Origins of Christianity

Christianity originated in the first century. According to Acts 11:19 and 11:26 in the New Testament, Jesus' followers were first called Christians by non-Christians in the city of Antioch, where they had fled and settled after early persecutions in Judea. After Jesus' death, early Christian doctrine was taught by Paul of Tarsus and the apostles.

Jesus, a descendant of Judah, is reported to have declared himself to be the long awaited Messiah (John 8:23-24, John 14:11), but this claim was rejected by the people generally considered to be the Jewish authorities (Matthew 26:63-64). He was executed by the Romans around the year 30. The formal charge cited in his execution was leading a rebellion (Luke 23:1-5): he was called the "King of the Jews" by Pontius Pilate (John 19:19-22, Luke 16:8) on the titulus crucis or statement of the charge hung over the condemned on the cross. The Gospels indicate that the Roman charge was actually an attempt to appease the Jewish authorities, although some scholars argue that it was an ordinary Roman trial of a rebel. After his crucifixion, his apostles and other followers claimed that Jesus rose from the dead, and set out to preach the new message.

The apostles are believed by most Christians to have written some of the New Testament's Gospels and Epistles; however, many of the New Testament's twenty-seven books were written by Paul of Tarsus. Twelve Epistles name him as writer, and some traditions also credit him as the writer of the book of Hebrews.

Undoubtedly, Paul was the principal missionary of the Christian message to the Gentile world. The Gospel of Luke and the Acts of the Apostles are stated as having been written by Luke, whom many believe to have been under Paul's direct influence. Acts cites Paul as a student of Gamaliel (Acts 22:3), a leading figure amongst the Jewish Sanhedrin (Acts 5:34-40) and a noteworthy authority in his own right (Acts 28:16-22) considering that the Jews of Rome sought his opinion on Christianity.