Christianity

Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion. It is based on the life and teachings of Jesus.

Most followers believe Jesus is the Son of God. They believe he rose from the dead after his crucifixion. This event was prophesied in the Old Testament. The life of Jesus is recorded in the New Testament. The core message is called the gospel. This word means "good news." It refers to the belief that Jesus came to save humankind.

Christianity is the world's largest religion. It has over 2.3 billion followers. This accounts for about 28.8% of the global population.

Christians make up the majority in 120 countries and territories. While many share core beliefs, there is great diversity. Groups differ on matters of salvation and ecclesiology. Ecclesiology is the study of how a church is organized. They also differ on Christology. Christology is the study of the nature of Christ.

Early Christianity began in the 1st century AD. It started in the Roman province of Judaea. At first, it was a Jewish sect with Hellenistic influence. Early followers were sometimes called "The Way."

In the city of Antioch, non-Jewish inhabitants used the term "Christian." This means "followers of Christ." The Apostle Paul played a formative role. He preached to Gentiles, who are non-Jewish people. This helped Christianity become an independent religion by the 2nd century.

Being a Christian was often dangerous in the Roman Empire. There were periods of intermittent persecution. The Decian persecution in 250 AD was the first empire-wide conflict. The Diocletianic Persecution starting in 303 AD was also very severe. These hardships ended with the Edict of Milan in 313 AD. Emperor Constantine I decriminalized the faith. Later, in 380 AD, Christianity became the state religion.

. During this time, the Council of Nicaea was held in 325 AD. This council helped create the Nicene Creed. This creed is still used by many denominations today.

History shows many splits within the faith. In the 5th century, the Church of the East and Oriental Orthodoxy split. This was due to differences in Christology. In 1054, the East-West Schism occurred. This separated the Eastern Orthodox Church from the Catholic Church. Later, in the 16th century, the Reformation era began. This led to Protestantism splitting from the Catholic Church.

These divisions created the many denominations we see today.

There are three main branches of Christianity. Catholicism is the largest with 1.3 billion people. Protestantism follows with 800 million people. Eastern Orthodoxy has about 300 million followers.

Other branches include Oriental Orthodoxy with 60 million people. Restorationism has about 35 million followers. In the West, Christianity remains dominant. About 70% of the population identifies as Christian. However, the religion is growing rapidly in Africa and Asia.

Christianity has influenced much of Western civilization. This was especially true in Europe during the Middle Ages. Monasticism became a powerful force during this time. Monasteries were often centers of learning.

During the Age of Discovery, Christianity spread globally. This happened through missionary work, trade, and immigration. Today, efforts called ecumenism aim toward unity among different churches. Even with this growth, Christians remain a minority in some regions. In places like North Africa and East Asia, they still face persecution.