People

King who, in legend, wrote to Jesus asking for healing.

Appears in: Countries of the Sunrise

Patriarch to whom God promised land and descendants; father of faith for Jews, Christians and Muslims.

Appears in: Ancient Israel

Swedish king who saved German Protestantism; killed at Lützen.

Appears in: Wars of Religion and Westphalia

Christian king of Kongo who protested the slave trade.

Appears in: The Reformation Goes Global

Gentle Irish monk from Iona who evangelized Northumbria.

Appears in: Gregory the Great and the Conversion of Europe

Visigothic king (an Arian Christian) whose army sacked Rome in 410.

Appears in: Augustine of Hippo, Rome Falls, the Papacy Rises

Dominican scientist-theologian; teacher of Aquinas.

Appears in: Cathedrals, Universities and Scholastics

English scholar who led Charlemagne's revival of learning.

Appears in: Charlemagne and Christendom

Bishop who first condemned Arius.

Appears in: Arius and the Council of Nicaea

Macedonian king whose conquests spread Greek language and culture across the Middle East.

Appears in: The Greek Mind, Judaism in the Time of Jesus

Notoriously worldly Renaissance pope.

Appears in: The Late Medieval Crisis, Christianity on the Eve of Reform

Byzantine emperor whose appeal for help led to the First Crusade.

Appears in: The Crusades

Born enslaved; founded the African Methodist Episcopal Church.

Appears in: The Great Awakening in America, Christianity in America

Church of the East missionary who reached China's capital in 635.

Appears in: Churches Beyond Chalcedon

Powerful bishop who baptized Augustine and made Emperor Theodosius do penance.

Appears in: Constantine, Augustine of Hippo

"Faith seeking understanding"; ontological argument; satisfaction theory of the atonement.

Appears in: Cathedrals, Universities and Scholastics

Greek-Syrian king whose ban on Judaism sparked the Maccabean revolt.

Appears in: Judaism in the Time of Jesus

Desert hermit regarded as the father of Christian monasticism.

Appears in: Countries of the Sunrise, The Desert and the Monastery

Taught that Christ had a divine mind instead of a human one; condemned 381.

Appears in: Who Is Christ? Ephesus and Chalcedon

Plato's student; master of logic and science whose ideas later shaped medieval theology.

Appears in: The Greek Mind

Alexandrian priest who taught that the Son was created; condemned at Nicaea.

Appears in: Arius and the Council of Nicaea

Lutheran author of True Christianity, forerunner of Pietism.

Appears in: Pietists and Moravians

Pioneer bishop of American Methodism.

Appears in: John Wesley and the Methodists, Christianity in America

Bishop who fought Arianism through five exiles; first to list the 27 New Testament books.

Appears in: Forming the Bible, Arius and the Council of Nicaea, The Desert and the Monastery

Ecumenical Patriarch who lifted the 1054 excommunications with Paul VI in 1965.

Appears in: The Great Schism of 1054, The Ecumenical Movement

Feared Hunnic ruler; turned back from Italy after meeting Pope Leo in 452.

Appears in: Rome Falls, the Papacy Rises

Monk sent by Gregory the Great to convert the English; first archbishop of Canterbury.

Appears in: Gregory the Great and the Conversion of Europe

North African bishop and the most influential theologian of the Western church.

Appears in: The Greek Mind, Forming the Bible, Countries of the Sunrise, The Desert and the Monastery, Augustine of Hippo, Rome Falls, the Papacy Rises

First Roman emperor; ended the civil wars and began the "Roman peace."

Appears in: Rome and Its Empire

Muslim philosopher of Córdoba, the great commentator on Aristotle.

Appears in: Cathedrals, Universities and Scholastics

First Indian Anglican bishop and ecumenical pioneer.

Appears in: The Global South

Lutheran composer of cantatas and Passions.

Appears in: Reformation Legacies, Pietists and Moravians

Christian philosopher and poet at the court of Edessa.

Appears in: Countries of the Sunrise

Generous early leader in Antioch who brought Paul into the mission.

Appears in: The Church in Jerusalem, Paul and the Gentiles

Swiss theologian of the Word of God; main author of the Barmen Declaration.

Appears in: World Wars and the Confessing Church

Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople since 1991; the "Green Patriarch."

Appears in: The Ecumenical Movement, Christianity Today and Tomorrow

Cappadocian theologian of the Trinity; father of Eastern monasticism; founded hospitals.

Appears in: Arius and the Council of Nicaea, The Desert and the Monastery, Byzantium and the Icons

Moderate Puritan pastor and devotional writer.

Appears in: Puritans, Baptists and Quakers

English monk-scholar; wrote the Ecclesiastical History of the English People.

Appears in: Gregory the Great and the Conversion of Europe

Ghanaian theologian of African Christianity.

Appears in: The Global South

Leading revivalist and reformer; father of Harriet Beecher Stowe.

Appears in: Christianity in America

Founder of Monte Cassino; his Rule became the basis of Western monasticism.

Appears in: The Desert and the Monastery

Theologian-pope; first pope to resign in nearly 600 years.

Appears in: The Second Vatican Council, Christianity Today and Tomorrow

Episcopal priest whose experience began the charismatic renewal.

Appears in: Pentecostals and Charismatics

Cistercian abbot, mystic and preacher; the most influential churchman of his day.

Appears in: The Crusades, Monks and Friars, Cathedrals, Universities and Scholastics

Calvin's successor in Geneva; led the Geneva Academy.

Appears in: Zwingli, Calvin and the Reformed

German chancellor who waged the Kulturkampf against Catholics.

Appears in: Revolution and the Church

Former priest; first person rebaptized in Zürich (1525).

Appears in: The Radical Reformation

Christian philosopher; wrote The Consolation of Philosophy before his execution.

Appears in: Rome Falls, the Papacy Rises

Henry VIII's second wife; mother of Elizabeth I; beheaded.

Appears in: Britain's Reformations

French emperor who made the Concordat with the pope and later imprisoned him.

Appears in: Revolution and the Church

Franciscan theologian and mystic; head of the Franciscan order.

Appears in: Cathedrals, Universities and Scholastics

German theologian and resister executed by the Nazis; The Cost of Discipleship.

Appears in: World Wars and the Confessing Church

English missionary, "Apostle of Germany"; martyred in Frisia.

Appears in: Gregory the Great and the Conversion of Europe

Claimed supreme power in Unam Sanctam; humiliated at Anagni.

Appears in: Popes Against Kings, The Late Medieval Crisis

Dutch Christian who hid Jews; survived Ravensbrück.

Appears in: World Wars and the Confessing Church

Co-founder of the Salvation Army; champion of women's preaching.

Appears in: Saving Souls and Society

Founder of the Salvation Army.

Appears in: Saving Souls and Society

Former nun who married Luther and ran their household.

Appears in: Martin Luther, Reformation Legacies

Model reforming archbishop of Milan.

Appears in: Catholic Reformation and Renewal

Missionary to Native Americans whose diary inspired generations.

Appears in: The Great Awakening in America

Episcopal bishop who inspired the Faith and Order movement.

Appears in: The Ecumenical Movement

Visionary widow who founded the Bridgettines.

Appears in: Monks and Friars, The Late Medieval Crisis

Swiss neo-orthodox theologian.

Appears in: World Wars and the Confessing Church

Founder of the Carthusian order.

Appears in: Monks and Friars

Politician and Presbyterian who opposed evolution at the Scopes trial.

