Christianity in the 7th century

Whereas in the East the Church maintained its structure and character and evolved more slowly, in the West the Bishops of Rome (the popes) were forced to adapt more quickly and flexibly to drastically changing circumstances.

Large portions of the Arabian Peninsula had been conquered by the time of his death, and the emerging caliphate would soon begin expanding beyond Arabia as the Byzantine and Persian empires had just been crippled during the Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628.

When the Western Roman Empire fragmented under the impact of various barbarian invasions, the empire-wide intellectual culture that had underpinned late patristic theology had its interconnections cut.

Important writers include: Wealthy lords and nobles would give the monasteries estates in exchange for the conduction of masses for the soul of a deceased loved one.

[2] The Synod of Whitby of 664, though not as decisive as sometimes claimed, was an important moment in the reintegration of the Celtic Church of the British Isles into the Roman hierarchy, after having been effectively cut from contact with Rome by the pagan invaders.

But aside from one rather obscure reference in the Adversus Gentes by Arnobius (303) to "the Chinese as among those united in the faith of Christ,[1] there is little or no evidence of Christians in China before the 7th century.

But from then on the evidence of Christianity in China during the Tang Era (618-906) are numerous, including references in Chinese writings, imperial edicts, and in particular the famous inscriptions on the so-called "Nestorian Monument".

The inscription displays considerable grace of literary style, and the allusions and phraseology reveal competence in both Chinese and Syriac and familiarity with both Buddhism and Taoism.

The trade routes of the Silk Road are also known to have reached Korea, Japan, and what is today eastern Russia by this time, contributing to these exchanges.

However, Muslim apostasy was curbed by threat of death, and many nominal Christians began to gradually defect to Islam to avoid discrimination and the 1 dinar per year jizya.

In fact, so successful were the missionary efforts that it appeared that Christianity might become the dominant faith in the whole region between the Caspian Sea and Xinjiang in northwest China.

Christian Turks visiting Ctesiphon in connection with the election of a new metropolitan about this time were described as people of clean habits and orthodox beliefs and as readers of the Scriptures in both Syriac and their own language.

Lasting from 92 BC to 627 AD, the conflict between the Persian and Roman Empires was a protracted struggle which was arguably a continuation of the Greco-Persian Wars.

These started during the initial Muslim conquests under the Rashidun and Umayyad caliphs and continued in the form of an enduring border tussle until the beginning of the Crusades.