Catholic Churches

History of the spread

The Catholic Church has its origin in the person of Jesus Christ. First Christian communities are dated to the years 30-35 AD. It was considered an organized institution only a few decades later, when bishops took over the presidency of the congregations. The first head of the church is considered to be the apostle and bishop of Rome Peter, who died as a martyr in 67.

Despite a general tolerance and freedom of religion in the Roman Empire, Christians were persecuted several times and the practice of their faith was forbidden at times. Significant increases in the population first occurred towards the end of the 2nd century, when Christians were largely tolerated and parts of the Roman upper class also professed Christianity. By the Middle Ages, the faith had become increasingly politicized and achieved its status as almost the sole religion of the people.

Despite the changes that the Catholic Church has undergone over the last 2000 years, it is still considered the most original Christian church today. The first secessions occurred in the eastern part of the Roman Empire, when the ancient Oriental Christians developed into the independent Orthodox churches from the end of the 5th century. More churches split off in the wake of the Reformation beginning in the early 16th century. While the more southern areas of Europe continued to recognize the pope as their head, the church lost large areas in northern and central Europe. Here, the formerly unified church split into Catholics, Anglicans and Protestants. The seafaring nations of Spain and Portugal, which remained Catholic, gave the church considerable growth through the conquered lands around the world. These initially included Central and South America, and later numerous countries in Africa and overseas.