Category: Christian Worldview

A Judeo-Christian perspective is principally structured upon a set of laws given by God- The Ten Commandments. These rules are then believed to be fulfilled in Jesus Christ, a Jew believed by Christians to be the saviour promised to them by God, as written in the Hebrew Bible. During his lifetime, he is said to have freed all humans from sin, no matter what their status, race, or gender was. His stay marked a time of compassion and empathy for all, and being fair, was also openly helping and defending women’s worth in society. This then, marked Christianity as very egalitarian during his time.

This egalitarian system however, was quickly set aside by the rise of more patriarchal structures during the spread of Christianity through the Mediterranean and eventually, the Roman Empire. The cultural norms and teachings set by Jesus became contaminated by this change in structure, and soon, women, once again, became subject to prejudice and discrimination. Male sexist domination placed women in the position of “the origin and source of sin, linked to sexuality,” and insisted that women remain subordinate to men. Since then, the growing bureaucratization within Christianity disallowed women to take more active roles of leadership in the church, since none of their positions could come above men. A hierarchy was put into place, and women were placed under mans authority in the church, marriage and in society itself.

Until recent times, the same patriarchal structure remained within society. However, the rise of women’s suffrage also gave rise of awareness, which led to debates regarding the legitimacy of a male-dominated society. As the demand for equality became more rampant, the church became more pressured for action and change, with calls for reforms within its belief and leadership structure coming from outside. The 20th century also birthed more Christianity-based ideas, and with it, an emphasis on the need for every member of the church to be engaged in ministry. This notion led to more women questioning the limits of their roles in the church, and therefore, giving way for more women-held positions, such as clergies in protestant churches. By the early 1990s, women comprised an average of 10% of women clergy in the denominations that officially admit women’s ordination. Although, despite an increasing participation of women in the church, old traditions still posed to be problems for them. Stereotypes derived from biblical text and a “glass-cieling” for women’s leadership still posed as limitations.

Today, modernization has intensified efforts in studying the ‘gender roles’ present in scripture. Modernization has allowed for more conversation regarding the topic, and along with a wider access to global information, many now take it upon themselves to dive deeper on the issue.

Despite this though, female religious leadership still remains to be controversial within Christianity. In a more positive note, women’s suffrage and empowerment efforts have moved Christian leaders to view women with higher regard, with respect to how they were viewed by Christ. It has then been successful in spreading the idea that men and women are fundamentally equal in nature and value. However, the church still takes an ambiguous stance to the idea, because attached to the former is this other ‘complementarian view,’ which is that God has assigned genders different roles in order to accomplish His purpose in the world. This is the reason why today, women still do not have higher roles than men within the church. They are believed to be capable of leadership, but their positions must all still fall under male authority. So now, though many Catholic nuns can take leadership roles in the order, the Pope never allow them to preach as an official clergy.

It is evident then, that though Christianity has been progressive in terms of recognizing the worth and capabilities of women, the patriarchal structure still remains in the leadership positions they can carry out. They still do not have equal access to opportunities with men in the church, and thus, male priority and female submission continues to remain today.

Perhaps you have had this conversation with a close friend. Maybe you have run across this Secular vs. Sacred argument on online forums or social media. Regardless of background or context, many people have been confused by this topic and are perplexed by the lack of clear, undeniable facts. In my research, I have discovered that as there are very few actual facts to answer the question, the journey to a conclusion has been long and difficult. The sides are less clear-cut than would be expected. One side would yell a resounding “No! We should shun any and all worldly influences! All secular music is of the devil!” The other side would answer “Oh, always. Secular music is sooo much better than all those repetitive worship songs.” And yet I suspect that the vast majority of Christians would sit silently in the middle, not quite sure of the answer to this controversial and confusing question. Our influences are a crucial part of how we behave in our walks with Christ. If we cannot decide what influences are kosher for us, we will be handicapped when advising others in their media choices, and ultimately confused when others question our beliefs and decisions regarding what media we allow to influence our lives.

Most Christians support the idea that much secular music is of worldly influences, and that Christians should be very cautious when listening to secular artists, yet we still listen to, and much of the time, endorse secular music. A radical group on the anti-secular side would endorse the idea that all secular music is, indeed, of the devil; whatever does not proceed from faith is sin; we should avoid sinful content at any and all costs. I suspect that much of the church would disagree with much of those blunt theories, and yet many parts of them ring true to biblical standards. The Bible does say, “Whatever is true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable, of excellence, and worthy of praise, think on these things,” (Phillippians 4:8 ESV, paraphrase), and “Whatever does not proceed from faith is sin,” (Romans 14:23 ESV). Then there is the question of profanity. The idea of profanity is against the beliefs of one proclaiming the Christian faith. The fact that much secular music contains some level of profanity motivates them to abhor secular music in general. Also, the fact that there is no Biblical basis for profanity fuels the argument. Profanity tramples on their values. The writers at both churchleaders.com and biblereasons.com point out that any and all music that you listen to will influence you, either negatively or positively. So, in answer to the question posed above, Christians defending this viewpoint would generally say that, no, Christians should avoid secular music and sinful content, and only listen to and expose ourselves to that which glorifies God the Father and Jesus Christ his son.

On the other side, we have some in the church who would say that both contemporary and classic Christian music become boring quite easily; that secular music is very entertaining to listen to; that as long as we are not directly influenced by it, all secular music is O.K. for Christians to enjoy. Catiana Kheiyn at 412teens.org points out that God intended for us to enjoy our own creativity and that secular music is mankind’s creativity expressed. It is argued that everyone else listens to secular music, that it is quite enjoyable, and if you want clean secular music, there is plenty of it out there to entertain yourself with. Daric Ferrell at overcomingchurch.org summarizes it like this, ”Can Christians listen to secular music and still live a respectable Christian life? I would say ‘Yes.’” Some point out that any secular artist can extol righteous values without extolling Christ himself. Among works cited to support this statement is a passage in the book of Acts, chapter 17, verses 22-28, which describe Paul’s use of secular material to draw Gentiles to Christ. This side would support the idea that Bible doesn’t outright tell us to completely disengage from the world, and a few would even argue that even listening to music with explicit or inappropriate lyrics isn’t sinful. In review, those Christian on this side would generally say that, yes, it is fine for Christians to listen to secular music, so long as their attitudes and behavior are not influenced by the potentially sinful content.

So where does that leave us? It leaves us with two very differing views, neither of which is completely endorsed by the Bible, neither of which are held by a majority of believers in the church. What can we do about this dilemma in the church? I think that the first place we should look for advice on this subject is the Bible. The Bible says many different things about worldly influences, but much of the advice presented in the Bible is subject to personal interpretation and application. I (and others: beliefnet.com) believe that the long and short of it is, that there is no one-size-fits-all answer to the question. Different people are influenced by different things in various ways. One person may be influenced by the style of a song, others by the lyrics. It is up to us personally to decide what is “kosher” for us to listen to, and whether or not it affects our faith. We need to seek God in this matter, no matter the circumstances, as he is the founder and perfecter of our faith, and as he knows what is best for us. It is up to us to apply his direction to our daily life, which includes our music choices. I would like to leave you with this thought-provoking quote from Landon Schott over at charismanews.com: “The battle between Spirit and Flesh is won by the one you feed the most.”

