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Ch 6 Sec 4 The Rise of Christianity

I. Religious Diversity in the Early Empire

A. Mystery Religions

1. The cult of Isis originated in Egypt and offered

women equal status as men

2. Mithraism worshipped the Persian god Mithras, who

championed good over evil and offered life after death(favored by Roman soldiers)

B. Religious Toleration

1. Rome generally tolerated the varied religious traditions

2. If citizens were loyal and honored the Roman gods,

they were allowed to worship other gods as they pleased3. Most people of this time were polytheistic

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C. Divisions in Judea

1. By 63 B.C., the Romans had conquered Judea,

where most Jews of the time lived2. The Romans excused the monotheistic Jews

from worshipping Roman gods

3. During the Hellenistic age, many Jews absorbed

Greek ideas

a.)Conservative Jews rejected these influencesand called for strict obedience to Jewish law

and traditions

4. Zealots They called on their fellow Jews to

revolt against Rome and reestablish anindependent state

5. Some Jews believed that a messiah (anointed

king sent by God) would soon appear to lead

Jewish people to freedom

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y D. Jewish Revolt

1. In A.D. 66, Roman forces crushed the rebels,

captured Jerusalem, and destroyed the Jewish

temple

2. Thousands of Jews were killed in the fighting

while many others were enslaved

3. Jews survived in scattered areas around theMediterranean

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II. Jesus and His Message

yA. Life of Jesus 1. Born about 4 BC, in Bethlehem, near Jerusalem

2. An angel told his mother, Mary, that she would give

birth to the messiah

3. Jesus worshipped God and followed Jewish law

4. Around the age of 30 he began preaching to

villagers near the Sea of Galilee

y A.) to help him, he recruited apostles (a person sent forth)

close followers

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B. The Message1. His teachings were rooted in Jewish tradition

2. He believed in 1 God and accepted the 10

Commandments

3. He also preached new beliefs and called himself the Son

of God

4. Jesus declared his mission was to bring spiritual

salvation and eternal life to anyone who would believe in

him

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y C. Death on the Cross

1. Some Jews welcomed Jesus while others regarded

him as a dangerous troublemaker

2. Roman authorities worried that he would lead the

Jews in a rebellion against Roman rule

3. After his arrest, he was tried and condemned to be

crucified

4. Rumors spread that he had risen from the dead andascended into heaven

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III. Spread of Christianity Apostles

spread Jesus message; Peter(apostle)

said to have established Christianity inthe city of Rome

yA. Work of Paul

1. Had been among those who persecuted Jesus

but had a vision in which Jesus spoke to him. Hethen began spreading the teachings of Jesus

2. His missionary work set Christianity on the

road to becoming a world religion

3. He journeyed around the world and set upchurches

4. He wrote letters in which he explained difficult

doctrines, judged disputes, and expanded

Christian teaching

y A.) These letters are part of the New Testament

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y B. Persecution

1. Roman officials suspected Christians of

disloyalty to Rome because they refused to make

sacrifices to the emperor or to honor the Romangods

2. Thousands of Christians became martyrs

people who suffer or die for their beliefs

y C. Reasons for Christianitys Appeal 1. People found comfort in Jesus message of

love

2. Missionaries like Paul added ideas from Plato,

the Stoics, and other Greek thinkers to Jesusmessage

3. People were impressed by the strength of

Christians belief

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y D. Triumph

1. The persecution of Christians finally ended inA.D. 313 when the emperor Constantine issued

the Edict of Milan

y a.) It granted freedom of worship to all citizens of the

Roman Empire

2. 80 years later the emperor Theodosius madeChristianity the official religion of the Roman

Empire

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IV. Early Christian Church

yA. Patterns of Life and Worship 1. Christians believed that through baptism their

sins were forgiven by the grace of God

2. Members were considered equals

3. Each Sunday, Christians gathered for aceremony of thanksgiving to God

4. The baptized ate bread and drank wine in a

sacred meal called the Eucharist

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y B. Role of Women

1. Women often led the way to Christianity 2. They served as teachers and administrators

y C. Structure of the Church

1. Each Christian community had its own priest

(only men were priests) 2. Bishops Church official responsible for all

Christians in an area called a diocese

3. Patriarch title given to the bishops of the

most important cities

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y D. Divisions in the Church

1. There was rivalry among the patriarchs 2. Bishops of Rome were called popes and

claimed greater authority over the other bishops

3. In the Greek-speaking east, the patriarchs

thought power should be equal

4. Heresies beliefs said to be contrary to official

Church teachings

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y E. Theology and Scholarship

1. Theology talk or discourse about God inGreek

2. Clement and Origen leading scholars; both

lived in Alexandria

y A.)Origen believed that he and other Christians could

reach a deeper understanding of Jesus teachingsthrough reflection

3. Augustine

y A.)bishop of Hippo in N. Africa

y B.) He combined Greco-Roman learning with Christian

doctrine

y C.) The City of God- he said the City of God was the

community of those who lived God and would one day

live with him in heaven