Difference between revisions of "Protestantism"

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{{Christianity}}
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[[File:Martin Luther by Cranach-restoration.jpg|thumbnail|right|200px|[[Martin Luther]] was one of the most important leaders in [[Christian]] and [[Germany|German]] history. An [[St. Augustine|Augustinian]] monk, priest, and professor of theology, he unintentionally launched the Protestant Reformation and founded the [[Lutheranism|Lutheran Church]].]]
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'''Protestantism''' is one of the three major divisions in [[Christendom]]; the others are [[Catholicism]] and the [[Eastern Orthodox]] Churches. 
  
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'''Protestantism''' encompasses the forms of [[Christian]] faith and practice that originated with the doctrines of the [[Reformation]]. The term is derived from the [[Protestation at Speyer|''Protestatio'']] delivered by a minority of delegates against the (1529) [[Second Diet of Speyer|Diet of Speyer]], which passed legislation opposed by the [[Lutheranism|Lutherans]]. Since that time, the term has been used in many different senses, but not as the official title of any church until it was assumed in 1783 by the [[Episcopal_Church_in_the_United_States_of_America#Official_names|Protestant Episcopal Church]] in the United States, the [[United_States|American]] branch of the Anglican Communion. Most broadly, Protestantism is [[Western Christianity]] that is not subject to papal authority.<ref>[http://www.episcopalchurch.org/19625_15125_ENG_HTM.htm Definition of Protestantism at the Episcopal Church website]</ref>
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Protestantism began in Europe with the [[Reformation]] of the 16th century. Early leaders were [[Jan Hus]], [[Martin Luther]] and [[John Calvin]]. [[King Henry VIII]] in England led the church in his country out of communion with the Church of Rome. Although he opposed Protestant doctrines, his action in ending the Pope's role in England contributed to the advance of Protestantism under Henry's successors.  
  
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The doctrines of the Reformation can be summarized as a) ''the rejection of [[Pope|papal]] authority'', b) ''rejection of some fundamental [[Roman Catholicism|Roman Catholic]] doctrines'', c) ''the [[priesthood of all believers]]'', d) ''the [[Prima scriptura|primacy]] of the [[Bible]] as the only source of revealed truth'', and e) the belief ''in [[Sola fide|justification by faith]]'' alone.<ref> Encarta Dictionary under "Protestant"</ref><ref>Merriam Webster Dictionary under "Protestant"</ref>
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Protestant Christianity rejects the Roman Catholic belief that Christ founded the Catholic Church as his sole representative and rejects the notion that priests or saints have special access to the divine.  Although Protestantism accepts that Mary gave birth to Jesus Christ while still a virgin, they reject the teaching of her [[perpetual virginity]], and although she is greatly admired, they do not elevate her to the status she holds within Catholicism.  
  
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==Major Groupings==
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Most Protestants stress their belief that the Bible is the inerrant Word of God, although Quakers and Pentecostals believe in personal revelation as a factor in God's connection to believers. Protestants reject the Catholic concept that Tradition—beliefs held consistently by the people of God since the time of the Apostles—is a second means (alongside Scripture) by which God reveals his will to the Church, nor do they accept Papal pronouncements as binding on all believers. With few exceptions, Protestant churches observe only two sacraments (Baptism and the Lord's Supper; on the former, Protestants differ between those who baptize infants and those who baptize children and adults), not the seven sacraments that the Catholic Church accepts.
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''Protestantism'' generally refers to the faiths and churches born directly or indirectly of the [[Protestant Reformation]] in which many
 
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[[Roman Catholic Church|Roman Catholics]] split from the larger body and formed their own communions.<ref>''Protestantism'', The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition.[http://www.bartleby.com/65/pr/Protstnt.html]</ref>
 
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In common [[Western World|Western]] usage, the term is often used in contradistinction to [[Roman Catholic Church|Roman Catholicism]] and [[Eastern Orthodox Church|Eastern Orthodoxy]]<ref> Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia</ref>. This usage, however, is regarded by many groups as improper since, among other things, there are many non-Roman-Catholic, non-Eastern-Orthodox communions that long predate the Reformation (notably [[Oriental Orthodoxy]]). The case of the [[Anglican communion|Anglicans]] can be argued to be different as well in that, although born during the Reformation era, the [[Anglican doctrine]] is substantially different from the Reformation principles of most of the other Protestants of the time and is sometimes referred to as a middle path - a ''via media'' - between [[Roman Catholic Church|Roman Catholic]] and Protestant doctrines. Yet some other groups, such as the [[Latter Day Saint movement|Mormons]] and the [[Jehovah's Witnesses]], reject Protestantism as having deviated from true Christianity and see themselves as [[Restorationism|Restorationists]].  
 
  
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The churches most commonly associated with Protestantism can be divided along four fairly definitive lines<ref> [[Schism (religion)]]</ref>:
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==Politics==
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{{Christianity}}
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Europe was polarized by the Reformation, with most of northern Europe becoming Protestant while most of the Mediterranean regions remained loyal to the Roman Catholic Church. In the mid-sixteenth century, the Catholic Church struck back with a [[Counter-Reformation]] that is considered to be responsible for keeping such areas as Italy, France and Poland in the Catholic fold.
  
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#[[Mainline Protestants]] - a North American phrase - are those who trace their lineage to [[Martin Luther|Luther]], [[Calvinism|Calvin]], or [[Anglicanism]]. The [[Protestant Reformation|doctrines of the Reformation]] are their doctrines. They include such denominations as [[Lutheran]]s, [[Presbyterian]]s, and [[Methodist]]s.
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Religious wars broke out, the worst being the [[Thirty Years War]] (1618-1648) that devastated much of Germany and neighboring areas. By 1648, a compromise was reached such that, in the Holy Roman Empire, the religion of the Prince determined the official religion of the people. Nevertheless, religious strife continued in Germany as late as the 1870s in the [[Kulturkampf]], and in [[Ireland]] into the late 20th century.
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#[[Anabaptist]]s are a movement that developed from the [[Radical Reformation]]. Today, denominations such as [[Baptist]]s<ref name="Baptist">Baptists usually are considered Protestants, although some Baptists reject that association. See the [[Baptist]] article and its [[Baptist#Origins|Origins subsection]] for a further discussion of Baptist Perpetuity.</ref>, [[Pentecostal]]s, [[Brethren]], [[Mennonite]]s and [[Amish]] eschew infant baptism and see baptism as aligned with a demonstration of the gifts of the spirit.
 
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#[[Nontrinitarianism|Nontrinitarian movements]] reject the doctrine of the [[trinity]]. Today, they include such denominations as the [[Universalist Church of America|Universalist]]s, [[Unitarian]]s, and some [[Quaker]]s.
 
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#[[Restorationism|Restorationists]] are a more recent movement. Today, they include such denominations as the [[Latter Day Saint movement|Latter-day Saints]], [[Jehovah's Witnesses]] and [[Seventh-day Adventist Church|Adventists]].
 
  
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==Origins==
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==Missions==
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For proto-Protestant movements see {{Main|proto-Protestants}}
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Each Protestant denomination launched missionary activity to spread the gospel, and they competed with each other and with Catholic missions.
  
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The Reformation came about through a number of factors, both political and theological. The [[Holy Roman Empire]] was by the 1500s, made up of approximately 300 states and imperial cities, each to some degree self-governing, most under a feudal lord - a prince, duke, margrave, etc. The 1521 Edict of Worms originally forbade [[Lutheranism|Lutheran]] teachings, the status of which within the Catholic Church was still unclear, within the [[Holy Roman Empire]]. However, the 1526 session of the [[Diet (assembly)|Diet]], the imperial parliament, gave each ruler within the empire the power to decide the religion of his subjects according to the principle of ''[[Cuius regio, eius religio]]'', allowing a local lord to forbid Lutheranism and enforce Catholicism, or forbid Catholicism and enforce Lutheranism.
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The greatest successes came in the United States, where a series of revivals called the First and Second [[Great Awakening]]s resulted in many converts to various Protestant churches by 1860,<ref>Sadly, the Awakenings also resulted in the formation of several sects which are considered in some circles to be cults, such as Seventh-Day Adventists, Christian Science, and the Mormons.</ref> and in Africa and South Korea, where Protestantism grew rapidly throughout the 20th century.
  
