BRIEF INTRODUCTION

The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian denomination, with more than 1.2 billion members (called catholic) worldwide out of approximately 2 billion (2014 estimates) Christians. The Catholic Church is one of the oldest religious institutions in the world.
~~The Catholic Church claims that it is the true church founded by Jesus Christ through apostle Peter (first bishop)and its bishops are the successors of Christ's apostles and the Pope is the successor to apostle Peter. It is the earliest branch of Christianity in existence today.
~~The Roman Catholic Church is headed by the Bishop of Rome, known as the Pope, who holds supreme power over the Church. Over the course of time it developed a highly sophisticated theology and an elaborate organizational structure.
~~For the first thousand years, Christianity and Catholicism were synonymous. But in 1054CE a formal split known as the Great Schism, also called the East-West Schism, divided the main stream Christianity (universal church) into Roman Catholic (Western-Latin branches)Church with its seat of power in Rome and the Eastern Orthodox (Eastern-Greek branches) Church with its seat of power (first among equal) in Constantinople. Then again the Protestant Reformation of sixteenth century CE split Roman Catholic Church and gave rise to the protestant denominations we see today.

PURPOSE OF LIFE

According to Catechism (summary of Christian teaching) of the Catholic Church :(CCC#1-3)
The life of man - to know and love God.
1- God, infinitely perfect and blessed in himself, in a plan of sheer goodness freely created man to make him share in his own blessed life. For this reason, at every time and in every place, God draws close to man. He calls man to seek him, to know him, to love him with all his strength. He calls together all men, scattered and divided by sin, into the unity of his family, the Church. To accomplish this, when the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son as Redeemer and Saviour. In his Son and through him, he invites men to become, in the Holy Spirit, his adopted children and thus heirs of his blessed life.
2- So that this call should resound throughout the world, Christ sent forth the apostles he had chosen, commissioning them to proclaim the gospel: "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age." Strengthened by this mission, the apostles "went forth and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the message by the signs that attended it.
3- Those who with God's help have welcomed Christ's call and freely responded to it are urged on by love of Christ to proclaim the Good News everywhere in the world. This treasure, received from the apostles, has been faithfully guarded by their successors. All Christ's faithful are called to hand it on from generation to generation, by professing the faith, by living it in fraternal sharing, and by celebrating it in liturgy and prayer.

CONCEPT OF GOD

Catholics believe in a triune God or Holy Trinity. Which teaches the Godhead or God is made up of three divine persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The three divine persons are truly distinct one from another. Essentially believing that the Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Spirit is God, and yet there are not three Gods but only one God. They have the same nature, substance, and being.
~~The mystery (truth which we cannot fully understand )of Holy Trinity — one God in three persons, is the central mystery of the Christian faith and of Christian life. In this mystery of Holy Trinity of Persons the Father has no origin, He came from no one, but the Son is begotten of the Father by an eternal generation , and the Holy Spirit comes or proceeds by an eternal procession from the Father and the Son. Yet, in spite of these different relations of origin the three Persons are eternal and equal in every respect.

The Father is God and the first Person of the Holy Trinity. God the Father Almighty is Creator of heaven and earth, and of all that is, seen and unseen. God the Father is all powerful, all knowing, and everywhere. He is sovereign, loving, merciful ,caring and just. Although the term 'God the Father' implies masculine characteristics, God is a pure spirit without any human biological gender. The Father is made of none, neither created nor begotten.

The Son is God and the second Person of the Holy Trinity. Jesus Christ the only Son of 'God the Father'. The Son is of the Father alone, not made nor created but begotten. Jesus the only begotten Son of the Father. Jesus is God, pre-existed before incarnation, coeternal and coequal with the Father.
~~He was sent (descended from heaven)to the world by the Father to become man and save humanity from their sins. He was conceived by virgin Mary by the power of the Holy Spirit. So the human Jesus Christ had only God as His Father, and the Virgin Mary as His Mother. In His human existence Jesus had two nature, He was fully God and fully human.
~~The main reason that Jesus became man was to redeem mankind from original sin (caused by disobedience of Eve and Adam). He suffered and was crucified which paid the ransom for the sins of mankind. This was necessary for the satisfaction of God's justice and the gaining of grace for men.
~~Jesus died and rose (bodily/physical resurrection) from the dead, glorious and immortal, on Easter Sunday, the third day after His death. And after forty days Jesus ascended into heaven in his resurrected glorious body , where He is seated at the right hand of the Father. There Jesus constantly intercedes on our behalf before the Father for those who draw near to God through Him. He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead.

The Holy Spirit is God and the third Person of the Holy Trinity. The Holy Spirit is also called the Holy Ghost, the Paraclete, the Spirit of Truth, the Spirit of adoption, the Spirit of Christ, the Spirit of the Lord, the Spirit of God and the Spirit of glory. The Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son, not made nor created nor begotten but proceeding. The Holy Spirit though really distinct, as a Person, from the Father and the Son, He is consubstantial and coequal with Them; being God like Them, He possesses with Them one and the same Divine Essence or Nature.
~~The Holy Spirit is at work with the Father and the Son from the beginning to the completion of the plan for humanity's salvation. As promised, Jesus sent Him from the Father on the day of Pentecost to remain continually in the Church (body of believers) to teach and guide believers with all truth.

The first, second and third with regard to the Persons of the Holy Trinity do not mean that one person was before the other or that one is greater than the other; for all the persons of the Trinity are eternal and equal in every respect. These numbers are used to mark the distinction between the persons, and they show the order in which the one proceeded from the other.

According to Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC), "Now this is the Catholic faith: We worship one God in the Trinity and the Trinity in unity, without either confusing the persons or dividing the substance; for the person of the Father is one, the Son's is another, the Holy Spirit's another; but the Godhead of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit is one, their glory equal, their majesty coeternal (CCC#266).Inseparable in what they are, the divine persons are also inseparable in what they do. But within the single divine operation each shows forth what is proper to him in the Trinity, especially in the divine missions of the Son's Incarnation and the gift of the Holy Spirit. (CCC#267)

THE CATHOLIC CREEDS (PROFESSIONS OF THE FAITH)

The Creeds also called 'professions of faith' and 'symbols of faith' are summary of the faith that a Christian profess. The two most important creeds used widely by the Roman Catholic Church are 'Apostle's Creed' and 'Nicene Creed'.

Apostle's Creed:

The Apostles' Creed is older of the two and is simple and brief. According to Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC#194),"The Apostles' Creed is so called because it is rightly considered to be a faithful summary of the apostles' faith. It is the ancient baptismal symbol of the Church of Rome. Its great authority arises from this fact: it is "the Creed of the Roman Church, the See of Peter the first of the apostles, to which he brought the common faith".

The English text of the Apostle's Creed: "I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of Heaven and earth; and in Jesus Christ, His only Son Our Lord, Who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended into Hell; the third day He rose again from the dead; He ascended into Heaven, and seated at the right hand of God, the Father almighty; from thence He shall come to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body and life everlasting. Amen."

Nicene Creed:

The Nicene Creed is longer of the two and contains some additional language explaining Catholic belief in the Trinity. According to Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC #195),"The Niceno-Constantinopolitan or Nicene Creed draws its great authority from the fact that it stems from the first two ecumenical Councils (in 325 and 381). It remains common to all the great Churches of both East and West to this day."

The English text of the Nicene Creed:" I believe in one God, the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all things visible and invisible. I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Only Begotten Son of God, born of the Father before all ages. God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, consubstantial with the Father; through him all things were made. For us men and for our salvation he came down from heaven, and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary, and became man. For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate, he suffered death and was buried, and rose again on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures. He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead and his kingdom will have no end. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son, who with the Father and the Son is worshipped and glorified, who has spoken through the prophets. I believe in one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church. I confess one Baptism for the forgiveness of sins and I look forward to the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come. Amen."

SOURCES OF RELIGIOUS/SACRED INFORMATION

Catholics believe in two sources of religious/sacred information :
(1) Sacred Scripture (Bible) and
(2) Sacred Tradition (or Holy Tradition).
Catholics believe that the entire revelation of Jesus Christ is preserved and passed down to successive generations in the above mentioned two different forms and are collectively known as "Deposit of Faith". (For more details CCC# 75,76, 97 @ http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/_INDEX.HTM)

(1)Sacred Scripture (The Holy Bible):

The Holy Bible is composed of a total of 73 books. The first 46 books known as Old Testament and the last 27 books are known as New Testament. Seven out of the 46 books of the old testament are called Deuterocanonical-'second canon' because their status as being part of the Sacred Scripture was settled later in time than the other books.
--"The Sacred Scriptures contain the Word of God and, because they are inspired, they are truly the Word of God"(CCC#135)
-- God is the author of Sacred Scripture because he inspired its human authors; he acts in them and by means of them. He thus gives assurance that their writings teach without error his saving truth.(CCC#136)
-- The unity of the two Testaments proceeds from the unity of God's plan and his Revelation. The Old Testament prepares for the New and the New Testament fulfils the Old; the two shed light on each other; both are true Word of God. (CCC#140)

(2)Sacred Tradition (or Holy Tradition):

Sacred Tradition is Divine instructions and revelations which were made to the Apostles either orally by Jesus Christ or by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, which were not committed to the inspired writings (Bible), and were transmitted by the Apostles to the Church. (For more details CCC# 81)

KEY FEATURES OF BELIEF

THE CHURCH

The Church is a divine institution founded by Christ for salvation of the believers. Catholics believe in one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church. The Church is the congregation of all those who profess the faith of Christ, partake of the same Sacraments, and are governed by their lawful pastors under one visible head the pope who is the successor of Apostle Peter, whom Christ appointed to build and lead the church. Jesus Christ as the invisible head of the church, founded the Church to teach, govern, sanctify, and save all men. All Catholics belong to the one true Church, body of Christ, temple of the Holy Spirit, and whoever knows the Church to be the one true Church and remains out of it cannot be saved.

A building or physical structure where Christians gather for worship or religious activities(congregation) is also called a church. All roman catholic churches all over the world are parts of the 'Roman Catholic Church' based in Rome headed by Pope (bishop of Rome).

THE POPE

The Pope is the visible head of Roman Catholic Church, the Bishop of Rome, the successor of Apostle Peter and Vicar of Jesus Christ on earth. Pope is also called “the pontiff,” “the Holy Father,” and “the Vicar of Christ,”.
~~As the religious and spiritual leader of the Catholic Church the Pope is infallible when he speaks 'ex cathedra' that is when in the exercise of his office as pastor and teacher of all Christians he defines, by virtue of his supreme Apostolic authority, a doctrine of faith or morals for whole Catholic Church.
~~The Pope is not infallible in everything he says and does, but only in matters of faith and morals for the whole Church as mentioned above. His opinion on any subject is taken with greatest respect on account of his knowledge and authority. Infallibility does not prevent pope from sinning, it only prevents him from teaching falsehood when he speaks ex-cathedra. (For more details CCC# 882,891)
~~He is the symbol of unity and constant assurance to the catholic believers that they are guided by a shepherd who is the successor of Apostle Peter handpicked by Jesus Christ.
~~Pope is also the head of the administrative affairs of the Catholic Church. He appoints bishops and cardinals to run central and local affairs. After the death or resignation (in very rare cases) of a pope, a new pope is elected be the college of cardinals (this process is known as 'Papal Conclave') .

THE CLERGY

The Catholic Church only appoints male and almost all unmarried clergy. The clergy include deacons, priests/presbyters, and bishops. All clergy must be celibate the only exception is given in the case of deacons who do not intend to become priests. The Catholic Church only ordains celibate men to the priesthood. (For more details CCC# 1577,1579)

NUNS, SISTERS, MONKS AND FRIARS

Catholic nuns, sisters and monks are individuals who have totally dedicated their lives to God; taken the vows of poverty, chastity (celibacy) and obedience. These individuals (except ordained monks) are not considered members of the clergy. These individuals are usually member of a particular religious order and follow the rule of its order, such as the Rule of St. Augustine or Rule of St. Benedict etc.

Catholic nun is a woman who professes the perpetual solemn vows to live a life of poverty, celibacy, and obedience. Nuns live a contemplative, cloistered (or enclosed) or semi-cloistered life of meditation and prayer for the salvation of others, in a monastery. They recite the Liturgy of the Hours or Divine Office in common, and engage in some work within the monastery to help support themselves.

Catholic sister is a woman who professes perpetual simple vows to live a life of poverty, celibacy, and obedience. Sisters live in convent which offer more open access to the outside community and typically live and pray in the convent but work outside in schools, hospitals, or religious institutions. Both nuns and sisters are addressed as 'Sister'.

Catholic monk may be a priest or a deacon who has received the Sacrament of Holy Orders, or a religious brother, who is not ordained. A monk is a member of a community of men, leading a more or less contemplative, cloistered (or enclosed) or semi-cloistered life apart from the world, under the vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience. Monks live in a monastery in prayer, meditation, liturgy and work within the monastery.

Catholic friar is also a member of a community of men, leading a more or less contemplative life under the vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience. Friars live in a friary in prayer, meditation and usually engage in an active ministry of service (like education, health care, or other charitable work) to the outside community. Friars may work in the community and are supported by donations or other charitable support.

MARY

Mary is the mother of Jesus, Son of God the second person of the Holy Trinity. Catholics respects and thinks very highly of Mary, to them, she “illumines” the faith in Christ. They believe that Mary's status is below Jesus but above that of the saints and angels.
~~Catholics believe Mary is Theotokos (God-Bearer) and truly the Mother of God. They also believe in the Immaculate Conception of Mary. Which means she was conceived without any stain of original sin in order to be a sinless bearer of God incarnate, Jesus Christ. They also believe in perpetual virginity of Mary. A belief that Mary remained a virgin all her life, before, during and after giving birth to Jesus. They also believe in Assumption of Mary. A doctrine that teaches that after the course of her earthly life, Mary was assumed body and soul into heaven by the power of God.
~~Mary is regarded highly, as she offers many graces and mercy to all who call upon her intercession. Mary is often prayed to by Roman Catholics to intercede on their behalf as in heaven she occupies a special place interceding between God and His people. Catholics devotion and veneration of Mary has grown over time in importance, and is manifested not only in prayer but also in consecration and entrustment to the Virgin Mary, the visual images, statues, poetry and music. (For more details CCC# 966,969)

THE SAINTS

In the Roman Catholic church the term 'Saint' is reserved for those individuals who have led a holy and exemplary life, have entered Heaven upon death, and are considered worthy of greater honor, emulation, or veneration, who receives official ecclesiastical recognition given by canonization. The Catholic Church only recognizes (after a rigorous due process call canonization) a person of remarkable holiness who lived a life of heroic virtue, assisted by the Church, during their pilgrimage on earth, upon proof of their "holiness" or likeness to God.
~~According to the Church one may not worship a saints but may revere, ask for things and pray to them to intercede for that individual. Catholics consider the intercession of these saints to be effective on account of their closeness to God. (For more details CCC# 956)
~~A patron saint is a saint of a particular cause, profession, or locale, or invoked as a protector against specific illnesses or disasters. Once a person is canonized, the deceased body , images, the remains and personal belongings of the saint are considered holy relics.

THE ANGELS

Catholics believe that angels are pure spirit and had no matter or body. They are personal, immortal, heavenly beings who have intelligence and will and they are of a nature higher than men (in fact all visible creatures). Angels are created beings, superior to men, were created before men and have greater knowledge than men but not omniscient. Angels being pure spirits are more perfect because by their very nature, they are more like God.
~~The Angels worship God and venerate His divine majesty through all eternity. The angels are ever attentive to God and fulfill God’s will. Angels never do anything on their own, they only do what God wants and assigns them to do. As an intermediary between God and humanity they often serve as mediators, messengers, guardians, and guides to humanity.
~~Catholics pray to angels for their help, guidance, protection and intercession. Catholics believe that all Christians have a guardian angel to lead, guide, guard them and also offer their prayers, good works and desires to God. Catholics recognize three angels (archangels-considered "princes" of the angels) by name: Michael, Gabriel and Raphael.
~~Traditionally, angels are said to be divided into nine different categories (nine choirs)of angels, with appropriate missions and activities assigned to them. The nine choirs of angels are Seraphim, Cherubim, Thrones, Dominations or Dominions , Virtues, Powers, Principalities, Archangels and Angels. All the angels are not equal in dignity. In the hierarchy the highest are Seraphim and the lowest are Angels.
~~Angels can appear by taking bodies to render themselves visible to people for a time. Art, imagery and illustration of angels help to show certain attributes and to distinguish between different categories of angels.
~~(For more information, CCC#328-336 and also Baltimore Catechism BC#216-228)

THE FALLEN ANGELS (SATAN AND DEMONS)

The Fallen Angels are wicked or rebellious angels those have been cast out of heaven who radically and irrevocably rejected God and His reign. Satan or devil is a fallen angel called Lucifer who was at first a good angel, made by God. The Satan and the other demons (fallen angels)were indeed created naturally good by God, but they became evil by their own doing. The angels that followed Satan in his disobedience and rejection of God are called demons (fallen angels).
~~How did some angels become fallen angels is a bit of mystery to the Christians. But the popular Christian belief (theologian's theory) is that God first created the pure spirits (angels). These pure spirits were created good by nature and with superior knowledge. At this beginning point of their creation they had a free will to choose whether to obey God and do His will or not. That was a moral test in heaven to their path to acquire the Beatific Vision of God. The angels (about three quarter) who passed the test entered into the blessedness of God and Heaven. The angels (about one quarter)who failed the test through their disobedience, pride and envy fell under the ban of eternal damnation from God hence called fallen angels.
~~Traditionally, Satan is known as Lucifer, meaning light-bearer, before his fall was one of the seraphim, the highest choir of angels who see and adore God directly. Other names for Satan in Sacred Scripture are the Evil One, Beelzebub, the Accuser, the Tempter, the Great Dragon and the Ancient Serpent.
~~Satan as the leader of the demons in many disguise constantly lies, tempts, seduces people to sin in order to try to entice them away from God.
~~(For more information, CCC#391-396 and also Baltimore Catechism BC#226-232)

THE SEVEN SACRAMENTS

Sacraments are rituals and events through which God gives the believers grace. According to Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC #1131)," The sacraments are efficacious signs of grace, instituted by Christ and entrusted to the Church, by which divine life is dispensed to us. the visible rites by which the sacraments are celebrated signify and make present the graces proper to each sacrament. They bear fruit in those who receive them with the required dispositions". Sacraments were instituted by Christ and given to the Church to administer and are necessary for salvation and grace.
~~The seven sacraments of Catholic Church are Baptism, Confirmation (or Chrismation), Eucharist, Penance, Anointing of the Sick, Holy Orders and Matrimony.

