CHRISTIANITY

Date: 2015-10-07; view: 551.

Inside the temple

aisle; pew; dome; crypt; altar; shrine;

magic ; witchcraft; to cast a spell; coven

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Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as presented in the New Testament.

The four primary divisions of Christianity are Roman Catholicism, the Orthodox Church, Anglicanism, and Protestantism. There are other Christian groups that do not fit neatly into one of these primary categories. There is a diversity of doctrines and practices among groups calling themselves Christian. These groups are sometimes classified under denominations, though for theological reasons many groups reject this classification system.

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The Catholic Church comprises those particular churches, headed by bishops, in communion with the Pope, the Bishop of Rome, as its highest authority in matters of faith, morality and Church governance. Catholics maintain the "one, holy, catholic and apostolic church”, but also acknowledge other Christian churches and communities and work towards reconciliation among all Christians. With more than 1.1 billion baptizedmembers, the Catholic Church is the largest church representing over half of all Christians and one sixth of the world's population.

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Like the Roman Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church also traces its heritage to the foundation of Christianity. A number of conflicts with Western Christianity over questions of doctrine and authority culminated in the Great Schism.

Eastern Orthodoxy is the second largest single denomination in Christianity, with over 200 million adherents.

The Russian Orthodox Church (ROC) is often said to be the largest of the Eastern Orthodox churches in the world and second only to the Roman Catholic Church among Christian churches, numbering over 135 million members world wide and growing numerically since late 1980s. According to the data made public December 12, 2008, the Church had 157 dioceses including 29,263 parishes served by 203 bishops, 27,216 priests and 3,454 deacons.