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125-708: The Christians who, through the Union of Brest (1595–96), entered full communion with the See of Rome while keeping their Byzantine liturgy in the Church Slavonic language, were at first mainly Belarusian. The rise of Protestantism in the Grand Dutchy and the growing power of the Russian Orthodox Church, which in 1589 was erected as an independent Patriarchate, were two of the factors which led

250-631: A Jewish Christian sect with Hellenistic influence of Second Temple Judaism . An early Jewish Christian community was founded in Jerusalem under the leadership of the Pillars of the Church , namely James the Just , the brother of Jesus, Peter , and John. Jewish Christianity soon attracted Gentile God-fearers, posing a problem for its Jewish religious outlook , which insisted on close observance of

375-769: A century before, had joined the Russian Orthodox Church joined the Catholic Church, while keeping their Byzantine liturgy. In 1931, the Holy See sent them a bishop as Apostolic Visitator. A Belarusian-language Uniate magazine was published by Fr Anton Niemancevič between 1932 and 1939. After the Soviet Union annexed West Belarus in 1939, Fr Niemancevič was appointed an exarch for the Belarusian Byzantine-Rite faithful in May 1940, but two years later, he

500-625: A decree granting freedom of religion, as many as 230,000 Belarusians wanted union with Rome. However, since the government refused to allow them to form a Byzantine-Rite community, they joined the Latin Church , to which most Belarusian Catholics now belong. Nevertheless, the wish to re-establish the Uniate Church remained a powerful factor in the Belarusian national revival of the early 20th century. The newspaper Nasha Niva printed

625-542: A few scriptures overlapping with the developing orthodox canon, most Gnostic texts and Gnostic gospels were eventually considered heretical and suppressed by mainstream Christians. A gradual splitting off of Gentile Christianity left Jewish Christians continuing to follow the Law of Moses , including practices such as circumcision. By the fifth century, they and the Jewish–Christian gospels would be largely suppressed by

750-402: A fresh policy of enforced russification was initiated. Repressive measures were increased after the accession of Tsar Nicholas I . In 1826 the sale of Uniate service books was prohibited. After the unsuccessful 1830–1831 November Uprising against Russian rule and the subsequent removal of the predominantly Catholic local nobility from influence in Belarusian society, the three bishops of

875-650: A joint Lithuanian Belorussian Soviet Republic (Litbel) was established, and then a separate Byelorussian SSR . Thus, the almost unsolicited national state, which arose during the First World War, owed its existence directly to the alternative German, Russian and Polish attempts to secure control over the area. — Tania Raffass In the Second Constituent Charter, the Rada abolished the right to private ownership of land (paragraph 7) in line with

1000-571: A protopresbyter or archpriest. Two of the parishes had small churches. Some of the others had pastoral centres with an oratory. In March 2023, Pope Francis erected the apostolic administration for faithful of Byzantine rite in Belarus, appointing the Rt. Rev. Mitred Archimandrite Jan Sergiusz Gajek, M.I.C., (until then apostolic visitator) as apostolic administrator without episcopal rank. Belarusian Greek Catholics abroad, numbering about 2,000, were under

1125-663: A rebirth of the Greek-Catholic Church. Because of the lack of priests and churches this interest did not lead to membership. In 1994, Pope  John Paul II appointed Sergiusz Gajek Apostolic Visitor for Greek Catholics in Belarus . At the beginning of 2015, the Belarusian Greek Catholic Church had 20 parishes, of which 18 had obtained state recognition. As of 2003, there have been two Belarusian Greek Catholic parishes in each of

1250-523: A small scale by both Jewish and Roman authorities , with Roman action starting at the time of the Great Fire of Rome in 64 AD. Examples of early executions under Jewish authority reported in the New Testament include the deaths of Saint Stephen and James, son of Zebedee . The Decian persecution was the first empire-wide conflict, when the edict of Decius in 250 AD required everyone in

1375-707: Is a historical region of modern-day Belarus which belonged to the Second Polish Republic during the interwar period . For twenty years before the 1939 invasion of Poland , it was the northern part of the Polish Kresy macroregion . Following the end of World War II in Europe , most of Western Belorussia was ceded to the Soviet Union by the Allies , while some of it, including Białystok ,

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1500-525: Is also used by Presbyterians , Methodists , and Congregationalists . This particular creed was developed between the 2nd and 9th centuries. Its central doctrines are those of the Trinity and God the Creator . Each of the doctrines found in this creed can be traced to statements current in the apostolic period . The creed was apparently used as a summary of Christian doctrine for baptismal candidates in

1625-430: Is recorded in the canonical gospels, although infancy gospels were popular in antiquity. In comparison, his adulthood, especially the week before his death, is well documented in the gospels contained within the New Testament , because that part of his life is believed to be most important. The biblical accounts of Jesus's ministry include: his baptism , miracles , preaching, teaching, and deeds. Christians consider

1750-752: Is seated at the right hand of the Father, and will ultimately return to fulfill the rest of the Messianic prophecy , including the resurrection of the dead , the Last Judgment , and the final establishment of the Kingdom of God . According to the canonical gospels of Matthew and Luke , Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born from the Virgin Mary . Little of Jesus's childhood

1875-521: The Bible and sacred traditions on which Christianity is based. Concise doctrinal statements or confessions of religious beliefs are known as creeds . They began as baptismal formulae and were later expanded during the Christological controversies of the 4th and 5th centuries to become statements of faith. " Jesus is Lord " is the earliest creed of Christianity and continues to be used, as with

2000-570: The Big Three , Great Britain, the United States and the Soviet Union, established new borders for Poland . Most of Western Belarus remained part of the BSSR after the end of World War II in Europe ; only the region around Białystok (Belostok) was to be returned to Poland. The Polish population was soon forcibly resettled west . The Western Belorussia, in its entirety, was incorporated into

