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Christian Denominations This page lists most of the "major" and "minor" denominations of Christianity in the United States. They are all listed in the menu on the left-hand side of this page. Denominations that are "in bold" have additional information (history, beliefs, links, books, etc.) which can be retrieved by simply "clicking" the name. Enjoy. |
| ADVENTIST --Adventist Christian Church --Church of God Gen Conf --Seventh-Day Adventist BAPTIST --Baptist Sects Berean Fundamental Church Bible Fellowship Church Bible Protestant Church BIBLE WAY CHURCH, WORLDWIDE BLACK MUSLIM BRETHREN Christadelphian Christian and Missionary Alliance Christian Catholic Church CHRISTIAN CHURCH (DISCIPLES OF CHRIST) Christian Church of North America, General Council Christian Churches and Churches of Christ Christian Congregation Christian Union Church of Christ (Holiness) U.S.A. CHRISTIAN SCIENCE CHURCH OF GOD Church of Illumination Church of Jesus Christ Church of Our Lord Jesus Christ of the Apostolic Faith, Inc. CHURCH OF THE NAZARENE CHURCHES OF CHRIST Churches of Christ in Christian Union Churches of God, General Conference Churches of God, Holiness Churches of the Living God Community Churches, International Council of Congregational Bible Churches, Inc. Congregational Christian Churches (National Association) Congregational Holiness Church Conservative Congregational Christian Conference Divine Science EPISCOPAL Evangelical Church, The Evangelical Congregational Church Evangelical Covenant Church Evangelical Free Church of America Fire-Baptized Holiness Church Foursquare Gospel, International Church of the Free Christian Zion Church of Christ FRIENDS (QUAKERS) Grace Gospel Fellowship Independent Fundamental Churches of America JEHOVAH'S WITNESSES Kodesh Church of Immanuel LATTER DAY SAINTS (MORMON) Liberal Catholic Church, The LUTHERAN MENNONITE METHODIST Metropolitan Community Churches, Universal Fellowship of Missionary Church MORAVIAN New Apostolic Church of North America OLD CATHOLIC Open Bible Standard Churches, Inc. ORTHODOX (EASTERN) PENTECOSTAL --ASSEMBLIES OF GOD Pillar of Fire Plymouth Brethren Polish National Catholic Church of America PRESBYTERIAN QUAKER (see Friends) REFORMED ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH Salvation Army Schwenkfelder Church Social Brethren SPIRITUALIST Swedenborgian Church Triumph the Church and Kingdom of God in Christ UNITARIAN UNIVERSALIST ASSOCIATION UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST --Congregational Church -Christian Churches United Holy Church of America, Inc. Unity School of Christianity Volunteers of America Wesleyan Church, The Worldwide Church of God |
ADVENTIST Adventists are a family of conservative Protestants in which the return or second Advent of Jesus Christ is central and the sole hope of the world. They believe that humanity's nature is fallen because of sin and that on the basis of neglect or rejection of God's plan of salvation, those who rebel against the government of God will be ultimately destroyed, while believers, by God's grace, will be saved. After that cataclysmic event, Jesus Christ will reign in triumph through the thousand-year period, or millennium, of Revelation 20:1-6. The whole Adventist thesis rests heavily upon the prophetic and apocalyptic texts of Daniel and Revelation. Great emphasis rests on the evil nature of the present age. However, good or God's righteousness and purpose will prevail. Therefore, Adventists are pessimistic about the present but filled with confidence and hope for God's future. They are a devout, disciplined people who practice a wholesome personal and family life, as well as a life of obedience toward God and toward the evangelization of the whole world. Adventists, at first known as Millerites, began as an interchurch movement among Methodists, Christians, Baptists, Presbyterians, and Congregationalists under the leadership of William Miller (New Hampton, NY; 1782-1849). After careful study of the Scriptures, especially Daniel and Revelation, and Cruden's Accordance, Miller became convinced that the "day" of Biblical prophecy represents one year. He also though that the earth would be cleansed by fire with the second Advent of Christ and that the earth (church) would be the sanctuary. This cleansing would occur sometime between 21 March 1843 and 21 March 1844. When the second Advent failed to occur, many left the movement after the spring of 1844. Miller's followers then set a second date for the second coming at 22 October 1844 (now referred to as "The Great Disappointment"). Many disposed of all their personal possessions and waited for the coming of Jesus Christ. After 22 October had come and gone with no second coming, many discarded Adventism and returned to their former churches or left Christianity altogether. Some of these followers eventually formed the Advent Christian Church in 1860. There are three major groups of Adventists today; their differences revolve around whether the second Advent will be premillennial (i.e. Christ's return would precede the thousand-year period foretold in Revelation) or amillennial. Other points of difference involve the state of the dead awaiting resurrection (conscious or unconscious), who will be saved (righteous and wicked or only righteous), eternal punishment or total annihilation of the wicked, nature of immortality, and the celebration of the sabbath day (Sunday or Saturday). Return to Menu Advent Christian Church The Advent Christian Church was formed in 1860 as an outgrowth of the Millerites. They differ from other Adventists in believing that the dead are in an unconscious state until resurrection during the second Advent of Christ, extinction and not eternal torment of the wicked, and the imminent return of Christ. There is no formal creed, but there is a declaration of principles. They observe two sacraments: baptism by immersion and the Lord's Supper. Sunday is the sabbath day. Return to Menu Church of God General Conference This church is a product of several independent local groups of similar faith, some dating back as far as 1800. Today the church is based in Oregon, Illinois. Followers of the Church of God General Conference (CGGC) accept the Bible as the supreme standard of faith and the premillennial Advent of Christ. The CGGC believes that the kingdom of God is literal, begins in Jerusalem at the return of Christ, and extends from there to all nations. They also believe in the restoration of Israel, the unconsciousness of the dead until the second coming, literal resurrection of the dead, and the reward of the righteous and complete annihilation of the wicked. Jesus Christ and God are thought to be one being, Jesus Christ did not exist prior to his birth in Bethlehem, and the Holy Ghost is the power and influence of God. Followers are expected to accept doctrinal faith, repentance, and baptism by immersion for the remission of sins. Return to Menu Seventh-day Adventist The Seventh-day Adventists are the largest Adventist body in the United States and the world. They were a small group formed by former Millerites after the "Great Disappointment" (see above) in 1844. After the failed prediction of the second date of the Advent of Christ, this group continued to study the scriptures for answers. They concluded that in October 1844 a significant event had occurred in which a change in Christ's ministry in heaven from the Holy to the Most Holy Place occurred. As they looked toward the Most Holy Place, the theology of the Third Angel's Message (Revelations 14) began to form. This newfound theology placed it's emphasis in the faith in Jesus and the Ten Commandments to prove interrelationship of God's Law and the gospel. It was the fourth Commandment that led them to observe the sabbath on the seventh day (Saturday). Seventh-day Adventists believe in an authoritative God who's revelations are seen in the inspired writings of the entire Bible. They recognize a personal, communicating God as disclosed in the Trinity. Humans are mortal but can attain immortality by divine grace and redemption through Jesus Christ. Seventh-day Adventists accept that God's law are found in the Ten Commandments and demonstrated through the life of Jesus. Church members believe in the unconscious of the dead until resurrection on the last day, immortality for the righteous and total destruction of the wicked by fire, a premillennial and visible return of Christ at a close but unknown time where a new earth is created from the ruins of the old, and the gift prophecy of the church. They also advocate religious liberty for all and complete separation of church and state. They believe that the human body is the temple of the holy spirit, and therefore, promote complete abstinence of alcohol and tobacco and healthful living through diet and exercise. Baptism is performed by immersion of adults only (age of accountability), and feet washing is a preparatory service for Communion. Return to Menu BAPTIST Baptists formed in England about 1610 in order to take Protestantism to its logical conclusion. Baptists believe that only "self-professed believers" are eligible for church membership, and therefore, it is only made of regenerated believers. They are evangelistic and emphasize purity in personal life and habits. The Baptist faith is the largest Protestant group in the U. S. Baptists claim that Christ is their only founder, but organized Baptist congregations appeared in Holland and England in the early 1600s. John Smyth is credited with establishing the first Baptist church in England (the English Baptist church) in 1609. Smyth was a part of a group British separatists in Amsterdam and was heavily influenced by the Mennonistic principles that baptism was a believer's privilege, church and state should be completely separate, and church discipline should be rigidly enforced in business, family, and personal affairs. In 1631, Roger Williams, a Separatist minister, arrived in the U. S. and organized the first Baptist church at Providence, Rhode Island. Arminian theology, via the preaching of George Whitefield, precipitated a split in the early Baptist church dividing them into the Old Lights or Regulars that distrusted revivals and emotionalism and the New Lights or Separates that required all members to be reborn. The Separated Baptists were instrumental in the fight for religious freedom in colonial America. After the signing of the Constitution, this rift subsided, and the Baptists directed their efforts toward foreign missionaries. In 1814, the Baptists formed the General Missionary Convention of the Baptist Denomination in the U. S. A. for Foreign Missions. This marked the beginning of the modern Baptist movement and organization on a national scale. In 1845, the "great division" occurred within the Baptist church forming the Northern and Southern Baptists. The split was prompted by a feeling of failure of home-mission agencies to evangelized the South and also differing views regarding slavery and the Civil War. There are approximately 25-30 different Baptists groups, and while there are doctrinal differences separating most, they all generally agree on the following principles: the inspiration and trustworthiness of the Bible as the sole rule of life, the Lordship of Jesus Christ, the inherent freedom of individuals to approach God for themselves, the granting of salvation through faith by way of grace and contact with the Holy Spirit, the Lord's Supper, baptism by immersion, independence of the local church, church members are regenerated believers, baptism upon confession of faith, infant baptism is unscriptural, complete separation of church and state, immortality of the soul, the unity of humankind, the royal law of God, the necessity of redemption from sin, and the ultimate triumph of God's kingdom. Baptists have professed freedom of thought for members and clergy and the absolute autonomy of the local congregation where they have the authority to organize its own worship and baptize its own members. Return to Menu Baptist Sects: American Baptist Association American Baptist Churches in the U.S.A. Baptist Bible Fellowship, International Baptist General Conference Baptist Missionary Association of America Bethel Ministerial Association Black Baptist Central Baptist Association Conservative Baptist Association of America Duck River (and Kindred) Associations of Baptists (Baptist Church of Christ) Free Will Baptist General Association of Regular Baptist Churches General Baptist General Conference of the Evangelical Baptist Church, Inc. Landmark Baptist National Primitive Baptist Convention of the U.S.A. North American Baptist Conference Primitive Baptist Reformed Baptist Separate Baptists in Christ (General Association of Separate Baptists) Seventh Day Baptist General Conference Southern Baptist Convention ("The Southern Baptists") Two-Seed-in-the-Spirit Predestinarian United Baptist United Free Will Baptist Church Return to Menu BEREAN FUNDAMENTAL CHURCH BIBLE FELLOWSHIP CHURCH BIBLE PROTESTANT CHURCH BIBLE WAY CHURCH, WORLDWIDE The Bible Way Church formed in 1957 after approximately 70 churches withdrew from the Church of Our Lord of the Apostolic Faith, a black Pentecostal church. Its doctrinal teachings are similar to the church from which it separated. There are approximately 70-350 churches in the United States containing around 300,000 members and more worldwide. Return to Menu BLACK MUSLIM Black Muslims are traced back to Timothy Drew who established a Moorish Science Temple in Newark, New Jersey. Drew claimed that American blacks were of Moorish decent and dubbed himself Noble Drew Ali. After his death in 1920, his followers separated into several small groups. One of these groups was led by Willace D. Fard who claimed he was the reincarnation of Timothy Drew. Initially, his teachings were based on the Bible and Koran and were referred to as "The Religion of the Black Men of Asia and Africa." However, Fard later shunned the Bible and declared himself a tool of Allah. He also claimed that "Black people were gods and the white race was the serpent devil that would be destroyed in the end." Fard disappeared in 1933 and was replaced by Elijah Poole also known as Elijah Muhammad whose ancestors hailed from the moon 66 trillion years ago. He continued to preach Poole's message of a Black revolution that would rid the world of white domination and create an independent Black Nation of Islam. Elijah Muhammad was imprisoned because of his insistence that followers avoid the draft. In prison, he met Malcom Little who later became Malcom X. Under Malcom X, numbers of Black Muslims grew to more than 300,000 in the early to mid-1960's but declined soon after his murder in 1965. Present estimates of Black Muslims range from 100,000 to 750,000 (some well below 100,000). The majority of members (app. 80%) are black males from 17-35 years old, anti-white, and believe in the formation of a separate, independent black state in the U. S. Despite their militant and sometimes violent nature, the Black Muslim movement has benefited poor black communities by attracting businesses and providing post-prison guidance. Black Muslim is not recognized as a legitimate branch of Islam by the orthodox Middle East Muslims. Black Muslims do not overeat, drink, smoke, gamble, or buy on credit. Return to Menu BRETHREN American descendants of early German Protestants, the Brethren are authentic Pietists. The inner spiritual life, piety, is cultivated in prayer and study of Scripture and through association with fellow believers. The local church is central: In it they are true brothers and sisters. The church claims their primary loyalty in a world that offers many societies for association. It is understood more as a community of people who love God and one another than as part of an organization or a body that formulates doctrine. Brethren do not emphasize tight doctrinal standards; it is rather the spirit of God within each one and binding each to all in love that takes precedence for them. They live a simple, unadorned life. In their early decades in Europe and America, Brethren were separatists from the state church and conventional churches. While not manifesting a judgmental attitude, they devote themselves to a purity that well may set them apart from other Christians, as well as from general society. The terms Brethren and Dunker have been the cause of much confusion; they call for careful definition. Dunker is a direct derivation of the German tunken, "to dip or immerse," and is identified with the peculiar method of immersion employed by this group of churches-triple immersion-in which the believer is immersed not once but three times, in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Through their long history, Dunkers have been variously called Tunkers, Täufers, and Dompelaars. They were first called Brethren when their organization was established at Schwarzenau, Germany, in 1708. It might be said generally that these Dunkers, or Brethren, are former German Reformed bodies which took their theology and much of their practice from the Pietists of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Most Pietists were Lutherans who had become unhappy with the formal worship and ritual in their state church and the general "barrenness" of German Protestantism. They took the New Testament literally and endeavored to put its teachings into practice, even in the least detail of their living. They spurned the idea of apostolic succession, and at the heart of their practice was a love feast, or agape, the serving of the Lord's Supper, preceded by a ceremony of feet washing. They saluted one another with a "kiss of peace," dressed in the plainest of clothing, covered the beads of women at services, anointed their sick with oil for healing and consecration, refrained from worldly amusements, and refused to take oaths, go to war, or engage in lawsuits. These doctrines and practices, with certain modifications, are held today by many Brethren. From those German Pietists came Church of the Brethren (Conservative Dunkers), Brethren Church (Progressive Dunkers), Old German Baptist Brethren (Old Order Dunkers), Church of God (New Dunkers, disbanded in August 1962), and Fellowship of Grace Brethren Churches. Return to Menu Brethren Sects: --Dunkers: ---- Brethren Church (Ashland) ----Church of Brethren ----Fellowship of Grace Brethren Churches ----Old German Baptist Brethren (Old Order Dunkers) --River Brethren: ----Brethren in Christ Church ----United Zion Church --United Brethren: ----Church of the United Brethren in Christ CHRISTADELPHIAN CHRISTIAN AND MISSIONARY ALLIANCE CHRISTIAN CATHOLIC CHURCH CHRISTIAN CHURCH (DISCIPLES OF CHRIST) Among the dozen largest religious groups in the United States, the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) might be called the most American; it was born on the nineteenth-century American frontier out of a deep concern for Christian unity. All four pioneers-Barton Stone, Thomas and Alexander Campbell, and Walter Scott-were from Presbyterian backgrounds. The first national convention of the Disciples and the first missionary society (American Christian Missionary Society) were organized in 1849; state conventions and societies had begun to meet in 1839. The group grew rapidly during and following the Civil War period, especially in Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Tennessee, and Missouri, in spite of conflict over any emphasis on denominationalism or ecclesiastical organization. The differences between conservatives and progressives became acute in such matters as the organization of missionary societies and instrumental music in the churches; the Churches of Christ separated from the Disciples during that debate. In matters of belief, conservative and progressive attitudes were and still are important, and the church allows for variance of opinion and complete freedom in interpretation, stemming from the conviction that there is no creed but Christ and no saving doctrines save those of the New Testament. It could be said that the Disciples are God-centered, Christ-centered, and Bible-centered; beyond that, faith is a matter of individual conviction, but there are areas of general agreement and acceptance. The Disciples are firm in their belief in immortality but do not accept the doctrine of original sin; they hold that all people are of a sinful nature until redeemed by the sacrifice of Christ; they are not concerned with speculation about the Trinity and the nature of a triune God. They have no catechism, no set orders of worship; faith in Christ as Lord is the only requirement. The local church is still the basic unit. All congregations listed in the latest yearbook are accepted as congregations; each congregation manages its own affairs, has its own charter and by-laws, owns and controls its property, calls its ministers, establishes its own budgets and financial policies, and has voting representatives in regional and national assemblies. The churches are grouped into 36 regions, organized to provide help, counsel, and pastoral care to members, ministers, and congregations. Each region organizes its own boards, departments, and committees. Within policies developed by the general assembly, the regions certify the standing of ministers and provide counsel in such matters as ordination, licensing, location and installation of ministers, and the establishment or dissolution of pastoral relationships. Regions have regional ministers as their administrative leaders. The general assembly is made up of voting and nonvoting representatives from the local churches and regions, plus ministers and a few ex-officio members, the chief officers of institutions and unit boards, and members of the general board, The assembly acts upon proposed programs, policies, reports and resolutions sent up through the general board, and elects officers of the church and half the members of the general board. The regions elect the other half. The general board meets annually, processes business going to the assembly, recommends policies, reviews the total program of the church, elects or confirms the governing bodies of the various administrative units, and elects the committees of the general assembly and the members of an administrative committee. One-third of general board members are ministers; the remainder, lay people. The administrative committee of the general board is made up of 40 members elected by the board; officers of the church are ex-officio members. Meeting at least twice a year, it provides long-range planning, implements policies, and promotes the causes and units of the church. Officers of the church are of two classes-voluntary (nonsalaried) and salaried. There is a volunteer moderator, two vice-moderators, and a salaried general minister and president. Membership continues to be largest in the lower Midwest and Southwest. There are now 1,086,668 members in 4,195 churches in the U. S.; 37 congregations with 4,209 members in Canada. There are 35 colleges, seminaries, undergraduate schools of religion, and foundations; 13 specialized services for children, youth, and the developmentally disabled; 54 health and housing centers for older adults; and one facility for family housing. The Disciples are represented in the National Council of Churches, the World Council of Churches, and the Consultation on Church Union. The headquarters of a World Convention of Churches of Christ is in Dallas. Return to Menu CHRISTIAN CHURCH OF NORTH AMERICA, GENERAL COUNCIL CHRISTIAN CHURCHES AND CHURCHES OF CHRIST CHRISTIAN CONGREGATION CHRISTIAN UNION CHURCH OF CHRIST (HOLINESS) U.S.A. CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST (Christian Science) At Lynn, Massachusetts, in 1866, after reading the account of Christ's healing of a palsied man (Matt. 9: 1-8), Mary Baker Eddy recovered almost instantly from a severe injury. Profoundly religious and a lifelong student of mental and spiritual causation, she came to attribute causation to God and to regard him as Divine Mind, as well as infinite Love. From these roots came Christian Science and the Church of Christ, Scientist. Generally described as "a religious teaching and practice, based on the words and works of Christ Jesus," Christian Science was regarded by Mrs. Eddy as "the scientific system of divine healing," the "law of God, the law of good, interpreting and demonstrating the divine Principle and rule of universal harmony"; she believed "the Principle of all harmonious Mind-action to be God. " Mrs. Eddy included most of these definitions and descriptions in Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures. This volume and the Bible have become the twofold textbook of Christian Science. Applied not only to the healing of sickness but to the problems of life generally, the tenets and doctrines of Christian Science are often confusing to non-scientists and call for careful explanation.. They begin with the conviction that God IS the only might, or Mind; God is "All-in-All," the "divine Principle of all that really is," "the all-knowing, all-seeing, all-acting, all-wise, all-loving, and eternal; Principle; Mind; Soul; Spirit; Life; Truth; Love; all substance, intelligence. " The inspired Word of the Bible is "accepted as "sufficient guide to eternal Life." Another tenet states: We acknowledge and adore one supreme and infinite God. We acknowledge His Son, one Christ; the Holy Ghost or divine Comforter; and man in God's image and likeness." Jesus is known to Christian Scientists as Master, or Way-shower. They accept his Virgin birth and his atoning mission "as the evidence of divine, efficacious Love, unfolding man's unity with God through Christ Jesus the Way-shower." He was "endowed with. ..the divine saved through Christ, through Truth, Life, and Love as demonstrated by the Galilean Prophet in healing the sick and overcoming sin and death." The crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus are held as serving "to uplift faith to understand eternal Life, even the allness of Soul, Spirit, and the nothingness of matter." This "allness" of Spirit and "nothingness of matter" involves the basic teaching of Christian Science concerning reality. As Science and Health explains: All reality is in God and His creation, harmonious and eternal. That which He creates is good, and He makes all that is made. Therefore the only reality of sin, sickness, or death is the awful fact that unrealities seem real to human, erring belief, until God strips off their disguise. They are not true, because they are not of God. God forgives sin through destroying it with "the spiritual understanding that casts out evil as unreal." The punishment for sin, however, lasts as long as belief in sin endures. It is a mistake to believe that followers of Christian Science ignore that which they consider "unreal"; rather, they seek to forsake and overcome error and evil through Christian discipleship, prayer, and progressive spiritual comprehension of the reality of God's allness and goodness and of humankind as God's likeness. Error is "a supposition that pleasure and pain, that intelligence, substance, life, are existent in matter. ...It is that which seemeth to be and is not." As Mrs. Eddy has stated (and this point is fundamental to Christian Science beliefs): If we would open their prison doors for the sick, we must first learn to bind up the broken-hearted. If we would heal by the Spirit, we must not hide the talent of spiritual healing under the napkin of its form, nor bury the morale of Christian Science in the grave-clothes of its letter. The tender word and Christian encouragement of an invalid, pitiful patience with his fears and the removal of them are better than hecatombs of gushing theories, stereotyped borrowed speeches and the doling of arguments, which are but so many parodies on legitimate Christian Science, aflame with divine Love. She further wrote, "Nothing aside from the spiritualization-yea, the highest Christianization-of thought and desire, can give the true perception of God and Christian Science, that results in health, happiness and holiness." Christian Scientists normally rely wholly on the power of God for healing, rather than on medical treatment. There is no church pressure involved, however, nor does the church abandon those who choose a different way. Certain terms are important in the exposition of Christian Science. Animal magnetism is the specific term for the hypnotic error of belief in a mind and power apart from God (typified by the dragon in the Apocalypse; Jesus as the Lamb of God exemplifies the conquering of this sin in every form). Healing is not miraculous, but divinely natural; disease is understood to be basically a mental concept which can be dispelled by active Christian discipleship, spiritual regeneration, and application of the truths to which Jesus bore witness. Heaven is not a locality but "harmony; the reign of Spirit; government by divine Principle; spirituality; bliss, the atmosphere of Soul. ..Hell is "mortal belief; error; lust; remorse; hatred; revenge; sin; sickness; death; suffering and self-destruction; self-imposed agony; effects of sin; that which 'worketh abomination or maketh a lie.' " Mortal mind is "the flesh opposed to Spirit, the human mind and evil in contradistinction to the divine Mind." Prayer is "an absolute faith that all things are possible to God-a spiritual understanding of Him, an unselfed love." Baptism is not observed as a traditional ceremony, but is held to be a continuing individual spiritual experience, "a purification from all error." The approximately 2,700 local Churches of Christ, Scientist, as branches of the Mother Church, are organized under the laws of the states or countries in which they exist. They enjoy their own forms of democratic government within the general framework of bylaws laid down by Mrs. Eddy in Manual of the Mother Church, which also provides for Christian Science college organizations. Reading rooms open to the general public are maintained by all churches. The affairs of the mother church are administered by a board of directors, which elects a president, first and second readers, a clerk, and a treasurer. The board of directors is a self-perpetuating body and elects all other officers of the church annually, with the exception of readers, who are elected by the board for a term of three years. Important in the Christian Science movement are the readers, teachers, and practitioners. There are two readers in each church, usually a man and a woman; in all services on Sundays and Thanksgiving Day, they read alternately from the Bible and from Science and Health. The lesson-sermons of Sunday services are prepared by a committee and issued quarterly by the Christian Science Publishing Society. This system is followed by all Christian Science churches throughout the world. A midweek meeting, conducted by the first reader alone, features testimonies of healing from sin and sickness. Practitioners devote their full time to healing and are listed in a directory in the monthly Christian Science Journal. A board of education consists of three members-a president, a vice-president, and a teacher of Christian Science. Under the supervision of this board, a normal class is held once every three years. Teachers are duly authorized by certificates granted by the board to form classes. One class of not more than 30 pupils is instructed by each teacher annually. A board of lectureship consists of about 100 members, appointed annually by the board of directors. At the invitation of branch churches, free lectures are given by these members all over the world. A committee on publication serves as an ecumenical and informational office, representing the denomination to the press and public. The Christian Science Publishing Society carries on broadcasting activities and publishes much well-written literature, including the Christian Science Sentinel, Christian Science Journal, Christian Science Quarterly, the Herald of Christian Science in twelve languages and braille, and Christian Science Monitor. The Monitor is acknowledged by journalists to be one of the finest newspapers in the world. A number of nursing homes for members who rely wholly on spiritual means for healing are independently maintained throughout the world. At a time when its members were frequently citing the rapid growth of the denomination. Mrs. Eddy ruled that membership statistics should not be made available for publication, believing that number of members is no indication of true spiritual growth. The government census of 1936 reported 268,915 members in the U. S. Today Christian Science churches have been established in some 66 countries, with the largest concentrations in English- and German-speaking areas. Church membership appears to have declined in the last several decades, reflecting a trend among some other Protestant denominations, though there has been growth in Third World areas. Also, as is the case with probably no other church in America, the number of people studying Christian Science and attending its services, but not yet admitted to full Return to Menu CHURCH OF GOD More a title widely claimed than an actual family, Church of God is the " denominational" name of more than 200 conservative Protestant groups , all of which seize upon the apostle Paul's reference to the "church of God. " Some pursue it as an ambition; others exalt it as a claim. In all cases, they are emphatically devoted to the Bible. They also affirm the nearness of God's spiritual power-the power to generate holiness and a life of righteousness, and often to equip believers with the gift of speaking in tongues. In the latter case, miracles are not exceptional but readily available, and for some groups, their occurrence is requisite to spiritual authenticity. From their origins and for many decades, these people were separatists who denounced accommodation to "the world. " While as dedicated and Spirit-led as ever, most have tempered their resistance to worldly fashions and have become quite modern, especially in the ways they construct their organizational life. Several Church of God bodies trace their roots to western North Carolina and eastern Tennessee during the years just before and after 1900. In particular, the Tomlinson family and Cleveland, a town in southeast Tennessee, are focal points for these historically related bodies. Some of those treated here are Church of God (Cleveland, Tennessee); Church of God of Prophecy; The Church of God (Huntsville, Alabama); and The (Original) Church of God, Inc. For all the bodies that grew out of this southern Appalachian Holiness revival, restoration of the "church of God" mentioned in the New Testament is the key concern. All these are pentecostal-that is, practice speaking in tongues-and that same practice characterizes the black bodies: Church of God in Christ and Church of God in Christ (International). But the Church of God (Anderson, Indiana) subscribes to Holiness teaching without being pentecostal. Moreover, its history is totally unrelated to the southern Appalachian developments; it is a dominantly midwestern denomination. These illustrations reveal that the diversity is great and that careful attention must be paid to specific titles by anyone seeking information. Return to Menu Church of God Sects: Church of God, The (Huntsville Alabama) Church of God, Inc., The (Original) Church of God (Anderson, Indiana) Church of God (Cleveland, Tennessee) Church of God (Seventh Day) Church of God and Saints of Christ Church of God by Faith, Inc. Church of God in Christ Church of God in Christ (International) Church of God of Prophecy CHURCH OF ILLUMINATION CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST CHURCH OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST OF THE APOSTOLIC FAITH, INC. CHURCH OF THE NAZARENE The theological and doctrinal foundations of the Church of the Nazarene lie in the doctrines of Holiness and sanctification, as taught by John Wesley in the eighteenth-century revival in England. Its physical structure is the result of the merging of three independent Holiness groups already in existence in the U. S. In 1907, an eastern Holiness body, the Association of Pentecostal Churches in America, located principally in New York and New England, joined with a California body, the Church of the Nazarene. The two churches agreed on the name Pentecostal Church of the Nazarene. Then in 1908, a southern group known as the Holiness Church of Christ merged with this Pentecostal Church of the Nazarene. In 1919, Pentecostal was dropped from the name, leaving it as we know it today, Church of the Nazarene. The background is Methodist; it adheres closely to the original Wesleyan ideology. Most of the early Holiness groups in this country originated in the Methodist Episcopal Church; two of the original general superintendents of Church of the Nazarene were former Methodist ministers, and the Nazarene Manual has been called a "rewritten and modified Methodist Discipline." The doctrine of the church is built around sanctification as a second definite work of grace, subsequent to regeneration; all ministers and local church officials must profess this experience. Other doctrines include belief in the plenary inspiration of the Scriptures as containing all truths necessary to Christian faith and living; the atonement of Christ for the whole human race; the justification, regeneration, and adoption of all penitent believers in Christ; the second coming of Christ; the resurrection of the dead; and the final judgment. Members of this church believe in divine healing, but never to the exclusion of medical agencies. The use of tobacco and alcoholic beverages is denounced. Two ordinances-baptism by sprinkling, pouring, or (most often) immersion, and the Lord's Supper-are accepted as "instituted by Christ." It is a middle-of-the road church, neither extremely ritualistic nor extremely informal; one church historian calls it the "right wing of the holiness movement." There are 5,232 local congregations grouped into 85 districts in the U. S. and Canada, and an additional 172 districts, or Intercontinental Regions, and mission areas throughout the world. Local pastors are elected by local churches; each district is supervised by a district superintendent, who may be elected for a four-year term by the members of the district assembly. The general assembly elects a general board consisting of an equal number of lay and ministerial members, which in turn is divided into five administrative departments: world mission, church growth, Christian life and Sunday school, and finance. Missionary work is conducted in 85 world areas by 660 missionaries. There is strong emphasis upon evangelism. Eight liberal arts colleges and universities, a theological seminary, and a Bible college are maintained m the U. S. In other world areas, there are 36 seminaries and Bible colleges . The books and periodicals of the church are produced at the Nazarene publishing house in Kansas City. The annual volume of business exceeds $20 million. Membership in the U. S. is reported at 554,022; in other world regions, 294, 374-a total membership of848,396 in 8,615 churches worldwide. Return to Menu CHURCHES OF CHRIST The largest of the three principal bodies in the American restoration movement, Churches of Christ are located throughout the nation but concentrated in the South and Southwest. Because this is not a denomination but a brotherhood with no central headquarters, activities such as record keeping are very difficult. Recent efforts show the membership to be about 1,250,000, in nearly 13,000 churches. A distinctive plea for unity-a unity that is Bible-based-lies at the heart of the Churches of Christ. It is believed that the Bible is "the beginning place," in and through which God-fearing people can achieve spiritual oneness-to "speak where the Bible speaks and to be silent where the Bible is silent" in all matters pertaining to faith and morals. Consequently, members recognize no other written creed or confession of faith. In all religious matters, there must be a "thus said the Lord." Today one of the outstanding features of Churches of Christ lies in the acceptance of the Bible as a true and completely adequate revelation. This basic concept has resulted in such practices as weekly observance of the Lord's Supper, baptism by immersion, a cappella singing, a vigorous prayer life, support of church needs through voluntary giving, and a program of preaching and teaching the Bible. This concept also explains the autonomy of local churches, governed by elders and deacons appointed under New Testament qualifications; dignified worship services; enthusiastic mission campaigns; and far-flung benevolence, all financed by local churches. The scriptural doctrines usually classified as conservative are found in Churches of Christ: belief in the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost as members of one Godhead; the incarnation, Virgin birth, and bodily resurrection of Christ; the universality of sin after the age of accountability, its only remedy the vicarious atonement of the Lord Jesus Christ. Strong emphasis is also laid on the church as the Body and bride of Christ. A figurative rather than a literal view is prevalent with reference to the book of Revelation. Membership is contingent upon an individual's faith in Jesus Christ as the only begotten Son of God, repentance, confession of faith, and baptism by immersion for the remission of sins. Church attendance is stressed. Churches of Christ maintain that the final judgment of all religious groups is reserved unto the Lord. This view, however, still allows for a vigorous evangelism that finds unacceptable the doctrines, practices, names, titles, and creeds that have been grafted onto the original Christianity . Ministers are ordained rather than licensed, and they hold tenure in their pulpits under mutual agreement with the elders of the churches in which they preach. Their authority is moral rather than arbitrary, the actual government of the church being vested in its elders. A vigorous missionary program is carried on in 75 nations outside the U. S., and in recent years a strong movement to extend the influence of the church in the northeastern states has developed. Counting native workers in the foreign field and mission activities within the U. S., more than 1,000 missionaries or evangelists are supported by groups other than those to which they preach. A quota of chaplains is maintained in the U. S. Air Force and Army. Properties owned by the group probably exceed $2.5 billion in value. There are 21 colleges, including one in Japan and several in Europe; 70 secondary and elementary schools; 83 child-care facilities; 46 senior citizen facilities; and 117 periodicals, newspapers, and magazines published throughout the country. The oldest publication, The Gospel Advocate, has been published continually since the 1850s, except when it ceased during the Civil War due to lack of mail delivery. Since the status of these institutions is unofficial, none authorized to speak for the entire church, their conformity in ideas and teachings is all the more remarkable. Return to Menu CHURCHES OF CHRIST IN CHRISTIAN UNION CHURCHES OF GOD, GENERAL CONFERENCE CHURCHES OF GOD, HOLINESS CHURCHES OF THE LIVING GOD COMMUNITY CHURCHES, INTERNATIONAL COUNCIL OF CONGREGATIONAL BIBLE CHURCHES, INC. CONGREGATIONAL CHRISTIAN CHURCHES (NATIONAL ASSOCIATION) CONGREGATIONAL HOLINESS CHURCH CONSERVATIVE CONGREGATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONFERENCE DIVINE SCIENCE EPISCOPAL This is the American branch of the worldwide Anglican (Church of England) communion, which began in 1534 when the English monarch, rather than the Bishop of Rome (the Pope), was recognized as the head of the church on earth. This church relies totally on the traditional liturgy in its worship, but is distinctive in leaving undefined the nature of the Communion bread and wine, regarded as a spiritual mystery. It acknowledges no central authority, although bishops are an important symbol of unity. Its sources of authority are the Bible, the tradition of the church, and reason. Aesthetic in orientation, it incorporates theology into liturgy and relies on the senses of sight and taste as well as those of hearing and speaking. Its clergy are called priests and have the authority of the apostolate. Return to Menu Episcopal Church, The It is stated in the preface of the Book of Common Prayer of the Protestant Episcopal Church-since 1967 known as The Episcopal Church-that "this Church is far from intending to depart from the Church of England in any essential point of doctrine, discipline, or worship." For a century and a half in this country, it bore the name Church of England. In 1830 the Protestant Episcopal Church had 12 bishops, 20 dioceses, 600 clergymen, and 30,000 communicants; in 1930 there were 152 bishops, 105 dioceses, 6,000 clergymen, and 1,250,000 communicants. Today The Episcopal Church stands as one of the largest denominations, with 2,462,300 members in 7 ,387 churches in the U. S. Overseas membership numbers 233,185 in 500 parishes. The Episcopal form of government closely parallels that of the federal government. It is a federal union, each diocese autonomous in its own sphere, originally associated with others for the maintenance of a common doctrine, discipline, and worship. To