Baptism: Baptism is also called "first sacrament" and "The door of the Church". Baptism as the first and basic sacrament of Christian initiation, is necessary for salvation, is the sacrament of regeneration and initiation into the Catholic Church that was instituted by Jesus, who accepted baptism from John the Baptist and after His resurrection also ordered the Apostles to baptize in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
~~Baptism is normally performed by a priest by immersing the candidate in water or pouring or sprinkling water over one's head in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Baptism cleanses one from original sin, annuls all previous sins, gives new birth as a Christian and son of God, incorporates one into the Church and body of Christ which empowers to lead the life of Christ.
~~Baptism can be performed on both adults and infants. Baptism is permanent and cannot be repeated. The Church recognizes validly administered baptism of other Christian denominations.
~~(For more information, CCC#1231-1284 and also Baltimore Catechism BC#620-669)

Confirmation: Confirmation is also called Chrismation because the essential rite of the sacrament is anointing with chrism (an aromatic oil consecrated by a bishop). Confirmation as the second sacrament of Christian initiation, is necessary for the completion of baptismal grace, instituted by Christ and instructed His Apostles in its use, at some time before His ascension into heaven.
~~Confirmation is normally performed during the mass by the bishop, who anoints the forehead of each candidate with chrism in the form of a cross saying "Accipe signaculum doni Spiritus Sancti" (“Be sealed with the Gift of the Holy Spirit”). According to Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC#1316), "Confirmation perfects Baptismal grace; it is the sacrament which gives the Holy Spirit in order to root us more deeply in the divine filiation, incorporate us more firmly into Christ, strengthen our bond with the Church, associate us more closely with her mission, and help us bear witness to the Christian faith in words accompanied by deeds."
~~Confirmation can be performed on adolescents (when the age of reason has been reached ) and adults. One can only receive confirmation only once in a lifetime.
~~(For more information, CCC#1285-1321, and also Baltimore Catechism BC#670-707)

The Eucharist: The Eucharist is also called the Blessed Sacrament, Holy Communion and the Lord’s Supper. It is third and last sacrament of Christian initiation which completes initiation of a catholic to the religion. It was instituted by Christ at the Last Supper, the night before He died.
~~In the Eucharist Catholics share in the body and blood of Jesus in the form of the bread (must be wheaten and unleavened) and wine (which must be from grapes) passed out to the congregation. Catholic Church believes that the bread and wine of the Eucharist become the actual body and blood (through a process called Transubstantiation) of Jesus Christ.
~~Only validly ordained priests can preside at the Eucharist and recipients must be free from mortal sin. Roman Catholics are obligated to receive Holy Communion at least once a year (during the Lent-Easter season) and encouraged to take it at mass every Sunday, on feast days and even more frequently if one is able to.
~~(For more information, CCC#1322-1419), and also Baltimore Catechism BC#869-953)

Penance: The Sacrament of Penance is also called sacrament of Conversion, Confession or Reconciliation. It is first of two sacraments of healing. It was instituted by Christ on Easter Sunday when He first appeared to the apostles after his Resurrection, breathing on them, he said: “Receive the Holy Spirit. For those whose sins you forgive, they are forgiven; for those whose sins you retain, they are retained” (John 20:22-23).
~~Through the sacrament of Penance the priest, as the agent of God, forgives sins of the penitent (absolution)committed after Baptism, when the sinner is heartily sorry (repentant/contrite) for them, sincerely confesses (confession) all of them, and is willing to make reparation (penance) and do works of reparation for them.
~~According to Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC#1495)," Only priests who have received the faculty of absolving from the authority of the Church can forgive sins in the name of Christ." Catholics who have committed mortal sin are obliged to seek God's forgiveness through this sacrament as soon as possible. Catholic church asks its faithful to confess sins at least once a year and encourages frequent confession.
~~(For more information, CCC#1422-1498)

Matrimony: Matrimony or marriage is one of the Seven Sacraments of the Catholic Church, is a lifelong union between a Catholic man and a woman for procreation, love and mutual support.
~~Catholic marriage cannot be dissolved by any human power. Divorce granted by secular authorities does not break the bond of marriage, and one who makes use of such a divorce to marry again while the former husband or wife is alive, commits a sacrilege and lives in the sin of adultery.
~~The Catholic Church sometimes, for very good reasons, does allow husband and wife to separate and live apart; but that is not dissolving the bond of marriage, or divorce as it is called, for though separated they are still husband and wife, and neither can remarry till the other dies.
~~(For more information, CCC#1601-1666)

Holy Orders: Holy Orders is one of the Seven Sacraments of the Catholic Church by which bishops, priests, and deacons of the Church are ordained and receive the power and grace to perform their sacred duties.
~~The Sacrament of Holy Orders are reserved only for men, following the example set by Christ and His Apostles, who chose only men as their successors and collaborators. Celibacy is required (except in the case of permanent deacons)for all bishops, priests and deacons. According to Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC#1600),"It is bishops who confer the sacrament of Holy Orders in the three degrees."
~~(For more information, CCC#1536-1600)

The Anointing of the Sick: The Anointing of the Sick is one of the Seven Sacraments of the Catholic Church also called Unction . It is used to be known as Extreme Unction or Last Rites. It is second of the two sacraments of healing. This sacrament was instituted by Christ and recommended to the faithful and promulgated by Apostle James the brother of Christ.
~~This Sacrament is administered both to the dying due to old age or sickness and to those who are gravely ill, for the recovery of their health and for spiritual strength.
~~According to Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC#1529-1530), "Each time a Christian falls seriously ill, he may receive the Anointing of the Sick, and also when, after he has received it, the illness worsens. Only priests (presbyters and bishops) can give the sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick, using oil blessed by the bishop, or if necessary by the celebrating presbyter himself."
~~(For more information, CCC#1499-1532)

WORSHIP AND PRAYER

Catholic worship range from regular public worship (formal liturgy) to worship in private and small groups, such as meditation, prayer and study. Rituals and prayers are integral parts of Catholic life, from the sacraments which mark the sacred milestones on life's journey to the smaller rituals of daily devotion.
~~Some of the main forms of worship are observing the sacraments, attending the Catholic Mass, fasting, almsgiving, self-denial, praying the rosary, and observing the sacred days etc.
~~The five forms of prayer revealed in the apostolic and canonical Scriptures are:
(1) Blessing and Adoration (blessing God and respectful silence in the presence of God).
(2) Prayer of Petition (asking for forgiveness, the quest for the Kingdom, and every true need ).
(3) Prayer of Intercession (asking for on behalf of others).
(4) Prayer of Thanksgiving (thanking God for all He has given and done).
(5) Prayer of Praise (Praise God simply because He is God).
~~The three major expressions or styles of prayer are vocal prayer, meditation, and contemplative prayer.
~~The Catholic Church encourages the faithful to regular prayer: daily prayers, the Liturgy of the Hours, Sunday Eucharist, the feasts of the liturgical year.
~~The Catholic Church teaches that it is an obligation to go to Mass every Sunday and other holy days. Examples of obligatory holy days are Mary- Mother of God (January 1), Christmas (December 25), All Saints Day (November 1) etc.
~~According to Baltimore Catechism prayer is necessary for salvation, and without it no one having the use of reason can be saved (Q#1104).
~~Roman Catholics believe in praying only to God. They also pray to Mary and other saints for their help, guidance, protection and intercession.
~~(For more information, CCC#2623-2649, 2700-2724, 2168-2195), and also BC#1098-1124)

SIN

According to Catechism of the Catholic Church, "Sin is an utterance, a deed, or a desire contrary to the eternal law. It is an offense against God. It rises up against God in a disobedience contrary to the obedience of Christ. Sin is an act contrary to reason. It wounds man's nature and injures human solidarity. The root of all sins lies in man's heart....(1871-1873)".
~~Sin is divided into inherited sin called original sin, and committed sin of individuals called actual sin. Sin (actual sin) is divided into two categories primarily based on degree and effect: mortal (greater) and venial (lesser) sins.

Original sin: Original sin is the sin inherited by all mankind as a result of the first sin committed by Adam (and Eve) in his disobedience of God’s command not to eat fruit from the Tree of Knowledge. According to Catechism of the Catholic Church, "By his sin Adam, as the first man, lost the original holiness and justice he had received from God, not only for himself but for all human beings. Adam and Eve transmitted to their descendants human nature wounded by their own first sin and hence deprived of original holiness and justice; this deprivation is called "original sin". As a result of original sin, human nature is weakened in its powers, subject to ignorance, suffering and the domination of death, and inclined to sin (this inclination is called "concupiscence")."(CCC#416-418)
~~Only Jesus and Mary were not born with original sin.
~~Catholics believe original sin is not a committed sin but contracted sin that everyone is born with. It is not a sin resulting for personal immoral actions , it is a state of the soul that represents the fallen nature that was handed down by the fall of the first parents.

Mortal sin: Mortal sin is a serious offense against the law of God which destroys relationship with God. According to Catechism of the Catholic Church," For a sin to be mortal, three conditions must together be met: "Mortal sin is sin whose object is grave matter and which is also committed with full knowledge and deliberate consent." Grave matter is specified by the Ten Commandments, corresponding to the answer of Jesus to the rich young man: "Do not kill, Do not commit adultery, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not defraud, Honor your father and your mother." The gravity of sins is more or less great: murder is graver than theft. One must also take into account who is wronged: violence against parents is in itself graver than violence against a stranger." (1857-1858).
~~Catholics believe mortal sin causes in the loss of charity and the state of grace. If this kind of sin is not redeemed by repentance and God's forgiveness, it will result in eternal death of hell. Examples of such sins are idolatry, fornication, adultery, abortion, contraception, incest etc.

Venial sin: Venial sin is a less serious offense against the law of God which does not destroy relationship with God. According to Catechism of the Catholic Church, " One commits venial sin when, in a less serious matter, he does not observe the standard prescribed by the moral law, or when he disobeys the moral law in a grave matter, but without full knowledge or without complete consent." (1862).
~~Venial sin does not cause loss of state of grace. It simply weakens that relationship with God. Unrepented venial sins can affect the duration spent in Purgatory. Examples of such sins are Impatience, selfishness, minor anger etc.

Forgiveness of Sin: Baptism removes original sin along with other personal sins of an individual. For sins committed after baptism, a different sacrament is needed. It is called the sacrament of penance or confession or reconciliation. Catholics believe an individual should first be penitent for committed sins and then forgiveness is achieved through church ritual (Penance), with the assistance of a priest in confession. Once satisfied the priest will forgive the penitent's sins with the power vested upon him. In certain cases the priest may impose certain act of reparation (satisfaction) like saying some prayers, or doing charitable works etc.

SALVATION

Catholics believe there are two elements necessary for salvation: faith and works. Catholics believe faith is the beginning, root and foundation of salvation. The Catholic Church teaches that salvation comes through Jesus alone as he is the One mediator between God and man who won the saving grace for all humanity by his perfect sacrifice (crucifixion) on the cross for the sins of humanity. In this process, the first step through baptism, one is cleansed from original and all other sin and thus united with God (sanctified or justified) through Christ. Then with the grace of God one is required to be obedient (works)to His commands to maintain salvation.
~~Catholics believe that salvation can be lost through mortal sin but can be regained through confession and penance.
~~(For more information, CCC#1987-2029, 2700-2724, 2168-2195, and also BC#1098-1124)

ESCHATOLOGY

The catholic eschatology (teachings of the end times or last things) deals with death, particular judgment, heaven, purgatory, hell, end of world and second coming of Jesus, Resurrection of the Dead, general (Last) Judgment, and the New Heaven and New Earth till eternity.

Death: Catholics believe that everyone will die once the appointed time for earthly life is over. They believe at the moment of death, the soul is separated from the body and as a natural consequence body will be left on earth to decompose. But the soul is immortal and never ceases to exist, once created. (For more details CCC# 1013, 1016, 1021)

Particular Judgment: Catholics believe that immediately upon death a particular judgment of each soul takes place by Jesus Christ, based on their faith and works. Based on their faith and works some will be immediately rewarded heaven, some will be rewarded heaven after purification and some will be rewarded with eternal damnation in hell.

Heaven: Catholics believe heaven the final resting place of the blessed, is the state of everlasting life in which one see God face to face, are made like God in glory, and enjoy eternal happiness. According to Catechism of the Catholic Church," Those who die in God's grace and friendship and are perfectly purified live forever with Christ. They are like God for ever, for they "see him as he is," face to face...(CCC#1023). This perfect life with the Most Holy Trinity - this communion of life and love with the Trinity, with the Virgin Mary, the angels and all the blessed - is called "heaven." Heaven is the ultimate end and fulfillment of the deepest human longings, the state of supreme, definitive happiness." (CCC#1024).
~~Entrance into Heaven may be direct (immediate) or through purification in Purgatory. Those Catholics who enter directly (immediately) into heaven are called Saints by the Church.
~~Describing heaven Catechism of the Catholic Church says, "This mystery of blessed communion with God and all who are in Christ is beyond all understanding and description. Scripture speaks of it in images: life, light, peace, wedding feast, wine of the kingdom, the Father's house, the heavenly Jerusalem, paradise: "no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man conceived, what God has prepared for those who love him."(CCC#1027).

Purgatory: Catholics believe Purgatory is the intermediate state of unknown duration for those who die in faith but imperfect due to works (unremitted venial sins). In this temporary state one goes through a course of penal purification, to achieve holiness necessary for the final destination in heaven.
~~While souls are being purified in Purgatory by cleansing fire, the family, friends and faithful on earth can help the souls in Purgatory by their prayers, fasts, alms, deeds; by indulgences, and by having Masses said for them. Souls in purgatory are also being helped by the intercession of the saints.
~~(For more details CCC# 1030-1032)

Hell: Catholics believe hell is the final destination for those who die without faith (non-believers) or with unremitted mortal sin. Upon death after judgment by Christ these souls directly (immediately) enter hell for eternity.
~~According to Catechism of the Catholic Church," Jesus often speaks of "Gehenna" of "the unquenchable fire" reserved for those who to the end of their lives refuse to believe and be converted, where both soul and body can be lost. Jesus solemnly proclaims that he "will send his angels, and they will gather . . . all evil doers, and throw them into the furnace of fire,"and that he will pronounce the condemnation: "Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire!"(CCC#1034).
~~Catholicism teaches no one is predestined to hell. One only enters hell after conscious and willful rejection and turning away from God.

End of time/world and Second Coming of Jesus: Catholics believe that Jesus Christ will come back to earth with his angels to end the current period of human history. This is known as Second Coming of Christ or the Parousia or the Day of the Lord.
~~According to Catechism of the Catholic Church ," Since the Ascension Christ's coming in glory has been imminent, even though "it is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has fixed by his own authority.". This eschatological coming could be accomplished at any moment, even if both it and the final trial that will precede it are "delayed"(CCC#673).
~~Catholic Church teaches (CCC #674-677) that Christ's second coming will precede some significant events such as the full number of the Gentiles and Jews come into the Church, the spread of the Gospel to the whole world, and the final trial of the supreme religious deception of the Antichrist.
~~Catholics do not believe in the literal rule of 1000 years (Millennialism) by Jesus or Rapture in popular conventional understanding of certain Christian denominations. Instead Catholics believe (see CCC#668-669)that Jesus already reigns in eternity and that in this world His reign, established as a seed, is found already in the Church.

Resurrection of the Dead: Catholics like all Christians believe (see CCC#998) in the resurrection of all dead men, women and children. They believe that upon Christ's second coming to earth, he will physically raise all those who have died, giving them back the bodies they lost at death thus uniting body and soul. Everyone will rise from the dead in their own, entire, and in immortal bodies. The bodies of the faithful will be transformed into the pattern of risen Christ: glorified, spiritualized bodies. And the bodies of the wicked (damned) will have the condition necessary for suffering the eternal punishment of hell.

General (Last) Judgment: At the end of time, at Christ's second coming everyone (righteous and wicked) will be resurrected for the General (also called Last or Final) Judgment. Everyone will be gathered in front of Christ the Judge. In the general judgment things will appear as they really are, all actions of an individual: good or evil, visible, hidden or obscure will be laid out before everyone to see.
~~The righteous are sent to heaven (eternal life) forever united with God and wicked are sent to hell (eternal punishment) are forever separated from God.
~~(For more details CCC# 1038-1041)
~~The New Heaven and New Earth till eternity: Catholics believe after the universal judgment the universe will be mysteriously renewed, which will transform humanity and the world to its original state which is called the New Heaven and New Earth (see CCC#1042-1043, 1047).
~~According to Catechism of the Catholic Church," In this new universe, the heavenly Jerusalem, God will have his dwelling among men. "He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain any more, for the former things have passed away." For man, this consummation will be the final realization of the unity of the human race, which God willed from creation and of which the pilgrim Church has been "in the nature of sacrament." Those who are united with Christ will form the community of the redeemed, "the holy city" of God, "the Bride, the wife of the Lamb."...... The beatific vision, in which God opens himself in an inexhaustible way to the elect, will be the ever-flowing well-spring of happiness, peace, and mutual communion."(CCC#1044-1045).
~~No one knows exactly when and how this transformation will take place. (more details CCC#1018)

INDULGENCE

According to the teaching of the Catholic Church an indulgence is a remission or reduction of the temporal punishment due to sin, the guilt of which has been forgiven.
~~Catholic Church teaches that there are two punishments for sin; one is called eternal (only for mortal sin) and is inflicted in hell, and the other is called temporal (for both mortal and venial) and is inflicted in this world or in purgatory. The sacrament of penance remits the eternal and may remit only part of the temporal punishment. To remit the remaining temporal sin one must do certain prescribed penances such as praying, fasting, almsgiving, works of mercy etc. Indulgences are a help towards achieving this remission of temporal punishment. An indulgence simply makes penance (work of reparation) lighter, so that one may more easily satisfy for his sins and escape the temporal punishments he deserves.
~~An indulgence is not the purchase of a pardon which secures the buyer's salvation or releases the soul of another from Purgatory. An indulgence is also not a permit to commit sin, a pardon of future sin or a guarantee of salvation
~~Indulgences are of two kinds: partial and plenary. A partial indulgence removes part of the temporal punishment and a plenary indulgence removes all temporal punishment up to that point. According to Baltimore Catechism for the gaining of Plenary Indulgences one is generally required to go to confession and Holy Communion and pray for the intention of the Pope (BC#861).
~~Only the Pope has the power to grant Indulgences for the whole Church. The bishops have power to grant partial Indulgences in their own diocese. Cardinals and some others, by the special permission of the Pope, can also grant certain Indulgences.
~~(For more information, CCC#1471-1479 and also BC#839-868).

STATUES AND IMAGES

Catholics believe God did not forbid the religious usage of statues, images and icons. They believe God forbade the worship of statues, images and icons.
~~They believe statues, images and icons are all reminders of God’s Three Divine Persons or Mary or the saint it represents. Catholics do not worship these statues, images and icons rather they adore, revere or worship who is represented by these manmade objects.
~~In Catholicism statues, images and icons are used for decoration, teaching tools and ritual objects. These manmade objects aid in meditation, helping to connect believers with Jesus Christ, or with Mary-mother of God or the saints whose lives they admire and seek their intercession.
~~(For more information, CCC#2129-2132 and also BC#1211-1216)

SEXUAL MORALITY

The Catholic Church teaches that moral sexuality is between a man and a woman, within a valid marriage and open to procreation. The Church condemns all sexual acts and unions outside marriage. The church teaches Catholics to stay chaste until marriage. The Church also forbids all unchaste freedom and all immodesty with oneself or others in looks, dress, words, and actions. Catholic Church considers masturbation, fornication, pornography, prostitution, rape, incest, homosexual practices as grievous (mortal) sins.
~~(For more information, CCC#2331-2400 and also BC#1281-1289)

CONTRACEPTION AND CONCEPTION

The Catholic Church strictly prohibits any deliberate, artificial impediment (artificial contraception) to the procreation of new life. The church's position rules out any contraceptive sex, coitus interruptus (withdrawal), oral and anal sex and any other methods which cannot lead to conception. The Catholic Church considers deliberate and artificial contraception as intrinsically evil (mortal sin).
~~The Catholic Church permits using Natural Family Planning (NFP) through which a woman can determine with good (about 95 percent) accuracy when to have sex and not get pregnant.
~~The Catholic Church considers conception through natural sex between husband and wife is the only morally accepted means to have children. Conception outside of normal sexual intercourse such as donation of sperm or ovum, surrogate uterus, artificial insemination, in vitro fertilization and embryo transfer are considered immoral by the Church.
~~(For more information, CCC#2366-2372 and 2373-2379)

ABORTION

The catholic Church forbids all forms of abortion and considers it as murder of an innocent human being who cannot defend himself in any way. According to Catechism of the Catholic Church," Human life must be respected and protected absolutely from the moment of conception. From the first moment of his existence, a human being must be recognized as having the rights of a person - among which is the inviolable right of every innocent being to life.."(CCC#2270)
~~All parties directly involved (aborter, doctors, nurses, encouraging family members etc.) in abortion procedure are considered perpetrators of grave sin (murder) and are excommunicated from the church. According to Catechism of the Catholic Church," Formal cooperation in an abortion constitutes a grave offense. The Church attaches the canonical penalty of excommunication to this crime against human life...."(CCC#2272)
~~If a medical procedure is carried out which is deemed by competent medical professionals to be vital to the survival of the mother which may possibly or definitely will result in an abortion, then this is not a sin provided that the abortion of the child is not an expressly desired result.
~~(For more information, CCC#2270-2275)

DIVORCE AND REMARRIAGE

The Catholic Church does not allow divorce and do not recognize divorce in any form or shape whatsoever. No exception for unchastity, infidelity or adultery. Once properly married as catholic (sacrament of matrimony) it is for life and it is indissoluble.
~~The Catholic church allows annulments which it calls “decree of nullity”. A decree of nullity is a declaration – not that the marriage is now dissolved – but after sufficient investigation, that a marriage never existed in the first place.
~~Remarriage is only possible upon death of a spouse or after getting an annulment.
~~Catholics who get remarried after getting a civil divorce (divorce through civil court or state) are considered adulterers and are not allowed to receive communion.
~~(For more information, CCC#2382-2386, 1644-1651)

FOR MORE INFORMATION (Some Sources Used For This Article)

http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/_INDEX.HTM,
http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/resources/catechism/baltimore-catechism/,
http://www.ewtn.com/faith/teachings/index.asp,
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/,
http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Roman_Catholic_Church,
http://www.ancient-future.net/basics.html,
http://www.patheos.com/Library/Roman-Catholicism,
http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/christianity/catholic/catholic_1.shtml,
http://catholicism.about.com/od/beliefsteachings/u/basics.htm,
http://catholicfaith.co.uk/.

