chrisitianity beliefs

• Christianity


  The religion based on the person and teachings of Jesus Christ
• Jesus


  The son of God, a person who was both God and man, the Messiah sent by God to save the human race from Sin.
• Bible


  Christian Holy Book, made up of two sections – ‘Old’ and ‘New’ Testaments
• New Testament


  A collection of 27 books recording the life and times of Jesus, his disciples and the Early Church
• Old Testament


  A collection of 39 books, recording the history of the nation of Israel, the law given to Moses and prophecies for the future
• Gospel


  Literally meaning ‘Good News’. The 1st four books of the New Testament relating to the life and teachings of Jesus. (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John)
• Nicene Creed


  Dated 325 C.E. a statement of Christian Faith
• Apostles' Creed


  Origins in the 4th century, another statement of faith.
• Denomination


  A recognised distinct branch or group within Christianity with its own traditions and organisation
• Roman Catholic Church


  Largest Christian denomination. Headed by the pope in Rome and claims to have began with Jesus and St Paul the 1st Bishop of Rome.
• Orthodox Christianity


  A large Christian denomination which claims its origins to Jesus. It formally split from the Catholic Church in 1054 AD in the ‘Great Schism’
• Anglican Church or Church of England


  He largest of the ‘protestant’ Churches and also a ‘World Church’. Headed by the Queen of England and founded by Henry VIII in the 1530s.
• Protestant Churches


  An umbrella term that covers a number of small denominations who reject the authority of the hierarchy of the Catholic and / or Orthodox Church
• Society of Friends (Quakers)


  A liberal protestant movement founded in 1650. They reject formal worship and liturgy.
• Baptist Church


  A large protestant denomination founded in 1612. They believe that only professing believers should be baptised (adult baptism)
• Monotheism


  The belief in one God
• Personal


  The belief that God cares for each individual and interacts with them individually
• Forgiving


  The belief that God can and does forgive or pardon sins or wrong deeds
• Immanence


  The belief that God in ‘inside’ creation, meaning He works in the world
• Transcendence


  The belief that God is ‘outside’ creation, meaning God is not restricted by the laws of the universe
• Omnipotence


  The belief that God is all-powerful
• Omniscient


  The belief that God is all-knowing (past, present and future knowledge)
• Benevolent


  The belief that God is all-good and the source of goodness in the world
• Judge


  The belief that God will judge each person’s soul at the end of time to determine their afterlife.
• Eternal


  The belief that God has always existed, will always exist and is beyond the restrictions of time and space
• Trinity


  The belief that there is only one God, but three persons in one, God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit
• God the Father


  The belief that God is the Creator of the Universe, Father of Jesus, loving parent to His creation
• God the Son


  The belief in Jesus as God incarnate, or God in human form
• God the Holy Spirit


  The belief that God is with his creation today, the power that acts inside creation and aids believers
• Creation


  The belief that God made the universe from nothing (ex nihilo)
• The Word


  The belief that God the Son was the agent of Creation in the gospel of John (John 1 :1-14)
• Dominion


  The belief that God gave Adam and Eve control or authority over creation
• Stewardship


  The belief that God has given humankind the responsibility of looking after His creation, to care for it
• The Fall


  The belief that God made the world perfect, but human free will and disobedience (story of Adam and Eve) resulted in a state of sin
• Original Sin


  The belief that due to Adam and Eve’s disobedience, all humankind is tainted and in a state of sin.
• Literal interpretation of the Bible


  The belief that the Bible is literally ‘true’ word for word. This is the stance taken by many Evangelical and fundamentalist Christians e.g. Creation over 7 days
• Liberal interpretation of the Bible


  The belief that the Bible is a product of it’s time, inspired by a sense of God, but not ‘literal truth’. This stance is taken by many e.g. Quakers
• ‘God Inspired’ interpretation of the Bible


  The belief that the Bible is ‘true’, but not word for word. The Bible was inspired by God, not dictated by God. Most Christians hold this view e.g. Catholics and Anglicans
• Moral Evil


  The suffering caused by human action or inaction, due to human sin and free will
• Natural Evil


  The suffering caused by nature as a result of the corruption of the perfection of creation due to the ‘Fall’ of humankind