What Christianity Means to Me

I am writing this Hub in response to a request on this topic: What Christianity Means to Me. It is a personal statement and is not intended to represent anyone else or any individual church or denomination.

Christianity is a religion based on the teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. Because he was called The Christ by his followers, they became known as Christians. In the Book of Acts Luke records that followers were first called Christians in the city of Antioch in Syria (Acts 11:19-30). Jesus called his followers “the Church.” After Peter proclaimed that Jesus was the Christ, the son of the Living God, Jesus said “I will build my church upon this rock (Matthew 16:16-18).” In Acts 2 we find the dejected disciples formed into a cohesive body of believers by the coming of the Holy Spirit. They were filled with power and energy to spread the Gospel message to the known world. Now Christianity and “the Church” have become synonymous.

Although there was only one recognized Church until the Reformation, there was much argument over beliefs and practices. A great deal of what the Church practiced as sacraments and holy acts was challenged as human interference in God’s plan. Even before the Reformation there were times when the Church was tested and purified. The human element in the Church contaminated God’s intent, and periodically, it was dealt with. After the Protestant Reformation in Europe and the English Reformation, many denominations were formed and are still forming today.

These diverse groups and organizations all belong under the grand umbrella of Christianity as long as they proclaim the core beliefs found in the New Testament: the divinity of Jesus, the virgin birth, the death and bodily resurrection of Jesus, the authority of God the Father, the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, the triune God, the communion of believers, and eternal life.

To me, Christianity means the attempts of human agents to build a mechanism of worship and work to honor and glorify God. The fact that we are human with flawed character and sinful natures allows errors and distortion in the vehicle Jesus envisioned. The Church as we see her on earth has not always been beautiful; sometimes she was arrogant or self-serving rather than humble and God-serving. Martin Luther took her to task with 95 theses describing her failures to honor her God and her mission. She was the cause of the bloody and violent instances of the Crusades killing innocent people and ravaging cities and populations for relics or gold or glory. The Indians of North and South America were ravaged, murdered and violated unless they engaged in mass conversions. Constantine and Charlemagne converted armies or massacred them in the name of the Church.

I feel shame when I find flaws in Church doctrine or beliefs that cause harm to people or populations. I try to justify or correct those things when I speak with friends or when I write about them. Sometimes I forget that my connection to God is not through the Church, but it is the assembly of people I worship with or perform acts of mercy in mission with—the Church is the vehicle to operate in the world. From my perspective, the Church, even with all the denominations and presentations in our world, is flawed. We fight among ourselves to be right or powerful or big.

Sometimes I am proud of the Church: It ministers to needs and preaches salvation and provides education and clean water and homes for orphans. I rejoice in the efforts of the Church even if it is not my denomination that is doing the work. I still identify myself with it. In spite of my somewhat negative and painful evaluation of the Church, I find myself giddy with excitement to be included in it. I am but one drop of water in the ocean called the Church, one brick in the wall Paul called the Temple, one cell in the Body of Christ on earth. I am reminded of C. S. Lewis’s description in The Screwtape Letters . Screwtape, a demon, writes to his nephew Wormwood that the humans cannot see “the Church as we see her spread out through all time and space and rooted in eternity, terrible as an army with banners.” When I consider the Church from that perspective, I am filled with everlasting joy.