Running Head: Jesus of Nazareth

Jesus of Nazareth
Andrew McCarty
University of Kentucky

Abstract

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Being the worlds most practiced faith means that Christianity's influence can be felt in all
corners of the world. This religion can be traced back a thousand years and has always been a
major and evolving faith. Christians are a diverse group of people, all of whom practice their
faith in a unique way. As a faith, it is flexible and adaptive to the needs of its adherents. What is
true of one Christian's beliefs are not typically representative of the whole. There are, however, a
few unifying themes throughout the faith, creating a wonderful melting pot of ideologies and
practices. This adaptability has made Christianity an enduring and popular faith. It is a modern
religion that has kept pace with the needs of its followers.

Jesus of Nazareth

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Christianity is one of the largest faiths in the world. It is a culture that shapes the lives of
everyone in America, even those who do not practice it. The faith has a long history and is full of
misconceptions and stereotypes. I hope to explain the origins and specifics of the religion and is
associated culture while addressing the numerous serotypes that surrounds this diverse and
widespread faith.
Christianity has a huge number of adherents, and with over 2.2 billion practitioners its
followers make up 31.5% of the global religious population ("The Global Religious," 2012).
Christianity is classified as a monotheistic (one god) Abrahamic religion ("Three Religions,"
2002). An Abrahamic religion is one in which the religion considers Abraham to be the first
prophet (religious teacher) of their God. All three of the Abrahamic religions, Christianity,
Judaism, and Islam, share a mother faith originating in the Middle East ("Three Religions,"
2002). The origin of Christianity itself can be traced back to first century Jerusalem. Christianity
has a long history, and has spread throughout the world. At its core, Christianity is a faith that
follows ideologies presented by a Jewish religious prophet reported to be the son of the
Abrahamic God, Jesus Christ.
The prophet Jesus was reportedly born in Bethlehem, and lived out his life preaching the
virtues of his father, God. Christians believe the most import aspect of Jesus's life was when he
"was crucified and executed by the Romans, [and when] he rose from the dead and ascended into
heaven"("Three Relgions,"2002 para. 25). He grew up as the child of a carpenter, and is
described as average looking with a kind demeanor. Many artists have given their own personal
touch to his appearance, but now he is mainly depicted the same way in all paintings. He is
commonly shown as seen below in this public domain scan of a steel engraving:
(Jesus, Wikimedia Commons)

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They believe that through this

suffering and death, Jesus has allowed for
those who accept him as their savior to
follow him into heaven ("Three
Religions," 2002). This has placed Jesus
in a central place in the faith, often
serving as the face of Christianity.
Christians actively try to model their lives into a life similar to Jesus's through kindness and
simple living. One of the most defining characteristics of this faith is the desire to feel a personal
connection with their God. This desire, along with the wide array of followers has led to many
subdivisions in the faith ("Why are there," 2015).
These subdivisions are referred to as denominations ("Why are there," 2015). It is explained
that denominations are a result of not everyone agreeing on how the faith should be practiced.
These disputes often end in yet another new off-branching and formation of a denomination.
These divisions and differences in how the faith is practiced are elegantly phrased in the article,
Why Are There So Many Christian Denominations?" by Northpoint Ministries as: "people from
different cultures will express their faith and worship God in their own distinctive ways. It
shouldnt surprise us if churches in a middle-class Midwest American city are extremely
different from those in a war-torn, poverty-stricken village in Africa" ("Why Are There," 2015).
The modern Christian faith that is practiced in America today can trace its roots to colonial era
political upheaval in Britain. In the late 1400's Catholicism was the main Christian force. This
branch of Christianity was highly organized and ornate, wielding significant religious and
political power. The head of the Catholic Church, the Pope, acted as the voice of the religion.

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This power lead to the king of England at the time, Henry VIII, asking for a marriage annulment
from his then wife, Catharine of Aragon (Foner, 2012, pg.47). The pope refused the king's
request, so in response he formed the Anglican Church of England, creating the first major
Christian denomination (Foner, 2012, pg.47). At the time this was a new and surprising event
because the catholic churches power was rarely questioned.
It was not much farther down the Christian timeline that there was yet another new offshoot
formed because a group of likeminded individuals felt that the Church of England was too
corrupt, leading to the creation of the Puritans (Foner, 2012, pg.64). It was this idea of taking
how your faith should be practiced into your own hands that has become a major theme in
Christianity. From Anglicanism, which branched into Protestantism, and into the countless new
branches of Christianity, it has been shown that this is a flexible and adaptive faith. Christianity
becomes what those practicing it need it to be. It is a modern faith with a wide array applications
and benefits to Christians.
Even with such diversity, modern Christians do share a few common beliefs. According to the
article, "Essential Doctrines of Christianity" by Matt Slick, these basic tenants are that Jesus is to
be worshipped, salvation by grace, Jesus was resurrected, the gospel, and monotheism (Slick,
2015). These principals can be simplified down into believing that their prophet Jesus died for
their sins, living by their Bible, and finally only believing in their one true God. One follower of
this faith feels that to her it "all boils down to believing that Jesus was born, died for our sins,
and was raised for our sins." (Lawson, B, Personal Communication, February 2nd, 2015).
Modern Christianity can also serve as a coping method and a support for those under pressure.
One modern Christian can be quoted as saying that his faith helps him to survive the day to day
struggles he faces in his life (Westling, M, Personal Communication, February 2nd, 2015). Faith

