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Christianity
Western Civilizations
David Wood
OVERVIEW AND IMPORTANCE
Overview
• As covered in previous classes: Christianity springs from Judaism!
• As also covered in previous classes: Christianity rises to being the
world’s largest and most powerful religion fairly quickly.
• Today, there are over 2.1 billion Christians, comprising some 30%
of the world’s population.
• It remains deeply embedded in modern Western institutions,
including and especially those found in the United States of
America.
Overview
• Christianity is found all across the world, but in “Western
Civilization” countries, Christianity is the strongest and most
powerful religious influence.
• There are zero atheists in American federal government: now or at
any point in the past.
• Religion is important to America, and for most Americans,
“religion” means Christianity.
• So clearly, if you want to understand Western Civilization, it’s
important to understand Christianity.
The Basics:
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Place of Origin - Israel
Founder - Jesus of Nazareth
Sacred Text - The Bible - Old and New Testaments
Sacred Building - Church, Chapel, Cathedral
BELIEFS
• Christian belief centers on the life and teachings of Jesus of
Nazareth, a Jewish teacher and healer who lived in first century
Palestine.
• The story and teachings of Jesus are described in the Gospels
(Matthew, Mark, Luke and John). These books make up what is
known as the New Testament in the Bible.
• The sacred text of Christianity is the Bible, which includes the Old
Testament of the Jews, along with the New Testament and the
book of Revelation, which describes the end of the world.
Holy Book
• The Bible is the Christian holy book. It is divided into the Old and
New Testaments. Parts of the writing contained in the Old
Testament are also sacred to Jewish and Muslim people.
Jesus Christ
• Who is the founder of Christianity?
Jesus Christ, who was crucified around A.D. 30 in Jerusalem, is the
founder of Christianity.
• Who is Jesus Christ?
Christians believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. He came to
earth to teach about love and fellowship. He represents the
person that all Christians must strive to be.
Jesus was a Jew who was born about 2000 years ago in
Bethlehem. Jesus lived for 33 years before being crucified by the
Romans.
Jesus Christ
BELIEFS
• Jesus was persecuted for his beliefs and was crucified.
• According to Christian beliefs, he rose from the dead three days
after his crucifixion and ascended to heaven to sit next to God.
• This resurrection symbolizes the chance for forgiveness of sin and
the hope for eternal life.
BELIEFS
• Christians believe in one God who consists of three persons:
• The Father
• The Son (Christ)
• The Holy Ghost or Spirit
BELIEFS
• Roman Catholics whose beliefs include Transubstantiation (the
change of the substance of bread and wine into that of the body
and blood of Christ ), Purgatory and the importance of saints and
Mary.
• Eastern Orthodoxy whose beliefs include the use of icons in
worship and its refusal of allegiance to the Pope.
• Protestantism who beliefs include a refusal of allegiance to the
Pope, an emphasis on reading the Bible and the doctrine of
salvation by faith alone.
Worship Practices
• Where do Christians worship?
• The Christian place of worship is called a Church. They are often built in the
shape of a cross with the altar facing east towards the rising sun.
• The Christian spiritual leaders are called priests or ministers or pastors.
• What is Christian worship like?
• Christian worship involves praising God in music, speech, readings from
scripture, prayers of various sorts, a sermon and various holy ceremonies.
BELIEFS
• All Christians worship on Sunday, read the Scriptures and
participate in baptism and communion.
• Easter – celebration of the resurrection.
• Lent – a time of fasting before Easter.
• Christmas – celebration of the birth of Jesus
• Plus…numerous Saint’s Days like Valentine’s Day, St. Patrick’s Day
and All Saint’s Day.
Basic Beliefs
• Christians believe that Jesus Christ was the Son of God and God in human form and
that:
• God sent his Son to earth to save humanity from the consequences of its sins
• Jesus was fully human, and experienced this world in the same way as other human
beings of his time
• Jesus was tortured and gave his life on the Cross (At the Crucifixion)
• Jesus rose from the dead on the third day after his Crucifixion (the Resurrection)
• Christians believe that Jesus was the Messiah promised in the Old Testament
• Christians believe that there is only one God, but that this one God consists of 3
"persons:"
• God the Father
• God the Son
• The Holy Spirit
• Christians believe that God made the world.
Festivals
• What are the two main Christian festivals?
The two main Christian festivals are Easter and Christmas. They
are major milestones in the Western secular calendar.
• Christmas is the time that Christians celebrate the birth of Jesus.
Easter is the celebration of Jesus’ resurrection from the dead.
Symbols
• The cross is the main symbol. It reminds Christians that Jesus died
on the cross to save them.
• The dove is the symbol of the holy spirit and peace.
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How is Christianity similar to other religions?
• Christianity shares a number of beliefs and practices with other
religions, particularly Judaism and Islam. With Judaism and Islam,
Christians believe in one God, who created the universe and all
that is in it. All believe that this God is active in history, guiding
and teaching his people.
