Church of the East (Eastern Nestorian Church)

Type Object Region West Asia Time 431–1552

The Eastern Nestorian Church, i.e. the Church of the East, had its patriarchate at Seleucia-Ctesiphon and enjoyed relative autonomy within the Sasani…

Timeline

501–540Seleucia-Ctesiphon · MesopotamiaIn the early 6th century, leaders such as patriarch Babai consolidated the church hierarchy within the Sasanian Persian framework, established the title 'Catholicos', and kept church administration independent of Byzantine Orthodoxy, forming a diocesan network across the Tigris valley.
528–560Nisibis · MesopotamiaIn the 6th century the Nisibis theological school became the center of East Syriac theology; scholars such as Narsai taught exegesis and logic there, producing large numbers of Syriac biblical translations and theological works, providing the church with unified doctrine and a system for training personnel.
561–600Central Asian Silk Road · Silk RoadIn the second half of the 6th century the Church of the East sent bishops and monks east along the Silk Road, establishing dioceses in Merv, Samarkand, and cities of the Tarim Basin. Although Nestorianism formally entered Tang China in 635, a Central Asian missionary network had initially taken shape by the late 6th century, linking the West Asian patriarchate with the East Asian gateway.

Sources

The Church of the East: An Illustrated History of Assyrian Christianity — Christine Chaillot (2016)
Nestorians and the Legend of Prester John — Francis Xavier Hecker
A History of Christianity in Asia, Vol. 1: Beginnings to 1500 — Samuel Hugh Moffett (1998)