Name: A History of Christianity
Uploaded: 1999
Description: The hidden origins and turbulent evolution of the world’s largest religion.

The hidden origins and turbulent evolution of the world’s largest religion.

Did Christianity really begin when the apostle Paul traveled from Jerusalem to Rome? This episode reveals that the true origins of Christianity lie east and that the headquarters of Christianity might have been in Baghdad instead of Rome.

embedded

Did Christianity really begin when the apostle Paul traveled from Jerusalem to Rome?

The First Christianity

Over one billion Christians look to Rome; that’s more than half of all Christians on the planet. But how did a small Jewish sect from the backwoods of first-century Palestine, which preached humility and poverty, become a wealthy and powerful worldwide religion? We discover the answers.

Over one billion Christians look to Rome; that's more than half of all Christians on the planet. How did a small Jewish sect become a powerful worldwide religion?

Catholicism: The Unpredictable Rise of Rome

Christianity is traditionally split into Catholicism and Protestantism, but Eastern Orthodox Christianity flourishes in Russia and the Balkans with over 150 million members worldwide. It’s quite unlike Catholicism or Protestantism. What story is this ancient drama trying to tell us?

Christianity is split into Catholicism and Protestantism, but Eastern Orthodox Christianity flourishes in Russia and the Balkans with over 150 million members worldwide.

Orthodoxy: From Empire to Empire

The ancestors of today’s peaceful Amish were once seen as some of the most dangerous people in Europe. Early Protestants were radicals who tore apart the Catholic Church. We look at the battle that split Christianity into two faiths and follow the reformers who tore down statues of saints.

The ancestors of today's peaceful Amish were once seen as some of the most dangerous people in Europe. Early Protestants were radicals who tore apart the Catholic Church.

Reformation: The Individual before God

Evangelical Protestantism is a lively expression of faith that has spread across the globe, marketed with all the flair and swashbuckling enterprise of American commerce. The Evangelical explosion has been driven by the search for a direct emotional relationship with God.

Evangelical Protestantism is a lively expression of faith that has spread across the globe, marketed with all the flair and swashbuckling enterprise of American commerce.

The Evangelical Explosion

Skepticism has transformed Western culture and transformed Christianity. Where did this religious doubt come from? Is fading belief due to the advance of science and reason, or due to its entanglement with world wars, Fascism, and Nazism?

Skepticism has transformed Western culture and transformed Christianity. Where did this religious doubt come from?