2125-773: The Carolingian Renaissance of the 9th century. In the 7th century, Muslims conquered Syria (including Jerusalem ), North Africa, and Spain, converting some of the Christian population to Islam , including some of the Christian populations in pre-Islamic Arabia , and placing the rest under a separate legal status . Part of the Muslims' success was due to the exhaustion of the Byzantine Empire in its decades long conflict with Persia . Beginning in

2250-627: The Celtic , the Baltic and some Slavic peoples . Around 500, Christianity was thoroughly integrated into Byzantine and Kingdom of Italy culture and Benedict of Nursia set out his Monastic Rule , establishing a system of regulations for the foundation and running of monasteries . Monasticism became a powerful force throughout Europe, and gave rise to many early centers of learning, most famously in Ireland , Scotland , and Gaul , contributing to

2375-633: The Church of the East (600,000). Smaller church communities number in the thousands despite efforts toward unity ( ecumenism ). In the West , Christianity remains the dominant religion even with a decline in adherence , with about 70% of that population identifying as Christian. Christianity is growing in Africa and Asia, the world's most populous continents. Christians remain greatly persecuted in many regions of

2500-520: The Edict of Worms condemned and excommunicated Luther and his followers, resulting in the schism of the Western Christendom into several branches. Other reformers like Zwingli , Oecolampadius , Calvin , Knox , and Arminius further criticized Catholic teaching and worship. These challenges developed into the movement called Protestantism , which repudiated the primacy of the pope ,

2625-745: The Inquisition , were established with the aim of suppressing heresy and securing religious and doctrinal unity within Christianity through conversion and prosecution. The 15th-century Renaissance brought about a renewed interest in ancient and classical learning. During the Reformation , Martin Luther posted the Ninety-five Theses 1517 against the sale of indulgences . Printed copies soon spread throughout Europe. In 1521

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2750-703: The Magisterial Reformation as corrupted. Their activity brought about the Radical Reformation , which gave birth to various Anabaptist denominations. Partly in response to the Protestant Reformation, the Catholic Church engaged in a substantial process of reform and renewal, known as the Counter-Reformation or Catholic Reform. The Council of Trent clarified and reasserted Catholic doctrine. During

2875-726: The Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact signed earlier in Moscow were soon broken, when the German Army entered the Soviet occupation zone on June 22, 1941. After Operation Barbarossa , most of Western Belorussia became part of the German Reichskommissariat Ostland (RKO), as the so-called Generalbezirk Weißruthenien (General Region of White Ruthenia). Many ethnic Belarusians supported Nazi Germany. By

3000-435: The New Testament . It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with over 2.4 billion followers, comprising around 31.2% of the world population . Its adherents, known as Christians , are estimated to make up a majority of the population in 157 countries and territories . Christianity remains culturally diverse in its Western and Eastern branches , and doctrinally diverse concerning justification and

3125-482: The Old Testament . The Christian concept of messiah differs significantly from the contemporary Jewish concept . The core Christian belief is that through belief in and acceptance of the death and resurrection of Jesus , sinful humans can be reconciled to God, and thereby are offered salvation and the promise of eternal life . While there have been many theological disputes over the nature of Jesus over

3250-753: The Oriental Orthodox , taught Christ "to be acknowledged in two natures, inconfusedly, unchangeably, indivisibly, inseparably": one divine and one human, and that both natures, while perfect in themselves, are nevertheless also perfectly united into one person . The Athanasian Creed , received in the Western Church as having the same status as the Nicene and Chalcedonian, says: "We worship one God in Trinity, and Trinity in Unity; neither confounding

3375-676: The Pinsk Regions. They were reorganized one more time after the Soviet liberation of Belarus into the contemporary western provinces of Belarus which include all of Grodno and Brest regions , as well as parts of today's Minsk and Vitebsk regions. Vilnius was returned by the USSR to the Republic of Lithuania which soon after that became the Lithuanian SSR . The territories of contemporary Belarus, Poland, Ukraine, and

3500-686: The Polish census of 1921 , there were around 1 million Belarusians in the country. Some estimated the number of Belarusians in Poland at that time to be perhaps 1.7 million, or even up to 2 million . Following the Peace of Riga, thousands of Poles settled in the area , many of them (including veterans of armed struggle for Poland's independence) were given land by the government. In his negotiations with Belarusian leaders in Vilnius, Józef Piłsudski rejected

3625-978: The Restoration Movement , such as the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) , the Evangelical Christian Church in Canada , and the Churches of Christ . The central tenet of Christianity is the belief in Jesus as the Son of God and the Messiah (Christ). Christians believe that Jesus, as the Messiah, was anointed by God as savior of humanity and hold that Jesus's coming was the fulfillment of messianic prophecies of

3750-910: The Roman Empire by the Edict of Milan (313), later convening the Council of Nicaea (325) where Early Christianity was consolidated into what would become the state religion of the Roman Empire (380). The Church of the East and Oriental Orthodoxy both split over differences in Christology (5th century), while the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Catholic Church separated in the East–West Schism (1054). Protestantism split into numerous denominations from

3875-438: The Russian Orthodox Church . Another source seems to contradict this, since it gives the number of parishes that came under Russian rule in 1772 only as "over 800", meaning that many priests and people remained in communion with Rome. During the Napoleonic campaign in Belarus in 1812, a large number of Belarusian parishes reverted to the Uniate rite but after the defeat of the French several bishops were deprived of their sees and

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4000-485: The State church of the Roman Empire . As soon as it became connected to the state, Christianity grew wealthy; the Church solicited donations from the rich and could now own land. Constantine was also instrumental in the convocation of the First Council of Nicaea in 325, which sought to address Arianism and formulated the Nicene Creed, which is still used by in Catholicism , Eastern Orthodoxy , Lutheranism , Anglicanism , and many other Protestant churches. Nicaea

4125-502: The USSR . The territory of modern-day Belarus was split by the treaty into Western Belorussia ruled by the Polish and the Soviet Eastern Belorussia , with the border town in Mikaszewicze . Notably, the peace treaty was signed with the full active participation of the Belarusian delegation on the Soviet side. In paragraph 3, Poland abandoned all rights and claims to the territories of Soviet Belarus, while Soviet Russia abandoned all rights and claims to Polish Western Belarus. As soon as

