Often there is considerable disagreement between various groups about whether others should be labeled with pejorative terms such as "cult", or about whether this or that group enjoys some measure of respectability. [11] The smallest of these groups may have only a few dozen adherents or an unspecified number of participants in independent churches as described below. [12][13] Such subtleties and complexities are not clearly depicted here. National Primitive Baptist Convention of the U.S.A. New England Evangelical Baptist Fellowship, Regular Baptist Churches, General Association of, Russian Union of Evangelical Christians-Baptists, Two-Seed-in-the-Spirit Predestinarian Baptists, Union d'glises baptistes franaises au Canada, Union of Evangelical Christians-Baptists in Serbia and Montenegro, United American Free Will Baptist Conference, United Baptist Convention of the Atlantic Provinces, Evangelical Church of the Dominican Republic, Independent Christian Churches/Churches of Christ, International Missionary Society of Seventh-Day Adventist Church Reform Movement, Friends Committee on National Legislation, International Pentecostal Holiness Church, Christian Congregation in the United States, Church of God of the Original Mountain Assembly, Evangelical Pentecostal Church of Besanon, Fire Baptized Holiness Church of God of the Americas, Independent Assemblies of God, International, International Assemblies of God Fellowship, International Fellowship of Christian Assemblies, International Pentecostal Church of Christ, Evangelical Association of Reformed and Congregational Christian Churches, Federation of Evangelical Churches in Italy, Union of Methodist and Waldensian Churches, United Church in Jamaica and the Cayman Islands, United Church in Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands, United Church of Christ in the Philippines, Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus (Place of Jesus), Mulu Wongel (Full Gospel Believers) Church, Meserete Kristos (Christ Foundation) Church, Evangelical Presbyterian and Reformed Church in Peru, Eternal Sacred Order of Cherubim and Seraphim, List of Independent Catholic denominations, American Catholic Church in the United States, Evangelical Catholic Church (Independent Catholic), Imani Temple African-American Catholic Congregation, Old Roman Catholic Church in North America, Old Roman Catholic Church in Great Britain, Philippine Independent Church (Aglipayan Church), St. Stanislaus Kostka Church (St. Louis, Missouri), Traditionalist Mexican-American Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox Church organization Unrecognized churches, Autocephalous Turkish Orthodox Patriarchate, Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church Canonical, Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate), Ukrainian Orthodox Church Kyiv Patriarchate, Church of God and Saints of Christ (Orthodox Christianity), The Covenant, The Sword, and the Arm of the Lord, Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity, Apostolic Assembly of the Faith in Christ Jesus, Bible Way Church of Our Lord Jesus Christ, Church of Our Lord Jesus Christ of the Apostolic Faith, Unitarian Universalist Christian Fellowship, International Council of Unitarians and Universalists, General Assembly of Unitarian and Free Christian Churches, List of sects in the Latter Day Saint movement, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Strangite), Remnant Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, Restoration Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, Restored Church of Jesus Christ (Eugene O. Walton), Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, The True and Living Church of Jesus Christ of Saints of the Last Days, Church of God International (United States), Lord's New Church Which Is Nova Hierosolyma, Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, World Peace and Unification Sanctuary Church, Israelite School of Universal Practical Knowledge, Ecumenical Institute for Study and Dialogue, Fellowship of Saint Alban and Saint Sergius. Some Baptists fit strongly with the Reformed tradition theologically but not denominationally. Other sects broke away over the abandonment of practicing plural marriage after the 1890 Manifesto. They departed from the state church of the Roman Empire after the Chalcedonian Council. Independent sacramental churches refer to a loose collection of individuals and Christian denominations who are not part of the historic sacramental Christian denominations (such as the Roman Catholic, Anglican, and Orthodox churches) and yet continue to practice the historic sacramental rites independently while utilizing "Old Catholic", "Catholic", or "Autocephalous Orthodox" labels. [33][32] Other denominations, such as the Eastern Orthodox Church and bodies in Old and True Orthodoxy, often label the Oriental Orthodox Churches as "Monophysite"; as the Oriental Orthodox do not adhere to the teachings of Eutyches, they themselves reject this label, preferring the term "Miaphysite". [37][38][39] Some of them have a disputed administrative status (i.e. Many such groups originated from schisms of these larger denominations, and they claim to have preserved the historical episcopate or apostolic succession, though such claims are frequently disputed or rejected outright by the historic churches of Rome, Constantinople, the Old Catholic Union of Utrecht, and the Church of England.