Christian denomination

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A Christian denomination is a distinct

Christian religious mainstream. Most Christian denominations refer to themselves as churches, whereas some newer ones tend to interchangeably use the terms churches, assemblies, fellowships, etc. Divisions between one group and another are defined by authority and doctrine; issues such as the nature of Jesus, the authority of apostolic succession, biblical hermeneutics, theology, ecclesiology, eschatology, and papal primacy may separate one denomination from another. Groups of denominations—often sharing broadly similar beliefs, practices, and historical ties—are sometimes known as "branches of Christianity". These branches differ in many ways, especially through differences in practices and belief.[1][2][3][4][5][6][7]

Individual

. Others, however, believe in denominationalism, where some or all Christian groups are legitimate churches of the same religion regardless of their distinguishing labels, beliefs, and practices. Because of this concept, some Christian bodies reject the term "denomination" to describe themselves, to avoid implying equivalence with other churches or denominations.

The

The Eastern Orthodox Church, with an estimated 230 million adherents,[15][11][16] is the second-largest Christian body in the world and also considers itself the original pre-denominational Church. Orthodox Christians, 80% of whom are Eastern Orthodox and 20% Oriental Orthodox, make up about 11.9% of the global Christian population.[15] The Eastern Orthodox Church is itself a communion of fully independent autocephalous churches (or "jurisdictions") that recognize each other, for the most part. Similarly, the Catholic Church is a communion of sui iuris churches, including 23 Eastern ones. The Eastern Orthodox Church, the 23 Eastern Catholic Churches, the Oriental Orthodox communion, the Assyrian Church of the East, the Ancient Church of the East, and the Eastern Lutheran Churches constitute Eastern Christianity. There are certain Eastern Protestant Christians that have adopted Protestant theology but have cultural and historical ties with other Eastern Christians. Eastern Christian denominations are represented mostly in Eastern Europe, North Asia, the Middle East, Northeast Africa, and India (especially South India).

Christians have various doctrines about the Church (the body of the faithful that they believe Jesus Christ established) and about how the divine church corresponds to Christian denominations. The Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox and Church of the East denominations, each hold that only their own specific organization faithfully represents the one holy catholic and apostolic Church, to the exclusion of all others. Sixteenth-century Protestants separated from the Catholic Church as a result of the Reformation, a movement against Catholic doctrines and practices which the Reformers perceived to be in violation of the Bible.[17][18][19] Generally, members of the various denominations acknowledge each other as Christians, at least to the extent that they have mutually recognized baptisms and acknowledge historically orthodox views including the divinity of Jesus and doctrines of sin and salvation, even though doctrinal and ecclesiological obstacles hinder full communion between churches.

Irvingians, Christadelphians, Swedenborgians, Jehovah's Witnesses, among others, although beliefs between these religions differ greatly.[21][22][23]

Since the reforms surrounding the

non-denominational Christians do not follow any particular branch,[24] though they sometimes are regarded as Protestants.[25][26][27][28]

Terminology

Each group uses different terminology to discuss their beliefs. This section will discuss the definitions of several terms used throughout the article, before discussing the beliefs themselves in detail in following sections.

A denomination within Christianity can be defined as a "recognized autonomous branch of the Christian Church"; major synonyms include "religious group, sect, Church," etc.[Note 1][29] "Church" as a synonym, refers to a "particular Christian organization with its own clergy, buildings, and distinctive doctrines";[30] "church" can also more broadly be defined as the entire body of Christians, the "Christian Church".

Some traditional and evangelical

denominationalism, the belief that some or all Christian groups are legitimate churches of the same religion regardless of their distinguishing labels, beliefs, and practices.[33] (Conversely, "denominationalism" can also refer to "emphasizing of denominational differences to the point of being narrowly exclusive", similar to sectarianism.)[34]

The views of Protestant leaders differ greatly from those of the leaders of the Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church, the two largest Christian denominations. Each church makes mutually exclusive statements for itself to be the direct continuation of the church founded by Jesus Christ, from whom other denominations later broke away.[10] These churches, and a few others, reject denominationalism.

