The Rise of Christianity

1. The Rise of Christianity

2. Religious Diversity • A growing number of people were looking elsewhere for spiritual fulfillment. • Some turned to mystery religions that had secret rituals and promised special rewards. • Generally, Rome tolerated the varied religions as long as they acknowledged the divine spirit of the emperor. • Most were content to worship the Roman gods along with their own.

3. Divisions in Judea • (63 B.C.) The Romans conquered Judea, where most Jews lived. • To avoid violating the belief in one God, the Romans excused Jews from worshipping the Roman Gods. • Many Jews had absorbed Greek customs and ideas. • Jewish conservatives rejected these influences and called for strict obedience to Jewish laws and traditions.

7. Divisions in Judea • The Jews that were not willing to live under Roman rule were called Zealots. • Some believed that a messiah, or anointed king sent by God, would soon appear to lead the Jewish people to freedom.

8. Jewish Revolt • (66 A.D.) The Jews rebelled and the Romans crushed them. • Jerusalem was captured and in the next century, destroyed. • Many Jews were killed or enslaved and transported to various parts of the empire. • Growing numbers left Judea and spread out around the Mediterranean. • Jewish rabbis, or scholars, preserved Jewish law. • Commitment to learning law and traditions enabled the Jews to survive in the future.

9. Jesus and His Message • Four followers of Jesus, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John left accounts in what is known as the Gospels, or first four books of the new testament of the Bible. • Jesus was born about 4 B.C. in Bethlehem, near Jerusalem. • He was a descendant of King David of Israel. • An angel told Jesus’ mother, Mary that she would give birth to the messiah. • He grew up in Nazareth and worshipped God and followed Jewish law. • He may have worked as a carpenter.

10. Life of Jesus • At age 30, he began preaching to villagers near the Sea of Galilee. • To help him in his mission, he recruited twelve followers, known as the apostles. • Peter was the chief apostle. • Large crowds gathered to hear Jesus’ teachings, especially when word spread that he had performed miracles of healing. • He often used parables, or short stories with simple moral lessons, to communicate his ideas. • After three years, he and his disciples went to Jerusalem to spread his message there.

11. The Message • Jesus believed in one God and accepted the Ten Commandments. • He preached obedience to the laws of Moses and defended the teachings of the Jewish prophets. • He also preached new beliefs. • He called himself the Son of God. • Many people believed he was the messiah. • Jesus proclaimed that his mission was to bring spiritual salvation and eternal life to anyone who would believe in him.

12. The Sermon on the Mount • “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God.”

13. The Message • Jesus emphasized God’s love and taught the need for justice, morality, and service to others. • “Love the Lord your God with all your heart” • “Love your neighbor as yourself” • “Love your enemies” • “If anyone hits you on one cheek, let him hit the other one, too.”

14. Death on the Cross • Some Jews welcomed Jesus to Jerusalem, others thought he was a dangerous troublemaker. • Jewish priests felt that he was challenging their leadership. • To the Roman authorities, he was a revolutionary who might lead the Jews in a rebellion against Roman rule. • Jesus was betrayed by one of his disciples, Judas. • Arrested by the Romans, he was tried and condemned to be crucified.

15. Death on the Cross • Crucifixion- a Roman method of execution where one is nailed to or hung on a cross and left to die. • Rumors spread through Jerusalem that Jesus was not dead at all. • His disciples saw and talked with Jesus, who had risen from the dead. • The Gospels say that Jesus commanded them to spread his teachings, and that he then ascended into heaven.

16. Spread of Christianity • Following Jesus’ death, the apostles and other disciples spread Jesus’ message and helped establish Christian communities. • Some Jews in Judea accepted that Jesus was the Christ, from the Greek for “the anointed one.” • These people became the first Christians and for a time, Christianity remained a sect within Judaism.

17. Spread of Christianity • Gradually, disciples of Jesus began to preach in Jewish communities throughout the Roman world. • Peter established Christianity in the city of Rome itself. • Paul played the most influential role in the spread of Christianity.

