Timeline of religion
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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The timeline of religion is a comparative chronology of important events in human religious history and prehistory.
The history of religion refers to the written record of human religious events, experiences, and ideas. However, writing is only about 5000 years old therefore all history reaches about 5000 years into the past.
As the bulk of the human religious experience is relegated to prehistory, the timeline of religion does include prehistoric religious events in addition to historical ones. Note: as a consequence of the lack of written records, much of the knowledge prehistory based on theories and suppositions from indirect sources such as archaeological records. Accordingly, much of religious prehistory is subject to continued debate. However Terracotta seals excavated at site suggest links of Jainism with Indus Valley civilization. Mention of Jain Tīrthaṇkaras in Vedas indicates pre-historic origins of Jainism
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The Prehistoric era (300th millennium to 34th century BC)
300th to 51st millennium BC
- 223,000 - 100,000 BC
- The earliest evidence of Hominids, such as Neanderthals and even Homo heidelbergensis, deliberately disposing of deceased individuals usually in funerary caches. The graves, located throughout Eurasia (e.g. the Pontnewydd Cave, Atapuerca Mountains, Qafzeh, Es Skhul, Krapina), are believed to represent the beginnings of ceremonial rites, although there is some debate about this. Neanderthals placed their deceased in simple graves with little or no concern for grave goods or markers; however, their graves occasionally appeared with limestone blocks in or on them, possibly an archaic form of grave marking. These practices were possibly the result of empathetic feelings towards fellow tribespeople, for example: an infant buried in the Dederiyeh Cave after its joints had disarticulated was placed with concern for the correct anatomical arrangement of its body parts.
- 98,000 BC
- In the area of present-day France and Belgium, Neanderthals begin defleshing their dead, possibly after a period of excarnation prior to burial.
50th to 11th millennium BC
- 40,000 BC
- One of the earliest Anatomically modern humans to be cremated is buried near Lake Mungo.
- 33,000 BC
- All convincing evidence for Neanderthal burials ceases. Roughly coinciding with the time period of the Homo sapiens introduction to Europe and decline of the Neanderthals.
- 25,000 BC
- Individual skulls and/or long bones begin appearing heavily stained with red ochre and are separately buried. This practice may be the origins of sacred relics.
- The oldest discovered "Venus figurines" appear in graves. Some are deliberately broken or repeatedly stabbed. Possibly representing murders of the men they are buried with or some other unknown social dynamic.
- 25,000 - 21,000 BC
- Clear examples of burials are present in Iberia, Wales, and Eastern Europe. All of these, also, incorporate the heavy use of red ochre. Additionally, various objects are being included in the graves (i.e. periwinkle shells, weighted clothing, dolls, possible drumsticks, mammoth ivory beads, fox teeth pendants, panoply of ivory artifacts, "baton" antlers, flint blades, etc.).
- 21,000 - 11,000 BC
- Convincing evidence of mortuary activity ceases.
- 13,000 - 8,000 BC
- Noticeable burial activity resumes. Prior mortuary activity had either taken a less obvious form or contemporaries retained some of their burial knowledge in the absence of such activity; dozens of men, women and children were being buried in the same caves which were used for burials 10,000 years beforehand. All these graves are delineated by the cave walls and large limestone blocks. The burials are very similar to each other and share a number of characteristics—ochre, shell and mammoth ivory jewellery—that go back thousands of years. Some burials are double, comprising an adult male with a juvenile male buried by his side. They are now appearing to take on the form of modern cemeteries. Old burials are commonly being redug and moved to make way for the new ones, with the older bones often being gathered together and cached together. Large stones may have acted as grave markers. Pairs of ochred antlers are sometimes poles within the cave; this is compared to the modern practice of leaving flowers at one's grave.
100th to 34th century BC
- 9831
- The Neolithic Revolution begins and results in a worldwide population explosion. The first cities, states, kingdoms, and organized religions begin to emerge. The early states were usually theocracies, in which the political power is justified by religious prestige.
- 9130 - 7370 BC
- The apparent lifespan of Göbekli Tepe, the oldest human-made place of worship yet discovered.
