from author Eric Shuster
SECTION 2: WHAT IS A
CHRISTIAN?—a Definition
Chapter 5: It’s
Confusing According to the World
Now that we know who the Christians were historically we will now turn our attention
to what a Christian is in our present
day. If you think it is an easy task to define a Christian, think again—there
are hundreds of definitions of a Christian that have been generated by people
and institutions over the centuries. Not all of them can be right as the
variations are sometimes mind numbing.
In this chapter author Eric Shuster
researches the definitions of a Christian offered by respected secular
publications, religious organizations, America’s ten largest Christian Churches
and the internet at large—the world’s view if you will. The result is a
convoluted set of definitions with little commonality and plenty of
confusion.
First are the definitions offered by two
widely known secular publications: Webster’s Dictionary and Encyclopedia Britannica. Webster’s
suggests a Christian is anyone who claims a belief in Jesus Christ. Encyclopedia Britannica suggests a Christian
is a person who aligns themselves with the traditions, cultures, and precepts
of Christianity.
Next are the definitions offered by the
world’s largest religious organizations including the National Council of
Churches, World Council of Churches, World Evangelical Alliance, American
Council of Christian Churches, National Association of Congregational Christian
Churches and the Council on Christian Unity. Half of these organizations focus
their definitions of a Christian on faith in Jesus Christ, the love of God, the
inspiration of the Holy Spirit and the Bible being the word of God. The other half
offer similar statements of faith; however, each includes an implied
requirement of Trinitarian belief as a qualification to be a Christian.
Next are the definitions offered by America’s
ten largest Christian Churches defined as those considered Christian by the World Christian Encyclopedia and
included in the 2012 Yearbook of American
and Canadian Churches published by the National Council of Churches. Each
church was contacted and publicly available content examined. The result of the
exercise demonstrated further confusion in trying to nail down a useful
definition of a Christian. The variations were breathtaking.
Finally a comprehensive search was
conducted via the internet for the definitions of a Christian provided by apologetics,
religious leaders, and various institutions. As one might suspect the
definitions of a Christian offered were widely different with only snippets of
commonality.
The result of Shuster’s research revealed
five different definitions of a Christian to be considered: 1) a Christian is one who believes they are a
Christian; 2) a Christian is one who believes in and follows Jesus Christ; 3) a
Christian is one who embraces a particular set of beliefs; 4) a Christian is
one who is born again; and 5) a Christian is one who is a member of a
particular church.
These five definitions are a leading
indicator of the confusion in today’s world in defining a Christian. With the
world in confusion in defining a Christian Shuster turns to a more native and
reliable source to gain understanding—the Bible.
Go to www.findyourchristianity.com to
watch the book trailer, find out what type of Christian you are, and to order
the book.
Where are the
Christians? The Unrealized Potential of a Divided Religion
by Eric Shuster
Coming May 2013!
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