Difference between revisions of "Timeline of Church History"
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*449 [[Robber Synod of Ephesus]], presided over by [[Dioscorus of Alexandria]], with an order from the emperor to acquit [[Eutyches (heretic)|Eutyches]] the [[Monophysitism|Monophysite]]. | *449 [[Robber Synod of Ephesus]], presided over by [[Dioscorus of Alexandria]], with an order from the emperor to acquit [[Eutyches (heretic)|Eutyches]] the [[Monophysitism|Monophysite]]. | ||
*450 First monasteries established in Wales; death of [[Peter Chrysologus]]. | *450 First monasteries established in Wales; death of [[Peter Chrysologus]]. | ||
+ | |||
+ | =='''[[Timeline of Church History: Byzantine Era (451-843)|Byzantine era (451-843)]]'''== | ||
+ | *451 [[Fourth Ecumenical Council]] meets at Chalcedon, condemning [[Eutychianism]] and [[Monophysitism]], affirming doctrine of two perfect and indivisible but distinct natures in Christ, and recognizing [[Church of Jerusalem]] as patriarchate. | ||
+ | *452 [[Proterios of Alexandria]] convenes synod in Alexandria to reconcile Chalcedonians and non-Chalcedonians; second finding of the Head of [[John the Forerunner]]. | ||
+ | *455 [[w:Vandals|Vandals]] under Gaiseric sack Rome. | ||
+ | *457 Victorius of Aquitania computes new [[Paschalion]]; first coronation of Byzantine Emperor by patriarch of Constantinople. | ||
+ | *459 Death of [[Symeon the Stylite]]. | ||
+ | *461 Death of [[Leo the Great]]; death of [[Patrick of Ireland]]. | ||
+ | *462 [[Indiction]] moved to [[September 1]]; [[Studion Monastery]] founded. | ||
+ | *466 [[Church of Antioch]] elevates bishop of Mtskheta to rank of [[Catholicos]] of Kartli, rendering the [[Church of Georgia]] [[autocephaly|autocephalous]]. | ||
+ | *ca.471 Patriarch [[Acacius of Constantinople]] was first called ''"Oikoumenikos"'' (Ecumenical). | ||
+ | *473 Death of [[Euthymius the Great]]. | ||
+ | *475 Emperor [[w:Basiliscus|Basiliscus]] issues circular letter to the bishops of his empire, supporting [[Monophysitism|Monophysite]] [[Christology|Christological]] position. | ||
+ | *477 [[Timothy Aelurus]] of Alexandria exiles Chalcedonian bishops from Egypt. | ||
+ | *482 Byzantine emperor [[Zeno|Zeno I]] issues ''[[Henotikon]]'' in an attempt to reconcile the differences over the Christology of [[Fourth Ecumenical Council|Chalcedon]]. | ||
+ | *484 [[Acacian Schism]]. | ||
+ | *484 Founding of [[Holy Lavra of St. Savas (Jerusalem)|Mar Sabbas Monastery]] by [[Sabbas the Sanctified]]; [[Synod of Beth Lapat]] in Persia declares [[Nestorianism]] as official theology of [[Assyrian Church of the East]], effectively separating the Assyrian church from the Byzantine church. | ||
+ | *489 Emperor [[Zeno I]] closes [[w:School of Nisibis|Nestorian academy in Edessa]], which was then transferred under Sassanian Persian auspices to Nisibis, becoming the spiritual center of the [[Assyrian Church of the East]]. | ||
+ | *490 [[Brigid of Kildaire]] founds monastery of Kildare in Ireland. | ||
+ | *494 Pope [[Gelasius I of Rome]] delineates relationship between church and state in his letter ''Duo sunt'', written to Emperor [[Anastasius I]]. | ||
+ | *496 Bp. [[Remigius of Rheims]] baptizes Franks into Orthodox Christianity. | ||
+ | *ca. 500 [[Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite]] writes ''The Mystical Theology''. | ||
+ | *506 [[Church of Armenia]] separates from Chalcedonian Orthodoxy. | ||
+ | *507 Clovis I defeats the Arian Visigoths at [[w:Battle of Vouillé|Battle of Vouillé]] near Poitiers, ending their power in Gaul. | ||
+ | *518 [[Severus of Antioch]] deposed by Emperor [[Justin I]] for Monophysitism; Patriarch [[John II of Constantinople]] is addressed as ''"Oikoumenikos Patriarches"'' (Ecumenical Patriarch). | ||
+ | *519 Eastern and Western churches reconciled with end of [[Acacian Schism]]. | ||
+ | *521 Birth of [[Columba of Iona]]. | ||
+ | *527 [[Dionysius Exiguus]] calculates the date of birth of Jesus incorrectly; foundation of [[St. Catherine's Monastery (Sinai)|St. Catherine's Monastery]] on the Sinai peninsula by [[Justinian the Great]]. | ||
+ | *529 Pagan University of Athens closed and replaced by Christian university in Constantinople; [[Benedict of Nursia]] founds monastery of [[Monte Cassino]] and codifies Western [[monasticism]]; [[Council of Orange]] condemns [[Pelagianism]]; death of [[Theodosius the Great]]. | ||
+ | *529-534 [[Justinian the Great|Justinian]]'s ''[[w:Corpus Juris Civilis|Corpus Juris Civilis]]'' issued. | ||
+ | *530 [[Brendan the Navigator]] lands in Newfoundland, Canada, establishing a short-lived community of Irish monks. | ||
+ | *532 [[Justinian the Great]] orders building of [[Hagia Sophia (Constantinople)|Hagia Sophia]]; death of [[Sabbas the Sanctified]]. | ||
+ | *533 Mercurius elected Pope of Rome and takes the name of [[John II of Rome|John II]], the first pope to change his name upon election. | ||
+ | *534 Roman Empire destroys the Arian kingdom of Vandals; Malta becomes Byzantine province. | ||
+ | *536 [[Mennas of Constantinople]] summons a synod anathematizing [[Severus of Antioch]]. | ||
+ | *537 Construction of [[Hagia Sophia (Constantinople)|Hagia Sophia]] in Constantinople completed. | ||
+ | *539 [[Ravenna (Italy)|Ravenna]] becomes exarchate of the [[Byzantine Empire]]. | ||
+ | *541 [[Jacob Baradeus]] organizes the [[Oriental Orthodox|Non-Chalcedonian Church]] in western Syria (the "Jacobites"), which spreads to Armenia and Egypt. | ||
+ | *543 Doctrine of [[apokatastasis]] condemned by Synod of Constantinople. | ||
+ | *544 [[Jacob Baradeus]] consecrates Sergius of Tella as bishop of Antioch, opening the lasting schism between the [[Church of Antioch (Syriac)|Syriac Orthodox Church]] and the Chalcedonian [[Church of Antioch]]; founding of the monastery at Clonmacnoise in Ireland by [[Ciaran of Clonmacnoise|Ciaran]]. | ||
+ | *545 Saint [[David of Wales]] moved the Primatial See of Britain from Caerleon to Menevia (St. Davids's). | ||
+ | *546 [[Columba of Iona|Columba]] founds monastery of Derry in Ireland. | ||
+ | *547 Saint [[David of Wales]] does obeisance to the Patriarch of Jerusalem. | ||
+ | *553 [[Fifth Ecumenical Council]] held in Constantinople in an attempt to reconcile Chalcedonians with non-Chalcedonians—the ''[[Three Chapters]]'' of [[Theodore of Mopsuestia]], [[Theodoret of Cyrrhus]], and [[Ibas of Edessa]] are condemned for their [[Nestorianism]], and [[Origen]] and his writings are also condemned. | ||
+ | *553 Bishops of Aquileia, Milan, Venetia and the Istrian peninsula in Italy all refuse to condemn the Three Chapters, causing [[Schism of the Three Chapters]] in those areas, leading to independence of [[Patriarch of Venice]] from [[Patriarch of Aquileia]]; Ostrogoth kingdom conquered by the Byzantines after the [[w:Battle of Mons Lactarius|Battle of Mons Lactarius]]. | ||
+ | *554 [[Church of Armenia]] officially [[schism|breaks]] with the West in 554, during the second Council of Dvin where the dyophysite formula of [[Fourth Ecumenical Council|Chalcedon]] was rejected. | ||
+ | *556 [[Columba of Iona|Columba]] founds monastery of Durrow in Ireland; death of [[Roman the Melodist]]. | ||
+ | *557 [[Brendan the Navigator]] founds monastery at Clonfert, Ireland. | ||
+ | *563 [[Columba of Iona|Columba]] arrives on [[Iona]] and establishes [[monastery]] there, founding mission to the Picts. | ||
