Protestant Church Related Information:

The word “protestant” is a derivative of the word “protest” because this was the beginning of Protestantism as a religion. Reformers within the Catholic Church protested against many of the beliefs and practices and when change did not occur swiftly enough, they started their own separate religions. The basic protest was about Church doctrine and the refusal of the Catholic Church to allow priests to marry and married couples to divorce. The protesting groups split further over differences in interpretation of the Bible, roles of men and women within the church and issues related to women serving as clergy.

There are many different Protestant religions all over the world. The largest of these are Lutheran, Episcopalian, Baptist, Presbyterian and Seventh Day Adventist.

Protestant Churches are Christian, but many of them have different beliefs and methods of worship. They all believe in God and accept the Bible as the authority on which they base their beliefs. They worship in a church and the religious leaders are called clergy, pastors or father, depending on the particular religion. The clergy is allowed to marry and have family obligations. Most celebrate the Lord’s Day on Sunday with Church worship, but the Seventh Day Adventist followers celebrate the Lord’s Day on Saturday.

Some Basic Beliefs of Lutherans

The Lutheran Church is based on the teachings of Martin Luther. He posted a sign on the door of the Catholic Church at Wittenberg University in Germany containing 95 challenges to the theology of the Church. The separate church became known as Lutheran after the founder. The followers believe in Jesus Christ as the Son of God and the New Testament. Many of these people still consider themselves to be a reform movement within the Catholic Church.

Lutherans celebrate the Reformation on October 31 and hold to the basic principles of theology espoused by Luther:

• Sola Gratia – we are saved by the grace of God, not by anything we do.
• Sola Fide – our salvation is through faith alone. We only need to believe that our sins are forgiven through Christ who died for us.
• Sola Scriptura – the Bible is the only norm of doctrine and life and the only standard by which teachings and doctrines are to be judged.

Lutherans believe that sin is a result of a broken relationship between the people and God. They celebrate two main sacraments, Baptism and Holy Communion, as visible acts of God’s love.

Some Beliefs of Episcopalians

The Episcopalian Church is actually the Anglican Church. The official standard is the Book of Common Prayer and both the Apostles Creed and the Nicene Creed are used in worship. The followers have seven sacraments and regular worship with Holy Communion. They believe in the Holy Trinity and the Bible is the authority on which the religion is based. They believe that Christ died for their sins and that each person has to be repentant for sins they have committed in order to be saved.

Some Beliefs of Presbyterians

The beliefs and practices of the Presbyterian Church are derived from the teachings of John Calvin and Huldreich Zwingli. The term “presbyterian” means elder and refers to representative government of the church by the elders. The basic principles of the religion are that man is saved through faith alone and that the Bible is the ultimate authority.

Presbyterians stress the sovereignty of God and that man is inherently sinful. They believe that certain men are predestined by God to become elders and that good works were a sign of this choosing. They emphasize that salvation is extended to everyone on condition of their faith. All Presbyterians are expected to obey and glorify God and study the Bible. They have two sacraments – Baptism and the Lord’s Supper. Baptism is seen as a sign of forgiveness and the Lord’s Supper commemorates Christ’s fellowship with believers.

The worship stresses preaching and reading of the Scriptures and is a formal service set out in their Book of Common Worship.

Some Beliefs of Seventh Day Adventists

Seventh Day Adventists profess the Bible is the sole basis of their religion. They believe that the Second Coming of Christ is imminent and even though no one knows when this will be, it will be literal, personal and visible all over the world. This religion is set apart from other Protestant religions in their observance of the Lord’s Day on Saturday. Observance is from Friday evening to Saturday evening and is a celebration of the creative and redemptive acts of God.

The followers believe in a healthy lifestyle because their bodies are seen as temples of the Holy Spirit. Therefore they do not eat unclean meats, refrain from drinking alcohol, smoking and the use of non-medical drugs.

Baptism is by immersion in water because the baptism of Jesus was in this format. To Seventh Day Adventists, this sacrament symbolizes the acknowledgement of Jesus as Lord and Saviour, forgiveness of sin and the receipt of the gifts of the Holy Spirit. They believe that at the last day there will be an investigative judgement, which will reveal who among the dead are worthy of resurrection. These followers believe there will be two resurrections – the righteous will be resurrected at the time of the Second Advent and the unrighteous will be resurrected a thousand years later.

Some Beliefs of Baptists

Some of the basis beliefs of the followers of the Baptist Church are:

• The Holy Bible is the ultimate authority
• There is only one God – Father, Son and Holy Spirit
• Man sins by free choice, but every man possesses dignity and is worthy of respect and love
• Salvation involves regeneration, sanctification and glorification
• All true believers endure to the end and those whom God has accepted will never fall from a state of grace
• Baptism is by immersion in water as an act of obedience symbolizing a person’s belief in God
• The first day of the week is the Lord’s Day – Saturday, because this is the day on which the Lord rose from the dead.
• The world will eventually end and everyone will be judged by God for their lives on earth
• God is the source of all blessings and everyone is obligated to serve Him with their time, talents and material possessions
• Church and State are two separate entities
• The family is the fundamental institution of human society

Holy Days of the Protestant Church

Holy Thursday, Good Friday and Easter Sunday – these are celebrated in early spring and are the same dates as Catholics and Church of England followers

Ash Wednesday – 40 days before Easter

December 24 th – the birth of Christ