1. Judeo-Christian Tradition
Prologue Sec. 2

2. Judaism in the Empire
 As
Rome secured Judea under
Augustus
 Jews
believed a messiah would
save them
 Jewish
Judea
revolts lead to unrest in
Destruction of the Temple
70 A.D.

3. Jesus of Nazareth
A
Jew who proclaimed that God’s
rule was close at hand preached
acts of kindness
 Disciples believed he was messiah

4. Jesus of Nazareth
 Jesus’s
teachings offended many
Jewish leaders
 Romans viewed him as an
instigator
 Executed by crucifixion

5. Spread and Persecution of
Christianity
 Disciples
claimed Jesus had risen
from the dead and was the messiah
 Converts like Paul spread religion
throughout Mediterranean
 Peter brought Christianity to Rome
 Many believers were martyred by
the Romans

6. Early Christianity in Rome
 Rome’s
early tolerance of
religions and transportation
routes allowed for
Christianity to spread
 Rome began to view
Christians as a threat and
persecuted them
Christian Martyrs in Rome
 Christians served as a
scapegoat for the problems
in the Empire

7. The Early Church
 According
to legend, Constantine
accepted Christianity in 312 after a
battle
 Edict of Milan granted all religious
freedom
 Theodosius made Christianity
Rome’s official religion in 392

8. The Early Church
 Church
was set up in a hierarchy by
the 400’s and the bishop of Rome
had taken a leadership role as the
pope
 Latin churches-Roman Catholic
 Greek churches-Eastern Orthodox
 “Legacy
of Monotheism” p. 15

9. Roman
Decline

10. Empire’s Problem
 After
Marcus Aurelius, there were
28 emperors in 90 years
 Instability opened Rome up to
attacks from “Barbarians”
 Warfare led to poor crops, inflation,
and extreme financial hardship for
the empire

11. An Empire Divided
 The
west part of the Roman Empire
was being constantly attacked
 Diocletian and Constantine tried to
implement reforms to slow
economic decline unsuccessfully
 Theodosius decreed that the empire
should be split in 395

12. Reasons Barbarians Attacked
 Sought
warmer, southern
climate
 Wanted Rome’s wealth
 Inability of military to
contain Visigoths led to
further uprisings from
Franks, Vandals, Goths,
Huns and others
Visigoths Sack Rome

13. Fall of Western Empire
 Vandals
destroyed Rome in 455
 Franks and Goths divided Gaul
 In 476, Odoacer defeated the
last Roman Emperor
 This German general accepted
Latin culture and Christianity

14. Reasons for Roman Collapse
 Collapse
took hundreds of years
 Decline in Morals (Gladiators, Prostitutes)
 Barbarian Invasions
 Inflation and Military Spending
 Political Corruption
 Public Health

15. Roman Legacy
Preserved Greek Culture
 Latin became the base language for
many other languages throughout
Europe
 Roman Law and Gov’t became the core
for many western countries today
 The western world’s major religion,
Christianity, was greatly influenced by
Rome
