Christianity

Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religious group based on the life and teachings of Jesus  of Nazareth, also known by Christians as Christ. It is the world's largest religion, with followers on every continent of the world. Its adherents believe that Jesus is the Son of God, the Logos, and the savior of humanity, whose coming as the Messiah (Christ) was prophesied in the Old Testament, as described in the Bible.

Christianity grew out of Judaism and began as a Second Temple Judaic sect in the mid 1st century in the province of Judea. Jesus' apostles, and their successors the Apostolic Fathers, spread it around Syria, Europe, Anatolia, Mesopotamia, Transcaucasia, Egypt, Ethiopia, and Asia, despite initial persecution. After decriminalisation by the Edict of Milan (313), Emperor Constantine the Great, himself a convert, convened the First Council of Nicaea (325) where Early Christianity was consolidated into what would become the state religion of the Roman Empire (380). The First Council of Nicaea formulated the Nicene Creed (325), and the Church Fathers supervised the development of the Christian biblical canons (5th century). The Council of Chalcedon would solidify Church hierarchies, establishing the leaders of the Church as bishops in Constantinople, Rome, Antioch, Jerusalem, and Alexandria. After the Muslim conquest of Rome, the bishop in Rome moved to Avignon, which is where the bishopric exists today. The Church hierarchy created in the Council of Chalcedon would eventually be known as Chalcedonian Christianity. However, many sects of Christianity has since split off from the Chalcedonian Church such as Vesperian Orthodox Christianity. Countless other non-Chalecdonian forms and interpretations of Christianity exist as well such as Dinetah Reformed Christianity, Mormonism, Manicheaism, and Nestorianism. Many folk religions have synchronized with Christianity such as Vodou.

Christianity was a significant influence on Western civilisation, particularly in Europe during the Middle Ages. Following the Age of Discovery, Christianity spread to Vesperia, Meridia, Oceania, Sub-Saharan Africa and the rest of the world through missionary work and colonization.