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In one minute
Christianity is the faith centred on the life, teachings, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, who lived in Galilee and Judea in the 1st century CE. Christians believe in one God known as Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and that Jesus is the Son of God who came to reconcile people with God. The Bible is their sacred scripture, and worship, prayer, love of neighbour and the sacraments are at the heart of Christian life. Christians are found in every part of the world, and in India their communities range from the ancient Syrian Christians of Kerala to the churches of Goa, Tamil Nadu and the Northeast.
In India (Census 2011): 2.78 crore (2.3%)
Origins
As the tradition tells it
Christians believe that Jesus was born of the Virgin Mary in Bethlehem, fulfilling the hopes of the Hebrew prophets. The Gospels tell that he taught about the Kingdom of God, healed the sick and called disciples, and that he was crucified in Jerusalem and rose from the dead on the third day. Christians believe the risen Jesus sent his apostles to share this good news (the Gospel) with all nations. At Pentecost, the Holy Spirit is believed to have come upon the disciples, which is remembered as the birth of the Church.
As historians describe it
Most historians accept that Jesus of Nazareth was a Jewish teacher in Roman-ruled Judea and Galilee who was crucified under the Roman governor Pontius Pilate, around 30 to 33 CE. His birth is usually placed a few years before 1 CE, in about 6 to 4 BCE. The earliest Christian writings are the letters of Paul from the 50s CE, and scholars generally date the four Gospels to about 65 to 100 CE. The movement spread through the Roman Empire and beyond, and became legal in the Roman Empire in 313 CE.
Timeline
- c. 6 to 4 BCEBirth of Jesus, according to most scholarly estimates.
- c. 30 to 33 CECrucifixion of Jesus in Jerusalem; Christians proclaim his resurrection.
- 52 CE (by tradition)According to the tradition of the Saint Thomas Christians, the apostle Thomas arrives at Muziris (Kodungallur) on the Kerala coast.
- c. 50 to 100 CEThe letters of Paul and the four Gospels are written; these become the core of the New Testament.
- 325 CEThe Council of Nicaea meets; the Nicene Creed, later expanded, becomes a shared statement of faith for most churches.
- 1054 CEThe Great Schism: the churches of Rome and Constantinople separate, giving rise to the Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches.
- 1517 CEMartin Luther publishes his 95 Theses in Germany, a starting point of the Protestant Reformation.
- 1542 CEThe Jesuit missionary Francis Xavier arrives in Goa; he later works along the coasts of south India.
- 1706 CELutheran missionaries led by Bartholomaeus Ziegenbalg arrive at Tranquebar (Tharangambadi), Tamil Nadu, and later print the New Testament in Tamil.
- 1947 and 1970 CESeveral Protestant churches unite to form the Church of South India (1947) and the Church of North India (1970).
- 1962 to 1965 CEThe Second Vatican Council renews Catholic worship and allows the Mass to be celebrated in local languages, including Indian languages.
Core teachings
One God, the Trinity
Christians believe in one God who exists as three persons: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. This belief, called the Trinity, is expressed in the ancient creeds shared by most churches.
Jesus Christ
Christians believe Jesus is the Son of God who became human, both fully divine and fully human. The title 'Christ' comes from the Greek for 'anointed one', translating the Hebrew 'Messiah'. In Islam, Jesus is honoured as the prophet Isa.
Cross and resurrection
Christians believe that through Jesus's death on the cross and his resurrection, sin and death are overcome and people are offered salvation and new life. Easter, the feast of the resurrection, is the most important day of the Christian year.
Love of God and neighbour
In the Gospels, Jesus names the greatest commandments as loving God with all one's heart and loving one's neighbour as oneself. Christians see service to the poor, forgiveness and even love of enemies as part of following him.
Grace and faith
Christians believe salvation is a gift of God's grace, received through faith. Churches differ on how faith, good works and the sacraments relate to one another, and this was a central question of the Reformation.