BRIEF INTRODUCTION

The Eastern Orthodox Church, officially the Orthodox Catholic Church, also known as the Orthodox Church, is one of the three major branches of Christianity with approximately 220-250 million adherents worldwide out of approximately 2 billion (2015 estimates) Christians. Up until the Great Schism in 1054 CE Western (Roman Catholic) and Eastern (Eastern Orthodox) branches, were branches of the same body—the One, Holy, Catholic (Universal) and Apostolic Church.

~~Like the Roman Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church also claims to be 'the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church' founded by Jesus Christ through the descent of the Holy Spirit on the Apostles in Jerusalem on the feast of Pentecost. It considers its bishops to be the successors of Christ's Apostles through an unbroken chain. The Church claims to have fully preserved the doctrines, practices and traditions of the early Christian church established by Jesus Christ through the Apostles and thus calling itself to be the only true and 'right (ortho) believing (doxa)' Christian Church.

~~The Eastern Orthodox Church is made up of a number of self-governing Churches which are either autocephalous (self-heading) or autonomous (self-governing to certain extent), with the Ecumenical (universal) Patriarch of Constantinople holding honorary primacy as 'primus inter pares' (the first among equals). It is not a centralized organization headed by a single pope with supreme power. These self-governing Churches are united in faith by a common approach to theology, tradition, and worship defined by the first seven Ecumenical Councils.

~~The Eastern Orthodox Church shares many common beliefs and practices with Roman Catholic Church being part of the One Universal (Catholic) Church until the split (Great Schism) of 1054 CE. They share a common history of first 1000 years of Christianity together. By this time Christianity was in firm footing with most of its doctrine and practices established. The Eastern Orthodox Church only accepts the first seven ecumenical councils which were held (between 325-787 CE) before the schism.

~In our following discussion we will focus only on unique aspects of Eastern Orthodox Church and where there are differences with Roman Catholic Church. So it is important to read upon 'Branches of Christianity' and 'Catholic (Roman) Church' in our website before proceeding any further.

PURPOSE OF LIFE

According Eastern Orthodox Church 'Theosis' is a goal and purpose of life. Theosis also known as deification or divinization, is a concept derived from the Old and New Testament, which teaches human beings can have real union/relationship with Triune God and become like God, a god by Grace. In this process an individual through full cooperation with his faith and actions, joins with God through His uncreated energies (God's Grace), and not through His essence and thus share in the divine nature. This is the mystery of the Orthodox Faith which is often misunderstood by Roman Catholics and Protestants.

CONCEPT OF GOD

Only difference here from Roman Catholic Church, which is also one of the main reasons (known as Filioque Controversy) for the Great Schism in 1054 CE, is that the Holy Spirit is God and the third Person of the Holy Trinity proceeds from the Father (Roman Catholic has added 'and the Son'), not made nor created nor begotten but proceeding. So unlike Roman Catholics the Orthodox Christians believe that the Holy Spirit proceeds from God the Father alone.

THE ORTHODOX CREEDS (PROFESSIONS OF THE FAITH)

Like the Roman Catholic the two most important creeds used widely by the Eastern Orthodox Church are 'Nicene Creed' and 'Apostle's Creed'. The Only difference here is an addition (and the Son)by the Roman Catholic Church version of 'Nicene Creed'. This addition was done during the sixth century by some western churches and finally adopted by the Pope of Rome in 1014 CE. The Orthodox Church rejected this addition and stuck to the original version put forward by the first two ecumenical councils (in 325 and 381CE).

The English text of the Nicene Creed:" I believe in one God, the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all things visible and invisible. I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Only Begotten Son of God, born of the Father before all ages. God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, consubstantial with the Father; through him all things were made. For us men and for our salvation he came down from heaven, and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary, and became man. For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate, he suffered death and was buried, and rose again on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures. He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead and his kingdom will have no end. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father (Roman Catholic has added 'and the Son'), who with the Father and the Son is worshipped and glorified, who has spoken through the prophets. I believe in one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church. I confess one Baptism for the forgiveness of sins and I look forward to the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come. Amen."

SOURCES OF RELIGIOUS/SACRED INFORMATION

Like the Roman Catholic Church the Eastern Orthodox Church also believe in two primary sources of religious/sacred information.
(1)Sacred Tradition (or Holy Tradition).
(2)Sacred Scripture (Holy Bible).
But Eastern Orthodox Church considers Holy Bible as part of Holy Tradition.

(1)Sacred Tradition (or Holy Tradition):

Sacred Tradition is Divine instructions and revelations which were made to the Apostles either orally by Jesus Christ or by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, some of which were committed to the inspired writings (Sacred Scripture- Bible), and others were transmitted through other means (orally or by practice etc.) by the Apostles to the Church from one generation to the next. Elements of Holy Tradition like the Holy Scriptures, the Creed and the dogmatic and doctrinal definitions of the first seven Ecumenical Councils hold the primary place in Holy Tradition and cannot be (a key difference with Roman Catholic)edited, deleted, revised or altered.

(2)Sacred Scriptures (The Holy Bible):

Most Eastern Orthodox accept that Orthodox Bible is composed of 76 books, 3 books more than the Roman Catholic Bible. There are 49 books which they count as 22 books (because some books are combined) in the Old Testament and 27 books (like other denominations) in the New Testament. Ten out of the 49 books of the old testament are called Deuterocanonical-'second canon' (or Anagignoskomena "readable, worthy to be read") because unlike Roman Catholic those are considered having secondary authority compared to rest of the old testament.

KEY FEATURES OF BELIEF

THE CHURCH

Most important difference with Roman Catholic Church is that it is not a centralized organization headed by a single pope with supreme power. There is no Pope (with supreme power) or equivalent in Eastern Orthodox Church. The Eastern Orthodox Church is made up of a number of self-governing Churches which are either autocephalous (self-heading) or autonomous (self-governing to certain extent).

~~Currently there are fourteen Orthodox autocephalous regional churches that are generally accepted. An autocephalous church is administratively completely independent and has its own authority to resolve all internal affairs on its own. It appoints its own bishops, including the Patriarch, Archbishop or Metropolitan who heads the church. All fourteen autocephalous churches are independent, equal to each other and remain in full sacramental and canonical communion with each other. These autocephalous orthodox regional churches are the four ancient Eastern Patriarchates (Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch, and Jerusalem), and the ten other orthodox regional churches that have emerged over the centuries in Russia, Serbia, Romania, Bulgaria, Georgia, Cyprus, Greece, Poland, Albania, and the Czech and Slovak Republics. There is a fifteenth autocephalous church, Orthodox Church in America which is only recognized as autocephalous by few of the fourteen regional churches. The autonomous churches are less independent and rely on an autocephalous church for certain functions.

~~An autocephalous regional church has a defined jurisdiction (country or region) and is ruled by its council of bishops or Synod presided by its Primate ( First Hierarch or first among equals of all bishops). The Primate may carry the honorary title of Patriarch, Metropolitan or Archbishop .

~~Eastern Orthodox Church considers Patriarch of Constantinople (Ecumenical Patriarch) as 'primus inter pares ' meaning first among equals. This title is of honor and symbolic unity rather than authority, in fact he does not have any administrative authority to intervene in the affairs of local churches outside his own Patriarchate.

~~The organization of church is both hierarchical and conciliar or synodal. It is considered hierarchical as priests, deacons, and laypersons are expected to follow their bishop who is inheritor of the authority of the apostles, authority given by Jesus. And it is conciliar or synodal as the bishops (all with equal voting power) meet together in synods or councils and reach binding agreements and decisions through consensus.

THE CLERGY

The main difference with Roman Catholic Church here is that Orthodox Church allows married priest (presbyters) and deacons as long as the marriage took place before ordination.
~~Also there is no bishop with supreme power like the Pope of Roman Catholic Church, all bishops are equal, sacramentally none is higher or greater than the other; none rules over other. They do carry different administrative title like patriarch, archbishop, metropolitan or bishop depending on the size, location and importance of their diocese.
~~The other notable distinction is Orthodox clergy are usually bearded whereas Roman Catholic clergy are usually beardless.

MONKS AND NUNS

There are no separate religious orders of Eastern Orthodox monks or nuns like Roman Catholic monks and nuns who belong to a particular religious order such as Rule of St. Augustine or Rule of St. Benedict etc.
~~Orthodox monks and nuns generally do not or less involve in social work or teaching in school. They spent their time in worship, manual labor to support themselves, private prayer, spiritual study, and mediation.

MARY

The only notable difference here with Roman Catholic Church is that Eastern Orthodox Church do not accept the Roman Catholic dogma of the 'Immaculate Conception of Mary' which was a later addition by Roman Pope Pius IX in 1854 CE.

THE SAINTS, ANGELS, FALLEN ANGELS (SATAN and DEMONS)

There is no major difference between Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic Church regarding saints, angels and fallen angels (Satan and demons).

THE SACRAMENTS (HOLY MYSTERIES)

The sacraments in the Eastern Orthodox Church are officially called the holy mysteries or sacred mysteries. Like the Roman Catholic Church the Orthodox Church generally accept the seven Sacraments or Mysteries while the Orthodox church do not limit the number to seven or consider it fixed.

Baptism: There is no major difference between Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic Church regarding baptism.

Chrismation (Confirmation): Eastern Orthodox Church prefers to use the term Chrismation. In Roman Catholic Church Chrismation (Confirmation) is separated from the Baptism and is performed by the bishop and not the priest but in Orthodox Church is performed with (immediately after) Baptism by a priest who has received "chrism" from the bishop. Unlike Roman Catholic Church, it also performs Chrismation on infants.

The Eucharist (Mystical Supper): The Roman Catholic Church uses unleavened bread for the celebration of the Eucharist, while in the Eastern Orthodox Church only leavened bread is used. The other notable difference would be Roman Catholics believe the consecrated bread and wine changes (a change of the whole substance--though it retains the appearance, odor, and taste of bread and wine) to actual body and blood of Christ through a process call 'transubstantiation' (change of substance) while the Orthodox Christians consider the bread and blood to be changed 'mysteriously' in body and blood of Christ.

Penance (Confession): There is no major difference between Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic Church regarding penance.

Matrimony: The major difference here, unlike Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox Church allows divorce only in the case of adultery and under extreme exceptional circumstances but condemns the breakdown of marriage as a sin and as evil as it considers marriage (like Roman Catholicism) to be permanent and indissoluble. Remarriage is allowed for widowed spouses and divorced individuals. While remarriage of widowed individuals is seen as a joyful occasion, remarriage (2nd marriage) of divorced individuals are not seen with the same light and includes prayers offering repentance for the earlier divorce.

Holy Orders: The major difference here with Roman Catholic is that Orthodox Church allows ordination of married priests and deacons.

The Anointing of the Sick (Holy Unction): The notable difference with Roman Catholic Church is that, in the Orthodox Church anointing of the Sick is not just for those who are dying or gravely ill, but for all those who are sick.

WORSHIP AND PRAYER

No major significant difference here in terms of belief and concept with Roman Catholic Church. Minor differences exist in language, style, form and other ways which are mostly influenced by local culture and tradition (seen even among different orthodox churches).
~~One notable minor difference here, while many eastern orthodox churches still use old Julian calendar, some other orthodox churches use the revised Julian calendar (which corresponds to Gregorian calendar used by Roman Catholic Church). And for this reason, for an example we see some orthodox Christians celebrate Christmas on December 25th (like Roman Catholic) while others celebrate it on January 7th (which is December 25th in old Julian calendar).

SIN

Eastern Orthodox Church defines sin as the Greek word for sin 'amartia' meaning 'to miss the mark or target'. So, sin is when one pervert what God has given as good, falling short or refusing to follow God's plan and the desire to be "like God". Sin separates one from God, leaving one spiritually dead. For Orthodox Christians, the mark or target is to live according to the teachings and laws of God. And transgression these laws is sin.

~~Unlike Roman Catholics, Orthodox Christians do not categorize sins into mortal and venial sins. They do recognize sins of grave nature for which sacramental penance is necessary. For minor sins there is no necessity of formal penance through sacramental ritual. While it is recommended to go to Confession for sin (regardless of the nature), to the very least one should ask for God's forgiveness whenever it occurs and on regular basis through personal prayers and follow up with Confession on regular intervals.

'Ancestral Sin' not 'Original Sin': Eastern Orthodox Church prefers the term 'ancestral sin' in oppose to the Roman Catholic Church's (and most other denominations) use of the term 'original sin' to refer to the state of humanity after the Fall of Adam and Eve.

~~The Eastern Orthodox Church, unlike the Roman Catholic Church, never speaks of guilt (sin) being passed down from Adam and Eve to humanity. It teaches that humanity inherited only the consequence of Adam and Eve's sin which is death, and not their guilt.

SALVATION

Eastern Orthodox Church teaches (similar to Roman Catholicism) salvation is achieved through faith in Christ (his doctrine, his life, his death, and resurrection) and live accordingly. It teaches that salvation is "faith working through love" an ongoing life long process aiming to obtain 'Theosis' or union with God.

ESCHATOLOGY

Death: Eastern Orthodox Christians believe at death the soul separates from the body. The body returns to the earth to decompose but not lost. The soul lingers on earth for few days (2-3 days). Then soul of the departed ascend to undergo personal trial (particular judgment).

Particular Judgment: Eastern Orthodox Christians believe at particular judgment righteous souls are taken by the angels and brought to the threshold of Paradise, called 'Abraham's bosom', where they remain in a condition of foretasting eternal joy and blessedness waiting for the Last Judgment. And others finds themselves in darkness of Hades (foretasting eternal torment) waiting for Last Judgment.

Hades: Hades is the 'abode of the dead' where the soul journeys to after death and remain till Last Judgment. It is not hell as sometimes misunderstood by many. It is spiritual prison for those unrighteous souls that are separated by sin from God. While souls are waiting in Hades the family, friends and faithful on earth can help the unrighteous souls (to cleanse some or all of its sins) by commemoration at the Divine Liturgy, by their prayers, fasts and alms giving on their behalf.

Purgatory: Unlike Roman Catholic Church, Orthodox Church do not accept the concept of Purgatory.

End of time/world and Second Coming of Jesus: No major difference here with Roman Catholic Church.

Resurrection of the Dead: There is no major difference between Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic Church regarding resurrection of the dead.

Last (General) Judgment: There is no major difference between Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic Church regarding Last Judgment.

Heaven: There is no major difference between Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic Church regarding heaven.

Hell: A notable difference with Roman Catholicism is the emphasis on Orthodox Church's teaching that, in hell God does not punish people by some material fire or physical torment but it is the separation from God's glory and love, cause of great trouble and suffering for those who reject God.

The New Heaven and New Earth till eternity: No major difference here with Roman Catholic Church.

INDULGENCE

Unlike Roman Catholic Church there is currently no similar concept of 'indulgence' within Eastern Orthodox Church.

STATUES AND ICONS (IMAGES)

Unlike Roman Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox Church do not use statues (life like three-dimensional) as it imitates idol worship. It uses Icons (images drawn or engraved) depicting Christ, Holy spirit, Mary, saints, angels and certain events extensively.

SEXUAL MORALITY

There is no major difference between Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic Church regarding the teachings about sexual morality.

CONTRACEPTION AND CONCEPTION

Unlike Roman Catholic Church there is no universal position on matter of contraception within the Eastern Orthodox Church. Up until mid twentieth century (around 1960) the Eastern Orthodox position was similar to Roman Catholic Church. But since then a less strict view coming to prevail within some of the eastern orthodox churches. Some Eastern Orthodox theologians and spiritual fathers of current time consider that the responsible use of contraception within marriage is not in itself sinful, hence the use of strictly non-abortive contraceptives are permitted.

ABORTION

There is no major difference between Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic Church regarding abortion.

DIVORCE AND REMARRIAGE

Unlike Roman Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox Church allows divorce only in the case of adultery and under extreme exceptional circumstances. Remarriage is allowed for widowed spouses and divorced individuals.

FOR MORE INFORMATION (Some Sources Used For This Article)

https://oca.org/orthodoxy/the-orthodox-faith,
http://orthodoxinfo.com/general/,
http://orthodoxfaith.co.uk/orthodoxy,
http://www.greekorthodox.org.au/,
http://sttikhonsmonastery.org/about_orthodoxy.html,
http://www.bible.ca/orthodox-church-autocephalous-hierarchy-organization.htm,
http://www.orthodoxchristian.info/pages/differences.htm,
http://www.fatheralexander.org/booklets/english/catechism_ext.htm,
http://www.orthodoxresource.co.uk/comparative/roman-catholic.htm,
http://www.patheos.com/Library/Eastern-Orthodoxy,
http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/christianity/subdivisions/easternorthodox_1.shtml.

BRIEF INTRODUCTION

Protestantism (all denominations combined) is one of the three major branches of Christianity with more than 700 million members (generally called protestant) worldwide out of approximately 2 billion (2014 estimates) Christians. Protestantism is the main product of the sixteenth century Reformation (also called Protestant Reformation) within Western (Roman Catholic) Christianity, a movement against what it considered to be errors and corruption in the Roman Catholic Church.

~~Officially the Protestant Reformation was initiated by German Roman Catholic monk Martin Luther , when he in his quest to reform the Roman Catholic Church posted his 95 propositions (or theses) against the errors and corruption of the Roman Catholic Church on the Castle Church door at Wittenberg, Germany in 1517 CE.

~~The term 'Protestant' owes its origin to the letter of the German princes who protested against the decision of the "Diet of Speyer"(an Imperial assembly of the Holy Roman Empire) in 1529 which condemned the teachings of Martin Luther as heretical . Since then 'Protestant' refers to an adherent of any of those Christian denomination that separated from the Roman Catholic Church during the Protestant Reformation, or of any group or sub-group descended from them.

