Rise of Christianity in the Roman Empire - Henry Wilson

Roman Rule of Israel (begins)

64 BCE

-The first war between the Jews and Romans started in 66 CE
-In the Siege of Jerusalem, Romans destroyed the Temple in Jerusalem and, according to some accounts, stole artifacts from it
-After the Jewish-Roman wars, Hadrian tried to erase historical ties of the Jews with the region
-After the Jewish-Roman wars, many Jews were sold into slavery
-The Jews that were not sold as slaves were either killed or forced to flee

Jesus of Nazareth

6 BCE

-He was Jewish and grew up in Nazareth
-His parents were extremely religious
-The Romans condemned Jesus to death in 30 CE
-His last name was not actually Christ
-He was baptized in 27 CE
Jesus of Nazareth was born sometime between 6 and 4 BCE and died in 30 CE

Birth of Paul of Tarsus

4 BCE

-Born is what is now Turkey
-A leader of the first generation of Christians
-Also know as Paul the Apostle and Saint Paul
-Considered to be most important person after Jesus in the history of Christianity
-Jewish name was Saul of Tarsus
Paul of Tarsus died sometime between 62-64 CE

Great Fire of Rome

64

-Emperor Nero blamed this fire on Christians
-The fire burned for 6 days and destroyed over 70% of the city
-Some ancient historians blamed the fire on Emperor Nero
-Modern historians blame the fire on poorly constructed wooden apartments
-Surprisingly, there were only 6 verified deaths in the fire
Ended July 23, 64 CE

Perpetua

181

-One of the most revered saints in the history of the church
-She was from Carthage
-She was martyred at 22, and she had an infant son at the time
-Her father was the only non-Christian in the family
-Her diary is the oldest preserved written work by a Christian woman
Perpetua died on March 7th 203 CE

Birth of Constantine the Great

272

-Constantine the Great ruled as emperor between 306 AD and 337 AD
-Along with Licinius, Constantine made the Edict of Milan in 313
-Constantine's birth name was Flavius Valerius Constantinus.
-Constantine first became a Christian because the night before an important battle, he supposedly saw a cross in the sky that led him to victory
-Constantine also founded Constantinople
Constantine the Great died May 22, 337 CE

Great Persecution of 303 CE

303

-The Great Persecution was the last persecution of Christians in the Roman Empire
-The Emperors Maximian, Constantius, Galerius, and Diocletian put out multiple laws restricting the rights of Christians
-These laws also demanded that Christians adhere to traditional religious practices
-Emperors before Diocletian were reluctant to write laws that were generally against Christians
-The start of the Persecution was when Diocletian ordered a newly built church to be destroyed
Ended 311 CE

Battle of Milvian Bridge

312

-Constantine the Great saw a cross in the sky before this battle, which supposedly brought him to victory
-After this battle, Christianity was established as the official religion of the empire
-This battle was a crucial moment in the civil war that was going on at the time
-By the time this battle happened, Rome was gradually falling apart
-Maxentius intended to make a strategic withdrawal, but that decision ended up costing him the battle

Edict of Milan

313

-Political agreement between Constantine I and Licinius
-Gave freedom for the people to worship whatever deity they wanted
-Gave Christians legal rights
-This was the first edict that actually succeeded in establishing religious toleration
-The Edict of Milan started the path to Christianity becoming the official religion of the empire

Birth of Emperor Theodosius

347

-His first goal as Emperor was to rebuild the army
-He ruled as Emperor from 379-395 CE
-He suppressed paganism
-He established a universal norm for the Christian orthodox
-His death was a surprise because he appeared to have recovered from the sickness that killed him
Emperor Theodosius died on January 17 395 CE