Appears in: Evangelicals and Fundamentalists

Strasbourg reformer and mediator; influenced Calvin and the English church.

Appears in: Zwingli, Calvin and the Reformed

Zwingli's successor in Zürich; influential Reformed leader.

Appears in: Zwingli, Calvin and the Reformed

Baptist tinker-preacher who wrote The Pilgrim's Progress in prison.

Appears in: Puritans, Baptists and Quakers

Anglican bishop whose Analogy of Religion answered the Deists.

Appears in: The Enlightenment

Jewish high priest who led the hearing against Jesus.

Appears in: Jesus of Nazareth

Former slave who became bishop of Rome; criticized for leniency to sinners.

Appears in: Bishops and Church Order

French reformer of Geneva; author of the Institutes.

Appears in: Zwingli, Calvin and the Reformed

Co-founder of the Disciples of Christ.

Appears in: Christianity in America

Stern reformer; as pope strengthened the Inquisition.

Appears in: Catholic Reformation and Renewal

Baptist shoemaker who became the "father of modern missions" in India.

Appears in: The Great Century of Missions

First Catholic bishop in the United States.

Appears in: Christianity in America

Humanist who protested the burning of Servetus and argued for tolerance.

Appears in: Reformation Legacies

Henry VIII's first wife, whose marriage he sought to annul.

Appears in: Britain's Reformations

Dominican laywoman and mystic who urged the pope to leave Avignon.

Appears in: Monks and Friars, The Late Medieval Crisis

Elizabeth's chief minister who shaped the religious settlement.

Appears in: Britain's Reformations

Pagan philosopher whose True Word was the first major intellectual attack on Christianity.

Appears in: Apologists and Thinkers

Frankish king crowned emperor in 800; reformed church and learning.

Appears in: Byzantium and the Icons, Charlemagne and Christendom

Frankish leader who defeated a Muslim army near Poitiers in 732.

Appears in: The Challenge of Islam, Charlemagne and Christendom

Holy Roman Emperor and king of Spain who faced Luther at Worms.

Appears in: Martin Luther, Britain's Reformations, Wars of Religion and Westphalia

Writer whose Genius of Christianity fueled a Romantic religious revival.

Appears in: Revolution and the Church

Boston minister and leading critic of the Great Awakening.

Appears in: The Great Awakening in America

Founder of Yoido Full Gospel Church in Seoul.

Appears in: Pentecostals and Charismatics

Spanish cardinal and reformer; sponsored the Complutensian Polyglot Bible.

Appears in: Christianity on the Eve of Reform, Catholic Reformation and Renewal

Follower of Francis; founded the Poor Clares.

Appears in: Monks and Friars

Jesuit who served enslaved Africans in Cartagena.

Appears in: The Reformation Goes Global

Christian teacher who argued that Greek philosophy prepared the way for Christ.

Appears in: The Greek Mind, Apologists and Thinkers

Early leader of the Roman church; letter (1 Clement) to Corinth.

Appears in: Bishops and Church Order

French pope who moved the papacy to Avignon.

Appears in: The Late Medieval Crisis

Catholic Burgundian princess and wife of Clovis who urged his conversion.

Appears in: Rome Falls, the Papacy Rises

King of the Franks whose Catholic baptism allied the Franks with the papacy.

Appears in: Rome Falls, the Papacy Rises, Charlemagne and Christendom

Wesley's superintendent for America; pioneer of Methodist missions.

Appears in: John Wesley and the Methodists

English humanist and dean of St Paul's who lectured on Paul's letters.

Appears in: Christianity on the Eve of Reform

Huguenot admiral murdered in the St Bartholomew's Day Massacre.

Appears in: Zwingli, Calvin and the Reformed, Wars of Religion and Westphalia

Irish monk who founded Iona and evangelized Scotland.

Appears in: Gregory the Great and the Conversion of Europe

Irish missionary monk who founded monasteries in Gaul and Italy.

Appears in: Gregory the Great and the Conversion of Europe

Genoese navigator whose 1492 voyage began European colonization of the Americas.

Appears in: The Reformation Goes Global

French Dominican theologian of the church and ecumenism.

Appears in: The Second Vatican Council

First Christian Roman emperor; legalized Christianity and called the Council of Nicaea.

Appears in: Rome and Its Empire, Persecution and Martyrs, Constantine, Arius and the Council of Nicaea

Constantine's son; supported Arian-leaning bishops.

Appears in: Arius and the Council of Nicaea

Reforming cardinal who sought agreement with Protestants at Regensburg.

Appears in: Catholic Reformation and Renewal

Archbishop of Canterbury; author of the Book of Common Prayer; burned under Mary.

Appears in: Britain's Reformations

Puritan general and Lord Protector of England after Charles I's execution.

Appears in: Puritans, Baptists and Quakers

Henry VIII's chief minister; dissolved the monasteries.

Appears in: Britain's Reformations

Rescued from slavery; first African Anglican bishop.

Appears in: The Great Century of Missions

Bishop who championed church unity and the bishops' authority; martyred under Valerian.

Appears in: Persecution and Martyrs, Bishops and Church Order, Worship and Daily Life

Greek brothers, "Apostles to the Slavs," who created Slavonic writing and liturgy.

Appears in: Byzantium and the Icons

Forceful bishop and theologian who defeated Nestorius and stressed Christ's unity.

Appears in: Who Is Christ? Ephesus and Chalcedon, Churches Beyond Chalcedon

Persian king who let the Jewish exiles return home.

Appears in: Ancient Israel

Brazilian archbishop and advocate for the poor.

Appears in: The Global South

French humanist Bible scholar who anticipated some Reformation ideas.

Appears in: Christianity on the Eve of Reform

Belgian priest who served people with leprosy in Hawaii and died of it.

Appears in: The Great Century of Missions

Naturalist whose theory of evolution by natural selection challenged traditional views.

Appears in: Faith, Science and Liberal Theology

Shepherd-king of Israel; made Jerusalem capital; ancestor of the hoped-for Messiah.

Appears in: Ancient Israel

Presbyterian revivalist in Virginia; later president of Princeton.

Appears in: The Great Awakening in America

Founder of the Catholic Worker movement.

Appears in: The Second Vatican Council

First emperor to order an empire-wide sacrifice, launching systematic persecution.

Appears in: Persecution and Martyrs

Philosopher: "I think, therefore I am."

Appears in: The Enlightenment

Indigenous Mexican to whom Our Lady of Guadalupe appeared, according to tradition.

Appears in: The Reformation Goes Global

Reorganized the empire and launched the "Great Persecution" of 303.

Appears in: Persecution and Martyrs, Constantine

Cyril's successor; presided over the "Robber Council" of 449; deposed at Chalcedon; honored by Copts.

Appears in: Who Is Christ? Ephesus and Chalcedon

Founder of the Dominican Order of Preachers.

Appears in: Monks and Friars

Bishop who led the North African "pure church" movement named after him.

Appears in: Augustine of Hippo

German church historian who rejected papal infallibility.

Appears in: Rome Against the Modern World

German Renaissance artist sympathetic to Luther.

Appears in: Reformation Legacies

Catholic theologian who debated Luther at Leipzig.

Appears in: Martin Luther

Founder of Christian Science.

Appears in: Christianity in America

Boy king under whom England became firmly Protestant.

Appears in: Britain's Reformations

Theologian and pastor of the Great Awakening.

Appears in: The Great Awakening in America

Wife of Jonathan Edwards, admired for her spiritual life.

Appears in: The Great Awakening in America

Queen who created the Protestant "middle way" Church of England.

