Christianity

Christianity
Jesus Christ
Origin	1st century AD Judaea, Roman Empire
Separated from	Second Temple Judaism[note 1]
Separations	Unitarian Universalism[7]
Number of followers	c. 2.4 billion (referred to as Christians)

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Christianity (

Christianity remains culturally diverse in its Western and Eastern branches, and doctrinally diverse concerning justification and the nature of salvation, ecclesiology, ordination, and Christology. The creeds of various Christian denominations generally hold in common Jesus as the Son of God—the Logos incarnated—who ministered, suffered, and died on a cross, but rose from the dead for the salvation of humankind; and referred to as the gospel, meaning the "good news". The four canonical gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John describe Jesus's life and teachings, with the Old Testament as the gospels' respected background.

Christianity

While Christians worldwide share basic convictions, there are differences of interpretations and opinions of the Bible and sacred traditions on which Christianity is based.^[24]

Creeds

Wikisource has original text related to this article:

Apostles' Creed

Wikisource has original text related to this article:

Nicene Creed

• Belief in
  Holy Spirit
• The death, descent into hell, resurrection and ascension of Christ
• The holiness of the Church and the communion of saints
• Christ's
  second coming, the Day of Judgement and salvation
  of the faithful

The Athanasian Creed, received in the Western Church as having the same status as the Nicene and Chalcedonian, says: "We worship one God in Trinity, and Trinity in Unity; neither confounding the Persons nor dividing the Substance".^[33]

Most Christians (

The central tenet of Christianity is the belief in

The death and resurrection of Jesus are usually considered the most important events in Christian theology, partly because they demonstrate that Jesus has power over life and death and therefore has the authority and power to give people eternal life.^[49]

Christian churches accept and teach the

The Greek word trias[78]^{[note 5]} is first seen in this sense in the works of Theophilus of Antioch; his text reads: "of the Trinity, of God, and of His Word, and of His Wisdom".^[82] The term may have been in use before this time; its Latin equivalent,^{[note 5]} trinitas,^[80] appears afterwards with an explicit reference to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, in Tertullian.^[83][84] In the following century, the word was in general use. It is found in many passages of Origen.^[85]

Trinitarianism

Trinitarianism denotes Christians who believe in the concept of the Trinity. Almost all Christian denominations and churches hold Trinitarian beliefs. Although the words "Trinity" and "Triune" do not appear in the Bible, beginning in the 3rd century theologians developed the term and concept to facilitate apprehension of the New Testament teachings of God as being Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Since that time, Christian theologians have been careful to emphasize that Trinity does not imply that there are three gods (the antitrinitarian heresy of Tritheism), nor that each hypostasis of the Trinity is one-third of an infinite God (partialism), nor that the Son and the Holy Spirit are beings created by and subordinate to the Father (Arianism). Rather, the Trinity is defined as one God in three persons.^[86]

Nontrinitarianism

Nontrinitarianism (or antitrinitarianism) refers to theology that rejects the doctrine of the Trinity. Various nontrinitarian views, such as

The end of things, whether the end of an individual life, the end of the age, or the end of the world, broadly speaking, is Christian eschatology; the study of the destiny of humans as it is revealed in the Bible. The major issues in Christian eschatology are the

Christians believe that the second coming of Christ will occur at the

In the Catholic branch of Christianity, those who die in a state of grace, i.e., without any mortal sin separating them from God, but are still imperfectly purified from the effects of sin, undergo purification through the intermediate state of purgatory to achieve the holiness necessary for entrance into God's presence.^[95] Those who have attained this goal are called saints (Latin sanctus, "holy").^[96]

Some Christian groups, such as Seventh-day Adventists, hold to mortalism, the belief that the human soul is not naturally immortal, and is unconscious during the intermediate state between bodily death and resurrection. These Christians also hold to Annihilationism, the belief that subsequent to the final judgement, the wicked will cease to exist rather than suffer everlasting torment. Jehovah's Witnesses hold to a similar view.^[97]

