We look at Catholic/Protestant/Orthodox divisions in Christianity and Sunni/Shia/Sufi divides in Islam, but note that the C or L question cuts across and within groups. In Islam, for example, 85 percent of Muslims are Sunnis, but that doesn't tell you much about how they live; it's more important to find out whether they are Hanafi (the most liberal Sunni school of thought), Hanbali (the most conservative) or one of the two schools in between.
The key divide within broadly defined Christianity (note: the theological C/L divide is not the same as the political one) is whether the biblical accounts are historically accurate or mythical. Paul, the apostle, wrote that "If Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and we are of all people most to be pitied." Positions on issues such as abortion also depend on whether we read the Bible as God's special book, or as an old book with some relevant thoughts and some we can ignore, as we choose.
TC or ID? G or F? B, Q or S? C or L? After a course that spends only three weeks on each major religion, barely scratching the surface, students will still be confused by the hundreds of different brands on sale along the aisles of our religious supermarket, but at least they'll know the basic food groups.
Marvin Olasky
Marvin Olasky is editor-in-chief of the national news magazine World. For additional commentary by Marvin Olasky, visit www.worldmag.com.
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