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The ways in which Christianity impact the world (essay
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The past eight years of my life since first recognizing my call to ministry have been like drinking from the fire hose of theology. I had done very little theological reading prior and so I have found myself reading a little of a lot of different voices trying to get a broad understand of the many strains of theology out there. Some I very much have agreed with and some I have walked away from saying not so much but almost all of it has shaped me in one way or another. Even what disagree with has helped because it forces me to at least think through why I disagree which further solidifies my own beliefs and working theology. Of the historic theologians one that I have really appreciated learning from is St. Julian of Norwich and her writing Revelations of Divine. St. Julian taught that God is not angered by our sin but is rather saddened and has pity on us. Instead of wrath we receive forgiveness. Our sin then becomes the opportunity to learn and grow. For me this speaks to the understanding that God is not the angry divine waiting to strike us down when fall, but is there to pick us up again with forgiveness and grace. For myself, this amplifies my understanding that we are not made perfect by our own doing but through God’s grace. Another influence …show more content…
Depending on who you are speaking the reactions to the term can run the gamut from excitement to disgust and even for myself this can be true. Two text though that have to help reshape my thinking around evangelism and how to talk about are Elaine Heath’s The Mystic Way of Evangelism and Francis Adeney’s Graceful Evangelism. Both of these texts approach evangelism in a graceful, humble, and respectful manner and that evangelism is a way of life and not just something we do in hopes of new converts. This a necessity for any church which not only hopes grow but to bring about the transformation of their community and the
What is Christianity and why has it been able to develop into a continuously growing and evolving religion?
Life is full of frustrations and confusion. There are times that questioning the purpose of one’s life to be living at all from their belief and faith in the one they believe. Christian Adherents are faced with these issues and are misguided by the loquacious talk of philosophers and scientists that seem to argue that the existence of human beings have been derived by something else other than God. These are illustrated through various forms of media and deem to be very convincing for most. However, there are people and ideas of the Christian Religion to comply back with what is said against it. Pope John XXIII was a significant role model for the Christian Religion as he showed true belief and faith to God through his deeds. Topics in debate of Bioethical issues are in question and the practices of the Christian belief are fact to the individual of the means of questioning the purpose here on Earth. Regarding the letter from Paul to the Corinthians, it says “Be on guard; stand firm in faith; be men of courage, be strong.” Its significance to believers is that they can be deceived in time of desperation and at times of hardship but God tells them to stay strong in faith and in courage no matter the distress they are facing.
In this paper two topic from the Psychology and Spirituality course will be discussed in regards to spirituality and their influence on my personal life. I will examine how I have grown and what I have learned from the week on Spring Lake ranch and how I wish to continue moving forward in my attempt to be spiritual and build a closer relationship to God.
As far as mankind’s history can date, religion has had quite an intimate relationship with people. Although maybe it hasn’t always been identified in the same way as we identify religion today, spread across the world we have the remains of pyramids, temples, and even written in ancient texts from centuries ago dedicated to god, to the afterlife, to what lies on the other side. And up to today’s times, religion has grown along with man.
The Late Middle Ages saw great theological discrepancies through the progression of Christian mysticism. The exploration into spiritual practices and the unification of the soul during this period led to great philosophical works. The Cloud of Unknowing and The Imitation of Christ are two noteworthy texts that discuss one’s aspiration to attain union with God. The Cloud of Unknowing is an anonymously authored spiritual exercise that accentuates movement toward the contemplative life by acknowledging what is unknown by man. In contrast, The Imitation of Christ by Thomas à Kempis is a spiritual guide which emphasizes that the way to be fully Christian is to live in the imitation of Jesus Christ. While many of the thoughts concerning human reason and withdrawal from the corporal world are similar in the texts, the two are inherently different as the account in The Imitation of Christ is more compelling due to its focus on a humanistic objective while acquiring union and salvation with God.
Scholars have been trying to come up with a well-founded, acceptable and universal definition of religion for years; however, none of these definitions so far are a perfect fit for all religions of the world. There are many things in our life that are well defined and well understood but, unfortunately, religion is not one of them. There is no common ground and understanding of what religion really means. Religion is what we make of it, so no one can truly define religion in a way that is meaningful across all borders as it is outside of the realm of reason and rationale and the definitions we give could be either too exclusive or inclusive.
