Includes bibliographical references and index.

1. An interim ecclesiology -- Movement one : Church united : -- 2. Evangelical unity -- 3. A reformed Church -- 4. The end of Protestantism -- Movement two : Church divided : -- 5. The case for denominationalism -- 6. The case against denominationalism -- 7. Denominationalism's dividing walls -- intermezzo : -- 8. From glory to glory : the pattern of history -- Movement three : divided Church dissolving : -- 9. The restructuring of global Christianity -- 10. American denominationalism and the global Church -- 11. American denominationalism in the twenty-first century -- Movement four : united Church reborn : -- 12. A way forward : from present to future.

One of the unforeseen results of the Reformation was the shattering fragmentation of the church. Protestant tribalism was and continues to be a major hindrance to any solution to Christian division and its cultural effects. In this book, influential thinker Peter Leithart critiques American denominationalism in the context of global and historic Christianity, calls for an end to Protestant tribalism, and presents a vision for the future church that transcends post-Reformation divisions. Leithart offers pastors and churches a practical agenda, backed by theological arguments, for pursuing local unity now. Unity in the church will not be a matter of drawing all churches into a single, existing denomination, says Leithart. Returning to Catholicism or Orthodoxy is not the solution. But it is possible to move toward church unity without giving up our convictions about truth. This critique and defense of Protestantism urges readers to preserve and celebrate the central truths recovered in the Reformation while working to heal the wounds of the body of Christ.