Breakdown of Religion

So, I am hoping that yesterday's post helped you to see that the American culture is pervasive around the world.  The affects of Hollywood and its export of slang and warped world values has tremendously changed the face of the world, and not for the better.  When American swear words, no matter how badly pronounced, can be recorded at a Siberian traffic accident - you have all the proof you need.

Today I want to look at the breakdown of religion.  You more than likely have seen it, even commented on it, but not realized the trend.  So, let us partake of a little history lesson:

Lots of people I talk to lament the loss of the Church as documented in the book of Acts.  I think even I would have loved to have been part of such a church, however, reality is always a bit different - no one wants a government over them as the Roman one was over the whole of the "civilized" Earth at the time!  The role and function of that Acts church, was in direct contrast to the role and function of that evil empire.  And Romans wondered, in writing, at what was this faith which not only took care of its own, but also of its communities - when the Roman government saw no reason to.

Our Acts based church was local, it had disciples whom had followed Jesus as their head and they in turn were under the authority of the Apostles and Church of Jerusalem.  Of course, with the upheaval of the slaughter of those disciples and Apostles, shortly to be followed by the destruction of Jerusalem, the Christians scattered, yet maintained a loose confederation amongst themselves.

Eventually, we end up with a Church eldership based out of Rome, Alexandria, Constantinople, even Carthage - depending upon whom your church was associated with.  Eventually, the Christian church ended up with seven Popes, all claiming authority, over all of Christendom.  It was a political and religious mess.  Eventually, this shook down to just two real Popes - West centered in Rome, East in Constantinople (yeah and there was an oriental one but honestly very ineffective in history).  Two Christianities, both believing they were right, both actually wrong in just as many regards.  The western Church was the more successful and became just as abusive and un-Godly as the Roman Empire they replaced had been.

If the Acts based Church had it right, then the organization of churches under Rome, had it gravely wrong.  Bright young minds realized this and for hundreds of years wrestled with the question of how do you bring truth back to the people?  If those whom were educated, could have access to the manuscripts, then they could read and know for themselves whom God is and tell those whom could not read.  Most of them were burned at the stake by the Church for their efforts.

Oh there were separatists whom were able to break away from the Church, most of them did not fare well though.  The English King separated his Christians from the Roman church, so that he could get a divorce without Pope approval.  His own church, to run his way, to support his beliefs and he still killed all those whom sought a native language Bible.  In France, almost the same situation, eventually the separatists fled to Zurich under the safe passage guarantees of John Calvin, whom then had them executed as heretics.

The Roman church was fracturing and it was to be in future Switzerland where it was to take hold.  Men such as Huss, Hutt, and Zwingli were to define a Christianity, which could be defended in public before their Roman counterparts.  They did not fare much better than the French did, but the movement was to take hold and thinking men were to begin to question.  Luther was to create the first real split, a Christian church based upon Biblical tenants, not personal preferences - and he created the beauty of the German Bible.

It can be argued that the Roman church had become completely corrupt by this time and Luther's call for a faith based upon Scripture and a God whom will deal with us personally, answered the call of the many.  Equally, it was to doom the future church as you will see tomorrow.

In England, Puritans, were to successfully split from the state church and although they had to flee to the Netherlands for the right to live and survive as migrant workers, they were willing to.  Because they had found God.  Being offered free land in the America's help to remove them from migrant worker status to land owner.  A new nation would be born with the best of intentions - a place where God could be freely worshiped.  Well, for a few hundred years until the god of that new country would become the court system.

So, denominations were born of the evil of the Roman church in the 16th century.
The church universal, Catholic, became denominational , then denominations as there was further disagreement and refining of beliefs - through the 20th century.
Denominations by and large had their hey day in the 19th and early 20th centuries, but by the end of the 20th century, churches would be identified with a denomination, however often with their own spin on the belief set.
And just as denominations failed, churches were to as well.  Politics, end fighting, the world was gaining ground within the church.
This now created a situation we see today, it is the individual believer whom is deciding right from wrong, may gather at church for fellowship, and may have nothing in common with the belief set of the local church.

Where does this train wreck now go?  Well, there is nothing smaller than the individual, so collectivism must come next and again.  The Christian church, now destroyed, will regather - creating something which will not resemble anything which came before it - because the basis of belief has now been lost.  (shades of John's Apocalypse?)

Remember, we are not discussing the state of Christianity worldwide, yet.  That will come tomorrow.  But, this is the outline of the breakdown of the Christianity from unification God-ly to today's individual God-ly.  Of course, I condemn a Christianity based upon American Theology, a pagan belief set, that you will be able to understand tomorrow.  Then see why  collectivism is a requirement and why "Christianity" will then be a dead religion.