Automoderated users, Autopatrolled users, Bureaucrats, Comment administrators, Confirmed users, Moderators, Rollbackers, Administrators
214,620
edits
Christianity: Difference between revisions
→Catholicism
Derivative (talk | contribs) m (Fixing links to disambiguation pages) |
|||
| (20 intermediate revisions by 4 users not shown) | |||
Line 1:
{{Useful Notes}}
[[File:Christianity symbols.svg|thumb|200px|The Latin Cross and the Fish]]
{{quote|''For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.''|'''[[Jesus Christ]]''', [[The Four Gospels|John]] 3:16, King James Version}}
'''Christianity''' is a monotheistic religion that originated in what is now Israel in the 1st century A.D. as an offshoot of [[Judaism]]. It is based on the teachings of [[Jesus|Jesus of Nazareth]], a Jewish rabbi whose followers identified Him as the ''Messiah'' promised in the Old Testament, and who was executed by Roman and Judean authorities for His heresy. Christianity teaches that a day will come when the world will end and all of mankind will be judged by God, and that only those who follow Jesus and accept His sacrifice on their behalf will be spared from eternal punishment. Christianity spread throughout the [[Roman Empire]], despite systematic persecution of Christians, and in the 4th century became the official religion of the Empire, and thereafter the dominant religion throughout Europe and the western world.
That doesn't even begin to describe it.
The world's biggest single religious group{{verify}} tends to be a bit misunderstood at times, even by its own adherents. Since only one-in-three people worldwide describe themselves as Christians, it follows that at least [[Two Out of Three Ain't Bad|two out of three people]] are a little vague on what it is all about.
{{TOCright}}
== Basics ==
A few basic points that the majority of Christians agree on; any disagreement will be mentioned '''in the entry for the appropriate sect!''':
* Christianity is a monotheistic religion from the perspective of modern adherents. The most prevalent view is that the one [[God]] subsists in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (sometimes collectively called the Trinity). Needless to say, a ''lot'' of philosophy and theology has been devoted to understanding this and it's still a [[Mind Screw]] for many; some sects do away with it entirely, [[Voodoo Shark|probably for that reason]].
* God is omniscient (i.e., knows everything that has ever transpired or will transpire, past, present, and future), omnipotent (i.e., capable of doing anything He desires to), and omnibenevolent (i.e., He loves everyone and everything). As above, a lot of philosophy has been dedicated to comprehending how these qualities interact with each other, and how they can coexist given the seemingly contradictory nature of the world man exists in; the general answer being that [[These Are Things Man Was Not Meant to Know|God is playing a long game the understanding of which is beyond man's comprehension.]]
* Christ is not Jesus' last name but His title designating His role as Messiah and Savior; it comes from the Greek ''Christos'' meaning "[[The Chosen One|anointed]]", in turn a translation of ''Māšîăḥ''. This is why phrases like "Passion of ''the'' Christ" make sense. Note that this also means that referring to Jesus as "Christ" or "Jesus Christ", rather than just "Jesus", constitutes an implied claim that Jesus was, in fact, the Messiah. To refer to the historical, secular view of Jesus, as opposed to the Christian view, the preferred proper name is "Jesus of Nazareth".
Line 89 ⟶ 91:
=== Catholicism ===
We're going to define the Catholicism type as Churches in communion with the Roman Catholic Church as well as those churches that broke off recently, as in the last couple centuries.{{when}}
==== Roman Catholic Church ====
The largest sect in raw numbers (about one in six human beings are Catholic) and one of the many types of Christianity hailing from about AD 300. The leader of the Catholic Church, the Pope, is the Bishop of Rome just as St. Peter was; in practice, the real authority of the Church is with its Bishops, each of whom is responsible for passing on the teachings of the church intact within their dioceses. It should be kept in mind that Catholicism is comprised of diverse segments of believers and that inevitably, there's bound to be some arguments amongst themselves, and let's leave it at that.
