The difference between the religion of Christianity and the religion of Orthodoxy. Why Orthodoxy is the only right choice, who will be saved besides the Orthodox
On October 22, 2013, at the National Research Nuclear University MEPhI, in continuation of the special course “History of Christian Thought,” a lecture on traditional religions and their relationship with Orthodoxy was given by the head, chairman, rector, professor and head of the Department of Theology of MEPhI.
Today I would like to say a few words about the relationship between the Orthodox and representatives of world religions, three of which are represented in our country as traditional; we call these religions traditional because they have historically existed among us for centuries. These are Judaism, Islam and Buddhism. I will not talk in detail about each of these religions, but I will try to general outline highlight their differences from Orthodox Christianity and talk about how we build relationships with them today.
Orthodoxy and Judaism
First of all, I would like to say a few words about Judaism. Judaism is the religion of the Jewish people: it is impossible to belong to it without having Jewish origin. Judaism sees itself not as a world religion, but as a national religion. Currently, it is professed by about 17 million people who live both in Israel and in many other countries of the world.
Historically, Judaism was the basis on which Christianity began to develop. Jesus Christ was a Jew, and all His activities took place within the then Jewish state, which, however, did not have political independence, but was under the rule of the Romans. Jesus spoke Aramaic, that is, one of the dialects of the Hebrew language, and followed the customs of the Jewish religion. For some time Christianity remained somewhat dependent on Judaism. In science, there is even the term “Judeo-Christianity,” which refers to the first decades of the development of the Christian faith, when it still remained associated with the Jerusalem Temple (we know from the Acts of the Apostles that the apostles attended services in the temple) and the influence of Jewish theology and Jewish ritual on Christian communities.
The turning point for the history of Judaism was the year 70, when Jerusalem was sacked by the Romans. From this moment begins the history of the dispersion of the Jewish people, which continues to this day. After the capture of Jerusalem, Israel ceased to exist not only as a state, but even as a national community tied to a specific territory.
In addition, Judaism, represented by its religious leaders, reacted very negatively to the emergence and spread of Christianity. We find the origins of this conflict already in the polemics of Jesus Christ with the Jews and their religious leaders - the Pharisees, whom He harshly criticized and who treated Him with extreme hostility. It was the religious leaders of the Israeli people who achieved the condemnation of the Savior to death on the cross.
The relationship between Christianity and Judaism over the course of many centuries has developed in the spirit of polemics and complete mutual rejection. In rabbinic Judaism, the attitude towards Christianity was purely negative.
Meanwhile, Jews and Christians share a significant part of the Holy Scriptures. All of what we call the Old Testament, with the exception of some later books, is also Holy Scripture for the Jewish tradition. In this sense, Christians and Jews retain a certain single doctrinal basis, on the basis of which theology was built in both religious traditions. But the development of Jewish theology was associated with the appearance of new books - these are the Jerusalem and Babylonian Talmuds, Mishnah, Halacha. All these books, or rather collections of books, were interpretive in nature. They are based on the Holy Scripture, which is common to Christians and Jews, but they interpreted it differently from those interpretations that have developed in the Christian environment. If for Christians the Old Testament is an important, but not the primary part of the Holy Scriptures, which it is New Testament, which speaks of Christ as God and man, the Jewish tradition rejected Christ as the God-man, and the Old Testament remains the main holy book.
The attitude towards the New Testament and the Christian Church in general among the Jews was sharply negative. Among Christians, the attitude towards Jews was also negative. If we turn to the writings of the 4th century Church Fathers, such as John Chrysostom, we can find very harsh statements about the Jews: by today's standards, these statements could be classified as anti-Semitic. But it is important to remember that they were dictated, of course, not by some kind of interethnic hatred, but by the polemics that had been going on for centuries between representatives of the two religions. The essence of the disagreement was in the attitude towards Jesus Christ, because if Christians recognize Him as God Incarnate and the Messiah, that is, the Anointed One about whom the prophets predicted and for whom the Israeli people expected, then the Israeli people themselves for the most part did not accept Christ as the Messiah and continue to expect the coming of another messiah. Moreover, this messiah is conceived not so much as a spiritual leader, but rather as a political leader who will be able to restore the power of the Israeli people and the territorial integrity of the Israeli state.
It was precisely this attitude that was already characteristic of the Jews of the 1st century, which is why many of them did not accept Christ quite sincerely - they were sure that the messiah would be a man who, first of all, would come and free the Israeli people from the power of the Romans.
The Talmud contains many offensive and even blasphemous statements about Jesus Christ and the Most Holy Theotokos. In addition, Judaism is an iconoclastic religion - it does not have any sacred images: neither God nor people. This, of course, is connected with a tradition dating back to Old Testament times, which generally prohibited all images of the Divine and saints. Therefore, if you go to a Christian temple, you will see a lot of images, but if you visit a synagogue, you will see nothing but ornaments and symbols. This is due to a special theological approach to spiritual realities. If Christianity is the religion of God Incarnate, then Judaism is the religion of the Invisible God, Who revealed Himself in the history of the Israeli people in a mysterious way and was perceived as God first of all of the Israeli people, and secondarily as the Creator of the whole world and the Creator of all people.
Reading the books of the Old Testament, we will see that the Israeli people perceived God as their own God, in contrast to the gods of other nations: if they worshiped pagan deities, then the Israeli people worshiped the True God and considered this their legitimate privilege. Ancient Israel did not have at all, as there is still no in the Jewish religion, any missionary calling to preach among other peoples, because Judaism is conceived, I repeat, as the religion of one - the Israeli - people.