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In 1529, [[Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor|Emperor Charles V]] at the [[Diet of Speyer]] revised this policy again and declared that until there was clarification of the Catholic Church's position from another [[Ecumenical council|council]] all further new religious developments in the empire would remain forbidden:
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==Numbers and Distribution in 1900==
  
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<blockquote>''"Those that until now have followed the Edict of Worms should continue to do so [ i.e., where Lutheranism has been forbidden, it remains forbidden]. In the areas where this has been deviated from, there shall be no further new developments and no-one shall be refused Mass [i.e., where Lutheranism has been permitted, Catholicism must be at least permitted]. Finally, the sects which contradict the sacrament of the true body and blood, shall absolutely not be tolerated, no more than the Anabaptists [i.e., anything beyond Lutheranism or Catholicism is outlawed everywhere]."</blockquote>
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In terms of Europe, due to the history of the Protestant [[Reformation]], significant Protestant populations can be found in Denmark, Estonia, Finland, the northern part of Germany, Iceland, Latvia, Norway, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and the east, north and west of Switzerland.<ref>[http://www.adherents.com/adh_predom.html Predominant religions], Adherence.com</ref>
  
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The name ''protestant'' is derived from the Latin ''protestatio'' meaning ''declaration'' which Martin Luther made when he and his supporters dissented "from the decision of the Diet of Spires (1529), which reaffirmed the edict of the Diet of Worms against the Reformation<ref> Compact Oxford English Dictionary under "protestant"</ref>. The term '''Protestant''' was initially applied to a group of princes and imperial cities within the [[Holy Roman Empire]] who were against this decision, and therefore referred only to those who wished to forbid Catholicism and enforce Lutheranism within their territories.   Later, '''Protestant''' came to be used as the collective name for those who opposed Roman Catholic practice in general and whose followers separated from it.  
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In addition, one of the most striking facts in the history of Protestantism during the 19th century was its great expansion in North America.<ref>This section is based on [http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/encyc09.protestantism.html?highlight=schleiermacher#highlight F. Kattenbusch and Arthur C. A. Hall, "Protestantism" in ''New Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia of Religious Knowledge,'' (1911) Vol. IX]</ref> The United States by 1910 had the largest Protestant population of any land—from 65,000,000 to 66,000,000 (out of a total population of 79,000,000),<ref>According to the estimate of H. K. Carroll in W. D. Grant, ed. ''Christendom Anno Domini 1901'', (1902), i. 530–531</ref> which is based upon the census of 1900. Britain probably comes next with 38,000,000 Protestants (total population 42,500,000) and Germany third with somewhat more than 35,000,000 (total population 56,000,000).<ref>H. Zeller's figures for the Eastern Church are 106,480,000, Orthodox; 8,130,000 "other [Eastern] Christians."; H. A. Krose, gives Greek Orthodox 109,000,000 schismatic Orientals, 6,554,913; Raskolniks (Russian dissenters), 2,173,371.  Roman Catholics 265,000,000; Eastern Church 117,000,000.</ref>
  
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There were reformers and dissenters before the reformation - such as [[John Wycliff]] and [[Jan Hus]] -  who did not foresee nor advocate a separation from the Catholic Church but rather sought to purge 'impurities' within the Catholic Church. With [[Martin Luther]], the reformation had its formal beginning. Like his proto-ideological predecessors, Luther was not schismatic and did not seek a formal separation from the Catholic Church. For five years, Luther was an open reformer within the Church until his ex-communication. Although the Catholic Church now had left him, Luther spent the rest of his life as a reformer of the Church but now from the outside as a spiritual exile. The rise of a separate Protestantism began with Luther but it was Luther's contemporaries and later reformers - such as [[John Calvin]], [[Huldrych Zwingli]], [[Thomas Cranmer]], and [[John Knox]] - who developed a doctrine and theology outside of the Catholic Church.
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According to ''Slate'', "Protestant Christianity has been the fastest growing religion in [[China]]."<ref>[http://www.slate.com/bigideas/what-is-the-future-of-religion/essays-and-opinions/fenggang-yang-opinion When Will China Become the World’s Largest Christian Country?], Slate</ref>  [[Evangelicalism|Evangelical Christianity]] is especially growing sharply in China.<ref>[https://www.csmonitor.com/World/Asia-Pacific/2015/0111/In-China-a-church-state-showdown-of-biblical-proportions In China, a church-state showdown of biblical proportions]</ref>  See: [[Growth of Christianity in China]]
  
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{{Protestant}}
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'''Reformed Protestantism in 1900:'''   
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* Great Britain  20,500,000 
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**see [[Church of Scotland]]
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* Germany  3,000,000 
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* Switzerland  2,000,000 
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* Netherlands  3,000,000 
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* Hungary  2,500,000 
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* France  500,000 
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* United States  65,000,000 
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* Canada  2,000,000 
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* Australia and New Zealand  1,500,000 
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* India  1,500,000 
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* South Africa  1,000,000 
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* Elsewhere 2,000,000 
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**Total Reformed    104,500,000
  
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As an intellectual movement, Protestantism grew out of the Renaissance and West European universities, attracting some learned intellectuals, as well as politicians, professionals, skilled tradesmen, and artisans. The new technology of the [[printing press]] allowed Protestant ideas to spread rapidly, as well as aiding in the dissemination of translations of the Christian [[Bible]] in native tongues. Nascent Protestant social ideals of liberty of conscience and individual freedom were formed through continuous confrontation with the authority of the Papacy, and the hierarchy of the Catholic priesthood. The Protestant movement away from the constraints of tradition, toward greater emphasis on individual conscience, anticipated later developments of democratization, and the so-called "[[Age of Enlightenment|Enlightenment]]" of later centuries.
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'''Lutheran: in 1900'''
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*Germany  32,000,000 
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* Norway and Sweden  7,500,000 
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* Denmark  2,500,000 
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* Finland and the Baltic Provinces  6,000,000 
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* Hungary 1,250,000 
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* United States  6,000,000 
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* Elsewhere  750,000 
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**Total Lutheran    56,000,000 
  
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In [[German language|German]]-speaking and [[Scandinavia]]n countries, the word "Protestant" still refers specifically to national [[Lutheran church]]es{{Fact|date=February 2007}} (in contrast to [[Reformed churches]]), while the common historical designation ([[evangelical]]) for all churches originating from the Reformation is a term that, in the United States, is used to refer to specifically conservative Protestant churches. Some Western, non-Catholic, groups are labelled as Protestant (such as the [[Religious Society of Friends]]), despite the reality that they recognize no historical connection to Luther, Calvin, or the Catholic Church.
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'''Anglican: in 1900'''
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* England  10,750,000 
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* Scotland and Ireland  750,000 
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* British Empire  4,000,000 
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* United States 2,500,000 
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** Total Anglican    24,000,000
  
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In England, before the Oxford movement of the 19th century,the word "Protestant" later came to be used to refer to the established [[Church of England]]. Protestants who were not members of the Church of England are further delineated as [[non-conformists]].
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'''Protestant missions'''    5,500,000
  
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==Basic theological tenets of the Reformation==
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'''Grand Total  in 1900:  182,000,000'''
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{{main|Five solas}}
 
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The '''Five Solas''' are five [[Latin]] phrases (or slogans) that emerged during the [[Protestant Reformation]] and summarize the Reformers' basic theological beliefs in contradistinction to the teaching of the [[Roman Catholic Church]] of the day. The Latin word ''sola'' means "alone," "only," or "single" in English. The five solas were what the Reformers believed to be the only things needed in their respective functions in Christian salvation. Listing them as such was also done with a view to excluding other things that hindered salvation. This formulation was intended to distinguish between what were viewed as deviations in the Christian church and the essentials of Christian life and practice.
 
  
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* ''[[Solus Christus]]'': ''Christ alone''.
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== Impact ==
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:The Protestants characterize the dogma concerning the Pope as Christ's representative head of the Church on earth, the concept of meritorious works, and the Catholic idea of a treasury of the merits of saints, as a denial that Christ is the ''only'' mediator between [[God]] and man.
 
  
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* ''[[Sola scriptura]]'': ''Scripture alone''.
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Protestants made the Bible available to all persons through publication of the Scriptures in the common language and by promoting universal education. The mandatory [[celibacy]] of the [[clergy]] (including monasticism) was rejected, resulting in married clergy becoming the norm in Protestant churches. Unordained persons were permitted more voice in church affairs and in the worship services themselves.  
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:Protestants believe that the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church obscure the teachings of the [[Bible]] by convoluting it with church history and doctrine.
 
  
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* ''[[Sola fide]]'': ''Faith alone''.
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=== Economic impact and impact on democratic political systems ===
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:Protestants believe that faith in Christ alone is enough for eternal salvation (as stated in Ephesians 2:8-9), whereas Catholics believe "faith without works is dead" (as stated in [[Epistle of James|James 2:20]]). Protestants believe that practicing good works attests to one's faith in Christ and his teachings.
 
  
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* ''[[Sola gratia]]'': ''Grace alone''.
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''See also:'' [[Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism]] and [[Protestant cultural legacies]]
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:The Roman Catholic view of the means of salvation was believed by the Protestants to be a mixture of reliance upon the grace of God, and confidence in the merits of one's own works, performed in love. The Reformers posited that salvation is entirely comprehended in God's gifts, (i.e. God's act of free grace) dispensed by the Holy Spirit according to the redemptive work of Jesus Christ alone. Consequently, they argued that a sinner is not accepted by God on account of the change wrought in the believer by God's grace, and that the believer is accepted without any regard for the merit of his works — for no one deserves salvation.
 
  
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* ''[[Soli Deo gloria]]'': ''Glory to God alone''
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Some historians have also contended that Protestantism played an important factor in the growth of democracy and [[capitalism]] (see also: [[Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism]] and [[Protestant cultural legacies]]).
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:All glory is due to God alone, since salvation is accomplished solely through his will and action&mdash;not only the gift of the all-sufficient [[atonement]] of [[Jesus]] on [[Christian cross|the cross]] but also the gift of faith in that atonement, created in the heart of the believer by the [[Holy Spirit]]. The reformers believed that human beings&mdash;even saints [[canonization|canonized]] by the Roman Catholic Church, the popes, and the ecclesiastical hierarchy&mdash;are not worthy of the glory that was accorded them.
 
