You are here: » Christianity in View » Introduction to the Orthodox Church » Timeline
Timeline
| c.4 BC | Birth of Jesus Christ, in Bethlehem. |
| c.30 AD | Death of Jesus Christ. |
| c.33 | Pentecost and the coming of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2). Sometimes known as the Birthday of the Church. |
| c.33 | Stephen - First Christian martyr (Acts 7). |
| c.48 | Council of Jerusalem (Acts 15). Gentile Christians accepted alongside those in the Jewish tradition. |
| c.60 | First Gospel published (often thought to be that written by Mark). |
| 62 | Martyrdom of James, "The Lord's Brother". |
| c.67-68 | Apostles Peter and Paul* martyred in the reign of the Roman emperor Nero. |
| 70 | Jewish rebellion against the Roman empire ends. Destruction of the temple in Jerusalem. |
| From 70 | Centre of Christianity moves to Antioch, Alexandria and Rome. |
| c.90 | Book of Revelation and Gospel of Saint John written. |
| 161-80 | Widespread persecution of Christians under Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius. (Severe persecutions also occurred under the emperors Decius (249-251) and Diocletian (284-305)). |
| 301 | Armenia becomes the world's first country to officially adopt Christianity as the state religion. |
| 312 | Roman emperor Constantine receives a vision of a flaming cross with the words 'In hoc signo vinces' : 'By this sign conquer'. Defeats rival Maxentius at the Battle of Milvian Bridge. |
| 313 | Edict of Milan issued by Constantine - Christianity becomes a legal religion within the Roman empire. |
| 325 | Constantine calls the first ecumenical council at Nicea. Arian heresy which declared Christ was a created being is refuted. Nicene Creed is drawn up, declaring Christ to be "...Begotten, not made; of one essence with the Father..." |
| 367 | Saint Athanasius is the first to list all 27 New Testament books in his festal letter. |
| 381 | Ecumenical Council at Constantinople revises the Nicene creed to its current form. |
| c.382 | Saint Jerome begins a translation of the Bible into Latin. |
| 397 | Synod at Carthage ratifies the 27 books of the New Testament as sacred scripture. |
| 431 | Ecumenical council held at Ephesus refutes Nestorianism. (The doctrine that Christ was two persons (one human, the other divine) in one body). Mary is declared Theotokos i.e. 'God-bearer' or more commonly, 'Mother of God'. |
| 451 | Ecumenical council at Chalcedon affirms Christ as having two distinct natures united in one person (known as the 'Hypostatic Union'). |
| 553 | Ecumenical council at Constantinople affirms teaching of previous councils. |
| 589 | To refute Arianism, the filioque (Latin: 'and the son') was added to the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed at a council in Toledo. |
| 636 | Capture of Jerusalem by Muslim Arabs after Battle of Yarmuk. |
| 641 | Capture of Alexandria and subesquent conquest of Egypt by Muslims. |
| 663 | Emperor Constans II is last Eastern emperor to set foot in Rome. |
| 680-81 | Ecumenical council at Constantinople rejects Monothelite heresy of one will in Christ. |
| 787 | Ecumenical council at Nicea ends the controversy over the use of icons in worship. |
| 843 | Triumph of Orthodoxy occurs on first Sunday of Great Lent, restoring icons to churches. |
| 861 | Cyril and Methodius begin their missionary work among the slavic peoples. |
| 867 | At a council held at Constantinople, Patriarch Photius declares Pope Nicholas I anathema following conflict over missionary work in Bulgaria and the filioque. |
| 879-880 | Ecumenical council at Nicea - confirms Photius as patriarch and rejects the filioque. |
| 885 | Mount Athos obtains political autonomy. |
| 988 | Conversion of Prince Vladimir in Kiev. Growth of Christianity in Russia. |
| 1014 | Use of the filioque for the first time in Rome, by Pope Benedict XIII. |
| 1054 | Great Schism - Eastern Orthodox and Western Catholic churches separate. |
| 1084 | Capture of Antioch by Seljuk Turks. |
| 1095 | Pope Urban II authorises the first Crusade to recover the Holy Land from Moslems. |
| 1099 | Crusaders conquer Jerusalem. |
| 1187 | Jerusalem recaptured by a Moslem army led by Saladin. |
| 1204 | Sack of Constantinople during the fourth crusade. |
| 1261 | End of Latin occupation of Constantinople and restoration of Orthodox patriarchs. |
| 1269 | Orthodox patriarch returns to Antioch after a 171-year exile. |
| 1274 | Second Council of Lyons held, proclaiming union between the Orthodox East and the Roman Catholic West, but generally unaccepted in the East. |
| c.1341 | Defence of Orthodox spirituality by Gregory Palamas. Rise of Hesychasm. |
| 1410 | Iconographer Andrei Rublev paints an icon depicting the three angels who appeared to Abraham and Sarah, the angels being considered a type of the Holy Trinity. |
| 1439 | Ecclesiastical reunion with West attempted at Council of Florence, but subsquently fails. |
| 1448 | Independence of Russian Orthodox Church from the Church of Constantinople. |
| 1453 | Fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Turks. |
| 1568 | Pope Pius V recognizes four Great Doctors of the Eastern Church, John Chrysostom, Basil the Great, Gregory of Nazianzus, and Athanasius. |
| 1698 | Consecration of the First Orthodox Church in China. |
| 1794 | Orthodox Missionaries arrive in Alaska. |
| 1821 | Independence of Greece. |
| 1965 | Mutual anathemas of 1054 between Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches lifted. |
| 2008 | Pan-Orthodox meeting in Constantinople. |
| 2008 | Publication of the Orthodox Study Bible. |
* See the Timeline of Paul's ministry for more information.
