Misplaced Pages

#934065

112-436: In many Christian denominations , " modality " refers to the structure and organization of the local or universal church, composed of pastors or priests. By contrast, parachurch organizations are termed sodalities. These include missionary organizations and Christian charities or fraternities not linked to specific churches. Some theologians would include denominations, schools of theology, and other multi-congregational efforts in

224-904: A cult or sect, a denomination is usually seen as part of the 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. Individual denominations vary widely in

336-482: A "dangerous cult" in another part of the world. Inclusion on this list does not indicate any judgment about the size, importance, or character of a group or its members. Early Christianity is often divided into three different branches that differ in theology and traditions, which all appeared in the 1st century AD / CE . They include Jewish Christianity , Pauline Christianity and Gnostic Christianity . All modern Christian denominations are said to have descended from

448-633: A definition making a clear distinction between the sodalities and other confraternities . Confraternities and sodalities had their beginnings after the rise of the confraternities of prayer in the early Middle Ages (around 400–1000 AD), and developed rapidly from the end of the 12th century, with the rise of the great ecclesiastical orders, such as the Dominicans , the Carmelites , and the Servites . Other associations of this kind soon appeared under

560-447: 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 early Church which do not exist today and are not generally referred to as denominations: examples include

672-407: A denomination, that is, "an organized body of Christians." 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

784-481: A general rule, the larger a group becomes, the more acceptance and legitimacy it gains. Modern movements such as Christian fundamentalism , Radical Pietism , Evangelicalism , the Holiness movement and Charismatic Christianity sometimes cross denominational lines, or in some cases create new denominations out of two or more continuing groups (as is the case for many united and uniting churches , for example; e.g.

896-586: 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 . Others include the ancient Patriarchates of Constantinople , Alexandria , Antioch and Jerusalem , the Georgian , Romanian , Serbian and Bulgarian Orthodox churches, and several smaller ones. The second largest Eastern Christian communion

1008-635: A little over 1 billion Protestant Christians. Proto-Protestantism refers to movements similar to the Protestant Reformation, but before 1517, when Martin Luther (1483–1546) is reputed to have nailed the Ninety-Five-Theses to the church door. Major early Reformers were Peter Waldo (c. 1140–c. 1205), John Wycliffe (1320s–1384), and Jan Hus (c. 1369–1415). It is not completely correct to call these groups Protestant due to

1120-531: A part of the same family but have distinct doctrinal variations within each group— 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

1232-507: A particular group with specialized needs, such as students or ethnic groups. A related concept is denominationalism , the belief that some or all Christian groups are legitimate churches of the same religion regardless of their distinguishing labels, beliefs, and practices. (Conversely, "denominationalism" can also refer to "emphasizing of denominational differences to the point of being narrowly exclusive", similar to sectarianism .) The views of Protestant leaders differ greatly from those of

SECTION 10

#1732773286935

1344-508: 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. The initial differences between

1456-727: A rift in Western Christianity . In England , Henry VIII of England declared himself to be supreme head of the Church of England with the 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. The Old Catholic Church split from

1568-410: 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. Due to the reactions of ecclesiastical office holders at the time of the reformers, these reformers separated from the Catholic Church, instigating

1680-472: A statement 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 (Eastern Orthodox/Roman Catholic). In Western Christianity, a handful of geographically isolated movements preceded

1792-527: 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. 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

1904-463: A whole (e.g. Church of the East, Oriental Orthodox Churches, or Lutheranism). The largest denomination is the Catholic Church with more than 1.3 billion members. The smallest of these groups may have only a few dozen adherents or an unspecified number of participants in independent churches as described below. As such, specific numbers and a certain size may not define a group as a denomination. However, as

2016-553: Is Oriental Orthodoxy , which is organized in a similar manner, with six national autocephalous groups and two autonomous bodies, although there are greater internal differences than among the Eastern Orthodox (especially in the diversity of rites being used). The six autocephalous Oriental Orthodox churches are the Coptic (Egyptian), Syriac , Armenian , Malankara (Indian), Ethiopian and Eritrean Orthodox churches. In

