Are you a Christian if you don't believe Jesus Christ was divine?

Answer 1

A positive answer to this question would seem to imply that all nonbelievers were Christian.

A more apt question would be, "Can one be Christian without believing in the divinity of Jesus."

Answering this question requires a sense of what the word "Christian" means. One dictionary definition says anyone professing belief in the teachings of Jesus Christ is Christian. From that point of view, the answer depends on whether or not Jesus himself taught that He was divine. If the New Testament can be trusted, then we have to conclude that Jesus taught He was divine, and so to be a Christian one would have to believe in his divinity. (See John 1:1, 8:24, 14:10-11, Matthew 28:19)

Another contributor adds:

More restrictive definitions of the word "Christian" seem all to relate to whether a person is a member of a particular sect, to the exclusion of others. Such people might view a large number of people, who do believe in the divinity of Jesus, as non-Christian.

And, in fact, I have read writings of people (Messianic Jews, among others) who believe that Jesus is divine, but claim not to be Christian because they distinguish between Christian practice and their own.

Sometimes I look to the sky and can see the sun is shining, but I cannot perceive the stars. Other times I look to the sky and see the stars but cannot perceive the sun. I have never looked to the sky and seen both. When are they ever both there?

It probably would also be good to remember that for the first three centuries after the Crucifixion, until the Council of Nicea in 325 AD, there were many church bishops who believed that Jesus was the "Prophet" foretold by Moses (Deut. 18:15 & John 5:46). Were they not Christians?

I.e. Some Christian groups 2000 years ago regarded Jesus as e.g. like Moses and Elijah.