It would seem that Christianity denies reincarnation. At the same time, the transmigration of souls is recognized in many religions of the world. Answering the question of which religions believe in reincarnation, scientists recall the Eskimos, North American Indians, Gnostics and esoteric Christians. In addition, Buddhists, supporters of Taoism, believe in this phenomenon. Reincarnation occurs in world religions. So, in Islam there are 3 types of it, and for each of them there is a term. In Jewish tradition, it is called "ilgul". Remembering in which religion there was still reincarnation, it is worth considering the traditions of Ancient Greece. The best scientists of this country - Pythagoras, Plato, Socrates, accepted this idea. Neopagans, the New Age movement also recognizes the transmigration of souls.
Denial of reincarnation
At the moment it is known that there is no doctrine of reincarnation in Christianity. However, there is no idea of the transmigration of souls directly in the Bible, but there is no denial of it either. At the same time, it is known that reincarnation was indeed recognized in early Christianity. She was called"the pre-existence of human souls." Similar ideas were expressed by Origen Adamati, a Christian theologian, author of the Hexala. The latter was written according to the Old Testament.
At the same time, Origen, who expressed ideas about reincarnation in Christianity, was accused of heresy at the Fifth Ecumenical Council. However, his teaching was popular for several centuries. Theologians all this time denied reincarnation in Christianity and in the Gospel.
The famous philosopher Philo also explored the ideas of the rebirth of the soul. And modern Orthodoxy considers him a fairly significant figure.
When understanding whether there was reincarnation in Christianity, it is worth taking into account the fact that the transmigration of souls was mentioned more than once in the Old Testament.
For example, Solomon himself said that sinners are born to be cursed. There are many references to reincarnation in Christianity, but Orthodoxy does not accept the idea of the transmigration of souls. The main idea of this faith is that Jesus saved people from sins.
Those who believe in this are destined for eternal life in heaven or in hell if a person is a sinner. The Orthodox Church gives forgiveness of sins to those who repent. And if the lost link, reincarnation in Christianity, is recognized, this action will lose all meaning. After all, the transmigration of souls means their gradual evolution. In this case, the souls themselves are responsible for their own actions, and they do not need any absolution. If reincarnation is recognized in Christianity, it will also be accepted that the Heavenly Father gives people not one, but several chances.
Modernbeliefs
It is noteworthy that, according to polls, many Christians believe in the transmigration of souls. However, they consider themselves Orthodox. The popularization of the ideas of reincarnation in Christianity is due to the bright news related to the souls of sensations, the propaganda of the idea in films. A lot of people in different shows describe memories of their past lives. Self-knowledge sessions are popular, in which, during meditation, people are also invited to recall previous incarnations. There are many books and articles on the subject.
There are also many official supporters of the transmigration of souls, who answer positively to the question of whether there was reincarnation in Christianity. We are talking about Edgar Cayce, Gene Dixon.
General concept of transmigration of souls
According to the theory of reincarnation, every living creature comes for the Earth in incarnations again and again. It is believed that every action in this life affects the incarnation in the next. There are beliefs that a person can incarnate in both an insect and an animal. For example, insatiable people can be reborn as a pig. And if a person has some kind of injustice in life from birth, this is a consequence of the action of karma. And no one can escape punishment.
Passing through incarnations, the soul improves more and more, approaching the Absolute.
The theory of the transmigration of souls in Western culture manifested itself in Orphic mysticism. Reincarnation was recognized in Greek culture.
When Christianity appeared, it was not like the then dominant religions. However, some ideastransmigrations of souls have simply changed in Western culture. In these times, it was believed that the human soul moved only in people. Similar ideas were heard in Theosophy.
In favor of reincarnation
Supporters of the fact that reincarnation is a lost link in Christianity, argue that, in fact, the transmigration of souls can solve the problem of evil. The injustice is also explained when someone is born in poverty, with physical disabilities, and someone in we alth and with a beautiful appearance. It is the transmigration of souls that explains the differences in the level of intelligence in different people.
In this case, there is an answer: this is a consequence of the previous incarnation.
At the same time, it is impossible not to notice that with the development of science, it has become possible to prevent many congenital diseases of people that could not be cured before.
It is often believed that it is not without reason that many people during meditation recall the events of a past life, speak languages that have never been taught before.
Why Christianity does not recognize reincarnation
Christianity also believes that a person is responsible for his own actions himself. However, it is believed that everyone has one life. The priests themselves claim that the theory of the transmigration of souls means that good or evil in the world is increasing. If a person steals, then they will steal from him, and so on. As with heaven, he earns his next life through good deeds. But in such conditions, in fact, God is not needed, there is no role left for him. And this is worth considering when figuring out why Christianityrejects reincarnation. The transmigration of souls ultimately implies merging with the Absolute. And Christians do not recognize this.
