If there’s one thing about Roman Catholicism that many Christians can compliment, it’s their unity. Unlike the rest of mainstream Christianity, Catholics don’t get embroiled in differences of opinion and interpretation. There are no in-house debates over things like Bible translations, music, denominations, or even what the Bible teaches about certain things. If you’re a Catholic, you can go to any church around the world and never wonder if this group of people believes differently than you do.
I do not ask on behalf of these alone, but for those also who believe in Me through their word; that they may all be one; even as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us, so that the world may believe that You sent Me. (John 17:20-21)
There appears to be a oneness in Catholicism, much more than in any other branch of Christianity. They appear to reflect Christ’s prayer about being unified in their beliefs. Meanwhile, the ever-growing amount of Christian denominations makes non-Catholics look like a pile of shattered glass, part of the same thing but looking very different and separated from one another.
Of course, we were all once part of the Roman Catholic Church. Christianity around the world looked very similar no matter where you went, with the entire world believing much of the same things about God, salvation, church authority, and the Bible. All of this changed in the 1500s with the ignition of the Protestant Reformation, when Christians around the world began to break away from the Roman Catholic Church and started teaching and believing things that seemed unthinkable at the time.
Today, we call ourselves “Protestants.” However, sometimes it seems like that’s all we have in common. Over the last 500 years, what was once an alternative understanding to Christianity has splintered off into so many different denominations that we sometimes isolate ourselves from anyone who has the wrong title listed on their church sign.
Many Catholics are quick to point out that Christianity is so splintered that there are anywhere from 33,000-50,000+ denominations in the world. We claim unity, yet there are more versions of Christianity than there are professional teams for every sport ever played. Even within those denominations, Christians rarely agree on everything. While Catholics are marked by their united beliefs, we more often think about other Christians based on how many ways we disagree with them.
Why would God allow His people to become so fractured? Why isn’t His church united? Did Christ’s prayer fail?
These are questions that Catholics and Protestants struggle with, and they are what this series will address. We will look at the events and beliefs leading up to the Protestant Reformation, examine the 5 main theological beliefs that came from it, and end with a discussion on why God allowed it. In the end, the goal is to show that we may be more united than we originally realized. In the end, I want all of us to get a more realistic understanding of what Christianity looked like back then so that we can praise God for where we are now.
