Christianity Without Beliefs
- ISBN-10
- 1730969720
- ISBN-13
- 9781730969720
- Pages
- 131
- Language
- English
- Published
- 2018-11-07
- Author
- Marshall Davis
Description
Once upon a time there was a Christian gospel without doctrines. There was time when Christianity did not have beliefs. It did not require its adherents to accept a set of theological statements. There was no New Testament. There were no creeds or doctrinal statements. There was no clergy or ecclesiastical hierarchy. No vestments or sacraments. No one had ever heard of ideas like the Virgin Birth, the Incarnation, the Trinity or the Second Coming. Concepts like the Fall of Man and a subsequently necessary Atonement, accomplished through the death of Jesus on the Cross, never crossed anyone's mind. These beliefs, which later became orthodox Christian teaching, took years to develop. In the beginning Christianity was not a religion distinguished from other religions. It was just a way of life. The early followers of Jesus simply called it "the Way." The early church was not a religious institution; it was a spiritual movement. It was a community of pilgrims traveling a common path, which had been taught by Jesus. That is the way it used to be. It can be that way again. Is that possible? Can you really have Christianity without all the baggage? Can you be a Christian without beliefs? Can you be a follower of Jesus without holding ideas like the deity of Christ, the resurrection of the body, the Last Judgment and hell? Can you have Christianity without church buildings and budgets, religious denominations and bureaucracies? Sure you can! The original twelve apostles did. This book begins by looking at the nature of early Christianity before there were beliefs. Then using Jesus' Sermon on the Mount as a framework, Marshall Davis explores twenty-one spiritual values and ethical principles taught by Jesus. They are concepts like humility, compassion, forgiveness, peacemaking, simplicity, tolerance, and nonviolence. Building upon Dietrich Bonhoeffer's idea of a "religionless Christianity," he proposes that Christians move beyond religious dogmatism to a Christianity beyond beliefs.
