Early Christianity in Britain

The road to Christianity from two directions; The Celtic Church pushed into the areas now known as Wales, Cornwall and Ireland from the North and the Roman Catholic Church approached from the South beginning with the mission of St. Augustine to Aethelbert, King of Kent in 597. St. Augustine chose Aethelbert because of his wife, Berth who was a Frankish Christian princess and Augustine needed her support.

After Aethelbert defeated the Vikings at the Battle of Eddington, it became the dream of the King that Christianity could be shared and taught to all of the ordinary people and he created a system of Christian learning that spread through the land.

The Celtic and Roman churches were not completely incompatible, but most definitely had differences of opinion and religious practice. The Celtic Church was fervent and based on monastic life and very loosely organized. The Roman Church was disciplined and structured and led by a religious order of hierarchy.

In the early centuries, churches had large areas of impact on politics and education. Churches were the only forum of formal education and schools were encouraged under Alfred the Great. Higher church officials were important in secular roles as well. They were advisors to kings, witnessed charters and administered estates of the church which would be very large. In the 10th century lords all over the Kingdom were building small chapels on their land for local people. This was the beginning of the parish system that is still used throughout the United Kingdom today.

Spreading the gospel of Jesus was mostly done through traveling missionaries and monks. The monks of the 7th and 8th centuries were not confined to monasteries but traveled throughout the countryside preaching the gospel and educating converts.

These systems established during these early centuries reflect the divinely given wisdom of God and many of these early systems are still seen in the doctrines of modern religion.