2128-469: Is a distinct religious body within Christianity , identified by traits such as a name, organization and doctrine . Individual bodies, however, may use alternative terms to describe themselves, such as church, convention, communion, assembly, house, union, network, or sometimes fellowship. Divisions between one denomination and another are primarily defined by authority and doctrine. Issues regarding

2240-480: Is administratively grouped into several autocephalous jurisdictions (also commonly referred to as "churches", despite being parts of one Church). 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

2352-486: Is composed of 24 autonomous sui iuris particular churches : the Latin Church and the 23 Eastern Catholic Churches . It considers itself the one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church that Christ founded, and which Saint Peter initiated along with the missionary work of Saint Paul and others. As such, the Catholic Church does not consider itself a denomination, but rather considers itself pre-denominational,

SECTION 20

#1732773286935

2464-744: Is considered part of Eastern Protestant denominational movement. Denominational associations Regional associations Churches Together in England Oriental Orthodox African-American Baptist Oriental Orthodox Eastern Protestant Finished Work Pentecostal Oneness Pentecostal The Latin portion of the Catholic Church , along with Protestantism , comprise the three major divisions of Christianity in

2576-478: Is known as ecumenism . Many denominations participate in the World Council of Churches . Christianity has not been a monolithic faith since the first century or 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

2688-838: Is the largest and most widely known of the 24 sui iuris churches that together make up the Catholic Church. It is headed by the Bishop of Rome—the Pope —with headquarters in Vatican City , enclaved within Rome , Italy . As of 2015 , the Latin Church comprised 1.255 billion members. All of the following are particular churches of the Catholic Church. They are all in communion with the Pope as Bishop of Rome and acknowledge his claim of universal jurisdiction and authority. They have some minor distinct theological emphases and expressions (for instance, in

2800-403: 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. The Eastern Orthodox Church is itself a communion of fully independent autocephalous churches (or "jurisdictions") that recognize each other, for

2912-605: Is to divide the sodalities, pious associations and confraternities into three broad types: This group includes the confraternities which seek mainly to attain piety, devotion and the increase of love of God by special devotion to God, the Blessed Virgin, the angels , or the saints . In the first half of the twentieth century, such sodalities were the mainstay of Catholic parish life in many countries. According to Rene Metz, "[Catholic] [c]anon law provides for and favours pious associations of lay people ...The best-known of

3024-757: Is what since 1976 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

3136-469: The via media between Lutheranism and Reformed Christianity, as well as between Roman Catholicism and Protestantism. The majority of Anglicans consider themselves part of the one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church within the Anglican Communion. Anglicans or Episcopalians also self-identify as both Catholic and Reformed . Although the use of the term "Protestant" to refer to Anglicans

3248-828: 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

3360-757: The Church of the East , Oriental Orthodoxy , Eastern Orthodoxy , Roman Catholicism , Protestantism , and Restorationism . Within these six main traditions are various Christian denominations (for example, the Coptic Orthodox Church is an Oriental Orthodox denomination). Protestantism includes many groups which do not share any ecclesiastical governance and have widely diverging beliefs and practices. Major Protestant branches include Adventism , Anabaptism , Anglicanism , Baptists , Lutheranism , Methodism , Moravianism , Quakerism , Pentecostalism , Plymouth Brethren , Reformed Christianity , and Waldensianism . Reformed Christianity itself includes

3472-499: The Church of the East . However Roman Catholicism is to be seen as a distinct denomination within Western Christianity. Protestantism includes diverse groups such as Adventists , Anabaptists , Anglicans , Baptists , Congregationalists , Methodists (inclusive of the Holiness movement ), Moravians , Pentecostals , Presbyterians , Reformed , and Unitarians (depending on one's classification scheme) are all

Sodality - Misplaced Pages Continue

3584-891: The Continental Reformed , Presbyterian , Evangelical Anglican , Congregationalist , and Reformed Baptist traditions. Anabaptist Christianity itself includes the Amish , Apostolic , Bruderhof , Hutterite , Mennonite , River Brethren , and Schwarzenau Brethren traditions. 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 . Christianity has denominational families (or movements) and also has individual denominations (or communions). The difference between

