110-618: In Christian history , the Collegiants ( Latin : Collegiani ; Dutch : Collegianten ), also called Collegians , were an association , founded in 1619 among the Arminians and Anabaptists in Holland . They were so called because of their colleges (meetings) held the first Sunday of each month, at which everyone had the same liberty of expounding the scripture and praying . Collegiants were an association, founded in 1619 among
220-526: A Christendom that influenced every aspect of medieval life. From the ninth-century into the twelfth, politicization and Christianization went hand-in-hand in developing East-Central Europe , influencing culture, language, literacy, and literature of Slavic countries and Russia . The Byzantine Empire was more prosperous than the Western Roman Empire , and Eastern Orthodoxy was influential, however, centuries of Islamic aggression and
330-636: A Christian, and in 313, just two years after the close of Diocletian's persecution, issued the Edict of Milan expressing tolerance for all religions. The Edict was a pluralist policy, and throughout the Roman Empire of the fourth to sixth centuries, people shifted between a variety of religious groups in a kind of "religious marketplace". Constantine also took important steps to support and protect Christianity. He gave bishops judicial power and established equal footing for Christian clergy by granting them
440-837: A Roman Emperor is under Nero , probably in 64 AD, in the city of Rome. Scholars conjecture that the Apostles Peter and Paul were killed then. The Hellenized Greek-speaking Jews of Alexandria had produced the Septuagint , a Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible, between the third and first centuries BC. This was the translation of the Hebrew Bible used by the apostles and early Christians. Christian writings in Koine Greek, including Gospels containing accounts of Jesus's ministry, letters of Paul, and letters attributed to other early Christian leaders, were written in
550-531: A freedom otherwise denied to them. The Pauline epistles in the New Testament provide some of the earliest documentary sources of women as true missionary partners in the early Jesus movement. Female figures in early Christian art are ubiquitous. In the church rolls from the second-century, there is conclusive evidence of groups of women "exercising the office of widow". Judith Lieu affirms that influential women were attracted to Christianity. Much of
660-804: A growing criticism of the Catholic Church in the 1300–1500s, led to the Protestant Reformation and its related reform movements . Reform, and the Catholic Counter-Reformation , were followed by the European wars of religion , the development of modern political concepts of tolerance, and the Age of Enlightenment . Christianity also influenced the New World through its connection to colonialism , its part in
770-575: A lot of time passes between 6:4, "the Passover . . . was at hand," and 12:1, "Six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany..," especially at the beginning of Chapter 7 which even includes another feast (Booths/Tabernacles), and then again at 10:22 another season passes as well as the Feast of Dedication. This third reference to a passover in the Gospel of John is why many suggest that Jesus's ministry
880-595: A million. This provided enough adopters for its growth rate to be self-sustaining . In the first-century, it spread into Asia Minor ( Athens , Corinth , Ephesus , and Pergamum ). Egyptian Christianity probably began in the first-century in Alexandria. As it spread, Coptic Christianity , which survives into the modern era, developed. Christianity in Antioch is mentioned in Paul's epistles . Early Christianity
990-562: A presbyter/bishop whose primary role was economic. Any liturgical role would still have been linked to the substantial character of the eucharistic meal, the resources needed for it, and the charitable distributions connected to it. Accordingly, Christian bishops began forming an alternative elite. The first Christian communities were predominantly Jewish, although some also attracted God-fearers : Gentiles who visited Jewish synagogues. The religious, social, and political climate in Judea
1100-512: A refuge from the bitterness of the Calvinist and Arminian controversies of the day. Their name is derived from the custom they had of calling their communities "Colleges", as did Spener and the Pietists of Germany. The Collegiants' first place of meeting was at the village of Warmond , at the residence of one of the brothers, but they shortly established their headquarters at Rijnsburg ,
1210-659: A sage, a holy man, a prophet, a seer, or a visionary. Jesus saw his identity, mission, and that of his followers, in light of the coming kingdom of God and the prophetic tradition of Israel. His followers believed he was the Son of God, the Christ , a title in Greek for the Hebrew term mashiach (Messiah) meaning “the anointed one", who had been raised from the dead and exalted by God . As Frances Young has written, "The incarnation
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#17327906801921320-502: A variety of hostile and discriminatory imperial laws aimed at suppressing sacrifice and magic and closing temples that continued their use. Blood sacrifice had been a central rite of virtually all religious groups in the pre-Christian Mediterranean, but it disappeared by the end of the fourth-century. This is "one of the most significant religious developments of late antiquity," writes Scott Bradbury, and "must be attributed to ...imperial and episcopal hostility". Christian emperors wanted
1430-636: A village 2.5 mi (4.0 km) northwest from Leiden , and were hence called the Rijnsburgers (Dutch: Rijnsburger Collegianten ). In Rijnsburg , the Collegiants had a guest-quarter in the present-day alleyway of Kwakelsteeg called the Grote Huis (Large House). There were also large communities of Collegiants in other places, for instance in Amsterdam and Hoorn . The Amsterdam college
