Why Are There So Many Different Christian Denominations?

Throughout history, different Christian denominations have arisen for a range of reasons usually because of slightly different beliefs about the Christian faith.

Why are there so many different Christian Denominations

It’s a good question! Why are there so many different Christian denominations?

Different Christian denominations have arisen for a range of reasons throughout history. Usually, it’s because of slightly different interpretations or doctrines (a church word for beliefs) about the Christian faith that arises within different groups. Historically when those different views are strongly enough held, a group will separate, and eventually a new denomination is born.

History of Different Denominations

Three Branches of Christianity

Two major separations led to the development of different branches of Christianity. First, the Western and Eastern churches separated around the 11th Century. The Eastern churches continue today as Orthodox churches – typically related to a cultural grouping in Eastern Europe or northern Africa (e.g. the Greek Orthodox, Coptic, Serbian or Syrian Orthodox Churches).

The Western Church continued as we now know as the Roman Catholic Church until the 16th Century when the Protestant Reformation resulted in a second major separation. The newly formed “protestant” churches disagreed with key elements of Catholic teaching and went their own way.

Protestant Christian Denominations

Several major denominations of the Protestant church formed in the decades that followed – Lutheran, Reformed, Anabaptist and Anglican. Key figures in the protestant reformation included Martin Luther (teaching led to the formation of the Lutheran Church), John Wesley (led to the Methodist Church), Huldrych Zwingli (led to Anabaptist churches), John Calvin (led to Reformed, Congregational and Presbyterian Churches), John Knox (Presbyterian Church of Scotland) and Henry VIII (Church of England). From these leaders, and the four major divisions of the Christian church that emerged following the Reformation, the majority of different Christian denominations have developed. Later, in the 20th Century, what we now know as the Pentecostal Church emerged as a further significant denomination of Christianity.

Mainly it has been different beliefs or understandings about elements of the Christian faith that has led to the separations and the forming of different denominations of the church. There were differences around important questions such as baptism, Holy Communion, free will and sovereignty, the place of the Holy Spirit, and so on. It’s also fair to say that there were, at times, political and cultural differences that also led to or hastened separations.

The Entire Body of Christ

It is important to note that despite these differences, each different denomination is part of the wider, global ‘body of Christ’. Christians in different denominations seek to love and serve God, and grow and live as disciples of Jesus Christ. Each different denomination, while sharing common core beliefs and identifying with the whole Christian church, operates slightly differently, has different areas of focus, and believes slightly different things.

In the post-war period of the 21st century, there have been extensive efforts to restore or strengthen relationships between different denominations of the church. ‘Ecumenism’ – a movement whose principal is promoting unity among different Christian churches – has led to closer cooperation and in some places (including Australia) to different denominations merging. The Uniting Church in Australia, the United Church of Canada and the United Reformed Church (UK) are examples of denominations that have merged in recent decades.

Where Do Different Beliefs Come From?

If we acknowledge that different Christian denominations hold slightly different doctrines, then it begs the question “Where do those different beliefs come from?”. While that’s perhaps too big a question for us to completely answer in full here, we can offer a couple of clues.

Sources of Doctrine

John Wesley was an English missionary, credited with leading what became the Methodist movement (and eventually the Methodist Church) in the 18th Century. Looking back over Wesley’s prolific writing, American Scholar Albert Outler worked to understand where Wesley’s theological beliefs came from. Outler developed the term and the idea of the “Wesleyan Quadrilateral”.

Wesley, Outler said, took the Bible as his primary source for understanding doctrine and theology. Along with the Bible though, he acknowledged that church tradition (things like Creeds, the teachings of key church figures and so on), lived experience of Christians (answered prayer, for example), and reason or rational enquiry were of significance. These four sources, Outler suggested, make up the Wesleyan Quadrilateral’.

One way of understanding how different Christian denominations arrive at their Christian doctrine or beliefs is to look at this quadrilateral. Different denominations place different importance on each of the four sources.

