Eastern Christianity: Historical Friday

Last we discussed the way that Western culture has shaped the Christian faith. The Roman legal system permeated the West and it found its way into churches. This is neither a good nor a bad thing. The cultures we live in have always influenced Christianity. The problem arises when we try to make the cultural elements of our faith the essential truths of the Gospel.

This was the problem Paul faced in writing his letter to the Galatians. The people in Galatia were being told that in order to truly be a Christian they must first fully submit to Jewish culture. Now Paul was a proud Jew. He loved his heritage and the culture he grew up in, but he didn't let it overtake his faith in Jesus.

Today as we look at the East and the influences  therein I want state again that I am not trying to draw a dividing line between fellow believers. What I am trying to do is highlight the cultural differences between the way we all express our faith in Christ. It can be eye opening to learn how someone else looks at the same faith through a different cultural lens.

Eastern Christianity

So as we talk about the East we are really talking about Greece. The great enduring strength of Greek culture is their philosophy. When we think back to famous Greek people, most of the names are those of philosophers. In fact the philosophies they came up with still form the foundation of most philosophy courses today.

So how does this affect Christianity? Well to those living in the eastern part of the Roman Empire, those primarily in Greece's cultural influence, began to bring philosophy into their faith. 

This means that churches began to see Christianity primarily as a mindset or a way of thinking. This resulted in the preaching and teaching to be less about how to live and more focused on who God is. The disagreements that arose in the East were also focused on theological or philosophical issues, not so much issues of procedure. 

I'll give you an example. In the year AD 451 a large number of representatives from eastern churches (and very few western ones) met in the city of Chalcedon. What did they meet about? They debated for about a month over whether or not Jesus had a human soul. Now there was more to it than that but for the sake of simplicity I shall leave it there. Now one of the reasons this was so important to those in the East was the focus they placed on Jesus' life.

How many of you would agree that the crucifixion is the center of history? The majority of you would agree. Those in the East, however, would disagree. Now they don't mean that the cross is unimportant. They would say that the Incarnation, or the fact that the Word became flesh, is the center of history. The cross is a part of that event.

Conclusion

I hope today's post was educational. The goal was simply to highlight the way a different cultural mindset can lead to different ways of looking at the same faith. Eastern Christianity is far more philosophical than Christianity is here. This is neither a good nor a bad thing. Next week we shall examine both the West and the East together and show how one isn't inherently better than the other and how studying these various cultures helps our own faith.