Eastern Orthodox Church The Eastern Orthodox Church, also called the Orthodox Church, is the second-largest Christian church, with approximately 260 million baptized members. It operates as a communion of autocephalous churches, each governed by its bishops via local synods. The church has no central doctrinal or governmental authority analogous to the head of the Roman Catholic Church—the Pope—but...
Nicene Christianity Nicene Christianity is a set of Christian doctrinal traditions which reflect the Nicene Creed, which was formulated at the First Council of Nicaea in AD 325 and amended at the First Council of Constantinople in AD 381. History Main articles: First Council of Nicaea, Church Fathers, Nicene Creed,...
Visions Of Jesus And Mary Since the Crucifixion of Jesus Christ on Calvary, a number of people have claimed to have had visions of Jesus Christ and Mary personal conversations with him. Some people make similar claims regarding his mother, the Blessed Virgin Mary. Discussions about the authenticity of these visions have...
Creation Myth A creation myth (or cosmogonic myth) is a symbolic narrative of how the world began and how people first came to inhabit it. While in popular usage the term myth often refers to false or fanciful stories, members of cultures often ascribe varying degrees of truth to their creation myths. In the society in...
Paul The Apostle And Jewish Christianity This article covers the relationship between Paul the Apostle and Jewish Christianity. Paul the Apostle has been placed within Second Temple Judaism by recent scholarship since the 1970s. A main point of departure with older scholarship is the understanding of Second Temple Judaism, the...
Church Fathers The Church Fathers, Early Church Fathers, Christian Fathers, or Fathers of the Church were ancient and influential Christian theologians and writers who established the intellectual and doctrinal foundations of Christianity. There is no definitive list. The historical period during which they flourished is referred to by scholars as the Patristic Era ending approximately around AD 700 (John...
Trinitarianism In The Church Fathers This article covers Trinitarianism in the Church Fathers. According to churches that consider the decisions of ecumenical councils final, Trinitarianism was definitively declared to be Christian doctrine at the 4th-century ecumenical councils, that of the First Council of Nicaea (325), which declared the full divinity of the Son, and the First Council of...
Christophany A Christophany is an appearance or non-physical manifestation of Christ. Traditionally the term refers to visions of Christ after his ascension, such as the bright light of the Damascus Christophany. Also, following the example of Justin Martyr who identified the Angel of the Lord with the Logos, some appearances of angels in the Hebrew...
Pre-existence Of Christ The pre-existence of Christ asserts the existence of Christ before his incarnation as Jesus. One of the relevant Bible passages is John 1:1–18 where, in the Trinitarian interpretation, Christ is identified with a pre-existent divine hypostasis (substantive reality) called the Logos or Word. There are nontrinitarian views that question the aspect of personal pre-existence or the...
Rejection Of Jesus This article relates to a number of episodes in the New Testament in which Jesus was rejected in accordance with the Jewish tradition which was followed during his lifetime. There are 11 Bible verses regarding the rejection of Jesus. New Testament Hometown rejection See also: Mark 6, Pauline Christianity and Paul the Apostle...
Messiah In Judaism The Messiah in Judaism (מָשִׁיחַ, māšîaḥ; χριστός, khristós, ‘anointed, covered in oil’) is a savior and liberator figure in Jewish eschatology, who is believed to be the future redeemer of the Jewish people. The concept of messianism originated in Judaism, and in the Hebrew Bible a messiah is...
Jewish Christian Early Christianity had its roots in Hellenistic Judaism and the Jewish messianism of the first century and Jewish Christians were the first Christians. Christianity started with Jewish eschatological expectations, and it developed into the veneration of a deified Jesus after his earthly ministry, his crucifixion, and the post–crucifixion experiences of his followers. The inclusion of gentiles led to a growing split...
Old Testament Messianic Prophecies Quoted In The New Testament In this article, you will find the Old Testament Messianic Prophecies Quoted In The New Testament. The New Testament frequently cites Jewish scripture to support the claim of the Early Christians that Jesus was the promised Jewish Messiah, but only a handful of these citations are actual predictions...
Jewish English Bible Translations Jewish English Bible translations are English translations of the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh) according to the Masoretic Text, in the traditional division and order of Torah, Nevi’im, and Ketuvim. Most Jewish translations appear in bilingual editions (Hebrew–English). Jewish translations often reflect traditional Jewish exegesis of the Bible; all such translations...
Man And Religion-2 This article covers the relationship between man and religion. At birth man has no conscious knowledge about himself or about the environment around him; nevertheless, he is not an alien but fitted for the world into which he is born. To begin with, his body is made...
History Of Christianity The history of Christianity concerns the Christian religion, Christendom, and the Church with its various denominations, from the 1st century to the present. Christianity originated with the ministry of Jesus, a Jewish teacher and healer who proclaimed the imminent Kingdom of God and was crucified c. AD 30–33 in Jerusalem in the Roman province of Judea. His followers believe that, according to the Gospels, he...
Messianic Judaism Messianic Judaism is a modern syncretic religious movement that combines Christianity—most importantly, the belief that Jesus is the Jewish messiah—with elements of Judaism and Jewish tradition. It emerged in the 1960s and 1970s. Messianic Jews believe that Jesus is the Jewish Messiah and “God the Son” (one person of the...
Christian Pacifism Christian pacifism is the theological and ethical position that any form of violence is incompatible with the Christian faith. Christian pacifists state that Jesus himself was a pacifist who taught and practiced pacifism and that his followers must do likewise. Notable Christian pacifists include Martin Luther King, Jr., Leo Tolstoy, and Ammon Hennacy. Hennacy believed that adherence to...
Christian Denomination A Christian denomination is a distinct religious body within Christianity, identified by traits such as a name, organization, leadership and doctrine. The Roman Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox Church, and Oriental Orthodox Churches, meaning the large majority, all self-describe as churches, whereas many Protestant denominations self-describe as congregations or fellowships....
Covenant Theology Covenant theology (also known as covenantalism, federal theology, or federalism) is a conceptual overview and interpretive framework for understanding the overall structure of the Bible. It uses the theological concept of a covenant as an organizing principle for Christian theology. The standard form of covenant theology views the history of God’s...