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Concept
History of Christianity
Summary
The history of Christianity concerns the Christian religion, Christian countries, and the Christians with their various denominations, from the 1st century to the present. Christianity originated with the ministry of Jesus, a Jewish teacher and healer who proclaimed the imminent Kingdom of God and was crucified AD 30–33 in Jerusalem in the Roman province of Judea. His followers believe that, according to the Gospels, he was the Son of God and that he died for the forgiveness of sins and was raised from the dead and exalted by God, and will return soon at the inception of God's kingdom.
The earliest followers of Jesus were apocalyptic Jewish Christians. Christianity remained a Jewish sect for centuries, diverging gradually from Judaism over doctrinal, social and historical differences. Christianity spread as a grassroots movement that became established by the third century. The Roman Emperor Constantine I became the first Christian emperor and in 313, issued the Edict of Milan expressing tolerance for all religions thereby legalizing Christian worship. Various Christological debates about the human and divine nature of Jesus occupied the Christian Church for three centuries, and seven ecumenical councils were called to resolve them.
Christianity played a prominent role in the development of Western civilization in Europe after the Fall of Rome. In the Early Middle Ages, missionary activities spread Christianity towards the west and the north. During the High Middle Ages, Eastern and Western Christianity grew apart, leading to the East–West Schism of 1054. Growing criticism of the Roman Catholic church and its corruption in the Late Middle Ages (from the 14th to 15th centuries) led to the Protestant Reformation and its related reform movements, which concluded with the European wars of religion.
In the twenty-first century, Christianity has expanded throughout the world. Today, there are more than two billion Christians worldwide and Christianity has become the world's largest religion.
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