Appears in: Britain's Reformations

Great Syriac poet and hymn-writer, honored by all churches.

Appears in: Churches Beyond Chalcedon

Formerly enslaved Christian whose autobiography fueled abolition.

Appears in: Saving Souls and Society

Leading humanist; published the Greek New Testament (1516); critic of abuses who stayed Catholic.

Appears in: Christianity on the Eve of Reform, Martin Luther, Reformation Legacies

Priest who encouraged and recorded the "martyrs of Córdoba."

Appears in: The Challenge of Islam

Bishop and "father of church history"; admirer and biographer of Constantine.

Appears in: Rome and Its Empire, The Fall of Jerusalem and the Parting of the Ways, Forming the Bible, Constantine, Arius and the Council of Nicaea, Augustine of Hippo

Monk who taught Christ's humanity was absorbed into his divinity; condemned at Chalcedon.

Appears in: Who Is Christ? Ephesus and Chalcedon

Desert monk and teacher of prayer; his "eight thoughts" became the Seven Deadly Sins.

Appears in: The Desert and the Monastery

King of Aksum (Ethiopia) who converted to Christianity in the 330s.

Appears in: Countries of the Sunrise

Priest and scribe who led a renewal of Torah observance after the exile.

Appears in: Ancient Israel

Baptist pastor who founded the Moral Majority.

Appears in: Evangelicals and Fundamentalists

Fiery reformer who persuaded Calvin to stay in Geneva.

Appears in: Zwingli, Calvin and the Reformed

"Mother of Quakerism"; defended women's preaching.

Appears in: Puritans, Baptists and Quakers

Catholic emperor whose policies sparked the Thirty Years' War.

Appears in: Wars of Religion and Westphalia

Philosopher who called God a projection of human ideals.

Appears in: Faith, Science and Liberal Theology

Revivalist of "new measures" and abolitionist; president of Oberlin.

Appears in: Christianity in America

Jewish general turned historian; our main source on first-century Judaism and the Jewish War.

Appears in: Judaism in the Time of Jesus, Jesus of Nazareth, The Fall of Jerusalem and the Parting of the Ways

Liberal preacher: "Shall the Fundamentalists Win?"

Appears in: Evangelicals and Fundamentalists

Founder of the Quakers (Religious Society of Friends).

Appears in: Puritans, Baptists and Quakers

First pope from the Americas and first Jesuit pope; stressed mercy and the poor.

Appears in: The Ecumenical Movement, The Second Vatican Council, The Global South, Christianity Today and Tomorrow

Founder of the Franciscans; embraced radical poverty; loved creation.

Appears in: The Crusades, Monks and Friars

Pietist who built schools, an orphanage and a mission center at Halle.

Appears in: Pietists and Moravians

German emperor who drowned on the Third Crusade.

Appears in: The Crusades

Brilliant Hohenstaufen emperor; repeatedly excommunicated.

Appears in: Popes Against Kings

Skeptical Prussian king who practiced religious toleration.

Appears in: The Enlightenment

Elector of Saxony who protected Luther.

Appears in: Martin Luther

Dutch Reformed Pietist pastor whose revivals foreshadowed the Great Awakening.

Appears in: The Great Awakening in America

Syrian captive who became first bishop of Ethiopia.

Appears in: Countries of the Sunrise

Quaker prison reformer.

Appears in: Saving Souls and Society

French archbishop and spiritual writer who defended Madame Guyon.

Appears in: Pietists and Moravians

Bishop of Münster who denounced Nazi euthanasia.

Appears in: World Wars and the Confessing Church

Astronomer condemned by the Inquisition for teaching that the earth moves.

Appears in: The Enlightenment

Italian nationalist general who fought to unify Italy.

Appears in: Rome Against the Modern World

Pope who defined the "two powers" of priestly authority and royal power.

Appears in: Rome Falls, the Papacy Rises

Evangelist who preached to over 200 million people.

Appears in: Evangelicals and Fundamentalists

Co-founder of the Swiss Brethren Anabaptists.

Appears in: The Radical Reformation

Cappadocian theologian and poet, called "the Theologian"; briefly bishop of Constantinople.

Appears in: Arius and the Council of Nicaea, Who Is Christ? Ephesus and Chalcedon

Basil's brother; mystical theologian of the Trinity.

Appears in: Arius and the Council of Nicaea

Athonite monk and archbishop who defended hesychast prayer.

Appears in: Byzantium and the Icons

Monk-pope who organized Rome's defense and sent missionaries to England.

Appears in: Rome Falls, the Papacy Rises, Gregory the Great and the Conversion of Europe

Apostle of Armenia; converted King Tiridates III.

Appears in: Countries of the Sunrise

Driving force of church reform; humbled Henry IV at Canossa.

Appears in: Popes Against Kings

Inventor of printing with movable type in Europe.

Appears in: Christianity on the Eve of Reform

Peruvian priest; father of liberation theology.

Appears in: The Global South

French Quietist mystic, imprisoned but later loved by Protestants.

Appears in: Pietists and Moravians

Civil rights activist whose faith and song inspired the movement.

Appears in: Evangelicals and Fundamentalists

Liberal church historian; What Is Christianity? (1900).

Appears in: Faith, Science and Liberal Theology, World Wars and the Confessing Church

Liberian prophet whose preaching converted multitudes in West Africa.

Appears in: The Global South

German philosopher of history as the unfolding of Spirit.

Appears in: Faith, Science and Liberal Theology

Constantine's mother; pilgrim to Jerusalem, credited with finding the True Cross.

Appears in: Constantine

Scholar and abbess; Abelard's lover and wife.

Appears in: Cathedrals, Universities and Scholastics

Founded the first Baptist church in England; pleaded for full religious liberty.

Appears in: Puritans, Baptists and Quakers

Evangelical theologian; first editor of Christianity Today.

Appears in: Evangelicals and Fundamentalists

King whose quarrel with Becket ended in the archbishop's murder.

Appears in: Popes Against Kings

German emperor who deposed rival popes and backed church reform.

Appears in: Popes Against Kings

German king/emperor who stood in the snow at Canossa (1077).

Appears in: Popes Against Kings

Protestant who converted to become king; issued the Edict of Nantes.

Appears in: Wars of Religion and Westphalia

English king who broke with Rome to annul his marriage.

Appears in: Britain's Reformations

Byzantine emperor who beat Persia but lost Syria and Egypt to the Arabs.

Appears in: The Challenge of Islam

Rome's client king of Judea; rebuilt the Temple; ruthless and suspicious.

Appears in: Rome and Its Empire, Judaism in the Time of Jesus

Abbess of a double monastery; hosted the Synod of Whitby.

Appears in: Gregory the Great and the Conversion of Europe

Abbess, visionary, composer and scientist; Doctor of the Church.

Appears in: Monks and Friars

Influential Pharisee teacher known for his gentle interpretation of the law.

Appears in: Judaism in the Time of Jesus

Theologian and rival bishop of Rome; the Apostolic Tradition is attributed to him.

Appears in: Bishops and Church Order, Worship and Daily Life

Nazi dictator whose regime sought to control the churches and murdered six million Jews.

Appears in: World Wars and the Confessing Church

Princeton theologian who defended Reformed orthodoxy.

Appears in: Faith, Science and Liberal Theology

Apocalyptic Anabaptist preacher whose ideas inspired Münster.

Appears in: The Radical Reformation

Legendary Greek poet of the Iliad and Odyssey, the "Bible" of Greek culture.

