There are two central elements to Christianity that are fundamental to the religion. The first is the resurrection story, which is similar to many other myths of death and rebirth, and the second is the assertion that Jesus was both fully human and fully divine, which is unique to Christianity. The story of Christianity is the story that tells us about who Christ was and how he changed the relationship between people and their God.
As mentioned above, the death and rebirth of Jesus resembles those portrayed in other mythologies of the ancient world. Inanna, for example, descended into Hades, died, and was reborn again after three days. Other stories had stories of kings who died to restore the fertility, or safety, of their countries.
In the case of Jesus, the crucifixion has come to be seen as the central event of Christianity. According to this formulation, Jesus died for our sin. By dying for the sins of all people serving as a scapegoat Jesus saved human beings from the ultimate victory of death. Adam and Eve were believed to have brought sin, and death, into the world, but Jesus, a son of Adam, was seen as restoring the relationship between God and human beings and ensuring humanity the possibility of eternal life.
The victory of life over death is most concretely portrayed in the resurrection story. In this story, Jesus dies, but returns again to life on the third day. In the fullest telling of that story, Mary Magdalene goes to the tomb of Jesus and finds it open. She is upset by this and asks a shadowy figure what happened to Jesus. As it turns out, however, Jesus himself speaks to her, saying that he has risen from the dead. Mary tells the other disciples who do not initially believe her. However, gradually others have encounters with the risen Christ and come to believe in the resurrection experience.
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