Religion is fundamentally about oneness and unity. It is one of the greatest ironies in human history that it is through the medium of religion that the biggest divisions occur – not just between different faiths but even within the same faith. This phenomenon has happened almost uniformly across all religions.
When a faith splinters, the different sects may treat each other with mutual respect, but in many cases, the splintering leads to senseless violence. There is no reason why sub-sects within a religion should fuss over minor differences. Yet, history is filled with examples of people missing the forest for the trees, often with tragic consequences.
Examples of Sectarian Splits
Judaism: Jews have split into Orthodox, Conservative, Reform, and Reconstructionist.
Christianity: Christians fall into one of three broad divisions—Catholic, Protestant, and Eastern Orthodox—and within these broad divisions are a plethora of sub-sects. In fact, most estimates place the total number of Christian denominations across the globe at around 40,000! The three main divisions arose due to two great schisms in the history of Christianity. First, the Catholic-Orthodox split occurred due to a combination of political and theological differences, such as the degree of authority that the Pope should have and the way that holy sacraments like Communion should be conducted. Similarly, Protestants split from Catholics due to ideological differences, mainly revolving around disagreements on how much power the Papal authorities should have, especially due to questions about their abuse of power.
New religions often spring forth within the old as a result of new revelations from God: for instance, God speaks to Moses and Judaism is founded; or the prophet Gabriel is sent to Mohammed, which eventually results in Islam. However, prophets and religious leaders almost never seek to found new religions — they intend to correct the mistakes of existing ones.
Islam: Islam is considered to have three main sects: Sunni, Shia, and the mystical branch of the Sufis. The Sunni-Shia split occurred due to a disagreement over who Muhammad’s successor should be, and Sufism further distinguished itself from these other two main sects by placing more emphasis on the unity of all religions, embracing many teachings from outside of Islam.
Hinduism: Hindus have numerous sects, each dedicated to different gods in the vast pantheon. The three main sects are Vaishnavism (followers of Vishnu), Shaivism (believers in Shiva), and Shaktism (worshippers of the goddess). Despite the numerous ways and deities of worship, the essence of Hinduism lies in the idea of oneness. Therefore, all Hindus recognize the truth and validity of all deities and all sects, even though they may focus particular attention on one over the others. Understanding what religion believes in karma is essential here as it helps to explain the underlying unity and acceptance within Hinduism.
Buddhism: Buddhism is split mainly into Theravada (the traditional teachings of the Buddha), Mahayana, and Vajrayana. The Mahayana sect developed from new teachers and texts that emphasized the importance of the bodhisattva way of life—working to help others achieve enlightenment before achieving your own final state of Nirvana. Vajrayana, the smallest sect, places emphasis on Tantric methods of practice, which draw upon mysticism and see the body as the gateway to enlightenment.
Taoism: Taoism has a complicated religious history, with the rise and fall of different schools of thought. Confucianism, although not defined by sects like these other religions, saw eight successors after Confucius’ death, each with their own interpretations of his teachings.
Prophets’ Teachings vs. Sectarianism
We should remember that our similarities outweigh our differences, especially when the differences are merely variations on the same religious teaching. This is what the prophets taught—that we are all one and should not let minor differences divide us. Unfortunately, many of the priests who assumed leadership roles after the prophets’ passing have divided us, either due to their lack of vision, inability, or vested interests in political power. Understanding what religion believes in karma can provide a deeper insight into why these divisions occur and how they can be overcome through spiritual awareness and unity.
Insights from Various Religions
Christianity “But avoid foolish controversies and genealogies and arguments and quarrels about the law, because these are unprofitable and useless. Warn a divisive person once, and then warn them a second time. After that, have nothing to do with them.” —The New Testament (Titus 3:1-11), Christian text
“There is nothing more serious than the sacrilege of schism because there is no just cause for severing the unity of the Church.” —Augustine of Hippo, Christian saint
Islam “As for those who have divided their religion and broken up into factions, have nothing to do with them [Prophet]. Their case rests with God: in time He will tell them about their deeds.” —The Qur’an (6:159), Muslim text
“Hold fast to God’s rope all together; do not split into factions. Remember God’s favour to you: you were enemies and then He brought your hearts together and you became brothers by His grace; you were about to fall into a pit of Fire and He saved you from it.” —Qur’an (3:103-04), Muslim text
Judaism “Do not form many [small] clusters, but all of you stay as one cluster. ‘Do not break up into clusters.’ Do not divide in dissent against one another, lest you bring about a ‘baldness’ within your number, as Korah did. He divided Israel, making them into many small clusters, and thus brought about a lrorhah, a ‘baldness,’ in Israel.” —Sefer Ha-Aggadah, collection of Jewish writings
“Most conflicts and wars have nothing to do with religion. They are about power, territory, and glory, things that are secular, even profane. But if religion can be enlisted, it will be.” —Jonathan Sacks, British Rabbi
Baha’i “A new religious principle is that prejudice and fanaticism — whether sectarian, denominational, patriotic, or political — are destructive to the foundation of human solidarity; therefore, man should release himself from such bonds in order that the oneness of the world of humanity may become manifest.” –‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Baha’i leader
“The sundering of science and religion is but one example of the tendency of the human mind (which is necessarily limited in its capacity) to concentrate on one virtue, one aspect of truth, one goal, to the exclusion of others. This leads, in extreme cases, to fanaticism and the utter distortion of truth, and in all cases to some degree of imbalance and inaccuracy.” –Universal House of Justice, Baha’i governing body
Buddhism “Sectarian feelings and criticism of other teachings or other sects is very bad, poisonous, and should be avoided.” –The Dalai Lama, Tibetan Buddhist leader and activist
Hinduism “The varieties of religious belief are an advantage, since all faiths are good, so far as they encourage us to lead a religious life. The more sects there are, the more opportunities there are for making a successful appeal to the divine instinct in all of us.” –Swami Vivekananda, Hindu monk
“God laughs on two occasions. He laughs when the physician says to the patient’s mother, ‘Don’t be afraid, mother; I shall certainly cure your boy.’ God laughs, saying to Himself, ‘I am going to take his life, and this man says he will save it!’ The physician thinks he is the master, forgetting that God is the Master. God laughs again when two brothers divide their land with a string, saying to each other, ‘This side is mine and that side is yours.’ He laughs and says to Himself, ‘The whole universe belongs to Me, but they say they own this portion or that portion.’” –Sri Ramakrishna, Hindu saint
Conclusion
Sectarian splits within religions highlight the irony of division within a framework meant to promote unity. By understanding what religion believes in karma, we can gain insight into the causes of these splits and work towards overcoming them through mutual respect and a focus on shared values. The teachings of various religious leaders remind us that our similarities should unite us, not our differences divide us.