Catholicism is generally best known for its rituals and a rather authoritarian approach to religious and moral doctrine. It is believed that the church's teachings on these subjects are "infallible" - without error - because the Holy Spirit will not allow the Church to be in error; debate remains, however on how to interpret this infallibility. There are three sources of infallible teachings, two of which are not controversial. First, there is the "Magisterium" of the Church: the teachings of the church that are considered universal by the Pope and Bishops. Second are the teachings of Church Councils - meetings of all the bishops within the Church, called by the Pope to settle in a democratic fashion questions of an extraordinary nature. The Catholic Church recognizes 21 Councils as having occured in its history, the most recent of which was the Second Vatican Council held from 1962-1965 (which, among many other mostly procedural changes, allowed Mass to be said in languages other than Latin). The last source, and the most controversial, is the Pope himself; Catholics believe the Pope is infallible when he speaks on matters of faith or morals, leaving no wiggle room. This circumstance is known as ''ex cathedra'', which literally means "from the chair." When the Pope solemnly defines a doctrine or dogma, he is speaking ''ex cathedra''. In the grand scheme of the Church it is a very new idea, first officially pronounced in 1870, and which modern theologians recognize as having been exercised only seven times in the history of the church, most recently in 1950. Many people debate just how solemnly, and what language a pope has to speak to be doing so, however, if the term anathema (a bad thing, as in "let him be anathema") shows up, you're probably in ''ex cathedra'' territory. As a note, infallibility has nothing to do with impeccability, that is, sinlessness (Peter the Apostle, considered to be the first Pope by Catholics, denied Christ three times in The Bible).
Infallibility is viewed as a negative power, that means the pope is incapable of speaking falsely when speaking ''ex cathedra'' on faith and morals. This does not extend to private letters, most public discourses, theological musings and what not, though they are to be accorded respect. Note that due to the principle of ''doctrinal development'' in Catholicism (the belief that new dogmas are simply ''existing'' beliefs that have been better understood and now ''explicitly'' defined, as opposed to doctrinal ''innovation'' which means coming up with new doctrine or changing existing ones), this rule applies ''retroactively''. But in practice, infallible teachings from the Pope are very rare; the Church doesn't keep a list, [[wikipedia:Papal infallibility#Instances of papal infallibility|but by one theologian's count, there have only been seven in the entire 2000-year history of the Church, the most recent in 1950]].
Catholicism recognizes seven "sacraments," signs of God's grace: Baptism, Communion (a remembrance of the Last Supper, and where Catholics believe Jesus acting through the priest turns the bread and wine into Himself), Confirmation (when people choose to become full members of the Church as adults), Marriage, Holy Orders (where clergy take their vows), Reconciliation, and Anointing of the Sick (sometimes, and not quite correctly, called "[[Last Rites (trope)|Last Rites]]"; Last Rites often includes the sacraments Anointing of the Sick, Reconciliation, and
An important difference between Catholicism and some Protestant sects is that Catholics do not believe the Bible is entirely literal, only "divinely inspired." For example, Popes have endorsed the theory of evolution as both plausible and consistent with Catholic teaching, referring to the Creation story of Genesis as a metaphor or a poetic way of describing the creation of man by God. This reflects the greater emphasis that Catholicism puts on human reason and philosophy in terms of theological learning. Scholasticism, popularized by St. Thomas Aquinas, is a major influence on this way of thinking.
