Religious difference
The term religious diversity means that two people belong to different religions , not just different confessions / denominations . There is a religious difference between Christians and Muslims. Although there is a denominational difference between Lutherans and Catholics or Sunnis and Shiites , there is usually no religious difference. A special case arises when a group that has emerged from a religion and sees itself as part of it is denied belonging to the same religion by other religious members. For example, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (" Mormons ") considers itself Christian but is not recognized as Christian by most other Christian communities. Under certain circumstances, it can then depend on the denomination whether there is a religious difference between two people or just a denominational difference.
In Catholic marriage law , religious differences represent an obstacle to marriage (see Interreligious Marriage ). There is a religious difference when one partner is Catholic but the other is unbaptized. Since it is purely ecclesiastical law, it can be dispensed with if the conditions that apply to marriages of different denominations are met by analogy. The religious difference is distinguished from the denominational difference on the basis of baptism . Anyone who was validly baptized by Catholic standards in a non-Catholic church - which is true of most non-Catholic Christians - is only denominationally different from a Catholic. However, since the Catholic side repeatedly doubts about the adherence to the form of baptismal donation, which is valid in the respective religious community , in such cases, as a rule, the religious difference is dispensed prophylactically, so to speak.