Christianity is one of the three world religions, which is today the leader in the number of adherents. His influence is colossal. The territory of the spread of Christianity covers the whole world: it has not disregarded a single corner on the globe. But how did it come about and what made it so successful? We will try to answer these questions in this article.
Messianic aspirations of the ancient world
To begin with, we turn to the religious atmosphere of the world at the turn of our era. It is, of course, about Oykumen - Greco-Roman civilization, which has become the cradle of modern Europe and humanity as a whole. At that time, intense tension and intense religious search were observed. The official religion of Rome did not suit people who wanted depth and mysteries. Therefore, they turned their attention to the east, looking for some special revelations there. On the other hand, Jews who settled around the world carried the idea of the imminent coming of the Messiah, who would change the face of the world and turn history around. He will become the new revelation of God and the savior of mankind. In the empire, the crisis was ripe in all respects, and people just needed such a savior. Therefore, the idea of messianism was in the air.
Wandering Preachers
Of course, in response to the request of the era, many prophets and preachers appeared who declared themselves sons of God and offered salvation and eternal life to their followers. Some of them were outright scammers, others sincerely believed in their calling. Among the latter, there have indeed been quite a few great people, a vivid example of which is Apollonius of Tyana. But they all organized their local communities, schools, then died, and their memory was erased. Only one such wandering teacher was more fortunate than others - the Jewish Jesus.
Jesus Appearance
There is no reliable data on where he was born and what kind of life he lived before Jesus went to the sermon, later known as Christ. Biblical stories on this score are accepted by Christians on faith, but the degree of their historical authenticity is not very high. It is only known that he came from Palestine, belonged to a Jewish family and, possibly, to some kind of near-Jewish sect, like the Qumranites or Essenes. Then he led a wandering life, preached peace, love, the imminent coming of the kingdom of God, and, as the New Testament affirms, considered himself the Messiah promised by the Jewish prophets. However, whether he considered himself as such or whether his followers imposed this role on him, is a moot point. In the end, Roman authorities crucified Jesus near Jerusalem at the insistence of the Jewish clergy. And then the fun began.
The emergence and spread of Christianity
Unlike his colleagues in the workshop — the saviors of mankind — Jesus was not forgotten. The disciples of Christ proclaimed the thesis that he was resurrected and ascended to heaven. With this news, they first went around Palestine, and then concentrated their attention on other cities of the empire. It was this teaching about the posthumous resurrection of Jesus that became the subject of a sermon that further ensured such a stable position in the empire that Christianity had. Its distribution area extended from the British Isles to India. And this is only in the first century of its existence.
Apostle Paul
But the Apostle Paul especially worked in the field of preaching . It is he who, as they say, doctrinally "made" Christianity. The territory of the spread of his influence covered most of the empire. Starting from Antioch, he subsequently reached Spain and Rome, where he was killed on the orders of Nero. Everywhere he founded communities that grew like mushrooms after rain, multiplied and established in all provinces and the capital.
Official religion
The spread of Christianity in the world took place in stages. If in the first period of its existence Christians were persecuted and the work of preaching rested on the naked enthusiasm and deep religious zeal of its adherents, then after 314 years, when the emperor made Christianity the state religion and ideology, the scope of proselytism acquired an unprecedented scale. Christianity, the territory of distribution of which swept the whole empire like a sponge, absorbed the bulk of the inhabitants - for the sake of a career, tax benefits, etc. people were baptized by tens of thousands. Then, along with merchants, it began to spread beyond the empire - to Persia and beyond.
Patriarch Nestorius
Condemned as a heretic and expelled from Constantinople, Patriarch Nestorius led a new formation in the church, known as the Nestorian Church. In fact, it was his followers who, being expelled from the empire, joined the Syrian believers and subsequently launched a grand mission, having passed with their teachings almost the entire East, preaching Christianity. The territory where their influence spreads covers all the eastern countries, including China, right up to the border territories of Tibet.
Further distribution
Over time, missionary centers covered all of Africa, and after the discovery of America and Australia - and them. Then, from America, Christian preachers set off to conquer Asia and the territories of Hindustan, as well as other corners of the world lost far from civilization. Today, active missionary work is still underway in these places. However, after the advent of Islam, significant Christian territories for the church were lost and deeply Arabized and Islamized. This applies to the vast territories of Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, the Caucasus, Syria, etc.
Russia and Christianity
The spread of Christianity in Russia began around the 8th century, when the first communities were founded in the Slavic territories. They were claimed by Western preachers, and the influence of the latter was small. For the first time, Russia was decided to convert Russia by the pagan prince Vladimir, who was looking for a reliable ideological bond for disparate tribes whose native paganism did not satisfy his needs. However, it is possible that he himself sincerely converted to a new faith. But there were no missionaries. He had to besiege Constantinople and ask the hands of the Greek princess to be christened. Only after that were preachers sent to Russian cities who baptized the population, built temples and translated books. For some time after this there was pagan resistance, rebellion of the Magi and so on. But after a couple of hundred years, Christianity, the distribution area of which already covered all of Russia, won, and pagan traditions have sunk into oblivion.