Another important Catholic tradition is the remembrance of Canonical Saints: people who have been found by the Church to have led holy lives, are considered examples for Catholics to follow, and are believed to have demonstrated they are in Heaven and have God's favor by granting what the church considers miracles (usually, healings without a certain medical explanation) to those who ask saints to "intercede" for them with God. There are at least 5,000 Canonical Saints (the most important being "The Virgin" Mary, who was Jesus' earthly mother), though some of them may be more legends than real people. Note that the word "saint" is often misinterpreted to mean an especially good person. In Catholic theology, anyone currently in heaven is a "saint" (hence the fact that the Church does not Canonize living people); thus, anyone who died in a state of grace is a saint, regardless of what sort life they led. When people talk about "saints", they usually mean ''Canonical Saints''. When the Catholic Church formally declares that someone is a saint, that person is said to be "canonized", and someone who has been canonized is a Canonical Saint. Whether someone has been canonized, however, is irrelevant to whether they are a saint. Despite common usage, the Pope does not "make" people saints; only God can do that. The Pope is merely reporting on current events.▼
▲Another important Catholic tradition is the remembrance of Canonical Saints: people who have been found by the Church to have led holy lives, are considered examples for Catholics to follow, and are believed to have demonstrated they are in Heaven and have God's favor by granting what the church considers miracles (usually, healings without a certain medical explanation) to those who ask saints to "intercede" for them with God. There are at least 5,000 Canonical Saints (the most important being "The Virgin" Mary, who was Jesus' earthly mother), though some of them may be more legends than real people. Note that the word "saint" is often misinterpreted to mean an especially good person. In Catholic theology, anyone currently in heaven is a "saint" (hence the fact that the Church does not Canonize living people); thus, anyone who died in a state of grace is a saint, regardless of what sort life they led. When people talk about "saints", they usually mean ''Canonical Saints''. When the Catholic Church formally declares that someone is a saint, that person is said to be "canonized", and someone who has been canonized is a Canonical Saint. Whether someone has been canonized, however, is irrelevant to whether they are a saint. Despite common usage, the Pope does not "make" people saints; only God can do that. The Pope is merely reporting on current events. (Notably, most Roman Catholic churches are named after canonical saints, and Spanish, Portuguese, and French explorers and settlers often used their names as placenames.)
==== Traditional Catholicism ====
Line 132 ⟶ 133:
=== [[Orthodox Christianity]] ===
Various Churches that broke with the Church in Rome a millennium ago or more (they say Rome broke with them, others see it as a clean break both ways). Many branches are in active discussion with the Catholic Church over reuniting, some almost a millennium:
* Eastern Orthodox—Established as a distinct entity in 1054 when the Pope and the Byzantine Patriarch mutually excommunicated each other (the question of who exactly broke off from whom is a millennium-old flame war, [[Serious Business|literally]]). Similar to Catholicism in theology and practice, the Eastern Orthodox Church is a collection of related churches, usually of an ethnic or cultural makeup. Whatever language this group traditionally used is the language of their religious ceremonies (as Latin was for the Roman Catholic Church until recently). The main triggers for the split were Papal supremacy and whether the phrase ''filioque'' (and the Son) should be inserted into the Nicene Creed, as Eastern Orthodoxy insists that it throws off the delicate balance of the Trinity's interrelationship, which they labored so hard to establish intellectually. A further divergence from Western Christianity arose during the Hesychast Controversy of the 14th century, which resulted in the official denial of absolute divine simplicity, a view held by Roman Catholics as well as most Protestants and which (ironically) is too complex to describe here. The most commonly known churches in this group are the Greek Orthodox Church and the Russian Orthodox church. Widely known for their practice of iconography, the making of small icons that depict saints, martyrs and other holy figures. Also on a different calendar than the Western churches, so that Easter (or Pascha, rather) and related holy days don't coincide with the ones being observed around them. (Convenient when Orthodox Christmas falls after Western Christmas - can you say clearance sale?) Like Catholics, Orthodox Christians recognize seven sacraments and venerate saints, many of whom they share in common with Catholics.▼
==== Eastern Orthodox====
