Rise of Christianity in the Roman Empire

Roman Rule of Israel Begins

64 BCE

There was an early Roman General by the name of Pompey. In one of his campaigns, he conquered Jerusalem in 63 BC, and Syria in 64 BC. The great Julius Ceaser took over Alexandria in 47 BC, and eventually defeated the General Pompey in 45 BC. This overall hurt the spread of Christianity because now all of the regions that had practiced it were now under Roman control.

Jesus of Nazareth

1 CE

Jesus of Nazareth is now also known as Jesus Christ, the son of Joseph. He later became the main center of Christianity, and had many followers. In 30 AD, Jesus was crucified on the cross. Romans crucified him for being a leader of Jews.

Paul of Tarsus

5

Paul of Tarsus, was a man in Ancient Rome who taught teachings from the bible. He was also called, "Paul the Apostle." He was considered one of the most important people in the Apostolic age. He helped spread the teachings of Christianity to a ton of different people, which helped the overall growth. He was born in 5 AD.

Great Fire of Rome

64

The Great Fire of Rome happened in 64 AD. The fire lasted a total of six days and it burned most of the city. The emperor at the time was Nero, who was supposedly mentally unstable. He also wanted 1/3 of the city destroyed so he could rebuild the city how he wanted. When the fire was over, it had been discovered that there was an area in the city, mainly a Christian area, that was untouched by the fire. Nero blamed the fire on them, and used their Christianity as a scapegoat.

Perpetua

203

Perpetua was a Christian woman who lived in North Africa, and was imprisoned for being a Christian. She carried around a diary with her and that's how her death was marked. Nobody knows when she was born, but died in 203 AD in the Colosseum.

Great Persecution of 303 CE

303

Last, but most severe persecution of Christians.In 303, multiple emperors has issued legal rights that had taken away many rights of Christians.The Edict of Milan about 10 years later had ended the Persecution. Christians were fed to the beasts in public for entertainment,.

Battle of Milvian Bridge

312

Constantine the Great and Maxentius were in a civil war of Rome. Constantine had a vision of the cross, and that symbol would help him win, so he painted that on the shields of his men, and ended up inning the battle. The defeat of Maxentius was the turning point of Constantine to Christianity.

Constantine the Great

313

Constantine was an emperor in Rome who led from 306-337 AD. He was the first emperor to go to Christianity. In 313 AD, he proclaimed the of the Edict of Milan. The Edict of Milan was an agreement to treat Christians equally within Rome. Constantine was also the one who had had a vision of the cross, so he had that painted on his soldiers shields in the civil war against Maxentius. He ended up wining the civil war.

Edict of Milan

313

The Edict of Milan was a proclamation by Constantine the Great to treat Christians equally. This was the main event that made Christianity legal. The Edict of Milan was finally made in February of 313 AD. It was an argument that had concluded in Milan, and that's why its called the Edict of Milan.

Emperor Theodosius

347

The emperor used his powers mainly for Christianity, and he was a man of god. He put his powers he had in the church, and was a big step in the way of Rome adopting Christianity.