<P> For at least a millennium, Europe has been nearly equivalent to Christian culture, even though the religion was inherited from the Middle East . Christian culture was the predominant force in Western civilization, guiding the course of philosophy, art, and science . </P> <P> Europe has a rich Christian culture, especially as numerous saints, martyrs and popes were European themselves . All of the popes from 741 to 2013 were from Europe . Europe brought together many of the Christian holy sites and heritage and religious centers . </P> <P> Historians believe that St. Paul probably wrote his first epistle to the Christians of Thessaloniki (Thessalonians) around AD 52 . His Epistle to the Galatians was perhaps written even earlier, between AD 48 and 50 . Other epistles written by Paul were directed to Christians living in Greece (1 Corinthians, 2 Corinthians, Philemon, Philippians, 2 Thessalonians) and Rome (Romans) between the 50s and 70s of the first century . </P> <P> The Record of Saint Dorotheus Bishop of Tyre is that the Church at Tyre sent Saint Aristobulus (of the seventy) to Britain as bishop in AD 37 . The Church seems to have been begun by him around the Bristol Channel area and 150 years later we have names of bishops recorded . By AD 550 there are recorded 120 bishops spread throughout the British Isles . </P>

When did christianity begin to spread in europe