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112-583: Christianity • Protestantism The Wesleyan Reform Union is an independent Methodist Connexion founded in 1859 and based in the United Kingdom . The Union comprises around one hundred individual self-governing churches in England and Scotland. Beliefs are set out in a nine-point Confession of Faith. The Wesleyan Reform Union was founded in 1859 by members of the Wesleyan Reform movement . The leaders of

224-613: A Jewish Christian sect with Hellenistic influence of Second Temple Judaism . An early Jewish Christian community was founded in Jerusalem under the leadership of the Pillars of the Church , namely James the Just , the brother of Jesus, Peter , and John. Jewish Christianity soon attracted Gentile God-fearers, posing a problem for its Jewish religious outlook , which insisted on close observance of

336-457: A President and a Vice President , or it may elect a Leadership Group. These positions are generally voted on annually. In the case of a Leadership Group, a Minister may also be elected. The Union maintains a list of approved ministers although churches are at liberty to appoint others not on the list. Some churches have had women pastors for a number of years and in 2016 the Union ordained and received

448-438: A faith that is without works, a fruitless faith (cf. Matthew 7:17 ), cannot be a justifying faith, because faith is made perfect or completed by works ( James 2 , especially James 2:22 ; see also Romans 4:11 ). Indeed, works are required for justification because "man is justified by works, and not by faith alone" ( James 2:24 ), though the sense of the word justified in this passage is disputed. The writer of James emphasizes

560-596: A female minister onto its approved list for the first time. The position of Trustees may be implemented as well. Wesleyan Reform Union churches are self-governing , this being the principal point of difference with the Methodist Church. Local leadership has final authority in local matters. Many churches are organized into Circuits which have four Quarterly Meetings each year. The WRU's headquarters are in Jump , Barnsley , and it has around 100 congregations across Yorkshire,

672-539: A few scriptures overlapping with the developing orthodox canon, most Gnostic texts and Gnostic gospels were eventually considered heretical and suppressed by mainstream Christians. A gradual splitting off of Gentile Christianity left Jewish Christians continuing to follow the Law of Moses , including practices such as circumcision. By the fifth century, they and the Jewish–Christian gospels would be largely suppressed by

784-446: A person might live from that point on. Neither is it merely a legal declaration that an unrighteous person is righteous. Rather, justification is a living, dynamic, day-to-day reality for the one who follows Christ. The Christian actively pursues a righteous life in the grace and power of God granted to all who continue to believe in Him. "The Holy Spirit effects the vocation, the illumination,

896-523: A preservation of grace and a growth in grace and faith is also held by Lutherans. They do emphasize that righteousness as acceptance by God and sharing in the righteousness of Christ is always complete. At the same time, they state that there can be growth in its effects in Christian living. When they view the good works of Christians as the fruits and signs of justification and not as one's own 'merits', they nevertheless also understand eternal life in accord with

1008-510: A small scale by both Jewish and Roman authorities , with Roman action starting at the time of the Great Fire of Rome in 64 AD. Examples of early executions under Jewish authority reported in the New Testament include the deaths of Saint Stephen and James, son of Zebedee . The Decian persecution was the first empire-wide conflict, when the edict of Decius in 250 AD required everyone in

1120-475: Is a free gift received through baptism initially, through the faith which works by love in the continuous life and growth of the Christian and through the sacrament of reconciliation if the grace of justification is lost through mortal sin . For the Catholic and Orthodox Christian, justification and sanctification are different ways of speaking of the same reality , rather than positing an actual distinction between

1232-515: Is also used by Presbyterians , Methodists , and Congregationalists . This particular creed was developed between the 2nd and 9th centuries. Its central doctrines are those of the Trinity and God the Creator . Each of the doctrines found in this creed can be traced to statements current in the apostolic period . The creed was apparently used as a summary of Christian doctrine for baptismal candidates in

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1344-593: Is applied through faith alone and that rather than being made personally righteous and obedient, which Protestants generally delegate to sanctification as a distinct reality, justification is a forensic declaration of the believer to possess the righteousness and obedience of Christ . Catholics and Orthodox Christians believe that the obedience that flows from faith is the cause of increase in justification; holding justification to be an ontological process of being truly made righteous by union and cooperation with Christ and also believe they are justified by God's grace which

1456-485: Is by faith alone – not through good deeds – and is a gift from God through Christ. According to Catholics and Eastern Orthodox we are justified by God's grace which is a free gift but is received through baptism initially, through the faith that works for love in the continuous life of a Christian and through the sacrament of reconciliation if the grace of justification is lost through grave sin . James discusses justification briefly but significantly, declaring that

1568-488: Is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. But someone will say, "You have faith; I have deeds." Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do. D. James Kennedy explains this verse: James is dealing with people who profess to be Christians, and yet they don't evidence the reality of their faith by their works [deeds]. Over, and over again... people will say they have faith and they don't have works, and James

1680-470: Is no need in Eastern theology for any forensic justification. The Orthodox see salvation as a process of theosis , in which the individual is united to Christ and the life of Christ is reproduced within him. Thus, in one sense, justification is an aspect of theosis. However, it is also the case that those who are baptized into the church and experience Chrismation are considered to be cleansed of sin. Hence,

