# Catholic and Christianity: a Diptych comparison Schema version 1.0. The Diptych displays; it does not score, rank, or adjudicate. ## 1. In its own words ### Catholic The Catholic Church is the largest single body in Christianity. It understands itself as the continuing church of the apostles, governed by bishops in communion with the Pope, and it carries the Latin Church and the Eastern Catholic Churches within one communion. - [Catholic](/tree/catholic) ### Christianity Christianity began as a Jewish movement proclaiming Jesus as the Messiah and grew, through the early councils, the great schisms, and the Reformations, into the largest of the world religions. Its internal divisions are not decorations on a single body; they are the substance of its history, and this tree models them as first-class entities, from the ancient branches to the denominations and movements of today. - [Christianity](/tree/christian) ## 2. Scale and spread ### Catholic The Catholic Church counts about 1.38 billion baptized members, close to half of all Christians, organized in more than 3,000 dioceses. The largest populations stand in Latin America, Europe, and Africa, and the church is the largest single Christian body in the world. - [Catholic](/tree/catholic) ### Christianity Christianity counts about 2.3 billion adherents, roughly a third of the world's people, and stands in every country. The largest populations are in the Americas, Europe, and sub-Saharan Africa, and Christians form the majority in about 157 countries. - [Christianity](/tree/christian) ## 3. Historical timeline ### Catholic - [The christian timeline](/history/christian) - [Council of Jerusalem](/history/events/council-of-jerusalem) - [First Council of Nicaea](/history/events/first-council-of-nicaea) - [Athanasius' 39th Festal Letter](/history/events/athanasius-39th-festal-letter) - [First Council of Constantinople](/history/events/first-council-of-constantinople) - [Council of Ephesus](/history/events/council-of-ephesus) - [Council of Chalcedon](/history/events/council-of-chalcedon) ### Christianity - [The christian timeline](/history/christian) - [Birth of Jesus](/history/events/birth-of-jesus) - [Crucifixion and Resurrection](/history/events/crucifixion-and-resurrection) - [Paul's Missionary Journeys](/history/events/pauls-missionary-journeys) - [Council of Jerusalem](/history/events/council-of-jerusalem) - [Nero's Persecution](/history/events/neros-persecution) - [Destruction of the Jerusalem Temple](/history/events/destruction-of-the-jerusalem-temple) ## 4. Sources of authority ### Catholic - [New Catholic Dictionary (1910)](/dictionaries/new-catholic-dictionary) - [The Catholic Encyclopedia (1914)](/dictionaries/catholic-encyclopedia) - [CatholicCulture.org Library](/dictionaries/catholic-culture) - [Hail Mary](/prayers-and-creeds/hail-mary) - [Glory Be (Gloria Patri)](/prayers-and-creeds/glory-be) - [Prayers of the Rosary](/prayers-and-creeds/rosary-prayers) ### Christianity - [Easton's Bible Dictionary](/dictionaries/eastons-bible-dictionary) - [Smith's Bible Dictionary](/dictionaries/smiths-bible-dictionary) - [Hitchcock's Bible Names Dictionary](/dictionaries/hitchcocks-bible-names) - [Apostles' Creed](/prayers-and-creeds/apostles-creed) - [Nicene Creed](/prayers-and-creeds/nicene-creed) - [Athanasian Creed](/prayers-and-creeds/athanasian-creed) ## 5. Ultimate reality ### Catholic - [The Catholic World View](/world-views/the-catholic-world-view) ### Christianity - [Protestantism](/world-views/protestantism) ## 6. The human person ### Catholic - [The Catholic World View](/world-views/the-catholic-world-view) ### Christianity - [Protestantism](/world-views/protestantism) ## 7. Problem and solution ### Catholic - [The Catholic World View](/world-views/the-catholic-world-view) ### Christianity - [Protestantism](/world-views/protestantism) ## 8. Ethics and hard cases ### Catholic - [The Catholic World View](/world-views/the-catholic-world-view) ### Christianity - [Protestantism](/world-views/protestantism) ## 9. Practice and devotion ### Catholic - [The Rosary](/devotion/the-rosary) - [Stations of the Cross](/devotion/stations-of-the-cross) - [Novena](/devotion/novena) - [Hail Mary](/prayers-and-creeds/hail-mary) - [Glory Be (Gloria Patri)](/prayers-and-creeds/glory-be) - [Prayers of the Rosary](/prayers-and-creeds/rosary-prayers) ### Christianity - [The Rosary](/devotion/the-rosary) - [Stations of the Cross](/devotion/stations-of-the-cross) - [Novena](/devotion/novena) - [Baptism](/traditions/baptism) - [The Eucharist](/traditions/the-eucharist) - [Lent](/traditions/lent) - [Apostles' Creed](/prayers-and-creeds/apostles-creed) - [Nicene Creed](/prayers-and-creeds/nicene-creed) ## 10. Community and governance ### Catholic - [Catholic](/church/catholic) ### Christianity - [Christian](/church/christian) ## 11. Art and material culture ### Catholic - [The Good Shepherd of the Catacombs](/art/entries/catacomb-good-shepherd) - [Hagia Sophia](/art/entries/hagia-sophia) ### Christianity - [The Good Shepherd of the Catacombs](/art/entries/catacomb-good-shepherd) - [Hagia Sophia](/art/entries/hagia-sophia) - [Rublev's Trinity](/art/entries/rublev-trinity) - [Christianity](/art/profiles/christianity) ## 12. Science and technology posture ### Catholic - [Patristic](/science/eras/patristic) - [Medieval European](/science/eras/medieval-european) - [Renaissance and Reformation](/science/eras/renaissance-and-reformation) - [Catholic](/science/traditions/catholic) - [Heliocentric astronomy](/science/technologies/heliocentric-astronomy) - [The telescope](/science/technologies/telescope) - [Evolution by natural selection](/science/technologies/evolution-by-natural-selection) - [Artificial intelligence and human dignity](/science/flashpoints/ai-and-human-dignity) ### Christianity - [Patristic](/science/eras/patristic) - [Medieval European](/science/eras/medieval-european) - [Renaissance and Reformation](/science/eras/renaissance-and-reformation) - [Catholic](/science/traditions/catholic) - [Orthodox](/science/traditions/orthodox) - [Mainline Protestant](/science/traditions/mainline-protestant) - [Heliocentric astronomy](/science/technologies/heliocentric-astronomy) - [The telescope](/science/technologies/telescope) ## 13. Internal diversity ### Catholic - [Pentecostal and Charismatic Christianity](/tree/pentecostal-and-charismatic) - [The Latin Church](/tree/the-latin-church) - [The Eastern Catholic Churches](/tree/the-eastern-catholic-churches) ### Christianity - [Catholic](/tree/catholic) - [Eastern Orthodox](/tree/eastern-orthodox) - [Oriental Orthodox](/tree/oriental-orthodox) - [Protestant](/tree/protestant) - [Restorationist](/tree/restorationist) - [Anglican](/tree/anglican) ## 14. Contributions ### Catholic Coverage: not documented. Evaluative coverage is scheduled; this slot populates through sourced, reviewed records. ### Christianity Coverage: not documented. Evaluative coverage is scheduled; this slot populates through sourced, reviewed records. ## 15. Internal critique ### Catholic Coverage: not documented. Evaluative coverage is scheduled; this slot populates through sourced, reviewed records. ### Christianity Coverage: not documented. Evaluative coverage is scheduled; this slot populates through sourced, reviewed records. ## 16. External critique and reply ### Catholic Coverage: not documented. Evaluative coverage is scheduled; this slot populates through sourced, reviewed records. ### Christianity Coverage: not documented. Evaluative coverage is scheduled; this slot populates through sourced, reviewed records. ## 17. Contested history ### Catholic - [East-West Schism](/tree/schisms/east-west-schism) - [Protestant Reformation](/tree/schisms/protestant-reformation) - [English Reformation](/tree/schisms/english-reformation) ### Christianity - [Chalcedonian Schism](/tree/schisms/chalcedonian-schism) - [East-West Schism](/tree/schisms/east-west-schism) ## 18. What each says about the other ### Catholic Coverage: not documented. This slot renders only when both directions stand populated and reviewed. ### Christianity Coverage: not documented. This slot renders only when both directions stand populated and reviewed. ## 19. What this comparison cannot settle ### Catholic This comparison sets two self-descriptions side by side; it does not decide between them. A tradition is a living range of positions, and each panel renders the range this site has documented, which is not the whole of the tradition. Where a cell is marked not yet documented, the gap belongs to this site's documentation, not to the tradition. Questions of truth between the panels turn on premises the reader brings: what counts as evidence, what authority is recognized, and what a human life is for. The instrument does not score, rank, or adjudicate. ### Christianity This comparison sets two self-descriptions side by side; it does not decide between them. A tradition is a living range of positions, and each panel renders the range this site has documented, which is not the whole of the tradition. Where a cell is marked not yet documented, the gap belongs to this site's documentation, not to the tradition. Questions of truth between the panels turn on premises the reader brings: what counts as evidence, what authority is recognized, and what a human life is for. The instrument does not score, rank, or adjudicate. ## 20. Sources ### Catholic - [Catholic](/tree/catholic) ### Christianity - [Christianity](/tree/christian) ## Sources - Catholic: The Catechism of the Catholic Church (1992). - Catholic: Thomas P. Rausch, Towards a Truly Catholic Church (2005). - Christianity: The New Testament. - Christianity: Justo L. Gonzalez, The Story of Christianity (2010).