History of Christianity

Christianity arrived at Pentecost or shortly afterward. The Assyrian Church of the East emerged following the Council of Nicea in 431. Its formation used a theological issue as cover for an underlying political motivation of demonstrating to their rulers that they were different from the state church of the Byzantine Empire that was in competition with the Persian Empire. Today, the recognized churches are Armenian and Assyrian. They are able to conduct services in ethnic languages but not the national lingua-franca Farsi. Historically, there have been churches within the Protestant family worshipping in Farsi and other languages. They were established for expatriates, but most became authentically Iranian over time. However, these have been closed for a decade. The numerous disciples of Jesus of Muslim heritage use a house-fellowship model of church, although many choose to worship alone. Satellite TV, online and other media forms of church are widely appreciated.