* Oriental Orthodox—Not to be confused with Eastern Orthodox, this is a collection of national churches structured similar to the Eastern Orthodox Church who do not accept the Council of Chalcedon (451). The Coptic (i.e. Egyptian), Ethiopian, Syrian, Indian and Armenian Churches are examples. Catholics, Eastern Orthodox, and Protestants sometimes label them as Eutychians (who believe that the human nature of Christ was united with and overwhelmed by the divine nature), but they self-define themselves as miaphysites (who believe in one ('mia') united nature ('physis') in which the human attributes are not overwhelmed). They consider the dyophysitism of Chalcedonian Christians to be at best crypto-Nestorian. (If you didn't understand any of that, don't worry, you've got something in common with 99% of us Christians). Much in the way that the Eastern Orthodox recognize the Patriarch of Constantinople as first among equals, the Oriental Orthodox recognize the Patriarch of Alexandria (who confusingly lives in Cairo), the head of the Coptic Church, as the first-among-equals "head" of the communion; despite the style "Pope," he actually has no authority over the rest of the churches (merely influence). The most recent Coptic Pope, Shenouda III, died in 2012.▼
▲
==== Oriental Orthodox ====
** Assyrian Church of the East—On its own since 424, that while traditionally based in Mesopotamia it's expanded all over the world.▼
▲
** Ancient Church of the East—Split off from the above over reforms in 1964, based in Baghdad.▼
==== Churches of the East ====
** Chaldean Catholic Church—Technically a Rite in the Catholic Church that would fall under eastern Catholicism above this church left the Assyrian Church of the East in 1553 to join the Roman Church.▼
Technically Three Churches:
▲
▲
=== Protestant Christianity ===
Not one sect, but an umbrella term for hundreds of churches who broke with Catholicism, most of which claim descent from Martin Luther's stand in 1521, Protestantism eschews most Catholic sacraments and the veneration of saints, and encourages individual study of Scripture. Generally, Protestants do not practice the sacraments of confession, confirmation, or anointing of the sick. Baptism is performed by many Protestant groups, though when (birth vs. adult conversion) and how (sprinkling vs. full immersion) differs from church to church. Frequency of celebrating Communion varies greatly within Protestant denominations, anywhere from never to being practiced during every service. Typically, churches with more formal liturgy (orders of service) and more Catholic trappings will celebrate it more frequently, while those lacking such liturgy will usually celebrate it infrequently and usually on an informal basis. Belief in transsubstantiation is almost unknown, but liturgical churches typically believe in a doctrine of Real Presence that is extremely similar. Around half of Protestants, by population, are members of churches that confess a doctrine of Real Pressence. Due to Protestantism's distrust of having an official hierarchy to maintain orthodoxy and emphasis on biblical interpretation, the original sect from the Reformation splintered very quickly. Protestant churches now include Lutherans, Baptists, Pentecostals, Presbyterians, and Methodists, among many others. If a sect of Christianity doesn't fall into any other category, it usually gets filed under Protestantism.
* Anglican Christianity—An offshoot of Roman Catholicism originating in 1534 when Henry VIII claimed dominion over the English church with the Act of Supremacy. Largely identical to Catholicism in terms of ceremonial practice. The sacrament of Confession is not practiced, but Confirmation is. It should be noted that Anglicanism is considered a Protestant church in a historical context; as the acceptance of the Pope as temporal head of the church is ''required'' for conciliation with the Roman Catholic denomination, Anglicans by definition are not RC. Although, it did not split from Catholicism in the same way as the original Protestant Movement. Note also that Henry's schism with Rome allowed many sincere Protestants within England to preach. Further note that many "low" Anglican churches are firmly committed to independence from Rome.▼
▲
Some "highs" on the other hand are "More Roman than Rome" in terms of worship practice. Anglican Churches recognize two sacraments - Baptism and the Eucharist, as primary, since those were the only two that Jesus himself presided over. Anglicans, on the whole believe in the real presence of Christ in communion, though it is officially left a mystery just how that looks.
====Episcopalianism:====
* Evangelical Christianity -- Somewhat synonymous to "Fundamentalism", a movement within Christianity unique to America beginning in the 19th century as a response to Modernity, and continued to gain popularity into the 20th. While early leaders of this movement shunned mainline churches, their followers instead stayed within their congregations and spread their teachings through these communities, injecting a particular flavor of Premillenialist theology into already-existing American Protestanism. However around the turn of the century the movement did start splitting from these mainline churches to create their own congregations and are now mostly associated with giant cross-denominational mega-churches. Evangelicals emphasize the potential imminence of Judgment Day and the importance of converting non-believers. Notable evangelical preachers of the 20th century include Jimmy Swaggart, Oral Roberts, Billy Graham (and later his son Franklin), Jerry Falwell, and Pat Robertson. Most of these preachers are best known to the public through TV programs connected to their respective churches, and are thus sometimes called "televangelists". Evangelicals have a reputation for being highly, but not exclusively, conservative and in America are highly influential in politics, especially in the southern states.▼
* There are some cases of Episcopal communities which have chosen to become Roman Catholic ''en masse''.