  
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<!-- image is desinformative :
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The [[Harvard University]] historian [[Niall Ferguson]] declared: "Through a mixture of hard work and thrift the Protestant societies of the North and West Atlantic achieved the most rapid economic growth in history."<ref>[http://blog.tifwe.org/the-protestant-work-ethic-alive-well-in-china/ The Protestant Work Ethic: Alive & Well…In China] By Hugh Whelchel on September 24, 2012</ref>
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[[Image:ProtestantBranches.svg|right|thumb|400px|Branches of Protestantism (Incomplete, edit freely).]] -->
 
  
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On the theological front, the Protestant movement began to coalesce into several distinct branches in the mid-to-late sixteenth century. One of the central points of divergence was controversy over the Lord's Supper.
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=== Protestant missionaries and economic/societal development statistics ===
  
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===Real Presence in the Lord's Supper===
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''See also:'' [[Protestant cultural legacies]]
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{{main|Real Presence|Lord's Supper}}
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[[File:John Wesley.jpg|thumbnail|right|200px|[[John Wesley]] ]]
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The article "The Surprising Discovery About Those Colonialist, Proselytizing Missionaries" published in ''Christianity Today'' notes:
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{{Cquote|In his fifth year of graduate school, Woodberry created a statistical model that could test the connection between missionary work and the health of nations. He and a few research assistants spent two years coding data and refining their methods. They hoped to compute the lasting effect of missionaries, on average, worldwide...
  
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Although early Protestants generally rejected the Roman Catholic [[dogma]] of [[transubstantiation]], which teaches that the bread and wine used in the sacrificial rite of the Mass lose their natural substance by being  transformed into the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Christ (see [[Eucharist]]), they disagreed with one another concerning the manner in which Christ ''is'' present in Holy Communion.
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One morning, in a windowless, dusty computer lab lit by fluorescent bulbs, Woodberry ran the first big test. After he finished prepping the [[statistics|statistical]] program on his [[computer]], he clicked "Enter" and then leaned forward to read the results.
  
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*Lutherans hold to the [[Real Presence]] as [[Consubstantiation]] (although some Lutherans disapprove of [[Consubstantiation]] because of misunderstandings, it was [[Philipp Melancthon]]'s term used with Martin Luther's approval), which affirms the physical presence of Christ's true Body & Blood supernaturally "in, with, and under" the Consecrated Bread and Wine. Lutherans point to Jesus' statement, "...This '''IS''' my body...". According to the Lutheran Confessions of Faith the [[Sacramental Union]] takes place at the time of Consecration, when Christ's Word's of Institution are spoken by the celebrant . Lutheran teaching insists that the Consecrated Bread & Wine ARE the truly abiding and adorable Body & Blood of Christ in a [[Sacramental Union]], while also affirming the Lord's Supper ranges along the continuum from Calvin to [[Zwingli]].
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"I was shocked," says Woodberry. "It was like an [[atomic bomb]]. The impact of missions on global democracy was huge. I kept adding variables to the model—factors that people had been studying and writing about for the past 40 years—and they all got wiped out. It was amazing. I knew, then, I was on to something really important."
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*The Reformed closest to Calvin emphasize the ''real presence'', or ''sacramental presence'', of Christ, saying that the sacrament is a means of saving grace through which only the elect believer actually partakes of Christ, but merely WITH the Bread & Wine rather than in the Elements. Calvinists deny the Zwingli assertion that Christ makes himself present to the believer in the elements of the [[sacrament]], but affirm that Christ is united to the believer through  faith—toward which the supper is an outward and visible aid, this is often referred to as ''dynamic presence''.
 
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*A Protestant holding a popular simplification of the Zwinglian view, without concern for theological intricacies as hinted at above, may see the Lord's Supper merely as a symbol of the shared faith of the participants, a commemoration of the facts of the crucifixion, and a reminder of their standing together as the Body of Christ (a view referred to somewhat derisively as ''memorialism'').
 
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*[[Anglicans]] (members of the Church of England, the [[Episcopal Church in the United States of America|Episcopal Church]] in the USA, the [[Scottish Episcopal Church]] in [[Scotland]] and other Protestant churches claiming the Anglican heritage) recognize Christ's presence in the Eucharist in a spectrum (according to specific denominational, diocesan, and parochial emphasis) ranging from acceptance of the Roman Catholic doctrine of transubstantiation, through the Lutheran position, to high Calvinistic notions. However, the twenty-eighth and twenty-ninth of the [[39 Articles]] - an Anglican Confession following the [[Augsburg Confession]] - teach that Christ's Body and Blood in the Consecrated Elements are truly present in a spiritual modality.   
 
  
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In Protestant theology, as the bread shares identity with Christ (which he calls "my body"), in an analogous way, the Church shares identity with Him (and also is called "the Body of Christ"). Thus, controversies over the Lord's Supper seem to be only about the nature of the bread and wine, but are ultimately about the nature of salvation and the Church; and indirectly about the nature of Christ.
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Woodberry already had historical proof that missionaries had educated women and the poor, promoted widespread printing, led nationalist movements that empowered ordinary citizens, and fueled other key elements of democracy. Now the statistics were backing it up: Missionaries weren't just part of the picture. They were central to it...
  
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===Catholicism===
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Areas where Protestant missionaries had a significant presence in the past are on average more economically developed today, with comparatively better health, lower infant mortality, lower corruption, greater literacy, higher educational attainment (especially for women), and more robust membership in nongovernmental associations.
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Contrary to how the Protestant reformers were often characterized, the concept of a ''catholic'', or universal, Church was not brushed aside during the Protestant Reformation. To the contrary, the visible unity of the catholic Church was an important and essential doctrine of the Reformation. The Magisterial Reformers, such as [[Martin Luther]], [[John Calvin]], and [[Ulrich Zwingli]], believed that they were reforming a corrupt and heretical Catholic Church. Each of them took very seriously the charges of schism and innovation, denying these charges and maintaining that it was the medieval Roman Catholic Church that had left them. Because of this the fundamental Unity of the Catholic Church remained a very important doctrine in the churches of the Reformation. Dr. James Walker wrote in "The Theology of Theologians of Scotland":
 
  
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:''The visible church, in the idea of the Scottish theologians, is catholic. You have not an indefinite number of Parochial, or Congregational, or National churches, constituting, as it were, so many ecclesiastical individualities, but one great spiritual republic, of which these various organizations form a part. The visible church is not a genus, so to speak, with so many species under it. It is thus you may think of the State, but the visible church is a totum integrale, it is an empire. The churches of the various nationalities constitute the provinces of this empire; and though they are so far independent of each other, yet they are so one, that membership in one is membership in all, and separation from one is separation from all... This conception of the church, of which, in at least some aspects, we have practically so much lost sight, had a firm hold of the Scottish theologians of the seventeenth century.''<ref>Dr. James Walker in The Theology of Theologians of Scotland. (Edinburgh: Rpt. Knox Press, 1982) Lecture iv. pp.95-6.</ref>
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In short: Want a blossoming democracy today? The solution is simple—if you have a time machine: Send a 19th-century missionary."
  
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Wherever the Magisterial Reformation, which received support from the ruling authorities, took place, the result was a reformed national church envisioned to be a part of the whole visible Holy Catholic Church described in the creeds, but disagreeing, in certain important points of doctrine and doctrine-linked practice, with what had until then been considered the normative reference point on such matters, namely the See of Rome. The Reformed Churches thus believed in a form of Catholicity, founded on their doctrines of the five solas and a visible [[ecclesiastical]] organization based on the [[14th century|14th]] and [[15th century]] [[Conciliarism|Conciliar movement]], rejecting the [[Papacy]] and [[Papal Infallibility]] in favor of [[Ecumenical council]]s, but rejecting the [[Council of Trent]].
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...at a conference presentation in 2002, Woodberry got a break. In the room sat Charles Harper Jr., then a vice president at the John Templeton Foundation, which was actively funding research on religion and social change. (Its grant recipients have included Christianity Today.) Three years later, Woodberry received half a million dollars from the foundation's Spiritual Capital Project, hired almost 50 research assistants, and set up a huge database project at the University of Texas, where he had taken a position in the sociology department. The team spent years amassing more statistical data and doing more historical analyses, further confirming his theory.
  
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Today there is a growing movement of Protestants, especially of the [[Calvinist|Reformed]] tradition, that reject the designation "Protestant" because of its negative "anti-catholic" connotations, preferring the designation "Reformed," "Evangelical" or even "Reformed Catholic" expressive of what they call a "Reformed Catholicity" [http://www.reformedcatholicism.com/?p=424] and defending their arguments from the traditional Protestant [[Confession of Faith|Confessions]]. <ref>The Canadian Reformed Magazine 18 (Sept. 20-27, Oct. 4-11, 18, Nov. 1, 8, 1969) - http://spindleworks.com/library/faber/008_theca.htm</ref>
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...Woodberry's historical and statistical work has finally captured glowing attention. A summation of his 14 years of research—published in 2012 in the American Political Science Review, the discipline's top journal—has won four major awards, including the prestigious Luebbert Article Award for best article in comparative politics. Its startling title: "The Missionary Roots of Liberal Democracy."
  