3696-606: The Continental Reformed , Presbyterian , Evangelical Anglican , Congregationalist , and Reformed Baptist traditions. Anabaptist Christianity itself includes the Amish , Apostolic , Bruderhof , Hutterite , Mennonite , River Brethren , and Schwarzenau Brethren traditions. 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 . Among those listed, some bodies included do not consider themselves denominations, though for

3808-621: The Eastern Catholic Churches , most of which are counterparts of those listed above, sharing with them the same theological and liturgical traditions, but differing from them in that they recognize the Bishop of Rome as 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 ",

3920-682: The First Council of Nicaea , the East-West Schism and proto-Protestantism . Among these late ancient and Medieval Christian denominations, the most prominent and continuously operating have been the Church of the East and its successors in Assyrian Christianity; and the Oriental Orthodox Churches. Both the Church of the East and Oriental Orthodox separated from the imperial Roman church during

4032-872: The Gnostics (who had believed in an esoteric dualism called gnosis ), the Ebionites (who denied the divinity of Jesus), and the Arians (who subordinated the Son to the Father by denying the pre-existence of Christ , thus placing Jesus as a created being), Bogumilism and the Bosnian Church . The greatest divisions in Christianity today, however, are between the Eastern and Oriental Orthodox, Catholics, and

4144-546: 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 excommunicated one another in about 1054 in what is known as the Great Schism . The political and theological reasons for

4256-477: The Middle East , Northeast Africa , and 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, Church of the East and Lutheran denominations, each hold that only their own specific organization faithfully represents

4368-696: The Pope of Rome ), and the Assyrian Church of the East. Other minor, modern related splinter groups include the Ancient Church of the East (split 1968 due to rejecting some changes made by Patriarch Shimun XXI Eshai ) and the Chaldean Syrian Church. In 1995 the Chaldean Syrian Church reunified with the Assyrian Church of the East as an archbishopric . The Chaldean Syrian Church is headquartered in Thrissur , India . Together,

4480-615: The Second Diet of Speyer mandated the burning of Luther's works and the end of the Protestant Reformation . Anglicanism is generally classified as Protestant, being originally seen as a via media , or middle way between Lutheranism and Reformed Christianity, and since the Oxford Movement of the 19th century, some Anglican writers of Anglo-Catholic churchmanship emphasize a more catholic understanding of

4592-508: The Second Great Awakening and collectively affirms belief in a Great Apostasy , thus promoting a belief in restoring what they see as primitive Christianity. It includes Mormons , Irvingians , Christadelphians , Swedenborgians , Jehovah's Witnesses , among others, although beliefs between these religions differ greatly. Generally, members of the various denominations acknowledge each other as Christians, at least to

Sodality - Misplaced Pages Continue

4704-621: The Syriac and Coptic churches dividing themselves, with some churches becoming today's Oriental Orthodox . The Armenian Apostolic Church , whose representatives were not able to attend the council did not accept new dogmas and now is also seen as an Oriental Orthodox church. In modern times, there have also been moves towards healing this split, with common Christological statements being 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

4816-506: The United Church of Christ ). Such subtleties and complexities are not clearly depicted here. Between denominations, theologians, and comparative religionists there are considerable disagreements about which groups can be properly called Christian or a Christian denomination as disagreements arise primarily from doctrinal differences between each other. As an example, this list contains groups also known as "rites" which many, such as

4928-741: The Waldensian Evangelical Church is a well known existing body in that tradition. The Hussites are presently represented in the Moravian Church , Unity of the Brethren and the Czechoslovak Hussite Church . Bible Translators Theologians Lutherans are a major branch of Protestantism, identifying with the theology of Martin Luther, a German friar, ecclesiastical reformer, and theologian . Lutheranism initially began as an attempt to reform

5040-607: The World Council of Churches , though only five form the Standing Conference of Oriental Orthodox Churches. Throughout Oriental Orthodoxy, non-mainstream or non-canonical churches have passed in and out of recognition with the mainstream churches (e.g., British Orthodox Church ). Eastern Orthodoxy is one of the main Chalcedonian Christian branches, alongside Roman Catholicism and Protestantism. Each Eastern Orthodox church considers itself part of

