Quote:
Originally Posted by ZNPaaneah
I think we all agree with Evangelical that if a local congregation requires that they baptize you before allowing you to take the Lord's table then that of course would be divisive.
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Not just that. But this - if one is baptized in certain denominations they are considered members of that denomination more than the wider body of Christ. This is evident in their speech when they say "I was baptized as a Lutheran". Saying, " I was baptised as a Lutheran Christian" is something to which Paul would say "were you baptised in the name of Luther?, did Luther die for you?".
The fact that a number of denominations do not practice open communion or recognize baptism from other churches is a clear sign that denominations are divisions and not just groups with different names. Example:
The Lutheran Church has a variety of practices, depending on denominational polity. Some branches of Lutheranism, such as the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod and the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod, do not practice open communion; they exclude non-members and require catechetical instructions for all people, even members from other Lutheran churches, before receiving the Eucharist.[27] This generally stems from an understanding that sharing communion is a sign of Christian unity; where that unity is not present, neither should Eucharistic sharing be present.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_c...utheran_Church