[Stacee27902]

I was raised a Southern Baptist and I’m currently an Episcopalian, so I can tell you some of the difference between these two, as I have experienced them. Baptist authority is decentralized. That is, the individual church has much more latitude in practice than a hierarchical church, like the Episcopal church. For example, some Baptist churches allow women to be deacons, while some will not even let a woman teach a mixed adult Sunday school class. The Baptist denomination tends to be more literal in Biblical interpretation. The Episcopal church accepts more consideration of culture, history, and modern scientific/social scientific understanding in interpreting what Scripture means in everyday life. The Episcopal church draws its worship from the Anglican, and by extension Roman Catholic, tradition. For example, many churches use candles and incense, or clothe ministers in traditional colorful robes. Baptist tend to draw from a less adorned early American tradition. However, this is changing. Many Episcopal churches use contemporary music, while some Baptist churches have begun to incorporate the church calendar and historical prayers. Many Baptist churches oppose the use of alcohol, while Episcopal churches use real wine almost every week in communion. In general, social/political stances taken by the Baptist church as a body are conservative, although moderates are making their voices heard. The Episcopal church, by and large, is centrist to a fault. However, a vocal liberal minority has been the focus of quite a bit of debate lately, particularly on issues of sexuality, specifically same-sex issues. Overall,however,I would say the biggest difference between these two denominations is where power is centralized.

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Name : Stacee27902, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Christian, Age : 31, City : Sugar Land, State : TX, Country : United States, Occupation : TV director, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Upper middle class, 

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