ROME and the RISE OF CHRISTIANITY Essential Question

ROME and the RISE OF CHRISTIANITY

Essential Question: What impact did the rise and spread of Christianity have on the Classical World?

What was religion like in Rome?

Religion in the Roman Empire Religion in Rome was polytheistic and Roman gods were based on the Greek gods

Religion in the Roman Empire Romans worshipped the gods in daily rituals, but most Roman citizens were not very emotional about their religion

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

How do you think the Romans treated people they conquered who had different religions?

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

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

Many Hebrews began to resist Roman rule; they believed that God would send the Messiah to restore the kingdom to the Jews

What major event occurred in Judea during the time of Roman rule?

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

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

What were the basic teachings of Jesus?

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)

Jesus taught that he was God’s son and that God would rid the world of evil He taught about God’s love, mercy, and forgiveness towards people

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

What kind of person would Christianity appeal to?

Jesus and the Disciples Jesus’ message of eternal life Jesus’ followers in Heaven appealed to many were known as people, especially the poor disciples

How did Jesus die? For what reasons did he die?

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

Some of these leading Jews accused Jesus of the crime of blasphemy (contempt for God)

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

In the year 29 CE, Jesus was arrested on charges of blasphemy against the Jewish religion and defying Roman authority

He was executed by crucifixion, the Romans’ favored form of capital punishment

After Jesus’ death, the religion of Christianity was formed and began to spread

The Spread of Christianity The Apostles (disciples of Jesus who become teachers themselves), molded Jesus’ teachings into a new religion called Christianity was based upon the idea that Jesus was God’s son and that he died as way to atone for humanity’s sins

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

After Jesus’ death, Paul helped spread Jesus’ teachings throughout the Roman Empire

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

Persecution of Jews and Christians The spread of Judaism and Christianity was seen as a problem by the Roman emperors:

Persecution of Jews and Christians refused to worship the Roman gods or recognize the emperors as more important than God

Persecution of Jews and Christians and Jews were persecuted by the Romans; many were crucified, exiled, or killed during gladiator events (such as by being fed to lions)

Persecution of Jews and Christians who were executed were honored by other Christians as martyrs, those who sacrifice their lives for their beliefs This only helped spread Christianity

ORGANIZATION OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH

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 Popes later operated from the city of Rome (and still do to this day)

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

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 converted to Christianity after recognizing that the Christian religion was becoming the dominant one in his empire

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

DID CHRISTIANITY LEAD TO THE FALL OF ROME? Some historians think that Christianity helped lead to Rome’s 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

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

Originally created by Brooks Baggett Modified by Christopher Jaskowiak