1792-409: Is often viewed by Eastern theologians as too highly forensic and they reject it. The Greek term for justification ( δικαίωσις , dikaiōsis ) is not understood by most Eastern theologians to mean simply being pardoned of one's sins. In large part, this de-emphasis on justification is historical. The Eastern church sees humanity as inheriting the disease of sin from Adam, but not his guilt ; hence, there

1904-430: Is recorded in the canonical gospels, although infancy gospels were popular in antiquity. In comparison, his adulthood, especially the week before his death, is well documented in the gospels contained within the New Testament , because that part of his life is believed to be most important. The biblical accounts of Jesus's ministry include: his baptism , miracles , preaching, teaching, and deeds. Christians consider

2016-710: Is saying that real faith always produces works as a result... The question is, 'A man may say that he has faith, but will that faith justify him?' If it is just a 'said' faith—no, it won't! It was Paul who developed the term justification in the theology of the church. Justification is a major theme of the epistles to the Romans and to the Galatians in the New Testament, and is also given treatment in many other epistles. In Romans, Paul develops justification by first speaking of God's just wrath at sin ( Romans 1:18–3:20 ). Justification

2128-719: Is seated at the right hand of the Father, and will ultimately return to fulfill the rest of the Messianic prophecy , including the resurrection of the dead , the Last Judgment , and the final establishment of the Kingdom of God . According to the canonical gospels of Matthew and Luke , Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born from the Virgin Mary . Little of Jesus's childhood

2240-556: Is superior to the Old Testament sacrifices in that it takes away sin once for all ( Hebrews 10 ). In Hebrews, faith in Jesus' sacrifice includes steadfast perseverance ( Hebrews 10:19–31 , Hebrews 12:1 ). Justification as a concept is mentioned in the works of early Church Fathers , and in the sermons of John Chrysostom , but it is not developed until Augustine 's conflict with Pelagius. Pelagius taught that one became righteous through

2352-438: Is the relationship of justification to sanctification, the process whereby sinners become righteous and are enabled by the Holy Spirit to live lives pleasing to God? Protestants , Catholics , Eastern Orthodox , and Oriental Orthodox Christians together believe that justification is by grace through faith, though they differ on the relationship between faith, obedience, and justification. Protestants believe justification

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2464-820: Is then presented as the solution for God's wrath ( Romans 3:21–26 , Romans 5:1 ). One is said to be 'justified by faith apart from works of the Law' ( Romans 3:28 ). Further, Paul writes of sin and justification in terms of two men, Adam and Christ ( Romans 5 ). Through Adam, sin came into the world bringing death; through Jesus, righteousness came into the world, bringing justification unto life ( Romans 5:15–17 ). In this connection, Paul speaks of Adam's sin being 'imputed' or 'accounted' (Greek ελλογειται) and speaks of justification as acting in analogy to sin ( Romans 5:13 ; Romans 5:18 ). In chapter 8, Paul connects justification with predestination and glorification ( Romans 8:30 ). He further states that those who are justified cannot be separated from

2576-510: The Bible and sacred traditions on which Christianity is based. Concise doctrinal statements or confessions of religious beliefs are known as creeds . They began as baptismal formulae and were later expanded during the Christological controversies of the 4th and 5th centuries to become statements of faith. " Jesus is Lord " is the earliest creed of Christianity and continues to be used, as with

2688-688: The Carolingian Renaissance of the 9th century. In the 7th century, Muslims conquered Syria (including Jerusalem ), North Africa, and Spain, converting some of the Christian population to Islam , including some of the Christian populations in pre-Islamic Arabia , and placing the rest under a separate legal status . Part of the Muslims' success was due to the exhaustion of the Byzantine Empire in its decades long conflict with Persia . Beginning in

2800-614: The Celtic , the Baltic and some Slavic peoples . Around 500, Christianity was thoroughly integrated into Byzantine and Kingdom of Italy culture and Benedict of Nursia set out his Monastic Rule , establishing a system of regulations for the foundation and running of monasteries . Monasticism became a powerful force throughout Europe, and gave rise to many early centers of learning, most famously in Ireland , Scotland , and Gaul , contributing to

2912-617: The Church of the East (600,000). Smaller church communities number in the thousands despite efforts toward unity ( ecumenism ). In the West , Christianity remains the dominant religion even with a decline in adherence , with about 70% of that population identifying as Christian. Christianity is growing in Africa and Asia, the world's most populous continents. Christians remain greatly persecuted in many regions of

3024-507: The Edict of Worms condemned and excommunicated Luther and his followers, resulting in the schism of the Western Christendom into several branches. Other reformers like Zwingli , Oecolampadius , Calvin , Knox , and Arminius further criticized Catholic teaching and worship. These challenges developed into the movement called Protestantism , which repudiated the primacy of the pope ,

3136-715: The Inquisition , were established with the aim of suppressing heresy and securing religious and doctrinal unity within Christianity through conversion and prosecution. The 15th-century Renaissance brought about a renewed interest in ancient and classical learning. During the Reformation , Martin Luther posted the Ninety-five Theses 1517 against the sale of indulgences . Printed copies soon spread throughout Europe. In 1521

3248-723: The Magisterial Reformation as corrupted. Their activity brought about the Radical Reformation , which gave birth to various Anabaptist denominations. Partly in response to the Protestant Reformation, the Catholic Church engaged in a substantial process of reform and renewal, known as the Counter-Reformation or Catholic Reform. The Council of Trent clarified and reasserted Catholic doctrine. During

