Compare
Catholic ChurchandReformed and Presbyterian Churches
At a glance
- Common groundIn full: Common ground
- Common inheritanceThe Western (Latin) church: Protestant churches grew, directly or through later movements, from the 16th-century Reformation of the Western church, so until then their history and that of the Catholic Church is one history.
2 sources
- Christianity: The First Three Thousand YearsIdentified, not independently read
- Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of JustificationSource verified
Provisional: broadly supported, but awaiting fuller checking.
- GodOne God in three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit
- ChristChrist is fully divine and fully human; Two natures united in one person, as defined at Chalcedon (451)
- Sacraments and ordinancesInfants are baptised
- AgreementBoth are parties to Joint Declaration on Justification (1999) (31 October 1999)
- Common inheritanceThe Western (Latin) church: Protestant churches grew, directly or through later movements, from the 16th-century Reformation of the Western church, so until then their history and that of the Catholic Church is one history.
- Key differencesIn full: Key differences
- Scripture and authorityCatholic ChurchScripture and Tradition, interpreted by the bishops in communion with the popeReformed and Presbyterian ChurchesScripture as the supreme authority for faith and life
- Church and ministryCatholic ChurchBishops in communion with the pope, who holds universal jurisdictionReformed and Presbyterian ChurchesElders and ministers in graded courts and synods
- Sacraments and ordinancesCatholic ChurchSeven sacraments (holy mysteries); Christ's body and blood are truly presentReformed and Presbyterian ChurchesTwo sacraments ordained by Christ: Baptism and the Lord's Supper; Christ received after a heavenly and spiritual manner, by faith
Below: 1 more difference, 1 difference of emphasis.
- How their histories connectIn full: How their histories connect
- Reform · 1519–1560 · A gradual processThe Swiss and Scottish ReformationsRead the account in Reformed and Presbyterian Churches
- Connected today?In full: their relationship today
Separate, in formal dialogueas of October 2026
Not in communion; the Reformed world communion shares in the Joint Declaration on Justification.
Source
- Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification (JDDJ)Source verified
Composed from each tradition’s sourced records. Where a topic is not yet recorded for one side, the Atlas says so rather than guess.
Structured comparison. Composed from each tradition’s sourced position records. No research has yet been written for this particular pair, so the Atlas shows only what those records establish.
Where they differ
Creeds and councils
Councils received
- Catholic Church
- The first three ecumenical councils (325, 381, 431); The fourth to seventh councils (451 to 787); Later general councils of the Western Church, including Trent and the Vatican councils
- Reformed and Presbyterian Churches
- Councils can err and are tested by Scripture
Scripture and authority
Sources of authority
- Catholic Church
- Scripture and Tradition, interpreted by the bishops in communion with the pope
- Reformed and Presbyterian Churches
- Scripture as the supreme authority for faith and life
Sacraments and ordinances
How the rites are understood and counted
- Catholic Church
- Seven sacraments (holy mysteries)
- Reformed and Presbyterian Churches
- Two sacraments ordained by Christ: Baptism and the Lord's Supper
Christ's presence in the Eucharist or Lord's Supper
- Catholic Church
- Christ's body and blood are truly present
- Reformed and Presbyterian Churches
- Christ received after a heavenly and spiritual manner, by faith
Church and ministry
Church government
- Catholic Church
- Bishops in communion with the pope, who holds universal jurisdiction
- Reformed and Presbyterian Churches
- Elders and ministers in graded courts and synods
Different emphases, not necessarily opposed (1)
Salvation and grace
Characteristic emphasis
- Catholic Church
- Justification by grace, which renews the believer and works through love
- Reformed and Presbyterian Churches
- Justification by grace, for Christ's sake, through faith and not by works; God's sovereign election (predestination)
Not yet comparable (7)
No sourced position is recorded for one side, so the Atlas does not say whether they agree:
- Creeds and councils (the nicene creed): not recorded for Reformed and Presbyterian Churches
- Creeds and councils (the filioque): not recorded for Reformed and Presbyterian Churches
- Sacraments and ordinances (how christ's presence is explained): not recorded for Reformed and Presbyterian Churches
- Church and ministry (ministry): not recorded for Reformed and Presbyterian Churches
- Mary and the saints (asking the saints to pray): not recorded for Reformed and Presbyterian Churches
- Mary and the saints (how mary is named): not recorded for Reformed and Presbyterian Churches
- Day of worship (weekly day of worship): not recorded for Reformed and Presbyterian Churches
How their histories relate
Reform · 1519–1560A gradual process
The Swiss and Scottish Reformations
A movement to reform the Western church that, in the 16th century, produced churches independent of Rome.
Reform in Zurich under Zwingli (from 1519), in Geneva under Calvin (from 1536) and in Scotland under Knox (1560) produced churches independent of Rome, governed by elders and synods.Read in Reformed and Presbyterian Churches history3 sources
The New Catholic Encyclopedia notes that Zwingli’s evangelical programme was already active in Zurich by 1516; 1519 is the year he began as preacher at the Grossmünster.
- History of the Christian Church, vol. 8, ch. III: The Reformation in Zurich, 1519–1526Source verified
- Reformed Churches (New Catholic Encyclopedia and other reference articles)Source verified
- Christianity: The First Three Thousand YearsIdentified, not independently read
Their relationship today
Separate, in formal dialogueas of October 2026
Source
- Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification (JDDJ)Source verified
Based on The Swiss and Scottish Reformations
Developments towards reconciliation
31 October 1999Several communions
Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification
Lutheran World Federation and Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, signed at Augsburg; later joined by the World Methodist Council (2006), the Anglican Consultative Council (2016) and the World Communion of Reformed Churches (2017)
The signatories state 'a consensus in basic truths of the doctrine of justification'; the remaining differences of language, theological elaboration and emphasis are said to be acceptable.Source
- Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification, §40Source verified
Still open: The declaration lists open questions, including the relationship between the Word of God and church doctrine, ecclesiology, authority, church unity, ministry, the sacraments and social ethics.
Signed in 1999 and confirmed by an Official Common Statement; the Methodist, Anglican and Reformed world communions later associated themselves with it. The Atlas has not checked reception by each member church.3 sources
- Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification (JDDJ)Source verified
- Letter of Cardinal Kasper and Dr Noko on the fifth anniversary of the Joint DeclarationSource verified
- Official Common Statement and Annex to the Joint DeclarationIdentified, not independently read
Explore further
Catholic Church
All citations link to the Atlas’s single source register.