Christendom is divided. Many think the divisions are complicated. They aren’t. Christendom is divided between The Only Church Jesus Founded and the 40,000 schisms invented by men who wanted to start their own “Christianity Business.” Realizing that helps us in: Understanding Christendom.
The man-invented schisms always begin with vanity. “The other churches do not understand. I realize that we need a church that appeals to _________ !” A perfect example is the cunning development of the Calvinist marketing plans. They resulted in very prosperous Presbyterian and Congregational Churches in the United States in the last half of the 1800s. Their status continued through the 1980s, when they began to die.
Some theological genius realized: “Every town in America is increasingly divided between haves and the have-less. Most of the haves feel guilty about owning and making so much more than their neighbors. We can jigger the denominations that began with Calvin’s desire to take over Switzerland. We can orient them toward alleviating whatever guilt the wealthy have about being so much wealthier than their neighbors.”
The marketing plan worked! America’s towns and cities were soon topped by huge Presbyterian and Congregational churches. Their ministers, to a man, let their largely wealthy congregations know that “God shows His great love for you by the wealth He has chosen you to have! You, who are among God’s Elect, have a real responsibility.”
Soon, well-meaning post-Calvinistic twits were embarking on endless, simple-minded crusades about largely Imaginary Problems while feeling better about themselves than ever.
What a marketing plan! What great religious businesses sprang from it!
The same process continues among the tens of thousands of schisms invented by vain men who want to make their mark in the Christianity Business.
Most who are involved in the 40,000 man-invented schisms are relatively blind to the far greater concerns occupying the hearts and minds of those in The Only Church Jesus Founded.