Historically, Catholics would label members of certain Christian churches (also certain non-Christian religions) by the names of their founders, either actual or purported. Such supposed founders were referred to as heresiarchs. This was done even when the party thus labeled viewed itself as belonging to the one true church. This allowed the Catholic party to say that the other church was founded by the founder, while the Catholic church was founded by Christ. This was done intentionally in order to "produce the appearance of the fragmentation within Christianity"[35] – a problem which the Catholic side would then attempt to remedy on its own terms.

Although Catholics reject branch theory, Pope Benedict XVI and Pope John Paul II used the "two lungs" concept to relate Catholicism with Eastern Orthodoxy.[36]

Major branches

Worldwide Christians by denomination as of 2011[37]

  
Protestant (36.7%)
(11.9%)

Christianity can be taxonomically divided into six main groups: the

Within the Restorationist branch of Christianity, denominations include the Irvingians, Swedenborgians, Christadelphians, Latter Day Saints, Jehovah's Witnesses, La Luz del Mundo, and Iglesia ni Cristo.[41][22][23][42]

Christianity has denominational families (or movements) and also has 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. Groups that are members of a branch, while sharing historical ties and similar doctrines, are not necessarily in

communion
with one another.

There were some movements considered heresies by the

non-Trinitarian
groups.

Denominationalism

Denominationalism is the belief that some or all Christian groups are legitimate churches of the same religion regardless of their distinguishing labels, beliefs, and practices.

apostate over unimportant matters.[46]

Some Christians view denominationalism as a regrettable fact. As of 2011, divisions are becoming less sharp, and there is increasing cooperation between denominations, which is known as ecumenism. Many denominations participate in the World Council of Churches.[47]

Taxonomy

(Not shown are non-Nicene, nontrinitarian, and some restorationist denominations.)

Historical schisms and divisions

Christianity has not been a monolithic faith since the

Apostolic Age, though Christians were largely in communion with each other. Today there exist a large variety of groups that share a common history and tradition within and without mainstream Christianity. Christianity is the largest religion in the world (making up approximately one-third of the population) and the various divisions have commonalities and differences in tradition, theology, church government
, doctrine, and language.

The largest

Lutherans
see themselves not to be a part of the rest of what they call "Reformed Protestantism" due to radical differences in sacramental theology and historical approach to the Reformation itself (both Reformed and Lutherans see their reformation in the sixteenth century to be a 'reforming' of the Catholic Church, not a rejection of it entirely). From these come denominations, which in the West, have independence from the others in their doctrine.

The Catholic Church, due to its hierarchical structures, is not said to be made up of denominations, rather, it is a single denomination that include kinds of regional councils and individual congregations and church bodies, which do not officially differ from one another in doctrine.

Antiquity

The initial differences between the East and West traditions stem from socio-cultural and ethno-linguistic divisions in and between the

Apollinarians, Montanists, and Ebionites
).

Following the

Ignatius Zakka I Iwas
, as well as between representatives of both Eastern and Oriental Orthodoxy.

There has been a statement that the

Monophysite); one hypostasis, two natures (Eastern Orthodox/Roman Catholic).[50]

Middle Ages

Reformation

In Western Christianity, a handful of geographically isolated movements preceded the spirit of the

Hussites defied Catholic dogma, creating the still-extant Moravian Church
, a major Protestant denomination.

Although the church as a whole did not experience any major divisions for centuries afterward, the Eastern and Western groups drifted until the point where patriarchs from both families

papal primacy
.

Both West and East agreed that the Patriarch of Rome was owed a "

Patriarch Athenagoras
, that significant steps began to be made to mend the relationship between the two.

Protestant Reformation (16th century)

The Protestant Reformation began with the posting of

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. Due to the reactions of ecclesiastical office holders at the time of the reformers, these reformers separated from the Catholic Church, instigating a rift in Western Christianity
.

In

Act of Supremacy in 1534, founding the Church of England, repressing both Lutheran reformers and those loyal to the pope. Thomas Cranmer as Archbishop of Canterbury
introduced the Reformation, in a form compromising between the Calvinists and Lutherans.

Old and Liberal Catholic Churches (19th–20th centuries)

The Old Catholic Church split from the 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.

Eastern Christianity

In the Eastern world, the largest body of believers in modern times is the

Apostles. The Orthodox and Catholics have been separated since the 11th century, following the East–West Schism
, with each of them saying they represent the original pre-schism Church.

