Christian denomination

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(October 2007)

See also: Denominationalism, List of
Christian denominations, List
of Christian denominations by number of members, and Christian Church

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A Christian denomination is an identifiable religious body under a
common name, structure, and doctrine within Christianity.

Worldwide, Christians are divided, often
along ethnic and linguistic lines, into separate churches and traditions.
Technically, divisions between one group and another are defined by doctrine and
church authority. Issues such as the nature of Jesus, the
authority of apostolic
succession, and papal primacy separate one
denomination from another.

The Roman Catholic Church is the
largest denomination with over 1.1 billion members, comprising over half of all
Christians worldwide making it the largest denomination for any religion
worldwide. Protestant denominations
comprise roughly 38-39% of Christians worldwide, and together the Catholics,
Protestants, Anglicans, and other closely
related denominations comprise Western Christianity. Saint Thomas
Churches (India) and the Assyrian Church
of the East are considered Eastern Christian denominations. Western
Christian denominations prevail in Europe and its former colonies. Eastern
Christian denominations are represented mostly in the Near East, Northern Africa
and the Middle East.

Christians have various doctrines about the Church, the body of faithful that
they believe was established by Jesus Christ, and how the divine church
corresponds to Christian denominations. Both the Catholics and the Eastern
Orthodox consider themselves to faithfully represent the One Holy Catholic
and Apostolic Church. Protestants separated from the Catholic Church because
of theologies and practices that they considered to be in violation of
fundamental Christian doctrine. Generally, members of the various denominations
acknowledge each other as Christians, at least to the extent that they
acknowledge historically orthodox views including the
Divinity of Jesus and
doctrines of sin and salvation,
even though some obstacles hinder full communion between
churches.

Since the reforms surrounding Vatican II, the Catholic
Church has referred to Protestant communities as "denominations", while
reserving the term "church" for apostolic churches,
including the Eastern Orthodox (see subsistit in and branch
theory). There are however some non-denominational
Christians who do not follow any particular branch.[1][2]

Contents

1 Major
branches

2 Historical schisms and
methods of classification scheme

2.1 Eastern
churches

2.2 Western
churches

2.3 Christians with Jewish
roots

2.4 Uncategorized

2.5 Restorationism

2.6 New Thought
Movement

2.7 The Christian
Community

2.8 Christian-related
movements

3 Differences of opinion
regarding the definition of Christianity

4 See also

5 References

6 External
links

[edit]
Major branches

Christianity has denominational families (or movements) and also has
individual denominations (or communions). Within these denominational families
and movements are (often further denominational families and) various individual
denominations or communions. The difference between a denomination and a
denominational family is sometimes unclear to outsiders. Some denominational
families can be considered major branches.

Christianity is composed
of, but not limited to, five major branches of Churches: Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Anglican
and Protestant; some groupings
include Anglicans amongst Protestants. The Assyrian Church
of the East is also a distinct Christian body, but is much smaller in
adherents and geographic scope. Each of these five branches has important
subdivisions. Because the Protestant subdivisions do not maintain a common
theology or earthly leadership, they are far more distinct than the subdivisions
of the other four groupings. Denomination typically refers to one of the
many Christian groupings including each of the multitude of Protestant
subdivisions.

Denominationalism is
an ideology which views some or all Christian groups as being, in some sense,
versions of the same thing regardless of their distinguishing labels. Not all
churches teach this. The Catholic and Orthodox Churches do not use this term as
its implication of interchangeability does not agree with their theological
teachings. There are some groups which practically all others would view as apostate or heretical, and not
legitimate versions of Christianity.

There were some movements considered heresies by the early church which do
not exist today and are not generally referred to as denominations. Examples
include the Gnostics (who had believed in
an esoteric dualism called gnosis), the Ebionites (who
denied the divinity of Jesus),
and the Arians (who believed Jesus said
"My Father is greater than I"). The greatest divisions in Christianity today,
however, are between Eastern Orthodoxy, Catholicism, and various denominations
formed during and after the Protestant
Reformation. There also exists in Protestantism and Orthodoxy various
degrees of unity and division.

Comparisons between denominational churches must be approached with caution.
For example, in some churches, congregations are part of a larger church
organization, while in other groups, each congregation is an independent autonomous
organization. This issue is further complicated by the existence of groups of
congregations with a common heritage that are officially nondenominational and
have no centralized authority or records, but which are identified as
denominations by non-adherents. Study of such churches in denominational terms
is therefore a more complex proposition.

Numerical comparisons are also problematic. Some groups count membership
based on adult believers and baptized children of believers,
while others only count adult baptized believers. Others may count membership
based on those adult believers who have formally affiliated themselves with the
congregation. In addition, there may be political motives of advocates or
opponents of a particular group to inflate or deflate membership numbers through
propaganda or outright
deception.

