The Origin of Churches

The Origin of Churches:
A Brief History of How Our Major Christian Denominations Originated

(Note: A Disclaimer: This is NOT meant to be a comprehensive discussion of how our churches originated, nor it is to be thought of as a complete textual history. This is merely an "below-the-surface" look at how our major church denominations originated. There are many sources to find in-depth studies. This is a compilation of what I've seen/read after years of studying.


Lutheran:

I mention this faith first because, as far as I can determine, it is the oldest Protestant faith that still exists in anything like its original form. It originated at some point soon after Martin Luther's posting of the "95 Thesis" at the Diet of Worms in 1517. (The exact time that the Lutheran church started would be difficult to imagine, since Luther had followers as a Catholic priest. His followers were Catholic of course, but were also called "Lutherans".)

The main difference between Lutherans and what the Catholic church believed came from two ideas:

  1. Salvation: Martin Luther believed in "Justification by God's grace alone". The Catholics believe that grace must be combined with work(s), or "faith formed by love".
  2. Indulgences: Martin Luther believed that we all have the right to petition God for the remission of our sins, and therefore do not need the Catholic church (or anyone else) to intervene for us.

Lutherans, as do Catholics, also believe in "once saved, always saved" and do not accept the idea of predestination. In other forms they generally follow the ideology of the Catholic church, for instance, in the case of Holy Communion, they believe in something that for all practical purposes is transubstantian (the bread actually becomes the body of Christ, and the wine becomes his blood).

The Lutheran Church's evolution started with what Luther formed which would become known, eventually, (1945)as the Missouri Synod. Then a branch occurred and they named themselves the Evangelical Lutheran Church (ELC); another branch became known as the Lutheran Church of America (LCA). In 1988 the the LCA, the ELC combined to form the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America (ECLA).. The Missouri Synod has remained unchanged, and is probably closer to what Martin Luther's original church was than almost any other church of the Reformation era.

(In a side note, while Martin Luther published his "95 Theses" in 1517, there was really no formal split until 1521. The term "Lutheran", officially used to denote his followers did not come about until 1597.)

Baptist:

There are three schools of thought regarding the origin of the Baptist church. I will mention before I regard them that the adherants to any of the theories are very convinced - and committed - that their belief is the only correct one. What I am writing is what I have discovered through my own research - actually the research of years of trying to divine the true origin of the Baptist church.

    1.) Theory Number One says that the Baptist church is the oldest church, and was started with John the Baptist. Adherents to this theory believe that it was created before Jesus' ministry had ended, thus it has never "been Reformed" - it is not considered to be a church of the Reformation.

      A. The first problem with that theory is there is NO evidence to be found anywhere that John the Baptist ever started any kind of church, anywhere. In fact he states quite the opposite - that his mission is to "prepare the way of the Lord - to make his path straight" (Mark 1:3 paraphrased)
      B.)the second problem is that Jesus told Peter "On this rock (petra) I will build my church", meaning that the church Christ was forming was to have been started with Peter. We know from reading the Bible that most of the early evangelical movement came directly from Peter, so this would provide proof.

    2.) The SECOND school of thought lies with the Anabaptists. It's undeniable that in a broad sense some of the early Baptists were Anabaptists (Anabaptists meaning one baptism for the forgiveness of sins), but the problem with this idea comes from the main church document stating what the Baptists believed: The English Baptist General Confession of 1660. From 1663 onward, this became the STANDARD OF BELIEF with respect to the Baptist church. The "Declaration of Faith" says:

      "Set forth by many of us, who are (falsely) called Ana-Baptists, to inform all Men (in these days of scandal and reproach) of our innocent Belief and Practise; for which we are not only resolved to suffer Persecution, to the loss of our Goods, but also Life itself, rather than to decline the same."

    Very clearly these men of the Baptist church were NOT Anabaptists, and, in fact distanced themselves from the Anabaptists.

    3.) The THIRD school of thought; the one most documented by history says that the Baptist church most likely evolved from the Armenian church, as did the Wesley brothers, upon whom, of course, rested the foundation of the Methodist church.

    To further understand the history of the Baptist and Methodist churches, read this section on Armenianism, below:

Armenianism:

Armenianism deserves a deeper discussion, since it is so important to learning the history of what we have today as Protestant Christianity.

Armenianism was started by Jacobus Arminius (1560-1609), a Dutch Reform theologian, on seven general principles:

    1. Humans are naturally unable to make any effort towards salvation (prevenient grace).
    2. Salvation is possible only by God's grace which cannot be merited.
    3. No works of human effort can cause or contribute to salvation
    4. God's election is conditional on faith in the sacrifice and Lordship of Jesus Christ.
    5. Christ's atonement was made on behalf of all people
    6. God allows his grace to be resisted by those who freely reject Christ.
    7. Salvation can be lost, as continued salvation is conditional upon continued faith.

John and Charles Wesley split from Jacob Armenius, but kept many of his original teachings intact. Therefore there were two distinct forms of Armenianism - the first form was Classical Armenianism (which saw Armenius as its head), the second was Wesleyan Armenianism - at its head were the two Wesley brothers. Their practice was called the "Wesleyan Armenian Method", or, later, just the Methodists.

Armenianism was very close to Calvinism, with the exception that Armenianists believed that salvation was open to everyone - it was not predestined by the Lord, as the Calvinists believed.

(Here is a short statement of faith from John Calvin, which explains his stance, and why the Armenians differed from what he believed.

"All are not created on equal terms, but some are preordained to eternal life, others to eternal damnation; and, accordingly, as each has been created for one or other of these ends, we say that he has been predestinated to life or to death."

