Well, I see that Dennis is out with another post on Explaining Jews - so he's my answer on Christians. His topic this time is why are most Jews Secular?
Why are most Christians that in name only?
Dennis spends some time talking about the conservative movement in Judaism, and I mean to speak of other things. From the time of Christ until about 300A.D., Christianity was pretty much as it was in the Bible. Bishops (or elders) from a given area were the religious authority for their area and no one could interfere (after all of Jesus' Apostles died). But that all changed when a man named Constintine, who just happened to be the Roman Emperor became a Christian. True convert or no, Contintine was a Christian, and since he was, Rome became a Christian Empire. It became the state religion, and with that acknowledgement, the Bishop of Rome became more powerful, eventually becoming the Pope of the Roman Catholic Church (Catholic means Universal)
The so called universal church didn't stay universal for long. By a few hundred years later, the church was in some trouble. There was much corruption and some church leaders were not religious at all, but saw Church activity as a way to get power. This eventually led to the Protestant reformation in 1517. With this movement, now not just two streams or Christianity, but hundreds of streams broke forth - all interpreting the faith in their own way.
Some were holy and close to God, such as the Pietists. Some were very secular, like the Anglicans. This continued, even after the Church enter America and splintered further into alternative movements similar to Christianity like Mormonism and movements that tried to move the church back to ancient times like the Churches of Christ (Cambellites). But the end of the church as we know it was the Rational thinking movement, liberal theology and Evolution.
After that, and after the Civil War in the USA, other events like World War One, the Boxer Revolution, , the Spanish American War, the 1918 Influenza Pandemic, churches started to change their message. Many churches started to preach a "Social Gospel", not the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The preachers talked about saving the poor and fighting the unjustness of it all instead of seeking and saving the lost. And churches split. The faithful moving into smaller, more evangelical and "out there" groups and the mainline churches becoming more social orders.
By the end of the 20th century, most people were not churchgoers - but most still identified themselves as Christians. Some who went were in fact Christians - following Christ. Some were part of an overall social movement - helping people as their first role - while Jesus said the first role of the believer is to "go into all the world and make disciples" (Matt 28:19)
Why are most Christians that in name only?
Dennis spends some time talking about the conservative movement in Judaism, and I mean to speak of other things. From the time of Christ until about 300A.D., Christianity was pretty much as it was in the Bible. Bishops (or elders) from a given area were the religious authority for their area and no one could interfere (after all of Jesus' Apostles died). But that all changed when a man named Constintine, who just happened to be the Roman Emperor became a Christian. True convert or no, Contintine was a Christian, and since he was, Rome became a Christian Empire. It became the state religion, and with that acknowledgement, the Bishop of Rome became more powerful, eventually becoming the Pope of the Roman Catholic Church (Catholic means Universal)
The so called universal church didn't stay universal for long. By a few hundred years later, the church was in some trouble. There was much corruption and some church leaders were not religious at all, but saw Church activity as a way to get power. This eventually led to the Protestant reformation in 1517. With this movement, now not just two streams or Christianity, but hundreds of streams broke forth - all interpreting the faith in their own way.
Some were holy and close to God, such as the Pietists. Some were very secular, like the Anglicans. This continued, even after the Church enter America and splintered further into alternative movements similar to Christianity like Mormonism and movements that tried to move the church back to ancient times like the Churches of Christ (Cambellites). But the end of the church as we know it was the Rational thinking movement, liberal theology and Evolution.
After that, and after the Civil War in the USA, other events like World War One, the Boxer Revolution, , the Spanish American War, the 1918 Influenza Pandemic, churches started to change their message. Many churches started to preach a "Social Gospel", not the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The preachers talked about saving the poor and fighting the unjustness of it all instead of seeking and saving the lost. And churches split. The faithful moving into smaller, more evangelical and "out there" groups and the mainline churches becoming more social orders.
By the end of the 20th century, most people were not churchgoers - but most still identified themselves as Christians. Some who went were in fact Christians - following Christ. Some were part of an overall social movement - helping people as their first role - while Jesus said the first role of the believer is to "go into all the world and make disciples" (Matt 28:19)
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