* Pentecostal/Charismatic—Another branch of Protestantism unique to America, this refers to Christians that believe in the continuance to the present day of miraculous 'Gifts of the [Holy] Spirit' mentioned in Acts and the Pauline Epistles. The gifts tend to materialize in the form of "speaking in tongues" (must be seen to be believed), faith-healing, or having the entire congregation spontaneously fall over in religious ecstasy. Needless to say, services can be noisy and emotional affairs. However, beliefs differ depending on which church type you go to. More traditional Pentecostal churches have interesting/old fashioned rules such as female church members not being allowed to wear pants due to them supposedly being too revealing. Also, traditional members are not allowed to listen to non-Christian music, watch movies or TV, or read non-Christian novels. As one can imagine, younger members are likely to sneak in "taboo" entertainment behind their parents' backs. However, newer churches such as Assemblies of God churches allow most things traditional Southern Pentecostal churches do not, but still have most of the same views on morality. Pentecostal churches split from mainline Protestant churches around the same time the Evangelical/Fundamentalist movement did, but both for different reasons. Pentecostals wanted to rediscover the emotional catharsis that was present in American Christianity around the 18th century, and Evangelicals instead sought to attack new ideas of Modernity (Darwinism, changes in social behavior, and the introduction of liberal theology). A lot of people tend to get them confused, and there is some overlap between the two movements in the modern day, particularly with the more visible televangelists.▼
* Lutherans—A collection of predominantly Germanic denominations that broke communion with Rome under the leadership of Martin Luther. The most important issues were salvation by faith alone, the total bondage of the will to sin, and scripture as the only infallible authority. Believe in the objective presence of Christ in communion (but in a different way than Catholics. Catholics believe in "transubstantiation", or that the bread and wine become the ''actual'' body and blood of Christ. Lutherans believe in "consubstantiation", which teaches that Jesus is real and present in the meal, but doesn't necessarily specify in what way). Unusual among Protestants for their identification of being 'born again' with baptism. Their services are very similar to Catholic masses. Originally known as 'Evangelicals.' They only recognize the sacraments of Baptism and the Eucharist.▼
==== Evangelical Christianity ====
* Reformed/Presbyterians/Calvinists—A set of similar denominations arising from the Swiss Reformation led by Huldrych Zwingli, a contemporary of Luther. Most famously promoted by John Calvin in Switzerland and John Knox in Scotland. Known for believing in unconditional election, limited atonement and irresistible grace. Zwingli believed that communion is symbolic, but Calvinists (following their namesake) believe Jesus is "pneumatically" present. Unconditional election means that everybody going to Heaven has already been pre-ordained as such; no-one can "earn" the right regardless of their faith or good deed, in a way. Calvinist also believe in Total Depravity, which states that all men were born totally corrupted and wicked, (In Adam's Fall, we sin'd all), and so they cannot love God or do Good because they are so completely evil, therefore God grants a select few irresitable grace, which cannot be rejected, and is enough to make them goody-two-shoe Christian people. With that in mind, it is God alone who knows who the Elect. This emphasis on pre-ordination and the idea that God has planned (or simply knows) ''everything'' also leads into another Calvinist belief, namely that everyone has their own role or job to do on Earth, whether that be an occupation, a calling, service or whatever. This particular belief is what Max Weber termed the "Protestant Ethic", which emphasises hard work, obedience and productivity, and allegedly was the driving force behind Capitalism (this popular theory has been largely debunked, but its interesting for how many Calvinists sometimes see themselves, and why Protestantism is often linked to Capitalism). The impact of Calvinism on modern world history is, in a word, immense- the Huguenots, the opposition in the French Wars of Revolution, were Calvinists, while Presbyterianism in Scotland had a major impact on North America when Scots began emigrating across the Atlantic.▼
▲