+ | *569 Final schism between Chalcedonians and non-Chalcedonians in Egypt; [[David of Wales]] holds [[Synod of Victoria]] to re-assert the anti-Pelagian decrees of Brefi. | ||
+ | *579 400 Martyrs slain by Lombards in Sicily. | ||
+ | *580 [[Monte Cassino]] sacked by Lombards, sending its monks fleeing to Rome; Slavs begin to migrate into the Balkans and Greece. | ||
+ | *587 Visigoth King [[w:Reccared I|Reccared]] renounces [[Arianism]] in favor of [[Orthodoxy]]. | ||
+ | *589 [[Council of Toledo]] adds [[Filioque]] to [[Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed]] in an attempt to combat [[Arianism]]. | ||
+ | *590 [[Columbanus]] founds monasteries in France. | ||
+ | *593 [[Anastasius I of Antioch|Anastasius the Sinaite]] restored as Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch. | ||
+ | *596 [[Gregory the Dialogist]] sends [[Augustine of Canterbury|Augustine]] along with forty other monks to southern Britain to convert pagans. | ||
+ | *597 Death of [[Columba of Iona]]. | ||
+ | *598 Glastonbury Abbey founded - the Church in the British Isles numbers 120 bishops, hundreds of monasteries and parishes organized under a Primate with his See at Menevia. | ||
+ | *ca. 600 ''[[The Ladder of Divine Ascent]]'' written by [[John Climacus]]; [[Gregory the Dialogist]] inspires development of [[Gregorian Chant]] through his liturgical reforms. | ||
+ | *601 [[Augustine of Canterbury]] converts King [[Ethelbert of Kent]] and establishes see of Canterbury. | ||
+ | *602 [[Augustine of Canterbury]] meets with Welsh bishops to bring them under Canterbury. | ||
+ | *604 [[Mellitus]] becomes first bishop of London and founds first [[w:St Paul's Cathedral|St. Paul's Cathedral]]; death of [[Gregory the Dialogist]]. | ||
+ | *605 Death of [[Augustine of Canterbury]]. | ||
+ | *610 [[Heraclius]] changes official language of the Empire from Latin to [[w:Medieval Greek|Greek]], already the ''lingua franca'' of the vast majority of the population. | ||
+ | *612 [[Holy Sponge]] and [[Holy Lance]] brought to Constantinople from Palestine. | ||
+ | *614 Persians sack Jerusalem under Chosroes II of Persia; [[Church of the Holy Sepulchre (Jerusalem)|Church of the Holy Sepulchre]] damaged by fire, [[True Cross]] captured, and over 65,000 Christians in Jerusalem massacred. | ||
+ | *615 Death of [[Columbanus]] in Italy. | ||
+ | *617 Persian Army conquers Chalcedon after a long siege. | ||
+ | *626 [[Akathist|Akathist Hymn]] to the Virgin Mary written, after Constantinople liberated from a [[w:Siege of Constantinople (626)|siege]] of 80,000 Avars, Slavs and the Persian fleet. | ||
+ | *627 Emperor [[Heraclius]] decisively defeats Sassanid Persians at [[w:Battle of Nineveh (627)|Battle of Nineveh]], recovering [[True Cross]] and breaking power of the Sassanid dynasty. | ||
+ | *630 Second [[Elevation of the Holy Cross]]. | ||
+ | *633 Death of [[Modestus of Jerusalem]]. | ||
+ | *635 Founding of [[Lindisfarne]] Monastery by [[Aidan of Lindisfarne|Aidan]], a monk from [[Iona]]; Cynegils, king of Wessex, converts to Christianity. | ||
+ | *636 Capture of [[Jerusalem]] by Muslim Arabs after [[w:Battle of Yarmouk|Battle of Yarmuk]]. | ||
+ | *640 [[w:Muslim conquest of Syria|Muslim conquest of Syria]]; [[w:Battle of Heliopolis|Battle of Heliopolis]] between Arab Muslim armies and Byzantium opens door for Muslim conquest of Byzantine [[w:Exarchate of Africa|Exarchate of Africa]]. | ||
+ | *641 Capture of Alexandria by Muslim Arabs. | ||
+ | *642 Muslim conquest of Egypt. | ||
+ | *646 Alexandria recaptured by Muslim Arabs after a Byzantine attempt to retake Egypt fails, ending nearly ten centuries of [[w:Greco-Roman|Greco-Roman]] civilization in Egypt. | ||
+ | *648 Pope [[Theodore I of Rome]] excommunicates patriarch [[Paul II of Constantinople]]. | ||
+ | *649 Arabs invade and conquer Cyprus. | ||
+ | *650 Final defeat of [[Arianism]] as Lombards convert to Orthodox Christianity. | ||
+ | *653 Pope [[Martin the Confessor]] arrested on orders of Byzantine Emperor [[Constans II]]. | ||
+ | *654 Invasion of Rhodes by Arabs. | ||
+ | *655 Martyrdom of [[Martin the Confessor]]. | ||
+ | *657 Founding of [[Whitby Abbey]] in Yorkshire, England. | ||
+ | *662 Death of [[Maximus the Confessor]]. | ||
+ | *663 Emperor [[Constans II]] is last Eastern emperor to set foot in Rome; [[Constans II]] declares the Pope of Rome to have no jurisdiction over the Archbishop of Ravenna, since that city was the seat of the exarch, his immediate representative. | ||
+ | *664 [[Synod of Whitby]] held in northern England, adopting Roman calendar and tonsures in Northumbria; [[Iona|Ionian]] monk [[Wilfrid of York|Wilfrid]] appointed as Archbishop of York. | ||
+ | *669-78 [[w:Siege of Constantinople (674)|First Arab siege of Constantinople]]; at [[w:Battle of Syllaeum|Battle of Syllaeum]] Arab fleet destroyed by Byzantines through use of [[w:Greek Fire|Greek Fire]], ending immediate Arab threat to eastern Europe. | ||
+ | *670 Composition of ''Caedmon's Hymn'' by [[Caedmon]] of [[Whitby Abbey|Whitby]]. | ||
+ | *672 The First Synod of Hertford called by [[Theodore of Tarsus]], adoption of ten decrees paralleling the canons of the Council of Chalcedon. | ||
+ | *673 The Second Council of Hatfield upholds Orthodoxy against [[Monothelitism]]. | ||
+ | *680-681 [[Sixth Ecumenical Council]] held in Constantinople, condemning [[Monothelitism]] and affirming [[Christology]] of [[Maximus the Confessor]], affirming that Christ has both a human will and a divine will; Patr. [[Sergius of Constantinople]] and Pope [[Honorius of Rome]] are both explicitly [[anathema]]tized for their support of Monothelitism. | ||
+ | *682 Foundation of [[Monkwearmouth-Jarrow Abbey]] in England. | ||
+ | *685 First monastics come to [[Mount Athos]]; death of [[Anastasius of Sinai]]. | ||
+ | *685 [[John Maron]] elected first Maronite Patriarch, becoming the founder of what is known today as the [[Maronite Catholic Church]], which embraced [[Monothelitism]], rejected the teaching of the [[Fifth Ecumenical Council]], and separated from the [[Orthodox Church]]. | ||
+ | *687 Destruction of [[Whitby Abbey]] by Danish raiders; death of [[Cuthbert of Lindisfarne]]. | ||
+ | *688 Emperor [[Justinian II]] and Caliph [[w:Abd al-Malik|al-Malik]] sign treaty neutralizing Cyprus. | ||
+ | *690c. The Witenagamot of England forbade appeals from the Local Church to the Patriarch of Rome. | ||
+ | *691 [[w:Dome of the Rock|Dome of the Rock]] completed in Jerusalem. | ||
+ | *692 [[Quinisext Council]] (also called the ''Penthekte Council'' or ''Council in Trullo'') held in Constantinople, issuing [[canon]]s which are seen as completing the work of the Fifth and Sixth [[Ecumenical Councils]], and declaring the [[Church of Jerusalem]] to be a [[patriarchate]]. | ||
+ | *694 Byzantine army of [[Justinian II]] defeated by [[Maronite Catholic Church|Maronites]], who became fully independent afterwards. | ||
+ | *697 [[Council of Birr]] accepts Roman [[Paschalion]] for northern Ireland; at this synod, [[Adomnán of Iona]] promulgates his [[w:Cáin Adomnáin|Cáin Adomnáin]]. | ||
+ | *698 Muslim conquest of Carthage; at [[Synod of Aquileia]], bishops of the diocese of Aquileia end the [[Schism of the Three Chapters]] and return to communion with Rome. | ||
+ | *ca. 700 Death of [[Isaac of Syria]]. | ||
+ | *707 Byzantines lose Balearic Islands to Moors; death of [[John Maron]]. | ||
+ | *710 Pope [[Constantine of Rome|Constantine]] makes last papal visit to Constantinople before 1967. | ||
