by Christianity is the most practiced religion in the world. This rich religion hides a lot of Christianity fun facts that everyone should know.
From the lesser-known facts about the beginning of the religion to some stats and facts about Christianity in the USA, this is a comprehensive article with facts you probably didn’t know.
Let’s start with the top ten Christianity religion facts.
Top 10 Christianity Fun Facts
- Christianity began as a Jewish sectarian movement.
- Christianity became an independent religion in the middle of the second century CE.
- Christianity is the biggest religion in the world, with more than 2.4 billion believers worldwide.
- There are approximately 45,000 Christian denominations globally.
- 20 countries in the world have state churches or are Christian states.
- Baptism is the official act of entering the Christian religion.
- In 2019, the most people were baptized in one day, counting 18,272.
- With 16%, white mainline protestants are the biggest Christian group in the USA.
- 55% of the Christians in the USA are women.
- Compared to the other states in the USA, Alabama has the highest percentage of Christians, counting 86%.
Christianity Fun Facts and Stats You Probably Didn’t Know
1. Christianity began as a Jewish sectarian movement.
The very beginnings of Christianity are tied up to Judaism. Christianity appeared in the middle of the second century CE.
In the early stages, Christianity was a Jewish sect that developed in the province of Judea. The sectarian movement was unorganized in the beginning and based on Jesus’s teachings. The main belief of the movement was individual salvation after death.
2. Christianity became an independent religion in the middle of the second century CE.
During the second century CE, there were many changes in Christianity. The three most important things that made Christianity an independent religion from Judaism were:
- Creation of the Christian dogma
- Practicing institutional hierarchy
- Demographical changes in the religion
3. In 313 AD, it was a legally recognized religion with legal status in the Roman Empire.
The Roman emperor Constantine granted Christianity a legal status by signing the Edict of Milan. Later, in 380 CE, the emperor Theodosius named Christianity the Roman Empire’s official religion by issuing the Edict of Thessalonica.
4. The Christian community called themselves “saints” rather than Christians.
(Aletia)
In the New Testament, the Christian community called themselves “saints”, which comes from the Greek word hagios meaning “consecrated to God”.
Did you know that the word Christians is mentioned three times in the New Testament? The first time the word Christians appears is in the Book of Acts (11:26), in Antioch.
“And when he had found him, he brought him unto Antioch. And it came to pass, that a whole year they assembled themselves with the church, and taught much people. And the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch.” (Book of Acts 11:26)
The other two times the word Christians is used is in Acts 26:28 and 1 Peter 4:16.
5. The word Christian means anointed.
The word Christian has Greek origins. It comes from the adjective christos, which means anointed, dedicated to God and officially chosen to do an important job.
6. Christianity is the biggest religion in the world, with more than 2.4 billion believers worldwide.
In 2022, Christianity remained the biggest religion in the world, with around 2.4 billion believers. In 2022, 31,11% of the world’s population was estimated to be Christian.
As a comparison, the second biggest religion is Islam, which is practiced by 25% of the world’s population.
7. The Christian population is estimated to reach 2.6 billion people in mid-2023.
(Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary)
The Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary researches religious trends and estimates the global Christian population. They predict that the number of Christians worldwide will reach 2,604,381,000, or 32.4% of the world population.
8. There are approximately 45,000 Christian denominations globally.
(Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary)
Within Christianity, there are different religious groups and churches that are defined on a country level. The Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary counted 45,000 denominations in 2019.
However, taxonomically there are six major branches of Christianity:
- Church of the East
- Oriental Orthodoxy
- Eastern Orthodoxy
- Roman Catholicism
- Protestantism
- Restorationism
9. 20 countries in the world have state churches or are Christian states.
A Christian state is a country that has claimed Christianity as its official religion. Typically, these countries also have a state church. The government and the state church mutually support each other. The Christian countries are:
- Argentina
- Armenia
- Costa Rica
- El Salvador
- Denmark
- England
- Georgia
- Greece
- Hungary
- Iceland
- Liechtenstein
- Malta
- Monaco
- Norway
- Samoa
- Serbia
- Tonga
- Tuvalu
- Vatican City
- Zambia
10. In 2019, the most people were baptized in one day, counting 18,272.
One of the lesser-known facts about Christianity is that the Church of Christ in Ciudad de Victoria, located in the Philippines, holds a Gunness World Record.
On 7 September 2019, the world record was set for the most people baptized in a single day. The Christian community welcomed more than 18,000 people into their family.
Christianity Beliefs and Practices
11. Generally, there are five doctrines Christians believe in.
There are many things different Christian groups don’t agree on. However, there are five basic beliefs every Christian tradition believes in.
Here are the five points all churches and believers agree on:
- The Bible embodies the word of God.
- Belief in the Holy Trinity: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
- Jesus is both God and human.
- We as humanity can be saved with faith in Jesus Christ.
- There is life after death; good people will live eternally in heaven.
12. Christians need to follow the ten commandments.
The ten commandments are biblical principles that are fundamental in Christianity. Each believer needs to follow them, as they are a guide for ethical living and worshiping.
