Why are there so many Christian denominations?

Since some of you are determined to blame Martin Luther, let me remind you of a few facts.

At the end of this very month, October 31, Protestants the world over and even some Orthodox and Catholic Christians, will celebrate the 500th anniversary of Luther's nailing his famous 95 THESES to the door of the church in Wittenberg, Germany. This was the event that touched off the Reformation.

The Reformation would never have happened if the Catholic Church at the time had not been both corrupt and greedy. As a fund-raising measure, Pope Leo X decided to sell "indulgences," to the public. These were pieces of paper declaring that the person named on it was granted ?-years out of purgatory. IN EFFECT, THE CHURCH WAS SAYING THAT GOD'S GRACE COULD BE BOUGHT.

"As soon as the coin in the coffer rings / The soul from purgatory springs."

That was the sales slogan. Luther protested this abuse. The Catholic Church, infuriated that Luther refused to recant, eventually excommunicated him.

Bruce and Sophia are correct. Luther did not choose to be a monk nor was he chosen. He was caught in a thunder storm and prayed to St Anne promising to be a monk if he survived. Historians have recorded that Luther had a guilt complex from his childhood which resulted in him going to confess so much that it annoyed priests hearing his confessions. Then he took a complete reverse position and told people no repenting was necessary. He even said, "Sin and sin boldly."

He opened the door to others starting their own churches when they disagree with something. Obviously there was a lot of disagreement among Protestants.

Yea...but there is only one Jesus, and the only way to know him is thru faith.

Humans

Until 500 years ago, there were only Catholic and Orthodox churches, with nearly identical beliefs. Luther was the first to decide that his private interpretations of the Catholic-Orthodox scriptures entitled him to start a rival church to Jesus' church. Many thousand other imaginative readers since then have decided they have equal authority to Jesus to start their splinter denominations.

Because of Luther. He left the Catholic Church and founded the first Protestant church. Other groups broke away from that church, etc., etc. . . . to the point that there are now thousands of churches started by one man.

protestant revolt