[edit]
Historical schisms and methods of classification
scheme

Christianity has not been a monolithic faith since the first
century or Apostolic Age, if ever,
and today there exist a large variety of groups that share a common history and
tradition within and without mainstream
Christianity. Since Christianity is the largest religion in the world (making
approximately one-third of the population), it is necessary to understand the
various faith traditions in terms of commonalities and differences between
tradition, theology, church government,
doctrine, language, and so on.

The largest schism or division in
many classification schemes is between the families of Eastern and Western
Christianity. After these two larger families come distinct branches of
Christianity. Most classification schemes list six (in order of size: Roman Catholicism, Protestantism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Anglicanism, Oriental Orthodoxy,
and the Church of the East, which was originally referred to as Nestorianism but in modern
times is embodied by the Assyrian Church
of the East).

Unlike Roman Catholicism, Protestantism is a general movement that has no
universal governing authority. As such, diverse groups such as Adventists, Anabaptists, Baptists, Congregationalists,
Lutherans, Methodists, Presbyterians, Reformed, and Pentecostals (depending
on one's classification scheme) are all a part of the same family, and with
further doctrinal variations within each group. From there come denominations,
which in the West, have independence from the others in their doctrine. The
Eastern and Roman Catholic churches, due to their hierarchical structures, are
not said to be made up of denominations, rather, they include kinds of regional
councils and individual congregations and church bodies.

Major branches and movements within
Protestantism

Relationship of the Nasrani (Saint
Thomas Christian) groups.

The initial differences between the East and West traditions stem from
socio-cultural
and linguistic divisions in and
between the Western Roman and
Byzantine Empires.
Since the West (that is, Western Europe) spoke Latin as its lingua
franca and the East (Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and northern
Africa) largely used Koine Greek to transmit
writings, theological developments were difficult to translate from one branch
to the other. In the course of ecumenical councils
(large gatherings of Christian leaders), some church bodies split from the
larger family of Christianity. Many earlier heretical groups either died off
for lack of followers and/or suppression by the church at large (such as Apollinarians, Montanists,
and Ebionites).

The first significant, lasting split in historic Christianity came from the
Church of the East,
who left following the Christological controversy
over Nestorianism in 431 (the
Assyrians in 1994 released a common Christological statement with the Roman Catholic
Church). Today, the Assyrian and Roman Catholic Church view this schism as
largely linguistic, due to problems of translating very delicate and precise
terminology from Latin to Aramaic and vice-versa (see Council of
Ephesus). Following the Council of
Chalcedon in 451, the next large split came with the Syrian and Alexandrian
(Egyptian or Coptic) churches dividing themselves, with the dissenting churches
becoming today's Oriental Orthodoxy.
(A similar Christological statement was made between Pope John Paul II and
Syriac patriarch Ignatius Zakka I
Iwas, as well as between representatives of both Eastern and Oriental
Orthodoxy).

There has been a claim that the Chalcedonian Creed restored Nestorianism,
however this is refuted by maintaining the following distinctions associated
with the person of Christ: two hypostases, two natures (Nestorian); one
hypostasis, one nature (Monophysite); one hypostasis, two natures
(Orthodox/Catholic).[3]

Although the church as a whole didn't experience any major divisions for
centuries afterward, the Eastern and Western groups drifted until the point
where patriarchs from both families excommunicated one
another in about 1054 in what is known as the Great Schism. The
political and theological reasons for the schism are complex, but one major
controversy was the inclusion and acceptance in the West of the filioque clause into the
Nicene
Creed, which the East viewed as erroneous. Another was the definition of papal
primacy. Both West and East agreed that the patriarch of Rome was owed a
"primacy of honour" by the other patriarchs (those of Alexandria, Antioch, Constantinople and Jerusalem),
but the West also contended that this primacy extended to jurisdiction, a
position rejected by the Eastern patriarchs. Various attempts at dialogue
between the two groups would occur, but it was only in the 1960s, under Pope Paul VI and Patriarch
Athenagoras, that significant steps began to be made to mend the
relationship between the two.

In Western Christianity, there were a handful of geographically isolated
movements that preceded the spirit of the Protestant
Reformation. The Cathars were a very strong
movement in medieval southwestern France, but did not survive into modern times.
In northern Italy
and southeastern France, Peter Waldo founded the Waldensians in the 12th
century. This movement has largely been absorbed by modern-day Protestant
groups. In Bohemia, a movement in the early
15th century by Jan Hus called the Hussites defied
Roman Catholic dogma and still exists to this day
(alternately known as the Moravian Church).

Door of the Schlosskirche (castle church) in
Wittenberg to which Luther is said to have nailed his 95 Theses on
the 31st of October 1517, sparking the Reformation.