- 8000 BCE
- Four to five pine posts are erected near the eventual site of Stonehenge.
- 7500 - 5700 BC
- The settlements of Catalhoyuk develop as a likely spiritual center of Anatolia. Possibly practicing worship in communal shrines, its inhabitants leave behind numerous clay figurines and impressions of phallic, feminine, and hunting scenes.
- 3100 - 2900 BC
- Newgrange, the 250,000 ton (226,796.2 tonne) passage tomb aligned to the winter solstice in Ireland, is built.
Ancient history (33rd century BCE to 3rd century CE)
33rd to 12th century BCE
- 3228 - 3102 BCE
- Traditionally accepted time of Krishna's life on Earth.
- 3100 BCE
- The initial form of Stonehenge is completed. The circular bank and ditch enclosure, about 110 metres (360 ft) across, may be complete with a timber circle.
- 3000 BCE
- Sumerian Cuneiform emerges from the proto-literate Uruk period, allowing the codification of beliefs and creation of detailed historical religious records.
- The second phase of Stonehenge is completed and appears to function as the first enclosed cremation cemetery in the British Isles.
- 2635 - 2610 BCE
- The oldest surviving Egyptian Pyramid is commissioned by pharaoh Djoser.
- 2600 BCE
- Stonehenge begins to take on the form of its final phase. The wooden posts are replaced with that of bluestone. It begins taking on an increasingly complex setup—including altar, portal, station stones, etc.—and shows consideration of solar alignments.
- 2560 BCE
- The approximate time accepted as the completion of the Great Pyramid of Giza, the oldest pyramid of the Giza Plateau.
- 2494 - 2345 BCE
- The first of the oldest surviving religious texts, the Pyramid Texts, are composed in Ancient Egypt.
- 2200 BCE
- Minoan Civilization in Crete develops. Citizens worship a variety of Goddesses.
- 2150 - 2000 BCE
- The earliest surviving versions of the Sumerian Epic of Gilgamesh (originally titled "He saw the deep") were written.
- 2000 - 1850 BCE
- The traditionally accepted period in which the Judeochristian/Islamic patriarchal figure Abraham lived. Likely born in Ur Kaśdim or Haran and died in Machpelah, Canaan.
- 1600 BCE
- The ancient development of Stonehenge comes to an end.
13th to 9th century BCE
- 1367 BCE
- Reign of Akhenaton in Ancient Egypt. Akhenaton is sometimes credited with starting the earliest known monotheistic religion. Akenaton's monotheistic beliefs are thought to be the precursor of the monotheistic doctrines of the Abrahamic religions.
- 1300 - 1000 BCE
- The "standard" Akkadian version of the Epic of Gilgamesh was edited by Sin-liqe-unninni.
- 1250 BCE
- The believed time of the Hebrew exodus from Egypt.
- 1200 BCE
- The Greek Dark Age begins.
- 1200 BCE
- Olmecs build earliest pyramids and temples in Central America.
- 1100 BCE
- Zoroaster (a.k.a. Zarathushtra), founder of Zoroastrianism is thought to have been born.
- 950 BCE
- The Torah begins to be written, the core texts of Judaism and foundation of later Abrahamic religions.
- 877 BCE
- Parsva, the penultimate (23rd) Tirthankara of Jainism is born.
8th to 3rd century BCE
- 800 BCE
- Early Brahmanas are composed.
- 800 BCE
- The Greek Dark Age ends.
- 600 - 500 BCE
- Earliest Confucian writing, Shu Ching incorporates ideas of harmony and heaven.
- 599 BCE
- Mahavira, the final (24th) Tirthankara of Jainism is born.
- 563 BCE
- Gautama Buddha, founder of Buddhism is born.
- 551 BCE
- Confucius, founder of Confucianism, is born.
- 440 BCE
- Zoroastrianism enters recorded history.
- 300 BCE
- Theravada Buddhism is introduced to Sri Lanka by the Venerable Mahinda.
- 250 BCE
- The Third Buddhist council was convened.