1540-785: A work which he wrote against Bredenburg under the title Arcana Atheismi detecta ("The Secrets of Atheism Revealed"); he was also the publisher of the Bibliotheca Fratrum Polonorum seu Unitariorum . The two parties were reunited on the death of these two controversialists, and attracted many to their society from other sects during the 18th century. The last (open) meetings of the Collegiants were held in Rijnsburg om 27 May 1787, in Rotterdam on 9 September 1788, and in Amsterdam in 1791. The last baptism in Rijnsburg
1650-787: Is believed that the Apostles dispersed from Jerusalem to found the apostolic sees . The major Galilean ministry which begins in Matthew 8 includes the commissioning of the Twelve Apostles , and covers most of the ministry of Jesus in Galilee. The final Galilean ministry begins after the beheading of John the Baptist as Jesus prepares to go to Jerusalem. In the later Judean ministry Jesus starts his final journey to Jerusalem through Judea. As Jesus travels towards Jerusalem, in
1760-636: Is generally considered the beginning and the Last Supper with his disciples in Jerusalem as the end of his ministry. However, some authors also consider the period between the Resurrection and the Ascension part of the ministry of Jesus. Luke 3:23 states that Jesus was "about 30 years of age" at the start of his ministry. There have been different approaches to estimating the date of
1870-399: Is not healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance." Commissioning the twelve Apostles relates the initial selection of the twelve Apostles among the disciples of Jesus. Jesus goes out to a mountainside to pray, and after spending the night praying to God, in the morning he calls his disciples and chooses twelve of them. In
1980-555: Is what turns Jesus into the foundation of Christianity". The Christian church established these as its founding doctrines, with baptism and the celebration of the Eucharist meal (Jesus' Last Supper) as its two primary rituals. Christianity initially emerged in the Roman province of Judea during the first-century. It was impacted by - and impacted - the geographical, cultural and socio-economic context in which it first developed. In
2090-535: The American Revolution , slavery in the west, and the long-term impact of Protestant missions. In the twenty-first century, traditional Christianity has declined in the West, while new forms have developed and expanded throughout the world. Today, there are more than two billion Christians worldwide and Christianity has become the world's largest , and most widespread religion. Within the last century,
2200-764: The Beatitudes and the widely recited Lord's Prayer . The Beatitudes are expressed as eight blessings in the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew, and four similar blessings appear in the Sermon on the Plain in Luke, where they are followed by four woes that mirror the blessings. The Beatitudes present the highest ideals of the teachings of Jesus on mercy , spirituality and compassion. The Major Galilean ministry , also called
2310-814: The Crusades negatively impacted Eastern Christianity. During the High Middle Ages , Eastern and Western Christianity had grown far enough apart that differences led to the East–West Schism of 1054. Temporary reunion was not achieved until the year before the fall of Constantinople in 1453. The fall of the Byzantine Empire put an end to the institutional Christian Church in the East as established under Constantine, though it survived in altered form. Various catastrophic circumstances, combined with
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#17327906801922420-592: The Diocletianic Persecution , took place in 303–311. There was also periodic persecution of Christians by Persian Sassanian authorities, and popular opposition from Graeco-Roman society at large. Christian authors of the second and third centuries were on the defensive, and the term Hellene became equated with pagan during this period. The Edict of Serdica was issued in 311 by the Roman Emperor Galerius , officially ending
2530-537: The Edict of Milan expressing tolerance for all religions. He did not make Christianity the state religion, but he did provide crucial support. Constantine called the first of seven ecumenical councils . By the Early Middle Ages , Eastern and Western Christianity had already begun to diverge, while missionary activities spread Christianity across Europe. Monks and nuns played a prominent role in establishing
2640-731: The Epistle to the Hebrews , the Epistle of James , the First and Second Epistle of Peter , the First Epistle of John , and the Book of Revelation . Gnostic texts emerged in the early second century challenging the physical nature of Jesus. In 172, Montanism suggested that current prophecy could supersede the apostles, and Monarchianism emphasized the unity of God over the Trinity. In
2750-631: The Great Galilean ministry , begins in Matthew 8 , after the Sermon on the Mount and refers to activities up to the death of John the Baptist . The beginnings of this period include The Centurion's Servant ( Matthew 8:5–13 ) and Calming the storm ( Matthew 8:23–27 ), both dealing with the theme of faith and fear. When the Centurion shows faith in Jesus by requesting a "healing at a distance", Jesus commends him for his exceptional faith. On
2860-593: The Judean desert , after rebuffing the temptation of Satan . In this early period, Jesus preaches around Galilee and, in Matthew 4:18–20 , his first disciples encounter him, begin to travel with him and eventually form the core of the early Church. The Gospel of John includes the Wedding at Cana as the first miracle of Jesus taking place in this early period of ministry, with his return to Galilee. A few villages in Galilee (e.g. Kafr Kanna ) have been suggested as
2970-614: The Kingdom of Heaven , beginning in Matthew 13:1 . These include the parables of The Sower , The Tares , The Mustard Seed and The Leaven , addressed to the public at large, as well as The Hidden Treasure , The Pearl and Drawing in the Net . At the end of the Major Galilean ministry, Jesus returns to his hometown, Nazareth. His wisdom is recognised there, questioned, and rejected. The Final Galilean ministry begins after
