Christendom

I thought Christianity would be the religion that I would know the most about of all the worlds major religions, but it turns out that I am wrong again. The more I read about the Christendom the more I am amazed at what I did not know. The fact that Christianity developed from Judaism and was not tolerated for several years in Rome. Until the Edict of Milan, which announced that the Roman Empire would be tolerant of other religions. Constantine and Licinius, the emperors of the western and eastern parts of the empire, signed edict at a wedding in Milan. It stated that the Christians were to have their confiscated property returned. The Edict of Milan was signed in 313CE, the next revolution for Christendom after that was the First Council of Nicaea, in 325. This was important because it was the first meeting of all the bishops of the church, also the Creed of Nicaea was created here. In 392 Christianity became the official religion of the Roman Empire, and the old pagan religion was outlawed. Once the western half of the Roman Empire collapsed, the churches in the western half were no longer connected with emperor and changed as a result. The eastern half of the empire became known as the Byzantine Empire. The Byzantine Empire was then ruled by Constantine the Great until 337, when he died. He is known for helping Christianity spread throughout the Roman Empire. At this point Christianity became more complex, creating different branches and denominations; there was the Catholic church, Eastern Orthodox church, Protestant. Overtime the Christendom has grown from a small Jewish sect to one of the world’s largest religions with billions of followers.

Constantine (the Great?)

A Roman emperor by the name of Constantine I stopped the persecutions of Christians started by his predecessor, Diocletian. During Diocletian’s rule, Christians were not allowed to practice their religion; instead, they were required to follow the Roman gods. In order to enforce this, Diocletian persecuted those who were Christians. In 313, Constantine issued the Edict of Milan which allowed citizens to practice any religion without being punished.
Why did Constantine create the Edict of Milan and convert to Christianity?
Constantine led the Romans to many military victories including the Battle of Milvian Bridge. However, this battle differed from his other battles. Constantine faced Maxentius, a rebellious Caesar, making this a civil war. During this war, Constantine claims that he saw a symbol (The Labarum) which changed his views of Christians from that point on. Constantine believed that the symbol and Christianity helped him win the Battle of Milvian Bridge, so he converted to Christianity. Constantine created the Edict of Milan, supported the Church financially, built basilicas, granted privileges to clergy, and promoted Christians to high office positions.
Constantine earned “the Great” from Christian historians, but should he have deserved this title because he was a Christian? Constantine could have claimed the title through his military achievements as well.
In 337, Constantine fell ill. At this point in his life, he decided to be baptized in the Jordan River (where Jesus himself was baptized). Why did he put off baptism until the last days of his life? Some thought Constantine did this to be forgiven for as much of his sin as possible. However, all sin is forgiven as long as an individual confesses them and attempts to live life according to God. For this reason, I do not believe Constantine to be a good Christian. This is much like Christians today who claim to be Christian because they attend church, but they do not live the way God intends them to live. In both cases, I think hypocritical describes the situations, and for this reason I believe that Constantine does not deserve the title of “the Great.”
However, without Constantine, Christianity could be non-existent today. Constantine’s work of making Christianity popular and ceasing the persecution of Christians helped the religion stay alive and spreading. Today in America, Christianity is the most popular religion, and without Constantine, many Americans, including myself, would follow some other religion. For this reason, I think Constantine deserves the title of “the Great.”

First Council of Nicaea

The First Council of Nicaea is a significant historical event in Christendom. It was a council called by Emperor Constantine I in 325 CE. Its purpose was to basically organize Christianity and set the movement straight. It did this by determining the debates of this early time, for example, when Christ's resurrection should be celebrated.
An important outcome of this event was the first agreed upon doctrine of Christianity. It is known as the Nicene Creed and was stated as follows:

We believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of all things visible and invisible.
And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, begotten of the Father [the only-begotten; that is, of the essence of the Father, God of God], Light of Light, very God of very God, begotten, not made, being of one substance (ὁμοούσιον) with the Father; by whom all things were made [both in heaven and on earth]; who for us men, and for our salvation, came down and was incarnate and was made man; he suffered, and the third day he rose again, ascended into heaven; from thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead.
And in the Holy Ghost.
[But those who say: 'There was a time when he was not;' and 'He was not before he was made;' and 'He was made out of nothing,' or 'He is of another substance' or 'essence,' or 'The Son of God is created,' or 'changeable,' or 'alterable'—they are condemned by the holy catholic and apostolic Church.]

As we can see from this, the council engaged heavily in technical Christology for the first time. Clarifying the divinity of Jesus was vital for the religion as it is the key to Christianity, even today. Along with this Creed, the council developed roughly twenty decrees.
The significance of this one event is incontrovertible as it has had lasting effects for hundreds and hundreds of years. It was the first time that numerous representatives of the Church agreed upon a specific doctoral statement. Along with this, it was the first time the Emperor played a large role in calling members of the Church under his power. Overall, this council remains a major event in the history of Christianity.

Overview of Sacred Texts

The past few weeks I have focused mainly on discussing religions. Continuing the pattern, I thought it would interesting to learn more about what is truly behind some of these religions. If a person is religious, he mostly likely follows and reads a sacred text. The sacred texts contain the central idea(s) of each religion. As a religious person myself, I think without a text there is no solid ground for a religion to build off of, so there is not a reason for religions to exist. For this reason, I find it interesting to discover the history behind these texts.

Some of the oldest known religious texts, Pyramid texts found in Ancient Egypt, date back to 2400 BCE. Another text that dates back to about 2000 BCE is the Epic of Gilgamesh written by Gilgamesh for Sumarians.

The more popular religions in today’s society, Buddhism, Hinduism, Christianity, Judaism, and Islam, have their own sacred texts as well.

Buddhism originated in India and spread throughout Asia and much of the current world. In fact, Buddhism was my ancestors’ religion, and to this very day it influences me to some degree. Buddhist texts include the Buddhavacana and other texts with aspects from the Sutras or Sanskrit, a former text. The main aspect of this sacred text discusses what Buddha thought a life consists of. Buddha argues that an individual’s spirit is in an endless cycle of life and death (reincarnation). In order to end this cycle, one must simply follow Buddha’s teachings and follow the path that he laid out. First, one must meditate, understand the Four Noble Truths , and follow the Noble Eightfold Path that Buddha presented. Eventually, when the individual accomplishes this task, they will be in a stage known as nirvana (no suffering). The sacred texts describe and aid individuals in this process to reach nirvana.

Christianity and its relatives affect United States citizens the most because it is the most popular form of religion. More specifically, being a student from a West Michigan school, Christianity shaped me to be the person I am. Through the Bible , Christians learn what it means to be alive, how to live life on earth, and what afterlife consists of. The Bible consists of two sections, the New Testament and Old Testament. The Old Testament originated from Hebrew scripture and is a collection of books written prior to the life of Jesus. The main difference between the two is organization and division of material. The life and teachings of Jesus, found in the New Testament, drives the religion and discusses the Christian life. Within the New Testament, the life of Jesus Christ and his teachings strikes individuals, making them believers. Lessons vary in difficulty, some as easy as not lying and others having multiple and deeper meanings. Those who dedicate their lives in following the word of Christ enjoy an afterlife in Heaven.

These are not the only sacred texts. For more information on the previously mentioned texts and other texts, visit http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religious_text.