2nd century BCE to 4th century CE
- 63 BCE
- Pompey captures Jerusalem and annexes Judea as a Roman client kingdom.
- 7 BCE - 36 CE
- The approximate time-frame for the life of Jesus of Nazareth, the central figure of Christianity.
- 50-62
- Council of Jerusalem is held.
- 70
- Siege of Jerusalem and the Destruction of the Temple.
- 220
- Manichaean Gnosticism is formed by prophet Mani
- 250
- Some of the oldest parts of the Ginza Rba, a core text of Mandaean Gnosticism, are written.
- 250 - 900
- Classic Mayan civilization, Stepped pyramids are constructed.
- 300
- The oldest known version of the Tao Te Ching is written on bamboo tablets.
- 325
- The first Ecumenical Council, the Council of Nicaea, is convened to attain a consensus on doctrine through an assembly representing all of Christendom. It establishes the original Nicene Creed, fixes Easter date, recognizes primacy of the sees of Rome, Alexandria, and Antioch and grants the See of Jerusalem a position of honor.
- 380
- Theodosius I declares Nicene Christianity the state religion of the Roman Empire.
- 381
- The second Ecumenical Council, the Council of Constantinople, reaffirms/revises the Nicene Creed repudiating Arianism and Macedonianism.
- 381 - 391
- Theodosius proscripted Paganism within the Roman Empire.
- 393
- The Synod of Hippo, the first time a council of bishops of early Christianity listed and approved a Biblical canon.
Middle Ages (5th to 15th century)
5th to 9th century
- 405
- St. Jerome completes the Vulgate, the first Latin translation of the bible.
- 410
- The Western Roman Empire begins to decline, signaling the onset of the Dark Ages.
- 424
- The Assyrian Church of the East formally separates from the See of Antioch and the western Syrian Church
- 431
- The third Ecumenical Council, the Council of Ephesus, is held as a result of the controversial teachings of Nestorius, of Constantinople. It repudiates Nestorianism, proclaims the Virgin Mary as the Theotokos ("Birth-giver to God", "God-bearer", "Mother of God"), repudiates Pelagianism, and again reaffirmes the Nicene Creed.
- 449
- The Second Council of Ephesus declares support of Eutyches and attacked his opponents. Originally convened as an Ecumenical council, it's ecumenicality is rejected and is denounced as a latrocinium by the Chalcedonian.
- 451
- The fourth Ecumenical Council, the Council of Chalcedon rejects the Eutychian doctrine of monophysitism, adopts the Chalcedonian Creed, reinstated those deposed in 449 and deposed Dioscorus of Alexandria, and elevates of the bishoprics of Constantinople and Jerusalem to the status of patriarchates.
- 451
- The Oriental Orthodox Church rejects the christological view put forth by the Council of Chalcedon and is excommunicated.
- 480 - 547
- The Codex Gigas, Devil's Bible, is written by Benedict of Nursia, the founder of Western Christian monasticism.
- 553
- The fifth Ecumenical Council, Second Council of Constantinople, repudiates the Three Chapters as Nestorian and condemns Origen of Alexandria.
- 570 - 632
- Life-time of Muhammad SAW ibn ‘Abdullāh RA, the founder of Islam.
- 632-661
- The Rashidun Caliphate brings Arab conquest of Persia, Egypt, Iraq, bringing Islam into those regions.
- 650
- The Qur'an is completed.
- 661-750
- The Umayyad Caliphate brings Arab conquest of North Africa, Spain, Central Asia. Marking the greatest extent of the Arab conquests bringing Islam into those regions.
- 680 - 681
- The sixth Ecumenical Council, the Third Council of Constantinople, rejects Monothelitism and Monoenergism.
- Circa 680 the split between Sunni and Shiites starts to grow.
- 692
- The Quinisext Council (aka "Council in Trullo"), an amendment to the 5th and 6th Ecumenical Councils, establishes the Pentarchy.
- 712
- Kojiki, the oldest Shinto text is written
- 754
- The latrocinium Council of Hieria supports iconoclasm.
