Chapter 11 The Roman Empire and Christianity Section

Chapter 11: The Roman Empire and Christianity

Section 1: The Roman Empire

Augustus l After the last civil war Augustus was able to stabilize the empire by shrinking the size of the army. l He also raised the pay of soldiers, which boosted the economy. l He fought against corruption and was considered to be an ideal emperor. When he died he was declared to be a God or deified.

Other Emperors l Hadrian: Traveled around the empire and built a wall that separated Roman provinces from non-Roman lands. l Trajan: conquered new territory for Rome. l Marcus Aurelius: wrote a book about philosophy. l Nero: known to be the cruelest Roman emperor. He often killed Roman citizens without cause or justification. Said to have burnt part of the city for his palace and blamed Christians.

Hadrian’s Wall & Remains of Barrack

Aurelius Famous Book of Philosophy

Nero’s Palace

Pax Romana l. The Pax Romana is the time of “Roman peace” that lasted about 110 years. This was a Golden Age. l. It was time in which 65 million people were able to go about their lives in relative peace.

Rome’s Practical Achievements l The road system of Rome was efficiently built, as the Romans built roads so that soldiers could march quickly from place to place. Military engineers often traveled with the army, as well as architects, stonemasons, and surveyors. They did this, so that they can continue to build roads when they were not fighting in a war. l The invention of concrete allowed the Romans to use less skill to build large buildings that had domes, such as the Pantheon. l Romans used running water for household water, public fountains, baths, and waste removal.

Roman Roads

Concrete & Dome: Pantheon

Water System and Aquaducts

Roman Economy l The Romans created a navy that removed all piracy, thus creating a safe waterway for shipping. This was necessary, as the Romans depended on the sea to ship their goods and products. l Farming was the base of the Roman economy. Its main product was grain, which fed the Roman people and its armies. l The craft industry was able to contribute to Rome’s economy by the cloth, glass, pottery, metalwork, and ships that the skilled craft workers made. The construction industry contributed to Rome’s economy by supplying building materials.

Roman Navy

Roman Farmers and Importance of Grain

Roman’s Craftwork: Pottery, Metal, and Cloth

Greco-Roman Culture l For the purposes of the government and culture, the Roman soldiers continued on building roads that connected colonies and provinces in the Greek area, but implemented Roman culture. l The government also spread the culture of Rome by allowing more people to become citizens. l The military often went to war in far off cities and the soldiers often married the women of the cities they served in, thus spreading both Greek and Roman culture.

Roman Colonies and Provinces

Spreading of Roman Culture

Section 2: Roman Culture and Its Legacy Picture taken from: historyforkids. org

Art and Langauge l Art was seen throughout Rome. Mosaics brightened the floors of homes and buildings. The homes of the wealthy of buildings held colorful paintings on their walls and ceilings. The Romans also built statues of their Gods, heroes, and important people. Skilled artists used various materials to make beautiful objects, such as vases, jars, and mirrors. l The Roman soldiers managed to take their language throughout Europe. The Europeans adapted to the language, but over the years, it changed to form the languages of Spanish, Italian, French, and Portuguese. These languages are called the Romance languages.

Roman Mosaic

Romance Language (Latin)

Literature l Rome’s best orator was Cicero. He used his ability of persuasion to win high office positions. His speeches were even written down for future orators to study. l During this time period, poets such as Virgil, Horace, and Ovid lived. They focused on poetry that dealt with love, heroes, and friendship. The poets Ovid and Virgil modeled their work around the Greek themes of poetry, thus the Greco-Roman culture. Juvenal created satires during this time. Juvenal made fun of the Roman people, by saying that the people only longed for two things, bread and circuses. Finally, the Romans continued on the search for reason through the study philosophy.

Orator: Cicero speaking to Politicians

Satire: “Bread & Circuses

Sciences l Like others that came before them, the Romans had great contributions in medicine and science. The scientist Ptolemy, from Egypt (part of Roman Empire) wrote a book on astronomy called the Almagest, which was the dominant work of study until the 1400 s. The physician Galen was best known for realizing that arties carry blood. Doctors used Galen’s writings for thousands of years to guide them in their study.

