The Evolution of the Church

While the Church has a rich history influenced by various factors, this article primarily focuses on the key events that influenced church traditions, beliefs and rules.

Jewish Influences

Period	Influencers	Influence
Before Christ	Jewish Era	Tanakh Apocrypha Temple Priesthood Calendar Chronology Removal of God's name
During Christ's life	Jesus	Jesus' teachings Jesus' ultimate sacrifice Resurrection of Jesus
After Christ	Messianic Era	Persecution and spreading of the Gospel

Christian Influences

Period	Influencers	Influence
1st Century	Roman Imperial Cult	More intense persecution, changing calendar to honour Greek and Roman gods
1st Century	First Christians	The adoption of the Christian name "Christian"
1st century	Gnosis	Various Gnostic "wisdom" that influenced Christianity
156	Montanism	Encouraged authoritative church roles and the canonisation of the bible
206	Tertullian	The invention of: the Trinity theology apostolic succession Eucharist
235	The Crisis of the Third Century	The fall of "divine" emperors
312	Emperor Constantine	The Catholic Church was institutionalised The sun god, Sol Invictus, was considered "Jesus Christ"
321	Constantine decreed "DIES SOLIS"	Sundays were declared a day of rest.
325	The Nicaea Creed	Church authority was supported by the government Christians were obliged to confess Jesus' divinity The Trinity gets defined Christian discouraged to keep "Jewish" Passover Date of Easter formulated
336	Pope Julius I	The first Christmas was celebrated
337	Constantius II and Bishop Ulfilas	Constantius II relaxed the church's creeds which allowed Bishop Ulfilas to spread Arianism in the Gothic regions
363	The Council of Laodicea	The Sabbath was outlawed
380	The Edict of Thessalonica	Christianity became the State Religion of the Roman Empire
381	The Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed	Declared: the incarnation of Jesus all members of the Trinity must be worshipped The Holy Spirit is the 3rd member of the Trinity The Holy Spirit speaks to the Catholic Church There is only 1 church which is the Catholic Church
382	St. Jerome	The first Latin Christian bible, namely the Vulgate Bible, was translated by a supporter of Nicene orthodoxy
395	The Dark Ages	All Arian nations fall in various wars, but Nicene Christianity survives
494	Pope Gelasius	Instituted Valentine's Day
609	Pope Boniface IV	Feast of "All Holy Martyrs" which led "All Hallows' Eve" (Halloween)
800	Holy Roman Empire	Pope Stephen II formed alliances which strengthen the papal involvement in politics Papal influence spread across Europe Suppress any religious practises against the Roman Catholic Church
1074	Pope Gregory VII	Prohibition of clerical marriages
1095	The Crusades	Various Christian crusades were attempted by the Byzantine Empire to regain territory occupied by Muslims Soldiers believed that salvation could be secured by participation in these wars
1215	The Council of Florence	The Seven Sacraments were defined as necessary for salvation
1229	Council of Toulouse	Prohibition of Bible ownership
1233	The Papal Inquisition	The systematic persecution of heretics