[RickJ]

Another post reminds me of this that I've wondered about often...

38,000 is the number of christian denominations used by a lot of people, but I have yet to see a list of them from a reputable source. Does anyone have a source for this number that includes a list, or at least an explanation at how they arrive at that number?

[Bubbler]

Rickj

I would be intrested to see if you could get a source about this, because this has been quoted a lot of time's in the past but no one can ever come up with any proof !

[RickJ]

I'm certain that there are thousands, but how many thousands I have no clue. No doubt there are many tiny ones that some Joe started in some small town home basement, but I'd think those should not be considered a "denomination".

[speechlesstx]

I had never seen a source for this claim but apparently someone actually does study this, Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary.

[RickJ]

They link to this page citing 9000 worldwide denominations in their database. I'd think toss in a couple extra thousand for good measure and 12,000 worldwide denominations would be more accurate than 38,000.

[speechlesstx]

They link to this page citing 9000 worldwide denominations in their database. I'd think toss in a couple extra thousand for good measure and 12,000 worldwide denominations would be more accurate than 38,000.

Rick, I think you need to look at that again, the World Christian Database has "extensive data" on 9,000 denominations, but the page I linked to claims 39,000 denominations at mid-2007, on number 43 under "CHRISTIAN ORGANIZATIONS."

[RickJ]

Ooh, yes I did miss that. So I guess we're back to square 1 wondering where they get that figure.

I emailed them asking for info that substantiates the figure of 39k :)

[RickJ]

I received a response to my email. Not what I was looking for, but here it is none-the-less:

Dear Rick,

The figure 39,000 represents our most current, up-to-date data. As we are constantly updating this figure, it is not published in print form. The figure of 33,800 from the year 2000 was printed in our book World Christian Trends, (Pasadena, CA: William Carey Library, 2001). Part 12 of World Christian Trends (WCT), Table 12-1 gives figures of denominational totals for all 238 countries of the world. These figures are also represented graphically in WCT on page 917, Global Map 14. Unfortunately, we do not have a comprehensive list of all denominations by name. Such a list would be lengthy indeed!

I hope this informations helps.
Thank you,
Justin J. Evans
Research Assistant
Center for the Study of Global Christianity
Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary
130 Essex Street #228
South Hamilton, MA 01982 USA
E-mail: [email protected]
World Christian Database
GCTS - Global Christianity - Center for the Study of Global Christianity
Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary
World Christian Encyclopedia

[speechlesstx]

Hey Rick, at least they responded. So many these days do not.

[sebirence]

Can you give the list of fouder's name of those denominations

[RickJ]

Sorry, sabirence, but it is not possible to post an answer of thousands of lines. Here is a link to information about some of them:

List of Christian denominations - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia