O Protestantism is a Christian movement that emerged with the Protestant Reformation in the 16th century.
One of its main characteristics is the break with certain doctrines of the Catholic Church, such as the sale of indulgences, the authority of the pope and the veneration of saints. The movement makes up one of the main strands of Christianity.
already the evangelical movement emerged in the seventeenth century as an offshoot of Protestantism. That is, the evangelical movement is part of Protestantism, but has more well-defined beliefs.
Thus, we can say that every evangelical is a Protestant, but not every Protestant is an evangelical.
| Protestantism | Evangelism | |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Christian movement that emerged with the Protestant Reformation for disagreeing with a series of actions and doctrines of the Catholic Church. Among its main features are the primacy of the Bible over oral tradition and the lack of a central human authority. | Movement that emerged from Protestantism and is characterized by faith in the gospel and the four cardinal beliefs. |
| Origin | 16th century, with the Protestant Reformation. | XVII century. |
| Origin of the term | The term Protestant came from “protest”, a document of protest that was presented in 1529 by Lutherans, followers of the theology of Martin Luther. | Derived from the Latin word "evangelium”, which means “good news”. |
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Definition and characteristics of Protestantism
Protestantism originated with the Protestant Reformation, a 16th-century movement that called for reform of the Catholic Church. It was led by Martin Luther and other reformers such as John Calvin and Huldrych Zwingli.
Protestantism has more than 1 billion followers worldwide, being the second largest form of Christianity. One of its main features is the lack of structural unity and a central human authority such as the pope. According to Protestantism, anyone has access to God through prayer.
Protestants follow the principles of "five soles”, which are the points where they diverge from the Roman Catholic Church.
- Sole Scripture: Only the principles found in the Bible are valid;
- sole gratia: Salvation comes only by the Grace of God;
- sola fide: Sins are forgiven only by faith and not by actions;
- Solus Christus: Salvation is found only in Christ;
- Soli Deo Gloria: Glory only to God.
Definition and characteristics of evangelism
Evangelism is a Christian movement that emerged after the Protestant Reformation. Its main characteristic is belief in the good news of Jesus Christ through the gospel.
Currently, the term most used for this aspect is "Evangelical Movement", since Evangelism is often used interchangeably with evangelism, which means to spread the gospel. teachings of Jesus.
Evangelicals follow the principles of four cardinal beliefs, that are:
- The Bible contains absolute truth;
- Salvation only comes by believing in Jesus Christ;
- Belief in being born again, that is, that by converting, it is as if the believer gained a new life;
- The importance of spreading the word of God through evangelism.
View of the Bible
The main difference between the two movements is that evangelicals have a more well-defined position on the Bible.
Protestants in general follow the principle of Sola Scriptura, which holds that the Bible alone is the source of ultimate revelation. Therefore, the church cannot create doctrines that are not in the scriptures.
Evangelicals also believe in this principle, but go further, claiming that the Bible is God's absolute truth, free from error.
On this point, some Protestant groups tend to be more liberal, asserting that the Bible requires interpretation and should not be taken literally.
Protestants and Evangelicals in Brazil
Although historically the term evangelical has been used to refer to Lutherans and Presbyterians, in Brazil the term has been used to define Pentecostals and Neo-Pentecostals. These include followers of the Universal Church and Assembly of God, among other congregations.
See also the difference between:
- Atheist and Agnostic
- Being Catholic and being Christian
- Creationism and Evolutionism
- Catholic Church and Orthodox Church
