Orthodox Christianity
Origin: Constantinople
#Emperor trumps Pope#Pope trumps Emperor#I think we should see other people
II EASTERN ORTHODOX CHRISTIANITY (A.D. 1053 to Present)
The
Eastern Orthodox Church is listed as having its beginning in A.D. 1053, in truth;
it began with Christ’s ministry, but at the time was considered the Catholic
Church. As the Church in Rome became
allied with western powers, the Eastern Roman Empire remained, and the church,
in accordance with Constantine’s design, defaulted to the authority of the
Emperor and God rather than to the Pope.
The Eastern Roman Empire is referred to by modern historians as Byzantium. Byzantium, at its peak, controlled most of
the civilized world, and thus it had many denominations of “Orthodox”
Christians: Ethiopian Orthodox, Greek Orthodox, Russ Orthodox, and etc. With the exception of the Russ, which were
converted later, these Christian communities were the same ones being
ministered to by Christ, His disciples, and the apostles.
The date
A.D. 1053 is the date given for what has been daubed the “Great Schism”, which
marked the informal separation between the Eastern and Western Christian
movements. The separation was largely
due to the pettiness and pride of a few influential Bishops on both sides. Unfortunately the two sides effectively
excommunicated one another. The formal divorce, if you will, didn’t occur until
nearly 60 years prior to the Protestant Reformation.
*Excommunication is an extreme form of penance,
forbidding the excomunicae from partaking in the Eucharist, not banishment from
church or Heaven, though if penance was not done in life it would still need to
be completed in death/purgatory.
Excommunication is used typically on all non-Catholics/Orthodox members;
Protestants (remain excommunicated today) and are “officially” forbidden to
take part in the Eucharist, but Orthodox Christians may celebrate the Eucharist
and Mass with Catholics within their own churches, it’s not a reunification but
it’s certainly an exciting step in the right direction.
Orthodox
Christians are very similar to their Catholic brothers. They share the same basic hierarchical
structure and dogmatic beliefs with few exceptions:
1.
Icons are believed to not only aid as a focal point for
veneration but as a direct link to the saint or event that they represent. They are not Idols, as they remain powerless
in and of themselves, and are used only as tools for prayer to God, with whom
they may intercede on your behalf. The
understanding of Icons is similar to the Roman Catholic veneration of saints,
but has proved a major point of contention in the past, as it had been mistaken
for idolatry.
2.
Papal authority, simply put, the EOC believes that God
is head of the Church(Now that there is no Roman Emperor); arch Bishops,
righteous as they may be, remain flawed stewards.
3.
Eternal Church is the simplest way I can think to
explain the Orthodox view of the afterlife.
While they believe in Heaven and Hell, they believe that when a
Christian dies they may still attend church. Though unseen by mortal eyes, they
may still worship and benefit from prayer, as well as pray for others, just as
the Saints in the Roman Catholic Church do.
Though there are canonized saints, the
EOC teach that all of the faithful are “saints” and should be asked to
intercede in prayer, just as one would ask the living. (Contrary to my Protestant upbringing, my interpretation of scripture
puts me more in line with this understanding of the afterlife.)
The EOC did not play
a large part in post renaissance Christian history as nearly all of its
adherents were destroyed by Islamic forces in the 15th Century. The Russian remnant was nearly obliterated by
Joseph Stalin’s Atheist regime in the mid-20th century but has since
experienced resurgence as a symbol of Russian Nationalism. The Greek Orthodox Church has also seen resurgence
since they shook the bonds of their Turkish overlords just prior to WWI. *Interesting
historical note: Though battered and destitute, the Greeks joined the Allies
against the Central Powers to completely defeat the (Turkish) Ottoman Empire in
WWI. Orthodox Christianity, though
larger than it was 50 years ago, is easily the smallest branch of
Christianity.
Protestantism
Origin: The Bible#Luther#Tyndale, “Grace Alone”
III PROTESTANTISM
Protestantism
is the general term given to all Non-Catholic, Non-Orthodox Christians. If you aren’t Catholic or Orthodox, but
consider yourself Christian you are a Protestant. Protestantism began in 1517 when Martin
Luther posted his grievances on the church doors (the social media outlet of
the day) as previously mentioned,
Luther’s theology is best summed up by the phrase: “God is all you need”
or “Grace alone”. Scripture and a
personal relationship with God allow us to enter into Heaven. No church or
human representative of God can neither save nor damn you.
Protestant denominations are like ice cream:
they come in many different flavors but are made the same way, from the same
core ingredients. That being said.....
Protestants really branched off, shortly after Luther settled down in relative
peace. I cannot adequately explain the Protestant
Reformation in this blog, as the subject has filled volumes. I’ll mention a few
names and highlights as best I can, but this is an oversimplified narrative at
best (The same could be said for this entire blog!).
Luther
never sought to start a new movement and had no desire lead, let alone attempt
to structure, the movement that he inadvertently began. Luther had hoped to reform the Catholic
Church, not start his own church. The
quickly after Luther and others like him, began to translate and circulate Bibles in
common speech, new churches sprouted like wild flowers. These movements were all fairly similar,
relying on God and reason to interpret scripture. The Catholic Church strongly opposed such
actions, and for good reason! People are
flawed, with a selfish nature, thus the power of God's word is dangerous in the wrong hands. The idea was: If people
are able to interpret scripture, there will surely be those that interpret
scripture for their own gain. *a power the Catholics had until that time, monopolized...