5152-581: The divine and human natures of Jesus , and addresses Mary as Christotokos instead of Theotokos ; the Church of the East also largely practiced aniconism . Adhered to by groups such as the Keraites and Naimans (see Christianity among the Mongols ), the Church of the East had a prominent presence in Inner Asia between the 11th and 14th centuries, but by the 15th century was largely confined to

5264-568: The nature of Jesus , Trinitarianism , salvation , the authority of apostolic succession , eschatology , conciliarity , papal supremacy and papal primacy among others may separate one denomination from another. Groups of denominations, often sharing broadly similar beliefs, practices, and historical ties—can be known as "branches of Christianity" or "denominational families" (e.g. Eastern or Western Christianity and their sub-branches). These "denominational families" are often imprecisely also called denominations. Christian denominations since

5376-478: The one holy catholic and apostolic Church , to the exclusion of all others. Certain denominational traditions teach that they were divinely instituted to propagate a certain doctrine or spiritual experience, for example the raising up of Methodism by God to propagate entire sanctification (the "second blessing"), or the launch of Pentecostalism to bestow a supernatural empowerment evidenced by speaking in tongues on humanity. Restorationism emerged after

5488-475: The one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church that Jesus founded . Some Christian denominations have recently considered the body of Oriental Orthodoxy to be a part of the one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church—a view which is gaining increasing acceptance in the wake of ecumenical dialogues between groups such as Eastern Orthodoxy , Roman and Eastern Catholicism, and Protestant Christianity . All canonical or mainstream Oriental Orthodox Churches are part of

5600-517: The "main trunk of the historical Christian Tree" founded by Christ and the Apostles, holding that during the Reformation , the Church of Rome fell away. Certain denominational traditions teach that they were divinely instituted to propagate a certain doctrine or spiritual experience, for example the raising up of Methodism by God to propagate entire sanctification (the "second blessing"), or

5712-793: The "two lungs" concept to relate Catholicism with Eastern Orthodoxy. World Christianity by tradition in 2024 as per World Christian Database Worldwide Christians by denomination as of 2011 Christianity can be taxonomically divided into six main groups: the Church of the East , Oriental Orthodoxy , Eastern Orthodoxy , Catholicism , Protestantism , and Restorationism . Protestantism includes many groups which do not share any ecclesiastical governance and have widely diverging beliefs and practices. Major Protestant branches include Adventism , Anabaptism , Anglicanism , Baptists , Lutheranism , Methodism , Moravianism , Quakerism , Pentecostalism , Plymouth Brethren , Reformed Christianity , and Waldensianism . Reformed Christianity itself includes

SECTION 50

#1732773286935

5824-475: The 1529 Protestation at Speyer , but originated in 1517 when Martin Luther began his dispute with the Roman Catholic Church. This period of time, known as the Reformation , began a series of events resulting over the next 500 years in several newly denominated churches (listed below). Some denominations were started by intentionally dividing themselves from the Roman Catholic Church, such as in

5936-583: 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

6048-491: The 20th century have often involved themselves in ecumenism . Ecumenism refers to efforts among Christian bodies to develop better understandings and closer relationships. It also refers to efforts toward visible unity in the Christian Church , though the terms of visible unity vary for each denomination of Christianity, as certain groups teach they are the one true church , or that they were divinely instituted for

6160-675: The 5th century. The Church of the East split from the Roman-recognized state church of Rome during the Sasanian Period . It is also called the Nestorian Church or the Church of Persia. Declaring itself separate from the state church in 424–427, liturgically, it adhered to the East Syriac Rite . Theologically, it adopted the dyophysite doctrine of Nestorianism, which emphasizes the separateness of

6272-600: The Anglican Communion. The Anabaptists trace their origins to the Radical Reformation . Alternative to other early Protestants, Anabaptists were seen as an early offshoot of Protestantism, although the view has been challenged by some Anabaptists. There were approximately 2.1 million Anabaptists as of 2015. Anabaptists are categorized into Old Order Anabaptism (such as the Old Brethren German Baptist ), Conservative Anabaptism (such as

