Roman Empire and the Rise of Christianity

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Roman Empire and the Rise of Christianity
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The Roman Empire

• Augustus is the first Roman Emperor
• Augustus wore a crown and the color purple (the
  most expensive color at the time)
• Augustus was a great ruler but he produced some
  pretty terrible offspring.
• I inherited a city of bricks and made it a city
  of Marble Augustus

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You probably Wouldnt Want to Be Emperor

• Augustuss Decedents
• Tiberius-Murdered
• Caligula-Assassinated by his own body guards
• Claudius-Poisoned by his own wife.
• Nero- Most Crazy Emperor of all.

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Nero (Crazy Nero)
What and artist dies in me

• Ruled jointly with his mother (Had a problem with
  sharing power)
• Tries to kill his mother by sinking her boat.
  (she swam to shore)
• Murder two wives (Kicked one to death while she
  was pregnant.
• Finally his army had enough and tried to kill
  him.
• He eventually stabbed himself.

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Pax Romana

• Pax Romana-Roman Peace
• was the long period of relative peace and minimal
  expansion by military force experienced by the
  Roman Empire in the 1st and 2nd centuries.

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Christianity

• Early on in Pax Romana, a new religion,
  Christianity emerged in a distant corner of the
  Empire
• Many different religions in the empire
• By 63 B.C., Romans had conquered Judea where most
  Jewish people lived.

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Roman Occupation of Judah

• Romans allowed Jewish people to worship their one
  god
• Many Jews reluctantly lived under Roman rule,
  however, some wanted a revolt against Rome and
  believed a messiah would come to lead their
  people to freedom

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Jesus
-Born in 4 B.C. in Bethlehem -worshipped God and
followed Jewish law -at 30 began preaching to
villagers, used parables-short stories with
simple moral lessons to communicate his
ideas -Recruited 12 disciples to help him spread
his ideas, called apostles, in Jerusalem -Some
Jews in Jerusalem welcomed Jesus, many of the
priests felt he threatened their
leadership -Roman authorities felt Jesus would
lead the Jews in a revolt against their rule
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Death of Jesus
-According to the gospels, Jesus was betrayed by
one of his disciples, arrested by the Romans, and
killed by crucifixion-a person was bound to a
cross and left to die
-Rumors then spread that Jesus had not died but
had risen from death and commanded his disciples
to spread his teachings -After the disciples
reported he ascended into heaven
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Christianity Spreads
-Followers called Christians -Disciples preach
the messages of Christianity throughout the Roman
world -Peter established Christianity in Rome
itself -Paul played the most influential role in
spreading Christianity
-His letters became part of the New Testament
in the Bible
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Christians Oppressed
-Romans were not tolerant towards Christians
because -they refused to honor the emperor with
sacrifices -they refused to worship Roman gods
to protect the state -Christians were used as
scapegoats, blamed for social and economic
problems -Many Christians became martyrs- or
people who suffer or die for their
beliefs -However, Christianity continued to
spread due to the fact that all people were
welcome
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Key Beliefs Christianity

• Christians believe that Jesus was the Messiah
  promised in the Old Testament and the Son of God.
  
• Christians believe that God sent his Son to earth
  to save humanity of its sins.
• One of the most important concepts in
  Christianity is that of Jesus giving his life on
  the Cross and rising from the dead on the third
  day (the Resurrection).
• Christians believe that there is only one God,
  but that there are three elements to this one
  God (Trinity)
• God the Father
• God the Son
• The Holy Spirit

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Early Christian Church

• Emperor Constantine issued the Edict of Milan in
  A.D. 313.

• The Edict granted freedom of worship to all
  citizens of the Roman empire

• By the end of the century, Emperor Theodosius
  made Christianity the official religion of the
  Roman empire

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Structure of the Church
The Christian Clergy
Pope
Bishop Bishop Bishop
Diocese Priest Community Diocese Priest Community Diocese Priest Community