At one end of the spectrum, some denominations acknowledge scripture as the only source for doctrine and theology and don’t accept input from tradition, experience or reason at all. Examples of denominations in this category might include the Baptist Church or some Pentecostal movements such. At another end of the spectrum, some churches accept scripture as the principal source, but also place significant weight on church tradition and teaching, on scholarly learning (such as insights from science), and on lived experience for Christians. The Catholic, Lutheran, Anglican or Uniting Churches might be in this category.

Bibles Used by Different Christian Denominations

Perhaps the principal source of difference in doctrine among different Christian churches is that the Bible has been, and continues to be, interpreted in different ways. This is a complex topic, and scholars spend their whole careers articulating the ways scripture can be interpreted. There are four notes we can offer here.

Compiling of the Bible

First, there is a physical difference between the Orthodox, Catholic and Protestant Church Bibles. Each branch of these major branches of Christianity recognises a slightly different number and sequence of books as making up the Bible. The word that churches use for the approved set of books recognised as being the Bible is the “Canon”.

Understanding of the Bible

Second, some different Christian denominations believe that the whole Bible is inerrant – that it is without any fault or error, and the literal inspired words of God. That is to say that God in a sense “dictated” the words of scripture which were then written down and every word is true, without exception. This can lead to referencing the Bible or scriptures as “God’s Word”.

Other denominations might believe that the scriptures are God-inspired, and a source of truth, but also acknowledge the human processes of the stories of scripture being gathered, interpreted and written down. These different starting points when it comes to understanding the source and authority of scripture can lead to different ending points for different Christian denominations.

Interpretation of the Bible

Third, the stories of scripture can be (and are) themselves interpreted to mean different things by different people and different Christian denominations. That’s in a sense natural – we all bring something of our worldview and perspective to any act of interpretation or meaning-making. It also relates to how different biblical stories are understood – is a particular story intended to be a historical, factual account, or is it perhaps mythological, or allegorical? Different approaches to interpretation are widespread across different Christian denominations and can lead to different conclusions on matters of doctrine.

Translation of the Bible

Fourth, there are many different translations of the Bible, and each can say slightly different things. Different translations come about as scholars work to understand the original and ancient languages in which scripture was first written (largely Hebrew and Greek). Differences arise as archeologists find different source material, as the English language and its use evolves over time, and as interpreters try to manage all of these changes while conveying the meaning of the original authors. The actual translations or versions of the Bible used by different denominations (the New International Version, New Living Translation or King James Versions, for example) might therefore result in them reaching slightly different conclusions than one another, based on those different versions in use.

Even allowing for those differences in how the Bible is compiled, understood, interpreted, and translated between different Christian churches, and as we’ve said many times here, core beliefs are largely shared across the whole Christian church. God created us, loves us, sent Jesus to not only show us the way to God, but to die on the Cross, and God sent the Spirit to indwell us. Your local church will help you explore all of these truths.

What does the Bible say about different Christian Denominations?

The Bible doesn’t support the forming of different Christian denominations. There is much more to be said about unity and togetherness. The Apostle Paul, for example, writing to the Church in Corinth (1 Corinthians 1:10-17) specifically calls for unity in mind and thought. This, it seems obvious, flies in the face of different denominations in the church.

The forming of denominations may be understandable and to some degree a natural human process, but it doesn’t seem to fit with scripture or what we might see as God’s plan for the whole church.

St Matthews Anglican Church, Wauchope, NSW

What Beliefs Do Different Christian Denominations Hold in Common?

The essentials of the Christian faith are shared between different Christian denominations. First, they acknowledge that a Christian is one who loves and worships God, and who seeks to live as a disciple of Jesus Christ as he is revealed in the scriptures or Holy Bible. Having considered why there are so many different denominations of Christianity, it is important to remember that most Christian denominations acknowledge one or more ancient statements of faith known as creeds. One in particular, the Nicene Creed, is widely accepted by different Christian churches in Australia and represents a good statement of the beliefs that different Christian churches hold in common.

Scott Guyatt is a writer, speaker, trainer, and facilitator who has served the church in Australia for more than two decades. Scott’s experience includes helping the church explore mission, discipleship and leadership practices in local communities across the country.

Why Are There So Many Different Christian Denominations?

Throughout history, different Christian denominations have arisen for a range of reasons usually because of slightly different beliefs about the Christian faith.