Practices

And on the day called Sunday, all who live in cities or in the country gather together to one place, and the memoirs of the apostles or the writings of the prophets are read, as long as time permits; then, when the reader has ceased, the president verbally instructs, and exhorts to the imitation of these good things. Then we all rise together and pray, and, as we before said, when our prayer is ended, bread and wine and water are brought, and the president in like manner offers prayers and thanksgivings, according to his ability, and the people assent, saying Amen; and there is a distribution to each, and a participation of that over which thanks have been given, and to those who are absent a portion is sent by the deacons. And they who are well to do, and willing, give what each thinks fit; and what is collected is deposited with the president, who succours the orphans and widows and those who, through sickness or any other cause, are in want, and those who are in bonds and the strangers sojourning among us, and in a word takes care of all who are in need.^[104]

Thus, as Justin described, Christians assemble for communal worship typically on Sunday, the day of the resurrection, though other liturgical practices often occur outside this setting. Scripture readings are drawn from the Old and New Testaments, but especially the gospels.

In Christian belief and practice, a sacrament is a

Liturgical calendar

Catholics, Eastern Christians, Lutherans, Anglicans and other traditional Protestant communities frame worship around the liturgical year.^[120] The liturgical cycle divides the year into a series of seasons, each with their theological emphases, and modes of prayer, which can be signified by different ways of decorating churches, colors of paraments and vestments for clergy,^[121] scriptural readings, themes for preaching and even different traditions and practices often observed personally or in the home.

Western Christian liturgical calendars are based on the cycle of the

The cross, today one of the most widely recognized symbols, was used by Christians from the earliest times.^[125][126] Tertullian, in his book De Corona, tells how it was already a tradition for Christians to trace the sign of the cross on their foreheads.^[127] Although the cross was known to the early Christians, the crucifix did not appear in use until the 5th century.^[128]

Among the earliest Christian symbols, that of the fish or Ichthys seems to have ranked first in importance, as seen on monumental sources such as tombs from the first decades of the 2nd century.^[129] Its popularity seemingly arose from the Greek word ichthys (fish) forming an acrostic for the Greek phrase Iesous Christos Theou Yios Soter (Ἰησοῦς Χριστός, Θεοῦ Υἱός, Σωτήρ),^{[note 8]} (Jesus Christ, Son of God, Savior), a concise summary of Christian faith.^[129]

Other major Christian symbols include the

Baptism is the ritual act, with the use of water, by which a person is admitted to membership of the

In the

The Apostolic Tradition directed that the sign of the cross be used by Christians during the minor exorcism of baptism, during ablutions before praying at fixed prayer times, and in times of temptation.^[153]

Intercessory prayer is prayer offered for the benefit of other people. There are many intercessory prayers recorded in the Bible, including prayers of the

Apostle Peter on behalf of sick persons^[154] and by prophets of the Old Testament in favor of other people.^[155] In the Epistle of James, no distinction is made between the intercessory prayer offered by ordinary believers and the prominent Old Testament prophet Elijah.^[156] The effectiveness of prayer in Christianity derives from the power of God rather than the status of the one praying.^[157]

The ancient church, in both

idolatrous.^[160]

According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church: "Prayer is the raising of one's mind and heart to God or the requesting of good things from God".^[161] The Book of Common Prayer in the Anglican tradition is a guide which provides a set order for services, containing set prayers, scripture readings, and hymns or sung Psalms.^[162] Frequently in Western Christianity, when praying, the hands are placed palms together and forward as in the feudal commendation ceremony. At other times the older orans posture may be used, with palms up and elbows in.