3080-626: The Mission Discourse , Jesus instructs the twelve apostles who are named in Matthew 10:2–3 to carry no belongings as they travel from city to city and preach. Separately, Luke 10:1–24 relates the Seventy Disciples , where Jesus appoints a larger number of disciples and sends them out in pairs with the Missionary's Mandate to go into villages before Jesus' arrival there. In Matthew 11:2–6 two messengers from John
3190-543: The Passion and Resurrection of Jesus . These episodes mark the beginnings of the gradual disclosure of the identity of Jesus as the Messiah to his disciples; and his prediction of his own suffering and death. Peter's Confession begins as a dialogue between Jesus and his disciples in Matthew 16:13 , Mark 8:27 and Luke 9:18 . Jesus asks his disciples: But who do you say that I am? Simon Peter answers him: You are
3300-536: The Sermon on the Mount , one of the major discourses of Jesus in Matthew, and the Sermon on the Plain in the Gospel of Luke. The Sermon on the Mount , which covers chapters 5 , 6 and 7 of the Gospel of Matthew, is the first of the Five Discourses of Matthew and is the longest piece of teaching from Jesus in the New Testament . It encapsulates many of the moral teachings of Jesus and includes
3410-794: The Widow's mite and the Second Coming Prophecy during the week that follows. In that week, the synoptics also narrate conflicts between Jesus and the elders of the Jews, in episodes such as the Authority of Jesus Questioned and the Woes of the Pharisees , in which Jesus criticizes their hypocrisy. Judas Iscariot , one of the twelve apostles , approaches the Jewish elders and performs
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3520-455: The death of John the Baptist , and includes the Feeding the 5000 and Walking on water episodes, both in Matthew 14 . After hearing of the Baptist's death, Jesus withdraws by boat privately to a solitary place near Bethsaida , where he addresses the crowds who had followed him on foot from the towns, and feeds them all with " five loaves and two fish " supplied by a boy. Following this,
3630-482: The last week of the life of Jesus in Jerusalem . The gospel accounts place the beginning of Jesus' ministry in the countryside of Roman province Judaea , near the River Jordan. The gospels present John the Baptist 's ministry as the precursor to that of Jesus and the baptism of Jesus as marking the beginning of Jesus' ministry, after which Jesus travels, preaches and performs miracles . Jesus's baptism
3740-649: The "parts of Tyre and Sidon " near the Mediterranean Sea , where the Canaanite woman's daughter episode takes place in Matthew 15:21–28 and Mark 7:24–30 . This episode is an example of how Jesus emphasizes the value of faith, telling the woman: "Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted." The importance of faith is also emphasized in the Cleansing ten lepers episode in Luke 17:11–19 . In
3850-403: The Arminians and Anabaptists in Holland. The practice originated in 1619 when, after the Synod of Dort forced the States of Holland to dismiss clerics for encouraging refuge to individuals being persecuted for religious beliefs, three brothers of Warmond by the name of van der Kodde (or Codde)—Gijsbert, Jan Jacobsz, and Adriaen—decided to hold religious services of their own. The sect began as
3960-404: The Baptist arrive to ask Jesus if he is the expected Messiah, or "shall we wait for another?" Jesus replies, "Go back and report to John what you hear and see: The blind receive sight, the lame walk". Following this, Jesus begins to speak to the crowds about the Baptist. This period is rich in parables and teachings and includes the Parabolic discourse , which provides many of the parables for
4070-436: The Baptist's ministry as the precursor to that of Jesus and the Baptism of Jesus as marking the beginning of Jesus' ministry. In his sermon in Acts 10:37–38 , delivered in the house of Cornelius the centurion, Apostle Peter gives an overview of the ministry of Jesus, and refers to what had happened "throughout all Judaea, beginning from Galilee, after the baptism which John preached" and that Jesus whom "God anointed with
4180-431: The Black Sea, in Ethiopia , India , Nubia , South Arabia , Soqotra , Central Asia and China . By the sixth-century, there is evidence of Christian communities in Sri Lanka and Tibet . Early Christianity was inclusively open to men and women, rich and poor, slave and free ( Galatians 3:28 ). Baptism was free, and there were no fees, which made Christianity a substantially cheaper form of worship compared with
4290-548: The Christ, the Son of the living God . In Matthew 16:17 , Jesus blesses Peter for his answer, and states: "flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father who is in heaven." In blessing Peter, Jesus not only accepts the titles Christ and Son of God , which Peter attributes to him, but declares the proclamation a divine revelation by stating that his Father in Heaven had revealed it to Peter. In this assertion, by endorsing both titles as divine revelation, Jesus unequivocally declares himself to be both Christ and
4400-448: The Dutch writer Aagje Deken was raised. Their principle from the beginning had been to admit all individuals to their society who were willing to acknowledge their belief in the Bible as inspired scripture, and to take it as a guide for Christian life; but no confession of faith was used, and the widest diversity of opinion was permitted. Their form of worship consisted of prayer meetings held on Sundays and Wednesdays, at which any men of
4510-576: The Gospel of Mark, after passing through Sidon , Jesus enters the region of the Decapolis , a group of ten cities south-east of Galilee, where the Healing the deaf mute miracle is reported in Mark 7:31–37 . After the healing, the disciples say, "He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak." The episode is the last in a series of narrated miracles which builds up to Peter's proclamation of Jesus as Christ in Mark 8:29 . In this period, Jesus starts his final journey to Jerusalem by going around Samaria , through Perea and on through Judea to Jerusalem. At
