Religion (Christianity)

Christianity largest world religion Three major branches about 2 billion adherents Many adherents in Europe, the Americas Three major branches Roman Catholicism (51% of all Christians) Protestant Christianity (24%) “denominations” include Lutheran, Baptist, Methodist, Anglican, Presbyterian, Episcopal etc. Eastern Orthodox (11%) Other (14%) Coptic (Egypt), Mormons (Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints), Jehovah’s Witnesses

Christian Holy Places Relate to life of Christ = universalizing Jerusalem Holy Sepulchre Bethlehem (birth) Nazareth (childhood) Later sites associated with saints and “miracles” Examples Lourdes, France Fatima, Portugal

Diffusion of Christianity To Europe (Roman Empire) follows Jewish diaspora RELOCATION “Paul’s letters” “pagan” = “country dweller” HIERARCHICAL “pagans” = convert CONTAGIOUS Outside of Europe colonization missionaries conversion of authorities (kings, chiefs, tribal leaders) followed by acceptance by common people Diffusion of Christianity

Islam in Europe (Ottoman Empire)

Christianity in Europe South/Romance = Catholic Italy, Spain, Portugal, France North/Germanic = Protestant UK = Anglican = Protestant political not doctrinal Scandinavia Sweden, Norway, Denmark other Nordic Iceland Latvia (split) Uralic Finland Estonia Does Ireland fit this pattern? Ireland = Catholic Why? ethnic identity/nationalism Christianity in Europe

Diffusion of Christianity Global Secondary hearths influence global distribution not the place of origin but place from which there was significant change Roman Catholicism = Rome/Vatican City Spanish, French colonies = Catholic “Latin” America Protestantism = Northern Europe (Germany/UK) British/Dutch colonies = Protestant North America (we will handle tomorrow) Australia, New Zealand Eastern Orthodox = Constantinople (now Istanbul) Orthodox missionaries → Eastern Europe/Russia St. Cyril and Methodius = Cyrillic Alphabet Moscow = “the Third Rome” after fall of Constantinople to Muslims relocation diffusion to Siberia

Christianity in Europe East/Slavic = Orthodox Exceptions = Poland Catholic, why? between Protestant Germany and Orthodox Russia ethnic identity/Nationalism

Cyrillic Alphabet (Eastern Europe, Slavic, Eastern Orthodox)

Religion in the Balkans Islam = legacy of Ottomans Albania, Kosovo, Bosnia Ottoman Turk influence Former Yugoslavia/Balkans SHATTERBELT a region caught between stronger colliding external cultural-political forces, under persistent stress, and often fragmented by aggressive rivals Leads to civil war in the 1990s Serbia, Montenegro, Macedonia Pro-Russian Eastern Orthodox Croatia, Slovenia Pro-Germany (WWII) “Western” focus Roman Catholic Bosnian identity is Muslim Religion in the Balkans

Religion in Europe Multi-religious states Netherlands Germany Switzerland Latvia

European “belief in God”

Diffusion of Christianity Global Secondary hearths influence global distribution not the place of origin but place from which there was significant change Roman Catholicism = Rome/Vatican City Spanish, French colonies = Catholic “Latin” America Protestantism = Northern Europe (Germany/UK) British/Dutch colonies = Protestant North America (we will handle tomorrow) Australia, New Zealand Eastern Orthodox = Constantinople (now Istanbul) Orthodox missionaries → Eastern Europe/Russia St. Cyril and Methodius = Cyrillic Alphabet Moscow = “the Third Rome” after fall of Constantinople to Muslims relocation diffusion to Siberia Africa = based on colonial holdings (see later map)

Dark Red = Catholic Pink = Protestant Magenta = Eastern Orthodox

World Distribution of Religions