* Arminians—An offshoot of Calvinism developed by Jacobus Arminius, Arminianism holds that election to salvation is conditional and that God's grace can be resisted. Many Anglicans, Methodists, Baptists, Evangelicals, and Pentecostals hold to Arminian soteriology. 'Arminian' is often misspelled 'Armenian,' which is a totally unrelated ethnic group that has a totally unrelated form of Christianity (see "Oriental Orthodox" above).▼
====Pentecostal/Charismatic====
* Baptists—Baptists are defined from other Christian sects by practicing baptism when one becomes a Christian, rather than baptizing infants, and is generally divided into two groups: Southern Baptists and general Baptists. The Southern Baptist denomination is centered in the American Deep South, where it is a deeply ingrained part of traditional Southern culture, and often characterized as an exceedingly conservative organization and an important part of the community, especially in rural areas. Other Baptist churches and subdenominations vary widely in actual doctrine, often adhering closely to one of the other denominations mentioned on this page. Historically, many Baptists adhered to slightly modified Calvinist theology.▼
▲
* Anabaptists—an extreme Reformation sect that practiced an extreme heresy in the eyes of the rest of the rest of Christianity: "believer's baptism," a re-baptism for people when they join the church, regardless of whether they were baptized as infants. In fact, Anabaptists didn't believe in baptizing infants at all. This ended up going badly for the Anabaptists it turns out that infant baptism is the kind of issue that makes strange bedfellows. In between killing each other, the Roman Catholics and the Lutherans teamed up to burn and drown the Anabaptists on this issue... Didn't really work, as the existence of modern day Amish and Mennonites can attest. A lot of Anabaptist descendants believe in nonviolence and separation from modern societies and countries. Anabaptists are not to be confused with Baptists, which are descended from more "mainline" Protestantism. Anabaptists are survived in the modern day by a number of different denominations including the Amish, Mennonites, and Hutterites. These groups tend to be almost exclusively based in rural communities, though there are plenty of exceptions. To qualify the rosy portrait given above, it must be noted that many Anabaptists were violent theocrats. Incidentally, the Mennonites (from whom the Amish split in the 17th century) were always pacifists and separatists, which was the reason they survived persecution, not a result of persecution.▼
====Lutherans====
** [[Amish]]—Probably the most well known of the Anabaptists, they are most well known for their disavowal of technology. They aren't hostile to technology per se, only its tendency to get in the way of leading a good Christian life. So they do allow [[Schizo-Tech]]—case in point: horse drawn buggies with blinkers. Also famous for their barn raisings, quilts, and oddly enough, wild teenagers. They are also [[Incredibly Lame Pun|sects maniacs]], schisms within schisms (based as often on what technology and/or dress is permitted as actual beliefs), to the point where many sects consist of a single congregation, and more than one of a single family. Outsiders tend to collectively refer to the horse-and-buggy, no-buttons sects as "Old Order".▼
▲
====Reformed/Presbyterians/Calvinists====
▲
==== Arminians ====
▲
====Baptists====
▲
==== Anabaptists====
▲
▲
On the wild teenager issue: it is referred to as ''Rumspringa'' or ''Rumschpringe'', a method to short-circuit the "teenage rebellion" phase by giving said teens free reign to rebel for a short time (as many tropes on this site will tell you, teenagehood and strict religious moralizing are not the best combination for producing a mentally healthy adult). At age 16, teens are allowed to leave the Amish community and experience life outside, and unsurprisingly, the experience usually consists of a combination of sex, drugs, and rock and roll (at least, that is the Hollywood version of event, in most communities, Rumspringa tends to be quite tame, it simply involves the parents giving the teen more space to act out, be slightly more tolerant of "the lip", letting them wear "English" clothes, drive, drink alcohol. and such. The outrageous things are usually done more out of symbolic "been there, done that" idea then in actual defiance). The period ends when the teen is ready to return to receive baptism to join the church as an adult, or with him deciding to leave the church. Moral indiscretions in this period are usually quietly forgiven and forgotten. All things considered, leaving the church (which is not the same thing as getting the shunning treatment) is a very rare event. This practice also means that for a subculture that shun technology, every Amish knows how to drive.