Discussion of transmigration of souls
A widespread point of view is that reincarnation has been abolished in Christianity. Just at some point, the theory began to conflict with other dogmas of this religion. After all, the question of the transmigration of souls was the subject of discussion by many early Christian writers.
However, for the most part, the theory that reincarnation has been abolished in Christianity has not been accepted.
At the same time, for example, the occultist Blavatsky spreads the idea that initially Christians believed in the transmigration of souls. She argues that the original message of Christianity was distorted intentionally. It happened at the Fifth Ecumenical Council, held in 533.
Recognizing that the transmigration of souls was originally envisaged in Christian traditions would mean that all the beliefs of mankind have much more common roots.
In the Bible
Directly in the Bible, cases are described that seem to indicate belief in reincarnation. So, one day Jesus and his disciples met a man blind from birth. And they asked Jesus who was sinful - the man himself or his parents, that he was born blind. And the fact of this question indicates the belief of these people in the transmigration of souls. They implied that children could pay for the sins of their parents.
Because otherwise this blind man could not be punished for any previous sins. That's how he iswas born. However, Jesus replied that he was born that way so that Jesus would heal him, "increasing the glory of the Lord." However, believers in the belief in the transmigration of souls point out that Jesus did not say that the question was incorrect. And usually Christ pointed to it. And also Jesus did not explain the nature of these things in any way. After all, there are many other people born with the same diagnosis.
Patriarch Kirill
After certain statements by Patriarch Kirill about reincarnation in Christianity, materials appeared on the net that he recognizes the transmigration of souls. However, in fact, he claimed that the soul is immortal. And a person's life affects the post-mortem experience.
The Holy Fathers of antiquity on the transmigration of souls
Understanding the issue of reincarnation in Christianity, it makes sense to pay attention to the ancient writings of the Holy Fathers, which mentioned the transmigration of souls. They judged him quite definitely.
It is known that Pythagoras and Plato mentioned the theory of reincarnation, supporting it. And St. Epiphanius of Cyprus also wrote about this in his work Panarion. Blessed Theodoret of Cyrus proclaimed the idea that Christianity does not recognize the transmigration of souls.
The Council of Constantinople in 1076 condemned the theory of the transmigration of souls. Anathema was proclaimed to anyone who believed in reincarnation. Many arguments have been put forward against the transmigration of souls.
As for today's skeptics, they continue to refute the existence of the transmigration of souls. One of the arguments in favor of the existence of reincarnation is the cases of miraculousmemories of past incarnations. For example, there are stories about how those who remembered their past life came to that area, naming those they could not know. Someone spoke in unfamiliar languages during meditations to restore memories of previous incarnations. It is firmly established in the culture and is found everywhere.
Stories of reincarnations
One of these world-famous stories is about a boy from Oklahoma, Ryan. At the age of 4, he began to wake up in tears frequently. For months he begged his mother to move him back to his old home. He asked to be returned to his former colorful life in Hollywood. He said that he could not live in such conditions, but wanted to "go home", that his former home was much better. His mother, Cindy, claimed that he resembled a little old man who lived in memories.
Taking books about Hollywood, Cindy began to look at them with her son, paying attention to the pictures. And somehow Ryan stopped her in a photo of an episode from the film "Night after Night" in 1932. He pointed to one of the actors in the episode. Ryan said it was him.
The boy's parents did not believe in reincarnation, but they found specialists who studied the transmigration of souls.
Most often, children remember previous incarnations in early childhood, at the moment when memories of the very first moments of life begin to fade. Often, after claims of memories of previous incarnations, checks are carried out to rule out fraud. Trying to find real facts, drawing parallels between real lifean existing person and memories.
As a result, 20% of children have the same birthmarks, scars, traces of injuries, as a person from the past. So, the child, who remembered that he was shot in the previous incarnation, had 2 moles located parallel to the eye, and also on the back of the head, and it looked like traces of a through wound from a bullet.
The whole world has become aware of the case of a burning plane. So, a boy of 4 years old named James Leininger recalled that he was a pilot during the Second World War. At the age of 2, as his parents recalled, he somehow woke up from a terrible dream with a cry: “The plane crashed! He's on fire! The man can't get out! In addition, the boy knew the design of the aircraft, which he could not even imagine. So, when his mother said that there was a bomb on the belly of the toy airplane, James corrected her - it was a fuel tank.
