Download Section 4: Rise of Christianity

Section 4:
Rise of Christianity
Early Empire Includes Diverse
Religions
• Rome tolerated the varied religious traditions of its subjects;
as long as citizens showed loyalty by honoring Roman gods
and acknowledging the divine spirit of the emperor, the
government allowed them to worship other gods as they
pleased.
Left: Cult of Isis
Started in Egypt and
offered women equal
status with men
Right: Cult of Mithras
Good over evil and
offered life after death
Divisions Arise in Judea
• By 63 B.C. the Romans had conquered Judea, where most Jews of
the time lived.
• Romans allowed Jews to practice their monotheistic religion and
did not force them to worship Roman gods.
• During the Hellenistic age, many Jews absorbed Greek customs and
ideas.
• Conservative Jews were concerned about the weakening of their
religion and called for strict obedience to Jewish laws and
traditions.
• Zealots called on Jews to revolt against Rome and reestablish an
independent state.
• Some Jews believed that a messiah, or anointed king sent by God
would soon appear to lead their people to freedom.
Jewish Rebellion Is Defeated
• In A.D. 66, discontent ended in rebellion
• Four years later, Roman forces crushed the rebels, captured Jerusalem,
and destroyed the Jewish temple
• When revolts broke out a century later, Roman armies leveled Jerusalem
and thousands of Jews were killed, enslaved, and transported to many
parts of the empire
Jesus Proclaims His
Teachings
• Jesus was Jewish
• Almost all the information we
have about the life of Jesus
comes from the Gospels (the
first four books of the New
Testament of the Christian
Bible)
• Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John
are credited with writing the
accounts of the life of Jesus.
Jesus Begins Preaching
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Jesus was born about 4 B.C. in Bethlehem (near Jerusalem)
The Gospels say: an angel told Mary, that she would give birth to the messiah.
Grew up in Nazareth, worshiped God and followed Jewish law
May have worked as a carpenter
At the age of 30, according to the Gospels, he began preaching to villagers near the Sea
of Galilee.
Performed miracles of healing
Used parables, short stories with a simple moral lesson, to communicate his ideas
Apostles
• He recruited 12 of his disciples, or close followers, to
help him in his mission. After three years, Jesus and his
disciples went to Jerusalem to spread his message
there.
Jesus Teaches New Beliefs
• Jesus’ teachings were firmly rooted in Jewish traditions: believed in one God, Ten
Commandments, preached obedience to the laws of Moses, defended the teachings of
Jewish prophets. But he also called himself the Son of God. Many people believed him to be
the messiah. His mission was to bring spiritual salvation and eternal life to anyone who
believed in him.
Condemned to Death
According to the Gospels, Jesus
traveled to Jerusalem near the
time of Passover (celebration of
the exodus). Romans feared Jesus
to be a threat to Roman rule. He
was betrayed by Judas and
arrested by the Romans, tried,
and condemned to death by
crucifixion.
But Jesus did not die, he had
risen from death and ascended
into heaven.
The Message of Christianity Spreads
• The disciples were given the responsibility of
spreading Jesus’ teachings; at first they only
preached to the Jews of Judea. Some Jews
accepted the teachings that Jesus was the
messiah, or the Christ (Greek word: Anointed
One)…soon they were called Christians.
• Gradually the disciples went to preach in Jewish
communities throughout the Roman world. The
apostle Peter established Christianity in the city
of Rome.
Paul
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Never met Jesus
He had persecuted Jesus’ followers
Had a vision of Jesus speaking to him; immediately joined the Christians and decided to spread Jesus’ teachings
to gentiles (non-Jews)
Journeyed around the Mediterranean and set up churches in Asia Minor and Greece
In letters to the Christian communities, he explained difficult doctrines, judged disputes, and expanded Cristian
teachings, emphasizing that Jesus had sacrificed his life out of love for humankind. He also stated that those
who believed Jesus was the son of God and obeyed his teachings would achieve salvation (eternal life); His
letters became part of the New Testament
Christians are Oppressed
• Romans were not tolerant toward Christianity; Roman officials found the Christians disloyal
to Rome because they refused to honor the emperor with sacrifices or ask the traditional
gods to protect the Roman state.
• Met in secret = engaged in evil practices
• Nero (Roman ruler) blamed Christians for social and economic ills
• Christians who were killed in times of persecution became known as martyrs (people who
suffer or die for their beliefs) Example: Peter and Paul
Rome Embraces Christianity
• Persecution of Christians
ended in A.D. 313
• Emperor Constantine
issued the Edict of Milan;
granted freedom to
worship to all citizens of
the Roman empire.