The Protestant
Reformation began with the posting of Martin Luther's Ninety-Five
Theses in Saxony on October 31, 1517,
written as a set of grievances to reform the pre-Reformation Western Church. Luther's
writings, combined with the work of Swiss theologian Huldrych Zwingli and
French theologian and politician John Calvin sought to reform
existing problems in doctrine and practice. However, due to the reactions of
ecclesiastical office holders at the time of the reformers, the Roman Catholic
Church separated from them, instigating a rift in Western
Christianity. In England, Henry VIII of
England declared himself to be supreme governor of the Church of England with
the Act of Supremacy in
1531, founding the Church of England,
repressing both Lutheran reformers and those loyal to the pope.

The Old Catholic Church
split from the Roman Catholic
Church in the 1870s because of the promulgation of the dogma of Papal Infallibility
as promoted by the First Vatican
Council of 1869–1870. The term 'Old Catholic' was first used in 1853 to
describe the members of the See of Utrecht that were not under Papal authority.
The Old Catholic movement grew in America but has not maintained ties with
Utrecht, although talks are under way between independent Old Catholic bishops
and Utrecht.

The Liberal Catholic
Church started in 1916 via an Old Catholic bishop in London, bishop Matthew,
who consecrated bishop James Wedgwood to the Episcopacy. This stream has in its
relatively short existence known many splits, which operate worldwide under
several names.

[edit]
Eastern churches

In the Eastern world, the largest body of believers in modern times is the Eastern Orthodox
Church, sometimes imprecisely called "Greek Orthodox" because from the time
of Christ through the Byzantine empire, Greek was the common language (Greek Orthodox actually
refers to only one portion of the entire Orthodox Church). The Eastern Orthodox
Church believes itself to be the continuation of the original Christian church
established by Jesus Christ, and the Apostles. They consider
themselves to be spiritually one body while administratively they are grouped
into several autocephalous councils. They
do not recognize any single bishop as universal church leader, but rather each
bishop governs only his own diocese. The Patriarch of
Constantinople is known as the Ecumenical
Patriarch, and holds the title "first among equals"
meaning only that if a great council is called, the Patriarch sits as president
of the council. He has no more power than any other bishop. Currently, the
largest synod with
the most members is the Russian Orthodox
Church.

The Oriental Orthodox
Churches are organized in a similar manner, with six national autocephalous
groups and two autonomous bodies. Although the region of modern-day Ethiopia and Eritrea has had a
strong body of believers since the infancy of Christianity, these regions only
gained autocephaly in 1963 and 1994 respectively. Since these groups are
relatively obscure in the West, literature on them has sometimes included the Assyrian Church
of the East as a part of the Oriental Orthodox Communion, but the Assyrians
have maintained theological, cultural, and ecclesiastical independence from all
other Christian bodies since 431. It is administered in a hierarchical model not
entirely unlike the Catholics, with the head of the church being the Patriarch
Catholicos of the Assyrian Church of the East, since 1976 HH Mar
Dinkha IV. Due to oppression, the church's
headquarters is in Chicago, Illinois,
rather than the Middle East, though some believers remain there. Even within
this small group, there was another split to the Ancient Church of
the East, and a rival Catholicos (Patriarch) in California.

[edit]
Western churches

Christian
Denominations
in English-speaking
countries

Australia

Australian
Christian
bodies v ·
d
· e

Australian
Interchurch

Australian Evangelical Alliance  • site
National
Council of
Churches

Catholic
& Anglican

Anglican
Church of Australia
Roman
Catholic
Church

Holiness
& Pietist

Christian
and Missionary Alliance
Christian
Outreach Centre
Church
of the Nazarene
Salvation
Army
Seventh-day
Adventist
Church

Historical
Protestantism

Australian Friends
Baptist
Union of Australia
Open
Brethren
Christian
Reformed Churches of Australia
Churches
of Christ
Fellowship
of Congregational Churches
Lutheran
Church of Australia
Presbyterian
Church of Australia
Uniting
Church in Australia
Wesleyan
Methodist Church of
Australia

Orthodox

Antiochian
Orthodox of Australia & New Z.
Greek
Orthodox Archdiocese of Australia
Serbian
Orthodox of Australia & New Z.

