3) Sacred Texts

  The Bible is not only the best sold book in the world, but it is also the most important text in the Christian faith. It is split into the New Testament and the Old Testament. The primary difference between the two parts are the fact that one anticipates Jesus' arrival and the other describes Jesus' life. This is when the authority of the Old Testament is called into question. Jesus was the figure that brought Christianity to existence and gave the Bible authority. The Old Testament however is unable to be determined as fact or fiction due to its resonance in faith and lack of historical reference. This is also found in the comparison between historians reports like Tacitus, and Josephus. These people offer different perspectives in a primary point of view that carry and give authority to the faith based gospels. 

  Reading the bible contextually, in the historical, cultural, and personal context of the time, or literally, each word is taken on face level to be exact, will dramatically change the interpretation of the text. Also, the Bible is considered to be God's word. This means that we are not able to fully understand his pristine meaning. These differences in analysis have lead to many variations in practice. Catholics and Protestants for example differ in their believes in the authority of the Bible alone. Protestants believe that the Bible is God's word and is the only text on which Christian behavior should be measured. Catholics believe that tradition and worship are equally important on Christian Values. This is shown in Timothy 3:16, "...all Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work."

  The Gospels focus on the life of Jesus Christ and his life, death, and resurrection. They explore Jesus from a first hand perspective and his status as Messiah. This results in a direct link between Christianity and Jesus. The Bible is also read as the word God which directly links God with the religious beliefs. 

  Interpretation of the Bible has changed over time and has resulted in many different denominations and sects within the Christian religion. This is apparent in the comparison above between the Catholic and Protestant denominations. These branch further into different sects, all with their own disagreements and contrasts about analyzing the Bible. For example, Baptists and Lutherans differ in their believes of how someone is saved- by a public profession, or to an unknowing baby. 

Read more:http://www.gotquestions.org/difference-Catholic-Protestant.html#ixzz3YiD9XWW0