Doctrine facts for kids

A doctrine is like a set of important beliefs, rules, or teachings. Think of it as a guide or a main idea that a group, a religion, or even a country follows. It's a bit like the core principles that everyone agrees on.

Doctrines are often found in religions. They are the main ideas that a church or faith teaches its followers. But doctrines can also be important rules in law, like the idea of self-defense, which means you can protect yourself if someone attacks you.

In how countries deal with each other (called foreign policy), a doctrine is a big plan or a set of rules for how a nation acts towards other countries. For example, the Monroe Doctrine was a rule for the United States about not letting European countries interfere in the Americas. Other famous examples include the Truman Doctrine and the Bush Doctrine.

Religious Doctrines

Many religions have their own doctrines. These are the central beliefs that define their faith.

Christian Beliefs

• In Christianity, important doctrines include the Trinity, which teaches that God is three persons (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit), and the Virgin birth of Jesus, which says Jesus was born to Mary, who was a virgin.
• The Catholic Church has doctrines like transubstantiation, which is their belief about the bread and wine in communion, and the Immaculate Conception, which is about Mary being born without sin.
• Pentecostalism has the Jesus-Only doctrine, a belief about the nature of Jesus.
• Calvinism teaches predestination, the idea that God has already decided who will be saved.
• Methodism has the doctrine of Prevenient Grace, which is about God's grace being available to everyone.

The Roman Curia, which is the main administration of the Catholic Church, even has a special department called the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. Its job is to protect and promote Catholic teachings.

Military Doctrines

The word "doctrine" is also used in the military. Here, it means a standard way of doing things in a battle or war. It's like a playbook for how soldiers and weapons should be used in different situations.

Famous Military Strategies

• The Blitzkrieg was a German military doctrine used in World War II. It meant using fast, powerful attacks with tanks and planes to quickly break through enemy lines.
• Hit-and-run tactics are a doctrine where small groups attack quickly and then retreat before the enemy can respond.
• Shock and Awe is a doctrine that aims to overwhelm an enemy by using massive force and a show of power to destroy their will to fight.
• Guerre de course is a naval doctrine where warships attack enemy merchant ships to disrupt their trade, rather than fighting main battleships.
• The Mahanian doctrine, popular in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, focused on the importance of having a strong navy to control the seas.

See also

In Spanish: Doctrina para niños