Appears in: The Greek Mind

First general secretary of the World Council of Churches.

Appears in: The Ecumenical Movement

Anabaptist theologian burned in Vienna.

Appears in: The Radical Reformation

Combative Catholic archbishop of New York.

Appears in: Christianity in America

Cardinal who laid the excommunication on the altar of Hagia Sophia in 1054.

Appears in: The Great Schism of 1054

Scottish skeptic who argued against miracles and the design argument.

Appears in: The Enlightenment

Czech reformer burned at the Council of Constance.

Appears in: The Late Medieval Crisis, Martin Luther

Puritan Bible teacher banished from Massachusetts.

Appears in: Puritans, Baptists and Quakers

"Darwin's bulldog"; coined the word "agnostic."

Appears in: Faith, Science and Liberal Theology

Founder of the Jesuits; author of the Spiritual Exercises.

Appears in: The Fall of Jerusalem and the Parting of the Ways, Persecution and Martyrs, Bishops and Church Order, Catholic Reformation and Renewal

Most powerful medieval pope; called Lateran IV; approved the friars.

Appears in: Popes Against Kings, The Crusades, Monks and Friars

Bishop who defended the "rule of faith" against the Gnostics; insisted on four Gospels.

Appears in: Writing the New Testament, Gnostics, Marcion and the Rise of Orthodoxy, Forming the Bible, Bishops and Church Order, Apologists and Thinkers

Byzantine empress who restored icons at the Second Council of Nicaea (787).

Appears in: Byzantium and the Icons, Charlemagne and Christendom

Prophet of judgment and hope; Christians read his "suffering servant" as Jesus.

Appears in: Ancient Israel

Grand Prince of Moscow who adopted Byzantine imperial symbols.

Appears in: Orthodoxy in Russia and the Ottoman World

Bishop who secretly ordained a whole Miaphysite hierarchy; the Syriac Orthodox were called "Jacobites."

Appears in: Churches Beyond Chalcedon

"Brother of the Lord" and leader of the Jerusalem church; executed in 62.

Appears in: The Church in Jerusalem, Paul and the Gentiles

"King" of the Anabaptist kingdom of Münster.

Appears in: The Radical Reformation

Dutch bishop whose book on Augustine began Jansenism.

Appears in: Pietists and Moravians

American president and Deist; author of the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom.

Appears in: The Enlightenment

Historian; author of The Next Christendom (2002).

Appears in: The Global South

Prophet of Jerusalem's fall who promised a "new covenant."

Appears in: Ancient Israel

Scholar-monk who translated the Bible into Latin (the Vulgate).

Appears in: Forming the Bible, The Desert and the Monastery, Augustine of Hippo, Rome Falls, the Papacy Rises

Jewish teacher from Galilee, crucified under Pontius Pilate; Christians believe him the risen Messiah and Son of God.

Appears in: Jesus of Nazareth

French peasant girl and military leader burned for heresy; later declared a saint.

Appears in: The Late Medieval Crisis

Rabbi who refounded Jewish learning at Yavneh after the Temple fell.

Appears in: The Fall of Jerusalem and the Parting of the Ways

Brought the wisdom of the Egyptian desert to Western monasticism.

Appears in: The Desert and the Monastery

Subtle Franciscan theologian who emphasized God's will and Mary's Immaculate Conception.

Appears in: Cathedrals, Universities and Scholastics

Arab Christian monk and theologian; great defender of icons.

Appears in: The Challenge of Islam, Byzantium and the Icons

King forced to submit to Innocent III; signed Magna Carta.

Appears in: Popes Against Kings

Carmelite mystic and poet; Dark Night of the Soul.

Appears in: Catholic Reformation and Renewal

Polish pope who helped bring down Communism; canonized 2014.

Appears in: Christianity Under Communism, The Second Vatican Council, Christianity Today and Tomorrow

Son of Zebedee, one of the Twelve; traditionally linked to John's Gospel.

Appears in: The Church in Jerusalem, Writing the New Testament

Desert prophet who baptized Jesus; executed by Herod Antipas.

Appears in: Jesus of Nazareth

Called the Second Vatican Council; canonized 2014.

Appears in: The Ecumenical Movement, The Second Vatican Council

Leader of the Jewish revolt that recaptured and rededicated the Temple.

Appears in: Judaism in the Time of Jesus

American Baptist missionary to Burma; translated the Bible into Burmese.

Appears in: The Great Century of Missions

Pioneer American missionary to Burma.

Appears in: The Great Century of Missions

Nephew of Constantine who tried to restore paganism.

Appears in: Constantine

English anchoress; Revelations of Divine Love: "all shall be well."

Appears in: Monks and Friars

Roman general and dictator whose murder led to the rise of Augustus.

Appears in: Rome and Its Empire

Philosopher-convert and apologist; taught that "seeds of the Logos" were in all people.

Appears in: Gnostics, Marcion and the Rise of Orthodoxy, Apologists and Thinkers, Worship and Daily Life

Byzantine emperor; reconquered Italy, codified Roman law, built Hagia Sophia.

Appears in: Who Is Christ? Ephesus and Chalcedon, Rome Falls, the Papacy Rises, Churches Beyond Chalcedon, Byzantium and the Icons

German philosopher who limited reason to "make room for faith."

Appears in: The Enlightenment

New York pastor and apologist to secular audiences.

Appears in: Christianity Today and Tomorrow

Monk of the Modern Devotion; author of The Imitation of Christ.

Appears in: Monks and Friars, Christianity on the Eve of Reform

Bishop of Mainz and pioneer of Catholic social teaching.

Appears in: Saving Souls and Society

Soviet leader who closed thousands of churches (1958–64).

Appears in: Christianity Under Communism

Danish thinker of passionate personal faith; critic of "Christendom."

Appears in: Faith, Science and Liberal Theology

Congolese prophet-healer; founder of the Kimbanguist Church.

Appears in: The Global South

Leader of the Scottish Reformation.

Appears in: Zwingli, Calvin and the Reformed, Britain's Reformations

Franciscan who gave his life for another prisoner at Auschwitz.

Appears in: World Wars and the Confessing Church

Healing evangelist influential in the charismatic movement.

Appears in: Pentecostals and Charismatics

Dutch Calvinist theologian and prime minister.

Appears in: Saving Souls and Society

Christian writer and tutor to Constantine's son; recorded Constantine's dream.

Appears in: Constantine

French priest who urged the church to embrace liberty; condemned.

Appears in: Revolution and the Church

Dominican friar and defender of Indigenous peoples in the Americas.

Appears in: The Reformation Goes Global

Archbishop of Canterbury who persecuted Puritans; executed.

Appears in: Puritans, Baptists and Quakers

Cardinal who founded the White Fathers and campaigned against slavery.

Appears in: The Great Century of Missions

Author of A Serious Call to a Devout and Holy Life.

Appears in: John Wesley and the Methodists

First woman authorized to preach in the AME Church.

Appears in: Christianity in America

Traditionalist archbishop who rejected Vatican II; excommunicated 1988.

Appears in: The Second Vatican Council

Bolshevik leader who launched the Soviet campaign against religion.

Appears in: Christianity Under Communism

Pope who crowned Charlemagne emperor on Christmas Day 800.

Appears in: Charlemagne and Christendom

Byzantine emperor who began the iconoclast campaign.

Appears in: Byzantium and the Icons

Reforming pope who launched the Gregorian Reform.

