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Section 4: Rise of Christianity

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Early Empire Includes Diverse Religions Rome tolerated the varied religious traditions of its subjects; as long as citizens showed loyalty by honoring Roman gods and acknowledging the divine spirit of the emperor, the government allowed them to worship other gods as they pleased. Right: Cult of Mithras Good over evil and offered life after death Left: Cult of Isis Started in Egypt and offered women equal status with men

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Divisions Arise in Judea By 63 B.C. the Romans had conquered Judea, where most Jews of the time lived. Romans allowed Jews to practice their monotheistic religion and did not force them to worship Roman gods. During the Hellenistic age, many Jews absorbed Greek customs and ideas. Conservative Jews were concerned about the weakening of their religion and called for strict obedience to Jewish laws and traditions. Zealots called on Jews to revolt against Rome and reestablish an independent state. Some Jews believed that a messiah, or anointed king sent by God would soon appear to lead their people to freedom.

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Jewish Rebellion Is Defeated In A.D. 66, discontent ended in rebellion Four years later, Roman forces crushed the rebels, captured Jerusalem, and destroyed the Jewish temple When revolts broke out a century later, Roman armies leveled Jerusalem and thousands of Jews were killed, enslaved, and transported to many parts of the empire

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Jesus Proclaims His Teachings Jesus was Jewish Almost all the information we have about the life of Jesus comes from the Gospels (the first four books of the New Testament of the Christian Bible) Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John are credited with writing the accounts of the life of Jesus.

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Jesus Begins Preaching Jesus was born about 4 B.C. in Bethlehem (near Jerusalem) The Gospels say: an angel told Mary, that she would give birth to the messiah. Grew up in Nazareth, worshiped God and followed Jewish law May have worked as a carpenter At the age of 30, according to the Gospels, he began preaching to villagers near the Sea of Galilee. Performed miracles of healing Used parables, short stories with a simple moral lesson, to communicate his ideas

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Apostles He recruited 12 of his disciples, or close followers, to help him in his mission. After three years, Jesus and his disciples went to Jerusalem to spread his message there.

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Jesus Teaches New Beliefs Jesus teachings were firmly rooted in Jewish traditions: believed in one God, Ten Commandments, preached obedience to the laws of Moses, defended the teachings of Jewish prophets. But he also called himself the Son of God. Many people believed him to be the messiah. His mission was to bring spiritual salvation and eternal life to anyone who believed in him.

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Condemned to Death According to the Gospels, Jesus traveled to Jerusalem near the time of Passover (celebration of the exodus). Romans feared Jesus to be a threat to Roman rule. He was betrayed by Judas and arrested by the Romans, tried, and condemned to death by crucifixion. But Jesus did not die, he had risen from death and ascended into heaven.

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The Message of Christianity Spreads The disciples were given the responsibility of spreading Jesus teachings; at first they only preached to the Jews of Judea. Some Jews accepted the teachings that Jesus was the messiah, or the Christ (Greek word: Anointed One)soon they were called Christians. Gradually the disciples went to preach in Jewish communities throughout the Roman world. The apostle Peter established Christianity in the city of Rome.

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Paul Never met Jesus He had persecuted Jesus followers Had a vision of Jesus speaking to him; immediately joined the Christians and decided to spread Jesus teachings to gentiles (non-Jews) Journeyed around the Mediterranean and set up churches in Asia Minor and Greece In letters to the Christian communities, he explained difficult doctrines, judged disputes, and expanded Cristian teachings, emphasizing that Jesus had sacrificed his life out of love for humankind. He also stated that those who believed Jesus was the son of God and obeyed his teachings would achieve salvation (eternal life); His letters became part of the New Testament

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Christians are Oppressed Romans were not tolerant toward Christianity; Roman officials found the Christians disloyal to Rome because they refused to honor the emperor with sacrifices or ask the traditional gods to protect the Roman state. Met in secret = engaged in evil practices Nero (Roman ruler) blamed Christians for social and economic ills Christians who were killed in times of persecution became known as martyrs (people who suffer or die for their beliefs) Example: Peter and Paul

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Rome Embraces Christianity Persecution of Christians ended in A.D. 313 Emperor Constantine issued the Edict of Milan; granted freedom to worship to all citizens of the Roman empire. By the end of the century, emperor Theodosius (thee uh DOH shus)made Christianity the official religion of the Roman empire and repressed the practice of other faiths.

