Chapter 13: Faiths and traditions · Part 5

Christianity

Forty-four traditions, by family, from the Catholic parish to the Unitarian Universalist congregation. Most gather on Sunday morning around an altar or a communion table and a pulpit, with a font or a baptistry, and keep the Western church year (the Orthodox the Eastern), some its whole round, others little more than Christmas and Easter. Only they have the game's sacraments: communion, weekly to twice a year as each keeps it, and baptism, of infants or of believers, by pouring or immersion, with confirmation where it's kept (Growing the congregation); and only they have paraments and the season's colours, the Christmas and Easter specials, Vacation Bible School, the choir ministry, and the visiting elder for a communion its own pastor can't celebrate.

Catholic and Orthodox

Catholic Church its page →

St. Michael's: the altar with its paraments, the tabernacle behind, a crucifix on the wall, the pulpit, a lectern, a communion rail, statues, and the pipe organ.
St. Michael's: the altar with its paraments, the tabernacle behind, a crucifix on the wall, the pulpit, a lectern, a communion rail, statues, and the pipe organ.

A parish of the Latin Rite: Mass on Saturday evening and Sunday morning (an 8 o'clock and a Spanish Mass if you want them), the full church year with the Fridays of Lent kept, weekly communion received at stations, and seven sacraments, confirmation by the bishop among them.

The diocese sends your priest, for six-year terms; priests are scarce and celibate, and a parish under 60 at Mass shares one. Between priests, a lay leader holds the Sunday Celebration in the Absence of a Priest, with communion from the tabernacle (−0.04, not the −0.1 of no one at all). Parishioners don't vote: the priest decides renovations with the finance council's advice (a week), and the diocese decides new building, wanting the parish solvent and in good standing, so pay the 10% assessment. Changes made on authority provoke harsher reactions (see Projects, approvals and conflict). Fundraising is open (bingo, the Lenten fish fry, the parish festival), Mass stipends add a little, and a parish school is offered, a fifth of its cost paid by the diocese. Gothic suits a Catholic church almost perfectly. A parish can't vote to leave.

Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church its page →

The Byzantine liturgy in communion with Rome: the Divine Liturgy on Sunday in Ukrainian and in English behind an iconostasis, infants baptized by immersion and given communion, the Byzantine Catholic year with lighter fasts than the Orthodox, and the Great Blessing of Waters and the Easter basket blessing.

The eparchy sends the priest, who may be married; priests are scarce and shared below 60. The eparchial assessment is 8%, and the Collection for Ukraine a voluntary $1,500 a year. Candles and stipends bring in a little at every Liturgy, fundraising is open, and the Sisterhood forms as the parish grows. It can't vote to leave.

Orthodox Church in America its page →

Holy Trinity Orthodox: the iconostasis with the Royal Doors, the altar and tabernacle behind it, icons, a lectern, choir stalls, and chairs rather than pews.
Holy Trinity Orthodox: the iconostasis with the Royal Doors, the altar and tabernacle behind it, icons, a lectern, choir stalls, and chairs rather than pews.

The Divine Liturgy on Sunday and the Vigil on Saturday evening, sung throughout without instruments; the iconostasis between nave and sanctuary; infants baptized by triple immersion, chrismated, and communed by spoon; the Eastern church year, with strict fasts.

The faithful traditionally stand. Pews are discouraged (−0.03), but standing costs far more (−0.15), and chairs score −1 for fit: a few rows of chairs in a nave full of icons and formal furniture is the best compromise. Turn the lot in Church → Church so the church faces east. The diocese sends a priest (married before ordination, or not), from a scarce supply. The assessment is $90 a member, and falling behind on it costs the parish its voice: the diocese turns down its projects and sends it the weakest priest. In a strict fast, church meals cost more and fewer stay, and weddings aren't held. Candles and open fundraising help.

Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America its page →

Orthros and the Divine Liturgy every Sunday, in Greek and English, chanted by the psaltes at the analogion and often sung by a choir with an organ, before the iconostasis, with the people in pews; infants baptized by triple immersion, chrismated, and communed by spoon; the Eastern church year, with strict fasts and the epitaphios of Holy Friday.

