Christianity and the Holy Bible teach things in exact numbers, from the eight Beatitudes to the 10 Commandments which set forth some of the essential elements of the Christian faith. Within this faith, there exist:
One God
In spite of the diverse bible doctrines and denominations of the Christian religion, one thing that can said of Christianity, and indeed Christians, is that they all believe in one God; the almighty father.
Two Testaments
The Holy Bible consists of 66 books written by various authors and divided into two parts – the Old and New Testament. The Old Testament introduces the history of God’s creation of the world, his interaction with mankind and promises for the future including the coming of the messiah, Jesus Christ. The New Testament talks of the fulfilment of prophesies from the Old Testament and the life of Christ through the Gospels of the evangelists.
The Holy Trinity (God in Three Persons)
The Christian faith teaches that God exits in three forms – God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit – commonly referred to as the Holy Trinity. The mystery of the Trinity is beyond human understanding; as the Bible affirms that there is only one God and subsequently states that Jesus is God and the Holy Spirit is God.
Four Evangelists
The evangelists, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John are also the authors of the first four Gospels (whose names they bear) in the New Testament. Their Gospels account for the life of Jesus Christ, his teachings and sayings. The term gospel is a direct translation of the Latin evangelium meaning good news.
Five Books of Moses – The Pentateuch
The Pentateuch are the first five books of the Old Testament and are assumed to have been written by Moses (as the Bible suggests in Joshua 8:31-34) as a single scroll which was later broken into 5 separate books that are also widely known as the Books of the Law:
- Genesis
- Exodus
- Leviticus
- Numbers and
- Deuteronomy
Six Working Days
Although referring to the first six days of creation, the emphasis is on the seventh, the Sabbath. The Holy Bible, specifically Genesis, states that God created the world in six days but He rested on Sabbath and made it holy. Although observing Sabbath is also one of the commandments, its full meaning is open to interpretation according to each Christian denomination. Exodus 20:8-11 emphasises on the importance of Sabbath and prohibits labour on this day. Themes of the first six days of creation, from one to six, are:
- Light
- Heaven
- Earth, seas and plant life
- Sun, moon and stars
- Sea life and birds
- Land animals and mankind
Seven Sacraments
The seven sacraments of initiation are religiously followed by the Catholic Church more than churches of other disciplines. They are usually administered by a priest in a person’s life and deemed necessary for salvation. The sacraments come in the following order, although they are not always followed so.
- Baptism
- Penance
- Holy Eucharist
- Confirmation
- Holy Orders
- Matrimony
- Extreme Unction (Anointing of the Sick)
Traditionally, Baptism, Confirmation and Holy Orders can only be given once as their imprints are believed to be everlasting on a person’s soul.
Eight Beatitudes
Sometimes called the charter of Christianity (because they typically lay out the characteristics of those who will get salvation), the Beatitudes are the words with which Jesus addressed the crowds at the Mount. The Gospel of Matthew (5:3-10) lists them as:
- Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
- Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
- Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.
- Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
- Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.
- Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.
- Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God.
- Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Nine Orders of Angels
Angels go as far back as the time of Zarathustra the prophet of Zoroastrianism – an ancient religion that dominated the Persian Empire during the sixth century BC. The Christian celestial hierarchy of angels, from the lowest to the highest, includes:
- Angels
- Archangels
- Principalities
- Powers
- Virtues
- Dominations
- Thrones
- Cherubim
- Seraphim
Incidentally, Satan was known as the most glorious seraph. He became a victim of his own pride and a third of all angels in the hierarchy are said to have gone along with him to hell.
Ten Commandments
The story of the Ten Commandments is told in Exodus 20:2-17 and Deuteronomy 5:6-21. There are various arrangements of the Commandments found in Catholicism, Protestantism and Judaism according to their understanding of the script.
Sources:
D’Epiro, Peter and Pinkowish, Mary D. (2005) What Are the Seven Wonders of the World? And 60 Other Great Cultural Questions. The Folio Society, London.
The Holy Bible: New International Version. International Bible Society, UK
www.wcg.org – accessed on 27 Jan 2010
Clementine Nyembo - Clementine is freelance writer and journalist currently contributing to several online publications. Apart from Suite101, she has been ...
