Rise of Christianity in the Roman Empire

Jesus of Nazareth

5 BCE

Jewish religious figure and center of the Christian faith. Believed to have been the son of God, born in a barn, preformed miracles crucified by Romans, and rose back to life. He preached the Christian faith where ever he went. The Romans heard that he claimed to be the son of God and crucified him. He rose from the dead 3 days later and proved to people that he was Gods son. More and more people turned to the Christian faith. He did not just have an impact on Christianity, he was Christianity.

Paul of Tarsus

62

Paul spent the first half of his life persecution Christians. One day he saw a blinding light that he said to have been God himself. He told him Jesus was going to be the promised messiah. Paul then devoted his life to traveling and preaching to many people everywhere. He was a great factor in the rise of Christianity because he turned many people to Christians. Paul was arrested and sent to Rome to later be executed. Nearly half of the new testament today is devoted to Paul and his teachings

Roman Rule of Israel (begins)

63

Israel has has three occupants over the years. They are the Jewish Muslim and Christian. When Rome Conquered Israel, they brought the Christian religion with them. This caused Christianity to grow significantly because it gave Christianity a place to grow once again.

The Great Fire of Rome

64

It is believed that Emperor Nero started a fire because he was told he was not allowed to tear down parts of Rome and rebuild them the way he wanted. The fire lasted 6 days and destroyed close to 70% of Rome.

Perpetua

203

Perpetua was a Christian woman who was executed for refusing to decline her faith. She was to be eaten alive by beast but survived and was killed by sword. Her diary tells the story of the roles Christian women play in the church. She was a role model to Christians and was not afraid to die for her faith, she wanted to. She gave a sense of pride and persistence to Christians. She also gave them a reason to keep believing and keep their faith alive despite the violence around them.

Great Persecution of 303 CE

303

Led by Emperor Diocletian. Thousands of Christians were killed and prevented from practicing their religion. This did not discourage Christians to stop their religion, it only made their faith stronger and their perseverance greater. Many people were tortured, killed or imprisoned. This was the last mass persecution of Christians. Women and children were killed for the enjoyment of the Roman citizens. This mass persecution was ended 8 years later with the edict of milan. Ended April 30, 311.

Constantine the Great

306

Constantine the Great was preparing for battle when he saw the words, "in this sign, conquer" in the sky. He later had a dream where Jesus told him the take the sign of the Christians into battle. They put the Christians signs on the shields of the soldiers and emerged with an overwhelming victory. He devoted this battle to the Christians God and later created the edict if Milan which ended the persecution of Christians and let them rebuild their churches and practice their religion freely.

Battle of Milvian Bridge

312

Battle of Milvian Bridge was fought between the armies of Constantine and Maxentius. The battles name comes from the bridge on witch the battle was won. It was in this battle that Constintine had a prophetic dream and after his overwhelming victory he devoted the battle to the Christians God. It was this battle that created the Edict of Milan and

Edict of Milan February

313

Constantine the Great created the Edict of Milan to end christian persecution and allow them to practice their religion freely. It says that no person should be refused complete toleration. Christians were now allowed to rebuild churches and meet in them too. This greatly impacted the rise of Christianity because now that the Christians were free to believe, they were also free to preach and spread their faith, which they did. Christianity has since become the biggest and most practiced religion

Emperor Theodosius

380

Emperor Theodosius was a major factor in the rise of Christianity. In 380, he made Christianity the official religion of Rome and even successfully defended it against paganism and Arianism which were the other two leading religions in Rome. Theodosius deemed all other religions foolish and withdrew all state support for them. This made the rest of religions shrink smaller and smaller while Christianity was still on the rise. Theodosius also won two wars in the defense of Christianity.