Unlike the OCA, a Greek Orthodox parish sits in pews and may have an organ. The Metropolitan assigns and moves the priest (married before ordination, or not), from a scarce supply, paid on the Archdiocese's own scale. Two altar boys are needed at every Liturgy, and an Epistle reader is expected. The parish council decides renovations with the priest's advice; new building takes two thirds of the Parish Assembly and the Metropolis's consent. The Total Commitment (12%) is required, and falling behind on it costs the parish its voice. Stewardship is taught as a tithe; candles, rentals, and the summer festival help, and the Sisterhood (the Philoptochos) forms as the parish grows. It can leave by two thirds with the Archdiocese's consent, but the building stays behind.

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Coptic Orthodox Church its page →

The Coptic Liturgy, two to three hours, at 7 (in Arabic) and 9:30 on Sunday, with Friday and Saturday liturgies; chanted throughout, with men and women seated apart; the haikal screen before the sanctuary; infants baptized by triple immersion; the Coptic year, with some 210 strict fast days.

The parish names its priest from its own members (Ask who'd serve), married before ordination, and the diocese ordains him, for life. Members don't vote; the priest decides renovations at once. The diocesan contribution is 10%. Giving is by contribution boxes and the plate; candles help. The fasts make meals dear and weddings rare for much of the year. It can't vote to leave.

Anglican and Lutheran

The Episcopal Church its page →

The Holy Eucharist at 8 and 10 on Sunday, with the full church year and the Fridays of Lent; weekly communion at the rail from a common cup; infant baptism; the reserved sacrament.

The vestry decides renovations, and calls a rector with the bishop's consent; an interim serves through the search. The diocesan assessment (12%) is required, and falling behind on it costs the parish its voice. A parish that shrinks below 15 members for a year, or falls to 25% regard for six months, is reduced to a mission, whose vicar the bishop appoints; it can vote to be a parish again at 40 members, paying its way. Leaving takes two thirds and the diocese's consent, and the building stays behind: the settlement is its whole worth.

Anglican Church in North America its page →

Holy Communion from the 2019 Book of Common Prayer at 10 on Sunday (and an 8 o'clock if you want it), at the rail for all the baptized; worship from Anglo-Catholic to evangelical and charismatic, with organ and choir (traditional) or a band (contemporary); infants baptized by pouring, confirmed by the bishop; the full church year.

The vestry (confirmed members) decides renovations and new building, and calls the rector, who can't be called without the bishop's consent. A lay reader is needed at every service; an acolyte and two chalice bearers are expected. Unlike the Episcopal Church, the congregation owns its building outright: the diocese can withdraw its rector's credentials or expel it, but leaving takes a majority and costs nothing. Every member is taught the tithe, and the church is asked to give a tenth of its income to the diocese, voluntarily; its regard rides on it. Fundraising is modest. Each diocese decides whether women are ordained priests, so the congregation does here; bishops are men.

Evangelical Lutheran Church in America its page →

Grace Lutheran: the altar behind a communion rail, a pulpit and a lectern, choir stalls, an electronic organ, and an empty cross, in Gothic stone.
Grace Lutheran: the altar behind a communion rail, a pulpit and a lectern, choir stalls, an electronic organ, and an empty cross, in Gothic stone.

Word and sacrament in balance: a pulpit beside the altar, weekly communion at the rail, infant baptism, and a strong tradition of organ and choir.

The congregation council votes on renovations; the members on new building. A pastor comes from the synod's list (two candidates, a little more skilled), called by two thirds of the members with the synod's consent, with an interim between. Mission support (7%) is voluntary. The congregation decides whether it's affirming, and can become Reconciling in Christ. Lutherans want the most reverberant room of any tradition, so stone floors and Gothic walls pay off. Leaving takes two votes, three months apart, each by two thirds, and the synod's consent.

The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod its page →

The Divine Service, highly formal, with communion every other Sunday for those of its own fellowship, individual confession if asked, and Wednesday services in Lent and Advent; a confessional church that worships only with its own.

The wider body puts forward one candidate at a time, whom the members call; an interim serves meanwhile, and a small church shares its pastor. The board of elders is men only, and the board of trustees decides renovations. District mission support (6%) is voluntary. A parish school is offered (with no help from the district). Lodges are forbidden on church property, and the church keeps out of politics. Its claim on a church's property wouldn't hold up, so leaving (two thirds) costs nothing.

Reformed and united

Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) its page →

Word and Table on Sunday, communion monthly with wine and juice both offered, infants baptized by sprinkling, and the full church year.

