History of Christianity Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.Anti-spam check. Do not fill this in! PreviewAdvancedSpecial charactersHelpHeadingLevel 2Level 3Level 4Level 5FormatInsertLatinLatin extendedIPASymbolsGreekGreek extendedCyrillicArabicArabic extendedHebrewBanglaTamilTeluguSinhalaDevanagariGujaratiThaiLaoKhmerCanadian AboriginalRunesÁáÀàÂâÄäÃãǍǎĀāĂ㥹ÅåĆćĈĉÇçČčĊċĐđĎďÉéÈèÊêËëĚěĒēĔĕĖėĘęĜĝĢģĞğĠġĤĥĦħÍíÌìÎîÏïĨĩǏǐĪīĬĭİıĮįĴĵĶķĹĺĻļĽľŁłŃńÑñŅņŇňÓóÒòÔôÖöÕõǑǒŌōŎŏǪǫŐőŔŕŖŗŘřŚśŜŝŞşŠšȘșȚțŤťÚúÙùÛûÜüŨũŮůǓǔŪūǖǘǚǜŬŭŲųŰűŴŵÝýŶŷŸÿȲȳŹźŽžŻżÆæǢǣØøŒœßÐðÞþƏəFormattingLinksHeadingsListsFilesDiscussionReferencesDescriptionWhat you typeWhat you getItalic''Italic text''Italic textBold'''Bold text'''Bold textBold & italic'''''Bold & italic text'''''Bold & italic textDescriptionWhat you typeWhat you getReferencePage text.<ref>[https://www.example.org/ Link text], additional text.</ref>Page text.[1]Named referencePage text.<ref name="test">[https://www.example.org/ Link text]</ref>Page text.[2]Additional use of the same referencePage text.<ref name="test" />Page text.[2]Display references<references />↑ Link text, additional text.↑ Link text==Eastern Christianity (1000–1586)== {{See also|Christianization of Poland}} {{Further|Christianity in the Ottoman Empire|Persecution of Christians#Ottoman Empire|History of the Eastern Orthodox Church under the Ottoman Empire}} Bulgarians, [[Alania|Alanians]] (modern Iran), Russians and [[Armenia|Armenians]] had come under the auspices of the Byzantine Patriarch by the early eleventh century.{{sfn|Shepard|2006|p=4}}{{sfn|Harris|2014|p=7}} These rulers preferred the Byzantine over the Roman view of culture and politics because it was modeled on Byzantine emperors. This strongly supported their right to the throne, saw the ruler’s law making and enforcement as divinely inspired, and gained them the respect, authority and obedience needed to establish their states.{{sfn|Shepard|2006|pp=5; 7-8}} [[File:Cyril Metodej.jpg|thumb|left|[[Saints Cyril and Methodius|St. Cyril and St. Methodius]] monument on [[Radhošť|Mt. Radhošť]]|alt=image of a monument depicting Saints Cyril and Methodius]] Conversion of the Slavs dates to the time of [[Eastern Orthodox]] missionaries [[Saints Cyril and Methodius]] during the reign of the Byzantine emperor [[Basil I]] (r. 867–886).{{sfn|Radić|2010|p=232}}{{sfn|Ivanič|2016|pp=126; 129}} [[Serbia]] can be seen as a "Christian nation" by 870.{{sfn|Vlasto|1970|p=208}} Cyril and Methodius translated the [[canonical Gospels|Gospels]] into the [[Old Church Slavonic]] language, developing the [[Glagolitic alphabet|first Slavic alphabet]], and with their disciples, the [[Cyrillic script]].{{sfn|Ivanič|2016|p=127}}{{sfn|Schaff|1953|pp=161–162}} It became the first literary language of the Slavs and, eventually, the educational foundation for all Slavic nations.{{sfn|Ivanič|2016|p=127}} The adoption of Eastern Christianity and the use of vernacular Slavic language influenced the direction of the spiritual, religious, and cultural development of the entire region through the rest of the millennium.{{sfn|Poppe|1991|p=25}} [[File:Southeastern Europe Late Ninth Century.png|thumb|Southeastern Europe Late Ninth Century|alt=map of southeastern Europe in the ninth century]] In the last two decades of the 9th century, missionaries [[Clement of Ohrid|Clement]] and [[Saint Naum|Naum]], disciples of the brothers Cyril and Methodius, arrived in [[Romania]] spreading Christianity and the Cyrillic alphabet.{{sfn|Pop|2009|p=252}} By the 10th century, the [[Bulgarian royal family|Bulgarian Tsars]] imposed the [[Religion in Bulgaria|Bulgarian church model]] and its Slavic language without opposition.{{sfn|Pop|2009|p=251}} This ecclesiastical and political tradition continued until the 19th century.{{sfn|Pop|2009|p=253}} [[File:Matejko Christianization of Poland.jpg|thumb|right|''[[Introduction of Christianity in Poland]]'', by [[Jan Matejko]], 1888–89, [[National Museum, Warsaw]]|alt=image of first baptisms in Poland]] The dynastic interests of the [[Piast dynasty|Piasts]] produced the establishment of both church and state in [[Poland]].{{sfn|Bukowska|2012|p=467}} The [[Christianization of Poland|"Baptism of Poland"]] in 966, refers to the baptism of [[Mieszko I of Poland|Mieszko I]], the first ruler, which was followed by the building of churches and the establishment of an ecclesiastical hierarchy.