The boy began to wake up often from nightmares about the plane crash. And his mother turned to specialists. They advised her to support her son, agreeing that all this happened to him in another body. Subsequently, the boy's nightmares ceased to disturb.
The main problem in the study of reincarnation is the fact that the study of these cases begins only at the moment when the family believed that the child went through the transmigration of the soul, and turned to specialists.
Skeptics refer to the fact that James, at the age of 1.5, went to the World War II museum, where he was struck by the planes of those times. At the same time, in the end, a person was found who, indeed, being a pilot inWorld War II, died in the area mentioned by James. The boy said that his name was the same in the previous incarnation. And the pilot's name was also James. And many of the facts known about the boy's past life coincided with the biography of this once-deceased pilot.
The boy's father said he was a skeptic by nature. However, all the facts collected about his son were genuine. And he thinks the idea of his son being swayed with memories at such an early age is insane. He says that it is impossible to make a 2-year-old child feel something and it is impossible to live with it.
The undisputed fact is that reincarnation is still an unproven part of life. Memories of previous incarnations are considered quite rare, especially when it comes to Western culture.
Rejection of the theory of reincarnation
When scrutinizing people's memories of past lives, skeptics point out several important details. For example, most often people who remember the previous incarnation find themselves in the first roles in a past life. So, there are many cases when a person proclaimed himself a priest, a templar, a druid, an inquisitor, a noble courtesan. Often, past lives take place in the greatest ancient civilizations. But less common are memories of ordinary life, despite the fact that such people are the majority at all times.
As a result, skeptics have a question where the majority of the representatives of the human race go. Peasants and housewives among the reincarnated are indeedfew. And even less often there are people who remember their past life as mice, flies, toads. Skeptics argue that memories of previous incarnations are due to the personal preferences and fantasies of these people.
The second noteworthy fact is the fact that memories never concern areas unknown to mankind in different eras. People do not remember what cannot be learned from books, films, history.
If reincarnations were proven, it would be a treasure trove of valuable information for historians about life, about the clothes of representatives of past eras. After all, there are many unexplored moments in different parts of the world. Many ancient languages remain undeciphered, there are many unsolved alphabets. And in cases where the memories of previous incarnations would really be real, scientists could restore all this from the stories of people, as from carriers of "dead" languages.
But detailed studies show that an extremely small number of memories fully corresponds to the real historical situation of the described areas and eras. It is known that science does not receive information from such memories, but they start from what science already knows.
All this suggests that memories of previous incarnations are due to human will, fantasies, dreams and wishful thinking.
Early teachings
During the first centuries of Christianity, many sectarian associations flourished. And a rowof them proclaimed the reincarnation of the real. And although these beliefs were subsequently fiercely attacked by orthodox theologians, disputes about the transmigration of souls flared until the 6th century.
Some Christians claimed to have a particularly secret knowledge from Jesus that was hidden from the masses. This is what the Gnostics claimed, and for the most part they were organized around certain leaders, not organizations like the church.
And this is while the orthodox preached the belief that only the church saves. Because of this, they prospered for many years, setting themselves on a stable foundation. In 312, the emperor of Rome, Constantine, began to support Christianity. And then he took the side of the orthodox. This was due to the desire to strengthen the state.
The most fierce struggle unfolded around the issue of reincarnation between the church and the authorities in the III-VI centuries. It is known that in Italy there were Cathars who believed in the transmigration of souls. The church de alt with them only in the XIII century, starting a crusade against these people, and then destroying them on the fire of the Inquisition with torture and bonfires. Then the idea of the transmigration of souls continued to live in secret - this faith was kept by alchemists and Freemasons until the 19th century.
However, the ideas of reincarnation also lived directly in the church environment. For example, in the 19th century, the Polish archbishop of Passavalia began to openly recognize the transmigration of souls. Thanks to his influence, the theory was also recognized by a number of other Polish and Italian priests.
According to the latest polls, 25% of Catholics in the US believe in reincarnation. Someone recognizestransmigration of souls, but is silent about it.
Many consider reincarnation a much better solution than hell. Indeed, in Christianity there are no unambiguous answers to what happens to souls that are not good enough for paradise. But at the same time, not bad enough for hell.
For those who believe in the transmigration of souls, it is easier to explain the outcome of many events. For example, it becomes clear what happens to those who killed themselves or someone else. According to the theory of reincarnation, in the next life they will become a victim of the one they killed. They will serve those who have been harmed so they can fulfill their destiny.
In Christianity there are no answers to why babies die, children, why these lives are needed if they are so short.
Often when relatives are not satisfied with the church's responses that this is part of the divine plan, they prefer to be in spiritual limbo between the belief in reincarnation and the church that refuses to take them into account.