The trustees decide renovations; the members vote on new building and calls, each with the presbytery's consent. Pastors come from the presbytery's list, and a full-time one is never paid under $50,000. The per capita ($40 a member) and shared mission giving (3%) are voluntary. The church is affirming. Leaving is by gracious dismissal: a majority, the presbytery's consent, and half the building's worth.

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Christian Reformed Church in North America its page →

Two services every Sunday, catechism for the young, communion four times a year, infants baptized, banners rather than images, and officebearers who sign the confessions.

The council decides renovations, the members new building; calls go to the members with the classis's consent. Only confessing members of two years or more sit on the council, and under formal discipline those who've fallen away are taken off the rolls each January. The classis quota and pension assessment ($87.20 a member together) are required; ministry shares ($250 a member) are voluntary. Gambling and lodges are forbidden. The congregation decides whether women serve as officebearers and pastors. Many of its children go to the nearby Christian school. Leaving takes two votes a month apart and the classis's consent.

Presbyterian Church in America its page →

Confessionally Reformed under the Westminster Standards: Lord's Day worship centred on long expository preaching, with psalms and hymns (or a band) and an evening service if you want it; the Lord's Supper monthly, passed in the pews, for communicants; believers' children baptized by pouring or sprinkling, and received to the table at about ten on profession of faith before the session.

The session of ruling elders governs, and its elders, deacons, and ministers are men only; two elders serve at every communion. The session decides renovations; the members vote on new building and call the pastor, whom the presbytery examines and installs. Membership is under formal discipline. Every gift upward is voluntary: the presbytery's askings ($25 a member, on which its regard rides), the Administrative Committee (0.35%), and the ministry partnership (3%). The congregation owns its property outright, and leaving takes a majority and costs nothing. Fundraising is modest.

United Church of Christ its page →

Word and Table with the lectionary, monthly communion open to all, church school during worship, no formal discipline, and congregations that govern themselves.

The members decide everything, including calling a pastor (with an interim between). Basic Support (2%) is voluntary, fundraising is open, and renting space is something its churches are known for. The congregation decides whether it's affirming, and can vote to become Open and Affirming or a Just Peace church. Leaving costs nothing.

Methodist and holiness

The United Methodist Church its page →

A preaching service with an organ and choir (a contemporary church has a praise service too), monthly communion at the rail by intinction, open to all, infants baptized, the full year, the love feast, covenant renewal, and Watch Night.

The bishop appoints the pastor, into a parsonage, and may move them each July at the yearly review; the staff-parish relations committee is consulted, so an unhappy church sees its pastor moved sooner. Turn moves off on the Staff screen to keep a good one. A full-time pastor is paid at least $48,000, and a church under 70 shares one. The trustees decide renovations, the district new building. Apportionments (12%) are required. The building is dry and gambling is forbidden. The congregation decides whether it's affirming, and can become a Reconciling Congregation. Leaving takes two thirds, the wider body's consent, and 30% of the building's worth.

African Methodist Episcopal Church its page →

Long, responsive Black-church worship on Sunday at 11, a Wednesday prayer meeting, monthly communion at the rail, walked offerings, and Watch Night, Women's Day, and Homecoming.

The bishop appoints and moves the pastor, at the yearly review, into a parsonage. Pastors rise from licentiate through itinerant deacon to elder; until yours is an elder, an elder visits for each communion ($150). The trustees decide renovations, with a strong pastor's view swaying them. Three obligations stack: the General Budget ($25 a member; falling behind costs the church its voice), the conference claims (6%), and the district (2%). The wider body is present in everything: it visits four times a year, and its regard follows what you do quickly. Four auxiliaries, from the Stewardess Board to the Usher Board, and a First Lady, enrich the church's life.

Free Methodist Church USA its page →

A preaching service with a band, monthly communion at the rail, infants baptized or dedicated, and covenant membership.

The conference appoints the pastor, who stays as long as it suits. The Board of Administration (tithers) decides renovations, and the conference consents to new building. Conference support is $180 a member. Membership is a covenant, exclusive, under formal discipline; lodges, alcohol, tobacco, and gambling are forbidden. Consecrated deacons from the members widen the pastor's care, and the conference camp holds families.

Church of the Nazarene its page →

A preaching service with a weekly altar call at the mercy seat, quarterly communion at the rail, infants baptized or dedicated as parents wish, and revivals and camp meetings.

The members call a pastor by two thirds, with the district's consent. A church below 35 members, or at 30% regard, for six months has its pastor appointed instead; it can vote to call again at 35 members, paying its way. The church board decides renovations; the members vote on new building, with the district's consent. Four obligations (the World Evangelism Fund, the district, education, and pensions) come to 15% of income. Tithing is expected.