Appears in: The Great Schism of 1054, Popes Against Kings

Pope whose Tome shaped Chalcedon; met Attila; champion of papal primacy.

Appears in: Who Is Christ? Ephesus and Chalcedon, Rome Falls, the Papacy Rises

Medici pope who excommunicated Luther.

Appears in: Christianity on the Eve of Reform, Martin Luther

Pope of Rerum Novarum and the Thomist revival.

Appears in: Rome Against the Modern World

German dramatist who raised questions about the historical Jesus.

Appears in: The Enlightenment

Oxford scholar and author of Mere Christianity and the Narnia books.

Appears in: World Wars and the Confessing Church, Evangelicals and Fundamentalists

Eastern co-emperor who agreed the Edict of Milan; later defeated by Constantine.

Appears in: Constantine

Freed slave, Baptist preacher, and first American overseas missionary (Jamaica).

Appears in: The Great Awakening in America

Scottish missionary-explorer of Africa and campaigner against the slave trade.

Appears in: The Great Century of Missions

Philosopher of toleration and "reasonable" Christianity.

Appears in: The Enlightenment

French Catholic biblical scholar excommunicated as a Modernist.

Appears in: Rome Against the Modern World

Saintly king who led two failed crusades.

Appears in: The Crusades

Charlemagne's son and successor, whose sons divided the empire.

Appears in: Charlemagne and Christendom

Pious French king executed during the Revolution.

Appears in: Revolution and the Church

French Jesuit theologian of the "return to the sources."

Appears in: The Second Vatican Council

Patriarch of Constantinople who published a Calvinist-leaning confession.

Appears in: Orthodoxy in Russia and the Ottoman World

Painter and friend of Luther who created Reformation art.

Appears in: Reformation Legacies

Physician and companion of Paul; traditional author of Luke and Acts.

Appears in: Writing the New Testament

German monk and professor whose protest began the Protestant Reformation.

Appears in: Martin Luther, Zwingli, Calvin and the Reformed, Reformation Legacies

Merchant in purple cloth at Philippi; Paul's first recorded convert in Europe.

Appears in: Paul and the Gentiles

Princeton scholar; Christianity and Liberalism.

Appears in: Evangelicals and Fundamentalists

Sister of Basil and Gregory; ascetic leader whom Gregory called "the Teacher."

Appears in: Arius and the Council of Nicaea, The Desert and the Monastery

Persian prophet who founded Manichaeism, a dualist religion of Light versus Darkness.

Appears in: Countries of the Sunrise, Augustine of Hippo

Early Anabaptist drowned in Zürich; first Protestant executed by Protestants.

Appears in: The Radical Reformation

Rejected the Old Testament God; produced the first fixed Christian canon.

Appears in: Gnostics, Marcion and the Rise of Orthodoxy, Forming the Bible

Co-founder of the Daughters of Charity.

Appears in: Catholic Reformation and Renewal

Traditional author of the earliest Gospel; said to have recorded Peter's preaching.

Appears in: Writing the New Testament

Baptist pastor who led the American civil rights movement.

Appears in: Evangelicals and Fundamentalists

Soldier turned monk and bishop who shared his cloak with a beggar; patron of France.

Appears in: The Desert and the Monastery

Pope elected at Constance, ending the Great Schism.

Appears in: The Late Medieval Crisis

Founder of communism; called religion "the opium of the people."

Appears in: Faith, Science and Liberal Theology, Christianity Under Communism

Catholic queen who restored Rome's authority and burned Protestants.

Appears in: Britain's Reformations

Follower of Jesus and first witness of the resurrection in the Gospels; "apostle to the apostles."

Appears in: Jesus of Nazareth

Honored by Christians as Mother of God (Theotokos); central to Catholic and Orthodox devotion.

Appears in: Jesus of Nazareth, The Church in Jerusalem, Who Is Christ? Ephesus and Chalcedon

Catholic queen of Scotland; executed by Elizabeth.

Appears in: Britain's Reformations

Founder of the Church of God in Christ.

Appears in: Pentecostals and Charismatics

Powerful countess and Gregory VII's chief ally; host at Canossa.

Appears in: Popes Against Kings

Tax collector among the Twelve; the first Gospel bears his name.

Appears in: Writing the New Testament

Anglican theologian and founder of Christian Socialism.

Appears in: Saving Souls and Society

Pentecostal evangelist; founder of the Foursquare Church.

Appears in: Pentecostals and Charismatics

Beguine mystic and poet.

Appears in: Monks and Friars

French queen mother linked to the St Bartholomew's Day Massacre.

Appears in: Wars of Religion and Westphalia

Ottoman sultan who conquered Constantinople in 1453.

Appears in: The Late Medieval Crisis, Orthodoxy in Russia and the Ottoman World

Daring German Dominican mystic.

Appears in: Monks and Friars

Luther's colleague; author of the Augsburg Confession.

Appears in: Martin Luther

Russian Orthodox priest and writer murdered in 1990.

Appears in: Christianity Under Communism

Founder of the Ursulines, a teaching order for girls.

Appears in: Catholic Reformation and Renewal

Patriarch of Constantinople excommunicated in 1054.

Appears in: The Great Schism of 1054

Baptist preacher who predicted Christ's return in 1844.

Appears in: Christianity in America

Puritan poet, author of Paradise Lost.

Appears in: Puritans, Baptists and Quakers

Hungarian cardinal tortured and imprisoned by Communists.

Appears in: Christianity Under Communism

Chinese independent pastor imprisoned for over 20 years.

Appears in: Christianity Under Communism

German theologian of hope.

Appears in: Christianity Today and Tomorrow

Augustine's devout mother, whose prayers he credited for his conversion.

Appears in: Augustine of Hippo

Phrygian prophet who, with Prisca and Maximilla, claimed new revelations of the Spirit.

Appears in: Gnostics, Marcion and the Rise of Orthodoxy

Leading evangelist of the late 19th century.

Appears in: Christianity in America

Southern Baptist missionary to China.

Appears in: The Great Century of Missions

Evangelical writer and educator of the Clapham circle.

Appears in: Saving Souls and Society

English humanist, author of Utopia; executed for refusing Henry VIII's supremacy.

Appears in: Christianity on the Eve of Reform, Britain's Reformations

First Protestant missionary to China; translated the Bible into Chinese.

Appears in: The Great Century of Missions

Led Israel out of Egypt and received the Law at Sinai.

Appears in: Ancient Israel

Jewish philosopher who harmonized Torah and Aristotle.

Appears in: Cathedrals, Universities and Scholastics

Methodist layman who chaired the Edinburgh 1910 conference; Nobel Peace Prize.

Appears in: The Great Century of Missions, The Ecumenical Movement

Founder of Islam, whom Muslims regard as the final prophet.

Appears in: The Challenge of Islam

American Jesuit who shaped Vatican II's teaching on religious freedom.

Appears in: The Second Vatican Council

Founder of Bristol orphanages supported by prayer alone.

Appears in: Saving Souls and Society

Nazi-backed "Reich Bishop" of the German Christians.

Appears in: World Wars and the Confessing Church

Radical apocalyptic preacher executed after the Peasants' War.

Appears in: Martin Luther, The Radical Reformation

Chinese church leader and writer who died in prison.

Appears in: Christianity Under Communism

Joyful Roman priest who founded the Oratory.

Appears in: Catholic Reformation and Renewal

Roman emperor who blamed Christians for the fire of Rome in 64.

