What Happened During the First Decades Following the Crucifixion
The period between 30–100 AD is often referred to as the Apostolic Age in the history of the early Christian Church. This is the period when the Church Fathers laid the foundation to what would later emerge as the worlds biggest religion. Most of what happened during the first decades following the proclaimed execution of Jesus from Nazareth is shrouded in mystery, but we do know that Christianity spread rapidly across the world in a very short time.
It is easy to question the historicity of the contradicting theological parts of Christianity, and even the historicity of the very person that supposedly inspired to all of this, but the evolution from a local Jewish sect into the world’s biggest religion is a fact. In my Essay on the Historical Jesus I elaborate on the likelihood that such a person ever existed, but from a historical point of view the real foundations of Christianity was laid in the decades after the crucifixion of Jesus and not during his lifetime. The Apostles, Church Fathers and writers of the gospels were creative and ambitious and did not necessarily need a real person to convey the message.
The start of the Apostolic Age is generally defined as the crucifixion. I have started with the baptism. These are the only two events in the life of Jesus of Nazareth that (arguably) bear some historical truth. These key events, as well as the other important milestones that I have listed, are in approximate chronological order but the exact year and historicity can be questioned. In some cases I have permitted myself to some interpretations. Several events are of course derived from theological documents but otherwise stripped from as much theological claims as possible. Pls feel free to comment on the details!
29 AD: The ministry of Jesus from Nazareth begins after he is baptized by John the Baptist.
29–33 AD: A local sect of Judaism emerges in the Roman occupied Palestine during the early first century AD but there are many competing Jewish sects in the Holy Land.
33 AD: Jesus is executed in Jerusalem during the pilgrim festivals. The group of followers, which is believed to be around 70 at the time, is scattered.
33 AD: The disciples of Jesus regroup in Jerusalem under the leadership of James the Just, brother of Jesus, and Peter (the Apostle). They meet together in the “Upper Room” of a house, traditionally believed to be where the Cenacle is today.
33–36 AD: In the first years following the Crucifixion, Christianity is merely a seed of a new religion, lacking a developed liturgy, a method of worship, and a name. This seed soon transforms into the Church of Jerusalem and is still recognized as the “Mother Church”.
34 AD: Peter the Apostle founds the Church of Antioch and becomes the first Bishop of Antioch.
35 AD: Stephen is accused of blasphemy by the Jewish authorities (Sanhedrin) in Jerusalem and gets stoned to death. He is later acknowledged as Saint Stephen.
36 AD: The Pharisee Saul of Tarsus converts to what is later to be known as “Christianity” and becomes Paul the Apostle.
36–44 AD: The Church in Jerusalem grows in numbers and several Apostles leave Jerusalem to spread the message across the region.
37 AD: The second Roman emperor Tiberius dies.
37–41 AD: The reign of the third Roman emperor Caligula.
39 AD: Initially, the Jews are receptive to the Christian message, but later they turn against the followers of Jesus. Rejected by the Jews, the message is taken to the Gentiles under the guidance of Paul. Paul meets with Peter in Jerusalem to discuss the issue. The meeting supposedly takes place three years after his conversion and Paul stays for two weeks.
41–54 AD: The reign of the fourth Roman emperor Claudius.
42–44 AD: Peter is imprisoned by King Herod Agrippa in Jerusalem. He escapes in 44 AD and flees Jerusalem to eventually arrive in Rome.
44 AD: The Apostle James, son of Zebedee, is executed in Jerusalem and becomes the first Christian to be martyred.
44 AD: King Herod Agrippa dies.
45 AD: Famine in Judea, Paul and Barnabas provide support to the Jerusalem poor from Antioch.
46–49 AD: The first missionary journeys of Paul the Apostle. He travels in the Mediterranean Sea.
49–52 AD: Paul’s Second Missionary Journey
49 AD: The Church of Alexandria is formed by Mark the Evangelist and Church of Corinth is formed by Paul the Apostle.
50 AD: Church at Philippi, Colossae and Thessalonica is formed by Paul the Apostle.
50 AD: The Council of Jerusalem. A meeting between the Apostles and different groups of Jews and non-Jews during the first Christian council may mark the first formal schism between Christianity and Judaism.
52 AD: Church at Ephesus is formed by Paul the Apostle.
53–57 AD: Paul’s Third Missionary Journey.
54 AD: Paul the Apostle writes a letter to a number of Early Christian communities in Galatia. The Epistle to the Galatians has exerted enormous influence on the history of Christianity and the development of Christian theology.
54–68 AD: The reign of the fifth Roman emperor Nero.
60-62 AD: Paul’s imprisonment in Rome
64 AD: The Great Fire of Rome in the year 64 is blamed on the Christians.
64 AD: Peter the Apostle is crucified in Rome some three months after the great fire.
66 AD: James the Just, the brother of Jesus and first Bishop of Jerusalem, is killed in Jerusalem at the instigation of the high priest Ananus ben Ananus.
66–73 AD: The first Jewish-Roman war. The Great Revolt originated in Roman and Jewish religious tensions.
66–70 AD: The Gospel of Mark is written. Some historians and theologists conceives Mark’s story of Jesus as a contrast to the events of the war.
68 AD: Paul the Apostle is beheaded in Rome.
68–69 AD: The Year of the Four Emperors.
69–96 AD: The Flavian dynasty rules the Roman Empire
70 AD: The destruction of the Second Temple
80 AD: Colosseum is completed
85–90 AD: The Gospels of Mathew and Luke are compiled
90–110 AD: The final form of the fourth Gospel John
95 AD: The Book of Revelation is written
90–96 AD: Jews and Christians are heavily persecuted throughout the Roman Empire.
98-100 AD: After the death of John in 98 AD, the last of the Twelve Apostles, over 40 church communities has been formed and Christianity has already spread to Rome, Armenia, Greece and Syria, serving as foundations for the expansive spread of Christianity, eventually throughout the world.