In Christianity, the doctrine of God's chosen people of Israel was interpreted differently in different eras. The Apostle Paul also said that “all Israel will be saved” (Rom. 11:26). He believed that the entire Israeli people would sooner or later believe in Christ. On the other hand, already in the theology of the Fathers of the Church of the 4th century, which, as we remember, was the time of the formation of many historiosophical concepts within Christian theology, an understanding developed according to which the chosenness of God of the Israeli people ended after they rejected Christ and passed to “ new Israel”, Church.
In modern theology, this approach is called “replacement theology.” The point is that the new Israel, as it were, replaced ancient Israel in the sense that everything said in the Old Testament in relation to the Israeli people already applies to the new Israel, that is, the Christian Church as a multinational chosen people of God, as a new reality, the prototype of which was the old Israel.
In the second half of the 20th century, another understanding developed in Western theology, which was associated with the development of interaction between Christians and Jews, with the development of Christian-Jewish dialogue. This new understanding practically did not affect the Orthodox Church, but found fairly wide recognition in the Catholic and Protestant environment. According to him, the Israeli people continue to remain God's chosen people, because if God chooses someone, He does not change His attitude towards a person, several people or a specific nation. Consequently, God's chosenness remains a kind of stamp that the Israeli people continue to bear. The realization of this chosenness of God, from the point of view of Christian theologians who adhere to this point of view, lies precisely in the fact that representatives of the Israeli people turn to faith in Christ and become Christians. It is known that among people who are Jewish by ethnic origin, there are many who believed in Christ - they belong to different faiths and live in different countries. In Israel itself there is a movement “Jews for Christ”, which was born in a Protestant environment and is aimed at converting Jews to Christianity.
The hostile attitude of Jews towards Christians and Christians towards Jews existed for centuries in different countries and even reached the everyday level. It took a variety of, sometimes monstrous, forms, right up to the Holocaust in the 20th century, right up to the Jewish pogroms.
Here it must be said that in the past, until very recently, in fact, until the 20th century, as we see from history, contradictions in the religious sphere very often resulted in wars, civil confrontation, and murders. But the tragic fate of the Israeli people, including in the 20th century, when they suffered mass repression, extermination, first of all, from the Nazi regime - a regime that we cannot in any way consider connected with Christianity, because in its ideology it was anti-Christian - prompted the world community at the political level to rethink its relationship with Judaism, including in a religious context, and establish a dialogue with the Jewish religion. Dialogue now exists at the official level, for example, there is a theological commission on dialogue between Christianity and Islam (literally a few weeks ago the next session of such a dialogue was held with the participation of representatives of the Russian Orthodox Church).
In addition to this official dialogue, which, of course, is not aimed at bringing positions together, because they are still very different, there are other ways and forms of interaction between Christians and Jews. In particular, on the territory of Russia, Christians and Jews lived in peace and harmony for centuries, despite all the contradictions and conflicts that arose at the everyday level. Currently, the interaction between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Jewish community Russian Federation quite tight. This interaction concerns, first of all, social as well as moral issues. Here there is a very high degree of agreement between Christians and Jews, as well as representatives of other traditional faiths.
Well, and the most important thing that probably needs to be said: despite the quite obvious differences in the area of doctrine, despite the cardinal difference in the approach to the person of Jesus Christ, between Jews and Christians what is preserved is what is the basis of all monotheistic religions: the belief in that God is one, that God is the Creator of the world, that He participates in the history of the world and the life of every person.
In this regard, we are talking about a certain doctrinal similarity of all monotheistic religions, of which three are called Abrahamic, because they all go back genetically to Abraham as the father of the Israeli people. There are three Abrahamic religions: Judaism, Christianity and Islam (I list them in order of appearance). And for Christianity, Abraham is a righteous man, and for Christianity, the history of the Israeli people is Sacred history.
If you get acquainted with the texts that are heard at Orthodox services, you will see that they are all filled with stories from the history of the Israeli people and their symbolic interpretations. Of course, in the Christian tradition, these stories and stories are refracted through the experience of the Christian Church. Most of them are perceived as prototypes of the realities associated with the coming of Jesus Christ into the world, while for the Israeli people they are of independent value. For example, if in the Jewish tradition Easter is celebrated as a holiday associated with the memory of the passage of the Israeli people through the Red Sea and the deliverance from Egyptian slavery, then for Christians this story is a prototype of the liberation of man from sin, the victory of Christ over death, and Easter is already thought of as feast of the Resurrection of Christ. There is a certain genetic connection between the two Easters - Jewish and Christian - but the semantic content of these two holidays is completely different.
The common basis that exists between the two religions helps them today to interact, conduct dialogue and work together for the benefit of people.
Orthodoxy and Islam
The relationship between Christianity and Islam in history has been no less complex and no less tragic than the relationship between Christianity and Judaism.
Islam appeared at the turn of the 6th and 7th centuries, its founder is Muhammad (Mohammed), who in the Muslim tradition is perceived as a prophet. The book that plays the role of Holy Scripture in the Muslim tradition is called the Koran, and Muslims believe that it was dictated by God himself, that every word of it is true and that the Koran pre-existed with God before it was written down. Muslims consider Mohammed's role to be prophetic in the sense that the words he brought to earth were Divine revelation.
There is quite a lot in common between Christianity and Islam in terms of doctrine. Just like Judaism, like Christianity, Islam is a monotheistic religion, that is, Muslims believe in One God, whom they call the Arabic word “Allah” (God, the Most High). They believe that, besides God, there are angels, that after the death of people, reward after death awaits. They believe in the immortality of the human soul, in the Last Judgment. There are quite a few other Muslim dogmas that are largely similar to Christian ones. Moreover, both Jesus Christ and the Virgin Mary are mentioned in the Koran, and they are spoken about repeatedly and quite respectfully. Christians are called the "People of the Book" in the Koran, and followers of Islam are encouraged to treat them with respect.
