Rise of Christianity of the Roman Empire

Jesus of Nazareth

30

Jesus was born in Bethlehem and grew up in Nazareth as a child. He studied the teachings of Jewish prophets and became a religious leader. Jesus had disciples or in other words, followers, that believed in him. He did many miracles during this time and healed many people. Later, he was crucified because the Jewish leaders did not accept his teachings that were thought to be false. His followers continued his teachings and Christianity was born.

Paul of Tarsus

32

Saul, later named Paul, started actively opposed that Jesus was the Messiah. During a trip to Damascus, Paul was converted to Christianity though an experience. After this conversion, Paul helped create Christian churches throughout the Eastern Mediterranean. He helped make Christianity a broader religion attracting new followers. His epistles and letters to these churches became part of the New testament. He became a great Christian leader and teacher to many people.

Roman Rule of Israel (begins)

64

During this time, the Roman general Pompey conquered Syria and took the land of Israel from them. The capture of Israel lead many people to worship God and convert to Christianity, but also gave Rome easy access to Europe, Asia, and Africa.

Great Fire of Rome

64

A fire started in the merchants' shops around Rome's chariot stadium. It burnt brightly over the course of 6 days, until it was burnt out, but then reignited lasting another 3 days. The fire burned about 2/3 of Rome causing devastation to many people and homes. Historians believed that Nero, the ruler at the time, started the fire so he can bypass the Senate to rebuild Rome to a greater glory. With the vulnerable new religion of Christianity, Nero blamed the cause of the fire on the Christians.

Perpetua

203

Perpetua was a woman of noble birth that supported Christianity to the end. She was imprisoned for teaching and conversing the religion of Christianity for quite a while. Perpetua kept a journal of her thoughts and feelings during the time she was in prison. She was then put to death at 22 years old and was recorded as a Christian martyr. Today, the journal is an influential book to many Orthodox Christians.

Great Persecution of 303 CE

303

In 303 CE, Diocletian, the emperor at the time, hated Christians greatly. He persecuted them the most at this point in time. If he found any Christians, he put them in prison or killed them in an attempt to wipe out the church. Later, Constantine came into power and ended the Great Persecution against the Christians.

Constantine the Great

312

Constantine, a son of one of the original Caesars, was proclaimed the new emperor by his troops. He ended a Civil war among Rome and finally restored order. Constantine supported the religion Christianity greatly and stopped the persecution of the Christians. He built a new capital of Rome called Constantinople which was named after him. It was built on the Eastern side of Rome because it was richer and easier to defend than the Western side of Rome.

Battle of Milvian Bridge

312

The Roman emperor Constantine fought against Maxentius in battle. Before Constantine fought, he received a vision with the words saying, “In this sign, conquer.” Constantine believed in it so much he fought under the sign, a cross. He engraved the sign into shields and made banners with the cross on it. He fought the war and came out victorious. This converted Constantine to the religion of Christianity and was the cornerstone of the rise of the religion.

Edict of Milan

313

After the Battle of Milvian Bridge, Constantine created a document that stated all the wrongs that were done to the Christians should be made right. The Christians would stop being persecuted and they would be free to practice their religion of Christianity in Rome.

Emperor Theodosius

391

Emperor Theodosius removed public non-christian sacrifices and religious ceremonies. Due to this event, Polytheism slowly left the culture of the Roman Empire. He created the Nicean Creed which states God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit are one. In other words, the Trinity. He also made the Nicean Christianity official state church of Rome.