Scriptures

Main articles:

Development of the Christian biblical canon, and Religious text

Christianity, like other religions, has adherents whose beliefs and biblical interpretations vary. Christianity regards the biblical canon, the Old Testament and the New Testament, as the inspired word of God. The traditional view of inspiration is that God worked through human authors so that what they produced was what God wished to communicate. The Greek word referring to inspiration in 2 Timothy 3:16 is theopneustos, which literally means "God-breathed".^[163]

Some believe that divine inspiration makes present Bibles inerrant. Others claim inerrancy for the Bible in its original manuscripts, although none of those are extant. Still others maintain that only a particular translation is inerrant, such as the King James Version.^{[164][165][166]} Another closely related view is biblical infallibility or limited inerrancy, which affirms that the Bible is free of error as a guide to salvation, but may include errors on matters such as history, geography, or science.

The canon of the Old Testament accepted by Protestant churches, which is only the

Tanakh (the canon of the Hebrew Bible), is shorter than that accepted by the Orthodox and Catholic churches which also include the deuterocanonical books which appear in the Septuagint, the Orthodox canon being slightly larger than the Catholic;^[167] Protestants regard the latter as apocryphal, important historical documents which help to inform the understanding of words, grammar, and syntax used in the historical period of their conception. Some versions of the Bible include a separate Apocrypha section between the Old Testament and the New Testament.^[168] The New Testament, originally written in Koine Greek

, contains 27 books which are agreed upon by all major churches.

Some denominations have

In antiquity, two schools of exegesis developed in

Catholic theology distinguishes two senses of scripture: the literal and the spiritual.^[171]

The literal sense of understanding scripture is the meaning conveyed by the words of Scripture. The spiritual sense is further subdivided into:

• The allegorical sense, which includes
  parting of the Red Sea being understood as a "type" (sign) of baptism.^[172]
• The moral sense, which understands the scripture to contain some ethical teaching.
• The anagogical sense, which applies to eschatology, eternity and the consummation of the world.

Regarding exegesis, following the rules of sound interpretation, Catholic theology holds:

• The injunction that all other senses of sacred scripture are based on the literal^[173][174]
• That the historicity of the Gospels must be absolutely and constantly held^[175]
• That scripture must be read within the "living Tradition of the whole Church"^[176] and
• That "the task of interpretation has been entrusted to the bishops in communion with the successor of Peter, the Bishop of Rome".^[177]

Protestant interpretation

Qualities of Scripture

Many Protestant Christians, such as Lutherans and the Reformed, believe in the doctrine of sola scriptura—that the Bible is a self-sufficient revelation, the final authority on all Christian doctrine, and revealed all truth necessary for salvation;^[178][179] other Protestant Christians, such as Methodists and Anglicans, affirm the doctrine of prima scriptura which teaches that Scripture is the primary source for Christian doctrine, but that "tradition, experience, and reason" can nurture the Christian religion as long as they are in harmony with the Bible.^[178][180] Protestants characteristically believe that ordinary believers may reach an adequate understanding of Scripture because Scripture itself is clear in its meaning (or "perspicuous"). Martin Luther believed that without God's help, Scripture would be "enveloped in darkness".^[181] He advocated for "one definite and simple understanding of Scripture".^[181] John Calvin wrote, "all who refuse not to follow the Holy Spirit as their guide, find in the Scripture a clear light".^[182] Related to this is "efficacy", that Scripture is able to lead people to faith; and "sufficiency", that the Scriptures contain everything that one needs to know to obtain salvation and to live a Christian life.^[183]

Original intended meaning of Scripture

Protestants stress the meaning conveyed by the words of Scripture, the

History

Early Christianity

Apostolic Age

Christianity developed during the 1st century AD as a

This formative period was followed by the early bishops, whom Christians consider the successors of Christ's apostles. From the year 150, Christian teachers began to produce theological and apologetic works aimed at defending the faith. These authors are known as the Church Fathers, and the study of them is called patristics. Notable early Fathers include Ignatius of Antioch, Polycarp, Justin Martyr, Irenaeus, Tertullian, Clement of Alexandria and Origen.

