Block Day- October 15th & 16th • Welcome Back • How was break??

• This Quarter:• Rise of Christianity & Fall of Rome• Islam• Emerging Europe and Middle Ages• Renaissance & Reformation• Exploration- possibly…

New Seating Charts

CNN Student News plus another Warm Up• Name one of the favorite things you did this break or

something fun that happened- appropriate please

• CNN Student News

Learning Goal: • Students will be able to…

• Summarize the life and teachings of Jesus. • Trace the spread of Christianity in the Roman Empire. • Analyze Christianity’s appeal.

• Name 2 symbols that you associate with Christianity

• *DISCLAIMER* This class is not about my personal views on religion, or about instilling any views of religion on others. It is a intellectual discussion on the origins of Christianity and its beliefs, not on whether it is correct or not. Please make sure that you are sensitive to others when discussing this topic.*

ROME & THE RISE ROME & THE RISE OF CHRISTIANITYOF CHRISTIANITY

The rise of Christianity marked an important break with the dominant values of the Greek

and Roman worlds.

Early Roman Religion Played an important role in

Roman societyBeginning with Augustus,

emperors were often declared gods◦ Romans worship many gods

& goddesses (polytheism)Roman Worship of Gods:

◦ Impersonal◦ Practiced without a great deal

of emotion

Tolerance in Rome • Romans were tolerant of

other religions• Allowed worship of other

gods and goddesses • People desired a more

emotional spiritual experience

Roman Conquest of Judea• CA 63 BCE—Roman

Empire extends to Judea (Home of the Jews)Jewish kingdom

remained independent at first,

• 6 CE—Roman Empire took total control and made Judea a Roman province

• Jews believed the Messiah would arrive to restore kingdom of the Jews

Jews in RomeJews in RomeMost Jews of the time

lived in Judea which became part of the Roman empire in 6 A.D.Jews were monotheistic

therefore they could not accept the emperor as being divine

The Romans allowed them not to see the emperor as divineMany Jews wanted to be

independent

THE RISE OF CHRISTIANITY

Although Christians were initially persecuted, Christianity grew in importance and spread throughout the empire.

Jesus of Nazareth

The Beginnings of JesusThe Beginnings of Jesus• He was a carpenter and a

student of the writings of earlier Jewish prophetsHistorians believe he was born

between 6 to 4 BCE in town of Bethlehem, Judea

• Raised in the village of Nazareth in Northern PalestineBaptized by prophet John the

Baptist• Public Ministry—began at the

age of 30

Jesus of NazarethJesus of Nazareth

• Reportedly performed miracles, preached, did good works

• Teachings: • Contained many ideas from Jewish tradition• Monotheism—belief in one

god• Principles of the Ten

Commandments• His mission was to complete

the salvation that God had promised

Followers of JesusFollowers of JesusHe developed many

followersOf these he chose

Twelve to help him preach his message

Jesus TravelsJesus Travels

Jesus became popular as he traveled from town to town

• Messages: appealed especially to the

poor (he ignored wealth and status)

Simple and direct—people touched by messages (easily understood)

Controversy with JesusMany Jews believed Jesus was

the divine messiahOther Jews thought he was just

a revolutionary and they did not like him◦ The Romans were scared that he

would lead another uprising◦ Thought of him as a Revolutionary ◦ Around 30 A.D. He was brought to

trial before a Roman governor, Pontius Pilate

Pilate’s ConcernsPilate’s ConcernsPontius Pilate—

accused Jesus of defying authority of Rome

• Jesus was arrested, sentenced to death by crucifixion—the nailing of a person to a wooden cross to die

Jesus’ Death • Jesus’ body placed in a tomb following his death• According to the Gospels, 3

days later, his body was gone, & a living Jesus appeared to his followers.

CHRISTIANITY SPREADS THROUGHOUT THE EMPIRE

Paul and the DisciplesPaul and the Disciples• Jesus' followers, called

disciples, spread the Christian message

• Paul emphasized that Christianity was not a sect of Judaism, but a religion of all people

• Universality enables Christianity to become more than a local religion

The Romans and ChristiansThe Romans and Christians• At first the Romans were tolerant of Christians the same way they were of Jews

• By the 100’s A.D. that had changed• Many churches established throughout

the empire• Christians made good citizens because

the religion taught them to respect government

• However they were more likely than Jews to convert people to their religion, which meant not worshipping the emperor

• This was seen as an attack on the Roman empire

Persecution of ChristiansPersecution of ChristiansRomans began to persecute,

kidnap and kill ChristiansMany Christians refused to

renounce their religion even in the face of death They are known as martyrs

The Roman effort would not stop the spread of Christianity

Persecution of the ChristiansPersecution of the Christians

(Left) Picture of St. Ignatius being thrown to the Lions in Rome. (He was a Christian martyr)

Christian AppealChristian Appeal• Even with the persecution of the Christians by the 3rd Century A.D. there were millions of Christians in Rome

• Widespread Appeal due to:• 1) embraced all people• 2) gave hope to the powerless• 3) appealed to those repelled by extravagances by Rome

• 4) Personal relationship with loving God• 5) promised eternal life after death• 6) Pax Romana

Catacombs- a refuge for early ChristiansCatacombs- a refuge for early Christians

MartyrMartyrSt. Sebastian

St. Stephen

The Spread of The Spread of ChristianityChristianity

The Spread of The Spread of ChristianityChristianity

Roman Roads and Why they were important• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XRYHsiCvmhc

Roman Roads Article

Constantine: 312 - 337Constantine: 312 - 337Constantine: 312 - 337Constantine: 312 - 337

Constantine was the 1st Christian Emperor

Constantine and ChristianityConstantine and Christianity• 312 A.D. Emperor Constantine was going to

battle when he prayed for help….He had a vision of a cross; symbol of ChristianityHe had a cross painted on his soldiers shieldsWhen he won the battle he gave credit to

Christianity• 313 A.D. Constantine ended Christian

persecution and in the Edict of Milan made Christianity a religion of Rome

• 380 A.D. emperor Theodosius made it the official religion of Rome.

ConstantineConstantine• Constantine died in 337

A.D. he was baptized on his death bed

• A 180 degree turn from the early days of RomeIn about 400 years

Christianity spread from little Judea throughout the entire Roman Empire

Constantine Moves the Constantine Moves the Roman CapitalRoman Capital

Constantine Moves the Constantine Moves the Roman CapitalRoman Capital

Constantine divides the Roman Empire into two:Rome = capital of westConstantinople = capital of east

The Early ChurchThe Early Church

• As the Roman empire neared its end the Christian religion became very organizedPriests had the

churches and in each city there was a bishop

The PopeThe PopeThe patriarch of Rome became

known as Pope Pope means father in Latin

The pope claimed supremacy over the other patriarchs

The Vatican The Vatican

Archdiocese/Archbishop

Bishop/Diocese

Priest/Parish

Pope

DBQ