+ | *711 Umayyad Islamic invasion of Spain. | ||
+ | *712 Death of [[Andrew of Crete]]. | ||
+ | *ca. 715 [[Lindisfarne Gospels]] produced in Northumbria (Northern England). | ||
+ | *715 [[w:Umayyad Mosque|Grand Mosque of Damascus]] built over the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist; Al-Aqsa Mosque constructed over site of [[Church of St. Mary of Justinian (Temple Mount, Jerusalem)|Church of St. Mary of Justinian]]; Pictish [[w:Nechtan IV of the Picts|King Nechtan]] invites Northumbrian clergy to establish Christianity amongst the Picts. | ||
+ | *716 Monastery at [[Iona]] conforms to Roman liturgical usage; [[Boniface]]'s first missionary journey to Frisia. | ||
+ | *717 Pictish king Nechtan expels monks from [[Iona]]. | ||
+ | *717-18 [[w:Siege of Constantinople (718)|Second Arab siege of Constantinople]]. | ||
+ | *719 [[w:Nubia#Christian Nubia|Nubian Christians]] transfer allegiance from [[Church of Alexandria|Chalcedonian church]] to [[Church of Alexandria (Coptic)|Coptic church]]. | ||
+ | *723 [[Boniface]] fells Thor's Oak near Fritzlar. | ||
+ | *726 [[Iconoclasm|Iconoclast]] Emperor [[Leo the Isaurian]] starts campaign against [[iconography|icons]]. | ||
+ | *730 Emperor [[Leo the Isaurian]] orders destruction of all icons, beginning the First Iconoclastic Period. | ||
+ | *731 [[Bede]] completes ''[[Ecclesiastical History of the English People]]''. | ||
+ | *732 Muslim invasion of Europe stopped by Franks at [[w:Battle of Tours|Battle of Tours]], establishing a balance of power between Western Europe, Islam and the [[Byzantine Empire]]. | ||
+ | *733 Byzantine Emperor [[Leo the Isaurian]] withdraws the Balkans, Sicily and Calabria from the jurisdiction of the Pope in response to Pope [[Gregory III of Rome]]'s support of a revolt in Italy against iconoclasm. | ||
+ | *734 [[Egbert of York|Egbert]] becomes bishop of York, founding a library and making the city a renowned centre of learning. | ||
+ | *735 Death of [[Bede]]; See of York achieves archepiscopal status. | ||
+ | *739 Emperor Leo III (717-41) publishes his ''[[w:Byzantine law#Ecloga|Ecloga]]'' , designed to introduce Christian principle into law; death of [[Willibrord]]. | ||
+ | *742 After a forty-year vacancy, [[Stephen IV of Antioch|Stephen IV]] becomes Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch, at the suggestion of Umayyad caliph Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik. | ||
+ | *746 Byzantine forces regain Cyprus from the Arabs. | ||
+ | *747 The Witenagamot of England again forbids appeals to the Roman Patriarch ; [[Council of Clovesho I]] adopts Roman calendar, observance of the feasts of St. Gregory the Great and Augustine of Canterbury, and adopts the Rogation Days. | ||
+ | *749 Death of [[John of Damascus]]. | ||
+ | *750 ''[[Donation of Constantine]]'' accepted as a legitimate document, used by Pope [[Stephen II of Rome|Stephen II]] to prove territorial and jurisdictional claims. | ||
+ | *751 Lombard king Aistulf captures [[Ravenna (Italy)|Ravenna]] and the Romagna, ending Byzantine Exarchate of Ravenna. | ||
+ | *752 Death of Pope [[Zacharias of Rome]]. | ||
+ | *754 [[Iconoclastic Council]] held in Constantinople under the authority of Emperor [[Constantine V Copronymus]], condemning icons and declaring itself to be the Seventh Ecumenical Council; Constantine begins dissolution of the monasteries. | ||
+ | *754 Death of [[Boniface]]. | ||
+ | *756 [[w:Donation of Pepin|Donation of Pepin]] cedes lands including Ravenna that became basis of [[w:Papal States|Papal States]]. | ||
+ | *768 Wales adopts Orthodox [[Paschalion]] and other decrees of the Synod of Whitby at teaching of Elfoddw of Gwynedd. | ||
+ | *769 Pope [[Stephen III of Rome]] holds a council changing papal election procedure and confirming veneration of icons. | ||
+ | *772 Charlemagne starts fighting Saxons and Frisians; Saxony is subdued and converted to Christianity. | ||
+ | *781 King [[Charlemagne]] of the Franks summons [[Alcuin]] of York to head palace school at Aachen (Aix-la-Chapelle) to inspire revival of education in Europe. | ||
+ | *785 The Synod of Cealchythe erects the Archbishopric of Lichfield. | ||
+ | *787 [[Seventh Ecumenical Council]] held in Nicea, condemning [[iconoclasm]] and affirming [[veneration]] of [[iconography|icons]]; two councils held in England, one in the north at Pincanhale, and the other in the south at Chelsea, reaffirming the faith of the first Six Ecumenical Councils (the decrees of the Seventh having not yet been received), and establishing a third archbishopric at Lichfield. | ||
+ | *792 The Synod of Regensburg condemned Adoptionism. | ||
+ | *793 Sack of [[Lindisfarne|Lindisfarne Priory]], beginning Viking attacks on England. | ||
+ | *794 Charlemagne convenes council in Frankfurt-in-Main, rejecting decrees of Seventh Ecumenical Council and inserting [[Filioque]] into [[Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed]]. | ||
+ | *800 [[Charlemagne]] crowned as Holy Roman Emperor by [[Leo III of Rome]] on [[Christmas]] day, marking the break of Frankish civilisation away from the Orthodox Christian Roman Empire; [[Book of Kells]] produced in Ireland. | ||
+ | *800 Ambassadors of Caliph Harunu al-Rashid give keys to the [[Church of the Holy Sepulchre (Jerusalem)|Holy Sepulchre]] to Charlemagne, acknowledging some Frankish control over the interests of Christians in Jerusalem ; establishment of the [[Western Rite]] Monastery of Saint Mary in Jerusalem. | ||
+ | *801 Controversy in Jerusalem over Frankish pilgrims using [[Filioque]]. | ||
+ | *803 [[Council of Clovesho II]] abolishes archbishopric of Lichfield, restoring the pattern of the two metropolitan archbishoprics (Canterbury and York) which had prevailed before 787, and requires the use of the [[Western Rite]] amongst the English speaking peoples. | ||
+ | *810 Pope Leo III refused permission for the [[Filioque]] to be inserted in the Creed. | ||
+ | *814 Conflict erupts between Emperor [[Leo V the Armenian|Leo V]] and Patr. [[Nicephorus I of Constantinople|Nicephorus]] on the subject of iconoclasm; Leo deposes Nicephorus, Nicephorus excommunicates Leo. | ||
+ | *824 Byzantine [[w:Crete|Crete]] falls to Arab insurgents fleeing from the Umayyad Emir of Cordoba Al-Hakam I, establishing an emirate on the island until the Byzantine reconquest in 960. | ||
+ | *826 [[Ansgar]] arrives in Denmark and begins preaching; King Harald Klak of Denmark converts to Christianity. | ||
+ | *828 Death of Patr. [[Nicephorus I of Constantinople]]. | ||
+ | *ca. 829-842 Icon of the [[Panagia Portaitissa]] appears on [[Mount Athos]] near [[Iviron Monastery (Athos)|Iviron Monastery]]. | ||
+ | *836 Death of [[Theodore the Studite]]. | ||
+ | *ca. 839 First [[w:Paphlagonian expedition of the Rus|Rus'-Byzantine War]], where the Rus attacked Propontis (probably aiming for Constantinople) before turning east and raiding Paphlagonia. |
Revision as of 19:30, December 21, 2008
Timeline of Church History | |||||
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The History of the Church is a vital part of the Orthodox Christian faith. Orthodox Christians are defined significantly by their continuity with all those who have gone before, those who first received and preached the truth of Jesus Christ to the world, those who helped to formulate the expression and worship of our faith, and those who continue to move forward in the unchanging yet ever-dynamic Holy Tradition of the Orthodox Church.