When you wake up in the morning, what do you do? Do you brush your teeth, shower, eat, or maybe even hit snooze on your alarm too many times? All of this seems like the norm with society nowadays, and there isn’t any problem with that. Have you ever thought about how you’ve got into this situation though? Maybe not the waking up routine, but more of your life as a whole. What do you do everyday that has been a routine all of your life, and where did these ideas come from? Well, I can provide a little insight into those questions, or more specifically, Christianity can. Early Christianity in Europe can link us to almost all modern culture without being very relevant to this day. But, to get a more firm grip on this concept, we need to know about the roots of Christianity in Europe, the fall of Christianity in Europe, and Christianity’s effect on modern society.

The most logical way to go about this, as with everything else, is to start at the beginning, and what better way to start than with the roots of christianity itself:

The coming of Christianity to Europe may in some ways be read as the leitmotif of the Acts of the Apostles in the New Testament… The church in Gaul is thought by many scholars to have been the source of the earliest Christian missions to the British Isles, which date from the second or third century, when some of the Celtic inhabitants of Britain were converted (hence the usual designation ‘Celtic church’) (encyclopedia).

From this quote we can see that christianity not only started as a religion in Europe very early on, but what was written in the New Testament was written with the purpose of spreading Christianity into Europe, and it’s impact was felt. The religion spread like a wildfire and took almost anything into its grip. People started including this idea into their everyday life. This could have been due to a lot of things, but the main thought was that when people started to think about death or what happened after life, they got scared, and they needed something to fall back onto. Because of this, they turned to religion. And while it was quite obvious that this religion could fuel the actions of almost anyone to do anything, it wasn’t proven until Emperor Constantine:

The event with the most far-reaching consequences for the history of European Christianity, indeed for the history of Christianity everywhere, was the conversion of the emperor Constantine and the ensuing transformation of the Roman Empire into a Christian empire. That change took place on European soil when, in the Battle of the Milvian Bridge on October 28, 312, Constantine defeated the forces of his rival Maxentius, who was emperor for Italy and Africa, and thus became sole emperor. Attributing his victory to the Christian God (encyclopedia).

But, reading this does bring up some questions in most people’s minds, the biggest one being, is all of this power really good for the people? The answer, it seems, is a little more complicated.

Christianiy was able to keep a sort of peace for a while, if you exclude people taking things uncontested “in the name of God”. But, as all things do, Christianity brought some full fledged violence:

Germany, France, and the Netherlands each achieved a settlement of the religious problem by means of war… The population of Lutheran Württemberg, for example, which was occupied by the imperialists between 1634 and 1638, fell from 450,000 to 100,000; material damage was estimated at 34 million thalers (Weinstein).

As the quote states, the most common way to settle disputes was war, and it clearly took a toll. With just a very broad view of what was a very intense time, it’s easy to see that these wars did nothing but damage the integrity of everyone. People are smart though, and even if it did take them a long time to figure out, they did figure out that war was not the best answer:

One hundred and ninety-four European rulers, great and small, were represented at the Congress of Westphalia, and talks went on constantly from the spring of 1643 until the autumn of l648. The outstanding issues of the war were solved in two phases: the first, which lasted from November 1645 until June 1647, saw the chief imperial negotiator, Maximilian, Count Trauttmannsdorf, settle most issues; the second, which continued from then until the treaty of peace was signed in October 1648 (Weinstein).

These resolutions that they discussed for many years seemed to work. And even though countries like France didn’t always agree with the compromises, they knew that they were better than the alternative. With the wars finally behind the countries, the story of christianity leading up to modern day seems to be that of any other religion or leadership. There was corruption, deceit, discontent, and even some rebellion, but at the end of the day, it has lasted the test of time.

With the background of christianity in Europe known, it’s easy now to make connections to modern culture. Obviously I could talk about corruption and war, but what I want to talk about is Christianities effect on modern society, like religion and beliefs:

Surprisingly, Islam has a lot of the same foundations that Christianity has. People of both faiths believe in similar rules given by God for all people and obeying them keeps humankind in a right relationship with God. Both Muslims and most Christians believe Mary was a virgin and that Jesus was born miraculously (Bailey).

As the quote says, there are religions that have some similar beliefs that Christianity has. Now, this is not to say that all religions, even ones with similarities, are direct offshoots of Christianity, but with transformations of many things, including religion, over the years, it is quite safe to say that Christianity has some sort of influence on religion, even if it’s miniscule. But, what about things outside of religion:

A recent study has shown that the rise and spread of stable democracies in the non-Western world can be attributed primarily to the impact of Protestant missionaries. According to a study by sociologist Robert Woodberry,{28} the impact of these missionaries far exceeds that of fifty other control variables such as gross domestic product and whether or not a nation was a British colony. One would think that having a healthy amount of production per individual would be one of the biggest factors leading to a stable democratic government. But the data shows that it has been much more important to have the teaching and leadership development provided by Protestant missionaries (Cable).

As the quote says, christian missionaries not only had an important part in spreading “the word of God”, but they also had an important impact on the leadership roles in current day society. With this being known, it makes me wonder how different society could be today without the impact of christianity, but that research is for a diferent time.

Now that we understand not only the history of Christianity, but the impact it has as well, it’s easy to see how Early Christianity in Europe can link us to almost all modern culture without being very relevant to this day. That’s not to say that it isn’t relevant to this day, but it doesn’t have to be to mold our culture. And whether or not you are religous, there is almost always going to be a connecion to religion in your everyday life.

Native American Culture is something that has been passed down from generation to generation. This culture and religion have had a lot of influence from Christianity and American culture. However, these influences may have not impacted the Native Americans and their culture positively. Christianity and Indigenous American Religions do have some similarities. But just because these two lifestyles have some things in common, that doesn’t mean that everything is perfect between the two. Whether or not the two have some good within them, they have unintentionally brought each other down and have had some negative influence on one another.