Non-Chalcedonic

Coptic
Orthodox Church in
Australia

Pentecostal
& Related

Australian
Christian Churches (AOG)
Christian
City Church Intl.
CRC
Churches International
Revival
Centres International
Vineyard
Churches Australia
Worldwide
Church of
God

Canada

Canadian
Christian
bodies v ·
d
· e

Canadian
Interchurch

Canadian
Council of Churches
S.
Conference of Orthodox Bishops in America
North
Am. Presbyterian & Reformed
Council

Anabaptist
& Friends

Canadian
Mennonite Brethren Churches
Canadian
Yearly Meeting (Quakers)
Mennonite
Church Canada

Baptist &
Stone-Campbell

Baptist

Association
of Regular Baptist Churches
Baptist
General Conference of Canada
Canadian
Baptist Ministries
Canadian
Convention of Southern Baptists
Fellowship
of Evgcl. Baptist Churches, Canada
North
American Baptist Conference

Stone-Campbell Restoration Movement

Christian
Church (Disciples of Christ)
Evangelical
Christian Church in
Canada

Catholic
& Anglican

Anglican
Church of Canada
Anglican
Church in North America
Polish
National Catholic Church
Roman
Catholic Church

Holiness
& Pietist

Christian
and Missionary Alliance, Canada
Church
of the Nazarene
Evangelical
Free Church of Canada
Salvation
Army
Seventh-day
Adventists, North America
Wesleyan
Church

Lutheran

Evangelical
Lutheran Church in Canada
Lutheran
Church–Canada
Wisconsin
Evangelical Lutheran
Synod

Methodist

British
Methodist Episcopal Church
Free
Methodist Church in Canada
United
Church of Canada

Orthodox

Antiochian
Orthodox Archdiocese, N.Am.
Greek
Orthodox Archdiocese of America
Orthodox
Church in America
Russian
Orthodox Church Outside Russia
Ukrainian
Orthodox Church of Canada

Non-Chalcedonic

Armenian
Apostolic Diocese of Am.
Coptic
Orthodox Church in
Canada

Pentecostal

Canadian
Assemblies of God
Church
of God of Prophecy
Intl.
Foursquare Gospel, Canada
Intl.
Pentecostal Holiness Church
Pentecostal
Assemblies of Canada
Pentecostal
Church of God

Oneness Pentecostal

United
Pentecostal Church
Intl.

Presbyterian
& Reformed

Canadian
and American Reformed Churches
Christian
Reformed Church in North America
L'Église
réformée du Québec
Presbyterian
Church in Canada
Presbyterian
Church in America
Reformed
Church in America
United
Church of Canada

Other

Messianic
Jewish Alliance of America
Plymouth
Brethren
Vineyard
Canada

United
Kingdom

Christian denominations in
the UK v ·
d
· e

UK
Interchurch

Affinity
(formerly British Evangelical
Council)
Churches
Together in Britain & Ireland
Evangelical
Alliance, UK
Fellowship
of Independent Evangelical Churches
Churches
Together in England
Action
of Churches Together, Scotland (ACTS)
Associating
Evangelical Churches of Wales  • site
Churches
Together in Wales
Evangelical
Movement of
Wales

Anglican

Church
of England
Free
Church of England
Church
of Ireland
Scottish
Episcopal Church
Church
in Wales

Baptist

Association
of Baptist Churches in Ireland
Baptist
Union of Great Britain
Baptist
Union of Scotland
Baptist
Union of Wales
Grace
Baptist Assembly
Old
Baptist
Union

Catholic

Roman
Catholicism

England
& Wales
Ireland
Scotland

Old
Catholicism

British Old Catholic Church  • site
Old
Catholic Church in Europe
Old
Catholic Mariavite Church
Old Catholic Church of
Great Britain

Holiness
& Pietist

Christian
Outreach Centre
Church
of the Nazarene
British
Moravian Church
Salvation
Army
Seventh-day
Adventist Church
Wesleyan
Holiness
Church

Lutheran

Evangelical
Lutheran Church of England
Lutheran
Church in Great
Britain

Methodist
& Wesleyan

Free
Methodist of the UK
Methodist
Church in Ireland
Methodist
Church of Great Britain
Wesleyan
Reform Union

New
Church Movement

Vineyard
Churches UK
Ichthus
Christian Fellowship
Newfrontiers
Pioneer
Church  • site

Orthodox

Eastern
Orthodox Church

Greek
Orthodox Archdiocese of G.B.
Russian
Orthodox Diocese, G.B. & Ire.
Russian
Tradition Vicariate, G.B. & Ire.

Oriental
Orthodox Church

British
Orthodox Church
Celtic
Orthodox
Church

Pentecostal

Assemblies
of God
Church
of God in Christ
Elim
Pentecostal Church
Foursquare
Gospel Church
Worldwide
Church of
God

Presbyterian
& Reformed

Asso.
Presbyterian Churches, Scotland
Church
of Scotland
Congregational
Federation
Evangelical
Presbyterian Church
Free
Church of Scotland
Free
Church of Scotland (Continuing)
Free
Presbyterian Church of Scotland
Free
Presbyterian Church of Ulster
Non-subscribing
Presbyterian, Ireland
Presbyterian
Church in Ireland
Presbyterian
Church of Wales
Reformed
Presbyterian Church
United
Free Church of Scotland
United
Reformed
Church

