A non-Christian Europe

I've been trying to think of ways in which Europe might not adopt Christianity - partially or at all. I've come up with a few but I'm sure there are others.

  • Arabic expansion into France via Spain and into Italy via Sicily and perhaps Sardinia/Corsica
  • Romans don't conquer France and Spain leaving them open to invasion from what is now Germany and Scandinavia
  • Impact of plague leaves Europe almost depopulated and ripe for takeover from the East (As in Kim Stanley Robinson's book Years of Rice and Salt)
  • Rome manages to expand much further, into present day Germany and further east and holds off the various migratory tribes long enough to develop industrially.
  • Carthage defeats Rome.
  • Mongol invasion in 13th Century much more successful or takes place much earlier. Either way a Mongol foothold is secured in Central Europe in which a Mughal style empire is created.
  • Alexander survives and his successors look west into Europe.
Any others not entirely ASB? (some of these need lots of hand waving I know)
 
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Deleted member 67076

You could have the early Christians expand into Persia rather than Rome
 
You could have the early Christians expand into Persia rather than Rome

A good way to have this happen would be to have the Judean Revolt be more successful, perhaps with Parthian assistance. I don't know how likely that is, but it's a start.

Otherwise, Roman roads are just too good for Christian Missionaries NOT to use for conversion. You also have to take into account where Jewish communities are. There were many in Mesopotamia, but there were also many in Egypt (Roman), Syria (Roman), Anatolia (Roman), and Armenia
 
This thread, https://www.alternatehistory.com/discussion/showthread.php?t=276703, suggests that without a coherent Roman Empire, there would have been little pressure to adopt Christianity.

If then as I suggested, the Romans never took over in France and Spain, there would be little chance of Christianity spreading there.

Without a Christian France - and presumably no Charlemagne - would this make Arab expansion through Spain more likely? Without the Normans what happens in Sicily?
 
Maybe an early eradication of the papacy and a few other patriarchs along with state adoption of Mithraism would allow Christianity to diverge in so many conflicting directions that its remnants would in no way look like the Christianity of today.
 
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