{{sfn|Bukowska|2012|p=467}} [[File:SztIstvan 5.jpg|thumb|right|Image of the King Saint [[Stephen I of Hungary]], from the medieval codex Chronicon Pictum from the 14th century|alt=stylized image of St.Stephen of Hungary]] [[Stephen I of Hungary|St. Stephen]], the first [[Hungary|Hungarian]] king, suppressed rebellion, organized the Hungarian State around strong royal authority, established the church by inviting missionaries and suppressing paganism, and by making laws such as one which required people to attend church every Sunday.{{sfn|Sedlar|1995|pp=1119–1120}}{{sfn|Moravcsik|1947|p=141}}{{sfn|Jestice|1997|p=57}} [[File:Delegation of Croats and Serbs to Emperor Basil I, Skylitzes.jpg|thumb|right|[[Basil I]] with delegation of Serbs|alt=image of Emperor Basil I receiving a delegation of Croats and Serbs]] Conversion of the [[Croats]] was completed by the time of [[Trpimir I of Croatia|Duke Trpimir]]'s death in 864. In 879, under duke [[Branimir of Croatia|Branimir]], Croatia received papal recognition as a state from [[Pope John VIII]].{{sfn|Antoljak|1994|p=43}} ===Near East and Africa=== Between the eleventh and fourteenth centuries, the Christian churches in Egypt, Syria and Iraq became subject to fervently Muslim militaristic regimes.{{sfn|Micheau|2006|p=403}} Christians were [[Dhimmi|dhimma]]. This cultural status guaranteed Christians rights of protection, but discriminated against them through legal inferiority.{{sfn|Micheau|2006|p=373}} Various Christian communities adopted different strategies for preserving their identity while accommodating their rulers.{{sfn|Micheau|2006|p=403}} Some withdrew from interaction, others converted, while some sought outside help.{{sfn|Micheau|2006|p=403}} As a whole, Christianity in these areas declined demographically, culturally and socially.{{sfn|Micheau|2006|pp=373; 381}} By the end of the eleventh century, Christianity was in full retreat in Mesopotamia and inner Iran. Some Christian communities further to the east continued to exist.{{sfn|Micheau|2006|p=378}} ===Byzantium and the Fall of Constantinople=== In the mid-eleventh century, the Byzantine Empire was the largest and most prosperous polity in the Christian world.{{sfn|Harris|2014|p=7}} Constantinople remained its capitol and center, and its wealth and safety was seen, even by distant outsiders, as resulting directly from the religious devotion of its inhabitants.{{sfn|Shepard|2006|p=3}} The eleventh century was a period of relative peace and prosperity, and Christianity was the ‘glue' holding the empire together until April of 1204, when western crusaders in the Fourth Crusade stormed, captured, and looted Constantinople.{{sfn|Harris|2014|pp=1-2; 8-9}}{{sfn|Bundy|2007|p=133}} It was a severe blow.{{sfn|Jacoby|1999|pp=525; 536}} Byzantine territories were divided among the Crusaders establishing the [[Latin Empire]] and the Latin takeover of the Eastern church.{{sfn|Gregory|2011|p=178}}{{sfn|Harris|2014|p=1}} By 1261, the Byzantines had recaptured a much weakened and poorer Constantinople.{{sfn|Harris|2014|p=4}}{{sfn|Gregory|2011|p=186}} Mongol invasions to the East caused many Turkic refugees to pour in, strongly affecting Asia Minor, the core of Byzantium.{{sfn|Gregory|2011|pp=353-354}} In 1339, the Ottoman threat prompted leaders of the Eastern and Western churches to make overtures toward reunion, but as the threat waned, nothing of substance was accomplished.{{sfn|Dowley|2018|p=342}} In 1439, an agreement was made, but there was popular resistance in the East. As a result, it wasn't until 1452 that the decree of union was officially published in Constantinople. Resolution of the Roman-Greek conflict in Christianity was overthrown the very next year by the [[Fall of Constantinople]] to the Ottoman Turks in 1453.{{sfn|Dowley|2018|pp=342-343}}{{sfn|Kitromilides|2006|p=187}} The conquest of 1453 destroyed the Orthodox Church as an institution of the Christian empire inaugurated by Constantine, sealing off Greek-speaking Orthodoxy from the West for almost a century and a half.{{sfn|Kitromilides|2006|pp=187, 191}} However, even as political fortunes declined, the spiritual and cultural influence of the Byzantine Empire, Constantinople, and Mount Athos the monastic peninsula, increased, forming a spiritual epicenter that continued tp provide the norm of correct doctrine and piety for all the Orthodox nations.{{sfn|Kenworthy|2008|p=173}} Islamic law did not recognize the Patriarch as a ‘juristic person,’ nor did it acknowledge the Orthodox Church as an institution, but it identified the Orthodox Church with the Greek community, and concern for stability allowed it to exist.{{sfn|Zachariadou|2006|pp=171, 173}}{{sfn|Kenworthy|2008|p=175}} The monastery at [[Mt. Athos]] prospered from the fourteenth to the sixteenth centuries.