Other

Brethren
in Christ
Churches
of Christ
Fellowship
of Ind. Evangelical Churches
Latter-day
Saints
Quakers/
Britain
Yearly Meeting
Quakers/
Ireland
Yearly
Meeting

United
States

United
States Christian
bodies v ·
d
· e

United
States Interchurch

National
Association of Evangelicals
National
Council of Churches
Churches
Uniting in Christ
S.
Conference of Orthodox Bishops in America
North
Am. Presbyterian & Reformed
Council

Anabaptist
& Friends

Brethren
Church
Church
of the Brethren
Evangelical
Friends International
Fellowship
of Grace Brethren Churches
Friends
General Conference
Friends
United Meeting
Mennonite
Brethren Churches
Mennonite
Church USA
Old
Order Amish Mennonite
Church

Baptist &
Stone-Campbell

Baptist

Alliance
of Baptists
American
Baptist Association
American
Baptist Churches
Baptist
Bible Fellowship International
Baptist
General Conference
Baptist
Missionary Association of America
Conservative
Baptist Association of America
General
Association of Regular Baptist Churches
National
Association of Free Will Baptists
National
Primitive Baptist Convention
North
American Baptist Conference
Southern
Baptist Convention

African-American Baptist

National
Baptist Convention of America
National
Baptist Convention, USA
National
Missionary Baptist Convention of America
Progressive
National Baptist Convention

Stone-Campbell Restoration Movement

Christian
Church (Disciples of Christ)
Christian
Churches and Churches of Christ
Churches
of Christ
International
Churches of
Christ

Catholic
& Anglican

Anglican
Church in North America
Episcopal
Church
Old
Roman Catholic Church
Polish
National Catholic Church
Roman
Catholic Church

Holiness
& Pietist

Christian
and Missionary Alliance
Church
of God (Anderson)
Evangelical
Covenant Church
Evangelical
Free Church of America
Church
of the Nazarene
Salvation
Army
Seventh-day
Adventist Church
Wesleyan
Church

Lutheran

Evangelical
Lutheran Church in America
Lutheran
Church - Missouri Synod
Wisconsin
Evangelical Lutheran
Synod

Methodist

African
Methodist Episcopal Church
African
Methodist Episcopal Zion Church
Christian
Methodist Episcopal Church
Free
Methodist Church
United
Methodist Church

Orthodox

Antiochian
Orthodox Christian Archdiocese
Greek
Orthodox Archdiocese of America
Orthodox
Church in America
Russian
Orthodox Church Outside Russia
Serbian
Orthodox Church

Non-Chalcedonic

Armenian
Apostolic of Am.
Armenian
Apostolic Diocese of Am.
Coptic
Orthodox Church

Pentecostal

Assemblies
of God
Church
of God (Cleveland, TN)
Church
of God in Christ
Church
of God of Prophecy
Full
Gospel Fellowship
Intl.
Church of the Foursquare Gospel
Intl.
Pentecostal Holiness Church
Pentecostal
Church of God

Oneness Pentecostal

Pentecostal
Assemblies of the World
United
Pentecostal Church
Intl.

Presbyterian
& Reformed

Christian
Reformed Church in North America
Conservative
Congregational Christian Conference
Cumberland
Presbyterian Church
Evangelical
Presbyterian Church
Korean
Presbyterian Church in America
International
Council of Community Churches
National
Asso. of Congregational Christian Churches
Presbyterian
Church (USA)
Presbyterian
Church in America
Reformed
Church in America
United
Church of Christ

Other

Church
of Christ, Scientist
Church
of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
Community
of Christ
Grace
Gospel Fellowship
Independent
Fundamental Churches of America
Jehovah's
Witnesses
Messianic
Jewish Alliance of America
Plymouth
Brethren
Vineyard
USA
See also: Non-denominational
Christianity

International Associations

Interdenominational Associations

World
Council of Churches
World
Evangelical Alliance

Denominational Associations

Friends
World Committee for Consultation
Mennonite
World Conference
Anglican
Communion
Baptist
World Alliance
World
Convention of Churches of Christ
Eastern
Orthodox Church
Confessional
Evangelical Lutheran Conference
International
Lutheran Council
Lutheran
World Federation
World
Methodist Council
Pentecostal
World Conference
International
Conference of Reformed Churches
Reformed
Ecumenical Council
World
Communion of Reformed Churches
World
Reformed Fellowship

Regional Associations

Africa

All
Africa Conference of Churches (AACC)
Association
of Evangelicals of Africa (AEA)
All
Africa Baptist Fellowship
Africa
Lutheran Communion

Asia

Christian
Conference of Asia (CCA)
Evangelical
Fellowship of Asia
Asia
Pacific Baptist Federation
Asia
Lutheran Communion

Caribbean

Caribbean
Conference of Churches (CCC)
Evangelical
Association of the Caribbean
Caribbean
Baptist Fellowship