those objectives have been added the unification, development, and prosecution of missionary, educational, and social programs. Most of the overseas jurisdictions will become either independent or parts of existing Anglican churches in their areas. The dioceses of the Philippines Episcopal Church will be the first to become autonomous in the early 1990s. Those in Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central America have begun trial periods leading toward eventual autonomy. Each diocese functions through a bishop (elected locally, with the approval of the episcopate and representatives of clergy and laity from the whole church), who is the spiritual and administrative head. There is a diocesan legislative body made up of the clergy of the diocese and representatives of the local congregations, which meets annually; a standing committee of clergy and laity, advisers and assessors to the bishop; and, usually, a program board. The normal pattern for the local congregation is the parish, which elects its own minister (rector, or priest), who is vested with pastoral oversight of the congregation and, with the wardens and vestry representatives, administers the temporal affairs and the property of the parish. Each parish and parochial district (mission or chapel) is represented in the annual diocesan convention by its clergy and elected lay delegates (usually in proportion to the congregation's constituency); each diocese is represented in the triennial general convention of the church by its bishop (or bishops) and clergy and lay deputies elected in equal numbers (at present, four of each). The general convention is bicameral, and the two houses of the legislature, bishops and deputies, meet and deliberate separately. Either house may initiate, but concurrence of both is required to enact legislation. Between sessions of the general convention, the work of the church is carried on by the presiding bishop (elected for a 12-year term by the House of Bishops, with the concurrence of the House of Deputies) and an executive council of 43 members-20 elected by the general convention, 18 elected by the provinces (regional groups of dioceses and missionary districts), two ex officio (the presiding bishop and the president of the House of Deputies), and the vice-president, secretary, and treasurer. Established in 1919 to unify the work of three previously independent boards, in 1968 the council took the further step of abolishing a somewhat rigid departmental structure in favor of a collaborative working relationship among the program areas: national mission, world mission, education, communication, administration, finance, and stewardship. In a further development, the mission of the church has been clustered around planning, operations, and support. The members accept two creeds-the Apostles' and the Nicene, The articles of the Church of England, with the exception of the 21st and modification of the 8th, 35th, and 36th, are accepted as a general statement of doctrine, but adherence to them as a creed is not required. The clergy make the following declaration: I do believe the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments to be the Word of God, and to contain all things necessary to salvation; and I do solemnly engage to conform to the doctrine, discipline, and worship of the Episcopal Church. The church expects its members to be loyal to the "doctrine, discipline and worship of the one Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church" in all the essentials, but permits great liberty in nonessentials. It allows for variation, individuality, independent thinking, and religious liberty. Liberals and conservatives, modernists and fundamentalists, find cordial and common ground for worship in the prayer book, which, second only to the Bible, has probably influenced more people than any other book in the English language. Two sacraments, baptism and the Eucharist, are recognized as "certain sure witnesses and effectual agencies of God's love and grace. " Baptism by pouring, sprinkling, or immersion is necessary for both children and adults; baptism by any church in the name of the Trinity is recognized as valid; baptized persons are confirmed as members of the church by the bishop. Adults who receive laying on of hands by a bishop at baptism are considered confirmed. Without stating or defining the holy mystery, The Episcopal Church believes in the real presence of Christ in the elements of the Eucharist. The church also recognizes a sacramental character in confirmation, penance, orders, matrimony, and unction. Some Episcopal churches are "high," with elaborate ritual and ceremony; others are described as low, with less involved ceremony and more of an evangelistic emphasis. All members, high or low, have a loyalty to their church that is deep and lasting. This has been called the church of beauty, and it is an apt description. Its prayer book is eloquent in the literature of religious worship, containing the heart of both New Testament and Old Testament devotions. Members have built stately cathedrals in this country: the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York City. Next to the stress on episcopacy, its liturgical worship is a distinguishing feature; varying in degree according to high or low church inclinations, its roots are in the Church of England and include the reading, recitation, or intonation by priest, people, and choir of the historic general confession, general thanksgiving, collects, psalms, and prayers. Financial support is given to funded U. S. dioceses, the Navajo land Episcopal Church (an area mission in the Southwest), and a coalition of dioceses on the East Coast which share a common ministry to the Appalachian mountain people. Special emphasis is placed on urban ministries, ministry in college communities, and ministry to black, Hispanic, Native American, and Asian congregations. Overseas missions are located in all American territories and in the Dominican Republic, Haiti, India, Japan, the Near East, Liberia, Mexico, Okinawa, Taiwan, Central America, and the Philippines. The church sponsors 10 accredited seminaries in the United States, plus three overseas; nine colleges, a university, and about 6, 745 nursery through high schools for boys and girls; 81 homes for the aged; 91 institutions and agencies for child and youth care; 43 hospitals, homes, and convalescent clinics; and works for seamen in 22 U. S. dioceses. It has religious orders of monks and nuns, sisters and friars; 9 communities for men, 11 for women, and two for both men and women; both men and women are employed in schools, hospitals, and various forms of missionary work. Two major developments in the past few years have been subjects of debate in The Episcopal Church: prayer book revision and the ordination of women to the priesthood. The general convention of 1976 gave first approval to The Proposed Book of Common Prayer, the first revision of the American prayer book since 1928, and the first to use contemporary language. Much of the Tudor idiom, however, has been retained. The Holy Eucharist, Morning and Evening Prayer, the service for burial of the dead, and all the collects for the church year appear in both contemporary and traditional language; Archbishop Cranmer's Great Litany has been somewhat revised, but appears in its traditional form. All other services-such as those for baptism, matrimony, confirmation, and ordination-have been revised or rewritten in contemporary idiom. The new book is also more comprehensive, with forms for private confession, complete rites for Ash Wednesday and Holy Week, two daily offices in addition to Morning and Evening Prayer, and a special form for evening worship. The eucharistic lectionary has also been revised to include regular readings from the Old Testament. The Proposed Book was passed by an overwhelming majority at the 1979 convention, and the fully approved version is now in use. A new hymnal, the first since 1940, was approved in 1982. The issue of women's ordination is extremely complex. Actually, it has to do with the historical doctrine of the uninterrupted line of succession in the episcopacy-the apostolic succession-in which men only had been ordained in the threefold ministries of deacon, priest, and bishop. Those in opposition to ordination of women were of two groups: (1) those who believed it impossible for women to be priests; and (2) those who believed that the general convention, though it is the supreme legislative authority of The Episcopal Church, had no right to decide this question; that such a decision should have been made only by catholic consensus or in some kind of ecumenical council. The general convention of 1970 authorized the ordination of women to the deaconate, but "priesting," rejected at that convention and again in 1973, finally passed in 1976. In 1988, the Reverend Barbara C. Harris was elected Suffragan Bishop of Massachusetts, and in February 1989, she was ordained the first woman bishop in the historic succession. In the wake of such changes, a minority of clergy (including bishops) and lay people protested. Arguing that respect for tradition in a tradition-minded communion had been subverted, several thousand went so far as to form new Anglican bodies. These regard themselves as old, of course, hardly as "new." Among them are: the Anglican Episcopal Church; Diocese of Christ the King; United Episcopal Church of North America; and Anglican Rite Jurisdiction of America. Some alternative branches of Anglicanism, however, date back to the 1920s. Each of these groups has a few thousand or a few hundred members. The Episcopal Church has an undeserved reputation for exclusiveness and noncooperation with other Protestant bodies, whereas actually it has been most cooperative. Other Episcopalian Sects: --Reformed Episcopal Church Return to Menu EVANGELICAL CHURCH, THE EVANGELICAL CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH EVANGELICAL COVENANT CHURCH EVANGELICAL FREE CHURCH OF AMERICA FIRE-BAPTIZED HOLINESS CHURCH FOURSQUARE GOSPEL, INTERNATIONAL CHURCH OF THE FREE CHRISTIAN ZION CHURCH OF CHRIST FRIENDS (Quakers) Dating from the 1650s in England, the Society of Friends, or Quakers, is an unconventional but much respected Protestant body. Because they affirm the "lnner Light," the spiritual nerve-center that God has placed in every person, classical Friends deny the validity of clergy, liturgy, and sacraments. Worship takes the form of silent meetings, except when one is inspired to speak. The fact that every person has this inward spiritual endowment has prompted Friends to stand for the equality of all people, oppose slavery, and be exceptionally service-minded. Their record of providing for human physical, social, and spiritual needs is truly remarkable. In America since the mid-nineteenth century, some Friends have adapted the silent meeting to forms of church life that resemble standard evangelical practices, perhaps as much like Methodist as any other. But even there, the heritage of equality, and respect for and service to all remains very strong. With a membership in the U. S. and Canada of only 123,000 (200,000 around the world), Friends, better known as Quakers, have had a deep and lasting influence upon Western society. Contributions in both religious and humanitarian spheres have won universal respect and admiration, and their amazing history and loyalty to their quiet faith offer a challenge and inspiration to all churches. The Friends' vicissitudes and victories began when George Fox (1624-1691), a British seeker after spiritual truth and peace, failed to find them in the churches of his time. He did find them, however, in a new personal relationship with Christ: "When all my hopes in [churches] were gone. ..I heard a voice which said, 'There is one, even Christ Jesus, that can speak to thy condition.' " That is the Inner Voice, or Inner Light, based upon the description of John 1:9,: "the True Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world-a voice available to all, having -- nothing to do with ceremonies, rituals, or creeds. To Friends, every person is a walking church; every heart is God's altar and shrine. Quakerism was revolutionary, and it was treated as such by the state Church of England. To say that both state and church were wrong-that their theology and dogma meant nothing; that people need not attend "steeple houses" to find God; that it was equally wrong to pay taxes to support the state church clergy-this was rebellion. Fox and his early followers went even further. They not only refused to go to church, but insisted upon freedom of speech, assembly, and worship. They would not take oaths in court; they refused to go to war; they doffed their hats to no one, king or commoner; they made no distinction in sex or social class; they condemned slavery and England's treatment of prisoners and the insane. The very names they adopted- Children of Truth, Children of Light, Friends of Truth-aroused ridicule and fierce opposition. When Fox, hauled into court, advised one judge to "tremble at the Word of the Lord," he heard the judge call him "a quaker. " But derision was not enough to stop the Friends. This led to the persecution of Quakers in England that continued upon their arrival to America. Early in America, Quakers, looking within rather than without, began to enforce such strict discipline upon their members that they became in fact a "peculiar people." Members were disowned or dismissed for even minor infractions; thousands were cut off for "marrying out of Meeting. " Pleasure, music, and art were taboo; sobriety, punctuality, and honesty were demanded in all directions; dress was painfully plain, and speech was biblical. They were "different" and dour; they gained few new converts and lost many old members. The twentieth century thus far has been one of Quaker unity and outreach. A Five Years Meeting (now Friends' United Meeting) was organized in 1902, merging a large number of the pastoral yearly meetings. The two Philadelphia meetings, separated since 1827, were united in 1955; in the same year, the two New York Yearly Meetings merged, and the three Canada Yearly Meetings came together to form one body; in 1968, two Baltimore Yearly Meetings reunited; in 1972, the Southeastern Meeting, newly founded, affiliated with Friends United Meeting and Friends General Conference. Worship and business in the society are conducted in monthly, quarterly, and yearly meetings. The monthly meeting is the basic unit, made up of one or more meetings (groups) in a neighborhood. It convenes each week for worship and once a month for business. It keeps records of membership, births, deaths, and marriages; appoints committees; considers queries on spiritual welfare; and transacts all business. Monthly meetings join four times a year in a quarterly meeting to stimulate spiritual life and decide on any business that should be brought to the attention of the yearly meeting. The yearly meeting corresponds to a diocese in an episcopal system. There are 27 in the U. S. and Canada, in touch with Friends all over the world. There are standing committees on such subjects as publications, education, the social order, missions, peace, charities, and national legislation; trust fund incomes are allocated, and the work of the society is generally supervised. Group decisions await the "sense of the meeting. " Lacking unity of opinion, the meeting may have a "quiet time" until unity is found, or it may postpone consideration of the matter or refer it to a committee for study. Minority opinion is not outvoted, but convinced. Every man, woman, and child is free to speak in any meeting; delegates are appointed at quarterly and yearly meetings to ensure adequate representation, but enjoy no unusual position or prerogatives. Women and men hold positions of absolute equality. There are, contrary to popular misunderstanding, church officers-elders and ministers-chosen for recognized ability in spiritual leadership, but they too stand on equal footing with the rest of the membership. To the Friend, all members are ministers. A few full-time workers are paid a modest salary, and "recorded" ministers who serve as pastors in meetings that have programmed worship also receive salaries (about 1,000 meetings have no paid pastors). Worship may be either programmed or unprogrammed, but the two are not always distinct. The former more nearly resembles a simple Protestant service, although there are no rites or outward sacraments. While Friends believe in spiritual communion, partaking of the elements is thought unnecessary. In unprogrammed meetings there is no choir, collection, singing, or pulpit; the service is devoted to quiet meditation, prayer, and communion. Any vocal contributions are spontaneous. There is no uniform practice; most churches greatly prefer to be called meetings. In business meetings there often is frank inquiry into members' conduct of business, treatment of others, use of narcotics or intoxicants, reading habits, and recreation. No true Friend gambles, plays the stock market, bets, owns racehorses, or engages in raffles, lotteries, or the liquor business. Some follow conservative religious or theological patterns; others are liberal; all are guided by the Inner Light. The Inner Light is highly important. Friends believe that grace, the power from God to help humankind resist evil, is universal among all people. They seek not holiness, but perfection-a higher, more spiritual standard of life for both society and the individual-and they believe that the truth is unfolding and continuing. They value the Bible highly but prefer to rely upon fresh individual guidance from the Spirit of God which produced the Bible, rather than follow only what has been revealed to others. Some modern groups accept the Bible as the final authority in all religious matters. Rufus Jones says: They believe supremely in the nearness of God to the human soul, in direct intercourse and immediate communion, in mystical experience in a firsthand discovery of God. ...It means and involves a sensitiveness to the wider spiritual Life above us, around us, and within us, a dedication to duty, a passion for truth, and an appreciation of goodness, an eagerness to let love and the grace of God come freely through one's own life, a reverence for the will of God wherever it is revealed in past or present, and a high faith that Christ is a living presence and a life-giving energy always within reach of the receptive soul. No Quaker body has ever departed from the Declaration to Charles II in 1661: "We utterly deny all outward wars and strife and fighting with outward weapons, for any end or under any pretense whatever. ...The spirit of Christ, which leads us into all Truth, will never move us to fight and war against any man with outward weapons, neither for the Kingdom of Christ, not for the kingdoms of this world. " However, there is great tolerance toward individual variations in this position. During World War II, the formal Quaker position favored applying for conscientious- objector status, either as a noncombatant within the military or in alternate service; in the case of the Vietnam war, corporate positions shifted toward encouraging men to practice draft refusal and go to jail if necessary. In both cases a wide variety of positions was seen as acceptable; the emphasis was on following individual conscience. Friends who enter military service are no longer disowned from membership, but many leave the society and join a church that does not profess pacifism. Conversely, pacifists brought up in other traditions tend to join the Friends in young adulthood. Marriage is not necessarily a ceremony to be performed by a minister; in cases where the traditional Quaker marriage is observed, the bride and groom simply stand before a meeting and make mutual vows of love and faithfulness. In certain sections of the country the pastor of the meeting officiates. Friends have never been great proselytizers; they depend almost entirely upon birthright membership and membership by "convincement." In many bodies, though not all, every child born of Quaker parents is declared a member of the society. This has resulted in a large number of nominal, or paper, members who contribute little; efforts are being made to correct this custom by establishing a junior, or associate, membership for children. This reliance upon birthright membership has seriously depleted their numbers. If Friends were ever "exclusive," they no longer are; a world outreach has been evident and growing in recent years. The F. W.C.C. is a nongovernmental organization related to the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations, through cooperation with the A.F.S.C.; it helps operate a program at U. N. headquarters to forward world peace and human unity. Something of a world community, or "Franciscan Third Order... has been set up in the Wider Quaker Fellowship, in which non-Friends in sympathy with the spirit and program may participate in the work without coming into full membership. This is not so much an organization as "a fellowship of kindred minds-a way of life, a contagion of spirit"; it has 4,200 members, 360 of whom live abroad. An Evangelical Friends Alliance was formed in 1965 in the interests of evangelical emphasis and denominational unity; it seeks to bring together those interested in an evangelical renewal within Christianity and a renewal of interest in the evangelical emphases of seventeenth-century Quakerism; it includes the Association of Evangelical Friends. Theology here is conservative; local pastors are elected. There are 217 churches and 24,095 members. A further movement toward unity is found in the Religious Society of Friends (Unaffiliated Meetings), which also stresses elements and teachings of early Friends movements. This group is unique in its wide variety and experimentation in worship and polity; it is not associated with the larger bodies in the society. There are 112 churches with 6,386 members. Friends Sects: Friends General Conference Friends United Meeting (Five Years Meeting) Religious Society of Friends (Conservative) Return to Menu GRACE GOSPEL FELLOWSHIP INDEPENDENT FUNDAMENTAL CHURCHES OF AMERICA JEHOVAH'S WITNESSES The people called Jehovah's Witnesses believe that their movement is the true realization of the one faith mentioned by the apostle Paul in Ephesians 4:5. Their certainty of this, and their zeal in proclaiming it, have made them, at least in point of public interest, an outstanding religious phenomenon in modern America. Charles Taze Russell had brought about their first incorporation In 1884, and until 1931, they were known as Russellites, Millennial Dawn People, and International