Basic principles of the Christian worldview

At the end of the 10th century, the light of Orthodoxy shone in Russia, which was brought here by the Grand Duke of Kiev, Vladimir, later ranked as a member of the Holy Apostles, that is, in the grandeur of his deeds, equal to the apostles - the disciples of Christ. But the new religion became for our ancestors not only a different form of religious worship, the principles of the Christian world view radically changed the relations of people established at that time to each other and to the world around them.

Religion of love

The unshakable foundations of the Christian worldview are based on the principles of salvation and redemption, which fundamentally distinguishes them from the postulates of Islam and Judaism, where God is represented primarily as a formidable judge. The mercy of God is brought to the forefront of Christianity for a man who was created in his own image and likeness, but as a result of the fall of the divine nature that has damaged himself.

Christian faith is, first of all, the love of God, who endured the crucifixion for the salvation of people. The result of the search for a more complete understanding of it was the system of knowledge that emerged in the first centuries of Christianity, called theology, or theology. This is nothing more than a set of speculative conclusions based on texts included in the Holy Scripture , which are, according to the adherents of Christianity, the revelation of God.

God is the center of everything

Christian early medieval worldview is completely built on the principle of theocentricity. The Greek word "theos" means "God." It is with him - the center and creator of the universe - that all the concepts of medieval thinking are correlated. It is also the basis of knowledge, where the dominant place belongs to theology, which rises above philosophy as a secondary and purely official element. Other private and applied sciences have the role of semi-legal and not serious initiatives.

Christianity is a religion of monotheism, professing the one God. It is based on two most important principles, the unknown philosophy of the pagan world - the idea of creation, which became the foundation of medieval ontology, and the revelation that served as the basis for the doctrine of the knowledge of the world. According to the dogma adopted in Christianity, God created the world out of nothing, only by the influence of one's own will and through omnipotence, which constantly preserves and upholds it. This form of worldview bears the name of creationism from the French word creation - "creation."

Cognition of the Creator of the world

It is important to note that this principle rejects the idea of the natural beginning of the world and proclaims it supernatural. If the gods of the ancient world were part of nature, then the Christian God stands outside and above it. In theology, the term "transcendental God" is used to express this concept. In this case, every active creative principle is withdrawn from nature and completely transferred to God. It is eternal, unchanging, is the source of all things in the world and does not depend on anyone.

Despite the fact that the Christian God is unknowable, he nevertheless reveals to man what he is able to contain in his consciousness. This happens through the texts of the Holy Scripture, the interpretation of which is the main task of the knowledge of God. The basic principles of the medieval worldview were built on the fact that everything God created is good and perfect, as the Creator himself is perfect. Hence the consequence - evil is not created by God and is not an essence, but only takes its image. Therefore, the world is ruled by good, and this gave hope to the triumph of good, making Christianity optimistic in its essence.

The Bible is the path to knowledge of God

All the principles of the Christian world view are described in detail in the Bible, a set of sacred texts divided into two groups - the Old Testament, setting out the history of the creation of the world and the relationship of God with people before the coming of his son Jesus Christ into the world, and the New Testament telling about the coming of the Savior and the creation On the land of the holy apostolic church.

The main purpose of the Bible is to reconcile the fallen man to God and to indicate the ways that enable him to join the Kingdom of Heaven in earthly life. In it for the first time in accordance with the principles of theocentrism, philosophical ideas about a person as a person and his role in the life of the state are set forth. One of the most important ideas of the Bible is the theory of predestination of both the life of a single person and the whole society as a whole and the correlation of this "programmed" with personal freedom.

The two beginnings underlying the creation of man

The basic principles of the Christian worldview are based on the fact that when a man was created, two fundamentally different beginnings were laid in his foundation. One of them is material - this is his body, another spiritual is his soul. The Bible teaches that the first of these is carnal, connected with this world and dependent on it, is inferior and insignificant, whereas the second, its spiritual component, dominates and makes a person a person. This is what determines the attitude of a Christian to the world around him.

Cause of human suffering

The Bible, being the revelation of God, answers the key question that worries people throughout human history: why do they suffer and experience incalculable upheavals? The answer to it, set forth in the Bible, boils down to the sinful nature of a man who has broken his connection with God.

According to the Holy Scriptures, at first man embodied the harmony of mental and physical forces, conditioned by his union with the Creator. But after the famous fall, being cursed and banished from paradise, he lost his inner harmony, he exhausted the influx of divine power, and, as a result, degradation came.