~~There is no central authority in Protestantism like the Church of Rome headed by a single pope with supreme power. Instead Protestants consider Bible (Word of God) to be the supreme central authority. Protestantism encourages individual (guided by holy spirit) private interpretation of the Bible. The lack of central authority along with individual interpretation of the Bible resulted differing interpretations or applications of the teachings of the Bible (such as grace, predestination, sacraments etc.) which is the principal cause of so many Protestant denominations in existence today.

~~Protestants also reject the idea of visible 'one holy catholic apostolic church' and apostolic succession. Every denomination within Protestantism considers itself to be part of the 'Invisible Church', the true church of Christ adhering to the teachings of Bible. Some Protestant denominations (like Lutheran, Baptist, Methodist) have churches and members worldwide, and some are confined to a single region, country, or community.

~~The main characteristics of Protestantism are acceptance of Bible (word of God) as the sole authority in all matters of faith and morals, doctrine of salvation by grace through faith alone and belief in the universal priesthood of all believers.

~~Protestantism shares many common beliefs and practices with Roman Catholic Church (and Eastern Orthodox Church) being part of it until the 16th-century Protestant Reformation. They share a common history of first 1500 years of Christianity together.

~In our following discussion we will focus only on generally accepted aspects of Protestantism and where there are differences with Roman Catholic Church. So it is important to read upon 'Branches of Christianity' and 'Catholic (Roman) Church' in our website before proceeding any further. The unique aspects among different protestant denominations will be highlighted under the individual denomination discussion.

PURPOSE OF LIFE

The purpose of life is to know, love and glorify God and live in a joyful and loving relationship with God and others through Jesus.

CONCEPT OF GOD

There is no major difference between Protestantism and Roman Catholicism regarding concept of God.

THE ORTHODOX CREEDS (PROFESSIONS OF THE FAITH)

Like Roman Catholicism the two most important creeds used widely in Protestantism are 'Nicene Creed' and 'Apostle's Creed'. Nicene Creed is almost universally accepted cross all protestants denominations.

SOURCES OF RELIGIOUS/SACRED INFORMATION

Unlike Roman Catholicism, Protestantism only considers the holy Bible as the source of religious/sacred information.
The Holy Bible: The Holy Bible of Protestantism is composed of a total of 66 books, 7 books less than the Roman Catholic Bible (and 10 books less than Eastern Orthodox Bible). There are 39 books in Old Testament (7 less than Roman Catholic) and 27 books (like other Christian branches) in the New Testament.

KEY FEATURES OF BELIEF
(Only the common features of Protestantism among all denominations are discussed in this section)

THE 'FIVE SOLAS'

The 'Five Solas' are the five Latin phrases (or slogans) that emerged since the Protestant Reformation featuring the primary beliefs of Protestantism and differences from Roman Catholicism. These are Sola scriptura (Scripture alone), Sola fide(faith alone), Sola gratia (grace alone), Solo Christo (Christ alone), Soli Deo gloria (glory to God alone). Almost all Protestant denominations accept these ' Five Solas'.

Scripture alone (Sola Scriptura): Sola (only or alone) Scriptura, or scripture alone means, the Bible is the ultimate authority of Christianity. This is also called the 'formal principle' of Protestant Reformation. Bible is the divinely inspired Word of God and is the sole source of all religious information. This confirms the protestant position of rejecting all other worldly authority be it an institution (church of Rome) or an individual (Pope) or traditions (sacred tradition). Simply put all information regarding religious belief, moral and practice must be from the Bible and/or conform to the Bible and/or according to (for) the Bible.

Faith alone (Sola fide): Sola fide, or faith alone means, salvation (and justification) is through faith alone in Jesus Christ. Protestants believe one is saved and justified (being declared just by God) only through faith in Jesus Christ (as Lord and Savior), without any requirement of good works (such as sacraments, charity, indulgences, prayers, efforts or actions) on the part of the individual. Simply put salvation is through faith (alone) not by works.

Grace alone (Sola gratia): Sola gratia, or grace alone means, salvation (one is saved) by the grace of God alone. Grace of God is a divine free gift a totally unmerited-unearned (not a result of any human action or work) favor from God for those who have faith in Jesus Christ.

Christ alone (Solo Christo): Solo Christo or Christ alone means, Christ alone is the way (mediator, means and savior) to salvation. Christ alone is the mediator between human and God. This principle automatically rejects all other mediators (such as pope, priest, Mary and saint etc.) between man and God. It emphasizes that salvation is made possible for man, only through the sinless life, sacrificial death on cross, and bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ. Simply put Jesus Christ in the only way to salvation.

Glory to God alone (Soli Deo gloria): Soli Deo gloria or glory to God alone that is, God alone is the one who is to receive all the glory. The goal of life is to give glory to God alone. It emphasizes no one (such as angles, Mary mother of Jesus or saints etc.) is to be glorified beside God. God alone is worthy and deserving of all glory.

THE CHURCH

In Protestantism, most important difference with Roman Catholicism, there is no single centralized organization (Church of Roma) headed by a single pope with supreme power . There is no Pope (with supreme power) or equivalent in Protestantism. Protestants generally recognize church to be the invisible body of all believers headed by Jesus Christ.
~~Protestants worship spaces, building or physical structures (i.e. the church), in general are characterized by a plainer decoration usually without images and statues than those of Roman Catholics or Eastern Orthodox Christians.
~~Some Protestant churches are fully independent and local while others are part of a national, regional or worldwide protestant denomination.
~~There is no one form of church governance in use across all protestant denominations. The basic forms of church governance in use are Episcopal, Presbyterian and Congregational polity.

~Episcopal polity is a system of church governance (used by Roman Catholic church) which is hierarchical in structure and a bishop (Greek, episcopos) or 'overseer' is the chief authority. This form of church governance is used by many Lutheran and Methodist churches.

~Congregational (or Congregationalist) polity is a system of church governance in which every local church is autonomous and independent. In this form each church operates through democratic processes where each member have equal voice in the governance of the church. Usually members will elect a committee or a group of people to manage the day to day affairs of the church. Some of these churches may join certain convention (like Southern Baptist convention) and some may join other congregations (which share same belief and practices) for mutual strength, support or cooperation. This form of church governance is used by Baptist, Anabaptist, Quakers, some Lutherans and Congregational churches.

~Presbyterian polity is a system of church governance which is run by assemblies of elders or presbyters. In this form of governance, authority flows both from the bottom (congregation elects elders) up and from the top (as higher assemblies hold certain authority over individual congregations) down. Local elected presbyters make decisions for the local church in a body called the session or consistory. Group of local churches are governed by higher assembly of presbyters called Presbytery. Group of Presbyteries are governed by a Synod. Synods together compose the final governing authority called General Assembly. This forms of church governance is used by Presbyterian and Reformed churches.

THE CLERGY

In many (not all)Protestant denominations, women are not allowed to be part of the clergy. Unlike Roman Catholics, Protestants do not require celibacy as a condition of election to the clergy.
~~Protestantism also do not consider ordination of the clergy as a sacrament. Clergies are viewed more as individuals with religious knowledge (scholar) and zeal, the representative of the community, appointed (ordained)and chosen to lead its spiritual life.
~~Protestantism also rejects (unlike Roman Catholicism) the idea that clergy such as bishops and priests are successors of the apostles (Apostolic succession), mediators between man and God and have exclusive privileges regarding the dispensation of grace.
~~In Episcopal polity the clergy include deacons, pastors/priests and bishops. In Presbyterian and Congregational Polity the clergy include deacons, ruling elders (elder board) and teaching elders/presbyters may also be known bishop or pastor or reverend or minister.

MONKS AND NUNS

Unlike Roman Catholicism, practice of monasticism (monkhood) is generally not existent within mainstream protestant denominations.

MARY

Mary is considered a holy woman, highly honored and respected as chosen by God to be the mother of Jesus through a virgin birth. But unlike Roman Catholics, Protestants generally reject immaculate conception, assumption, perpetual virginity and intercession of Mary.

THE SAINTS

Unlike Roman Catholicism, Protestantism considers all believers in Jesus as savior, as saints and are called to be saints. Protestantism rejects veneration and intercession of a special group of believers as saints.

THE ANGELS

Main difference with Roman Catholicism is that Protestantism rejects the intercession of angels.

THE FALLEN ANGELS (SATAN AND DEMONS)

There is no major difference between Protestantism and Roman Catholicism regarding belief about fallen angels.

THE SACRAMENTS (OR ORDINANCES)

Unlike Roman Catholic Church, most Protestant denominations accept only two sacraments (also known as ordinances) : Baptism and the Eucharist (also known as communion or the Lord's Supper). All other sacraments are only considered as rituals or rites as those do not meet criterion for sacraments. The other important difference is that Protestantism doesn't consider any of the sacraments absolutely necessary for salvation.

~~While some protestants accept a third sacrament (Confession) others (like the Quakers) accept none.

~~There are different views within Protestantism about how the sacraments are defined and understood, which lead to division within Protestantism. As a result among Protestant denominations contemporary practices of baptism and the Lord's Supper vary greatly which will be discussed in the particular denomination section.

WORSHIP AND PRAYER

Unlike Roman Catholic Church, Protestant liturgies are simpler and place greater emphasis on preaching (sermon) and reading from the Bible. The other key difference is Protestants do not participate in any kind of intercessory prayer (like Roman Catholic 'Prayer of intercession') or celebrate holidays related to Mary, saints or angels.
~~A great emphasis is put on regular Bible study, private prayer and attending church services on Sunday. There are wide variety of worship styles among protestant denominations ranging from the spontaneity of the Pentecostal churches to more traditional worship of the Lutheran churches in some ways similar to the Roman Catholic Church. Singing hymns in choir or in congregational participation during church services are common in many protestant denominations.

SIN

A notable difference with Roman Catholicism is that Protestantism does not categorize sins into mortal and venial sins. Other key difference is Protestants believe that sins (except for blasphemy against Holy Spirit) do not harm their eternal relationship with God, once they have acquired salvation (they are saved for eternity). Though recognizing if or when a Protestant gets involved in sin, he or she may suffer worldly, physical, mental or spiritual consequences.
Forgiveness of Sin: Protestants believe that Jesus Christ upon his death on cross paid for all sins ever committed and will be committed for all those who believe in him. So when one commits sin, he or she may confess to God through Jesus and ask for forgiveness which will restore the perfect fellowship and communion with God.

SALVATION

A major difference with Roman Catholics is that Protestants believe Salvation is through faith alone in Jesus. Salvation is by grace (free unmerited-undeserved gift from God) through faith in Jesus Christ. Protestants believe (unlike Roman Catholics) good works is not necessary for salvation. Protestants recognize the importance of good works but believe good works is the fruit of their salvation (a consequence of receiving salvation) and not part of the process to be saved.
~~Unlike Roman Catholics, most Protestants do not believe salvation can be lost due to sin (except for blasphemy against Holy Spirit).

ESCHATOLOGY

The main difference here is that unlike Roman Catholics, Protestants do not accept the concept of Purgatory. After death till resurrection(this temporary-intermediate state) the souls of the believers end up in heavenly bliss and others in eternal damnation. There is no changing of state of salvation or cleansing with fire (like roman Catholicism) after death in the intermediate period, one is either saved or damned for eternity.

INDULGENCE

Unlike Roman Catholicism, Protestantism rejects the concept of 'indulgence' .

STATUES AND IMAGES

Unlike Roman Catholic Church, most Protestant denominations abstain from excessive usage of statues and images in the religious sphere of life since God forbade the worship of statues, images and icons. For this very reason Protestant Churches are usually devoid of statues and images.

SEXUAL MORALITY

There is no major difference between Protestants and Roman Catholics regarding the teachings about sexual morality. The only difference is that Protestants do not consider sexual immorality such as masturbation, fornication, pornography, prostitution, rape, adultery etc. (though considered as sins) can cause loss of salvation.

CONTRACEPTION AND CONCEPTION

Unlike Roman Catholicism there is no universal position on matter of contraception within the Protestantism. Up until twentieth century Protestantism position was similar to Roman Catholicism, where contraception was condemned as a violation of God's procreative purpose of marriage. But since then a lesser strict view coming to prevail, where most Protestant denominations usually allow use of some sort of contraception within marriage as a responsible way of family planning.

ABORTION

Like Roman Catholicism, Protestantism generally considers it to be immoral to have or to associate with abortion. But unlike Roman Catholic Church, most Protestant denominations consider abortion as a legal option in the case of rape, incest or 'life of mother'. There is no universal position among Protestant denominations on abortion. Views ranges from totally against abortion (identical to Catholicism) to mothers life and choice being an important consideration.

MARRIAGE, DIVORCE AND REMARRIAGE

Unlike Roman Catholic Church, most Protestant denominations do not consider marriage as unbreakable union or a sacrament though they consider it to be sacred, holy and permanent union.
Unlike Roman Catholic Church, most Protestant denominations also allow divorce and remarriage under certain circumstances. Views ranges from divorce allowed only in the case of adultery to mutual incompatibility and dislike.

FOR MORE INFORMATION (Some Sources Used For This Article)

https://gotquestions.org/search.php?zoom_query=protestant&search.x=0&search.y=0,
http://protestantism.co.uk/,
http://www.prayerfoundation.org/protestant_beliefs.htm,
http://www.patheos.com/Library/Protestantism,
http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Protestantism,
http://www.religioustolerance.org/chr_capr.htm,
http://www.diffen.com/difference/Catholic_vs_Protestant,
http://www.religion-online.org/showchapter.asp?title=1623&C=1563,
https://www.monergism.com/thethreshold/articles/onsite/essentials.html

BRIEF INTRODUCTION

Anglicanism is one of the major branches of Christianity with approximately 70-85 million adherents (often called Anglicans or Episcopalians) worldwide out of approximately 2 billion (2015 estimates) Christians. Anglicanism (derived from Latin world Anglia for England) is the Christian branch that follow the common forms of doctrine, structure, and worship that developed over the course of the English Reformation (associated with Protestant Reformation) by the established Church of England.

~~The Church of England (Anglican Church) began its journey as a separate branch of Christianity in 1534, when King Henry VIII of England split from the Roman Catholic church because the pope would not grant an annulment to his marriage with Catherine of Aragon. Even though considered a result of 16th century Protestant Reformation, this split from Roman Catholic church was more personal and political than theological. But soon under King Edward VI (ruled 1547-1553) and Elizabeth I (ruled 1558-1603), the Church of England underwent many changes and reversals, and eventually acquired a distinct, an Anglican identity. An identity which is neither truly Roman Catholic (as its parent church) nor truly Reformed (as the Protestant) ; instead is thought of as a via media or middle way (or a blend) between Protestantism and Catholicism.

~~The Anglican Church considers itself to be part of 'the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church'. It (like the Roman Catholics) considers its bishops to be the successors of Christ's Apostles through an unbroken chain. But there is no central authority in Anglicanism like the Church of Rome headed by a single pope with supreme power. Rather each national or regional church (churches within the Anglican Communion) has full autonomy and headed by a primate (archbishop) but recognize the primacy (or first) among equals of the Archbishop of Canterbury.

~~Anglicanism spread to America, Canada, Australia, South Africa and New Zealand in the seventeenth century through colonization. And in the eighteenth Century it spread to Asia, Africa and Latin America through the work of the missionaries. In some countries (like America and Scotland) Anglican Church is known as Episcopal Church. Today most Anglican/Episcopal Churches around the world are part of the international body called Anglican Communion. Anglicanism (Church of England) is the official state religion of England. Large number of Anglicans are also found in Nigeria (18 million), Uganda (8 million), Sudan (5 million), Australia (4 million), Kenya (5 million), India (4million), America (3 million), South Africa (2 million) and Tanzania (2 million) to name a few (all population are estimates from various reports taken between 2008-2015).

~~Anglicanism shares many common beliefs and practices with Roman Catholicism being part of the One Universal (Catholic) Church until the split and also with Protestantism (of Reformed tradition). There is a fair amount of diversity in doctrine and practice among Anglican Churches due to the freedom allowed by the Anglicanism in the areas of Scripture, tradition and reason. Which gave rise to broad traditions within Anglicanism, such as the Evangelical or 'low-church' Anglicans (leaning more towards Protestantism) and Anglo Catholic or 'High-Church' Anglicans (leaning more towards Catholicism). But most Anglicans fall somewhere between the two.

~~In our following discussion we will focus only on generally accepted unique aspects of Anglicanism and where there are differences with Roman Catholic Church. So it is important to read upon 'Branches of Christianity' , 'Catholic (Roman) Church' and 'Protestantism' in our website before proceeding any further.

SOURCES OF RELIGIOUS/SACRED INFORMATION

Unlike Roman Catholics, Anglicans (like the Protestants) only considers the holy Bible as the source of religious/sacred information.

The Holy Bible: The Holy Bible of Anglicans is composed of a total of 66 Canonical books (like Protestants) but also contain 7 non-canonical books (like the Catholics who view theses as Canonical). Anglicans consider these non-canonical books as part of the Bible, which could be used in worship as providing examples of life and instructions in manners, but not for the establishment of doctrine.

The Book of Common Prayer: Anglicans also accept 'The Book of Common Prayer' a foundational prayer book as source of religious information as it relates teachings from Bible. It contains the common liturgies for all the various rites and practices of the church, including the Morning and Evening Offices, the Eucharist, Ministration to the Sick, Reconciliation of a Penitent, and Funeral services etc.

KEY FEATURES OF BELIEF
(Only the unique features of Anglicanism are discussed in this section)

Anglican belief and practice are drawn from the Bible, the traditions (with Biblical foundation) of the Church, Biblically sound human reasoning, the Book of Common Prayer and the 'Thirty-Nine Articles of Religion' (Anglican doctrine).

THE CHURCH

Anglican churches use Episcopal polity (like Roman Catholic Church) but unlike Roman Catholic Church there is no single central organization headed by a single pope with supreme power. Instead each national or regional church (38 churches/provinces of the Anglican Communion) has full autonomy and headed by a primate (archbishop) but recognize the primacy (or first) among equals of the Archbishop of Canterbury.
~~Anglican churches are led by bishops and its practices are decided by the General Synod. The General Synod is elected from the clergy and laity of each diocese and meets in certain intervals.
~~Anglican churches tend to reflect the appearance, atmosphere and liturgical structure of Roman Catholic Church. For example, most Anglican churches have altars, images and their clergy wear vestments similar to those worn by Roman Catholic clergy.

THE CLERGY

Anglican churches (like Roman Catholic) maintain threefold ministry of bishops, priests and deacons.
~~There is no bishop with supreme power like the Pope of Roman Catholic Church, all bishops are equal, sacramentally none is higher or greater than the other; none rules over other. They do carry different administrative title like primate or archbishop or bishop depending on the size, location and importance of their diocese. Like in Roman Catholicism, bishops are considered the successors of the Apostles.
~~Unlike Roman Catholic Church no requirement is made for clerical celibacy.
~~Almost all Anglican provinces ordain women as deacons, some ordain women as priests and a few provinces ordain women as bishops.
~~Some Anglican Churches ordain celibate homosexuals as clergy. While only very few allow ordination of practicing homosexuals as clergy.

MONKS AND NUNS

No major difference with Roman Catholicism except that certain Anglican orders are open to married people.

MARY

Anglican position on Mary is similar to Roman Catholicism except 'Immaculate Conception' and the 'Assumption of Mary'. Most Anglicans do not believe in 'Immaculate Conception' , 'Assumption' and the intercessory power of Mary.

THE SAINTS

Anglicans respect, honor and observe certain 'saints day' but do not worship or ask for their intercession.

THE ANGELS

Main difference with Roman Catholicism is that Anglicanism rejects the intercession of angels.