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The Salvation Army its page →

A corps, not a church: the holiness meeting on Sunday with brass and the mercy seat, no sacraments (soldiers are enrolled instead), the Army's flag, Founders' Day, the Self-Denial appeal, and the Red Kettle season.

The division sends a married couple of officers for three-year terms, ranked lieutenant, captain, and major, and pays them itself. It funds the corps centrally: each month's offerings go up, and a budget of $25 for each active person, plus the building's costs, comes down. The division decides everything past routine spending. The corps runs social services, raises the Red Kettle appeal each December, and holds open-air meetings. Soldiers don't vote, and the corps can't vote to leave.

Baptist

Southern Baptist Convention its page →

Calvary Baptist: the pulpit at the centre of the platform, the communion table before it, a baptistry with its plumbing stack, a grand piano, and an empty cross.
Calvary Baptist: the pulpit at the centre of the platform, the communion table before it, a baptistry with its plumbing stack, a grand piano, and an empty cross.

A free-church tradition: congregations govern themselves, baptize believers by immersion, and keep the Lord's Supper quarterly as a memorial. Worship centres on the sermon, with a Wednesday prayer meeting and Sunday school for all ages before the service. The Lottie Moon and Annie Armstrong offerings run in their seasons.

The members decide almost everything, including calling the pastor, so keep them happy before any big proposal. Pastors are men and plentiful, so a search is short (six months, with an interim). Southern Baptists don't pledge: people give in the plate and the boxes as they come, so income follows attendance. The Cooperative Program (4.67%) is voluntary, and nothing turns on it for your own projects. The building is dry and gambling is forbidden.

American Baptist Churches USA its page →

A preaching service with organ and choir, monthly communion passed in the pews, believers' baptism, and local options on nearly everything. A Black Baptist church is one of its variants.

The members decide everything, receive new members by vote, and call the pastor (with an interim between). Members pledge; United Mission (4%) is voluntary. The denomination's stance isn't affirming, but its churches often depart from it, and yours can, at a cost in the region's regard; it can also become a Welcoming and Affirming church. Leaving costs nothing.

National Baptist Convention, USA its page →

Black-church worship on Sunday at 11, a Wednesday prayer meeting, an afternoon service if you want it, walked offerings, Watch Night, and anniversaries and homecomings.

A strong pastor, called by the members and supported by a First Lady, usually stays until retirement, and the pastor's view sways every vote. The deacons are men. Association and convention dues ($1,200 a year) are voluntary. The congregation decides whether women preach and pastor. The Mothers' Board, the usher board, and the Missionary Society form as the church grows.

Pentecostal

Assemblies of God its page →

New Life Pentecostal: the pulpit and communion table, a baptistry, a drum kit and sound system, and rows of chairs on carpet.
New Life Pentecostal: the pulpit and communion table, a baptistry, a drum kit and sound system, and rows of chairs on carpet.

Long, band-led praise and worship, a long sermon, and a weekly altar call; believers' baptism by immersion; the Lord's Supper monthly; Christmas, Easter, and Pentecost kept; tarrying and healing services.

The cheapest tradition to furnish. The members call a pastor by two thirds and approve new building by 60%, with a strong pastor's view swaying them; an associate takes over at once when the pastor goes. District support (3%) is voluntary, and the pastor's $600 dues come in their salary. A sovereign assembly that falls below 20 members, or to 30% regard, for six months becomes district-affiliated: the district appoints its pastor and decides its building. With 20 members, its way paid, and 50% regard for three months, it can vote to be sovereign again. Pentecostals want a dry room: carpet, and no Gothic stone. Watch the neighbours: drums and a sound system are noisy.

Church of God (Cleveland, Tennessee) its page →

Praise and worship with a weekly altar call, quarterly communion with foot washing, Sunday evening and Wednesday services if you want them, and revivals and camp meetings.

The state bishop appoints the pastor, reviewed each year with the church's council consulted. The pastor decides renovations alone, and new building with the trustees' advice and the district's consent. The church sends 14% of its tithes up, and the pastor a tithe of their own (which they ask for in their pay). Women may pastor but not be bishops. Lodges, tobacco, alcohol, and gambling are forbidden. The wider body holds its ministers' credentials, so a church it regards badly loses its pastor, not its independence.

