The Basics of Christian Beliefs

 God, Jesus and the saints

God

The Bible is the basis of Christian beliefs

Christians believe that there is only one God, whom they call Father as Jesus Christ taught them.

Jesus

Christians recognise Jesus as the Son of God who was sent to save mankind from death and sin.

Jesus Christ taught that he was Son of God. His teachings can be summarised, briefly as the love of God and love of one's neighbour.

Jesus said that he had come to fulfil God's law rather than teach it.

Justification by faith

Christians believe in justification by faith - that through their belief in Jesus as the Son of God, and in his death and resurrection, they can have a right relationship with God whose forgiveness was made once and for all through the death of Jesus Christ.

The Trinity

Christians believe in the Trinity - that is, in God as Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

Some confuse this and think that Christians believe in three separate gods, which they don't.

Christians believe that God took human form as Jesus Christ and that God is present today through the work of the Holy Spirit and evident in the actions of believers.

Life after death

Christians believe that there is a life after earthly death.

While the actual nature of this life is not known, Christians believe that many spiritual experiences in this life help to give them some idea of what eternal life will be like.

The Saints

These days, the word saint is most commonly used to refer to a Christian who has lived a particularly good and holy life on earth, and with whom miracles are claimed to have been associated after their death.

The formal title of Saint is conferred by the Roman Catholic and Orthodox Churches through a process called canonisation.

Members of these Churches also believe that Saints created in this way can intercede with God on behalf of people who are alive today. This is not accepted by most Protestants.

In the Bible, however, the word saint is used as a description of anyone who is a committed believer, particularly by St. Paul in the New Testament (e.g. Ephesians 1.1. and 1.15).

Prayer and ritual

Prayer

Candles lit in church during Christian prayerCandles ©

Prayer is the means by which Christians communicate with their God.

The New Testament records that Jesus taught his disciples how to pray and that he encouraged them to address God as Father. Christians believe that they continue this tradition.

Sometimes the prayers are formal and part of a ritual laid down for hundreds of years.

Others are personal and spontaneous, and come from personal or group need.

Whilst prayer is often directed to God as Father, as taught by Jesus, some traditions encourage prayer to God through intermediaries such as saints and martyrs.

Prayers through Mary, as the mother of God, are central to some churches and form a traditional part of their worship.

The Church

The Christian church is fundamental to believers. Although it has many faults it is recognised as God's body on earth.

The church is the place where the Christian faith is nurtured and where the Holy Spirit is manifest on earth.

It is where Christians are received into the faith and where they are brought together into one body through the Eucharist.

Baptism

The Christian church believes in one baptism into the Christian church, whether this be as an infant or as an adult, as an outward sign of an inward commitment to the teachings of Jesus.

Eucharist

Eucharist is a Greek word for thanksgiving. Its celebration is to commemorate the final meal that Jesus took with his disciples before his death (the Last Supper).

This rite comes from the actions of Jesus who, at that meal, took bread and wine and asked his disciples to consume them and continue to do so in memory of him.

Christian priest's hand holding thin, white Communion wafers

At the meal, the wine represented his blood and the bread his body.

The Eucharist (also known as a Communion meal in some churches) is central to the Church and is recognised as a sign of unity amongst Christians.

Different Churches understand and practice the Eucharist in different ways. As a result, the central ideas of the Eucharist can cause disharmony rather than unity.

For example, the idea that Christ is present in the bread and wine is interpreted literally by some churches and metaphorically by others. This has given rise to substantial and often irreconcilable disagreement.

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The Trinity

Christian beliefs concerning God

There is only one God

God is a Trinity of Father, Son and Holy Spirit

God is perfect

God is omnipotent

God is everywhere

God knows everything

God created the universe

God keeps the universe going

God intervenes in the universe

God loves everyone unconditionally (though people have to comply with various conditions in order to achieve salvation)

Human beings can get to know God through prayer, worship, love, and mystical experiences

Human beings can get to know God through God's grace - that is through his love and his power

God the Son

God lived on earth as Jesus

Jesus was both wholly God and wholly human

Jesus was born to a human woman, Mary, but conceived of the Holy Spirit

Because Jesus was wholly human he was subject to pain, suffering, and sorrow like other human beings

Jesus was executed by crucifixion but rose from the dead at the Resurrection

Jesus's life provides a perfect example of how God wants people to live

Jesus died on the Cross so that those who believe in him will be forgiven all their sins

God the Holy Spirit

After the Resurrection, Jesus remained on earth for only a few days before going up into Heaven

Jesus promised that he would stay with his followers, so after he went to Heaven he sent his Spirit to guide them

The Holy Spirit continues to guide, comfort, and encourage Christians.