Bible Students. Pastor Russell, the first president, is acknowledged not as founder (there is no "human" founder), but as general organizer; passages have been cited to prove the claim that Witnesses have been on earth as an organization for more than 5,000 years (Isa. 43:10-12; Heb. 11; John 18:37). Russell was deeply influenced by a belief In Christ's second coming; he studied the Bible avidly and attracted huge crowds to hear his lectures. The first formal group was organized in Pittsburgh in 1870; Russell's books, of which 13,000,000 are said to have been circulated, had great influence on the movement. When Russell died in 1916, Joseph F. Rutherford, known widely as Judge Rutherford, became president; he had been a lawyer who occasionally sat as a circuit court judge in Missouri. He wrote tirelessly; his books, pamphlets, and tracts supplanted those of Russell, and his neglect of some aspects of Russell's teaching brought dissension. Administration of the group underwent changes during Rutherford's presidency. The governing body today is in the hands of those older and more "spiritually qualified," who base their judgments upon the authority of the Scriptures; this is not considered a governing hierarchy, but a true imitation of early apostolic Christian organization. Under that system, three corporations eventually came to serve under the direction of the governing body: Watchtower Bible and Tract Society of New York, Inc.; Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of Pennsylvania; and International Bible Students Association of England. Judge Rutherford, as president, was a moving power in all three. Under direction of the leaders at headquarters, local congregations of Witnesses (always called congregations, never churches) are arranged in circuits, with a traveling minister who spends a week with each congregation. Approximately 20 congregations are included in each circuit, and circuits are grouped into districts-41 in the U. S. District and circuit organizations are now found in 210 countries and islands around the world. Meeting in Kingdom halls (not in churches), members witness and publish their faith in testimony and in a remarkably comprehensive missionary effort. They do not believe in separation into clergy and laity, since "Christ Jesus did not make such a separation." They never use titles such as Reverend; this, they feel, is not in accordance with the words of Jesus in Matthew 23:6-10. All members give generously of their time in proclaiming their faith and teaching in private homes. Called publishers of the Kingdom, they preach only from the Bible. Pioneers, or full-time preachers, are required to give at least 90 hours per month; special pioneers and missionaries donate a minimum of 140 hours per month and are sent to isolated areas and foreign lands where new congregations can be formed. All pioneers provide their own support, but the society gives a small allowance to special pioneers, in view of their special needs. The headquarters staff, including the president of the society, are housed at Bethel Home in Brooklyn, engage primarily in editorial and printing work, and receive an allowance of $30 a month, in addition to room and board. They write, print, and distribute literature in almost astronomical proportions. The official journal, The Watchtower, has a circulation of 13,045,000; more than one billion Bibles, books, and leaflets have been distributed since 1920, and these are available in at least 176 languages. More than 3,395,612 Witnesses are active in this work throughout the world. Contained in the literature (all circulated without by-lines or signatures) is the teaching of the Witnesses, which rests firmly upon the idea of theocracy, or rule of God. In the beginning, according to Witnesses, the world was under the theocratic rule of the Almighty; all then was "happiness, peace, and blessedness." But Satan rebelled and became the ruler of the world, and from that moment, humankind has followed his evil leading. Then came Jesus, "the beginning of the creation by God," as the prophets had predicted, to end Satan's rule. Jesus' heavenly rule, after he paid the ransom sacrifice of his death on earth, began in 1914. In 1918, Christ "came to the temple of Jehovah," and in 1919 when Rutherford reorganized the movement shattered by the war, Jesus, enthroned in the temple, began to send out his followers to preach. God, according to Witness belief, will take vengeance upon wicked human beings in our time; God is now showing his great love by "gathering out" multitudes of people of goodwill, to whom he will give life in the new world that is to come after the imminent battle of Armageddon. This is to be a universal battle; Christ will lead the army of the righteous, composed of the "host of heaven, the holy angels," and will completely annihilate the army of Satan. The righteous of the earth will watch the battle but will not participate. After the battle, a great crowd of people will remain on the earth; these will be believers in God and will be his servants. Those who have proved their integrity under test in the old world will multiply and populate the new earth with righteous people. A resurrection will also take place, as an additional means of filling the cleansed earth with better inhabitants. After the holocaust, "righteous princes" will rule the earth under Christ, King of the Great Theocracy. One special group-the 144,000 Christians mentioned in Revelations 7 and 14-will become the "bride of Christ" and rule with him in heaven. All these beliefs are based upon the Bible; Witnesses quote elaborately from Scripture. All other teachings and interpretations are, to them, suspect and unreliable. They have been especially active in opposing what they consider the three allies of Satan: false teachings of the churches, tyranny of human governments, and oppression by big business. This "triple alliance" of ecclesiastical, political, and commercial powers has misled humankind, the Witnesses claim, and must be destroyed at Armageddon before the new world can be born. They refuse to salute the flag, bear arms in war, or participate in the affairs of government-not because of pacifist convictions, but because they desire to remain apart from what they consider expressions of Satan's power over humankind. This attitude has brought them into conflict with law enforcement agencies; they have also endured whippings, assault by mobs, stonings, tar-and-featherings, and the burning of their homes. All this they have accepted in a submissive spirit; their position is that they will obey the laws of the earth when those laws are not in conflict with the laws of God; their guide is Acts 5:29. The ranks of active "publishers" across the world have grown to 3,395,612, of whom approximately 773,219 are in the U. S. There are 8,547 congregations in the U. S.; 46,364 throughout the world. Branch offices are maintained in 93 countries, and work is reported in 210 lands; more than 6,000 people have been trained as foreign missionaries. The Bible School of Cilead was established in 1943 for this training, and since 1961 has operated out of the international headquarters in Brooklyn. Kingdom Ministry Schools, designed to provide a brief training course for congregation elders, have operated in all major countries of the world since 1959. Return to Menu KODESH CHURCH OF IMMANUEL LATTER DAY SAINTS (MORMON) Best known as Mormons, Latter Day Saints are neither Protestant nor Catholic. Their beliefs rest on the authority provided by the discovery in the 1820s of the Book of Mormon, which details the history of God's ancient people in the western hemisphere between 600 B. C. and A. D. 400. That book, with its distinctive message, stands alongside the Bible (''as far as it is translated correctly") as the basis of Mormon teachings. They believe that the authentic church, having gone underground for many centuries, was restored with that new revelation. By 1850, Mormons finally enjoyed a place of their own, Utah, where they built a civilization. Committed to expansion, they continue to grow rapidly in the U. S. and many foreign countries, most dramatically in Latin America and Asia. Few modern churches live with such clear identity and manage such a high degree of loyalty and dedication. Conservative politically and morally, it gives a predominant place to family life. Latter Day Saints have had one of the most tempestuous histories of any church in the U. S. Attacked by mobs and once invaded by U. S. Army troops, they built a religious community in what was once a desert and have established themselves as one of the outstanding religious groups of the nation. Essentially a lay people's movement, the church is rooted in the visions of Joseph Smith, who organized the movement with six charter members at Fayette, New York, in 1830. Smith claimed to have experienced a series of heavenly visitations, beginning with the appearance of God and Jesus Christ in 1820, in which he was informed that all existing churches were in error and that the true gospel was yet to be restored. It would be revealed to him, and he was to reestablish the true church on earth. He was led by an angel to discover, buried in a hill called Cumorah near Manchester, New York, certain metal plates left there by an ancient prophet. The plates contained the sacred records of ancient inhabitants of America and the true Word of God. According to the Mormons, America was originally settled by Jaredites, one of the groups dispersed during the confusion of tongues at the Tower of Babel; American Indians were direct descendants of the Hebrews who came from Jerusalem in 600 B.C., and Jesus himself visited this country after his resurrection. Smith translated the hieroglyphics on the plates into the Book of Mormon, from which the name comes. Oliver Cowdery acted as his scribe. This Book of Mormon is considered by the Saints as equal with the Bible, and with the two other writings of Joseph Smith, Doctrine and Covenants and Pearl of Great Price. These four books contain the foundation teachings of the church. The metal plates were said to have been returned to the angel by Joseph Smith; their authenticity has been challenged by non-Mormon scholars and as ardently defended by Mormons, who offer the names of eleven other persons besides Smith who saw them. The "priesthood of Aaron" was conferred upon Smith and Cowdery by a heavenly messenger, John the Baptist, who instructed them to baptize each other. In 1829, a year before the founding of the church, three other divine visitors, Peter, James, and John, bestowed upon them the "priesthood of Melchizedek" and gave them the keys of apostleship. Opposition arose as the church gained strength, and in 1831 the Mormons left New York for Ohio, where headquarters were established at Kirtland. Another large Mormon center developed at Independence, Missouri, where they planned to build the ideal community, with a temple at its heart. Friction with other settlers there became so acute that they left Missouri during 1838 and 1839 and settled at Nauvoo, Illinois. But violence followed them and reached its peak when Joseph Smith and Hyrum Smith, his brother, were murdered by a mob at Carthage in 1844. With Smith's death, the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles was accepted as the head of the church, and Brigham Young as president of the Quorum. The defeated minority, objecting that Young was not the legal successor to Smith, withdrew to form other churches. Some followed James J. Strang to Wisconsin to form the sect known as Strangite; others joined various other dissenting groups. But the largest body of "anti- Brighamites" believed that the leadership belonged to direct descendants of Joseph Smith, and in 1847 these people, led by Joseph Smith, Jr., formed the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. But Young held his office with the vote of the majority, and he had the courage and the administrative ability to save the church from disruption and further division. He led the Saints when they were driven out of Nauvoo in February 1846 and began their epic march to what is now Utah. They arrived in Salt Lake Valley in July 1847, and there they built their famous tabernacle at the heart of what was to become worldwide Mormonism, creating a self-existent community in the desert. In 1850 the Territory of Utah was formed; it became a state in 1896. Based on The Book of Mormon and the Bible, plus the revelations of Joseph Smith, the faith of Mormons is like that found in many conservative Protestant churches. However, certain aspects of Latter Day Saints theology depart from the traditional orthodoxy of Catholic and Protestant churches: three persons comprise the Godhead-the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost; the Father and the Son have bodies of flesh and bones, but the Holy Ghost is a personage of Spirit; persons will be punished for their own individual sins, not for Adam's transgression. All humankind may be saved through the atonement of Christ and by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the gospel; these include faith in Christ, repentance, baptism by immersion for the remission of sins, the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost, and the observance of the Lord's Supper each Sunday. They believe in the gift of tongues and of interpretation of tongues, visions, prophecy, and healing; that Christ will return to rule the earth from his capitals in Zion and Jerusalem, following the restoration of the ten tribes of Israel. It is also believed that Latter Day Saints should adhere to the official pronouncements of the living president (prophet) of the church. Revelation is not to be regarded as confined to either the Bible or The Book of Mormon; it continues today in the living apostles and prophets of the Latter Day Saints church. Baptism is necessary for salvation, and obedience to the principles of the gospel of Christ is of first importance. Subjection to civil laws and rules is advocated, together with insistence upon the right of the individual to worship according to the dictates of conscience. Two practices, baptism for the dead and sealing in marriage for eternity, are exclusive with this church. Baptism and salvation for the dead are based upon the conviction that those who died without a chance to hear or accept the gospel cannot possibly be condemned by a just and merciful God. The gospel must be preached to them after death; authority for this is found in I Peter 4:6: "For this cause was the gospel preached also to them that are dead, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the spirit. " Baptism is considered as essential to the dead as to the living, though the rites will not finally save them; there must be faith and repentance. The ceremony is performed with a living person standing proxy for the dead. Marriage has two forms: marriage for time and marriage for eternity (celestial marriage). Mormons who are married by only civil authority still remain in good standing in the church, but marriage for time and eternity in the church's temples is regarded as a prerequisite for the highest opportunity for salvation. In connection with this, it is said that Joseph Smith informed his associates in the 1840s that plural marriage was also sanctioned and commanded by God. Plural marriages had been contracted secretly for some time before the practice was announced publicly by Brigham Young in 1852. Following the Civil War, the federal government mounted an increasingly intense campaign against Mormon polygamy. In 1882, the Edmunds Act provided stringent penalties, and in 1887 the church was disincorporated and its properties confiscated. In 1890 the U. S. Supreme Court ruled it constitutional to deny all privileges of citizenship to members of the church. Also in 1890, the church president issued a manifesto which officially discontinued the contracting of new plural marriages. Some followers of Joseph Smith, Jr. , deny that polygamy was ever sanctioned, but a few in other groups believe that it will never end. These contemporary polygamists are excommunicated from the church. Organization and government differ in detail among the five Mormon denominations, but agree on essentials. They are based upon the two priesthoods: the higher priesthood of Melchizedek, which holds power of presidency and authority over offices of the church, and whose officers include apostles, patriarchs, high priests, seventies, and elders; and the lesser priesthood of Aaron, which guides the temporal affairs of the church through its bishops, priests, teachers, and deacons. The presiding council of the church is the First Presidency, made up of three high priests-the president and two counselors. Its authority is final in both spiritual and temporal affairs. The president of the church is "the mouthpiece of God"; through him come the laws of the church by direct revelation. Next to the presidency stands the Council of the Twelve Apostles, chosen by revelation to supervise, under the direction of the First Presidency, the whole work of the church. The church is divided into areas, regions, and stakes (geographical divisions) composed of a number of wards (local churches, or parishes). Members of two quorums of seventy preside over the areas, under the direction of the Twelve. High priests, assisted by elders, are in charge of the stakes and wards. Members of the Melchizedek priesthood, under the direction of the presidency, officiate in all ordinances of the gospel. The duties of the apostles and the seventies carry them into all the stakes, wards, and missions of the entire church. The stake presidents, ward bishops, patriarchs, high priests, and elders supervise the work within the stakes and wards of the church. The Aaronic priesthood is governed by three presiding bishops known collectively as the Presiding Bishopric, who also supervise the work in the stakes and wards done by members of the priesthood. In June 1978, it was ruled that "all worthy male members of the church may be ordained to the priesthood without regard for race or color." The church influences every phase of the life of every member; it supplies relief in illness or poverty and assists with education and employment when necessary, but does not educate or employ all members. Such a program has resulted in deep loyalty. Some 37,000 young Mormons currently serve as full-time missionaries throughout the world without compensation; they devote 18 months to two years to spreading the teaching of their church at home and abroad. Only about 100 persons in full-time leadership positions receive a salary or living allowance. Their missionary experience strengthens them and their church and offers a model of church service. Mormon Sects: Church of Christ (Temple Lot) Church of Jesus Christ (Bichertonites) Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Strangite) Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints Return to Menu LIBERAL CATHOLIC CHURCH, THE LUTHERAN The earliest dissenting movement among those that comprised the Protestant Reformation, Lutheranism dates from Martin Luther's theological "discoveries" between 1513 and 1530. Never intending to splinter the church by leaving it, these first Protestants meant to affirm the message of the Bible as the sole authority for church life and Christian belief and practice. To this day, Lutheranism retains much from the tradition of the ancient and medieval church, including a sense of participation in the historic People of God and the traditional liturgy, revised to accord with Protestant biblicism. It is devoted to sound doctrine, systematically developed and expressed in thoughtful preaching. The historic church of Germany and the Scandinavian countries, it has been largely ethnic in the U. S., and numerous mergers have taken places as church unity has replaced ethnic identity as a primary factor. Lutheran at first was a nickname applied to the followers of Martin Luther in the days of the Protestant Reformation; today it stands for something far more comprehensive. "It is clear," said Abdel R. Wentz, "that 'Lutheran' is a very inadequate name to give to a movement that is not limited to a person or an era but is as ecumenical and abiding as Christianity itself. " Luther's teachings of justification by faith and of the universal priesthood of believers might be called the cornerstone of Protestantism. The story of Luther's rebellion against the Roman Catholic Church is well known. His position, briefly, was that the church and the papacy had no divine right in things spiritual; that Scripture, not the priest or the church, has final authority over conscience. "Whatever is not against Scripture is for Scripture, and Scripture is for it," said Luther. People are forgiven and absolved of their sins, he believed, not by good works or by imposition of church rite-and especially not through the purchase of indulgences offered for sale by the Roman Catholic Church-but by their Spirit-empowered turning from sin directly to God. Justification is attained through faith, not through ceremony; and faith is not subscription to the dictates of the church, but "the heart's utter trust" in Christ. 