What is a non-denominational church?

Question

The term "non-denominational" makes me think of a church that has no leadership and no organization. For example, if I went to a non-denom church in L.A., called the ABC Church, and I moved across the country to N.Y., would I be able to find the same ABC Church there, or any church at all that teaches the same exact doctrine as the ABC Church in L.A.?

Do any two non-denominational churches teach the same doctrine? If they do, doesn't that make them a denomination? Furthermore, do any non-denominational churches claim to be God's one and only true church? If so, which one(s)?

I know I'm asking a lot of questions here, but I would like to know exactly what it means to be non-denominational. Thanks.

Answer 1

I go to a non-denominational church. It is sort of Baptist, and used to have the word Baptist in its name, but it is not part of the Southern Baptist Convention (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_Baptist_Convention).

Non-denominational is general term for Protestant church that is not affiliated with any denomination, which means don't expect one ND church to be the same as another ND church. ND is not a special religion in itself. There are conservative ND churches and there are moderate ND churches. If you look at the Wiki some of these ND's have names, which almost make them another new denomination/brand of church...like Vineyard and Calvary Chapel. BUT I think "denominations" is a term to refer to older "mainline" groups.

Doctrines can be slightly or even greatly, but heck ours core doctrines are pretty similar to Convenent churches as well as Baptist and many other "bible-believing" Protestant churches.

Most Christians these days aren't really extremely tied to one denomination or the other. They rather pick by location, quality of teaching, the congregation (do they click with them), the worship style or if there is child care. Practical, huh? Correct core beliefs on salvation and Jesus fit in somewhere there, too.

I have to refute James who said ND's "are those that allow people of any or no faith in". Actually ALL churches welcome people of other faiths if they want to check them out and learn. If you don't like what they teach, then you leave. I could walk into a Methodist church or Presbyterian church or Catholic church. They're not going to kick me out if I said I was a Lutheran, gay, Jew or aetheist, as long as you are not there to disrupt and disrespect their beliefs. (this is how it should be anywayz)

I have to respectfully refute oldguy63 too. Though he is right some ND's have sweetened the teaching so it doesn't turn off folk....(i.e. no outward condemnation of adultery, on-line porn, no guilt trips. They don't condone it, but they don't want to bop people over the head with it).... there are plenty of ND's which aren't afraid to preach all of the bible.... the purty parts and the hard to swallow parts.

I don't know if there is a ND church that says they are the one and only true church... but there is one ND that makes you get RE-baptised if you didn't get baptised by their church. Most Christians I know say this ND church is a cult for the way they treat members. (former members created this site http://www.reveal.org/ )

Answer 2

You're correct in your basic assumption. A non-demoninational church is one that is not affiliated with a larger church body -- it is a stand-alone congregation. If you were to move to another place, it is possible to find another church that teaches like the previous one; but it would be purely accidental. The idea of being non-denominational precludes the possibility of a larger umbrella organization which guarantees doctinal uniformity.

You ask if various churches teaching the same (or similar) doctrines makes them a denomination. No -- not at all. You and I might make similar purchasing choices, but that doesn't mean one of us is following the lead of the other. The idea of becoming a denomination means that people have decided on a common code of teaching for separate congregations, and a single governing body to oversee compliance with those teachings. Once again, it's possible that many non-denomination churches may very well be teaching the same thing; but it is purely coincidence because none of these churches recognizes the authority of an external body making a super-ordinate claim of obedience.

Do any non-denominationals claim to be the "true" church? Since there are countless non-denominationals out there, my guess would be that they all do. After all, one goes one's own way precisely because one has come to the conclusion that everyone else is incorrect.

Answer 3

A denomination is a formal organization of which a church may be a member. For instance "Southern Baptist" is one of the nation's biggest denominations (several hundred). Other denominations like "Bible Presbyterian" have only about 25 churches.

Non-denominational means that they are not officially associated with any denomination. They are entirely independent. Non-denominational church is like saying "bird." You have peacocks, ostriches, penguins, and hummingbirds. They can be very different, but they are often similar if they hold to what the bible teaches.

If 2 have the same doctrine, it is usually because they are approaching the Bible with the same hermeneutic (Bible study method) for instance, if a church employs an allegorical hermeneutic, then they could come up with about anything. If 2 churches use a grammatical-historical hermeneutic (What did it mean to the original audience, and how then am I to understand it) Then they will come out fairly similar, but they may still have doctirnal differences.