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===Radical Reformation===
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...over a dozen studies have confirmed Woodberry's findings. The growing body of research is beginning to change the way scholars, aid workers, and economists think about democracy and development.<ref>''Christianity Today'', [https://archive.is/cDMnA "The surprising discovery about those colonialist, proselytizing missionaries"], January 8, 2014</ref>}}
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Unlike mainstream Evangelical ([[Lutheran]]), Reformed ([[Huldrych Zwingli|Zwinglian]] and [[Calvinist]]) Protestant movements, the [[Radical Reformation]], which had no state sponsorship, generally abandoned the idea of the "Church Visible" as distinct from the "Church Invisible." For them, the Church only consisted of the tiny community of believers, who accepted Jesus Christ by adult baptism, called [[Believers Baptism|"believer's baptism"]]. Others believed that the Church could not be defined as anything more than a single congregation meeting together for worship at one time in a single place. The Radical Reformation thus did not believe that the Magisterial Reformation had gone far enough. For example, radical reformer Andreas von Bodenstein Karlstadt referred to the Lutheran theologians at Wittenberg as the 'new papists.'<ref>The Magisterial Reformation - http://www.reformationhappens.com/movements/magisterial/</ref> It was exactly because the Reformation still strongly defended the visible unity of the Catholic Church that they were criticized by the Radical Reformers and vice versa.
+
[[File:Niall Ferguson.jpg|thumbnail|200px|center|The [[Harvard University]] historian [[Niall Ferguson]] declared: "Through a mixture of hard work and thrift the Protestant societies of the North and West Atlantic achieved the most rapid economic growth in history."<ref>[http://blog.tifwe.org/the-protestant-work-ethic-alive-well-in-china/ The Protestant Work Ethic: Alive & Well…In China] By Hugh Whelchel on September 24, 2012</ref> ]]
 +
{{clear}}
  
−
===Authority===
+
==Notable events==
−
{{Section-stub}}
+
* [[Martin Luther]]'s nailing of [[The 95 Theses]] to the church door in [[Wittenberg]] on October 31, 1517. Luther became the spiritual leader of the Evangelical movement later called [[Lutheranism]], which came to dominate much of Germany and all of Scandinavia
−
''See the articles [[Laity|Lay]], [[Holy orders|Ordained]] and [[Priesthood of all believers]]''
 
  
−
Whereas Catholics look to the Church for authority, Protestants look to the Bible for authority.
+
* [[King Henry VIII]]'s asserting the independence of the English church from Papal control in 1533. Under Henry's successors, Edward VI and Elizabeth I, the English Church became Protestant, although it retained the Catholic system of governance by bishops.  
  
−
====Within the Church====
+
* [[John Knox]]'s leading of [[Scotland]] into the [[Presbyterian]] faith in 1560. He was a follower of [[John Calvin]] (and was aided by many [[Martyrs' Monument|martyr]]s).
−
Many Protestant churches practice similar rituals to [[Catholicism]]—chiefly [[baptism]], [[Eucharist|communion]], and [[matrimony]]—frequently varying or de-formalizing the rites (although this is not the case in some Lutheran and Anglican parishes).
 
  
−
====Secular authority====
+
== Protestantism in the United States ==
−
*Lutheran - [[doctrine of the two kingdoms]]
 
−
*Reformed
 
−
*Anglican
 
−
Radical - [[Anabaptist]] and peace churches
 
  
−
==Later development==
+
Protestants represent the largest Christian division in the United States.  There are two main groupings, the more conservative [[Evangelical Christians]] and the more liberal [[Mainline]] denominations. Some Evangelicals incline to [[Fundamentalism]], but the terms are often used casually and inconsistently; fundamentalist groups, though strongly believing in evangelism, do not see themselves as Evangelical.  Other Evangelicals are part of the [[Pentecostalism]] movement, which places emphasis on the gifts of the Holy Spirit and speaking in tongues.
−
{{Section-stub}}
 
  
−
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.
+
There are over 200 major denominations in the United States. Among the larger groupings are:
  
−
===Pietism and Methodist movement===
+
*[[Baptist]]
−
{{main|Pietism|Methodism}}
+
**[[American Baptist Churches]] (liberal)
 +
**[[Southern Baptist Convention]] (Evangelical)
 +
**[[Independent Baptist]] (fundamentalist)
 +
*[[Methodist]]
 +
**[[Free Methodist Church]] (Evangelical/fundamentalist)
 +
**[[United Methodist Church]] (liberal)
 +
**[[Global Methodist Church]] (conservative)
 +
*[[Lutheran]]
 +
**Evangelical Lutheran Church in America ([[ELCA]]) (liberal)
 +
**[[Lutheran Church Missouri Synod]]
 +
**[[Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod]]
 +
**[[North American Lutheran Church]] (conservative)
 +
*[[Presbyterian]]
 +
**[[Presbyterian Church (USA)]] (liberal)
 +
**[[Presbyterian Church in America]] (conservative)
 +
**[[Orthodox Presbyterian Church]] (conservative)
 +
*[[Reformed]]
 +
**[[Christian Reformed Church]]
 +
**[[Reformed Church in America]]
 +
*[[Episcopal]] (liberal)
 +
*[[Continuing Anglican]] (conservative)
 +
*[[Restorationist]]
 +
**[[Churches of Christ]] (Evangelical/fundamentalist)<ref>However, Churches of Christ claim they are NOT Protestant, as they do not seek to reform Catholicism or any other group, only to restore Christianity to New Testament practice.</ref>
 +
**[[Disciples of Christ]] (liberal)
 +
*[[Pentecostal]] (Evangelical/charismatic)
 +
**[[Assemblies of God]] (Evangelical/charismatic)
 +
**[[Church of God (Cleveland, TN)]] (Evangelical/charismatic)
 +
*[[Holiness Movement]] (Evangelical)
 +
**[[Church of the Nazarene]] (Evangelical)
 +
**[[Church of God (Anderson, IN)]] (Evangelical)
 +
**[[Salvation Army]] (Evangelical)
 +
*[[Seventh Day Adventist]] <ref>Questions exist as to whether this group is a Christian denomination or a cult.</ref>
 +
*[[United Church of Christ]] (liberal)
  
−
The German [[Pietism|Pietist]] movement, together with the influence of the [[Puritan]] Reformation in England in the seventeenth century, were important influences upon [[John Wesley]] and Methodism, as well as through smaller, new groups such as the [[Religious Society of Friends]] ("Quakers") and the [[Moravian]] Brethren from [[Herrnhut]], [[Saxony]],  [[Germany]].
 
−
 
−
The practice of a spiritual life, typically combined with social engagement, predominates in classical Pietism, which was a protest against the doctrine-centeredness ''Protestant Orthodoxy'' of the times, in favor of depth of religious experience. Many of the more conservative Methodists went on to form the [[Holiness movement]], which emphasized a rigorous experience of holiness in practical, daily life.
 
−
 
−
===Evangelicalism===
 
−
{{main|Evangelicalism}}
 
−
 
−
Beginning at the end of eighteenth century, several international revivals of Pietism (such as the [[Great Awakening]] and the [[Second Great Awakening]]) took place across denominational lines, which are referred to generally as the Evangelical movement. The chief emphases of this movement were individual conversion, personal piety and Bible study, [[public morality]] often including [[Temperance (virtue)|Temperance]] and [[Abolitionism]], de-emphasis of formalism in worship and in doctrine, a broadened role for laity (including women) in worship, evangelism and teaching, and cooperation in evangelism across denominational lines.
 
−
 
−
===Pentecostalism===
 
−
{{main|Pentecostalism}}
 
−
 
−
Pentecostalism, as a movement, began in the United States early in the twentieth century, starting especially within the Holiness movement. Seeking a return to the operation of New Testament gifts of the Holy Spirit, speaking in tongues as evidence of the "baptism of the Holy Ghost" or to make the unbeliever believe became the leading feature. Divine healing and miracles were also emphasized. Pentecostalism swept through much of the Holiness movement, and eventually spawned hundreds of new denominations in the United States. A later [[Charismatic movement|"charismatic"]] movement also stressed the gifts of the Spirit, but often operated within existing denominations, rather than by coming out of them.
 
−
 
−
===Modernism===
 
−
{{main|Liberal Christianity}}
 
−
{{Section-stub}}
 
−
 
−
Modernism, or Liberalism, does not constitute a rigorous and well-defined school of theology, but is rather an inclination by some writers and teachers to integrate Christian thought into the spirit of the [[Age of Enlightenment]]. New understandings of history and the natural sciences of the day led directly to new approaches to theology. Though, the Protestants refer more to the newer bible.
 
−
 
−
===Fundamentalism===
 
−
{{main|Christian fundamentalism}}
 
−
 
−
In reaction to liberal Bible critique, [[Fundamentalism]] arose in the twentieth century, primarily in the United States and Canada, among those denominations most affected by Evangelicalism. Fundamentalism placed primary emphasis on the authority and sufficiency of the Bible, and typically advised separation from error and cultural conservatism as an important aspect of the Christian life.
 