[84][7]. They are all in communion with the Pope as Bishop of Rome and acknowledge his claim of universal jurisdiction and authority. Assyrian Christianity forms part of the Syriac Christian tradition. [11], The Latin (or Western) Church is the largest and most widely known of the 24 sui iuris churches that together make up the Catholic Church (not to be confused with the Roman Rite, which is one of the Latin liturgical rites, not a particular church). They include Jewish Christianity, Pauline Christianity and Gnostic Christianity. [10] This also illustrates that denominations can arise not only from religious or theological issues, but political and generational divisions as well. [23][24] Other minor, modern related splinter groups include the Ancient Church of the East (split 1968 due of rejecting some changes made by Patriarch Shimun XXI Eshai) and the Chaldean Syrian Church. Church of the East, Oriental Orthodox Churches, or Lutheranism). There are numerous churches following the Anglican tradition that are not in full communion with the Anglican Communion. They have some minor distinct theological emphases and expressions (for instance, in the case of those that are of Greek/Byzantine tradition, concerning some non-doctrinal aspects of the Latin view of Purgatory and clerical celibacy).
The most accepted figure among various authors and scholars includes around 900 million to a little over 1 billion Protestant Christians.[53][54]. As of 2015[update], churches of the movement had an estimated 12 million adherents.[73]. [40][41][42][43], The Catholic Church, or Roman Catholic Church, is composed of 24 autonomous sui iuris particular churches: the Latin Church and the 23 Eastern Catholic Churches. A group that fits the generally accepted definition of "Protestant" might not officially use the term. For example, the Catholic Church considers itself the one true church and the Holy See as pre-denominational. [77], Pentecostalism and Charismatic Christianity began in the 1900s. It is not completely correct to call these groups Protestant due to the fact that some of them had nothing to do with the 1529 protestation at Speyer which coined the term Protestant. They are listed here because they include some elements of Christian practice or beliefs, within religious contexts which may be only loosely characterized as Christian. Christian denominations since the 20th century have often involved themselves in ecumenism. [19] Theologically, it adopted the dyophysite doctrine of Nestorianism, which emphasizes the separateness of the divine and human natures of Jesus, and addresses Mary as Christotokos instead of Theotokos; the Church of the East also largely practiced aniconism. [79][80] Churches are listed here when their disparate heritage marks them as inappropriately listed in the particular categories above. Issues regarding the nature of Jesus, Trinitarianism, salvation, the authority of apostolic succession, eschatology, conciliarity, papal supremacy and papal primacy among others may separate one denomination from another. Modern movements such as Christian fundamentalism, Pietism, Evangelicalism, the Holiness movement and Pentecostalism sometimes cross denominational lines, or in some cases create new denominations out of two or more continuing groups (as is the case for many united and uniting churches, for example; e.g. National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A. Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, List of religions and spiritual traditions, "Eastern Christianity and Western Christianity", "History of the World Council of Churches", "The differences between the Catholic and Orthodox churches", "Presentazione dell'Annuario Pontificio 2018 e dell' "Annuarium Statisticum Ecclesiae" 2016", "Fragmentation of the primitive Christian movement", "The Patriarchs of the Church of the East from the Fifteenth to Eighteenth Centuries", "Holy Apostolic Catholic Assyrian Church of the East", "Orthodox Christianity in the 21st Century", "About the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America", "Status of Global Christianity, 2019, in the Context of 19002050", "Who Are Eastern Orthodox Christians and What Do They Believe? [55][56][57][58] The largest non-United Lutheran denomination was the Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus, a Eastern Protestant Christian group.[59]. [18] Declaring itself separate from the state church in 424427, liturgically, it adhered to the East Syriac Rite. [15] All modern Christian denominations are said to have descended from the Jewish and Pauline Christianities, with Gnostic Christianity dying, or being hunted out of existence after the early Christian era and being largely forgotten until discoveries made in the late 19th and early twentieth centuries. These organizations are not churches but work with churches or represent a coalition of churches. Some of these denominations consider themselves as part of True Orthodoxy or the Old Believers. [45] The Catholic population exceeds 1.3 billion as of 2016[update]. Early Christianity is often divided into three different branches that differ in theology and traditions, which all appeared in the 1st century AD/CE. Calvinists differ from Lutherans on the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist, theories of worship, and the use of God's law for believers, among other things.
