Rise of Christianity in the Roman Empire

Roman Rule of Israel

67 BCE

In 37 BCE, Herod was appointed King of by the Romans. Israel was destroyed as a nation after Judah was taken over by the Babylonians. The area was highly populated with Jews and Israel was not a nation again until 1948. Rome allowed them to continue their religion. Rebellion in Judaea led to a major change in the practice of their religion. By 4 BC the Romans had complete control over Judea.

Jesus of Nazareth

1 CE

Jesus of Nazareth and Jesus Christ was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the central figure of Christianity. Jesus was originally Jewish born as was his mother Mary. He was born in Bethlehem but grew up in Nazareth. Everybody in the town of Nazareth appreciated and loved his kind gestures. Jesus died on the cross as a way to sacrifice himself instead of sacrificing others, in 33 AD.

Paul of Tarsus

5

Paul the Apostle was one of the leaders of the first generation of Christians, often considered to be the most important person after Jesus in the history of Christianity. He had a hand in creating many churches across Europe. Over the years Paul had gained many enemies. He had an enormous influence on subsequent Christianity. He was one of the greatest Christian leaders to have existed. Paul got imprisoned in Jerusalem and was then beheaded under Nero according to some.

The Great Fire of Rome

64

On the night of July 19, 64 AD, a fire had begun to spark around the shops lining the infamous Circus Maximus. The homes of around two billion people had burned for 6 days before they were able to gain control. Unfourtuenly, the fire reignited and burnt for 3 more. 2/3 of Rome was destroyed. Gangs and Thuds had threatened/prevented civilians from fighting the fire under the Emperor's order. Nero had blamed the fire on Christians, whom he'd torture during gladiator matches.

Perpetua

203

Christian martyr who wrote the Passion of saints. She was a christian noblewoman at the start of the third century, lived with her husband, her son, and her slave. The Christian Perpetua was persecuted and sent to prison in Africa. While Perpetua was there, she wrote many pieces about her visions of prophets and other Christian ideals. Emperor Septimius Severus determined to cripple Christianity. She perished in 203 CE after her death sentence in Carthage.

Constantine the Great

272

Constantine was a Roman Emporer who ruled in the early 4th century. He was the first Christian Emperor Rome had seen. Constantine was born on February 27, 272. During Constantine's life, he separated civil and military authorities. Constantine joined Christian Fatih on his deathbed. Constantin played a significant role in the Edict of Milan in 313, which declared religious tolerance for Christianity in the Roman empire.

Great Persecution of 303 CE

303

Citizens were forced to offer a sacrifice for the Emperor. The Christians saw this as an attempt to further purge them from society. The first persecution was on Feb. 24. The legislation targeted churches, destruction of sculptures, places of worship, and anything Christ related. Three further edicts were declared in the following years, in AD 304 with the fourth edict, which demanded an offering be made, in public, on pain of death.

Battle of Milvian Bridge

312

This infamous battle took place on October 28, 312. The battle was between Constantine and Emperor Maxentius. This battle was a key point in history on the Rise of Christianity. During the battle, Constantine claimed to have seen a symbol of Christ in the sky and had a dream that told him to defeat his enemies with the cross. Constantine won the battle. Maxentius men all drowned before the battle. Constantine painted the symbol of Christ on his soldiers' shields, the letter X was a cross sign.

Edict of Milan

313

The Edict of Milan was made during the month of February. After the victorious win of the Battle of Milvian Bridge, Constantine had created the Edict of Milan as an act of respect towards Christians and their religion. It removed all restrictions on Christian worship and the purpose of it was to grant Christians the full authority to do/ follow whatever they wanted. They were also going to abolish all conditions against Christians.

Emperor Theodosius

379

Theodosius was born Northwest Main. He was Emperor from 379 to 395. He was the last Emperor in the ancient Roman times to rule over the Western and Eastern Halves of Rome. His first assignment was to secure his land against Barbarians. Thedause later in life took parts in Military Campaigns like his father. Theodosius became a leader of the empire and established Christianity as the Romans State Religion. Defended