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4620-450: The Holy Family for Passover when Jesus is twelve years old). There are three references to Passovers in John's Gospel: 2:13, 6:4, and 12:1. Some contend that the Gospel of John refers to only two actual Passovers, one at the beginning of Jesus's ministry and the second at the end of Jesus's ministry, and that the third reference to Passover is only a forecasting of the second Passover in the Gospel of John. But much scholarship recognizes that
4730-467: The Holy Spirit and with power" had gone about "doing good". John 1:28 specifies the location where John was baptizing as "Bethany beyond the Jordan". This is not the village Bethany just east of Jerusalem, but the town of Bethabara in Perea . Perea is the province east of the Jordan, across the southern part of Samaria , and although the New Testament does not mention Perea by name, John 3:23 implicitly refers to it again when it states that John
4840-428: The King of Armenia, to convert to Christianity. Driven by a universalist logic, Christianity has been, from its beginnings, a missionary faith with global aspirations. It first spread through the Jewish diaspora along the trade and travel routes followed by merchants, soldiers, and migrating tribes. It achieved critical mass in the years between 150 and 250 when it moved from fewer than 50,000 adherents to over
4950-405: The Nicaean council. Clement , a first-century bishop of Rome, refers to the leaders of the Corinthian church in his epistle to Corinthians as bishops and presbyters interchangeably. The New Testament writers also use the terms overseer and elders interchangeably and as synonyms. It is unlikely that Christian offices were derived from the synagogue. The Second and Third centuries included both
5060-414: The Roman Empire , the faith spread as a grassroots movement that became established by the third-century both in and outside the empire. New Testament texts were written and church government was loosely organized in its first centuries, though the biblical canon did not become official until 382. Constantine the Great was the first Roman Emperor that converted to Christianity . In 313, he issued
5170-433: The Roman Empire around the ancient Mediterranean, elites (2 - 5 % of the population) controlled the means of economic production, had a virtual monopoly on literacy, and most of the political power. Life for peasants was not easy, and hunger was common. 'Religion' in this context did not exist separately from politics or the family household. The 'house church' was the earliest stage of development and organization in
5280-493: The Second Temple by Roman Emperor Titus in 70 contributed to the divergence of Judaism and Christianity as did disagreements about Jewish law, Jewish insurrections against Rome which Christians did not support, and the development of Rabbinic Judaism . What had begun as a Jewish messianic movement becomes a largely Gentile movement that is increasingly divorced from Judaism and its practices. However, Jewish Christianity remained influential in Palestine, Syria, and Asia Minor into
5390-419: The Son of God. In the Gospel of Matthew, following this episode, Jesus also selects Peter as the leader of the Apostles, and states that "upon this rock, I will build my church". In Matthew 16:18 Jesus then continues: "That thou art Peter, and upon this rock, I will build my church". The word "church" ( ekklesia in Greek) as used here, appears in the Gospels only once more, in Matthew 18:17 , and refers to
5500-430: The activities of the Baptist in Bethabara and Ænon in John John 1:28 and John 3:23 . This period of ministry includes the Discourse on the Church , in which Jesus anticipates a future community of followers and explains the role of his apostles in leading it. It includes the parables of The Lost Sheep and The Unforgiving Servant in Matthew 18 , which also refer to the Kingdom of Heaven. The general theme of
5610-437: The anticipated community. It teaches that in the Kingdom of God, it is personal humility that matters, not social prominence and clout. At the end of this period, the Gospel of John includes the Raising of Lazarus episode in John 11:1–46 , in which Jesus brings Lazarus of Bethany back to life four days after his burial. In the Gospel of John, the raising of Lazarus is the climax of the "seven signs" which gradually confirm
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#17327906801925720-428: The beginning of this period, Jesus predicts his death for the first time, and this prediction then builds up to the other two episodes, the final prediction being just before Jesus enters Jerusalem for the last time, the week of his crucifixion . In Matthew 16:21–28 and Mark 8:31–33 , Jesus teaches his disciples that "the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests and teachers of
5830-402: The centre of growth has shifted from West to East and from the North to the Global South becoming a global religion in the twenty-first century . Early Christianity begins with the ministry of Jesus ( c. 27–30 ) Virtually all scholars of antiquity accept that Jesus was a historical figure . His crucifixion is well attested. He was a complex figure, which many see as
5940-428: The city. In the three Synoptic Gospels, entry into Jerusalem is followed by the Cleansing of the Temple episode, in which Jesus expels the money changers from the Temple, accusing them of turning the Temple to a den of thieves through their commercial activities. This is the only account of Jesus using physical force in any of the Gospels. The synoptics include a number of well known parables and sermons such as
6050-439: The community might pray and expound the scripture, but there was no regular organization of a ministry among them. They recognized the necessity of baptism , which they administered by immersion, and twice a year they had a sacramental meeting extending over several days, similar to those of the Scottish Presbyterians . Benedict Spinoza joined the study groups of the Collegiants while living near Leiden from 1660 to 1663. It