I don't know of any churches that are Christian that claim to be the one and only true denomination. I have a book somewhere that is titled, "Handbook of the denominations of the United States" It will tell you the basic beliefs of all the major denominatoins, but it won't help much with the non-denominational. It would be best to get a doctrinal statement and interview the leadership (via phone). This saves a lot of wasted time visiting chruches you wouldn't want to attend.

Answer 4

A non-denominational church is a church that is not affiliated with any organization such as Baptist, Methodist, or Presbyterian. The ministers, generally speaking, have graduated from a seminary somewhere so they have been taught doctrine and Bible. The churches all have, or should have, a mission statement that details what they believe and teach.
Churches often become non-denominational for reasons other then doctrine, such as financial disagreements. Or it could be doctrinal issues that cause it form it's own independent church. They are all, pretty much, similar in doctrine and belief and tend to be Evangelical.
Unless it's actually a cult and not a Bible believing church it does not claim to be the "God's one and only" church. If it does, run like crazy because it is not an organization that you want to be affiliated with.
You wouldn't find another "ABC" church anywhere else, but you could find one that is very similar in doctrine named "DEF" or "GHI" anywhere else you go.

Answer 5

In Christianity, the term non-denominational refers to those churches which have not formally aligned themselves with an established denomination. Non-denominational churches establish their own internal means and methods of policy and worship without interference from the policies and worship practices of regional, national, or multinational organizations. Members of non-denominational churches often consider themselves simply "Christians", and many feel at home when visiting any number of other denominational churches with compatible beliefs.

On the other hand, some non-denominational churches consciously reject the idea of a denominational structure as a matter of doctrine, insisting that each congregation must be autonomous, sometimes pointing out that in early Christianity, there were no denominations. In support of this stance, 1 Corinthians 1:10-13 is often cited. It reads:

Now I mean this, that each one of you is saying, "I am of Paul," and "I of Apollos," and "I of Peter," and "I of Christ." Has Christ been divided? Paul was not crucified for you, was he? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Non-denominational_church

Answer 6

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Christianity, the term non-denominational refers to those churches which have not formally aligned themselves with an established denomination. Non-denominational churches establish their own internal means and methods of policy and worship without interference from the policies and worship practices of regional, national, or multinational organizations. Members of non-denominational churches often consider themselves simply "Christians", and many feel at home when visiting any number of other denominational churches with compatible beliefs.

Answer 7

Many churches claim to be non-denominational while in reality they are connected with one. It hjas nothing to do with leadership or organization.

In Christianity, the term non-denominational refers to those churches which have not formally aligned themselves with an established denomination. Non-denominational churches establish their own internal means and methods of policy and worship without interference from the policies and worship practices of regional, national, or multinational organizations. Members of non-denominational churches often consider themselves simply "Christians", and many feel at home when visiting any number of other denominational churches with compatible beliefs.

On the other hand, some non-denominational churches consciously reject the idea of a denominational structure as a matter of doctrine, insisting that each congregation must be autonomous, sometimes pointing out that in early Christianity, there were no denominations. In support of this stance, 1 Corinthians 1:10-13 is often cited. It reads:

Now I mean this, that each one of you is saying, "I am of Paul," and "I of Apollos," and "I of Peter," and "I of Christ." Has Christ been divided? Paul was not crucified for you, was he? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Non-denominational

Answer 8

Non denominational churches tend to be non doctrine churches, and there are lots of them around. They don't want to take a stand on anything because that may offend some people, and they want everyone to come to their church. I'm glad Christ was not non denominational, He was committed to One Way to life

Answer 9

it means just what it says. there is no set criteria for membership, attenmdance, doctrine or anything found within denominational churches. the non-denominational church is usually, but not always, not aligned with any other churches. they welcome all persons, regardless of previous church affiliation, may have non-traditional explanations or ideas about what it teaches, as well as teachings drawn from other religions such as buddhist and shintoist, both of which are eastern asian religions.
they are usually chartered as a single church for tax purposes, while denominational churches are chartered by the main church.
the pastor may have his ministerial credentials from the church, and not from seminarial study, such as catholic priests and ministers in the methodist church of the usa.

Answer 10

Non-denominational Churchs are those that allow people of any or no faith in . To listen and learn about the different religious ideas of the other members.