Bellwork

• From what religion did Christianity originate from? What do you think the general attitude towards early Christians were?

World History

Section 3, Unit 6Ancient Rome p. 3

Objectives

• Discuss the beginnings of Judaism and analyze the story of Moses in comparison to the actual history of slavery in Egypt.

• Analyze the life and message of Jesus Christ and the impact of his death.

• Evaluate how Christianity spread through the Roman empire after Jesus’s death.

• Explain why the Roman’s persecuted the Christians.

Where we are in History

• The origins of the Hebrews goes farther back than the Greeks and Romans. We will be going back and discussing an era during the existence of both the early Egyptian empire and Mesopotamia.

Palestine• Ancient Palestine is the

region near the coast of the Mediterranean, and had hosted many different nations within the region: Judah, Israel, Philistia, Canaan, and Phoenicia.– When we talk about any

of these places, they are situated within Palestine itself. Palestine itself did not become an independent empire or state until the early 20th century.

Geography of the Hebrews

• The Hebrews would originate from the area known as Canaan (present day Israel/Palestine). Their history, legends, and moral laws would become a major influence on western culture and begin a tradition by both Christians and Muslims.

Beliefs• The Hebrews were

monotheistic, meaning they only believed in one God– Yahweh.

• In their eyes, Yahweh was a God of all people and all places, unlike other faiths which believed that their God only existed within that one region or for those people within the area.

• Because their God did not belong to any one place, the Hebrews could carry their worship of him wherever they went.

Origins of Judaism

• Canaan was in a cultural crossroads, an area that connected Africa and Asia, with empires that wanted to expand and grow.

• To the west lay Egypt and the east lay Babylon.

• The Hebrews settled in Canaan, which lay between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea. According to the Bible, Canaan was the land God promised to the Hebrew people.

Early History

• Most of what historians know about the Hebrews come from the Hebrew Bible, or Torah. The Torah is the most sacred writing in their traditions. – The Torah is what makes up the Old

Testament of the Christian Bible and Quran.

• The Torah is a sacred text and describe events that the Hebrews believe to be true.

Abraham

• According to Hebrew legend, God chose Abraham to be the “father” of the Hebrew people. – This might be more

literal, as he and his children are said to be the ancestors of the Jewish people.

Abraham

• The Torah says that Abraham was a shepherd who lived in Mesopotamia and that God told him to move his people and flocks to Canaan in the west, which may have occurred around 2000 B.C. –Many historians do agree that Abraham

may have not existed, but rather represents the move by the Hebrews to Canaan.

After Abraham

• Over the course of several generations, Hebrews did eventually live in the Egyptian empire.

• The Bible states that they came to Egypt because of a drought and threat of famine. According to the Torah and Old Testament, they were forced to become slaves for the Egyptian empire.– Although plausible, no archeological or historical

evidence supports this claim (as we discussed in the Egypt unit) and, more than likely, the Hebrews were probably nomads in Egypt.

Moses

• Another important figure, Moses is believed to have been saved by his mother who was hiding him from the Egyptian Pharaoh who was trying to kill all the Hebrew newborns.

Moses

• He was found by an Egyptian Princess who adopted and raised him.

• Though raised in luxury, he did not forget his birth and, according to legend, he was told by God to lead the Jews out of Egypt.

The Exodus• According to Hebrew legend, the Hebrews

fled Egypt after being saved by Moses.• The stories state that Moses led the

Hebrews out of Egypt, across the Red Sea to Canaan.

Historicity

• Most archeologists and historians agree that the mass exodus may have not occurred, but the story acts as symbolism for the actual development of Canaan by the Hebrews.

Judah• Canaan– the land that the Hebrews believed was

promised to them by God– was situated near the ancient Philistines in Ancient Palestine.

• The Hebrews got along well with other neighbors within the Palestinian region, such as the Canaanites, but were often in conflict with the Philistines .– The Philistines are believed to have been the “sea

peoples” that may have attacked Egypt.

• Sometime after the purported date of the exodus, the Hebrews began to refer to themselves as “Jews”, after the name of the largest Hebrew tribe of Judah.

Israel and Judah

• From about 1020 to 922 B.C., the Hebrews united under three able kings: Saul, David, and Solomon (each one succeeded the next to the throne).

• They formed a new kingdom, Israel and for 100 years experienced a great period of power and independence.

• However, a smaller kingdom would form with the tribe of Judah being the creator. Both kingdoms, despite being divided, shared the similar Hebrew faith.

Judah and Israel

Jerusalem

• King David was said to have united the tribes of Israel under his rule and established the Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

• Jerusalem would continue to be a sacred home to not just the Hebrews, but also to Christians and Muslims.

What happens next?

• The Palestinian region would, overtime, become conquered by many different groups who would even bring the Hebrews under their control, including the Egyptians, Greeks, Persians, and– for the purposes of this lesson– the Romans.