Science: Galen and Ptolemy

Popular Entertainment l The gladiators played a very important role in entertaining the Romans. The Romans craved and loved being entertained and the gladiators often were there to serve their needs. The gladiators often fought in the Colosseum in Rome. The majority of the time they fought until death. l The gladiators who were skilled at fighting often won many matches and could earn their freedom, as they were often slaves or criminals. Those who could win the crowds loyalty often became celebrities over night. l The chariot races that were held in Rome were similar to car races held in modern times. They would go around a track and whoever finished the course first would win. The chariot races took place in the Circus Maximus, a facility that held over 270, 000 people. The chariot races were held more frequently than the gladiator fights.

Gladiators

Chariot Races

Roman Law l Roman laws were not originally written down until the creation of the Twelve Tables. The Twelve Tables is a set of laws dealing directly about family relations, property, inheritance, and other important issues. l Roman laws have existed even after the fall of Rome. Over time, Roman laws evolved to become civil law. France, Spain, Portugal, Mexico, Algeria, Brazil, and even Louisiana currently follow the civil laws created by the Romans.

Section 3: Origins of Christianity Christians getting persecuted by Romans. Image taken from: nationalgeographic. com

Judea Under Roman Rule l The Romans treated the Jewish people very badly. In fact the Zealots (Jewish people) prayed to their God to send a Messiah who would save them from the oppression that they were being succumb to. l Each religious group dealt with the Romans differently, but none of them wanted them on their land. l The Pharisees, were educated people who practiced Jewish laws, but they believed in resurrection, in which good people would come back to life after death. l The Sadducees were of the elite people and supported the traditions of the temple, but they cooperated with the Romans. l There was another smaller group of people who lived in the desert, but did not have a specific name, often practiced spiritual cleansing by dipping themselves into water. This practice would be later adopted through the baptism process.

Jesus’ Life and Teachings l What is known about Jesus’ earl life is found in the Gospel. It is said that he was a descendant of King David and that his birth was miraculous. He was a carpenter like his father. l He could heal people and he preached how to live a good life. He also preached that God would soon come to establish his kingdom. He was a champion for the poor and the outcasts of society. l Jesus was executed, because he was believed the be the leader of a religion that threatened the Roman government. He was nailed to a cross and left for dead. This is called crucifixion, which was the cruelest way of killing someone in Roman times.

Resurrection l After Jesus’ death some of his followers went to visit his grave, but when they reached it he was not in his tomb. They quickly went to tell the other disciples that Jesus’ body was missing. After this event many people claimed to have seen Jesus. It was then that some people decided that Jesus was resurrected and he was indeed the Messiah. l Those who believed that Jesus was the Messiah formed a new religion called, Christianity.

The Spread of Christianity l Peter is known as one of the most important apostles. He did all he could to spread the word of Christianity. He was also the leader of the new church. l In the early years of the Christian religion, people still practiced and respected the Hebrew Bible. As time went by, differences between the religions started to arise. l The Romans were very angry and thus they destroyed the temple in Jerusalem and forbid Jewish people to live there. They also enslaved the Jewish people and they were forced them to leave the area they once called home.

Spread of Christianity Continued… l Paul was not one of the 12 disciples, but he is known as an apostle, because he helped to spread the word of Christianity throughout the Roman Empire. He also founded churches and was a driving force in spreading the word that non-Jews did not need to follow the Jewish laws to become Christians. This led Christianity to become a separate religion.

Christianity and the Empire l The Romans respected the Jewish religion and allowed the Jewish people to practice their religious beliefs, because it was an old religion. The Christian religion on the other hand was something new and the government completely opposed it. The Romans also feared that their Gods would be upset with them if people stopped worshipping them and looking at Christianity for religious guidance. This was of course a major concern, because it was the government’s job to keep the Gods happy. l The Romans treated the Christians very badly. l At first Constantine did not believe in Christianity, nor did he treat the Christians appropriately, but then he had a dream that he should fight under the cross. He did do this and was so moved, that he converted to Christianity and ended the persecution of the Christian people.

Section 4: Beliefs of Christianity

The Christian Bible l The difference between the Old and New Testament is that the Old Testament is the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament is works written between 50 to 150 A. D. that contains 27 separate documents called books. The New Testament is the work of the people who followed Jesus and listened and acted upon his teachings. There is no way to find out exactly what Jesus’ specific teachings were, as they were never written down, but his disciples carried his teachings on through stories. l The first four books of the New Testament are the Gospels. The Gospels describes the life and teachings of Jesus from four different points of view. l The other books located in the New Testament are epistles or formal letters. These are letters that the early apostles wrote to the newly established churches.

