How%20did%20Christianity%20impact%20the%20Roman%20World?

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How did Christianity impact the Roman World?

• Period Two

NY State Standard 2 Common Core RS 1, 2, 4, 5, 6
and WS 1, 2
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Did You Know Christianity Evolved from Judaism?
The followers of Jesus believe he is the messiah
and will return to bring peace to earth. They
also wrote The Gospels, which became part of the
New Testament. They call the Jewish Bible the Old
Testament.
Jesus, a carpenter and Jewish preacher spreads
his message for 3 years is crucified by the
Romans 33 CE.
The Jewish Bible is written, consisting of the
Torah (the first 5 Books) through Chronicles. The
Torah speaks of a messiah who will bring peace
and greater forgiveness to the Jewish people.
1800 BCE Abraham (from Mesopotamia) made a
covenant with God to worship only him, founding
Judaism, the first accepted monotheistic
religion.
Ancient civilizations worshipped spirits in
nature (animism) or many gods (polytheism).
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I Judaism at the time of Jesus

• Jesus, the apostles, and the earliest converts
  to Christianity were Jews.
• There were several main sects of Judaism at the
  time of the birth of Jesus.
• 1. The Sadducees were the most conservative
  group. They rejected the Oral Torah (the Talmud
  and other Jewish tradition and commentary), and
  much of the beliefs about angels and demons. They
  focused on the temple rituals, and tended to be
  on friendly terms with Roman authorities.
• 2. The Pharisees acknowledged the authority of
  both the Written and Oral Torah and focused on
  personal obedience of the Law over temple ritual.
  
• 3. The Essenes were a much smaller sect, but they
  have become well known since the discovery of the
  Dead Sea Scrolls that they are believed to have
  authored. The Essenes were an apocalyptic group
  that emphasized extreme personal purity and
  remained separate from the rest of the Jewish
  community.
• C) Despite this diversity, however, the Judaism
  of Jesus' time was essentially unified by a
  devotion to one God, adherence to the Bible,
  emphasis on both Temple and Law, and the hope of
  a messiah. religionfacts.com

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II Paganism at the time of Jesus

• With the exception of Judaism, religion in the
  Greco-Roman world was marked by syncretism - the
  easy exchange and borrowing of ideas and rituals
  between religious groups - so many of the pagan
  religions in existence in the time of Jesus
  shared common characteristics with one another.
• Nevertheless, distinct threads of pagan
  religious thought are clearly identifiable, the
  most prominent being the cults of the Roman
  state, the mystery religions, and the schools of
  Greek philosophy.
• 1. The Roman state cults were adopted from the
  Eastern pattern of deifying emperors and honoring
  the gods of individual cities. The cult of the
  emperor, which began with Augustus, was organized
  by the state and used primarily to reinforce and
  test political loyalty. Statues of Augustus were
  erected and rituals were developed to honor him,
  but the cult generated little religious feeling
  or personal belief. The primary significance of
  the state cult for early Christianity was in its
  political uses, for many Christians (and Jews)
  refused to offer a sacrifice in honor Caesar and
  were persecuted heavily for it. Although actual
  personal belief in the divinity of Caesar was of
  little to no importance to Roman authorities, the
  unwillingness of monotheists to go through the
  ritual motions was taken as evidence of
  disloyalty to the Roman Empire.

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Paganism at the Time of Jesus Continued

• 2. The pagan mystery cults, named for their focus
  on secret knowledge and rituals available only to
  initiates, met the need for personal religious
  devotion that the state cult could not. Most of
  them held in common a heavy element of secrecy,
  the use of syncretism in their belief and
  practice, and a focus on the death and
  resurrection of a savior-god.
• 3. As Christianity expanded beyond Palestine, it
  also came into contact with Greek philosophy.
  Hellenistic thinking would become a significant
  influence on Christian thought, for most of the
  early church fathers were Greek-speaking gentiles
  (non-Jews) who had been trained in classical
  philosophy. Like the Hellenistic Jews before
  them, they believed classical philosophy to be
  compatible with the ancient teachings of Semitic
  monotheism, and even more with the teachings of
  Christianity.

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III How did Christianity begin?

• A) Christians believe that Jesus was born to Mary
  (a virgin) in Bethlehem (a Roman territory). He
  was the son of God. Most historians believe he
  was born between 6 and 4 BCE.
• B) The Magi (wise men) saw a star in the sky and
  knew the messiah had been born. They traveled to
  Bethlehem and gave gold, frankincense, and myrrh
  as gifts.
• C) Jesus was raised in the Jewish faith in
  Nazareth by Mary and Joseph.
• D) As an adult, in Jesus preached in the Holy
  Land. He was still Jewish His followers were
  known as the 12 disciples.

