RELI 448N Discussion What Makes Christianity Unique?
RELI 448N Discussion What Makes Christianity Unique?
RELI 448N Discussion What Makes Christianity Unique?
The Trinity is a mysterious and contradictory belief of the oneness of God. Other religions may see the Trinity as not being one single God, and may argue that this is idolizing other Gods. “Christians have often been suspected of harboring polytheist sentiments” (Muller, 2019). As a Christian myself, I was not brought up with the belief of three Gods or different Gods, it was always one God and the Trinity composed of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The Trinity was always described to me as a mystery, “perhaps more accessible to the heart than the head”, as great theologians have believed (Muller, 2019). I can also say like you did, that when I have to do something difficult at work, I always turn to prayer to ease my anxiety and help me do my best. I have always left my shifts knowing I did everything I could and in good conscious.
Muller, R. (2019). The non-translatability of the Holy Trinity. Theological Studies 75 (1), p.1-8.
As humans, we always need something to encourage us in life because we are often faced with challenges that can push us to want to give up in life. Christianity is one of those religions that is very special and unique. Its uniqueness lies in its proclamation or way or worship, that is, they believe in the trinitarian God, the resurrection, and the second coming of Jesus. It is a belief about Jesus Christ who is the son of God and God himself.
It is encouraging that you discussed that the Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit as the three major beliefs in Christianity. By saying the trinity alone, you are putting together the three persons, which makes it one belief and not three separate beliefs
I chose to write about option two. There are many issues each religion faces today but Christianity faces quite a few. The first issue being of gender roles. Females have come a long way and, in many religions, now are allowed to be thought of equally. For Protestantism, women are typically treated equally and can hold higher roles. “However, Catholicism and the Orthodox and Eastern churches do not accept the ordination of females” (Molloy, 2020). Catholicism has refused to change its stance on this modern-day issue as of yet.
Another modern-day issue Christianity face is its image to most Americans. There have been and still are many issues concerning molestation and unconsented sex. Each branch of Christianity has helped shape America and its people, but this is dwindling. “Yet, contemporary Americans are hard pressed to identify any specific value added. In a period of history where image is reality, and life-changing decisions are made on the basis of such images, the church is in desperate need of a more positive and accessible image” (“The 10 biggest issues Christian Americans are facing today”, n.d.).
Click here to ORDER an A++ paper from our Verified MASTERS and DOCTORATE WRITERS RELI 448N Discussion What Makes Christianity Unique?:
The third issue is of moral nature. Christianity proclaims the truths of Jesus that science feels it can disprove and many people start to question the fundamentals of the religion now. They vow to help others in need, but many dispute and discuss who is to be helped. Such as only help other Christians or everyone and what kind of help should be given (Molloy, 2020). These are issues being seen now by non-Christians and Christians alike. Moral disputes on who ought to be given help and who to influence.
Catholicism is struggling to respond to the sexual abuse scandals that have arisen and continue to come up. The American bishop himself attempted to create new policies regarding sexual abuse prevention, it later came out that he himself had committed sexual abuse. These incidents are not only happening to children but to adults attempting to become apart of the church as well. According to Bruenig, Pope Francis has expanded his definition of “vulnerable adults” which had only included physical and mental disorders, to now adults that can be easily persuaded, such as junior priests or seminarians who must be ordained by the bishops they work under (2020). While bishops and the Pope are trying to make new policies to prevent sexual abuse, they still have a long way to go and most people do not feel like they have made much headway in their responses.
Im not sure how one of these issues affirms or challenges my professional practice. Potentially the moral issue of Christianity and who it helps. I do not work at a religious hospital but have applied to them before. I am not particularly very religious and was never baptized. I found the application process quite difficult because it wanted to know how I prayed and would pray with my patients. While I believe everyone is greatly allowed to have their own beliefs and I am willing to help however I can with their healing process mentally, I felt as though because I wasn’t of religious background, they wouldn’t allow me to work for them. I have a fundamental and somewhat moral issue with this because I have the same credentials and am just as willing to learn and help my patients however I can. I understand it is a religious hospital, but in the end, we are all healthcare providers trying to help the population.
Best,
References
Bruenig, E. (2020, November 10,). The catholic sex abuse crisis is far from over. The New York Times Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/10/opinion/McCarrick-Catholic-sex-abuse.htmlLinks to an external site.
Molloy, M. (2020). Experiencing the world’s religions – tradition, challenge, and change (8th ed.). 2 Penn Plaza, New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Education.
The 10 biggest issues christian americans are facing today. Retrieved from https://www.beliefnet.com/faiths/christianity/galleries/the-10-biggest-issues-christian-americans-are-facing-today.aspx
I have to admit I was skeptical about answering my post with option two. You have presented it in a way that highlights many of the issues facing Christianity in a simplified and understandable way. Between the gender issues, due to the dwindling male population joining religions in leadership rolls should force a change in the gender equality arena, and then the unconsented sex issues will become another issue possibly forcing change. Moral issues within our religious beliefs are slowly becoming an issue that will raise concern among the leadership. I am of the opinion that society in general is becoming a “me first” society and that the moral standard is taking a step backwards. Even the most faithful are unknowingly or are unconcerned with the belief in helping other human beings equally. I enjoyed reading your post and wish you continued success.
Your description of what certain religious hospitals should or should not require is an interesting issue, and not one that we should overlook or dismiss too quickly. Often times what we find in situations like these there a number issues and opinions getting caught up into one situation. First, you have your rights as a potential employee. Second, you have the hospitals or healthcare providers point of view, and what they view as an important requirement that they feel is in line with their religious beliefs. Third, we have a political or legal point of view. In all three situations, there are very strong arguments that people can make, and seldom will you find all parties agreeing on which one that could and should be followed.
