Early Christians in Roman Eyes

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Christianity started out as a tiny sect of Jewish followers of Jesus, but within 400 years it was the dominant religion of the Roman world and a major political force. It had a rough start, however; Romans did not accept this new movement with open arms. But was Christianity actually an illegal religion? Did the followers of Jesus have to hide in the catacombs? Did the emperors consider it a threat to the social order? In this episode we talk about the early reception of Christianity, in particular the persecutions, in order to explode many of the myths one hears about the new faith in its early days.

In this episode, Bart and Megan discuss:

+the place Christianity occupied in the Roman Empire when it was first formed. A lot of historical movies show early Christians as a persecuted group, meeting in secret for fear of imprisonment or violence by the empire. Is this at all rooted in historical fact?

+recorded accounts or persecutions of Christians

+persecution of other religions

+the “Edict of Toleration” issued by the Emperor Galerias in 311 CE

+the conversion of Emperor Constantine to Christianity in 312, and then the Edict of Milan in 313, which essentially granted freedom of religion to all Roman citizens - including Christians.

+was Christianity actually made into an official state religion, or did it simply continue to gain popularity?


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