1. CopyrightbyTheMcGraw-HillCompanies.
NAME DATE CLASS
The Rise of Christianity
Geography and History Activity
Lesson 2 The Early Church
The Role of Geography in the Spread
of Christianity
Following the death of Jesus in about A.D. 33, his followers
brought his teachings to people living around the
Mediterranean Sea. Among the first areas to become
converted to Christianity were Judaea, Syria, Asia Minor,
Greece, and parts of Africa. The earliest converts were Jews
as well as non-Jews. By around A.D. 400, Christianity had
reached most of Western Europe as well as the British Isles.
In A.D. 312 the emperor Constantine granted religious
freedom to all religious groups, including Christians. Before
that, however, the Romans tried to destroy the new religion,
which they viewed as a threat to their power. Yet, despite
Rome’s persecution of Christians, the religion continued to
grow. In this activity, we will consider some of the physical,
cultural, and other factors that contributed to the spread of
Christianity during its first three hundred years.
The Spread of Christianity throughout
the Roman Empire A.D. 30–325
Rome
Constantinople
Alexandria
Jerusalem
Tyre
Nazareth
Damascus
AntiochTarsusSicily
ASIA
MINOR
SPAIN
GAUL
ITALY
GREECE
SYRIA
JUDAEA
EGYPT
BRITAIN
A F R I C A
M e d i t e r r a n e a n S e a
Black Sea
Aegean
Sea
ATLANTIC
OCEAN
0
Lambert Azimuthal Equal-Area projection
500 km
500 miles0
N
S
E
W
KEY
Main areas of Christian
growth to A.D. 325
Paul’s first journey
Paul’s second journey
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2. CopyrightbyTheMcGraw-HillCompanies.
NAME DATE CLASS
The Rise of Christianity
Geography and History Activity Cont.
Directions Answer the following questions.
Understanding the Concept
1. Describing Where did Paul travel on his two journeys?
Which of the journeys was longer?
2. Calculating According to Christian tradition the disciple
Peter established a church in the city of Rome. What is the
approximate straight-line distance in miles between Rome
and Nazareth, the birthplace of Jesus?
3. What is the northernmost region on the map into which
Christianity had spread by A.D. 325? What is the
southernmost region?
Applying the Concept
4. Analyzing What role do you think geography played in the
spread of Christianity throughout the Roman Empire?
5. Comparing and Contrasting Complete the following
chart by listing the cultural and geographic factors that
contributed to the spread of Christianity.
Cultural Factors Geographic Factors
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