[Elationist]

...according to AskOxford.com

The Compact Oxford English Dictionary

It means:

non-denominational

• adjective open or acceptable to people of any Christian denomination.

I like that answer.

But I guess some could say that it means (to them) not open to any Christian denomination...which could mean that the person would like to have his or her own denomination that exists without anyone denominational in it.

If that doesn't confuse em' enough...then I like the answer "I am non-denominational, Christ is My Dominator. And I am currently a dual citizen of two Nations...Heaven & Earth Nationalilty." Then I run to the nearest church for cover.

Could Oxford also mean transdenominational? Or interdenominational...Which is a non-word that I often hear ministries (not churches) calling themselves.

http://onelook.com/?w=denominational&loc=nophr <--denominational

[Godroxmylife]

Originally Posted by Becky

What makes a person non denominational?

Non denomonational to me means that ur not catholic, baptist,pentcaostal or stuff like that it means that u follow what the Bible says and not like what some other denomonations who do stuff that isnt metioned in the Bible like praying to the Saints for Example it dosent tell us to pray to saints in the Bible but some denomonations do

[THolland]

Having waded through most of this 2 1/2 year long thread, I don't see the real meaning of non-denominational (though godrocks above has much of it).

I believe that most non-denominational churches are founded on the principle that they reject the authority of man's rules (denominational hierarchies) in favor of God's rules (the Bible). This is a positive definition but not a definitive one. Since in a nondenominational church there is no denominational hierarchy to interpret the Bible for us, we are responsible to study it on our own. It becomes the guidepost for everything in the church, from governance to teaching. This is also called a "Bible based church".

If the church is to be truly inclusive, this often means only the most basic, core Christian tenants that most if not all can agree to are the churches founding tenets. The nature of God, the divine and inerrant inspiration of the Bible, and the core Salvation message are the starting points. If the church is composed of mostly one denomination or has a strong charismatic Pastor it may move in a slightly more unified direction regarding other portions of the Gospel (that might or might not parallel a formal denomination). More likely, it heavily promotes individual spiritual growth and personal Biblical understanding above non-core doctrinal unity.

I find non-denominational churches to be more personally challenging and fulfilling because of this, but your mileage may vary.

Thanks,
Tim

[Vituperator]

Originally Posted by Iliv2serv

Iliv2serv
Wrong, Assemblies are non-demon. I never read of any demon. in the Bible. I would think it's better explained by people following there convictions.

Like living as the early church or what not.

Originally Posted by Kori

I just wanted to emphasize that sir.

You have nearly posted my thoughts concerning the word denomination.

What does denomination do? It seperates the body of Christ. What comes from the first four letters of that word if one rearranges them slightly? DEMON. What is the goal of demons?

It has been said that denomination is good. Who would want to be a Mormon or Buddist? Well, speaking from a fleshly point of view, denomination is good, but from a spiritual standpoint, it is not needed. The problem is the lack of Spirit. Were there no such lack, there would be no need for the diverse denominations, for we would ALL be of one body as was intended.

[penguinofwar]

basically you dont belive in having different beliefs on what happened. also, you usually attend different types of churches. its a bit complicated.

[Art]

The only thing that Non-Denominational means is that your church or you personally do not associate yourself with any specific group that has set beliefs across the board. Any little local community church would probably classify themselves as non-denom.

[penguinofwar]

for instance i go to a non-denominational church. they have sort of a poprock-worship band play at the beggining. then they have a pastor, n all this stuff. its kinda confusing...but its nothing traditional really, not like a catholic church, where they have like a choir n all that stuff in w.e. my dad goes to a catholic church and my mom goes to a non-demon. so i can totally tell the difference, but its hard to explain lol.