The bare minimum, to me, for someone to belong to the Christian religion is for them to worship Jesus Christ in any way or form. They don't have to consider him a god, or attempt to act like him, but they have to worship him in some spiritual way. People might be moral or philosophical Christians if they try to emulate Jesus but don't have the worship element, but that won't cover the religion aspect to me. Likewise, acting according to a particular moral structure is something that most Christians (religious version) follow, but it's not necessary for them to fit the definition. It's the same way that a Zeusian would be a Zeusian no matter their moral structure, because they worship Zeus and that's all the word means.
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NON-CHRISTIANS ONLY: What is a Christian to you?
- Thread starter Katzpur
- Start date
Mr Gray?
There isn't what the definition of a Christian is within the list.... The term christian was first applied in Antioch, to Paul's and Simon the stone's (petros) ministry.
It is clearly defined by Paul 'as someone who believes, that jesus came to die for you, that through his death and resurrection you're saved.'
It is clearly defined by Paul 'as someone who believes, that jesus came to die for you, that through his death and resurrection you're saved.'
Sand Dancer
Currently catless
I think anyone who follows Jesus' teachings could be called a Christian. The Christian religion distorted and continues to distort Jesus' message.
Tumah
Veteran Member
I chose all except for:
A person who strives to love his fellow men, including his enemies.
A person whose life is controlled by fear and superstition.
I assumed that by Bible, you meant both the Jewish Bible and the Christian NT. Otherwise I would have left that one out too.
The two above are not beliefs specific to Christianity, so I left them out.
Other than that, I would call anyone who professed any of the other beliefs a Christian.
A person who strives to love his fellow men, including his enemies.
A person whose life is controlled by fear and superstition.
I assumed that by Bible, you meant both the Jewish Bible and the Christian NT. Otherwise I would have left that one out too.
The two above are not beliefs specific to Christianity, so I left them out.
Other than that, I would call anyone who professed any of the other beliefs a Christian.
Desert Snake
Veteran Member
I do not refer to myself as a Xian. That being said, I believe that a Xian, sees Jesu as a manifestation of God. I also believe, that the ''father'' here, for real Xians, is actually the same being, in Deific form, as Jesus. I believe that although it is understandable that people have different interpretations, they are not, to me, actual Xians. A Xian is also, the other things I voted for, on that list. I have a fairly strict definition, there are other labels that are accepted, that are used, when someone wishes to associate themselves with Jesus. These are valid, imo, and may even present other logical positions, that can be missed by other Xians.
//basically, I have a 'strict' definition, to maintain coherency in definition
//basically, I have a 'strict' definition, to maintain coherency in definition
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I voted for #2....
a person who worships Jesus Christ and looks to Him as his Savior.
a person who worships Jesus Christ and looks to Him as his Savior.
Baladas
An Págánach
This is a little complicated for me.
While I agree that anyone who claims the title "Christian" technically is so, I definitely make
distinctions based on sincerity and actual knowledge about the religion.
I would say that a Christian is a person who believes that Jesus is the prophesied Messiah (Christ) and the Son of God who lived a perfect life and died on
the cross for the salvation of mankind and was resurrected.
To take it a step further, I do think that a distinction can be made between those who seek to apply the teachings of Jesus to their lives and to emulate his example,
and those who Bible-thump the Old Testament (or any part of scripture) like self-righteous asses.
The distinction being that I would consider the one who follows Jesus' teachings to be genuinely following Christ.
The people I have met who fall into that "Christ Follower" category are usually very good and loving people. The later?
Not so much.
While I agree that anyone who claims the title "Christian" technically is so, I definitely make
distinctions based on sincerity and actual knowledge about the religion.
I would say that a Christian is a person who believes that Jesus is the prophesied Messiah (Christ) and the Son of God who lived a perfect life and died on
the cross for the salvation of mankind and was resurrected.
To take it a step further, I do think that a distinction can be made between those who seek to apply the teachings of Jesus to their lives and to emulate his example,
and those who Bible-thump the Old Testament (or any part of scripture) like self-righteous asses.
The distinction being that I would consider the one who follows Jesus' teachings to be genuinely following Christ.
The people I have met who fall into that "Christ Follower" category are usually very good and loving people. The later?
Not so much.
seeking4truth
Active Member
To me a Christian is one who tries to follow the teaching and example of Jesus believing this is the best way to live and gain eternal life.
Some groups deify Jesus some do not
Some groups deify Jesus some do not
In my Opinion, a Christian is a self righteous hypocrite. It is by their doing (belief) that they are Christian. It is by their doing (belief) that the Bible exclusively determines Humankinds future, without any evidence outside the Bible. It is by their doing (belief) that repeating words of repentance covers their "sins" only. It is by their doing (belief) there was a person named Jesus of Nazareth who died for them only because they told someone that they "believed" he did. It is by their doing (beliefs) that Jesus teachings don't pertain to them and when questioned about them have no answers because their self righteousness tells them they don't have to answer to anyone.
There are more that I can come up with.
So basically a Christian is a self made label that can be put on anyone by their own doing (believing) they are Christian.
The above doesn't mean I don't respect people as Humans.
There are more that I can come up with.
So basically a Christian is a self made label that can be put on anyone by their own doing (believing) they are Christian.
The above doesn't mean I don't respect people as Humans.
Very little in and of itself. I would assume that the person believes in the literal existence of Jesus and, without good evidence to the contrary, I would also assume that he holds God to exist and the Bible to be at least partially inspired by Him.
I would not assume monotheism necessarily. Many people regard themselves as syncretic Christians in one way or another.
Beyond that,I would use the situation and circunstances as stronger evidence for the person's beliefs than the Christian claim proper. There is a lot of variety of belief among Christians, although not all acknowledge that. Perhaps more significantly, even among members of a specific, traditional denomination it is often possible to find what amounts IMO to a variety of effective religious stances, to the point that I wonder whether there is much of a point in claiming to be members of the same religion.
LASTINGLIGHT
Member
A Christian is someone who follows the theology of Saul of Tarsus.