Christian Pure

Catholic vs Christian: Catholics Are Christians Who Differ From Protestants

Christian Pure Team

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Summary

  • Catholics are Christians. The Catholic Church is the largest Christian church, with just over 1.42 billion baptized members in 2024 by the Vatican’s count.
  • In American usage, “Christian” often means a Protestant or nondenominational believer: Pew Research Center counts people who call themselves “just Christian” as Protestants.
  • The deepest difference is authority. Catholics hold Scripture and Tradition together, taught by the bishops with the Pope; Protestants hold Scripture alone as the final rule.
  • Catholics count seven sacraments and believe the bread and wine of the Mass become Christ’s body and blood; most Protestants count two, and their views of Communion range from real presence to a memorial.
  • Catholic Bibles have 73 books and most Protestant Bibles 66; the extra seven are Tobit, Judith, 1 and 2 Maccabees, Wisdom, Sirach and Baruch.
  • A Catholic may marry a Protestant with the bishop’s permission, but does not receive Communion in a Protestant church, and a Protestant service does not replace Sunday Mass.

Yes, Catholics are Christians, and theirs is the largest church in the world. People who ask about “Catholic vs Christian” usually mean Catholics and Protestant, evangelical or nondenominational Christians. Both confess the Trinity and Jesus Christ as Savior. They differ most over authority, the sacraments, Mary and salvation; Catholics look to the Pope and Tradition as well as Scripture. QuestionCatholic ChurchMost Protestant churches What members call themselvesCatholic, a word meaning universalBaptist, Lutheran, Methodist and so on, or just Christian Who…

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Bibliography (Click to show)
  • Scripture is quoted from the English Standard Version (Ephesians 2:8–9; 1 Timothy 2:5 is cited), via Bible Gateway. https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+16%3A18-19%3B1+Timothy+2%3A5%3BEphesians+2%3A8-9%3BJames+2%3A24&version=ESV
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  • Catechism of the Catholic Church, paragraphs 818, 830 and 838 (Christians outside the Catholic Church; the meaning of “catholic”). https://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P29.HTM
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  • Catechism of the Catholic Church, paragraph 834 (communion with the Church of Rome), on the same page as 818–838 above; paragraph 1203 (the rites in use in the Church). https://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P3C.HTM
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