* Quaker—The correct name is Religious Society of Friends. At the very core they believe that God (or Jesus, or the Light, depending on where you are and who you ask) is in everyone. From this comes a number of other, better known values, such as nonviolence (would you kill God?), simplicity (so you can better hear the light), equality (well if God's in everyone...), and integrity (would you lie to God?). Very non hierarchical; they do not believe in ministers and "meeting for worship" consists of any one who wants to coming up and talking about whatever they want, amid vast amounts of silence (yes it's ''supposed'' to be "awkward"). Quakers show up in some of the most unexpected places; for instance, would you believe that [[Richard Nixon]] was a Quaker? (He wasn't particularly religious, though).▼
====Quaker====
* Shakers—got their name from the fact that they'd "shake the sin out of their fingers." Founded by Ann Lee, it dwindled to a current population of 4 (yes, four) due to the fact they don't believe in sex, helped along by a 1960 law that banned religious groups from adopting children. Renowned for their furniture. As of December 2009, it's down to three.▼
▲
* Seventh-day Adventists—The basics are in the name: they worship on the Jewish Sabbath (sundown Friday to sundown Saturday) instead of on Sunday, and they believe the Second Coming is imminent. They believe that they should honor the Sabbath each week, but, like most Christian sects, do not follow the scriptural teachings of the Sabbath Year (every 7th year) or the Jubilee Year (every 25th or 50th year). Also known for vegetarianism, a strong focus on healthy living (many adherents belonging to the medical field), and a belief in soul sleep. Adventist teaching is largely based on the work of a nineteenth-century writer Ellen G. White; Adventists refer to Mrs. White as the "Voice of Prophecy" and consider her writings second in authority only to the Bible. The SDA grew out of the Millerite movement which believe that the world would end on 22 October 1844. This day is now referred to as "The Great Disappointment" in a massive understatement. Many modern Adventists view "The Great Disappointment" as a result of misinterpretation of the of the date, stating that it was incorrectly meant to be the end of the world, when it was merely the start of "The Remnant Church" in preparation for the End Times.▼
==== Shakers ====
** On the healthy-living front: The Seventh-Day Adventists ran numerous sanitariums in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, particularly in the Midwest (and most particularly in Michigan). While some SDA ideas did end up in modern nutrition, a lot of them (like eating bland food to suppress impure urges) didn't. They are, however, responsible for the corn flakes you ate for breakfast this morning, as well as a few other forms of breakfast cereal.▼
▲
* Stone-Campbell Restoration Movement—generally called some variant of Disciples of Christ, Church of Christ, or a generic Christian Church. Founded when Barton Stone and Thomas Campbell independently came up with the idea that all these creeds and churches named after a founder is wrong. Individual churches are autonomous and believe on full immersion baptism. Southern Churches of Christ tend to be strictly non-instrumental vs the northern Christian Churches use instruments. Disciples of Christ formally split from the others when they formed an ecumenical council.▼
==== Seventh-day Adventists ====
** In many cases, the independent "Christian Churches" that schismed off in the 20th Century are basically Baptists in practice, descended from Presbyterians (the Campbells were Scots-Irish), and refuse to use any sectarian name more specific than "Christian." (The term "Campbellite Baptist" was applied by outsiders, and is not used by the sect.) Quite a small sect, and of course they insist they're not a sect, they're just Christians. Very confusing, and then they start calling themselves Christian in contrast to other Christian sects, thus taking the name of a major world religion for their tiny schism of same.▼
▲
* Christian Scientists—more properly "The Church of Christ, Scientist." Founded by a Boston woman, Mary Baker Eddy, whose sickness was not healed by "animal magnetism" (which worked by inadvertently hypnotizing the patient) but did get better after praying. Their main difference from other types of Christianity is denying the existence of the physical world (which peculiarly sounds rather like [[Buddhism]]). This leads to the conclusion that there is no need to rely on drugs and medical treatment, since these imply a reality to the physical. In practice, failing to be good enough at seeing that there is no physical world is not a sin, so members are allowed to seek medical help as a second resort. They also deny the existence of evil, Satan and any need to evangelize or proselytize. They are very much in favor of reading though. Not to be confused with the Church of Scientology. The sect established ''[[wikipedia:The Christian Science Monitor|The Christian Science Monitor]]'' as a response to criticism and ridicule of Eddy early on; it eventually became a top outlet for high-quality journalism in the United States.▼