Abrahamic Religions

• The Hebrew faith would be the backbone of the other two Abrahamic religions: Christianity and Islam.

• Overtime, the Romans would learn more about Judaism and a new growing faith in Israel- Christianity.

Class-wide Review

1. What was the name of the God the Jews believed in?

2. Who was the “father” of the Hebrews? 3. What was the land that the Hebrew’s believed

God promised them? 4. What three kings did the Jews unite under to

form Israel and Judah? 5. What two religions grew out of Judaism? 6. What relationship did the Hebrew’s believe God

had with everyone? What was different between their believe in God and other religions?

Directions: As the questions are brought up, please raise your hand to answer the question. Do not shout out.

Break

• Please take two minutes to breathe.

Roman rule in Judea

• Roman power spread to Judea, the home of the Jews, around 63 B.C. At first, the Jewish kingdom remained independent, at least in name.

• Jewish kings ruled as representatives of Rome. Some Jews allied with Romans and accepted their plans to “Romanize” Jerusalem.

Roman Rule

• Due to issues between the people and the ruler ship, the Jews began a revolt against the Roman influence that lasted almost 10 years starting in 4 B.C.

• Rome finally took control of the Jewish kingdom and made it the province of Judea in A.D. 6.

Roman Rule

• To restore order in Judea, the Romans gave control of religious matters and local affairs to the Jewish court called Sanhendrin.

Roman Rule

• Jews were then divided into two major factions: – Zealots who wanted to rid their

homeland of the Romans – Another group who believed that

Messiah (savior) would soon appear. For the Jews, they believed the Messiah would restore the kingdom of the Jews.

Roman rule in Judea

Jesus of Nazareth• Jesus was born in the

town of Bethlehem in Judea. The date is uncertain, but is thought to be around 6-4 B.C. Jesus was both a Jew and Roman subject.

• He was raised in the village of Nazareth in northern Palestine.

• As a child, he was baptized by the prophet know as John the Baptist and was skilled carpenter. A 2001 CGI of Jesus–

suggesting that his features would be darker and his face more broad.

Jesus’s Message• At the age of 30, Jesus

began his public ministry. For the next three years, he preached, taught, did good deeds, and reportedly performed miracles.

• His teachings were very similar to the basics of the Jewish faith: a single god, belief in the 10 commandments, and that God has a personal relationship with each human being.

Head of Jesus (1890) Enrique Simonet

Teachings

• Jesus stressed that the importance of people’s love for God, their neighbors, their enemies, and even themselves.

• He also taught that God would end wickedness in the world and would establish an eternal kingdom after death for people who sincerely repented their sins.

Apostles• Jesus gathered twelve disciples, or pupils, to

teach his word. Historical records mention very little about Jesus’ existence, so most evidence that does exist are the Gospels, or the first four books of the New Testament of the Bible. – Arguably, nothing was written during Jesus’

lifetime because those who followed him would have believed that “salvation” was near—meaning that writing anything down was unnecessary.

• Some of the Gospels are thought to have been written by one or more of Jesus’ disciplines, or Apostles.

Increasing Fame

• As Jesus preached from town to town, his fame grew.

• He attracted large crowds, and many people were touched by his message.

• Many believed him to be the long-awaited Messiah, the son of God. Because Jesus ignored wealth and status, his message appealed to the poor and vulnerable of society.

Concerns

• Jesus’ growing popularity concerned both Roman and Jewish leaders.

• When Jesus visited Jerusalem around 29 A.D., enthusiastic crowds greeted him as the Messiah, or king.

• The chief priests of the Jews denied that Jesus was the Messiah. They said his teaching were blasphemy– contempt for God.

Crucifixion

• Roman authorities feared that Jesus was challenging their authority.

• The Roman governor had Jesus arrested, tried in the Jewish courts and– after a short process of torture and cruelty– Jesus was crucified by Roman authorities.

After his Death

• According to Biblical tradition, his body was placed in a tomb and, three days later, his body was gone--- having ascended to heaven.

• The apostles, upon learning this, became ever more convinced that Jesus was the Messiah and felt the need to spread the teachings of Jesus across the empire.

Peter

• Peter, the first apostle, lead the others to spread the teachings of Jesus throughout Palestine and Syria.

• The cross in which Jesus was crucified became a symbol for their beliefs.

Spread

• Jesus’ teaching did not contradict Jewish law, and his first followers still considered themselves to be Jewish.

• Soon, however, those followers would create a new religion based on his message.

• Despite both political and religious opposition, the new religion– Christianity– spread slowly throughout the Roman Empire.

Paul the Apostle• One man, Paul, had

enormous influence on Christianity’s development.

• He had never met Jesus and was at first an enemy of Christianity.