Islamic ritual rests on several pillars. First of all, this is the statement that “there is no God but Allah, and Mohammed is his prophet.” It is obligatory for all Muslims to pray five times a day. In addition, just like Christians, Muslims have fasting, but Christians and Muslims fast differently: Christians abstain from certain types of food on certain days, while for Muslims fasting is a certain period of time called Ramadan, when they do not eat food or even drink water from sunrise to sunset. For Muslims, alms are obligatory - zakat, that is, an annual tax that each Muslim with a certain income must pay in favor of his poorer brothers. Finally, it is believed that a devout Muslim, if he has the physical and material capabilities, must make a pilgrimage to Mecca at least once in his life, which is called hajj.
In Islam and Christianity, as I said, there are many similar elements, but it should be noted that just as Christianity today is divided into different faiths, so Islam is a heterogeneous phenomenon. There is Sunni Islam, to which, according to various estimates, from 80 to 90 percent of all Muslims in the world belong. There is Shiite Islam, which is quite widespread, but mainly in the countries of the Middle East. There are a number of Islamic sects, such as the Alawites, who live in Syria. In addition, recently an increasingly important role, including in world politics, has been played by the radical wing of the Islamic world - Salafism (or, as it is now often called, Wahhabism), which the leaders of official Islam disavow as a perversion of Islam, because Wahhabism calls for hatred, aims to create a worldwide Islamic caliphate, where either there will be no place for representatives of other religions, or they will become second-class citizens who will have to pay tribute only for the fact that they are not Muslims.
When talking about the differences between Christianity and Islam in general, we must understand one very important thing. Christianity is a religion of free choice of one person or another, and this choice is made regardless of where the person was born, what nation he belongs to, what language he speaks, what color his skin is, who his parents were, and so on. In Christianity there is not and cannot be any compulsion to faith. And, besides, Christianity is precisely a religious, not a political system. Christianity has not developed any specific forms of existence of the state, does not recommend one or another preferable state system, does not have its own system of secular law, although, of course, Christian moral values had a very significant influence on the formation legal norms in European countries and in a number of countries on other continents (North and South America, Australia).
Islam, on the contrary, is not only religious, but also political and legal system. Mohammed was not only a religious, but also a political leader, the creator of the world's first Islamic state, a legislator and a military leader. In this sense, in Islam, religious elements are very closely intertwined with legal and political elements. It is no coincidence, for example, that in a number of Islamic states, religious leaders are in power, and, unlike Christian ones, they are not perceived as clergy. Only at the everyday level is it customary to talk about “Muslim clergy” - in fact, the spiritual leaders of Islam are, in our understanding, laymen: they do not perform any sacred rites or sacraments, but only lead prayer meetings and have the right to teach the people.
Very often in Islam, spiritual power is combined with secular power. We see this in the example of a number of states, such as Iran, where spiritual leaders are in power.
Turning to the topic of dialogue between Islam and Christianity, the relationship between them, it must be said that with all the bitter experience of the coexistence of these religions in different conditions, including the history of the suffering of Christians under the Islamic yoke, there is also a positive experience of living together. Here again we must turn to the example of our country, where for centuries Christians and Muslims have lived and continue to live together. There have been no interreligious wars in Russian history. We had interethnic conflicts - this explosive potential still exists, which we see even in Moscow, when in one of the city's microdistricts one group of people suddenly rebels against another group - against people of a different ethnic origin. However, these conflicts are not religious in nature and are not religiously motivated. Such incidents can be characterized as manifestations of hatred at the everyday level, having signs of interethnic conflicts. In general, the experience of coexistence of Christians and Muslims in our state over the centuries can be described as positive.
Today in our Fatherland there are such bodies of interaction between Christians, Muslims and Jews as the Interreligious Council of Russia, the chairman of which is the Patriarch. This council includes leaders of Russian Islam and Judaism. It meets regularly to discuss various socially significant issues related to everyday life people. A very high degree of interaction has been achieved within this council, in addition, religious leaders jointly carry out contacts with the state.
There is also a Council for Interaction with Religious Associations under the President of the Russian Federation, which meets quite regularly and in the face of state power represents the generally agreed position of the main traditional faiths on many issues.
Russian experience of interaction between Christians and Muslims shows that coexistence is quite possible. We share our experience with our foreign partners.
Today it is especially in demand precisely because in the countries of the Middle East, North Africa, and some Asian countries, the Wahhabi movement is growing, which is aimed at the complete eradication of Christianity and the victims of which today are Christians in many parts of the world. We know what is happening now in Egypt, where until recently the radical Islamic party “Muslim Brotherhood” was in power, they destroyed Christian churches, set them on fire, killed Christian clergy, which is why we are now seeing a mass exodus of Coptic Christians from Egypt . We know what is happening in Iraq, where ten years ago there were one and a half million Christians, and now there are about 150 thousand of them left. We know what is happening in those areas of Syria where the Wahhabis hold power. There is an almost complete extermination of Christians and massive desecration of Christian shrines.
The tension that is growing in the Middle East and a number of other regions requires political decisions and the efforts of religious leaders. Now it is no longer enough to simply declare that Islam is a peaceful religion, that terrorism has no nationality or religious affiliation, because we are increasingly seeing the growth of radical Islamism. And therefore, more and more often, in dialogue with Islamic leaders, we tell them about the need to influence their flock in order to prevent cases of hostility and hatred, to eliminate the policy of eradicating Christianity, which is being implemented today in the Middle East.
Orthodoxy and Buddhism
Buddhism is a religion that is also represented in our Fatherland. Buddhism is professed by a considerable number of people, while this religion, in its doctrinal principles, is much further from Christianity than Judaism or Islam. Some scholars do not even agree to call Buddhism a religion because there is no concept of God in it. The Dalai Lama calls himself an atheist because he does not recognize the existence of God as a supreme Being.