▲
* Moravians—One of the oldest Protestant sects, and one of the very few surviving that can lay claim to independence before Martin Luther's proclamation. The Moravians have their origins in 1400's Bohemia and Moravia, following the execution of Jan Hus, a priest who openly criticized the Catholic Church, particularly their practices of indulgences and not allowing texts to be published and said in the language of the people. He was burned at the stake in 1415; his followers organized and rebelled. Although they were successful, they were eventually overrun and scattered by the Catholic Habsburgs in 1621. A group of refugees managed to escape to Germany, where an open-minded nobleman, [[Awesome McCoolname|Count Nikolaus Ludwig von Zinzendorf]], allowed them to settle on his estate at Herrnhut. Fascinated by their story and teachings, he eventually became a Moravian bishop, sent forth the first Protestant missionaries, and founded the [[Eagle Land|American]] Moravian settlements of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania and Salem,<ref>now Winston-Salem</ref> North Carolina. Much like their early counterparts, modern Moravians strongly believe in a focus on the essential basics of Christianity, the freedom to choose styles of worship, tolerance towards others who believe differently, and a call of stewardship to dedicate time and talents to those who need them. The most famous Moravian practice is the ''Lovefeast'', a simple meal, usually bread and a beverage, eaten as a congregation to show of fellowship and celebration.<ref>This does ''not'' replace communion, which Moravians also observe.</ref> There are also 26-pointed stars called Moravian stars that are often used as Christmas decorations; they did not get their start as religious symbol, but are called so because they were used as a geometry lesson at the Moravian Boys' School in Niesky, Germany.▼
==== Stone-Campbell Restoration Movement ====
** The Moravians were a strong influence on John Wesley; he actually studied with Zinzendorf in Herrnhut for a brief time, though he ultimately disagreed with them on a few key theological points. These difference were enough for him to create what would become Methodism.▼
▲
▲
====Christian Scientists ====
▲
==== Moravians ====
▲
▲
=== Other ===
Line 197 ⟶ 222:
* [[Creepy Cool Crosses]]: Obviously.
* [[Deep South]]: The region is also known in North America as the Bible Belt.
* [[Devil's Advocate]]: The Devil's Advocate (''advocatus diaboli'') is the popular name for the Promoter of the Faith (''promotor fidei''), a person appointed by the Catholic Church who argues against the formal recognition of someone as a Saint by, again, the Catholic Church. The job has been taken up on at least one occasion (Mother
* [[Evil Counterpart]]: [[wikipedia:Unholy Trinity (Christianity)|According to]] [[The Other Wiki]], at least, some Christians believe in an evil counterpart to the Holy Trinity called the Unholy Trinity, consisting of Satan (evil counterpart to God), The Anti-Christ (evil counterpart to Jesus) and the False Prophet (evil counterpart to The Holy Spirit)
* [[Fanon]]: Much of Christianity's pop culture presentation comes from the work of artists and writers of non-[[Canon]] literature, perhaps most famously John Milton and [[Word of Dante|Dante Alighieri]]. This may explain some of the non-source weirdness in Christian belief.
Line 216 ⟶ 241:
* [[The Knights Templar]]
* [[Knight Templar]]
* [[Last Rites (trope)|Last Rites]]
* [[The Legions of Hell]]
* [[The Messiah]]: Three guesses who.
* [[The Missionary]]
* [[Nice Job Breaking It, Herod]]
* [[Nuns Are Funny]]
* [[Nuns Are Mikos]]
* [[Nuns Are Spooky]]
* [[Nuns-N-Rosaries]]: Specifically Catholic.
* [[The Order]]
* [[Pals with Jesus]]: Quite literally, at least to some traditions.
* [[Satan]]: Though the character goes back to Judaism or before, the mythology now associated with him is largely a Christian invention. His characterization has evolved continuously with the religion, growing from a rather buffoonish trickster/tempter figure in medieval folktales to an almost Manichean embodiment of evil in contemporary media. Has sometimes been thought to represent Man's capacity to do evil, and has thus grown as our ability to do harm to one another has grown.
Line 233 ⟶ 261:
{{reflist}}
{{Abrahamic Traditions}}
▲[[Category:Christianity]]
[[Category:
[[Category:Pages with working Wikipedia tabs]]
| |||