Early Christian Art

Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic faith based on the teachings and life of Jesus of Nazareth, also known as the messiah or “God man” who lived about six centuries ago. It is the most popular world religion, having about 2.4 Billion followers worldwide. The basic beliefs of Christianity are that: First, there is God (also known as the creator) and in him there is no difference between good and evil, and that the human being is God’s son and His final temple, which is right in the heavenly realms. Second, man is a sinner, born in the wrong way, who died in his sins, and is now eternally saved by Christ, who paid the price for all sin (at least for the sin of the first Adam) by dying in the lake to atone for his sin. Third, Jesus is the one who accomplished this by his life, suffering, and death.

The teachings of Christianity differ on many issues, such as the time period in which Jesus lived and died, the number of apostles that were alive at that time, what happens after his death, whether or not he actually rose from the dead and so forth. However, all of these beliefs are based on what is taught in the Bible, which can be found throughout both the New Testament written by the Bible’s three authors, and the Old Testament, which came after the Bible. Much of what we believe in today was taught by the fathers and elders of the church, either in what is called the word of wisdom, or through revelation.

Christianity grew and flourished throughout the ages as a very powerful political and cultural force in the world, and was eventually followed by numerous other religions. However, for many years it was the only officially recognized religion in the Roman Empire. It was in the year 452 that Emperor Constantine converted the Christians into Roman Catholics, although he never fully embraced their teachings. The conversion was largely due to the influence of Valentinus, who was a convert to Christianity. The Roman Catholic Church, headed by the Germanic Catholic Church, has been consistent in opposing extreme heathenism and attempts to deny the existence of a supreme being, in favor of a belief in theosis, or worship of a single person, which is known as salvation, or divinization.