This document discusses the origins and history of religion, specifically Christianity. It covers the Old Testament prophecies of a messiah, Jesus Christ and his teachings. It then outlines the persecution of early Christians by Roman emperors like Diocletian before the conversion and adoption of Christianity by Emperor Constantine in the 4th century. The document also summarizes the structure of the early Christian church, including the roles of bishops, priests and councils in establishing church doctrine.

1. Is religion still
relevant today?
Or not?

3. MESSIAH
OLD TESTAMENT
HEBREWS- SEMATIC
PEOPLE WHO LIVED IN
PALESTINE
JUDAISM
JEWS
TORAH- FIRST FIVE
BOOKS OF THE BIBLE

5. “desires all men to
be saved and to
come to the
knowledge of the
truth”- Jesus Christ

6. “the ultimate truth of God’s
Revelation is handed down and
its central object is Jesus Christ,
God’s incarnate Son: his acts,
teachings, Passion and
glorification and his Church’s
beginnings under the Spirit’s
guidance.”

9. “I WILL COME
AGAIN”

11. first emperor to have himself
officially titled in Rome as
“God the Lord.” He insisted
that other people hail his
greatness with acclamations
like “Lord of the earth,”
“Invincible,” “Glory,” “Holy,”
and “Thou Alone.”

13. Trajan
“They are not to be hunted out.
[Although] any who are accused and
convicted should be punished, with
the proviso that if a man says he is
not a Christian and makes it obvious
by his actual conduct—namely, by
worshiping our gods—then, however
suspect he may have been with
regard to the past, he should gain
pardon from his repentance. ”

14. The first of Diocletion’s edicts
prohibited all Christian worship
and commanded that churches
and Christian books be destroyed.
Two further edicts, required in
the eastern provinces, ordered
clergy to be arrested unless they
sacrificed to pagan deities.
Diocletian

16. • Last great Christian persecution was by Emperor Diocletian
• By 4th century Christianity prospered when Emperor Constantine
became the 1st Christian emperor
• Converted after seeing a vision of a cross before a battle for
leadership of Rome
• Ordered the cross be put on his soldier’s shield
• 313 A.D. Constantine issued the Edict of Milan which proclaimed
Christianity a religion accepted by Rome
• Under Theodosius the Great, Romans adopted Christianity as the
official religion in 380 A.D.

17. •Renounced evil in the rite of baptism
•Sins are forgiven by the Grace of God
•Members were equals, addressing each other as
sister and brother
•Gathered to celebrate God on Sundays
•Ate bread and drank wine in sacred meal called
the Eucharist
•Women served as teachers and administrators

18. •Men allowed to become
members of clergy
•Priests under authority of
bishop
•Church official responsible
for all Christians in an area
called a diocese
•Peter became first bishop of
Jerusalem
•Peter was “rock” church
would be built on

19. •Bishops of important cities gained more authority
•Bishops of Rome, Antioch, Alexandria, Jerusalem and
Constantinople called patriarchs
• They had power over Bishops in their area
• Called a hierarchy
•Latin-speaking west, bishops of Rome, called Popes,
claimed greater authority over all bishops
• Rome center of Christianity
• Claimed Peter was first Pope
•Greek-speaking east, patriarchs shared power

20. •Emergence of heresies causes a council of church leaders
to be called to determine official church teachings
•Beliefs compiled into New Testament
• Contained four gospels
• Epistles of Paul
• Other documents
•Constantine called the council of Nicaea in Anatolia to
define basic beliefs of church
•Church sent missionaries throughout Roman Empire and
beyond to spread Christianity

21. Christian church became example of moral
authority
Loyalty to the Church became more important
than loyalty to the Emperor
Church would be main unifying force of
Western Europe