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Church of God in Christ its page →

Black-church worship with choir, organ, and band; a Tuesday prayer meeting and Friday and Sunday evening services; tarrying, shut-ins, prayer cloths, and Watch Night.

The jurisdictional bishop appoints the pastor for life (they retire after 35 years), trained by apprenticeship; below 150 at worship a church has a part-time one. The pastor decides renovations; the district decides new building. The district and jurisdictional reports ($1,200 and $3,000 a year) are required. Offerings are walked forward, fundraising is open, and the Women's Department, the YPWW, and the usher board are strong. The Holy Convocation each November holds its people.

International Pentecostal Holiness Church its page →

Praise and worship with a weekly altar call, quarterly communion, optional foot washing, and camp meetings. A church of transfer members is one of its variants.

The conference nominates one pastor; the members ratify by two thirds and the conference consents. The Local Church Administrative Council (tithers) decides renovations. The church tithe and the ministers' tithe each send a tenth upward. Church elders, named by the pastor from the members, each care for 25 more people.

United Pentecostal Church International its page →

A Oneness Pentecostal church: praise and worship Sunday morning and evening and a Wednesday prayer meeting, baptism in Jesus' name the moment someone responds, communion with foot washing twice a year, holiness dress, and a restricted view of entertainment.

The saints call a pastor, who serves for life with strong authority. The church board are tithers. Christmas for Christ ($1,500 a year) is voluntary, and the pastor's $900 dues come in their pay. Holiness dress holds people, but no dancing is allowed on the property and the youth ministry does less. The church recognizes only baptism in Jesus' name, so newcomers from other churches are baptized again.

Anabaptist, Moravian, and Friends

Mennonite Church USA its page →

A preaching service with four-part singing unaccompanied, led by a song leader; believers' baptism by pouring; communion about quarterly, optional foot washing; peace at the heart of its witness.

The members decide and call. Conference giving (4%) is voluntary. A thrift store is offered as an institution, and the relief sale circle raises money each September. A ringing room helps unaccompanied singing. Whether the church is affirming is its conference's to decide, not the congregation's, and is fixed for the game.

Church of the Brethren its page →

A preaching service on Sunday and, twice a year, the love feast: foot washing, a meal, and communion together at tables. Believers are baptized by triple immersion, the sick are anointed, and members affirm rather than swear.

The members decide and call. District support and the Core Ministries Fund (4% together) are voluntary. Peace and service are emphasised highly, and the building is dry. The denomination isn't affirming, but its churches often depart from that, and yours can, at a cost in the district's regard.

Moravian Church in America its page →

A printed liturgy with organ, choir, and brass; communion about seven times a year; the lovefeast with buns and coffee, the Christmas Eve candle service, and Easter at sunrise. The Southern Province is one of its variants.

The provincial board calls the pastor to the congregation, so the pastor is sent rather than advertised for. The board of trustees decides renovations; the members vote on new building with the province's consent. The Provincial Share (8%) is required. The church is affirming, but its congregations vary, and yours can depart from that, at a cost in regard.

Religious Society of Friends (Friends General Conference) its page →

Friends Meeting House: meeting benches in a hollow square on a plain wooden floor. No pulpit, no altar, no focal point.
Friends Meeting House: meeting benches in a hollow square on a plain wooden floor. No pulpit, no altar, no focal point.

Friends gather in silence, facing one another, with no one appointed to lead. Anyone moved to speak rises and does so where they sit. No sacraments are observed outwardly, and there's no church year.

No pastor needed (no preaching factor, and no penalty for its absence), almost nothing required, and only a voluntary covenant contribution ($60 a member). Giving is mailed or boxed, not passed. Attenders may serve on committees but don't decide. Decisions need consensus: no more than a tenth may object. Propose only what nearly everyone wants. The meeting decides whether it's affirming.

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Friends United Meeting its page →

A pastoral meeting: a pastor preaches, with a time of open worship within the service, a piano, Sunday school, and Christmas and Easter kept. No outward sacraments.

The pastor is part-time, recorded as a minister, and doesn't govern: the meeting decides everything, its pastor's call included, by consensus. The yearly meeting's apportionment (8%) is required. The denomination isn't affirming, but its meetings vary, and yours can depart from that, at a cost in regard.

Restorationist

Churches of Christ its page →

The Lord's Day assembly morning and evening and a Wednesday Bible class; singing unaccompanied, as the New Testament church sang; the Lord's Supper every Sunday; baptism by immersion the moment someone responds; men lead in worship.