3360-475: The Old Testament . The Christian concept of messiah differs significantly from the contemporary Jewish concept . The core Christian belief is that through belief in and acceptance of the death and resurrection of Jesus , sinful humans can be reconciled to God, and thereby are offered salvation and the promise of eternal life . While there have been many theological disputes over the nature of Jesus over

3472-725: The Oriental Orthodox , taught Christ "to be acknowledged in two natures, inconfusedly, unchangeably, indivisibly, inseparably": one divine and one human, and that both natures, while perfect in themselves, are nevertheless also perfectly united into one person . The Athanasian Creed , received in the Western Church as having the same status as the Nicene and Chalcedonian, says: "We worship one God in Trinity, and Trinity in Unity; neither confounding

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3584-923: The Restoration Movement , such as the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) , the Evangelical Christian Church in Canada , and the Churches of Christ . The central tenet of Christianity is the belief in Jesus as the Son of God and the Messiah (Christ). Christians believe that Jesus, as the Messiah, was anointed by God as savior of humanity and hold that Jesus's coming was the fulfillment of messianic prophecies of

3696-870: The Roman Empire by the Edict of Milan (313), later convening the Council of Nicaea (325) where Early Christianity was consolidated into what would become the state religion of the Roman Empire (380). The Church of the East and Oriental Orthodoxy both split over differences in Christology (5th century), while the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Catholic Church separated in the East–West Schism (1054). Protestantism split into numerous denominations from

3808-695: The State church of the Roman Empire . As soon as it became connected to the state, Christianity grew wealthy; the Church solicited donations from the rich and could now own land. Constantine was also instrumental in the convocation of the First Council of Nicaea in 325, which sought to address Arianism and formulated the Nicene Creed, which is still used by in Catholicism , Eastern Orthodoxy , Lutheranism , Anglicanism , and many other Protestant churches. Nicaea

3920-542: The World Communion of Reformed Churches , representing 80 million members of Congregational, Presbyterian, Reformed, United, Uniting and Waldensian churches affirmed the Joint Declaration. The Lutheran World Federation represents around 77 million Christians. The Catholic Church represents around 1.4 billion Christians. As of 2022, this tallies to about 1.7 billion people associated with communions that have affirmed

4032-531: The World Council of Churches . The Apostles' Creed is the most widely accepted statement of the articles of Christian faith. It is used by a number of Christian denominations for both liturgical and catechetical purposes, most visibly by liturgical churches of Western Christian tradition, including the Latin Church of the Catholic Church , Lutheranism , Anglicanism , and Western Rite Orthodoxy . It

4144-871: The dechristianization of France during the French Revolution , the Spanish Civil War , and certain Marxist movements, especially the Russian Revolution and the persecution of Christians in the Soviet Union under state atheism . Especially pressing in Europe was the formation of nation states after the Napoleonic era . In all European countries, different Christian denominations found themselves in competition to greater or lesser extents with each other and with

4256-533: The sacraments and the resulting grace of cooperation with God's will ( sanctification )—as an organic whole: one act of reconciliation brought to completeness in glorification . In the Lutheran and Reformed denominational traditions, this righteousness is portrayed as imputed to the inherently ungodly, by grace, through faith in the voluntary sacrifice and resurrection of Christ. The Reformed, Lutheran and Anglican traditions emphasize that "the observance of

4368-597: The state religion in Armenia in the early 4th century AD, making Armenia the first officially Christian state. It was not an entirely new religion in Armenia, having penetrated into the country from at least the third century, but it may have been present even earlier. Constantine I was exposed to Christianity in his youth, and throughout his life his support for the religion grew, culminating in baptism on his deathbed. During his reign, state-sanctioned persecution of Christians

4480-451: The world population . Its adherents, known as Christians , are estimated to make up a majority of the population in 157 countries and territories . Christianity remains culturally diverse in its Western and Eastern branches , and doctrinally diverse concerning justification and the nature of salvation , ecclesiology , ordination , and Christology . The creeds of various Christian denominations generally hold in common Jesus as

4592-401: The 'meritorious' character of good works, they wish to say that, according to the biblical witness, a reward in heaven is promised to these works. Their intention is to emphasize the responsibility of persons for their actions, not to contest the character of those works as gifts, or far less to deny that justification always remains the unmerited gift of grace", in comparison with "the concept of

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4704-509: The 1st century , after the death of Jesus, as a Judaic sect with Hellenistic influence in the Roman province of Judaea . The disciples of Jesus spread their faith around the Eastern Mediterranean area, despite significant persecution . The inclusion of Gentiles led Christianity to slowly separate from Judaism (2nd century). Emperor Constantine I decriminalized Christianity in

4816-527: The 21st century, there is now substantial agreement on justification by most Christian communions. The collective bodies of most of the largest Christian denominations, including Catholic , Lutheran , Reformed , Anglican and Methodist , have affirmed a 1999 Lutheran–Catholic Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification that details this consensus, noting different "distinctive emphases" that individual communions consider essential to state. Historically,