4250-429: The Western Front for the 1918 Spring Offensive , leaving behind a power vacuum . The non-Russians inhabiting the lands ceded by the Soviets to the German Empire , saw the treaty as an opportunity to set up independent states under the German umbrella. Three weeks after the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk was signed on 3 March 1918, the newly formed Belarusian Central Council founded the Belarusian People's Republic . The idea

4375-422: The World Council of Churches . The Apostles' Creed is the most widely accepted statement of the articles of Christian faith. It is used by a number of Christian denominations for both liturgical and catechetical purposes, most visibly by liturgical churches of Western Christian tradition, including the Latin Church of the Catholic Church , Lutheranism , Anglicanism , and Western Rite Orthodoxy . It

4500-486: The dechristianization of France during the French Revolution , the Spanish Civil War , and certain Marxist movements, especially the Russian Revolution and the persecution of Christians in the Soviet Union under state atheism . Especially pressing in Europe was the formation of nation states after the Napoleonic era . In all European countries, different Christian denominations found themselves in competition to greater or lesser extents with each other and with

4625-498: The state religion in Armenia in the early 4th century AD, making Armenia the first officially Christian state. It was not an entirely new religion in Armenia, having penetrated into the country from at least the third century, but it may have been present even earlier. Constantine I was exposed to Christianity in his youth, and throughout his life his support for the religion grew, culminating in baptism on his deathbed. During his reign, state-sanctioned persecution of Christians

4750-519: The 1987–1988 issues of Litaratura i Mastastva . And in the autumn of 1989 some young intellectuals of Minsk decided to publish the periodical Unija intended to promote the rebirth of the Greek-Catholic Church. In early 1990, Nadson brought humanitarian aid from Belarusians abroad to their compatriots at home still suffering as a result of the 1986 Chernobyl disaster . He was surprised to meet young Belarusians who said they were Greek Catholics. On 11 March, he celebrated Minsk's first Divine Liturgy in

4875-415: The 6th century AD. These new universities expanded the curriculum to include academic programs for clerics, lawyers, civil servants, and physicians. The university is generally regarded as an institution that has its origin in the Medieval Christian setting. Accompanying the rise of the "new towns" throughout Europe, mendicant orders were founded, bringing the consecrated religious life out of

5000-501: The 8th century, with the rise of Carolingian leaders, the Papacy sought greater political support in the Frankish Kingdom . The Middle Ages brought about major changes within the church. Pope Gregory the Great dramatically reformed the ecclesiastical structure and administration. In the early 8th century, iconoclasm became a divisive issue, when it was sponsored by the Byzantine emperors. The Second Ecumenical Council of Nicaea (787) finally pronounced in favor of icons. In

5125-406: The BSSR . It was initially planned to move the capital of the BSSR to Vilna . However, the same year Joseph Stalin ordered that the city and surrounding region be transferred to Lithuania , which some months later was annexed by the Soviet Union and became a new Soviet Republic. Minsk, therefore, remained the capital of the enlarged BSSR. The borders of the BSSR were again altered somewhat after

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5250-475: The BSSR, but very soon became victims of Soviet repression . The table below shows a comparison of the number of Belarusians and the number of Poles in Western Belarus based on the 1931 census (questions about mother tongue and religion). Belarusian/Poleshuk("Tutejszy")/Russian and Orthodox/Greek Catholic plurality or majority counties are highlighted with yellow, while Polish and Roman Catholic plurality or majority counties are highlighted with pink: Soon after

5375-452: The Baltic states were a major theatre of operations during World War I ; all the while, the Bolshevik Coup overturned the interim Russian Provisional Government and formed Soviet Russia . The Bolsheviks withdrew from the war with the Central Powers by signing the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk , and ceded Belarus to Germany for the next eight and a half months. The German high command used this window of opportunity to transfer its troops to

5500-456: The Belarusian Uniate Church developed the individuality of its ritual and customs, as a blend of its dual Eastern and Western heritage. Prelates such as Leo Kiska (1668–1728) and other clergy used the vernacular, not only in their sermons, but also in their writings. Hymns (kantyčki), carols (kaladki) and prayers, as well as the catechism, were recited and taught in Belarusian. A whole corpus of Belarusian Church music for choir, cantor and even organ

5625-479: The Belarusian faithful abroad. He was the first Belarusian Catholic bishop since the Synod of Polatsk. A successor, Uladzimir Tarasevich , was appointed in 1983. After his death in 1986, Alexander Nadson was appointed Apostolic Visitator, but not, at his own request, raised to episcopal rank. The 1980s saw a gradual increase in interest among Minsk intellectuals in the Greek-Catholic Church. Articles by Anatol Sidarevich and Jury Khadyka about its history appeared in

5750-420: The Belarusian hierarchs to accept Union with the See of Rome. Even after further Ukrainians joined the Union around 1700, Belarusians still formed about half of the group. According to the historian Anatol Taras, by 1795, around 80% of Christians in Belarus were Greek Catholics, with 14% being Latin Catholics and 8% being Orthodox. Four Uniate bishoprics existed in Brest , Polatsk , Smalensk and Pinsk and

5875-529: The Byelorussian SSR as the Soviet subjects, without the recognition of their Polish citizenship. The Soviet propaganda portrayed the Soviet invasion of Poland as the "reunion of Western Belorussia and Ukraine". Many ethnic Belarusians and Jews welcomed unification with the BSSR. Mostly wealthy groups of citizens changed their attitude after experiencing firsthand the style of the Soviet system. The Soviets quickly began confiscating, nationalizing, and redistributing all private and state-owned property. During

6000-415: The Byzantine Emperor Alexios I for aid against Turkish expansion. The Crusades ultimately failed to stifle Islamic aggression and even contributed to Christian enmity with the sacking of Constantinople during the Fourth Crusade . The Christian Church experienced internal conflict between the 7th and 13th centuries that resulted in a schism between the Latin Church of Western Christianity branch,