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Early Christian Church Develops To join the Christian community, a person had to be baptized, or blessed with holy water Through the rite of baptism, sins were forgiven by the grace of God Members of the community were considered equals brothers sisters

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Thanksgiving to God Each Sunday, Christians gathered for a ceremony of thanksgiving to God The baptized ate bread and drank wine in a sacred rite called the Eucharist. They did this in memory of Jesus, whose last supper was described in the Gospels.

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Structuring the Clergy Only men were eligible to become members of the Christian clergy (group of people who conduct Christian services) Each Christian community and its clergy were grouped together as a diocese Every diocese had its own priest Over the priest presided a bishop (high Church official responsible for everyone in his diocese) Bishops in the most important cities: Rome, Antioch, Alexandria, Jerusalem, and Constantinople gained greater authoritytook on the honorary title of patriarch Christian Church developed into a hierarchy (organization in which officials are arranged according to rank)

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Differences Arise Within the Church Rivalry among the patriarchs develop Bishops of Rome, came to be called popes; they began to claim authority over all other bishops The other four patriarchs felt that all five should share spiritual authority as equals The emergence of heresies (beliefs said to be contrary to official Church teachings) caused a division; to end disputes councils of church leaders met to decide official Christian teachings.

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First Letter to the Corinthians Around A.D. 51, Paul founded a Christian community in the city of Corinth. After he left, he wrote two letters to the newly converted Christians to encourage and guide them in their faith. In Pauls First Letter to the Corinthians, Paul declares that, for a Christian, love is more important than any other quality.

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The Byzantine Empire Constantinople sat at a crossroads of land and sea routes, and its great wealth came from trade.

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Constantine Creates a New Rome Eastern Roman empire became known as the Byzantine Empire; Constantinople will be the new capital of the empire. Named after Constantine. Emperors after Constantine built an elaborate system of land and sea walls to bolster its defenses Europes busiest marketplace Byzantine emperors and empresses lived in glittering splendor; dressed in silk, attended chariot races at the Hippodrome arena. Reminder of the citys glorious Roman heritage

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Justinian Byzantine empire peaks under the emperor Justinian; he ruled from 527 565. After riots and a devastating fire swept through Constantinople in 532, Justinian launched a program to make Constantinople grander than ever. The greatest achievement was rebuilding the church of Hagia Sophia (AH yee uh suh FEE uh) Justinian reformed the law; known as Justinians Code: Body of Civil Law By the 1100s Western Europe had modeled their laws on its principles Justinian was an autocrat (sole ruler with complete authority) Byzantine emperor also had power over the church.

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Hagia Sophia (AH yee uh suh FEE uh)

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Byzantine Christianity East (Byzantine) Kept the right to marry Rejected the popes claim to authority over all Christians Greek was the language of the church Chief holy day was Easter (day Jesus rose from the dead) Less emphasis on Christmas West Could not marry Respected the popes claim to authority over all Christians Latin was the language of the Church One of the chief holy days is Easter Another chief holy day is Christmas (birth of Jesus)

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Great Schism Dispute over use of icons (holy images) contributed to the split The Byzantine emperor outlawed the worship of icons (Ex: Jesus, Virgin Mary, Saints) In 1054, this along with other controversies provoked a schism (split) between eastern and western Christianity The Byzantine church became known as the Eastern or Greek Orthodox Church The western branch became known as the Roman Catholic Church Both sides treated each other as rivals instead of branches of the same faith

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Crisis and Collapse In 1453, Ottoman forces surrounded the city of Constantinople After a siege lasting two months, the Turks stormed the capital The ancient city was renamed Istanbul and became the capital of the Ottoman empire. Hagia Sophia (AH yee uh suh FEE uh) was turned into an Islamic house of worship and Istanbul soon emerged as a great center of Muslin culture.