King Tiridates III made Christianity the state religion in Armenia in the early 4th century AD, making Armenia the first officially Christian state.^[203][204] It was not an entirely new religion in Armenia, having penetrated into the country from at least the third century, but it may have been present even earlier.^[205]

Early Middle Ages

With the decline and

Around 500, Christianity was thoroughly integrated into Byzantine and

In the West, from the 11th century onward, some older cathedral schools became universities (see, for example, University of Oxford, University of Paris and University of Bologna). Previously, higher education had been the domain of Christian cathedral schools or monastic schools (Scholae monasticae), led by monks and nuns. Evidence of such schools dates back to the 6th century AD.^[228] These new universities expanded the curriculum to include academic programs for clerics, lawyers, civil servants, and physicians.^[229] The university is generally regarded as an institution that has its origin in the Medieval Christian setting.^{[230][231][232]}

Accompanying the rise of the "new towns" throughout Europe,

In the thirteenth century, a new emphasis on Jesus' suffering, exemplified by the Franciscans' preaching, had the consequence of turning worshippers' attention towards Jews, on whom Christians had placed the blame for Jesus' death. Christianity's limited tolerance of Jews was not new—Augustine of Hippo said that Jews should not be allowed to enjoy the citizenship that Christians took for granted—but the growing antipathy towards Jews was a factor that led to the expulsion of Jews from England in 1290, the first of many such expulsions in Europe.^[241][242]

Beginning around 1184, following the crusade against

Protestant Reformation and Counter-Reformation

The 15th-century

Thomas Müntzer, Andreas Karlstadt and other theologians perceived both the Catholic Church and the confessions of the Magisterial Reformation as corrupted. Their activity brought about the Radical Reformation, which gave birth to various Anabaptist denominations.

Partly in response to the Protestant Reformation, the Catholic Church engaged in a substantial process of reform and renewal, known as the Counter-Reformation or Catholic Reform.^[251] The Council of Trent clarified and reasserted Catholic doctrine. During the following centuries, competition between Catholicism and Protestantism became deeply entangled with political struggles among European states.^[252]

Meanwhile, the discovery of America by Christopher Columbus in 1492 brought about a new wave of missionary activity. Partly from missionary zeal, but under the impetus of colonial expansion by the European powers, Christianity spread to the Americas, Oceania, East Asia and sub-Saharan Africa.

Throughout Europe, the division caused by the Reformation led to outbreaks of

The combined factors of the formation of nation states and ultramontanism, especially in Germany and the Netherlands, but also in England to a much lesser extent,^[268] often forced Catholic churches, organizations, and believers to choose between the national demands of the state and the authority of the Church, specifically the papacy. This conflict came to a head in the First Vatican Council, and in Germany would lead directly to the Kulturkampf.^[269]

Christian commitment in Europe dropped as modernity and secularism came into their own,

With around 2.4 billion adherents according to a 2020 estimation by

In 2010, 87% of the world's Christian population lived in countries where Christians are in the majority, while 13% of the world's Christian population lived in countries where Christians are in the minority.[1] Christianity is the predominant religion in Europe, the Americas, Oceania, and Sub-Saharan Africa.^[1] There are also large Christian communities in other parts of the world, such as Central Asia, the Middle East and North Africa, East Asia, Southeast Asia, and the Indian subcontinent.^[1] In Asia, it is the dominant religion in Armenia, Cyprus, Georgia, East Timor, and the Philippines.^[299] However, it is declining in some areas including the northern and western United States,^[300] some areas in Oceania (Australia^[301] and New Zealand^[302]), northern Europe (including Great Britain,^[303] Scandinavia and other places), France, Germany, Canada,^[304] and some parts of Asia (especially the Middle East, due to the Christian emigration,^{[305][306][307]} and Macau^[308]).