{{sfn|Kenworthy|2008|p=174}} Ottomans were tolerant and wealthy Byzantines who entered monastic life there were allowed to keep some control over their property until 1568.{{sfn|Kenworthy|2008|p=174}} Compulsory resettlement meant Constantinople reacquired a considerable population of Greek Orthodox inhabitants.{{sfn|Zachariadou|2006|p=175}} Leaders of the church were recognized by the Islamic state as administrative agents charged with supervising the loyal submission of its Christian subjects and the collection and delivery of their taxes.{{sfn|Kitromilides|2006|p=191}} The regularly levied and compulsory taxes, higher and higher "bids" to the sultan in hopes of receiving his appointment to the Patriarchate, and other financial gifts, corrupted the process and bankrupted the Christians involved.{{sfn|Zachariadou|2006|pp=176-177; 179}}{{sfn|Kenworthy|2008|p=175}} Conversion became a solution.{{sfn|Zachariadou|2006|p=181}} The oldest Ottoman document lists 57 bishoprics existing in 1483. By 1525, their number decreased to fifty, and only forty are recorded from 1641–1651.{{sfn|Zachariadou|2006|p=181}} Even so, by the reign of [[Suleiman the Magnificent|Süleyman the Magnificent]] (1520 – 1566), the patriarchate had become a part of the Ottoman system to the degree that it continued to have great influence in the Orthodox world.{{sfn|Zachariadou|2006|p=184}}{{sfn|Kenworthy|2008|p=175}} ===Russia=== {{Main|Christianization of Kievan Rus'}} [[File:Lebedev baptism.jpg|thumb|''The Baptism of Kievans'', a painting by [[Klavdiy Lebedev]]|alt=Russian painting by Lebedev depicting first mass baptisms of Kievan Rus]] [[File:Kievan-rus-1015-1113-(en).png|thumb|[[Christianization of Kievan Rus']], the first unified federation of Slavic tribes|alt=map of spread of Christianity among the Kievan Rus]] [[File:80-391-0151 Kyiv St.Sophia's Cathedral RB 18 2 (cropped).jpg|thumb|80-391-0151 Kyiv St.Sophia's Cathedral RB 18 2 (cropped)|alt=St.Sophia's cathedral]] The event associated with the conversion of the Rus' has traditionally been the baptism of [[Vladimir the Great|Vladimir of Kiev]] in 989. However, aristocrats had been making attempts to unify since the mid-ninth century, and contacts with Christian countries had led the ruling class to conclude that Christianity would aid in this process.{{sfn|Poppe|1991|pp=5-7}} From the 950s up to the 980s, polytheism declined and many social and economic changes fostered the spread of the new religious ideology.{{sfn|Poppe|1991|p=25}} The Rus' dukes maintained control of the church which was financially dependent upon them.{{sfn|Štefan|2022|p=111}} The prince appointed the clergy to positions in government service, satisfied their material needs, determined who would fill the higher ecclesiastical positions, and directed the synods of bishops in the Kievan metropolitanate.{{sfn|Poppe|1991|p=15}} This new Christian religious structure was imposed upon the socio-political and economic fabric of the land by the authority of the state's rulers.{{sfn|Poppe|1991|p=12}} While monasticism was the dominant form of piety, Christianity permeated daily life for both peasants and elites who identified themselves accordingly, while keeping pre-Christian practices as part of their religion.{{sfn|Kenworthy|2008|pp=173-174}} In a defining moment in 1380, a coalition of Russian polities headed by the [[Dmitry Donskoy|Grand Prince Dmitrii of Moscow]] faced the army of the [[Golden Horde]] on Kulikovo Field near the Don River, there defeating the Mongols. This began a period of transformation fusing state power and religious mission, transforming the Kievan Rus into the [[Tsardom of Russia|Russian state]].{{sfn|Angold|2006|p=253}} [[Ivan III of Russia|Ivan III of Muscovy]] adopted the style of the ancient Byzantine imperial court a generation after Constantinople fell to the Turks.{{sfn|Shepard|2006|pp=8-9}} This gained Ivan support among the late fifteenth and early sixteenth-century Rus elite who saw themselves as the New Israel and Moscow as the new Jerusalem.{{sfn|Shepard|2006|p=9}} [[Jeremias II of Constantinople|Jeremias II]] (1536 - 1595) was the first Eastern patriarch to visit north-eastern Europe. His visit culminated in Moscow with the founding of the new Orthodox patriarchate of Russia.{{sfn|Zachariadou|2006|p=185}}{{sfn|Kenworthy|2008|p=175}} Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly, then do not submit it here. You are also promising us that you wrote this yourself, or copied it from a public domain or similar free resource (see Christianpedia:Copyrights for details). Do not submit copyrighted work without permission! Cancel Editing help (opens in new window) Discuss this page