Church, prayer and sacraments
Christians gather as the Church to worship, especially on Sundays, and pray the Lord's Prayer that Jesus taught. Baptism and the Eucharist (Holy Communion, the Mass or Holy Qurbana) are shared by nearly all churches; Catholic and Orthodox churches count seven sacraments in all.
Sacred books
📖 The Bible ›
The sacred scripture of Christians, made up of the Old Testament and the New Testament. Christians believe it is inspired by God; it has been translated into most Indian languages.
Read now📖 Old Testament
Scriptures shared largely with the Hebrew Bible of Judaism: the Law, the history of Israel, the Psalms, wisdom books and the prophets.
Reader coming📖 New Testament
Twenty-seven books accepted by nearly all churches: the four Gospels, the Acts of the Apostles, the letters of Paul and other apostles, and the Book of Revelation.
Reader coming📖 The Gospels ›
The books of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, which tell the life, teaching, death and resurrection of Jesus; 'gospel' means 'good news'.
Read now📖 Deuterocanonical books
Books such as Tobit, Judith, Wisdom, Sirach and 1 and 2 Maccabees, which Catholic and Orthodox Bibles include in the Old Testament. Most Protestant Bibles leave them out or print them separately as the Apocrypha, so the canon differs between churches.
Reader comingKey figures
| Jesus Christ | Christians believe he is the Son of God and Saviour; his life and teaching are the centre of the faith. Muslims honour him as the prophet Isa. |
|---|---|
| Mary, mother of Jesus | Honoured by Christians as the mother of Jesus, and especially venerated in Catholic and Orthodox traditions; many Indian shrines, such as Velankanni and Mount Mary, are dedicated to her. |
| Saint Peter | A leading apostle of Jesus; Catholics regard him as the first Bishop of Rome, the office now held by the Pope. |
| Saint Paul | An early missionary whose letters to young churches form a large part of the New Testament. |
| Saint Thomas the Apostle | One of the twelve apostles; the Saint Thomas Christians of Kerala hold, by tradition, that he preached in south India and died near Chennai. |
| Saint Francis Xavier | A 16th-century Jesuit missionary who worked in Goa and south India; his remains are kept at the Basilica of Bom Jesus in Old Goa. |
| Saint Alphonsa | A Franciscan Clarist nun from Kerala of the Syro-Malabar Church, declared a saint in 2008, the first woman of Indian origin to be canonised by the Catholic Church. |
| Saint Teresa of Calcutta (Mother Teresa) | Founder of the Missionaries of Charity in Kolkata (1950), known for care of the poorest and dying; Nobel Peace Prize 1979, Bharat Ratna 1980, declared a saint in 2016. |
Schools and communities
Where traditions within this faith differ. Described side by side, with no verdict.
Catholic Church
The largest Christian body worldwide, in communion with the Pope in Rome, with seven sacraments and the Mass at the centre of worship. In India it includes the Latin Church and two Eastern Catholic churches from Kerala's Syrian tradition: the Syro-Malabar and Syro-Malankara churches.
Orthodox churches
Ancient churches led by their own patriarchs and bishops, with rich liturgy and icons. They include the Eastern Orthodox churches (such as the Greek and Russian) and the Oriental Orthodox family, to which Kerala's Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church and the Jacobite Syrian Christian Church belong; their worship, the Holy Qurbana, follows the West Syriac rite.
Protestant churches
Churches that grew from the 16th-century Reformation, such as Lutheran, Anglican, Methodist, Baptist and Presbyterian churches. They stress the authority of the Bible, salvation by grace through faith and worship in the local language; in India many have joined in the Church of South India and the Church of North India.
Mar Thoma Syrian Church
A Kerala church of the Saint Thomas Christian heritage that keeps an Eastern liturgy while having adopted reforms in the 19th century influenced by Protestant ideas; it is in communion with Anglican churches.
Pentecostal and Evangelical churches
Fast-growing movements of the 20th century that emphasise personal faith, Bible reading and, in Pentecostal churches, the gifts of the Holy Spirit such as healing and spirited worship.