6160-425: The community of believers at the time. Following the proclamation by Peter , the account of the Transfiguration of Jesus is the next major event and appears in Matthew 17:1–9 , Mark 9:2–8 and Luke 9:28–36 . Jesus takes Peter and two other apostles with him and goes up to a mountain, which is not named. Once on the mountain, Matthew 17:2 states that Jesus "was transfigured before them; his face shining as
6270-410: The costly aristocratic models of patronage, temple building, and cult observances. Inclusivity extended to women who made up significant numbers of Christianity's earliest members. Traditional social expectations of women in the Roman Empire did not encourage them to engage in the same activities as men of the same social class. However, through religious activities, women were sometimes able to attain
6380-400: The date of the Last Supper is very close before the date of the crucifixion of Jesus (hence its name). Scholarly estimates for the date of the crucifixion generally fall in the range AD 30–36. The three Synoptic Gospels refer to just one passover , specifically the Passover at the end of Jesus's ministry when he is crucified (with the exception of Luke's Gospel, which narrates a visit of
6490-407: The date of the start of his ministry at around AD 27–29 and the end in the range AD 30–36. Jesus' early Galilean ministry begins when after his baptism, he goes back to Galilee from his temptation in the Judaean Desert . In this early period, he preaches around Galilee and recruits his first disciples who begin to travel with him and eventually form the core of the early Church as it
6600-413: The dead, crowds gather around Jesus and believe in him, and the next day the multitudes that had gathered for the feast in Jerusalem welcome Jesus as he descends from the Mount of Olives towards Jerusalem in Matthew 21:1–11 , Mark 11:1–11 , Luke 19:28–44 and John 12:12–19 . In Luke 19:41–44 as Jesus approaches Jerusalem, he looks at the city and weeps over it, foretelling the suffering that awaits
6710-470: The disciples increase their faith in Jesus, and, in Matthew 14:33, they say, "Of a truth thou art the Son of God". Major teachings in this period include the Discourse on Defilement in Matthew 15:1–20 and Mark 7:1–23 where, in response to a complaint from the Pharisees, Jesus states: "What goes into a man's mouth does not make him 'unclean,' but what comes out of his mouth, that is what makes him 'unclean.'". Following this episode, Jesus withdraws into
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#17327906801926820-408: The discourse is the anticipation of a future community of followers, and the role of his apostles in leading it. Addressing his apostles in Matthew 18:18 , Jesus states: "Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven". The discourse emphasizes the importance of humility and self-sacrifice as the high virtues within
6930-507: The early fifth-century, continuing in parts of the empire into the seventh-century, and into the ninth-century in Greece. Jews and Christians were both religious minorities, claiming the same inheritance, competing in a direct and sometimes violent clash. Augustine's ethic regarding the Jews rejected those who argued they should be killed or forcibly converted. Instead, he said Jews should be allowed to live in Christian societies and practice Judaism without interference because they preserved
7040-528: The empire to become a Christian empire, and they used imperial law to make it easier to be Christian and harder to be pagan. However, there was no legislation forcing the conversion of pagans until the sixth-century, during the reign of the Eastern emperor Justinian I, when there was a shift from generalized legislation to actions that targeted individual centers of paganism. Despite threatening imperial laws, occasional mob violence, and imperial confiscations of temple treasures, paganism remained widespread into
7150-400: The face of such diversity, the scriptures commonly used in worship provided some unity. The early church fathers rejected the making of images. This rejection, along with the necessity to hide Christian practice from persecution, left behind few early records. What is most likely the oldest Christian art emerged on sarcophagi , and in burial chambers in frescoes and statues, sometime from
7260-513: The first-century and had considerable authority even in the formative period. The letters of the Apostle Paul sent to the early Christian communities were circulating in collected form by the end of the first-century. According to Gerd Theissen , institutionalization began very early when itinerant preaching transformed into resident leadership in the first-century. Edwin Judge argues that there must have been organization long before 325 since many bishops were established enough to participate in
7370-468: The fluidity and the consolidation of Christian identity. A more formal Church structure grew, and according to Carrington, that hierarchy developed at different times in different locations. Bishops began presiding over multiple churches and rose in power and influence. The Ante-Nicene period included increasing but sporadic persecution from Roman authorities, and the rise of Christian sects , cults , and movements . The destruction of Jerusalem and
7480-411: The gospels present the Walking on water episode in Matthew 14:22–23 , Mark 6:45–52 and John 6:16–21 as an important step in developing the relationship between Jesus and his disciples, at this stage of his ministry. The episode emphasizes the importance of faith by stating that, when he attempted to walk on water, Peter began to sink when he lost faith and became afraid. At the end of the episode,
7590-480: The government's action. Augustine's authority on coercion was undisputed for over a millennium in Western Christianity, and according to Peter Brown, "it provided the theological foundation for the justification of medieval persecution". Opponents of Gnosticism used it to develop better Christian theology. Montanism was mentioned at Nicea but not condemned, however, there were repeated and ongoing writings against it after 324. Traditionally, scholars have seen
