Another fun ‘gram’ memory. I’ve mentioned that I’m very short. Well, some occasion came up…I was probably between 8 and 11…and we went to visit grams sister.

First, the idea of gram having a sister threw me. Gram was Gram. She always had been. What’s this deal about having a sister and a past life? So, then we get there and, now that I understand, I can’t wait to see this person.

We find her in the kitchen, with the freezer door ajar. She’s small and a bit bent. I notice the age like I never did with gram. I also notice the shortness. Her eyes are barely level with the bottom of the freezer. My six brothers and I are all standing at our ‘most polite attention’ and I start nudging mom to ask a question. Sensing it won’t be good, perhaps, she shushed me. And again when I nudged again. On my third try, she finally asked, “What?” I pointed at ‘Aunt Sadie” and, with dread in my voice, iwhispered rather loudly “Is THAT going to happen to US?”

What a lot of people do not realize is that there are many sects of christianity as well as sects of judaism, and muslim. And we of any particular group choose to be of that group and do not agree with others of our “same” religion. Believing in the same prophet does not mean believing the same about the prophet.

There are even splits among the mormons, the catholics, etc.. There are the Calvinists the Weslyans among the protestants – and on and on it goes.

LOL…I remembered a few of those other groups that would be lumped under “Protestant”…Mennonite, Amish sects, Quakers. Strangest thing about forgetting them is that I’m originally from Pennsylvania and my dad’s mom actually wore the white bonnet most of her life. (Funny…when it’s ‘gram’ wearing the bonnet you don’t even notice it.)

“I think as time marches on, the PEW Review might need to break down their Protestant numbers somehow to give a more accurate picture of churches and their influence.”

Great point on this…and thank you Timothy for the breakdown…

Although they are as far apart as you can get theologically and still be “Christian”, as far as politics and culture go the Catholics, Mormons, Baptists and Pentecostals have more in common with each other than they do with Episcopalians, Lutherans or Presbyterians.

Very, very interesting – thank you!

Timothy,

Thank you answering my second question and sending the breakdown – I’m going to study it as I have never seen this information before.

Eddy,

Thank you for your comments – it is always nice to have a meaningful dialogue, regardless of where two or more people originally stand on issues – where we start could be completely different from where we end up – it is what we learn from each other in between that matters – if I respect someone, I’m going to want to listen to what they say, whether I agree with it or not.

I did want to comment on the results of the PEW Review Council. JAG did cite that Protestants (as the largest group) represented ‘multiple denominational families’. I think what caught my attention was the fact that the PEW review council seemed to see all Protestants as pretty much the same thing. Yet the term would include (I presume) Baptists, Methodists, Lutherans, Episcopalians, Congregationalists, United Church of Christ, Presbyterians, and many more. It strikes me that some of these groups hold more to a ‘born-again’ theology while others simply try to ‘live by Christian principles’. And, among the Protestants–and even within most of the individual denominations–there are differing views on issues such as homosexuality, divorce, abortion. LOL! I think as time marches on, the PEW Review might need to break down their Protestant numbers somehow to give a more accurate picture of churches and their influence.