CERCADO, Geran Kearn L.

RE-114 7:30-9:30AM
BSA-2 April 5, 2021

How the Catholic Church started?

-After the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476, the Catholic Church became a
powerful social and political institution and its influence spread throughout Europe.
The history of the Catholic Church begins with the teachings of Jesus Christ, who lived
in the 1st century CE in the province of Judea of the Roman Empire. The contemporary
Catholic Church says that it is the continuation of the early Christian community
established by Jesus.
According to Catholic tradition, the Catholic Church was founded by Jesus Christ. The
New Testament records Jesus' activities and teaching, his appointment of the twelve
Apostles, and his instructions to them to continue his work. The Catholic Church
teaches that the coming of the Holy Spirit upon the apostles, in an event known as
Pentecost, signaled the beginning of the public ministry of the Church. Catholics hold
that Saint Peter was Rome's first bishop and the consecrator of Linus as its next bishop,
thus starting the unbroken line which includes the current pontiff, Pope Francis. That is,
the Catholic Church maintains the apostolic succession of the Bishop of Rome, the
Pope – the successor to Saint Peter.
Christianity spread throughout the early Roman Empire despite persecutions due to
conflicts with the pagan state religion. In 313, the struggles of the early church were
lessened by the legalization of Christianity by the Emperor Constantine I. In 380, under
Emperor Theodosius I, Christianity became the state religion of the Roman Empire by
the decree of the emperor, which would persist until the fall of the Western Empire, and
later with the Eastern Roman Empire until the fall of Constantinople.
After the destruction of the Western Roman Empire, the church in the West was a major
factor in preserving classical civilization, establishing monasteries, and sending
missionaries to convert the peoples of northern Europe as far north as Ireland. In the
East, the Byzantine Empire preserved Orthodoxy well after the massive invasions of
Islam in the mid-7th century.

Reference:
https://courses.lumenlearning.com/boundless-worldhistory/chapter/the-catholic-church/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_Catholic_Church#Church_beginnings