Rise of Christianity in the Roman Empire

  • Roman Rule of Israel (begins)
    63 BCE

    Roman Rule of Israel (begins)

    -Romans invaded and conquered Jerusalem
    -Romans destroyed the Jewish temple in Jerusalem
    -stole artifacts from it
    -Jews were kicked out from Jerusalem or sold into slavery
    -Jews still stayed
  • Jesus of Nazareth
    4 BCE

    Jesus of Nazareth

    -Jewish preacher and religious leader.
    -referred to as a "rabbi"
    -was arrested and tried by the Jewish authorities
    -crucified on the order of Pontius Pilate
    -his followers believed he rose from the dead
  • Paul of Tarsus
    5

    Paul of Tarsus

    -taught the gospel of Christ to the first-century world
    -known as "Saul of Tarsus" or "Saint Paul"
    -considered one of the most important figures of the Apostolic Age
    -was both a Jew and Roman citizen
    -began to preach that Jesus of Nazareth is the Jewish Messiah and the Son of God.
  • Great Fire of Rome
    64

    Great Fire of Rome

    -started in the enormous Circus Maximus stadium in Rome
    -People blame Nero for it
    -fire extinguished 6 days later
    -2/3 of Rome was destroyed
    -Nero blamed the Christians for the fire
  • Perpetua
    203

    Perpetua

    -Christian martyr
    -wrote a journal about her trial and imprisonment
    -killed at 22 years old
    -executed by decapitation
    -diary helped us understand how Christians were treated back then
  • Great Persecution of 303 CE
    303

    Great Persecution of 303 CE

    -last major persecution of Christians
    -laws telling them to follow traditional religion
    -3000-3500 Christians executed
    -Emperors Diocletian, Maximian, Galerius, and Constantius started it
    -Varied in intensity
  • Constantine the Great
    306

    Constantine the Great

    -enacted many reforms to strengthen Rome
    -the first emperor to convert to Christianity
    -Istanbul used to be named Constantinople
    -he had a very good reputation among Rome
    -died from a terminal illness in 337
  • Battle of Milvian Bridge
    312

    Battle of Milvian Bridge

    -took place between the Roman Emperors Constantine I and Maxentius
    -marked the beginning of Constantine's conversion to Christianity.
    -legend is that Constantine was guided by heaven to win the battle
    -Constantine won the battle
    -Constantine becomes sole emperor of Roman Empire
  • Edict of Milan
    313

    Edict of Milan

    -proclaimed religious toleration
    -stopped persecution of Christians
    -exact words of it are no longer known
    -paved the way for its spread across Rome
    -transition to the era of the Christian Empire
  • Emperor Theodosius
    379

    Emperor Theodosius

    -the last emperor to rule over both the Eastern and the Western halves of the Roman Empire.
    -issued Decrees that made Nicene Christianity the official church of the Roman Empire
    -helped fight during the Gothic War
    -got Maximus executed
    -eventually, co-conspirators killed themselves or died another way so Theodosius was eventually the sole emperor.