Quote:
Originally Posted by HERn
Maybe it's Christendom rather than Christianity that is the problem. Here is a quote from the publisher. I have enjoyed the book.
"Christendom, according to Malcolm Muggeridge in this fiery book, is something quite different from Christianity. Christ said his kingdom was not of this world; Christendom, on the other hand, is of this world and, like every other human creation, is subject to decay and eventual desolation. In this book Muggeridge perceptively explores the downfall of Christendom, indicating some of the contributing factors to its collapse."
About the Author
Malcolm Muggeridge (1903–1990) was a British journalist and prolific author. The End of Christendom.
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That's interesting... As I believe Lee puts it the other way around... Christendom, not being a mixture, is of Christ... Christianity, being a mixture, isn't of Christ.
Adding "en" to a word can mean that one element of the word is what the whole word defines... Which I think is the case with the word "Christendom"... Meaning... This particular judgement... "...dom..."... has Christ in it... "Christ... en...dom"... Christ in His judgement.
Which is similar to the word "Christian"... Which means that the person the word is being applied to is off Christ... "Christ...ian".
But with the "ity" suffix things change a bit... As the use if the "ity" at the end of the word "Christian" tells us that what is being referenced is related to the "Christian"... And not just Christ.
Which sounds like it should be fine... And would be... If the "Christian" was fully perfected in Christ and therefore only expressed Christ... But we know from scripture, and from our own experience, that is is not the case... The "Christian" certainly expresses a whole lot of the fallen old man that is in each of us... And as a result... When we look at "Christian...ity..." what we see is the expression of the human who is still yet to be fully perfected.
One day, there will be a "Christianity" that is perfect... Because only Christ will be seen in and through humanity... But this is not yet the case... And as such, what we today refer to as "Christianity", and have been referring to as "Christianity" for a very long time... Is not only Christ expressed in and through humanity... But is a mixture of fallen humanity and perhaps a certain measure of Christ.
But this mixture, scripture tells us, is absolutely unacceptable to God... And therefore, should be absolutely unacceptable to us.
Now, being clear regarding the above... How we go about expressing this reality is another matter.