Rise of Christianity in the Roman Empire

Jesus of Nazarath

4 BCE

~Jesus, 4 BC-30 CE, is the religious leader for Christianity ~ Christians reflect the nature and teachings of Jesus ~ Jesus was born in Bethlehem ~ Jesus when he was young became a preacher and healer ~ Jesus was then arrested, tried and then killed, but his disciples still believed that he was alive. This is what eventually led to the new religion of Christianity.

Paul of Tarsus

4 BCE

4 BCE- 64 CE ~ Paul was one of the leaders of the first generation of Christians ~ He is considered one of the most important people after Jesus ~ He was a major figure in the small Christianity movement ~ He was converted to Christianity in 33 CE ~ Before he was converted, half of his life he spent persecuting Christians

Great Fire of Rome

64

~On July 19, 64 CE, a fire started at the Circus Maximus stadium in Rome. ~After 6 days, the fire was extinguished, but 10 of Rome's 14 districts were burned to the ground. ~Ancient historians have blamed Emperor Nero for the fire and said that he started the fire because he wanted to build a new palace for himself. ~However, Emperor Nero blamed the Christians for the fire. ~Modern historians however disagree that Nero started the fire because people lived in wooden apartments.

Roman Rule of Israel (begins)

66

Julius Caesar restored certain territories of Judea ~ He appointed Hycranus II to be ruler ~ Hycranus's father had been forced into Judaism because Hycranus was such a weak figure ~ John Hyrcanus than took control of matters and converted everyone to Judaism ~ The Romans saw him as their agent

Pertetua

182

182-203 ~ She was a Christian noblewoman ~ She was arrested when she was new to Christianity and was taking a class to prepare for baptism ~ Her father denied that she was a Christian to get her out of jail ~ Pertetua's father begged her to denied to be a Christian, but she refused his request after being touched by her fathers words ~ During her hearing, her friends admitted to being Christians and so did she, they were to die in the arena

Constantine the Great

280

Constantine the Great was born on February 27, 280 and died May 22 337 ~ He was the first emperor to allow Christianity ~ Constantine's success was the expansion of Christianity and the support of the Christian God ~ Constantine's support in Christianity was associated with his rise of power ~ He fought in the battle of Milvian Bridge under the name of the Christian God ~ He had arrangements made to produce the Edict of Milan that stopped the persecutions of Christians.

Great Persecution of 303 CE

303

The Great Persecution occurred during 303-311 ~ On February 24, 303, Emperor Diocletian declared his first edict against the Christians ~ The edict ordered people to destroy Christian sculptures and any places of worship ~ This edict also prohibited any Christians form gathering together to worship ~ This was the beginning of the Great Persecution, Rome's last, largest and bloodiest persecution of Christians.

Battle of Milvian Bridge

312

Two rival emperors, Constantine and Maxentius, on October 28, 312, face each other at the Milvian Bridge in Rome ~ Constantine painted Christian symbols on his army's shields because he saw a vision just before the battle ~ After Constantine was victorious, he made Christianity official in the Roman empire ~ Constantine had proven himself to be a great general ~ The most important consequence of this victory

Edict of Milan

313

In January of 313 to emperors, Constantine in the west and Licinus in the east, came together on good terms and produced the Edict of Milan ~ After years of struggles, the Romans enjoyed some peace ~ The two emperors were determined to guarantee religious freedom for Christians ~ The era of the Christian empire had began because of the edict ~ After 6 months though the edict was re-scripted

Emperor Theodosius

347

347-395 ~ He used his power as emperor to official enforce Christianity, but ended up putting his power under the church ~ Theodosius had accepted Christianity when he was seriously ill ~ In 308, proclaimed himself a Christian of the Nicene Creed ~ He tried to reign but the church got the better of him ~ The bishop wouldn't give him communion until he put aside his royal garments and publicity plead for God's mercy