6125-448: The Byzantine liturgy in Belarusian. The same year, a survey by Belarus State University found that 10,000 people in Minsk identified themselves as Greek Catholics. By 1993, it was estimated that the number of Greek Catholics in Belarus had grown to 100,000. Extrapolated to the country as a whole, this was interpreted to mean that, especially among the intelligentsia and nationally conscious youth, some 120,000 Belarusians were in favour of

6250-657: The Catholic Church in the Reformation era (16th century). Following the Age of Discovery (15th–17th century), Christianity expanded throughout the world via missionary work , evangelism , immigration and extensive trade. Christianity played a prominent role in the development of Western civilization , particularly in Europe from late antiquity and the Middle Ages . The six major branches of Christianity are Roman Catholicism (1.3 billion people), Protestantism (625 million-900 million), Eastern Orthodoxy (230 million), Oriental Orthodoxy (60 million), Restorationism (35 million), and

6375-535: The Church (led by Joseph Semashko ), along with 21 priests, convoked in February 1839 a synod that was held in Polatsk on 25 March 1839. This officially brought 1,600,000 Christians and either 1,305 or some 2,500 priests to join the Russian Orthodox Church. This was preceded by confiscation and destruction of Belarusian service-books, chant-books and manuscripts and their replacement with official Russian Orthodox publications. However, some priests and faithful still refused to join. The Russian state assigned most of

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6500-434: The Communist Manifesto . Meanwhile, by 1919, the Bolsheviks took control over large parts of Belarus and forced the Belarusian Rada into exile in Germany. The Bolsheviks formed the Socialist Soviet Republic of Byelorussia during the war with Poland on roughly the same territory claimed by the Belarusian Republic. The League of Nations ratified the new Polish-Soviet border. The peace agreement remained in place throughout

6625-468: The Jewish commandments. Paul the Apostle solved this by insisting that salvation by faith in Christ , and participation in his death and resurrection by their baptism, sufficed. At first he persecuted the early Christians, but after a conversion experience he preached to the gentiles , and is regarded as having had a formative effect on the emerging Christian identity as separate from Judaism. Eventually, his departure from Jewish customs would result in

6750-408: The NKVD apparatus, which resulted in over 100,000 people being forcibly deported to eastern parts of the Soviet Union (e.g. Siberia) in the very first wave of expulsions. In total, during the next two years some 1.7 million Polish citizens were put on freight trains and sent from the Polish Kresy to labour camps in the Gulag . The majority of Poles live in the Western regions, including 230,000 in

6875-442: The Nazi-Soviet invasion of Poland following the Nazi–Soviet Pact , the area of Western Belorussia was formally annexed into the Belarusian Soviet Socialist Republic (BSSR). The Soviet secret police NKVD , aided by the Red Army, organized staged elections which were decided in the atmosphere of intimidation and state terror. The Soviet occupational administration held the elections on October 22, 1939, less than two weeks after

7000-413: The Netherlands and Frisia . Ultimately, these differences led to the outbreak of conflicts in which religion played a key factor. The Thirty Years' War , the English Civil War , and the French Wars of Religion are prominent examples. These events intensified the Christian debate on persecution and toleration . In the revival of neoplatonism Renaissance humanists did not reject Christianity; quite

7125-421: The People's Assembly session held in Belastok ( Polish Białystok ) affirmed the Soviet decision to join the Belarusian Soviet Socialist Republic (BSSR) with the USSR. Nevertheless, the unification voting in the People's Assembly of Western Belorussia was not fully successful during the first attempt because 10 Lithuanians , who were elected to the People's Assembly of Western Belorussia, initially voted against

7250-452: The Persons nor dividing the Substance ". Most Christians ( Catholic , Eastern Orthodox , Oriental Orthodox , and Protestant alike) accept the use of creeds and subscribe to at least one of the creeds mentioned above. Certain Evangelical Protestants , though not all of them, reject creeds as definitive statements of faith, even while agreeing with some or all of the substance of the creeds. Also rejecting creeds are groups with roots in

7375-534: The Polish minority were shot by NKVD troika . According to Bogdan Musiał, many were murdered in prison executions. In addition, several hundred thousand ethnic Poles from Belarus and Ukraine were deported to other parts of the Soviet Union. The Soviets also promoted the Soviet-controlled BSSR as formally autonomous to attract Belarusians living in Poland. This image was attractive to many Western Belorussian national leaders, and some of them, like Frantsishak Alyakhnovich or Uładzimir Žyłka emigrated from Poland to

7500-514: The Polish national identity on Roman Catholics in Belarus . In January 1921, the starosta from Wilejka wrote of the popular mood as being one of resignation and apathy among the Western Belorussian peasants , impoverished by food requisitions by the Bolsheviks and the Polish military . He insisted that, although the new Belarusian schools were 'springing up everywhere' in his county, they harbored anti-Polish attitudes. In 1928 there were 69 schools with Belarusian language in Western Belorussia;

7625-421: The Republic of Ireland, and Switzerland, all countries with competing denominations. Competition is found in Germany, the Netherlands, and again Switzerland, all countries with minority Catholic populations, which to a greater or lesser extent identified with the nation. Finally, separation between religion (again, specifically Catholicism) and the state is found to a great degree in France and Italy, countries where

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7750-498: The Roman Empire (except Jews) to perform a sacrifice to the Roman gods. The Diocletianic Persecution beginning in 303 AD was also particularly severe. Roman persecution ended in 313 AD with the Edict of Milan . While Proto-orthodox Christianity was becoming dominant, heterodox sects also existed at the same time, which held radically different beliefs. Gnostic Christianity developed a duotheistic doctrine based on illusion and enlightenment rather than forgiveness of sin. With only

7875-419: The Soviet NKVD undertook the so-called "Polish Operation" (from approximately August 25, 1937, to November 15, 1938) – where the Poles in East Belorussia, i.e. BSSR, were deported and executed. The operation caused the deaths of up to 250,000 people – out of an official ethnic Polish population of 636,000 – as a result of political murder , disease or starvation . Amongst these, at least 111,091 members of