Contents
New Testament era
- ca. 27 BC - AD 180 Pax Romana.
- ca. 4 BC Christ is born in Bethlehem; 14,000 Holy Innocents slain in Bethlehem.
- ca. 25-26 Death of Joseph the Betrothed.
- ca. 28 John the Baptist begins ministry in the "15th year of Tiberius" (Luke 3:1-2), preaching "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near" (Matt 3:1-2), baptized Christ in the Jordan (Mark 1:4-11), is later arrested and beheaded by Herod Antipas, tetrarch of Galilee.
- ca. 28-30 Three year ministry of Jesus Christ, including: Temptation; Appointment of the Twelve Apostles; Sermon on the Mount; Miracles performed; Rejection; Transfiguration; Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem; driving out the Temple money changers; Cursing the fig tree; Giving the great commandment; Anointing; Mystical Supper; Arrest; Sanhedrin Trial; Before Pilate; Passion; Crucifixion on Good Friday; Entombment by Pharisees Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus of the Sanhedrin; Harrowing of Hell; Resurrection on Easter Sunday; Appearances to various people over the next forty days; Giving the Great Commission (Matt. 28:16-20); and Ascension.
- ca. 30 Martyrdom of Stephen the deacon, first Christian martyr.
- 30 Conversion of Apostle Paul on road to Damascus.
Apostolic era (33-100)
- 33 The Holy Spirit descends on the day of Pentecost, filling the followers of Jesus Christ with power from on high.
- 34 Apostle Peter founds See of Antioch.
- 35 The name Christian first used in Antioch.
- 37 Joseph of Arimathea travels to Britain and lands in Glastonbury.
- 40 Apostle Barnabas sent from Jerusalem to Antioch to strengthen community after persecution when church leaders flee city.
- ca.42 Apostle Paul's ecstasy to the third heaven (2 Cor.12:2-4).
- ca.46-48 Apostle Paul's first missionary journey, with Apostle Barnabas (Acts 13 - 14).
- 49 Apostolic Council of Jerusalem rules that Gentiles do not have to become Jews before becoming Christians.
- ca.49-52 Apostle Paul's second missionary journey, with Apostle Silas (Acts 15:39 - 18:22).
- 50 Apostle Matthew finishes the Gospel of Matthew in Aramaic.
- 52 Apostle Thomas arrives in Kerala, introducing Christianity to India.
- ca.53-57 Apostle Paul's third missionary journey (Acts 18:23 - 21:16).
- ca.59-62 Apostle Paul's fourth missionary journey, voyage to Rome (Acts 27 - 28:16).
- 62 Martyrdom of Apostle James the Just; crucifixion of Apostle Andrew in Patras.
- 63 Aristobulus consecrated as first bishop of Britain.
- 64-68 First of ten major persections of the Early Church, under Emperor Nero.
- 66 Flight of the Christian community in Jerusalem to Pella and other places in the Decapolis, and Antioch.
- 67 Martyrdom of the Apostle Peter in Rome; martyrdom of the Apostle Paul in Rome; Apostle Linus elected first bishop of Rome.
- 69 Ignatius of Antioch consecrated bishop of Antioch.
- 70 Apostle Mark writes Gospel; Temple in Jerusalem is destroyed by the Romans; expulsion of the Christians from the synagogues.
- 71 Apostle Mark introduces Christianity to Egypt.
- 80 Gospel of Luke written by the Apostle Luke; Titus dedicates the Colosseum, site of the martyrdom of many early Christians.
- ca. 80-90 Didache written.
- 85 Acts of the Apostles written by Apostle Luke.
- 90 Council of Jamnia (Javneh) marks final separation and distinction between the Jewish and Christian communities, including rejection of the Septuagint widely then in use among the Hellenized Jewish diaspora.
- 95 Apostle John writes Book of Revelation.
- ca.90-96 Persecution of Christians under Emperor Domitian (2nd).
- 96 Gospel of John written by Apostle John as supplement and further theological illumination of the Synoptic gospels.
- ca.100 Emergence of Christian Catacombs in the second century.
- 100 Death of Apostle John.
Ante-Nicene era (100-325)
- 107 Martyrdom of Ignatius of Antioch; death of Apostle Symeon.
- 108-124 Persecution under Emperor Trajan, continuing under Emepror Hadrian (3rd).
- 120 Beginning of time of the Apologists: Justin Martyr, Aristides, Tatian, Athenagoras of Athens, Theophilus, Minucius Felix, Tertullian and Quadratus, writing to defend the Church against internal heresies, and to defend the faith before the Jews, and before the larger pagan world, using Greek philosophic concepts and terms.
- 124 Apostles Quadratus and Aristides present Christian apologies to Emperor Hadrian at Athens.
- 128 Aquila's Greek translation of the Old Testament.
- 130 Conversion of Justin Martyr.
- 132 Jews, led by Bar Kochba, whom some identify as the Messiah, revolt against Rome.
- 135 Christmas instituted as a feast day in Rome.
- 136 Emperor Hadrian crushes Jewish resistance, forbids Jews from returning Jerusalem, and changes city name to Aelia Capitolina; first recorded use of title Pope for the bishop of Rome by Pope Hyginus.
- 144 Excommunication of Marcion for his heretical rejection of the Old Testament and for his semi-Gnostic teachings, particularly Docetism.
- 150 Justin Martyr describes Divine Liturgy.
- 155 Martyrdom of Polycarp of Smyrna.
- 156 Beginning of Montanism.
- 165 Martyrdom of Justin.
- 166 Pope Soter inaugurates in Rome a separate annual feast for Pascha, in addition to the weekly Sunday celebrations of the Resurrection, which is also held on a Sunday, in contrast to the Quartodecimans.
- ca. 175 Tatian’s Diatessaron harmonizes the four canonical gospels into single narrative.
- 177-180 Persection under Emperor Marcus Aurelius (161-180) (4th).
- 180 Irenaeus of Lyons writes Against Heresies; Saint Dyfan first martyr in British Isles (at Merthyr Dyfan, Wales).
- 180-192 Theodotion's Greek translation of the Old Testament.
