Eastern Orthodox Catholics and Roman Catholics - Coursework Example

? Religion and Theology Describe the teachings of Paul. How do they differ from those of Jesus in the Gospels? Paul wrote his epistles when there were no written gospels at that time. Even before his death, there were no written gospels, and for Paul a “gospel” means “good news” (of Christ). There were some changes after Jesus’ ascension. It was time when events of his life were communicated verbally among the disciples. Jesus practiced the Aramaic language with his apostles, and he was much concerned about Hebrew and Greek. Paul was unaware of Jesus' life and he did not know about the facts from the life of Jesus at all. Paul met Peter and James, a brother of Jesus. Paul was not acquainted with the other apostles. The main differences in Paul's ideas were the following: he did not mention anything about Miracles, Parables, Birth, Mary and Joseph, the Lord's Prayer, etc. Paul did not draw parallels between relations of a man to God's son. Graham Stanton, Professor of New Testament Studies in the University of London, explains Paul's failure as a failure of Jesus' teachings misinterpretation. He says: "Paul's failure to refer more frequently to the actions and teaching of Jesus is 'baffling'" (“What did Paul know about Jesus?” n.d.) 2.Explain the schism between the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches. Eastern Orthodox Catholics and Roman Catholics have experienced a serious split which is known as the East-West Schism (or Great Schism) of 1054. Pope Leo III crowned Charlemagne, King of the Franks, as Holy Roman Emperor in 800. The Byzantine Empire was undermined in this case. Barbarian invasions intimidated destruction of the Empire. The Eastern Church became the Greek Orthodox Church and it created different types of ties with Rome and the Roman Catholic Church (“The split,” n.d.). The Eastern Church and Western Church had been separated for centuries because of the geographical position, ignorance against Latin traditions, etc. The West (Latin) tradition was more practical and the divinity of Christ was positioned at the highest point. As a result, there are different branches of Eastern Orthodox churches such as Ukrainian, Ruthenian, Romanian, Greek Catholic and some others (“The split,” n.d.). 3.What issues did each of the Protestant Reformers (Luther, Calvin, the English Reformers) have with the Roman Catholic Church? Be specific. Martin Luther proclaimed his 95 propositions against the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church and he denied this false teaching. Luther undermined a strong position of the Pope. The Protestant Reformation began and there was a need to reform and return biblical doctrines. Luther initiated four major divisions of Protestantism such as Lutheran, Reformed, Anabaptist, and Anglican. Godly men in different countries had a perfect opportunity to restore churches and find out there some biblical roots (“What was the Protestant Reformation?” n.d.). John Calvin was another remarkable reformer and he participated in the Protestant Reformation. Calvin’s argument against his Catholic opponents was well-known all over the world. His movement and initiation to renovate biblical ideas and principles were the most important factors for further development of the Protestant movement. There are also representatives of the English Reformation, such as the English King Henry VIII, who separated from the English church and made a division between this church and the Roman Catholic Church. This split means another serious separation because the Roman Catholic Church was against English King Henry VIII’s marriage to another girl. 4.There is a wide variation in Christianity as it is currently practiced. Identify and explain at least three points of difference among Christian groups. There are many interesting modern subgroups in Christianity. The Amish are an American Protestant group that consists of 200,000 members who are rooted in the European Anabaptists originated from the USA and escaped from a centennial persecution (“Introduction and history,” n.d.). Their life style tradition is very weird and these old-fashioned subgroups have an interesting "lifestyle choice." Another movement is the Christadelphian. This subgroup is a non-Trinitarian, millennial Christian group and they are connected with understanding of the Bible and Christianity. This group is interested in faith and practice of the early Christian Church. The name of this group is translated from Greek as "brothers (and sisters) in Christ" (“Introduction and history,” n.d.). The Church of Scotland has also a unique and individual character. It is one of the branches of the Protestant Christian Church. This subgroup was established in 400 CE. John Knox and others are often associated with this subgroup. Actually, each of these subgroups of church has their own principles and religious laws. They are different by their national peculiarities and common Christian traditions. 5.Pick one description from the section of subdivisions from your virtual tour. Describe how it developed and why it still exists. To my mind, Baptist churches are the most influential ones. Human minds are subjected to external pressures and influences of the churches. Baptists have developed one of the largest Christian churches in the world. Beginning from the nineteenth century, the followers of this movement started associating them with this name, "Baptism." The roots of Baptism can be found in 16th century Holland. The main beliefs of Baptists were as follows: "The Bible is the only guide in solving different problems and issues of faith. Believers should join the church only and not to visit it only because of their local dwelling near it. Only believers and not bishops should rule in the Church" (“Introduction and history,” n.d.). In 1612, Helwys established the first Baptist church on the English land. There are two main divisions of Baptism: the first is that Baptists believed that when Christ died on the cross, he saved the lives of all people in the world in general. The subgroup of particular Baptists was driven by the main traditions of Calvinism. It means that they interpreted the death of Christ as devotion to a certain group of selected people. There were different periods in Baptism formation. In 17th and 19th centuries, they were mainly persecuted. Nowadays the global community has a chance to participate in the Baptist World Alliance founded in 1905 (“Introduction and history,” n.d.). Christian education, religious freedom, human rights and missions are outlined in the documents of this group. Everyone is equal in Baptism. There is a vague option of outside interference in this movement. Therefore, Baptists are against the idea that the church should be established or belong to the state. References Introduction and history. Baptist churches. (n.d.). BBC. Retrieved February 20, 2012 from http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/christianity/subdivisions/baptist_1.shtml. The split that created Roman Catholics and Eastern Orthodox Catholics. (n.d.). Dummies. Retrieved February 20, 2012 from http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/the-split-that-created-roman-catholics-and-eastern.html. What did Paul know about Jesus? (n.d.). Retrieved February 20, 2012 from http://www.bowness.demon.co.uk/paul.htm. What was the Protestant Reformation? (n.d.). Retrieved February 20, 2012 from http://www.gotquestions.org/Protestant-Reformation.html. Read More