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Christians follow the teachings of and about Yeshua of Nazareth,
commonly referred to as Jesus Christ. (Jesus is the Greek
form of Yeshua; Christ is Greek for "the Messiah"
or the "anointed one.") Yeshua was a Jewish itinerant
preacher who was born circa 4 to 7 BCE. He was executed
by the Roman occupying authorities in Palestine, perhaps
on Friday, 30-APR-7 CE (i.e. in the spring of the year 30).
Most Christians regard him as the son of God. They further
believe that he is God, the second person in the Trinity.
(The Trinity consists of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit;
three separate persons, all eternal, all omnipresent, who
form a single, unified deity.) Most Christians believe that
Jesus co-existed with God before the creation of the world,
was born of a virgin, was resurrected three days after his
death, and later ascended to Heaven.
The followers of Yeshua formed the Jewish Christian movement,
centered in Jerusalem, after his death. They regarded themselves
as a reform movement within Judaism; they continued to sacrifice
at the temple, circumcise their male children, follow Jewish
kosher food laws, etc. Saul of Tarsus, originally a persecutor
of the Jewish Christians, reported having a vision of the
risen Christ. Adopting the new name of Paul, he became the
greatest theologian of the early Christian movement. His
writings, along with those of the author(s) of the Gospel
of John, provided much of the theological foundation for
Christianity as we know it. Paul's ministry was directed
to Gentiles -- non-Jews in the Mediterranean basin. After
the destruction of Jerusalem by the Roman Army in 70 CE,
the Jewish Christian movement was largely dissipated, leaving
Pauline Christianity among the Gentiles as the dominant
group.
The Roman Empire recognized Pauline Christianity as a valid
religion in 313 CE. Later in that century, it became the
official religion of the Empire. Church authority became
concentrated among the five bishops or patriarchs located
in Alexandria, Antioch, Constantinople, Jerusalem and Rome.
With the expansion of Islam throughout the Middle East during
the seventh century CE, power became concentrated in Constantinople
and Rome. These two Christian centers gradually grew apart
in belief, and practice. In 1054 CE, a split was formalized
between the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches;
it remains in effect today.
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The Protestant Reformation in the 16th century led to a
split within the western church. The Protestant movement
further fragmented into what is now thousands of individual
denominations and groups of denominations.
Christian beliefs about one's destination after death vary
greatly:
Many conservative Protestant Christians believe that people
are born and remain sinful; they will end up being eternally
punished in Hell unless they are "saved" by trusting
Jesus as Lord and Savior.
Roman Catholics also believe that salvation comes from God.
But they believe that it is channeled through church sacraments
to sinful but repentant persons. Most people, at death,
go to Purgatory, which is a type of temporary Hell; a few
go directly to Heaven; others go permanently to Hell.
Religious liberals generally interpret hell symbolically,
not as an actual place. They reject the concept of a loving
God creating a place of eternal torment.
About 33% of the world's population regard themselves as
Christian. This percentage has been stable for decades.
(The second most popular religion is Islam at about 20%.
It is growing. If its present growth rate continues, it
will to become the dominant religion of the world during
in a few decades.) About 75% of American adults and a similar
number of Canadians identify themselves as Christian. This
number has recently been dropping about one percentage point
per year. This is mainly due to:
The sudden increase in non-theists, such as Agnostics,
Atheists, Humanists, etc. They are growing about one percentage
point per year.
An increase in the numbers of followers of minority religions,
largely caused by immigration from regions of the world
which are predominantly Buddhist, Hindu, and Muslim.
The emergence of new spiritual/religious movements like
New Age, Wicca and other Neopagan religions. Wicca, for
example, is doubling in size about every 30 months.
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