4928-415: The 6th century AD. These new universities expanded the curriculum to include academic programs for clerics, lawyers, civil servants, and physicians. The university is generally regarded as an institution that has its origin in the Medieval Christian setting. Accompanying the rise of the "new towns" throughout Europe, mendicant orders were founded, bringing the consecrated religious life out of

5040-501: The 8th century, with the rise of Carolingian leaders, the Papacy sought greater political support in the Frankish Kingdom . The Middle Ages brought about major changes within the church. Pope Gregory the Great dramatically reformed the ecclesiastical structure and administration. In the early 8th century, iconoclasm became a divisive issue, when it was sponsored by the Byzantine emperors. The Second Ecumenical Council of Nicaea (787) finally pronounced in favor of icons. In

5152-415: The Byzantine Emperor Alexios I for aid against Turkish expansion. The Crusades ultimately failed to stifle Islamic aggression and even contributed to Christian enmity with the sacking of Constantinople during the Fourth Crusade . The Christian Church experienced internal conflict between the 7th and 13th centuries that resulted in a schism between the Latin Church of Western Christianity branch,

5264-657: The Catholic Church in the Reformation era (16th century). Following the Age of Discovery (15th–17th century), Christianity expanded throughout the world via missionary work , evangelism , immigration and extensive trade. Christianity played a prominent role in the development of Western civilization , particularly in Europe from late antiquity and the Middle Ages . The six major branches of Christianity are Roman Catholicism (1.3 billion people), Protestantism (625 million-900 million), Eastern Orthodoxy (230 million), Oriental Orthodoxy (60 million), Restorationism (35 million), and

5376-401: The Catholic tradition of " et...et... " (i.e., "both ... and ...") that righteousness was both imputed and infused (he suggested the term "adhered".) Eastern Christianity, including both Eastern Orthodoxy and Oriental Orthodoxy , tends to not have a strong emphasis on justification as compared to Catholicism or Protestantism , seeing it as part of the concept of " theosis "; justification

5488-462: The Christian Life" that "Faith alone makes us righteous before God" but further added that "such faith cannot remain idle, but must break forth in gratitude toward God and in all sorts of works of brotherly love toward others." Pilgram Marpeck similarly wrote that the sinner was justified by faith and also that, "If God...liberates him (the sinner) from the bonds, cords, and power of the devil, and if Christ lives in him again through His Holy Spirit, he

5600-541: The Distressed Christians" that salvation was not in "works, words or sacraments" but are found only in Christ. In 1539 he wrote the qualities of this faith; " true evangelical faith... cannot lay dormant; but manifests itself in all righteousness and works of love; it... clothes the naked; feeds the hungry; consoles the afflicted; shelters the miserable; aids and consoles all the oppressed; returns good for evil; serves those that injure it; prays for those that persecute it." Balthasar Hubmaier wrote in "Eighteen Thesis Concerning

5712-478: The Holy Spirit as well as through the sacraments. This has the effect of combating sin in the individual's life, causing him to become more righteous both in heart and in action. If one falls into mortal sin he loses his justification and it can be gained back through the sacrament of confession . At the Resurrection those believers who died in a state of grace but with some venial sins will have been purged of these excessive creaturely attachments. As part of

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5824-554: The Jewish belief that faith and deeds go together. However, in James, it is possible that justification is referring to how believers are to behave as believers, not how an unbeliever becomes a believer (i.e., salvation). Faith without works is counterfeit. The faith must produce good fruit as a sign lest it become the occasion for self-justification . Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, "Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed", but does nothing about his physical needs, what good

5936-468: The Jewish commandments. Paul the Apostle solved this by insisting that salvation by faith in Christ , and participation in his death and resurrection by their baptism, sufficed. At first he persecuted the early Christians, but after a conversion experience he preached to the gentiles , and is regarded as having had a formative effect on the emerging Christian identity as separate from Judaism. Eventually, his departure from Jewish customs would result in

6048-403: The Joint Declaration, or 75% of all Christians worldwide. Other Lutherans, especially Confessional Lutherans , maintain that this agreement fails to properly define the meaning of faith, sin, and other essential terms and thus do not support the Lutheran World Federation's agreement. Likewise, some Catholics affirming real and serious differences between the decrees of the Council of Trent and

6160-405: The Law , a rejection sparked apparently by a controversy concerning the necessity of circumcision for salvation ( Galatians 2:16 , Galatians 5:4 ; see also Romans 5:1–12 and Council of Jerusalem ). He also adds that the only thing that counts is the "faith [which] works by love"( Galatians 5:6 ). The Epistle to the Hebrews also takes up the theme of justification, declaring that Jesus' death

6272-533: The Lutheran doctrine of justification is rejected. Rather than a forensic justification that only gives a legal change of one's status before God, Anabaptists teach that "justification begun a dynamic process by which the believer partook of the nature of Christ and was so enabled to live increasingly like Jesus." Orthodox theology similarly teaches that "Salvation is accomplished by grace in response to faith. But that faith cannot be passive; it must express itself…by feeding, clothing, visiting and otherwise caring for

6384-512: The Midlands, Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire, Cornwall, and Scotland. Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, professing that Jesus Christ was raised from the dead and is the Son of God , whose coming as the Messiah was prophesied in the Hebrew Bible (called the Old Testament in Christianity) and chronicled in the New Testament . It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with over 2.4 billion followers, comprising around 31.2% of