- 787
- The seventh Ecumenical Council, Second Council of Nicaea, restores the veneration of icons and denounces iconoclasm.
10th to 15th century
- 1054
- The Great Schism between the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches formally takes place.
- 1095 - 1099
- The first Crusade takes place.
- 1107 - 1110
- Sigurd I of Norway wages the Norwegian Crusade on Muslims in Spain, the Baleares, and in Palestine.
- 1147 - 1149
- The Second Crusade is waged in response to the fall of the County of Edessa.
- 1189 - 1192
- The Third Crusade, European leaders attempt to reconquer the Holy Land from Saladin.
- 1191
- Dehli Sulatanate is stablished.
- 1199 - 1204
- The Fourth Crusade takes place.
- 1204
- Crusaders of the Fourth Crusade sack the Christian Eastern Orthodox city of Constantinople, capital of the Byzantine Empire.
- 1209 - 1229
- The Albigensian Crusade takes place in Occitania, Europe.
- 1217 - 1221
- The Church attempts the Fifth Crusade.
- 1228 - 1229
- The Sixth Crusade occurs.
- 1244
- Jerusalem is sacked again, instigating the Seventh Crusade.
- 1270
- The Eighth Crusade is organized.
- 1271 - 1272
- The Ninth Crusade fails.
- 1320
- Pope John XXII lays the groundwork for the future witch-hunts with the formalization of the persecution of witchcraft.
- 1378 - 1417
- The Roman Catholic Church is split during the Western Schism.
- 1469 - 1539
- The life of Guru Nanak, founder of Sikhism.
- 1484
- Pope Innocent VIII marks the beginning of the classical European witch-hunts with his papal bull Summis desiderantes.
- 1500
- African religious systems are introduced to the Americas, with the commencement of the trans-Atlantic forced migration.
- 1517
- Martin Luther, of the Protestant Reformation, posts the 95 theses.
- In the Spanish Empire, Catholicism is spread and encouraged through such institutions as missions and the Inquisition.
Early modern and Modern era (16th to 20th century)
16th to 18th century
- 1699
- The creation of the Khalsa by Guru Gobind Singh Ji in Sikhism
- 1708
- Death of Guru Gobind Singh, the last human Guru, who before his death, instituted the Sikh holy book, the Guru Granth Sahib Ji, as the eternal Guru.
- 1789 - 1799
- The Dechristianisation of France during the Revolution. The state confiscates Church properties, bans monastic vows, with the passage of the Civil Constitution of the Clergy removes the Church from the Roman Pope and subordinates it as a department of the Government, replaces the traditional Gregorian Calendar, and abolishes Christian holidays.
- 1791
- Freedom of religion, enshrined in the Bill of Rights, is amended into the constitution of the United States forming an early and influential secular government.
19th to 20th century
- 1801
- The situation following the French Revolution, France and Pope Pius VII entered into the Concordat of 1801. While "Catholicism" regains some powers and becomes recognized as "...the religion of the great majority of the French", it's not reafforded the latitude it had enjoyed prior to the Revolution. It's not the official state religion, the Church relinquishes all claims to estate seized after 1790, the clergy is state salaried and must swear allegiance to the State, and religious freedom is maintained.
- 1819 - 1850
- The life of Siyyid `Alí Muḥammad Shírází (Persian: سيد علی محمد شیرازی) Bab (October 20, 1819 – July 9, 1850), the founder of Bábism.
- 1817 - 1892
- The life of Bahá'u'lláh, founder of the Bahá'í Faith.
- 1830
- The Latter Day Saint movement (Mormonism) is founded by Joseph Smith, Jr.
- 1835 - 1908
- Lifetime of Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, the founder of the messianic Ahmadiyya Movement in Islam.
- 1899
- Aradia (aka the Gospel of the Witches), one of the earliest books describing post witchhunt European religious Witchcraft, is published by Charles Godfrey Leland.
- Becoming a place of pilgrimage for neo-druids and other pagans, the Ancient Order of Druids organized the first recorded reconstructionist ceremony in Stonehenge.