THE SACRAMENTS (OR ORDINANCES)

Anglicans accept Baptism and Eucharist as 'great sacraments' or 'the Sacraments of the Gospel' . They recognize these two as superior in dignity to the others, as being clearly ordained by Christ Himself during His earthly ministry, and as being, according to His own teaching, generally necessary for salvation. Anglicans also recognize the other five sacraments (called as 'sacramental rites') that evolved (not instituted by Jesus during his ministry on earth) in the Church under the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

Baptism: Anglicans baptize both infants and adults. They believe Baptism is a once-in-a-lifetime event, thus people with valid baptisms (all baptisms performed in the name of the triune God) from other denominations may not be baptized again upon conversion.

Eucharist (Holy Communion): Anglicans teach, in the Eucharist, the Body and Blood of Christ are given, taken and received by the faithful , and that through this Sacrament they dwell in Christ and Christ in them. They discourage scholastic definitions as to the mode and manner of Christ's presence (in the bread and wine), but they acknowledge it to be true and genuine as mysterious, ineffable and spiritual manner.

WORSHIP AND PRAYER

Anglican liturgy and prayer are in many ways similar to that of Roman Catholic Church. The format and details are laid out in the 'Book of Common Prayer'. Anglican churches display great variety in their worship, from very informal to highly liturgical, dependent on local, ethnic, historical or theological conditions.
~~Anglicanism also encourages individual daily prayer and Bible study. Anglicans do not participate in any kind of intercessory prayer (like Roman Catholic 'Prayer of intercession').

SIN

Unlike Roman Catholicism, Anglicanism does not categorize sins into mortal and venial sins. And also when one commits sin, he or she may confess to God through Jesus and ask for forgiveness which will restore the perfect fellowship and communion with God. One may also go to a priest (confess privately to the priest) if he/she chooses to but are not required to do so.

SALVATION

A major difference with Roman Catholics is that Anglicans (like the protestants) believe Salvation is through faith alone in Jesus. Salvation is by grace (free unmerited-undeserved gift from God) through faith in Jesus Christ. By faith Anglicans understand not a dead but a living faith, which naturally leads the believers to do good works for God (i.e. leading a life that reflects the teachings of Jesus Christ). To them there is neither contrast nor any permanent distinction between faith and good works.
~~Unlike Roman Catholics, Anglicans do not believe salvation can be lost due to sin (except for blasphemy against Holy Spirit).

ESCHATOLOGY

The main difference here is that unlike Roman Catholicism, Anglicanism (like Protestants) does not accept the concept of Purgatory. There is no cleansing with fire (like roman Catholicism) after death in the intermediate period, one is either saved or damned for eternity.

INDULGENCE

Unlike Roman Catholicism, Anglicanism (like Protestants) rejects the concept of 'indulgence' .

STATUES AND ICONS (IMAGES)

Anglican position is similar to the position of Roman Catholic.

SEXUAL MORALITY

There is no major difference between Anglicanism and Roman Catholicism regarding the teachings about sexual morality. The only difference is that Anglicans (like Protestants) do not consider sexual immorality such as masturbation, fornication, pornography, prostitution, rape, adultery etc. (though considered as sins) can cause loss of salvation.

CONTRACEPTION AND CONCEPTION

Unlike Roman Catholicism contraception is allowed in Anglicanism. Anglicans do not consider contraception (natural or artificial) as a sin or going against God's purpose.

ABORTION

Like Roman Catholicism, Anglicanism generally considers it to be immoral to have or to associate with abortion. There is no universal position among all Anglicans on Abortion. But unlike Roman Catholic Church most Anglican churches allow abortion if there is a risk to the life or health (physical or mental) of the mother, or if there is substantial risk of a child being born with physical or mental abnormalities.

DIVORCE AND REMARRIAGE

Anglicanism teaches that marriage is for life. But unlike Roman Catholic Church most Anglican Churches allow divorce when marriages fail. They also allow remarriage under certain circumstances.

FOR MORE INFORMATION (Some Sources Used For This Article)

https://www.churchofengland.org/our-faith/being-an-anglican.aspx,
http://www.episcopalchurch.org/page/anglican-communion,
http://www.anglicansonline.org/,
http://www.anglican.org/index.html,
http://www.patheos.com/Library/Anglican,
http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Anglicanism,
http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/christianity/cofe/cofe_1.shtml

BRIEF INTRODUCTION

The Lutheran Church (Lutheranism) is a major Protestant denomination with approximately 70-80 million (2014 estimates) members (often called Lutherans) worldwide. Lutheranism is founded by German Roman Catholic monk Martin Luther (1483-1546), whose efforts in early sixteenth century (1517 CE)to reform (from errors and abuse) the theology and practice of the Roman Catholic Church initiated the Protestant Reformation.

Lutheranism (i.e. Protestantism) began as a separate movement splitting from Roman Catholicism with the 'Edict of Worms' (declared Luther and his teachings as heretic and banned aiding and supporting him or his teachings) in 1521 CE. Officially Lutheranism would become known as a separate movement after the' Diet of Augsburg' in 1530 CE. Lutheranism soon spread throughout Germany and northern Europe (Norway, Sweden, Finland, Iceland, and Denmark)getting acceptance and support from local princes and rulers.

Lutheranism was brought to America when Lutherans from these countries began to migrate to north America in the 17th century. Later on Lutheranism spread to Australia, Africa and Asia through migration, colonization and evangelism. Today (2014 CE)Lutheranism is the official state religion of Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Iceland. Lutheranism is the religion of the majority of the population in Namibia, Latvia and Germany (along with Roman Catholicism).

Luther's intention was never to start a separate movement but rid the Catholic Church or its errors and abuse and bring it back to a faith based on Biblical teaching. Hence whenever possible Luther in his reform kept the Roman Catholic position and practice as long as it didn't contradict or seem to be totally unfounded according to Bible. This is why Lutheran Churches resemble the Roman Catholic Church more than any other Protestant denominations.

In our following discussion we will focus only on unique aspects of Lutheranism and where there are differences with other Protestant denominations. So it is important to read upon 'Branches of Christianity' and 'Protestantism' in our website before proceeding any further.

SOURCES OF RELIGIOUS/SACRED INFORMATION

Lutheranism (like all other Protestant denominations)only considers the holy Bible as the source of religious/sacred information.
Lutheranism also accepts "Book of Concord" as a source of religious information with high esteem as it relates teachings from Bible authored by Luther and Philipp Melanchthon.

KEY FEATURES OF BELIEF
(Only the unique features of Lutheranism are discussed in this section)

THE CHURCH

There is a good amount of diversity when it comes to church governance within Lutheran Churches. Many Lutheran churches (mostly in Europe) use Episcopal form while some other use Congregational or Presbyterian form of church governance.

Many Lutheran churches tend to reflect the appearance, atmosphere and liturgical structure of Roman Catholic church. For example, most Lutheran churches have altars, and their clergy wear vestments similar to those worn by Roman Catholic priests.

THE CLERGY

Today most Lutheran churches allow women to be part of the clergy. Many Lutheran Churches nowadays also ordain homosexual clergy.

THE SACRAMENTS (OR ORDINANCES)

Lutherans accept two sacraments: Baptism and Holy Communion.

Baptism: Lutherans baptize both infants and adults. They believe Baptism is a once-in-a-lifetime event, thus people with valid baptisms (all baptisms performed in the name of the triune God) from other denominations (such as Catholics, Anglicans, Presbyterians, Methodists, etc.) may not be baptized again upon conversion.

Holy Communion: The Lutheran Church teaches that in the Holy Communion, Christ’s body and blood are given in, with and under the bread and the wine. Lutherans stress the real bodily presence of Christ (known as the sacramental union) in the sacrament. They traditionally use bread and wine in the celebration of the Holy Communion and communicants normally receive both bread and wine.

WORSHIP AND PRAYER

Lutheranism retains altars, vestments and a certain order in worship (liturgy) structure of Roman Catholicism with the understanding that no church was bound to follow any particular order. Importance is given on Bible readings, preaching and congregational singing during service.

SALVATION

Lutherans believe falling away (loss of salvation) is possible by disbelief (blasphemy or not persisting in faith).

STATUES AND ICONS (IMAGES)

Lutherans do not totally object use of religious statues and objects. Hence there is limited use of statues and images in Lutheran churches.

CONTRACEPTION AND CONCEPTION

Historically opposed contraception but in modern times some Lutheran churches allow some sort of contraception, some oppose and some have no official position.

ABORTION

There is no unified position among all Lutheran churches. Some Lutheran churches allow abortion under certain circumstances and some do not allow abortion except in case of 'life of mother'.

DIVORCE AND REMARRIAGE

Lutheran churches allow divorce and remarriage under certain circumstances.

FOR MORE INFORMATION (Some Sources Used For This Article)

http://www.patheos.com/Library/Lutheran
http://www.lutheran-resources.org/lutheran_beliefs.htm
https://www.elca.org/en/Faith/ELCA-Teaching
http://www.lcms.org/belief-and-practice
http://www.lca.org.au/what-lutherans-believe-3.html
http://bookofconcord.org/lc-1-intro.php

BRIEF INTRODUCTION

The Anabaptist church (Anabaptism) is a Protestant denomination with approximately 3-4 million (2014 estimates) members (often called anabaptist) worldwide. Anabaptism is the fruit of a early 16th century (1522-1525 CE) movement known as Radical Reformation (considered offshoot of Protestant Reformation) that disagreed with Luther and Zwingli on host of issues most importantly of that of infant Baptism. They viewed baptism was to be performed on believing adults only.

Conrad Grebel, George Blaurock and Felix Mantz (according majority view)are credited as the founder of the movement whose reform began in Zurich, Switzerland between 1522-1525 CE. The term "Anabaptism" (literally means rebaptism or baptized again) was initially used by the opponents of the Radical Reformation and later adopted for their own name. From there the movement spread to parts of Germany, Moravia and other parts of Europe. Anabaptists were heavily persecuted early on (during 16th and 17th century) by both Roman Catholics and Protestants.

By the end of 17th century the leading Anabaptists groups were the Mennonites, Hutterites, Bretheren and the Amish. Mennonites were named after the leader of the movement Menno Simons (1496-1561) in Netherlands. Followers of Swiss bishop named Jakob Amman (1656-1730) who led a movement for reform within the church resulting in schism and formation of a new group name Amish. Members of these groups brought their faith when they migrated to North America.

In our following discussion we will focus only on unique aspects of Anabaptism and where there are differences with other Protestant denominations. So it is important to read upon 'Branches of Christianity' and 'Protestantism' in our website before proceeding any further.

SOURCES OF RELIGIOUS/SACRED INFORMATION

Anabaptists (like all other Protestant denominations)only considers the holy Bible as the source of religious/sacred information.

KEY FEATURES OF BELIEF
(Only the unique features of Anabaptism are discussed in this section)

Baptism:Anabaptists do not baptize infants and children. They believe Baptism is only for believing adults. They believe that a person must first believe before he could be accepted into the Church with the sign of water baptism. They also believe to baptize one doesn't have to be an ordained minister.

Lord's Supper: Anabaptists view on Lord's Supper (occasionally called the "fellowship at the Lord's Table") is more of symbolic nature which was simply memorial in which Christ was in no way present in the elements.

Pacifism: Anabaptists believe one must not use violence or force to obtain or protect his rights. Most Anabaptists opposed to all military service, and took no oaths and held no government offices.

Separation of church and state: Anabaptists believe in absolute separation of Church and state from the movement's conception. They believe church represents the community of saved and state (civil government) belongs to the world. They didn't want either element to influence the other.

FOR MORE INFORMATION (Some Sources Used For This Article)

http://thirdmill.org/newfiles/jac_arnold/ch.arnold.rmt.10.html,
http://www.anabaptistchurch.org/,
http://www.anabaptists.org/
http://www.patheos.com/Library/Anabaptist,
http://www.anabaptistnetwork.com/node/467

BRIEF INTRODUCTION

Reformed Christianity is a major Protestant denomination with approximately 75-80 million (2014 estimates) members worldwide. Reformed Christianity began in Switzerland in early 16th century (1522 C.E) when Roman Catholic priest Huldrych Zwingli (1484-1531) began to reform many of non-biblical teachings, practices and corruptions of Roman catholic Church. This movement got its solid footing with the work of John Calvin (1509-1564).

The reform movement led by Luther in Germany and Zwingli in Switzerland began independently around the same time. Zwingli was soon impressed and influenced by Luther. Zwingli's disagreement with Luther regarding "Real presence of Christ during the Lord's Supper" is the main reason behind the emergence of Lutheran and Reformed churches instead of one Protestant Church out of Protestant Reformation.

John Calvin's contribution was decisive and helped spread Reformed Christianity within Europe and beyond. Many reform-era theologians trained with Zwingli and Calvin then fanned out across Europe spreading the Reformed faith. One of them John Knox (1513-1572) brought and established reformed Christianity (Presbyterian) in Scotland. To this day (2014 CE) only Church of Scotland remains the dominant church (National Church) with majority of its population (34% 2014 estimates)being reformed protestant. Immigrants from Europe brought Reformed Christianity in North America.

Churches that follow Reformed Christianity (also known as Calvinism) in terms of their theology but differ in the form of church polity (governance)are the Presbyterian Church, the Congregational Church, the Dutch Reformed Church, and the German Reformed Church.

In our following discussion we will focus only on unique aspects of Reformed Christianity and where there are differences with other Protestant denominations. So it is important to read upon 'Branches of Christianity' and 'Protestantism' in our website before proceeding any further.

SOURCES OF RELIGIOUS/SACRED INFORMATION

Reformed Christianity (like all other Protestant denominations)only considers the holy Bible as the source of religious/sacred information.
Reformed Christians also accept the Westminster Confession of Faith, the Heidelberg Catechism, the Scots Confession and the Second Helvetic Confession as these relates teachings from the Bible.

KEY FEATURES OF BELIEF
(Only the unique features of Reformed Christianity are discussed in this section)

THE CHURCH

Most Reformed Churches use presbyterian polity (hence the name Presbyterian church) and few uses congregational polity (hence the name Congregational church).
~~Church structure is usually plain and devoid of statues and images.

THE CLERGY

Today most Reformed/Presbyterian churches allow women to be part of the clergy. Most Churches nowadays also ordain homosexual clergy.

THE SACRAMENTS (OR ORDINANCES)

Reformed Christianity accept two sacraments: Baptism and Lord's Supper.

Baptism: They baptize both infants and adults.

Lord's Supper: Most Reformed Christians today side with the teaching of John Calvin who taught there is a real presence of Jesus in the elements (bread and wine), but it is a spiritual presence.

SALVATION

Reformed Christians believe falling away (loss of salvation) is not possible for a person who truly has been regenerated by God and will remain in God's stead.

STATUES AND ICONS (IMAGES)

Reformed Christians view range from total objection to very limited use of statues and images in their churches and lives.

CONTRACEPTION AND CONCEPTION

Historically opposed contraception but in modern times most churches allow some sort of contraception and some oppose contraception.

ABORTION

There is no unified position among all Reformed churches. Some churches allow abortion under certain circumstances and some do not allow abortion except in case of 'life of mother'.

DIVORCE AND REMARRIAGE

Churches allow divorce and remarriage under certain circumstances.

FOR MORE INFORMATION (Some Sources Used For This Article)

http://www.patheos.com/Library/Presbyterian
http://www.churchofscotland.org.uk/about_us
https://www.presbyterianmission.org/ministries/today/what-do-presbyterians-believe/
http://christianity.about.com/od/presbyteriandenomination/p/presbyteprofile.htm
https://carm.org/calvinism
http://www.scfaith.org/about-faith-church/history
http://www.gotquestions.org/new-calvinism.html
http://www.theopedia.com/calvinism

BRIEF INTRODUCTION

Baptists Churches form a major Protestant denomination with approximately 40-45 million (2014 estimates) members worldwide. Most Baptists accept that the movement was founded by Anglican priest John Smyth (1570-1612 CE)who led a group of Separatists to Holland and in 1609 CE formed the first Baptist Church there.

John Smyth, Thomas Helwys and a group of 'Separatists' left England for Holland in early 17th century to avoid persecution when they wanted to purify Anglican Church from the remnants of non-biblical Roman Catholic practices. There in Holland they found refuge and formed first Baptist church. John Smyth first baptized himself with water and then the rest of the adults. Thomas Helwys led the group back to England and established the first Baptist Church in England in 1612 CE. Roger Williams (migrant from England) established the first Baptist Church in North America in 1638 CE.

This movement flourished in America and today there are approximately 33 million Baptists in United States out of the 45 million worldwide. Through Baptist missionary work the movement had spread to many other countries of the world. Today large number of Baptists are found in Nigeria (3.5 million), Democratic Republic of the Congo (2 million), India (2.5 million), Uganda (1.5 million), Brazil (1.8 million), and Myanmar (1 million).

Baptist churches operate according to the Congregational polity (church governance), giving autonomy to individual local churches. But the churches often associate with others in the same denominational group for mutual benefit and form large umbrella association such as the Southern Baptist Convention, National Baptist Convention USA, Conservative Baptist Association of America, American Baptist Churches USA to name a few.

Baptist Churches, as a of Protestant denomination share the basic beliefs of most Protestant denominations but differ in their belief that only adult (reject traditional infant baptism) believers should be baptized and that it should be done by full immersion in water.

In our following discussion we will focus only on unique aspects of Baptist Churches and where there are differences with other Protestant denominations. So it is important to read upon 'Branches of Christianity' and 'Protestantism' in our website before proceeding any further.

SOURCES OF RELIGIOUS/SACRED INFORMATION

Baptists (like all other Protestant denominations)only considers the holy Bible as the source of religious/sacred information.

KEY FEATURES OF BELIEF
(Only the unique features of Baptists Churches are discussed in this section)

THE CHURCH

Baptist Churches follow congregational polity in which each individual church is fully independent and governed autonomously, free from the direct control or hierarchy of any other institution.
~~Church structure is simple, plain and devoid of any statues and images.

THE CLERGY

The Baptist church leadership usually consists of one or more ordained, professional ministers/pastors, deacons and a board consisting elected members of the congregation.

Today some Baptist churches ordain woman in ministry while others (like Southern Baptist Convention 'SBC') do not. Same goes for homosexuals, as more conservative Baptist churches (like SBC) do not ordain homosexuals in ministry but some liberal ones do.

THE ORDINANCES (OR SACRAMENTS)

Baptists prefer to use the word "ordinance" as these practices are ordained by Christ to be observed by the church.

Baptism: Baptists do not baptize infants and children. They believe Baptism is only for believing adults. This ordinance is performed by full immersion in water (a key difference with other protestant denominations) after a person professes Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and is symbolic of the cleansing or remission of his or her sins.

Lord's Supper: The Lord's Supper or the Holy communion is the only other ordinance Baptists observe as a symbolic act of obedience, whereby believers by the sacred use of bread and wine commemorate together the dying love of Jesus Christ. They deny any form of physical or spiritual presence of Christ in the bread and wine.

SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATE

Baptists also (like Anabaptist)believe in separation of Church and state. They believe church represents the community of believers and state (civil government) belongs to the world. Baptist churches are autonomous, hence there can be no outside interference in church (religious) affairs of any outsider such as any secular power or the state. Therefore Baptist Churches reject the idea of an established or state church from early on.

STATUES AND IMAGES

Baptists object to use of religious statues and images.

CONTRACEPTION

Historically opposed contraception but in modern times many Baptists churches allow some sort of contraception.

ABORTION

Some Baptist churches allow abortion under certain circumstances and some (like SBC) do not allow abortion except in case of 'life of mother'.

DIVORCE AND REMARRIAGE

There is no unified position among Baptist churches on divorce and remarriage. While some allow divorce and remarriage under certain circumstances, others (like SBC) allow strictly only on biblical ground (adultery and desertion by unbeliever spouse).

