INTRODUCTION
The political, intellectual, and religious contributions of the historical era that preceded the incarnation of Christ call attention to the words spoken by Paul in Galatians, “When the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son.” The religious preparations for the advent of the Messiah and the subsequent rapid emergence of Christianity were brought about politically by the Romans and intellectually by the Greeks, while the religious contribution of the Jews was more intimate because of heredity. “In the period of Christianity’s birth and during the first three centuries of its existence, conditions were more favorable for its spread through the Mediterranean world than at any other time in the ancient or medieval eras.” Christianity’s remarkable rise to prominence from its inception as a small sect of Judaism in the first century seems to be a divinely orchestrated occurrence
ROMAN INFLUENCE
From humble beginnings as a city-state in Italy to eventually stretching across Europe and much of Central Asia and North Africa at its zenith, the Empire of Rome has earned its place in history as the launching pad of Christianity. The influence of Rome on Christianity is multifaceted, but predominately political.
At the height of the empire around 200 A.D., there was a period of great peace known as
Roman Peace or “Pax Romana.” Initiated under Caesar Augustus, this era was a time of
cultural and economic growth. “With its borders secure and a stable central government, the
Roman Empire enjoyed a period of prosperity, technological advance, great achievements in the
arts, and flourishing trade and commerce.”
As the empire widened, imperial power extended throughout the Mediterranean, an...
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...aul stated, the fullness of time had been reached in a myriad of respects to allow for the rapid spread of the gospel message and its subsequent acceptance and proliferation. The government had been established, relative peace reigned, the infrastructure was developed, the current philosophies and religions were failing to provide ultimate meaning, and the language was fairly universal. The kindling had been prepared to rapidly ignite and flame high once the missions from Jerusalem began. Once that flame had been lit, nothing would ever stop it. Christianity and Judaism are the only religions to survive to the present day from that time period. “For the Lord of hosts has planned, and who can frustrate it? And as for His out-stretched hand, who can turn it back?” Clearly, the Lord advances His purposes according to His timing, and history stands witness to this.
The Imperium Romanum (Roman Empire) was a vast domain containing large territorial holdings in Europe and the Mediterranean. Beyond the empire however consisted of barbarous nations that were a constant threat to the Roman boundaries. For this reason, it was necessary for well-functioning frontier policies to be administrated and sustained to protect the outskirts of the empire from invasion. During the Julio-Claudian dynasty both Tiberius and Claudius established many effective frontier policies during their Principates. In addition to securing the frontiers, both also provided stability in the empire through the maintenance of the Pax Romana (the peace of Rome), which was established during the reign of Augustus.
However, Rome entered into a long series of decline beginning with the death of Marcus Aurelius in AD 180. Meanwhile Marcus Aurelius instead of accommodate another successor he made a crucial mistake of naming his son Commodus as an emperor. Confronting this time of problems Rome desired a good and devoted leader. As a substitute of the carefree that Commodus was. The Roman Empire fell in AD 476 to Barbarians invaders as a result of the fall of Rome. This period of time became known as the “crisis of the third century.” At that time the empire was surrounded by economic, military, and politic problems.
From 300-600 CE The Roman Empire allowed new religions to be formed and universalized. The Religion that was associated with The Roman empire was Christianity. Christianity became the religion of Rome because of a man named Constantine who allowed Christianity to spread and flow throughout the empire create a harmony throughout the people. Constantine allowed for the Roman officials to adopt Christianity and this led to the building of the Constantinople. Christianity had basilicas which were opulent churches that were open to all which meant any person could go there allowing Christianity to be very universal. Christianity was also very appealing because the worshiped deity walked on land with the people. Christianity split and became the Roman Catholic church which consisted
The rise of Christianity in Rome did not come easily. It came with much destruction and death. The spark of Christianity in Rome came from an appearance of Martyrs in Rome. Martyrs were people that were executed for going against the common beliefs of pagan (polytheistic) ways. (Tignor, 2011, p. 286) Because of these awful executions, Christianity is said to be based off of “the blood of martyrs.” One of their main ways of spreading Christianity was through the sharing of their writings and by 300 CE there was an exceptional amount of book production throughout Rome. (Tignor, 2011, p. 289) “Christianity operated as one among many minority religions in the Roman Empire, and on several occasions experienced widespread persecution, especially under the emperors Nero (r. 54–68), Decius (r. 249–251), and Diocletian (r. 284–305). However, the situation changed radically under the emperor Constantine (r. 306–337), who in 313 issued the Edict of Milan that made Christianity a legitimate religion in the empire.” (Melton, 2010, p. 634)
Christianity became more prevalent in Roman society as time went on because it appealed to Rome and what Roman ideals were. In the beginning Romans were skeptical of changing religion, but as the years went by, the Romans adopted and changed. Christianity appealed to the Roman ideals, as it gave certain perks that their current polytheistic religion did not offer to them. The emperors of Rome had many different views on Christianity; some emperors encouraged change, and others were more traditional and wanted to stick to their current, polytheistic religion. Roman views on Christianity have changed drastically from the early years of the Roman Empire to the 4th century, as well as its appeal to the ordinary Roman citizen.