7700-464: The greatest controversy as that between Arianism and trinitarianism . Exactly what occurred has long been a matter of intense debate. Sometime around 320, Arius wrote a letter to his bishop, Alexander, distinguishing three distinct "substances" of God with the Father alone as eternal and not having a beginning. In this metaphysic, the Son is not of the same substance as the Father. Alexander responded by taking formal action against Arius and advising
7810-455: The identity of Jesus as the Son of God and the expected Messiah. It is also a pivotal episode which starts the chain of events that leads to the crowds seeking Jesus on his Triumphal entry into Jerusalem —leading to the decision of Caiaphas and the Sanhedrin to plan to kill Jesus ( Crucifixion of Jesus ). The final ministry in Jerusalem is traditionally called the Passion and begins with Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem early in
7920-467: The identity of Jesus as the Son of God , (as in his Baptism ), but the statement "listen to him" identifies him as the messenger and mouth-piece of God. The significance is enhanced by the presence of Elijah and Moses, for it indicates to the apostles that Jesus is the voice of God, and, instead of Elijah or Moses, he should be listened to, by virtue of his filial relationship with God. 2 Peter 1:16–18 echoes
8030-525: The initial encounter with the disciples of John the Baptist in John 1:35–37 , where "two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus". Assuming that there were two incidences of Cleansing of the Temple , which was located in Jerusalem, a possible reference to an early Judean ministry may be John 2:13–25 . The Early Galilean ministry begins when, according to Matthew, Jesus goes back to Galilee from
8140-493: The late second to the early third-century. This art is symbolic rather than representative. Much of it is a fusion of Graeco-Roman style and Christian symbolism. Jesus as the good shepherd is the most common image of this period. In 250, the emperor Decius made it a capital offense to refuse to make sacrifices to Roman gods , resulting in widespread persecution of Christians. Valerian pursued similar policies later that decade. The last and most severe official persecution,
8250-488: The later Perean ministry, about one third the way down from the Sea of Galilee (actually a freshwater lake) along the River Jordan, he returns to the area where he was baptized. The final ministry in Jerusalem is sometimes called the Passion week and begins with Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem . The gospels provide more details about the final ministry than the other periods, devoting about one third of their text to
8360-626: The law, and that he must be killed and after three days rise again." Later in this period, at about the middle of each of the three Synoptic Gospels , two related episodes mark a turning point in the ministry of Jesus: the Confession of Peter and the Transfiguration of Jesus . These episodes begin in Caesarea Philippi , just north of the Sea of Galilee , at the beginning of the final journey to Jerusalem which ends in
8470-501: The location of Cana . The return of Jesus to Galilee follows the arrest of John the Baptist . The early teachings of Jesus result in his rejection at his hometown when in Luke 4:16–30 Jesus says in a Synagogue, "No prophet is acceptable in his own country", and the people reject him. In this early period, Jesus' reputation begins to spread throughout Galilee. In Mark 1:21–28 and Luke 4:31–37 , Jesus goes to Capernaum , where people are "astonished at his teaching; for his word
8580-430: The new Jesus movement. Voluntary associations known as collegia served as a model. Some church members were of higher social and economic standing than others and used their means to provide what was needed. The owner of the house was patron and host. The typical setting for worship was the communal meal which was not yet formally distinguished from the eucharistic meal. These house churches would each have been overseen by
8690-617: The other hand, when his own disciples show fear of a storm on the Sea of Galilee, Jesus instructs them to have more faith, after he orders the storm to stop. In this period, Jesus is still gathering the twelve apostles , and the Calling of Matthew takes place in Matthew 9:9 . The conflicts and criticism between Jesus and the Pharisees continue, e.g. they criticize Jesus for associating with "publicans and sinners", whereby Jesus responds: "It
8800-534: The pagan world. Late Antiquity can be seen as an era of economic struggle with periods of stagnation and periods of tremendous activity. The Christian faith grew and spread through the Empire into Western Europe and around the Mediterranean basin . Different doctrines and practices emerged as schisms and heresies due to its multiple geographic and cultural contexts. Church organization began to mirror
8910-551: The persecution of Christians in the East. With the promulgation of the Edict of Milan in 313, in which co-emperors Constantine and Licinius legalized all religions, persecution of Christians by the Roman state ceased. The Kingdom of Armenia became the first country in the world to establish Christianity as its state religion when, in an event traditionally dated to 301, Gregory the Illuminator convinced Tiridates III ,
9020-511: The powerful psychological attraction of elitism. Christian and non-Christian witnesses testify to the zealousness of Christian communities for almsgiving and charity. Christians showed the poor great generosity. Early Christianity redefined family by burying together church members not related by blood and extending funeral rites to include the Christian community. Christians had no sacrificial cult, and this set them apart from Judaism and