- 193-211 Symmachus' Greek translation of the Old Testament.
- 197 Quartodeciman controversy.
- 200 Martyrdom of Irenaeus of Lyons.
- 202 Emperor Septimus Severus issues edict against Christianity and Judaism; Martyrdom of Haralampus of Magnesia.
- 202-210 Persecution under Emperor Septimius Severus (193-211) (5th).
- 206 King Abgar IX converts Edessa to Christianity.
- ca. 209 Martyrdom of Alban in Britain.
- 210 Hippolytus of Rome, bishop and martyr and last of Greek-speaking fathers in Rome, writes Refutation of All Heresies (Philosophumena), and Apostolic Tradition, the latter containing the earliest known description of the rite of ordination.
- 215 Conversion of Tertullian to Montanism.
- 225 Death of Tertullian.
- ca.225-250 Didascalia Apostolorum, "Teaching of the Apostles", oldest extant manual of church order describes church life at that time; circulated widely in Persia, being translated early on from Greek into Syriac.
- 227 Origen begins Commentary on Genesis, completes work on First Principles.
- 235-238 Persecution under Emperor Maximinus Thrax (6th); martyrdom of St. Hippolytus of Rome.
- 238 During reigns of Gordian and Philip the Arab the church proclaims the faith openly and increasingly attracts well-educated converts.
- ca.240 Origen's Hexapla of the Old Testament, largest critical production of antiquity.
- 244 Plotinus founds Neoplatonist school in Rome, whose system is developed in conscious opposition to Christianity, however whose teachings indirectly influenced Augustine of Hippo and Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite and hence medieval theologians and mystics.
- 246 Paul of Thebes retreats to the Egyptian desert and becomes first Christian hermit.
- 247 Rome celebrated its thousandth anniversary this year, witnessing a period of increased persecution of Christians.
- 248 Origen writes in Against Celsus that the Roman empire is a Divine Will.
- 249-251 Persecution under Emperor Decius (7th).
- 257-260 Persecution under Emperor Valerian (253-260) (8th).
- 258 Bp. Cyprian of Carthage martyred.
- 260 Paul of Samosata begins his heretical preaching against the divinity of Christ; Synod in Rome condemns Sabellianism and Subordinationism.
- 264 Excommunication of Paul of Samosata.
- 265 The word "Homoousios", "of the same substance", to define relationship between Father and Son, used for first time by Modalist Monarchians of Cyrene, playing an important part in defining Orthodoxy at Nicene Council in 325.
- 274-275 Persecution under Emperor Aurelian (9th).
- 270 Death of Gregory Thaumaturgus; Porphyry of Tyre writes Against the Christians, a powerful anti-Christian book, causing several Christian contemporaries to try and refute him, and which was later banned and burned in 448; first priest ordained in Seleucia-Ctesiphon.
- 284 Diocletian becomes Roman emperor, persecutes Church and martyrs an estimated one million Christians; martyrdom of Cosmas and Damian, Andrew Stratelates ("the General") and 2,593 soldiers with him in Cilicia; the Era of the Martyrs dating system, currently used by the Coptic Church, had its beginning on this date, its year one.
- 285 Anthony the Great flees to the desert to pursue a life of prayer.
- 300 By this date, the Chrisitan population is about 6,200,000, or 10.5% of the population of the Roman Empire (based on population of 60 million).
- 301 Gregory the Illuminator converts King Tiridates I of Armenia to the Christian faith.
- 302 20,000 Martyrs burned at Nicomedia.
- 303 Outbreak of the Great Persecution (303-311) (10th), as Diocletian and Galerius launch the last and most severe persecution of Christians in the Roman Empire; martyrdom of George the Trophy-bearer.
- ca.305-311 Lactantius writes Divinae Institutiones, the first systematic Latin account of the Christian view of life.
- ca.306 Synod of Elvira in Spain, requires continence of all clergy, and severe disciplinary penalties for apostasy and adultery, becoming the pattern in the west.
- 308 Pope Marcellus, a rigorist, opposes more lenient treatment of the Christians who had lapsed under the recent persecution.
- 310 Armenia becomes first Christian nation; persecution of Christians under Persian King Shapur II (310-379).
- 311 Galerius issues Edict of Toleration ending persecution of Christians in his part of the Roman Empire; rebellion of the Donatists in Carthage.
- 312 Vision and conversion of Constantine the Great; defeat of Maxentius at the Battle of Milvian Bridge, making Constantine Emperor of the West; martyrdom of Lucian of Antioch, who had completed a recension of the Septuagint and the Four Gospels in Greek, and inspired the development of the School of Antioch and Biblical textual study.
- 313 Edict of Milan issued by Constantine the Great and co-emperor Licinius, officially declaring religious freedom in the Roman Empire, specifically naming religious toleration for Christianity, restoration of property to Christian churches, and legal recognition.
- 314 Council of Ancyra held; Council of Arles condemns Donatism.
- 315 Council of Neo-Caesaria held.
- 318 Publication of On the Incarnation by Athanasius the Great, influencing the condemnation of Arianism; beginnings of Arian Controversy.
- 318 Pachomius the Great, disciple of Anthony the Great, organizes a community of ascetics at Tabennis in Egypt, founding cenobitic monasticism.
- 320 Expulsion of Arius by Alexander of Alexandria; martyrdom of Forty Martyrs of Sebaste.
- 320-21 Licinius' measures against Christians in the east enforced.
- 321 Constantine declares Sunday a holiday in honor of the Resurrection.
- 323 Constantine the Great builds church on the site of the martyrdom of Peter in Rome.
- 324 Constantine defeats Licinius and becomes sole emperor.
Nicene era (325-451)
- 325 First Ecumenical Council held in Nicea, condemning Arianism, setting the Paschalion, and issuing the first version of the Nicene Creed.
- 326 Discovery of the True Cross by the Empress Helena; King Miraeus of Georgia becomes Christian.
- 328 Athanasius the Great becomes bishop of Alexandria (328-373).
- 329 Athanasius ordains Frumentius (Abba Selama) to priesthood and commissions him to evangelize Ethiopia.
- 330 Constantinople is founded as New Rome and Christian capital of the Roman Empire; Amoun and Macarius the Great found monasteries in the Egyptian desert.
- 336-338 Athanasius the Great goes into exile in Treves, telling Europeans about the monastic rule of Pachomius the Great, awakening interest in monasticism in Europe.
- 337 Death of Constantine.
- 340 Conversion of Wulfila to Arianism, subsequently missionizing the Goths with heretical doctrine; Council of Rome under Pope Julius where Athanasius and Marcellus are declared innocent and maintained in the communion of the western churches.
- 341 Council of Antioch held; Emperor Constans bans pagan sacrifices and magic rituals under penalty of death.
- 345 Death of Nicholas, Archbishop of Myra in Lycia.
- 347 Council of Sardica.
- 348 Death of Pachomius the Great; death of Spyridon of Trimythous.
- 350 Ninian establishes the church Candida Casa at Whithorn in Galloway, Scotland, beginning the missionary effort to the Picts.
- 351 Apparition of the Sign of the Cross over Jerusalem.
- 355 Death of Nina, Enlightener of Georgia.
- 356 Death of Anthony the Great.
- 357 The Council of Sirmium, the high point of Arianism, issues the Blasphemy of Sirmium.
- 358 Basil the Great founds monastery of Annesos in Pontus, the model for Eastern monasticism.
- 359 Councils of Seleucia in the east and Rimini in the west.
- 360 Martin of Tours founds first French monastery at Liguge; first church of Hagia Sophia inaugurated by Emperor Constantius II.
- 362 Synod of Alexandria; Antiochian schism (362-414).
- 361-63 Julian the Apostate becomes Roman emperor, attempting to restore paganism.
- 363 Emperor Jovian reestablished Christianity as the official religion of the Empire.
- 364 Council of Laodicea held.
