Transcript Chapter 16 Christianity

The Life of Jesus
• Born in Bethlehem, raised in
Nazareth
• Studied scriptures in Hebrew
• He traveled around preaching to
people in everyday language using
parables.
Paul
• Small groups of people who
believed in Christ were meeting in
Antioch, Corinth, Rome and other
trading cities.
• Jews were waiting for a messiah to
save them; refused to worship the
Roman emperor and paying high
taxes
• Paul taught Christianity to gentiles.
• Crucified, like lower criminals,
outside of Jerusalem
• He wrote letters to guide members
of new communities.
• His resurrection convinced his
disciples that he was the Son of
God.
• Paul was the first missionary for
Christianity.
• He spent his life spreading the
Christian message throughout the
Roman world.
The Roman Empire helped
Christianity spread:
Romans had issues with those who
practiced Christianity:
• Pax Romana allowed
missionaries to move
across Roman lands
Christians did not want to
serve in the army or hold
public office.
• The system of roads made
travel easy.
• Most people spoke Latin or
Greek which made it easier
for missionaries to talk to
them.
Christians criticized Roman
festivals and games.
Christianity taught all people
were equal in heaven if they
followed Jesus’ teachings.
Romans blamed Christians
for disasters.
Christians were not allowed
to use Roman burial grounds.
Christianity
spread
throughout
the Roman
Empire:
Christianity
appealed to the poor
and slaves who led
bad lives.
Romans admired
the courage of
Christians.
Romans grew
tired of war.
Constantine I
Saw a flaming cross in sky
In hoc signo vinces - “In this sign
you shall conquer”
Edict of Milan gave religious
freedom to all people.
Built churches
Used government money for
Christian schools
Theodosius
Followed Constantine I
Made Christianity the official
religion of the Roman Empire
Church Structure
Church organization followed the
Roman Empire’s structure of
government.
Each church was called a parish.
Priests were the leaders.
Groups of parishes were called a
diocese. A bishop headed each.
The most important bishops were
called archbishops. They led
churches in large cities.
The five leading archbishops were
called patriarchs.
Pope Archbishop of Rome claimed
power as the head of the Church
In 1054 AD Latin speaking and Greek
speaking churches split.
Roman Catholic
Church
Greek Othodox
Church
New Testament
Christian scriptures
Jesus left no written records
Four others wrote accounts of
his life – Matthew, Mark, Luke
and John (and Paul)
Heresy is belief that does not
follow Church doctrine
Fathers of the Church
Scholarly writers
Monasteries
Hermits lived in isolation
Jerome
Translated the Old and New
Testaments into Latin
Basil suggested Christians form
religious communities
Vulgate became the official Bible of
the Roman Catholic Church
Men  monks  monasteries
Augustine
Women  nuns  convents
Benedict drew up a set of rules
for religious
Wrote City of God
1.Gave up personal possessions
Rome’s fall was a result of the rich
and corruption; not Christianity
2.Could not marry
3.Obey orders of
4.Pray seven times daily