'The just shall live by faith" was the beginning and the end of Luther's thought. He held that the individual conscience is responsible to God alone; he also held that the Bible is the clear, perfect, inspired, and authoritative Word of God and guide for humankind. God, conscience, and the Book-on these was Lutheranism founded. The German Reformation resulted not in a united Protestantism, but one with two branches: Evangelical Lutheranism, with Luther and Melanchthon as leaders; and the Reformed Church, led by John Calvin, Ulrich Zwingli, and John Knox. Evangelical Lutheranism spread to Poland, Russia, Lithuania, Czechoslovakia, Austria, Hungary, Yugoslavia, France, and Holland; it later became the state church of Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Iceland, Estonia, and Latvia. It was mainly from Germany and Scandinavia that Lutheranism came to the United States. In spite of their divisions, there has been real unity among Lutherans, based more upon faith than organization. All the churches represent a single type of Protestant Christianity, built upon Luther's principle of justification by faith alone-faith in Jesus Christ; it centers in the gospel for fallen humanity. The Bible is the inspired Word of God and the infallible rule and standard of faith and practice. Lutherans confess their faith through the three general creeds of Christendom-Apostles, Nicene, and Athanasian-which they believe to be in accordance with the Scriptures. They also believe that the unaltered Augsburg Confession is a correct exposition of the faith and doctrine of evangelical Lutheranism. The Apology of the Augsburg Confession, the two catechisms of Luther , the Smalcald Articles, and the Formula of Concord are held to be faithful interpretations of Lutheranism and of the Bible. The two sacraments, baptism and the Lord's Supper, are not merely signs or memorials, but channels through which God bestows his forgiving and empowering grace upon humankind. The body and blood of Christ are believed to be present "in, with, and under" the bread and wine of the Lord's Supper and are received sacramentally and supernaturally. Consubstantiation, transubstantiation, and impanation are rejected. Infants are baptized, and baptized persons are believed to receive the gift of regeneration from the Holy Ghost. The congregation is usually administered between its annual meetings by a church council consisting of the pastor and a number of elected lay officers. Pastors are called by the voting members of the congregation. As a rule, ministers, after college and seminary training, are ordained at the annual meetings of the synods. Congregations are united in synods composed of pastors and lay representatives elected by the congregations and have authority as granted by the synod constitution. In some instances there are territorial districts or conferences instead of synods, operating in the same manner and under the same restrictions; some may legislate, while others are for advisory or consultative purposes only. Synods (conferences, or districts) are united in a general body that may be national, or even international, and called variously church, synod, or conference. Some of these general bodies are legislative in nature, some consultative; they supervise the work in worship, education, publication, charity, and mission. Congregations have business meetings at least annually; synods, districts, and conferences hold yearly conventions; the general bodies meet annually or biennially. Worship is liturgical, centering on the altar. "No sect in Western Christendom outside the Church of Rome," said the late Lutheran Archbishop Nathan Soderblom of Sweden, "has accentuated in its doctrine the Real Presence and the mysterious communion of the sacrament as has our Evangelic Lutheran sect, although our faith repudiates any quasi-rational magical explanation of the virtue of the sacrament." Non-Lutherans are often critical of the divisions among Lutherans, but actually they are not as divided as they may seem. At one time there were 150 Lutheran bodies in this country; consolidation, unification, and federation have now reduced that number to nine. Three of the U. S. bodies account for about 95 percent of all Lutherans in North America. With the old barriers of speech and nationality disappearing, the tendency toward union becomes continually stronger. Most recently, in 1988 the American Lutheran Church merged with the Lutheran Church in America and the Association of Evangelical Lutheran Churches. This new Lutheran body comprises approximately 5.5 million baptized members and 11,000 congregations. On the international front, united efforts are noticeable also; groups of lay and ministerial delegates from major Lutheran churches in 22 countries formed a Lutheran World Federation in 1947 for the purpose of relief and rehabilitation on a global scale among Lutherans. Historically, Lutherans have shown a tendency to remain apart from the rest of Protestantism. The U. S. churches were founded by immigrant groups deeply conscious of their national and linguistic origins, but as the older membership passed, English became the predominant language. The larger Lutheran churches have been constituent members of the National Council of the Churches of Christ; some participated in the organization of the World Council of Churches. Lutheran groups that are part of interdenominational organizations have always insisted upon the operation of two principles within those organizations: the evangelical principle that the churches in the association should be those confessing the deity and saviorhood of Jesus Christ, and the representative principle that the governing and operating units of the organizations should be made up of officially chosen representatives of the churches. Lutheran Sects: Apostolic Lutheran Church of America Church of Lutheran Brethren Church of the Lutheran Confession Evangelical Lutheran Church of America: American Lutheran Church, The Lutheran Church in America Evangelical Lutheran Synod Free Lutheran Congregations, The Assoc. of Lutheran Church of-Missouri Synod, The Protestant Conference (Lutheran) Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod Return to Menu MENNONITE Dating from the 1520s in Central Europe, these radical Protestants take their name from Menno Simons, an early Dutch leader. "Radical" in yearning to get to "the roots" of the biblical manner of living, they rejected the "magisterial Reformation" of Luther and Calvin and were in turn treated as outsiders, even heretics. Their concerns have not been with proper theology, the sacraments, or liturgy. Rather, they are called to exemplify godly living. Until recently, most (and still, some) of these quietly dedicated Christians frowned on involvement in secular activity, refusing to take oaths, bear arms, vote, or hold public office. They are a called-out (from the state, from conventional society) fellowship of believers. Always emphasizing the local congregation, some groups insist on living in "intentional communities." In many ways akin to the Brethren family, they pursue their own course in giving primacy to life-style, rather than to cultivated piety. The first Mennonite congregation of historical record was organized at Zurich, Switzerland, in 1525; it consisted of Swiss Brethren, or Täufer, who disagreed with Ulrich Zwingli in his readiness to consent to a union of church and state. They also denied the scriptural validity of infant baptism and hence were labeled Anabaptists, or Re-baptizers .Anabaptist congregations were organized in Holland by Obbe Philips as early as 1534. The Mennonite belief is based upon a confession of faith signed at Dordrecht, Holland, in 1632. In 18 articles, the following doctrines were laid down: faith in God as creator; humanity's fall and restoration at the coming of Christ; Christ as the Son of God, who redeemed humankind on the cross; obedience to Christ's law in the gospel; the necessity of repentance and conversion for salvation; baptism as a public testimony of faith; the Lord's Supper as an expression of common union and fellowship; matrimony only among the "spiritually kindred"; obedience to and respect for civil government, except in the use of armed force; exclusion from the church and social ostracism of those who sin willfully; future reward for the faithful and punishment for the wicked. The Lord's Supper is served twice a year in almost all Mennonite congregations; in most, baptism is by pouring. Most also observe the feet-washing ordinance in connection with the Supper, after which they salute one another with the "kiss of peace. " The sexes are separated in the last two ceremonies. All Mennonites baptize only on confession of faith, refuse to take oaths before magistrates, Oppose secret societies, and strictly follow the teachings of the New Testament. They have a strong intra-church program of mutual aid and a worldwide relief and eleemosynary service through their relief organization, the Mennonite Central Committee. The local congregation is more or less autonomous and authoritative, although in some instances appeals are taken to district or state conferences. The officers of the church are bishops (often called elders), ministers, and deacons (almoners). Many ministers are self-supporting, working in secular employment when not occupied with the work of the church. Other officers are appointed for Sunday school, young people's work, and so forth. The Amish movement within the ranks of the Mennonites takes its name from Jacob Amman, a Swiss (Bernese) Mennonite bishop of the late seventeenth century, who insisted upon strict adherence to the confession of faith, especially in the matter of shunning excommunicated members. This literalism brought about a separation in Switzerland in 1693; about 200 years later, the divided bodies, with the exception of three Amish groups, were reunited. Early Amish immigrants to the U. S. concentrated in Pennsylvania and spread into Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Nebraska, other western states, and Canada. Many Amish, distinguished by their severely plain clothing, are found in the Conservative Amish Mennonite Church and Old Order Amish Mennonite Church. They are still the literalists of the movement, clinging tenaciously to the "Pennsylvania Dutch" language and seventeenth-century culture of their Swiss-German forebears. They oppose automobiles, telephones, and higher education, and are recognized as extremely efficient farmers. Mennonite Sects: Beachy Amish Mennonite Churches Church of God in Christ, Mennonite Conservative Mennonite Conference Evangelical Mennonite Church Fellowship of Evangelical Bible Churches General Conference Mennonite Church Hutterian Brethren Mennonite Brethren Church of North America Mennonite Church Old Order Church Old Order (Wisler) Mennonite Church Reformed Mennonite Church Unaffiliated Mennonite Return to Menu METHODIST Beginning as a movement within the Church of England, Methodism expanded over the years between 1738 and 1790 under the leadership of John and Charles Wesley. The direct and warm action of the Holy Spirit infused and vivified the formal and often perfunctory liturgy. And though Methodism remains history-minded and respectful of liturgy, it typically has been concerned with ministry to the poor and disadvantaged, expressing its faith in compassion for the human condition. In a variety of ways, the witness of the Spirit has been an impelling force-for worship, love of neighbor, personal piety, and evangelization. Strong in the U. S. from its inception in 1784, its breadth of distribution brings it close to being the national church. England's famed Oxford University has been called the cradle of lost causes, but at least one cause born there has not been lost-Methodism. Known and ridiculed at Oxford in 1729, today it claims some 13 million adherents in North America, more than 18 million around the world. The Oxford Methodists, a tiny group of methodically religious students (also dubbed Bible Bigots, Bible Moths, and the Holy Club) who gave stated time to prayer and Bible reading, numbered among their members John and Charles Wesley and George Whitefield. The Wesley brothers were sons of a Church of England clergyman; with the other members of the Holy Club, they stood their ground against jeering students and went out to preach and pray with the poor and desperate commoners of England-prisoners in jail, paupers in hovels, bitter and nearly hopeless "underdogs of a British society that was perilously close to moral and spiritual collapse." Methodism began on a campus and reached for the masses. The Wesleys arrived in Georgia in 1736. Charles came as secretary to General Oglethorpe, and John was sent by the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel to be a missionary to the Indians. It was an unsuccessful and unhappy two years for John, with but one bright spot: On shipboard en route to the colonies, he met a group of Moravians and was deeply impressed by their piety and humble Christian way of life. When he returned to London later, he went to the meeting of a religious society in Aldersgate Street. There he heard the preacher read Luther's Preface to the Epistle to the Romans , and he felt his heart "strangely warmed" as the meaning of the Reformer's doctrine of "justification by faith" sank into his soul. That was the evangelistic spark that energized his life and started the flame of Wesleyan revival in England. From the pious Moravians, via Wesley, came the warmhearted emphases upon conversion and holiness which still are the central themes of Methodism. Methodism was primarily a lay movement. Wesley did his best to keep it within the Church of England; an evangelical party grew within that church, but the greater numbers recruited from among the unchurched made a separate organization imperative. In 1739 Wesley drew up a set of general rules, which are still held by modem Methodists, and an ideal delineation of Bible rules and conduct. A Deed of Declaration in 1784 gave legal status to the yearly Methodist conference. But John Wesley died in 1791, before Methodism in England became a recognized church, the Wesleyan Methodist Connection. In 1776, there were fewer than 7, 000 Methodists, and they seemed doomed to disappear as quickly as they had gathered. The majority of preachers had come from England; they were incurably British and were so roughly handled by the patriots that by 1779, nearly all had fled either to Canada or home to England. Wesley's pro-British attitude also aroused resentment, and Francis Asbury, working almost single handedly, found it difficult to keep some of the churches alive. But a miracle happened; of all the religious groups in the colonies, the Methodist alone actually seemed to prosper during the Revolution. By the end of the war, the membership had grown to 14,000 and there were nearly 80 preachers. It was now an American church, free of both England and the Church of England. Wesley accepted the inevitable; he ordained ministers for the colonies and appointed Asbury and Thomas Coke as superintendents. Coke brought with him from England certain instructions from Wesley, a service book and a hymnal, and authority to proceed with the organization. The Christmas Conference, held at Baltimore in December 1784, organized the Methodist Episcopal Church and elected Coke and Asbury as superintendents (later called bishops). The Sunday Service (an abridgment of The Book of Common Prayer) and Articles of Religion were adopted as written by John Wesley, but another article was added: that as good patriots, Methodists should vow allegiance to the United States government. The first general conference of the new church, made up solely of ministers, was held in 1792. It was not until 1872 that the laity was admitted to what had then become a quadrennial general conference. Membership soared: From 14,000 in 37 circuits at the close of the Revolution, by the middle of the following century it had increased to 1,324,000. Methodism not only swept through the cities; it also developed an amazing strength in small towns and rural areas. Circuit riders, ministers on horseback who traveled the expanding frontier, went everywhere-to mountain cabins, prairie churches, schoolhouses, and camp meetings- preaching free grace and individual responsibility and the need for conversion and regeneration. Their itinerant ministry was perfectly adapted to the democratic society of the frontier. The Methodist Book Concern was established in 1789, putting into the saddlebags of the circuit riders a religious literature that followed the march of the American empire south and west. The camp meeting, born among the Presbyterians, was adopted by the Methodists and exploited to the limit. Its revivalistic flavor and method were made to order for the followers of Wesley and Whitefield. All was not peaceful, however, among the Methodists; divisions came. Objecting to what they considered abuses of the episcopal system, several bodies broke away. In 1844 came the most devastating split of all, the bisecting of the Methodist Episcopal Church into the Methodist Episcopal Church, the northern body, and the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, organized in 1845. The cause of this major split was, of course, slavery. Bishop Andrew, a Georgian, owned slaves through inheritance, and his wife also was a slaveholder. It was not possible for them to free their slaves under the laws of Georgia, but the general conference of 1844, held in New York City, requested that the bishop desist from the exercise of his office while he remained a slaveholder. Incensed, the southern delegates rebelled, a provisional plan of separation was formulated, and the southerners went home to organize their own church. Basic to the separation was the constitutional question of the power of the general conference, which, the southerners maintained, assumed supreme power in virtually deposing a bishop who had violated no law of the church and against whom no charges had been brought. It was a split that concerned neither doctrine nor polity; purely political and social. However, in 1939, the Methodist Episcopal Church, the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, and the Methodist Protestant Church were reunited at Kansas City, Missouri. The uniting conference of that year adopted a new constitution in three sections: an abridgment of the Articles of Religion drawn up by John Wesley; the General Rules, covering the conduct of church members and the duties of church officials; and the Articles of Organization and Government, outlining the organization and conduct of conferences and local churches. This constitution cannot be changed by any general conference unless and until every annual conference has acted upon the proposed changes. In matters of faith, there has been very little occasion for confusion or difference; doctrinal quarrels have been noticeably absent. Historically, Methodists have never built theological fences to keep anyone out; they have stressed the foundation beliefs of Protestantism and offered common theological ground. Not all the churches repeat the Apostles' Creed in their worship, though the discipline of the church provides for its use in formal worship. The theology is Arminian, as interpreted by Wesley in his sermons, his Notes on the New Testament, and his Articles of Religion. The church preaches and teaches the doctrines of the Trinity, the natural sinfulness of humankind, its fall and the need of conversion and repentance, freedom of the will, justification by faith, sanctification and holiness, future rewards and punishments, the sufficiency of the Scriptures for salvation, the enabling grace of God, and perfection. Two sacraments, baptism and the Lord's Supper, are observed; baptism is administered to both infants and adults, usually by sprinkling. Membership-full, preparatory, or affiliate (for those away from their home church who wish to affiliate where they live)-is based upon confession of faith or by letter of transfer from other evangelical churches; admission of children to membership is usually limited to those 13 years of age or over, though in the South the age may be a few years younger . There is wide freedom in the interpretation and practice of all doctrines; liberals and conservatives work in close harmony. The local churches of Methodism are called charges; ministers are appointed by the bishop at the annual conference, and each church elects its own Administrative Board, which initiates planning and sets goals and policies on the local level; it is composed of staff members, chairs of various committees, those representing various program interests, and members at large. Charge, annual, and general conferences prevail in most Methodist bodies; while the government is popularly called episcopal, it is largely governmental, through this series of conferences. The charge conference meets at the local church or on the circuit, with the district superintendent presiding. It fixes the salary of the pastor, elects the church officers, and sends delegates to the annual conference; it may delegate responsibility for many of these duties to the administrative board. Some areas have a district conference between the charge and the annual conference, but it is not a universal arrangement. Annual conferences cover defined geographic areas; they ordain and admit ministers, vote on constitutional questions, supervise pensions and relief, exchange pastors with other annual conferences through acts of the bishop; every fourth year, they elect lay and ministerial delegates to the general conference. The general conference is the lawmaking body of the church, meeting quadrennially; the bishops preside, and the work of the conference is done largely in committees, whose reports then may be adopted by the general conference. Worship and liturgy are based upon the English prayer book, with widespread modifications. The language of the prayer book is much in evidence in the sacraments of Methodist churches. In many forms of worship, however, each congregation is free to use or change the accepted pattern as it sees fit. Of the 23 separate Methodist bodies in the U. S., The United Methodist Church is numerically the strongest. Return to Menu Methodist Sects: African Methodist Episcopal Church African Methodist Episcopal Christian Methodist Episcopal Church Congregational Methodist Church Evangelical Methodist Church First Congregational Methodist Church of the U.S.A. Free Methodist Church of North America Primitive Methodist Church, U.S.A. Reformed Methodist Union Episcopal Church Reformed Zion Union Apostolic Church Southern Methodist Church Union American Methodist Episcopal Church United Methodist Church, The Return to Menu METROPOLITAN COMMUNITY CHURCHES, UNIVERSAL FELLOWSHIP OF MISSIONARY CHURCH MORAVIAN Moravian Sects: Moravian Church (Unitas Fratrum) Unity of the Brethren Return to Menu NEW APOSTOLIC CHURCH OF NORTH AMERICA OLD CATHOLIC Old Catholic churches in the U. S. are outgrowths of the Old Catholic movement of Europe. The European bodies originated in a protest against the doctrine of papal infallibility adopted by the Catholic Vatican Council of 1870; Roman priests in Germany who refused to accept the doctrine were excommunicated and organized the Old Catholic Church under the leadership of Ignatz von Döllinger in 1871. A similar break occurred in Holland and Switzerland where other Old Catholic churches were established. This revolt did not break completely with Roman Catholicism. Although it rejected papal infallibility, the doctrine of immaculate conception, compulsory celibacy of the priesthood, and, in some instances, the filioque clause of the Nicene Creed, it kept many of the other doctrines, creeds, customs, and liturgies of the Roman Catholic Church. It also was most anxious to preserve the orders and apostolic succession of its priests and bishops, inasmuch as the apostolic succession was considered vital to a valid Christian ministry. Much confusion has resulted in conflicting claims of succession and validity of orders, especially in American Old Catholic churches. All Old Catholic bodies in this country were at one time