FOR MORE INFORMATION (Some Sources Used For This Article)

http://www.religionfacts.com/baptists,
http://www.patheos.com/Library/Baptist,
http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/christianity/subdivisions/baptist_1.shtml,
http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Baptist_Church,
http://www.sbc.net/aboutus/basicbeliefs.asp,
http://www.abc-usa.org/10facts/,
http://www.nationalbaptist.com/about-us/what-we-believe.html,
http://www.baptisthistory.org/baptistorigins/baptistbeginnings.html.

BRIEF INTRODUCTION

The Methodist Church (Methodism) is a major Protestant denomination with approximately 70-80 million (2014 estimates) members (often called Methodists) worldwide. Methodism is founded by Anglican priest John Wesley (1703-1791)whose efforts in eighteenth-century England was focused on to revive the holy life of Christians according to the teaching of gospel within Anglican Church.

Rise of Methodism within Anglican Church was not due to some doctrinal dispute, but out of an emphasis on living the holy life according to its teaching. John Wesley (influenced by Moravian Church, Pietism and Arminianism) saw the failure of Anglican church, in calling sinners to repentance while people were perishing in their sins; and reaching out to the poor and needy. So, John along with his brother Charles Wesley and George Whitefield founded the movement (between 1739-1744 CE) when they started preaching to the crowds of working people on open-air in the outdoors (like in fields, farm houses, barns etc) with an emphasis on conversion and living a holy life guided by the Holy Spirit.

They established small groups or societies with new converts everywhere they went. These new societies met on regular basis for Bible study and to encourage and support fellow members in life of faith. Their emphasis on helping the poor and the average person and their very systematic approach of building the individual's life as holy, earned them the name Methodist from their opponent. Methodists stress on building loving relationships with others through social services such as establishment of hospitals, universities, orphanages, soup kitchens and organizations to train people to spread their faith.

The movement spread rapidly in England and America during eighteenth and nineteenth century. Methodism eventually separated completely from Anglican Church in 1784 CE. Through vigorous missionary campaign Methodist missionaries focusing on both evangelism and service, spread Methodism throughout the world.

This movement flourished in America where majority of the Methodists live today. Today large number of Methodists are also found in Zambia (3.9 million) South Africa (3.3 million),Nigeria (2.6 million), South Korea (2 million),Democratic Republic of the Congo (2.9 million) and West Africa (1.9 million).

Methodism, as a of Protestant denomination share the basic beliefs of most Protestant denominations.

In our following discussion we will focus only on unique aspects of Methodism and where there are differences with other Protestant denominations. So it is important to read upon 'Branches of Christianity' and 'Protestantism' in our website before proceeding any further.

SOURCES OF RELIGIOUS/SACRED INFORMATION

Methodism (like all other Protestant denominations)only considers the holy Bible as the source of religious/sacred information.

KEY FEATURES OF BELIEF
(Only the unique features of Methodism are
discussed in this section)

The most distinguishing belief of Methodism from that of other Protestant denominations is the belief in the life of Christian perfection. John Wesley agreed with other Protestants reformer like Martin Luther, Zwingli and John Calvin that no one could earn salvation by works. But he however, taught that with God's sanctifying grace (the supernatural assistance) a Christian should work toward achieving a sinless life, turning away from temptation and sin, and performing works of piety and mercy. This aspect of Methodism was suspect to other Protestants, for whom it seemed too close to Roman Catholic doctrine of salvation by faith and works.

THE CHURCH

Methodist Churches use Connexional polity a derivative of Episcopal polity (clergy in local churches presided over by a bishop). Ministers are assigned to local churches by bishops (or chairperson) of a region. But unlike Episcopal polity Methodists typically give lay members representation at regional and national meetings (conferences) at which the business of the church is conducted. Which means a local church is never independent of the rest of 'The Methodist Connexion'.
~~The church structure is usually simple, plain and devoid of statues and images.

THE CLERGY

The Methodist church clergy is usually consists of Elders and Deacons. Methodist Church allows women to be part of the clergy and leadership position. There is no unified position on ordination of practicing homosexual clergy. Most Methodist Churches oppose ordination of homosexual clergy.

THE SACRAMENTS (OR ORDINANCES)

Methodists accept two sacraments: Baptism and Holy Communion.

Baptism: Methodists baptize both infants and adults.

Holy Communion: Methodist believe in the spiritual presence of Christ in the bread and wine. Most Methodists use non-alcoholic wine or grape juice instead of wine.

SALVATION

Methodists believe loss of salvation is possible for those who do not strive to make progress in living a life of Christian perfection. The profession of one's faith and growth in holiness are necessary for God's sanctifying grace to continue its work in him/her, and both of these are necessary elements for faith to be genuine and not compelled.

STATUES AND IMAGES

Methodists do not totally object use of religious statues and objects. Hence there is limited use of statues and images in Methodist churches.

CONTRACEPTION

Methodists allow responsible use of contraception.

ABORTION

Methodists allow abortion on certain reasonable circumstances.

DIVORCE AND REMARRIAGE

Methodists allow divorce and remarriage. Methodists position on this issue has changed over the years from its early strict divorce policy to today's rather liberal policy.

FOR MORE INFORMATION (Some Sources Used For This Article)

http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Methodism,
http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/christianity/subdivisions/methodist_1.shtml,
http://www.patheos.com/Library/Methodist,
http://christianity.about.com/od/devotionals/a/Methodist.htm,
http://www.umc.org/what-we-believe,
http://www.methodist.org.uk/who-we-are,
http://www.siouxcityfirst.com/283125.

BRIEF INTRODUCTION

Pentecostalism is a movement that includes many different churches which places special importance on direct personal experience of God through the baptism of the Holy Spirit and charismatic gifts as described in the 'Books of Acts' in the Bible. When the distinguishing Pentecostal belief and practice entered ( or adopted by)other mainline denominations (Methodist, Roman Catholic, Episcopalian, Baptist etc.) that was called 'the Charismatic Movement' which existed as a subculture within that denomination.

Churches based on Pentecostalism form a major Protestant denomination with approximately 100-130 million (2014 estimates) members (often called Pentecostals) worldwide. And approximately 300-350 million people(2014 estimates) identify themselves with the Charismatic Movement.

Pentecostalism began in 1901, when a student at Charles F. Parham's (perceived founder of the movement) Bethel Bible School in Topeka, Kansas, spoke in tongues (foreign language previously unknown to a specific individual). But the beginning of the widespread Pentecostal movement in the United States is generally considered to have begun with Parham's student William Seymour's (also considered as the founder) three-year-long Azusa Street Revival from 1906-1909.

Pentecostalism grew out of Methodism, Pietism, Millennialism and the Holiness movements of the 18th to early 20th century. From 1906 to 1909, a wide variety of Christians (black, white, and Hispanic, rich and poor), including some of the most prominent early leaders of the Pentecostal movement, traveled to Azusa Street Mission in Los Angeles, who sought the experience of the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Some of these individuals who were impacted went back to their communities and began their own Pentecostal churches. Soon Pentecostal churches sprang up across the United States, in rural areas as well in urban neighborhoods. Pentecostalism also made headways in the mid-twentieth century (1950-1970) in mainline denominations (Methodist, Roman Catholic, Episcopalian, Baptist etc.) as 'the Charismatic Movement', where believers instead of leaving their theology or churches/denominations stayed within.

Within Pentecostalism an early (in 1914 CE) dispute over the doctrine of the Trinity split the Pentecostalism into non-Trinitarian (Oneness Pentecostalism) and mainline Trinitarian denominations.

Today there are approximately 700 Pentecostal denominations and a large number of independent churches worldwide. And there is no one central authority governing all of them. Many Pentecostal denominations and churches are affiliated with the Pentecostal World Fellowship. Sometime it is difficult to know if a church/denomination is Pentecostal because many of them do not include the word 'Pentecostal' in their name. Some of the biggest and well known Pentecostals denominations are Assemblies of God, Apostolic Church (UK based), International Church of the Foursquare Gospel (ICFG), Church of God (Cleveland), The Pentecostal Mission and Church of God in Christ.

This movement flourished and growing in America where majority of the Pentecostals (approximately 25 million)live today. It is also growing in other parts of the world and large number of Pentecostals are found in Brazil (20 million), Guatemala (2.5 million),South Africa (5 million),Nigeria (11 million), and Kenya (12 million) to name a few (all population are estimates from various reports taken between 2010-2014).

Pentecostalism (with the exception of the Oneness movement, also known as Oneness Pentecostalism, which does not accept the Trinity.), as a of Protestant denomination share the basic beliefs of most Protestant denominations.

In our following discussion we will focus only on unique aspects of Pentecostalism and where there are differences with other Protestant denominations. So it is important to read upon 'Branches of Christianity' and 'Protestantism' in our website before proceeding any further.

SOURCES OF RELIGIOUS/SACRED INFORMATION

Pentecostalism (like all other Protestant denominations)only considers the holy Bible as the source of religious/sacred information.

KEY FEATURES OF BELIEF
(Only the unique features of Pentecostalism are discussed in this section)

The most distinguishing belief of Pentecostalism from that of other Protestant denominations is that it teaches Christians should seek the post conversion experience of Holy Spirit Baptism (i.e. a Holy Spirit filled life). Evidence of baptism with the Holy Spirit usually manifests in receiving one or more spiritual (charismatic) gifts such as speaking in tongues (unintelligible utterances or speaking a previously unknown language), interpreting tongues, ability to prophecy and healing the sick (gift of healing) etc.

KEY FEATURES OF BELIEF

THE CHURCH

Most Pentecostal churches use congregational polity in which each individual church is fully independent and governed autonomously, free from the direct control or hierarchy of any other institution. Some also use Episcopal polity. Many are associated with national and international bodies.
~~The church structure is usually mostly devoid of statues and images.

THE CLERGY

There is no unified position on women in all levels of clergy. Some Pentecostal churches allow women in many level of church leadership, some allow restricted leadership roles and some do not allow any leadership roles.
~~Almost all mainline and traditional Pentecostal churches do not allow homosexual clergy.

THE ORDINANCES (OR SACRAMENTS)

Pentecostals commonly use the term ordinances in oppose to sacraments. And most usually accept Baptism and Holy Communion.

Baptism: Pentecostals do not baptize infants and little children. Most Pentecostal denominations practice believer's baptism by immersion. Pentecostals view water baptism as an outward symbol of one's conversion.

Holy Communion: Pentecostals believe that Holy Communion or Lord's Supper is symbolic and is to be used primarily to remind them of the sacrifice Jesus Christ made for them. Most Pentecostals use nonalcoholic wine or grape juice during communion instead of wine.

BAPTISM IN THE HOLY SPIRIT

Baptism in the Holy Spirit is the central belief of Pentecostalism, a teaching according to the first baptism in the Holy Spirit of the followers of Jesus Christ, on the day of Pentecost , as described in the second chapter of the Book of Acts in the Bible. Pentecostals believe baptism in the Holy Spirit is available to all Christians seeking to live a Holy Spirit filled life. Traditionally this is considered the second baptism that follows the usual water baptism (considered the first baptism).

Baptism in Holy Spirit is a distinct spiritual experience whereby Once a person is baptized feels himself totally immersed in the Holy Spirit which brings in the gifts of spirit. Most Pentecostals believe that the initial sign of the baptism in the Holy Spirit is speaking in tongues.

Speaking in Tongues: Initial and most common form of spiritual gifts. To Pentecostals Speaking in tongues mean speaking or utterances (with the power of Holy Spirit) miraculously in a language unknown to the speaker. This may be in the form of glossolalia which means unintelligible utterances (of no known human language) believed to be a divine language which may be interpreted by someone with the 'gift of interpretation'. Speaking in tongues also can be in the form of xenoglossy which means a natural language (of human origin) previously unknown to the speaker.

Others spiritual gifts include ability of prophecy, ability to heal the sick, ability to perform miracles and ability to handle poisonous snakes etc.

WORSHIP AND PRAYER

Pentecostals take worship seriously as it is often viewed as an entryway for the baptism in the Holy Spirit. Their worship is less formal and more spontaneous and emotionally driven marked by speaking in tongues, clapping, chorusing, singing and dynamic preaching. Church services are often designed for the participants to worship freely with their body, heart and soul to bring about an atmosphere of god's presence.

SALVATION

Pentecostals believe falling away (loss of salvation) is possible.

STATUES AND IMAGES

There is very limited use of statues and images in Pentecostal churches.

CONTRACEPTION

Most Pentecostal churches allow responsible use of contraception.

ABORTION

Pentecostal Churches do not allow abortion except in case of 'life of mother'.

DIVORCE AND REMARRIAGE

Most Pentecostal churches allow divorce and remarriage strictly only on biblical ground (adultery and abandonment or desertion by unbeliever spouse).

FOR MORE INFORMATION (Some Sources Used For This Article)

http://www.patheos.com/Library/Pentecostal,
http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/christianity/subdivisions/pentecostal_1.shtml,
http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Pentecostalism,
http://ag.org/top/Beliefs/Our_Core_Doctrines/index.cfm#,
http://www.cogic.org/cogic30/about-company/what-we-believe/,
http://www.churchofgod.org/beliefs/declaration-of-faith.

BRIEF INTRODUCTION

The Seventh-Day (in short SDA) Adventist Church considered mostly a Protestant denomination (though some Christians consider it to be a cult) with approximately 18 million members worldwide out of approximately 2 billion (2014 estimates) Christians. This movement grew out of the prophetic Millerite movement in the United States during the middle part of the 19th century and was formally established in 1863 under the guidance of prophetess Ellen G. White.

The Seventh-day Adventist Church traces its roots to Baptist preacher William Miller (1782–1849), who predicted the Second Coming of Jesus would occur sometime between 1843 and March 1844. After his predictions failed, William Miller faded into obscurity and so did most of his followers (known as Millerites). But a small group of followers under the guidance of young prophetess Ellen G. white (1827-1915), over the next 15 years, through biblical study and conferences shed new light on the second coming (Jesus had indeed come again, but not to Earth. Jesus had actually returned to the "Most Holy Place" of the heavenly sanctuary.) and series of Biblical truths forgotten since the early days of Christianity.

The movement was named Seventh-day Adventist at a meeting by the delegates on October 1, 1860. In May 21, 1863, through a meeting of delegates from all parts of America it constituted itself as a denomination and became an official organization. Ellen White, James White and Joseph Bates are the prominent founding figures of the Church.

The name Seventh-day Adventist is based on the Church's distinctive characteristics of observance of the Sabbath on Saturday, the seventh day of the week and an expectation of Christ's imminent second coming (advent) on this earth.

The movement grew in north America and in later part of nineteenth century through missionary work it spread to the rest of the world. The movement is governed by a General Conference, headquartered in Silver Spring, Maryland, USA, with smaller regions administered by 13 divisions, 122 union conferences, and 600 local conferences. Today the worldwide members include about 2 million in north America, 5.3 million in central and south America, 7 million in Africa, 3.5 million in Asia (2014 estimates).

The Seventh-day Adventist Church, as a of Protestant denomination share many basic beliefs of most Protestant denominations but differ in some with some of their unique beliefs.

In our following discussion we will focus only on unique aspects of The Seventh-day Adventist Church and where there are differences with other Protestant denominations. So it is important to read upon 'Branches of Christianity' and 'Protestantism' in our website before proceeding any further.

SOURCES OF RELIGIOUS/SACRED INFORMATION

The Seventh-day Adventist Church considers the holy Bible as the primary source of religious/sacred information.

The Church also considers the written works by Ellen White as authoritative. According to the 18th of the 28 Fundamental Beliefs, "Her writings speak with prophetic authority and provide comfort, guidance, instruction, and correction to the church."

KEY FEATURES OF BELIEF
(Only the unique features of The Seventh-day Adventist are discussed in this section)

There is currently '28 Fundamental Beliefs' laid out by the Seventh-day Adventist Church of which most are similar to most mainstream Protestant denominations. The most distinguishing beliefs of Seventh-day Adventists are their belief on the observance of the Sabbath day and its observance on Saturday (the seventh day); the doctrine of the heavenly sanctuary and investigative judgment; the status of Ellen G. White and her writings; their doctrine of the second coming and millennium and various dietary observances rooted in Jewish law.

STATUS OF ELLEN G. WHITE AND HER WRITINGS

The Seventh-day Adventists accept Ellen G. White (one of the founders) as a prophetess. And also considers her writings (based on revelations and prophetic visions) as authoritative and secondary source of religious information along with Bible (the primary source). The mainstream Christians for obvious reasons consider her to be a false prophet and her writings to be forgery.

CHRIST'S HEAVENLY SANCTUARY AND INVESTIGATIVE JUDGMENT

The Seventh-day Adventists believe that the heavenly sanctuary has two areas; the Holy Place and the Most Holy Place. Christ on his ascension from earth to heaven went into the Holy Place. And after 2300 years (in 1844) he went into the Most Holy Place to cleanse it before his second coming to earth. And from that moment on he began 'investigative (pre-advent) judgment'.

The investigate judgment identifies who is worthy of salvation in God's everlasting kingdom. Through this process Jesus identifies who among the dead are asleep in Christ and are worthy of resurrection; and also who among the living abiding in Christ, and are ready for translation into God's everlasting kingdom.

THE CHURCH

The Seventh-day Adventist Church is a centralized Church and its polity includes elements of representative, hierarchical and Presbyterian polity. Church authority is derived from the membership of local churches. Executive responsibility is given to representative bodies and officers to govern the Church. Four levels of Church organization (local Church, local conference, union conference, and general conference) lead from the individual believer to the worldwide Church organization. The 'General Conference' is the highest earthly authority for the Church.
The local church has three-level hierarchical structure of ministers, elders, and deacons.
The Church structure usually is modern and simple and devoid of statues and images.

THE CLERGY

The Seventh-day Adventist Church clergy is usually consists of ministers (pastors), elders and deacons. Adventist do not believe in clerical celibacy. Currently the Church do not ordain women ministers. The Church also do not ordain homosexuals in ministry.

THE SACRAMENTS (OR ORDINANCES)

The Seventh-day Adventist Church accepts two ordinances: Baptism and Holy Communion.

Baptism: The Seventh-day Adventists do not baptize infants and children. They believe Baptism is only for consenting believers after the age of accountability. This ordinance is performed by full immersion in water.

Lord's Supper: The Lord's Supper or the Holy communion is the only other ordinance Seventh day Adventists observe as a symbolic expression of faith in Jesus as Lord and Savior. Adventists Holy communion service also include 'the service of foot washing' also known as the 'Ordinance of Humility'. The Holy communion is usually observed four times a year and usually open to all believing Christians (members and non-members). Only unfermented grape juice and unleavened bread are used for the service.

WORSHIP AND PRAYER

The seventh-day Adventist worship and prayer services are similar to that most Protestant denominations, like Bible study, private prayer and attending church services. A key difference though is the main day for worship is a Saturday not a Sunday.

Sabbath and Saturday: Adventists are unique from the rest of the mainstream Christians in their view of observing Sabbath. The importance of observing Sabbath as in the old testament (from sundown on Friday to sundown on Saturday) was revealed to Ellen G. White in a prophetic vision. Mainstream Christians believe that they are no longer required to observe Sabbath. Also the main day of worship for the Adventist is Saturday (the day of Sabbath) unlike the rest of the Christians Sunday.

SALVATION

Like most mainstream Protestants Adventists believe salvation is through grace by faith alone. But make a import point that living a holy life (works) is a natural consequence of true faith. Adventists believe falling away (loss of salvation) is possible.

ESCHATOLOGY

The Seventh-day Adventist believe about death is unique among other Christians. They do not believe in immortality of soul (as most Christians do) rather believe in 'conditional immorality'. They believe death is an unconscious state as sleep. This state is temporary while one awaits resurrection.

