The news that Southern Baptists vote to leave alliance doesn’t particularly upset me, as I’m not a Baptist, and I am disturbed by the ultra conservatism of the Southern Baptists.

But it did lead me wonder about the splits in the Christian church.

Certainly the Christian church was never a single, unified group, although following the council of Nicea, there was a small degree of unity until 1054, and the split of the Roman Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox church. Following the Orthodox/Catholic split, things were relatively calm until the 16th century and the Protestant Revolution, after which such divisions became increasingly frequent, continuing today till we have almost innumerable Christian sects.

Each sect has its own slightly different set of beliefs, and typically asserts that all those who belong to a different sect, with a slightly different set of beliefs, are going straight to hell, those damned papists/heretics/infidels.

Is this really how Christianity was supposed to end up? Damning others for technical doctrinal positions? Spending time in debate over questions of doctrine instead of spending time helping others?

And you wonder why I don’t care for organized religion?