Native American culture is a practice that was used far before Christianity was first seen in America. Their lifestyle has been seen as confusing to a vast majority of people because they didn’t have any texts that they followed and not a lot of written information about their group. But this was done because their culture was passed down by word of mouth. It can also be seen as hard to understand because there is no one definitive way of practicing this culture. How they practice everything is impacted by location greatly. As a result of this though, the native american religion has mostly died and doesn’t have as large of a following as it once did. Although, there is a lot of information about the once-popular culture. For example, people of this culture often had ceremonies. Even though the reasoning may vary and how often these occurred may differ from tribe to tribe, they had the same concepts. According to an article written by Christopher Jocks and Lawrence E. Sullivan, it states, “Most traditional Navajo ceremonies are enacted on behalf of individuals in response to specific needs. Most Pueblo ceremonial work is communal, both in participation and in perceived benefit, and is scheduled according to natural cycles.” (Jocks and Sullivan). Participation in these ceremonies is considered very important in this culture. It is often seen as more important than the beliefs. Common ceremonies include coming-of-age practices and initiation ceremonies. In the article American Indian Belief Systems and Traditional Practices, it states, “Cultural interventions include ceremonies of name giving, spiritual cleansing of individuals, as well as homes and offices, and education on tribal traditions and practices..” (Duran P.3). Something this culture believes in strongly is teaching children proper manners and very excellent etiquette. When it comes to talking to elders, meeting new people, and more, they value proper manners and behavior (Jocks and Sullivan). In Native American Culture, treating people in the way that you want to be treated is very important. Lastly, death is a significant thing. According to the article written by Jocks and Sullivan, “ death, is understood as a transition and not an ending. Beliefs about death, and ritual responses to it.Many Native American traditions appear to conceive of human beings as complex entities that bind together different kinds of essences, breaths, or spirits, which are thought to undergo divergent outcomes after death. It is believed that after death some of these essences may be harmful for living people to encounter without ceremonial protection.” (Jocks and Sullivan). This is saying that death is seen as a passageway to be able to handle the essences that come from being a human in their eyes. Furthermore, Native Americans had strong beliefs when it came to health. According to Durans article, Native Americans believed that “Health is not just the absence of disease, it is harmony with oneself, including body, mind, and spirit, harmony with others, and harmony with one’s surroundings or environment. Therefore the concept of spirituality and religion are inseparable from one’s health.” (Duran P.3)

Christianity and Native American culture have a decent amount of common ground. For instance, they both believe in the existence of a single god, which is called monotheism. Although the higher powers may be slightly different, the general idea is similar. According to an article written by the Oklevueha Native American Church, “…both Indigenous American religions and Christianity have the same goal – to bring the individual into harmony with eternal truth and with God or the Great Creator…Increasing in knowledge brings them closer as they realize that terminology and perception are flawed as applied to eternal truth, but that eternal truth is the same for both as they come to understand it more clearly.” (Oklevueha Native American Church) These are some of the things the two cultures have in common. Similarly, they both have similar views in terms of forgiveness. The same article states, “..the concept of repentance or walking in a new way begins with realizing what has been done that is wrong or destructive.” (Oklevueha Native American Church).

When Native Americans and the Europeans first encountered each other, it was hard for them to understand one another. Not only was one invading another’s land, but they also came from totally different religions and cultures. In an essay written in Harvard, it says, “Many of the European missionaries who energetically sought to spread Christianity to Native peoples were motivated by a sense of mission, seeking to bring the Gospel to those who had never had a chance to hear it, thereby offering an opportunity to be “saved.”(President and Fellows of Harvard College and Diana Eck). The new Christians had not only invaded their homes but were imposing their beliefs on people who were content with the way that things were around their environment. Natives were seen as people to be changed, converted, or rescued, and to do that, they had to become new believers in the Christian church. Back when Christians were still new to America, they were harsh and persistent with their ideals of converting everyone to their religion. In an article written by Carolyn Casey, it states, “Mention Christianity and native Americans to some tribal elders, for example, and they will launch into heart-wrenching tales of being forced into boarding schools, banned from speaking their language and forbidden from practic­ing their tribe’s spiritual customs.”(Casey). The new people in America were insanely insistent in their attempts to transform these people into full-fledged Christians.

On the other hand, after a long time together, these Christians grew to stop being so forceful in their attempts at conversion. Instead, they have started to support the Native American Religion. In the article by Carolyn Casey, it states, “Christian churches have begun apologizing for past oppression of Native spirituality and are trying to include Native cultural traditions into the Christian churches that serve them.” (Casey). Christian churches have realized the wrongdoings that had occurred long ago and are doing whatever they can in their power, to make up for their ancestor’s mistakes. They have become much more understanding and unforceful with the Native American Cultures and religions.

In conclusion, Christianity has had a positive and negative impact on the Native American people, cultures, and religions. Although a lot of unfavorable actions had come out of the European’s invasion of the Native Americans’ homes, it eventually became better between the two belief systems. Christian churches have accepted that what has happened in the past was wrong and shouldn’t have occurred, and have been doing their best to make up for those wrongdoings. Even though some of the elders in Native tribes can have some bad memories when it comes to the early Christians in America, they have worked towards forgiveness because of the effort put in by the Christian Churches. Because of these achievements, Christianity and Native American religions can live peacefully among one another.

1. Sullivan, Lawrence E., and Christopher Jocks. “Native American Religions.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., July 2016. Web. 14 Mar 2019. 02.
2. Casey, Carolyn. ‘Crossing Cultures: A growing number of Christian churches work to support, not destroy Indian spirituality.’ Tribal College Journal. 14 May 2012. Web. 14 Mar 2019.
3. Duran, Betty. ‘American Indian Belief Systems and Traditional Practices.’ Tribal Healing to Wellness Courts. 11 Apr 2002. Web. 14 Mar 2019.
4. ‘The Collision of Christianity and American Native Spirituality. | Oklevueha Native American Church.’ Lakota Religion & Native American Church | Oklevueha Native American Church. Web. 14 Mar 2019.
5. ‘First Encounters: Native Americans and Christians | The Pluralism Project.’ The Pluralism Project. Web. 14 Mar 2019.

Christianity is currently the world most followed religion in the world. The religion has about 2.3 billion followers worldwide1 or about 31.2% of the population1 and teaches the teachings of Jesus Christ. Throughout the world, many people choose to follow Christianity as a way to worship ‘God’ and in return, they are able to attain salvation and have a figure to look up to and believe in. Throughout time Christianity can prove its adherents and the society they are a part of with a system and a set of laws that they can follow and trust. Christianity can provide its believers with a sense of purpose and help contribute to their lives by giving them support for when they need it most as well as provide them with a set of goals and ideas to believe in. Christianity at its core help people when they are in need of assistance and provides the support they would need in order to move on in their life.

Christianity is the belief in God, whereas Jesus Crist is a religious leader for Christianity. By being a Christian, a believer is able to have a personal connection with Jesus, Jesus will act like a person who will also ways be with them in every moment. Through the bibles teachings, it tells the believers that being a Christian allows them to have a deep connection with Jesuses, regardless of when and where. In Isaiah teachings it tells god is always with us this can be shown when he speaks of God in the verse ‘Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.’ (Isaiah, 41:10)3. This verse from the bible expresses his ideas on how god will always be there to help a person, even in that person’s darkest times. The Bible tells its believers Jesus look after its people, Christianity also teaches believers that there are holy spirits that will be a companion in their lives to help guild them along their life’s journey. The Bible teaches us holy spirits are sent from heaven and guild us to the correct path throughout our lives, as well as this the bible also teaches us that holy spirits are there for us to help us when a person is in need and when a person is weak, just like Jesus would in a person toughest moment. Through the teachings, a verse in the bible tells us “Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.” (Romans 8:26)3. Through gaining help from God, this teaching from Christianity is able to provide its adheres with hope and affection. Through holy spirits and Jesus, Christianity teaches its believers there will be someone able to support believers when they are in need of assistance, regardless of where they are, and the teaching tells us God is always beside its believers ready to help. Through Christianity, the belief of god being beside its followers helps contribute to a person’s hope and self-esteem and additionally gives them a sense of hope in their time of need.

