Editing Christianity (section)

=== Criticism ===

[[File:Bronze statue of Giordano Bruno by Ettore Ferrari , Campo de' Fiori, Roma.jpg|thumb|upright=0.9|The monument to [[Giordano Bruno]] in the place he was executed in Rome]]
Criticism of Christianity and Christians goes back to the [[Apostolic Age]], with the New Testament recording friction between the followers of Jesus and the [[Pharisees]] and [[scribes]] (e.g., {{Bibleverse||Matthew|15:1–20|NIV}} and {{Bibleverse||Mark|7:1–23|NIV}}).<ref>''International Standard Bible Encyclopedia: E-J'' by Geoffrey W. Bromiley 1982 {{ISBN|0-8028-3782-4}} p. 175</ref> In the 2nd century, Christianity was criticized by the Jews on various grounds, e.g., that the prophecies of the Hebrew Bible could not have been fulfilled by Jesus, given that he did not have a successful life.<ref>''Jews and Christians: The Parting of the Ways, A.D. 70 to 135'' by James D.G. Dunn 1999 {{ISBN|0802844987}} pp.&nbsp;112–113</ref> Additionally, a sacrifice to remove sins in advance, for everyone or as a human being, did not fit the Jewish sacrifice ritual; furthermore, [[God in Judaism]] is said to judge people on their deeds instead of their beliefs.<ref>Asher Norman ''Twenty-six Reasons why Jews Don't Believe in Jesus'' Feldheim Publishers 2007 {{ISBN|978-0977193707}} p. 11</ref><ref>Keith Akers ''The Lost Religion of Jesus: Simple Living and Nonviolence in Early Christianity''. Lantern Books 2000 {{ISBN|978-1930051263}} p. 103</ref> One of the first comprehensive attacks on Christianity came from the Greek philosopher [[Celsus]], who wrote ''[[The True Word]]'', a polemic criticizing Christians as being unprofitable members of society.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Ferguson|first1=Everett|title=Backgrounds of Early Christianity|url=https://archive.org/details/backgroundsearly00ferg|url-access=limited|year=1993|publisher=William B. Eerdmans |location=Grand Rapids, MI|isbn=978-0-8028-0669-7|pages=[https://archive.org/details/backgroundsearly00ferg/page/n581 562]–564|edition=second}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Thomas|first=Stephen|date=2004|chapter=Celsus|title=The Westminster Handbook to Origen|location=Louisville, KY|editor-last=McGuckin|editor-first=John Anthony|publisher=Westminster John Knox Press|isbn=978-0-664-22472-1|pages=72–73}}</ref><ref name="Olson1999" /> In response, the church father [[Origen]] published his treatise ''[[Contra Celsum]]'', or ''Against Celsus'', a seminal work of Christian apologetics, which systematically addressed Celsus's criticisms and helped bring Christianity a level of academic respectability.<ref>{{cite book|last=McGuckin|first=John Anthony|year=2004|chapter=The Scholarly Works of Origen|title=The Westminster Handbook to Origen|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=riEdrWEDFq0C&q=Origen+ordination&pg=PA13|location=Louisville, KY |publisher=Westminster John Knox Press |isbn=978-0-664-22472-1|pages=32–34}}</ref><ref name="Olson1999">{{citation|last=Olson|first=Roger E.|year=1999|title=The Story of Christian Theology: Twenty Centuries of Tradition & Reform|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zexBAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA100|location=Downers Grove, IL|publisher=InterVarsity |isbn=978-0-8308-1505-0|page=101}}</ref>

By the 3rd century, criticism of Christianity had mounted. Wild rumors about Christians were widely circulated, claiming that they were [[atheism|atheists]] and that, as part of their rituals, they devoured human infants and engaged in incestuous orgies.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Ferguson|first1=Everett|title=Backgrounds of Early Christianity|url=https://archive.org/details/backgroundsearly00ferg|url-access=limited|year=1993|publisher=William B. Eerdmans |location=Grand Rapids, MI|isbn=978-0-8028-0669-7|pages=[https://archive.org/details/backgroundsearly00ferg/page/n575 556] 561|edition=second}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Sherwin-White |first1=A. N. |title=Why Were the Early Christians Persecuted? – An Amendment |journal=Past and Present|date=April 1964|issue=27|pages=23–27|jstor=649759|doi=10.1093/past/27.1.23}}</ref> The [[Neoplatonism|Neoplatonist]] philosopher [[Porphyry (philosopher)|Porphyry]] wrote the fifteen-volume ''Adversus Christianos'' as a comprehensive attack on Christianity, in part building on the teachings of [[Plotinus]].<ref>''The Encyclopedia of Christian Literature, Volume 1'' by George Thomas Kurian and James Smith 2010 {{ISBN|081086987X}} p. 527</ref><ref>''Apologetic Discourse and the Scribal Tradition'' by Wayne Campbell Kannaday 2005 {{ISBN|9004130853}} pp.&nbsp;32–33</ref>

By the 12th century, the [[Mishneh Torah]] (i.e., [[Rabbi]] [[Moses Maimonides]]) was criticizing Christianity on the grounds of idol worship, in that Christians attributed divinity to Jesus, who had a physical body.<ref>''A Dictionary of Jewish-Christian Relations'' by Edward Kessler, Neil Wenborn 2005 {{ISBN|0521826926}} p. 168</ref> In the 19th century, [[Nietzsche]] began to write a series of polemics on the "unnatural" teachings of Christianity (e.g. sexual abstinence), and continued his criticism of Christianity to the end of his life.<ref>''The Cambridge Companion to Nietzsche'' by Bernd Magnus, Kathleen Marie Higgins 1996 {{ISBN|0521367670}} pp.&nbsp;90–93</ref> In the 20th century, the philosopher [[Bertrand Russell]] expressed his criticism of Christianity in ''[[Why I Am Not a Christian]]'', formulating his rejection of Christianity.<ref>''Russell on Religion: Selections from the Writings of Bertrand Russell'' by Bertrand Russell, Stefan Andersson and Louis Greenspan 1999 {{ISBN|0415180910}} pp.&nbsp;77–87</ref>

Criticism of Christianity continues to date, e.g. [[Jewish]] and [[Muslim]] theologians criticize the doctrine of the [[Trinity]] held by most Christians, stating that this doctrine in effect assumes that there are three gods, running against the basic tenet of [[monotheism]].<ref>''Christianity: An Introduction'' by Alister E. McGrath 2006 {{ISBN|1405108991}} pp.&nbsp;125–126.</ref> New Testament scholar [[Robert M. Price]] has outlined the possibility that some Bible stories are based partly on myth in ''The Christ Myth Theory and its problems''.<ref>" The Christ Myth Theory and its Problems ", published 2011 by American Atheist Press, Cranford, NJ, {{ISBN|1578840171}}</ref>