They believe in a literal, personal, visible, worldwide and imminent second coming of Jesus. At his second coming only the righteous dead will be resurrected (known as first resurrection) and together with the living righteous will be transformed into glorified beings (with immortal body and soul --conditional immorality) and together will be caught up in the clouds to meet Jesus.

They believe second coming of Jesus will mark the beginning of 'the millennium', the thousand-year reign of Jesus with his saints in heaven between the first and second resurrections. During this period the unrighteous dead will be judged while they remain sleeping. The earth in this period will be totally desolate without any human beings and will be occupied by Satan and his angels.

At the end of the millennium Jesus with His saints and the Holy City will come down from heaven to earth. Then the unrighteous dead will be resurrected . This is called second resurrection and occurs before the final judgment. After the final judgment the unrighteous will receive their punishment called the second death. Fire from God will consume the unrighteous, Satan and his angles, a total annihilation, rather than a continual and eternal conscious torment in hell (as most Christians believe).

HEALTH AND DIETARY RESTRICTIONS

Seventh-day Adventists believe that the human body is the temple of Holy Spirit and thus should be cared for properly. So, they prohibit (unlike the mainstream Christianity) the use of tobacco, alcohol recreational drugs.

They also prohibit (unlike all other Christians) pork, shellfish, and other animals proscribed as "unclean foods" as in Judaism according to the laws in Leviticus 11 (Old Testament). They also recommend vegetarian diet and abstinence from coffee, tea and caffeinated beverages.

CONTRACEPTION

Adventists allow responsible use of all forms of contraception.

ABORTION

Adventists allow abortion only for the most serious reasons. They do not allow abortions for reasons of birth control, gender selection, or convenience. Abortion is allowed in serious circumstances such as significant threats to the pregnant woman's life, serious jeopardy to her health, severe congenital defects carefully diagnosed in the fetus, and pregnancy resulting from rape or incest. They do not condone any attempts to coerce women either to remain pregnant or to terminate pregnancy.

DIVORCE AND REMARRIAGE

Marriage is divinely established lifelong union between a man and a woman who share a common faith. Seventh-day Adventist ministers do not officiate marriage between Adventist and non-Adventists.

Divorce is only allowed in the case of fornication and abandonment by a non-believing (non-SDA) spouse. Remarriage is allowed for the not guilty divorcee but the guilty divorcee may not remarry while the ex-partner lives.

FOR MORE INFORMATION (Some Sources Used For This Article)

https://www.adventist.org/fileadmin/adventist.org/files/articles/official-statements/28Beliefs-Web.pdf,
http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Seventh-day_Adventist_Church,
http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/christianity/subdivisions/seventhdayadventist_1.shtml,
http://christianity.about.com/od/seventhdayadventist/a/7thdayadventistbeliefs.htm,
http://www.religionfacts.com/seventh-day-adventism,
http://www.religioustolerance.org/sda2.htm.

BRIEF INTRODUCTION

Mormon Church also (officially) known as 'The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS-Church)', considered a Christian cult (not a branch or denomination) by majority of the Christians, with approximately 12 to 15 million (2015 estimates) members (often called Mormons) worldwide. Mormonism is founded by Joseph Smith (1805-1844) in 1830 CE in New York, USA.

Mormons believe (as claimed by Joseph Smith) that 'God the Father and Jesus Christ' visited Joseph Smith (considered a modern-day prophet) when he was about 15 years old (1820 CE), and told him all the existing Christian denominations of that time were wrong and forbade him to follow any of them. Three years later (in 1823) God sent angel Moroni to instruct him about his prophetic mission of restoring the Church.

Angel Moroni also told him about a buried book of golden plates (which contained the fullness of the gospel as delivered by the Savior-Jesus to ancient inhabitants of the American continent). Prophet Joseph Smith was eventually (in 1827 CE) ordered to unearth the buried plates and translate those into English which came to be known as 'The Book of Mormon'. A new restored church led by Joseph Smith by the name of 'Church of Christ' was formed in 1830 and eventually in 1938 the church was renamed 'The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints'.

Mormons believe God through the ministering of angels (Moroni and John the Baptist) to prophet Joseph Smith, returned the priesthood authority to act in God's name to earth and thus restored (not reformed) the original church of Jesus Christ. The new formed church were getting converts from other Christians denominations and was meet with stiff resistance from the other denominations. Early Mormons moved from one place to another as violence and persecutions continued against them from the mainstream Christians. The cycle of violence continued and in 1844 Smith was killed by an angry mob in Illinois. After Smith's death, Brigham Young led the faithful to Salt Lake City, Utah, (Headquarter of the Mormon Church) and established the movement in firm footing.

Mormonism has grown ever since and has moved to other continents through missionary activities. Today vast majority (almost two-third) of Mormons live in United states and the rest are found mostly in Mexico, Brazil, Philippines, Chile, Argentina and Canada.

Mormonism is distinct from all other mainstream Christian denominations in many of its beliefs and practices; and is thus considered by majority of Christians as a cult in oppose to a branch or denomination.

PURPOSE OF LIFE

The purpose of life or as Mormons call it 'mortal life' (Mormons believe in 3 stages or parts of one's existence as premortal life, mortal life, and life after death ) is to obtain physical bodies and have experiences that help people learn and grow; and be tested to see if they will obey God's commandants paving the way to become like God (Heavenly Father).The ultimate goal of 'mortal life' is to live with God, as God.

CONCEPT OF GOD

Mormons believe in one Godhead consists of three separate and distinct persons. God the Heavenly (or Eternal)Father; his Son, Jesus Christ; and the Holy Ghost are three members of the Godhead. They are one in perfect unity and harmony of purpose and doctrine.

They also believe God is an exalted, perfected man with a physical body like human. They believe man have the potential to become just like God hence giving the idea of more than one God. They also reject the mainstream Christian view of trinity or Trinitarian god.

God the Father: Also called Elohim and Havenly Father. Generally when the title God is used it refers to Him. Heavenly Father has a body of flesh and bones just like man but is immortal, perfected, and has a glory that words can’t describe. God is perfect, all wise, merciful, kind, just, all-powerful and the ruler of the universe. God is not of another species nor is he the great unknowable one. He (along with Heavenly Mother are literally the Heavenly Parents) is literally (begotten) the Father of all male and female spirits. He is also the literal father of Jesus (spirit body and his physical body), His firstborn.
~~God the Father was once a man and lived on an earth like present day human beings. Over time he made himself perfect by following the commandments of his God and became a God himself.
~~Mormons are commanded to obey and give reverence to the Father alone and to pray to him in Jesus’ name.

Jesus Christ: Jesus was known as Jehovah to the people of the Old Testament. Jesus is the first born literal (begotten) child (both in spirit and flesh) of God the Father. He is the second person of the Godhead and has tangible body of flesh and bone just like God the Father.
~~He works under the direction of the Father and is in complete harmony with him. All mankind are his literal brothers and sisters as he is the eldest of the spirit children of God the Father. Under the direction of the Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ created the heavens and earth (and everything on it).
~~He was during his earthly existence the literal, biological Son of God, and of Mary. He lived a sinless life following the commandments of God the father, set a perfect example of how all mankind should live; and made a perfect atonement for the sins of all mankind by shedding of his blood and giving his life on the cross. On the third day he rose from the dead, thus assuring the eventual resurrection of all mankind. Those who accept Jesus as their savior, repent of their sins and obey God’s commandments can live eternally with Jesus and the Father.
~~Mormon's believe that after his resurrection, Jesus visited America, where he stayed for several days, teaching, healing and performed miracles.
~~All prayers, blessings, and priesthood ordinances should be done in his name for God's (God the Father) sake.

The Holy Ghost: Also called the Holy Spirit, the Spirit, and the Spirit of God. He is the third person of the Godhead and made of spirit alone, not having a body of flesh and bones. The Holy Ghost performs some important roles in the plan of salvation. He bears witness of the Father and the Son, reveals the truth of all things, sanctifies and guides those who have repented and become baptized.

SOURCES OF RELIGIOUS/SACRED INFORMATION

Sources and concept of religious information is one of the main differences between Mormons and other Christians. Mormons consider words, both written and spoken, by holy men of God when moved upon by the Holy Ghost, as sacred scripture. They also believe in continual revelation and 'open cannon', which means holy men (the Church leaders, mainly the President and the 12 current apostles of the church) continue to receive divine inspiration (instructions/revelation) and that their utterances either edit/update current canonical text or equal in authority to existing canonized texts.

The current official canonized scriptures of the Mormon Church consist of (1) the Bible, (2) Book of Mormon, (3) Doctrine and Covenants, and (4) Pearl of Great Price. Other than the Bible the rest of the canon constitutes revelation, inspiration, translation and exegesis spoken by prophet Joseph Smith. Mormons also consider official pronouncements and sermons by 'general authorities' of the Church as authoritative.

KEY FEATURES OF BELIEF

THE CHURCH AND ORGANIZATION

The LDS church is a hierarchical Church headquartered in Salt Lake city, Utah and led by the President (the longest serving Apostle) of the Church. Mormons believe under the direction of Jesus Christ, the Church is led by 15 apostles, who are also regarded as prophets, seers, and revelators. They along with other members of 'General Authorities' exercise both ecclesiastical and administrative leadership over the church and direct the efforts of regional leaders down to the local level. All members of the 'General Authorities' are men only.

Worldwide the Church is divided into different geographic areas. In local level larger congregations called wards are led by a bishop and two counselors. Smaller congregations called branches are led by a branch president and two counselors.

The local church structures called chapels (wards/branches) are usually simple, plain and interior is devoid of statues and images. They also have temples which are buildings dedicated to be the 'House of the Lord', and those are considered by Mormons to be the most sacred structures on earth; and only members in good standing are permitted entrance. Most LDS temples are identified by a gold-colored Angel Moroni statue on top of the temple.

THE CLERGY

LDS church (unlike other Christians Denominations) has no full time dedicated paid professional clergy, hence do not use the term clergy. Instead locally, unpaid and part-time priesthood holders lead the church. They refer to their Church officers as stake presidents, bishops or branch presidents. These individuals are laypersons who, without professional training in theology, are called to these positions for limited periods of time by those having authority. Centrally the worldwide Church is led by fulltime General Authorities, some of whom have lifetime tenure and some receive modest living allowances.

LDS church only ordains male into priesthood. Usually all faithful and worthy Mormon men age 12 and above may receive the priesthood. Worthy young men between ages 12 to 18 are ordained into Aaronic priesthood (the lesser priesthood) as deacons, teachers, or priests. Worthy adult men ages 18 and up may receive the Melchizedek (the higher or greater) Priesthood, as elder, high priest, patriarch, Seventy, and Apostle.

It is important for all Mormons to serve as missionaries to spread their faith within and outside their communities. All young Mormons (between ages 18 to 19) are strongly encouraged to leave home and serve as missionaries for 18 months to 2 years (fulltime, unpaid) outside their community or in a foreign country.

LDS church do not ordain women or homosexuals into priesthood.

MARY

Mormons believe Mary was a virgin chosen by God the Father to be the mother of His Son in the flesh. How the union (sexual or not) between God and Mary resulted into her becoming pregnant with God's literal son in flesh, is usually left alone or understood as a mystery of God. They reject the Roman Catholic traditions of the immaculate Conception, the perpetual virginity and assumption of Mary. They also do not worship or use her for intercessory prayer.

THE SAINTS

A faithful member of the LDS church is a saint hence all faithful members are saints. They do not have a special category or patron saints nor do they seek intercession from them.

THE ANGELS

LDS Church teaches that angels are also offspring of God. There are two kinds of angels in heaven: those who are spirits and those who have bodies of flesh and bone. Angels who are spirits either have not yet obtained a body of flesh and bone, or they are spirits who once had a mortal body and are awaiting resurrection. Angels who have bodies of flesh and bone have either been resurrected from the dead or translated. There are various types angels and they perform a variety of functions to implement the work of the Lord on the earth.

TRANSLATED BEINGS

LDS Church teaches of a unique class of beings, persons whom the Lord has "translated" or changed from a mortal state to a state in which they are temporarily not subject to death, and in which they experience neither pain nor sorrow. These beings appear to have much greater power than mortals. All translated beings will eventually experience physical death and resurrection. This state is a necessary condition in special circumstances to further the work of the Lord.

SATAN AND DEVILS

Lucifer (as satan was then called) was the spirit brother of Jesus, born as a spirit after Jesus "in the morning of pre-existence", literally a spirit son of God. In the pre-mortal existence Lucifer was an angel in authority in the presence of God. In the pre-mortal existence, God the Father convened a “Council in Heaven" in which He offered the plan of righteousness to help His children become as He is. But needed a Savior, Jesus (who was then called Jehovah) responded willingly to give His life to pay for sins of all humanity and teach them how to return to the Heavenly Father. But Lucifer came with an alternate plan in which he will force mankind to follow god's will (no freedom of choice) and thus save and exalt all. And in return he wanted the Father's honor and glory given to him personally.

Lucifer's plan was rejected by God. Lucifer became angry and he rebelled, a third of the spirits followed him in rebellion. After rebellion he and his followers fought a war in heaven against Jesus and his followers. God cast out Lucifer and his followers from heaven to earth, where he became Satan and they all became devils. They were denied the opportunity of obtaining mortal bodies and experiencing mortal life, and will be eternally damned. Since then Satan has sought constantly to deceive all men and women and lead them away from the work of God.

ORDINANCES (SACRAMENTS)

Mormons prefer the term ordinances, which are sacred ceremonies that has spiritual meaning. God has established these unchangeable, eternal ordinances as essential elements of the Plan of Salvation and redemption.

Some ordinances (called saving ordinances) are necessary for salvation (baptism and gift of the Holy Ghost) and for exaltation (priesthood ordination, temple Endowment, celestial marriage and sealings).

Other ordinances (called non-saving ordinances) enhance the physical, emotional, and spiritual welfare of the recipient; such as Sacrament/Lord's Supper, administering to the sick, naming of children, confirmation, consecration of oil, dedication of buildings, and dedication of graves etc. The ordinance of Sacrament (known as Lord's supper, Eucharist or communion by other Christian denominations), most frequently performed public Mormon ritual, in which participants meet together often (usually weekly) to partake of the bread and water (instead of wine) in remembrance of the Lord Jesus. This ordinance is designed to renew the covenants that Mormons made during baptism to obey God's commandments and to remember the sacrifice of Christ.

Baptism is performed to worthy individuals of age 8 and over and is done by complete water immersion. The bread and water used during ordinance of sacrament (Lord's supper) are symbols of Jesus’ flesh and blood.

Ordinances are performed by worthy men and boys who have been given the authority of the priesthood.

Vicarious ordinance: An ordinance performed by a living person on behalf of someone who is dead. Mormons believe that individuals who die without the knowledge of true gospel must be provided with an opportunity to accept those teachings in the afterlife. So faithful Mormons search out the genealogical records of their ancestors and perform by proxy all of the required saving ordinances. These ordinances take effect only when those (dead physically but are in spirit world) for whom the ordinances were performed accept them.

WORSHIP AND PRAYER

All worship is directed to Heavenly Father in the name of Jesus Christ. True and perfect worship consists in following in the steps of the Son of God; it consists in keeping the commandments and obeying the will of the Heavenly Father.
~~Ritual worship includes prayer, fasting, church service, participating in gospel ordinances, and other practices that show devotion and love for the Father.
~~Mormons focus their worship in weekly Sunday meetings that include sermons, the sacrament (Lord's supper) and classes on scripture and LDS history.
~~One Sabbath day (Sunday) each month is set aside for the purpose of fasting. During this time Mormons go without food and water for twenty-four hours. They then contribute the many saved from fasting to the Church (for welfare program)which is called a fast offering.
~~Mormons are required to give a tenth part of a person’s annual income to the Church.

SIN

Sin is to willfully disobey God's commandments or to fail to act righteously having knowledge of the truth. Sin results in the withdrawal of the Holy Ghost which makes one unable to dwell in the presence of Heavenly Father. Through the atonement of Jesus Christ, one can repent and be forgiven of his or her sins.
~~Mormons do not believe in the concept of 'original sin' (a key difference with mainstream Christianity).

Repentance is through Faith in Our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ; feeling sorrow for sin; confession to and seeking forgiveness from Heavenly Father; abandonment of sin; restitution as much as possible; and righteous living.
~~Serious transgressions (such as violations of the law of chastity) may jeopardize a person’s membership in the Mormon Church. Such sins need to be confessed to both the Father and His priesthood representatives in the Church.

SALVATION

Mormon concept of Salvation is different and unique compared to all other Christian denominations. Mormon concept of salvation is to be saved from both physical and spiritual death; and to live forever as a family in the highest heaven of the celestial kingdom. There are various levels of salvation because there are various levels of belief and works among people.
~~Salvation is attained through faith in the atonement of Jesus Christ, baptism; and following the ordinances and commandments of God throughout the entire life.

ESCHATOLOGY

Death: Mormons believe at death (end of mortal existence) physical body and spirit separates, spirits will go to the spirit world to wait for the resurrection, while the body remains in the grave. They believe each person suffers only one physical death since once resurrected, bodies can die no more.
~~In the spirit world spirits will have the same form (shape) as when they lived on the earth with bodies of flesh and bones. Immediately after death the disembodied righteous spirits will go to paradise and the rest will go to spirit prison.

Paradise is the temporary abode for the righteous spirits where people (spirits) are happy, peaceful, free from trouble, sorrow, and pain. There they wait for the resurrection of the body. There they can teach others (those in spirit prison) about the gospel or learn more about it themselves.

Spirit prison (also known as temporary hell) is the temporary abode for the rest of the spirits (wicked, disbeliever, unaware of the gospel) where they will be tormented by guilt, weeping, wailing and restlessness. There they have the opportunity to accept the gospel and repent be resurrected at Jesus' second coming.

Second Coming of Jesus: When Jesus comes again from heaven, at the beginning of the Millennial Era, the wicked people will be removed from the earth and the righteous will be caught up in a cloud while the earth is cleansed. The righteous dead (those in paradise and those who accepted the gospel and repented in spirit prison) will be resurrected .

Millennium is a thousand year rule by Jesus, only the living righteous (including good people that are not member of the Church) and resurrected righteous will live on earth. There will be peace and righteousness for those thousand years and Satan will no longer have power over the people. The living righteous who will get old and die (the first death) will be instantly resurrected to immortality. Near the end of the Millennium, Satan will begin to have power again and some people will follow him. There will be a war between the two parties and Satan will be defeated forever.

Resurrection is reuniting the spirit body with the physical body of flesh and bones from the grave. All will have the same physical body as before but immortal and perfected. All people will not be resurrected at the same time nor will to the same glory (perfection). Many were resurrected at the time of Christ’s resurrection called first resurrection. Resurrection than started again at Christ's second coming and will continue till the end of the Millennium. The unrepentant sinners; and those people who served Satan and was against God (called sons of Perdition) will come forth in the last resurrection.

Final (Last) Judgment will take place after the last resurrection. Everyone will be brought before God the Father and He will judge everyone through Jesus Christ. People will be judged by Jesus according to their actions and obedience to God’s commands and will be awarded either the celestial kingdom, the terrestrial kingdom, the telestial kingdom, or outer darkness.

The Celestial Kingdom, highest of the three kingdom, is the place where the Heavenly Father and Jesus live. Most righteous Mormons will live there. Some Mormons there will live in the highest part of the celestial kingdom is called 'exaltation' or eternal life. To live in this part of the celestial kingdom, they (in their mortal life) must have been married in the temple and must have kept the sacred promises they made in the temple. They will receive everything that God the Father has and will become like Him. They will be able to have spirit children and make new worlds for them to live on, and do all the things God the Father has done.

