| Essay, Research Paper
Rise of Christianity in the Roman Empire
In St. Paul?s Epistle to the Romans, he explains that God?s justice is ?God?s way of righting wrong?. St. Paul says in Jesus? sacrificial death God ? meant by this to demonstrate his justice?. According to Paul, human pride is excluded because ?the keeping of law would not exclude it, but faith does?. St. Paul?s reason for this is ?that a man is justified by faith quite apart from success in keeping the law.
St. Paul also discusses that a person must use their gifts for the good of people. We have to use our gifts because ?the gifts we possess differ as they are allotted to us by God?s grace?. ?A teacher should employ his gift in teaching?.
In Paul?s last selection, he explains that ?every person must submit to the supreme authorities?. He explains that God institutes all authorities, and if you don?t follow the law you are resisting ?a divine institution?. Paul says that if you do right you have no reason to fear the authorities. We pay taxes because ?the authorities are in God?s service and to these duties they devote their energies.? Paul also explains that if you love your neighbor has ?satisfied every claim of the law?. ?Love cannot wrong a neighbor; therefore the whole law is summed up in love.?
Diocletion was a Roman emperor that persecuted the Christians. He persecuted them by sending out edicts to all the empire saying that all churches be destroyed, Scriptures be burned, people that were Christian and held places of honor be degraded, and citizens that practiced Christianity after the letters went out be taken to prison.
Soon after other letters were issued ?commanding that all bishops of the churches everywhere? be put in prison and be ?compelled to sacrifice [to the gods]?. The persecution became worse. The letters demanded that ?all the people should sacrifice at once?and offer libations to the idols?.
In the rise of Christianity, Constantine was the most important contributor to the rise of the new faith. Constantine was a Roman ruler that claimed he saw the Roman sign for Christianity and God spoke to him during a battle. He used Christianity as his backbone of his crusade. He eventually took over the whole Roman Empire and greatly supported Christianity. Constantine issued the Edict of Milan, giving religious freedom to everyone .He especially favored Christians by building magnificent churches and exempting clergy from taxes.
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