Council of Jerusalem opens Christianity to the Gentiles
- Date
- c. 49-50 CE
- Category
- Religion & ideology
- Region
- Roman Judaea (Jerusalem)
- Era
- Classical Antiquity
- Significance
Around 49-50 CE, leaders of the early Christian movement met in Jerusalem to resolve a fundamental dispute: whether non-Jewish (Gentile) converts had to be circumcised and keep the full Mosaic Law.
Following the missionary work of Paul and Barnabas among Gentiles, the apostles and elders, including Peter and James, decided that Gentile believers need not be circumcised or observe most Jewish ritual law, requiring only a few basic prohibitions. Described in Acts 15 and reflected in Paul's letter to the Galatians, this decision was decisive for the future of Christianity. By detaching the faith from ethnic Jewish identity and the obligations of the Torah, it enabled Christianity to spread rapidly as a universal religion across the Greco-Roman world rather than remaining a sect within Judaism. Paul's subsequent missionary journeys and letters, which became foundational scripture, carried the movement throughout the eastern Mediterranean and to Rome itself.
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Empires active in c. 49-50 CE
- Han Dynasty202 BCE – 220 CE
- Roman Empire27 BCE – 476 CE
- Parthian Empire247 BCE – 224 CE
- Zapotec State of Monte Albán500 BCE – 800 CE
- Xiongnu Confederation209 BCE – 93 CE
- Kan Kingdom (El Mirador)300 BCE – 150 CE
Related religion & ideology events
- Crucifixion of Jesus and the origins of Christianityc. 30 CE
- Roman destruction of the Second Temple in Jerusalem70 CE
- Codification of the Caste System in the Manusmriti (Laws of Manu)c. 100 CE
- Nagarjuna Founds the Madhyamaka School and Systematises Mahayana Philosophyc. 150 CE
- Buddhism reaches China and the White Horse Temple is foundedc. 67-68 CE (traditional)
- Judah ha-Nasi Codifies the Mishnahc. 200 CE
Further reading
The wider story
A Little History of Religion
Accessible sweep of humanity's faiths and belief systems from prehistory to the present.
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