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How did Christianity begin? Continued
D)The Romans feared Jesus would lead a revolt
against Rome due to some of his followers calling
him the King of the Jews. BUT The Romans had
appointed King Herod as King of Judea in 37 BC.
He was Jewish. The Romans gave Herod the title
'King of the Jews' because of the Jewish
population he ruled. This helps explain why the
Romans felt threatened by Jesus being called
King of the Jews. Jesus was arrested and
crucified (hung on a cross and tortured to
death). E) The Gospels say Jesus rose from the
dead 3 days after his death, remained on Earth
for 40 days, then rose to heaven. F) The
followers of Jesus (disciples) became known as
the apostles. Their goal was to spread the
message that Jesus was the messiah.
Crucifixion was a common and painful form of
Roman public execution.
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Does the Shroud of Turin Show What Jesus Looked
Like?
The Shroud of Turin first appeared in the 14th
century. It allegedly is the shroud that covered
the body of Jesus after his death. Most
scientists believe it was a hoax, but many
Christians believe that it shows the face of
Jesus.
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IV Christian Beliefs

• Christianity is monotheistic.
• God takes on three forms the father, the son,
  and the holy spirit. This is known as the Holy
  Trinity.
• C) Jesus is the messiah and will return to Earth
  to bring peace.

The earliest Christians were still Jews! They
prayed in synagogue and kept kosher. However, St.
Paul (5 67 CE) argued that because Jesus died
for our sins, followers of Jesus no longer need
to obey all 613 laws of the Torah. This is when
historians believe Christianity became a separate
religion from Judaism.
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Christian Beliefs Continued

• D) Christians believe in heaven and hell. The
  devil (Satan) was an angel who rebelled against
  god.
• E) When Jesus returns to earth, there will be a
  final day of judgment.

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V Christian Practices

• A) Jews observe the Sabbath (day of rest) on
  Friday nights and Saturdays, while most
  Christians observe it on Sundays.
• B) Instead of prayer in a synagogue, Christians
  pray in church.
• C) Baptism Babies are given Holy Water to wash
  away original sin. (Belief every person is born
  with sin because we are children of Eve who
  disobeyed God.)
• D) Holy Communion/Eucharist Christians drink
  wine (a symbol of Jesus' blood) and eat a wafer
  (a symbol of Jesus' body) in Church.

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Christian Practices Continued

• E) Christian Monks and Nuns devote their entire
  lives to God. They take a vow of poverty and
  chastity, and often live in a monastery (isolated
  religious community). Today many do charity work.

Mother Theresa was an Albanian born Christian
monk. She won a Nobel Peace prize for her charity
work with orphans in India and other poor nations.
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VI Christian Sacred Texts

• Christians refer to the Torah and the Jewish
  Bible as the Old Testament (Genesis through
  Chronicles).
• Christians also read the New Testament.
  Originally written in Greek, the New Testament
  contains the Gospels (stories about the life and
  death of Jesus, written after his death), and
  ends with the Book of Revelation (about the Day
  of Judgment).

Unlike Christians, Jews do not refer to the Torah
as the Old Testament, as they do not believe that
anything comes after it.
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VII Christian Holidays

1. Christmas celebrates the birthday of Jesus.
2. Easter celebrates his resurrection. It follows
   the 40 days of Lent (a time of repentance, when
   you ask for forgiveness).

DID YOU KNOW? December 25 is not Jesus actual
birthday! In order to increase converts to
Christianity, the church changed the date to
coincide with Saturnalia, a Roman holiday. Santa
Claus was not always fat! The image of him as
jolly became popular due to a Coca Cola
advertisement in the 1930s. Finally, bunnies and
eggs are symbols of spring and fertility that go
back to ancient pagan rituals.
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VIII Sacred Christian Places

1. Church
2. Jerusalem where Jesus was crucified
3. Bethlehem where Jesus was born
4. Nazareth Where Jesus was raised

Via Della Rosa Procession Worshippers Carry a
cross along the path Jesus may have walked to his
crucifixion.
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IX Constantine and the Council of Nicea

