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Roman general Pompey established the Roman province of Syria in 64 BCE and conquered Jerusalem in 63 BCE. Jerusalem was just 10 km north to the birthplace of the center figure of Christianity, Jesus of Nazareth who was born in 4 BCE in Bethlehem. Jerusalem was a Jewish kingdom that became a client state of Rome, and later Pompey was defeated by Julius Caesar in 45 BCE after Caesar conquered Alexandria in 47 BCE.
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Jesus of Nazareth, also referred to as Jesus Christ, is a central figure in Christianity. Born in Bethlehem in the Roman Empire in 4 BCE, he was a Jewish religious leader and preacher who some branches of Christianity have regarded as God himself. Most Christians believe that he is the reincarnation of the Messiah (Christ) prophesied in the old testament. He was then crucified in 30 BCE as a Jewish victim of Roman violence. He was one of the thousands of Jews crucified in the Roman Empire.
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Born in ~4 BCE, Paul of Tarsus is known as the second most important figure in Christianity next to Jesus of Nazareth. The two were alive in the same time period, but are believed to have never met. In fact, Paul of Tarsus spent his time early on helping the the prosecution of Jewish Christians in Rome. He proceeded to later travel tens of thousands of miles along the Mediterranean to spread word of Jesus and Christianity.
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Some people believed that Emperor Nero had purposefully started the fire because the Senate would allow him to rebuild Rome the way that he wished to. The Christian area of Rome was left unharmed, giving Nero the opportunity to turn the blame away from himself and reflect it onto the Christians by saying they may have started the fire to fulfill a prophecy. This led to an even greater hatred towards Christians in Rome and the first organized prosecution of Christians in history.
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Perpetua was a Christian noblewoman arrested when Emperor Septimius Severus became determined to cripple Christianity. When her father came to her in prison, he told her to just deny that she was a Christian, but she refused to do so. She insisted on saying she was a Christian despite her father's begging and despite the fact that she had a baby to take care of, and was therefore prosecuted.
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A severe persecution of Christians in Rome under the rule of Emperors Diocletian, Maximian, Galerius, and Constantius who revoked all rights of the Christian citizens of Rome and forced them to follow the religions of Rome, or they would be sought out and persecuted like the many other Christians of that time who refused to comply with the requirements.
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The Roman Emperor who essentially put an end to the mass persecution of Christians and actually made Christianity a popular religion, all thanks to his vision, dream and victory in the Battle of Milvian Bridge.
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This was the battle that turned the tables for Christianity after Constantine claimed to have had a vision, then a dream that told him to put the "XP" symbol on the sheilds of his soldiers for battle and that if he did so, it would ensure his victory. Sure enough, with the labarum on their shields, the Battle of Milvian Bridge was won, and Constantine credited the victory to God.
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Roman emperors Constantine and Licinius signed a letter reinstating all rights back to the Christians. The letter proclaimed complete religious tolerance towards the Christians throughout Rome, and possibly even contributed to the rising of Christianity as it would be beneficial to be a Christian with the Edict of Milan in place.
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The final Roman Emperor to rule over both the western and eastern halves of the empire. He used his power as emperor to officially enforce orthodox Christianity throughout Rome, and ended up placing his power under the church, which still remains as a standard in parts of the world today.