6384-399: 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

6496-418: The Assyrian, Ancient, Chaldean Syrian and Chaldean Catholic Church comprised over 1.6 million in 2018. Assyrian Christianity comprises those Eastern churches who kept the traditional Nestorian christology and ecclesiology of the historical Church of the East after the original church reunited with the Catholic Church in Rome, forming the Chaldean Catholic Church in 1552. Assyrian Christianity forms part of

6608-678: The Catholic Church as a result of the Reformation , a movement against doctrines and practices which the Reformers perceived to be in violation of the Bible. Together, Catholicism and Protestantism (with major traditions including Adventism , Anabaptism , Anglicanism , Baptists , Lutheranism , Methodism , Moravianism , Pentecostalism , Plymouth Brethren , Quakerism , Reformed , and Waldensianism ) compose Western Christianity . Western Christian denominations prevail in Sub-Saharan Africa , Europe (excluding Eastern Europe), North America , Oceania and South America . The Eastern Orthodox Church , with an estimated 230 million adherents,

6720-648: The Catholic Church before the excommunication of its members. Lutherans are divided among High Church , Confessional , Pietist and Liberal churchmanships, though these can overlap, e.g. the Communion of Nordic Lutheran Dioceses is High Church and Confessional. The whole of Lutheranism had about 70-90 million members in 2018. The largest non-United Lutheran denomination was the Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus , an Eastern Protestant Christian group. Those who separated from established Lutheran churches to form their own denominations are known as Radical Pietists (as opposed to Pietistic Lutherans , who remain in

6832-408: 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" – 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

SECTION 60

#1732773286935

6944-408: The Church experienced a crisis and lost power and influence. Two hundred years later, in the 16th century, the Church rose to renewed prosperity and the many new religious congregations and associations gave birth to numerous new confraternities and sodalities which worked with great success and, in some cases, still exist. A useful way to understand sodalities, and their place in the Christian Church,

7056-433: The East and West traditions stem from socio-cultural and ethno-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 Aramaic and Koine Greek to transmit writings, theological developments were difficult to translate from one branch to

7168-438: The Eastern Aramaic -speaking Assyrian communities of northern Mesopotamia, in and around the rough triangle formed by Mosul and Lakes Van and Urmia —the same general region where the Church of the East had first emerged between the 1st and 3rd centuries. Its patriarchal lines divided in a tumultuous period from the 16th-19th century, finally consolidated into the Eastern Catholic Chaldean Church (in full communion with

7280-448: The Episcopacy. This stream has in its relatively short existence known many splits, which operate worldwide under several names. 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 its common language. However, the term " Greek Orthodox " actually refers to only one portion of

7392-487: The Jewish and Pauline Christianities, with Gnostic Christianity dying, or being hunted out of existence after the early Christian era and being largely forgotten until discoveries made in the late 19th and early twentieth centuries. There are also other theories on the origin of Christianity. The following Christian groups appeared between the beginning of the Christian religion and the First Council of Nicaea in 325. The following are groups of Christians appearing between

7504-437: The Latin Church in 1724 through the consecrations of bishops for the present-day Old Catholic Archdiocese of Utrecht without papal approval. Largely distinguished by their rejection of papal infallibility and supremacy, most Independent Catholic churches are unrecognized by the Vatican, although their sacraments have been recognized as valid but illicit . Protestantism is a movement within Christianity which owes its name to

7616-414: The Lutheran churches (such as the Church of the Lutheran Brethren ) and combine its emphasis on Biblical doctrine with the importance of individual piety and living a holy Christian life. Although the Radical Pietists broke with Lutheranism, its influence on Anglicanism, in particular John Wesley , led to the spawning of the Methodist movement . Christianity • Protestantism Calvinism, also known as

7728-594: The Orthodox Catholic Church, claims continuity (based upon apostolic succession ) with the early Church as part of the state church of Rome . The Eastern Orthodox Church had about 230 million members as of 2019 , making it the second largest single denomination behind the Catholic Church. Some of them have a disputed administrative status (i.e. their autonomy or autocephaly is not recognized universally). Eastern Orthodox churches by and large remain in communion with one another, although this has broken at times throughout its history. Two examples of impaired communion between

