Christianity is a religion based on the life of Jesus. Christians believe in God and see Him as an example, a Father.
Christians
A Christian is someone who believes that Jesus is the son of God. He came into the world to improve the behavior of people. To save people from their sins (sins are actions of people against the agreement and love of God).
A Christian is someone who lives by and believes in the teachings of Jesus Christ. Today there are Christians all over the world . The most important book that Christians refer to is the Bible.
On Sundays many Christians gather for worship. They also come together on Christian holidays. At Christmas they give thanks for the birth of Jesus. On Good Friday they commemorate his death on the cross and on Easter they celebrate his resurrection. When Christians talk about church, they not only mean the building where they meet for worship, but often also all the people together who form the church community. Members of a denomination think of themselves as belonging to a large family, the Christian church. Christians try to live as Jesus told them to. Many Christians help poor and disadvantaged people around the world. Wherever they are and whatever they do, Christians pray for God to guide them in what they do and in their decision-making.
Jesus
Jesus was a Jew born in Bethlehem about 2,000 years ago. He lived in Judea, a province of the Roman Empire. Most people believe that Jesus is the son of god. Christians believe that he rose from the dead the third day after he was hanged on the cross. Later they said he floated to heaven. Traditional Christian belief is that Mary, the mother of Jesus, was betrothed to a carpenter named Joseph. Matthew and Luke say that Mary became pregnant by the Holy Spirit, not by a man. Very little is known about Jesus’ childhood. It is believed that he had a normal Jewish childhood. Jesus lived with his parents in Nazareth and worked as a carpenter until he began God’s work.
When Jesus was about thirty years old, he began to talk about God (preaching). Jesus told the people that God would give them what they needed if they believed in him, trusted him, and kept his laws. Everywhere Jesus went, groups of people came to listen to him. There are stories known about miracles that Jesus performed. He made the sick better, he made sure that a lame man could walk again and that a blind man could see again.
The Roman government put Jesus to death by crucifixion. For most Christians, the greatest miracle is that Jesus came back to life two days after his death. This is called the resurrection . This resurrection is commemorated every year at Easter.
Origin of Christianity
Most of what is known about the life and death of Jesus comes from the accounts written by four of his apostles: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Each writer tells the life of Jesus in a different way. They also wrote that Jesus appeared to the apostles (= followers) after his death. He then told them that they should pass on his teachings to others.
The Pentecost story states that a heavy, strong wind blew through the apostles’ house (the holy spirit). People of different nations, gathered in Jerusalem for the feast, all heard and understood in their language what the apostles said. The event at Pentecost is often seen as the beginning of Christianity. The first Christians then tell the good news of Jesus Christ. People were baptized as a sign that they became followers of Jesus. Apostles like Paul went on mission trips to share their faith in Jesus with others.
The Bible
The Bible consists of several books, namely 66. These books are about how faith originated and its history. It also contains rules and guidelines for Christians. The Bible consists of the Old and New Testaments. The Old Testament is about the history of the Jewish people before Christ was born.
The New Testament are books that were written about 50 to 100 years after Christ. The oldest books are letters from Paul, a disciple of Christ. He mainly writes about the significance of Jesus for Christians. Furthermore, the New Testament consists of the four Gospels. Gospel means good news. The four Gospels tell about Jesus’ life, his words and actions. They were not written until about 40 years after Jesus’ death.
Reading the Bible is very important for Christians. Parts from the Bible are read in all Christian services. A lot of Bible reading is also done outside the church. In many families people read from the Bible every day. The Bible books are decorated with all kinds of pictures made by famous artists. In the Middle Ages, these were mainly monks who copied the Bible and then beautifully decorated it. This used to be a lot of work because the printing press had not yet been invented. The Bible is the most translated book series in the entire world.
Parties and celebrations
Every Sunday is a holiday for Christians. They celebrate this in church by attending a church service. They also have other festivals such as Easter, Pentecost, Christmas, All Saints’ Day, Ascension Day and Epiphany.
