Collection: Christianity

Christianity is rooted in the life, teachings and death of Jesus of Nazareth. Christians believe Jesus is the Son of God, the second person of the Holy Trinity, and that he died to redeem humankind. Their sacred scripture is the Bible, especially the New Testament. The church, the community of believers, is central to the faith. Churches differ in their beliefs about the sacraments, the roles of the Bible and tradition, the Virgin Mary and the saints, and the papacy.

There were about 2.3 billion Christians in 2020, around 29% of the world's population. The largest share lives in sub-Saharan Africa (31%), followed by Latin America and the Caribbean (24%) and Europe (22%). Christian numbers fell in Europe and North America between 2010 and 2020 but rose in every other region. Asian and African countries have Christian minorities, some of them several million strong, as in India and China. The major divisions are Roman Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy and Protestantism. Protestantism itself includes Lutheran, Anglican, Reformed and Free Church families.

Attitudes to images differ. In the Eastern Orthodox Church, icons are venerated because God took material form in Jesus Christ, so he can be shown in pictures. Opposition to images also appears in some branches of Protestantism. Easter celebrates the Resurrection of Jesus. Christmas marks his birth, after the preparation of Advent. Pentecost falls on the 50th day of Easter and commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit on the Apostles. Reformed churches kept fewer feasts, and some groups observe only Sundays.

Sources: Britannica: Christianity · Britannica: Christianity summary · Pew Research Center: How the Global Religious Landscape Changed (2025) · Britannica: Icon · Britannica: Church year