Well, if you are a protestant of European descent you came out of the Catholic Church one way or another, same thing with the Eastern Orthodox Churches (not considered protestants) and their history is your history up until whatever schism be it 1054 or 16th century. Maybe if you're an Ethiopian or Copt your faith was never a part of the Catholic Church, but just about everyone else in Christendom was.
| Branch | Primary Leadership Structure | Scripture and Tradition | Sacraments | Unique Practices and Beliefs |
|---|
| Roman Catholic Church | Centralized under the Pope as the Bishop of Rome. | Scripture and Tradition are co-equal sources of authority. | Seven sacraments: Baptism, Eucharist, Confirmation, Reconciliation, Anointing of the Sick, Matrimony, Holy Orders | Veneration of saints and Mary;
emphasis on Tradition and Papal authority. |
| Eastern Orthodox Church | Decentralized; autocephalous churches led by patriarchs. | Scripture and Tradition are co-equal | Seven sacraments, similar to Catholicism. | Use of icons; theosis (union with God); emphasis on mysticism |
| Protestantism | Generally decentralized, with leadership varying by denomination. | Sola Scriptura (Scripture alone) as the highest authority | Two sacraments (Eucharist and Baptism) in most traditions, though views vary. | Emphasis on personal faith and relationship with God; the priesthood of all believers; and diverse worship styles. |
| Oriental Orthodoxy | Decentralized; autocephalous churches led by patriarchs. | Scripture and Tradition are authoritative, with a unique miaphysite Christology. | Seven sacraments | Emphasis on miaphysite theology; strong sense of communal identity. |
| Assyrian Church of the East | Led by a Catholicos — Patriarch with regional bishops | Scripture is central but with emphasis on apostolic tradition. | Seven sacraments with a unique Eucharistic liturgy (Holy Qurbana) | Different Christology and less emphasis on the importance of icons in liturgy. |
Go back to Billy Grham's explanation as to who IS and ISN'T a "Christian". There are main elements, and then a ton of window dressing. The window dressing doesn't (shouldn't according to the Bible) matter. That is not to say that bloody wars have been fought over window dressing, or that Churches are man made things, because they are and we bring all our sinful politics into them, and we shouldn't.
Some folks that would possibly be labeled under the broad term "protestant" (which usually means like anything not Roman Catholic Church), might not have any specific connection roots with any of the stuff from the Roman Catholic Church. Both in modern Churches and in secret churches over the past 1600 years.
Part of the reason for most all the other ones of branching off from the Catholics, is pretty much right after the Emperor of Rome finished working with the "Christian Leaders" to co-opt Christianity and revise it to be the new state religion that was pretty comfortable for former pagan Greeks and Romans and ensured state power and central state control, they essentially went on a 50 year + campaign of trying to murder, slaughter, genocide and wipe out any true Christians who didn't bow the knee to the new Church of Rome. They would have made the Muslims proud of their "believe in our way and our rule or die" had the Muslims been around back then. The State and the State Church working hand in hand to slaughter all who wouldn't accept "The official way things were going to be"
The Roman Catholic Church, which was the fusion of political power with religious backing, then spent the better part of the next 1000 years being pretty much full on Muslim style and murdering, torturing, slaughtering, and genociding anyone who ever looked at the scriptures for themselves or tried to go back to the truths of the actual early Church of Jesus Christ and His apostles.
So the small bands of true believers that weren't taken in by the great apostasy of the Roman Church, were either very far away or had to keep very secret.
(In fairness the various "protestants" of the reformation often did the exact same thing, became the state Church and went about persecuting and slaughtering folks).
Most folks today don't really appreciate the freedom of Religion we enjoy today, where you can believe in God as you wish (or not) and expect to be safe, secure in your rights and not persecuted for your beliefs.
It's actually unique in the history of the world and doesn't even exist in some countries this day.
Back in the early 1800s the local "established" religions were busy literally murdering, slaughtering and trying to genocide Christians with the Restored Gospel. They even had the local and sometimes State governments backing them while the Federal government was too weak to stop it.
Nowadays everybody in this country, (including those who don't believe in god or believe in Satan) enjoys being able to believe as they wish.
BUT it might not always be that way, freedom comes and goes as the free folks age and generations become complacent.
Enjoy freedom and freedom of religion while you have it now.
The times may come in either your lifetime or that of your grandchildren, where people may once again be persecuted for their beliefs (just as happens right now around the world including in our "frenimies" countries)...