• However, while traveling to Damascus in Syria, he reportedly had a vision of Christ. Afterwards, he spent his life spreading and interpreting Christ’s teachings.

Pax Romana and Christianity

• The Pax Romana made travel and exchange of ideas fairly safe and provided the ideal conditions for Christianity to spread.

• The excellent Roman road system made passage by land easy and common languages– Latin and Greek– allowed the message to be easily understood.

Paul

• The excellent road systems—along with the fact that Paul was a Roman citizen-- allowed him to travel freely from city to city around the eastern Mediterranean and preach.

• Paul stressed that Jesus was the son of God who died for people’s sins.

Paul

• He also declared Christianity should welcome all converts, Jew or non-Jew.

• It was the universality that enabled Christianity to become more than a local religion and spread quickly.

What allowed Christianity to Spread?

1. Safe travel2. A positive message about God’s personal

relationship3. An appeal to the poor and underprivileged4. Common language to spread Jesus’ teachings5. Acceptance of any group into the religion

(universality)6. Promise of life after death (Roman and Greek

religions had a bleak concept of afterlife)

Jewish Rebellion

• During the early years of Christianity, much Roman attention was focused on the Jews. In A.D. 66, a band of Zealots rebelled against Roman rule and, in A.D. 70, the Romans stormed Jerusalem and destroyed the temple complex.

• About a half million Jews were killed during the course of the rebellions against Rome.

Diaspora

• The Jews made another attempt to break free of Roman rule in A.D. 132.

• Another half million Jews died in three years of fighting and, though their religion survived, the Jewish political state ceased to exist for another 1,800 years.

• Most Jews were forced from their homeland into exile, which was been referred to has the Jewish Diaspora.

The Jewish Diaspora

• Centuries of Jewish exile followed after they lost Judea to Rome in 70 A.D.

• This period was called the Diaspora, the Greek word for “dispersal”.

• Jews fled to many parts of the world, including Babylonia, Syria, Egypt, and Spain.

• Eventually, Jews would spread to the rest of Europe where they would be the ancestors of modern European (and, in many cases, American) Jews.

Persecution of Christians• Christians also posed a

problem for Roman rulers because Christians refused to worship roman gods.

• This refusal was seen as opposition to Roman rule.

• Some Roman rulers used Christians as scapegoats for political and economic troubles, which more easily allowed for their persecution.

Nero

• Emperor Nero of Rome (one of the three bad emperors) blamed a disastrous fire on Christians and ordered them to be persecuted. Both the apostles Peter and Paul were put to death in Rome sometime around 60 A.D. – Peter, like Jesus, was crucified, but

requested to be crucified upside down as he saw himself as lesser than Jesus.

– Paul was beheaded by Roman officials.

Changing times• The emperors who followed Nero did

not continue the persecutions, at first.

• However, when the Pax Romana began to crumble, the Romans exiled, imprisoned, or executed Christians for refusing to worship Roman gods.

Changing times (cont.)

• Thousands were crucified, burned, or killed by wild animals in the Colosseum.

• However, the Roman’s plan had an unintended effect: Christians killed became martyrs (people who are willing to die for a cause) for the survivors, only strengthening the belief system.

Early Christian Church

• Christians soon began to give their religion a structure, much as the Roman Empire had a hierarchy.

• At the local level, a priest led each small group of Christians. A bishop supervised several local churches.

• Eventually, every major city had it’s own bishop.

Papacy• According to tradition,

Jesus referred to Peter as the “rock” on which the Christian church should be built.

• As a result:– All priests and bishops

traced their authority to Peter

– Peter became the first Pope, the father/head of the Christian church.

Papacy

• As well, the Christians also said that who ever the bishop of Rome was the leader of the whole church, since they identified Rome as the center of the empire and therefore, the center of the Church.

• These beliefs would lead into the creation of the Roman Catholic church

Growth of Christianity

• Despite persecution, Christianity became a powerful force. By the late third century, A.D. there were millions of Christians in the Roman Empire. Missionaries spread the faith throughout the empire and beyond.

• Soon, the power of Christianity would even spread to the upper echelons of society– including the Roman Emperor.

Questions

• If you have any questions, please ask now.

Next lesson

• In the next lesson, we are going to talk about the fall of Rome and the rise of Constantinople.

Review1. Why did Christianity spread so well through the

empire? Name at least 3 reasons it spread so well. 2. What made Jesus so popular and how did this

popularity lead to his death? 3. What were the names of the two apostles who

spread Christianity through the Roman empire? Why did they both die?

4. Why did the Romans persecute the Christians? What effect did persecution have on Christians?

5. What was the hierarchy of the early Christian church and where was the church’s “center”?

6. What did Rome do to Judea after the revolts and what affect did this have on the Jews?

7. Why did early Christians still consider themselves to be Jewish?