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Line 4: + + + − == CHRISTIANS ARE GAY!!!!!! ==+ − + − + − − − Signed, − − A fellow Conservative Atheist Line 27:
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Reverted edits by TeaPartier31 (Talk) to last revision by Wycliffe
== Main Christian groups ==
== Main Christian groups ==
[[Image:Anglican Christ Church.jpg|thumb|left|150px|Anglican Christ Church in Western Australia]]
'''The three largest self-governing bodies of Christians are:'''
* The [[Roman Catholic Church]] (approx. 1.1 billion baptized members) traces its roots back to [[Saint Peter]] whom Catholics believe established their church and the succession of [[Pope]]s as the spiritual leaders of Christendom.
* The [[Orthodox Church]]es (approx. 300 million baptized members) also trace their roots back to the Apostles, but do not believe in the Primacy of the Pope. Differing theological perspectives led to the [[Great Schism]] between the Roman Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Churches in A.D. 1054.
* [[Protestantism]]; the largest Communions are the [[Anglican Church|Anglicans]] (approx. 115 million baptized members) and the Lutheran World Federation (approx. 68 million baptized members). Protestantism has its origins in the European [[Reformation]]. It first broke away from the Roman Catholic Church under [[Martin Luther]] when differences over the nature of [[faith]] and works in the role of [[Christianity#salvation|salvation]] as well as other practices of the Catholic Church that Luther saw as unBiblical. Other preachers and theologians, such as [[Ulrich Zwingli]] and [[John Calvin]] followed Luther in rejecting key Catholic teachings.
== Christian Beliefs ==
== Christian Beliefs ==
===God===
===God===
{{main|God}}
God is a triune being. Though there is only one Divine nature there are three Divine Persons: The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The three Persons are collectively called the [[Trinity]] or the Holy Trinity. While God is tripartite, this does not imply that Christians are polytheists--the oneness of the divine nature (or essence) is what matters. The doctrine of the Trinity is central to most (but not all) Christian theology.
A major theme of the Bible is [[love]]. In the Hebrew [[Old Testament]] the idea is expressed in the Hebrew word ''hessed'', which is variously translated as loyal love, tender mercy, steadfast love, mercy, goodness, etc. in the [[New Testament]] the same idea is expressed in the Greek word ''agape'', which is variously translated as love, compassion, charity, etc.
The God of the Christians is the creator of all things, is everywhere present, exists in all times, is transcendent, all-knowing (omniscient), just, and all-powerful (omnipotent).
===Jesus===
===Jesus===
[[Image:Jesus' Baptism.jpg|180px|left|]]
During the reign of [[Augustus Caesar|Caesar Augustus]] the Son (e.g. the second Person of the Trinity) took flesh from a virgin woman and was incarnate as a man. He was born in the town of [[Bethlehem]] and was given the name [[Jesus]]. At the age of thirty he was baptized by his cousin, the [[John the Baptist|Prophet John]], and began to preach in the area [[Palestine]]. About three years after his baptism, he raised his friend [[Lazarus]] from the dead, prompting the Jewish power establishment to plot Jesus' death. Jesus was [[crucified]]. He came back from the dead and was seen by over 500 people. He ascended to Heaven. The four [[Gospels]] contain the records of some of what Jesus did and said, but he did much more than those four books relate, as the Apostle John said in his Gospel.
{{Clear}}
===Morality===
===Morality===