6496-413: The Netherlands and Frisia . Ultimately, these differences led to the outbreak of conflicts in which religion played a key factor. The Thirty Years' War , the English Civil War , and the French Wars of Religion are prominent examples. These events intensified the Christian debate on persecution and toleration . In the revival of neoplatonism Renaissance humanists did not reject Christianity; quite

6608-484: The New Testament as unmerited 'reward' in the sense of the fulfillment of God's promise to the believer." In July 2006 the World Methodist Council , representing 70 million Wesleyan Christians, including The United Methodist Church , "signed on" to (or affirmed) the Joint Declaration on Justification between Roman Catholics and the Lutheran World Federation. In 2016, the Anglican Consultative Committee, representing 85 million Anglicans, issued resolution 16.17 In 2017,

6720-442: The Orthodox concept of justification cannot be reconciled to Protestant concepts, while it is in partial agreement with some Roman Catholic concepts. In the words of one Orthodox Bishop: Justification is a word used in the Scriptures to mean that in Christ we are forgiven and actually made righteous in our living. Justification is not a once-for-all, instantaneous pronouncement guaranteeing eternal salvation, regardless of how wickedly

6832-452: The Persons nor dividing the Substance ". Most Christians ( Catholic , Eastern Orthodox , Oriental Orthodox , and Protestant alike) accept the use of creeds and subscribe to at least one of the creeds mentioned above. Certain Evangelical Protestants , though not all of them, reject creeds as definitive statements of faith, even while agreeing with some or all of the substance of the creeds. Also rejecting creeds are groups with roots in

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6944-421: The Republic of Ireland, and Switzerland, all countries with competing denominations. Competition is found in Germany, the Netherlands, and again Switzerland, all countries with minority Catholic populations, which to a greater or lesser extent identified with the nation. Finally, separation between religion (again, specifically Catholicism) and the state is found to a great degree in France and Italy, countries where

7056-498: The Roman Empire (except Jews) to perform a sacrifice to the Roman gods. The Diocletianic Persecution beginning in 303 AD was also particularly severe. Roman persecution ended in 313 AD with the Edict of Milan . While Proto-orthodox Christianity was becoming dominant, heterodox sects also existed at the same time, which held radically different beliefs. Gnostic Christianity developed a duotheistic doctrine based on illusion and enlightenment rather than forgiveness of sin. With only

7168-446: The Son of God —the Logos incarnated —who ministered , suffered , and died on a cross , but rose from the dead for the salvation of humankind; and referred to as the gospel , meaning the "good news". The four canonical gospels of Matthew , Mark , Luke and John describe Jesus's life and teachings as preserved in the early Christian tradition, with the Old Testament as the gospels' respected background. Christianity began in

7280-456: The Wesleyan Reform Union is the Union President, who presides over the General Committee. The General Committee consists of up to 20 elected members plus representatives from various Union committees. There is also a President Designate. People are elected to each of these positions annually by delegates to a Conference. The General Secretary takes care of business matters. At the local level, churches follow one of two schemes. A church may elect

7392-473: The Wesleyan Reform Union two years later. Wesleyan Reform Union communicants were reported to number 8,147 by 1876. Membership statistics from 1903 show the Union had 17 ministers, 193 churches, 7,858 members and 20,953 pupils. A proposal to unite with the Methodist Church was overwhelmingly rejected at the 1936 conference. The Wesleyan Reform Union Confession of Faith was accepted at a conference in 1970, and later modified by conference of 2008: The head of

7504-411: The Wesleyan Reformers had been expelled from the Wesleyan Methodist Church at its Manchester Conference in 1849. The expelled ministers and first leaders of the Wesleyan Reformers were James Everett , William Griffith and Samuel Dunn . In 1857, the major part of the Wesleyan Reformers joined other Methodist groups to form the United Methodist Free Churches but a minority joined together to establish

7616-414: The West , the papacy became a political player, first visible in Pope Leo 's diplomatic dealings with Huns and Vandals . The church also entered into a long period of missionary activity and expansion among the various tribes. While Arianists instituted the death penalty for practicing pagans (see the Massacre of Verden , for example), Catholicism also spread among the Hungarians , the Germanic ,

7728-417: The West during this period was enormous and of long-lasting significance. The later rise of Islam in North Africa reduced the size and numbers of Christian congregations, leaving in large numbers only the Coptic Church in Egypt, the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church in the Horn of Africa and the Nubian Church in the Sudan (Nobatia, Makuria and Alodia). With the decline and fall of the Roman Empire in

7840-443: The atonement, through faith and the sacraments. The Catholic Church teaches that "faith without works is dead" and that works perfect faith. In Catholic theology, all are born in a state of original sin , meaning that the sinful nature of Adam is inherited by all. Following Augustine, the Catholic Church asserts that people are unable to make themselves righteous; instead, they require justification. Catholic theology holds that

7952-703: The call to imitate Christ by excusing anti-Christian behavior generally, and justifying violence towards fellow Christians in particular. True fide , it was argued, takes Christ both as savior and example. That is, faith is directed not just to the soteriological work of Christ's death, but also towards his exemplary human life. Faith accepts that because Christ's earthly life pleased God, it is normative for proper human experience. Consequently, early Anabaptism expected an affirmative answer to two basic questions: 1) "Do you believe that Christ bore your sins?" and 2) "Do you believe that Jesus' human life, which pleased God, should be copied?" Menno Simons wrote in his "Confession of

