Part of a series of articles on Christianity

History of Christianity Timeline of Christianity The Apostles Ecumenical councils Great Schism The Crusades Reformation Christianity is a monotheistic[1] religion centered on Jesus of Nazareth, and on his life and teachings as presented in the New Testament. ... Christianity is a monotheistic[1] religion centered on Jesus of Nazareth, and on his life and teachings as presented in the New Testament. ... Image File history File links Christian_cross. ... This article outlines the history of Christianity and provides links to relevant topics. ... The purpose of this chronology is to give a detailed account of Christianity from the beginning of the current era to the present. ... The Twelve Apostles (in Koine Greek απόστολος apostolos, Liddell & Scott, Strongs G652, someone sent forth/sent out) were men that according to the Synoptic Gospels and Christian tradition, were chosen from among the disciples of Jesus for a mission. ... See also General Council (disambiguation). ... Great Schism redirects here. ... This article is about the medieval crusades. ... The Protestant Reformation was a movement in the 16th century to reform the Catholic Church in Western Europe. ...

The Trinity God the Father God the Son (Jesus Christ) God the Holy Spirit For other uses, see Trinity (disambiguation). ... In many religions, the supreme God is given the title and attributions of Father. ... This article presents a description of Jesus as based on the views of Christians. ... Jesus (8–2 BC/BCE — 29–36 AD/CE),[1] also known as Jesus of Nazareth, is the central figure of Christianity. ... This page is about the title or the Divine Person. For the Christian figure, see Jesus. ... This article uses excessive clichés and jargon associated with topic . ...

The Bible Old Testament · LXX New Testament The Gospels Ten Commandments Sermon on the Mount For other uses, see Bible (disambiguation). ... NOTE: Judaism commonly uses the term Tanakh, but not Old Testament, because it does not recognize the New Testament as a continuation or completion of the Jewish bible. ... The Septuagint (LXX) is the name commonly given in the West to the Greek Alexandrine translation of the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh/Old Testament) translated some time between the 3rd to 1st century BC. The Septuagint translation includes additional books and chapters of the Hebrew text, including the books of the... John 21:1 Jesus Appears to His Disciples--Alessandro Mantovani: the Vatican, Rome. ... For other uses, see Gospel (disambiguation). ... The Ten Commandments on a monument on the grounds of the Texas State Capitol This 1768 parchment (612x502 mm) by Jekuthiel Sofer emulated 1675 decalogue at the Esnoga synagogue of Amsterdam The Ten Commandments, or Decalogue, are a list of religious and moral imperatives which, according to religious tradition, were... The Sermon on the Mount was, according to the Gospel of Matthew, a particular sermon given by Jesus of Nazareth (estimated around AD 30) on a mountainside to his disciples and a large crowd (Matt 5:1; 7:28). ...

Christian theology Fall of Man · Grace Salvation · Justification Christian worship Antichrist It has been suggested that Christian theological controversy be merged into this article or section. ... Essentially, original sin is the doctrine, shared in one form or another by most Christian churches, that the sin of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden changed or damaged human nature, such that all human beings since then are innately predisposed to sin, and are powerless to overcome... In Christianity, divine grace refers to the sovereign favor of God for humankind, as manifest in the blessings bestowed upon all —irrespective of actions (deeds), earned worth, or proven goodness. ... In religion, salvation refers to being saved from an undesirable state or condition — typically one in which an individual faces the prospect of eternal torment in hell. ... In Christian theology, justification is Gods act of making or declaring a sinner righteous before God. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... In Christian eschatology and Islam, the Antichrist, Anti-christ or Dajjal (literally: anti, opposite; christ, Jesus) has come to mean a person, image of a person, or other entity that is the embodiment of evil and utterly opposed to truth, according to Christianity, while convincingly disguised as wholly good and...

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The trinitarian formula is the phrase "in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit" (original Greek εις το ονομα του πατρος και του υιου και του αγίου πνεύματος, eis to onoma tou patros kai tou huiou kai tou hagiou pneumatos), or words to that form and effect referring to the persons of the Holy Trinity. This article concerns the holy Trinity of Christianity. ...

Biblical origin

These words are quoted from a command of Jesus in Matthew 28:19, commonly called the Great Commission: "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit." The Gospel of Matthew (literally: according to Matthew, Greek: Κατά Μαθθαίον or Κατά Ματθαίον ) is one of the four Gospel accounts of the New Testament. ... The Great Commission is a tenet in Christian theology emphasizing mission work and evangelism, particularly (but not exclusively) emphasized by evangelicals. ...

Use in baptism

According to Roman Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy and most forms of Protestantism, a baptism is not valid if the trinitarian formula is not used in the administration of that sacrament. Consequently, they may not recognize religious communities that baptize without the trinitarian formula—e.g. The Roman Catholic Church, most often spoken of simply as the Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with over one billion members. ... ... Protestantism is one of three primary branches of Christianity. ... Baptism in early Christian art. ... A sacrament is a Christian rite that mediates divine grace—a holy mystery. ...

