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quickly grew in size and influence over a few decades, and by the 4th
century had become the dominant religion within the Roman
Empire.
During the Middle Ages, most of the remainder of Europe was
christianized, with Christians also being a (sometimes large)
religious minority in the Middle East, North Africa, and parts of
India. Following the Age of Discovery, through missionary work and
colonization, Christianity spread to the Americas and the rest of the
world.
Christianity has played a prominent role in the shaping of Western
civilization at least since the 4th century. As of the early 21st
century, Christianity has between 1.5 billion and 2.1 billion
adherents, representing about a quarter to a third of the worlds
population.
1. Beliefs
In spite of important differences of interpretation
1.1 Creeds
1.4 Salvation
Protestantism teaches that eternal salvation is a gift
1.5 Trinity
Trinity refers to the teaching
1.5.1 Trinitarians
1.5.2 Non-trinitarians
Nontrinitarianism refers to beliefs systems that
1.6 Scriptures
Christianity regards the Bible, a collection of canonical
2. Worship
2.1 Sacraments
In Christian belief and
practice, a sacrament is a
rite, instituted by Christ,
that mediates grace,
constituting a sacred
mystery.
The most conventional
functional definition of a
sacrament is that it is an
outward sign, instituted by
Christ, that conveys an
inward, spiritual grace
through Christ. The two
most widely accepted
sacraments are Baptism
and the Eucharist.
2.3 Symbols
The cross, which is
The church also entered into a long period of missionary activity and expansion
among the former barbarian tribes. Catholicism spread among the Germanic
peoples (initially in competition with Arianism), the Celtic and Slavic peoples, the
Hungarians and the Scandinavian and Baltic peoples.
Around 500, 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 the Carolingian Renaissance of the 9th century.
From the 7th century onwards, Islam conquered the Christian lands of the Middle
East, North Africa and much of Spain, resulting in oppression of Christianity and
numerous military struggles, including the Crusades, the Spanish Reconquista and
wars against the Turks.
The Middle Ages brought about major changes within the church. Pope Gregory the
Great dramatically reformed ecclesiastical structure and administration.
In the early 8th century, iconoclasm became a divisive issue. In the early 10th
century, western monasticism was further rejuvenated through the leadership of the
great Benedictine monastery of Cluny.
4. Demographics
With an estimated number of adherents that ranges
5. Denominations
There is a diversity of doctrines and practices among
Various smaller
5.4 Protestantism
5.5 Restorationism
Restorationism is composed of various unrelated churches that
believe they are restoring the original church of Jesus Christ and not
reforming any of the churches existing at the time of their perceived
restorations.
They teach that the other divisions of Christianity have introduced
defects into Christianity, which is known as the Great Apostasy.
Additionally, there are the following groups: Christadelphians,
Churches of Christ with 2.6 million members, Disciples of Christ
with 800,000 members, and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latterday Saints, the largest denomination of the Latter Day Saint
movement with over 13 million members.
Though Restorationists have some superficial similarities, their
doctrine and practices vary significantly.
6. Ecumenism
In the 20th century Christian ecumenism advanced