Estimated reading time: 4 minutes
What is the Christian faith?
Simply explained
Introduction
Christianity is one of the three Abrahamic religions, that is to say, claiming to be the heirs of the patriarch and prophet Abraham, with whom God offered a covenant, according to which Abraham would recognize him as the one and only God, in exchange for a country and many blessings for his descendants.
Abraham is thus considered the founder of Monotheism, the belief in a single God.
The story of this covenant begins with the creation of the world, and is recounted in the most well-known sacred book, the very first one to have been printed: The Bible!
We will return to this wonderful sacred book later, but it is the starting point of Monotheism.
Where monotheism becomes Christianity
We have seen that monotheism, the belief in a single, omniscient and omnipotent God (Who knows everything, Who sees everything and whose power has no limits) is based on the covenant of God with Abraham, as recounted in the Bible.
The latter is composed of many books, the two main ones being the Old and New Testaments.
The Old Testament begins with the story of the creation of the world, and ends just before the arrival of the spiritual founder of Christianity, Our Lord Jesus Christ, and the New Testament is the story of his life, the teaching of his first disciples, followed by the Acts of the Apostles, which relates the beginnings of the first Christian communities.
Jesus Christ is therefore at the center of Christianity, hence its name.
The Kerygma
But then, what is it that makes this man, who had so much influence on the world, despite a short life of just over 30 years, that his birth serves as the basis for our current calendar (2026... after Jesus Christ), able to be at the center of the Christian faith.
The essence of the Christian faith can be summed up in a simple and concise statement:
- Jesus Christ is both the son of God and God himself, made Man.
- He called, and continues to call through his word, for conversion for the salvation of our souls.
- He died in excruciating suffering and rose again to redeem us from our sins, past, present and future; in doing so, he accepted to be punished in our place for our salvation.
In order to combat numerous heresies, the Kerygma was developed into a Profession of Faith (Creed) in the form of the Apostles' Creed, directly transmitted by the apostles of Christ under the influence of the Holy Spirit, as well as the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed, introduced in its definitive form in 451 at the Council of Chalcedon. (Article forthcoming on the Creed)
Conclusion
Now you know what the Christian faith is and what constitutes it, I hope I have been clear and simple, summarizing what Christianity is is a real challenge.
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JOUANNE Clément
Stella Christi - religious items, rosaries, crosses, icons and Christian gifts.
Committed to the faith, Devotion for all
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