Hear it pronouncedProtestantism
-
For more details on the origins of protestantism, see Protestant Reformation.
Protestantism |
Waldensians · Lollards · Hussites
Anglicanism · Anabaptism · Calvinism · Lutheranism · Zwinglianism
Baptists · Congregationalists · Pietism · Pentecostalism · Puritanism Revivalism · Methodism · Evangelicalism Adventism · Restoration Movement |
Protestantism encompasses the forms of Christian faith and practice that originated with the doctrines of the Reformation. Protestant doctrine, in contradistinction to that of Roman Catholicism, rejects papal authority and doctrine, and is also known in continental European traditions as Evangelical doctrine. It typically holds that scripture (rather than tradition or ecclesiastic interpretation of scripture[1]) is the only source of revealed truth, and also that salvation can be achieved through God's grace alone. The key tenets of Protestantism are outlined in the Five Solas.
The word Protestant is derived from the Latin protestatio meaning declaration which refers to the letter of protestation by Lutheran princes against the decision of the Diet of Speyer in 1529, which reaffirmed the edict of the Diet of Worms against the Reformation.[2] Since that time, the term Protestantism has been used in many different senses, often as a general term to refer to Western Christianity that is not subject to Papal authority.[2]
While the faiths and churches born directly or indirectly of the Protestant Reformation constitute Protestantism, in common usage, the term is often used in contradistinction to Roman Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy.[3] This usage is imprecise. There are many non-Roman Catholic, non-Eastern Orthodox communions that long predate the Reformation (notably Oriental Orthodoxy). The Anglican Church, although born of the Protestant reformation, differs from the reformation principles of most other Protestants and is referred to as a middle path—a via media—between Roman Catholic and Protestant doctrines. Other groups, such as the Mormons and Jehovah's Witnesses, reject Protestantism as a deviation from true Christianity, while perceiving themselves to be restorationists.
Contents |
[ Major groupings
The churches most commonly associated with Protestantism can be divided along four fairly definitive lines:
- Mainline Protestants—a North American phrase—are those who trace their lineage to Luther, Calvin, or Anglicanism. These groups hold the doctrines of the Reformation. They include such denominations as Lutherans, Presbyterians, and Methodists. Baptists,[4] Pentecostals, and Adventists also developed from this movement, though they developed aspects of Anabaptist beliefs as well.
- Anabaptists are part of a movement that developed from the Radical Reformation. Today, denominations such as the Brethren, Mennonites, Hutterites, and Amish eschew infant baptism and have historically been Peace churches.
- Restorationists are a more recent movement beginning with the Stone-Campbell Restoration Movement. Restorationists may not consider themselves Protestants. Nevertheless, they do not recognize papal authority, and so they are most commonly deemed Protestants by those who include them among Christian denominations.
- Nontrinitarian movements reject the doctrine of the trinity. Today, they include such denominations as the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Jehovah's Witnesses, Unitarians, Christadelphians and some Quakers.
[ Denominations
Protestants often refer to specific Protestant churches and groups as denominations to imply that they are differently named parts of the whole church. This "invisible unity" is assumed to be imperfectly displayed, visibly: some denominations are less accepting of others, and the basic orthodoxy of some is questioned by most of the others. Individual denominations also have formed over very subtle theological differences. Other denominations are simply regional or ethnic expressions of the same beliefs. The actual number of distinct denominations is hard to calculate, but has been estimated to be over thirty thousand. Various ecumenical movements have attempted cooperation or reorganization of Protestant churches, according to various models of union, but divisions continue to outpace unions, as there is no overarching authority to which any of the sects owe allegiance, which can authoritatively define the faith. Most denominations share common beliefs in the major aspects of the Christian faith, while differing in many secondary doctrines, although what is major and what is secondary is a matter of idiosyncratic belief. There are "over 33,000 denominations in 238 countries" and every year there is a net increase of around 270 to 300 denominations.[5] According to David Barrett's study (1970), there are 8,196 denominations within Protestantism.
There are about 800 million Protestants worldwide,[6] among approximately 1.5 billion Christians.[7][8] These include 170 million in North America, 160 million in Africa, 120 million in Europe, 70 million in Latin America, 60 million in Asia, and 10 million in Oceania.
Protestants can be differentiated according to how they have been influenced by important movements since the magisterial Reformation and the Puritan Reformation in England. Some of these movements have a common lineage, sometimes directly spawning later movements in the same groups. Only general families are listed here (due to the above-stated multitude of denominations); some of these groups do not consider themselves as part of the Protestant movement, but are generally viewed as such by the public at large:
| Christian Denominations in | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|