7840-441: The Orthodox churches include the Moscow–Constantinople schisms of 1996 and 2018 . There are also independent churches subscribing to the Eastern Orthodox traditions. These Eastern Orthodox churches are not in communion with the mainstream or canonical Eastern Orthodox Church. Some of these denominations consider themselves as part of True Orthodoxy or the Old Believers . True Orthodoxy, or Genuine Orthodoxy, separated from

7952-410: The Protestant denominations. The exact number of Protestant denominations, including the members of the denominations, is difficult to calculate and depends on definition. A group that fits the generally accepted definition of "Protestant" might not officially use the term. Therefore, it should be taken with caution. The most accepted figure among various authors and scholars includes around 900 million to

8064-537: The Reformed tradition or Reformed Protestantism is a movement which broke from the Catholic Church in the 16th century. Reformed Christianity is represented in the Continental Reformed , Presbyterian , and Congregationalist traditions, along with Reformed Anglican and Reformed Baptist denominations (the latter two are listed under the Anglican and Baptist sections of this article, respectively). Calvinism follows

8176-426: The Roman Catholic Church, would say are not denominations as they are in full papal communion , and thus part of the Catholic Church. For the purpose of simplicity, this list is intended to reflect the self-understanding of each denomination. Explanations of different opinions concerning their status as Christian denominations can be found at their respective articles. There is no official recognition in most parts of

8288-488: The Syriac Christian tradition. The Assyrian Church of the East and the Ancient Church of the East together had over 0.6 million members as of 2018 . The Oriental Orthodox Churches are the Christian churches adhering to Miaphysite christology and theology, with a combined global membership of 62 million as of 2019 . These churches reject the Council of Chalcedon in 451 and those after it. They departed from

8400-533: 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. The Protestant Reformation began with the posting of Martin Luther 's Ninety-Five Theses in Saxony on October 31, 1517, written as

8512-516: The Western world. Catholics do not describe themselves as a denomination but rather as the original Church, from which all other branches broke off in schism . 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 Protestation at Speyer after the decree of

8624-549: The case of the English Reformation while others, such as with Luther's followers, were excommunicated after attempting reform. New denominations and organizations formed through further divisions within Protestant churches since the Reformation began. A denomination labeled "Protestant" subscribes to the fundamental Protestant principles—though not always—that is scripture alone, justification by faith alone, and

8736-587: The case of those that are of Greek/Byzantine tradition, concerning some non-doctrinal aspects of the Latin view of Purgatory and clerical celibacy ). The Eastern Catholic Churches and the Latin Church (which are united in the worldwide Catholic Church) share the same doctrine and sacraments, and thus the same faith. The total membership of the churches accounted for approximately 18 million members as of 2019 . Independent Catholics consists of those denominations embodying catholicity , and have initially separated from

8848-622: The church and characterize it as being both Protestant and Catholic. 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. List of Christian denominations A Christian denomination

8960-563: The confraternities is that of the Most Blessed Sacrament". Christian denomination A Christian denomination is a distinct religious body within Christianity that comprises all church congregations of the same kind, identifiable by traits such as a name, particular history, organization, leadership, theological doctrine , worship style and, sometimes, a founder. It is a secular and neutral term, generally used to denote any established Christian church. Unlike

9072-554: 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. "Church" as a synonym, refers to a "particular Christian organization with its own clergy, buildings, and distinctive doctrines"; "church" can also more broadly be defined as

9184-430: The degree to which they recognize one another. Several groups say they are the direct and sole authentic successor of the church founded by Jesus Christ in the 1st century AD . 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

9296-553: The entire Eastern Orthodox Church. The Eastern Orthodox Church believes itself to be the continuation of the original Christian Church established by Jesus Christ , and 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

9408-558: The entire body of Christians, the " Christian Church ". Some traditional and evangelical Protestants draw a distinction between membership in the universal church and fellowship within the local church. Becoming a believer in Christ makes one a member of the universal church; one then may join a fellowship of other local believers. Some evangelical groups describe themselves as interdenominational fellowships, partnering with local churches to strengthen evangelical efforts, usually targeting