- 367 Athanasius of Alexandria writes his Paschal letter, listing for the first time the canon of the New Testament of the Holy Scriptures, including all 27 New Testament Books; death of Hilary of Poitiers.
- 373 Death of Athanasius the Great; death of Ephrem the Syrian.
- 374 Election of Ambrose as bishop of Milan.
- 375 Basil the Great writes On the Holy Spirit, confirming the divinity of the Holy Spirit.
- 376 Visigoths convert to Arian Christianity.
- 379 Death of Basil the Great; Emperor Gratian's rescript Ordinariorum Sententias extends power of Bishop of Rome by allowing him authority over bishops within his own jurisdiction.
- 380 Christianity established as the official faith of the Roman Empire by Emperor Theodosius the Great; Council of Saragossa condemns Priscillianism.
- 381 Second Ecumenical Council held in Constantinople, condemning Macedonianism/Pneumatomachianism and Appollinarianism, declaring the divinity of the Holy Spirit, confirming the previous Ecumenical Council, and completing the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed; Council of Aquileia led by Ambrose of Milan deposes Arian bishops.
- 382 Pope Siricius of Rome first to bear title Pontifex Maximus.
- 384 Council of Bordeaux condemns Priscillian.
- 385 Death of Gregory of Nyssa.
- 386 Death of Cyril of Jerusalem.
- 387 Augustine baptized at Pascha by Ambrose of Milan.
- 391 Death of Gregory the Theologian.
- 391-92 All non-Christian temples in the Empire closed; Theodosius the Great ends pagan Eleusinian Mysteries by decree and causes surviving pagan sacrifices at Alexandria and Rome to cease.
- 392 Death of Macarius the Great.
- 393 Council of Hippo publishes Biblical canon; Emperor Theodosius bans Olympic Games as a pagan festival.
- 394 Epiphanius of Salamis attacks teachings of Origen as heretical; Council of Constantinople held; Donatist Council of Bagai in Africa held with 310 bishops.
- 395 Augustine becomes bishop of Hippo in North Africa; the placing of the cincture (sash) of the Most Holy Theotokos in the Church of the Virgin in Halkoprateia-Constantinople (395-408).
- 395 Re-division of Empire with death of Emperor Theodosius the Great.
- 397 Council of Carthage publishes Biblical canon; death of Martin of Tours; death of Ambrose of Milan.
- 398 John Chrysostom becomes Archbishop of Constantinople.
- ca. 398 Martyrdom of 10,000 Fathers of the Scetis by Patriarch Theophilus of Alexandria.
- 399 Anastasius of Rome and other bishops condemn doctrine of Origen.
- 401 Augustine of Hippo writes Confessions; Pope Innocent I of Rome supports John Chrysostom and condemns pelagianism.
- 402 Porphyry of Gaza obtains imperial decree ordering closing of pagan temples in Gaza.
- 403 Abduction of Patrick to Ireland to serve as a slave; visit of Victricius of Rouen to Britain; Synod of the Oak held near Chalcedon, deposing and exiling John Chrysostom.
- 404 Martyrdom of Telemachus, resulting in Emperor Honorius' edict banning gladiator fights.
- 405 Translation of Holy Scriptures into Latin as the Vulgate by Jerome.
- 407 Death of John Chrysostom in exile.
- 410 Fall of Rome to the Visigoths under Alaric I; escape of Patrick back to Britain; Emperor Honorius tells Britain to attend to its own affairs, effectively removing the Roman presence.
- 410 Council of Seleucia declares Mesopotamian Nestorian bishops independent of Orthodox bishops.
- 411 Pelagius condemned at council in Carthage; Rabbula becomes bishop of Edessa.
- 412 Cyril succeeds his uncle Theophilus as Pope of Alexandria; Honorius outlaws Donatism; Lazarus, bishop of Aix-en-Provence, and Herod, bishop of Arles, expelled from sees on a charge of Manichaeism; Alexandrian Creation Era date finalized at 25 March, 5493 BC.
- 414 Resolution of the Antiochian division.
- 415 Pelagius cleared at a synod in Jerusalem and a provincial synod in Diospolis (Lydda); John Cassian founds convent at Marseilles.
- 416 Councils in Carthage and Milevis condemn Pelagius and convince Pope Innocent I of Rome to excommunicate him.
- 418 Foundation of the Arian Visigothic Kingdom, as Emperor Honorius rewards Visigoth federates by giving them land in Gallia Aquitania on which to settle.
- 418-24 Council in Carthage anathematizes Pelagianism by way of endorsing Augustinian anthropology.
- 425 Sanhedrin disbanded by the Roman Empire.
- 426 Augustine of Hippo writes The City of God.
- 428 Nestorius becomes patriarch of Constantinople.
- 429 Pope Celestine I dispatches prominent Gallo-Roman Bishops Germanus of Auxerre and Lupus of Troyes to Britain as missionary bishops and to combat the Pelagian heresy; death of Sisoes the Great.
- ca. 430 Death of Nilus of Sinai.
- 430 Peter the Iberian founds Georgian monastery near Bethlehem.
- 431 Third Ecumenical Council held in Ephesus, condemning Nestorianism and Pelagianism, confirming the use of the term Theotokos to refer to the Virgin Mary, and confirming autocephaly of Church of Cyprus; Pope Celestine sends Palladius to Ireland.
- 432 Return of Patrick to Ireland to begin missionary work; death of Ninian, Apostle to the Picts.
- 433 Formulary of Peace completes the work of the Third Ecumenical Council by reconciling Cyril of Alexandria with John of Antioch.
- 435 Death of John Cassian; death of Acacius of Melitene; Nestorius exiled by Imperial edict to a monastery in a Sahara oasis.
- 438 Codex Theodosianus published.
- 439 Carthage falls to Vandals.
- 444 Death of Cyril of Alexandria; Pope Leo the Great abolishes Gallican vicariate.
- 445 Founding of monastery at Armagh in northern Ireland; Emperor Valentinian III issues decree recognizing primacy of the bishop of Rome.
- 447 Earthquake in Constantinople, when a boy was lifted up to heaven and heard the Trisagion.
- 449 Robber Synod of Ephesus, presided over by Dioscorus of Alexandria, with an order from the emperor to acquit Eutyches the Monophysite.
- 450 First monasteries established in Wales; death of Peter Chrysologus.
Byzantine era (451-843)
- 451 Fourth Ecumenical Council meets at Chalcedon, condemning Eutychianism and Monophysitism, affirming doctrine of two perfect and indivisible but distinct natures in Christ, and recognizing Church of Jerusalem as patriarchate.
- 452 Proterios of Alexandria convenes synod in Alexandria to reconcile Chalcedonians and non-Chalcedonians; second finding of the Head of John the Forerunner.
- 455 Vandals under Gaiseric sack Rome.
- 457 Victorius of Aquitania computes new Paschalion; first coronation of Byzantine Emperor by patriarch of Constantinople.
- 459 Death of Symeon the Stylite.
- 461 Death of Leo the Great; death of Patrick of Ireland.
- 462 Indiction moved to September 1; Studion Monastery founded.
- 466 Church of Antioch elevates bishop of Mtskheta to rank of Catholicos of Kartli, rendering the Church of Georgia autocephalous.
- ca.471 Patriarch Acacius of Constantinople was first called "Oikoumenikos" (Ecumenical).
- 473 Death of Euthymius the Great.
- 475 Emperor Basiliscus issues circular letter to the bishops of his empire, supporting Monophysite Christological position.
- 477 Timothy Aelurus of Alexandria exiles Chalcedonian bishops from Egypt.
- 482 Byzantine emperor Zeno I issues Henotikon in an attempt to reconcile the differences over the Christology of Chalcedon.
- 484 Acacian Schism.
- 484 Founding of Mar Sabbas Monastery by Sabbas the Sanctified; Synod of Beth Lapat in Persia declares Nestorianism as official theology of Assyrian Church of the East, effectively separating the Assyrian church from the Byzantine church.
