An Analysis of the Book, Christ and Empire Essay

In the Roman Civilization where the prevalent worship of Roman gods were impersonal and did not provide a moral base or a message of hope, in the fourth century Christianity was formed, born as a movement within Judaism. Christianity emphasized the personal relationship between God and people, slowly spread through the Roman Empire until ultimately dominating the western culture. Three of the several factors that aided to the growth of Christianity in the Roman Empire were: the central beliefs and value of Christianity, prominent figures, and Christianity appeal to women. Christianity offered hope to many, for it was the time of grace and freedom, the time to rebuild the future and

In his treatise, “Memorial and Remonstrance against Religious Assessments,” James Madison pointed out, “Who does not see that the same authority which can establish Christianity, in exclusion of all other Religions, may establish with the same ease any particular sect of Christians, in exclusion of all other Sects?” As members of the Church and as American citizens, our promotion of freedom of religion is both a matter of promoting the general welfare and promoting our own self-interest. In matters of religious liberty, it is necessary that we recognize that our approach to the religious freedoms of others sets a precedent that could potentially be used against us. This applies both restrictions on the practice of other faiths and the legal compulsion of others to follow the tenets of our own faith.

Religion and biblical law cannot be separated from life in general and politics in particular. Politics has to do with civil government. Politicians get elected, make laws, tax, spend, regulate, and control. Every law passed and every spending decision is based on some moral system. This is where the Bible comes in. All morality is based on a religion. The Bible says, “Thou shalt not steal.” Right there is the common and basic law against theft. What we believe religiously will affect our political beliefs and practices. If we as Americans could only follow the basic standards set for us in the Bible and follow the values, the standard would be balanced. Yet, when religion or morality becomes separated from decision making, convenience becomes the standard. We are then left with two options: either God’s word serves as the State’s standard of the state decides upon its own standard. America has not

The Christian religion finds its foundation on the Word of God and the work of Jesus Christ. Christianity finds its beginnings with Jesus Christ about 2,000 years ago. Jesus Christ, the Son of God, came down to earth to teach, heal, and die for the sins of humanity. When God created man, he openly rebelled against God, causing a rift in their relationship. Since humans cannot save themselves, a perfect and completely innocent sacrifice was necessary in order to purify and restore mankind. Christianity is all about Jesus’ death and resurrection, as well as denying oneself and following Christ.

Christianity and the Roman Empire shared an important bond. Christianity offered the Roman Empire joy, hope, a shift in their world view, and a monotheistic God. Rome offered Christianity a more efficient way of spreading the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

As I read this article, I was immediately reminded of the political situation of Jesus’ day. On one front, the Romans had conquered the

Even when the Constitution establishes a separation between church and state, traces of religion can still be found in public and government environments, such as the Pledge of Allegiance containing the words ‘under God’, American currency having ‘In God we trust’ and other such events and places. Consequently, this prevalence of Christian ideology violates all Americans’ first amendment right to freedom of and from religion and has a negative impact all citizens as it conflicts with their individual beliefs, religious or not.

Factors Which Led to the Spread of Christianity in the Roman Empire Christianity was not born in a vacumn. There were many social, geographical, historical and religious issues prevailing at the time of Christ and all of which were favorable to the spread of Christianity. Geograpicly, Christianity came into being in the Meditation world, the largest of the various centers of civilization at that time. Israel stands almost central to the five continents, dividing the east and west.

In the United States, religious freedom is a unique right that not all countries allow. The founding fathers instilled this idea although they predominately followed the Christian faith. Several documents and common American morals have Christian roots; some of which include the establishment of God given rights and basic human decency. The words “In God We Trust” on our currency and “One Nation Under God” in our pledge represent the guiding principles that the United States was established on. Although some may believe these words are controversially bias toward Christianity, they are an important part of history. There are multiple references to faith throughout history and several words and concepts are derived from Christian

Christians went from being persecuted to dominating Rome rather quickly. In a world where separation between church and state does not exist, a Christian becoming the sole emperor of Rome symbolized a huge turning point in history. The power switched and the Pagans in turn became persecuted. Christians rose up and took control of all aspects of Roman society. The Pagan past was destroyed, banned, or forgotten about. Those Christians that did not agree with how things were being run either left the empire and became monks or formed their own sect. All of Rome changed.

The relationship between Christians and the Roman Empire is complicated to say the least. Before the summation of the primary sources begin there must be a little background information provided. Rome was in power over a big portion of the Mediterranean region. A good portion of Christians lived under Rome’s rule. Rome was a very tolerant state when it came to religious flexibility. As long as you recognized the Roman God’s then they were tolerant with any other practices you decided to have. The Christians would not recognize the Roman God’s and that caused great friction. There are many primary sources historians have found on the relationship between the Christians and the Romans. The majority of the sources being used in this summation are from the Documents of the Christian Church the fourth edition. Also three primary sources from the times of Constantine, the emperor of Rome in the fourth century. The Romans start as thinking of the Christians as criminals, to being tolerant with them, to eventually they embrace the Christian faith.

In the Roman Civilization where the prevalent worship of roman gods were impersonal and did not provide a moral base or a message of hope, in the fourth century Christianity was formed, born as a movement within Judaism Christianity emphasized the personal relationship between God and people slowly spread through the Roman Empire until ultimately dominating the western culture. Three of the several factors that aided to the growth of Christianity in the Roman Empire were; the central beliefs and value of Christianity, prominent figures, and Christianity appeal to women.

This model of Christianity is one of the earliest models. The Book of Revelations reflects this model particularly well. The text in the Book of Revelations is full of symbolism to illustrate what Christians persecuted by the Roman Emperors underwent. Faced with hostility from their government, who viewed Christians as treasonous and disloyal, early Christians had to band together to form communities. The hostility from imperial Rome led to the persecution of Christian communities, which lasted for hundreds of years.

Ancient Rome, the period between the 8th and 1st centuries B.C. in which Rome grew from a little colony to an emerging empire. "Roman imperialism introduced extremes of wealth and poverty that honed social and economic conflict within the Roman state ." The enormous army and their countless loots, as well as their captured slaves, produced many changes along the countryside such as small farms becoming large plantations, and peasants left without lands decided to journey to Rome and other cities. "Immense wealth inflamed the ambitions of Roman nobles who struggled for personal domination rather than collective rule ." This dominant emergence of power and rule thus led to the conquering and control of other societies. The

Christ in Majesty is a Romanesque fresco secco from the 12th century that was transferred to plaster and wood. It was originally located in the apse of the Church of Santa Maria de Mur in Catalonia, Spain but now is located in the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston as a gift from the Maria Antoinette Evans Fund. The fresco is a transition from Roman and Byzantine Art to Gothic Art. The artist of Christ in Majesty utilizes his art to educate people in the doctrines of the Christian faith.