The Eastern Orthodox consider themselves to be spiritually one body, which is administratively grouped into several

Orthodox churches, and several smaller ones.

Geramon

The second largest Eastern Christian communion is

Armenian, Malankara (Indian), Ethiopian and Eritrean Orthodox churches. In the Aramaic-speaking areas of the Middle East, the Syriac Orthodox Church has long been dominant. 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. The Oriental Orthodox are distinguished from the Eastern Orthodox by doctrinal differences concerning the union of human and divine natures in the person of Jesus Christ, and the two communions separated as a consequence of the Council of Chalcedon in the year 451, although there have been recent moves towards reconciliation. Since these groups are relatively obscure in the West, literature on them has sometimes included the Church of the East, which, like the Oriental Orthodox, originated in the 1st century A.D., but has not been in communion with them since before the Council of Ephesus
of 431.

Largely

aniconic, the Church of the East represents a third Eastern Christian tradition in its own right. In recent centuries, it has split into three Churches. The largest (since the early 20th century) is the Baghdad-based Chaldean Catholic Church formed from groups that entered communion with Rome at different times, beginning in 1552. The second-largest is what since 1976[51] is officially called the Assyrian Church of the East and which from 1933 to 2015 was headquartered first in Cyprus and then in the United States, but whose present Catholicos-Patriarch, Gewargis III, elected in 2015, lives in Erbil, Iraq. The third is the Ancient Church of the East, distinct since 1964 and headed by Addai II Giwargis
, resident in Baghdad.

There are also the

universal head of the Church. They are fully part of the Catholic communion, on the same level juridically as the Latin Church. Most of their members do not describe themselves as "Roman Catholics", a term they associate with membership of the Latin Church, and speak of themselves in relation to whichever Church they belong to: Maronites, Melkites, Ukrainian Catholics, Coptic Catholics, Chaldean Catholics, etc.[52]

And finally the smallest Eastern Christian group founded in early 20th century is

Byzantine Rite Lutheranism where accept Byzantine Rite as Church's liturgy while retaining their Lutheran traditions like Ukrainian Lutheran Church. It is considered part of Eastern Protestant
denominational movement.

Western Christianity

The

Reformed churches, from which nearly all other Protestant denominations derive.[55]

One central tenet of Catholicism (which is a common point between Catholic, Scandinavian Lutheran, Anglican, Moravian, Orthodox, and some other Churches), is its practice of

twelve apostles
, and they, in turn laid hands on subsequent church leaders to ordain (commission) them for ministry. In this manner, Catholics and Anglicans trace their ordained ministers all the way back to the original Twelve.

Catholics believe that the

Catholicism and who incorporate many Catholic beliefs and practices.[55]
The Catholic Church refers to itself simply by the terms Catholic and Catholicism (which mean universal).

Sometimes, Catholics, based on a strict interpretation of

extra ecclesiam nulla salus ("Outside the Church, there is no salvation"), rejected any notion those outside its communion could be regarded as part of any true Catholic Christian faith, an attitude rejected by the Second Vatican Council (1962–1965).[56]
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.

Each Protestant movement has developed freely, and many have split over theological issues. For instance, a number of movements grew out of spiritual revivals, such as Pentecostalism. Doctrinal issues and matters of conscience have also divided Protestants. Still others formed out of administrative issues; Methodism branched off as its own group of denominations when the American Revolutionary War complicated the movement's ability to ordain ministers (it had begun as a movement within the Church of England). In Methodism's case, it has undergone a number of administrative schisms and mergers with other denominations (especially those associated with the holiness movement in the 20th century).

The

infant baptism; this tradition is also noted for its belief in pacifism. Many Anabaptists do not see themselves as Protestant, but a separate tradition altogether.[57][58]

Some denominations which arose alongside the Western Christian tradition consider themselves Christian, but neither Catholic nor wholly Protestant, such as the

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.

Many churches with roots in

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
.

Christians with Jewish roots

disciples of Jesus generally retained their ethnic origins while accepting the Gospel message. The first church council was called in Jerusalem to address just this issue, and the deciding opinion was written by James the Just
, the first bishop of Jerusalem and a pivotal figure in the Christian movement. The history of Messianic Judaism includes many movements and groups and defies any simple classification scheme.

