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[[Image:Spread of Christianity in Europe to AD 600.jpg|thumb|Spread of [[Christianity]] to 325 AD (dark blue) and 600 AD (light blue).]]
''Synopsis:'' The [[church]] is the body of believers of Jesus Christ and since it was formed after the resurrection of Jesus, major events and conflict, often over matters of [[doctrine]] have resulted in significant rifts in the church. Initially the early Christians spread the good news of Jesus throughout the Roman empire and small congregations of Christians sprang up in many towns. Rome soon became the geographical centre of the church. However, there was a rift between the Church in Greece and the one in Rome that slowly developed over centuries culminating in a schism in 1054 AD. Later, in sixteenth century, Christians in northern Europe split from the Roman church, an event known as the [[Reformation]]. Today there seems to be a bewildering array of [[denominations]]. Some of the larger ones include [[Roman Catholicism]], the Greek and Russian [[Eastern Orthodox|Orthodox]] churches and the wide variety of [[Protestant]] churches. ==Contents==
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* [[Timeline of church history]]
[[Church History (G.G.)]]
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==Main article==