Editing Philippi (section)

=== Early Christian era ===
{{see also|Diocese of Philippi|Early centers of Christianity#Greece}}
[[File:Archaeological site of Philippi BW 2017-10-05 12-54-40.jpg|thumb|240px|Floor mosaic with the name of St. Paul, Octagonal Basilica]]

The [[New Testament]] records a visit to the city by the apostle [[Paul of Tarsus|Paul]] during his second missionary journey (likely in AD 49 or 50).<ref>{{bibleverse||Acts|16:9–10|KJV|}}</ref> On the basis of the [[Acts of the Apostles]]<ref>{{bibleverse||Acts|16:12|KJV}}</ref> and the [[Epistle to the Philippians|letter to the Philippians]],<ref>{{bibleverse||Philippians|1:1|KJV}}</ref> [[early Christians]] concluded that Paul had founded their community. Accompanied by [[Silas]], by [[Saint Timothy|Timothy]] and possibly by [[Luke the Evangelist|Luke]] (the author of the Acts of the Apostles and the Gospel of Luke), Paul is believed to have preached for the first time on European soil in Philippi,<ref>{{bibleverse||Acts|16:12–40|KJV|}}</ref> leading to the conversion and baptism of the purple merchant, [[Lydia of Thyatira]]. According to the New Testament, Paul visited the city on two other occasions, in 56 and 57. The [[Epistle to the Philippians]] dates from around 61–62 and is generally assumed to show the immediate effects of Paul's instruction.

The development of Christianity in Philippi is indicated by a [[Epistle of Polycarp to the Philippians|letter from Polycarp of Smyrna]] addressed to the community in Philippi around AD 160 and by funerary inscriptions.

[[File:Ruins of a large three-aisled early christian Basilica (Basilica A), end of 5th century AD, Philippi (7272360544).jpg|thumb|Ruins of a large, three-aisled early Christian Basilica (Basilica A), end of 5th century AD]]
[[File:The imposing basilica next to the Forum and its gagantic pillars, also known as Basilica B, Philippi (7272621716).jpg|thumb|right|Basilica B]]

The first church described in the city is a small building that was probably originally a small prayer-house. This ''Basilica of Paul'', identified by a [[mosaic]] inscription on the pavement, is dated around 343 from a mention by the bishop Porphyrios, who attended the Council of [[Sofia|Serdica]] that year.

Despite Philippi having one of the oldest congregations in Europe, attestation of a [[Diocese of Philippi|bishopric]] dates only from the 4th century.

The prosperity of the city in the 5th and 6th centuries was attributed{{by whom|date=January 2019}} to Paul and to his ministry.{{citation needed|date= July 2013}} As in other cities,{{which|date=January 2019}} many new ecclesiastical buildings were constructed at this time. Seven different churches were built in Philippi between the mid-4th century and the end of the 6th, some of which competed in size and decoration with the most beautiful buildings in [[Thessalonica]], or with those of [[Constantinople]]. The relationship of the plan and of the architectural decoration of Basilica B with [[Hagia Sophia]] and with [[Hagia Irene|Saint Irene]] in Constantinople accorded a privileged place to this church in the history of [[Early Christian art and architecture|early Christian art]]. The complex cathedral which took the place of the Basilica of Paul at the end of the 5th century, constructed around an octagonal church, also rivaled the churches of Constantinople.

In the same age, the Empire rebuilt the fortifications of the city to better defend against growing instability in the [[Balkans]]. In 473 [[Ostrogoths|Ostrogothic]] troops of [[Theodoric Strabo]] besieged the city; they failed to take it but burned down the surrounding villages.

[[File:Archaeological site of Philippi BW 2017-10-05 12-40-34.jpg|thumb|View of Philippi]]