8064-465: The churches of Rome. Its points include: The Nicene Creed was formulated, largely in response to Arianism , at the Councils of Nicaea and Constantinople in 325 and 381 respectively, and ratified as the universal creed of Christendom by the First Council of Ephesus in 431. The Chalcedonian Definition , or Creed of Chalcedon, developed at the Council of Chalcedon in 451, though rejected by

8176-686: The contrary, many of the greatest works of the Renaissance were devoted to it, and the Catholic Church patronized many works of Renaissance art . Much, if not most, of the new art was commissioned by or in dedication to the Church. Some scholars and historians attribute Christianity to having contributed to the rise of the Scientific Revolution . Many well-known historical figures who influenced Western science considered themselves Christian such as Nicolaus Copernicus , Galileo Galilei , Johannes Kepler , Isaac Newton and Robert Boyle . In

8288-468: The conversion, the justification, the rebirth in Baptism and the sanctification in the Church..." Anabaptist theology emphasizes a "faith that works"; Anabaptists teach that "justification [began] a dynamic process by which the believer partook of the nature of Christ and was so enabled to live increasingly like Jesus." Anabaptist cleric David Griffin writes: For early Anabaptists, sola fide muted

8400-502: The decisions, and the two principal churches remain in schism to the present day. However, the Catholic Church has achieved union with various smaller eastern churches . In the thirteenth century, a new emphasis on Jesus' suffering, exemplified by the Franciscans' preaching, had the consequence of turning worshippers' attention towards Jews, on whom Christians had placed the blame for Jesus' death . Christianity's limited tolerance of Jews

8512-470: The desire thereof, men obtain of God, through faith alone, the grace of justification;-though all (the sacraments) are not indeed necessary for every individual; let him be anathema (excommunicated)." Anglican John Henry Newman 's 1838 Lectures on the Doctrine of Justification (re-issued as a Catholic in 1879) sought to align the Protestant and Catholic understanding of Justification, writing in terms of

8624-656: The difference in theories on the means of justification has often been the theological fault line that divided Roman Catholicism, Eastern Orthodox , Oriental Orthodox from the Lutheran, Anglican and Reformed traditions of Protestantism during the Reformation . Catholic doctrine characteristically portrays this righteousness as infused , i.e., God "pours" grace into one's soul or, "fills" one with his grace more and more over time; faith—shown through charity and good works—justifies sinners ( fides caritate formata .) Broadly speaking, Catholics have spoken of justification—which in their view initially occurs at baptism , partaking of

8736-639: The division caused by the Reformation led to outbreaks of religious violence and the establishment of separate state churches in Europe. Lutheranism spread into the northern, central, and eastern parts of present-day Germany, Livonia , and Scandinavia. Anglicanism was established in England in 1534. Calvinism and its varieties, such as Presbyterianism , were introduced in Scotland, the Netherlands, Hungary, Switzerland, and France. Arminianism gained followers in

8848-400: The doctrine of justification exists between Lutherans and Catholics." The declaration states that several theological views on justification held by Lutherans and Catholics, though not apparently similar to each other, are in fact explaining the same "basic truths of the doctrine of justification" at different angles. An example can be cited from section 4.7 no. 38–39, "when Catholics affirm

8960-529: The dominant sects in both Judaism and Christianity. Christianity spread to Aramaic -speaking peoples along the Mediterranean coast and also to the inland parts of the Roman Empire and beyond that into the Parthian Empire and the later Sasanian Empire , including Mesopotamia , which was dominated at different times and to varying extents by these empires. The presence of Christianity in Africa began in

9072-400: The earliest centuries of Christian history, generally, Christians believe that Jesus is God incarnate and " true God and true man " (or both fully divine and fully human). Jesus, having become fully human , suffered the pains and temptations of a mortal man, but did not sin . As fully God, he rose to life again. According to the New Testament , he rose from the dead, ascended to heaven,

9184-580: The early 10th century, Western Christian monasticism was further rejuvenated through the leadership of the great Benedictine monastery of Cluny . In the West, from the 11th century onward, some older cathedral schools became universities (see, for example, University of Oxford , University of Paris and University of Bologna ). Previously, higher education had been the domain of Christian cathedral schools or monastic schools ( Scholae monasticae ), led by monks and nuns . Evidence of such schools dates back to

9296-514: The era known as the Great Divergence , when in the West, the Age of Enlightenment and the scientific revolution brought about great societal changes, Christianity was confronted with various forms of skepticism and with certain modern political ideologies , such as versions of socialism and liberalism . Events ranged from mere anti-clericalism to violent outbursts against Christianity, such as

9408-712: The establishment of Christianity as an independent religion. This formative period was followed by the early bishops , whom Christians consider the successors of Christ's apostles . From the year 150, Christian teachers began to produce theological and apologetic works aimed at defending the faith. These authors are known as the Church Fathers , and the study of them is called patristics . Notable early Fathers include Ignatius of Antioch , Polycarp , Justin Martyr , Irenaeus , Tertullian , Clement of Alexandria and Origen . Persecution of Christians occurred intermittently and on