At the same time, being the creation of God, he did not lose the ability to act, guided by his own will. The freedom of choice between good and evil remained with him, but in isolation from God he began to use it not for the good of himself and his neighbors, but for harm. This led to the fact that the life of most people is an endless series of moral and physical suffering.

Texts of the New Testament

About what was done by the Creator for the salvation of his creations perishing in sinful darkness, the four Gospels, which are included in a separate part of the Bible, called the New Testament, narrate. They were written at the end of the first century, and at the same time followers of the disciples of Jesus Christ developed the basic principles of the Christian worldview, based on the main Christian dogmas.

In addition to the evangelical texts mentioned, the New Testament included such an important part as the Epistles of the Apostles. These texts, compiled by the closest disciples and followers of Christ, became the main ideological and organizational basis for the creation of the Christian church, which in time established itself as the beginning of the first apostles and received divine sanction. It is from the moment of its formation that it plays the role of the representative of God on earth and has the right to interpret Divine revelation, doing this on the basis of the works of the holy fathers - those through whom the Lord reveals his truth to people.

Errors in the interpretation of Scripture

It is fair to note that over the centuries, there have been contradictions within the Christian worldview. The Holy Church does not try to hide this fact, but explains it by what it is customary to call the human factor today. Not always even recognized church authorities are the vehicles of truth.

They, like other people, are subject to the same physical and spiritual infirmities. They also have the property of making mistakes when, for whatever reason, the voice of God weakens within each one of them. In these cases, there are false teachings. As a rule, the church finds ways to get rid of them, considering opinions on the contentious issue, perhaps more theologians.

Care in your own inner world

Despite the immutability of the divine teaching, the principles of the Christian worldview for two millennia underwent certain changes. They developed and expanded. This happened mainly under the influence of the church tradition, which is not, unlike religious dogmas, established once and for all.

It is important to note that the principles of Christian thought and worldview were formed during the period of the deep crisis of the ancient world and the devaluation of its generally accepted values. For many, who felt disappointed in the structure of Roman life, Christianity became attractive because it offered spiritual salvation and a withdrawal inside of itself from the sinful external world.

Christianity contrasted with severe sensual pleasures strict austerity, and arrogance - humility and obedience. It was these qualities that were to be rewarded in the Kingdom of Heaven, the achievement of which was the goal of earthly existence. This gave rise to the consciousness of meaningfulness of being and set a concrete goal.

The commonality of all the followers of Christ

From the first days of the emergence of Christian communities, an important aspect of their lives was the desire to involve their members in caring not only for themselves and their welfare, but also for the destinies of the whole world. Their prayers were raised about universal salvation. Even in those early years Christian universalism began to emerge - communities that are far from each other at a great distance, nevertheless felt their unity. A special role in this was played by the New Testament thesis: "There is no Greek, not a Jew," who established equality before God for all people, regardless of their nationality.

Christian doctrine says that man, created in the image and likeness of God, distorted his Godlike identity with original sin. The Son of God atoned for the sins of the people, but for this he needed to receive God's suffering. For this reason, one of the main Christian dogmas has been the purifying role of suffering and any restrictions voluntarily imposed on oneself to eradicate evil. The Church teaches that by overcoming evil in itself, a person not only fulfills God's commandment, but also ascends to it, becoming closer to the Kingdom of Heaven, prepared for him from the creation of the world.

Return to the spiritual roots

In Russia, Christianity has come a long and difficult journey. Vossyav in 988 on the banks of the Dnieper, it created a spiritual impetus for the development of the country throughout its centuries-old history. Even the innumerable disasters that hit Russia in the twentieth century, and the theomachism elevated to state policy, could not turn people away from religion. The revival of the Christian world view, which came in the period of democratic reforms, was a logical result.

Today hundreds of churches are being built all over the country and new church communities are being created. For millions of people the foundations of the concept of the Russian Orthodox Church - a document adopted by the Council of Bishops of 2000 - have become the law of life. On the basis of his tenets, a Christian worldview is currently being built on divorce, abortion, attitude towards incompetent members of society and many other problems that cause public outcry. Such a return to spiritual roots is a deeply gratifying fact.

Today, the contradiction is gradually blurred, which included the scientific and Christian worldview in the past. People begin to understand that the world around us is not limited only to its visible side - it is wide and diverse. Both secular science and theology, without entering into conflict with each other, study its various aspects - spiritual and material. A deep and comprehensive knowledge of the world is their common goal.