Though conflict erupted over the sudden
upset to papal authority, Germany, Switzerland and the Netherlands after much tragedy,
eventually managed to achieve some semblance of peace between Catholic and
Protestant adherents. Many powers took
advantage of the opportunity presented by religious passions, and a massive war
ensued, lasting for some 30 years.
France, under the infamous Cardinal Richelieu, endeavored to balance
powers, and actually supported both sides of the conflict, to his own people’s
peril. France, Ireland, and Scotland
remained Catholic. (England was
Catholic up until the Catholic Church’s policy on divorce became an
inconvenience to King Henry VIII.)
King Henry VIII of England used the
conflict to divorce his Catholic wife, in favor of his ill-fated young
protestant mistress. John Wycliffe and
John Calvin became household names in England, though while Wycliffe’s name remains
untarnished, Calvin’s puritan movement, supported by the Crown, began to
mercilessly purge all Catholic Churches of treasure and “pomp and
circumstance.” They also began to purge
England and Ireland of Catholics and Irish-(a war that continues to a minor
extent today). Many pacifist Protestants, exiled puritans,
and Irish sought safe harborage in other nations and colonies.
The relative independence experienced
by colonists allowed Christians of various "flavors" to flourish.
In the English colonies, unity was essential for survival. Religious tolerance existed because the early
colonists were too busy fighting starvation and the elements to fight each
other. Though there was a certain amount
of tension between the various Protestant groups and Catholics, rarely, if
ever, resulted in bloodshed. Protestant
groups that shared a mutual understandings of scripture, conducted regular
devotionals and Bible studies. Though
all held the same core beliefs, some focused more on one aspect of Christ and
his teachings than another.
Denominations eventually developed
into organized faith branches: Those
that were drawn more to doctrine and tradition than on matters of the Spirit
would attend an Episcopalian church.
Those focused on the methods of the Spirit would attend a Methodist
church, so on and so forth. Protestantism’s greatest strength is its absence of
uniformity, in practice but not in core doctrine. A true protestant believes that anyone who
accepts Christ as savior, repents of sin (Sin, being clearly defined in scripture),
and agrees to try to live as Christ lived is a Christian brother and
a fellow soldier in the war against evil.
I say true Protestants
because hard line Puritan-Calvinist/Anabaptists, often defined sin according to
their own twisted/flawed, extra-biblical interpretations. Some of those “sins” remain in most Church
doctrine found in the United States because the United States of America was
the first Protestant state built on protestant principles. Protestant principles are all basically the same and have not changed since the founding of this nation: God’s grace and hard work, which are synonymous
with liberty, and capitalism, *if that doesn't describe American culture, then not only were our founder's deists, but they were also monkeys' uncles!
One of the biggest difference between
the high church Christians and the Non-Anglican/Presbyterian, Protestant Church
is that Church attendance and clerical leadership is recommended, but not
required for salvation. Jesus told us to go out unto all the world, not go unto the temple once a week. Church is to be used to provide education and support, the mission is given to ALL and is outside of the church walls. Again
Protestantism varies wildly, so this is a historically based generalization.
(*Many modern Catholic, Anglican/Presbyterian
Churches also share this view, it varies according to the pastor. I’ve heard of modern Lutheran ministers for instance, that were
quicker to denounce a Baptist as a heretic, than a Renascence Bishop would
denounce a Cathar!)
Exactly what constitutes as sin is often a
point of contention in Protestantism, as it was in the early church. *Read the New Testament! The
advantage of High Churches, is that the Archbishop or Pope is permitted to
interpret what scripture says, resulting in a uniform understanding of
expectations and a clear moral code.
Protestantism’s lack of centralized power allows for a certain amount of
individual interpretation, which has been problematic, to say the least. I will list a few of the most common sins,
with a brief explanation: * the following moral standard is
also held by those that are considered false
witnesses by the Church, such as Mormons, Jehovah’s Witnesses, & etc.
● Lie: Honesty is the best policy
● Murder: To end the life of anyone made
in the image of God, (Mankind). If it
has a heartbeat, it is alive and should remain so.
(Self-defense does not = murder, it
is a prevention of it.)
● Blaspheme: To do or say anything
contrary to Christ, especially espousing it as truth.
● Curse: To call forth evil wrath (Satan)
onto someone, finding pleasure in the thought of that person’s damnation.
● False witness: To claim to be teaching
Christ’s message and philosophy but actually teaching Man’s/Satan’s or
otherwise lead the faithful into sin. (Some cultures, mainly the U.S., put the use of tobacco and alcohol in
this category, though drunkenness is universally condemned.)
● Pride: To live according to your own
will and self-righteousness, never humbling yourself to God.
● Idolatry: Putting anything as priority
above God or even at his level. (Man, animal, object, or activity.)
● Lust (covetous behavior): We all have
desires, but those desires become sin when they lead us to hurt others, or when
coming to the place in our hearts where we would, out of our own selfishness,
be willing that others should suffer.
● Adultery: Christian marriage is a
covenant designed to mirror the relationship between Christ and the Church,
thus it is an eternal institution between two people and God. Covenants are not contracts. Though the Israelites violated God’s
covenant, it never ended and they remain God’s people. Though we sin, God takes us back. *Read Hosea
*For more information on the
reformation, and understanding the fears, and actions of those living through
it, I recommend Dan Carlin’s podcast on the events that transpired in Post-Catholic
Munster (Germany): http://www.dancarlin.com/product/hardcore-history-48-prophets-of-doom/
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