The ten commandments in Christianity are also called the Decalogue, which comes from the Greek “dekalogos”, meaning ten words.
13. Most American Christians believe there is heaven and hell.
Christianity teaches about the existence of heaven and hell. One of the Christianity religion facts is that not everybody believes that there are two worlds in the afterlife.
The Pew Research survey shows that 85% of the respondents believe there is heaven, and 8% don’t share that opinion.
When it comes to the existence of hell, 70% of the respondents said that there is hell, while 22% don’t believe in hell.
14. The universal symbol of Christianity is the cross.
One of the most known facts about Christianity is that the cross is its universal symbol. The cross is a reminder for Christians about Christ’s death. Also, the cross is a symbol of the resurrection of Jesus.
Here are other important Christianity symbols and their meaning.
- Water – a symbol of new life and baptism
- Butterfly – a symbol of new life and transformation
- Fleur-de-lis – sign of resurrection
- Fish – a sign of Christian faith
- Alpha and omega – symbolizing beginning and end
- Anchor – a symbol of hope
- Borromean rings – a symbol of the Holy Trinity
- Rainbow – a symbol of God’s faithfulness and promise to never destroy the Earth again
- Star of David (morning star) – Symbolizes the birth of Jesus Christ
15. Baptism is the official act of entering the Christian family.
Getting baptized is one of the most important traditions in Christianity. One becomes a Christian by getting baptized. The symbolism behind the act is a personal identification with Christ and a public confession of your faith.
16. Lord is the most commonly used word in the Bible, with more than 7000 mentions.
Although the exact number of mentions of the word Lord in the Bible can vary according to the version, it is estimated that it is used between 7000 and 8000 times.
Roughly, the word Lord is used more than 7000 times in the Old Testament and approximately 600 to 700 times in the New Testament.
Other most commonly used words in the Bible are God, man, Israel, and people.
17. Christianity, Islam, and Judaism share a holy city, Jerusalem.
(UNESCO)
Jerusalem is one of the cities with the biggest religious history. It is a holy city for three religions: Christianity, Islam, and Judaism.
Jerusalem is a significant holy site because it was the city of Abraham’s sacrifice.
18. There are seven most commonly used types of Christian prayers.
Christians use prayers to grow spiritually and to strengthen their relationship with God. Christians practice many different types of prayers, but the main ones are prayers of worship, thanksgiving, faith, intercession, corporate, consecration, and the prayer of the Holy Spirit.
Christianity in the USA Stats
19. With 16%, white mainline protestants are the biggest Christian group in the USA.
(Public Religion Research Institute)
The American Christian community is diverse. According to the latest data from 2022, the following Christian groups are the most common:
- 13.9% White mainline Protestant
- 13.6% White Evangelical Protestant
- 12.6% White Catholic
- 8.6% Hispanic Catholic
- 7.7% Black Protestant
- 3.5% Hispanic Protestant
- 2.6% Other Protestant of color
- 1.9% Other Chatolic of color
- 1.5% Latter-day Saint
- 0.3% Orthodox Christian
20. 55% of the Christians in the USA are women.
The latest research from the Pew Research Center showed that women made up the majority of Christian believers in the USA in 2014. 45% of the Christians in America were men.
21. Compared to the other states in the USA, Alabama has the highest percentage of Christians, counting 86%.
Almost nine in ten adults from Alabama are Christians. Other states with a high percentage of Christians compared to the population are:
- Louisiana 84%
- Mississippi 83%
- Tennessee 81%
- Arkansas 79%
- Georgia 79%
- Oklahoma 79%
- South Dakota 79%
On the other hand, the states with the least Christians in the USA are:
- Vermont 54%
- New Hampshire 59%
- Maine 60%
- Oregon 61%
- Washington 61%
- Alaska 62%
22. Every third Christian in the USA is between 30 and 49 years old.
33% of Christians in the USA are from 30 to 49 years old. The next biggest age group is the generation from 50 to 64 years, of which 29% are Christians. 21% of Christians are older than 65, and only 17% are between 18 and 29 years.
23. 43% of Christians in America have a high school education or less.
According to the educational background of Christians in the USA, a little more than 40% have a high school education or less. 32% of the respondents in the Pew Research survey have some college education, 16% are in college, and only 9% are post-graduates.
Conclusion
Christianity is definitely a rich religion. There are many Christianity fun facts that many believers aren’t familiar with. Luckily, now you know the most important and fascinating Christianity religion facts.
The more you learn about the religion, the closer you will be to God and the greater your appreciation of the religion will be. You will find it easier to understand the complexities of faith.
Sources
- Aletia
- Church of Jesus Christ
- Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary
- Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary
- Grand Canyon University
- Guinness World Records
- Khan Academy
- Oak Ridge Baptist Church
- Pew Research
- Statistics and Data
- Pursue God
- Public Religion Research Institute
- The Bible Answer
- The Catholic Cemeteries
- UNESCO
- Wikipedia
- Word Origins
- World History
