Christianity | National Geographic

About 2,000 years ago in a far-flung province in the Middle East, a man emerged from the desert with a message—one that would radically alter the course of world events and come to define the lives of billions. Christianity is a monotheistic religion that centers on the teachings of Jesus Christ, believed to be the son of an almighty Universal God. It is through faith in Jesus Christ and his teachings that believers have access to God and afterlife. The Christian religion began about 2,000 years ago in the province of Judea in the Middle East. It was a sect of the overarching religion at the time, Judaism, and originally had a very few followers.

What’s known about Christianity’s earliest days and the life of Jesus Christ comes from four books called the Gospels. The Gospels hold that Jesus was born in the first decade BC in the region of Judea. His father was named Joseph, and his mother was named Mary. According to tradition, Jesus was immaculately conceived by God. In some accounts, Jesus had been trained as a carpenter or a builder, but by the age of 30, he took to preaching, saying that forgiveness of past sins was the key to achieving righteousness. However, the Jewish religious leaders and Roman rulers of the region declared Jesus an agitator. They had him arrested and crucified, nailed to a wooden cross, and left to die. But the story of Jesus doesn’t end with his death. According to the Gospels, the body of Jesus was resurrected by God, his father.

If Jesus had built the foundations of the Christian faith, it was a Greek-speaking Jew named Paul who made it a religion. According to Paul, God revealed Jesus Christ to him in a vision. Paul then converted to Christianity and made it his mission to see Christ’s teachings as an institution by establishing churches across the Roman Empire. Paul’s actions catapulted Christians from an esoteric Jewish sect to a society of worshipers with reach across the known world.

Over the next two millennia, Christianity would go through an unprecedented journey. Scriptures such as the Gospels would be gathered and translated to form Christianity’s sacred texts, the Bible. The Christian faith would branch to many denominations and be practiced by followers in all seven continents, and the number of Jesus Christ’s followers would grow to two billion, making Christianity the world’s largest religion. While religious practice, ritual, and tradition have changed according to the spiritual needs and desires of its billions of adherents worldwide, a man from Judea’s simple message of peace and forgiveness remains just as powerful now as it did 2,000 years ago.

• far-flung /ˌfɑːr ˈflʌŋ/ (adj) – Remote or distant.
  SYN: remote, distant
  Example: He traveled to a far-flung village to teach the children.
• alter the course of /ˈɔːltər ðə ˈkɔːrs əv/ (v) – To change the direction or development of something.
  SYN: change, shift
  Example: The discovery of electricity altered the course of human history.
• Christianity /ˌkrɪstiˈænɪti/ (n) – The Christian religion.
  SYN: Christendom, the Christian faith
  Example: Christianity is practiced by millions around the world.
• monotheistic /ˌmɒnəʊθiˈɪstɪk/ (adj) – Believing in one God.
  SYN: one-God, single-deity
  Example: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam are monotheistic religions.
• almighty Universal God /ˌɔːlˈmaɪti ˌjuːnɪˈvɜːrsl ˈɡɒd/ (n) – The all-powerful, all-encompassing God.
  SYN: supreme being, all-powerful God
  Example: Believers pray to the almighty Universal God for guidance.
• faith in /feɪθ ɪn/ (n) – Trust or belief in someone or something.
  SYN: trust, belief
  Example: Her faith in humanity remained unshaken.
• sect /sɛkt/ (n) – A subgroup or faction of a religion.
  SYN: faction, division
  Example: The new sect attracted many followers quickly.
• overarching /ˌəʊvərˈɑːrtʃɪŋ/ (adj) – Comprehensive or all-encompassing.
  SYN: comprehensive, all-encompassing
  Example: The CEO\u2019s overarching goal is to increase company profits.
• Gospels /ˈɡɒspəlz/ (n) – The four books of the New Testament that tell the story of Jesus.
  SYN: scripture, holy writings
  Example: The Gospels narrate the life and teachings of Jesus.
• immaculately /ɪˈmækjʊlətli/ (adv) – Perfectly, without flaw.
  SYN: perfectly, flawlessly
  Example: She was dressed immaculately for the ceremony.
• preaching /ˈpriːʧɪŋ/ (n) – The act of delivering a religious message or sermon.
  SYN: sermonizing, evangelism
  Example: His preaching inspired many to follow his path.
• righteousness /ˈraɪʧəsnəs/ (n) – Moral uprightness or virtue.
  SYN: virtue, morality
  Example: They admired her righteousness in handling the situation.
• agitator /ˈæʤɪteɪtər/ (n) – A person who stirs up trouble or protests.
  SYN: instigator, troublemaker
  Example: The agitator stirred up protests in the streets.
• crucified /ˈkruːsɪfaɪd/ (v) – To be nailed to a cross as a form of execution.
  SYN: executed, nailed
  Example: Jesus was crucified as a punishment.
• resurrected /ˌrezəˈrektɪd/ (v) – Brought back to life.
  SYN: revived, brought back
  Example: According to the Gospels, Jesus was resurrected three days after his death.
• catapulted /ˈk\u00e6təp\u028cltɪd/ (v) – To propel something or someone forward quickly.
  SYN: propelled, launched
  Example: The invention catapulted the company to global fame.
• esoteric /ˌɛsəˈtɛrɪk/ (adj) – Understood by a small, specialized group of people.
  SYN: obscure, arcane
  Example: The philosophy was considered too esoteric for the general public.
• millennia /mɪˈlɛniə/ (n) – A thousand years (plural of millennium).
  SYN: thousands of years, ages
  Example: These traditions have been passed down for millennia.
• unprecedented /ʌnˈprɛsɪdɛntɪd/ (adj) – Never done or seen before.
  SYN: unparalleled, unmatched
  Example: The company achieved unprecedented success this year.
• scripture /ˈskrɪpʧər/ (n) – Religious texts or holy writings.
  SYN: holy book, sacred text
  Example: They studied the scripture together every week.
• sacred /ˈseɪkrɪd/ (adj) – Holy or worthy of religious reverence.
  SYN: holy, divine
  Example: This site is considered sacred by the local community.
• denominations /dɪˌnɒmɪˈneɪʃənz/ (n) – Branches or divisions within a religion.
  SYN: branches, sects
  Example: Christianity has many denominations, including Catholicism and Protestantism.
• religious practice /rɪˈlɪʤəs ˈpr\u00e6ktɪs/ (n) – Acts of worship or religious observance.
  SYN: worship, rituals
  Example: Religious practices vary across different cultures.
• ritual /ˈrɪʧuəl/ (n) – A ceremonial or traditional act.
  SYN: ceremony, rite
  Example: The wedding included traditional rituals.
• spiritual /ˈspɪrɪtjʊəl/ (adj) – Relating to the soul or religious matters.
  SYN: metaphysical, religious
  Example: Meditation is part of her spiritual journey.
• adherents /ədˈhɪərənts/ (n) – People who follow or believe in a religion or philosophy.
  SYN: followers, believers
  Example: The religion gained millions of adherents worldwide.