8000-401: The Soviet regime. Tensions between the increasingly nationalistic Polish government and various increasingly separatist ethnic minorities continued to grow, and the Belarusian minority was no exception. Likewise, according to Marek Jan Chodakiewicz , the USSR considered Poland to be "enemy number one". During the Great Purge , the Polish National District at Dzyarzhynsk was disbanded and

8125-475: The Soviet-German peace treaty was signed in March 1918, the newly formed Rada of the Belarusian Democratic Republic laid territorial claims to Belarus based on areas specified in the Third Constituent Charter unilaterally as inhabited by the Belarusian majority. The same Rada charter also declared that the Treaty of Brest-Litowsk of March 1918 was invalid because it was signed by foreign governments partitioning territories that were not theirs. In February 1919,

8250-479: The Uniate feast days, the Belarusian writer and political leader Ivan Luckievič discussed the restoration of the Uniate Church in Belarus with the Ukrainian Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky and one of the avowed objects of the Belarusian Democratic Union established in 1917 was the re-establishment of that rite. After the First World War, the western part of Belarus was included in the reconstituted Polish state, and some 30,000 descendants of those who, less than

8375-449: The United States. Michael served in the parish until it was closed by Cardinal Francis George , Archbishop of Chicago , on 20 July 2003. Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, professing that Jesus Christ was raised from the dead and is the Son of God , whose coming as the Messiah was prophesied in the Hebrew Bible (called the Old Testament in Christianity) and chronicled in

8500-414: The West , the papacy became a political player, first visible in Pope Leo 's diplomatic dealings with Huns and Vandals . The church also entered into a long period of missionary activity and expansion among the various tribes. While Arianists instituted the death penalty for practicing pagans (see the Massacre of Verden , for example), Catholicism also spread among the Hungarians , the Germanic ,

8625-417: The West during this period was enormous and of long-lasting significance. The later rise of Islam in North Africa reduced the size and numbers of Christian congregations, leaving in large numbers only the Coptic Church in Egypt, the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church in the Horn of Africa and the Nubian Church in the Sudan (Nobatia, Makuria and Alodia). With the decline and fall of the Roman Empire in

8750-436: The annexation, the Soviet authorities carried out the nationalization of agricultural land owned by large landowners in Western Belorussia. Collectivization and the creation of collective farms ( kolkhoz ) was planned to be carried out at a slower pace than in Eastern Belorussia in the 1920s. By 1941, in the western regions of the BSSR, the number of individual farms decreased only by 7%; 1115 collective farms were created. At

8875-453: The attendance was minimal due in part to lower quality of instruction. The first-ever textbook of Belarusian grammar was written only around 1918. In 1939, over 90% of children in Poland attended school. As elsewhere, the educational systems promoted Polish language there also. Meanwhile, the Belarusian agitators deported to the USSR from Poland were put in prison by the Soviet NKVD as bourgeois nationalists . Most Polish inhabitants of

9000-586: The call for Western Belorussian independence. In December 1919 the Rada was dissolved by Poland, while by early January 1920 a new body was formed, the Rada Najwyższa , without aspirations for independence, but with proposed cultural, social and educational functions. Józef Piłsudski negotiated with the Western Belorussian leadership, but eventually abandoned the ideas of Intermarium , his own proposed federation of partially self-governing states on

9125-785: The care of Mitred Protopresbyter Alexander Nadson as Apostolic Visitator until his death in 2015. The chief centres are the Church of St Cyril of Turau and All the Patron Saints of the Belarusian People in London and parish in Antwerp (constituted in 2003). A parish in Chicago , that of Christ the Redeemer, existed from 1955 to 2003. It was founded by John Chrysostom Tarasevich and was served by Deacon Vasili von Burman ;

9250-532: The churches of Rome. Its points include: The Nicene Creed was formulated, largely in response to Arianism , at the Councils of Nicaea and Constantinople in 325 and 381 respectively, and ratified as the universal creed of Christendom by the First Council of Ephesus in 431. The Chalcedonian Definition , or Creed of Chalcedon, developed at the Council of Chalcedon in 451, though rejected by

9375-701: The contrary, many of the greatest works of the Renaissance were devoted to it, and the Catholic Church patronized many works of Renaissance art . Much, if not most, of the new art was commissioned by or in dedication to the Church. Some scholars and historians attribute Christianity to having contributed to the rise of the Scientific Revolution . Many well-known historical figures who influenced Western science considered themselves Christian such as Nicolaus Copernicus , Galileo Galilei , Johannes Kepler , Isaac Newton and Robert Boyle . In

9500-508: The decisions, and the two principal churches remain in schism to the present day. However, the Catholic Church has achieved union with various smaller eastern churches . In the thirteenth century, a new emphasis on Jesus' suffering, exemplified by the Franciscans' preaching, had the consequence of turning worshippers' attention towards Jews, on whom Christians had placed the blame for Jesus' death . Christianity's limited tolerance of Jews

9625-711: The division caused by the Reformation led to outbreaks of religious violence and the establishment of separate state churches in Europe. Lutheranism spread into the northern, central, and eastern parts of present-day Germany, Livonia , and Scandinavia. Anglicanism was established in England in 1534. Calvinism and its varieties, such as Presbyterianism , were introduced in Scotland, the Netherlands, Hungary, Switzerland, and France. Arminianism gained followers in

9750-543: The dominant sects in both Judaism and Christianity. Christianity spread to Aramaic -speaking peoples along the Mediterranean coast and also to the inland parts of the Roman Empire and beyond that into the Parthian Empire and the later Sasanian Empire , including Mesopotamia , which was dominated at different times and to varying extents by these empires. The presence of Christianity in Africa began in

9875-400: The earliest centuries of Christian history, generally, Christians believe that Jesus is God incarnate and " true God and true man " (or both fully divine and fully human). Jesus, having become fully human , suffered the pains and temptations of a mortal man, but did not sin . As fully God, he rose to life again. According to the New Testament , he rose from the dead, ascended to heaven,