18. Work of Paul • Paul had never seen Jesus. • He had been among those who persecuted Jesus’ followers. • One day he had a vision where Jesus spoke to him. • He converted and as a missionary, spread the teachings of Jesus beyond Jewish communities to gentiles, or non-Jews.

19. Work of Paul • A tireless traveler, Paul journeyed around the Mediterranean and set up churches from Mesopotamia to Rome. • In long letters to Christian communities, he explained difficult doctrines, judged disputes, and expanded Christian teachings.

20. Works of Paul • These letters are known as epistles, found in the new testament of the Bible. • Christian communities: • Rome • Corinth • Galatia • Ephesus • Philippi • Corinth • Colossae • Thessalonica • Paul taught that whoever followed Jesus’ teachings would achieve salvation, or eternal life.

21. Christian Persecution • Rome’s tolerant attitude did not extend to Christianity. • Christians were suspected of disloyalty because they refused to make sacrifices to the emperor or to honor the Roman gods. • When Christians met in secret to avoid persecution, rumors spread that they were engaged in evil practices. • Roman rulers like Nero increased persecution, using Christians as scapegoats, blaming them for social and economic ills.

22. Christian Persecution • Thousands of Christians became martyrs, people who suffer or die for their beliefs. • According to tradition, both Peter and Paul were killed in Rome during the reign of Nero.

23. Reasons for Christianity’s Appeal • Christianity continued to spread however. Why? • The humble, poor, and oppressed found comfort in Jesus’ message of love. • Equality, human dignity, and the promise of a better life beyond the grave were attractive teachings. • Missionaries like Paul had added ideas from Plato, the Stoics, and other Greek thinkers to Jesus’ message.

24. Reasons for Christianity’s Appeal • Educated Romans were attracted to a religion that had the discipline and moderation of Greek philosophy. • Missionary work was made easy because Christians traveled along Roman roads and across the Mediterranean Sea, which was protected by Roman fleets. • Christian documents were usually written in Greek or Latin, main languages in the Roman empire.

25. Reasons for Christianity’s Appeal • People were impressed by the willingness of Christians to die for their religious beliefs. • “The blood of the martyr is the seed of the Christian Church” noted one Roman.

26. Persecution Ends • (313 A.D.) Persecution of Christians finally ended when Roman emperor Constantine issued the Edict of Milan. • Edict of Milan- granted freedom of worship to all citizens. • He was influenced by his mother, who was a devout Christian. • 80 years later, emperor Theodosiusmade Christianity the official religion of the Roman empire.

27. Early Patterns of Life and Worship • Baptism- renouncing evil and having their sins forgiven. • Considered each other as equals. • “brother” or “sister” • Eucharist- eating bread and drinking wine in a sacred meal. • Commemorates the Last Supper.

28. Early Structure of the Church • Only men were allowed to become members of the clergy. • Each community had its own priest. • Priests came under the authority of a bishop. • Bishops were responsible for an area called a diocese. • Bishops traced their spiritual authority to the apostles, and through the apostles, to Jesus.

29. Early Structure of the Church • Bishops of Rome, Antioch, Alexandria, Jerusalem, and Constantinople gained the title of patriarch. • Except for Rome, all these cities were in the eastern empire. • The Christian church developed into a hierarchy, or organization where officials are arranged according to rank.

30. Divisions in the Church • Bishops in the western city of Rome, claimed greater authority and came to be called Popes. • The eastern bishops thought all five patriarchs should be equal. • The emergence of heresies caused disunity. • Heresy- belief said to be contrary to the official teachings of the church. • To end disputes, councils of Church leaders met to decide official teachings.

31. Theology and Scholarship • Early Christians produced an abundance of works on Judeo-Christian theology. • Theology- talk or discourse about God. • Clement and Origen were both scholars and teachers that lived in the Egyptian city of Alexandria. • They had several works written in Greek. • Augustine, bishop of Hippo in N. Africa, also wrote many works. • The City of God