connected with European bodies, but that is not true today; most American groups have severed those connections. Although separated and competing, Old Catholics in the U. S. have a common doctrinal basis similar to that held by the Greek and Latin churches before those bodies separated, though the Old Catholic is now more Eastern than Western. It accepts the seven ecumenical councils of the church held before the division. Bible reading is encouraged, and national tongues, rather than Latin, are used in all worship. Orthodoxy and rationalism are strangely blended in both doctrine and ritual. Five main divisions of Old Catholic churches exist in the U. S., with an approximate total of 500,000 members in 100 churches-Mariavite Old Catholic Church, Old Roman Catholic Church (English rite), North American Old Roman Catholic Church, Christ Catholic Church of America and Europe (no information available aside from membership-7,100 in 24 churches), and the American Catholic Church (Syro-Antiochian). The African Orthodox Church, a black group, is often listed as an Old Catholic body, but it actually is Protestant Episcopalian in origin and connection. The Polish National Catholic Church might be said to have certain Old Catholic origins and doctrines, but it has been listed separately in this book, in consideration of its distinctively nationalistic character. The Liberal Catholic Church is also related to the Old Catholic movement. Old Catholic Sects: Mariavite Old Catholic Church North American Old Roman Catholic Churches Old Roman Catholic Church (English Rite) Return to Menu OPEN BIBLE STANDARD CHURCHES, INC. ORTHODOX (EASTERN) A major sector of historic Christianity, the Eastern Orthodox tradition claims direct descent from Christ and the Apostles. For the first thousand years, the Eastern and the Roman were two branches of the same church. In 1054, an official division occurred with mutual excommunication. Since then, Orthodoxy has lived in a number of distinct organizational forms, usually national churches such as the Greek, Romanian, Russian, and Syrian. The focus is on worship, liturgically conducted. The church acknowledges the creeds produced by the first seven Ecumenical Councils and shares many prayers, litanies, and eucharistic forms with the Roman church. Orthodoxy is unusually sight-oriented, creating for worship a variety of icons meant to represent the reality of God, which make the setting quite elaborate in color, shape, and brightness. When Constantine moved his capital from Rome in A.D. 330 and began to rule his vast empire from the new Constantinople (formerly Byzantium), the most important split in the history of Christianity was underway. In the East there were four patriarchs, each traditionally equal with the fifth patriarch, the pope of Rome; all accepted the Nicene Creed and all were sacramental and apostolic. There were, however, certain basic differences that made for confusion; racially, socially, linguistically, mentally, morally, and philosophically, deep gulfs existed. The East was Greek in blood and speech; the West was Latin. The transference of the capital from West to East meant a shifting of the center of political, social, and intellectual influence. When the Goths swept down upon Rome, that city turned for help-not to Constantinople, but to the Franks; in gratitude for the aid of Charles the Great, the pope crowned him emperor on Christmas Day in 800, and the Roman Church became coterminous with the Holy Roman Empire. Conflict deepened between the pope at Rome and the patriarch at Constantinople. In 857 Ignatius of Constantinople refused to administer the sacrament to Caesar Bardas on the ground that he was immoral. Tried and imprisoned by the emperor, Ignatius was succeeded by Photius, an intellectual giant for whom the weaker pope was no match. Their increasing friction broke into flame at the Council of St. Sophia, where Photius bitterly condemned the Latin church for adding the word filioque to the Nicene Creed. The Eastern church held that the Holy Spirit proceeded directly from the Father; the Western church had adopted the view that the Spirit proceeded from the Father and the Son-filioque. Political and ecclesiastical jealousies fanned the flame until, in 1054, the pope and the patriarch excommunicated each other, the result being two churches, Eastern and Western. The pope remained head of the Western church; at that moment, in the East, four patriarchs were guiding the destiny of Eastern Orthodoxy. This is important to an understanding of the Eastern Orthodox Church. It is not a monarchy with one all-powerful ruler at the top, but "an oligarchy of patriarchs," based on the body of bishops and responsible to local, or general, church councils. No one patriarch is responsible to any other patriarch; yet all are within the jurisdiction of an ecumenical council of all the churches, in communion with the patriarch of Constantinople, who holds the title Ecumenical Patriarch. Today Christendom remains divided into three principal sections: Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox (frequently referred to as the Greek church), and Protestant. The Eastern Orthodox Church consists of those churches that accept the decisions and decrees of the first general church councils-two at Nicea, three at Constantinople, one at Ephesus, one at Chalcedon-and those of other churches that originated in missionary activities and have grown to self-government but still maintain communion with their parent churches. Certain Eastern bodies refused to accept the christological definition of the Council of Chalcedon (451) and are generally referred to as Ancient Eastern churches-Syrian-Antiochian, Malabar Syrian, Armenian, Copt of Egypt, and Ethiopian. Claiming to be "the direct heir and true conservator" of the original primitive church, Eastern Orthodoxy has tended to divide into independent national and social groups-Syrian, Russian, Serbian, Bulgarian, Romanian, Albanian, Greek, Georgian. These groups have struggled for existence, caught between Arab, Tartar, Turkish, and Western armies in endless wars. Generally, it may be said that Greek Christianity became the faith of the people of the Middle East and the Slavs in Europe, while Latin Christianity became the religion of Western Europe and the New World. There are at present four ancient Eastern Orthodox patriarchates (Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch, and Jerusalem), with the modem patriarchates of Russia, Serbia, Romania, Bulgaria, and Georgia. In 1970, the former Russian Orthodox Greek Catholic Church in North America was granted autocephaly, with the new name Orthodox Church in America. Mount Sinai, Cyprus, and the national Orthodox churches of Greece, Albania, Finland, Poland, Japan, and Czechoslovakia have autonomous status. In the U. S. today, Albanian, Bulgarian, Greek, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Ukrainian, Carpatho-Russian, and Syrian churches are under the supervision of bishops of their respective nationalities and usually are related to their respective mother churches in tradition and spirit, if not in administration. The patriarch of Moscow and of Alexandria each has jurisdiction over a few parishes. The Nicene Creed in its original form (without the filioque clause) is recited in all liturgies and in various other services, the Eastern churches holding that a "creed is an adoring confession of the church engaged in worship"; its faith is expressed more fully in its liturgy than in doctrinal statement. Actually the basis lies in the decisions and statements of the seven ecumenical councils which defined the faith of the early undivided church against the heresies of the period, and in the later statements which defined the position of the Orthodox Church of the East with regard to the doctrine and practices of the Roman Catholic and Protestant churches. The dogma of the pope as the sole vicar of Christ on earth" is rejected, together with that of papal infallibility. Members of Orthodox churches honor the Virgin as theotokos but do not dogmatize on the immaculate conception. They reverence the cross, the saints, and nine orders of angels, but reject the teaching of the surplus merits of the saints and the doctrine of indulgences. Icons (consecrated pictures) of revered persons or events are honored, and bas-relief is permitted in some groups, but the use of carved images is forbidden. There are seven sacraments: baptism, anointing (confirmation or chrismation), Communion, penance, holy orders, marriage, and holy unction. Infants and adults are baptized by threefold immersion. The confirmation sacrament of anointing with chrism, or holy oil, is administered immediately after baptism. Holy unction is administered to the sick, but not always as a last rite. The Holy Eucharist is the chief service on all Sundays and holy days, and all Orthodox churches teach that the consecrated bread and wine are the body and blood of Christ. Purgatory is denied, but prayers are offered for the dead; and it is believed that the dead pray for those on earth. For justification, both faith and works are considered necessary. Government is episcopal. There is usually a council of bishops, clergy, and laypeople, and a synod of bishops, over which an elected archbishop, metropolitan, or patriarch presides. In the U. S. each jurisdiction is incorporated, with a church assembly of bishops, clergy, and laity. There are three orders in the ministry: deacons (who assist in parish work and in administering the sacraments), priests, and bishops. Deacons and priests may be either secular or monastic; candidates for the deaconate and the priesthood may marry before ordination but are forbidden to marry thereafter. Bishops are chosen from members of the monastic communities; all belong to the monastic rule of St. Basil the Great and are under lifelong vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience. Church services are elaborately ritualistic; the liturgy of Holy Communion is a reenactment of the gospel story. Churches in the U. S. pray for the President, Congress, the armed forces, and all in places of lawful civil authority. Membership statistics are confusing and often unreliable, inasmuch as membership is based on baptismal records rather than communicant status. Having received their first Communion immediately after baptism and confirmation (chrismation), when they reach the age of seven, children must go to confession before taking Communion. Parish membership is frequently determined by the number of males over 21 (often the male head of each family is the voting member in the parish organization). There probably are more than 3 million Orthodox church members in the U. S. It must be kept clear, however, that other so-called Orthodox churches in the U. S. are not recognized as canonically "Orthodox". These irregular Eastern churches might be called autogenic, or self-starting, but they cannot properly be called Orthodox, since Orthodox churches must be in canonical relationship with the Patriarch of Constantinople and with one another. Orthodox (Eastern) Sects: Albanian Orthodox Archdiocese in America American Carpatho-Russian Orthodox Greek Catholic Church American Holy Orthodox Catholic Eastern Church Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America Bulgarian Eastern Orthodox Church Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of North and South America Romanian Orthodox Episcopate of America Russian Orthodox Church Serbian Eastern Orthodox Chruch in the U.S.A. and Canada Syrian Orthodox Church of Antioch Ukranian Orthodox Churches Return to Menu PENTECOSTAL Described by a term that refers to the first Pentecost, which took place fifty days after Christ's resurrection, when the Spirit enabled Christians to speak in unfamiliar languages, these conservative Protestants have grown rapidly since their modern beginnings in the U. S. around 1900. They believe that through the Holy Spirit, what happened during Pentecost can happen now. In fact, seeking and receiving the gift of tongues is regarded as a sign of the baptism of the Holy Spirit, itself requisite to full discipleship. Other Spirit gifts-healing, love, joy, answers to prayer-also make up Pentecostals' experience of God. Although they differ somewhat in doctrine and practice, both black and white churches participate in the Pentecostal movement. Once largely confined to the uneducated in rural areas, this group has attained strength in many socioeconomic sectors. The term Neo-Pentecostalism has been used recently to describe the direct Spirit action concerned with "speaking in tongues" which is now quite common in churches whose liturgies historically were very different from those of Pentecostal churches. Many of these revivalistic bodies have either a Methodist or a Baptist background and are primarily concerned with perfection, Holiness, and the Pentecostal experience. Their statements of faith are often long, involved, and highly repetitious, but through them run certain common strains and elements. Most believe in the Trinity, original sin, salvation through the atoning blood of Christ, the Virgin birth and deity of Jesus, the divine inspiration and literal infallibility of the Scriptures, manifestations and "blessings" of the working of the Holy Spirit-the fiery Pentecostal baptism of the Spirit, premillennialism, and future rewards and punishments. Two sacraments are found in most groups-baptism, usually by immersion, and the Lord's Supper. Feet washing is frequently observed in connection with the Supper. Many practice divine healing. Varying in size from small groups to huge mass meetings, Pentecostal churches are found in every state in the union, with greatest strength in the South, West, and Midwest. They bear a great variety of names that do not always include the word Pentecostal-for instance, the largest single group, Assemblies of God, with more than 2 million members, and most of the Church of God groups. No accurate count of total membership is possible, since some never issue statistical reports. Return to Menu Assemblies of God, General Council of The largest of the Pentecostal bodies, with 2,160,667 members and 11,004 churches, the General Council of the Assemblies of God is actually a group of churches and assemblies that joined together at Hot Springs, Arkansas, in 1914. The founders were former pastors of evangelical persuasion who wished to unite in the interest of more effective preaching and an enlarged missionary crusade. Ardently fundamentalist, its theology is Arminian; there is strong belief in the infallibility and inspiration of the Bible, the fall and redemption of the human race, baptism in the Holy Spirit, a life of holiness and separation from the world, divine healing, the second Advent of Jesus and his millennial reign, eternal punishment for the wicked, and eternal bliss for believers. Two ordinances, baptism and the Lord's Supper, are practiced. They are especially insistent that baptism in the Holy Spirit be evidenced by speaking in tongues. The Assemblies of God believe that all the gifts of the Spirit should be evident in the normal New Testament church. The government of the assemblies is an unusual mixture of presbyterian and congregational systems. Local churches are independent in polity and in the conduct of local affairs. District officers have a pastoral ministry to all the churches and are responsible for the promotion of home missions. Work is divided into 57 districts in the U. S. and Puerto Rico, including 10 foreign-language districts, each with a district presbytery that examines, licenses, and ordains pastors. The General Council consists of all ordained ministers; licensed ministers are members of district councils. Local churches are represented by one lay delegate each. This biennial General Council elects general officers, sets the doctrinal standards, and provides for church expansion and development. Missionary work is conducted under the guidance of a central missionary committee; there are 1,530 foreign missionaries at work on a missionary budget of $84,265,837-unusually high among Protestant churches. A weekly periodical, The Pentecostal Evangel, has a circulation of approximately 300,000; a prosperous church press produces books, tracts, and other religious literature. In the U. S. there are eight Bible colleges; two Arts and Sciences colleges; six institutes; a nontraditional college and a seminary in Springfield, Missouri; and 299 Bible schools abroad. An international weekly radio program, "Revival time," is broadcast on 548 stations. Pentecostal Sects: Assemblies of God, The Elim Fellowship Emmanuel Holiness Church Independent Assemblies of God, International International Pentecostal Church of Christ Pentecostal Assemblies of the World, Inc. Pentecostal Church of God Pentecostal Free-Will Baptist Church, Inc. Pentecostal Holiness Church, International United Pentecostal Church International Return to Menu PILLAR OF FIRE PLYMOUTH BRETHREN POLISH NATIONAL CATHOLIC CHURCH OF AMERICA PRESBYTERIAN Originating between 1534 and 1560 with the Protestant theological program of John Calvin in France and Switzerland, Presbyterian refers to a church governed by presbyters (representatives). This church places great emphasis on the theology of God's sovereignty over the world and people's lives, and on people's response to God's authority and will, known through Word and Spirit. More cerebral and verbal than emotional and aesthetic, it values understanding, learning, and propriety. Because of its covenantal understanding of the relation between God and people, it stresses active human responsibility. In the U. S., strongest among people of middle-class Scots and Scots-Irish descent, it has fostered many colleges and exercised cultural influence far beyond its size. Presbyterianism has two firm and deep roots: One leads to the Greek presbuteros, "elder," and has to do with the system of church government of ancient and apostolic times; the other leads to John Calvin and the Protestant Reformation, and pertains to the form of government used by all people who call themselves Presbyterian and hold the faith of the Reformed churches. Calvin (1509-1564) was French and trained in the law. Turning to theology, his keen legalistic mind and lust for freedom from the rigid, confining forms of Roman Catholicism drove him as a fugitive to Geneva, where he quickly grasped the reins of leadership in the Reformed sector. Calvin's whole thought revolved around the concept of sovereignty: "The sovereignty of God in his universe, the sovereignty of Christ in salvation, the sovereignty of the Scriptures in faith and conduct, the sovereignty of the individual conscience in the interpretation of the Will and Word of God. " His system has been summarized in five main points: human impotence, unconditional predestination, limited atonement, irresistible grace, and final perseverance. God, according to Calvin, is the sovereign and eternal ruler of the world; humans are completely dominated by and dependent upon God. Out of Calvinism came miracles of reform; few have made as many contributions in so many fields at once-education, building of an intelligent ministry, liberation of the oppressed and persecuted, and establishment of democratic forms of government in both church and state. In Calvin's thoughts lay the germ that in time destroyed the divine right of kings. He gave a new dignity to the people and brought representative government to their parliaments and church councils. He struck the final blow at feudalism and offered a spiritual and moral tone for dawning capitalism. Strictly speaking, John Calvin did not found Presbyterianism; he merely laid the foundations upon which it was constructed-in Switzerland, Holland, France, England, Scotland, and Ireland; From France came the Huguenots, and by 1560, there were in that country 2,000 churches of Presbyterian complexion; the people of Holland established the Dutch Reformed Church; British Presbyterians gained courage in their struggle against "Bloody" Mary Tudor; and from Scotland came the Covenanters and John Knox. A delegation of Scots sat in the Westminster Assembly of Divines (1643-1648) with 121 English ministers, 10 peers, and 20 members of the House of Commons. They resolved to have "no bishop, and no king. .. That assembly, a milestone in Presbyterian history, met in 1,163 sessions at the call of Parliament, to resolve the struggle over the compulsory use of the Anglican Book of Common Prayer. Those sessions produced a Larger and a Shorter Catechism; a directory for the public worship of God; a form of government; and the Westminster Confession of Faith, which, built upon the Old and New Testaments, became the doctrinal standard of Scottish, British, and American Presbyterianism. Dominant in the Westminster Assembly, Presbyterians soon also dominated the British government. Oliver Cromwell completed the ousting of the monarch and established a commonwealth. The commonwealth subsequently crashed, the monarchy returned, the fires of persecution flamed again, and British Presbyterians fled to America with the Puritans. An attempt to establish episcopacy in Scotland after 1662 sent many Presbyterians out of Scotland into Ireland, where economic difficulties and religious inequalities then drove them on to America. From 1710 until mid-century, between 3,000 to 6,000 arrived annually, settling at first in New England and the middle colonies. Those British and Scots-Irish spread Presbyterianism throughout America. But there were Presbyterian congregations in the colonies long before their arrival. One was worshiping in Virginia in 1611; others were underway in Massachusetts and Connecticut in 1630. Long Island and New York had congregations by 1640 and 1643, respectively. Presbyterian Sects: Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church Bible Presbyterian Church Cumberland Presbyterian Church Orthodox Presbyterian Church Presbyterian Church in America, The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.): The Southern Church The National Church The New Church Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America Second Cumberland Presbyterian Church of the United States Return to Menu REFORMED Reformed Sects: Christian Reformed Church in North America Hungarian Reformed Church in America Netherlands Reformed Congregations Protestant Reformed Churches in America Reformed Church in America Reformed Church in the United States Return to Menu ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH For the first 1,500 years of Christianity's history, the Western world was almost solidly Roman Catholic. In the eleventh century, Eastern Christianity went its independent way to