10000-584: The early 10th century, Western Christian monasticism was further rejuvenated through the leadership of the great Benedictine monastery of Cluny . In the West, from the 11th century onward, some older cathedral schools became universities (see, for example, University of Oxford , University of Paris and University of Bologna ). Previously, higher education had been the domain of Christian cathedral schools or monastic schools ( Scholae monasticae ), led by monks and nuns . Evidence of such schools dates back to

10125-702: The early Christian tradition, with the Old Testament as the gospels' respected background. Christianity began in the 1st century , after the death of Jesus, as a Judaic sect with Hellenistic influence in the Roman province of Judaea . The disciples of Jesus spread their faith around the Eastern Mediterranean area, despite significant persecution . The inclusion of Gentiles led Christianity to slowly separate from Judaism (2nd century). Emperor Constantine I decriminalized Christianity in

10250-641: The end of 1942, sworn Germanophile Ivan Yermachenka formed the pro-Nazi BNS organization with 30,000 members. The Belarusian Auxiliary Police was formed. Known to the Germans as the Schutzmannschaft , the ethnic Belarusian police played an indispensable role in the Holocaust in Belarus , notably during the second wave of the ghetto liquidations, starting in February–March 1942. In 1945,

10375-525: The era known as the Great Divergence , when in the West, the Age of Enlightenment and the scientific revolution brought about great societal changes, Christianity was confronted with various forms of skepticism and with certain modern political ideologies , such as versions of socialism and liberalism . Events ranged from mere anti-clericalism to violent outbursts against Christianity, such as

10500-723: The establishment of Christianity as an independent religion. This formative period was followed by the early bishops , whom Christians consider the successors of Christ's apostles . From the year 150, Christian teachers began to produce theological and apologetic works aimed at defending the faith. These authors are known as the Church Fathers , and the study of them is called patristics . Notable early Fathers include Ignatius of Antioch , Polycarp , Justin Martyr , Irenaeus , Tertullian , Clement of Alexandria and Origen . Persecution of Christians occurred intermittently and on

10625-580: The following centuries, competition between Catholicism and Protestantism became deeply entangled with political struggles among European states. Meanwhile, the discovery of America by Christopher Columbus in 1492 brought about a new wave of missionary activity. Partly from missionary zeal, but under the impetus of colonial expansion by the European powers, Christianity spread to the Americas, Oceania, East Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. Throughout Europe,

10750-479: The following cities - Minsk , Polatsk and Vitsebsk ; and only one in Brest , Hrodna , Mahiliou , Maladziechna and Lida . The faithful permanently attached to these came to about 3,000, while some 7,000 others lived outside the pastoral range of the parishes. Today there are 16 priests, and 9 seminarians. There was a small Studite monastery at Polatsk. The parishes are organized into two deaneries, each headed by

10875-505: The interwar period. The borders established between the two countries remained in force until World War II and the 17 September 1939 Soviet invasion of Poland . On Joseph Stalin 's insistence, the borders were redrawn in the Yalta and Potsdam Conferences. "Despite Soviet efforts at sealing the border [with Poland], peasants – refugees from the BSSR – crossed into Poland in the tens of thousands, wrote Per Anders Rudling . According to

11000-598: The invasion. The citizens were threatened repeatedly that their deportations to Siberia were imminent. The ballot envelopes were numbered to remain traceable and usually handed over already sealed. The referendum was rigged. By design, the candidates were unknown to their constituencies which were brought to the voting stations by armed guards. The so-called Elections to the People's Assemblies of Western Ukraine and Western Belorussia were conducted in Russian. On October 30,

11125-565: The lands of the former Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth . In the 1922 Polish legislative election , the Belarusian party in the Bloc of National Minorities obtained 14 seats in the Polish parliament (11 of them in the Sejm ). In the spring of 1923, Polish prime minister Władysław Sikorski ordered a report on the situation of the Belarusian minority in Poland . That summer, a new regulation

11250-782: The last century have been significant, since 1900, Christianity has spread rapidly in the Global South and Third World countries. The late 20th century has shown the shift of Christian adherence to the Third World and the Southern Hemisphere in general, with the West no longer the chief standard bearer of Christianity. Approximately 7 to 10% of Arabs are Christians , most prevalent in Egypt, Syria and Lebanon . While Christians worldwide share basic convictions, there are differences of interpretations and opinions of

11375-663: The middle of the 1st century in Egypt and by the end of the 2nd century in the region around Carthage . Mark the Evangelist is claimed to have started the Church of Alexandria in about 43 AD; various later churches claim this as their own legacy, including the Coptic Orthodox Church . Important Africans who influenced the early development of Christianity include Tertullian , Clement of Alexandria , Origen of Alexandria , Cyprian , Athanasius , and Augustine of Hippo . King Tiridates III made Christianity

11500-695: The monastery and into the new urban setting. The two principal mendicant movements were the Franciscans and the Dominicans , founded by Francis of Assisi and Dominic , respectively. Both orders made significant contributions to the development of the great universities of Europe. Another new order was the Cistercians , whose large, isolated monasteries spearheaded the settlement of former wilderness areas. In this period, church building and ecclesiastical architecture reached new heights, culminating in

11625-677: The national language, and, two days later, had a meeting with the editors of Unija , the first issue of which was then printed in Latvia . September 1990 saw the registration of the first Greek-Catholic parish since the Second World War , and in early 1991 Jan Matusevich began to celebrate the liturgy in his Minsk apartment. He was later put in charge of all the Greek-Catholic parishes in Belarus, and died in 1998. By 1992, three priests and two deacons in Belarus were celebrating

11750-588: The nature of salvation , ecclesiology , ordination , and Christology . The creeds of various Christian denominations generally hold in common Jesus as the Son of God —the Logos incarnated —who ministered , suffered , and died on a cross , but rose from the dead for the salvation of humankind; and referred to as the gospel , meaning the "good news". The four canonical gospels of Matthew , Mark , Luke and John describe Jesus's life and teachings as preserved in

