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{{Infobox_Contents | topic_name = Church history[[Image:Spread of Christianity in Europe to AD 600.jpg|thumb|center|Spread of [[Christianity]] to 325 AD (dark blue) and 600 AD (light blue).]]''Synopsis:'' The [[church]] is the body of believers of Jesus Christ and since it was formed after the resurrection of Jesus, major events and conflict, often over matters of [[doctrine]] have resulted in significant rifts in the church. Initially the early Christians spread the good news of Jesus throughout the Roman empire and small congregations of Christians sprang up in many towns. [[Rome]] soon became the geographical centre of the church. However, there was a rift between the Church in Greece and the one in Rome that slowly developed over centuries culminating in a schism in 1054 AD. Later, in sixteenth century, Christians in northern Europe split from the Roman church, an event known as the [[Reformation]]. Today there seems to be a bewildering array of [[denominations]]. Some of the larger ones include [[Roman Catholicism]], the [[Greek]] and Russian [[Eastern Orthodox|Orthodox]] churches and the wide variety of [[Protestant]] churches. ----__TOC__{{topics}}* subtopics = [[Timeline of church history]]* [[Major events and movements in church history]] - [[Councils]] | , [[Great Schism]] | , [[Crusades]] | , [[Inquisition]] | , [[Reformation]] | , [[Vatican I]] | , [[Revivalism]] | , [[Vatican II]]

* [[Ancient Israel and Judah]] | , [[Biblical Places Index]]|  opinion_pieces = {{opinionsshort_opinions}} * [[Church History (G.G.)]]| ==Main article==}}

The [[church]] is the body of believers of Jesus Christ. Its history of the Christian church is full of times periods of struggle and renewal. Initially, the early Christians spread the good news of [[Jesus]] throughout the Roman empire and small congregations of Christians sprang up in many towns. [[Rome]] soon became the geographical centre of the church. In the early centuries, debates about the nature of [[God]] caused great divisiondebates, however the church mostly stayed unified until a major rift finally occurred between the Church in Greece and the one in Rome (it had slowly developed over centuries) culminating in a schism in [[1054 AD]]. In the Middle Ages, people in Christian lands formed armies to "defend" the Holy Landsof Israel from Islamic control. In the mid second millenium, there was a renewal of awareness of the Bible spawning the Reformation, with Christians in northern Europe splitting from the Roman church. In the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, missionary activity has spread the [[gospel]] around the world. Today there seems to be a bewildering array of [[denominations]]. Some of the larger ones include [[Roman Catholicism]], the [[Greek]] and Russian [[Eastern Orthodox|Orthodox]] churches and the wide variety of [[Protestant]] churches.

====[[Persecutionof the early church]]====

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