The total Christian population is not decreasing in Brazil and the southern United States,

Despite a decline in adherence in the West, Christianity remains the dominant religion in the region, with about 70% of that population identifying as Christian.^[1][315] Christianity remains the largest religion in Western Europe, where 71% of Western Europeans identified themselves as Christian in 2018.^[316] A 2011 Pew Research Center survey found that 76% of Europeans, 73% in Oceania and about 86% in the Americas (90% in Latin America and 77% in North America) identified themselves as Christians.^[282][1] By 2010 about 157 countries and territories in the world had Christian majorities.^[282]

There are many

In most countries in the developed world, church attendance among people who continue to identify themselves as Christians has been falling over the last few decades.^[335] Some sources view this as part of a drift away from traditional membership institutions,^[336] while others link it to signs of a decline in belief in the importance of religion in general.^[337] Europe's Christian population, though in decline, still constitutes the largest geographical component of the religion.^[338] According to data from the 2012 European Social Survey, around a third of European Christians say they attend services once a month or more.^[339] Conversely, according to the World Values Survey, about more than two-thirds of Latin American Christians, and about 90% of African Christians (in Ghana, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa and Zimbabwe) said they attended church regularly.^[339] According to a 2018 study by the Pew Research Center, Christians in Africa and Latin America and the United States have high levels of commitment to their faith.^[340]

Demographics of major traditions within Christianity (Pew Research Center, 2020 data)^[276]

Tradition	Followers	% of the Christian population	% of the world population	Follower dynamics	Dynamics in- and outside Christianity
Roman Catholic Church	1,329,610,000	50.1	15.9	Growing	Growing
Protestantism	900,640,000	36.7	11.6	Growing	Growing
Eastern Orthodox Church	220,380,000	11.9	3.8	Growing	Declining
Other Christianity	28,430,000	1.3	0.4	Growing	Growing
Christianity	2,382,750,000	100	31.7	Growing	Stable

Christians (self-described) by region

(Pew Research Center, 2010 data)^[282][1]

Region	Christians	% Christian
Europe	558,260,000	75.2
Latin America–Caribbean	531,280,000	90.0
Sub-Saharan Africa	517,340,000	62.9
Asia Pacific	286,950,000	7.1
North America	266,630,000	77.4
Middle East–North Africa	12,710,000	3.7
World	2,173,180,000	31.5

Regional median ages of Christians compared with overall median ages (Pew Research Center, 2010 data)^[282]

	Christian median age in region (years)	Regional median age (years)
World	30	29
Sub-Saharan Africa	19	18
Latin America-Caribbean	27	27
Asia-Pacific	28	29
Middle East-North Africa	29	24
North America	39	37
Europe	42	40

• 
  Countries with 50% or more Christians are colored purple; countries with 10% to 50% Christians are colored pink.
• 
  Nations with Christianity as their state religion are in blue.
• 
  Distribution of Catholics
• 
  Distribution of Protestants
• 
  Distribution of Eastern Orthodox
• 
  Distribution of Oriental Orthodox
• 
  Distribution of other Christians

Churches and denominations

Christianity can be taxonomically divided into six main groups: Roman Catholicism, Protestantism, Oriental Orthodoxy, Eastern Orthodoxy, the Church of the East, and Restorationism.^[355][356] A broader distinction that is sometimes drawn is between Eastern Christianity and Western Christianity, which has its origins in the East–West Schism (Great Schism) of the 11th century. Recently, neither Western nor Eastern World Christianity has also stood out, for example, in African-initiated churches. However, there are other present^[357] and historical^[358] Christian groups that do not fit neatly into one of these primary categories.