Appears in: Paul and the Gentiles, The Fall of Jerusalem and the Parting of the Ways, Persecution and Martyrs

Bishop of Constantinople who objected to calling Mary "Mother of God"; deposed at Ephesus 431.

Appears in: Who Is Christ? Ephesus and Chalcedon, Churches Beyond Chalcedon

Leader of the Oxford Movement who became a Catholic cardinal; canonized 2019.

Appears in: Revolution and the Church, Faith, Science and Liberal Theology, Rome Against the Modern World

Physicist whose laws described a universe ruled by mathematical order.

Appears in: The Enlightenment

Former slave-ship captain turned clergyman; wrote "Amazing Grace."

Appears in: John Wesley and the Methodists

Assertive pope who clashed with Photius of Constantinople.

Appears in: The Great Schism of 1054

Athonite monk who compiled the Philokalia.

Appears in: Orthodoxy in Russia and the Ottoman World

American theologian of "Christian realism."

Appears in: World Wars and the Confessing Church

Confessing Church pastor imprisoned in concentration camps.

Appears in: World Wars and the Confessing Church

Philosopher who proclaimed "God is dead."

Appears in: Faith, Science and Liberal Theology

Russian patriarch whose liturgical reforms caused the Old Believer schism.

Appears in: Orthodoxy in Russia and the Ottoman World

Jesuit who lived as a Brahmin holy man in India.

Appears in: The Reformation Goes Global

Germanic general who deposed the last Western emperor in 476.

Appears in: Rome Falls, the Papacy Rises

King who forced Christianity on Norway; became its patron saint.

Appears in: Gregory the Great and the Conversion of Europe

Brilliant Alexandrian scholar and Bible interpreter; later partly condemned for speculative ideas.

Appears in: The Greek Mind, Forming the Bible, Apologists and Thinkers, Arius and the Council of Nicaea

German king crowned emperor in 962; founder of the Holy Roman Empire.

Appears in: Charlemagne and Christendom

Egyptian founder of communal (cenobitic) monasticism.

Appears in: The Desert and the Monastery

Latin American theologian of "integral mission."

Appears in: Evangelicals and Fundamentalists

Author of Natural Theology and the "watchmaker" argument.

Appears in: The Enlightenment

Methodist leader of the Holiness movement.

Appears in: Christianity in America, Pentecostals and Charismatics

Early bishop who recorded traditions about the Gospels' origins.

Appears in: Writing the New Testament

Holiness preacher who taught tongues as evidence of Spirit baptism.

Appears in: Pentecostals and Charismatics

French mathematician and Jansenist; author of the Pensées.

Appears in: Pietists and Moravians

British-born missionary bishop to Ireland, kidnapped there as a youth.

Appears in: The Desert and the Monastery, Gregory the Great and the Conversion of Europe

Approved the Jesuits and called the Council of Trent.

Appears in: Catholic Reformation and Renewal

Pharisee turned apostle to the Gentiles; his letters are the oldest Christian writings.

Appears in: The Church in Jerusalem, Paul and the Gentiles, Writing the New Testament

Completed Vatican II; met Patriarch Athenagoras; lifted the 1054 excommunications.

Appears in: The Great Schism of 1054, The Ecumenical Movement, The Second Vatican Council

French priest devoted to the poor; co-founded the Daughters of Charity.

Appears in: Catholic Reformation and Renewal

Roman noblewoman who founded monasteries in Bethlehem and supported Jerome's scholarship.

Appears in: The Desert and the Monastery

British monk who taught that humans can choose to obey God without inborn sin; opposed by Augustine.

Appears in: Augustine of Hippo

Quaker founder of Pennsylvania as a "holy experiment."

Appears in: Puritans, Baptists and Quakers

Frankish king anointed by the pope; gave the pope the Papal States.

Appears in: Charlemagne and Christendom

Leading Puritan theologian of "practical divinity."

Appears in: Puritans, Baptists and Quakers

Young noblewoman martyred at Carthage with her slave Felicity; her prison diary survives.

Appears in: Persecution and Martyrs

Fisherman, leader of the Twelve; traditionally martyred in Rome; Catholics regard him as first pope.

Appears in: Jesus of Nazareth, The Church in Jerusalem, Paul and the Gentiles

Brilliant, controversial Paris teacher; author of Sic et Non.

Appears in: Cathedrals, Universities and Scholastics

Author of the Sentences, the standard medieval theology textbook.

Appears in: Cathedrals, Universities and Scholastics

Tsar who modernized Russia and placed the church under state control.

Appears in: Orthodoxy in Russia and the Ottoman World

Popular preacher who led the ill-fated People's Crusade.

Appears in: The Crusades

Archpriest who led the Old Believers; burned at the stake.

Appears in: Orthodoxy in Russia and the Ottoman World

Champion of Catholicism; sent the Armada against England.

Appears in: Wars of Religion and Westphalia

French king who defeated Boniface VIII and destroyed the Templars.

Appears in: Popes Against Kings

Protestant prince who organized the Marburg Colloquy.

Appears in: Martin Luther

Jewish philosopher who read the Bible through Platonic ideas, influencing Christian interpreters.

Appears in: The Greek Mind, Judaism in the Time of Jesus, Apologists and Thinkers

Monk who declared Moscow the "Third Rome."

Appears in: Orthodoxy in Russia and the Ottoman World

Learned patriarch of Constantinople who clashed with Pope Nicholas I.

Appears in: Byzantium and the Icons, The Great Schism of 1054

Longest-reigning pope; Syllabus of Errors; Vatican I.

Appears in: Rome Against the Modern World

Dominican pope who enforced Trent and excommunicated Elizabeth I.

Appears in: Catholic Reformation and Renewal

Pope who condemned the Civil Constitution; died a prisoner of France.

Appears in: Revolution and the Church

Pope who signed the Concordat with Napoleon and was later his prisoner.

Appears in: Revolution and the Church

Pope who condemned Modernism and encouraged frequent Communion.

Appears in: Rome Against the Modern World

Wartime pope whose response to the Holocaust is still debated.

Appears in: World Wars and the Confessing Church

Taught that true reality is an unseen world of perfect Forms; hugely shaped Christian theology.

Appears in: The Greek Mind

"Mr Pentecost," bridge-builder between Pentecostals and other churches.

Appears in: Pentecostals and Charismatics

Roman governor whose letter to Trajan describes early Christians and how they were tried.

Appears in: Persecution and Martyrs

Founder of Neoplatonism, a mystical philosophy that deeply influenced Christian thinkers.

Appears in: Apologists and Thinkers

Elderly bishop linked to the apostle John; burned at the stake.

Appears in: Persecution and Martyrs

Roman general who conquered the East and captured Jerusalem in 63 BC.

Appears in: Rome and Its Empire

Roman governor of Judea who ordered Jesus' crucifixion.

Appears in: Jesus of Nazareth

Pro-Solidarity priest murdered by Polish secret police.

Appears in: Christianity Under Communism

Neoplatonist who wrote fifteen books Against the Christians.

Appears in: Apologists and Thinkers

With her husband Aquila, a leading teacher and co-worker of Paul.

Appears in: Paul and the Gentiles

Anonymous Syrian mystic writer who blended Christianity and Neoplatonism.

Appears in: The Greek Mind

Pious and powerful empress who convened the Council of Chalcedon.

Appears in: Who Is Christ? Ephesus and Chalcedon

German Jesuit, one of the most influential Catholic theologians at Vatican II.

Appears in: The Second Vatican Council

Pioneer of Sunday schools.

