Christian Missions and Global Spread

Christianity spread far beyond Europe, both before and during the age of European empires. The Church of the East reached China by 635, as recorded on the Xi'an Stele, and Christianity in Ethiopia dates to the 4th century, when King Ezana adopted it. From the 16th century, Spanish and Portuguese colonization brought Catholic missions to the Americas, Africa and Asia, while Protestant missions expanded greatly in the 19th century. The relationship between mission and empire was complex.

Missionaries often accompanied conquest and suppressed Indigenous religions, and some forced conversions occurred; yet missionaries such as Bartolomé de las Casas condemned abuses of Indigenous people, and many mission schools and hospitals were valued. Local Christians, translators and evangelists did most of the work of spreading the faith, adapting it to their cultures. As a result, Christianity became a truly global religion, not merely a European export.