−
 
−
===Neo-orthodoxy===
 
−
{{main|Neo-orthodoxy}}
 
−
 
−
A non-fundamentalist rejection of liberal Christianity, associated primarily with [[Karl Barth]], neo-orthodoxy sought to counter-act the tendency of liberal theology to make theological accommodations to modern scientific perspectives. Sometimes called "Crisis theology", according to the influence of philosophical [[existentialism]] on some important segments of the movement; also, somewhat confusingly, sometimes called ''neo-evangelicalism''.
 
−
 
−
===Neo-evangelicalism===
 
−
{{main|Neo-evangelicalism}}
 
−
 
−
Neo-evangelicalism is a movement from the middle of the twentieth century, that reacted to perceived excesses of Fundamentalism, adding to concern for biblical authority, an emphasis on liberal arts, cooperation among churches, Christian [[Apologetics]], and non-denominational evangelization.
 
−
 
−
===Paleo-Orthodoxy===
 
−
{{main|Paleo-orthodoxy}}
 
−
 
−
Paleo-orthodoxy is a movement similar in some respects to Neo-evangelicalism but emphasising the ancient Christian consensus of the undivided Church of the first millennium AD, including in particular the early Creeds and councils of the church as a means of properly understanding the Scriptures. This movement is cross-denominational and the theological giant of the movement is [[United Methodist]] theologian [[Thomas Oden]].
 
−
 
−
===Ecumenism===
 
−
{{main|Christian ecumenism}}
 
−
 
−
The ecumenical movement has had an influence on [[mainline]] churches, beginning at least in 1910 with the [[Edinburgh Missionary Conference]]. Its origins lay in the recognition of the need for cooperation on the mission field in [[Africa]], [[Asia]] and [[Oceania]]. Since 1948, the [[World Council of Churches]] has been influential. There are also ecumenical bodies at regional, national and local levels across the globe. One, but not the only expression of the ecumenical movement, has been the move to form united churches, such as the [[Church of South India]], the [[Church of North India]], The US-based [[United Church of Christ]], The [[United Church of Canada]] and the [[Uniting Church in Australia]]. There has been a strong engagement of [[Eastern Orthodox Church|Orthodox]] churches in the ecumenical movement.
 
−
 
−
In 1999, the representatives of [[Lutheran World Federation]] and Roman Catholic Church signed The [[Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification]], apparently resolving the conflict over the nature of [[Justification]] which was at the root of the [[Protestant Reformation]], although some [[conservative Lutheran]]s did not agree to this resolution. On July 18, 2006 Delegates to the World Methodist Conference voted unanimously to adopt the Joint Declaration. [http://www.umc.org/site/c.gjJTJbMUIuE/b.1863123/k.FF49/World_Methodists_approve_further_ecumenical_dialogue.htm] [http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/0604186.htm]
 
−
 
−
==[[List_of_Christian_Denominations#Protestant|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 [[Christian ecumenism|ecumenical movements]] have attempted cooperation or reorganization of Protestant churches, according to various models of union, but divisions continue to outpace unions. Most denominations share common beliefs in the major aspects of the Christian faith, while differing in many secondary doctrines. There are "over 33,000 denominations in 238 countries" and every year there is a net increase of around 270 to 300 denominations.<ref> World Christian Encyclopedia (2nd edition). [[David V. Barrett|David Barrett]], George Kurian and Todd Johnson. New York: Oxford University Press, 2001</ref>  According to David Barrett's study (1970), there are 8,196 denominations within Protestantism.
 
−
 
−
===Families of denominations===
 
−
Only general '''families''' are listed here (due to the above-stated mulititude of [[List of Christian denominations|denominations]]); some of these groups do not consider themselves as part of the Protestant movement, but are generally viewed as such by scholars and the public at large:
 
  
 +
Smaller groups include:
 
*[[Anabaptist]]
 
*[[Anabaptist]]
−
*[[Anglicanism|Anglican / Episcopalian]]
+
**[[Mennonite]]
−
*[[African Methodist Episcopal]]
+
**[[Amish]]
−
*[[Baptist]]<ref name="Baptist" />
+
*[[Continuing Anglican]]  
−
*[[Christian and Missionary Alliance]]
+
*[[Brethren]]
−
*[[Evangelicalism]]
+
*[[Religious Society of Friends|Quaker]]
−
*[[Lutheranism|Lutheran]]
 
−
*[[Methodism|Methodist / Wesleyan]] and the [[Holiness movement]]
 
−
*[[Pentecostalism|Pentecostal]] and [[Charismatic (movement)|Charismatic]]
 
−
*[[Religious Society of Friends|Quakerism]]
 
−
*[[Reformed churches|Reformed]]/[[Congregational church|Congregational]] /[[Presbyterian Church|Presbyterian]]
 
−
*[[Restoration Movement|Restoration movement]]
 
−
*[[Adventists]]
 
−
*[[Non-denominational]]
 
−
*[[Waldensians]]
 
−
 
 
−
==Number of Protestants==
 
−
{{main|Protestants by country}}
 
−
There are about 590 million Protestants worldwide. 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. Nearly 27% of all Christians (2.1 billion) today are Protestants.{{Fact|date=February 2007}}
 
−
 
 
−
==Notable Protestant religious figures==
 
−
(in alphabetical order by century.)
 
  
−
===Fifteenth century===
+
== See also ==
−
*[[Jan Hus]], Czech reformist/dissident; burned to death by Roman Catholic Church authorities for unrepentant and persistent heresy.
+
*[[Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism]]
 +
*[[Protestant cultural legacies|Irreligious countries with Protestant cultural legacies]]
 +
*[[Growth of Protestantism in Russia]]
 +
*[[Christian Union]]
 +
*[[Infant baptism]]
 +
*[[Essay: Water baptism cannot save, the Church cannot save, Born again by faith alone]]
 +
*[["Catholic Heresies and Traditions Adopted and Perpetuated by the Roman Catholic Church in the Course of 1600 Years"]]
 +
*[[American_Christianity | American Christianity]]
 +
*[[Christianity | Christianity]]
 +
*[[Christianity by continent]]
  
