Clarify these religions please

Wow. . . yes, Catholics are Christians, since they believe in the divinity of Jesus Christ. All Christians are not Catholics, however.

Uhm, unfortunately, so are Mormons, as much as some people object. They believe in Latter Day Saints, but they also believe that Jesus came to America.

And, uhm, Russian, Eastern, and Greek Orthodox religions are NOT Catholic, but they are Christian religions, some of the oldest in existence, actually.

As far as Quakers are concerned, I'm pretty sure they're Protestant, which would make them Christians. . .

Catholics are Christians. Christianity embodies all the denominations who have selected Jesus Christ as their head to speak in simple and universal terms. However, not all Christians are Catholics since Catholicism only comprises the largest Christian community and not the entire Christian community.

Thanks for the info. I feel less confused now.

I don't want to confuse the issue, but I have heard that to some people, the word "Christian" refers to a person who belongs to a Protestant denomination, as opposed to a Catholic. I know that Catholics are also Christians, but I think that the designition "Christian" is sometimes used colloquially to refer to Protestants.

This may be the cause of some of the confusion held by the high school student.

The world is divided into Catholics and Non Catholics. Sister told me this, and thats it, otherwise shed beat the livin crap out of you.
Any other questions?

Was that Sister Nunsensical there farmerman? Just for the sake of information, these are all categorized as Christian sects. Choose your poison:

http://netministries.org/denomlst.htm

You're probably right, Phoenix. . . I've never heard a Catholic call themselves Christian, even though technically they are. . .

Sister Attila, even today her name strikes fear into my heart

As a way to deferentiate themselves, Protestants started calling themselves Christians because it was more godlike. Afterall protestant comes from the word protest and that is hardly christian. Eastern Orthodox, Coptic and Catholic faiths would also describe themselves as Chritian but with much more pomp and circumstance, tradition and doctrine. Anyone with a bible can call themselves a christian, it's pretty non-distinct/pc.

Mormons never really had any more polygamy than anyone else. And if their missionaries get big-headed, it's because they're 19. They're a lot less obstinate and more centered than most any other 19 year olds any of us have ever met.

There are those who usurp the name Christian by refusing to answer to their sect name, mostly churches who are splinters of other churches and don't want to be known by their parent-church's name anymore. By this I mean mostly splinter-pentecostals and splinter-baptists. They, too, are Christian; but, contrary to their assertions, they are not the only Christians.

Anyone who believes that Jesus Christ is divine has my permission to call themselves Christian. That includes Catholicism, Mormonism, Protestantism, etc. All of the above read the Bible and consider it scripture; so if you're going to disallow them the name Christian, you are doing so against the advice of any and all dictionaries.

IMHO, anyone for whom Christ/Jesus is the primary religious teacher is a Christian. That includes those that think Jesus is God and those that don't; those that believe in a holy trinity and those that don't; those that believe in seven sacraments, two sacraments or no sacraments; those that believe in mainstream denominations and those in less popular sects.

You may not like it that the guy next door worships on the wrong day, or uses a holy book in addition to or instead of the Bible, or that he handles snakes and speaks in tongues. But if he centers his beliefs on Jesus, he is a Christian, period.

Until a few years ago, maybe less than 10, Christian and Catholic were almost synonims in Mexico.
When I was a child, there were Catholics and Protestants.
When I was a young adult, there were Catholics, Protestants and "Evangelicals" (meaning the newer churches).
Now, with the big influx of Evangelical groups from the US, the word "Christian" is beginning to be a synonim of "Evangelical" (and it's often whispered as a dirty word).

The term "Christian" has often been used by splinter groups within various denominations to distinguish them selves from the church they are leaving. For example in the 18th century there was a split within New England congregationalism (new light, old light) The "new lights" generally a more emotional party, often established new congregations which they call "Christian churches" to distinguish them from the more traditional congregationalist. And by extension imply that they were less "Christian". Echoes of this controversy survive in New England in place names such as "Christian Hill" or "Christian Church Road". Among Protestants, the term generally implys a schismatic evangelical movement.

I was walking across a bridge one day, and I saw a man standing on the edge, about to jump off. So I ran over and said, "Stop! Don't do it!" "Why shouldn't I?" he said.

I said, "Well, there's so much to live for!"

He said, "Like what?"

I said, "Well...are you religious or atheist?"

He said, "Religious."

I said, "Me too! Are you Christian or Buddhist?"

He said, "Christian."

I said, "Me too! Are you Catholic or Protestant?"

He said, "Protestant."

I said, "Me too! Are you Episcopalian or Baptist?"

He said, "Baptist!"

I said, "Wow! Me too! Are you Baptist Church of God or Baptist Church of the Lord?"

He said, "Baptist Church of God!"

I said, "Me too! Are you original Baptist Church of God, or are you Reformed Baptist Church of God?"

He said, "Reformed Baptist Church of God!"

I said, "Me too! Are you Reformed Baptist Church of God, reformation of 1879, or Reformed Baptist Church of God, reformation of 1915?"

He said, "Reformed Baptist Church of God, reformation of 1915!"

I said, "Die, heretic scum!" and pushed him off.

(I heard this first in church (of all places) and just found it on the web.)

Has anyone ever read anything by Rodney Stark? He's one of the big guys in the Sociology of Religion discipline. He writes a lot about which subsets of society are likely to join which church, and when they leave, where they go next. He also writes a lot about new churches and compares them to the younger churches of our day... He also writes in a pretty casual style, so it's easy to play with. Fascinating stuff, and a good light read.

My favorite is called "The Rise of Christianity: How the Obscure, Marginal Jesus Movement Became the Dominant Religious Force in the Western World in a Few Centuries."

ebrown_p: excellent joke/truthful observation. I believe this is a quote from humorist Emo Phillips.

Mormons are not Chistians in the sense of my definition.....they do not believe in the divinty of Jesus.....they also believe they themselves can become Gods.....in fact, IMHO, they have many bizarre beliefs that are anit-christian....

Would that there were really some humility in your expressed opinions, Micah. Just spreading a little more of your "if you ain't with me, yer goin' to HELL" love and acceptance, huh, Micah?

Mich, please refer to ebrown_p's post above.