The first Baptists -- originally called "General Baptists" because of their confession of a "general" or unlimited atonement, were Armenians. The Baptist movement originated with Thomas Helwys, who left his mentor John Smyth (Smythe), who had moved into semi-Pelgianism and other distinctives of the Dutch Waterlander Mennonites of Amsterdam, and returned to London to start the first English Baptist Church in 1611.

The General Baptists encapsulated their Armenian views in numerous confessions, the first one was by Smythe in 1609 - "Short Confession Of Faith In XX Articles By John Smythe" , however the most influential of these confessions was "the "Standard Confession of 1660"."

There is no verifiable record of any Baptist documentation or churches for common usage before the time of Smythe, other than, as previously mentioned, the Anabaptists, who didn't appear to have left much of a written record.

(As a side-note, there are Baptist Confessions and Baptist Creeds, but they are not included in the Baptist worship service often, if at all.)

The Baptists had a schism early on (and are still having them today), whereby one branch (General Baptists) continued to worship as the Armenians, the other branch became known as the "Particular Baptists" (and basically followed the teachings of John Calvin), with respect to predestination.

Roger Williams was one of the earliest American Baptist theologians (also a General Baptist). He came to America in 1631, and became a huge advocate for separation of church and state. He believed no magistrate should have authority over God's laws (Ten Commandments). He formed either the first or second Baptist church in America, which he left soon after, saying "God is too large to be housed under one roof."

Methodists

The Wesley brothers, John and Charles were avid students of Arminius, however they also tried (and succeeded) in staying "true" to the Anglican Church. Main differences between them and the early Baptists seemed to be in the method of Baptism. John was, in most things, more Liberal than the Baptists of his day, becoming an advocate of abolitionist, and was a friend to William Wilburforce, and John Newton (who wrote Amazing Grace).

John Wesley came to America to settle in Georgia under Governor James Oglethorpe; however he didn't stay long and went back to England, to join the Moravians. He never left the Anglican church, even though he was frequently harassed by the church for his viewpoints on ordained ministers (he didn't believe the church had to ordain a minister, that they could be "free speakers"), and on repentance (he felt that the churches didn't call sinners to repentance, and that many of the clergy were corrupt and needed to repent.) John's brother, Charles was also a great minister, but was even more reknown for his hymns. Among others he wrote "Hark the Herald Angels Sing", and "Christ the Lord is Risen Today."

Catholic:

Peter was the "rock that Jesus built His church on", and that rock more likely than not was what became the Catholic church. It has evolved tremendously since those days, and we don't know for sure how close the present day Catholic church is to the original one intended by Christ. Remember that the Catholic Church had a major schism when the Greek Orthodox Church split from it. Both have relevant ideology and beliefs, both have things that differ from what Protestants believe. Doctrinally, it is still probably the least changed of the churches since its beginning.

Episcopalians:

The Episcopalean church is an off-shoot of the Anglican Church of Great Britain. When the Catholic church forbade King Henry VIII to divorce and re-marry, he formed the Anglican church. There are still very close ties between the American Episcopalean church and the Anglican Episcopalean church. The Methodist church remains very close to Episcopaleans, and, in fact there are numerous combinations of Methodist Episcopalean churches.

Presbyterians:

Presbyterianism evolved primarily in Scotland before the Act of Union in 1707. Most of the few Presbyteries found in England can trace a Scottish connection. Modern Presbyterianism traces its institutional roots back to the Scottish Reformation. Local congregations are governed by Sessions made up of representatives of the congregation, a conciliar approach which is found at other levels of decision-making The church is, in fact, a form of governorship.

As far as what they believe, the origins were much closer to Calvinism, though the modern churches have gotten away from that, to determine their own belief system. The church has so many different forms, as far as what they worship, that they are collectively called the "Split P's". They all maintain the one form of church government.

John Knox is one of the famous Scottish Presbyterians.

Church of Christ:

The church of Christ is a uniquely American church. It was formed in the New World. The United Church of Christ formed in 1957. It is without a doubt the most liberal of any of the mainline Protestant churches. They favor gay marriage, openly admit to the practice of homosexuality, and admit openly practicing homosexuals as members of the church, etc. One of the branches of the United Church of Christ is called the Church of Christ, Scientists - they have become known as "Christian Scientists".

They do not allow any type of instrumental music with their services. They also believe in the "144,000 in heaven" concept, and that "your works will gain your heavenly reward, gaining this insight from the (mis)reading of the New Testament book of James.

The Disciples of Christ (First Christian Church):

Split from the Presbyterian church in 1804. They share their origins with the Church of Christ and the Independent Christian Churches/Churches of Christ. They are charter members of the "National Council of Churches". They are opposed to Creeds and to the Augsberg Confession. The Disciples of Christ officially split from the Church of Christ in 1906.

NATIONAL COUNCIL OF CHURCHES:

I would be remiss in talking about churches if I didn't at least mention the National Council of Churches. This far-left, liberal organization has membership of 36 of the major churches in America, including The United Methodist Church, The Presbyterian Church of the USA, and the Church of Christ. The NCC advocates homosexuality, gay marriage or "unions" (including in the ministry), abortion until delivery, and many other socialist policies. It receives half of its funding from the United Methodist Church and the PCUSA, the other half comes from secular groups like the Pew Foundation and the Ford Foundation. It has been in financial trouble for years, and has to continue garnering support for its liberal agenda from secular liberal sources.

Most of the more conservative churches, such as the Baptists are NOT part of the NCC, however some of the "splinter" branches of these conservative churches, such as the Reverend Wright's church in Chicago, are members.


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