Unitarians, Branhamists, Frankists, all of whom deny the Trinity—as Christian religions. Some of these other religions (Frankists and Branhamists in particular) use the formula In the name of Jesus (based on Acts 2:38) for baptism, and in their turn re-baptize converts baptized under the trinitarian formula. They claim that previously these would not have been aware that 'Jesus is the Lord', Jesus being the name of the Son, Father and Holy Ghost). Historic Unitarianism believed in the oneness of God as opposed to traditional Christian belief in the Trinity (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit). ... William Marrion Branham (April 6, 1909, Kentucky – December 24, 1965) was an influential Bible minister sometimes credited with founding the Latter Rain Movement within American Pentecostal churches, elements of which are present in most modern Pentecostal and Charismatic churches (although William Branham denied any specific connection with the movement). ... Jacob Frank (יעקב פרנק Yaakov Frank, Jakob Frank) (1726-1791) was a Jewish merchant who claimed to be the Jewish messiah. ...

Jehovah's Witnesses baptize “in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit" but deny the Trinity. They believe Jesus is the "Son of God" not "God the Son" and that the Holy Spirit is God's active power not "God the Holy Spirit".

Other uses

As well as baptism, the formula is used in other prayers, rites, liturgies, and sacraments. One of the most common uses of the Trinitarian invocation is when Catholics, Eastern Orthodox Christians, Anglicans, Lutherans, and others make the Sign of the Cross while reciting the formula. Maria Magdalene in prayer. ... A rite is an established, ceremonious, usually religious act. ... From the Greek word λειτουργια, which can be transliterated as leitourgia, meaning the work of the people, a liturgy comprises a prescribed religious ceremony, according to the traditions of a particular religion; it may be refer to, or include, an elaborate formal ritual (such as the Catholic Mass), a daily... A sacrament is a Christian rite that mediates divine grace. ... The Sign of the Cross is a ritual performed mainly within Latin-Rite Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy and the Oriental Orthodox, as well as Eastern-Rite Catholicism, Anglicanism, and Lutheranism. ...

Views from historical criticism

Biblical scholars from the Jesus Seminar, a group of textual critics (including figures like Robert W. Funk, John Dominic Crossan, Marcus Borg, Bruce D. Chilton, and John S. Kloppenborg), have stated that the whole of chapter 28 is the result of later editorial work on the Gospels and was never uttered by Jesus or his immediate disciples. The Jesus Seminar is a controversial research team of about one hundred academic New Testament scholars founded in 1985 by the late Robert Funk under the auspices of the Westar Institute. ... Robert W. Funk (July 18, 1926-September 3, 2005), was founder of the controversial Jesus Seminar and the nonprofit Westar Institute in Santa Rosa, California. ... John Dominic Crossan (born Nenagh, Co. ... Marcus Borg is a contemporary Jesus Scholar and religious author. ...

These scholars further acknowledge the passage as a valid expression of Trinitarian sentiment reflective of the development of the Trinity idea, and as such still has significance within Christian doctrine, while rejecting the historical connection of the words to the historical figure of Jesus of Nazareth.

They argue, however, that this denial of connection to Jesus does not affect the validity of the passage in such thinking, since it remains in the canon and has been proved through the Christian experience of a Tripartite Monotheist diety. Luke Timothy Johnson, often a critic of the methods of the Jesus Seminar, states in his book The Writings of the New Testament: An Interpretation that his research affirms a view of Matthew 28:19 as apocryphal. In Judeo-Christian theologies, apocrypha refers to religious Sacred text that have questionable authenticity or are otherwise disputed. ...

In other words, these scholars' belief that the passage has no historical foundation (i.e., that Jesus said it) is not to claim that it is irrelevant, since it has shaped the development of Christianity through time.

Others have challenged the work of the Jesus Seminar, arguing that the scholars working on the project began with a conclusion and worked to justify it through their research and exegesis.

Fears of patriarchal influence

From the late twentieth century onwards, many in liberal Christianity have become uncomfortable with the traditional male representation of God and have sought to de-emphasise or eliminate altogether gender-specific references to God. (19th century - 20th century - 21st century - more centuries) Decades: 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s The 20th century lasted from 1901 to 2000 in the Gregorian calendar (often from (1900 to 1999 in common usage). ... For Christian theological modernism in the Roman Catholic Church, see Modernism (Roman Catholicism). ...

Some of these individuals and groups prefer the formula "in the name of the Creator, the Redeemer, and the Sanctifier." The traditionalists respond that all persons of the Trinity are involved in creation, redemption and sanctification, and that attempting to redefine the Trinity in terms of "functions" is essentially a form of Sabellianism, or modalism. God is the divine being that created the omniverse. ... Creation is a doctrinal position in many religions which maintains that one or a group of gods or deities is responsible for creating the universe. ... Redemption can mean several things: Redemption is a religious term synonymous with salvation; or delivery from sins. ... Sanctification or in its verb form, sanctify, literally means to set apart for special use or purpose, that is to make holy or sacred (compare Latin sanctus holy). Therefore sanctification refers to the state or process of being set apart, i. ... In Christianity, Sabellianism (also known as modalism) is the belief that the Father, Son and Holy Spirit are different modes or aspects of one God, rather than three distinct persons. ...

Because of this, the Roman Catholic Church has declared that baptisms carried out under such a formula are not only illicit, but also invalid. Catholic Church redirects here. ...

See also

• Sign of the Cross