Christianity as a religion provides its adherers with purpose, but it also provides them with redemption. In the Bible, the sin is a wrongdoing or act of transgression act against God and is seen as a terrible deed that a person must live with. Often it is seen that cursing and murder are seen as a sin however the religion Christianity would be able to take this guilt of committing a sin away from people, so they are able to live their lives without guilt and move on. By being believers of God, many people are able to see how their actions affect their surroundings and they are able to gain remorse from their actions. As it is taught in the Bible, “Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.” (Luke 6:37, NIV)2,3, this tells us that anyone can be forgiven, and god will be able to give the sinner redemption for the sin they have committed as long as the person owns up to their sins and understand the consequence of the sin they have caused. This idea of forgiveness is a dominant theme in the bible, the bible tells us it that sinning isn’t good however if a person understands the consequences and choose to forgive, then all will be forgiven. Through the Bible’s teaching, it has given many people a set of beliefs that they can believe in and help them understand themselves and what they need to do in order to become a happier and remorseful citizen. This act of belief in Christianity provides adheres with a path of perfection and helps them in becoming more like Jesus, which gives believers with a sense of purpose and hope.

Through Christianity, it provides believers with peace and rest. Through Christianity the bible teaches us god will bring peace to the world, adheres of god get the benefits of peace and prosperity, as it tells us in the bible “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.” (Romans 8:28.)3. Through god teaching many adherents are able to gain peace and a life without worry, this teaching of God gives it believers peace of mind that God will keep its believers at our absolute best no matter where we are or what state we are in. Through god, Christianity will provide its believers with experience and joy throughout their life. Believing in Christianity allows adherers to become free and have peace of mind that God is watching over them and making sure they are at their best. Christianity also provides an absolute eternity with Jesus, after death it is taught in Christianity that there will be eternal life after death. This eternal life after death is called heaven and it is presented a utopia for many people, as stated in the bible “They shall neither hunger anymore nor thirst anymore; the sun shall not strike them, nor any heat; for the Lamb who is in the midst of the throne will shepherd them and lead them to living fountains of waters. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.” (Revelation 7:16-17)3. Heaven is a promise given from God as a way to provide its adherers with hope and a bright future to look forward into. Through Christianity, it teaches us that God would give everything we could possibly want or need and how freedom will continue to exist into eternity. Through Christianity it provides its adherents with hope and prosperity as well as a future to look upon in the future, creating a sense of comfort and relief for many believers.

Overall Christianity is able to provide a vast amount of support and a set of belief for many of its adherents. Through providing services like communication directly to help from Jesus or the twelve apostles at any time or even gain redemptions for a sin, many believers are able to achieve a sense of purpose and hope within their lives. Through providing a future after death and providing a sense of relief Christianity can give many people enough support to move on or continue joyfully in their lives. Thus, creating a religion where its admirers are able to gain from the teaching of God to use throughout their lives.

References

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4. Bbc.co.uk. (2019). BBC – Religion: Christianity. [online] Available at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/christianity/ [Accessed 10 Mar. 2019].
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6. Hillsong.com. (2019). Why Do We Worship?. [online] Available at: https://hillsong.com/collected/blog/2017/05/why-do-we-worship/#.XITMECgzZPY [Accessed 10 Mar. 2019].
7. Pew Research Center. (2019). World’s largest religion by population is still Christianity. [online] Available at: http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2017/04/05/christians-remain-worlds-largest-religious-group-but-they-are-declining-in-europe/ [Accessed 10 Mar. 2019].
8. Sherwood, H. (2019). Religion: why faith is becoming more and more popular. [online] the Guardian. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/news/2018/aug/27/religion-why-is-faith-growing-and-what-happens-next [Accessed 10 Mar. 2019].
9. The Conversation. (2019). Why are people religious? A cognitive perspective. [online] Available at: http://theconversation.com/why-are-people-religious-a-cognitive-perspective-108647 [Accessed 10 Mar. 2019].
10. ThoughtCo. (2019). What Does Redemption Mean to Christians?. [online] Available at: https://www.thoughtco.com/what-is-redemption-700693 [Accessed 10 Mar. 2019].
11. ThoughtCo. (2019). 7 Questions (and Answers) About Forgiveness in the Bible. [online] Available at: https://www.thoughtco.com/what-does-the-bible-say-about-forgiveness-701968 [Accessed 10 Mar. 2019].
12. ActiveChristianity. (2019). 7 benefits of being a Christian. [online] Available at: https://activechristianity.org/7-perks-of-being-a-christian [Accessed 10 Mar. 2019].
13. Biography. (2019). Jesus Christ. [online] Available at: https://www.biography.com/people/jesus-christ-9354382 [Accessed 10 Mar. 2019].
14. ThoughtCo. (2019). Scripture That Illustrates Jesus’ True Sacrifice on the Cross. [online] Available at: https://www.thoughtco.com/bible-verses-on-redemption-712107 [Accessed 10 Mar. 2019].
15. you, 7., Mabilog, P. and Today, C. (2019). 7 Bible verses to remind you God is always with you. [online] Christiantoday.com. Available at: https://www.christiantoday.com/article/7-bible-verses-to-remind-you-god-is-always-with-you/107961.htm [Accessed 10 Mar. 2019].

Introduction

‘The Sea Farer’ is one of the oldest poems of the Anglo Saxon period. Today’s world has the opportunity to know about this poem because of the Exeter Book which is one of the four surviving manuscripts of that age. This is one of the greatest passages of English literature. The 124 lines of the poem are supposed to represent the Anglo Saxon society of that time but surprisingly although being a part of Anglo Saxon literature, this has some Christian elements blended inside. The sea farer seems to narrate his past life and his journey after being exiled. He is thought to be a self-exiled person but ironically he doesn’t seem to be content wholly with his decision in the first part. He seems to be in a dilemma whether or not his decision is right or wrong. In the second part the situation changes so dramatically that it is hard to believe if the narrator is the same person. Suddenly he doesn’t regret of his decision and confidently goes through the ‘whale road’ which doesn’t seem so harsh like earlier. The sudden and abnormal change of perspective can be explained by the manipulation of Christianity on the Anglo Saxon Literature.

Background of the Study

This paper researches on the manipulation of the Christian religion on the Anglo Saxon literature focusing on the religious Anglo Saxon poem ‘The Dream of the Rood’. Studying this paper would be essential for understanding how a religion can affect the natural flow of literature and dominate it.

Literature Review

According to W. W. Lawrence, ‘The Sea Farer’ can be a metaphorical conversion between two different sailors about their way of life. The old sea farer is tired of the waves of sea. (‘The Seafarer (Poem) – Infogalactic: The Planetary Knowledge Core’) His weariness can be understood from the very beginning of the poem- “Sitting day-long at an oar’s end clenched against clinging sorrow,/ breast drought I have borne and bitterness too.” On the other hand, the young sea-farer is excited to be in the journey which cane be clearly seen in the second part of the poem where he says, “Cuckoo’s dirge drags out my heart,/ whets weel to the whale’s beat/ across wastes of water: far warmer to me/ are the Lord’s kindness than this life of death/ lent us on land.”

