A religious denomination, (also simply denomination) is a large, long-established subgroup within a religion that has been in existence for many years. Religion, a term sometimes used interchangeably with faith, is commonly defined as belief concerning the supernatural, sacred, or divine, and the moral codes, practices and institutions associated with such belief. ...

The term is frequently used to describe the different Christian churches (Eastern Orthodoxy, Roman Catholicism and the many varieties of Protestantism); it is also used to describe the three main branches of Judaism (Orthodox Judaism, Conservative Judaism and Reform Judaism), and (less often, though it would not be inappropriate) to describe the two main branches of Islam (Sunni and Shia). Christianity is an Abrahamic religion based on the life, teachings, death by crucifixion, and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth as described in the New Testament. ... ... The Roman Catholic Church, most often spoken of simply as the Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with over one billion members. ... Protestantism is a general grouping of denominations within Christianity. ... For a discussion of Jews as an ethnicity or ethnic group see the article on Jew. ... Orthodox Judaism is one of the three major branches of Judaism. ... Conservative Judaism (or Masorti Judaism) is a denomination of Judaism characterized by: A positive attitude toward modern culture The belief that traditional rabbinic modes of study, and modern scholarship and critical text study, are both valid ways to learn about and from Jewish religious texts. ... Reform Judaism (also known as Progressive Judaism while in the U.K. Reform Judaism and Liberal Judaism together make up Progressive Judaism) is a branch of Judaism characterized by: The belief that an individuals personal autonomy overrides traditional Jewish law and custom. ... Islam ( Arabic al-islām الإسلام,  listen?) the submission to God is a monotheistic faith and the worlds second-largest religion. ... Sunni Islam (Arabic سنّة) is the largest denomination of Islam. ... Shiʻa Islam (Arabic شيعى follower; English has traditionally used Shiite) makes up the second largest sect of believers in Islam, constituting about 30%–35% of all Muslim. ...

Hinduism is also traditionally divided into four major denominations: Saivism, Shaktism, Vaishnavism and Smartism. This article is about the Hindu religion; for other meanings of the word, see Hindu (disambiguation). ... Shaivism, also Saivism, is a branch of Hinduism that worships Siva as the Supreme God. ... Shaktism is a denomination of Hinduism that worships Shakti, the Divine Mother, in all of her forms whilst not rejecting the importance of masculine and neuter divinity. ... Vaishnavism is the branch of Hinduism in which Vishnu or one of his avatars (i. ... Smartism is a denomination of the religion of Hinduism and is closely affiliated with the Advaita tradition. ...

Denominations usually have a significant degree of authority over their member congregations, although the term is also used to describe religious groups when the congregations have authority over the "denomination", such as the numerous Baptist associations or the Unitarian Universalist Association. Baptist churches are part of a Christian movement often regarded as an Evangelical, Protestant denomination. ... Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA), in full the Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations in North America, is a liberal religious denomination formed by the merger in 1961 of the American Unitarian Association and the Universalist Church in America. ...

Denominations often form slowly over time for many reasons; due to historical accidents of geography, culture, and influence between different groups, members of a given religion slowly begin to diverge in their views. Over time members of a religion may find that they have developed significantly different views on theology, philosophy, religious pluralism, ethics and religious practices and rituals. As such, in any of a myriad of ways, different denominations eventually form. In other cases, denominations form very rapidly, either as a result from a split or schism in an existing denomination, or as people from many different denominations share an experience of spiritual revival or spiritual awakening, and choose to form a new denomination based on that new experience or understanding. Theology is literally rational discourse concerning God (Greek θεος, theos, God, + λογος, logos, rational discourse). By extension, it also refers to the study of other religious topics. ... Philosophy (from the Greek words philos and sophia meaning love of wisdom) is understood in different ways historically and by different philosophers. ... Religious pluralism is the belief that one can overcome religious differences between different religions, and denominational conflicts within the same religion. ... Ethics is a general term for what is often described as the science (study) of morality. In philosophy, ethical behavior is that which is good or right. ... Categories: Move to Wiktionary | Stub ...

An example within Christianity is the Mennonite and the Church of the Brethren denominations. Both denominations are similar in their beliefs, yet they are unique because they were started by a different person (Menno Simons and Alexander Mack respectively). Their division is administrative, and there is much communication and interaction between the two. Since its founding, the Mennonite denomination has split into a number of smaller Mennonite denominations, because of both geography and social and theological differences. The Mennonites are a group of Christian Anabaptist denominations based on the teachings and tradition of Menno Simons. ... The Church of the Brethren was organized by Alexander Mack, a miller, in Schwarzenau, Germany, in 1708. ... Menno Simons (1496-1561) was an Anabaptist religious leader from the province of Fryslân (today Netherlands and Germany). ... (1679-1735) The son of a German miller, born in the town of Schriesheim, Germany, in 1679. ...

Another example is the Roman Catholic Church and various Protestant churches such as the Lutheran Church. When Martin Luther founded the Lutheran Church, he and his followers were persecuted and sometimes killed as heretics. The early Lutherans in turn persecuted and sometimes killed the Anabaptists as heretics. Even today there are major ideological differences between them, even though there is no physical hostility. The Roman Catholic Church, most often spoken of simply as the Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with over one billion members. ... The Lutheran movement is a group of denominations of Protestant Christianity by the original definition. ... Martin Luther (originally Martin Luder or Martinus Luther) (November 10, 1483 – February 18, 1546) was a German theologian and an Augustinian monk whose teachings inspired the Protestant Reformation and deeply influenced the doctrines of Lutheran, Protestant and other Christian traditions (a broad movement composed of many congregations and church bodies). ... Heresy, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, is a theological or religious opinion or doctrine maintained in opposition, or held to be contrary, to the ‘catholic’ or orthodox doctrine of the Christian Church, or, by extension, to that of any church, creed, or religious system, considered as orthodox. ... Anabaptists (re-baptizers, from Greek ana and baptizo; in German: Wiedertäufer) are Christians of the so-called radical wing of the Protestant Reformation. ...

See also

• Sect
• Cult
• Religion
• Christian denomination
• Full communion
• Schism (a splitting of a group of Christians into more groups)
• List of Christian denominations
• Denominationalism
• Non-denominational
• Jewish denominations

A sect is a small religious group that has branched off of a larger established religion. ... In religion and sociology, a cult is a group of people devoted to beliefs and goals which are not held by the majority of society, often religious in nature. ... Religion, a term sometimes used interchangeably with faith, is commonly defined as belief concerning the supernatural, sacred, or divine, and the moral codes, practices and institutions associated with such belief. ... A Denomination in the Christian sense is an identifiable religious body, organization under a common name, structure, and/or theology. ... Full communion is a kind of relationship between two or more organizations of Christians. ... The word schism, from the Greek σχισμα, schisma (from σχιζο, schizo, to split), means a division or a split, usually in an organization. ... List of Christian denominations ordered by historical and doctrinal relationships. ... Denominationalism is the division of a religion into separate religious denominations. ... A non-denominational church (usually Christian) is a religious organization which does not necessarily align its mission and teachings to an established denomination. ... Jewish denominations: Over time, the Jewish community has become divided into a number of religious denominations, also called branches or movements. Each denomination has a different understanding of what principles of belief a Jew should hold, and how one should live as a Jew. ...

External links

• Dictionary of the History of Ideas: Church as an Institution (http://etext.lib.virginia.edu/cgi-local/DHI/dhi.cgi?id=dv1-50)