Christianity.

Christianity is the religion centered on Jesus of Nazareth, whom Christians believe is the Christ — the Messiah prophesied in the Hebrew Bible — and the Son of God.

Core claim: the Nicene Creed

The Nicene Creed is Christianity's foundational doctrinal statement. From the Christian Reformed Church:

"And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, begotten from the Father before all ages, God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made; of the same essence as the Father. Through him all things were made. For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven; he became incarnate by the Holy Spirit and the virgin Mary, and was made human. He was crucified for us under Pontius Pilate; he suffered and was buried. The third day he rose again, according to the Scriptures."¹

Christianity's central claim is the resurrection.

Primary texts: the Gospels

Public domain English translations of the New Testament, including the American Standard Version, are accessible through Bible Gateway and other online sources.

What must not be mashed

People: Christians are individuals who profess faith in Jesus Christ. Their behavior is not the doctrine. A Christian who commits violence is not acting on Christian teaching unless that teaching explicitly commands the act. Judgment requires opening the text.

Doctrine: The Nicene Creed and the Gospels make claims. Those claims are not the same as Christendom — the political and cultural dominance of Christian institutions in Europe and the Americas.

State: States that claimed Christianity were political entities. Their wars, their conquests, their slave trades were state actions. Conflating doctrine with state action is a category error. Theology as lived faith is not a desk verdict.

Related reading

For how religious terms carry hidden claims, see Load-bearing terms.

For the mash between doctrine, community, and state, see Religions as objects.

Footnotes

1. Translation © 1988, Faith Alive Christian Resources, Christian Reformed Church in North America. ↩