11875-565: The noted historian of the Russian Greek Catholic Church . Christ the Redeemer was later the home parish of Uladzimir (Vladimir) Tarasevich until his death, after which it was administered by the local Latin Catholic ordinary, who appointed first Joseph Cirou and then John Mcdonnell as administrators. On 7 September 1996, the parish had seen the ordination of Prince Michael Huskey, EOHS as the first Belarusian deacon in

12000-490: The now-Catholic Church, and an Eastern , largely Greek, branch (the Eastern Orthodox Church ). The two sides disagreed on a number of administrative, liturgical and doctrinal issues, most prominently Eastern Orthodox opposition to papal supremacy . The Second Council of Lyon (1274) and the Council of Florence (1439) attempted to reunite the churches, but in both cases, the Eastern Orthodox refused to implement

12125-459: The occasion of the 70th anniversary of the Soviet invasion, the authoritative Polish Institute of National Remembrance announced that its researchers reduced the estimate of the number of people deported to Siberia to 320,000 in total. Some 150,000 Polish citizens perished under Soviet rule. The majority of Lithuanians in Belarus intelligentsia and communists were also repressed. The terms of

12250-571: The orders of Romanesque and Gothic architecture and the building of the great European cathedrals. Christian nationalism emerged during this era in which Christians felt the desire to recover lands in which Christianity had historically flourished. From 1095 under the pontificate of Urban II , the First Crusade was launched. These were a series of military campaigns in the Holy Land and elsewhere, initiated in response to pleas from

12375-707: The papacy. This conflict came to a head in the First Vatican Council , and in Germany would lead directly to the Kulturkampf . Christian commitment in Europe dropped as modernity and secularism came into their own, particularly in the Czech Republic and Estonia , while religious commitments in America have been generally high in comparison to Europe. Changes in worldwide Christianity over

12500-402: The peaks in Christian history and Christian civilization , and Constantinople remained the leading city of the Christian world in size, wealth, and culture. There was a renewed interest in classical Greek philosophy , as well as an increase in literary output in vernacular Greek. Byzantine art and literature held a preeminent place in Europe, and the cultural impact of Byzantine art on

12625-468: The population of Western Belorussia welcomed the annexation by the USSR. However, soon after the annexation of Western Belorussia by the Soviet Union, the Belarusian political activists had no illusions as to the friendliness of the Soviet regime. The population grew less loyal as the economic conditions became even worse and as the new regime carried out mass repressions and deportations that targeted Belarusians as well as ethnic Poles. Immediately after

12750-701: The property to the Orthodox Church in the 1840s. Recalcitrant priests and parish clerks were deported to monasteries and penal colonies in Northern Russia, emigrated to Austrian Galicia or chose to practise in secret the now-forbidden religion. Resentment over the suppression of the Belarusian Uniate Church was one of the causes of the 1863 Uprising and used as a rallying cry by the uprising's leader on Belarusian lands Kastus Kalinoŭski . When, in 1905, Tsar Nicholas II published

12875-465: The region supported the policy of cultural assimilation of Belarusians as proposed by Dmowski . The polonization drive was inspired and influenced by Dmowski's Polish National Democracy , who advocated refusing Belarusians and Ukrainians the right of free national development. Władysław Studnicki , an influential Polish official, stated that Poland's engagement in the East amounts to a much needed economic colonization . Belarusian nationalist media

13000-748: The resurrection of Jesus to be the cornerstone of their faith (see 1 Corinthians 15 ) and the most important event in history. Among Christian beliefs, the death and resurrection of Jesus are two core events on which much of Christian doctrine and theology is based. According to the New Testament, Jesus was crucified , died a physical death, was buried within a tomb, and rose from the dead three days later. West Belarus Western Belorussia or Western Belarus ( Belarusian : Заходняя Беларусь , romanized :  Zachodniaja Biełaruś ; Polish : Zachodnia Białoruś ; Russian : Западная Белоруссия , romanized :  Zapadnaya Belorussiya )

13125-417: The role of tradition, the seven sacraments , and other doctrines and practices. The Reformation in England began in 1534, when King Henry VIII had himself declared head of the Church of England . Beginning in 1536, the monasteries throughout England, Wales and Ireland were dissolved . Thomas Müntzer , Andreas Karlstadt and other theologians perceived both the Catholic Church and the confessions of

13250-472: The same time, pressure and even repressions against larger farmers (called by the Soviet propaganda, kulaki ) began: the size of agricultural land for one individual farm was limited to 10ha, 12ha and 14ha depending on the quality of the land. It was forbidden to hire workers and lease land. Under the Soviet occupation, the Western Belorussian citizenry, particularly the Poles, faced a "filtration" procedure by

13375-402: The state actively opposed itself to the authority of the Catholic Church. The combined factors of the formation of nation states and ultramontanism , especially in Germany and the Netherlands, but also in England to a much lesser extent, often forced Catholic churches, organizations, and believers to choose between the national demands of the state and the authority of the Church, specifically

13500-555: The state. Variables were the relative sizes of the denominations and the religious, political, and ideological orientation of the states. Urs Altermatt of the University of Fribourg , looking specifically at Catholicism in Europe, identifies four models for the European nations. In traditionally Catholic-majority countries such as Belgium, Spain, and Austria, to some extent, religious and national communities are more or less identical. Cultural symbiosis and separation are found in Poland,

13625-467: The two years following the annexation, the Soviets arrested approximately 100,000 Polish citizens across Kresy. Due to a lack of access to the secret Soviet and Belarusian archives, for many years after the war the estimates of the number of Polish citizens deported to Siberia from the areas of Western Belorussia, as well as the number who perished under Soviet rule, were only estimated. In August 2009, on

13750-619: The unification of Western Belorussia with the Belarusian SSR and explained that they instead want to unite with Lithuania , thus the voting had to be repeated and eventually succeeded. The petition was officially accepted by the Supreme Soviet of the USSR on November 2 and by the Supreme Soviet of the BSSR on November 12, 1939. From then on, all citizens of Poland but also born in Poland would find themselves living in

