Rise of Christianity in the Roman Empire

Roman Rule of Israel

63 BCE

Rome became the great power of the world. The Jews were hostile to the new regime. Mattathias Antoninus made a last attempt to restore the kingdom but his defeat brought an end to the Hasmoneon Dynasty and the land came under Roman Rule. Herod was then appointed king of Judea by the Romans

Paul of Tarsis

10

Also know as Saint Paul. He preached the word of god across Rome. He convinced many Romans to convert to Christianity. HE traveled thousands of miles to spread the word of Jesus. HE contributed greatly to spreading the Religion and getting it well known.

Jesus of Nazareth

30

This is the Birth of Jesus which is between 0 and 30. Jesus is the leader of the wave of Christianity that overflowed Rome. He is believed to be the son of God and the savior. Christians believe that he toured talking about god and performing miracles. It is believed that he died on the cross for the sins of the people.

The Great Fire of Rome

64

Rome was set ablaze. Only 4 out of 14 districts were untouched and 3 were completely wiped out. The fire ended up being blamed on the Christians. Hundreds of people died in the fire and more were left homeless. This contributed to the rise of Christianity because the Christians were ultimately blamed for the fire, but many people suspect Emperor Nero for starting the fire and putting it on the Christians. Since the Christians were blamed it made the religion more well know which helped it spread

Perpetua

181

Perpetua was a Christian woman, she isn't very well known but we have a diary about her life as a christian. She later was turned into a Saint by the Catholic Church.

Constantine The Great

272

Constantine was born on February 22 272 CE. His full name is Flavius Valerius Aurelius Constantinus Augustus. Constantine contributed greatly to the rise of Christianity because he was the first Emperor to convert to Christianity. Before a major battle called the Battle of Milvian Bridge Constantine saw a cross in the sky with words that translate to "In This Sign, Conquer". Constantine believed god was on his side so he converted to Christianity and many others followed. He died May 22 337 CE.

The Diocletianic Prosecution

303

This was the most severe and last prosecution of Christians. In 303 CE the Emperor Diocletian made rules restricting all of the Christian rights. He tried to force them to follow the traditional practice. If they didn't follow the rules they were executed. The Christians were faithful up to their death which brought attention to it and the religion continued to grow because of the ideals that they had.

The Battle of the Milvian Bridge

312

This was a great battle between Constantine and Maxentius. Constantine emerged victorious and became the sole Emperor of Rome ending the Tetrarchy. This was a big step for Christians because this battle marked the beginning of Constantine's conversion to Christianity, starting with him self and moving on to all of Rome. The first two letters of Christs name were written on Constantine's soldiers shield believing that it would put god on their side and they would win.

Edict of Milan

313

The Edict of Milan was a paper signed by Constantine and Lucinius to make freedom of religion throughout Rome. This contributed to the growth of Christianity because it made Christians not scared to support their religion and they could freely worship. Constantine was a believer in Christ so it was strongly directed at Christians o they wouldn't be prosecuted by Rome anymore.

Emperor Theodosius

347

Born in 347 Emperor Theodosius was the last Emperor to rule both the Eastern and Western sides of Rome. Theodosius contributed greatly to the growth of Christianity by making it the state religion of Rome. He went against invading Barbarians and created a treaty.