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Preface The purpose of this paper is to take a look into the ways that Christianity has divided the population, negating all attempts to bring the world closer into one body of Christ. To truly understand this concept takes a great deal of patience, and an unbiased approach to the subject. Although all Christians believe that Jesus Christ is the messiah, the son of god, and the savior of man, the way in which people practice worship, and interpret the calling of God him has caused a great deal of struggle, tension, argument, as well as violence. The subject matter in which these conflicts entail are not roots of the religion, but simply minute details that people interpret in different ways. Thus begins the argument, “Who is Right.” As we delve into the idea that Religion can cause some of the longest lasting, most severe, and most devastating wars that have happened in the history of the world, it doesn’t settle easily that some of these wars are between people who have the same general beliefs, the same main idea of what this life is all about, and lastly, what we have to do in order to satisfy our god. In the early church, the split was between Christians, and Jews. Jews believed that the messiah had yet to come, and that they must prepare for that great day when the Messiah will arrive to judge the living and the dead. Christians believed that the messiah is Jesus Christ, who had already come and died for the sake of mankind. This was an idea that set these religions apart in a large way. Christians, however, do not have opposing ideas on this scale. The most obvious way that Christians are divided is the formation of denominations. Whether Roman Catholic, Mormon, Episcopal, Methodist, or Lutheran, Christians divide themselves into smaller groups that justify their own needs in worship, service, and to a small degree, lifestyle. In a nutshell, Christians are saying, “let’s believe the same thing, but let’s not believe it in the same way.” While the simple form of this idea in itself seems to cause no immediate drawbacks, it leads to a breakdown in the bond between parts of what seem to be the same body. Most people, just based upon hearing how the denominations differ, would think that they are extremely different, but upon visiting another church, would realize that we are simply “different color M&M’s.” We are the same, but with a different color shell. A wise man once said: “If you boil down the body of each group, that residue in the bottom of the pot is the same in all parts.” Great examples of this are the sacraments. The sacrament of baptism is a part of all Christian denominations, but keeping in tradition, each denomination has its own way of doing things. In the Presbyterian Church, most parents have their children baptized at an early age, and the minister simply dips his hands into the water and places it onto the child’s forehead. In the Baptist Church, immersion is the way in which people are baptized, and it is commonly am adult, more conscientious about what the sacrament represents, and come to be baptized based upon their own personal relationship with God.
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