There are two main sects of Christians: Catholics and Protestants, and three main heretical
sects: Jehovah’s Witness, Seventh Day Adventists, and Mormons.
Catholics are the oldest – the earliest
split was the Eastern Orthodox (Greek and Russian Orthodox churches have
different organizational structure, but essential beliefs the same).
Protestants split over Catholic hierarchy:
Pope, bishops, etc and saint worship. Martin Luther (1483-1546) and Calvin
(1509-1564) lead a
reform movement, which later became known as the Protestant
movement. It rejected the accumulated rites, rituals and hierarchy of Roman
Catholicism in an attempt to return to a purer form of Christianity. After a
bitter struggle with church leaders leading to the excommunication of many
reformers, a number of communities throughout Europe broke off and formed new
churches in which Mary, the mother of Jesus, was no longer worshipped, and intercession
through saints was no longer sought. Priests were allowed to marry, and the
infallibility of the authority of the Pope was totally rejected. Rites like
communion, in which little pieces of bread were served to the congregation in
the belief that the pieces were somehow transformed into the body of Jesus
Christ, were dropped along with the use of Latin in church rites.
Scriptural Difference
The Protestant Bible has seven less books
than that of the Catholics.
Mormons (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints)
4.5 Million followers with 30,000
missionaries gathering 200,000 converts yearly (1980 figures)
Founder: Joseph Smith (1805-1844 killed)
1822 Angel Moroni came
Book of Mormon published 1830
Smith’s closest disciple, Brigam Young (1801-1877),
took followers to Utah, and took 25 wives and promoted unrestricted polygamy,
until the USA government threatened to revoke statehood. Mr. Young received
revelation that polygamy was abrogated.
Unusual Beliefs
Adam actually God incarnated who came to
Eden (in Missouri) with one of his heavenly wives, Eve. Had sexual relations
with Mary to produce Jesus.
God physically a huge man along with
mother-wife begat all human spirits. Until 1978 blacks could not enter the
priesthood (age 14 males enter Aaronic priesthood and at age 20 they enter the
higher office of Melchezdec), thus all 17 temples of the sect were off-limits
to blacks. Then First President, Spencer Kimball got revelation to include
blacks.
Seventh Day Adventism
William Miller (1782-1849) calculated end
of the world between 21March 1843 and 21 March 1844 (followers called
Millerites)
Samuel Snow later recalculates the date as
Oct. 22, 1844.
After the “Great Disappointment” remnants
gather under Hiram Edson, Joseph Bates and Ellen White (1827-1950)
Unusual Beliefs
1844 Christ entered heavenly sanctuary to
judge sins of living and dead
Ellen White a true prophet
Sabbath – Seventh day (Saturday)
No pork, alcohol or tobacco
Jehovah’s Witness
4.1 million followers, 200,000 converts
yearly
Founder: Charles Taze Russell (1852-1916) a
former Millerite and Christadelphian
Rejected eternal punishment
Started Watchtower 1879 – informal
following in the millions, but organized only a distributorship of tracts
(100,000 books and 800,000 magazines printed daily)
Followers called: Bible Students
Joseph F. Rutherford (1869-1942) lawyer
took over and officially named group “Jehovah’s Witnesses” in 1931
Unusual Beliefs
Jesus not God, but son of God and His first
creation.
Souls not separate from body
No hell
Tithing
World’s end predicted in 1914, 1918, 1920,
1925, 1941, 1975
(6,000 year to the end of the world
recalculated from Eve’s creation who’s date ofcreation unrevealed currently)
The term “Jehovah” is not found in the
Hebrew Bible – only in the Jehovah’s Witness translation “The New World Bible”.
Jewish custom to avoid pronouncing the divine name led them to write yhwh (Yahweh)
in texts and read adonai (the Lord). In ignorance, later the vowels of adonai
combined with the tetragrammaton to get Jehovah.
Born Again Christians
Among Mainstream Christians the most active
in missionary work are the Charismatic Groups Commonly know as “Born Again”
Christians – emphasize the gifts of the Holy Spirit
Stress is laid on reading the Bible
They consider mainstream Christians as not
true Christians because they are not “born” of the Holy Spirit
First appeared among Protestants in 1960
and among Roman Catholics in 1966 Origins in Pentecostalism (1901 John Wesley
and John Fletcher) in which Baptism in the Holy Spirit was stressed, and
Glossalia (speaking in tongues) was practiced.
Approved by Pope Paul VI in 1973.
Consequently, one should be familiar with
whom one is inviting to Islaam.
The Unifying Belief: Trinity
The unifying belief of mainstream
Christianity is the Trinity: God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy
Ghost/Spirit, three Gods in One. It is officially called the Nicene Creed and
was agreed upon in a meeting of bishops in Nicea which took place in 325 CE. Bishops,
like Arius, and others who supported Unitarianism and opposed the Trinitarian concept
and the divinity of Jesus, where subsequently declared heretics, their
followers hunted down, tortured and burned at the stake, and their gospels
burned.
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