Christianity is the largest religion in the world today, but it began as a small sect of Judaism about 2,000 years ago.
About 26 CE, Jesus of Nazareth was baptized in the Jordan River by John the Baptist, and so began His ministry. Those who followed him believed him to be the awaited Messiah, but rather than re-establishing the Kingdom of David, he was crucified by the Roman governor of Judea. Christians believe that He rose on the third day, later ascending into heaven.
Christians began welcoming Gentiles into their fellowship, forming a new religion.
Christians kept the Jewish Scriptures and added a New Testament.
The Christian Church was not separated into clergy and laity during the early centuries, but eventually, a leadership structure arose. Perhaps no question in church history has resulted in more controversy than the origin and development of church officers.
The earliest Gentile churches had no officers in the strict sense. Paul's letters to the churches make no mention of local officers. Had there been, they would have surely been alluded to in his letters to the Corinthians. Paul does, however, specify three classes of leaders: Apostles, prophets, and teachers; but, although the Apostles held positions of authority, the sense is that the authority of the prophets and teachers was persuasive rather than authoritarian, and the Apostles were over the larger Church rather than the individual churches.
As the Church spread and developed politically, conflicts arose. Councils of bishops decided that some movements within the Church were heretical, and heretics were often executed in horrifying ways.
Many of the more significant divisions in the Church resulted from growing divisions between different language groups. The first official separation occurred in the mid-5th century when the Coptic and Syrian Orthodox churches separated from the Greek Orthodox.
The separation between the Greek Orthodox and the Roman Catholic Church occurred gradually out of disagreements over who should be the temporal head of the Church. Eastern and Roman church members had quarreled for centuries; still, they viewed the Church as one body. The final break came in 1054, after which the Roman Catholic Church became the dominant social institution in Western Europe.
The Roman Catholic Church was not without controversies. Pope Celestine V was forced to resign only five months into his papacy. He was replaced by Pope Boniface VIII, who believed that the Roman bishop should rule all of Western society, even over the kings. Disagreeing, the French king had the pope kidnapped and killed. His successor was forced to flee Rome not long after his election. He died after eating poisoned figs.
The next pope fled to Avignon, France, where popes lived it up for 72 years. Bishops openly sold leadership positions, friars sold indulgences, and priests ignored their vows of celibacy.
The bubonic plague and a series of wars put an end to the frivolity.
In the 16th century, reformers like Martin Luther and Ulrich Zwingli called for doctrinal reform in Catholicism based on Scripture rather than tradition. Although it can be argued that Luther did not intend to split the Roman Catholic Church, that was the result. The Church in Western Europe was divided between Roman Catholicism and Protestantism.
While the Protestant Reformation took place, the Anabaptists and Mennonites emerged from the Radical Reformation, which resulted in response to perceived corruption in both the Catholic Church and the growing Protestant movement. Originating in Germany, Switzerland, and Austria, the Anabaptist movement spread to North America, in part due to intense persecution from both Catholics and Protestants in Europe.
In the following years, many further divisions occurred, particularly within Protestantism, although there have been several divisions within Anabaptist and Orthodox bodies, as well. Less divided following the Protestant Reformation, there have been minor splits within Catholicism.
According to the World Christian Encyclopedia, there are about 9,000 Protestant denominations in the world, most of them belonging to a few Protestant denominational families, such as the Anglicans, Baptists, Lutherans, and Methodists. Additionally, many other Protestant bodies consider themselves to be nondenominational or do not fit neatly into defined branches.
Categories
AnabaptistCatholic | OrthodoxProtestant |
Recommended Resources
Ethan Longberry wrote a book entitled, “A Study of Denominations,” which can be purchased online. However, much of the information is available here, including a historical overview and an overview of each of the major denominations and movements, the doctrinal matters that resulted in some of the splits, as well as references to movements in the early years of the Church, such as the Judaizers, the Gnostics, and the Montanists.
http://www.astudyofdenominations.com/
Association of Religion Data Archives
The mission of the ARDA is to provide equal access to data on religion, including features for researchers, educators, journalists, and religious congregations throughout the world. Its data collections include, but are not limited to, United States congregational membership statistics, and a denominational list, which provides a variety of information, regional and national profiles, the family trees of religion, group profiles, and interactive timelines.
http://www.thearda.com/
Organized in 1950, the National Council of Churches is an American organization that encourages ecumenical cooperation among all Christian groups in the United States. With members from a wide spectrum of Protestant, Anglican, Orthodox, Evangelical, historic African American, and Living Peace churches, the Council also seeks to build interfaith relations, reduce poverty, global issues and environmental concerns. You can also find news reports on the state of Christianity around the world.
http://www.ncccusa.org/
