The guide's three headings: Divine authority: God and Jesus. Authority of foundational figures, prophets and saints. Church hierarchy and the authority of the person in different denominations.
Three levels, and Christians differ mainly about the third.
Christian authority. Every church claims the first link; they differ about the fourth.
Interactive diagram
Explore the labelled diagram, charts and maps for this topic in full study mode.
Read the guide's cross-reference: Under authority it says: see "Worship" in the "Theme 1: Rituals" table.
The syllabus is telling you that the ministers list is the authority answer. Who may preside at a rite and who holds authority in a church are the same question asked twice.
Free preview
This is the free notes preview
You're reading the free notes. Aimnova Pro unlocks the full study experience — and you can try it with your first topic free to keep:
- FlashcardsLock in vocabulary and key terms with spaced repetition.
- Practice questionsAnswer exam-style questions and get instant AI marking.
- Mock exams & past-paper vaultSit full mocks and see exactly how examiners award marks.
- Personalised study planA daily plan built around your exam date and weak areas.
The guide's list: Mainstream (Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Anglican, Methodist, and so on), Fundamentalism, Charismatic, Pentecostal, non-denominationalism.
Note what kind of list this is: the last four are not churches but ways of being Christian that cut across churches.
Christian bodies and movements, as equal siblings. The last two cut across the others rather than sitting beside them.
Interactive diagram
Explore the labelled diagram, charts and maps for this topic in full study mode.
Two kinds of category: Roman Catholic names an institution. Charismatic names a way of worshipping found inside many institutions, including the Roman Catholic Church.
An answer that treats the guide's five as five denominations has misread the list — and saying so is itself a piece of analysis.
Learn what examiners really want
See exactly what to write to score full marks. Our AI shows you model answers and the key phrases examiners look for.
| Doctrinal position | The structure it produces |
|---|---|
| Sacraments convey God's own presence | Ordained priesthood, apostolic succession, conditions on who may preside |
| A sacrament is an outward sign | Pastors and lay ministers; a congregation may call its own |
| Scripture alone is authoritative | No teaching office above the text; disputes settled by argument from scripture |
| Scripture and tradition together | Councils, encyclicals, and a magisterium that can define |
| The Spirit acts now | Charismatic and Pentecostal worship; authority attaches to evident gifts |
| No denomination is necessary | Independent congregations; non-denominationalism |
The Theme 3 key question, answered: "What is the relationship between doctrine and organizational structure?"
In Christianity the answer is unusually tight: each column above produces the one beside it. A church's government is its doctrine of the sacraments and of authority, made into an institution.
The same question can be run backwards, which is a useful check. Given a church with a pope, Councils and seven sacraments, you can predict its view of the Eucharist; given a church with a pastor and a pulpit at the centre, you can predict its view too.
If your prediction fails, you have found either an exception worth knowing or an error worth correcting — and both are useful.
How this is tested. Theme 3 asks whether a religion's doctrines hold it together or pull it apart. Christianity is the course's largest case of that question.
Examine the extent to which doctrine divides Christianity.
Model answer plan
See the mark-by-mark plan — for / against / judgement, with marking guidance — in study mode.