Homosexuality within the Church:An Issue of Religious LibertyThe ArgumentIf one were to ask your stance on homosexuality within the Christian church andyour reasoning behind your views, how would you answer them? I find that mostChristians I have talked with take a rather conservative, traditional ...

Cults&Sects Boston Church of Christ or CrossroadismThere is a group growing rapidly across the United States and the world called the Boston Church of Christ or the Crossroads. This cult is a highly aggressive movement that bases its doctrine on the Bible but many say is way off. Looking deeper into...

In terms of the number of adherents, Christianity is by far the largest religion in the world and the most active of all faiths with 1.9 billion Christians spread across the world. Christianity originated in Israel, on the birth of its founder, Jesus of Nazareth in Bethlehem. Jesus, born of the Virg...

Introduction Mark 16:16 says, "And He said to them, Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. He who has believed and has been baptized shall be saved; but he who has disbelieved shall be condemned."1 This is the basis for which Christian's all around the world shares the gosp...

The Organization of the Early Church. According to The Acts of the Apostles, the church began on the day of the first Pentecost, but the need for the development of the church is presented well before it's actual creation. The gospels of Matthew and John reveal the apostles preparation by ...

Lumen Gentium, arguably the most significant document to emerge from Vatican II in 1964, symbolizes a new turn in Catholicism, changing the way the Catholic Church views itself and its relationship to its world. Throughout Lumen Gentium, phrases such as "proclaiming... to every creature," ...

When you think of persecution, what comes to the forefront of your mind? Are you reminded of those who have been murdered mercilessly for the name of Christ? I think any of us, once we knew what the early church experienced--and, indeed, what Christians in other parts of the world are experiencing n...

(A cult in the webster's is defined as," a system of religious worship, especially with the reference to it's rites and ceremonies".) The word cult comes from the Latin word cultus, which means "worship". "In this sense the cultic act is an act of worship, involving external rites and ceremonies a...

Baptism is one of the seven sacraments that the Roman Catholic Church practice. It holds first place among the sacraments. The reason for this is Holy Baptism in the Catholic Church "is the door of spiritual life; for it we are made members of Christ and incorporated with the Church. And since th...

Baptism is one of the seven sacraments that the Roman Catholic Church practice. It holds first place among the sacraments. The reason for this is Holy Baptism in the Catholic Church "is the door of spiritual life; for it we are made members of Christ and incorporated with the Church. And since th...

Field Observation Paper For my field observation, I attended a Catholic mass and Pentecostal service, both in my hometown of Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The first service I attended was the Catholic mass. The mass started at 10:30 a.m. with a Christmas hymn, God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen. The priest w...

PREFORMING OUR THEOLOGICAL TASK1.Write an essay, which sets out as clearly as possible your present understanding of the Christian Church and the Christian faith and life. Along the way, discuss how Buechner and English have/or have not been helpful to you in formulating your own statement. The Chri...

The bible states many different opinions and "facts" on predestination. I say "facts" because that is what one is led to believe that the bible teaches. In one area the bible says that a certain number was chosen at the start and that the number will neither increase nor decre...

Walking down the street in downtown Burlingame, California shops consistently caught my eye- The Gap, Banana Republic, and J. Crew. As I was about to enter Ralph Lauren two young men in pressed black slacks and white collared shirts approached me. They introduced themselves as Elder Hansen and Elde...

When you take a class or when you are trying to make new friends it is important to be open-minded. Not always are you going to have all the right answers or know how to do everything. In my case, I had to be open-minded to the ideas of religion. My mom found this new church. I went there ever...

According to the Catholic Church, every Catholic, through thesacrament of Baptism, "is freed from sin and reborn." Through the firstsacrament of baptism and immersion, all individual members of the CatholicChurch engage in the act of becoming members of Christ. Baptism enables anadherent of ...

Biblical Foundations for Small Group Ministry in the Church We live and move and function in the midst of a fallen world, but there is hope for a little slice of heaven right in our midst if we will pursue the model for community that God has given us in His word. The Bible portrays numerous ins...

The world is going to be filled with prejudice no matter what. People are going to have their own opinions about some issues, new or old. If there weren't any disagreements, the world would be at peace. That seems impossible with today's world. Religion has been the topic since ancient tim...

Scold your wife sharply, bully and terrify her" is a quotation from a fifteenth century Catholic Church publication called 'Rules of Marriage', a "document which does not just condone wife battering but actually recommends it as a meritorious action that will bring spiritual benefit to both husband ...

Does God call us to worship Him because He needs our worship? This is the question that runs through many people\'s minds when going to worship at church. Does God command us to worship Him because His ego needs a boost? No! Worship was created not for His benefit, but for our benefit. The particula...

The State of DisillusionIn most of our lives, there comes a point when the way we perceive things changes unexpectedly, a point when we come to a sudden realization that things aren't always the way we perceive them. Langston Hughes "Salvation" is a story of a young boy who comes to a sudden reali...

The book of Philemon has several different meanings which can be distinguished by the reader. I believe the book of Philemon is about authority, and specifically how Paul is able to harness his authority and still achieve his objectives. In the dictionary, authority is defined as, "The right ...

Culture is a catch-all term that is used to describe the various rites, traditions, and rituals attached to a specific group of people. A people's culture encompasses more than his or her religion; it encompasses everything from political beliefs to family traditions. While culture certainly...

The Sacrament of Reconciliation Within the Christian faith there are many beliefs and acts for one to follow. Such acts consist of the sacraments, for which there are seven. Believed by many to be one of the most intricate and difficult to understand of all the sacraments, is the sacrament of R...

In the year 324 CE Constantine became the ruler of the entire Roman Empire. For the first time a Christian emperor had ascended the throne, although there is some dispute about the depth of his faith. Some see him as a statesman who exploited Christianity for political purposes, while others mainta...