1. Origins of Christianity

2. Judea Under Roman Rule In 63 B.C.E the Romans took control of the Jewish Kingdom of Judea Zealots – Many Jews saw the Romans as foreigners who occupied their lands and treated them cruelly They hoped that God would send a Messiah – Messiah= specially chosen king who would save the Jews – Zealots Group of Jews who resisted the Romans by force

3. Jesus’ Life and Teaching During this period of upheaval, a Jewish man named Jesus of Nazareth lived and taught Early life – Most of what we know about Jesus comes form early Christian writings known as the Gospels Jesus was a descendant of the Jewish king David His birth was miraculous He was a carpenter

4. Jesus the teacher – Baptized by John – Began teaching from Hebrew scriptures – Traveled through Judea telling people that God would soon come to establish his kingdom – Champion of the poor – His closest followers began to wonder whether Jesus was the Messiah

5. Opposition, arrest, and death – Wend to Jerusalem around 33 C.E. to celebrate Passover – Roman authorities in Jerusalem worried about large holiday crowds and possible riots In response to these concerns Pontius Pilate had Jesus arrested, and crucified – Crucifixion= slow painful Roman method of execution where the victim is attached to a large wooden cross and left to hang until dead

6. The Resurrections – Jesus’ body was laid in a tomb and sealed – According to the Gospels some of Jesus’ followers visited his tomb three days after his death The tomb was found empty – They believed that God had resurrected Jesus and that he was indeed the Messiah – Jesus and his early followers were Jews. But those who believed Jesus was the Messiah eventually formed a new religion known as Christianity

7. The Spread of Christianity During his life Jesus chose 12 trusted followers call disciples or apostles After his death they spread his teachings Early church – Peter a key apostle became leader of the new church when Jesus died

8. Christians and Jews – The first followers of this new faith still consider themselves Jews – Eventually differences grew between Jewish followers of Christianity and other Jews The apostle Paul – And other areas – Created churches and preached – Help spread the belief that non-Jews did not need to follow all Jewish laws to become Christian

9. Reasons for growth – Christianity spread rapidly during the pox Romana – The roads the Romans built a lot Christians to move more easily from place to place spreading their beliefs – Greek was widely spoken Christian Scriptures where in Greek so large number of people could understand them – Many appreciated it’s moral teachings

10. Christianity and the Empire The growth of Christianity worried Roman officials Toleration – Men’s allowed people in the empire to worship their own gods as long as they also were shipped Roman gods and emperors as a sign of loyalty A new faith – When non-Jews became Christians they stopped worshiping the old gods – Speared that Christians refused to worship Roman gods because they were disloyal Worried that the gods would be angry with people who became Christians stopped worshiping

11. Persecution – In 64 CE and throw near Emperor Nero blamed the Christians for a fire that destroyed much of Rome – 250 CE emperors persecuted Christians across the empire – Persecution continued on and off until the reign of Emperor Constantine – A later emperor made Christianity the official Roman religion in 380 CE