Each congregation is independent: there's no wider body, nothing owed, and no one above it. Up to five elders, men named from the members, lead it, and the elders (married men) decide everything by consensus, including hiring a preacher, who doesn't govern. Members don't vote. There are no fundraisers. The church recognizes only its own baptism. A ringing room makes the singing count for more.

Christian Churches and Churches of Christ its page →

The instrumental churches of the same Restoration Movement, independent Christian churches with "No creed but Christ": the Lord's Supper every Sunday near the centre of the service, before the sermon, with an elder's short meditation at the table and the bread and cup passed along the pews; songs with piano and organ, or a band; an invitation every week, and believers immersed for the forgiveness of sins the moment they respond; Sunday school for all ages first, and a Sunday evening service and a Wednesday prayer meeting if you want them. A contemporary church is one of its variants.

Like the Churches of Christ, each congregation stands alone: there's no wider body, nothing owed, and no one above it. Unlike them, the members vote. The elders (men named from the members) decide renovations and call the minister; the members vote on new building. Ministers come from the movement's Bible colleges, a little less skilled than seminary graduates and asking a little less, and the congregation ordains its own. The minister's view doesn't sway votes, and deacons from the members widen the care. The building is dry, the church keeps out of politics, and it can hold a revival each year. The congregation decides whether women minister. The youth group forms once there are five teenagers, and raises its way to a summer conference each June. A contemporary church holds two Sunday services (and Saturday evening if you want it) with a band and chairs, serves communion at stations as well, and has no members' vote, so its elders decide new building too.

Independent churches and networks

Independent nondenominational church its page →

The pattern many independent churches share (not one body): two Sunday services of band-led praise and worship, a kids' ministry during, screens, online giving, and monthly communion. Baptistic, charismatic, and Reformed-leaning variants.

No wider body and nothing owed. The elder board decides and calls, with a strong lead pastor's view swaying it; the lead pastor stays a long time, and an associate takes over when they go. Members don't vote. The church decides whether women lead.

Calvary Chapel its page →

The movement Chuck Smith began at Costa Mesa in the Jesus movement. The pastor teaches the whole Bible verse by verse, Sunday morning and Wednesday evening, after a band-led set of worship songs; no plate is passed; communion monthly, after the teaching, passed in the pews; believers immersed, and each quarter the church goes down to the ocean or a river to baptize; children dedicated. The gifts of the Spirit are welcome, but tongues and prophecy are kept for a monthly afterglow, not the main service. (The game doesn't hold the afterglow or the quarterly baptisms yet: services of their own are yearly.)

In what Calvary calls the Moses model, the senior pastor leads: he decides renovations and new building himself, after a week's advice from the board, which stops the work only if most of it is against it. The board, men he trusts, calls the next pastor. There's no formal membership and no vote: everyone is a regular attender. Pastors are raised up within a church rather than sent to seminary, so candidates are a little less skilled and ask less; they stay a long time, and an associate takes over at once when one goes. Only men preach and pastor. People give at the box at the back and online, so visitors give nothing. The Association asks nothing of the church, and its only power is to end the affiliation, which it does once its regard has been below 0.15 for six months (a church that drifts far from Calvary's practice risks it). Leaving costs nothing.

Acts 29 its page →

A church-planting network, Reformed in its view of salvation: a casual, band-led preaching service on Sunday (and a second if you want it) around a long expository sermon; the Lord's Supper every week, by intinction at stations; believers immersed (a church that baptizes infants is one of its variants); the major days of the year kept; no altar call.

A plurality of elders leads, men only: one paid lead pastor, advertised and called, and up to five elders named from the members. The elders decide renovations; new building and a call go from the elders to the covenant members for their consent. Membership is by covenant, under formal discipline, and asks much of its people. The covenant the elders renew with the network each year gives a tenth of the general offerings to church planting: 2% to Acts 29 itself, required, and 8% to plants the church chooses, voluntary. The network's regard rides on the 2%; it offers grants to a church in need that stands well with it, and it can't direct a church, only end its membership. Pastors are trained by residency and apprenticeship. Women don't preach or govern. Outreach is by invitation, home Bible studies, and planting churches, and the church commissions the plants it sends. Leaving takes a majority and costs nothing.