There is a diversity of doctrines and liturgical practices among groups calling themselves Christian. These groups may vary ecclesiologically in their views on a classification of Christian denominations.^[359] The Nicene Creed (325), however, is typically accepted as authoritative by most Christians, including the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, and major Protestant, such as Lutheran and Anglican denominations.^[360]

Major denominational families in Christianity:

This box:

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Western Christianity

Eastern Christianity

Protestantism

Anabaptism

Anglicanism

Lutheranism

Reformed

(Latin Church)

Catholic Church

(Eastern Catholic Churches)

Eastern Orthodox Church

Oriental Orthodox Churches

Church of the East

Schism (1552)

Assyrian Church of the East

Ancient Church of the East

Protestant Reformation

(16th century)

Great Schism

(11th century)

Council of Ephesus (431)

Council of Chalcedon (451)

Early Christianity

Great Church

(Full communion)

(Not shown are ante-Nicene, nontrinitarian, and restorationist denominations.)

Catholic Church

The Catholic Church consists of those

As the world's oldest and largest continuously functioning international institution,[377] it has played a prominent role in the history and development of Western civilization.^[378] The 2,834 sees^[379] are grouped into 24 particular autonomous Churches (the largest of which being the Latin Church), each with its own distinct traditions regarding the liturgy and the administering of sacraments.^[380] With more than 1.1 billion baptized members, the Catholic Church is the largest Christian church and represents 50.1%^[1] of all Christians as well as 16.7% of the world's population.^{[381][382][383]} Catholics live all over the world through missions, diaspora, and conversions.

Eastern Orthodox Church

The Eastern Orthodox Church consists of those churches in communion with the patriarchal sees of the East, such as the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople.^[385] Like the Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church also traces its heritage to the foundation of Christianity through apostolic succession and has an episcopal structure, though the autonomy of its component parts is emphasized, and most of them are national churches.

The

The Oriental Orthodox communion consists of six groups:

Its main spoken language is

The Ancient Church of the East distinguished itself from the Assyrian Church of the East in 1964. It is one of the Assyrian churches that claim continuity with the historical Church of the East, one of the oldest Christian churches in Mesopotamia.^[411] It is officially headquartered in the city of Baghdad, Iraq.^[412] The majority of its adherents are ethnic Assyrians.^[412]

Protestantism

In 1521, the

Historical chart of the main Protestant branches

Restorationism

The

Within Italy, Poland, Lithuania, Transylvania, Hungary, Romania, and the United Kingdom,

Messianic Judaism (or the Messianic Movement) is the name of a Christian movement comprising a number of streams, whose members may consider themselves Jewish. The movement originated in the 1960s and 1970s, and it blends elements of religious Jewish practice with evangelical Christianity. Messianic Judaism affirms Christian creeds such as the messiahship and divinity of "Yeshua" (the Hebrew name of Jesus) and the Triune Nature of God, while also adhering to some Jewish dietary laws and customs.^[449]

Though Western culture contained several polytheistic religions during its early years under the Greek and Roman Empires, as the centralized Roman power waned, the dominance of the Catholic Church was the only consistent force in Western Europe.^[493] Until the Age of Enlightenment,^[493] Christian culture guided the course of philosophy, literature, art, music and science.^[493][462] Christian disciplines of the respective arts have subsequently developed into Christian philosophy, Christian art, Christian music, Christian literature, and so on.

Christianity has had a significant impact on education, as the church created the bases of the Western system of education,

Ecumenism

Main article: Ecumenism

Roman Catholic Diocese of Winona and Bishop Steven Delzer of Evangelical Lutheran Southeastern Minnesota Synod leading a Reformation Day

service (2017)

Christian groups and

Edinburgh Missionary Conference of Protestants in 1910, the Justice, Peace and Creation Commission of the World Council of Churches founded in 1948 by Protestant and Orthodox churches, and similar national councils like the National Council of Churches in Australia, which includes Catholics.^[517]

The other way was an institutional union with united churches, a practice that can be traced back to unions between Lutherans and Calvinists in early 19th-century Germany. Congregationalist, Methodist, and Presbyterian churches united in 1925 to form the United Church of Canada,^[519] and in 1977 to form the Uniting Church in Australia. The Church of South India was formed in 1947 by the union of Anglican, Baptist, Methodist, Congregationalist, and Presbyterian churches.^[520]

