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Christianity
Members of the religion are called Christians. Christians generally believe Jesus to be God the Son, the second person of the Trinity. It is a monotheistic religion, meaning it has only one God. It is the largest religion in the world and is based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth.
History of Christianity. Christianity began in the 1st century AD after Jesus died as a Jewish sect in Judea but quickly spread throughout the Roman empire. Most of the first Christians were ethnically Jewish or Jewish proselytes. An early difficulty came from non-Jewish converts.
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Beliefs:
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Belief in God the Father, Jesus Christ as the Son of God, and the Holy Spirit. Holy Trinity in Pic.
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The death, descent into hell, resurrection and ascension of Christ.
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The holiness of the Church and the communion of saints.
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Christ's second coming, the Day of Judgement and salvation of the faithful.
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Holy Scriptures:
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The New Testament has 27 books, written between about 50 and 100 AD, and falling naturally into two sections: the Gospels, which tell the story of Jesus (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John); and the Letters (or epistles) - written by various Christian leaders to provide guidance for the earliest church communities.
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Seven deadly sins/ Capital vices/ Cardinal Sins
pride, greed, lust, envy, gluttony, wrath and sloth
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Seven heavenly virtues
Four classical cardinal virtues of prudence, justice, temperance, and courage (or fortitude)
with the three theological virtues of faith, hope, and charity.
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Prudence from prudentia (meaning "seeing ahead, sagacity") is the ability to govern and discipline oneself by the use of reason.It is called the Auriga virtutum (the charioteer of the virtues) as it guides the other virtues.
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Justice is the virtue which regulates man in his dealings with others. Connected to justice are the virtues of religion, piety, and gratitude.
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Fortitude which Thomas Aquinas ranks third after prudence and justice and equates with brave endurance. Patience and perseverance are virtues related to fortitude.
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Temperance is the virtue which moderates in accordance with reason the desires and pleasures of the sensuous appetite. Related to temperance are the virtues of conscience, humility, and meekness.
The traditional understanding of the differences in the natures of Cardinal and Theological virtues, is that the latter are not fully accessible to humans in their natural state without assistance from God.
Faith. Hope. Charity.
"All virtues have as their final scope to dispose man to acts conducive to his true happiness. The happiness, however, of which man is capable is twofold, namely, natural, which is attainable by man's natural powers, and supernatural, which exceeds the capacity of unaided human nature. Since, therefore, merely natural principles of human action are inadequate to a supernatural end, it is necessary that man be endowed with supernatural powers to enable him to attain his final destiny. Now these supernatural principles are nothing else than the theological virtues."
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Catholics and Protestants
Two main divisions. Differences.
1. Understanding of the Bible
Catholicism and Protestantism have distinct views on the meaning and the authority of the Bible. For Protestant Christians, Luther made clear that the Bible is the "Sola Skriptura," God's only book, in which He provided His revelations to the people and which allows them to enter in communion with Him.
Catholics, on the other hand, do not base their beliefs on the Bible alone. Along with the Holy Scripture, they are additionally bound by the traditions of the Roman Catholic Church.
2. Understanding the church
Catholics and Protestants have a different view on the nature of the church. The word "catholic" means "all-embracing," and the Catholic Church sees itself as the only true church worldwide, under the leadership of the pope.
In contrast, the Protestant Churches which have emerged from Reformation, also called "Evangelical," which means "according to the Gospel," do not make up one united Church. There are rather several tens of thousands of different denominations around the world. Officially, all of these many churches are considered equal.
3. The pope
Protestants are not open at all to papal primacy. According to the Evangelical view, this dogma contradicts statements in the Bible.
Catholics see in the pope the successor of the Apostle Peter, the first head of their Church, who was appointed by Jesus. The papal office is justified by an allegedly unbroken chain of consecrations, ranging from the first century to the present.
4. Understanding of the office
This continuous chain, known as the apostolic succession, is overall significant for different spiritual offices in the Catholic Church. With the Sacrament of Holy Orders, bishops, priests and deacons receive a lifelong seal of God giving them sacramental authority over Catholic laypeople. This consecration can only be given to men.
Protestants do not consecrate specific persons into office, but rather accept the principle that priesthood can be transferred to every believer — even to women.
5. Eucharist or Lord's Supper
The Catholics' views on the spiritual office are reflected in the Eucharist, or Holy Communion, a rite commemorating the Last Supper of Jesus with his disciples before his crucifixion. Once consecrated by a priest in the name of Jesus, bread and wine become the body and blood of Christ. Non-Catholics may not participate in Communion.
In the Protest Church, every baptized person is invited to share and is allowed to lead the Lord's Supper. This approach is not accepted by Catholics.
Additionally, Eucharist has a different meaning for Catholics and Protestants. The bread, known as the Host, embodies Jesus and can therefore be prayed to. For Protestants, the ritual only serves to commemorate Jesus' death and resurrection.
6. Sacraments
In the Roman Catholic Church, there are seven solemn rites, called sacraments: baptism, confirmation, the Eucharist, matrimony, penance, holy orders and extreme unction. The church believes these sacraments were instituted by Jesus and that they confer God's grace.
Most Protestant churches only practice two of these sacraments: baptism and the Eucharist (called Lord's Supper). They are perceived as symbolic rituals through which God delivers the Gospel. They are accepted through faith.
7. Marian dogmas and the worship of Saints
The Roman Catholic Church reveres Mary, the mother of Jesus, as "Queen of Heaven." However, there are few biblical references to support the Catholic Marian dogmas — which include the Immaculate Conception, her perpetual virginity and her Assumption into heaven. This is why they are rejected by Protestants.
8. Celibacy
All main world religions integrate in some way the concept of celibacy, the vow of abstaining from marriage and sexual relations, and the Catholic and Protestant churches are no exception. In the Catholic Church, celibacy is obligatory for priests. It is seen as a symbol of the undivided succession of Christ.
The Protestant Church rejects this obligation for priests. Martin Luther already demanded its abolition as early as 1520. He made a decisive personal contribution to this end in 1525: The former monk married the former nun Katharina von Bora. Initially unsure of whether he should marry, Luther finally determined that "his marriage would please his father, rile the pope, cause the angels to laugh, and the devils to weep."
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