However, Buddhism and Christianity have some similarities. For example, in Buddhism there are monasteries, in Buddhist temples and monasteries people pray and kneel. However, the quality of the prayer experience of Buddhists and Christians is completely different.
Even as a student, I had the opportunity to visit Tibet and communicate with Tibetan monks. We also talked about prayer, and it was not clear to me who Buddhists turn to when they pray.
When we Christians pray, we always have a specific addressee. For us, prayer is not just some kind of reflection, some words that we say, it is a conversation with God, the Lord Jesus Christ, or with the Mother of God, with one of the saints. Moreover, our religious experience convincingly confirms for us that this conversation is not conducted in only one direction: by turning questions to God, we receive answers; when we make requests, they are often fulfilled; If we are perplexed and pour it out in prayer to God, then very often we receive admonition from God. It can come in different forms, for example, in the form of insight, which occurs in a person when he is looking for something and does not find it, rushes about, turns to God and suddenly the answer to the question becomes clear to him. The answer from God can also come in the form of some life circumstances or lessons.
Thus, the entire experience of prayer for a Christian is an experience of interaction and dialogue with a living Being, Whom we call God. For us, God is a Person who is able to hear us and answer our questions and prayers. In Buddhism, such a Person does not exist, therefore Buddhist prayer is, rather, meditation, reflection, when a person immerses himself in himself. Its adherents try to extract all the potential for good that exists in Buddhism from themselves, that is, from human nature itself.
We, as people who believe in One God, have no doubt that God acts in a wide variety of environments, including outside the Church, and that He can also influence people who do not belong to Christianity. Recently I talked with our famous Buddhist Kirsan Ilyumzhinov: he came to a television program that I host on the Russia-24 channel, and we talked about Christianity and Buddhism. Among other things, he talked about how he visited Athos, stood for six or eight hours in a church during a service and experienced very special sensations: he called them “grace.” This man is a Buddhist, and according to the laws of his religion, he should not believe in God, and yet in a conversation with me he used words such as “God”, “Almighty”. We understand that the desire to communicate with the Supreme Being exists in Buddhism too, only it is expressed differently than in Christianity.
There are many teachings in Buddhism that are unacceptable to Christianity. For example, the doctrine of reincarnation. According to Christian doctrine (and both Jews and Muslims agree with this), a person comes into this world only once in order to live here human life and then pass on to eternal life. Moreover, during his stay on earth, the soul is united with the body, the soul and body become one inseparable being. In Buddhism there is a completely different idea of the course of history, the place of man in it and the relationship between soul and body. Buddhists believe that the soul can migrate from one body to another, moreover, that it can move from the human body to the animal body, and vice versa: from the animal body to the human body.
In Buddhism, there is a whole teaching that a person’s actions in this life affect his future fate. We Christians also say that our actions in earthly life influence our destiny in eternity, but we do not believe that a person’s soul can pass into some other body. Buddhists believe that if a person was a glutton in this earthly life, then next life may turn into a pig. The Dalai Lama in his book talked about one dog who, no matter how much he ate, always found room for another piece. “I think that in a past life she was one of the Tibetan monks who died of starvation,” writes the Dalai Lama.
In this regard, Buddhism is very far from Christianity. But Buddhism is a good religion. It helps to cultivate the will to goodness, helps to release the potential of goodness - it is no coincidence that many Buddhists are calm and cheerful. When I visited Buddhist monasteries in Tibet, I was very struck by the constant calm and hospitality of the monks. They always smile, and this smile is not developed, but quite natural, it stems from some kind of internal experience.
I would also like to draw your attention to the fact that throughout the history of our country, Christians and Buddhists have peacefully coexisted in different regions for centuries and there is no potential for conflicts between them.
Answers to questions from the audience
— You talked about a unique experience Russian Empire, in which good relations have developed between Muslims and Christians - the main population of Russia. However, the peculiarity of this experience is that there are many more Christians in the country than Muslims. Is there any known long and effective experience of good cooperation and good neighborliness in countries where the majority of the population is Muslim?
— Unfortunately, there are much fewer such examples. There is, for example, Lebanon, where until relatively recently there were probably more Christians than Muslims, then they became approximately equal, but now Christians are already in the minority. This state is structured in such a way that all government posts are distributed among representatives of different religious communities. Thus, the president of the country is a Maronite Christian, the prime minister is a Sunni Muslim, etc. This strict representation of religious communities in government bodies, enshrined in the Constitution, helps maintain the peaceful coexistence of different religions in the country.
—Are we in Eucharistic communion with Ethiopian Christians and Egyptian Copts?
— The word “Coptic” means “Egyptian” and therefore indicates ethnicity, not religious affiliation.
Both the Coptic Church in Egypt and the Ethiopian Church in Ethiopia, as well as some others, belong to the family of the so-called pre-Chalcedonian Churches. They are also called Eastern or Oriental Churches. They separated from the Orthodox Church in the 5th century due to disagreement with the decisions of the IV Ecumenical Council (Chalcedon), which adopted the doctrine that Jesus Christ has two natures - Divine and human. These Churches did not accept not so much the teaching itself as the terminology with which this teaching was expressed.
The Eastern Churches are now often called Monophysite (from the Greek words μόνος - “one” and φύσις - “nature, nature”) after the heresy that taught that Jesus Christ was God, but was not a full-fledged man. In fact, these Churches believe that Christ was both God and man, but believe that the Divine and human natures in Him are united into one divine-human composite nature.
Today there is a theological dialogue between the Orthodox Churches and the Pre-Chalcedonian Churches, but there is no communion in the Sacraments between us.
— Could you tell us about Jewish holidays? Do adherents of Judaism have any sacred rites, and is it acceptable for a Christian to participate in their rites?