9520-519: 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 . Since the reforms surrounding the Second Vatican Council of 1962–1965, the Catholic Church has referred to Protestant churches as ecclesial communities , while reserving

9632-500: The fact that some of them had nothing to do with the 1529 protestation at Speyer which coined the term Protestant. In particular, the Utraquists were eventually accommodated as a separate Catholic rite by the papacy after a military attempt to end their movement failed. On the other hand, the surviving Waldensians ended up joining Reformed Protestantism, so it is not completely inaccurate to refer to their movement as Protestant;

9744-535: The jurisdiction of the local ordinary and had no particular connection with a religious order. During the Middle Ages , many of these pious associations placed themselves under the special protection of the Blessed Virgin and chose her as their patron. The main object and duty of these societies were, above all, the practice of piety and works of charity. By the end of the Middle Ages (around 1400 AD),

9856-582: The launch of Pentecostalism to bestow a baptism with the Holy Spirit evidenced by speaking in tongues on humanity. To express further the complexity involved, the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches were historically one and the same , as evidenced by the fact that they are the only two modern churches in existence to accept all of the first seven ecumenical councils , until differences arose , such as papal authority and dominance ,

9968-521: 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. These churches, and a few others, reject denominationalism. For the purpose of academic study of religion, the main families of Christianity are categorized as

10080-481: The local congregation; several groups within the Restoration Movement and congregational churches fall into this category. Some Christian bodies are large (e.g. Catholics, Orthodox, Pentecostals and nondenominationals , Anglicans or Baptists), while others are just a few small churches, and in most cases the relative size is not evident in this list except for the denominational group or movement as

10192-526: The mainstream church over issues of ecumenism and calendar reform since the 1920s; and the Russian Old Believers refused to accept the liturgical and ritual changes made by Patriarch Nikon of Moscow between 1652 and 1666. Several Old Believer denominations have reunified with the Russian Orthodox Church and subsequent wider Eastern Orthodox communion. God Schools Relations with: The Catholic Church, or Roman Catholic Church,

10304-892: 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 ,

10416-545: The one true church, and pre-denominational. Though they consider themselves pre-denominational, being the original Church of Christ before 1054, some scholars suggest the Eastern Orthodox and Catholic churches began after the East–West Schism . Autocephaly recognized by some autocephalous Churches de jure : Autocephaly and canonicity recognized by Constantinople and 3 other autocephalous Churches: Spiritual independence recognized by Georgian Orthodox Church: Semi-Autonomous: The Eastern Orthodox Church, officially

10528-519: The original Church of Christ. Continuity is claimed based upon apostolic succession with the early Church. The Catholic population exceeds 1.3 billion as of 2016 , making up the majority of Western Christianity. Stemming from the one Roman Catholic institution, there exists several Independent Catholic churches which have expanded the Catholic denominational family, becoming Old and Old Roman Catholicism , and Liberal Catholics . The Latin Church

10640-422: 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 or suppression by the early proto-orthodox Church at large (such as Apollinarians , Montanists , and Ebionites ). Following the Council of Chalcedon in 451, the next large split came with

10752-821: The propagation of a certain doctrine. The largest ecumenical organization in Christianity is the World Council of Churches . The following is not a complete list, but aims to provide a comprehensible overview of the diversity among denominations of Christianity, ecumenical organizations, and Christian ideologies not necessarily represented by specific denominations. Only those Christian denominations, ideologies and organizations with Misplaced Pages articles will be listed in order to ensure that all entries on this list are notable and verifiable. The denominations and ecumenical organizations listed are generally ordered from ancient to contemporary Christianity. World Christianity by tradition in 2024 as per World Christian Database Christianity can be taxonomically divided into six main groups:

10864-512: The purpose of academic study of religion, they are categorized as a denomination, that is, "an organized body of Christians." For example, the Catholic Church considers itself the one true church and the Holy See as pre-denominational. The Eastern Orthodox Church, and the Oriental Orthodox Churches, also considers themselves to be the original Christian church along with the Roman Catholic Church. The Lutheran churches have viewed themselves as