The following essay will evaluate the importance of the journey that takes place from Systematic to Practical theology; this view will be explored through Ronelle Sonnenberg’s research done regarding ‘being together’ in a youth setting. This essay will first build on the basis of Practical Theology; furthermore addressing the importance of the community aspect within a youth setting; this will lead to the process that takes place between a Systematic stance, leading to a Practical theological stance.
Religion plays an enormous role in the history of mankind. Wars have been fought over it, lives have been surrounded by it, and it has directly or indirectly shaped the lives of many individuals. Culture and religion play a large role in developing each other. People’s religion is decided by their culture. The prominence or the lack of religion will develop someone’s religious identity have play a core role in determining what that person believes.
... In order to understand the Bible we must read it as the Psalmist says “O how I love Thy law! It is my meditation all the day.” (Psa. 119:97). However there some suggestions to cope with the study of the Bible in effective manner. The Bible was written a long time ago before us. That is why we need to deal with some back grounds, context, and theology differs with our time. Some hermeneutics principles can help us how to work in the better frame of interpret the Bible, such as the literary context, historical context and how to compare Scripture.
The Holy Spirit is often time defined as the comforter or helper. The Holy Spirit is conveyed as a presence not a mystical being. When I think of the Holy Spirit I see him as not only my comforter or helper but also the one who completes the trinity. The trinity is the divine manifestation of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit has strong emotions for us believers. One way the Holy Spirit reacts to us rejecting his help against sin or simply rebelling is by him being grieved. Ephesians 4:30 reads “And grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.” The sins we commit brings mourning to the Holy Spirit.
A pastor has a great responsibility to minister the Word of God and to be a shepherd to his people. The pastor must be committed to biblical truths when he engages the work of the ministry. Some of these truths include: The Bible is the infallible Word of God, his preaching must be from the Word of God, and he must do proper exegesis to get to the authorial intent and proclaim that to his congregation.
The religions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam are alike in many ways but they also share many differences. Judaism and Christianity use the bible in their holy scriptures, while Islam does not. Jesus Christ is a part of all three religions as Christianity and Islam developed from Judaism. Many believe that the three religions worship, pray to, and focus on the same god. They believe this as many of the prophets are they share much in common as they share many beliefs. However, the followers of the three religions pray differently and in different places. the religions believe that their god created the world and everything in the world. The three Abrahamic religions have different histories, yet they share many similarities and difference.
“Just as a candle cannot burn without fire, men cannot live without a spiritual life.” According to Buddha, everyone needs some form of spirituality to define his or her life and existence. Webster Dictionary defines spiritualism as “a system of beliefs or religious practices based on supposed communication with the spirits of the dead, often times through mediums.” Though this is one general definition of spiritualism, this concept is one that does not hold a conclusive meaning. Each and every single person has the ability and right to create and practice their own idea of spiritualism. From ancient times to present day, the term and practice of spirituality has transformed, particularly from region to region. Despite the discrepancies in practices and overall understanding of this idea, spirituality has had an effect and impact upon all of humanity since the creation of time. This religion that is believed to have been established in the early eighteen hundreds, after two little girls claimed to have the ability to talk to spirits, sparked interest in this spiritual movement, allowing it to spread rather rapidly over many geographical locations. Aside from being recognized as a religion, spiritualism is also believed to be a form of philosophy and a science in which spiritualists believe that there is life after death and try to demonstrate this through the ability of attempting to communicate with those that have passed on. Spiritualism was socially different from other religions in existence at the time because it presented followers with a more tolerant belief system that assimilated the principles and facts from a selection the world's religions. Spiritualism also made it acceptable for women to play a disti...
My definition of religion has mostly stayed the same, but my perception of it has changed. At the beginning of the class, I assumed religion was something you believed based on your moral principles. I now believe that those moral principles are based on the religion that you believe in. Your religion changes your perception of the world and how to go about in it. Your religion tells you what is right and wrong in the world and answers all of the big questions one asks. Religion according to our book is, “A pattern of beliefs and practices that expresses and enacts what a community regards as sacred and/or ultimate about life” (Van Voorst 6). That definition was one thing that really got me thinking about my own personal idea of what religion
Spirituality can have many different definitions, depending on who is asked. It can be something as simple as looking for a higher meaning to life, or something so complex that one can base their beliefs, religion and overall life around it. There are several different ways to express one's spirituality; rituals, songs, dances, stories, and writings are all common methods of expression.