The Rise of Christianity in the Roman Empire-History P.333

Roman Rule of Israel

64 BCE

Israel had been under Roman rule since they had conquered most of the known world. They had crucified Jesus Christ before they had conquered them however

Jesus of Nazareth

4 BCE

Jesus is the central figure of Christianity. He is believed to be the incarnation of God the son and how he had sacrificed himself in crucifixion to relieve our sins.

Paul of Tarsus

40

Paul was an early prosecutor of Christians until he had seen the resurrection of Jesus Christ and he then became a leader and believer in the Christian community. He was commonly known as Saint Paul. He established churches in Rome underground since Christianity was illegal.

The Great Fire of Rome

64

Emperor Nero was starting to crack down on Christians and he wanted the peoples support so he started the great fire the burned a lot of Rome. He then later blamed this fire on the Christian community and this started the first prosecutions.

Perpetua

190

Lived to 22 years old, Perpetua was put to death along with others at Carthage in the Roman province of Africa.She was married to a noblewoman and was an editor in early Christian texts

The Great Persecution

303

Emperors Diocletian and three later Emperors issued multiple edicts to reduce Christians legal rights. They started the most severe persecution of Christians in the Roman Empire. They were torched, mauled, sacrificed and tortured in the arenas for entertainment. The persecution lasted around 10 years

Constantine the Great

306

Constantine the Great was an Emperor who ruled Rome from 306-337 AD. He was the first Emperor to accept Christianity into Rome and he credited his win in battles to Jesus and created the Edict.

Battle of Milvian Bridge

312

The Battle of Milvian Bridge was a battle between Roman Emperors Constantine and Maxentius and marked the beginning of Constantine's conversion to Christianity. Constantine had a vision before the battle in which he saw a cross in the sky and the words, "In hoc signo vinces" and had a dream to put the first to letters of Christ on his shields. He did this and won the battle and gave all the credit to Christ.

Edict of Milan

313

One year after Constantine won the battle of Milvian Bridge and became emperor of Rome, he and Licinius issued the Edict of Milan which gave Christianity a legal status within Rome.

Emperor Theodosius

379

This Emperor was the last emperor of Rome to rule over both east and western halves of the Roman Empire. He issued decrees which made Nicene Christianity the official state church of the Roman Empire.