−
===Sixteenth century===
+
==Further reading==
−
*[[Jacobus Arminius]], Dutch theologian, founder of school of thought known as [[Arminianism]]
+
* Bell, James S.,  and Tracy Macon Sumner. ''The Complete Idiot's Guide to the Reformation and Protestantism'' (2002) [https://www.amazon.com/Complete-Idiots-Guide-Reformation-Protestantism/dp/0028642708/ref=pd_bbs_sr_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1200807603&sr=8-2 excerpt and text search]
−
*[[Heinrich Bullinger]], successor of Zwingli, leading reformed theologian
+
* Gonzalez, Justo L. ''A History of Christian Thought: Volume 3: From the Protestant Reformation to the Twentieth Century'' (1987) [https://www.amazon.com/History-Christian-Thought-Protestant-Reformation/dp/0687171849/ref=sr_1_12?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1200808706&sr=8-12 excerpt and text search]
−
*[[John Calvin]], French theologian, [[Protestant Reformation|Reformer]] and resident of [[Geneva, Switzerland]], he founded the school of theology known as Calvinism
+
* Hillerbrand, Hans J. ed. ''The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Reformation.''  ([[OUP]] 1996); the book is online at many academic libraries; [https://www.amazon.com/Oxford-encyclopedia-Reformation/dp/0195103645/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1201162350&sr=8-2 excerpt and text search]
−
*[[Elizabeth I]], [[England|English]] Queen known for reforming the national religion of England
+
*   Latourette, Kenneth Scott. ''A History of Christianity'' (2 vol 1975) [https://www.amazon.com/History-Christianity-Beginnings-1500-Revised/dp/0060649526/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1200823548&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search vol 1, to 1500]
−
*[[Abraomas Kulvietis]], jurist and a professor at Königsberg Albertina University, as well as a Reformer of the Lithuanian church.
+
*  Latourette, Kenneth Scott. ''Christianity in a Revolutionary Age: A History of Christianity in the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries'' (1958) [http://www.questia.com/library/book/christianity-in-a-revolutionary-age-a-history-of-christianity-in-the-nineteenth-and-twentieth-centuries-vol-1-by-kenneth-scott-latourette.jsp vol 1 online edition]
−
*[[John Knox]], Scottish Calvinist reformer,
+
*  Latourette, Kenneth Scott. ''A history of the expansion of Christianity'' (7 vol 1939-1970), monumental history of missionary work worldwide [http://www.questia.com/library/book/a-history-of-the-expansion-of-christianity-vol-7-by-kenneth-scott-latourette.jsp online edition]
−
*[[Martin Luther]], German religious reformer, theologian, founder of the Lutheran church in Germany, founder of Lutheranism
+
* MacCulloch, Diarmaid. ''The Reformation'' (2005), influential recent survey [https://www.amazon.com/Reformation-Diarmaid-MacCulloch/dp/014303538X/ref=pd_bbs_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1200808706&sr=8-2 excerpt and text search]
−
*[[Philipp Melanchthon]], early Lutheran leader
+
*  McGonigle, Thomas D., and James F. Quigley. ''A History of the Christian Tradition, Vol. II: From the Reformation to the Present'' (1996) [https://www.amazon.com/History-Christian-Tradition-Vol-Reformation/dp/0809136481/ref=sr_1_15?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1200808706&sr=8-15 excerpt and text search]
−
*[[Menno Simons]], founder of [[Mennonitism]]
+
*''New Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia of Religious Knowledge'' (1911), major sources of older scholarly articles; mainline Protestant perspective 
−
*[[Huldrych Zwingli]], founder of Swiss reformed tradition
+
**[http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/encyc01.toc.html Vol. 1: Aachen - Basilians]
−
*[[John Smyth (1570-1612)|John Smyth]], founder of the [[Baptist]] denomination
+
**[http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/encyc02.toc.html Vol. 2: Basilica - Chambers]
−
*[[Martynas Mažvydas]] was the author and the editor of the first printed book in the Lithuanian language. First Lithuanian Protestant Archdeacon of Ragainė.
+
**[http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/encyc03.toc.html Vol. 3: Chamier - Draendorf]
 +
**[http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/encyc04.toc.html Vol. 4: Draeseke - Goa]
 +
**[http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/encyc05.toc.html Vol. 5: Goar - Innocent]
 +
**[http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/encyc06.toc.html Vol. 6: Innocents - Liudger]
 +
**[http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/encyc07.toc.html Vol. 7: Liutprand - Moralities]
 +
**[http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/encyc08.toc.html Vol. 8: Morality - Petersen]
 +
**[http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/encyc09.toc.html Vol. 9: Petri - Reuchlin]
 +
**[http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/encyc10.toc.html Vol. 10: Reutsch - Son]
 +
**[http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/encyc11.toc.html Vol. 11: Son of Man - Tremellius]
 +
**[http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/encyc12.toc.html Vol. 12: Trench - Zwingli]
 +
**[http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/encyc13.toc.html Vol. 13: Index]
 +
===United States===
 +
* Ahlstrom, Sydney E. ''A religious history of the American people‎'' (1979) 1192 pages; classic history from broad perspective [https://books.google.com/books?id=5kFF6a1viGcC&dq=inauthor:ahlstrom&lr=&as_drrb_is=q&as_minm_is=0&as_miny_is=&as_maxm_is=0&as_maxy_is=&num=30&as_brr=0&as_pt=ALLTYPES excerpt and text search]
 +
* Balmer, Randall. ''Protestantism in America'' (2005) [https://www.amazon.com/Protestantism-Columbia-Contemporary-American-Religion/dp/0231111312/ref=pd_bbs_sr_3?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1200807603&sr=8-3 excerpt and text search]  
 +
* Balmer, Randall. ''Encyclopedia of Evangelicalism'' (2nd ed.  2004), 655pp
 +
* Balmer, Randall. ''Grant Us Courage: Travels along the Mainline of American Protestantism'' (1996) [http://www.questia.com/read/106364823?title=Grant%20Us%20Courage%3a%20%20Travels%20along%20the%20Mainline%20of%20American%20Protestantism online edition]
 +
* Hutchison, William R. ed. ''Between the Times: The Travail of the Protestant Establishment in America, 1900-1960'' (1990) [https://books.google.com/books?id=wMH7PRqQDGkC&printsec=frontcover&dq=%22neo+orthodoxy%22+barth+OR+niebuhr&lr=&num=30&as_brr=3&as_pt=ALLTYPES&source=gbs_summary_r&cad=0 excerpt and text search]
 +
* Lippy, Charles H. and Peter W. Williams, eds. ''Encyclopedia of the American religious experience: studies of traditions and movements'' (3 vol 1988) 1872 pages; standard reference work; long essays by scholars
 +
* Noll, Mark A. ''The Old Religion in a New World: The History of North American Christianity'' (2001) [https://www.amazon.com/Old-Religion-New-World-Christianity/dp/0802849482/ref=sr_1_11?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1200823548&sr=8-11 excerpt and text search], by a leading evangelical scholar
 +
* Noll, Mark A. '' A history of Christianity in the United States and Canada‎'' (1992), by leading Evangelical historian [https://books.google.com/books?id=VGF3wbzzy9QC&dq=intitle:christianity+inauthor:noll&lr=&as_drrb_is=q&as_minm_is=0&as_miny_is=&as_maxm_is=0&as_maxy_is=&num=30&as_brr=0&as_pt=ALLTYPES excerpt and text search], by a leading evangelical scholar
 +
* Queen, Edward L. et al., eds. Encyclopedia of American Religious History'' (3rd ed. 2 vol. 2009) 1200pp
 +
* Reid, Daniel G. et al. eds., ''Dictionary of Christianity in America'' (199)
 +
* Roof, Wade Clark, and William McKinney. '' American Mainline Religion: Its Changing Shape and Future'' (1990) [https://www.amazon.com/American-Mainline-Religion-Changing-Future/dp/0813512166/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1243520093&sr=1-6 excerpt and text search]
 +
*  Wooley, Davis C. ed. '' Encyclopedia of Southern Baptists‎'' (5 vol 1958-1982); 2565 pages
 +
* Wuthnow, Robert,  and John H. Evans, eds. ''The Quiet Hand of God:  Faith-Based Activism and the Public Role of Mainline Protestantism,'' (2002), 430 pp.; essays by scholars
  
−
===Seventeenth - nineteenth centuries===
+
===Primary sources===
−
*[[Jacob Albright]], founder of the Evangelical Church
+
* Placher, William C. ''Readings in the History of Christian Theology, Volume 2: From the Reformation to the Present'' (1988) [https://www.amazon.com/Readings-History-Christian-Theology-Reformation/dp/0664240585/ref=sr_1_24?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1200809912&sr=8-24 excerpt and text search]  
−
*[[Jacob Amman]], founder of the [[Amish]] church
 
−
*[[Francis Asbury]], early bishop of American Methodism
 
−
*[[Jonathan Edwards (theology)|Jonathan Edwards]], American Puritan theologian, Great Awakening reformist preacher, Calvinist
 
−
*[[George Fox]], Founder of the Religious Society of Friends
 
−
*[[William Penn]], Founder of [[Pennsylvania]]
 
−
*[[William Laud]], [[Archbishop of Canterbury]] under [[Charles I of England]]
 
−
*[[Friedrich Schleiermacher]], German theologian considered founder of [[Liberal Christianity]]
 
−
*[[Søren Kierkegaard]], Danish philosopher considered the "Father of Existentialism" and influenced [[Karl Barth]] and neo-orthodoxy theology.
 
−
*[[Philipp Jakob Spener]], "father" of the Pietist movement
 
−
*[[Charles Wesley]], Anglican priest, Methodist leader, poet, & hymn writer
 
−
*[[John Wesley]], Anglican priest, founder of the Methodist movement
 
−
*[[George Whitefield]], Great Awakening reformist preacher
 
−
*[[William Booth]], founder of the [[Salvation Army]], renowned for his treatise ''In Darkest England and the Way Out''
 
−
*[[Edward Irving]], Scottish clergyman, generally (but wrongly) regarded as the founder of the [[Catholic Apostolic Church]]
 
−
*[[Ellen G. White]], [[James Springer White|James White]], [[Joseph Bates (Adventist)|Joseph Bates]], [[Uriah Smith]], [[John Harvey Kellogg|Dr. John Kellogg]] Pioneers of Seventh-day Adventism
 
−
*[[Charles Taze Russel]], [[Judge Rutherford]] founders of the Watch Tower Bible and tract society, more commonly known as Jehovah's Witnesses.
 
−
* Mme. Henriette Feller, missionary to Quebec and founder of [[Feller College]].
 
−
* Nikolaus Ludwig, Count von [[Zinzendorf]], Founder and Bishop of the Moravians
 
−
* [[August Gottlieb Spangenberg]],  Leader of American Moravian missions, Bishop, German theologian
 
−
* [[Charles P. Chiniquy]], Catholic Priest converted to Presbyterian Preacher, Quebec and Illinois
 
−
* [[Gustav II Adolf]], King of Sweden during the [[Thirty Years War]]
 
  
−
===Twentieth century===
+
== External links ==
−
*[[Karl Barth]], Swiss theologian along with [[Emil Brunner]] known for [[Neo-orthodoxy|Neo-orthodox theology]] also known as "Dialectical theology" and "Crisis theology"
 
−
*[[Cornelius Van Til]], American theologian known for his development of pre-suppositional apologetics
 
−
*[[Dietrich Bonhoeffer]], German theologian, involved in the resistance against Nazism and executed shortly before the end of [[World War II]]
 
−
*[[Jerry Falwell]], American evangelist and political activist
 
−
*[[Austin Farrer]], Anglican theologian, preacher, and philosopher
 
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*[[Billy Graham]], American evangelist
 
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*[[John Stott]], Anglican Minister, preacher and author
 
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*[[Nicky Gumbel]], Anglican British evangelist
 
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*[[Martin Luther King, Jr.]],American Minister, peace and civil rights activist
 
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*[[C. S. Lewis]], Anglican novelist, literary scholar, and lay theologian
 
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*[[Aimee Semple McPherson]] American founder of the [[Foursquare Church]]
 
−
*[[Reinhold Niebuhr]], American theologian and ethicist
 
−
*[[H. Richard Niebuhr]], American theologian and ethicist
 
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*[[Pat Robertson]], American charismatic/evangelical leader
 