“We prohibit our believers from participating in the rituals and prayers of other religions, because we believe that each religion has its own boundaries and Christians should not cross these boundaries.
An Orthodox Christian can attend a service in a Catholic or Protestant church, but he should not receive communion from a non-Orthodox church. We can marry a couple if one of the future spouses is Orthodox and the other is Catholic or Protestant, but we cannot marry a Christian with a Muslim woman or a Muslim with a Christian woman. We do not allow our believers to go to prayers in a mosque or synagogue.
Worship in the Jewish tradition is not worship in our sense, because in the Jewish tradition, worship itself was associated with the Jerusalem Temple. When it ceased to exist - now, as you know, only one wall remains of the temple, which is called the Wailing Wall, and Jews from all over the world come to Jerusalem to worship it - full-fledged worship became impossible.
A synagogue is a house for meetings, and initially synagogues were not perceived as places of worship. They appeared in the period after the Babylonian captivity for those people who could not make at least an annual pilgrimage to the temple, and were perceived rather as places of public gatherings where holy books were read. Thus, the Gospel tells how Christ entered the synagogue on Saturday, opened the book (that is, unrolled the scroll) and began to read, and then interpret what He read (see Luke 4:19).
In modern Judaism, the entire liturgical tradition is associated with the Sabbath as the main holy day, a day of rest. It does not involve any sacred rites or sacraments, but involves general prayer and reading of the Holy Scriptures.
There are also some rituals in Judaism, and the main one is circumcision, a ritual preserved from the Old Testament religion. Of course, a Christian cannot participate in this ritual. Although the first generation of Christians - the apostles - were circumcised people, already in the middle of the 1st century the Christian Church accepted the teaching that circumcision is not part of the Christian tradition, that a person becomes a Christian not through circumcision, but through baptism.
— From the point of view of modern times, the Apocalypse of John the Theologian looks quite funny, because not a single aspect of the evolution of mankind is mentioned there. It turns out that he saw a revelation about the end of the world, but did not see, for example, skyscrapers, modern weapons, machine guns. From the point of view of physics, such statements look especially strange, for example, that one third of the sun will be covered during some kind of punishment. I think that if one third of the sun is covered, the earth will not have long to live.
— First of all, I would like to note that the person who writes this or that book does it in a certain era, using the concepts accepted at that time and the knowledge that he has. We call the holy books revealed, but we do not say that they were written by God. Unlike Muslims who believe that the Qur'an is a book written by God and fallen from the sky, we say that all the holy books of the Old and New Testaments were written by people here on earth. They wrote about their experiences in books, but it was a religious experience, and when they wrote, they were influenced by the Holy Spirit.
The Apostle John the Theologian describes what he saw in supernatural visions. He, of course, could not see, much less describe, either skyscrapers or machine guns, because such objects did not exist then, which means there were no words to designate them. The words we are used to - machine gun, skyscraper, car and others - simply did not exist then. Therefore, it is natural that such images could not exist in the book of Revelation.
In addition, I would like to draw your attention to the fact that very often in such books, in particular in the books of the prophets, various symbols were used. And a symbol always has a diverse interpretation, and in each specific era of human development it can be revealed in a new way. The history of mankind shows how the biblical Old Testament and New Testament prophecies came true. You just need to understand that they are written in symbolic language.
And I would also like to advise: if you decide to take up reading the New Testament, then start it not from the end, but from the beginning, that is, not from the Apocalypse, but from the Gospel. Read one Gospel first, then the second, third, fourth. Then - the Acts of the Apostles, the epistles. When you read all this, the Apocalypse will become more understandable to you and, perhaps, will seem less funny.
— I often come across the opinion that if a Jew becomes Orthodox, then he stands above an ordinary Orthodox person, that he rises to a higher level...
“This is the first time I’ve heard about such judgments and I’ll tell you right away: there is no such teaching in the Church, and the Church does not approve of such an understanding.” The Apostle Paul also said that in Christ there is neither Greek nor Jew, neither slave nor free(see Gal. 3:27) - therefore, nationality in moral and spiritual terms has no meaning. What matters is how a person believes and how he lives.
Runes are Old Norse writing. The Normans of the pre-Christian era knew neither parchment, nor, especially, paper. Writings were applied to wood, stone, and metal objects; then they said not “write,” but “cut runes.” Associated with this is the angular shape of runes - signs made up of straight lines located at different angles.
At the birth of writing, the very idea of storing information not in the form of drawings depicting specific images, but in the form of signs conveying abstract concepts, aroused admiration mixed with fear. It seemed like witchcraft - any written word seemed like a spell. Thus, the letters “turned” into magical signs, and runic magic arose.
Runes as a pagan tradition
Runic inscriptions on sacred stones, weapons and other Viking Age artifacts are an important part of Old Norse history and culture. The Orthodox Church has never objected to their study, as well as to any study in the field of history or cultural studies. Objections arise when modern people begin to perceive runes in the same way as the ancient Normans - in their magical aspect, and even those who consider themselves Christians do this.
Some runes directly correlate with the gods of the Old Norse pantheon: Ansuz - with Odin, Inguz - with Frey, Teyvaz - with Tyr. The use of such runes (for example, in talismans) actually means the worship of pagan gods. A Christian should not do this on principle; this is a direct violation of the commandment that prescribes veneration only to the One God: “Thou shalt have no other gods...”
The magical essence of runes
The Church does not accept the very idea of magic. This is directly stated in the Old Testament: “Do not cast spells and do not guess... And if a soul turns to those who call the dead and to magicians, then I will turn my face to that soul and destroy it from among its people.” This prohibition has not been abolished in the New Testament either: in the Revelation of John the Theologian, among those who have no way to the Heavenly City, along with “fornicators and murderers,” sorcerers are named.