9130-507: The route Jesus followed from Galilee to Jerusalem passed through Perea . However, the Gospel of John does state that he returned to the area where he was baptized, and John 10:40–42 states that "many people believed in him beyond the Jordan", saying "all things whatsoever John spake of this man were true". The area where Jesus was baptised is inferred as the vicinity of the Perea area, given
9240-468: The same immunities polytheistic priests had long enjoyed. By intervening in church disputes, he initiated a precedent for ecclesiastical councils. Constantine was the first emperor to order the restoration of properties to the churches. There was a burst of church building under Constantine, and Christian art and literature blossomed. By the late fourth-century, there were churches in essentially all Roman cities. Overt pagan-Christian religious conflict
9350-544: The same message: at the Transfiguration, God assigns to Jesus a special "honor and glory" and it is the turning point at which God exalts Jesus above all other powers in creation. Many of the episodes in the Later Judean ministry are from the Gospel of Luke but, in general, these sequence of episodes in Luke do not provide enough geographical information to determine Perea, though scholars generally assume that
9460-416: The second and third centuries. By the early third-century, there existed a set of early Christian writings similar to the current New Testament . Although a general acceptance of the four gospels and the letters of Paul as authoritative is found in the second and third centuries, it is significant that church leaders assigned different degrees of authority to different writings. There were disputes over
9570-465: The start of the ministry of Jesus. One approach, based on combining information from the Gospel of Luke with historical data about Emperor Tiberius yields a date around 28–29 AD/CE, while a second independent approach based on statements in the Gospel of John along with historical information from Josephus about the Temple in Jerusalem leads to a date around AD 27–29. In the New Testament,
9680-476: The structure of the Roman Empire. The Theodosian Age embracing the last twenty years of the fourth century and the first twenty years of the fifth has been described as "the last renaissance of the Roman Empire". By the second half of the fifth-century, cities were in decline, streets were no longer being built, and fortifications were decaying. Constantine the Great became emperor in the West, declared himself
9790-437: The sun, and his garments became white as the light." At that point, the prophets Elijah and Moses appear and Jesus begins to talk to them. Luke is specific in describing Jesus in a state of glory, with Luke 9:32 referring to "they saw his glory". A bright cloud appears around them, and a voice from the cloud states: "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him". The Transfiguration not only supports
9900-658: The teachings of the Old Testament and were "living witnesses" of the New. According to Anna Sapir Abulafia , scholars agree that "with the marked exception of Visigothic Spain in the seventh-century, Jews in Latin Christendom lived relatively peacefully with their Christian neighbors" until the 1200s. Sometime before the fifth-century, the theology of supersessionism emerged, claiming that Christianity had displaced Judaism as God's chosen people. Supersessionism
10010-613: The texts they produced indicate Jesus' first followers saw him as that promised Messiah. Saul of Tarsus, a pharisee who became Paul the Apostle , persecuted the early Jewish Christians, then converted . Paul was influential in the early spread of Christianity making at least three missionary journeys and writing letters of instruction and admonishment to the churches he founded. Beginning with less than 1000 people, Christianity had grown to around one hundred small household churches consisting of an average of seventy members each, by
10120-410: The third-century had already produced a decline of urbanism and prosperity. Further economic disruption in the fourth and fifth-centuries occurred when various Germanic peoples sacked Rome, and invaded Britain, Gaul, and Iberia. Such disruption made fewer public funds and private donations available to support expensive pagan festivals and temples. Under Constantine, non-Christians became subject to
10230-592: The vociferous anti-Christian criticism of the early church was linked to "female initiative" which indicates women were playing a significant role. Monasticism was one area of antique life that gave women who practiced charismatic asceticism some control over their destinies. Ross Kraemer theorizes that the ascetic life was attractive to large numbers of women. It offered an escape from marriage and motherhood and offered an intellectual life with access to social and economic power that would otherwise have eluded them. A key characteristic of these inclusive communities
10340-491: The week that includes the Last Supper and is liturgically marked as Holy Week . The gospels pay special attention to the account of the last week of the life of Jesus in Jerusalem, and the narrative amounts to about one third of the text of the four gospels, showing its theological significance in Christian thought in the Early Church . Before arriving in Jerusalem, in John 12:9–11 , after raising Lazarus from
10450-596: The wider church to do the same. Ministry of Jesus The ministry of Jesus , in the canonical gospels , begins with his baptism near the River Jordan by John the Baptist , and ends in Jerusalem in Judea , following the Last Supper with his disciples . The Gospel of Luke Luke 3:23 states that Jesus was "about 30 years of age" at the start of his ministry . A chronology of Jesus typically sets
10560-553: The year 100. The earliest date for the council is 47, but most likely it was held in 49 or 50. The issue concerned Gentiles joining the movement in increasing numbers and the Judaizers who wanted them to follow Jewish law. "The faith that was Jewish in form, and universal in content, had to be adjusted to non-Jewish people". In its first three centuries, some saw Christianity as a threat which led to localized persecution by mobs and governors. The first reference to persecution by