Appears in: Saving Souls and Society

Indian scholar and reformer who founded a home for widows and translated the Bible.

Appears in: The Great Century of Missions

Baptist leader of the Social Gospel movement.

Appears in: Saving Souls and Society

Jesuit who adapted Christianity to Chinese culture and lived in Beijing.

Appears in: The Reformation Goes Global

English king who led the Third Crusade.

Appears in: The Crusades

French statesman who allied Catholic France with Protestants against the Habsburgs.

Appears in: Wars of Religion and Westphalia

Dutch painter of deeply personal biblical scenes.

Appears in: Reformation Legacies

Leading German liberal theologian.

Appears in: Faith, Science and Liberal Theology

Founder of Cîteaux, origin of the Cistercians.

Appears in: Monks and Friars

Pentecostal healing evangelist and television pioneer.

Appears in: Pentecostals and Charismatics

Leader of the Terror who staged a Festival of the Supreme Being.

Appears in: Revolution and the Church

Founder of the ecumenical Taizé Community.

Appears in: The Ecumenical Movement

Archbishop of San Salvador martyred at Mass; canonized 2018.

Appears in: The Global South

First canonized saint of the Americas.

Appears in: The Reformation Goes Global

Philosopher of natural religion and the "social contract."

Appears in: The Enlightenment

Sultan of Egypt and Syria who retook Jerusalem in 1187.

Appears in: The Crusades

Bishop of Geneva; wrote Introduction to the Devout Life.

Appears in: Catholic Reformation and Renewal

Gambian-born Yale historian of mission and translation.

Appears in: The Global South

Former monk; drafted the Schleitheim Confession; burned.

Appears in: The Radical Reformation

Dominican preacher in Florence executed after attacking papal corruption.

Appears in: The Late Medieval Crisis

Evangelical thinker who influenced the Religious Right.

Appears in: Evangelicals and Fundamentalists

"Father of liberal theology": religion as the feeling of absolute dependence.

Appears in: Revolution and the Church, Faith, Science and Liberal Theology

Benedict's twin sister; leader of a community of nuns.

Appears in: The Desert and the Monastery

Theologian, organist and doctor; The Quest of the Historical Jesus.

Appears in: Faith, Science and Liberal Theology

Spiritualist reformer who stressed the inner work of the Spirit.

Appears in: The Radical Reformation

Aristocratic patron of the Calvinistic Methodists.

Appears in: John Wesley and the Methodists

Metropolitan who declared loyalty to the Soviet state (1927).

Appears in: Christianity Under Communism

Founder of the Holy Trinity monastery; Russia's most beloved saint.

Appears in: Orthodoxy in Russia and the Ottoman World

Franciscan founder of missions in California.

Appears in: The Reformation Goes Global

Spanish physician and anti-Trinitarian burned in Geneva.

Appears in: Zwingli, Calvin and the Reformed, The Radical Reformation

Founder of the American Sisters of Charity; first US-born saint.

Appears in: Christianity in America

Leading Miaphysite theologian and patriarch of Antioch.

Appears in: Churches Beyond Chalcedon

Black pastor who led the Azusa Street Revival.

Appears in: Pentecostals and Charismatics

Evangelical reformer of factory and mine labor laws.

Appears in: Saving Souls and Society

Anglican abolitionist and legal campaigner.

Appears in: Saving Souls and Society

Founder of the Nazareth Baptist Church in South Africa.

Appears in: The Global South

Emperor who pushed for the Council of Constance and broke his promise to Hus.

Appears in: The Late Medieval Crisis

Syrian ascetic who lived for decades on top of a pillar.

Appears in: The Desert and the Monastery

Leader of the second Jewish revolt (132–135), hailed by some as Messiah.

Appears in: The Fall of Jerusalem and the Parting of the Ways

Former priest who led peaceful Anabaptists; founder of the Mennonites.

Appears in: The Radical Reformation

Indian Sikh convert who lived as a wandering Christian holy man.

Appears in: The Global South

Scottish missionary in Calabar, Nigeria.

Appears in: The Great Century of Missions

Founder of the Latter-day Saint movement.

Appears in: Christianity in America

English Separatist who began the first Baptist church in Amsterdam.

Appears in: Puritans, Baptists and Quakers

Italian anti-Trinitarian leader in Poland.

Appears in: The Radical Reformation

Athenian philosopher executed for questioning the city's beliefs; a model of principled death.

Appears in: The Greek Mind

David's son; built the First Temple in Jerusalem.

Appears in: Ancient Israel

Patriarch of Jerusalem who surrendered the city to Caliph Umar.

Appears in: The Challenge of Islam

Leader of the "Non-Possessors," who urged monastic poverty and inner prayer.

Appears in: Orthodoxy in Russia and the Ottoman World

Peasant girl who saw visions of Mary at Lourdes.

Appears in: Rome Against the Modern World

Father of Pietism; author of Pia Desideria.

Appears in: Pietists and Moravians

Jewish philosopher who identified God with nature and pioneered biblical criticism.

Appears in: The Enlightenment

Soviet dictator whose terror nearly destroyed the Russian church.

Appears in: Christianity Under Communism

Luther's superior and spiritual mentor.

Appears in: Martin Luther

Jewish-born philosopher and Carmelite nun murdered at Auschwitz.

Appears in: World Wars and the Confessing Church

One of the seven chosen to serve the Jerusalem church; the first Christian martyr.

Appears in: The Church in Jerusalem

Pope who crossed the Alps to seek Frankish protection and anointed Pepin.

Appears in: Charlemagne and Christendom

Leader of the Cane Ridge revival and the Restoration Movement.

Appears in: Christianity in America

English Anglican evangelical leader; drafted the Lausanne Covenant.

Appears in: Evangelicals and Fundamentalists

Argued the Gospel miracles were myths (Life of Jesus, 1835).

Appears in: Faith, Science and Liberal Theology

Abbot whose rebuilt church began Gothic architecture.

Appears in: Cathedrals, Universities and Scholastics

Chinese revivalist preacher across Asia.

Appears in: The Global South

Desert Mother whose wise sayings were collected with those of the Desert Fathers.

Appears in: The Desert and the Monastery

Swedish archbishop and ecumenical pioneer; Nobel Peace Prize.

Appears in: The Ecumenical Movement

Compiled the Diatessaron, a single combined Gospel used for centuries in Syriac churches.

Appears in: Countries of the Sunrise

Founder of the China Inland Mission.

Appears in: The Great Century of Missions

Presbyterian revivalist; preached on "The Danger of an Unconverted Ministry."

Appears in: The Great Awakening in America

Founder of the Missionaries of Charity; Nobel Peace Prize; canonized 2016.

Appears in: The Second Vatican Council, Christianity Today and Tomorrow

Carmelite reformer and mystic; author of The Interior Castle.

Appears in: Catholic Reformation and Renewal

Fiery North African writer; first major Christian author in Latin; coined "Trinity" in Latin.

Appears in: The Greek Mind, Persecution and Martyrs, Gnostics, Marcion and the Rise of Orthodoxy, Apologists and Thinkers, Worship and Daily Life

Dominican indulgence preacher whose campaign provoked Luther.

Appears in: Christianity on the Eve of Reform, Martin Luther

Empress, wife of Justinian; protector of the Miaphysite churches.

Appears in: Rome Falls, the Papacy Rises, Churches Beyond Chalcedon

Byzantine regent who ended iconoclasm in 843.

Appears in: Byzantium and the Icons

Abbot in Constantinople who led monastic resistance to iconoclasm.