The 19th century saw at least 250,000 Jews convert to Christianity according to existing records of various societies.

Protestants.[60][61][62] According to the same data, most of the Jews who identify themselves as some sort of Christian (1.6 million) were raised as Jews or are Jews by ancestry.[61]

Modern history

Unitarianism

Within Italy, Poland, Lithuania, Transylvania, Hungary and Romania

credobaptism.[65] The Unitarian Church of Transylvania is an example of such a denomination that arose in this era and is represented in the Protestant Theological Institute of Cluj. Due to their rejection of the Athanasian Creed which contains the doctrine of the Trinity, many mainstream Christian Churches do not recognize Unitarians as Christians.[66]

Restorationism

Second Great Awakening

The Stone-Campbell

Protestant but simply as Christian.[68][69][70]
: 213 

The Restoration Movement developed from several independent efforts to return to

Alexander Campbell; they used the name "Disciples of Christ". Both groups sought to restore the whole Christian church on the pattern set forth in the New Testament, and both believed that creeds
kept Christianity divided. In 1832 they joined in fellowship with a handshake.

Among other things, they were united in the belief that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; that Christians should celebrate the Lord's Supper on the first day of each week; and that baptism of adult believers by immersion in water is a necessary condition for salvation. Because the founders wanted to abandon all denominational labels, they used the biblical names for the followers of Jesus.[72]: 27  Both groups promoted a return to the purposes of the 1st-century churches as described in the New Testament. One historian of the movement has argued that it was primarily a unity movement, with the restoration motif playing a subordinate role.[73]: 8 

The Restoration Movement has since divided into multiple separate groups. There are three main branches in the US: the

International Christian Churches. Non-U.S. groups include the Churches of Christ in Australia, the Evangelical Christian Church in Canada, the Churches of Christ in Europe. The Plymouth Brethren are a similar though historically unrelated group which originated in the United Kingdom. Some churches, such as Churches of Christ or the Plymouth Brethren
reject formal ties with other churches within the movement.

Other Christian groups originating during the Second Great Awakening including the

Adventist movement,[74] the Jehovah's Witnesses,[75] and Christian Science,[76] founded within fifty years of one another, all consider themselves to be restorative of primitive Christianity and the early church. Some Baptist churches with Landmarkist views have similar beliefs concerning their connection with primitive Christianity.[77]

Latter Day Saint movement

Most Latter Day Saint denominations are derived from the

Smith's death by the remnants of the Latter Day Saints who did not go west with Brigham Young. Many of these opposed some of the 1840s theological developments in favor of 1830s theological understandings and practices. Other denominations are defined by either a belief in Joseph Smith as a prophet or acceptance of the Book of Mormon as scripture. Mormons generally consider themselves to be restorationist, believing that Smith, as prophet, seer, and revelator, restored the original and true Church of Christ to the earth. Some Latter Day Saint denominations are regarded by other Christians as being nontrinitarian or even non-Christian, but the Latter Day Saints are predominantly in disagreement with these statements. Latter Day Saints see themselves as believing in a Godhead comprising the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost as separate personages united in purpose. Latter Day Saints regard traditional definitions of the Trinity as aberrations of true doctrine and emblematic of the Great Apostasy[78] but they do not accept certain trinitarian definitions in the post-apostolic creeds, such as the Athanasian Creed
.

Spiritual Christianity

Spiritual Christianity, inclusive of the Molokans and Doukhobors emerged in Russia, each containing a unique tradition.[79] The Doukhobor have maintained close association with Mennonite Anabaptist Christians and Quaker Christians due to analogous religious practices; all of these groups are furthermore collectively considered to be peace churches due to their belief in pacifism.[80][81][82]

Other movements

Protestant denominations have shown a strong tendency towards diversification and fragmentation, giving rise to numerous churches and movements, especially in Anglo-American religious history, where the process is cast in terms of a series of "Great Awakenings".

The most recent wave of diversification, known as the

Charismatic Movement, the Jesus movement, and a number of parachurch organizations based in Evangelicalism
.