There are also debates that this poem has not two but three sections. O.S. Anderson believes the first lyric part shows paganism; the second lyric part shows a little bit of Christianity. The third part, which is written part is thought to be written by a Christian monk because of it’s fully Christian tone. (‘Arngart, Bjork, Schotte’) Some critics believe that ‘The Sea Farer’ is a well written monologue.

Thomas D. Hill believes ‘The Sea Farer’ is an allegorical story and is a part of the Sapiental books or Wisdom literature which are mainly used in biblical studies to evoke morality. He says, “It has significant sapiential material concerning the definition of wise men, the ages of the world, and the necessity for patience in adversity”. (Wisdom (Sapiential) Literature) John F. Vickrey believes this poem is a psychological allegory. It represents the life of a sinner by using ‘the boat of the mind’ as a metaphor. (Some Hypotheses Concerning The Seafarer)

Faust and Thompson, in their ‘Old English Poems’ shared their opinion by saying that the later portion of this literary piece maybe added after the original version. (Old English Poems)

According to Anna Marie Sorenson, the Anglo Saxon literature was dominated by natural elements but there are some unusual twists in some parts where religion comes and dominates the subject matter. (Sorenson)

Discussion

To successfully prove the fact that how Christians used Anglo Saxon literature as a way to promote their religion, this paper is sub categorized into four parts. The first part gives a general idea about manipulation, briefly discussing the theories of Simon and Braiker regarding this matter and relating those to this paper. The second part talks about paganism in Anglo Saxon literature focusing on ‘The Sea Farer’. The following part briefly shows how Christianity came to Anglo Saxon society which would help to clarify their way of manipulation. The last and most important part of this paper, with the help of previous arguments proves how the Christians manipulated Anglo Saxon literature to uphold their religion.

What is Manipulation?

Manipulation means playing with one’s mind and make them to act like your way. It is a method which is used to pursued people and depends on your convincing power. One can justify himself, even if he or she is wrong, by the power and use of manipulation.

According to the book ‘Who’s Pulling Your Strings? How to Break The Cycle of Manipulation.’ By Braiker, the people who try to manipulate others use ‘positive reinforcement’ as a weapon. (‘Top 11 Take Aways From “Who’S Pulling Your Strings” By Harriet Braiker’) The Christians did the exact thing by ‘helping’ them to preserve their literature. And according to Simon’s theory, The Christians used the technique ‘Rationalization’, which is actually an excuse for their inappropriate doings. (‘In Sheep’s Clothing – Dr. George Simon’)

Idea of Paganism in Anglo Saxon Literature

The term ‘Pagan’ comes from the Latin word ‘paganus’. It is thought to be religion outside of Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism, Islam, and Buddhism. Some people refer this as being without a religion as it does not have any official doctrine. People of ancient Greece and Rome used to follow paganism. They had had a polytheistic belief in many gods. Most pagans believed that everything present in this universe is individual and sacred. (‘Religion In The Anglo-Saxon Kingdoms’)

In the poem ‘The Sea Farer’ there are many references to paganism. The speaker explains the setting with lots of imageries which shows one of the major features of paganism- worshiping the nature. ‘Ice cold seas’, ‘whole winters’, ‘swan’s blare’, ‘cries of gannets’, ‘music of the gull’, ‘storm striking the stone cliffs’ suggest the love for natural elements by the Anglo Saxon pagans. ‘The Sea Farer’ does not only show their love for the nature but their love for earthly possessions too. The Line 90 “There are no gold givers like the gone masters” represents their lust for earthly possessions. The line 105, “A man may bury his brother with the dead” shows how the pagans thought that riches can help them not only in their earthly life but also in their afterlife.

Coming of Christianity in the Anglo Saxon Society

Christianity came to Roman civilization in the 3rd century and through Roman invasion in England, Christianity came to Anglo Saxon literature in the middle of the 5th century through Pope Gregory I. He sent St. Augustine to England from Ireland as he wanted to convert the people of England into Christianity. Augustine came in 597 and established his base at the main town of Canterbury. They slowly began to reform the Anglo Saxon pagan religion in the mould of Christianity. (‘Christianity In Anglo-Saxon England | Dickinson College Commentaries’)

Manipulation of Christianity in ‘The Sea Farer’

Christianity came in England in the 5th century with much to ‘give’ rather than only the religion. They had the promise to a secured afterlife which the pagans did not have. The idea of after life was not clear to the pagans. Taking this chance, the Christians made the idea of afterlife clearer than ever to them.

Earlier the main motivation of the Anglo Saxon people was heroism. The Germanic tribes the Angles, the Saxons, the Jutes had different kings and often indulged in wars. All the kings had their personal scops or bards who would orally produce epics in order to motivate the warriors. Soon it became a tradition and oral literature became a part and parcel of Anglo Saxon life. But it had it’s limitation. People had to memorize the long narrative poems and pass along with generation. The Christians proposed a welcoming solution to this problem. The people associated with the Christian churches knew how to write. And only the had the authority to write. The Anglo Saxons happily took the solution of preserving their literature. But they never knew the solution was itself a problem. The Christians tactfully put some Christian elements inside the pagan literature. The procedure was slow so they did not get caught. They could commit a perfect crime in the name of religion and nobody could point it out because only the Christians knew how to write in Roman and Latin letters. If we assume that the Anglo Saxons protested this act of ‘preserving’ the literature by the Christians still it doesn’t matter because we have only one source to know about that time which is written by the Christians.

The Christians mixed paganism and Christianity mainly in two aspects. Pagans used to believe ‘fate’ is the most powerful entity in this world and nothing can be done except fate or ‘wyrd’ wants it as fate controls everything. Christians did not oppose the idea but just added that fate is controlled by God. In ‘The Sea farer’ the line “yet Doom is stronger and God is mightier than any man’s conception.” proves this. Secondly where the pagans were busy in earthly life, Christians provoked the paradoxical idea that one should keep him busy in the earthly life, ignoring the earthly pleasures to get the heavenly pleasure. The lines “No man blessed/with a happy land-life is like to guess/how I, aching hearted, on ice- cold seas/ have wasted whole winters” is totally contradictory from the line “through its happiness, what hardships they suffer”. At first he was feeling sorry for his being in such a poor condition but suddenly he starts to feel pity for the same people he felt jealous of. Maybe the sea farer went on the voyage because he felt tired of this world and searched for peace but the subject matter was manipulated by Christians with words like ‘God’ and ‘Lord’.

Conclusion

Religion is supposed to bring peace to the core of human mind, not having problem within it’s own core. It is thought to guide a person spiritually not to misguide them from something they are spiritually connected. It is supposed to originate enlightenment, not to keep someone’s originality in darkness. It should evoke morality, not provoke falsehood. Truth should be the base of a religion not only the face. Christianity seems to forget all of these while converting the Anglo Saxons. To welcome the Anglo Saxons into their religion they welcomed the way of provocation and manipulation. They not only harmed the Anglo Saxon religion but also the Anglo Saxon literature. Literature is thought to be the mirror of life. But in this case it is not a mirror but a bioscope which only shows what the Christians wanted them and the rest of the world to see. ‘The Sea Farer’ is the burning proof of this as still it creates a perplex situation because of its both pagan and Christian elements. It has the elements of both pagan and Christianity but lost the element which any literary piece should have: pleasure of reading. The manipulation of Christianity in ‘The Sea Farer’ has driven away the pleasure of a literary piece by neglecting it’s originality and welcoming a horrible blunder which would not make sense even to a nonsense.