• Christianity and Judaism share the same roots. The Old Testament
and the Torah (Jewish Holy Book) have the same content. The
Jews are awaiting the coming of a Messiah or Savior, while
Christians believe that Jesus Christ was the Savior and are now
waiting for his second coming.
OVERVIEW OF JESUS
Christianity: Seizing the Moment
• Christ is born in 5 or 6 BC
• Why not 0?
• What the heck does AD mean?
The Appeal of Jesus
• His Ministry
• His Death
• His Claim
Y’Shua min Nazaret
…Jesus of Nazareth
The Appeal of Jesus
HIS MINISTRY
• Healing
• Preaching
• “The Kingdom of God”
• Harsh judgment or
Loving Father?
Y’Shua min Nazaret
…Jesus of Nazareth
The Appeal of Jesus
HIS DEATH
• Pontius Pilate
• Scandal
Y’Shua min Nazaret
…Jesus of Nazareth
Key People & Actions foster the Spread of
Christianity
PETER
• Traveling Preacher
• Later revered as “First Pope” or the “Bishop of Rome”
• Martyred in Rome in mid-60’s AD
Key People & Actions foster the Spread of
Christianity
PAUL (Saul of Tarsus)
• Jewish
• Started Gentile Churches
• Wrote letters which make up 1/3 of the New Testament
• Martyred in Rome in mid-60’s AD
The Spread of
Christianity
How did Christianity Spread?
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The spread of Christianity is not linear
Rather, it is very gradual, and happens over a long period of time.
It starts from Jewish Synagogues and private homes
The initial enclaves expand with time
As it expands, it becomes more hierarchical
By the 4th century we have bishops, namely church officials
overseeing entire regions
Rome in the New Testament
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Gospel of Matthew: the miracle
involving the son of the centurion
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The Role of Pontius Pilate and the
Romans in the Crucifixion of Jesus
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Letter to the Romans
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Rome is portrayed as the violent
occupying force.
The Roman Empire
• Brought unprecedented political unity to the Mediterranean basin
• Tolerant of local laws and customs, yet greatly encouraged as much
uniformity as possible
• The Romans were admirers of (and thought of themselves as successors
to) Alexander the Great
• Roman legal system and Hellenistic culture (synthesis)
• Unprecedented freedom/safety of travel (road system and safe sea
passage)
• Paul’s missionary journeys enjoyed all of the benefits of Roman society:
common language, legal system, culture and safe travel
How the Roman world contributed to the Spread of
Christianity
• Pax Romana
• The unification of the three sides of the Mediterranean, relative safety
in the sea routes, and the Roman road network facilitated movement.
Paul alone is believed to have covered 10,000 miles in terms of travel.
• The widespread use of common languages (Greek in the East and Latin in
the West) facilitated communication and the spread of the message
• The religious and cultural syncretism of the Roman empire and the
presence of so many religions allowed for the followers of Christianity to
preach their message all around the Mediterranean.
• While Islam had to conquer its way through the Near East, Christianity
found a world unified, ready and receptive
Rome’s Religious Policy
• In order to achieve greater unity, imperial policy sought religious
uniformity by following two routes:
• Religious syncretism
• Emperor worship
• Rome had a vested interest in having her subjects from different lands
believe that, although their gods had different names, they were the
same as the gods of the Romans.
• Roman Pantheon – Temple of “All Gods”
• Combined with Emperor Worship, religious syncretism amounted to the
“state religion” (or state-control of religion)
• Jews and Christians regarded as unbending fanatics who insisted on the
worship of their one God
Emperor Worship
• The “glue” that kept religious unity in society
• The intermingling of religions meant that one could possibly be an
adherent of many; creates confusion for historians
• Emperor worship (worship of the state in the person of the ruling
imperator) was the measure of unity and test of loyalty
• To refuse to burn incense before the emperor’s image was a sign
of treason and/or disloyalty.
• Christian refusal to burn incense before the emperor’s image was
a witness to their faith; hence, a cause of their persecution
Why did Christians refuse to worship state
gods and emperors?
• Christians believed there was only ONE God
• To them, worship of state gods and
emperors meant worshipping false gods
which would endanger their own salvation
Distinction between Judaism and Christianity
became clearer…
• As more and more converts were gained from the Gentile
population
• As Jewish nationalism increased, Christians sought to put as much
distance as they could between themselves and that movement
RESULT: Roman authorities began to take cognizance of Christianity
as a religion quite different from Judaism, and thus not given the
same tolerance as Judaism
• Basis for later persecutions
Nero
• Became emperor in AD 54 (deposed AD 68)
• At first ruled well, or reasonably enough
• Became increasingly infatuated with his own grandeur and desire
for pleasure; increasingly unpopular
• Great fire of Rome – AD 64
• Blamed the Christians – first imperial persecution of the Church
Base accusations against Christians
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Atheism
Orgiastic celebrations
Incestuous relationships
Gluttons and Drunkards
Child sacrifice
Cannibalism
Mockery – Christians worshiped an “ass” (donkey)
Symbols
• The Romans persecuted the Christians and it became dangerous
for them to meet, so the Christians devised a secret code. They
drew half a fish in the sand. If a person completed the fish, they
knew he or she was a believer too. Under the fish sign the
Christians wrote the Greek word for fish.