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Charismatic

A family for churches between Pentecostal and evangelical: the Vineyard, ARC, and the nondenominational pattern's charismatic variant. Both bodies here are networks of independent churches, and each church owns its building.

Vineyard USA its page →

The movement that grew from John Wimber's Anaheim church: one Sunday service of long, unhurried worship, a message, and then ministry time every week, when ordinary members pray at the front for anyone who comes forward; monthly communion at stations; believers immersed and children dedicated; members anoint the sick; Vineyard Kids during the service. A Spanish-speaking La Viña church is one of its variants.

The church board decides building work, with a strong lead pastor's view swaying it, and calls the pastor; members don't vote. Pastors are licensed by the board, then ordained two years on and endorsed by Vineyard USA, which holds their credentials: a church it regards below 0.3 for three months loses its pastor. A married pastor's spouse leads alongside, and the two care for 75 more people. An associate takes over when the pastor goes. To keep the Vineyard name, the church gives 3% of its income to Vineyard USA, required. A church in good standing can have its grants; at 0.3 regard or less for six months it's found out of compliance, gets no help, and is watched more closely, until 0.5 for three months restores it. Below 0.15 for six months, it's disassociated. The church decides whether women pastor it. Leaving costs nothing.

Association of Related Churches its page →

A network that plants churches and launches them large: two Sunday services, band-led and production-heavy, with an invitation to respond every week; believers immersed, with a baptism celebration each month; monthly communion at stations; tithing expected; and each year begun with 21 Days of Prayer and Fasting in January.

Every church starts as a launching church, repaying its launch funding at 10% of income, required; ARC watches it closely and can lend to it from its launch funding. Once it has paid its own way (no help, and the last six months' books in the black) for two years running, it becomes a partner church, and owes nothing but a voluntary 2% toward the next plants. The lead pastor is always a married couple, trained by the network, who care for 75 more people together. The lead pastor decides renovations, after a week's advice from the trustees; the trustees decide new building, with the pastor's view swaying them; the elders call a successor. Members don't vote. Pastors stay a long time, and when one retires a son or daughter takes over. Women preach; the church decides whether they pastor. ARC claims no authority over its churches beyond ending the connection, and leaving costs nothing.

Latter-day Saints and Community of Christ

The Latter-day Saints' wards, with a lay bishop and the Church above them, and Community of Christ, a separate church (until 2001 the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints) now much closer to the mainline churches. Both are under Christianity, as they describe themselves.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints its page →

Maple Grove Ward's chapel: pews, the pulpit on the stand with chairs for the bishopric, the sacrament table, the organ, and the font; a classroom and an office off one side, the cultural hall off the other.
Maple Grove Ward's chapel: pews, the pulpit on the stand with chairs for the bishopric, the sacrament table, the organ, and the font; a classroom and an office off one side, the cultural hall off the other.

A ward, meeting in a meetinghouse: on Sunday a two-hour block, an hour of sacrament meeting with bread and water and talks by members of the ward, then classes (Sunday School, Primary, the Relief Society and the quorums); members baptized by immersion from eight; Christmas and Easter kept; no crosses. On the General Conference Sundays (the first of April and of October) and the stake conference Sundays (here the third of March and of September) the ward holds no meetings of its own.

The stake calls a member as bishop, unpaid, for five years, with two counselors and a ward clerk, all called from the ward; there are no paid clergy. Two priests (young men from 16) bless the sacrament and four deacons (from 12) pass it; only men and boys serve, so a ward short of them misses them. The bishop decides renovations; the stake decides new building. The Church funds the ward centrally: tithes and offerings go up, given privately, never in a plate, and a budget ($25 for each active person a month) and all the building's costs come down. The meetinghouse is shared with other wards, which have it on Sunday from noon to five, so keep your own meetings in the morning; the Church pays for it all, so the others owe no share, and members clean it, so there's no caretaker to hire. Fast offerings are given each month; fundraising is limited to modest events (the Church allows one a year, for youth camp), never a raffle. Young adults go out as missionaries for two years, the temple holds families, and the Relief Society, elders quorum, and youth are strong. The Word of Wisdom rules out alcohol, tobacco, coffee, and tea, though caffeine isn't forbidden, so a fifth fewer stay to talk after the meeting. A ward of 40 members or fewer for a year becomes a branch, led by a branch president; at 120 it's a ward again. It can't vote to leave.