10670-417: Was crucified and died c. AD 30–33 in Jerusalem in the Roman province of Judea . Afterwards, his followers, a set of apocalyptic Jews , proclaimed him risen from the dead. Christianity began as a Jewish sect and remained so for centuries in some locations, diverging gradually from Judaism over doctrinal, social and historical differences. In spite of the persecution of Christians in
10780-457: Was a much higher priority than paganism for Christians of this period. In North Africa during the reign of Constantine, Donatism formed as a schism. Donatists refused - sometimes violently - to accept back into the Church those who had handed over sacred texts during Diocletian's persecution. After many appeals, the empire responded with force, and in 408 in his Letter 93, Augustine defended
10890-434: Was a period of about three years. Scholars that support a three-year ministry, such as Köstenberger state that the Gospel of John simply provides a more detailed account. During the ministry of Jesus, the tetrarch ruling over Galilee and Perea in this period was Herod Antipas , who obtained the position upon the division of the territories following the death of Herod the Great in 4 BC. The gospels present John
11000-625: Was baptising in Enon near Salim , "because there was much water there". First-century historian Flavius Josephus also wrote in the Antiquities of the Jews ( 18 5.2 ) that John the Baptist was imprisoned and then killed in Machaerus on the border of Perea. Luke 3:23 and Luke 4:1 indicate possible activities of Jesus near the Jordan River around the time of his baptism, as does
11110-524: Was during this period that he began working on his major book, The Ethics . At the end of the 17th century, the opinions of Spinoza had obtained a strong hold upon the Collegiants, and caused a temporary division of their members into two parties, with separate places of meeting. The leader of the Spinozist party was John Bredenburg, a merchant of Rotterdam , and he was opposed by a bookseller from Amsterdam, named Francis Couper, who attained some eminence by
11220-545: Was extremely diverse and characterized by turmoil. Judaism itself included numerous religious and political movements. One was Jewish messianism with its roots in Jewish apocalyptic literature . Its prophecy and poetry promised a future anointed leader (messiah or king) from the Davidic line to resurrect the Israelite Kingdom of God and replace the foreign rulers. The nature of the earliest communities and
11330-428: Was founded in 1646 by Adam Boreel as a spiritualist cell, like those of Sebastian Franck and Kaspar Schwenkfeld , but Daniel De Breen, a Leiden-educated Remonstrant theologian, brought the college in line with Rijinsburger principles. A disaffected Mennonite, Galenus Abrahamsz (or Abrahamson), brought many other Mennonites to the Amsterdam college. In Amsterdam, the Collegiants ran an orphanage, 'De Oranjeappel', where
11440-800: Was in Gaul , North Africa, and the city of Rome. It spread (in its Arian form) in the Germanic world during the latter part of the third-century, and probably reached Roman Britain by the third-century at the latest. From the earliest days, there was a Christian presence in Edessa (modern Turkey). It developed in Adiabene in the Parthian Empire in Persia (modern Iran). It developed in Georgia by
11550-409: Was in 1801. The center in Rijnsburg was sold in 1828, after the last Collegiant had died. The orphanage of the Collegiants called 'De Oranjeappel' survives to this day as a foundation promoting youth work ("Stichting Weeshuis der Doopsgezinde Collegianten "De Oranjeappel"). Christian history The history of Christianity begins with the ministry of Jesus , a Jewish teacher and healer who
11660-544: Was never official or universally held, but replacement theology has been part of Christian thought through much of history. Many attribute the emergence of antisemitism to this doctrine, while others make a distinction between supersessionism and modern antisemitism. There has been a paradigm shift in modern scholarship that questions the existence of heresy and orthodoxy before the Council of Nicea (325) and differentiates heresy from schism. The Church of Late Antiquity
11770-554: Was once the dominant view of Late Antiquity. Twenty-first-century scholarship indicates that, while hostile Christian actions toward pagans and their monuments did occur, violence was not a general phenomenon. As Jan N. Bremmer writes, "religious violence in Late Antiquity is mostly restricted to violent rhetoric". Support for the polytheistic religions had been declining since the second-century B.C. and continued to decline throughout Late Antiquity. The economic crisis of
11880-426: Was seen by its supporters as a universal church. Membership was based on belief, and correct belief - defined by apostolic tradition - identified variations as heresies according to their degrees of difference from the "true church". Ancient authors labeled anyone with doctrinal variations and different practices as heretical. The sheer number of laws directed at heresy in the fourth and fifth centuries indicate it
11990-403: Was their unique type of exclusivity. Believing was the crucial and defining characteristic of membership. Correct belief identified and separated believers from the "unbeliever" creating a high social boundary. Such exclusivity formed an important part of Christianity's success by enabling independence in a society that syncretized religion. In Daniel Praet's view, exclusivity gave Christianity
12100-588: Was with authority", in the Exorcism at the Synagogue in Capernaum episode, which is followed by healing the mother of Peter's wife . Luke 5:1–11 includes the first Miraculous draught of fishes episode in which Jesus tells Peter , "now on you will catch men". Peter leaves his net and, along with him, James and John , the sons of Zebedee, follows Jesus as disciples thereafter. This period includes
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