Truthfulness is an important virtue in everybody’s life. When this aspect of a person’s life is thrown away, then they will not make it far. No one will trust them, and it will make it much harder for them to get jobs and other things in life. Not only is it important for day-to-day life, but it is also talked about in the Bible on several different occasions. Many Christian leaders have also talked about the importance of truthfulness and what it does to benefit you in the future.

To be a liar, you are someone who knows what the truth is, but decides to tell of do the opposite. The Bible talks about the importance of telling the truth, and when you don’t, you can make Christians a bad name. God talks about how when you lie, you are also denying God. Jeremiah 13:25 talks about how when you lie a lot, you start trusting in lies, and that is also a sign of forgetting God.

Another way to be considered a liar is when you say you follow God but then act likewise. He says when you refuse to follow His rules and/or accept whatever He might command, you are also considered a liar. Honesty is a character trait found in God’s people. God can’t lie, said in Hebrews 6:18, so when God’s presence is in someone, then they lie less.

Psalm 101:7 says: “No one who practices deceit shall dwell in my house; no one who utters lies shall continue before my eyes”. This talks about how God doesn’t approve of dishonesty, and that people who lie or break the rules of the Bible will not walk with Him if they aren’t saved. The only way to walk with God is to take Him into your heart and believe that Jesus died on the cross to save us from our sins. Once you do that, you can walk with Him, but you should stay as truthful and godly as you can.

And finally, Jeremiah 9:5 says: “Everyone deceives his neighbor, and no one speaks the truth; they have taught their tongue to speak lies; they weary themselves committing iniquity”. This is when God was talking about a wicked city. He later talks about punishing them. He talks about how they followed their own word instead of God’s voice. So, God gives them bitter food and bad water. He then scatters them across nations. He sent them to places where they didn’t know and they had to find out how to survive there instead of having everything handed to them as they had before. Now they had to search for things and work much harder to survive.

So, as we can see, truthfulness is one of the main virtues in the life of every person and its importance has been repeatedly emphasized in Christian teachings.

Religion and Society

The task is in three parts:

Part A –

Description of topic –broadly speaking what would a Christian/Buddhist believe about this general issue (sphere of activity or global concept)

This involves an investigation of what the religious tradition actually thinks, says, and does about the topic given. It can include any specific organizations developed to support the viewpoints held. Evidence of teachings from a variety of sources needs to be supplied as does a description of what is said and done. (300 – 400 words).

Although the term Christian education does not occur in the Bible, the Bible speaks of the moral and spiritual instruction of believers in general and of children in particular. It places a high value upon knowledge, both of God and of his works. It describes the moral and spiritual fruits of this knowledge and defines its ultimate purpose.

Christian Schools Australia believes that every student is made in the image of God, therefore the unique needs of every child are the primary concern of a Christian school. The Melbourne Declaration on Educational Goals for Young Australians emphasizes the importance of supporting students’ social, emotional, spiritual, and physical development. A Christian School education meets these important objectives. “The mission of a Christian school is the spiritual, educational, emotional, social and physical development of every child in a holistic way”.

Christians believe that students learn better in a religious school compared to a non-religious school. Catholic schools are faith communities based on belief in God and a Christian way of life. Through Catholic education, families are supported in their efforts to educate young people. Catholic schools also use Jesus as a role model.

As a direct response to Jesus’ example of servant leadership, Christian schools have a strong culture of mission and service both at home and overseas. They educate students to be locally and globally active citizens, concerned about the welfare of others and about using their gifts to serve.

An ongoing current need is the development of teachers and leaders. An essential priority is to promote growth in the knowledge and understanding of Biblical principles and Christian beliefs as they apply to the practice of teaching and school leadership: in other words, the integration of Biblical principles with school education.

• Underprivileged members
• Disadvantaged families
• Remote communities

Part B –

The ethical and moral perspectives/ethical authorities

This involves an investigation and synthesis of the specific ethical and moral perspectives including ethical authorities of the religious tradition that underpin the work done or viewpoints held. Religious texts will need to be sourced and quoted as evidence. (400 -500 words).

The Christians have a positive view towards Catholics as their morals are around the teachings and learnings that life offers and are also based on giving and showing others the way of life. Being compassionate and helping others around us is important to the Christian Faith. The fourth principle of subsidiarity and participation is an ethical explanation that supports learning and teachings through the participation of all people. The life of the Christian school community is centered on Jesus.

The present Christian school movement can be understood only as a part—certainly in these times a very significant and necessary part—of the total endeavor of Christian education. A full understanding of this movement requires an examination of the basis upon which its educational theory and practices rest: its philosophy of education. Accordingly, there follows, first, a presentation of the basic beliefs of Christian education and, second, an application of these beliefs to the specific mission of the Christian school.

The God of the Bible is not a God of man’s own making or choosing. The eternal Creator of all things existed before man and exists independently of man. God, however, has revealed himself to man, speaking through his word (the inerrant, divinely inspired, and preserved sixty-six books of the Old and New Testaments) and his works. His self-revelation is the substance of Christian belief. What we call biblical Christianity is a system of certain basic truths that God has revealed. Among these truths, the following are fundamental to Christian education.

Part C –

The intended impact on society

This involves a description of the intention of the religious tradition(Christianity/Buddhism) to contribute to a better life for all. What are the aims and purposes of the words and actions of the religious tradition? What would a better society look like in terms of programs run/activities held/outcomes achieved in relation to the sphere of activity or global concept you have investigated? (200 – 250 words).

Focus on the Family Australia –

Since 1993, Focus on Family Australia has been helping Australia’s families and communities through radio broadcasts, preventative education programs, seminars, counseling, and a wide range of resources for families. Focus on the Family Australia is a not-for-profit organization that offers relevant, practical support to help families thrive in every stage of life. Our aim is to ‘To help strengthen Australian Families’. Regardless of their religion, politics, socioeconomic status, culture, or age.

They focus on real-life issues and offer relevant, practical support for all members of the family. Through their programs, resources, and seminars, they tackle the challenging issues of binge drinking, drugs, pornography, depression, bullying, and teenage sexuality head-on. They focus on academic and research excellence where the major parenting and relationship programs undergo ongoing validation by independent experts. They focus on partnerships with government, schools, businesses, churches, and you to promote policies and programs that advance family stability. They also focus on preventative education to help parents and teens recognize and stop crises before they happen, which motivates a unique type of supporter, who understands that giving to prevention is often more effective than giving to a cure.

KIDS HOPE AUS is a life-changing program that provides Churches with an opportunity to impact and serve their local community through a partnership with a local Primary School. After comprehensive training, the Church deploys passionate, screened, and trained mentors into the school to provide one-to-one mentoring to children in need for one hour per week.