The Roman Empire is known as one of the most powerful and influential empires the world has ever seen. At it’s height, this Empire had peace, economic prosperity and was expanding. Roman cities contributed to a fair amount of this success because they contributed to many advances during Pax Romana and united the empire. After the fall of the Empire, Christianity survived because although the empire separated into many kingdoms they were still being influenced by the religion.
Christianity developed with Jesus of Nazareth (6 BCE- 29 CE). He was born during the reign of Augustus Caesar. He practiced Christianity from 26 CE to 29 CE. He was the Son of God and the Redeemer of all Mankind. The Romans viewed him as someone “rocking the boat” with what was already a nation of the religiously obsessed. Eventually h...
The Roman Empire dominated much of Europe, Asia Minor, and parts of Northern Africa for nearly five hundred years. The Roman Empire lasted from 27 BC to 476 AD and is credited with being the world’s greatest superpower. The Roman Empire was known for their wealth, which was gained from conquest, their citizens, who lived in luxury, and their military, which was extensive and well trained. There was not an outside force strong enough to bring down an Empire so large and so powerful. In the end, it was the Roman Empire itself that led to its demise. Over the last three hundred years of Imperial rule the Empire was slowly crumbling.
The era of the Pax Romana – though still a period of time filled with civil war and conquests in an attempt to expand the empire – was an overall period of stability for Roman society. During this time the Roman people knew their Emperor was an unwavering political powerhouse with an ability to run the Empire efficiently. In addition to having an efficient political leader, Rome had a strong military force stable enough to protect them from outside forces. The security of the Pax Romana period allowed Romans to focus on politics, culture, and technology providing them the opportunity to progress and flourish as a society.
For those who are interested in learning about history, the Roman Empire and its civilization were one of the most interesting spotlights in the human history. The Roman Empire existed throughout a hundreds-years timeline, officially since 27 BC under the reign of Emperor Augustus. However, to learn how this great empire rose up, they have to back to the “the early Rome and the Republic” period. In this period, these events happened orderly, from the rise of Rome in the Italian peninsula that led to creating the Roman republic, the conflicts with the Carthage Empire, the conquest of the Mediterranean and it ended with the fall of the Roman Republic.
After years of fighting and civil wars, order was finally established throughout the Roman empire during the first century AD with the rule of Augustus. Peace and prosperity followed with the reign of Augustus and with the emperors that came into control after him, and it was during this time that Roman architecture began to move away from the traditional Hellenistic and Greek influences and generate its own style.
First, the rise of Christianity was a major event that affected many cultures, customs, and especially politics. In the
Church History in Plain Language is written by Bruce L. Shelley. This work focuses on the history of Christianity from 6 B.C. to the current period. It covers some of Christianity’s greatest events, theologians, and the various subsection of Christianity. Other than the events leading up to the death of Jesus, I had very little knowledge of Christianity’s history. After reading through the book, I have gained understanding on the Christian Councils, scholasticism, Christendom, and modern trends of Christianity.
Factors Which Led to the Spread of Christianity in the Roman Empire Christianity was not born in a vacumn. There were many social, geographical, historical and religious issues prevailing at the time of Christ and all of which were favorable to the spread of Christianity. Geograpicly, Christianity came into being in the Meditation world, the largest of the various centers of civilization at that time. Israel stands almost central to the five continents, dividing the east and west.
The rise of Christianity in western civilization is arguably among the most important memories in history. There is no denying what the spread of Christianity has done for the world, for better or worse. Its impact on western civilizations is unrivaled and unprecedented. Christianity slowly became something for many individuals to turn to; in times of hurt it provided comfort, in times of pleasure it gave thanks. The will and belief for salvation has driven individuals to be better, and to have a reference while in need.