Christianity

[Nec Spe Nec Metu]

What is Christianity's biggest strength?

What is Christianity's biggest weakness?

Do the strengths outweigh the weaknesses?

Definition of Christianity: the religion derived from Jesus Christ, based on the Bible as sacred scripture, and professed by Eastern, Roman Catholic, and Protestant bodies

[10CC]

What is Christianity's biggest strength?

What is Christianity's biggest weakness?

Do the strengths outweigh the weaknesses?

Is it possible to get a consensus view of what christianity IS?

[JoeyKnothead]

From the OP:

What is Christianity's biggest strength?

Great numbers of believers.

What is Christianity's biggest weakness?

Inability to show core claims are truth.

Do the strengths outweigh the weaknesses?

'Pends.

If believers is the goal, I'd say it's doing well.

If showing there actually is a god, and all that entails, I'd say it's lost as a cow at a square dance.

[A Troubled Man]

What is Christianity's biggest strength?

The indoctrination machine, they've had centuries to perfect it.

What is Christianity's biggest weakness?

The Resurrection and it's capacity to show any validity.

Do the strengths outweigh the weaknesses?

Absolutely, without the indoctrination machine having any success, the Resurrection is easily dismissed with some critical thinking.

[Divine Insight]

What is Christianity's biggest strength?

A very large number of people have been convinced to believe in it.

What is Christianity's biggest weakness?

Overall it's an utterly absurd story.

Do the strengths outweigh the weaknesses?

Not for too much longer. The absurdity of the story is becoming more realized.



Definition of Christianity: the religion derived from Jesus Christ, based on the Bible as sacred scripture, and professed by Eastern, Roman Catholic, and Protestant bodies

This is actually an untrue definition.

A more true definition would be that Christianity is a religion that uses Jesus as a patsy to hold up the Old Testament as the word of God.

The greatest irony in this is that even the New Testament rumors of Jesus have Jesus himself rejecting many of the core teachings of the Old Testament.

I always say that the Jewish Priests may have had Jesus physically nailed to a pole, but the Christians (i.e. the authors of the New Testament), then metaphorically nailed Jesus to the Old Testament as the Son of a God that clearly even Jesus didn't believe in.

[Mithrae]

What is Christianity's biggest strength?

Its blend of tradition and innovation. The narrative stretches back to bronze age nomadic roots, but was progressively developed and modified by the later prophets, by Jesus, by the early Christians and by later reformers and modern/postmodern theologians. Even its core scriptures were written by dozens of people with differing agendas across over a thousand years, leaving them fairly open to interpretation and re-interpretation as circumstances warrant.

What is Christianity's biggest weakness?

Too much integration into the political structures and cultural mainstream of western society from the fourth century onwards. Views which become identified so deeply with the status quo tend towards conservatism and reactionary/fundamentalist responses to changes in knowledge and society. Views which refuse to bend are likely to break.

##

This is actually an untrue definition.

A more true definition would be that Christianity is a religion that uses Jesus as a patsy to hold up the Old Testament as the word of God.

The greatest irony in this is that even the New Testament rumors of Jesus have Jesus himself rejecting many of the core teachings of the Old Testament.

I always say that the Jewish Priests may have had Jesus physically nailed to a pole, but the Christians (i.e. the authors of the New Testament), then metaphorically nailed Jesus to the Old Testament as the Son of a God that clearly even Jesus didn't believe in.

Your evidence for this? The Tanakh itself states that the covenant of Moses would one day be replaced in some manner (eg. Jeremiah 31:31-34) and, rightly or wrongly, that seems to be an element of how the gospels portray Jesus, each in their own way. They all also very clearly portray him as a Jew, quoting Jewish Scriptures, observing Jewish festivals and debating application of Jewish religious ethics.

Hopefully your "more true definition" of Christianity has more substance to it than your quaint interpretation of Matthew 5 which has been refuted several times in the past

[Divine Insight]

Your evidence for this? The Tanakh itself states that the covenant of Moses would one day be replaced in some manner (eg. Jeremiah 31:31-34) and, rightly or wrongly, that seems to be an element of how the gospels portray Jesus, each in their own way. They all also very clearly portray him as a Jew, quoting Jewish Scriptures, observing Jewish festivals and debating application of Jewish religious ethics.

Hopefully your "more true definition" of Christianity has more substance to it than your quaint interpretation of Matthew 5 which has been refuted several times in the past

Christiandom is the evidence for this.

I agree with you that there are outliers of Christian sects and denominations that don't agree with the bulk of Christiandom.

10CC had already posted, "Is it possible to get a consensus view of what christianity IS?"

So actually, Mithrae, the only way I could agree with your views are in the light of the observations made by 10CC.

But then Christianity becomes nothing more than a myriad of diverging personal opinions and is basically meaningless at that point.

[Divine Insight]

Hopefully your "more true definition" of Christianity has more substance to it than your quaint interpretation of Matthew 5 which has been refuted several times in the past

What specifically are you claiming as been "refuted"?

I'm not aware of any of my interpretations having been refuted. So if you would be kind enough to share what you believe has been refuted that could be enlightening.

Thank you.

[alive]

Faith...

Faith...


They both equal nothing...

[YahDough]

What is Christianity's biggest strength?

It's the truth that leads to peace with God and everlasting life.

What is Christianity's biggest weakness?

Salvation is based on grace through faith. It seems not all receive that gift.

Do the strengths outweigh the weaknesses?

Yes

Definition of Christianity: the religion derived from Jesus Christ, based on the Bible as sacred scripture, and professed by Eastern, Roman Catholic, and Protestant bodies