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The Religions > Christianity >
Christianity
owes its origin to the life, passion, death, and resurrection
of Jesus Christ. Christians believe that Jesus Christ is
the Son of God, who uniquely disclosed God by his life
of costly self-sacrificing love, and his ministry to the
poor, the outcast, the needy, and those suffering from
physical and spiritual oppression.
The
primary accounts of his life are found in the four canonical
Gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, though his life
and death are also mentioned in other non-Christian accounts.
The 'epistles' or letters in the New Testament comprise
some of the early letters by Paul or his followers. Jesus
is the source of moral inspiration for millions of Christians
throughout the world. While much of his moral teaching
can be paralleled elsewhere, his emphasis on "loving one's enemies" is
virtually unique in religious literature.
Most
significantly, Jesus identifies himself (and therefore
God's own cause) with those who are the weakest and most
vulnerable: "I
was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and
you gave me drink. I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I
was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited
me, I was in prison and you came to me" (Matthew
25: 35-37, RSV).
The spirit of Christian discipleship is perhaps best summed up by Albert Schweitzer
in his conclusion to his book, The
Quest of the Historical Jesus:
He
comes to us as one unknown, without a name, as of old by the lake side.
He came to those men who knew Him not. He speaks to us
the same words: 'Follow thou me', and sets us to the
same task which He has to fulfil for our time. He commands.
And to those who obey Him, whether they be wise or simple,
He will reveal Himself in the toils, the conflicts and the sufferings
which they shall pass through in His fellowship and,
as an ineffable mystery, they shall learn in their own
experience who He is.
A
brief account of Jesus' teaching can be found in Andrew
Linzey, The
Sayings of Jesus.
Exclusive:
The Writings of Rev. Prof. Andrew
Linzey
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