Europe

Conference
of European Churches (CEC)
European
Evangelical Alliance
European
Baptist Federation
Pentecostal
European
Fellowship

Middle
East

Middle
East Council of Churches
(MECC)

Latin
America

Latin
American Council of Churches (CLAI)
Latin
American Evangelical Fellowship (FIDE)
Union
of Baptists in Latin
America

North
America

North
American Baptist Fellowship
Standing
Conference of Orthodox Bishops in America
North
American Presbyterian and Reformed
Council

Pacific

Pacific
Conference of Churches (PCC)
Evangelical
Fellowship of the South Pacific (EFSP)
Asia
Pacific Baptist
Federation

This box: view · talk · edit

Roman Catholicism,
Anglicanism and Protestantism are the
three major divisions of Christianity in the Western
world. However, Roman Catholics do not describe themselves as a denomination but
rather as the original Holy and Universal Church; which all others branched off
from, as do some Anglicans. The Baptist, Methodist, and Lutheran
churches are generally considered to be Protestant denominations, although
strictly speaking, of these three, only the Lutherans took part in the official
Protest after the
decree of the Second Diet of
Speyer mandated the burning of Luther's works and the end of the Protestant
Reformation. Anglicanism was
generally classified as Protestant, but since the "Tractarian" or Oxford Movement of the
19th century, led by John Henry Newman,
Anglican writers emphasize a more catholic understanding of the church and
characterize it as more properly understood as its own tradition—a via
media ("middle way"), both Protestant and Catholic. The American
province of the Anglican Communion,
the Episcopal Church
USA, describes itself as a modern via media church in this tradition.
A case is sometimes also made to regard Lutheranism in a similar way,
considering the catholic character of its foundational documents (the Augsburg Confession
and other documents contained in the Book of Concord) and its
existence prior to the Anglican, Anabaptist, and Reformed
churches, from which nearly all other Protestant denominations derive.

One central tenet of Catholicism (whether Roman Catholic, Anglican, Eastern
Orthodox, and some other denominations), is its practice of Apostolic
Succession. "Apostle" means "one who is sent out." Jesus commissioned the
first twelve apostles (see Biblical Figures for
the list of the Twelve), and they, in turn laid hands on subsequent church
leaders to ordain (commission) them for ministry. In this manner, Roman
Catholics, and Anglicans trace their ordained ministers all the way back to the
original Twelve. Roman Catholics believe that the Pope has authority which can be
traced directly to the apostle Peter whom they hold to be
the original head of and first Pope of the Christian Church. There
are smaller churches, such as the Old Catholic Church
which rejected the definition of Papal Infallibility
at the First Vatican
Council, and Anglo-Catholics, Anglicans who believe
that Anglicanism is a continuation of historical Catholicism and who
incorporate many Catholic beliefs and practices. The Catholic Church
refers to itself simply by the terms Catholic and Catholicism
(which mean universal). The Catholic Church has traditionally rejected any
notion that those outside its communion can be regarded as part of any true
Catholic Christian faith. Catholicism has a hierarchical structure in which
supreme authority for matters of faith and practice are the exclusive domain of
the Pope, who sits on the Throne of Peter, and the bishops when acting in union
with him. Most Catholics are unaware of the existence of Old Catholicism
which represents a relatively recent split from the Catholic Church and is
particularly vocal in rejecting their use of the term Catholic.

Each Protestant movement has developed freely, and many have split over
theological issues. For instance, a number of movements grew out of spiritual revivals, like Methodism and
Pentecostalism. Doctrinal
issues and matters of conscience have also divided
Protestants. The Anabaptist tradition, made up
of the Amish, Hutterites, and Mennonites, rejected the
Roman Catholic and Lutheran doctrines of infant baptism; this
tradition is also noted for its belief in pacifism. Many churches with
roots in Restorationism
reject being identified as Protestant or even as a denomination at all, as they
use only the Bible not creeds, and model the church after what they feel is the
first century church found in scripture; the Churches of Christ
are one example; African Initiated
Churches, like Kimbanguism, mostly fall
within Protestantism, with varying degrees of syncretism. The measure of mutual
acceptance between the denominations and movements varies, but is growing
largely due to the ecumenical movement in the
20th century and overarching Christian bodies such as the World Council of
Churches.

[edit]
Christians with Jewish
roots

One group which has maintained its Jewish identity alongside an acceptance of
Jesus as the Messiah and the New
Testament as authoritative are Messianic Jews, also
called Hebrew Christians.
Since the founding of the church, there have been Jewish elements retained by
particular groups that wanted to retain their national heritage alongside the Gospel message. In
fact, the first council was
called in Jerusalem to address just this issue, and the deciding opinion was
written by Jesus's half-brother James the Just, the first
bishop of Jerusalem and a pivotal figure in the Christian movement. Due to the
entirely different history of such movements and groups, they defy any simple
classification scheme.