Easter
Easter is the most important of all celebrations. Then Christians celebrate the core of their faith, namely the death and resurrection of Jesus. You can tell that Christians find this so important in the holidays around Easter. An important day is Ash Wednesday, which starts 40 days before Easter. Then a period of fasting begins. Not all Christians fast in the same way. Some don’t eat meat or fat, others don’t use things they like. They believe that this will help them understand better how Jesus suffered.
Palm Sunday is the Sunday before Easter and commemorates how Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey. He was then welcomed by the people by placing palm branches on his path. Sometimes parades are held in different places on Palm Sunday.
Maundy Thursday is the Thursday before Easter and commemorates the last supper that Jesus had with his Apostles. Good Friday is the day Jesus died on the cross. On that day He showed His love and goodness for the people by forgiving everyone their sins. This is the most solemn day of the Christian year. Easter Sunday is the day that Jesus rose from the dead and went to Heaven.
Christmas
The second major festival is Christmas. Then they celebrate the birth of Jesus. This is celebrated on December 25 by most churches, except the Orthodox Church. It celebrates Christmas on January 7. Epiphany is 12 days after Christmas and then they celebrate the visit of the Three Wise Men from the East to Jesus.
Other holidays and celebrations
The other holidays are celebrated differently by the many churches within the Christian faith. Other celebrations include baptisms, weddings, first communion and funerals. These are also celebrated by the churches in different ways.
Honoring God
By coming together, Christians honor their God. During this meeting the Bible is read and prayers and singing take place. The gathering is called a church, but the buildings in which the gathering takes place are also called churches. Christians can meet at all kinds of times, but Sunday is the most important day. It is precisely this day because Jesus rose from the dead on that day. The church service held on Sunday is led by a priest or minister. During the service there is sometimes music from choirs and organs to accompany the prayers and chants. Sometimes there is a separate service for children after the church service or during the church service: Sunday school, children’s church, children’s life service or children’s word service.
The most important thing during the Christian gathering is ‘Holy Communion’ or ‘Eucharist’. This is basically an imitation of ‘the last supper’. At this meal Jesus passed the bread and the cup of wine to his disciples, saying that they were his body and blood, which he would offer for the sins of the people. Jesus asked his disciples if they would continue to remember him by celebrating this meal. And that is what Christians do during church services.
The Lord’s Supper is celebrated less often in Protestant churches. Sometimes once a week, once a month or even twice a year. Among Protestants, the sermon is also the most important part of the church service. A sermon is a speech by the preacher or pastor based on readings from the Bible. During services, both priests and ministers wear special clothing. See picture.
Roman Catholics and Orthodox Christians honor and pray to holy men and women recognized as holy by the Christian Church. Holy men and women include the apostles and the Virgin Mary, the mother of Jesus.
Christians pray not only when meeting in church but also at home where they are alone.
Many things of Christianity can be seen in everyday life. Every place has a church. These are large buildings, certainly with a spire that points to the sky and is clearly visible from a distance. The door of the church usually faces west and opposite that door is the altar inside the church on the eastern side; a table with a cross and candles. In front of or next to the altar is the pulpit from which the priest preaches. Many churches have stained glass windows. These are stained glass windows with colorful images of Bible stories.
Different movements
In the year 313, a law was passed, the Edict of Milan, in which Christianity was officially recognized. Christianity spread westwards and the so-called Christian West emerged. The various Christian areas were headed by bishops or patriarchs. Over time, the Bishop of Rome and the Bishop of Constantinople (now Istanbul) gained more power than the others. However, these two bishops both had different ideas about worship. That’s why they got into a fight. This created two movements within the Christian church, the Roman Catholic and the Orthodox movement. The Bishop of Rome, later known as the Pope, became head of the Roman Catholic Church. The church services were held in Latin.
The Orthodox Church settled in Constantinople. The church services were held in Greek. In the Middle Ages, Christianity spread further and changed. That change meant that people started asking questions about the Roman Catholic worship service. One of them was the monk Martin Luther. He was angry about how some Catholic priests behaved and he felt that he saw little of the teachings of Jesus in worship.
Maarten Luth gained more and more followers in his anger about Roman Catholic worship. Together with his followers he founded his own form of Christianity. The Protestants, as these rebels were called, no longer held church services in Latin but in German. This is how three movements in Christianity emerged.