official religion of the Roman Empire when Christianity became the ruler Constantine I the Great (272-337).In 313, he officially permits in their country is religion, issued a decree equalizing the rights of Christianity with other religions, and in 324 it became the official religion of the Roman Empire united.In 330, Constantine moved his capital to the city of Byzantium, who in his honor will be renamed Constantinople.
time period of the early Christian church
in 325 at Nicaea (now the city of Iznik, Turkey) was held The First Ecumenical Council, which adopted the basic dogmas of Christianity, and thus put an end to the debate about the official religion.The early Christian church or apostolic age, too, ends its existence the Council of Nicaea.The starting date is considered to be 30 years of the I century AD, when Christianity was considered a sect of the nascent Jewish religion.Persecution of Christians did not begin from the Gentiles, namely the Jews.The first martyr of the Christian Church Archdeacon Stephen was put to death by the Jews in '34.
Harassment and an end to persecution of Christians
period of the early Christian church was a time of oppression of Christians by the emperors of the Roman Empire.The most severe was "Diocletian persecution" which lasted from 302 311 years.This Roman ruler set out to completely destroy the nascent faith.Diocletian himself died in 305, but his heirs continued the bloody deed."Great persecution" was legalized verdict issued in the year 303.
History of the Christian Church knew more harassment - Christians sacrificed tens, forcing their families into the arena with the lions.Although some scientists believe the number of victims of Diocletian persecution exaggerated, still called the figure is impressive - 3,500.Tortured and expelled the righteous were many times more.Constantine the Great put an end to stigma and gave rise to the flourishing of one of the major religions of mankind.Giving special status to Christianity, Constantine secured the religion rapid development.Byzantium became the center of Christianity at first, and later the capital of Orthodoxy, which, as in some other churches, this ruler canonized Sts.Catholic saints did not think so.
Communication times
More on donations mother of Constantine, the Empress Helena built a church.When Constantine was built Hagia Sophia in Constantinople - the city, named in honor of the emperor.But the first and most beautiful church in Jerusalem is considered, which in the Bible.However, many of the first religious buildings have survived.The oldest Christian church on earth, lived up to the present day, it is in the French city of Poitiers, the main town of Vienne department.This is the Baptistery of St. John the Baptist, built in the IV century.That is, even before history began early Middle Ages, during which the construction of churches, temples and cathedrals became widespread.
Rich historical period
accepted that the Early Middle Ages lasted 5 centuries since the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 until the end of the X century.But some scientists believe that the beginning of the first period of the Middle Ages exactly 313 years - the time of termination of persecution of followers of the Christian religion.
complex historical period, including the fall of the Roman Empire, the Great Migration, the emergence of the Byzantine Empire, strengthening the influence of the Muslim invasion of the Arabs in Spain, was based entirely on the Christian religion.The Church in the Early Middle Ages was the main political, cultural, educational and economic institutions for many tribes and peoples living in Europe.All schools were run by churches, monasteries were cultural and educational centers.In addition, already in the IV century monastery were all very rich and powerful.However, the church not only sowed reasonable, good, eternal.Subjected to the most severe persecution of dissent.Destroyed the pagan altars and temples, heretics were destroyed physically.
Faith as a bulwark of the state
Christian Church in the early Middle Ages, experienced its first flowering, and by the end of some lost ground.And later, in the following periods of the Middle Ages, a new rise of the Christian religion.At the beginning of the V century Ireland has become one of the centers of Christianity.Frankish state, will significantly expand its territory at the kind of Merovingian Clovis, took with him the new religion.In the V century with the ruler of the territory of the Frankish state it was already 250 monasteries.Church becomes a very strong organization with the full patronage of Clovis.Christian Church in the Early Middle Ages played a cementing role.Take faith congregation to rally around the church on the orders of the monarch, the country became much stronger and impenetrable to foreign enemies.For the same reasons, the new faith and took the rest of Europe.In the IX century the Rus was baptized.Christianity was gaining strength, it has penetrated into Asia and upstream Nile (modern Sudan).
brutal methods
But for various reasons - both objective (gaining strength of Islam), and subjective (the reign of the descendants of Clovis, called "lazy kings," the collapse of the Frankish state) - Christianity is temporarily surrendered their positions.Briefly Arabs invaded the Iberian Peninsula.It weakened the papacy.Christian Church in the Early Middle Ages was the religious ideology of feudalism.Born in ancient times, was survived by his Christianity became the cradle of feudalism, serving him faithfully, justify oppression and social inequality "will of the Lord."In order to keep the masses in submission, the Church resorted to intimidation, especially the fear of the afterlife.Recalcitrant proclaimed servants of the devil, heretics, which later led to the establishment of the Inquisition.
positive role of the church
But the Christian church in the Early Middle Ages as possible smoothed social conflicts, differences and antagonisms.One of the main tenets of the Church - all are equal before God.The church was not open hostility to the peasants, who were the main labor force of feudal society.She called for mercy towards the destitute and the oppressed.That was the official position of the church, even if sometimes hypocritical.
the early Middle Ages with almost complete illiteracy of the population, in the absence of any other means of communication, the Church played the role of communication center - people go here, here they are communicated and learned all the news.
brutal imposition of Christianity
history of the Christian church, like any other great religion, is unusually rich.All the masterpieces of art and literature for centuries created with the support of the Church, for her needs and her subjects.It influences on government policies, some of which are the Crusades.However, they started in the XI century, but during the V to the X century, Christianity was spread not only the power of persuasion and missionary or economic considerations.It plays an important role weapon.Brutally suppressed the Gentiles during its inception, the Christian faith often, including the conquest of the New World, was imposed with bayonets.
page in the history of mankind
Wars is full of the whole history of the Middle Ages.Early Middle Ages, or the early feudal period - the time when born and formed feudalism as a social political formation.By the end of X century feudalization land virtually it ended.Although synonymous with the term "feudalism" often serve as obscurantism and backwardness, it is in the church of this period, there were also positive features contributing to the progressive development of society, which led to the emergence of the Renaissance.