9520-460: The exertion of one's will to follow the example of Jesus' life. Over against this, Augustine taught that we are justified by God, as a work of his grace. Augustine took great pains in his anti- Pelagian works to refute the notion that our works could serve as the proper basis for our justification. Following an appeal from Augustine, Pope Innocent I condemned Pelagius. The accused heretic wrote an appeal of his own, declaring his innocence, which

9632-573: The following Final Judgment , the saved individual's works will then be evaluated for their reward. In the Council of Trent , which Catholics believe to be infallible, the Catholic Church declared in the VII session in canon IV (countering the view that sacraments are superfluous and therefore to be eschewed as unnecessary) that, "If any one saith, that the sacraments of the New Law are not necessary unto salvation, but superfluous; and that, without them, or without

9744-570: The following centuries, competition between Catholicism and Protestantism became deeply entangled with political struggles among European states. Meanwhile, the discovery of America by Christopher Columbus in 1492 brought about a new wave of missionary activity. Partly from missionary zeal, but under the impetus of colonial expansion by the European powers, Christianity spread to the Americas, Oceania, East Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. Throughout Europe,

9856-757: The last century have been significant, since 1900, Christianity has spread rapidly in the Global South and Third World countries. The late 20th century has shown the shift of Christian adherence to the Third World and the Southern Hemisphere in general, with the West no longer the chief standard bearer of Christianity. Approximately 7 to 10% of Arabs are Christians , most prevalent in Egypt, Syria and Lebanon . While Christians worldwide share basic convictions, there are differences of interpretations and opinions of

9968-671: The loss of faith or through sinning (cf. conditional security ). The Reformed tradition generally holds that justification can never truly be lost: for those who have been justified by grace, will certainly persevere through faith until the return of Christ himself. Jesus used the idea of ransom, or redemption when referring to his work on earth ( Matthew 20:28 ; Mark 10:45 ). Christ's death and resurrection (triumph over Satan and death) provide justification for believers before God. His righteousness becomes theirs, and his death becomes an offering to God in their place, to pay for all of their sins. According to Protestants this justification

10080-478: The loss of faith. Lutherans affirm that mortal sin can destroy faith; for Catholics and Orthodox Christians, justification can also be lost by committing a mortal sin. Anabaptists teach that Christians can apostatize, resulting in a loss of salvation, through disobedience to God and indulgence in sin; for Methodists along with other groups belonging to the Holiness Movement , salvation also can be lost with

10192-430: The love of Christ ( Romans 8:33–39 ). Several of these passages are central in the debate between Roman Catholics, and the various streams of Protestantism (while there is broad agreement on justification by faith, there is no complete doctrinal uniformity on justification among all Protestant denominations), who can understand them in quite different ways. In Galatians, Paul emphatically rejects justification by works of

10304-647: The middle of the 1st century in Egypt and by the end of the 2nd century in the region around Carthage . Mark the Evangelist is claimed to have started the Church of Alexandria in about 43 AD; various later churches claim this as their own legacy, including the Coptic Orthodox Church . Important Africans who influenced the early development of Christianity include Tertullian , Clement of Alexandria , Origen of Alexandria , Cyprian , Athanasius , and Augustine of Hippo . King Tiridates III made Christianity

10416-677: The monastery and into the new urban setting. The two principal mendicant movements were the Franciscans and the Dominicans , founded by Francis of Assisi and Dominic , respectively. Both orders made significant contributions to the development of the great universities of Europe. Another new order was the Cistercians , whose large, isolated monasteries spearheaded the settlement of former wilderness areas. In this period, church building and ecclesiastical architecture reached new heights, culminating in

10528-436: The moral law is not necessary either as a prerequisite for obtaining justification or as a means for preserving it." Therefore, a righteousness from God is viewed as being credited to the sinner's account through faith alone , apart from works , being based solely on the "blood of Christ". Growth in personal holiness is considered distinct from justification, belonging rather to sanctification . In Anabaptist Christianity ,

10640-535: The normative Lutheran documents collected in the 1580 Book of Concord equally reject the 1999 " JDDJ " as fatally flawed. Christian traditions answer questions about the nature, function and meaning of justification quite differently. These issues include: Is justification an event occurring instantaneously or is it as an ongoing process? Is justification effected by divine action alone ( monergism ), by divine and human action together ( synergism ) or by human action? Is justification permanent or can it be lost? What

10752-482: The now-Catholic Church, and an Eastern , largely Greek, branch (the Eastern Orthodox Church ). The two sides disagreed on a number of administrative, liturgical and doctrinal issues, most prominently Eastern Orthodox opposition to papal supremacy . The Second Council of Lyon (1274) and the Council of Florence (1439) attempted to reunite the churches, but in both cases, the Eastern Orthodox refused to implement

10864-559: The orders of Romanesque and Gothic architecture and the building of the great European cathedrals. Christian nationalism emerged during this era in which Christians felt the desire to recover lands in which Christianity had historically flourished. From 1095 under the pontificate of Urban II , the First Crusade was launched. These were a series of military campaigns in the Holy Land and elsewhere, initiated in response to pleas from

10976-675: The papacy. This conflict came to a head in the First Vatican Council , and in Germany would lead directly to the Kulturkampf . Christian commitment in Europe dropped as modernity and secularism came into their own, particularly in the Czech Republic and Estonia , while religious commitments in America have been generally high in comparison to Europe. Changes in worldwide Christianity over