The Nasrani or Syrian Malabar
Nasrani community in Kerala, India is conscious of their Jewish
origins. However, they have lost many of their Jewish traditions due to western
influences. The Nasrani are also known as Syrian
Christians or St. Thomas
Christians. This is because they follow the traditions of Syriac Christianity
and are descendants of the early converts by St. Thomas the
Apostle. Today, they belong to various denominations of Christianity but
they have kept their unique identity within each of these denominations.[4]

An existing community that still maintain their Jewish traditions is the Knanaya. They are
an endogamous sub-ethnic group among the Syrian Malabar
Nasrani and are the descendants of early Jewish Christian settlers who
arrived in Kerala in A.D 345. Although affiliated with a variety of Roman
Catholic and Oriental Orthodox denominations, they have remained a cohesive
community, shunning intermarriage with outsiders (but not with fellow-Knanaya of
other denominations).

[edit]
Uncategorized

Some denominations which arose alongside the Western Christian tradition
consider themselves Christian, but neither Roman Catholic nor wholly Protestant,
such as the Religious
Society of Friends (Quakers).
Quakerism began as an evangelical Christian movement in 17th century England, eschewing
priests and all formal Anglican or Roman Catholic sacraments in their worship,
including many of those practices that remained among the stridently Protestant
Puritans such
as baptism with water. They were known in America for helping with the
Underground Railroad and, like the Mennonites, Quakers traditionally refrain
from participation in war. The Salvation Army is often,
albeit incorrectly, understood to be a social relief organization. It is, in
fact, a denomination that does extensive social relief work. Other churches,
such as churches of Christ or
the Plymouth Brethren
reject formal ties with other churches within the movement.

[edit]
Restorationism

Main article: Restorationism
(Christian primitivism)

Other faith traditions claim not to be descended from any of these groups
directly. The
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, for instance, is often grouped
with the Protestant churches,[citation
needed] but does not characterize itself as Protestant nor does
Protestantism accept it as a Christian denomination or theology. Its origination
during the Second Great
Awakening parallels the founding of numerous other indigenous American
religions, especially in the Burned-over
district of western New York state, and in the
western territories of the United States, including
the Adventist movement, the Jehovah's
Witnesses, Christian Science
(which had roots in Congregationalism
but regarded itself as restorative), and the Restoration
Movement (sometimes called the "Stone-Campbell Movement", which include the
Evangelical
Christian Church in Canada, the Christian
Church (Disciples of Christ) and the Churches of Christ).
Each of these groups, founded within fifty years of one another, originally
claimed to be an unprecedented, late restoration of the primitive Christian
church.

[edit]
New Thought Movement

Another group of churches are known under the banner of "New
Thought,". These churches share a spiritual, metaphysical and mystical
predisposition and understanding of the Bible and were strongly influenced
by the Transcendentalist
movement particularly the work of Emerson. Another
antecedent of this movement was Swedenborgianism,
founded on the writings of Emanuel Swedenborg in
1787.[5]
The New Thought concept was named by Emma Curtis Hopkins
("teacher of teachers") after Hopkins broke off from Mary Baker Eddy's Church of
Christ, Scientist the movement had been previously known as the Mental
Sciences. The New Thought movement includes Religious Science
founded by Ernest Holmes; Divine Science, founded
by Malinda Cramer and the Brook
sisters; and Unity founded by Charles
Fillmore and Myrtle Fillmore. The
founders of these denominations all studied with Emma Curts Hopkins. Each of one
these New
Thought Churches has been influenced by a wide variety of ancient spiritual
ideas.[6]
Each of these churches identify to different degrees with Christianity, Unity
and Divine Science being the most explicit in the use of the Bible.

[edit]
The Christian
Community

The Christian
Community (German: Die Christengemeinschaft) is a worldwide movement for
religious renewal. It was founded in 1922 in Switzerland by the Lutheran
theologian and minister Friedrich Rittlemeyer, inspired by Rudolf
Steiner, the Austrian mystic and founder of anthroposophy. Both
Protestants and Roman Catholics took part in the initial development of this
movement, which combines a "high church" regard for the spiritual significance
of the Mass with rational theology[citation
needed] and freedom of thought.[clarification
needed]

[edit]
Christian-related
movements

Two movements which are entirely unrelated in their founding share a common
element of an additional Messiah or incarnation of Christ: the Unification Church
and the Rastafari movement.
These groups would also fall outside of traditional taxonomies of Christian
groups.

