Who is a Christian?
Which definition is correct?
Which one does this website use?
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Which definition is correct?
This question assumes that there is one and only one correct
definition of the term "Christian." However, depending upon your understanding
of the nature of truth, many definitions may be
"true" to various groups:
- To conservative Protestants, a Christian is often defined according to
their salvation status. Their definition is "true" to them,
because it agrees with some of their foundational beliefs: that the
Bible is inerrant, that salvation is by grace, and that one must be
"born-again" to be saved and avoid eternal punishment in Hell.
- To Roman Catholics, a Christian is often defined according to their
baptism status and the presence of any unresolved mortal sin in their lives. Their definition is "true" to them, because
it agrees with their fundamental beliefs about the nature of sacraments, their understanding of the Bible,
the declarations
of many Church Councils, the statements of many popes, and their church's tradition.
- To many in the very early Christian movement, a Christian was defined as a person
who was baptized and proclaimed "Jesus is Lord."
Their definition was "true" to them because it agreed with
their understanding of their religious belief at a time when the
Christian Scriptures (New Testament) had not yet been written and assembled.
- And so on, with other faith groups.
Each group has their own definition of "Christian" that
agrees with their own beliefs about the nature of Jesus, God,
church tradition, written text, evolved theology, the cultures in which they are
implanted, etc. There appears to be
no way to compromise on a single definition that is acceptable to all.
One
apparently cannot call on a higher power to resolve the problem, because
there seems to be no way to assess the will of God
on such matters. If there were such a method, then different definitions would have
been harmonized centuries ago. People would simply have prayed to God and
asked Him to define what a Christian is. Then, a consensus would exist today on the true
meaning of the word "Christian."
There is no consensus on what the "correct" definition of "Christian"
is. There is only a near consensus within individual faith groups. Therefore
questions like "Are you a Christian?" or "How many Christians are
there in the U.S." are only meaningful:
- Within a single denomination, or among a group of similarly-minded
denominations.
- In a public opinion poll where the definition of "Christian" is
either clearly
stated or left up to the subject to define.
The definition used on this web site:
There is a common belief held by every Christian that we have met: they all believe that they are attempting to live in accordance with Christ's teachings. Perhaps this is a good starting point from which to create a definition.
One problem is that different Christians and different Christian faith groups interpret biblical passages and Jesus' teachings very differently.
The two religious/spiritual/ethical/moral topics of greatest current concern in North America appear to be:
- Equal rights for persons of all sexual orientations and gender identities, including access to marriage by loving, committed same-sex couples. Some Christians feel that excluding sexual minorities from having the same rights and protections as loving, committed opposite-sex couples is one of their major responsibilities. Other Christians feel that homophobia and transphobia -- acts to restrict civil liberties of sexual minorities -- are the main evils.
- Access to abortion: Some Christians feel that reducing or prohibiting access to abortion is a prime responsibility. Others feel that their main task is to try to reduce the number of abortions to levels found in other developed countries by creating programs that would the reduce the cause of abortions: the number of unexpected, unwanted pregnancies. Still others feel that an abortion is often a woman's moral decision and that it is important for them to try to maintain abortion access.
WWJD ("What Would Jesus Do") and WDJT ("What Does/Did Jesus Teach) are questions that Christians ask, meditate over, and pray about. But they come to opposite conclusions. One might wonder if a Christian can actually assess the will of God through prayer; the answer may be no.
Our original definition in the year 2000 was:
"We accept as Christian any individual or group who devoutly, thoughtfully, seriously,
and prayerfully regards themselves to be Christian. That is, they honestly
believe themselves to be a follower of Yeshua of Nazareth (a.k.a. Jesus Christ)."
In 2011, changed to this definition:
"We accept as Christian any individual or group who devoutly, thoughtfully, seriously,
and prayerfully regards themselves to be Christian. That is, they honestly
believe themselves to be attempting to follow the teachings of Yeshua of Nazareth (a.k.a. Jesus Christ) as they interpret those teachings to be."
We would appreciate your comments about this change. Please click on the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this essay.
In North America there are over a thousand faith groups including the
Roman Catholic
church; the Eastern Orthodox churches, other conservative, mainline, liberal
and progressive Christian faith groups; The Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (the Mormons); Jehovah's Witnesses,
the
Unification Church, Christian
Science, progressive Christians, and other religious organizations.
They all
feel that they are trying to follow Jesus' teachings; they all identify
themselves as Christian. In fact, many regard their group as the only
"true" Christian church. Yet these groups, and their
followers, have very different beliefs about the life,
events, teachings, actions, sinlessness and
expectations of Yeshua.
Also included within our definition as Christians are those who regard themselves as being
followers of Jesus even though they do not affiliate themselves with any particular
religious group. They appear to be growing in numbers as increasing numbers of North Americans are abandoning religion in favor of a personal spirituality.
We realize that we are defining Christians in terms of being Christian. As
one person Emailed us, that is like defining a parrot as "something that has
the characteristics of a parrot." But since there is no consensus on what the teachings of Jesus are," we see no other choice. In contrast, there is
a general agreement about what a parrot -- or mountain, or car, or computer --
are.
Copyright © 2000 to 2011 by Ontario Consultants on Religious
Tolerance
Originally written: 2000-MAR-19
Latest update and review: 2011-MAR-09
Author: B.A. Robinson
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