11088-402: The peaks in Christian history and Christian civilization , and Constantinople remained the leading city of the Christian world in size, wealth, and culture. There was a renewed interest in classical Greek philosophy , as well as an increase in literary output in vernacular Greek. Byzantine art and literature held a preeminent place in Europe, and the cultural impact of Byzantine art on

11200-455: The resurrection of Jesus to be the cornerstone of their faith (see 1 Corinthians 15 ) and the most important event in history. Among Christian beliefs, the death and resurrection of Jesus are two core events on which much of Christian doctrine and theology is based. According to the New Testament, Jesus was crucified , died a physical death, was buried within a tomb, and rose from the dead three days later. Justification (theology) In

11312-417: The role of tradition, the seven sacraments , and other doctrines and practices. The Reformation in England began in 1534, when King Henry VIII had himself declared head of the Church of England . Beginning in 1536, the monasteries throughout England, Wales and Ireland were dissolved . Thomas Müntzer , Andreas Karlstadt and other theologians perceived both the Catholic Church and the confessions of

11424-498: The sacrament of baptism, which is closely connected to faith, "purifies, justifies and sanctifies" the sinner; in this sacrament, the sinner is "freed from sin". This is termed initial justification or "being cleansed of sin", the entrance into the Christian life. Catholics use Mark 16:16, John 3:5, Acts 2:38, and 1 Peter 3:21 to support this view in justification by baptism. As the individual then progresses in his Christian life, he continues to receive God's grace both directly through

11536-402: The state actively opposed itself to the authority of the Catholic Church. The combined factors of the formation of nation states and ultramontanism , especially in Germany and the Netherlands, but also in England to a much lesser extent, often forced Catholic churches, organizations, and believers to choose between the national demands of the state and the authority of the Church, specifically

11648-598: The state. Variables were the relative sizes of the denominations and the religious, political, and ideological orientation of the states. Urs Altermatt of the University of Fribourg , looking specifically at Catholicism in Europe, identifies four models for the European nations. In traditionally Catholic-majority countries such as Belgium, Spain, and Austria, to some extent, religious and national communities are more or less identical. Cultural symbiosis and separation are found in Poland,

11760-428: The two. To Catholics, justification is "a translation, from that state wherein man is born a child of the first Adam, to the state of grace, and of the adoption of the sons of God, through the second Adam, Jesus Christ, our Savior", including the transforming of a sinner from the state of unrighteousness to the state of holiness. This transformation is made possible by accessing the merit of Christ , made available in

11872-537: The world, particularly in the Middle East , North Africa , East Asia , and South Asia . Early Jewish Christians referred to themselves as 'The Way' ( Koinē Greek : τῆς ὁδοῦ , romanized:  tês hodoû ), probably coming from Isaiah 40:3 , "prepare the way of the Lord". According to Acts 11:26 , the term "Christian" ( Χρῑστῐᾱνός , Khrīstiānós ), meaning "followers of Christ" in reference to Jesus's disciples ,

11984-504: The “least” of Jesus’ brethren (Mt 25)." In Catholic, Orthodox, and Protestant theology, anyone who has been justified will produce good works as a product of faith, as a result of God's grace in sanctification. Notable exceptions to the idea that sanctification and good works always accompany justification are found in Free Grace Theology held by many Independent Baptist churches. For Lutherans, justification can be lost with

12096-497: Was duly accepted by Innocent's successor, Pope Zosimus . However, the Council of Carthage (418) again renounced Pelagius with papal approval. In 1999, Roman Catholics and most Lutherans as represented by most of the Lutheran councils worldwide that agreed with the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification (JDDJ), believe that they have found much agreement on the subject of justification: "consensus in basic truths of

12208-460: Was ended with the Edict of Toleration in 311 and the Edict of Milan in 313. At that point, Christianity was still a minority belief, comprising perhaps only 5% of the Roman population. Influenced by his adviser Mardonius , Constantine's nephew Julian unsuccessfully tried to suppress Christianity. On 27 February 380, Theodosius I , Gratian , and Valentinian II established Nicene Christianity as

12320-407: Was first used in the city of Antioch by the non-Jewish inhabitants there. The earliest recorded use of the term "Christianity/Christianism" ( Χρῑστῐᾱνισμός , Khrīstiānismós ) was by Ignatius of Antioch around 100  AD . The name Jesus comes from Ancient Greek : Ἰησοῦς Iēsous , likely from Hebrew / Aramaic : יֵשׁוּעַ Yēšūaʿ. Christianity developed during the 1st century AD as

12432-400: Was not new—Augustine of Hippo said that Jews should not be allowed to enjoy the citizenship that Christians took for granted—but the growing antipathy towards Jews was a factor that led to the expulsion of Jews from England in 1290 , the first of many such expulsions in Europe. Beginning around 1184, following the crusade against Cathar heresy, various institutions, broadly referred to as

12544-457: Was the first of a series of ecumenical councils , which formally defined critical elements of the theology of the Church, notably concerning Christology . The Church of the East did not accept the third and following ecumenical councils and is still separate today by its successors ( Assyrian Church of the East ). In terms of prosperity and cultural life, the Byzantine Empire was one of

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