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Ancient World Dbq

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Why did Christianity take hold in the Ancient World?

Christianity started off with only a few followers, but has grown into the most practiced religion in the world. About 2,000 years ago a man by the name of Jesus was born into the Roman ruled city of Jerusalem. Jesus was raised in a community of Jewish followers, and followed the Jewish law himself. Jesus believed that he was the messiah, the savior whom profits predicted would one day bring peace to the people of Israel. The Romans and and Jewish leaders felt threatened by Jesus because he thought he was the messiah. Jesus would then be crucified by the Romans. Christianity was able to take hold in the ancient world and flourish because of Christianity 's belief in equality, Rome’s biased …show more content…

Rome’s hierarchy system was very strict and it was based on how much money a family or person had. (Doc D) The Emperor was at the top, then it was his court which was made up of the wealthy and prestigious, then at the bottom the commoners, and people rarely moved between classes. (Doc D) Romans believed that the only way to a peaceful existence was through violence, victory, and no one opposing their rule. (Doc E) Christianity believed that you could have peace through nonviolence, justice, and when all was fair. (Doc E) Pliny the Younger, who was a Roman judge sentenced a group of Christians who would not buy sacrificial items for Roman gods to execution. (Doc G) Romans believed that there was an afterlife but there were two afterworlds that were for heros and commoners that people would be sent to after being judged on what they did in their lives. (Doc C) Christians to believed in an afterlife in which people who followed the laws of Christianity would be free of illnesses, poverty, and isolation, in their afterlife everyone was equal. (Doc C) The evidence above shows why Christianity took hold in the ancient world. Christianity gave an escape from the Roman hierarchy and let people of all backgrounds come together. Christianity also gave people a way of thinking so that they did not have to follow the Roman way to …show more content…

The final reason that Christianity took hold in the ancient world is because of how devoted the followers of Christianity were. Christians would take people into their homes and take care of them if they were in need, and would do their best to help them get back on their feet. (Doc D) A man named Paul who came to know the Christian religion spent 30 years of his life traveling the eastern Mediterranean sea, preaching the word of Jesus, and he single handedly wrote most of the New Testament letters on his journey. (Doc F) A group of Christians were sentenced to execution for not buying sacrificial items for the Roman gods. They all had an option to be set free if they stated that they were not Christian but none of them did. They all died for their belief in the religion after being offered a way out. (Doc G) This information helps explain why the Christian religion took hold in ancient world. People that followed the Christian religion were open to helping anyone in need and would even take them into their homes. The people who followed the Christian religion found its message so important that they would die rather than proclaim that they were not a follower of the Christian religion. This religion meant so much to a man that he spent 30 years of his life just to spread the word of

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