Magic is an attempt to control the invisible world of spirits. In principle, a person cannot control angels; they obey only God - therefore, the magician can only control demons, or rather, think that he can control them. It is unacceptable for a Christian to put the forces of evil at his service. In addition, such an attempt to go beyond the limits of natural capabilities is a manifestation of pride - the greatest sin that gives rise to all others.
There is nothing good in fortune telling, including runic. Wanting to know his future, a person demonstrates distrust in God, in His will, and there is no longer any talk of sincere faith. In addition, during runic fortune-telling, they call on the norns - the pagan goddesses of fate.
The danger of runic magic was obvious even to the Scandinavian pagans themselves. In the sagas you can find the negative consequences of the thoughtless use of runes. In this light, the words from the Elder Edda become clear: “This is what I will answer when you ask about the divine runes... there is blessing in silence.” Not a single Icelander or Norwegian of that era would have drawn a runic symbol, even in the air, the meaning of which he had little idea of. Modern people often wear talismans with images of runes, about which they know nothing. This attitude towards runes does not stand up to any criticism, not only from the standpoint Orthodox Church, but also from the point of view of the Scandinavian mythological tradition.
Sources:
- Magic, witchcraft: answers from priests to questions
- Russian Orthodoxy as a type of Christian religion
IN modern society accepted various ways find out your destiny or acquire any earthly goods. One of the most popular mystical activities is fortune telling. The Orthodox Church cannot but pay attention to such practice. Christianity has its own position regarding such actions.
The Orthodox Church has never recognized fortune telling as a useful way of obtaining certain knowledge or any earthly goods. Usually they tell fortunes; there is also a practice of telling fortunes in order to find out the name of a spouse or to obtain some other information. There are many different forms of fortune telling in folk tradition. For example, by hand, using a photograph or other objects. People even have a tradition of telling fortunes on Christmastide (days dedicated to the holiday of the Nativity of Christ). All these practices cause a negative attitude from the Church.
Orthodoxy places fortune telling in the realm of the mysterious and mystical. Christianity claims that when doing fortune telling, a person shows his free will by turning to demons. According to the teachings of Christianity, this cannot have a beneficial effect on the human soul, which is why the practice of fortune telling is also practiced by the Church.
Christianity teaches that it is not entirely useful for a person to know his future, since this can harm the desire for moral improvement of the individual. Appeal to the dark forces of the world cannot cause positive
Answered by: Vasily Yunak
3.117. Dima (dixt@???.ru) writes: “How does Christianity relate to sports? Many scientists are inclined to believe that in the process daily activities In humans (especially men), neuroses and aggression accumulate as a completely natural process, and clots of this energy require release, because a person is an active species. For some, the release of this energy is accompanied by depression, for others, conflicts with others, and sometimes even results in wars. To avoid all these negative consequences, they recommend directing this accumulated energy into a peaceful direction - sports. In sports, there is rivalry between brothers based on selfishness, but it’s all pretend, outside the sports field they again become friendly to each other.”
Christianity, as you understand, has many faces. Therefore, speaking about Christianity, any answer will be correct, but only in relation to certain Christians. Various denominations have directly opposite opinions on this matter: some completely deny sport, while others even present it as an integral part of their creed, while for others sport is one of the types of occupation, such as work in production or trade, so they say absolutely nothing about it.
The Bible also doesn't have much to say about sports directly. Here is almost the only text of the Scriptures that speaks about sports: “Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but only one receives the reward? So run to get it. All ascetics abstain from everything: those to receive a perishable crown, and we to receive an incorruptible crown. And that’s why I don’t run in the wrong way, I don’t fight in a way that just beats the air; But I discipline and enslave my body, so that while I have preached to others, I myself may not remain unworthy” (1 Cor 9:24-27). Someone may also see sport in other words of the apostle: “Flee youthful lusts, but hold on to truth, faith, love, peace with all those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. Avoid foolish and ignorant contests, knowing that they give rise to quarrels” (2 Timothy 2:22,23). However, in fairness, it should be recognized that all “competitions” in the Bible primarily imply verbal disputes and legal proceedings.
However, “man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart” (1 Samuel 16:7). “For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision made outwardly in the flesh; But he who is a Jew inwardly, and that circumcision which is in the heart is in the Spirit, and not in the letter, whose praise is not from men, but from God” (Rom. 2:28,29). The Holy Scripture is silent regarding very many issues, but this does not mean that the Lord approves or accepts everything that is not specifically prohibited in the Bible. The Word of God teaches principles, not specific answers to specific questions. And therefore, in the Holy Scriptures we can find the answer to absolutely any question.
Let's turn to the same “competitions”. Soviet people are accustomed to all kinds of competitions, from sports to “social” competitions, in which, sometimes, it was not clear what it was, but it is important that everyone competes. The Bible everywhere views competition as a negative thing that leads to strife and disputes. And although you say that “In sports there is rivalry between brothers, based on selfishness, but all this is, as it were, for fun, outside the sports field they again become friendly to each other.” But is this really true? Do fights on the hockey field actually happen? Do some boxers pretend to kill their opponents? I know that there are noble athletes who are ready to quit the race to help an injured opponent, although they could have become winners. I don't want to measure everyone with the same yardstick. But what is the admission worth: “In sports, there is rivalry between brothers, based on selfishness.” Do you know, dear Brother Dmitry, that the desire for primacy, selfishness and pride are the most terrible sins? It was these vices that gave birth to Satan. No, I would rather believe that athletes are pretending to be friendly to each other. Even in the same team, how do they feel about someone who caused a loss - who missed the ball, for example? How do some fans of sports teams behave? But this is an integral part of sport, because sport without spectators is nothing. Let's think about the super profits of the sports business. Like any other excess profits, this is dishonest earnings.
