The Timeline of Christianity
One Church — Two Thousand Years of Division Around It
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"You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." — Matthew 16:18
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The Catholic Church
Founded by Jesus Christ upon St. Peter · AD 33
~1.4 billion
+
The original Christian Church, founded by Jesus Himself on the Apostle Peter (Matthew 16:18). It has had an unbroken chain of leadership from Peter all the way to Pope Leo today — that's nearly 2,000 years with no gaps. Every other group on this timeline left this Church. The Catholic Church has never left anyone.
🟢7 Sacraments — all seven
🟢Real Presence — yes, the bread & wine truly become Jesus
🟢Baptism necessary — yes, for salvation
🟢Communion — every single Mass (daily)
🟢Liturgical — fully liturgical; the Mass follows a structured, ancient rite
🟢Tradition — Scripture + Sacred Tradition + Magisterium; 2,000 years of unbroken teaching
One united Church for the first millennium of Christianity
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Eastern Orthodox
Split from Rome over papal authority · 1054
~220M
+
The Eastern churches (Greek, Russian, Serbian, etc.) broke from Rome mainly because they didn't want to accept the Pope's authority over all Christians. They kept almost everything else — they're the closest thing to Catholicism out there. But without a single leader, they've broken into separate national churches that sometimes disagree with each other.
🟢7 Sacraments — all seven
🟢Real Presence — yes, same belief as Catholics
🟢Baptism necessary — yes
🟢Communion — every liturgy (at least weekly)
🟢Liturgical — fully liturgical; the Divine Liturgy is ancient and highly structured
🟢Tradition — Scripture + Holy Tradition; strong emphasis on the Church Fathers and early councils
L
Lutheranism
Martin Luther leaves the Church · 1517
~80M
+
Martin Luther was a Catholic monk who had real concerns about corruption, but instead of reforming from within, he ended up rejecting the Pope, most of the sacraments, and the authority of Church tradition. He kept some structure and some belief in communion being special, but opened the door to the idea that anyone can interpret the Bible for themselves — which is why the splits never stopped.
🟡2 Sacraments — baptism & communion only
🟡Real Presence — sort of; Jesus is "in & with" the bread, but the bread stays bread
🟢Baptism necessary — yes, including infants
🟢Communion — regularly (most Sundays)
🟡Liturgical — moderately liturgical; retains structured worship with hymns, readings, and creeds
🟡Tradition — Scripture alone (Sola Scriptura), but retains Lutheran confessions and catechisms
A
Anabaptists / Mennonites / Amish
Radical Reformation · 1525
~2M
+
These groups thought Luther and Calvin didn't go far enough. They rejected infant baptism (which Christians had practiced since the Apostles), demanded total separation from government, and formed tight-knit communities. This is the first clear example of "reforming the reformers" — a pattern that never stops once you remove a central authority.
🔴0 Sacraments — they call them "ordinances," not sacraments
🔴Real Presence — no, communion is just a symbol
🔴Baptism necessary — no; adults only, as a public statement of faith
🟡Communion — varies, some do it a few times a year
🔴Liturgical — non-liturgical; simple, plain worship with no formal rite
🔴Tradition — Bible only; actively rejects all post-apostolic tradition
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Anglicanism
Henry VIII breaks from Rome · 1534
~85M
+
This didn't start over theology at all — King Henry VIII wanted to divorce his wife, and the Pope said no. So Henry made himself the head of the English church. Anglicanism kept a lot of Catholic-looking things (robes, liturgy, bishops), but without the Pope, it has steadily drifted. Today, Anglican churches around the world can't agree on basic moral issues.
🟡2 Sacraments — recognizes baptism & communion; calls other 5 "rites"
🟡Real Presence — they can't agree; ranges from yes to no depending on the parish
🟢Baptism necessary — yes, including infants
🟢Communion — weekly in most parishes
🟢Liturgical — highly liturgical; follows the Book of Common Prayer
🟡Tradition — Scripture, tradition, and reason ("three-legged stool"); but tradition is optional in practice
C
Calvinism / Reformed / Presbyterian
John Calvin · 1536
~85M
+
Calvin took Luther's ideas and pushed them further. His big thing: God has already decided before you're born whether you're going to heaven or hell, and there's nothing you can do about it. This is called "predestination." Most Presbyterians come from this tradition. Communion is seen as spiritual but not physically real — Jesus is present "in spirit" but the bread is still just bread.
🟡2 Sacraments — baptism & communion only
🔴Real Presence — no; "spiritual presence" only
🟡Baptism necessary — important but not strictly required for salvation
🟡Communion — monthly or quarterly in most churches
🟡Liturgical — semi-liturgical; structured worship but less formal than Lutherans or Anglicans
🔴Tradition — Scripture alone; Reformed confessions exist but Bible is the only final authority
B
Baptists
John Smyth · 1609
~100M
+
Baptists reject infant baptism and say only adults who choose to believe should be baptized — by full dunking, not sprinkling. Every Baptist church is completely independent, which means Baptist churches in the same town can teach completely different things. Communion is purely symbolic — just crackers and grape juice to remember Jesus, with no special spiritual power at all.