• By the end of the century,
emperor Theodosius
(thee uh DOH shus)made
Christianity the official
religion of the Roman
empire and repressed the
practice of other faiths.
Early Christian Church Develops
• To join the Christian community, a person had to be baptized, or blessed with holy
water
• Through the rite of baptism, sins were forgiven by the grace of God
• Members of the community were considered equals “brothers” “sisters”
Thanksgiving to God
• Each Sunday, Christians gathered for a ceremony of thanksgiving to God
• The baptized ate bread and drank wine in a sacred rite called the Eucharist.
They did this in memory of Jesus, whose last supper was described in the
Gospels.
Structuring the Clergy
• Only men were eligible to become members of the
Christian clergy (group of people who conduct Christian
services)
• Each Christian community and its clergy were grouped
together as a diocese
• Every diocese had its own priest
• Over the priest presided a bishop (high Church official
responsible for everyone in his diocese)
• Bishops in the most important cities: Rome, Antioch,
Alexandria, Jerusalem, and Constantinople gained greater
authority…took on the honorary title of patriarch
• Christian Church developed into a hierarchy (organization in
which officials are arranged according to rank)
Differences Arise Within the Church
• Rivalry among the patriarchs develop
• Bishops of Rome, came to be called popes; they
began to claim authority over all other bishops
• The other four patriarchs felt that all five should
share spiritual authority as equals
• The emergence of heresies (beliefs said to be
contrary to official Church teachings) caused a
division; to end disputes councils of church
leaders met to decide official Christian teachings.
First Letter to the Corinthians
• Around A.D. 51, Paul
founded a Christian
community in the city of
Corinth. After he left, he
wrote two letters to the
newly converted
Christians to encourage
and guide them in their
faith. In Paul’s First
Letter to the Corinthians,
Paul declares that, for a
Christian, love is more
important than any
other quality.
The Byzantine
Empire
Constantinople sat at a
crossroads of land and
sea routes, and its great
wealth came from
trade.
Constantine Creates a “New Rome”
• Eastern Roman empire became known as the
Byzantine Empire; Constantinople will be the new
capital of the empire. Named after Constantine.
• Emperors after Constantine built an elaborate
system of land and sea walls to bolster its
defenses
• Europe’s busiest marketplace
• Byzantine emperors and empresses lived in
glittering splendor; dressed in silk, attended
chariot races at the Hippodrome arena.
• Reminder of the city’s glorious Roman heritage
Justinian
• Byzantine empire peaks under the emperor Justinian; he
ruled from 527 – 565.
• After riots and a devastating fire swept through
Constantinople in 532, Justinian launched a program to
make Constantinople grander than ever. The greatest
achievement was rebuilding the church of Hagia Sophia (AH
yee uh suh FEE uh)
• Justinian reformed the law; known as Justinian’s Code:
“Body of Civil Law” By the 1100s Western Europe had
modeled their laws on its principles
• Justinian was an autocrat (sole ruler with complete
authority) Byzantine emperor also had power over the
church.
Hagia Sophia
(AH yee uh suh FEE uh)
Byzantine Christianity
East (Byzantine)
West
• Kept the right to marry
• Rejected the pope’s claim to
authority over all Christians
• Greek was the language of
the church
• Chief holy day was Easter
(day Jesus rose from the
dead)
• Less emphasis on Christmas
• Could not marry
• Respected the pope’s claim
to authority over all
Christians
• Latin was the language of
the Church
• One of the chief holy days is
Easter
• Another chief holy day is
Christmas (birth of Jesus)
Great Schism
• Dispute over use of icons (holy images) contributed to the split
• The Byzantine emperor outlawed the worship of icons (Ex: Jesus, Virgin
Mary, Saints)
• In 1054, this along with other controversies provoked a schism (split)
between eastern and western Christianity
• The Byzantine church became known as the Eastern or Greek Orthodox
Church
• The western branch became known as the Roman Catholic Church
• Both sides treated each other as rivals instead of branches of the same
faith
Crisis and Collapse
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In 1453, Ottoman forces surrounded the city of Constantinople
After a siege lasting two months, the Turks stormed the capital
The ancient city was renamed Istanbul and became the capital of the Ottoman empire. Hagia Sophia
(AH yee uh suh FEE uh) was turned into an Islamic house of worship and Istanbul soon emerged as a
great center of Muslin culture.