13875-545: The war (notably the area around the city of Białystok ( Belastok Region ) was returned to Poland). Still, in general, they coincide with the borders of the modern Republic of Belarus . The Belarusian political parties and the society in Western Belorussia often lacked information about repressions in the Soviet Union and was under a strong influence of Soviet propaganda. Because of bad economic conditions and national discrimination of Belarusian in Poland, much of

14000-547: The world, particularly in the Middle East , North Africa , East Asia , and South Asia . Early Jewish Christians referred to themselves as 'The Way' ( Koinē Greek : τῆς ὁδοῦ , romanized:  tês hodoû ), probably coming from Isaiah 40:3 , "prepare the way of the Lord". According to Acts 11:26 , the term "Christian" ( Χρῑστῐᾱνός , Khrīstiānós ), meaning "followers of Christ" in reference to Jesus's disciples ,

14125-649: Was arrested and taken to a Soviet concentration camp, where he died. While from then on very little information about the Byzantine Catholics in Belarus could reach Rome, refugees from among them founded centres in western Europe (Paris, London and Louvain) and in parts of the United States of America , especially in Chicago . From 1947, Leo Haroshka initiated in Paris a pastoral and cultural periodical called Bozhym Shliakham ( Божым Шляхам ), which

14250-464: Was ended with the Edict of Toleration in 311 and the Edict of Milan in 313. At that point, Christianity was still a minority belief, comprising perhaps only 5% of the Roman population. Influenced by his adviser Mardonius , Constantine's nephew Julian unsuccessfully tried to suppress Christianity. On 27 February 380, Theodosius I , Gratian , and Valentinian II established Nicene Christianity as

14375-402: Was evolved. In an age of increasing polonisation, the Uniate Church played an invaluable role in preserving the integrity of Belarusian national culture. The partition of Poland–Lithuania and the incorporation of the whole of Belarus into Russia led, according to the Russian Orthodox Church, many Belarusians (1,553 priests, 2,603 parishes and 1,483,111 people) to unite, by March 1795, with

14500-414: Was first used in the city of Antioch by the non-Jewish inhabitants there. The earliest recorded use of the term "Christianity/Christianism" ( Χρῑστῐᾱνισμός , Khrīstiānismós ) was by Ignatius of Antioch around 100  AD . The name Jesus comes from ‹See Tfd› Greek : Ἰησοῦς Iēsous , likely from Hebrew / Aramaic : יֵשׁוּעַ Yēšūaʿ. Christianity developed during the 1st century AD as

14625-584: Was given to the Polish People's Republic . Until the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, Western Belorussia formed the western part of the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic (BSSR). Today, it constitutes the west of modern Belarus. Created by the USSR after the conquest of Poland , the new western provinces of Byelorussian SSR acquired from Poland included Baranavichy , Belastok , Brest , Vileyka and

14750-400: Was not new—Augustine of Hippo said that Jews should not be allowed to enjoy the citizenship that Christians took for granted—but the growing antipathy towards Jews was a factor that led to the expulsion of Jews from England in 1290 , the first of many such expulsions in Europe. Beginning around 1184, following the crusade against Cathar heresy, various institutions, broadly referred to as

14875-434: Was passed allowing for the Belarusian language to officially be used in courts and schools. Obligatory teaching of the Belarusian language was introduced in all Polish gymnasia in areas inhabited by Belarusians in 1927. The Belarusian population of West Belarus faced active Polonization by the central Polish authorities. The policy pressured Belarusian schooling, discriminated against the Belarusian language, and imposed

15000-800: Was pressured and censored by the Polish authorities. Belarusians were divided along religious lines with roughly 70% being Orthodox and 30% Roman Catholic. According to Russian sources, discrimination was targeting assimilation of Eastern Orthodox Belarusians. The Polish church authorities promoted Polish in Orthodox services, and initiated the creation of the Polish Orthodox Societies in four cities including Slonim , Białystok , Vawkavysk , and Novogrodek . The Belarusian Roman Catholic priest Fr. Vincent Hadleŭski who promoted Belarusian in church, and Belarusian national awareness,

15125-494: Was published from 1960 to the end of 1980 in London . In London also, Alexander Nadson began translating the Byzantine liturgical texts into the Belarusian language in the 1970s. Thanks to this work, when in 1990 the first Greek-Catholic parishes could be organized in Belarus, they were able immediately to use these texts in their national language. In 1960, the Holy See appointed Cheslau Sipovich as Apostolic Visitator for

15250-626: Was rejected by the Germans, the Bolsheviks and the Americans. Woodrow Wilson rejected it, because the Americans intended to protect the territorial integrity of European Russia . The fate of the region was not settled for the following three and a half years. The Polish–Soviet War which erupted in 1919, was particularly bitter; it ended with the Peace of Riga of 1921. Poland and the Baltic states emerged as independent countries bordering

15375-626: Was the Belarusian Peasants' and Workers' Union , also referred to as the Hramada . Hramada received logistical help from the Soviet Union and the Communist International and served as a cover for the radical and subversive Communist Party of Western Belorussia . It was therefore banned by the Polish authorities, its leaders sentenced to various terms in prison and then deported to the USSR, where they were killed by

15500-465: Was the first of a series of ecumenical councils , which formally defined critical elements of the theology of the Church, notably concerning Christology . The Church of the East did not accept the third and following ecumenical councils and is still separate today by its successors ( Assyrian Church of the East ). In terms of prosperity and cultural life, the Byzantine Empire was one of

15625-734: Was under pressure by his Polish counterparts. The Polish Catholic Church in Western Belorussia issued documents to priests about the usage of the Belarusian language rather than Polish language in Churches and Catholic Sunday Schools. The Warsaw-published instruction of the Polish Catholic Church from 1921 criticized priests preaching in Belarusian at the Catholic masses . Compared to the (larger) Ukrainian minority living in Poland , Belarusians were much less politically aware and active. The largest Belarusian political organization

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