The Christian Flag is an ecumenical flag designed in the early 20th century to represent all of Christianity and Christendom.^[521]

The ecumenical, monastic Taizé Community is notable for being composed of more than one hundred brothers from Protestant and Catholic traditions.^[522] The community emphasizes the reconciliation of all denominations and its main church, located in Taizé, Saône-et-Loire, France, is named the "Church of Reconciliation".^[522] The community is internationally known, attracting over 100,000 young pilgrims annually.^[523]

Steps towards reconciliation on a global level were taken in 1965 by the Catholic and Orthodox churches, mutually revoking the excommunications that marked their

Great Schism in 1054;^[524] the Anglican Catholic International Commission (ARCIC) working towards full communion between those churches since 1970;^[525] and some Lutheran and Catholic churches signing the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification in 1999 to address conflicts at the root of the Protestant Reformation. In 2006, the World Methodist Council, representing all Methodist denominations, adopted the declaration.^[526]

Criticism, persecution, and apologetics

Main articles: Criticism of Christianity, Persecution of Christians, and Christian apologetics

See also: Anti-Christian sentiment

Criticism

Criticism of Christianity and Christians goes back to the

scribes (e.g., Matthew 15:1–20 and Mark 7:1–23).^[527] In the 2nd century, Christianity was criticized by the Jews on various grounds, e.g., that the prophecies of the Hebrew Bible could not have been fulfilled by Jesus, given that he did not have a successful life.^[528] Additionally, a sacrifice to remove sins in advance, for everyone or as a human being, did not fit the Jewish sacrifice ritual; furthermore, God in Judaism is said to judge people on their deeds instead of their beliefs.^[529][530] One of the first comprehensive attacks on Christianity came from the Greek philosopher Celsus, who wrote The True Word, a polemic criticizing Christians as being unprofitable members of society.^{[531][532][533]} In response, the church father Origen published his treatise Contra Celsum, or Against Celsus, a seminal work of Christian apologetics, which systematically addressed Celsus's criticisms and helped bring Christianity a level of academic respectability.^[534][533]

By the 3rd century, criticism of Christianity had mounted. Wild rumors about Christians were widely circulated, claiming that they were atheists and that, as part of their rituals, they devoured human infants and engaged in incestuous orgies.^[535][536] The Neoplatonist philosopher Porphyry wrote the fifteen-volume Adversus Christianos as a comprehensive attack on Christianity, in part building on the teachings of Plotinus.^[537][538]

By the 12th century, the

Nietzsche began to write a series of polemics on the "unnatural" teachings of Christianity (e.g. sexual abstinence), and continued his criticism of Christianity to the end of his life.^[540] In the 20th century, the philosopher Bertrand Russell expressed his criticism of Christianity in Why I Am Not a Christian, formulating his rejection of Christianity in the setting of logical arguments.^[541]

Criticism of Christianity continues to date, e.g.

Muslim theologians criticize the doctrine of the Trinity held by most Christians, stating that this doctrine in effect assumes that there are three gods, running against the basic tenet of monotheism.^[542] New Testament scholar Robert M. Price has outlined the possibility that some Bible stories are based partly on myth in The Christ Myth Theory and its problems.^[543]

Persecution

Assyrian genocide.^[544]

Christians are one of the most

Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) to investigate global persecution of Christians found persecution has increased, and is highest in the Middle East, North Africa, India, China, North Korea, and Latin America, among others, and that it is global and not limited to Islamic states.^[553][552] This investigation found that approximately 80% of persecuted believers worldwide are Christians.^[547]

Apologetics

Christian apologetics aims to present a

Creationist apologetics is apologetics that aims to defend creationism

.

See also

• Outline of Christianity
• Christian atheism
• Christianity and Islam
• Christianity and Judaism
• Christianity and politics
• Christian mythology
• Christianisation
• One true church
• Prophets of Christianity
• Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

Notes