Nondenominational Christianity

Nondenominational Christianity (or non-denominational Christianity) consists of churches which typically distance themselves from the confessionalism or creedalism of other Christian communities by not formally aligning with a specific Christian denomination. Many non-denominational churches have a congregationalist polity, which is self-governing without a higher church authority. Nondenominational Christianity arose in the 18th century through the Restoration Movement, with followers organizing themselves simply as "Christians" and "Disciples of Christ". Often congregating in loose associations such as the Churches of Christ, or in other cases founded by individual pastors, few are affiliated with historic denominations, but many adhere to a form of evangelical Christianity. Nondenominational Christianity first arose in the 18th century through the Stone-Campbell Restoration Movement, with followers organizing themselves simply as "Christians" and "Disciples of Christ". Congregations in this tradition of nondenominational Christianity often refer to themselves as Churches of Christ. Independent nondenominational churches continued to appear in the United States in the course of the 20th century. Nondenominational congregations experienced significant and continuous growth in the 21st century, particularly in the United States. If combined into a single group, nondenominational churches collectively represented the third-largest Christian grouping in the United States in 2010, after the Roman Catholic Church and Southern Baptist Convention. In Asia, especially in Singapore and Malaysia, these churches are also more numerous, since the 1990s. Nondenominational churches are not affiliated with specifically denominational stream of evangelical movements, either by choice from their foundation or because they separated from their denomination of origin at some point in their history. Like denominational congregations, nondenominational congregations vary in size, worship, and other characteristics.