−
*[[Francis A. Schaeffer]], Christian apologist
 
−
*[[Billy Sunday]], American Evangelist
 
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*[[Paul Tillich]], Lutheran existentialist theologian
 
−
*[[John Howard Yoder]], Mennonite theologian and ethicist
 
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*[[James Dobson]], American psychologist and conservative activist, founder of Focus on the Family Ministry
 
−
*[[Charles Swindoll]], American theologian, author, pastor, founder of Insight for Living
 
  
−
===Twenty first century===
+
*[https://www.britannica.com/topic/Protestantism Protestantism], Encyclopedia Britannica
−
*[[Marcus Borg]], American Episcopal theologian (Lutheran background)
+
*[https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2015/05/12/appendix-b-classification-of-protestant-denominations/ Classification of Protestant Denominations], Pew Research Center
−
*[[John B. Cobb]], theologian, involved in [[Process theology|Process Theology]]
+
*[http://www.manilatimes.net/protestantism-fastest-growing-religion-developing-world/363522/ Protestantism: The fastest growing religion in the developing world], ''Manilla Times'', 2017
−
*[[Franklin Graham]], American evangelist (son of Billy Graham)
 
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*[[Stanley Hauerwas]], American Christian theologian and ethicist
 
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*[[Ian Paisley]], Moderator of the [[Free Presbyterian Church of Ulster]] also a senior politician in [[Northern Ireland]], UK
 
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*[[John Shelby Spong]], Retired (Episcopal) Bishop of Newark, New Jersey
 
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*[[N.T. Wright]], Anglican Bishop of Durham and New Testament scholar
 
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*[[Thomas C. Oden]], United Methodist presbyter and theologian
 
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*[[Brian McLaren]], "emergent church" guru
 
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*[[William Willimon]], United Methodist Bishop and theologian
 
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*[[Edir Macedo]], founder of the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God theology of the prosperity.
 
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*[[T. D. Jakes]], American televangelist. The Potter's House.
 
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<!-- Instead of deleting the following entry, I am going to comment it out for the time being. The link to Brian Reagon does not exist at this time and there is no cited refernce. Secondly I am not sure if it really fits this category, but that is a distant second to the lack of notability. Deleted entry follows
 
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*[[Brian Reagon]], Uses religion in comedy.
 
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commented out by Dbiel 6-10-2007 -->
 
  
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==References==
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==Notes==
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<references/>
 
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[[Category:Churches]]
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==See also==
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[[Category:Revivals]]
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*[[Anglicanism]]
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[[Category:Protestantism|*]]
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*[[Anti-Catholicism]]
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[[Category:Christian History]]
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*[[Anti-Protestantism]]
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[[Category:Reformation]]
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*[[Arminianism]]
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[[Category:Religion and Politics]]
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*[[Black Legend]]
 
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*[[Catholic Evangelical]]
 
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*[[Calvinism]]
 
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*[[Christianity]]
 
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*[[Christian eschatology]]
 
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*[[Christian Flag]]
 
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*[[Christian humanism]]
 
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*[[Detailed Christian timeline#Renaissance and Reformation|Christian timeline for Renaissance & Reformation]]
 
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*[[Feller College]]
 
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*[[Forgiveness]]
 
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*[[History of Protestantism]]
 
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*[[International Museum of the Reformation]]
 
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*[[List of former Protestants]]
 
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*[[List of Protestant churches]]
 
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*[[Persecution of Christians]]
 
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*[[Protestant Reformation]]
 
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*[[Protestant work ethic]]
 
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*[[Proto-Protestants]]
 
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*[[Southern United States]]
 
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*[[Waldensians]]
 
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==External links==
 
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===Supporting===
 
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*[http://www.ccir.ed.ac.uk/~jad/glb_sola.html "Is Sola Scriptura a Protestant Concoction?"] by [[Greg Bahnsen]]
 
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*[http://www.firstthings.com/ftissues/ft9508/opinion/leithart.html "Why Protestants Still Protest"] by [[Peter J. Leithart]] from ''[[First Things]]''
 
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===Critical===
 
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*[http://homepages.paradise.net.nz/mischedj/ct1_solascript.html Catholic websites on ''sola scriptura'']
 
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*[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/12495a.htm "Protestantism"] from the 1917 ''[[Catholic Encyclopedia]]''
 
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*[http://catholiceducation.org/articles/apologetics/ap0097.html "Why Only Catholicism Can Make Protestantism Work"] by Mark Brumley
 
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===Miscellaneous===
 
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*[http://catalystresources.org/issues/303balmer.html The Future of American Protestantism] from ''Catalyst'' ([[United Methodist Church|United Methodist perspective]])
 
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*[http://protestant.christianityinview.com/ Protestantism - Christianity in View]
 
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[[Category:Protestantism| ]]
 
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Latest revision as of 01:19, November 23, 2025

Protestantism is one of the three major divisions in Christendom; the others are Catholicism and the Eastern Orthodox Churches.

Jesus5.jpg
Christianity

Foundations
Jesus Christ
The Gospel

Bible
Old Testament
New Testament
Ten Commandments

Christian Theology
Trinity: Father,
Jesus Christ, Holy Spirit
Atonement
Nicene Creed
Creation
Defense of Christianity
Salvation

History and Traditions
Messianic Judaism
Roman Catholic Church
Arianism
Orthodox Church
Crusades
Protestant Reformation
Counter Reformation
Protestantism
Missions
Great Awakening
Social Gospel
Mainline
Liberal Christians
Evangelical Christians
Fundamentalism

Important Figures
Saint Paul
Saint Athanasius
Saint Augustine
Thomas Aquinas
Martin Luther
John Calvin
Jonathan Edwards
John Wesley
Pope

Martin Luther was one of the most important leaders in Christian and German history. An Augustinian monk, priest, and professor of theology, he unintentionally launched the Protestant Reformation and founded the Lutheran Church.

Protestantism began in Europe with the Reformation of the 16th century. Early leaders were Jan Hus, Martin Luther and John Calvin. King Henry VIII in England led the church in his country out of communion with the Church of Rome. Although he opposed Protestant doctrines, his action in ending the Pope's role in England contributed to the advance of Protestantism under Henry's successors.

Protestant Christianity rejects the Roman Catholic belief that Christ founded the Catholic Church as his sole representative and rejects the notion that priests or saints have special access to the divine. Although Protestantism accepts that Mary gave birth to Jesus Christ while still a virgin, they reject the teaching of her perpetual virginity, and although she is greatly admired, they do not elevate her to the status she holds within Catholicism.

Most Protestants stress their belief that the Bible is the inerrant Word of God, although Quakers and Pentecostals believe in personal revelation as a factor in God's connection to believers. Protestants reject the Catholic concept that Tradition—beliefs held consistently by the people of God since the time of the Apostles—is a second means (alongside Scripture) by which God reveals his will to the Church, nor do they accept Papal pronouncements as binding on all believers. With few exceptions, Protestant churches observe only two sacraments (Baptism and the Lord's Supper; on the former, Protestants differ between those who baptize infants and those who baptize children and adults), not the seven sacraments that the Catholic Church accepts.

Politics

 
Christianity

Foundations
Jesus Christ
The Gospel

Bible
Old Testament
New Testament
Ten Commandments

Christian Theology
Trinity: Father,
Jesus Christ, Holy Spirit
Atonement
Nicene Creed
Creation
Defense of Christianity
Salvation

History and Traditions
Messianic Judaism
Roman Catholic Church
Arianism
Orthodox Church
Crusades
Protestant Reformation
Counter Reformation
Protestantism
Missions
Great Awakening
Social Gospel
Mainline
Liberal Christians
Evangelical Christians
Fundamentalism

Important Figures
Saint Paul
Saint Athanasius
Saint Augustine
Thomas Aquinas
Martin Luther
John Calvin
Jonathan Edwards
John Wesley
Pope

Europe was polarized by the Reformation, with most of northern Europe becoming Protestant while most of the Mediterranean regions remained loyal to the Roman Catholic Church. In the mid-sixteenth century, the Catholic Church struck back with a Counter-Reformation that is considered to be responsible for keeping such areas as Italy, France and Poland in the Catholic fold.

Religious wars broke out, the worst being the Thirty Years War (1618-1648) that devastated much of Germany and neighboring areas. By 1648, a compromise was reached such that, in the Holy Roman Empire, the religion of the Prince determined the official religion of the people. Nevertheless, religious strife continued in Germany as late as the 1870s in the Kulturkampf, and in Ireland into the late 20th century.

Missions

Each Protestant denomination launched missionary activity to spread the gospel, and they competed with each other and with Catholic missions.

The greatest successes came in the United States, where a series of revivals called the First and Second Great Awakenings resulted in many converts to various Protestant churches by 1860,[1] and in Africa and South Korea, where Protestantism grew rapidly throughout the 20th century.