Appears in: Byzantium and the Icons

Arian Ostrogothic king who ruled Italy with Roman officials.

Appears in: Rome Falls, the Papacy Rises

Made Nicene Christianity the empire's official religion and banned pagan sacrifice.

Appears in: Constantine, Arius and the Council of Nicaea, Rome Falls, the Papacy Rises

Eastern emperor who called the Council of Ephesus.

Appears in: Who Is Christ? Ephesus and Chalcedon

Dominican friar who united Aristotle's philosophy with Christian theology.

Appears in: The Greek Mind, Monks and Friars, Cathedrals, Universities and Scholastics

Archbishop of Canterbury murdered in his cathedral after defying Henry II.

Appears in: Popes Against Kings

One of the Twelve ("doubting Thomas"); by tradition the founder of Christianity in India.

Appears in: Countries of the Sunrise

Carmelite nun of the "little way"; Doctor of the Church.

Appears in: Rome Against the Modern World

Patriarch of Moscow who resisted the Bolsheviks; died after arrest.

Appears in: Christianity Under Communism

Russian bishop and spiritual writer.

Appears in: Orthodoxy in Russia and the Ottoman World

Paul's young co-worker; two New Testament letters are addressed to him.

Appears in: Paul and the Gentiles

Catholicos of the Church of the East in Baghdad; directed missions across Asia.

Appears in: Churches Beyond Chalcedon, The Challenge of Islam

King of Armenia who made Christianity the state religion (traditionally 301).

Appears in: Countries of the Sunrise

Vespasian's son; destroyed Jerusalem and the Temple in 70.

Appears in: The Fall of Jerusalem and the Parting of the Ways

Reforming archbishop of Lima.

Appears in: The Reformation Goes Global

Emperor whose reply to Pliny set Rome's policy: punish Christians only if properly accused.

Appears in: Persecution and Martyrs

French pastor whose village of Le Chambon sheltered thousands of Jews.

Appears in: World Wars and the Confessing Church

Formerly enslaved preacher, abolitionist and women's rights advocate.

Appears in: Saving Souls and Society

Enslaved preacher who led a rebellion in Virginia.

Appears in: Christianity in America

Anglican archbishop who opposed apartheid; Nobel Peace Prize.

Appears in: The Ecumenical Movement, The Global South, Christianity Today and Tomorrow

Translated the New Testament into English; executed.

Appears in: Britain's Reformations

Hungarian Reformed pastor whose defense sparked the Romanian revolution.

Appears in: Christianity Under Communism

Apostle to the Goths; translated the Bible into Gothic in Arian form.

Appears in: Arius and the Council of Nicaea

Second caliph; his armies conquered Syria, Egypt and Persia; received Jerusalem's surrender.

Appears in: The Challenge of Islam

Preached the First Crusade at Clermont in 1095.

Appears in: The Crusades

Pope whose disputed election began the Great Western Schism.

Appears in: The Late Medieval Crisis

Lyon merchant whose poverty movement became the Waldensian church.

Appears in: Monks and Friars

Influential Gnostic teacher in Rome; nearly became a bishop.

Appears in: Gnostics, Marcion and the Rise of Orthodoxy

Emperor who targeted Christian clergy; later captured by the Persians.

Appears in: Persecution and Martyrs

Jesuit visitor who shaped mission strategy in Japan and China.

Appears in: The Reformation Goes Global

Monk who translated the Philokalia into Slavonic and revived the elder tradition.

Appears in: Orthodoxy in Russia and the Ottoman World

CMS secretary who championed self-governing native churches.

Appears in: The Great Century of Missions

Roman general who led the war in Judea, then became emperor.

Appears in: The Fall of Jerusalem and the Parting of the Ways

First king of united Italy; took Rome in 1870.

Appears in: Rome Against the Modern World

First Latin-speaking bishop of Rome; tried to impose Rome's Easter date.

Appears in: Bishops and Church Order

Roman poet; Christians later read one of his poems as a prophecy of Christ.

Appears in: Rome and Its Empire

Prince of Kyiv whose baptism in 988 brought Orthodoxy to the Rus'.

Appears in: Gregory the Great and the Conversion of Europe, Byzantium and the Icons

French writer and Deist who campaigned against religious intolerance.

Appears in: The Enlightenment

Imperial general in the Thirty Years' War.

Appears in: Wars of Religion and Westphalia

English founder of an active women's order modeled on the Jesuits.

Appears in: Catholic Reformation and Renewal

Catholic leader of Poland's Solidarity union; later president.

Appears in: Christianity Under Communism

German sociologist who linked Protestantism to the spirit of capitalism.

Appears in: Reformation Legacies

Biblical scholar of the Pentateuch's four sources.

Appears in: Faith, Science and Liberal Theology

Methodist hymn-writer of over 6,000 hymns.

Appears in: John Wesley and the Methodists

Anglican priest and founder of Methodism.

Appears in: Pietists and Moravians, John Wesley and the Methodists, Pentecostals and Charismatics

Mother and teacher of John and Charles Wesley.

Appears in: John Wesley and the Methodists

Prophetic co-founder of the Seventh-day Adventist Church.

Appears in: Christianity in America

Great evangelist of the British and American revivals.

Appears in: John Wesley and the Methodists, The Great Awakening in America

British Pentecostal evangelist known for healing ministry.

Appears in: Pentecostals and Charismatics

Bishop of Oxford who debated Huxley in 1860.

Appears in: Faith, Science and Liberal Theology

Evangelical MP who led the campaign to abolish the slave trade.

Appears in: Saving Souls and Society

Leader of the Woman's Christian Temperance Union.

Appears in: Christianity in America

Franciscan philosopher; "Ockham's razor"; nominalism.

Appears in: Cathedrals, Universities and Scholastics

Leader of the Dutch revolt against Spain; assassinated.

Appears in: Zwingli, Calvin and the Reformed, Wars of Religion and Westphalia

Founder of Rhode Island on the principle of religious liberty.

Appears in: Reformation Legacies, Puritans, Baptists and Quakers

Archbishop of Canterbury 2002–2012; theologian and poet.

Appears in: Christianity Today and Tomorrow

English missionary to the Frisians; first bishop of Utrecht.

Appears in: Gregory the Great and the Conversion of Europe

Governor of Massachusetts Bay; "a city upon a hill."

Appears in: Puritans, Baptists and Quakers

Presbyterian minister and Princeton president who signed the Declaration of Independence.

Appears in: The Great Awakening in America

Romanian Lutheran pastor imprisoned 14 years; author of Tortured for Christ.

Appears in: Christianity Under Communism

Oxford reformer; "Morning Star of the Reformation"; inspired the English Bible.

Appears in: The Late Medieval Crisis, Britain's Reformations

Polish cardinal who preserved the church's independence under Communism.

Appears in: Christianity Under Communism

Jesuit missionary to India, Southeast Asia and Japan.

Appears in: Catholic Reformation and Renewal, The Reformation Goes Global

Chinese Communist leader whose Cultural Revolution banned religion.

Appears in: Christianity Under Communism

Founder of Stoicism, which taught a divine reason (Logos) ordering the universe.

Appears in: The Greek Mind

Pioneer Lutheran missionary in India; translated the New Testament into Tamil.

Appears in: Pietists and Moravians

Count who sheltered the Moravians and launched their missions.

Appears in: Pietists and Moravians

Reformer of Zürich; held a symbolic view of the Lord's Supper.

Appears in: Zwingli, Calvin and the Reformed