Theology The Social Sources of Denominations

Richard Niebuhr's primary argument in his work "The Social Sources of Denominationalism" is that denominations within the church are hallmarks of religion within the United States. Churches naturally separate based on a variety of factors, and will continue to until the end of time. Many things account for these differentiations or thought or denominations including culture, economics race and national origin. Niebuhr believed that the majority of these separations occurred for non-religious or worldly-based reasons. Niebuhr held an almost harsh view of religion, stating that "Denominationalism thus represents the moral failure of Christianity," and he refers to such denominationalism specifically as "the moral failure of Christianity."

He believed that non-religious distinctions were primarily responsible for creating schisms and different factions or denominations of the church, not purely spiritual endeavors. Denominations, or different sects within the church, occur primarily because of social class distinctions.

According to Niebuhr, secularization is the process whereby religion accommodates the world. Secularization may be defined as the process by which religious denominations or organizations "become more worldly and offer a less vivid and less active conception of the supernatural." Religion accommodates...

When one group becomes dissatisfied with another, or with the masses, they typically will break from the church and form their own denomination. As this is not necessarily a spiritual motive, denominationalism may be referred to as secular in nature.
Niebuhr in his work strongly suggests that religious organizations form or originate through schism. From a cultural and race related perspective, Niebuhr also argues that immigrant denominations are formed when different cultures and races come together and decide not to conform to the most prevalent religious practices and groups already established within the U.S. Many times immigrant churches will form their own denomination or sect because they are more comfortable among people like themselves with similar backgrounds and social stature. The branching out of immigrants into their own churches often results in new denominations and increased differentiation. The primary basis for this differentiation is race and cultural related. Economics also come into play, as certain social classes or groups of immigrants will typically fall into one economic category or another.

In his work Niebuhr calls attention to denominational barriers as a shameful and sad fact of life. He points out the marked hostility that existed between members of different denominations during the time in which he wrote…