Download Religion in the Roman Empire

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