Everyone has basic presuppositions that affect the way they think about and respond to the world and life. This is their “worldview.” For many people, their worldview is unspoken and shaped by circumstances and up-bringing. Others, thoughtfully, construct their own understanding. In whatever way, our worldviews are developed, they shape our choices, values and commitments every day. A worldview, according to Christian apologist Dr. Ravi Zacharias, is a lens through which we view the world that answers four basic questions: origin -where do we come from?, meaning -what does life mean, and what does my life mean?, morality- what is the right way to live? and destiny- what happens after we die? (Pursuegod, 2019).

According to Tackett (2006), a worldview is the framework for understanding reality and making sense of our world. However, a biblical worldview transcends beyond our personal ideology about the world. As Christians, we have a prescribed ethical way of believing and behaving, pertinent to who we are based on the inspired, infallible, and inerrant word of God. In this paper, I will convey what is meant by a biblical worldview, share aspects of a Christian philosophy of education and examine how such beliefs impact educational practices.

Biblical Worldview

A biblical worldview is a view that sees everything through the lens of the Bible. Biblical worldview is unique in the sense that it is based on the following tenents:

• Truth: God’s Opinion, Not Mine: Christians believe God has an opinion and in biblical worldview, His opinion is elevated above all others. Worldview sees God’s opinion as the exact truth and projects the Bible as the ultimate guide and not culture or human ideas. “ Above all, you must realize that no prophecy in Scripture ever came from the prophet’s own understanding, or from human initiative. No, those prophets were moved by the Holy Spirit, and they spoke from God” (2 Peter 1:20-21, NLT).
• Submission: God’s Terms, Not Mine: Christian who holds biblical worldview come to God on his terms, not their own because they believe in total submission to God’s word. They allow the Bible to be authoritative in their everyday lives. “All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right” (2 Timothy 3:16, NLT).
• Relationship: Love God, Love People: A biblical worldview is not simply academic or philosophical. Central to the teachings of the Bible is relationship building; the need to build relationship with God and people. Christians are admonished to facilitate relationship by loving God and their neighbors. “Jesus replied, “‘You must love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ (Matthew 22:37-39, NLT).

Biblical worldview answers vital questions on God, human origin, human destination, purpose of life, relationships, morality and values in distinct manner that; God is the Creator of the world and rules this universe! (Genesis 1:1), the Bible is God’s Word for mankind and is completely accurate including matters of life and its origin. (2 Timothy 3:16), because of God and His Word, absolute moral truth exists! (Psalms 102:25–27; Malachi 3:6), Jesus Christ is the only begotten Son of God and He lived a sinless life, died for our sins, was buried, and rose again from the grave three days later! (1 Corinthians 15:3–4; 1 John 4:9–10), Satan is a real being (not symbolic) and seeks to defeat God’s plan for man! (1 Peter 5:8) and Salvation is obtained solely by individual faith in Christ’s work on the Cross and cannot be earned! (Ephesians 2:8–9).

Therefore, a biblical worldview is seeing the world, its beginning, its people, its problems, its governments, its church, its issues, its solutions, and its future through God’s Word (Netland, 2015). A biblical worldview necessitates that we know what Scripture teaches and be prepared to reflect those biblical messages in what we say and do.

Christian Philosophy of Education

The goal of Christian education is to guide children towards an understanding that God is at the center of every pursuit of knowledge. Not only that, but Christian schools also strive to challenge students towards allowing God to mold their hearts in submission to Him, and in doing that, they equip them to be the hands and feet of Jesus Christ in the world.

Christian philosophy of education draws its inspiration from the fact that; God’s revelation is the basis for all truth (Luke 11:52; Proverbs 1:7), parental responsibility is the priority control (Deut. 6; Ephesians 6; Genesis 18:17-19), the example of early Christians (Acts), significance of the Holy Spirit in the life of the teacher (John 16:13; 1 John 5:19-21), Christian Education is education for the whole man (Proverbs 22:6), God’s education is always in contrast to man’s education (Colossians 2:8), and Biblical Education requires a submission of all intellect and will to the Lordship of Christ (1 Cor. 1:18-31; 2 Cor. 10:5).

It is difficult to imagine a Christian philosophy of education that does not recognize the educational model established by Jesus Christ. Through his life, Jesus exemplified the principle of servant leadership, demonstration of humility in service, collaboration, and honest desire to see everyone achieve the will of God for their lives cannot be over-emphasized. As Christians educators, our key motivation in dispensing education should be to direct the process of our students’ development toward God’s purpose for them, which includes godliness in character and action.

Even though educators could find it increasingly challenging to provide services to diverse group of students with divergent worldviews. Nevertheless, Netland (2015) encouraged that the awareness of this should not deter us from adhering to our Christian philosophy. As Christian educators we must focus on the educational process, as facilitators of God’s specific purpose for everyone with the recognition that each student is unique.

Furthermore, we know that biblical principles are foundational to a wide variety of teaching methods and educational components. While there are many best practices and pedagogical processes that involve content, interaction and assessment, Christian philosophy of education has a distinguished approach and methodology. The Christian methodology significantly epitomizes the fruits of the Spirit-love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control etc.

Methods are usually selected for their efficiency in achieving designated goals in education, especially academic learning (Bartlett, 2017). However, a Christian philosophy of education recognizes that God’s factor is the most effective in teaching students to find their purpose and do good works. Bartlett (2017) asserts that a Christian philosophy must reject any components conflicting with the principles of Scriptures.

Implications for Educational Practices

A biblical worldview has serious implication for educational practices because it guides the purpose and goals of education, expectations of the students, role of the instructors, methods of instruction, curriculum and quality of teaching and learning (Eckel, 2015). Educator’s perspectives influence their design of curriculum and course content, the scope of the learning contexts, which can include guided independent study, project-based learning, collaborative learning, and experimentation (Esqueda, 2014). Eckel (2015) maintains that educator’s points of view affect how they solicit and use feedback, assess learning outcomes and whether students have well-adapted learning environments and appropriate student support services.

Christian educators have a unique opportunity to impact the lives of students while preparing them for life beyond the school (Eckel, 2015). A biblical worldview can help educators to provide students with a sense of God’s plan and purpose for their lives. Life offers many challenges and struggles for students, a Christian worldview can help to provide them with hope and direction (Eckel, 2015).

Conclusion

In my opinion, adapting leadership to a biblical worldview and a Christian philosophy helps to lead others with God’s will in focus. Educators with biblical worldview and a Christian philosophy for education serve others according to biblical principles. A Christian philosophy of education meets the social, emotional, and cognitive needs of all students and Christian administrators believe all children can learn. According to Blackaby & Blackaby (2011), “the goal of spiritual leaders should be taking people from where they are to where God wants them to be. Administrators who focus on God’s plan, value relationships and seek God in meeting the needs of staff and students.

Furthermore, biblical worldview has an obvious edge over other forms of worldview in that it draws its motivation from the word of God and focuses on love and relationship building while Worldview is about sensual knowledge, selfishness, endless and meaningless quest to find meanings and happiness. As Christians leaders, we must focus holistically on preparing courageous students who understand the importance of sharing their biblical worldview with family, friends, community and all of society.