• When Emperor Constantine became the first
  Christian leader of the Roman Empire in the 4th
  century, there was dissent within Christianity,
  with one major question threatening to cleave the
  popular cult into warring factions Was Jesus
  divine, and how? In June of 325 CE, 318 bishops
  from across the empire were invited to the
  Turkish town of Nicea, where Constantine had a
  vacation house, in an attempt to find common
  ground on what historians now refer to as the
  Arian Controversy. It was the first ever
  worldwide gathering of the Church. The
  Christianity we know today is a result of what
  those men agreed upon over that sticky month,
  including the timing of the religion's most
  important holiday, Easter, which celebrates Jesus
  rising from the dead. Jesus was as eternally
  divine as the Father, said one camp led by the
  Archbishop Alexander of Alexandria. The Arians
  saw Jesus as a remarkable leader, but inferior to
  the Father and lacking in absolute divinity. This
  was Constantines compromise Jesus and God were
  of the same "substance," he concluded. A majority
  of the bishops agreed on the compromise and voted
  to pass the language into doctrine. Their
  statement of compromise, which would come to be
  known as "The Nicene Creed," formed the basis for
  modern Christian ideology. The bishops also
  decided upon a date for the holiest of Christian
  celebrations, Easter, which was being observed at
  different times around the empire. Previously
  linked with the timing of Passover, the council
  settled on a day that would never coincide again
  with the Jewish holiday the first Sunday after
  the first full moon on or after the vernal
  equinox. Heather Whipps, 2008

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Council of Nicea Continued

• The holy Synod cried out So we all believe, we
  all are so minded, we all give our consent and
  have signed. This is the faith of the Apostles,
  this is the faith of the orthodox, this is the
  faith which hath made firm the whole world.
  Believing in one God, to be celebrated in
  Trinity, we salute the honorable images ! Those
  who do not so hold, let them be anathema. Those
  who do not thus think, let them be driven far
  away from the Church. Medieval Sourcebook
  Decree of Second Council of Nicea, 787

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X Gnostic Christianity an Example of Diversity
in early Christianity

• Gnosticism is derived from the Greek word
  gnosis (knowledge). Gnostics believed that they
  alone truly understood Christ's message, and that
  other streams of thought within Christianity had
  misinterpreted Jesus' mission and sayings.
• The Supreme Father God is unknowable and
  undetectable by human senses. She/he created a
  series of supernatural but finite beings called
  Aeons. One of these was Sophia, a virgin, who in
  turn gave birth to an defective, inferior
  Creator-God. This lower God is Jehovah, the God
  of the Hebrew Scriptures (Old Testament). He is
  portrayed as the creator of the earth and its
  life forms. He is viewed by Gnostics as
  fundamentally evil, jealous, rigid, lacking in
  compassion, and prone to genocide. "His pride and
  incompetence have resulted in the sorry state of
  the world as we know it, and in the blind and
  ignorant condition of most of mankind.
• Spirit is of divine origin and good the body is
  inherently earthly and evil. Gnostics were
  hostile to the physical world, to matter and the
  human body. But they believed that trapped within
  some people's bodies were the sparks of divinity
  or seeds of light that were supplied to humanity
  by Sophia. A person attains salvation by learning
  secret knowledge of their spiritual essence a
  divine spark of light or spirit. They then have
  the opportunity to escape from the prison of
  their bodies at death.

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Gnosticism Continued

• D) Gnostics divided humanity into three groups
  The spiritual, who would be saved irrespective of
  their behavior while on earth. The Soulish, who
  could be saved if they followed the Gnostic path.
  The carnal who are hopelessly lost.
• E) Gnostics did not look upon the world as having
  been created perfectly and then having
  degenerated as a result of the sin of Adam and
  Eve. Rather the world was seen as being evil at
  the time of its origin, because it had been
  created by an inferior God. They did not view the
  snake as a seducer who led the first couple into
  sinful behavior. Rather, they saw him/it as a
  liberator who brought knowledge to Adam and Eve
  by convincing them to eat of the Tree of the
  Knowledge of Good and Evil and thus to become
  fully human.
• F) The purpose of Jesus was to spread knowledge
  which would free individuals from Jehovas
  control and allow them to return to their
  spiritual home with the Supreme God at death.

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XI All Catholics Are Christian, But Not All
Christians are Catholic
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Focus Questions

1. Fill in your Period 2 religion chart for Nicean
   Christianity and Gnosticism.
2. Why/how did Christianity become a separate
   religion from Judaism? Is it more similar or
   different?
3. Why did the Romans prior to Constantine persecute
   Christians? Do you think Christianity would have
   spread to the extent that it did had it not been
   under persecution?
4. Does Christianity borrow any beliefs or
   practices from other religions or philosophies?

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Key Vocabulary

• Apostles
• Baptism
• Bethlehem
• Church
• Christianity
• Christmas
• Communion
• Crucifixion
• Day of Judgment
• Devil
• Disciples
• Easter
• Eucharist
• Gospels
• Heaven
• Hell
• Holy Trinity
• Joseph
• Jesus