[edit]
Differences of opinion regarding the definition of
Christianity

The neutrality
of this section is disputed.
Please see the discussion on the talk
page. Please do not remove this message until the dispute
is resolved. (July 2009)

See also: Cafeteria
Christianity

While a precise definition of what constitutes Christianity is difficult at
best, there are some groups worshipping Christ that accuse other groups
worshipping Christ of not being Christians because of theological differences.
The majority of Christians belong to denominations that express their faith in a
creed derived from the Council of
Nicaea, including the Orthodox, Catholic, Anglican, Methodist and
Lutheran churches.

Considering this diversity, it may be impossible to define what Christianity
is without either rejecting all definitions, or adopting a particular definition
as authoritative and thus excluding others. In terms of the modern aim of
scientific and objective definition, both options are considered
problematic.

Christianity, even in its
infancy as a Jewish sect,
rejected ethnic definition. It was conceived and grew as an international
religion with global ambitions, spreading rapidly from Jerusalem to
nations and people all over the world (following the Great Commission).
Doctrines, rather than ethnicity, define essential Christianity—even where ethnic groups have been
Christian for generations. The multiplicity of communities of faith may be
partly accounted for by the definition of Christianity according to specific
points of indispensable doctrine, the denial of which sets the heretic, or apostate,
outside of "the Church", where perhaps
he is accepted by another church holding doctrines compatible with his own.

Points of distinctive doctrine may be a very small number of simple
propositions, or very numerous and difficult to explain, depending on the group.
Some groups are defined relatively statically, and others have changed their
definitions dramatically over time. As an example, sometime after the First Council of
Nicaea in AD 325 established the doctrine of the Holy
Trinity and before the Enlightenment,
Christian teachers who denied the doctrine of the Holy Trinity would be
cast out of their churches, and at times exiled or otherwise deprived of the
protection of law. In later times, some points of the doctrine of the Trinity
are considered false doctrines according to groups such as The
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Christadelphians, and
the Jehovah's Witnesses
(representing tens of millions of believers combined). The Iglesia ni Cristo, for
its part believe the Trinity dogma is a totally unchristian doctrine.
These groups believe that their religious view of the Godhead comes
from Christian teachings prior to the establishment of the doctrine of the
Trinity AD 325. For example, Latter-day Saints
teach that God the Father, His Son
Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost are three
distinct beings that are one in purpose forming the Godhead.
Some groups have their roots in the Latter
Day Saint Movement, like Community of Christ,
but have reformed to such an extent that they are now more trinitarian and are
striving to be recognized as mainstream
Christianity.

Other movements coalesced to form today's Unitarian
Universalism, whose member congregations recognize to varying degrees and in
different ways their Christian origins. Unitarians and Universalists have
historically been non-creedal and congregations have been self-governing, such
that when the denominations consolidated in 1961, some congregations and
individual Unitarian Universalists continued to identify themselves broadly as
Christian, even more as "followers of Jesus" while other Unitarian Universalist
congregations simultaneously embrace agnostics and atheists as well as "followers
of Jesus".

Another group, the local
churches, is similar in many respects to mainstream Christianity but
theologically reject denominationalism
altogether.

There are also some Christians that reject organized religion altogether. Christian anarchists
believe that the original teachings of
Jesus were corrupted by Roman statism (compare Early Christianity
and State
church of the Roman Empire), and that earthly authority such as government,
or indeed the established Church, do not and should not have power over them.
Following "The Golden Rule",
many oppose the use of physical force in any circumstance, and advocate nonviolence. The Russian novelist Leo
Tolstoy wrote The Kingdom
of God Is Within You, [7]
and was a Christian
anarchist.

[edit]
See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Christian
denominations

Wikisource has original
text related to this article:

Portal:Christian
denominations

Wikiquote has a
collection of quotations related to: Denominationalism

Wikiversity has learning materials about Christian
Denominations

Ecclesiology

Denominationalism

Religious
denominations

List of
Christian denominations

List
of Christian denominations by number of members

Christian
tradition

One true church

One true faith

[edit]
References

^
Nondenominational Congregations Research at Hartford Institute
for Religion Research website. Hirr.hartsem.edu. Retrieved on
2010-11-03.

^
MTS
Maranatha Theological Seminary. Earn a Diploma, Associates, Bachelors, Masters
or Doctors degree totally free. Mts.50webs.org. Retrieved on
2010-11-03.

^
Chapman, J. (1911). Monophysites
and Monophysitism. in The Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton
Company. Retrieved June 4, 2009

^
Thomas
The Apostole. Stthoma.com. Retrieved on 2010-11-03.

^
William James, "The Varieties of Religious Experience". pp.92-93. New York
1929

^
"New Thought. The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition.
2001-07"

^
Leo Tolstoy - The Kingdom of God is Within You.
Kingdomnow.org. Retrieved on 2010-11-03.

[edit]
External links

Christian Denominations History, profiles and comparison
charts of major Christian denominations.

Denominational links from the Ecumenism in Canada
site

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_denomination"

Categories: Christian
denominations | Christian
group structuring

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