@alonicus, thanks for your well thought out comment. You're right that history is more easily understood with some backing in religious studies. After all, much of history has to do with the intersection and conflicts between faiths.
Another great insight about the interdenominational differences regarding the importance of biblical and apocryphal literature. Which books should be included in the Canon is still an ongoing discussion that will never be resolved.
This particular line made my heart flutter:
Looking from the outside in, I feel that the Church has historically been most effective when united.
That is, in essence, the point of my post. Christ expressed this sentiment when he exhorted his followers in John 17:20-23 to be united so that unbelievers would see God's love among them. We express the love of Christ best when we put aside our differences and focus on what we have in common. I'm glad you see that, and thanks, once again, for your awesome comment.