I am a Christian, and that is it, just Christian
There is no single Christian religion, so let's stop acting like there is.
What church are you with?
That question is always asked after I tell someone that I am a Christian. But that question has always baffled me. I don’t really know how to answer it. I grew up in a Presbyterian (PCUSA) church. Even then, I was involved in several churches. I didn’t really believe in separating by denominational lines. I have gone to many different churches of many different ideologies. I find good and bad theology in all of them. I also find good Christian believers in most of them. Sadly, I find many misinformed “believers” in all of them.
I realized people ask because they want an idea of what kind of ideology I have. But even then, I have not found an ideology that is consistent. Here in Brazil, many non-Catholic other churches are usually considered evangelical, but there is definitely no unifying concept of “evangelical”. From the way evangelical gets used in the US, I stopped using that term. In the US, it has become associated with some very toxic ideology. Where in Brazil, it isn’t as toxic, but still is not a good fit.
The above “word cloud” was generated using AI. I argued with the AI because it kept giving non-sense words. It apologized for not doing it right, but even after telling it the word I wanted included it failed. Eventually, I realized that it is a good representation of modern Christianity.
Christianity keeps becoming more and more fractured. Daniel’s vision of the statue with feet of a mixture of clay and iron has traditionally been interpreted as the future of politics. I wonder if it wasn’t actually a view of the future of religion. Consider these labels:
Orthodox, Judeo/Christian , Catholic , Protestant, Reformed, Evangelical
Pentecostal, Conservative, Progressive, Emergent, Nones
Baptist, Methodist, Lutheran, Church of Christ, Presbyterian, Assembly of God
That doesn’t even get into the numerous sub groups of those denominations and ideologies. And even within a church congregation, we regularly find people who say they like the people, but don’t really agree with the teaching. There isn’t even unity in small churches or even in families.
I have worked with many Churches and Christian organizations. All of whom hold very different things to be important. I hear people say something like “You can’t be a Christian and believe….” I’ve seen preachers call fellow Christians “demons” or “evil” based on who they vote for. It feels like I’ve been stabbed right through the heart of the Spirit.
Christians a supposed to walk in unity. Jesus commanded us to love our enemies. We certainly should love one another as Jesus also commanded.
Unfortunately, many in the church today even support leaders who DO NOT claim Jesus as savior above their own brothers and sisters. That is the spirit of antichrist.
Jesus used the scriptures to teach about himself/God. If your church gets obsessed with a world view, your church’s God might be the Prince of this World.
Once I was talking to someone and he called over to his sister: “Hey, you need to come over here and meet this guy. He is a Christian, but he isn’t like those other Christians!” I appreciate that they see a better image of Jesus in me, but it also makes me sad that so many people present an improper (often terrible) image of Jesus.
I am referring here to “Christians” who attack cultures. Many have split indigenous communities over the style of clothing or who can live in houses together. And even whether they can honor they ancestors. Honestly, when you read the Bible, there are many spiritual ideas we find pretty unusual in our modern society. The Holy Spirit knows how to convict and correct people where needed. Let the Spirit do its work! Our job as Christians is to LOVE!
I personally believe the Nicene Creed to be somewhat foundational, but even then I can see why the early church split over that creed. I get horrified over many modern “statements of faith” that actually equate things of this world to God.
Some of the basic things I believe:
Christians should be known “by there love”, not by what they hate
The Bible presents a view of God, not a world view
Jesus came to heal our relationship with our creator
God wants us to care for each other and especially the poor, sick, oppressed and marginalized—Jesus even described this as how people will be judged
There is no room in Christianity for favoritism including nationalism, racism, or many of schisms. However, the early church spread throughout many different cultures and spiritual beliefs.