🔴0 Sacraments — they call them "ordinances," not sacraments
🔴Real Presence — no, strictly symbolic
🔴Baptism necessary — no; it's an outward sign, not required for salvation
🟡Communion — monthly or quarterly, some less
🔴Liturgical — non-liturgical; no set order of worship, pastor-driven format
🔴Tradition — Bible alone; explicitly rejects all creeds and tradition as authoritative
M
Methodism
John Wesley · 1738 (from Anglicanism)
~80M
+
John Wesley was an Anglican priest who never wanted to start a new church — he just wanted to revive personal holiness within the Church of England. But after he died, his followers split off anyway. Sound familiar? This keeps happening: someone starts a "movement," and it becomes another denomination. Methodists put more emphasis on doing good works than most Protestants, but still reject the authority that could make those teachings stick.
🟡2 Sacraments — baptism & communion
🔴Real Presence — no; a "spiritual mystery" but not literally Jesus
🟡Baptism necessary — yes to infants, but not strictly required for salvation
🟢Communion — encouraged monthly; Wesley wanted weekly
🟡Liturgical — semi-liturgical; has a worship order, hymns, and lectionary but less formal
🟡Tradition — Wesley's Quadrilateral: Scripture, tradition, reason, and experience — but Scripture is primary
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Latter-day Saints (Mormons)
Joseph Smith · 1830
~17M
+
Mormonism claims that every Christian church on earth went completely wrong after the Apostles died — a "total apostasy" — and that God needed Joseph Smith to start over from scratch in 1830. This means Jesus' promise that "the gates of hell shall not prevail" against His Church (Matt 16:18) somehow failed for 1,800 years. LDS beliefs include: God was once a human man, you can become a god yourself, there are many gods, and new scriptures (Book of Mormon, etc.) override the Bible. This isn't a different denomination — it's a fundamentally different religion using Christian words.
🔴0 Sacraments — they call them "ordinances" with very different meanings
🔴Real Presence — no; they use bread & water as symbols only
🟡Baptism necessary — yes, but only LDS baptism counts (including for the dead)
🟢Communion — weekly (bread & water, not wine)
🟡Liturgical — semi-structured; temple ordinances are highly ritualized, but regular meetings are not
🔴Tradition — rejects all Christian tradition; claims a "total apostasy" required a complete restart
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Jehovah's Witnesses
Charles Taze Russell · 1870s
~8.7M
+
JWs deny the Trinity — the belief that God is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit — which every Christian group affirmed for over 1,500 years. They say Jesus is not God but a created being (the angel Michael). They rewrote the Bible (their "New World Translation") to support their views, have predicted the end of the world multiple times and been wrong every time, and members who leave are shunned by their families.
🔴0 Sacraments — no sacramental theology at all
🔴Real Presence — no; "Memorial" once a year, most don't partake
🟡Baptism necessary — yes, but it's a dedication to the organization
🔴Communion — once a year; only ~20,000 partake (the "anointed")
🔴Liturgical — non-liturgical; meetings follow a study format, not a worship service
🔴Tradition — rejects all Christian tradition; Watchtower publications override all historical teaching
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Pentecostalism
Azusa Street Revival · 1901
~280M
+
One of the newest major movements, focused on speaking in tongues, faith healing, and dramatic emotional experiences as proof that you really have the Holy Spirit. There's almost no connection to the historical Church at all — no bishops, no creeds, no tradition. It's incredibly fragmented into thousands of independent groups. The emphasis on personal experience over any kind of doctrine means there's no way to settle disagreements, so they just keep splitting.
🔴0 Sacraments — ordinances only
🔴Real Presence — no, symbolic only
🔴Baptism necessary — no, it's an act of obedience, not required
🟡Communion — varies wildly; some monthly, some rarely
🔴Liturgical — non-liturgical; worship is spontaneous, emotion-driven, no fixed order
🔴Tradition — Bible plus personal revelation; rejects tradition entirely in favor of direct Holy Spirit guidance
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Non-Denominational / Evangelical
20th–21st Century · mostly U.S.
~60M+ (US)
+
This is where the "just me and my Bible" idea ends up. Each pastor is basically his own pope, each church makes up its own rules. They say they're not a denomination — but that's basically just another denomination without the label. Non-denom churches disagree with each other on baptism, communion, salvation, predestination, and most moral questions. The fact that there are over 30,000 of these churches — all reading the same Bible and coming to different conclusions — is the strongest argument against the idea that you don't need a teaching authority.
🔴0 Sacraments — ordinances at best, many skip them
🔴Real Presence — no, almost always symbolic
🔴Baptism necessary — no; usually seen as optional public declaration
🟡Communion — once a month or less; some churches barely do it
🔴Liturgical — non-liturgical; contemporary worship band format, no set rite or order
🔴Tradition — "no creed but the Bible" — rejects all tradition, creeds, and confessions
The Catholic Church is still here.
45,000+
Protestant & independent Christian denominations worldwide
All reading the same Bible. All reaching different conclusions.
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Catholic Church
Same faith since AD 33
267
Popes in unbroken succession
Peter → Leo
"Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste, and no city or house divided against itself will stand."
— Matthew 12:25
Christ didn't found 45,000 churches. He founded one.