- 489 Emperor Zeno I closes Nestorian academy in Edessa, which was then transferred under Sassanian Persian auspices to Nisibis, becoming the spiritual center of the Assyrian Church of the East.
- 490 Brigid of Kildaire founds monastery of Kildare in Ireland.
- 494 Pope Gelasius I of Rome delineates relationship between church and state in his letter Duo sunt, written to Emperor Anastasius I.
- 496 Bp. Remigius of Rheims baptizes Franks into Orthodox Christianity.
- ca. 500 Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite writes The Mystical Theology.
- 506 Church of Armenia separates from Chalcedonian Orthodoxy.
- 507 Clovis I defeats the Arian Visigoths at Battle of Vouillé near Poitiers, ending their power in Gaul.
- 518 Severus of Antioch deposed by Emperor Justin I for Monophysitism; Patriarch John II of Constantinople is addressed as "Oikoumenikos Patriarches" (Ecumenical Patriarch).
- 519 Eastern and Western churches reconciled with end of Acacian Schism.
- 521 Birth of Columba of Iona.
- 527 Dionysius Exiguus calculates the date of birth of Jesus incorrectly; foundation of St. Catherine's Monastery on the Sinai peninsula by Justinian the Great.
- 529 Pagan University of Athens closed and replaced by Christian university in Constantinople; Benedict of Nursia founds monastery of Monte Cassino and codifies Western monasticism; Council of Orange condemns Pelagianism; death of Theodosius the Great.
- 529-534 Justinian's Corpus Juris Civilis issued.
- 530 Brendan the Navigator lands in Newfoundland, Canada, establishing a short-lived community of Irish monks.
- 532 Justinian the Great orders building of Hagia Sophia; death of Sabbas the Sanctified.
- 533 Mercurius elected Pope of Rome and takes the name of John II, the first pope to change his name upon election.
- 534 Roman Empire destroys the Arian kingdom of Vandals; Malta becomes Byzantine province.
- 536 Mennas of Constantinople summons a synod anathematizing Severus of Antioch.
- 537 Construction of Hagia Sophia in Constantinople completed.
- 539 Ravenna becomes exarchate of the Byzantine Empire.
- 541 Jacob Baradeus organizes the Non-Chalcedonian Church in western Syria (the "Jacobites"), which spreads to Armenia and Egypt.
- 543 Doctrine of apokatastasis condemned by Synod of Constantinople.
- 544 Jacob Baradeus consecrates Sergius of Tella as bishop of Antioch, opening the lasting schism between the Syriac Orthodox Church and the Chalcedonian Church of Antioch; founding of the monastery at Clonmacnoise in Ireland by Ciaran.
- 545 Saint David of Wales moved the Primatial See of Britain from Caerleon to Menevia (St. Davids's).
- 546 Columba founds monastery of Derry in Ireland.
- 547 Saint David of Wales does obeisance to the Patriarch of Jerusalem.
- 553 Fifth Ecumenical Council held in Constantinople in an attempt to reconcile Chalcedonians with non-Chalcedonians—the Three Chapters of Theodore of Mopsuestia, Theodoret of Cyrrhus, and Ibas of Edessa are condemned for their Nestorianism, and Origen and his writings are also condemned.
- 553 Bishops of Aquileia, Milan, Venetia and the Istrian peninsula in Italy all refuse to condemn the Three Chapters, causing Schism of the Three Chapters in those areas, leading to independence of Patriarch of Venice from Patriarch of Aquileia; Ostrogoth kingdom conquered by the Byzantines after the Battle of Mons Lactarius.
- 554 Church of Armenia officially breaks with the West in 554, during the second Council of Dvin where the dyophysite formula of Chalcedon was rejected.
- 556 Columba founds monastery of Durrow in Ireland; death of Roman the Melodist.
- 557 Brendan the Navigator founds monastery at Clonfert, Ireland.
- 563 Columba arrives on Iona and establishes monastery there, founding mission to the Picts.
- 569 Final schism between Chalcedonians and non-Chalcedonians in Egypt; David of Wales holds Synod of Victoria to re-assert the anti-Pelagian decrees of Brefi.
- 579 400 Martyrs slain by Lombards in Sicily.
- 580 Monte Cassino sacked by Lombards, sending its monks fleeing to Rome; Slavs begin to migrate into the Balkans and Greece.
- 587 Visigoth King Reccared renounces Arianism in favor of Orthodoxy.
- 589 Council of Toledo adds Filioque to Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed in an attempt to combat Arianism.
- 590 Columbanus founds monasteries in France.
- 593 Anastasius the Sinaite restored as Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch.
- 596 Gregory the Dialogist sends Augustine along with forty other monks to southern Britain to convert pagans.
- 597 Death of Columba of Iona.
- 598 Glastonbury Abbey founded - the Church in the British Isles numbers 120 bishops, hundreds of monasteries and parishes organized under a Primate with his See at Menevia.
- ca. 600 The Ladder of Divine Ascent written by John Climacus; Gregory the Dialogist inspires development of Gregorian Chant through his liturgical reforms.
- 601 Augustine of Canterbury converts King Ethelbert of Kent and establishes see of Canterbury.
- 602 Augustine of Canterbury meets with Welsh bishops to bring them under Canterbury.
- 604 Mellitus becomes first bishop of London and founds first St. Paul's Cathedral; death of Gregory the Dialogist.
- 605 Death of Augustine of Canterbury.
- 610 Heraclius changes official language of the Empire from Latin to Greek, already the lingua franca of the vast majority of the population.
- 612 Holy Sponge and Holy Lance brought to Constantinople from Palestine.
- 614 Persians sack Jerusalem under Chosroes II of Persia; Church of the Holy Sepulchre damaged by fire, True Cross captured, and over 65,000 Christians in Jerusalem massacred.
- 615 Death of Columbanus in Italy.
- 617 Persian Army conquers Chalcedon after a long siege.
- 626 Akathist Hymn to the Virgin Mary written, after Constantinople liberated from a siege of 80,000 Avars, Slavs and the Persian fleet.
- 627 Emperor Heraclius decisively defeats Sassanid Persians at Battle of Nineveh, recovering True Cross and breaking power of the Sassanid dynasty.
- 630 Second Elevation of the Holy Cross.
- 633 Death of Modestus of Jerusalem.
- 635 Founding of Lindisfarne Monastery by Aidan, a monk from Iona; Cynegils, king of Wessex, converts to Christianity.
- 636 Capture of Jerusalem by Muslim Arabs after Battle of Yarmuk.
- 640 Muslim conquest of Syria; Battle of Heliopolis between Arab Muslim armies and Byzantium opens door for Muslim conquest of Byzantine Exarchate of Africa.
- 641 Capture of Alexandria by Muslim Arabs.
- 642 Muslim conquest of Egypt.
- 646 Alexandria recaptured by Muslim Arabs after a Byzantine attempt to retake Egypt fails, ending nearly ten centuries of Greco-Roman civilization in Egypt.
- 648 Pope Theodore I of Rome excommunicates patriarch Paul II of Constantinople.
- 649 Arabs invade and conquer Cyprus.
- 650 Final defeat of Arianism as Lombards convert to Orthodox Christianity.
- 653 Pope Martin the Confessor arrested on orders of Byzantine Emperor Constans II.
- 654 Invasion of Rhodes by Arabs.
- 655 Martyrdom of Martin the Confessor.
- 657 Founding of Whitby Abbey in Yorkshire, England.
- 662 Death of Maximus the Confessor.
- 663 Emperor Constans II is last Eastern emperor to set foot in Rome; Constans II declares the Pope of Rome to have no jurisdiction over the Archbishop of Ravenna, since that city was the seat of the exarch, his immediate representative.
- 664 Synod of Whitby held in northern England, adopting Roman calendar and tonsures in Northumbria; Ionian monk Wilfrid appointed as Archbishop of York.
- 669-78 First Arab siege of Constantinople; at Battle of Syllaeum Arab fleet destroyed by Byzantines through use of Greek Fire, ending immediate Arab threat to eastern Europe.
