Consequently, Christians were able to construct churches throughout the Roman Empire. All of a sudden, the religion that was basis for persecution has now become the official religion of the empire. The sudden acceptance of Christianity as the religion of the Roman Empire presented many challenges. The early Christians didn’t have a formal religious system, rather, they followed the teachings of Jesus in the form of Gospels.…
The Roman emperor Constantine ruled from 306-307 A.D. He was born in the province of Moesia Superior at Naissus. After his father’s death in 306 A.D, the soldiers proclaimed him Augustus. Constantine had a son, Crispus, with his mistress before marring Fausta in 307 A.D. In 306 A.D, the senate and Praetorian Guard in Rome Proclaimed Maxentius emperor in the lower rank of princeps. Constantine and Maxentius did not trust each other even though they were brothers in law.…
Constantine’s victory at the Milvian Bridge over the fellow but rival ruler of the Western Roman empire, Maxentius and his army, became a great triumph for the consolidation and growth of Constantine’s power and with it the development of Christianity. David Potter, author of Constantine the Emperor, argues that Flavius Valerius Aurelius Constantinus Augustus, or more commonly known as Constantine, “is best known as the emperor of Rome who converted to Christianity and in doing so made it possible for Christianity to become a world religion.” With the growth of Christianity Potter’s assertion is hard to argue – Constantine does indeed deserve his place as the most authoritative ancient force responsible for initially allowing the incubation of the vast faithful following of Christianity to develop to the scale it is today. Further, Potter states with this action that Constantine “changed the modern world” with his acceptance of Christianity (and all other religions) more than any other Roman emperor.…
Some thought to distract from the suspicions, Nero began rounding Christians up. Christians, at this time, were gathered, prosecuted and executed. Some Christians were torn apart by dogs. Some Christians were thrown to the lions. Some Christians were even burnt alive like they were a human torch.…
The Roman culture tolerated most religions expect for Christianity, which it sought to terminate through persecution. The reasons for persecuting Christians was to send a clear message of conformity in the name of patriotism, provide a diversion and as a form of entertainment. Roman authorities viewed the belief in one true God as dangerous, having the potential to ignite strong motivations towards challenging and undermining the self appointed divine rule of the Emperor and unmasking the unstable government. Christianity then became a scapegoat for all the problems of the Empire. As the Romans were being battered from several fronts by invading armies, placing the blame on Christians who were deemed nonconformists seemed like the best response…
“Over 30 years, Paul clocked up around 10,000 miles, traveling across the Roman empire.” The epic transformation that Christianity went through in Rome was shocking. Christians were very strong through their struggles. Christianity transformed from a persecuted sect to the Roman state religion because of Paul and his apostles, the martyrs, and the emperors. Paul and his apostles helped Christianity spread throughout Rome by preaching and sharing the religion with non-Christians.…
Constantine embarked on a journey for his military career in which he traveled over the Roman Empire from Palestine to Britain, Spain, and Gaul. Before Constantine was emperor the early church was fierce with persecutions by the roman government, but throughout that time the Roman Empire was still growing and spreading. During this time many Christians lost their lives and many important documents were destroyed. He was convinced that he needed a more powerful aid than just his military forces could give him he need a higher divine power, so he sought the help of god. Constantine issued the edict of Milan declaring Christianity to be a legal religion providing hope and safety for the Christians.…
Rome was the most dominating and powerful government the world has ever seen. However, Rome is no longer a government, now it’s only a memory. In this essay I, will explain why agree that the spoils of victory were the downfall of Rome. I will explain how the military, politics, and the economy contributed to the spoils of victory which ultimately lead to the downfall of the Roman empire.…
“But finally under Constantine Christianity was accepted as the religion of the people and of the state. A large part of the empire was already Christian, and the recognition of the new religion gave stability to the new government.” (‘Outlines of Roman History’ by William C. Morey 1900, Ch.28, 2.Adoption of Christianity). The quote is a secondary source written by an author named William C.Morey in 1900 recounting how Christianity had rapidly spread throughout the Roman Empire. This establishment of Christianity was made shortly after the long and bloody span of time that Christian persecution was frequent and feared due to the many Roman Emperors who opposed this religious belief and initially thought of the Christian preachers to be a troublesome group of rebels though they also felt threatened.…
Beginning in AD 303, Diocletian’s persecution of Christians was the worst and final persecution in the Roman Empire. Diocletian dictated that the Church at Nicomedia be demolished and the scriptures burned. Christian men, women, and children were gathered together and told to offer a collective sacrifice to pagan gods. If they refused, they were executed.…
Constantine is one of the most powerful men in Rome, he became the emperor in 306. His conversion to Christianity had a huge impact on the Church and the religion itself. Constantine had a vision right before Milvian Bridge battle. He and his army saw a cross of light in the sky above the sun with words that are in Greek. The words were In hoc signo vinces, which translates to In this sign conquer.…
An argument could be made that the ‘Holy’ Roman Empire shaped the way the world is now, but the Fall of Rome was inevitable for three reasons which can be seen in the demise of most great empires. Firstly, the Romans expanded their empire too far from their capital, secondly the creation of enemies due to Rome’s lack of leadership resulted in the land being overrun by foreign nations, and lastly, due to the weakening of the Roman legions, corruption and political instability played a role in the ending of the Roman Empire. During its reign as the world’s foremost superpower, Rome overexpanded and overspent on its military. At its peak, the Roman Empire was 2 million square miles and it stretched across Western Europe, encompassing parts of…
At 1st Christianity was just looked at as another sector of Judaism it wasn’t until the second century that it became a solidified religion. Some factors that were involved with this included the disciples of Jesus and Paul going around the known world spreading the news of Christ. They would travel along trade routes so like goods moved so did Christianity. Some of the factors that lead to the conversion was that many people were able to relate to this new religions because it was a lot like some of the secret religions of Rome. Along with this new religion being non- discrimatory played a factor because you could be rich or poor and it didn’t matter who you were.…
The introduction of Christianity into the Roman Empire was not formidable. Tens of thousands of Christians were severely persecuted, imprisoned, and martyred in what can be viewed as a religion-fueled genocide in Ancient Rome. Eventually, as Empire grew to accept and welcome Christians, the religion spread like wildfire. It is widely accepted that the establishment and prosperity of Christianity in the western world helped to slow the inevitable fall of the Roman Empire. The impact that Christianity had on the Empire remains to be visible, particularly when viewed from political, social, and economic aspects.…
After the persecutions, the faith kept growing and many people became Christians. “The occasional persecution of Christians by the Romans in the first and second centuries had not stopped the growth of Christianity” (McGraw-Hill Networks, 153). That sentence shows that Christianity affected the common life of Rome because many people in the Empire turned to God for a life worth living. Ultimately, Christianity was an important factor in the ancient world affecting many people and how we live…