The Apostle Paul's Spread Of Christianity

The Pax Romana allowed Rome to expand, and created a period of peace that would spread the important religion of Christianity throughout the strong empire. The new religion of Christianity was Jesus’ interpertation of monotheistic religion, Judiasm. Christianity was unlike the polytheistic Roman religion which infuriated many Roman rulers. Despite the hatred of rulers it spread quickly throughout the empire and continued even after Jesus died. Although Christianity followers were persecuted they felt strongly about their beliefs and eventually the Edict of Milan was passed whih meant that Christianity was a religion approved by the emperor. Christianity changed from a sect of persecution to a state religion within the Roman Empire because

The population of Rome was mainly made up of peasants and farmers so when they learned that Jesus was like them it gave them hope of achieving eternal life. Christianity accepts people of all social classes so it spread quickly throughout Rome due to the lower class’s large population. When Constantine embraced Christianity and stopped the persecution of Christians the religion spread like wild fire because Christians could spread God’s word, like Paul, without being

The beginning of Christianity in Rome started with the spread of it and one of the main people who led to the spread of it was Paul and what he did was began traveling across the roman empire to spread the word of God. The citizens of the Rome who really needed God

Within the Roman Empire, Christianity was banned and Christians were punished for many years. Feeding Christians to the lions were seen as entertainment in Ancient Rome. In AD 313, the Emperor Constantine made Christianity legal and for the first time, they were allowed to openly worship. Churches were quickly built not just in Rome but throughout the empire, The main beliefs of Christianity The belief of one god, so it was monotheistic and the god that they worshipped was not the emperor so that is why the emperor was upset. The religions started out fairly similar to each other but as I said earlier when there imperial Rome's religion changed there was really no more similarities in the two empires religion.

In 313 Constantine I, also known as Flavius Valerius Constantinus, implemented the Edict of Milan; in which it established tolerance of Christianity as a religion, but did not place it above all other religions. Before the Edict of Milan came to effect the people of Rome did not tolerate Christianity let alone practice it. People in Ancient Rome persecuted the Christians for their beliefs often with Christians ending up dead or betraying their wait to escape the persecutions. Christians were persecuted because they were seclusive with their rituals. The people did not understand and thought that religion was supposed to be public.

Although Christianity was initially practiced within Semitic populations of the Roman Empire, by the 4th century A.D the Christian religion had a huge impact to the Greeks and also the early Byzantine Empire. But by this time Christian communities had been established in all the important cities in the Roman Empire. In 313 the next emperor Constantine legalized Christianity throughout the empire. He also

Paul was the most effective missionary of the early church. A missionary is a person sent on a religious mission, especially one sent to promote Christianity in a foreign country. The Damascus road experience was both a conversion and a call to advance the life of the new movement. Paul preached the gospel of Christ, beginning at Jerusalem and continuing his journey to Rome. He preached is local synagogues, city markets, outdoor arenas, private homes and public halls.

Jesus is the center of Christianity, but without Paul, Christianity would never exist. Paul organized Jesus’s disciples after Jesus’s death. Paul introduced Christianity to Non-Jewish people. He was extremely talented at converting others. The New Testament is largely based off Paul’s teachings. Paul also shaped the way Christianity thinks, he was the man who took a small cult and shaped it so that it would become a world religion; Paul was the most important figure to the growth of Christianity, even more than Jesus of Nazareth.

In 313 A.D., after centuries of persecution by the Roman Empire, Christianity was accepted as a legal religion by Emperors Constantine and Licinius. This sudden acceptance was due to Constantine’s dramatic conversion to Christianity. While many argue whether Constantine truly had visions and dreams from Christ, his impact on the Church cannot be denied. Ending Christian persecution is one of the most obvious contributions he made to the faith, but he did much more than that. As Emperor, he used his power and wealth to fund the Church, give benefits to priests, and build churches. Constantine was very interested in Christian theology and helped to unify the faith. The conversion of Constantine was a critically important factor to the growth of Christianity.

When Rome was finally able to legalize Christianity, is immediately got attention. To the Roman citizens, Christianity was very appealing. This is because it had more to offer then the leaders of Rome did at the time. The church provided the idea of a peaceful

With the up and coming development of Christianity as a major religion, came a lot of resistance from those in power. The Roman empire was very good at accepting new traditions into their vast empire, but everyone had to recognize the empire’s authority by making sacrifice for the emperors prosperity. Many Christians refused to do this because making sacrifices to someone other than their one true God is abhorrent to them. Christians did not participate in a lot of different activities within the Roman empire and from time to time Christians were persecuted because of it.

The conversion of Roman Emperor, Constantine, marked the start of a reform that would change Rome forever. A once pagan society, Rome was one of the last to grasp the Christianity concept. The start of “Christianizing” Rome began with two of Jesus’ disciples, Peter and James, as well as the apostle Paul in the Roman province of Antioch during the first century ("New Women of Color Study Bible" 1742). From this, Christianity spread all over the province, by the time it got to Rome it was not widely practiced. It wasn’t until the reign of Constantine that Christianity took its place as the empires forefront religion. Since Rome was known for its worship and idolizing of gods, how and for what reasons did Constantine transform his subjects’ beliefs? According to authors, Ramsay MacMullen, John Curran, and A.H.M. Jones, a number of tactics were used to sway the masses’ minds. Use of coercion, money, and campaigns aided Constantine’s questionable Christian “cleanse”.

Paul’s advise to the slaves totally aligns with the way he lived out his life. He was a zealous man and who gave 100% of himself in all that he did, including the persecution of Christians prior to his conversion. Even during his ministry, he continued his profession as a tentmaker so he wouldn’t burden the church financially. In his own words, he described the effort he put into his ministry, “To this end I strenuously contend with all the energy Christ so powerfully works in me” (Colossians 1:29 NIV) and “I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:14 NIV). Paul lived his life in total submission to Christ, “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain” (Philippians

It was this refusal that caused its practice to be illegal and those who chose to stick with the faith were prosecuted. Although people were being killed for practicing, Christianity started to become even more popular. After seeing Christian martyrs risk their lives for the sake of Christianity, many Romans were compelled and attracted to the faith. Also, there were Apostles who traveled around the empire spreading the message of Christianity. Then in 312 CE, Emperor Constantine proposed the Edict of Milan that banned all laws against Christianity. That allowed people to freely worship, without the fear of harsh punishment. He eventually converted on his deathbed. Then in 392 CE, Emperor Theodosius made Christianity the official religion of Rome. Christianity went from being an illegal religion to the official religion of the Roman Empire.

Christianity over the course of history has a vast influence on individuals, society and the way believers conduct themselves. It provides morals, practices and ethics that every Christian attempts to live by. Throughout the many denominations in the Christian church, Paul of Tarsus had a significant influence on the faith. His contribution to the development and expression of Christianity is immense and can be seen to stem from his writing and missionary journeys which have implemented his ideas and interpretations onto the development of Christianity. After Jesus, Paul was arguably the most significant figure in Christianity as his teachings form a significant part of the New Testament. Like may other Pharisees of that time in history, Paul sought to suppress the early Christian movement. He accused early Christians of blaspheming against God and breaking Mosaic Law. However, Paul had a life-changing experience when he had a vision of Jesus, and he spent the remainder of his life as a missionary for the early church. Centuries after his ministry, his teachings still influence Christian theology.