At the end of the day, what we do know is that there are never easy answers. Each situation often presents us with a new and challenging twist, and I don’t see the situation getting any easier in the future.
Only some communities think that other communities make use of the term “catholic” accurately. Additionally, only a few communities think that another towns have apostolic succession also. For instance, the Catholic Church thinks the Eastern Orthodox have apostolic succession. Nevertheless, the Catholic Church doesn’t think that the Lutherans or Anglicans have it. Eastern Orthodox have beliefs that are similar concerning Lutherans and Anglicans. Only some Eastern Orthodox think the Catholic Church has apostolic succession. Various users of the Eastern Orthodox churches have unique views. Catholicism was begun as an outcome of Jesus of Nazareth, a Jewish male who Christians think would be the Son of God, a Christian belief referred to as the Trinity (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) (Molloy, 2020). Jesus is believed by catholics being a descendant of David, a Jewish king from a very long time ago. Jesus was crucified by the Romans in the entire year thirty three AD. Catholics think Jesus rose out of the old, and spoke to the followers of his, known as the 12 Apostles. Additionally they think Jesus rose into Heaven, after which directed the Holy Spirit to guide the followers of his in an event referred to as Pentecost.
Molloy, M. (2020). Experiencing the world’s religions – tradition, challenge, and change (8th ed.). 2 Penn Plaza, New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Education.
Hello Professor and Fellow Classmates,
I have chosen option 2 again. I will also choose Catholic as my Christian denomination. In order for me to identify and examine three issues, scientific or moral, facing Christianity in 21st century America, I will have to start by giving my own opinion about the Religion/Christianity that is in my world today. I grew up in a deeply religious home. Catholic school, in the church choir, a daughter of Mary, praying the rosary, mass every Sunday and let us not forget confession. When I became an adult I also had my children in a Catholic school until I could afford it no more. I walked away from the church but not my beliefs. Today, I am a non-practicing Catholic but I still pray at home by myself. The church is not what it used to be for me. The satisfaction and feeling of joy as well as purity is no longer there. I ask myself, what happened? I am actually hoping to find the answer with this assignment.
Three of the issues that Christianity is facing today in my opinion are Relaxed morality, Biblical Illiteracy/ Anti-intellectualism, and a Definite Decline in Attendance. I have noticed that the Christians of today have relaxed their views on morality, things that should really matter such as abortion, marriage, and homosexuality. Even the Pope has come out expressing that it is O.K. to be gay and abortion is acceptable. Marriage now is a joke because the couples have the wedding of their dreams only to be divorced within 5 years. They do not know how to fight for their marriage to survive.
How are you supposed to teach your children about the Bible, when you yourself have biblical illiteracy/ anti-intellectualism. If a person does not read the Bible, you can not be expected to know what it says and therefore how can you be expected to know what the biblical doctrine is? The fundamentals of Scripture need to be relearned and it all has to start at the top with the Pope so that our priests can actually do their job and teach us the biblical doctrine and at the same time quench our thirst for the word of God, which will in turn fulfill the satisfaction and feeling of joy as well as purity that we so desperately need.
By doing the above the great decline in attendance in churches might stop. We might just believe that going to church and listening to the gospel, or reading the epistles to us, is what we need in our lives. “The word epistle means “letter.” It is an appropriate label for most of these works, which were written to instruct, to encourage, and to solve problems”(Molloy, 2020). The first step will have to come from the church itself. Make the effort of changing whatever strategies that are being used to something that will make parishioners want to come back. Maybe try not being so radical but at the same time do not change our moral beliefs that Catholicism stands for. “The church must understand that Jesus Christ is the Head of the Church, and the Biblical order of organization is to be followed. Timothy 3:5”(Journeyonline.org).
Basically I am part of the reason/problem that there is a decline in attendance in church. The fact that I work every weekend does not allow me to go to church on Sundays. Therefore I will have to say that this issue actually challenges my professional practice. Due to my profession I am not able to go to church but then again the church has done nothing to make me want to come back.
References:
Molloy, M. (2020). Experiencing the world’s religions: Tradition, challenge, and change (8th
ed.). McGraw-Hill.
Journeyonline.org. The 21st Century Church will face challenges never dreamed possible.
Your mention of biblical illiteracy remeinded me of a study from 2010. It is a Pew Research study that revealed what I thought were some very interesting results about basic religious knowledge among various groups of religious and non-religious Americans.
Here were the basic conclusions.
“Atheists and agnostics, Jews and Mormons are among the highest-scoring groups on a new survey of religious knowledge, outperforming evangelical Protestants, mainline Protestants and Catholics on questions about the core teachings, history and leading figures of major world religions.
On average, Americans correctly answer 16 of the 32 religious knowledge questions on the survey by the Pew Research Center’s Forum on Religion & Public Life. Atheists and agnostics average 20.9 correct answers. Jews and Mormons do about as well, averaging 20.5 and 20.3 correct answers, respectively. Protestants as a whole average 16 correct answers; Catholics as a whole, 14.7. Atheists and agnostics, Jews and Mormons perform better than other groups on the survey even after controlling for differing levels of education.” (Pew Research Center, 2010).
No matter what faith you follow, I think these numbers are a bit alarming.
U.S. Religious Knowledge Survey. (2010, September 28). Retrieved from https://www.pewforum.org/2010/09/28/u-s-religious-knowledge-survey/