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has always been used as a coping tool, and it is very adaptive at that role. One expression that
can be commonly heard is, "it's in God's hands". Modern Christians will do their best to live by
the principals set in their Bible and leave their fate in the hands of their Lord. The common
theme I noticed in my interviews was the interviewed practitioners of Christian faith to be at
peace with their life, less concerned about worldly affairs, and more focused on their spiritual
state of being.
Christianity, despite its positive aspects, is not a faith without criticisms and stereotypes. There
is a trend in media that those with faith are uneducated and unable to make rational decisions.
Some decry Christians as a group of people with outdated morals, completely incompatible with
modern life. Some evidence used to support this comes from what is viewed as backwards
policies brought forth in politics from those professing to be motivated by their Christian
convictions. Many also reference upheaval and debate surrounding social issues as an example of
outdated and unethical teachings in the Christian faith (Why are millennials, 2015).
The main stereotype faced by the religious population is that many people think they are antiscience and that religious faith holds all scientific fields of inquiry back. The media reinforces
this serotype and many people believe it. However, there is nothing inherently anti-science about
religious faith. In fact, a third of scientists are Christian. Christianity is a reformed progressive
religion that deeply benefits those who practice it. Many Christians see no conflict between their
faith and scientific principles. One Christian can be quoted as saying that science just explains
how her God built and runs the universe (Lawson, B, Personal Communication, February 2nd,
2015). This idea that people of faith are archaic and anti-science is the sort of baseless
overgeneralizations all stereotypes stem from.

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Many people also feel that Christians look down on those who are not part of their faith and
feel superior to them. Many have insisted there is a noticeable elitism when dealing with those of
faith in America. Aggressive conversion tactics and use of political influence are both examples
of how many Americans think that those of faith are unjustly promoting their faith and
discriminating against those who are different.
In some denominations these stereotypes are true. There is an array of aggressive
denominations that seek to assert their own interpretation of their faith on to all others. The
media has provided ample material to reinforce this idea. The pinnacle of these militant churches
is Westboro Baptist Church. Westboro Baptist is based in Topeka Kansas (About Westboro
Baptist, 2015). It is a church that condemns all of America for its perceived sins, and feels that
America is doomed (About Westboro Baptist, 2015). They often protest at funerals for
American soldiers because they feel like its divine will that those people are killed in combat.
This church has received nearly universal scorn from those who are aware of it practices. These
radical ideologies are not always so obvious, and many people can hold their own radical beliefs
but these people are not representative of the faith as a whole.
The diversity and wide array of beliefs of those who practice this faith is the very reason such
broad assumptions cannot be made about Christianity as a whole. Each person practices the faith
in the way they feel is right. Saying one person represents the faith as a whole is inaccurate, and
those claiming to speak for the faith as a whole should be discounted. There is no one authority
that speaks for all practitioners of this religion. While there are prominent and important figures,
such as priests or pastors, they do not have much control over how their congregation feels or
behaves. The closest thing to an authority in the faith is the Catholic pope, and he only can hope
to hold sway with at most the 50.1% of Christians who are Catholic.

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Cross symbolizing diversity in the faith.

Christianity is a diverse faith that has served as a foundation for
a lot of American culture. It is the most widely practiced faith in
the world, and many people and countries sing its praises. It has
become a trend in the media and in pop culture to treat those with
religious convictions as backwards both morally and scientifically.
It is true some branches of the faith practice harsh, uncommon
interpretations of the faith. However on the whole its a modern religion that is completely
shaped by the needs and beliefs of those who practice it. Trying to stereotype or lump together all
who practice the faith is inaccurate and nearly impossible due to this practice of tailoring the
faith to the individuals needs ("The Global Religious," 2012 para. 23).

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References
Larsen, C. Racial Diversity Cross. Retrieved March 10, 2015, from
http://www.dreamstime.com/royalty-free-stock-image-racial-diversity-cross-image9009826

Public Domain (1800's). Retrieved March 9, 2015, from

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Jesus_Christ_ (German_steel_engraving)
_detail.jpg

Slick, M... Essential Doctrines of Christianity. Retrieved March 2, 2015, from

https://carm.org/essential-doctrines-of-christianity

Foner, E. (2012). Give me liberty!: An American history (Seagull third Ed.). New York: W.W.
Norton.
Pew Research Center. (2012, December 17). The Global Religious Landscape. Retrieved
March 1, 2015, from http://www.pewforum.org/2012/12/18/global-religious-landscapeexec/4

Three Religions, One God. (2002, January 1). Retrieved March 2, 2015, from
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/globalconnections/mideast/themes/religion/index.html?
pagewanted=all

Why Are There So Many Christian Denominations? (2015, January 1). Retrieved March 2,
2015, from http://startingpoint.com/member/why-are-there-so-many-christiandenominations/

About Westboro Baptist. (n.d.). Retrieved April 20, 2015, from

http://www.godhatesfags.com/wbcinfo/aboutwbc.html
Why are millennials leaving church? Try atheism. (n.d.). Retrieved April 20, 2015,
from
http://religion.blogs.cnn.com/2013/07/30/why-are-millennials-leavingchurch-try-atheism/

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