About the Christian Faith

Christianity sometimes seems like a religious buffet table - as if anyone can come in, pick out their favorite doctrines, and freely ignore the rest. Yet, while various groups constantly bicker over specific issues, there are some core beliefs that unite all true Christians together, and I'll briefly explain them here.

The short answer to this problem is that, when you get down to it, all Christians are people. We're imperfect, and we often allow our own opinions to have more influence over what we believe than we should. Have a look at this page if you want some additional food for thought on the subject.

Chances are pretty good that you've heard someone say that something is a sin or talk about being tempted. Since the central Message of Christianity revolves around these topics, it's important for everyone to understand what sins are, why they are bad, and why sin and temptation are not the same thing.

It's more or less common knowledge that the documents that make up the Holy Bible were written in a language other than English, such as Hebrew or Greek. Today, most of us turn to professionally made translations in order to read the text, but the sheer number of translations out there has also lead to a number of questions, such as which translation is the "best" translation. I'll answer most of these questions here.

In a nutshell, the Apocrypha is a small group of disputed Scriptures. Some Christians (mainly Catholics) consider then to be valid parts of the Bible, while other groups (ie, most Protestants) do not. It's worth noting that these works were included in the Bible when it was originally compiled - the question then is whether or not including them was the right decision.

For easy reference, here's a page that simply lists books in the accepted Bible Canon. The Old and New Testaments are listed separately, and there is also a list for the Apocrypha, as some groups do accept it as Scripture. However, as the so-called "New Testament Apocrypha" is univerally rejected, none of those works are shown on this page.

The Five Solae are a set of five principles that formed the foundation of most Protestant churches. Chances are pretty good that you're already familiar with these ideas, though you might not know the fancy Latin names for them. This article explains each one in just enough depth to make you familiar with them.

Throughout the Bible, we are warned about listening to false teachers - but who are these people, and what makes them dangerous? The answer is incredibly simple, and this article provides some equally simple ways to identify them. It also offers some advice for dealing with any false teachers you might encounter.

Chances are, you've heard someone use the term "heretic" or "heresy" before. Since these sometimes get thrown around carelessly, it might be a good idea to take a look at what both terms actually mean. After discussing heresy in general, this page then provides some examples by listing some of the more common heresies.

A lot of people have been abused by people who claimed they were acting according to God's Will. This has understandably left them feeling deeply hurt and even betrayed by God. Sadly, many of the things Christians say or do to try and support victims of religious abuse don't actually help at all, and in some cases they can even make things worse. I don't feel it's right to just ignore this topic, so I've tried to address these issues as best I can.