Holy places
📍 Basilica of Bom Jesus
Old Goa, Goa
Holds the remains of Saint Francis Xavier; part of the 'Churches and Convents of Goa' UNESCO World Heritage Site.
📍 Basilica of Our Lady of Good Health, Velankanni
Nagapattinam district, Tamil Nadu
A major shrine to Mary visited by pilgrims of many faiths, especially during its feast from late August to 8 September.
📍 San Thome Basilica
Mylapore, Chennai, Tamil Nadu
Built, according to tradition, over the tomb of Saint Thomas the Apostle; nearby St Thomas Mount is linked by tradition to his death.
📍 Mount Mary Basilica
Bandra, Mumbai, Maharashtra
A hilltop church dedicated to Mary whose week-long Bandra Fair in September draws visitors of all faiths.
📍 Church of the Nativity
Bethlehem
Built over the place where Christians by long tradition remember the birth of Jesus; one of the oldest churches in continuous use.
📍 Church of the Holy Sepulchre
Jerusalem
Honoured by many Christians as the site of Jesus's crucifixion, burial and resurrection; several churches share its care.
📍 St Peter's Basilica
Vatican City, Rome
Built, according to Catholic tradition, over the tomb of Saint Peter; the principal church of the Pope.
Festivals
- Christmas: The feast of the birth of Jesus, on 25 December for most churches (some Orthodox churches that follow the Julian calendar keep it on 7 January), marked with midnight worship, carols, cribs and stars.
- Lent and Ash Wednesday: A season of about forty days of prayer, fasting and charity before Easter, beginning for many churches on Ash Wednesday.
- Good Friday: A solemn day remembering the crucifixion of Jesus, kept with prayer, fasting and the Way of the Cross; it is a public holiday in India.
- Easter: The feast of the resurrection of Jesus and the most important Christian celebration, held on a Sunday in spring whose date changes each year.
- Pentecost: Fifty days after Easter, remembering the coming of the Holy Spirit upon the disciples.
- Feast of Saint Francis Xavier: On 3 December, a major feast in Goa when many pilgrims visit the Basilica of Bom Jesus.
In India today
Christianity has a very long history in India: the Saint Thomas Christians of Kerala trace their origin, by tradition, to the apostle Thomas in the 1st century CE, and copper plates of the 9th century record privileges granted to a Christian community at Kollam. From the 16th century Catholic communities grew in Goa, Mangaluru, Vasai and along the coasts, and from the 18th century Protestant missions worked in Tamil Nadu, Bengal and elsewhere, also printing grammars and Bible translations in many Indian languages. Today Christians form the majority in Nagaland, Mizoram and Meghalaya and have large communities in Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Goa and other states. Indian churches run many schools, colleges and hospitals that serve people of every faith.
Visiting and learning with respect
- Dress modestly in church; men usually remove hats, and in many Indian churches visitors remove shoes, so follow local practice.
- Keep silence during worship, and ask before taking photographs during a service.
- In Catholic and Orthodox churches, Holy Communion is generally received only by members; visitors may simply remain seated or come forward for a blessing with arms crossed.
- Address clergy by their titles, such as Father, Reverend, Sister or Bishop; in Kerala's Syrian churches priests are often called Achen.
Test what you learned
Which feast celebrates the resurrection of Jesus?
By tradition, which apostle is linked with the early Christians of Kerala?
How many books does the New Testament have in nearly all churches?
Whose remains are kept at the Basilica of Bom Jesus in Old Goa?
Which church family do Kerala's Malankara Orthodox and Jacobite Syrian churches belong to?
What does the word 'gospel' mean?
Score: 0 / 6
Sources: Census of India 2011, religion data (Office of the Registrar General and Census Commissioner, India) · Encyclopaedia Britannica: Christianity · Encyclopaedia Britannica: Jesus · Encyclopaedia Britannica: Bible · UNESCO World Heritage: Churches and Convents of Goa
Corrections from members of every tradition are welcome at support@indiadigital.org. Last checked: .