Most Latter Day Saint denominations are derived from the Church of Christ established by Joseph Smith in 1830. Lutheranism initially began as an attempt to reform the Catholic Church before the excommunication of its members. Anglicans or Episcopalians also self-identify as both Catholic and Reformed. ", "Evangelical Church Fellowship of Ethiopia", "Ko su ziloti, pravoslavni fundamentalisti", "15 Million Member Milestone Announced at LDS Church Conference", National Primitive Baptist Convention, USA, Global Confessional and Missional Lutheran Forum, International Council of Community Churches, Church of Christ in the Sudan Among the Tiv, Architecture of cathedrals and great churches, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_Christian_denominations&oldid=1098324218, Short description is different from Wikidata, Pages using sidebar with the child parameter, Articles containing potentially dated statements from 2018, All articles containing potentially dated statements, Articles containing potentially dated statements from 2019, Articles containing potentially dated statements from 2016, Articles containing potentially dated statements from 2015, All articles with specifically marked weasel-worded phrases, Articles with specifically marked weasel-worded phrases from January 2022, All articles with links needing disambiguation, Articles with links needing disambiguation from March 2022, Articles with unsourced statements from June 2022, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 15 July 2022, at 08:22. In Protestantism, Anglicans numbered over 85 million in 2018.[66]. Therefore, it should be taken with caution. [74] This idea is also called Christian Primitivism. Inclusion on this list does not indicate any judgment about the size, importance, or character of a group or its members. [20][21] Adhered to by groups such as the Keraites and Naimans (see Christianity among the Mongols), the Church of the East had a prominent presence in Inner Asia between the 11th and 14th centuries, but by the 15th century was largely confined to the Eastern Aramaic-speaking Assyrian communities of northern Mesopotamia, in and around the rough triangle formed by Mosul and Lakes Van and Urmiathe same general region where the Church of the East had first emerged between the 1st and 3rd centuries. It considers itself the one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church that Christ founded,[44] and which Saint Peter initiated along with the missionary work of Saint Paul and others. Eastern or Western Christianity and their sub-branches). [29][26], The Oriental Orthodox Churches are the Christian churches adhering to Miaphysite christology and theology, with a combined global membership of 62 million as of 2019[update]. These groups or organizations diverge from historic trinitarian theology (usually based on the Council of Nicaea) with different interpretations of Nontrinitarianism. [83] Its members make up a significant portion of the 2 million Eastern Protestant tradition. Autocephalous Churches who are officially part of the communion: United and uniting churches who hold membership in the Anglican Communion, Other Anglican churches and Continuing Anglican movement, Adventist movement (Seventh Day Sabbath/Saturday observing), American Israelism and Latter Day Saint movement, Fundamentalist Rocky Mountain Latter Day Saints, List of Christian denominations by number of members, Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, History of Christianity during the Middle Ages, Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Italy and Malta, Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Great Britain, Vicariate for Palestine and Jordan in the USA, American Carpatho-Russian Orthodox Diocese, Antiochian Orthodox Archdiocese of North America, Antiochian Orthodox Archdiocese of Australia, Antiochian Orthodox Archdiocese of Mexico, Antiochian Orthodox Mission in the Philippines, Estonian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate), Philippine Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate), Catholic particular churches and liturgical rites, Greek Catholic Church of Croatia and Serbia, Ruthenian Greek/Byzantine Catholic Church, List of the largest Protestant denominations, Treatise on the Power and Primacy of the Pope, Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus, Association of Free Lutheran Congregations, Church of the Lutheran Brethren of America, Confessional Evangelical Lutheran Conference, Confessional