ROME and the RISE OF CHRISTIANITY

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ROME and the
RISE OF CHRISTIANITY
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• Essential Question
• What impact did the rise and spread of
  Christianity have on the Classical World?

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What was religion like in Rome?
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Religion in the Roman Empire
Religion in Rome was polytheistic and Roman gods
were based on the Greek gods
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Religion in the Roman Empire
Romans worshipped the gods in daily rituals, but
most Roman citizens were not very emotional about
their religion
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THE ROMAN EMPIRE AT ITS HEIGHT
The Romans conquered an enormous amount of
territory with that territory came many
different people and their own cultures and
religions
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How do you think the Romans treated people they
conquered who had different religions?
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Religion in the Roman Empire
Emperors were mostly tolerant of other religions
but they expected everyone who lived in their
empire to respect Roman gods as a sign of loyalty
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In 63 BCE, the Romans conquered the Hebrew
kingdom of Judea and allowed Romanized Jews
(who showed respect to Roman gods and obeyed
Roman laws) to govern Judea
But, the Jews were monotheistic and many refused
to pay respect to the Roman gods
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Many Hebrews began to resist Roman rule they
believed that God would send the Messiah to
restore the kingdom to the Jews
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What major event occurred in Judea during the
time of Roman rule?
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Some time between 6 BCE and 4 BCE, a Jew named
Jesus was born in Judea many considered Jesus to
be the Messiah who would restore control of Judea
to the Jews
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At the age of 30, Jesus began preaching a unique
version of Judaism throughout Judea
This version of Judaism would later be known as
Christianity
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What were the basic teachings of Jesus?
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Jesus did good works, performed miracles, and
delivered his religious teachings
Jesus preached a religion based on the Jewish
belief in a single God (monotheism)
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Jesus taught that he was Gods son and that God
would rid the world of evil
He taught about Gods love, mercy, and
forgiveness towards people
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Jesus proclaimed there would be eternal life in
Heaven for those who repent their sins
He based much of his good works and teachings on
the Hebrews Ten Commandments
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What kind of person would Christianity appeal to?
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Jesus and the Disciples
Jesus message of eternal life in Heaven appealed
to many people, especially the poor
Jesus followers were known as disciples
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How did Jesus die? For what
reasons did he die?
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Many Jews in Judea did not accept the idea that
Jesus was the Messiah (the one who would free the
Jews from Rome)
Part of Jesus message was that of equality,
which threatened the positions of leading Jews
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Some of these leading Jews accused Jesus of the
crime of blasphemy (contempt for God)
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The Roman rulers of Judea also feared Jesus
rising popularity amongst Jews
They were concerned that Jesus might lead a
rebellion against the Romans occupying Judea
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In the year 29 CE, Jesus was arrested on charges
of blasphemy against the Jewish religion and
defying Roman authority
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He was executed by crucifixion, the Romans
favored form of capital punishment
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After Jesus death, the religion of Christianity
was formed and began to spread
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The Spread of Christianity
The Apostles (disciples of Jesus who become
teachers themselves), molded Jesus teachings
into a new religion called Christianity
Christianity was based upon the idea that Jesus
was Gods son and that he died as way to atone
for humanitys sins
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The Apostles taught that Jews and non-Jews were
welcome as Christians
The Apostle Paul was especially influential in
the development of Jesus teachings into a
religion called Christianity
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After Jesus death, Paul helped spread Jesus
teachings throughout the Roman Empire
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Christianity spread quickly due to roads,
numerous trade routes, and common language
throughout the Roman Empire the peaceful time of
Pax Romana made travel safe for those spreading
Jesus teachings
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Persecution of Jews and Christians
The spread of Judaism and Christianity was seen
as a problem by the Roman emperors
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Persecution of Jews and Christians
Jews and Christians refused to worship the Roman
gods or recognize the emperors as more important
than God
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Persecution of Jews and Christians
Christians and Jews were persecuted by the
Romans many were crucified, exiled, or killed
during gladiator events (such as by being fed to
lions)
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Persecution of Jews and Christians
Christians who were executed were honored by
other Christians as martyrs, those who sacrifice
their lives for their beliefs
This only helped spread Christianity
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ORGANIZATION OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH
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ORGANIZATION OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH
The early Christians organized a hierarchy of
leadership
Priests were supervised by regional bishops the
overall head of the Church was the Pope
Popes later operated from the city of Rome (and
still do to this day)
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ORGANIZATION OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH
Teachings that the Christians believed in (Jesus
teachings as well as some of Judaism) were
collected into one official text called the Bible
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CHRISTIANITY BECOMES RECOGNIZED
Despite Roman efforts to suppress it,
Christianity spread throughout the Roman Empire
and gained popularity
In the year 312 CE, Emperor Constantine made
Christianity legal after recognizing that the
Christian religion was becoming the dominant one
in his empire
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CHRISTIANITY BECOMES RECOGNIZED
Constantine issued the Edict of Milan, a ruling
that gave freedoms and equality to Christians
within the Roman Empire
In the year 395 CE, Emperor Theodosius made
Christianity the official religion of the Roman
Empire
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DID CHRISTIANITY LEAD TO THE FALL OF ROME?
Some historians think that Christianity helped
lead to Romes fall
Romans spent more time thinking of the afterlife
than the here and now
As a result, the Christianized Romans were
unprepared for the invaders who eventually
conquered the Roman Empire
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Closure Activity

• What are the similarities and differences between
  Christianity and other religions of the Ancient
  World?
• Review your notes from Units 1 and 2
• Complete the graphic organizer on the back of
  your notes

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Originally created by Brooks Baggett Modified
by Christopher Jaskowiak