Transcript The rise of Christianity

6.4 Notes
RISE OF CHRISTIANITY
6.4- Christianity and Judaism
 A new religion called Christianity developed within
the Roman Empire and gradually spread throughout
the Roman world
 Essential Question: How did Christianity arise and
spread throughout the Roman world?
6.4- Christianity and Judaism
 Judaism in the Roman World
 Christianity – religion based on the teachings of Jesus of Nazareth
 Many of the beliefs and customs Jesus and his followers practice are based in
teachings from Judaism
 Romans conquer Judea in 63 BCE – allowed Jews to continue practicing their
religion as long as they paid tribute and maintained order
 Reaction to Roman Rule
 There are several branches of Judaism, and not all of the Jews believed they
should cooperate with Roman authority
 Zealots – armed resistance - rise up against Rome and re-establish the Kingdom
of Israel – 2 revolts

66-70AD a mass uprising began in Judea
 Romans sacked Jerusalem and killed thousands of Jews
 130’s Jews were banded from Jerusalem entirely
 Messianic Prophecies
 Messianic Prophecies – no resistance – wait ing for the Messiah, a spiritual
leader who would restore the kingdom and peace
6.4- Jesus of Nazareth
 Jesus of Nazareth
 born in Bethlehem, near Jerusalem. Studied carpentry and the writings of
Jewish prophets
 Against the turbulent background he taught messages of forgiveness and
redemption, love, mercy, humility, and charity
 Life
 Most of our knowledge of Jesus comes from the Gospels – first four books of the
New Testament
 The New Testament and the Old Testament from the Hebrew Bible make up the
Christian Bible
 Preach a message of redemption and warning
 Jesus had many followers called disciples. His messages aroused both followers
and critics, some of whom feared political uprisings
 According to the biblical accounts Jesus created a great deal of excitement by
performing miracle
 Instructed people to repent of their sin’s and seek God’s forgiveness
 His popularity alarmed authorities who feared political uprising
6.4- Christianity and Judaism
 Death and Resurrection
 Jesus was arrested, tried, and sentenced to death. According to
his followers he rose from the dead, and spent 40 days
teaching on earth before ascending to heave.
 He and his disciples claimed him as the long awaited Jewish
Messiah.
 12 disciples called Apostles, whom Jesus chose specifically,
became missionaries following his death to spread the
messages of Jesus
6.4- Spread of Christianity
 Paul of Tarsus
 Jesus had 12 followers called disciples, or Apostles. His messages
aroused both followers and critics, some of whom feared political
uprisings
 One apostle, Paul, was crucial to the spread of Christianity. Having
believed that God had chosen him to spread the messages of Christianity
and convert non-Jews by establishing churches, changes doctrines, and
broadening the religion to attract new followers
 Paul’s actions helped to gain followers and distinguish Christianity from
Judaism

Without him Christianity may have stayed a branch of Judaism rather than it’s
own religion
 Roman Christianity
 Two things that helped Christianity to spread were that Christian
messages of love and eternal life after death appealed to many people
across social classes, and the Roman religious tolerance of other
religions
6.4- Spread of Christianity
 Persecution
 As more people converted to Christianity, Roman leaders began to fear
it’s influence



began persecuting Christians, and create martyrs from the ones they killed
Large scale persecution of Christians was rare during the first 2 centuries
after Jesus’s life
As it grew persecution grew
 Imperial Approval
 The conversion of the Emperor Constantine increased the spread of
Christianity.
 Constantine converted after seeing an omen, a cross in the sky, that he
interpreted as meaning his conversion would result in winning an
important battle in 312 CE

Issues the Edict of Milan in 313 CE legalizing Christianity within the Roman
Empire
 This allowed for the spread of Christianity which will effect the western
world for centuries to come and even into modern times.
6.4- The Early Christian Church
 Early Christian Church
 The Christian church began as small close-knit groups and
became more complex as time passed
 The Eucharist is an example of a ceremony honoring the last
supper that increased the complexity of the church
 As the church grew an administrative structure was developed
bishops to oversee church affairs and had authority over other
priests
 By 300’s heads of the largest and oldest congregations were called
patriarchs and had authority over bishops
 Later the patriarchs of Rome became the pope who became the
figurehead of the entire Christian church

The rise of Christianity
 Knowledge Check Point
 What branch of Judaism was vocal about overthrowing Roman
rule?
 What were the teachings of Jesus of Nazareth?
 Why did authorities arrest Jesus and sentence him to death?
 What do Christians believe happened to Jesus after he died?
 How did Christianity spread throughout the Roman world?
 How did Constantine help Christianity gain a firm foothold in the
Roman Empire?
 What was the early Christian church like?
 Why was Paul a key figure in the early history and development of
Christianity?
 What types of officials developed in the early Christian church?
ASSIGNMENT
 Study the selections on page 192 under “Document
Based Investigation, Rome’s Legacy”. After you have
read and studied the documents, you will answer the
Reading Like a Historian question for Document 14. Then you will need to write a one page response
explaining Rome’s legacy. You will need to use
evidence from these selections and from Chapter 6.