Numbers and Distribution in 1900

In terms of Europe, due to the history of the Protestant Reformation, significant Protestant populations can be found in Denmark, Estonia, Finland, the northern part of Germany, Iceland, Latvia, Norway, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and the east, north and west of Switzerland.[2]

In addition, one of the most striking facts in the history of Protestantism during the 19th century was its great expansion in North America.[3] The United States by 1910 had the largest Protestant population of any land—from 65,000,000 to 66,000,000 (out of a total population of 79,000,000),[4] which is based upon the census of 1900. Britain probably comes next with 38,000,000 Protestants (total population 42,500,000) and Germany third with somewhat more than 35,000,000 (total population 56,000,000).[5]

According to Slate, "Protestant Christianity has been the fastest growing religion in China."[6] Evangelical Christianity is especially growing sharply in China.[7] See: Growth of Christianity in China

Reformed Protestantism in 1900:

  • Great Britain 20,500,000
  • Germany 3,000,000
  • Switzerland 2,000,000
  • Netherlands 3,000,000
  • Hungary 2,500,000
  • France 500,000
  • United States 65,000,000
  • Canada 2,000,000
  • Australia and New Zealand 1,500,000
  • India 1,500,000
  • South Africa 1,000,000
  • Elsewhere 2,000,000
    • Total Reformed 104,500,000

Lutheran: in 1900

  • Germany 32,000,000
  • Norway and Sweden 7,500,000
  • Denmark 2,500,000
  • Finland and the Baltic Provinces 6,000,000
  • Hungary 1,250,000
  • United States 6,000,000
  • Elsewhere 750,000
    • Total Lutheran 56,000,000

Anglican: in 1900

  • England 10,750,000
  • Scotland and Ireland 750,000
  • British Empire 4,000,000
  • United States 2,500,000
    • Total Anglican 24,000,000

Protestant missions 5,500,000

Grand Total in 1900: 182,000,000

Impact

Protestants made the Bible available to all persons through publication of the Scriptures in the common language and by promoting universal education. The mandatory celibacy of the clergy (including monasticism) was rejected, resulting in married clergy becoming the norm in Protestant churches. Unordained persons were permitted more voice in church affairs and in the worship services themselves.

Economic impact and impact on democratic political systems

See also: Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism and Protestant cultural legacies

Some historians have also contended that Protestantism played an important factor in the growth of democracy and capitalism (see also: Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism and Protestant cultural legacies).

The Harvard University historian Niall Ferguson declared: "Through a mixture of hard work and thrift the Protestant societies of the North and West Atlantic achieved the most rapid economic growth in history."[8]

Protestant missionaries and economic/societal development statistics

See also: Protestant cultural legacies

 
John Wesley

The article "The Surprising Discovery About Those Colonialist, Proselytizing Missionaries" published in Christianity Today notes:

“ In his fifth year of graduate school, Woodberry created a statistical model that could test the connection between missionary work and the health of nations. He and a few research assistants spent two years coding data and refining their methods. They hoped to compute the lasting effect of missionaries, on average, worldwide...

One morning, in a windowless, dusty computer lab lit by fluorescent bulbs, Woodberry ran the first big test. After he finished prepping the statistical program on his computer, he clicked "Enter" and then leaned forward to read the results.

"I was shocked," says Woodberry. "It was like an atomic bomb. The impact of missions on global democracy was huge. I kept adding variables to the model—factors that people had been studying and writing about for the past 40 years—and they all got wiped out. It was amazing. I knew, then, I was on to something really important."

Woodberry already had historical proof that missionaries had educated women and the poor, promoted widespread printing, led nationalist movements that empowered ordinary citizens, and fueled other key elements of democracy. Now the statistics were backing it up: Missionaries weren't just part of the picture. They were central to it...

Areas where Protestant missionaries had a significant presence in the past are on average more economically developed today, with comparatively better health, lower infant mortality, lower corruption, greater literacy, higher educational attainment (especially for women), and more robust membership in nongovernmental associations.

In short: Want a blossoming democracy today? The solution is simple—if you have a time machine: Send a 19th-century missionary."

...at a conference presentation in 2002, Woodberry got a break. In the room sat Charles Harper Jr., then a vice president at the John Templeton Foundation, which was actively funding research on religion and social change. (Its grant recipients have included Christianity Today.) Three years later, Woodberry received half a million dollars from the foundation's Spiritual Capital Project, hired almost 50 research assistants, and set up a huge database project at the University of Texas, where he had taken a position in the sociology department. The team spent years amassing more statistical data and doing more historical analyses, further confirming his theory.

...Woodberry's historical and statistical work has finally captured glowing attention. A summation of his 14 years of research—published in 2012 in the American Political Science Review, the discipline's top journal—has won four major awards, including the prestigious Luebbert Article Award for best article in comparative politics. Its startling title: "The Missionary Roots of Liberal Democracy."

...over a dozen studies have confirmed Woodberry's findings. The growing body of research is beginning to change the way scholars, aid workers, and economists think about democracy and development.[9]

”
 
The Harvard University historian Niall Ferguson declared: "Through a mixture of hard work and thrift the Protestant societies of the North and West Atlantic achieved the most rapid economic growth in history."[10]

Notable events

  • Martin Luther's nailing of The 95 Theses to the church door in Wittenberg on October 31, 1517. Luther became the spiritual leader of the Evangelical movement later called Lutheranism, which came to dominate much of Germany and all of Scandinavia
  • King Henry VIII's asserting the independence of the English church from Papal control in 1533. Under Henry's successors, Edward VI and Elizabeth I, the English Church became Protestant, although it retained the Catholic system of governance by bishops.

Protestantism in the United States

Protestants represent the largest Christian division in the United States. There are two main groupings, the more conservative Evangelical Christians and the more liberal Mainline denominations. Some Evangelicals incline to Fundamentalism, but the terms are often used casually and inconsistently; fundamentalist groups, though strongly believing in evangelism, do not see themselves as Evangelical. Other Evangelicals are part of the Pentecostalism movement, which places emphasis on the gifts of the Holy Spirit and speaking in tongues.

There are over 200 major denominations in the United States. Among the larger groupings are:


Smaller groups include:

See also

Further reading

United States

  • Ahlstrom, Sydney E. A religious history of the American people‎ (1979) 1192 pages; classic history from broad perspective excerpt and text search
  • Balmer, Randall. Protestantism in America (2005) excerpt and text search
  • Balmer, Randall. Encyclopedia of Evangelicalism (2nd ed. 2004), 655pp
  • Balmer, Randall. Grant Us Courage: Travels along the Mainline of American Protestantism (1996) online edition
  • Hutchison, William R. ed. Between the Times: The Travail of the Protestant Establishment in America, 1900-1960 (1990) excerpt and text search
  • Lippy, Charles H. and Peter W. Williams, eds. Encyclopedia of the American religious experience: studies of traditions and movements (3 vol 1988) 1872 pages; standard reference work; long essays by scholars
  • Noll, Mark A. The Old Religion in a New World: The History of North American Christianity (2001) excerpt and text search, by a leading evangelical scholar
  • Noll, Mark A. A history of Christianity in the United States and Canada‎ (1992), by leading Evangelical historian excerpt and text search, by a leading evangelical scholar
  • Queen, Edward L. et al., eds. Encyclopedia of American Religious History (3rd ed. 2 vol. 2009) 1200pp
  • Reid, Daniel G. et al. eds., Dictionary of Christianity in America (199)
  • Roof, Wade Clark, and William McKinney. American Mainline Religion: Its Changing Shape and Future (1990) excerpt and text search
  • Wooley, Davis C. ed. Encyclopedia of Southern Baptists‎ (5 vol 1958-1982); 2565 pages
  • Wuthnow, Robert, and John H. Evans, eds. The Quiet Hand of God: Faith-Based Activism and the Public Role of Mainline Protestantism, (2002), 430 pp.; essays by scholars

Primary sources

  • Placher, William C. Readings in the History of Christian Theology, Volume 2: From the Reformation to the Present (1988) excerpt and text search

External links

Notes

  1. ↑ Sadly, the Awakenings also resulted in the formation of several sects which are considered in some circles to be cults, such as Seventh-Day Adventists, Christian Science, and the Mormons.
  2. ↑ Predominant religions, Adherence.com
  3. ↑ This section is based on F. Kattenbusch and Arthur C. A. Hall, "Protestantism" in New Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia of Religious Knowledge, (1911) Vol. IX
  4. ↑ According to the estimate of H. K. Carroll in W. D. Grant, ed. Christendom Anno Domini 1901, (1902), i. 530–531
  5. ↑ H. Zeller's figures for the Eastern Church are 106,480,000, Orthodox; 8,130,000 "other [Eastern] Christians."; H. A. Krose, gives Greek Orthodox 109,000,000 schismatic Orientals, 6,554,913; Raskolniks (Russian dissenters), 2,173,371. Roman Catholics 265,000,000; Eastern Church 117,000,000.
  6. ↑ When Will China Become the World’s Largest Christian Country?, Slate
  7. ↑ In China, a church-state showdown of biblical proportions
  8. ↑ The Protestant Work Ethic: Alive & Well…In China By Hugh Whelchel on September 24, 2012
  9. ↑ Christianity Today, "The surprising discovery about those colonialist, proselytizing missionaries", January 8, 2014
  10. ↑ The Protestant Work Ethic: Alive & Well…In China By Hugh Whelchel on September 24, 2012
  11. ↑ However, Churches of Christ claim they are NOT Protestant, as they do not seek to reform Catholicism or any other group, only to restore Christianity to New Testament practice.
  12. ↑ Questions exist as to whether this group is a Christian denomination or a cult.
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