Other accusations
Christian doctrines were irrational and self-contradictory
Christians were uneducated; pedestrian
Foolish people who merely feigned wisdom
Not cultured
Christianity appeals to the “wrong sorts” of people
Christianity derived from the religion of barbarians (Jews)
Christianity destroys the fiber of good society
Christians continue to “fear the gods” by refusing to take part in most social
activities (contradiction to their claim that all other gods are false)
• Jesus was a criminal condemned by Roman authority
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Different groups of Jews’ response to Roman
rule
• Sadducees: priests, favored cooperation with Rome
• Pharisees: scholars, believed close observance of religious
law would protect them from Roman influences
• Essenes: lived apart from society, sharing goods in common,
waiting for God to save Israel from oppression
• Zealots: called for violent overthrow of Roman rule
• 66 A.D.: Began Jewish revolt that Romans crushed 4 years
later
Jesus
• Jewish teacher who travelled and preached
throughout Judaea and neighboring Galilee
• These teachings began new movement within
Judaism that gained strength and eventually
developed into new faith of Christianity
The teachings of Jesus…
• Believed his mission was to complete salvation God had promised to Israel
• Adhered to entire Law, but focused on elements that transformed the inner person
• Emphasized humility, charity, and love towards others
• Preaching stirred controversy
• Some saw him as potential revolutionary who could lead revolt
against Rome
• Opponents turned him over to Roman authorities
• Procurator Pontius Pilate ordered his crucifixion
• After death, followers proclaimed he had risen from death and
appeared to them
• Believed he was the Messiah (anointed one) who would save Israel from its foes
and bring an age of peace, prosperity, and monotheism (belief in the existence of
only one god)
• As opposed to polytheism (belief in many gods)
How Christianity spread throughout empire
• Apostles (leaders) travelled around spreading message that
Jesus was Savior and that accepting him as Christ, people
could be saved from sin
• Teachings of Christianity passed on orally and through
written tradition
• Apostles’ epistles (letters) and accounts of Jesus’s
sayings made up the core of the New Testament, second
part of Christian Bible
• By 100 A.D. Christian churches established in most major
cities
Why did Romans persecute Christians?
• Basic values of Christianity differed from those of GrecoRoman world
• Romans only tolerated religions of other peoples if those
religions did not threaten public order or public morals
• Many Romans viewed Christians as harmful to Roman state
because Christians refused to worship state gods and
emperors
• They saw this as act of treason, punishable by death
• Roman govt. began persecuting Christians during reign of
Nero (A.D. 54-68)
How did the church become more organized
in 2nd and 3rd centuries?
• Missionaries established more churches and
converted more Christians
• Christian church created new structure where
different people had different functions
• Clergy: church leaders
• Laity: regular church members
Why was Christianity attractive to ALL classes
of people?
•Eternal life was promised to all
regardless of social class or
gender
The End of Christian Persecution in Rome
• First Christian emperor: Constantine
• Edict of Milan: proclaimed official
tolerance of Christianity
• Theodosius the Great: Romans adopted
Christianity as the official religion of the
Roman Empire
Three reasons Christianity attracted
followers
1.Gave Romans meaning and purpose to life
2.Was familiar, yet easy to adopt and relate-able
3.Provided people with a sense of belonging
The reasons why Christianity Spread so
Effectively
• Its message was egalitarian in many ways (including women,
slaves, and all socioeconomic classes)
• It gave hope by promising a better life after death
• It appealed to the masses of poor and destitute inhabitants of
large cities, but also to members of the upper classes who felt
spiritually empty
• It promised equality and social justice, and offered a positive
alternative to an uncertain and dangerous world
• It appealed to tendencies of oriental mysticism
Other Points on Christianity Being Compelling
• Fear cannot be discounted as a factor in the spread of Christianity.
• This is a reputation that follows Christianity well into modern
times.
• Christian faith believes in a “Hell” – where unbelievers and sinners
are cast after death, forever to suffer
LATER PERIODS IN HISTORY
The Reality
• Church relied on secular lords for land,
financial support, and security.
• Secular lords relied on church for
political support.
• In Germany, emperor appointed church
officials.
• “Most knights scrupulously observed
the rites of religion. They were,
however, little troubled by Christian
ethics.”
Medieval World
• Throughout the fall of the Roman Empire and throughout the
Middle Ages, Christianity remains the top belief system throughout
Western Civilization.
• We can think of Western Civilization as being the core of the
Roman world and what it left behind.
• Romans were mass converting to Christianity as it fell.
• Naturally, Rome left a Christian legacy, and consequently, this
means that Western Civilization increasingly means Christian
Civilization.
Later Periods in History
• It wasn’t until the age of Enlightenment that Christianity in the
Western World became seriously questioned.
• We’ll cover this in future lectures.
• But by that time, it didn’t matter, as Christianity was so
thoroughly embedded in European culture.
Christianity in Modern Contexts