- 1908
- The establishment of the Khalifatul Masih after Prophethood in the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, the Second Manifestation of God's Power.
- 1917
- The October Revolution, in Russia, leads to the annexation of all church properties and subsequent religious suppression.
- the 1917 1917 Constitution of Mexico is written making the Mexico a secular state.
- 1926
- Cao Dai founded.
- The Cristero War is fought in Mexico between the secular governmenr and religious christian rebels ends 1929.
- 1930s
- Rastafari movement, the Nation of Islam is founded.
- 1932
- A neo-Hindu religious movement,the Brahma Kumaris or "Daughters of Brahma" started the origin of BKWSU can be traced to the group "Om Mandali", founded by Lekhraj Kripalani(1884–1969).
- 1938
- The first event of the Holocaust, the Kristallnacht, takes place.
- 1939 - 1945
- Millions of Jews are relocated and killed by the Nazi government during Holocaust.
- 1947
- British India is partitioned on religious lines; into an Islamic country of Pakistan and the secular nation of India with a Hindu majority.
- 1948
- The Jews return to their ancient biblical homeland and thus the state of Israel is created.
- 1952
- Scientology is created.
- 1954
- Wicca is publicized by Gerald Gardner.
- 1960s
- Various Neopagan and New Age movements gain momentum.
- 1961
- Unitarian Universalism formed from merger of Unitarianism and Universalism.
- 1962
- The Church of All Worlds, the first American neo-pagan church, is formed by a group including Oberon Zell-Ravenheart, Morning Glory Zell-Ravenheart, and Richard Lance Christie.
- 1962 - 1965
- The Second Vatican Council takes place.
- 1966
- Religious Satanism begins, with Anton Szandor LaVey's founding of the Church of Satan.
- 1972 - 1984
- The Stonehenge free festivals are held.
- 1973
- Claude Vorilhon established the Raëlian Movement and changed his name to Raël following an purported extraterrestrial encounter in December 1973.
- 1984
- Operation Blue Star occurs at holiest site of the Sikhs, the Golden Temple in Amritsar. 1984 Anti-Sikh riots follow.
- 1972 - 2004
- Germanic Neopaganism (aka Heathenism, Heathenry, Ásatrú, Odinism, Forn Siðr, Vor Siðr, and Theodism) begins to experience a second wave of revival.
- 1979
- The Iranian Revolution results in the establishment of an Islamic Republic in Iran.
- 1981
- The Stregherian revival continues. "The Book of the Holy Strega" and "The Book of Ways" Volume I & II are published.
- 1985
- The Battle of the Beanfield forces an end to the Stonehenge free festivals.
- 1989
- The revolutions of 1989, the overthrow of many Soviet-style states, allows a resurgence in open religious practice in many Eastern European countries.Template:Citation needed
- 1990s
- European pagan reconstructive movements (Celtic, Hellenic, Roman, Slavic, Baltic, Finnish, etc.) organize.
- 1993
- The European Council convened in Copenhagen, Denmark, agrees to criteria requiring religious freedom within any and all prospective members of the European Union.
- 1998
- The Strega Arician Tradition is founded.
Post modern period (21st century)
21st century
- 2001
- Osama bin Laden's declared holy war reaches a climax with 2,993 dead, through al-Qaeda's actions on 11 September.
- 2005
- The Church of The Flying Spaghetti Monster, a parody religion is created by Oregon State physics graduate Bobby Henderson. It was originally intended as a satirical protest against the decision by the Kansas State Board of Education to permit the teaching of intelligent design as an alternative to evolution in public schools.
- 2009
- The Church of Scientology in France is fined €600,000 and several of its leaders are fined and sentenced to jail for defrauding new recruits out of their savings.
The simplified animated Map below shows the progress of some religions across the populations on the world map - over thousands of years. The various colours represent (in order of appearance) Hinduism in yellow, Judeo-Christianity in blue, Buddhism in red, and Islam in green, while grey lumps together atheism, and all other world religions. More details of 'Ancient' religions which preceded those in the animation are to be found under both history of religion and Mythology.
Image:Religion spread animation slow.gif