form Eastern Orthodoxy in a number of national churches. Then the Protestant Reformation of the sixteenth century disrupted the unity of the Western church, leaving Europe divided among Roman Catholic, Lutheran, Anglican, Anabaptist, and Reformed, with the prospect of still further divisions as denominationalism increased. The Roman Catholic Church dates its beginning from the moment of Christ's selection of the apostle Peter as guardian of the keys of heaven and earth and chief of the apostles, and it claims the fisherman as its first pope. During the second, third, and fourth centuries its claim to the theological primacy of Rome was reinforced by practical developments in the church and Western society. It gained temporal authority and power when it arose as the only body strong enough to rule after the fall of Rome in A. D. 410. A house of terror, ravaged first by Goths, Vandals, and Franks, then by Saxons, Danes, Alemanni, Lombards, and Burgundians, Europe found its only steadying hand in the church. Without the church, anarchy would have been king from Britain to the Bosphorus. The first mention of the term catholic (universal) was made by Ignatius about AD.110-115, but the first real demonstration of its authority came in Rome as it won the barbarians to its banners while it kept the flame of faith burning in its churches and the candle of wisdom alive in its monastic schools. Augustine (345-430) deeply influenced its theological and philosophical structure and gave the papacy its finest justification and defense. He left it strong enough to grant crowns or deny them to Europe's heads of state. The church beat back the threats of its enemies at home and afar; it converted the barbarian, defeated the Saracen, and employed the Inquisition against the heretic boring from within. It brought the hopeful interval known as the Peace of God; it also supported chivalry and feudalism, mounted the Crusades, built schools, and created a noble art and literature. For long centuries, the Benedictine monasteries guarded and preserved learning and culture in Europe. That order was founded in 529 in Italy by St. Benedict; since then, more than 4 million men have practiced the Benedictine rule of life. Centuries later in 1209, St. Francis of Assisi established the Franciscan order, and at about the same time. St. Dominic began his Order of Friars Preachers (Dominicans). Inevitably there arose temptations of power within and prosperity from the outside. Then came the Reformation. Roman Catholic scholars readily admit that there were corrupt individuals within the church and reform was necessary. Indeed, reform was underway even before the Reformation; Martin Luther was a reformer within the church before he broke away. Erasmus and Savonarola wrote and preached against the corruption and worldliness of certain Roman Catholic leaders and lay people, but they stayed within the church. That these reformers had a case is not denied by Roman Catholic historians or scholars; they do, however, maintain that while priests and bishops, and even popes, may err, the one true church cannot err, and Luther was wrong in rebelling. But rebel he did, and the Roman church suffered its most fateful division. There were also other reasons for the revolt: the growth of nationalism and secularism; ambitious political princes and rulers, who wanted no interference from the church; the Renaissance, with its revival of Greek and Roman pagan influences. All those forces worked together to produce the Reformation. The Counter Reformation, focused in the Council of Trent (1545-1563), was effective in halting the spread of new Protestantism in Europe and won back some areas to the Roman Catholic Church and faith; one of its chief instruments was the Society of Jesus (Jesuits), an educational and missionary order founded by Ignatius of Loyola in 1534. In 1634 Roman Catholics founded Maryland; later they were restricted by law in Maryland and most other colonies, and the restrictions were not lifted until after the Revolution. In the face of these restrictions, and in view of the fact that most colonial immigrants were Protestants, the Roman Catholic Church grew slowly. In 1696, only seven Catholic families were in New York, and 80 years later they were still traveling to Philadelphia to receive the sacraments. In 1763 there were fewer than 25,000 Catholics in a population of 2.2 million, and they were under the jurisdiction of the vicar apostolic of London. There was no immediate hierarchical superior in the U. S. when the war ended, and the vicar apostolic in London refused to exercise jurisdiction over the "rebels. " After long investigation and delay and an appeal to Rome, the Reverend John Carroll was named Superior, or prefect apostolic, of the church in the 13 original states. At that time, 15,800 Catholics resided in Maryland, 700 in Pennsylvania, 200 in Virginia, and 1,500 in New York, unorganized and with no priests. At the turn of the century, there were about 150,000 Roman Catholics in 80 churches; by 1890 there were 6,231,417-a growth due primarily to the flood of emigration from the Catholic countries of Europe. The Civil War and two world wars failed to disturb the work of the church or interrupt its growth; indeed, World War I produced one of the ablest hierarchal Roman Catholic agencies in the country-the National War Council, now known as the United States Catholic Conference. There were 18,608,003 Catholics in the U. S. in 1926. In 1988 the Roman Catholic Church, the largest church in the U. S., reported 53,500,000 members in approximately 19,596 churches. About 22 percent of the American people identified themselves as Roman Catholics. The faith and doctrine of Catholicism are founded upon "that deposit of faith given to it by Christ and through his apostles, sustained by the Bible and by tradition. " Thus the church accepts the Apostles' Creed, the Nicene-Constantinople Creed, the Athanasian Creed, and the Creed of Pius IV, also called the Creedal Statement of the Council of Trent. Roman Catholics, like the Eastern Orthodox, believe in seven sacraments. Baptism, necessary for membership in the church, is administered to infants and adults by pouring or immersion; anointing with the holy chrism in the form of a cross follows baptism. Confirmation is by the laying on of hands; the ordinary minister of this sacrament is the bishop, but priests also may confirm. The laity usually receive the Eucharist in the form of bread alone; the body and blood of Christ are considered actually present in the eucharistic elements. Through the sacrament of penance, post-baptismal sins are forgiven. Anointing of the sick is for the seriously ill, injured, or aged. The sacrament of holy orders is for the ordination of deacons, priests, and bishops. Marriage is a sacrament that "cannot be dissolved by any human power"; this rules out remarriage after divorce. Members are required to attend Mass on Sundays and on obligatory holy days, fast and abstain on certain appointed days, confess at least once a year, receive the Holy Eucharist during the Easter season, contribute to the support of pastors, and strictly observe the marriage regulations of the church. The central act of worship is the Mass; its two principal parts are the liturgy of the Word and the eucharistic liturgy. From the third century until 1963, the Western church prescribed Latin as the liturgical language; now the entire Mass is recited in the vernacular by both priest and people. Many Catholics also participate in devotions such as the benedictions, rosary, stations of the cross, novenas, and Bible vigils. The government of the Roman Catholic Church is hierarchical, but lay members of the parishes assume much responsibility. The trend since Vatican Council II (1962-1965) is toward more and more lay participation. At the head of the structure stands the pope, who is also Bishop of Rome and "Vicar of Christ on earth and the Visible Head of the Church. " His authority is supreme in all matters of faith and discipline. Next is the College of Cardinals. Although lay people once were appointed as cardinals, the office has been limited to priests since 1918. Many cardinals live in Rome, acting as advisors to the pope or as heads or members of the various congregations or commissions that supervise the administration of the church. When a pope dies, cardinals elect the successor, and hold authority in the interim. The Roman Curia is the official body of administrative offices through which the pope governs the church; it is composed of congregations, tribunals, and curial offices. An archbishop is in charge of an archdiocese and has precedence in that province. Bishops, appointed by Rome, usually upon suggestions from the U. S. hierarchy, are the ruling authorities in the dioceses, but appeals from their decisions may be taken to the apostolic delegate at Washington, and even to Rome. The parish priest, responsible to the bishop, is appointed by the bishop or archbishop and holds authority to celebrate Mass and administer the sacraments, with the help of such other priests as the parish may need. The clergy of the church also includes deacons. Since the restoration of the Permanent Deaconate in 1967, more than 5,400 men have completed the training course and been ordained deacons. Most of these men are married and over 35. They are empowered to preach, baptize, distribute Holy Communion, and officiate at weddings. Most deacons support themselves in secular jobs and exercise their ministry during weekends and evenings. Seminarians study for orders in divinity schools; some 8,000 are in diocesan and religious-order seminaries. The usual course covers a period of eight years-four years of philosophy and four years of theology. Those in religious orders also spend one to two years in a novitiate. Three ecclesiastical councils form an important part of the Catholic system: (1) The general, or ecumenical, council is called by the pope or with his consent; it is composed of all the bishops, and its actions on matters of doctrine and discipline must be approved by the pope; (2) the plenary , or national, council is made up of the bishops of a given country; its acts, too, must submitted to the Holy See; (3) provincial and diocesan councils make further promulgation and application of the decrees passed by the other councils and approved by the pope. In 1968 Paul VI reaffirmed the official church position against any form of birth control except total or partial abstinence. Many theologians, priests, and lay people protested this, voicing opposition to the encyclical Humanae Vitae; the hierarchies of such countries as France, Canada, Belgium, Holland, Switzerland, Austria, and West Germany interpreted the papal position in the light of freedom of the individual conscience. With the most centralized government in Christendom, the Holy See at Rome has representatives in many countries of the world. Roman Catholic churches have been established in 217 countries, with a total membership of more than 650 million. The majority of Italians, Spanish, Irish, Austrians, Poles, Latin Americans, Belgians, Hungarians, Southern Germans, Portugese, French, and Filipinos are baptized Roman Catholics. The Society for the Propagation of the Faith is the overall representative missionary body. The U. S. has sent about 7,500 missionaries to 110 foreign countries. Education has been a primary concern of American Catholics since the establishment of a classical school at St. Augustine, Florida, in 1606. As of 1988 there were 8, 150 elementary parochial and private schools in this country with about 2 million students, and 1,391 Catholic high schools with at least 700,000 students. More than 565,000 students attend 233 Catholic colleges and universities, including Notre Dame, Fordham, Georgetown, Boston College, St. Louis, Marquette, Loyola, and Villanova. The Roman Catholic Church today finds itself in an era of change, tension, and some dissension. Priests now face their people as they say Mass in the vernacular of the people. Many Catholics now choose to practice confession by sitting down and discussing their sins and spiritual problems face-to-face with the priest, and many may choose one of several forms of penance. Dissension is found in the questioning of celibacy, birth control, abortion, the authority of bishops, and the anti-sex positions of many Fathers of the early church. Return to Menu SALVATION ARMY SCHWENKFELDER CHURCH SOCIAL BRETHREN SPIRITUALIST This movement is known popularly for its mediums, seances, and clairvoyance. Ouija boards, table tipping, spirit rappings and conversations have attracted thousands anxious to communicate with their departed. But Spiritualism offers genuine religious bases and connotations as well as psychic experiments. The movement has become a church. The National Spiritual Alliance (NSA) has a Declaration of Principles: 1. We believe in Infinite Intelligence. 2. We believe that the phenomena of Nature, both physical and spiritual, are the expression of Infinite Intelligence. 3. We affirm that a correct understanding of such expression, and living in accordance therewith, constitute true religion. 4. We affirm that the existence and personal identity of the individual continue after the change called death. 5. We affirm that communication with the so-called dead is a fact scientifically proven by the phenomena of Spiritualism. 6. We believe that the highest morality is contained in the Golden Rule. 7. We affirm the moral responsibility of the individual and that he makes his own happiness or unhappiness as he obeys or disobeys Nature's physical and spiritual laws. 8. We affirm that the doorway to reformation is never closed against any human soul, here or hereafter. 9. We affirm that the practice of Prophecy, as authorized by the Holy Bible, is a divine and God-given gift, reestablished and proven through mediumship by the phenomena of Spiritualism. The teaching of God as love is central in Spiritualism; the Lord's Prayer is used in both public worship and private seance. Christ is recognized as a medium; the annunciation was a message from the spirit world, the transfiguration was an opportunity for materialization of the spirits of Moses and Elias, and the resurrection was evidence that all people live on in the spirit world. The soul is often called the astral body; at death the material body dissolves, and the soul, as the body of the spirit, progresses through a series of spheres to a higher and higher existence. In two lower spheres, those of bad character or sinful record are purified and made ready for higher existences. Most of the departed are to be found in the third sphere, the summer land; beyond this are the philosopher's sphere, the advanced contemplative and intellectual sphere, the love sphere, and the Christ sphere. All reach the higher spheres eventually; Spiritualists do not believe in heaven or hell, or that any are ever lost. Services and seances are held in private homes, rented halls, or churches. Most Spiritualist churches have regular services with prayer, music, selections from the Spiritualist Manual, a sermon or lecture, and spirit messages from the departed. Churches and ministers are supported by freewill offerings; mediums and ministers also gain support from classes and seances in which fees are charged. Attendance at church services is invariably small; one authority estimates the average congregation at 20 to 25. But membership cannot be estimated on the basis of church attendance; for every enrolled member, at least 15 are not enrolled but are interested in the movement and in attending services. More than 180,000 have been reported as members, but this is not comprehensive or inclusive of all who use the services of the church. Administration and government differ slightly in the various groups, but most have district or state associations and an annual general convention. All have mediums, and most have ministers in charge of the congregations. Requirements for licensing and ordination also differ, but a determined effort is being made to raise the standards of education and character in the larger groups. Spiritualist Sects: International General Assembly of Spiritualists National Spiritual Alliance of the U.S.A. National Spiritualist Association of Churches Progressive Spiritual Church Return to Menu SWEDENBORGIAN CHURCH THEOSOPHY TRIUMPH THE CHURCH AND KINGDOM OF GOD IN CHRIST UNITARIAN UNIVERSALIST ASSOCIATION In May 1961, the Unitarian and Universalist churches in the U. S. and Canada were consolidated as the Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations in North America, one of the most influential liberal churches. The two bodies had separate and interesting origins and history . Unitarians often claimed that their thought reaches back into the early Christian centuries, before the concept of Trinitarianism developed. Unitarianism as we know it today, however, began with the Protestant Reformation, among Anti- Trinitarians and Socinians. The movement spread from independent thinkers and Anabaptists in Switzerland, Hungary, Transylvania, Holland, Poland, and Italy to England. There it found champions in such leaders as Newton, Locke, and Milton, but no attempt was made to organize the movement until late in the eighteenth century. American Unitarianism, however, developed independently, when members of the liberal wing of the Congregational Church in eastern Massachusetts, who asked that they not be required to subscribe to a creed, were branded as Unitarian. The first organized church to turn to Unitarianism as a body, however, was not a Congregational church but the Episcopal King's Chapel in Boston in 1785. In the second half of the eighteenth century many older and larger Congregational churches which moved toward Unitarianism were known as Liberal Christian. The split within Congregationalism came into the open in 1805 with the appointment of Henry Ware as professor of theology at Harvard; it was confirmed in 1819 when William Ellery Channing of Boston preached his famous Baltimore sermon outlining the Unitarian view. Channing defined the true church in these words: "By his Church our Savior does not mean a party bearing the name of a human leader, distinguished by a form or an opinion, and on the ground of this distinction, denying the name and character of Christians to all but themselves These are the church-men made better, made holy, virtuous by his religion-men who, hoping in his promises, keep his commands." Unitarians have no creed; the constitution states: "These churches accept the religion of Jesus, holding in accordance with his teaching that practical religion is summed up in the love to God and love to man." Main points in their doctrinal attitudes are the oneness of God (Trinitarianism is rejected as unscriptural); the strict humanity of Jesus. although all persons, as children of God, are divine; the perfectibility of human character (the doctrine of total depravity is denied); and the ultimate salvation of all souls. Salvation is by character; character is not an end. but a means, and salvation lies in being saved from sin here, not from punishment hereafter. Hell and eternal punishment are held to be inconsistent with the concept of a loving and all-powerful God. Heaven is a state, not a place. Unitarians do not accept the infallibility of the Bible; they believe the Bible is not a book, but a library of books, all of which cannot be accepted as of equal value and importance. Within this ideological framework, the widest possible freedom is encouraged in personal interpretation and belief; even students and teachers in Unitarian theological schools are not required to subscribe to any dogmatic teaching or doctrinal tests. Emphasis upon democratic principles, hospitality to the methods of science in seeking truth, and less concern with traditional doctrinal matters characterize the Unitarian movement. In accordance with its charter, the American Unitarian Association (1825-1961) considered itself devoted to certain moral, religious, educational, and charitable purposes. which may be as enlightening to the non-Unitarian as an analysis of its religious or doctrinal statements: 1. Diffuse the knowledge and promote the interests of religion that Jesus taught as love to God and love to man; 2. Strengthen the churches and fellowships that unite in the association for more and better work for the kingdom of God; 3. Organize new churches and fellowships for the extension of Unitarianism in our own countries and in other lands; and 4. Encourage sympathy and cooperation among religious liberals at home and abroad. Organization has always been liberally congregational; independent local churches were grouped in local, county, district, state, and regional conferences, and united in an international association for purposes of fellowship, counsel, and promotion of mutual interests. At the time of the merger, there were four Unitarian seminaries, two preparatory schools, 386 churches, and approximately 115,000 members. Foreign work is now conducted through the International Association for Religious Freedom, with headquarters at Frankfurt, West Germany; the International Association has correspondents in 65 countries. Universalists find evidence of their thinking and philosophy in many cultural streams; Universalism has much in common with several religions throughout the world. It is not exclusively a Christian denomination, having roots in both pre-Christian and contemporary world faiths; yet within the Christian frame of reference, Universalists claim roots in the early Christian Gnostics, Clement of Alexandria and Theodore of Mopsuestia, Anabaptists, and the seventeenth- and eighteenth-century German mystics. American Universalism has its direct origin in the work of George DeBenneville, a lay theologian; John Murray, a British anti-Calvinist; and Hosea Ballou, an original Universalist thinker. The Universalists met at Philadelphia in 1790 to draft their first declaration of faith and plan of government, which was established as strictly congregational. Doctrinally, they proclaimed their belief in the Scriptures as containing a revelation of the perfection and will of God, and the rule of faith and practice; faith in God; faith in Christ as a mediator who had redeemed all people by his blood; the Holy Ghost; and the obligation of moral law as the rule of life. They condemned war, but approved settling disputes out of court, abolition of slavery and education of blacks, testimony by affirmation rather than by oath, and free public education. This Philadelphia declaration was adopted by a group of New England Universalists in 1793. At about the same time, Hosea Ballou, a schoolteacher