Finally, it is important to consider curriculum and instruction in a context that offers ethical thinking and practices from the biblical viewpoint. I believe, since the virtues of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control characterize the life of a believer in Christ as referenced in Galatians 5:22-23, Christian leaders are spiritually equipped and must do their best to make a difference in the lives of their staff and students.

References

1. Bartlett, John C. (2017). A Christian philosophy of education of a public-school educator. Christian Perspectives in Education, 1(1), 1-11.
2. Blackaby, H., & Blackaby, R. (2011). Spiritual leadership: Moving people on to God’s agenda. Nashville, TN: B & H Publishing Group.
3. Eckel, M. (2015). Interdisciplinary education within biblical theology: A scriptural-philosophical-educational-practical overview. Christian Education Journal, 12(2), 384-396.
4. Esqueda, O. J. (2014). Biblical worldview: The christian higher education foundation for learning. Christian Higher Education, 13(2), 91-100.
5. Netland, H. A. (2015). Christianity & religious diversity: Clarifying christian commitments in a globalizing age. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic.
6. Pursuegod.org (2019). What Is a Biblical Worldview? https://www.pursuegod.org/what-is-a-biblical-worldview/
7. Tackett, D. (2006). What’s a Christian worldview? Focus on the Family. Retrieved from https://www.focusonthefamily.com/faith/christian-worldview/whats-a-christian-worldview/whats-a-worldview-anyway

When it comes to religion we have no idea where to start. What are the essentials to that religion as well as the worldview you have once you find that religion. Well I can help you when it come to Christian worldview and it essentials parts in this religion. The Christian faith is well known across the worldview and in my opinion the easiest one to follow. In this paper we will go over what I feel would be the important essentials to the Christian faith. We will go over God of course as well as Humanity, and then touch up on Jesus. In the end you will see if the Christian faith and the essential to that faith will help you understand more of the worldview that we Christian have and love to share with others. So come on this journey to the Christian worldview and see it for yourself.

God

We all wonder what god is like and want to see what his characteristics are. For a lot of us God is a Spirit and we know this from reading, “Handle Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see I have” (Luke 24:39, NKJV). With that verse we have proof that he is a spirit but what about his characteristics. Well God characteristics are so many but we will list two of them and have the proof of those characteristics. Frist is Goodness we all have heard that he is good in (Romans 11:22, NKJV) it states, ‘God is the final standard of good, and all that God is and does is worthy of approval.’ Then we have Graciousness, which is well said in the reading, “And the Lord passed by before him, and proclaimed, The Lord, The Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth,” (Exodus 34:6, NKJV). So God is so many things and is so great but what has he created? Well that is very simple everything but if you reading in the bible that it states “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. 4 And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.” (Genesis 1:1-5, NKJV) and that is a piece of what says in the book of Genesis of what God has created.

Humanity

We go from God to humanity in which he created but we want to know the human nature as well as the purpose of humans being created. In an article that I found states what I feel to be the truth behind the question on the purpose of humans being created “God’s design or purpose for creation reflects God’s intention that all creatures enjoy perfect love and justice. God works in human history to fulfill that purpose. God created human beings in the divine image, enabling humans to have some understanding of God and of God’s vast and complex design.” If we were made in his image in what we know to be perfection because God is perfection then what happen that made us fall from perfection. Well the root cause of human problems all started from the story of Adam and Eve when they ate the forbidden fruit to then be casted out from the Garden of Eden where everything was perfecta and safe. This was called the fall of humanity in the Bible and the reason why we are where we are at today.

Jesus

Now we are going to get into the Son of God. Yes we are going to talk about Jesus. Who is he? What did he do? What is Jesus is so important to us Christian? This will all be answered in this section. We answer part of the many questions in the beginning of this section Jesus is the Son of God as well as the second Person of the Trinity. But he is also known as God in human form and example of how God wanted humans to be. So we got down whom he is but if you do not know what he did then you need to open the bible. What he did was so much he gave people faith, he healed the sick, he spread the word of god but most important Jesus died for our sins on the cross. All that Jesus has such a great important to the Christian worldview views because he was the reason why we have the teachings of god and what he did for us.

Restoration

After everything we have learned so far when need to come up with a solution to human problems. This is very simple we need Jesus and God in our life. The faith we have in Jesus is because of what he did for us and that he died on the cross for the sake of men and that the way of Him doing this is a way of saving all people from their sin. So how does this help with our salvation? Well there are two roles that play in that salvation which are grace and faith. “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast” (Ephesians 2:8–9). We must have grace through faith in order to get salvation. Now as Christians how do we think that the transformation of self and society is going to happen? Transformation takes time and we need to be following the word of God and it is a process that does not happen overnight. That transformation happens when you develop an intimate relationship with Jesus.

Analysis

Lets gather all the information we have learn from the different sections and analysis everything. What are the benefits or strengths of Christian belief? Simple We have a connection to Jesus as well as having the Holy Spirit help us and be there in our life like it states in (John 16:13) “However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come.” Those are just two of the benefits as well strengths of the Christian belief. But with the Christian belief there seems to be some confusion about Christianity how to act and how to be around those who are not Christian as well as how to go about doing thing in our world today. Some of the troublesome is when you have those Christians that make other Christians look bad but judging others. The influence a person’s thinking and behavior on their Christianity can be explained in just three things like your old nature, your shaped nature and last your new nature. These are how you thinking and behavior on their Christianity can be affected.

Reflection

After analyzing all the information from the different sections let now reflect on all that information that we have learned. Even though I grew up partly Catholic for the younger portion of my life I have noticed that there is a small similarity to the Christian belief but huge different indeed. Some of the similarity is that they believe of an afterlife as well as that there is the father the son and the Holy Spirit. The differences are extremely As Christian we do not pray to saints; there is not communion, and in the service or what they call mass Christians do not go up and down forty hundred times. As a Christian I live out my belief in which I feel is normal standards and by that I mean I go to church, do my own personal development through the word of god and I pray to thank him everyday.

Conclusion

In the end of this the essential things we should know and have learned about the Christian faith is the fallowing. We know who God is and what he created as well as what happened to humanity. We learned a lot more about Jesus on who he is which we learned is the Son of God but what is more important is what Jesus did for us. After all that we then learned how we could be restored then analyzed all this information to reflect on ourselves and see how our Christian worldview is seen to other and ourselves as well. This is the entire essential of what I feel can completely explains the Christian belief and more importantly the Christian worldview.

References

1. Lovin, Robin W.. Christian Ethics : an essential guide, Abingdon Press, 2003. ProQuest Ebook Central, https://ebookcentral-proquest com.lopes.idm.oclc.org/lib/gcu/detail.action?docID=194315.
2. The Holy Bible: NKJV: New King James Version. Thomas Nelson, 2015.
3. “Human Nature and the Purpose of Existence.” Patheos, Patheos Explore the World’s Faith through Different Perspectives on Religion and Spirituality! Patheos Has the Views of the Prevalent Religions and Spiritualities of the World., https://www.patheos.com/library/christianity/beliefs/human-nature-and-the-purpose-of-existence.