Many independent churches and movements consider themselves to be

Christian anti-cult movement
. Further, others may have similar doctrine to mainline churches but incorporate a multi-faith and ecumenical model such as the Interfaith-Ecumenical Church (IEC) that is based entirely in a virtual and international model.

Two movements, which are entirely unrelated in their founding, but share a common element of an additional Messiah (or incarnation of Christ) are the

taxonomies
of Christian groups, though both cite the Christian Bible as a basis for their beliefs.

Syncretism of Christian beliefs with local and tribal religions is a phenomenon that occurs throughout the world. An example of this is the Native American Church. The ceremonies of this group are strongly tied to the use of peyote. (Parallels may be drawn here with the Rastafari spiritual use of cannabis.) While traditions vary from tribe to tribe, they often include a belief in Jesus as a Native American cultural hero, an intercessor for man, or a spiritual guardian; belief in the Bible; and an association of Jesus with peyote.

There are also some Christians that reject organized religion altogether. Some

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,[83]
and was a Christian anarchist.

See also

Notes

  1. ^ The Oxford Dictionary's full list of synonyms for "denomination" includes: "religious group, sect, Church, cult, movement, faith community, body, persuasion, religious persuasion, communion, order, fraternity, brotherhood, sisterhood, school; faith, creed, belief, religious belief, religion. rare: sodality."

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  1. .
  2. .
  3. .
  4. .
  5. .
  6. .
  7. .
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  10. ^ .
  11. ^ a b "Status of Global Christianity, 2019, in the Context of 1900–2050" (PDF). Center for Study of Global Christianity. Archived (PDF) from the original on 28 July 2020. Retrieved 14 May 2020.
  12. ^ . Amid all this diversity, however, it is possible to define Protestantism formally as non-Roman Western Christianity and to divide most of Protestantism into four major confessions or confessional families – Lutheran, Anglican, Reformed, and Free Church.
  13. ^ . Most narrowly, it denotes a movement that began within the Roman Catholic Church in Europe in the 16th century and the churches that come directly out of it. In this narrow sense, Protestantism would include the Lutheran, Reformed or Presbyterian, and Anglican (Church of England) churches, and by extension the churches of the British Puritan movement, which sought to bring the Church of England into the Reformed/Presbyterian camp. Most recently, scholars have argued quite effectively that the churches of the radical phase of the 16th-century Reformation, the Anabaptist and Mennonite groups, also belong within this more narrow usage.
  14. ^ "Western Christianity". www.philtar.ac.uk. Archived from the original on 28 April 2017. Retrieved 23 May 2020.
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  23. ^ . However, Swedenborg claimed to receive visions and revelations of heavenly things and a 'New Church', and the new church which was founded upon his writings was a Restorationist Church. The three nineteenth-century churches are all examples of Restorationist Churches, which believed they were refounding the Apostolic Church, and preparing for the Second Coming of Christ.
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  42. . The Second Great Awakening (1790-1840) spurred a renewed interest in primitive Christianity. What is known as the Restoration Movement of the nineteenth century gave birth to an array of groups: Mormons (The Latter Day Saint Movement), the Churches of Christ, Adventists, and Jehovah's Witnesses. Though these groups demonstrate a breathtaking diversity on the continuum of Christianity they share an intense restorationist impulse. Picasso and Stravinsky reflect a primitivism that came to the fore around the turn of the twentieth century that more broadly has been characterized as a "retreat from the industrialized world."
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  48. ^ . About one-third of the world's population is considered Christian and can be divided into three main branches: (1) Catholicism (the largest coherent group, representing over one billion baptized members); (2) Orthodox Christianity (including Eastern Orthodoxy and Oriental Orthodoxy); and (3) Protestantism (comprising many denominations and schools of thought, including Anglicanism, Reformed, Presbyterianism, Lutheranism, Methodism, Evangelicalism, and Pentecostalism).
  49. . Orthodox Churches represent one of te three major branches of Christianity, along with Catholicism and Protestantism.
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  55. ^
    The Lutheran Witness
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  56. ^ "Unitatis redintegratio". www.vatican.va. Archived from the original on 6 March 2013. Retrieved 10 May 2023. It remains true that all who have been justified by faith in Baptism are members of Christ's body, and have a right to be called Christian, and so are correctly accepted as brothers by the children of the Catholic Church.
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Further reading