and itinerant preacher in Vermont, was ordained in the Universalist ministry. He broke radically with Murray's thought, in 1805 publishing Treatise on Atonement, which gave Universalists their first consistent philosophy. Ballou rejected the theories of total depravity, endless punishment in hell, the Trinity, and miracles. Humankind, said Ballou, was potentially good and capable of perfectibility; God, being a God of infinite love, recognized humanity's heavenly nature and loved the human race as his own offspring. The meaning of the Atonement was not found in bloody sacrifice to appease divine wrath, but in the heroic sacrifice of Jesus. Arid Jesus was not God but a Son of the universal God, who revealed the love of God and wanted to win all persons to that love. This avowedly Unitarian-Universalist statement of theology deeply influenced American Universalism. Ballou made another lasting contribution with his insistence that the base of Christian community lay not in creeds, but in mutual good faith and goodwill; from this principle came two consistent aspects of modern Universalism-a broad theological liberalism and a universal concern for people. Universalists have never had an official statement of faith or covenant. From time to time they have set down their basic principles-not to be used in any official way, but only to examine their emphases at a given moment in history. Accordingly, in successive statements, they have grown progressively more liberal and inclusive. The Philadelphia statement of 1790 had obvious Trinitarian overtones, and orthodox views on the Scriptures, God, the Mediator, and the Holy Ghost prevailed. But the Winchester Profession of 1803 humanized Jesus and thus directly opposed Trinitarianism and reemphasized salvation for all humankind; it also saw the Bible as one revelation of the character of God. In Boston, an 1899 statement of Universalist principles liberalized the doctrine still further, and in 1935 in Washington, D. C., this statement was adopted: The bond of fellowship in this Convention shall be a common purpose to do the will of God as Jesus revealed it and to cooperate in establishing the kingdom for which He lived and died. To that end we avow our faith in God as Eternal and All-Conquering Love, in the spiritual leadership of Jesus, in the supreme worth of every human personality, in the authority of truth known or to be known, and in the power of men of good will and sacrificial spirit to overcome all evil and progressively establish the kingdom of God. Neither this nor any other statement shall be imposed as a creedal test, provided that the faith thus indicated be professed. In 1942 the charter of the Universalist Church of America was changed to read: "To promote harmony among adherents of all religious faiths, whether Christian or otherwise. " This was the last of a long series of steps calculated to meet the challenges of intellectual and social developments and to safeguard the Universalist conviction that no doctrinal statements should be employed as creedal tests. Consequently, Universalism has become a harmonious body of theists, naturalists, humanists, mystics, Christians, and non-Christians, who find great significance and meaning in a universal approach to life. In the new Unitarian Universalist Association, neither body seems to have lost any of its original ideology, theology, or purpose. Except for matters of organization and government, the churches involved will continue as they have through the years; no minister, member, or congregation "shall be required to subscribe to any particular interpretation of religion, or to any particular religious belief or creed. " The aims of the association were set forth in 1985 in a revised statement: The Principles and Purposes of the member congregations of the Unitarian Universalist Association covenant to affirm and promote: (a) The inherent worth and dignity of every person; (b) Justice, equity and compassion in human relationships; (c) Acceptance of one another and encouragement to spiritual growth in our congregations; (d) A free and responsible search for truth and meaning; (e) The right of conscience and the use of the democratic process within our congregations and in society at large; (f) The goal of world community with peace, liberty and justice for all; (g) Respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part. In recent years the association has been heavily involved in numerous causes and concerns: the issue of black power; the rise of feminist consciousness; scholarship in church history and process theology; inner-city ministries; and the development of lay religious life. Under the constitution, a general assembly, with clergy and lay representatives, is the overall policy-making body. It meets annually, or in such special sessions as may be called by the board of trustees. The elected officers of the association-a moderator, president, two vice-moderators, secretary, and treasurer-all elected for four-year terms, together with 24 other elected members, constitute a board of trustees, which appoints the executive and administrative officers and generally carries out policies and directives. Members of this board have the usual powers of corporate directors as provided by law; they meet four times a year, between regular meetings of the general assembly. A series of committees is appointed to facilitate and coordinate the association's work. Under the general assembly there are a nominating committee, program and business committees, and a commission on appraisal; under the board of trustees, an executive committee, ministerial fellowship committee, finance committee, and investment committee. Among its most notable and successful achievements are its publishing house, Beacon Press, which produces and circulates more than one million books every year to members, students, teachers, libraries, counselors, bookstores, and the world at large. It also publishes a periodical. Return to Menu UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST Four churches of historic importance constitute the United Church of Christ: the Congregational Churches, the Christian Church, the Evangelical Synod, and the Reformed Church. The first two bodies merged in 1931 to become Congregational Christian Churches; they were joined in 1957 by the merged Evangelical and Reformed churches. The union was completed when the constitution was adopted at Philadelphia in July 1961. So important are the backgrounds of these denominations, each of which has a long life of its own, that attention is given to them following a description of the present-day body itself. On July 8, 1959, at Oberlin, Ohio, representatives of the Congregational Christian Churches and the Evangelical and Reformed Church, upon merging into the United Church of Christ, adopted this statement, understood as a "testimony rather than a test of faith": We believe in God, the Eternal Spirit, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ and our Father , and to his deeds we testify: He calls the worlds into being, creates man in his own image and sets before him the ways of life and death. He seeks in holy love to save all people from aimlessness and sin. He judges men and nations by his righteous will declared through prophets and apostles. In Jesus Christ, the man of Nazareth, our crucified and risen Lord, he has come to us and shared our common lot, conquering sin and death and reconciling the world to himself. He bestows upon us his Holy Spirit, creating and renewing the Church of Jesus Christ, binding in covenant faithful people of all ages, tongues, and races. He calls us into his Church to accept the cost and joy of discipleship, to be his servants in the service of men, to proclaim the gospel to all the world and resist the powers of evil, to share in Christ's baptism and eat at his table, to join him in his passion and victory. He promises to all who trust him forgiveness of sins and fullness of grace, courage in the struggle for justice and peace, his presence in trial and rejoicing, and eternal life in his kingdom which has no end. Blessing and honor, glory and power be unto him. Amen. This statement is not intended to set forth doctrinal positions (the doctrines and theological positions of the four churches now within the United Church of Christ remain as they were), or to stand as a substitute for the historic creeds, confessions, and covenants of the churches involved. It is not binding upon any local church in the denomination. But it does stand as a tribute to the faith, charity, and understanding of the merging groups. Above the local church are associations, conferences, and the general synod. Local churches in a geographic area are grouped into an association, which is concerned with the welfare of the churches within its area: It assists needy churches; receives new churches into the United Church of Christ; licences, ordains, and installs ministers; adopts its own constitution, bylaws, and rules of procedure; and is made up of the ordained ministers and elected lay delegates of the area. Associations meet regularly and are related to the general synod through their conferences. Associations are grouped into conferences, again by geographic area, with the exception of the Calvin Synod, a nongeographic, acting conference. The voting members of a conference are ordained ministers of associations in the conference and lay delegates elected from local churches. A conference acts on requests and references from the local churches, associations, general synod, and other bodies. It meets annually, and its main function is to coordinate the work and witness of its local churches and associations, render counsel and advisory service, and establish conference offices, centers, institutions, and other agencies. The general synod is the highest representative body; it meets biennially and is composed of 675 to 725 delegates chosen by the conferences, together with ex officio delegates-the elected officers of the church, members of the executive council, the moderator, and assistant moderators. The conference delegates are clergy, laymen, and laywomen, in equal numbers; there are also associate delegates, with voice but with no vote. The general synod nominates and elects the officers of the church (president, secretary, director of finance, and treasurer), for four-year terms; a moderator and two assistant moderators to preside over the next session of the general synod, for one year only. (The duties are quite similar to those of a moderator among Presbyterians.) An executive council of 44 voting members and 10 ex officio members (ministers and lay people) is elected by the general synod to act for the synod between its meetings. It recommends salaries for officers of the church as part of a national budget, has responsibility for the church's publications, prepares the agenda for all meetings of the general synod, and appoints committees not otherwise provided; it also submits to the general synod "any recommendation it may deem useful" for the work of the church. The United Church of Christ has its oldest and deepest roots in the congregational tradition of Protestantism. That movement in England and colonial America enjoyed clear identity until Independence, but lost membership to the Unitarian exodus, and its relative standing among denominations fell as frontier conditions began to give shape to Americanized religious patterns. The Evangelical and Reformed tradition brought to the United Church of Christ varieties of German confessional Protestantism and a sizable membership with a progressive outlook. The Congregational Christian Churches contributed an indigenously American, even a frontier and southern form, to the stream. While some local churches in both bodies declined to enter the merger, there are today 1,662,568 members in 6,395 churches in the United Church of Christ. The national church holds membership in the National and the World Council of Churches, and in the World Alliance of Reformed Churches. Since 1985, the United Church of Christ has enjoyed an ecumenical partnership with the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). Both denominations are active in the Consultation on Church Union. Long ecumenical despite American Congregationalism's early career as an established church, the United Church of Christ remains a leader in cooperative Christianity, especially through its ministries in education, social action, and service. The words of John Robinson as he bade the Pilgrims god-speed in 1619 endure as a keynote to this denomination's life: "God hath yet more truth and light to break forth from His Holy Word." Return to Menu Congregational Church Congregationalism has been an issue in Christianity from the beginning; it began, as has been suggested, "without a name and with no sense of its destiny." Even before the Reformation, little dissenting groups of church people in England were "seeking a better way" than that of the established church. As the Reformation developed, dissent took corporate form in the Puritan movement, of which Congregationalism was the most radical wing. It was generally believed that Congregationalism rose from separatism, a movement that began in the days of Queen Elizabeth and held that to attempt to reform the Church of England from within was hopeless; that the only course for a true Christian was to separate from it completely. Recent historians, however, believe that though Robert Browne and other separatists developed ideas identical with those of early Congregationalists, the two groups were wholly distinct: Members of the former were perfectionists and refused to cooperate with other branches of the church; those of the latter were as cooperative as possible without giving up their principles. John Robinson, one of the most influential early Congregational leaders, first entered church history as a separatist. In 1609 he fled persecution in England and settled at Leiden in the Netherlands, with the exiled congregation from Scrooby in Nottinghamshire. There he met William Ames, Congregationalism's first great theologian, and Henry Jacob, its first great pamphleteer and organizer, who also were fugitives from the ecclesiastical courts of Britain. And they converted Robinson from rigid separatism to congregationalism. For twelve years Robinson and his congregation enjoyed peace and freedom under the Dutch. But haunted by the conviction that their children would not grow up as English people, a large part of the company sailed for America in 1620 aboard the historic Mayflower. In a hostile new world, with the wilderness before them and the sea at their backs, they helped lay the foundations of the American commonwealth; the democratic ideals of their Plymouth colony, worked out slowly and painfully, were the cornerstone of the structure that gave us our free state, free schools, and free social and political life. Church and commonwealth were that theocracy's two instruments. It was a stern and, at times, intolerant regime. Suffrage was limited to church members; Anne Hutchinson and Roger Williams were banished; Baptists were hauled into court; four Quakers were hanged on Boston Common. It was a dark but comparatively short period, which ended with the Act of Toleration in 1689. When the wagon trains went West, the families of Congregational ministers and missionaries were prominent. Manasseh Cutler, a preacher from Hamilton, Massachusetts, was instrumental in framing the famous Northwest Territory Ordinance of 1787; other ministers led the founding of Marietta, Ohio, the first permanent settlement in the Northwest Territory. Moving westward, Congregational missionaries from New England came into contact with Presbyterians from the middle and southern states. To avoid competition and duplication of effort, a plan was developed under which ministers and members from both churches were exchanged and accepted on an equal basis. Adopted in 1801, the plan eventually worked to the advantage of Presbyterians; it was discontinued in 1852, leaving Presbyterians stronger in the West, though Congregationalists had a virtual monopoly in New England. But the plan did much to inspire new Congregational missionary work. In 1826 the American Home Missionary Society was founded, and in 1846 the American Missionary Association, which was active in the South before the Civil War. It was especially effective toward the end of that conflict, with its "contraband" schools for blacks, one of which became Hampton Institute. Meanwhile, differences of opinion between theological liberals and conservatives were developing within the church. Strict Calvinists and Trinitarians were opposed by Unitarians, and a famous sermon by William Ellery Channing at Baltimore in 1819 made a division inevitable. The American Unitarian Association was established in 1825, and almost all the older Congregational churches in eastern Massachusetts went Unitarian; only one Congregational church was left in Boston. Debate and legal action over property and funds were not concluded until about 1840. In spite of Unitarian defection, Congregationalism continued to grow until a national supervisory body became necessary. A council held at Boston in 1865 was so effective that a regular system of councils was established. Following conferences between the associations into which the churches had grouped themselves, the first of these national councils was called at Oberlin, Ohio, in 1871. Known as the General Council of the Congregational Christian Churches, it met biennially and acted as an overall advisory body for the entire fellowship. The council of 1913 at Kansas City adopted a declaration on faith, polity, and wider fellowship which has been accepted by many churches as a statement of faith. While it did not in any way modify the independence of local churches, it did give a new spiritual unity to the church. The "wider fellowship" was taken seriously; unity and cooperation across denominational lines have been outstanding characteristics of Congregationalism. Christian Endeavor, the largest young people's organization in Protestantism, was founded in 1881 by a Congregationalist, Francis E. Clark; by 1885 it had become interdenominational, known allover the world as the United Society of Christian Endeavor. In 1924 the Evangelical Protestant Church of North America joined the National Council of Congregational Churches in the Evangelical Protestant Conference of Congregational Churches; the comparative closeness of the two mergers-with the Christian Churches and the Evangelical and Reformed Church-again witnesses to the widening fellowship and vision of Congregationalists. Into the most recent merger they brought 47 church-related (not church-controlled) colleges, 11 theological seminaries, foreign mission stations in Africa, Mexico, Japan, the Philippines, India, Ceylon, Greece, Lebanon, Syria, Turkey, Korea, and Micronesia, and home missionaries in every state in the Union and Puerto Rico. Return to Menu Christian Churches The Christian Churches, like the Congregational, were born in protest against ecclesiasticism and the denial of individual freedom. Actually, there were three revolts. The first was in 1792, when James O'Kelly, a Methodist minister in Virginia, withdrew from that church in protest when the superintendency developed into an episcopacy; he especially objected to the power of bishops to appoint ministers to their charges. O'Kelly and his followers organized under the name Republican Methodist, later changed to Christian; the new church insisted that the Bible be taken as the only rule and discipline, and Christian character be made the only requirement for church membership. Abner Jones, convinced that "sectarian names and human creeds should be abandoned," left the Vermont Baptists in 1801 to organize First Christian Church at Lyndon, Vermont. This was done from a desire to secure a wider freedom of religious thought and fellowship. Like O'Kelly, Jones insisted that piety and character be the sole test of Christian fellowship. In the Great Awakening that swept Tennessee and Kentucky in 1801, a great deal of preaching either ignored the old emphasis on doctrines of various denominations or directly contradicted them. Barton w. Stone, accused of anti-Presbyterian preaching, led a number of Presbyterians out of the Synod of Kentucky to organize a Springfield presbytery, which was discontinued as its members gradually came to accept the ideology of James O'Kelly and Abner Jones, and adopted the name Christian. Stone, an ardent revivalist, was deeply influenced by the preaching of Alexander Campbell and led many of his followers and churches into the Disciples of Christ. But the majority of his Christian Churches remained with the original Christian body. The groups under O'Kelly, Jones, and Stone engaged in a long series of conferences which resulted in agreement on six basic Christian principles: 1. Christ, the only head of the Church. 2. The Bible, sufficient rule of faith and practice. 3. Christian character, the measure of membership. 4. A right, individual interpretation of the Scripture, as a way of life. 5. "Christian," the name taken as worthy of the followers of Christ. 6. Unity, Christians working together to save the world. No council or other body in the Christian Church has ever drawn up any other creed or statement. Its interpretation of Bible teaching might be called evangelical, but no sincere follower of Christ is barred from membership because of difference in theological belief. Open Communion is practiced; baptism is considered a duty but is not required; immersion is still generally used in churches from this tradition, but any mode may be employed. The union of the Congregational and Christian churches was thoroughly democratic, leaving both free to continue their own forms of worship and each with its own polity and doctrine. Adhering strictly to the congregational idea, each local church was at liberty to call itself either Congregational or Christian. United Church of Christ Sects: Evangelical Church Reformed Church in the U.S., The Return to Menu UNITED HOLY CHURCH OF AMERICA, INC. UNITY SCHOOL OF CHRISTIANITY VOLUNTEERS OF AMERICA WESLEYAN CHURCH, THE WORLDWIDE CHURCH OF GOD Opposing Views Atheism Humanism Has Religion Made Useful Contributions to Civilization? by Bertrand Russell Why I am Atheist by Ram Samudrala Why I am not a Christian by Bertrand Russell The Necesity of Atheism by Percy Blysshe Shelley Internet Infidels Arguments in Favor of Atheism The Philosophy of Atheism by Emma Goldman American Humanist Association Council for Secular Humanism Letting Atheists Come Out of the Closet The Strategies of Christian Fundamentalism Return to Menu |