Kansas City, USA - You tell me you're Christian. How much information have you really given me?
Being Christian probably means that the story of Jesus is central to your life, but I don't know how you worship, what you claim as your authority, how your church is organized or even whether you belong to a church.
You say these details are not important, but remember, Christians have killed other Christians because of these details. Such sorry histories and present realities persist in many faiths. Some of these details may be important to who you are today.
The three main expressions of Christianity are (Eastern) Orthodoxy, Roman Catholicism and various forms of Protestantism. Some classify The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormonism) as Protestant; others consider it a fourth form of Christianity.
Christian worship varies from beautiful, elaborate forms of liturgical worship and sacramental devotion to the moving spirituals and cadenced preaching of the black church, to the utter simplicity and spontaneity of the Quaker meeting where folks sit in silence until and unless someone is moved to speak, to some Appalachians who worship by handling serpents.
Is tradition or the magisterium of your church your ultimate guide to how you live your life? Or is the Bible your final authority, and if so, whose interpretation? What roles do reason and cultural influences play in answering questions of faith?
Is your church led by clergy governed by bishops in apostolic succession or by members of the local congregation or by a presbyterial, regional authority? Or does your church eschew ordained leadership altogether and teach that each person has the inner light? What positions may women and gay people occupy?
I've not yet asked doctrinal questions such as whether you believe in a literal and eternal hell or whether all will ultimately be saved. I've not yet asked about religious issues that enter the political arena.
These questions hardly begin to outline differences within Christianity.
And other faiths may be even more varied. Buddhism, for example, ranges from the spare meditation of certain Zen schools to the phantasmagoric dances of some Tibetan sects. Even atheists differ considerably.
Most faiths have enormous internal variations. There is no single Islam, Hinduism or Judaism.
Problems within faiths, as among them, arise from those demanding unity, uniformity or control.
Differences exist because people need different approaches to ultimate mysteries. Seeking universal agreement defies those mysteries. Distinction rather than conformity may be the better blessing.