I could now cite a whole series of texts from Holy Scripture that speak of useful work. What are the benefits of sports? Sport does not even improve your health (if anything does improve your health, it is not sport, but physical education, which has little in common with sports in its essence), but much more cripples people. Exhaustive work, extreme strength, and injuries are the constant companions of an athlete. Often, athletes, and especially female athletes, cannot have healthy children. And what are all the dopings that dishonest athletes resort to, destroying their health in the process? But the human body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. Can the Holy Spirit dwell in such people? The Bible calls us to do everything for the glory of God (1 Cor 10:31). And who brings glory to sports competitions? I am sure - to anyone, but not to God!
As you can see, sport has enough negative aspects(I'm not even talking about the fact that aimless actions dull a person). Moreover, not only the athlete himself suffers, both physically and spiritually. Fans suffer, their families suffer (how many family dramas have occurred just because someone was overly carried away by watching sports television). And all this just for the sake of someone being freed from their “neuroses”? Most likely, there is a completely different interest here - Satan, the enemy of the human race, has found a wonderful way to take away a person’s time, health, money, good relationships...
And those scientists who propose to “let off steam” in this way follow the atheistic teachings of some psychiatrists like Freud, who deliberately went to the destruction of Christian morality. But all stress and aggression must not be released, but removed from our lives: “Let all irritation and rage, and anger, and shouting, and slander, along with all malice, be removed from you; But be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God in Christ forgave you” (Eph 4:31,32). Christianity has a much more effective method of dealing with such a human condition: “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faith, gentleness, self-control” (Gal 5:22,23).
“Finally, my brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good report, if there is any excellence or if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things” (Philippians 4:8), “and do not participate in the unfruitful works of darkness.” "(Eph 5:11). Therefore, “If we live by the Spirit, then we must walk by the Spirit. Let us not be conceited, let us not irritate one another, let us not envy one another” (Gal 5:25,26).
Hello, Ilya!
Let's look at the question from three angles:
1. What are the practical consequences of the development of Christianity,
2. What does this religion look like from a philosophical point of view,
3. What follows from the above in the sense of Alakha.
1. Let's start with the good (oddly enough!) - Christianity played important role in the fate of many peoples, alienating them from paganism. True, these peoples never came to monotheism (see point 2). Rambam writes that the conquest of most of the world by Christianity and Islam led to the spread of the ideas of the Torah, although distorted, and the knowledge of the coming of the Moshiach and the final Deliverance. When these events happen (probably in our days!), humanity, getting acquainted with the Truth, will discover that most of its postulates are already familiar to everyone.
True, there is not much merit in this for those who spread their faith throughout the world with fire and sword, and along the way, all sorts of crimes were committed, mainly robbery and robbery, not to mention the destruction of entire Jewish communities. The “religion of love” sprinkled the land of Europe with Jewish blood for more than one century, and their ideologists consistently instilled deep contempt and hatred for the Jewish people into the consciousness of the masses. Even those who seemed to sympathize with the persecuted Jews added a dose of poison to their sympathy (see the analysis of the story told by the great Russian writer Leskov at http:// toldot.ru/rus/articles/art/2161). Details, I believe, are unnecessary, refer to history.
2. From the point of view of the Torah, Christianity is a type of idolatry, since it deifies the person, the founder of this religion - Yeshu. A student of the famous sages of the Second Temple era, he was expelled by his teacher for indecent behavior. Offended, he began to fool people, using his knowledge of the Torah, open and secret, and persuading them to follow him, to the “New Truth.” That is, leave the Torah. He was executed, according to some sources, by the Sanhedrin, according to others - by the Romans. He was posthumously declared "resurrected", the Messiah, the son of G-d (in fact, one excludes the other). You can read more about exposing the false premises on which Christianity is built in books dedicated to this. Several such books have been published in Russian in Israel.
The presence of icons, “saints”, “mothers” and “sons” to which the prayers of Christians are addressed firmly secures for this religion the status of “avodah zara”, idolatry. And even those movements that do not have these elements allow “shituf” - they attribute deities to the Almighty, the so-called. "trinity". This contradicts the Unity of the Creator, declared by the Torah, and is not acceptable for a Jew.
3. Hundreds of thousands of Jews throughout history preferred death, exile and humiliation to the wealth and honor offered to them for baptism. The Sanhedrin treatise clearly defines the worship of idols as one of the three prohibitions that a Jew has no right to transgress, even on pain of death. Therefore, it is strictly forbidden to be baptized, even for appearances. You should also not go into churches, and it is advisable not to use them as landmarks to mark the area (“meet me at the church of such and such mother”, etc.)
In conclusion, we note that despite all the sharp, castigating definitions that we give to Christianity, in personal relation to Christians, as well as to all people, our sages taught us by example be polite and friendly. Do not cultivate hatred towards “others” who are not like us (this does not mean making concessions to idolatry and condoning its planting in the Land of Israel). The path of the Torah is different - to sanctify the Name of the Most High with a good attitude towards everyone (except for the villains, of course). Respect all the creations of the Almighty, especially people. To be grateful to those who, despite the general atmosphere of hatred, came to the aid of the oppressed and doomed Jews. Of course, there were Christian priests among them, but they acted like human beings not because they were priests, but contrary to this. The official attitude of the church towards Jews is known. Fig leaves of “reconciliation” and “removal of guilt” last decades do not close the centuries-old history. Even if we agree with the official Christian version of the death of their “Teacher,” this would not give any moral right to do what they did for two thousand years. We must assume that the majority of Jews still have enough sense to think about the above, and not to succumb to today’s sweet smiles of missionaries. After all, the existence of the Jewish people proclaiming “Hear, O Israel, there is one G‑d!” - the best answer to everyone who over the centuries tried with carrots and sticks to prevent the Jews from remaining faithful to the Creator.
