Discuss the internal and external challenges, threats and changes facing the Western Christian church between 300 and 1200

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

ANSWER:
The Christian church faced a significant number of crises as it attempted to maintain its power and focus during the decline of Rome and in the medieval period. After struggling to find acceptance within the Roman Empire, first with the endorsement by Constantine and then with official adoption by Theodosius (392), the church faced a significant geographic conflict: four dioceses were in the eastern portion of the empire (and subsequently eastern Roman Empire); and one stood in Rome. A road of "compromise" was noteworthy in 325, when the Council of Nicaea attempted to come up with a uniform doctrinal policy on the Arian heresy, but the adherence of many of the Germanic tribes to pro-Arianism, as well as the translation of a Bible into the vernacular language by Ulfilas, ensured continued splits within the church. The seventh century saw a serious competitor for both land and followers with the spread of Islam. Charlemagne's creation of the Holy Roman Empire gave a spark to the conflict between eastern and western Christianity, which persisted long after the monophysite and iconoclast crises. The Byzantine church, in a perpetual power struggle with the Roman papacy, scored well with the acceptance of Christianity by Vladimir of Kievan Rus. Ultimately a split in 1054 between the eastern and western churches made the rift even wider and left the Roman church divorced from the east. At the same time, the Roman church dealt with reforms in monasticism and ultimately challenged the threat to its religious supremacy (as well as a challenge to its power from secular authorities) by calling for the Crusades.