Evangelical Lutheran Church of Albania, Evangelical Lutheran Free Church (Germany), Lutheran Church of Central Africa Malawi Conference, Lutheran Church of Central Africa Zambia Conference, Evangelical Lutheran Diocese of North America, Evangelical Lutheran Church in the Kingdom of the Netherlands, American Association of Lutheran Churches, Evangelical Lutheran Church - Synod of France and Belgium, Latvian Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Lutheran Congregations in Mission for Christ, Evangelical Church of the Augsburg Confession in Slovakia, Evangelical Church of the Lutheran Confession in Brazil, Evangelical Lutheran Church in Madhya Pradesh, Evangelical Lutheran Church in Southern Africa, Evangelical Lutheran Church in the Himalayan States, Evangelical Lutheran Church of Papua New Guinea, Evangelical Lutheran Free Church of Norway, Gossner Evangelical Lutheran Church in Chotanagpur and Assam, International Conference of Reformed Churches, North American Presbyterian and Reformed Council, Christian Reformed Church in North America, Christian Reformed Church in Sierra Leone, Christian Reformed Church in South Africa, Continued Reformed Churches in the Netherlands, Communion of Reformed Evangelical Churches, Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa - NG Church, Evangelical and Reformed Church in Honduras, Evangelical Reformed Church in Bavaria and Northwestern Germany, National Union of Independent Reformed Evangelical Churches of France, Protestant Reformed Christian Church in Croatia, Reformed Churches in the Netherlands (Liberated), United Reformed Churches in North America, Uniting Reformed Church in Southern Africa, List of Presbyterian denominations in North America, Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church of Mexico, Conservative Presbyterian Church in Brazil, Costa Rican Evangelical Presbyterian Church, Cumberland Presbyterian Church in America, Evangelical Covenant Order of Presbyterians, Evangelical Presbyterian Church (Australia), Evangelical Presbyterian Church in England and Wales, Evangelical Presbyterian Church of Malawi, Evangelical Presbyterian Church of Ukraine, Evangelical Presbyterian Church (United States), Free Presbyterian Church of North America, Fundamentalist Presbyterian Church in Brazil, National Evangelical Presbyterian Church of Guatemala, Presbyterian Church of Aotearoa New Zealand, Presbyterian Reformed Church (North America), Reformed Presbyterian Church General Assembly, Reformed Presbyterian Church Hanover Presbytery, Reformed Presbyterian Church in the United States, Reformed Presbyterian Church of Australia, Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America, United Presbyterian Church of North America, Uniting Presbyterian Church in Southern Africa, Westminster Presbyterian Church in the United States, Westminster Presbyterian Church of Australia, Congregational Christian Church in American Samoa, Congregational Christian Churches in Canada, Conservative Congregational Christian Conference, Evangelical Congregational Church in Angola, Evangelical Fellowship of Congregational Churches, Fellowship of Independent Evangelical Churches, National Association of Congregational Christian Churches, Union of Evangelical Congregational Churches in Brazil, Union of Evangelical Congregational Churches in Bulgaria, United Church of Christ-Congregational in the Marshall Islands, United Congregational Church of Southern Africa, Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia, Church in the Province of the West Indies, Church of the Province of South East Asia, Church of the Province of the Indian Ocean, Episcopal Church in Jerusalem and the Middle East, Lusitanian Catholic Apostolic Evangelical Church, Province of the Anglican Church of Burundi, Province of the Anglican Church of Rwanda, Province of the Anglican Church of the Congo, Province of the Episcopal Church of South Sudan, Province of the Episcopal Church of Sudan, Communion of Evangelical Episcopal Churches, Alliance of Mennonite Evangelical Congregations, Canadian Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches, Conference of the Mennonite Brethren Churches in India, US Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches, Conservative Grace Brethren Churches, International, Old German Baptist Brethren, New Conference, All-Ukrainian Union of Churches of Evangelical Christian Baptists, Association of Baptist Churches in Ireland, Association of Reformed Baptist Churches of America, Baptist Evangelical