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Christianity was founded in Palestine as a breakaway sect of Judaism by the followers of Jesus Christ around 2,000 years ago. Christianity as a system of Christian beliefs, as a Way of Life and as a communal tradition, has spread to nearly every country of the world. Today there are more than two billion adherents of Christianity, mostly in the Americas and Europe where it has made a significant historical and cultural impact. It is also the predominant religion in large parts of Africa, Oceania, and the Phillipine Islands. Over the years, many divergent denominations or sects of Christians developed because of dogmatic disagreements. Some of the primary denominations were Roman Catholicism including Eastern Catholic and Latin Rite; and, Protestantism including Anabaptists, Anglicans, Baptists, Methodists, Nazarenes, Pentecostals, Reformed Presbyterians. Other denominations included the Restorationists (Churches of Christ, Disciples of Christ, Jehovah's Witnesses, Seventh-day Adventists, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints); and, Eastern Christianity including Assyrian (Nestorian), Eastern Orthodox, and Oriental Orthodox (Armenians, Copts, Jacobites).
Most of them; however, do
share a core of common beliefs. Only part of the life of Christ was known and
that was gleaned from writings of others written long after his passing. Many of
the writings available about the teachings of the Christ in ancient times were
not included in what is considered the sanctioned and official collection of
writings known as the Bible.
There is a period of time from when Jesus was thirteen until he began his ministry at age thirty where there are no written records available to explain where he sojourned or what he did during that timeframe. They are often called the "Lost Years of Jesus". Some speculate that perhaps he lived for awhile as an Essence before he journeyed back to Egypt, where he had lived as a child when his parents fled from the wrath of Herod. After he studied at the ancient mysteries schools at sacred places like Luxor, he made his way to India where he briefly studied Hinduism. Then he sojourned for many years at a Buddhist monastery in the Himalayan mountains. The Gospel of Thomas is written in a style similar to that of the Sutras of India. From the gospels we do know that for the most part he preferred to give his sermons outdoors in the Natural World like the Sermon on the Mount; and, that he was a benevolent, loving man of peace who believed in the diversity and equality of all humans, even sinners who had fallen into bad ways. The Gospel of Philip seemed to indicate that he had a very special and loving relationship with Mary Magdalene, similar to that of husband and wife. Jesus preferred to teach by the oral tradition method as a storyteller of parables, similitudes, and exemplaries. He was a kindhearted healer who performed miraculous healings, cast out demons, manifested food to fed the hungry, and calmed troubled and stormy seas.
He also was a
mentor and benefactor to his disciples, assuring them that in due course, they
would also be capable of performing the miraculous deeds which he had
accomplished...
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