List of oldest church buildings
These surviving freestanding buildings were purposely constructed for use by congregations (or used at an early date).The "church" (Greek ekklēsía, 'assembly') is traced to Pentecost and the beginning of the Christian mission in the first century and was not used in reference to a building.According to the Catholic Encyclopedia the Cenacle (the site of the Last Supper) in Jerusalem was the "first Christian church.[5][6][7][8][9][10] St. Thaddeus Monastery or Qara Kelisa[11] (meaning 'black church') in Chaldoran County, Iran is also noted by UNESCO World Heritage Centre as relating to 66 AD: "According to Armenian tradition such a location was chosen because saint Thaddeus built the earliest church—parts of which are still believed to be in place as the base of the old section—upon the ruins of the temple.[12][13][14] Church buildings of the 1st to 4th centuries (AD 30–400), either excavated archaeologically or substantially preserved.
church buildingsChristian denominationChristian ChurchPentecostChristian missionfirst centuryCatholic EncyclopediaCenacleLast SupperJerusalemDura-Europos churchAqaba ChurchMegiddo churchDiocese of the EastEtchmiadzin CathedralArmeniacathedralSt. Thaddeus MonasteryChaldoran CountyUNESCOArmenianApostlesKing Sanatrouk or SanadrukEarly ChristianityChurch architectureCatholic ChurchEastern Orthodox ChurchOriental OrthodoxyMonastery of Saint AnthonyEastern DesertCoptic OrthodoxMonastery of ParomeosWadi El NatrunMonastery of Saint Macarius the GreatDebre SinaAnsebaEritreaEritrean OrthodoxHoly CommunionEritrean Orthodox ChurchAba SalamaMonastery of Saint PishoyMonastery of Saint Mary DeiparaAbu Mena Basilica and ComplexAlexandriaChurch of Our Lady Mary of ZionEthiopiaEthiopian OrthodoxFasilidesBeta SamatiKingdom of AksumMonastery of Saint ThaddeusGregory the IlluminatorEarly ChurchIranian historyDura-EuroposHouse churchbaptistryparchmentHebrewEucharisticDidacheTel MegiddoIsraelJordanVagharshapatArmenian Apostolic Churchancient ArmeniaWorld Heritage SiteMa'loulaSyriac CatholicCouncil of NiceaSyrian Civil WarHagia Sophia, İznikİznikNicaeaByzantineYabroudBaalshaminSaint HelenChurch of the Holy SepulchrePalestineSimultaneumChurch of the NativityBethlehemConstantineHelenatraditionallybirthplaceMar Mattai MonasteryMount AlfafSyriac OrthodoxYererouk BasilicaYereroukArmenian ApostolicKasagh BasilicaAparanMor Gabriel MonasteryMidyatTurkeyJubail ChurchAl-JubailSaudi ArabiaChurch of the EastChurch of Saint PeterAntiochAntakyaGreek Orthodox Church of AntiochCave churchSaint PeterAramaicTemple of Augustus and LiviaVienneFranceRoman CatholicAugustusTemple of ReasonFrench RevolutionPantheon, RomeRoman templeCatacomb of CallixtusCathedral of Saint DomniusCroatiaDiocletianRotunda of Saint GeorgeThessaloniki