- 670 Composition of Caedmon's Hymn by Caedmon of Whitby.
- 672 The First Synod of Hertford called by Theodore of Tarsus, adoption of ten decrees paralleling the canons of the Council of Chalcedon.
- 673 The Second Council of Hatfield upholds Orthodoxy against Monothelitism.
- 680-681 Sixth Ecumenical Council held in Constantinople, condemning Monothelitism and affirming Christology of Maximus the Confessor, affirming that Christ has both a human will and a divine will; Patr. Sergius of Constantinople and Pope Honorius of Rome are both explicitly anathematized for their support of Monothelitism.
- 682 Foundation of Monkwearmouth-Jarrow Abbey in England.
- 685 First monastics come to Mount Athos; death of Anastasius of Sinai.
- 685 John Maron elected first Maronite Patriarch, becoming the founder of what is known today as the Maronite Catholic Church, which embraced Monothelitism, rejected the teaching of the Fifth Ecumenical Council, and separated from the Orthodox Church.
- 687 Destruction of Whitby Abbey by Danish raiders; death of Cuthbert of Lindisfarne.
- 688 Emperor Justinian II and Caliph al-Malik sign treaty neutralizing Cyprus.
- 690c. The Witenagamot of England forbade appeals from the Local Church to the Patriarch of Rome.
- 691 Dome of the Rock completed in Jerusalem.
- 692 Quinisext Council (also called the Penthekte Council or Council in Trullo) held in Constantinople, issuing canons which are seen as completing the work of the Fifth and Sixth Ecumenical Councils, and declaring the Church of Jerusalem to be a patriarchate.
- 694 Byzantine army of Justinian II defeated by Maronites, who became fully independent afterwards.
- 697 Council of Birr accepts Roman Paschalion for northern Ireland; at this synod, Adomnán of Iona promulgates his Cáin Adomnáin.
- 698 Muslim conquest of Carthage; at Synod of Aquileia, bishops of the diocese of Aquileia end the Schism of the Three Chapters and return to communion with Rome.
- ca. 700 Death of Isaac of Syria.
- 707 Byzantines lose Balearic Islands to Moors; death of John Maron.
- 710 Pope Constantine makes last papal visit to Constantinople before 1967.
- 711 Umayyad Islamic invasion of Spain.
- 712 Death of Andrew of Crete.
- ca. 715 Lindisfarne Gospels produced in Northumbria (Northern England).
- 715 Grand Mosque of Damascus built over the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist; Al-Aqsa Mosque constructed over site of Church of St. Mary of Justinian; Pictish King Nechtan invites Northumbrian clergy to establish Christianity amongst the Picts.
- 716 Monastery at Iona conforms to Roman liturgical usage; Boniface's first missionary journey to Frisia.
- 717 Pictish king Nechtan expels monks from Iona.
- 717-18 Second Arab siege of Constantinople.
- 719 Nubian Christians transfer allegiance from Chalcedonian church to Coptic church.
- 723 Boniface fells Thor's Oak near Fritzlar.
- 726 Iconoclast Emperor Leo the Isaurian starts campaign against icons.
- 730 Emperor Leo the Isaurian orders destruction of all icons, beginning the First Iconoclastic Period.
- 731 Bede completes Ecclesiastical History of the English People.
- 732 Muslim invasion of Europe stopped by Franks at Battle of Tours, establishing a balance of power between Western Europe, Islam and the Byzantine Empire.
- 733 Byzantine Emperor Leo the Isaurian withdraws the Balkans, Sicily and Calabria from the jurisdiction of the Pope in response to Pope Gregory III of Rome's support of a revolt in Italy against iconoclasm.
- 734 Egbert becomes bishop of York, founding a library and making the city a renowned centre of learning.
- 735 Death of Bede; See of York achieves archepiscopal status.
- 739 Emperor Leo III (717-41) publishes his Ecloga , designed to introduce Christian principle into law; death of Willibrord.
- 742 After a forty-year vacancy, Stephen IV becomes Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch, at the suggestion of Umayyad caliph Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik.
- 746 Byzantine forces regain Cyprus from the Arabs.
- 747 The Witenagamot of England again forbids appeals to the Roman Patriarch ; Council of Clovesho I adopts Roman calendar, observance of the feasts of St. Gregory the Great and Augustine of Canterbury, and adopts the Rogation Days.
- 749 Death of John of Damascus.
- 750 Donation of Constantine accepted as a legitimate document, used by Pope Stephen II to prove territorial and jurisdictional claims.
- 751 Lombard king Aistulf captures Ravenna and the Romagna, ending Byzantine Exarchate of Ravenna.
- 752 Death of Pope Zacharias of Rome.
- 754 Iconoclastic Council held in Constantinople under the authority of Emperor Constantine V Copronymus, condemning icons and declaring itself to be the Seventh Ecumenical Council; Constantine begins dissolution of the monasteries.
- 754 Death of Boniface.
- 756 Donation of Pepin cedes lands including Ravenna that became basis of Papal States.
- 768 Wales adopts Orthodox Paschalion and other decrees of the Synod of Whitby at teaching of Elfoddw of Gwynedd.
- 769 Pope Stephen III of Rome holds a council changing papal election procedure and confirming veneration of icons.
- 772 Charlemagne starts fighting Saxons and Frisians; Saxony is subdued and converted to Christianity.
- 781 King Charlemagne of the Franks summons Alcuin of York to head palace school at Aachen (Aix-la-Chapelle) to inspire revival of education in Europe.
- 785 The Synod of Cealchythe erects the Archbishopric of Lichfield.
- 787 Seventh Ecumenical Council held in Nicea, condemning iconoclasm and affirming veneration of icons; two councils held in England, one in the north at Pincanhale, and the other in the south at Chelsea, reaffirming the faith of the first Six Ecumenical Councils (the decrees of the Seventh having not yet been received), and establishing a third archbishopric at Lichfield.
- 792 The Synod of Regensburg condemned Adoptionism.
- 793 Sack of Lindisfarne Priory, beginning Viking attacks on England.
- 794 Charlemagne convenes council in Frankfurt-in-Main, rejecting decrees of Seventh Ecumenical Council and inserting Filioque into Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed.
- 800 Charlemagne crowned as Holy Roman Emperor by Leo III of Rome on Christmas day, marking the break of Frankish civilisation away from the Orthodox Christian Roman Empire; Book of Kells produced in Ireland.
- 800 Ambassadors of Caliph Harunu al-Rashid give keys to the Holy Sepulchre to Charlemagne, acknowledging some Frankish control over the interests of Christians in Jerusalem ; establishment of the Western Rite Monastery of Saint Mary in Jerusalem.
- 801 Controversy in Jerusalem over Frankish pilgrims using Filioque.
- 803 Council of Clovesho II abolishes archbishopric of Lichfield, restoring the pattern of the two metropolitan archbishoprics (Canterbury and York) which had prevailed before 787, and requires the use of the Western Rite amongst the English speaking peoples.
- 810 Pope Leo III refused permission for the Filioque to be inserted in the Creed.
- 814 Conflict erupts between Emperor Leo V and Patr. Nicephorus on the subject of iconoclasm; Leo deposes Nicephorus, Nicephorus excommunicates Leo.
- 824 Byzantine Crete falls to Arab insurgents fleeing from the Umayyad Emir of Cordoba Al-Hakam I, establishing an emirate on the island until the Byzantine reconquest in 960.
- 826 Ansgar arrives in Denmark and begins preaching; King Harald Klak of Denmark converts to Christianity.
- 828 Death of Patr. Nicephorus I of Constantinople.
- ca. 829-842 Icon of the Panagia Portaitissa appears on Mount Athos near Iviron Monastery.
- 836 Death of Theodore the Studite.
- ca. 839 First Rus'-Byzantine War, where the Rus attacked Propontis (probably aiming for Constantinople) before turning east and raiding Paphlagonia.