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Jesus was born as a Jew and his message was directed to other Jews. While we know he lived, not much was written about him while he was alive. New Testament writings are the only source for information about his life. These writings were written decades after his death. Many scholars believe Jesus was part of the Essene sect that was around at that time. He began his ministry at the age of 30 and taught for three years before being crucified. He was known for performing miracles and healing.
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Leader of Jesus Disciples therefore leader of the church after his death.
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Previously known as Saul (5-46CE) before becoming a follower of Jesus's teachings. Previously Saul was known for persecuting followers of Jesus and many were skeptical of him at first. Paul later became a great leader who wrote letters on the conduct of the church and spread the gospel to all (gentiles). He is responsible for calling Jesus the "Christ" and because of him people began to see Jesus as God or the son of God. The church was able to split from Judaism because of these views.
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Began under rule of Nero. Loss of life was small in scale. Christians were blamed for everything that went wrong in Rome. Denying Christianity set you free from persecution.
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Led by extreme Jewish group called the Zealots. This rebellion ended with the Romans destruction of a Temple.
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Written around 80 years after Jesus death. Before then these were stories told by word of mouth.
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Caused by rebellion led by Zealots in which Jerusalem was totally destroyed. Jews would not return till 1948 when Israel was established.
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Believed Rome was complex and could not be ruled from one place and by one centralized bureaucracy. Appointed Maximian as co-emperor in charge of the western half of the empire.
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Under the rule of Diocletian, Christianity suffered many brutal deaths. This did not hurt Christianity but helped strengthen followers faith.
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Issued by the ruler Constantine and granted legal toleration of Christianity. This allowed Christianity to grow without fear of persecution.
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Arranged by the Constantine (ruler of Rome) in order to establish common belief system between all the churches. This can be seen as Christianity's declaration of faith. Many people will die for contradicting these views.
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Responsible for developing monastery rules such as no property and manual labor.
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Known for translating the bible into Latin. Translation known as "The Vulgate".
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Bishop of Milan who urged clerics to avoid wealth and become more humble. Also believed that Emperors should not judge Bishops saying " The Emperor is within the church, not above it".
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Bishop of Hippo who wrote "The City of God" and an autobiography called "Confessions". He struggled with concept of good and evil. Believed that Christ death did not guarantee that everyone will go to heaven. Believed that Pagan philosophy contained some truth and that this truth should be adopted into Christianity.
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Constantine's nephew, and member of his court, who abandoned Christianity and attempted to revive traditional Roman piety. This attempt died with him in battle with the Persians.
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Declared by Theodosius which led to the destruction of Greek and Roman Temples. This stopped religious persecution for Christians but turned the tables to persecution of Jews, Pagans, and others who differed from their belief system. Many Pagan writings were destroyed.
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Group of non Christians who blamed Christians for not following ancient Gods. For this reason Gods had abandoned Rome.
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Romulus became the last western Rome emperor. This made Constantinople not only the new capital of Rome but "New Rome"
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Believed monks must study Bible in order to fully participate in a life of worship.
