Denominations... what is the purpose?

[learnin to learn]

In my short life span, I have ventured through several different churchs, of different denominations, trying to find a group of people who believe as I do. I have learned that I share beliefs whith all of them, but I also disagree with some of their teachings.

What is the purpose of being of a specific denomination? Isnt being Christian enough? Why is it that people of one denomination hate and despise people of other denominations? Why do protestants ridicule catholics, while everyone antagonizes mormons?

[Freddy]

In my short life span, I have ventured through several different churchs, of different denominations, trying to find a group of people who believe as I do. I have learned that I share beliefs whith all of them, but I also disagree with some of their teachings.

What is the purpose of being of a specific denomination? Isnt being Christian enough? Why is it that people of one denomination hate and despise people of other denominations? Why do protestants ridicule catholics, while everyone antagonizes mormons?

 

Jesus said, "upon this rock I will build my church", somewhere in the New Testament. Right after that Paul and James had problems over Jews and Gentiles converting to the new religion. Arias had problems over Jesus' human/devine being. Desention began early on and the further from the Jesus' time, if he ever lived, humans could not agree on doctrine. The Orthodox Church broke from the Catholic Church and then Luther came along and the Reformation happened and all Hell broke loose. Islam split and Judiasm split as humans cannot agree on religion. Show me a religion that does not have some desenters and I will be surprised. My Mom was a Congregationalist and my Dad was a Catholic and I am Agnostic.

[Pyrotex]

...What is the purpose of being of a specific denomination? Isnt being Christian enough? Why is it that people of one denomination hate and despise people of other denominations?...?

When Martin Luther translated the Bible into common German and started distributing copies (thanks to the recently invented printing press), he assumed that everyone who read the Bible would see what HE saw in it. But from the start, there were multitudes who had a different interpretation of the scriptures. Luther immediately denounced them as pawns of Satan and made some effort to see if he could have them punished or even executed. Fortunately, he didn't succeed.

 

The answer to your question appears to be "human nature". There are as many different personality types as there are flowers or rivers. There are those who are emotional or intellectual; those who are moody or content; those who have a warm feeling for others or those who fear others; there are the happy and the tolerant and the nurturing and the thoughtful; there are the bitter and the bigoted and the hermitic.

 

And for every kind of personality, there is an interpretation of scripture that validates or comforts THAT particular personality--THAT particular mindset. Different denominations attract different mindsets. One person may feel comforted by the teachings of one church and offended by another; his sister feels just the opposite.

 

But the idea that there could be MANY different ways to God is (on the surface at least) denied by the scripture. Therefore, each denomination takes great pains to show that THEIR interpretation is the RIGHT one; all the others (Like Luther believed) are corruptions of the devil.