Transcendentalist - 1105 Words

Transcendentalism and Christianity Have Incompatible Beliefs Transcendentalism is â€Å"a group of new ideas in literature, religion, culture, and philosophy that emerged in the early to middle 19th century† (Wikipedia). Transcendentalism first started with Ralph Waldo Emerson, one of the pioneers of the Transcendentalists, who in his essay â€Å"Nature†, criticized several things, especially the Unitarian church (Wikipedia). Many other Transcendentalists such as Thomas Parker, Henry David Thoreau, Amos Bronson Alcott, and James Freeman Clark, along with Emerson, were critics of their society because they didn’t like the fact that people had â€Å"unthinking conformity† (Stanford 1). Transcendentalists work to make the world better through â€Å"social†¦show more content†¦This means that God occupies the first place in their beliefs; therefore, they will never put God and nature in the same unity as Transcendentalists do. A last incompatible belief about God between Transcendentalists and Christians is th at Transcendentalists believe that human beings can become like God, that they can grow a resemblance to God (Stanford 2). Christians do not have the same point of view about that because, for them, God is perfect and the creator of everything, including humans (Certificate 2). So, logically, there is no way that humans could achieve the perfection of their creator. The incompatible beliefs about God make the two doctrines even more incompatible because Transcendentalists don’t see God as powerful as Christians do. The last area where the beliefs of Transcendentalists and Christians are incompatible is about the Bible. The Bible or â€Å"Holy Scriptures† contains the â€Å"Old and New Testaments† which are â€Å"the written words of God† and Christians believe strongly in it. They say that it was given by God and contains his knowledge which is the basis of Christian’s theology (Certificate 2). But Transcendentalists don’t like the idea of p utting theology between people and God (Gentry). They believe that people can by themselves know more about God or the truth in general (Lewis). This is incompatible with the Christians beliefs about the truth found in the Bible. Another reason why Transcendentalist and Christian beliefs about theShow MoreRelatedTranscendentalist Writers : The Transcendentalist Movement Essay1092 Words   |  5 PagesTranscendentalist Influence When the transcendentalist movement began, between 1820 and 1830, it was a retaliation against the modern concepts of religion and society that was prominent in the eastern region of the United States at the time. Writers Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau are the most well-known among transcendentalist writers, possibly because they served as an inspiration to many other writers. 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