Christianity began as a sect of Judaism in the 1st century CE. The life and teachings of Jesus Christ, who was born in Bethlehem and crucified in Jerusalem, form the basis of the religion. After Jesus' death, the Apostle Paul helped spread Christianity throughout the Roman Empire. Over time, the religion grew and divided into branches such as Catholicism and Protestantism, though movements seek unity among Christians. Today, Christianity is the world's largest religion with over 2 billion followers worldwide.

1. Chapter Twelve
Christianity

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The World of the First Century C.E.
• Christianity began as a sect of Judaism
• In the first century C.E., much of Europe,
North Africa, and the Middle East was
under Roman rule
• Roman rule made travel easier and safer
and gave the empire a common language
– Those factors helped the spread of
Christianity

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The Life and Teachings of Jesus
• Jesus of Nazareth appears in the
Gospels, or bibliographic stories that were
written by his followers
• Jesus grew up in Nazareth in Galilee
• He was born in Bethlehem, and his mother
(Mary) was believed to be a virgin
• Jesus was thirty when he began his
ministry

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The Life and Teachings of Jesus
• Jesus’ first public act was baptism by John
the Baptist
• Jesus preached and performed miracles,
including healing the sick
• Jesus was able to convey his messages in
simple and straightforward ways, which
made him outstanding among religious
leaders

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The Life and Teachings of Jesus
• It is difficult to identify a central theme in
Jesus’ teachings
– Love
– Pacifism
– The coming of the end of the age
– Redemption
– Human values

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The Life and Teachings of Jesus
• The clearest statement of Jesus as a
messianic figure comes during his last
supper with his disciples
• Jesus tells them that he will be put to
death
• Jesus’ prediction comes true when he is
arrested, tried, and crucified by the Roman
government

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Early Christianity
• Our knowledge of the early church is
drawn from accounts in the New
Testament
• Church leadership resided in Simon Peter
and James, the half-brother of Jesus
• Stephen, a follower who was chosen to
preach the faith, was killed as a result of
his message and became the first
Christian martyr

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Early Christianity
• Much of the book of Acts is devoted to
Paul’s missionary work
– Paul also contributed by setting out the beliefs
of the Christians in letters
• The church modeled its worship after the
Jewish synagogue
• Baptism became an important part of
Christian worship

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Growth of the Church of Rome
• Bishops began to lead the church after
Jesus’ original apostles
• Eventually the bishop of Rome was seen
as the most important leader and was
eventually designated Pope
– Simon Peter, whom Jesus designated to lead
the church, was the first bishop of the Roman
church

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Growth of the Church of Rome
• Augustine
– Converted and wrote about original sin, the
fall of man, and predestination
• The Monastic Movement
– Monasteries were secluded places where
people dedicated themselves to a life of hard
manual labor, prayer, and study
• Christians may have gotten this idea from the
ascetics of other faiths

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Medieval Christianity
• There was an ever widening gap between
the Christians of the Roman/Western
church and the Eastern Christians
• Their theological differences were basic:
– Eastern Christians were more interested in
theological formulations
– Western Christians were more practical and
concerned with survival

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Medieval Christianity
• By the medieval period, Christianity had
become the majority religion in Western
Europe
• The papacy was often the only source of
secure leadership in Europe
– The moral leadership of the papacy
weakened in the 1300s when the
headquarters were moved from Rome to
Avignon

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The Protestant Reformation
• In 1517, Martin Luther posted his Ninety-
Five Theses on a church door in
Wittenberg
• Those theses were his criticisms and
efforts to reform the church
• The theses created an immediate
sensation and struck off the Protestant
Reformation

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The Protestant Reformation
• Many denominations emerged from the
Protestant Reformation
• What are the differences between these
different denominations?
– Anabaptists
– Calvinists
– Church of England
– Lutheran

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Modern Christianity
• The Catholic Counter-Reformation
– Many Catholics wanted reformation but not
revolution
– The Council of Trent in 1545 sought to purify
and strengthen the Catholic Church
– The Council of Trent reaffirmed the seven
sacraments: baptism, confirmation, penance,
Eucharist, extreme unction, marriage, and
holy orders

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Modern Christianity
• Since the Council of Trent, the following
have been accepted as major Catholic
doctrines:
– The immaculate conception of Mary
– Papal infallibility
– The bodily assumption of Mary
• Vatican II was an effort by Pope John in
the 1950s to further revitalize the church

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Modern Movements
• There are so many different Protestant
movements that they can hardly all be
named
• There are four basic branches of
Protestantism:
– Lutheran
– Reformed and Presbyterian
– Anabaptists
– Methodists

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Modern Movements
• Christians have been missionaries since
the beginning of the faith, and that
tradition continues on modern times
– Ex. Mother Teresa
• The ecumenical movement has sought in
modern times to unify the Eastern and
Western church

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The Christian Calendar and Holy
Days
• Sunday
– It is the day of worship in remembrance of the
resurrection of Jesus
• Advent, Christmas, and Epiphany
– Christmas marks the birth of Jesus
– Advent is the season, and Epiphany
commemorates the visit of the wise men to
the baby Jesus

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The Christian Calendar and Holy
Days
• Easter
– Commemorates the resurrection of Jesus
– It is preceded by the Lenten season, during
which Christians fast, pray, and seek
forgiveness of their sins
• Pentecost
– Commemorates the Holy Spirit coming upon
the disciples and moving them to preach the
faith

21. Christianity Today
• Christianity is the world’s largest religion
and is more widespread than any other
• There are an estimated 34,000 Christian
denominations
• Despite the ecumenical movement, the
church remains divided between East and
West
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22. Christianity Today
• Eastern Christians are further divided by
orthodoxy
• Western Christians are further divided
between Catholic and Protestant
• Christianity faces increasing secularism in
Europe
• Attendance is still high in America, but the
Catholic church struggles to find sufficient
priests and nuns
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23. Christianity Today
• Liberation Theology remains a
controversial subject
– It purports to read the Bible through the eyes
of the poor and oppressed and apply its
message to contemporary problems
• Fundamentalism is a powerful force in
modern Christianity and seeks a literal
interpretation of the Bible
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