The Terrestrial Kingdom, second of the three kingdom, is not as wonderful as the celestial kingdom. Neither God the Father nor Jesus live there but they will get visits from Jesus. They will not live with God the Father and nor will have all He has. Less righteous Mormons and people who weren't Mormons on earth but became (after death) one later in the spirit prison.

The Telestial Kingdom, lowest of the three kingdom, less wonderful then terrestrial kingdom. God the Father and Jesus do not live or visit that kingdom. Instead angels will visit and people will have the influence of the Holy Ghost. Wicked people (liars, thieves, murderers, false prophets, adulterers etc.) who didn't accept the teaching of Jesus on earth or in spirit prison will end up there.

Outer Darkness (Hell), is where Satan, devils (spirits that followed him) and those people on earth who followed and served Satan and were against God. They will live there forever in darkness, sorrow, and suffering.

STATUES AND IMAGES

Mormons do not use pictures or statues in the chapel, the place congregational of worship. Images and statues are allowed in other parts of the church building. Also they do not use cross or crucifix like other Christian denominations.

DIETARY RESTRICTIONS

LDS church forbids consumption of alcohol, tobacco and hot drinks such as tea and coffee.

SEXUAL MORALITY

LDS Church teaches that moral sexuality is between a man and a woman, within a valid marriage only.
Sexual immortality include adultery, fornication, homosexuality, incest, or any other unholy, unnatural, or impure sexual activity.

CONTRACEPTION

LDS Church let the decisions about birth control and the consequences of those decisions rest solely with each married couple. But the church prohibits elective abortion as a method of birth control.

ABORTION

Abortion is only allowed in extreme circumstances such as rape, incest, and when life of mother or the fetus is threatened.

DIVORCE AND REMARRIAGE

Marriage is between a man and a woman only; performed under the law of the gospel and the holy priesthood, is for mortal life and for eternity (if sealed in the temple). Polygyny (having multiple wives) was allowed and practiced widely up until 1890 CE, when a revelation through then church president Wilford Woodruff terminated the practice.

Divorce is discouraged but allowed. Remarriage after divorce (and cancellation of sealing in case of woman seeking remarriage) is allowed.

FOR MORE INFORMATION (Some Sources Used For This Article)

https://www.lds.org/scriptures/gs?lang=eng&letter=s
https://www.lds.org/manual/gospel-principles?lang=eng&_r=1
https://www.lds.org/manual/gospel-fundamentals?lang=eng
http://mormonbeliefs.org/
http://eom.byu.edu/
http://www.mormonnewsroom.org/topics-and-background/
http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/mormon/
http://www.patheos.com/Library/Mormonism

BRIEF INTRODUCTION

Jehovah's Witnesses (officially 'The Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society'), considered a Christian cult (not a branch or denomination) by majority of the Christians, with approximately 8 million (2015 estimates) active members (often called Witnesses) and about 19 million adherents (including potential members) altogether worldwide. The movement is founded (promoted/restored/revived) by a group of Bible students under the leadership of Charles Taze Russell (1852-1916) towards the end of the 19th century (in late 1870s) in the USA.

Jehovah is the personal name of God found in the Bible and witness is a person who proclaims views or truths of which he is convinced; hence the name Jehovah’s Witnesses means Christians who proclaim the truth about God. Charles Taze Russell and a group of Bible students formed a Bible study group in 1870 (or 1872) CE. Russell and his group was convinced that Jesus Christ had returned to earth invisibly in 1874 (an idea held by Christian Millerite remnant).

Russell and his group published (promoting ideas and beliefs from their bible study) its first magazine "Zion's Watch Tower and Herald of Christ's Presence" in 1879 CE in Pennsylvania. Supporters of the movement grew steadily and in 1884 CE 'Zion's Watch Tower Tract Society' was officially incorporated, with Russell as its president. After his death ( 1916 CE) Joseph F. Rutherford became the second president and established the movement in firm footing. During his tenure the movement adopted (in 1931 CE) the title "Jehovah's Witnesses".

Jehovah's Witnesses see themselves as pioneers of promoting the true teachings of Jesus Christ according to the Bible and following the practices of the first-century Christian congregation. The movement grew within USA and internationally through its focus on missionary activity, as all active members are involved (door to door preaching) to proclaim the faith to others. Jehovah’s Witnesses who are active proclaimers of the good news of the Kingdom are also known as publishers. The headquarter of the Jehovah's Witnesses is located in New York, USA. Today vast majority (almost one-third) of Mormons live in United States and Mexico; and the rest are found mostly in Brazil, Congo, Zambia, Nigeria, Philippines, Colombia and Angola.

Jehovah's Witnesses are distinct from all other mainstream Christian denominations in many of its beliefs and practices; and is thus considered by majority of the Christians as a cult in oppose to a branch or denomination.

PURPOSE OF LIFE

The purpose of life is to earn the right to live forever in God's future Kingdom on earth (and in Heaven for some), called Earthly Paradise and to help others to do so.

CONCEPT OF GOD

Jehovah's witnesses reject the mainstream Christian view of trinity or Trinitarian god. They also deny the deity of Christ and Holy Spirit. These differences put them in odds with the mainstream Christains.

God: They believe there is only one true and Almighty God, the Creator, whose personal name is Jehovah. Jehovah is alone, above all other beings and all worship should be directed toward Him. God is an invisible spirit person who had no beginning or end.

Jesus Christ: Jehovah's Witnesses unlike mainstream Christianity do not believe Jesus to be God or equal to God or worthy of worship. They believe he was God’s first creation and "only-begotten Son" meaning he was the only one directly created by God. Jesus was a spirit creature in heaven before he was born as a human on earth. Jesus lived alongside Jehovah in heaven longer than any other spirit creature. Jehovah created everything else through Jesus.
~~Jesus is also called "the Word" because he tells everyone (both spirit and human) that he spoke for God, delivering messages and instructions from God.
~~Jesus was born as a perfect human to virgin Mary. He taught people the truth about God, lived a perfect exemplary life for people to follow and sacrificed his life to set people free from sin and death. He was crucified on a upright stake not on a cross. On third day God resurrected him back to spirit life and he returned to heaven. Jesus then waited at God’s right hand until Jehovah gave him power to rule as King over all the earth. Now (since 1914) Jesus is ruling as King in heaven, and his followers are announcing that good news worldwide.
~~They follow the teachings and example of Jesus Christ and honor him as their Savior.

The Holy Spirit: Jehovah's Witnesses unlike mainstream Christianity do not believe holy spirit being a separate entity, a spirit person, and God or part of Godhead. They believe the holy spirit is Jehovah’s power in action, his active force. Jehovah sends out His spirit by projecting His energy to any place to accomplish His will.

SOURCES OF RELIGIOUS/SACRED INFORMATION

Jehovah's Witnesses (like the Protestant denominations) only considers the holy Bible as the source of religious/sacred information. They have their own version of the Bible called 'The New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures '; although almost identical to most widely used protestant Bible, few key passages, such as those about the nature of Jesus, contains slightly different information.

KEY FEATURES OF BELIEF

THE CHURCH AND ORGANIZATION

Jehovah's Witnesses organization is hierarchical, headquartered in Warwick, New York and currently led by the Governing Body, a small group of mature male Christians(experienced elders). They are anointed brothers who are of God's 'faithful and discreet slave' class. They along with six committees provide both ecclesiastical and administrative leadership for Jehovah’s Witnesses worldwide.
~~Locally congregations are led by a body of 'elders', who are men chosen and appointed by the Governing Body upon recommendation from local congregations.
~~The house of worship is called a kingdom hall (in oppose to church). Kingdoms halls are modest in design and devoid of images, statues and altars (which they consider idolatry).

THE CLERGY

Jehovah's Witnesses do not have paid professional clergy. There is no distinction between clergy and lay people as all baptized members are considered ordained ministers. Members who led the local congregation are called elders and those who assist the elders are called ministerial servants. All baptized members share in the preaching and teaching work. Although woman do not teach or preach in congregation of mixed (male and female) gathering.
~~All active male and female members carry out ministerial work of preaching and declaring the good news of the kingdom of God from door to door in their communities and in other areas. Active members known as publishers are usually required to do at least one hour of ministerial service per month.
~~Jehovah's Witnesses also do not allow woman or homosexuals to be part of congregational or higher leadership position.

MARY

Jehovah's Witnesses believe Mary was a virgin chosen by God to be the mother Jesus and she had other children afterwards with her husband Joseph. They reject the Roman Catholic traditions of Mary mother of God, the immaculate Conception, the perpetual virginity and assumption of Mary. They also do not worship or use her for intercessory prayer.

THE SAINTS

Jehovah's Witnesses do not have a special category of beings who are called saints, who they pray to or ask for intercession.

THE ANGELS

Jehovah's Witnesses believe angels (similar to Protestantism) are powerful spirit creatures, created by God long before the creation of mankind. Angels have different ranks and are assigned a variety of functions by God.

ANOINTED BROTHERS AND SISTERS

Anointed brothers and sisters are also known as the "little flock". Becoming anointed is not something done by election or selection, rather one knows directly from God that he or she has been chosen as anointed. The vast majority of Jehovah's Witnesses are not anointed and will not spend eternity in heaven. The anointed person usually do not tell everyone that he is anointed or boast about the wonderful things he will do in heaven. The number of anointed are a total of 144,000 persons.

The Faithful and discreet slave is made up of a small group of anointed brothers who directly prepare and give out spiritual food to brothers around the world (throughout the last days); and bear the responsibility to manage everything on earth that belongs to Christ.

Jesus and Jehovah came and inspected all the Christians groups from 1914 to 1919 CE and were pleased with a small group of loyal Bible Students who showed that they truly loved Jehovah and his Word. After a period of testing, cleansing and refining, Jesus in 1919 CE selected qualified anointed brothers from them to be 'the faithful and discreet slave' and appointed them over his domestics (all the Jehovah's Witnesses). Today these anointed brothers make up the Governing body of Jehovah’s Witnesses.

THE FALLEN ANGELS (SATAN AND DEMONS)

There is no major difference between Jehovah's Witnesses and mainstream Christian belief about fallen angels (Satan and demons).

CEREMONIES (RITES)

Jehovah's Witnesses observe two principle ceremonies (or rites); Baptism and Lord's Evening Meal. They do not consider these ceremonies as sacraments, or religious practices that imparts merit such as grace or the forgiveness of sins.

Baptism: Jehovah's Witnesses baptism is for those individuals who are old enough to understand and believe in "the good news of the Kingdom of God". Baptism is done by full water immersion after hearing God’s word, accepting it, and repenting. Water baptism symbolizes an individual's dying to his past course of life, beginning a new life in harmony with Jesus' teachings and dedicated to God.

Lord's Evening Meal (the Memorial): The purpose of the Lord’s Evening Meal (or Lord's Supper) or 'the Memorial' is to remember Jesus, showing their gratitude for his sacrifice in their behalf. It is a literal meal consisting of unleavened bread and simple wine (not juice or water) as symbols of Christ's body and blood; a memorial of Jesus' death. They observe this once a year (not once a week like most Christians) after sundown on Nisan 14. When Jehovah’s Witnesses observe the Lord’s Evening Meal, only a small fraction 'those who have been called in a special way by God' (the anointed ones) partake of the bread and wine.

WORSHIP AND PRAYER

All worship and prayer directed to God alone. Worship includes prayer, reading/studying Bible, meditating on lessons from the Bible, Constructing and maintaining Kingdom Halls, preaching and expressing the "good news of the Kingdom" etc. Jehovah's Witnesses do not Fast.
~~Jehovah's Witnesses are expected to participate regularly in congregational meetings, evangelizing work and attending conventions
~~Jehovah’s Witnesses hold meetings for worship twice a week (Weekend meeting on Sunday and midweek meeting in the evening), held in local kingdom hall and are open to public. At these meetings they study and discuss Bible and 'Watch Tower Society' (Jehovah's witnesses publication) produced materials. These meetings begin and end with song and prayer.
~~Jehovah's Witnesses do not celebrate any popular mainstream Christian religious holidays such as Christmas and Easter.
~~Jehovah’s Witnesses do not practice tithing (giving one-tenth of income) but encourage anonymous voluntary donations.

SIN

Sin is any action, feeling or thought that goes against God's commandments. It includes doing what is wrong or unrighteous, or failing to do what right, in God's sight.
~~Forgiveness for sin is through acknowledging, confessing to God, feeling sorrow, turn around, restitution as much as possible, and asking God for forgiveness on the basis of the ransom of Jesus.
~~For serious sins one need to speak to someone who is qualified to provide the spiritual help needed and who can pray in his/her behalf. Those who unrepentantly engages in gross sin may be Disfellowshipped.
~~Jehovah's Witnesses believe all humans are born with inherited sin (Original sin) due to the transgressions of Adam and Eve.

SALVATION

Salvation is defined as deliverance from sin and death. Salvation is made possible by God through the ransom sacrifice of Jesus. Salvation cannot be earned, it comes through "the undeserved kindness of God" or "Grace", to those who have faith in Jesus and demonstrate that faith by works or acts of obedience to Jesus' commands.
~~Salvation can be lost by failing to keep exercising faith (by works or action) and falling into sin.

KINGDOM OF GOD

Kingdom of God (or God's Kingdom) is a government in heaven established in 1914 CE by God and ruled by His chosen king Jesus. Since then Jesus is ruling in heaven with co-rulers (kings), which will be a total of 144,000 (chosen Jehovah's witnesses called 'little flock' as co-rulers by God) altogether.

Immediately after becoming the King, Jesus waged a war against Satan and his wicked angels , the demons. Satan and his demons lost the war and were cast out of heaven to the earth. Now there is complete peace and harmony in heaven.

Satan is angry about being cast out of heaven and given just a short time to do his will, cause distress and chaos on earth. Eventually Satan will be able to convince all the kings of the world to get together and fight the great war (war of Armageddon) against God's Kingdom. God's Kingdom will defeat them and the earth will be turned into paradise for the faithful (called 'other sheep'). And God's Kingdom will be on heaven and earth forever.

Good news for mankind is, that there is very short time left for Satan, Jesus is ruling from heaven and his representatives the Jehovah's Witnesses are spreading the news of upcoming God's Kingdom on earth.

ESCHATOLOGY

Death: Jehovah's Witnesses believe at death a person ceases to exist, neither body nor soul survives death. They do not believe in possessing an immortal soul or spirit outside of the body.
~~At death; wicked individuals who knew about Jehovah and were unwilling to change, will face everlasting destruction (non existence forever) at death, never to be resurrected by God ; and the rest will be remembered by God and will be resurrected later.
~~The 144,000 chosen (by God) Jehovah's Witnesses called the "little flock" (who will live and rule with Jesus in Heaven) will be instantaneously resurrected to life in heaven after death.

Sheol or Hades: They translate and understand the Hebrew word "Sheol" and the matching Greek word "Hades", as to be and refer to the figurative location, the common grave of dead (in sleep without existence) mankind who (righteous and unrighteous) are worthy of resurrection.

Hell: Jehovah's witnesses do not believe in the existence of hell, traditionally portrayed as a place where a sinner suffers an eternity of fiery torment and punishment. Since they believe at death one cease to exist there is no point for existence of hell. They also argue that it is against God's nature to torture humans for eternity and hellfire is contrary to the Bible's teaching that "God is love".

The battle of Armageddon: This is the final war between human governments and God. Towards the end of Satan's given short period of time, he will be able to unite all the kings of the earth to fight against God. Jesus will lead the heavenly (God's) army to victory. At the end of the war, the wicked will be destroyed; Satan and demons will be imprisoned in an abyss (very deep grave prison) for a thousand years; and the righteous servants of God will survive. After the battle God's Kingdom will include both heaven and the earth.

Resurrection and Judgment Day: After the battle of Armageddon the Judgment day, thousand-year period will begin. During that time, the 144,000 heavenly joint heirs (the chosen ones for heaven, resurrected during earlier resurrection) will be judges and will rule as kings with Jesus for 1,000 years. Both the living (those survived the battle) and dead (worthy of resurrection) will be judged.
~~The righteous dead, the vast majority of Jehovah's Witnesses who were not chosen for heaven; and the unrighteous dead that include the unrighteous Jehovah's Witnesses and people that didn't hear or knew about Jehovah; will be resurrected (called later resurrection) gradually and judged.
~~Those resurrected to heaven will receive a spirit body and those resurrected to life on earth (earthly paradise) will receive a healthy and perfect physical body.
~~People will be judged before God by His chosen agent Jesus. People will not be judged based on their past but based on their action during that period. During this period some people will have their first opportunity to learn about Jehovah's will and to conform to it. All of those who do not conform to Jehovah's will, be put to death permanently during Judgment Day.
~~By the end of Judgment Day surviving humans will be restored to their original perfect state, as perfect humans. Towards the end of Judgment day, Satan will be released from his imprisonment and allowed to try to mislead mankind one last time (the final test). Those who resist him will possess the earth, and they will live forever on it.

Earthly Paradise: God made the earth never to be destroyed. Originally only a part of earth (Garden of Eden) was paradise, where Adam and Eve initially lived. But after their disobedience God put them out of the Garden and the paradise was lost. After the battle Of Armageddon during the 1000 year rule of Jesus the paradise will be restored on the entire earth. People who will pass the final test of Judgment Day will live forever in the earthly paradise.

Heaven: Heaven (also known as paradise not to be confused with earthly paradise) is where God (Jehovah), Jesus Christ, and the faithful angels reside in the spirit realm. Eventually, before the battle of Armageddon a total of 144,000 people will be resurrected to life (spirit body) in heaven to rule with Jesus in God's Kingdom.

KEEP SEPARATE FROM THE WORLD

Jehovah's Witnesses are taught to maintain a degree of separation from the world, as most of mankind are alienated from God, ruled by Satan, and enslaved to the selfish, prideful spirit that comes from Satan. So, they are instructed to minimize social contact and interaction with non-Witnesses to maintain their own standards of morality.
~~Jehovah's Witnesses recognize all current secular governments to be flawed, and their only alliance belong to God's kingdom, an actual government in heaven, lead (since 1914 CE) by Jesus Christ as king. They respect the government where they live and obey its laws as long as those do not contradict or ask to disobey God's laws. They also do not celebrate national and secular holidays.
~~They remain politically neutral for religious reasons, and do not lobby, vote for political parties or candidates, run for government office and serve in the military.

STATUES AND IMAGES

Jehovah's Witnesses do not use statues and images and consider doing so idolatry.

SEXUAL MORALITY

Jehovah's Witnesses teaches that moral sexuality is between a man and a woman, within a valid marriage only.
~~Sexual immortality include adultery, fornication, homosexuality, incest, or any other unholy, unnatural, or impure sexual activity.

CONTRACEPTION

Jehovah's Witnesses let the decisions about birth control and the consequences of those decisions rest solely with each married couple. They prohibit elective abortion as a method of birth control.

ABORTION

They consider abortion as murder. Abortion is only acceptable at the time of delivery, when the parents must make a choice between the life of the mother and that of the child.

DIVORCE AND REMARRIAGE

Jehovah's Witnesses believe marriage to be a permanent union between a man and a woman (monogamy only) and must be legally registered following local government rules; and if local law allows solemnize the marriage in a kingdom hall by a Jehovah Witness minister. Marrying a non-Jehovah's Witness is strongly discouraged.

Divorce is discouraged and only allowed on the grounds of adultery. Remarriage is only allowed in the case of a death of a spouse or for divorced individual due to adultery.

FOR MORE INFORMATION (Some Sources Used For This Article)

https://www.jw.org/en/jehovahs-witnesses/faq/,
http://wol.jw.org/en/wol/h/r1/lp-e,
http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/witnesses/,
http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Jehovah%27s_Witnesses,
http://www.patheos.com/Library/Jehovahs-Witnesses.
http://www.religionfacts.com/jehovahs-witnesses/beliefs