10976-869: The rise of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople , the fall of the Western Roman Empire , the continuance of emperors in the Eastern Roman Empire , and the final and permanent split that occurred during the Crusades with the siege of Constantinople . This also illustrates that denominations can arise not only from religious or theological issues, but political and generational divisions as well. Other churches that are viewed by non-adherents as denominational are highly decentralized and do not have any formal denominational structure, authority, or record-keeping beyond

11088-530: 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

11200-497: The sodality category. Sodalities can also include religious orders, monasteries, and convents. The Latin word sodalis means "companion", a sodality being an organization of companions or friends. The sodalities of the Church are pious associations and are included among the confraternities and archconfraternities. Joseph Hilgers , writing in the Catholic Encyclopedia , states that it would not be possible to give

11312-468: 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

11424-707: The state church of the Roman Empire after the Chalcedonian Council. Other denominations, such as the Eastern Orthodox Church and bodies in Old and True Orthodoxy , often label the Oriental Orthodox Churches as "Monophysite". As the Oriental Orthodox do not adhere to the teachings of Eutyches , they themselves reject this label, preferring the term "Miaphysite". Historically, the Oriental Orthodox Churches considered themselves collectively to be

11536-490: The term "church" for apostolic churches , including the Eastern and Oriental Orthodox Churches, as well as the Ancient and Assyrian Churches of the East (see subsistit in and branch theory ) . But some non-denominational Christians do not follow any particular branch, though they sometimes are regarded as Protestants. Each group uses different terminology to discuss their beliefs. This section will discuss

11648-473: The term "denomination" to describe themselves, to avoid implying equivalence with other churches or denominations. The Catholic Church , which has over 1.3 billion members or 50.1% of all Christians worldwide, does not view itself as a denomination, but as the original pre-denominational Church. The total Protestant population has reached around 1.047 billion in 2024, accounting for about 39.8% of all Christians. Sixteenth-century Protestants separated from

11760-530: The theological traditions set down by John Calvin , John Knox and other Reformation-era theologians . Calvinists differ from Lutherans on the nature of the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist , theories of worship , and the use of God's law for believers , among other things. There are from 60 to 80 million Christians identifying as Reformed or Calvinist according to statistics gathered in 2018. Anglicanism or Episcopalianism has referred to itself as

11872-399: 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

11984-547: The universal priesthood of believers. The majority of contemporary Protestants are members of Adventism, Anglicanism, the Baptist churches, Calvinism (Reformed Protestantism), Lutheranism, Methodism and Pentecostalism. Nondenominational , Evangelical, charismatic , neo-charismatic , independent, Convergence , and other churches are on the rise, and constitute a significant part of Protestant Christianity. This list gives only an overview, and certainly does not mention all of

12096-563: The various denominations formed during and after the Protestant Reformation . There also exists a number of non-Trinitarian groups. 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. The idea was first articulated by Independents within the Puritan movement. They argued that differences among Christians were inevitable, but that separation based on these differences

12208-588: 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 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 Roman Catholicism, Protestantism , and Orthodox Christianity , with Orthodox Christianity being divided into Eastern Orthodoxy , Oriental Orthodoxy and

12320-525: The world for religious bodies, and there is no official clearinghouse which could determine the status or respectability of religious bodies. Often there is considerable disagreement between various groups about whether others should be labeled with pejorative terms such as " cult ", or about whether this or that group enjoys some measure of respectability. Such considerations often vary from place to place, or culture to culture, where one denomination may enjoy majority status in one region, but be widely regarded as

12432-446: Was not necessarily schism . Christians are obligated to practice their beliefs rather than remain within a church with which they disagree, but they must also recognize their imperfect knowledge and not condemn other Christians as apostate over unimportant matters. Some Christians view denominationalism as a regrettable fact. As of 2011, divisions are becoming less sharp, and there is increasing cooperation between denominations, which

12544-529: Was once common, it is controversial today, with some rejecting the label and others accepting it. Anglicans numbered over 85 million in 2018. There are numerous churches following the Anglican tradition that are not in full communion with the Anglican Communion. Some churches split due to changes in the Book of Common Prayer and the ordination of women , forming Anglo-Catholic , Anglican Papal or Evangelical Anglican communities. A select few of these churches are recognized by certain individual provinces of

#934065