This paper discusses the development of Christianity from the time of Constantinople to the present. Besides the development of Roman Catholic Church, there was also the advent of the Protestant Reformation and other denominational split-offs for various reasons owing to differences in beliefs and practices.
As Christianity spread and became the state religion throughout Europe, various practices and beliefs developed. For example, because of the doctrine of humans being born sinful, it was believed that no one could approach God directly through prayer and worship. Instead, there should be an intercessor, such as the priests, bishops, cardinals and popes. In addition to the bureaucratic function that these clergy filled, they were also expected to be closer to God; to have more favor with Him and know more of what was the right thing to do. For example, when one committed a mortal sin (as opposed to a venial sin), it was to the clergy that one made one's confession. They would then advise of the proper penance for the sin, usually a litany of prayers said on a rosary. Besides the clergy, however, there was also the intercession of such beings as Mary the mother of Jesus, the angels and the saints. A development of this intercession was that someone, for example a knight, could pay a monk to pray for them and ask forgiveness and do penance for the lives that they would take in battle. This saved time for the knight and brought in money for the monastery.
Another outgrowth of this need for an intercessor, was the desire for things that might bring one closer to God as well, such as statues or images of the Virgin Mary, the angels and the saints. These are known as icons. There was also a desire to have holy relics. It was believed that parts of a saint's body or clothing had spiritually magic qualities of healing or holiness that would benefit those who owned these relics or touched them. This, in turn, developed a...