Christian Union of Italy, Baptist Missionary Association of America, Conservative Baptist Association of America, Convention of Baptist Churches of Northern Circars, Council of Baptist Churches in Northeast India, Council of Baptist Churches in Northern India, Evangelical Baptist Mission of South Haiti, Fellowship of Evangelical Baptist Churches in Canada, Fundamental Baptist Fellowship of America, General Association of Regular Baptist Churches. [22], Its patriarchal lines divided in a tumultuous period from the 16th-19th century, finally consolidated into the Eastern Catholic Chaldean Church (in full communion with the Pope of Rome), and the Assyrian Church of the East. Many of the splinter groups did not subscribe to trinitarian theologies. [2][3] It also refers to efforts toward visible unity in the Christian Church, though the terms of visible unity vary for each denomination of Christianity; the Roman Catholic Church and Eastern Orthodox Church each teach visible unity may only be achieved by converting to their denominational beliefs and structure, citing claims of being the one true church. [30][31][32] These churches reject the Council of Chalcedon in 451 and those after it. ", "Fellowship of Concerned Churchmen - Directory of Jurisdictions", "World Directory | Mennonite World Conference", "Holiness churches World Council of Churches", "Spirit and Power - A 10-Country Survey of Pentecostals", "When Did Evangelical Christianity Begin? Some denominations were started by intentionally dividing themselves from the Roman Catholic Church, such as in the case of the English Reformation while others, such as with Luther's followers, were excommunicated after attempting reform. Eastern Orthodox churches by and large remain in communion with one another, although this has broken at times throughout its history. The Anabaptists trace their origins to the Radical Reformation. 
Russian Old Believers refused to accept the liturgical and ritual changes made by Patriarch Nikon of Moscow between 1652 and 1666. There is no official recognition in most parts of the world for religious bodies, and there is no official clearinghouse which could determine the status or respectability of religious bodies. The Church of the East split from the Roman-recognized state church of Rome during the Sasanian Period. Some 60-80 million Christians are Methodists and members of the World Methodist Council. Examples incorporating elements of Christianity include but are not limited to: The relation of New Thought to Christianity is not defined as exclusive; some of its adherents see themselves as solely practicing Christianity, while adherents of Religious Science say "yes and no" to the question of whether they consider themselves to be Christian in belief and practice, leaving it up to the individual to define oneself spiritually. The Chaldean Syrian Church is headquartered in Thrissur, India. 
[25][26][27][28], Assyrian Christianity comprises those Eastern churches who kept the traditional Nestorian christology and ecclesiology of the historical Church of the East after the original church reunited with the Catholic Church in Rome, forming the Chaldean Catholic Church in 1552. As an example, this list contains groups also known as "rites" which many, such as the Roman Catholic Church, would say are not denominations as they are in full papal communion, and thus part of the Catholic Church. Other denominations are defined by either a belief in Joseph Smith as a prophet or acceptance of the Book of Mormon as scripture. Some Christian bodies are large (e.g. On the other hand, the surviving Waldensians ended up joining Reformed Protestantism, so it is not completely inaccurate to refer to their movement as Protestant. Individual bodies, however, may use alternative terms to describe themselves, such as church, convention, communion, assembly, house, union, network, or sometimes fellowship. Two examples of impaired communion between the Orthodox churches include the MoscowConstantinople schisms of 1996 and 2018. Major examples of uniting churches are the United Protestant Church of France (2013) and the Protestant Church in the Netherlands (2004). [81] Evangelical Protestantism modernly understood is an inter-denominational Protestant movement which maintains the belief that the essence of the Gospel consists of the doctrine of salvation by grace through faith in Jesus Christ's atonement.[82]. [78] As a result of the two movements, the Catholic Charismatic Renewal was established.