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When the Roman general sacked the temple, the Jews were forced into a new era—and so were the Christians.

The agreement shifted Christianity from being an illicit, persecuted sect to being a welcome—and soon dominant—religion of the Roman Empire.

At stake in the church’s first general council was the simplest, yet most profound, question: Who is Jesus Christ?

His letter is the earliest authoritative statement to fix the New Testament as we know it today.

A brilliant, profligate professor of rhetoric became the church’s leading theologian for centuries to come.

This Latin translation stood as the preeminent Bible text for centuries—and set the standard for future translators.

If Jesus was truly God, how could he be truly human as well? Leo the Great helped guide a critical council to a clear answer.

His flexible, compassionate guidelines for Christian community forever shaped monastic life—and influenced Western society.

The pagan prince of Kievan Rus’ embraced a new faith, leading to the Christianization of the Ukrainian, Russian, and Byelorussian peoples.

Long-standing differences between Western and Eastern Christians finally caused a definitive break, and Roman Catholics and Eastern Orthodox still remain separate.

Waves of pilgrims and soldiers embarked for the Holy Land, beginning an era of exploration, conquest, defeat, and folly.

The massive treatise set forth a theological system so influential it has been declared eternally valid.

When two popes, and later three popes, vied for supremacy, the medieval church entered a dramatic, forty-year crisis of authority.

A capsule overview of the movement Jesus started, seen mostly from a Western perspective.

Using his revolutionary invention—printing from movable type—he made the Scriptures potentially accessible to every person.

Some useful and accessible reading.

A timeline of important events in (mostly western) church history.

A selective chronology of church history and world events, mostly from a western point of view.

An obscure monk invited debate on a pressing church issue—and touched off a history-shattering reform movement.

Was the wayward Luther free to dissent? A German council rendered a judgment.

Hated by Protestants and Catholics alike, these “radical reformers” wanted to not merely reform the church but restore it.

Breaking from Rome, the English Parliament declared King Henry VIII “the only supreme head on earth of the Church of England.”

Either adored or abhorred, the reformer and his teachings live on in his monumental work.

Responding to the Reformation, the council charted the Catholic church’s course for the next 400 years.

A team of scholars produced an English Bible translation unsurpassed in linguistic beauty and longevity.

They were ordained ministers and missionaries. Then their hearts were “strangely warmed,” and their changed lives gave rise to a worldwide movement.

A mighty wave of revival washed across North America, forever altering the religious landscape.

In an epochal council, the Catholic Church undertook its most searching self-examination ever and renewed itself for a modern world.

A Baptist preacher had a dream that guided one of the most profound social movements of our times.

A brief listing of significant dates that also earn a place in the “Christian History 100”