Christianity is one of the world religions along with Buddhism and Judaism. Over a thousand-year history, it has undergone changes that led to branches from a single religion. The main ones are Orthodoxy, Protestantism and Catholicism. Christianity also has other movements, but usually they are classified as sectarian and are condemned by representatives of generally recognized movements.
Differences between Orthodoxy and Christianity
What is the difference between these two concepts? It's very simple. All Orthodox are Christians, but not all Christians are Orthodox. Followers, united by the confession of this world religion, are divided by belonging to a separate direction, one of which is Orthodoxy. To understand how Orthodoxy differs from Christianity, you need to turn to the history of the emergence of world religion.
Origins of religions
It is believed that Christianity arose in the 1st century. from the birth of Christ in Palestine, although some sources claim that it became known two centuries earlier. People who preached the faith were waiting for God to come to earth. The doctrine absorbed the foundations of Judaism and philosophical trends of that time, and was greatly influenced by the political situation.
The spread of this religion was greatly facilitated by the preaching of the apostles, especially Paul. Many pagans were converted to the new faith, and this process continued for a long time. At the moment, Christianity has the most large number followers compared to other world religions.
Orthodox Christianity began to stand out only in Rome in the 10th century. AD, and was officially approved in 1054. Although its origins can be dated back to the 1st century. from the birth of Christ. The Orthodox believe that the history of their religion began immediately after the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus, when the apostles preached a new creed and attracted more and more people to religion.
By the 2nd-3rd centuries. Orthodoxy opposed Gnosticism, which rejected the authenticity of the history of the Old Testament and interpreted the New Testament in a different way that did not correspond to the generally accepted one. Confrontation was also observed in relations with the followers of the presbyter Arius, who formed a new movement - Arianism. According to their ideas, Christ did not have a divine nature and was only a mediator between God and people.
On the doctrine of the emerging Orthodoxy The Ecumenical Councils had a great influence, supported by a number of Byzantine emperors. Seven Councils, convened over five centuries, established the basic axioms subsequently accepted in modern Orthodoxy, in particular, they confirmed the divine origin of Jesus, which was disputed in a number of teachings. This strengthened the Orthodox faith and allowed more and more people to join it.
In addition to Orthodoxy and small heretical teachings, which quickly faded in the process of development of stronger trends, Catholicism emerged from Christianity. This was facilitated by the split of the Roman Empire into Western and Eastern. Huge differences in social, political and religious views led to the collapse of a single religion into the Roman Catholic and Orthodox, which at first was called Eastern Catholic. The head of the first church was the Pope, the second - the patriarch. Their mutual excommunication of each other from the common faith led to a split in Christianity. The process began in 1054 and ended in 1204 with the fall of Constantinople.
Although Christianity was adopted in Rus' back in 988, it was not affected by the schism process. The official division of the church occurred only several decades later, but At the baptism of Rus', Orthodox customs were immediately introduced, formed in Byzantium and borrowed from there.
Strictly speaking, the term Orthodoxy was practically never found in ancient sources; instead, the word Orthodoxy was used. According to a number of researchers, previously these concepts were given different meanings (orthodoxy meant one of the Christian directions, and Orthodoxy was almost a pagan faith). Subsequently, they began to be given a similar meaning, made synonyms and replaced one with another.
Fundamentals of Orthodoxy
Faith in Orthodoxy is the essence of all divine teaching. The Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed, compiled during the convening of the Second Ecumenical Council, is the basis of the doctrine. The ban on changing any provisions in this system of dogmas has been in effect since the Fourth Council.
Based on the Creed, Orthodoxy is based on the following dogmas:
The desire to earn eternal life in heaven after death is the main goal of those who profess the religion in question. A true Orthodox Christian must throughout his life follow the commandments handed down to Moses and confirmed by Christ. According to them, you need to be kind and merciful, love God and your neighbors. The commandments indicate that all hardships and hardships must be endured resignedly and even joyfully; despondency is one of the deadly sins.
Differences from other Christian denominations
Compare Orthodoxy with Christianity possible by comparing its main directions. They are closely related to each other, since they are united in one world religion. However, there are huge differences between them on a number of issues:
Thus, the differences between the directions are not always contradictory. There are more similarities between Catholicism and Protestantism, since the latter emerged as a result of the schism of the Roman Catholic Church in the 16th century. If desired, the currents could be reconciled. But this has not happened for many years and is not expected in the future.
Attitudes towards other religions
Orthodoxy is tolerant of confessors of other religions. However, without condemning and peacefully coexisting with them, this movement recognizes them as heretical. It is believed that of all religions, only one is true; its confession leads to the inheritance of the Kingdom of God. This dogma is contained in the very name of the movement, indicating that this religion is correct and opposite to other movements. Nevertheless, Orthodoxy recognizes that Catholics and Protestants are also not deprived of the grace of God, since, although they glorify Him differently, the essence of their faith is the same.
By comparison, Catholics consider the only possibility of salvation to be the practice of their religion, while others, including Orthodoxy, are false. The task of this church is to convince all dissenters. The Pope is the head christian church, although in Orthodoxy this thesis is refuted.
The support of the Orthodox Church by secular authorities and their close cooperation led to an increase in the number of followers of the religion and its development. In a number of countries, Orthodoxy is practiced by the majority of the population. These include:
In these countries, a large number of churches, Sunday schools, and secular educational institutions Subjects dedicated to the study of Orthodoxy are introduced. Popularization also has a downside: often people who consider themselves Orthodox have a superficial attitude towards performing rituals and do not comply with the prescribed moral principles.
You can perform rituals and treat shrines differently, have different views on the purpose of your own stay on earth, but ultimately, everyone who professes Christianity, united by faith in one God. The concept of Christianity is not identical to Orthodoxy, but includes it. Maintaining moral principles and being sincere in your relationships with Higher Powers is the basis of any religion.