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Community of Christ its page →

Until 2001 the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and a separate church from the Latter-day Saints: much closer now to the mainline churches, trinitarian, keeping the Christian year with the lectionary. Sunday worship is planned from the church's Worship Resources, with the Prayer for Peace and a sermon by a member of the priesthood or another member; church school comes first; the Lord's Supper, with bread and grape juice, is on the first Sunday of the month, open to all who follow Christ; members are baptized by immersion from eight; children are blessed, and the evangelist blessing is given.

About one member in ten is ordained, nearly all unpaid, and women have been called to every office since 1984: the congregation elects one of its priesthood as pastor, so a pastor comes plentifully and for nothing. The members decide renovations and new building (the mission center consents to building). The church holds title through its Presiding Bishopric, which insures the building; it can merge or close a congregation, and leaving forfeits the building. Members give to their true capacity, and Mission Tithes for the World Church (about 15% of their tithes, voluntary) come out of what they'd give. Fundraising is open. Peace and justice mark its life, intoxicants aren't allowed on the property, and whether it's affirming is its region's to decide, fixed for the game.

Distinct traditions

Seventh-day Adventist Church its page →

Hillside Seventh-day Adventist Church: the pulpit at the centre of the platform, the communion table before it, a baptistry with its plumbing stack, a piano, and an empty cross.
Hillside Seventh-day Adventist Church: the pulpit at the centre of the platform, the communion table before it, a baptistry with its plumbing stack, a piano, and an empty cross.

Adventists keep the seventh-day Sabbath, from sunset on Friday to sunset on Saturday, so the church meets on Saturday: Sabbath School first, then the worship service. Believers are baptized by immersion, and the Lord's Supper, with foot-washing (the ordinance of humility) beforehand, comes once a quarter. The church keeps its own year, with Christmas and Easter, and the Ingathering appeal.

Choosing the tradition moves your services and Sabbath School to Saturday; a service you put back on a Sunday costs everyone at it (−0.12). The members vote on renovations, but the conference decides new building and sends the pastor, who is shared below 60. The tithe to the conference, 15% of income, is the heaviest obligation of any tradition, but the conference pays the pastor from it. A parish school is offered, a fifth of it paid by the conference; outreach is by evangelistic series and literature; the Pathfinders and Women's Ministries form. Meals are vegetarian (cheaper), fewer stay for coffee, the Sabbath keeps weddings and tenants away, and tenants pay 15% less for it.

Jehovah's Witnesses its page →

The weekend meeting on Sunday and the midweek meeting on Thursday in a Kingdom Hall, recorded music, and once a year the Memorial of Christ's death, when the bread and wine are passed and only the anointed partake. No crosses, no flags, no holidays.

A body of unpaid elders (baptized men named from the congregation and appointed by the circuit) leads, with ministerial servants. Publishers report their service each month, and the circuit's regard follows how many come (up where seven in ten do, down below half). Commitment is total: people come more, serve more, and seldom drift, and those who leave are shunned, which costs their friends. New publishers are baptized at the circuit assembly each April, not in the hall, so the hall needs no baptistry. Outreach is door to door, home Bible studies, and literature; giving is by contribution boxes only, so visitors give nothing; there are no fundraisers; donations to the worldwide work (25%) are voluntary. The Kingdom Hall is shared on a schedule. Blood drives, parties, polling places, and anything patriotic are ruled out. It can't vote to leave.

Church of Christ, Scientist its page →

The Lesson-Sermon, read on Sunday by two Readers from desks, with no sermon of anyone's own; the Wednesday testimony meeting; Sunday School during the service; an organ; no sacraments; a Reading Room open to the public; healing by prayer.

The members elect two Readers from among themselves, unpaid, for three years; there's no sermon topic to choose, since the Lesson-Sermon is set. The members decide everything else. The per capita tax ($1 a member) is paid by members themselves. Outreach is the Reading Room's literature. No health clinic, alcohol, or tobacco on the property.

Unitarian Universalist Association its page →

A covenantal, non-creedal faith drawing on many sources: the Sunday service opens by lighting the flaming chalice, with joys and concerns, the flower and water communions in their seasons, and religious education during the service. A lay-led fellowship is one of its variants.

The members call a minister by 90% (with an interim between) and approve new building by two thirds. Members pledge; the share plate gives 5% of each offering on; fundraising is open, and renting space is usual. The Annual Program Fund (6.75%) is voluntary, but giving less than half of it means no help from the Association. The church is affirming, and can be recognized as a Welcoming Congregation.

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