Old and New Testament

Beliefs About God l Christians believe that because Jesus could be resurrected from death, then he must have some godlike means. In fact, the text argues that Christians believe that Jesus was God in human form. l A person can reach salvation if they live a good life. If they have committed sins, they would need to acquire God’s forgiveness to move on. This can only be done if the person is truly sorry for their sins and believe in Jesus. l People who follow the Christian faith believe that there is only one God, monotheism. Some Christians believe that God exist in three forms, called persons. They believe that God is the Father, Jesus the Son, and the Holy Spirit and together the Trinity.

Practicing Christianity l One of the most important teachings of Jesus was to follow the “Golden Rule” or do onto others as you would like done to yourself. l 33. 1% of the people of the world practice the Christian religion. l The Holy Communion consist of a meal of bread and wine or grape juice. It is also called Eucharist. l The two most important Christian holidays are Christmas and Easter. Christmas celebrates the birth of Jesus, while Easter celebrates Jesus’ resurrection.

Judeo-Christian Tradition l How does the Judeo-Christian tradition influence society today? l It is reflected in art, literature, and law.

Section 5: Decline of the Roman Empire Depiction of the Roman Emperors. Image taken from: pbs. org.

The End of the Pax Romana l Marcus Aurelius was the last of the powerful emperors. His death marked the ending of the Pax Romana and the coming of the end of Rome. After his death many other emperors tried to make peace, but failed as they focused mostly on pleasing the people and ignoring the needs of the military. l Septimius Severus took power in a time when Rome was at its worse. Prior to him becoming emperor many tried to take control, but failed because their primary focus was on the people’s needs and not the army. Severus decided that his time in power would be focused on the army’s needs. By doing this there was peace for a short period of time.

The Imperial Crisis l The Imperial Crisis period was during 235 A. D. to 284 A. D. It was a time in which emperor after emperor fought for power, but lost to an even stronger emperor. This led to a very bad time in Rome’s history, which resulted in economic crisis and foreign invasion. l Rome’s economic crisis did not happen over night, but rather through a slow decline. The civil wars that were constantly occurring became very expensive. The emperors raised taxes to pay soldiers to continue fighting. This resulted in the common people hurting financially. When the emperor realized what he was doing, he decided to use fewer precious metals in coins to offset the cost of the war. This was worse than taxing the people, because when the merchants found out what was going on; they raised the prices of the goods. Finally, trading became dangerous, because the trade routes were no longer safe due to the constant fighting.

Crisis continued……… l Rome was in a civil war and could not always get its troops where they needed to be in time to defend its borders. Foreigners knew this and they took advantage of it. The Persian king Sassanian invaded Rome and even executed its emperor. This was the first time this happened in a very long time in Rome’s history. l The Germanic Tribes had always lived close to the Romans and some of them even adopted the Greco-Roman culture. They felt that the Roman land was the best and wanted to have it for their own. The Romans called the Germans barbarians, as they did not believe that they followed the Roman culture or way of life. They thought that the Germans were uncivilized people. Eventually, like the Persians, the Germans raided Rome.

Invasions from the North

The Late Empire l Diocletian restored peace in the empire by reorganizing the imperial government. He also persecuted the Christians, because he thought that they were to blame for all the fighting, as they made the Roman Gods unhappy by not following their religious views. Diocletian greatest contribution to the empire was dividing it in half. He had a co-emperor, Maximian. He also created the position of junior emperors. The junior emperors were meant to take the place of the senior emperors after their death. He wanted this, to avoid civil wars after an emperor’s death. l Constantine defeated his rivals to become the emperor. He ruled from what is known today as Turkey. He is best known for converting to Christianity and making the Christian religion the religion of the empire.

Collapse of the West l The Huns were a fearsome army to fight, but the Romans managed to defeat them. They saw the Romans borders as being weak and they could easily penetrate them. l The Romans were willing to try anything to stop the Germans, even hiring their own people (mercenaries) to help them in their fight to keep their land. The Romans eventually realized that the mercenaries were not always loyal to them and traded sides when it most mattered. The Germans defeated Rome, but the eastern part of Rome remained intact. l The last straw of Rome’s decline came when the Goths plundered Rome. Although Rome did not completely fall, the plundering of Rome was seen as a symbol to the end.