Essay on The Spread of Christianity in the Roman Empire

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. Another factor, which many scholars believe to be the single most important in the spread of Christianity, is the Pax Romana. This saw a period of over two hundred years, between 30 b.c. and a.d. 193, in†¦show more content†¦This could only be done if travel was easy, which required good roads connecting every part of the empire with the capital. These roads were not exclusively for military use and the progress of travel was increased for all, this included the travel of Christian missionaries. Another extremely important factor which contributed to the spread of the Christian faith was the creation of a universal language- this came in the form of Greek. The result was that the movement of ideas was no longer restricted by the language barrier. The Old Testament was translated into Greek and, outside Israel, it was widely used in Jewish communities- it was often the Greek and not the Hebrew version of the bible which was used by Paul and other early missionaries quoted from. For the first one hundred years of the churchs writings, Greek was the medium used for expansion into the Gentile world. Wand highlights the importance of a universal language, One coinage and one language would carry the traveler all the way... Greek was a kind of universal language which one could make shift anywhere- there would always be found someone who could speak it. Growing cosmopolitism must also be considered as a factor which favored the spread of Christianity. In both the Greek and Roman Empires there was a tendency to conform to a set pattern; this resulted in local peculiarities beingShow MoreRelatedJustinian And The Byzantine Empire1568 Words   |  7 PagesByzantine Empire. Although it is currently referred to as the Byzantine Empire, many citizens and leaders, including Justinian, considered themselves to be Roman and part of the Roman Empire. This mentality led to the revival of the Roman Empire in Byzantine and in its capital, Constantinople. During his rule, Justinian led the empire to its greatest size both in the amount of controlled land and influence over groups in Europe and Asia. He also contributed to the spread of Christianity both withinRead MoreConstantine and His Effect on Christianity1518 Words   |  7 PagesConstantine and his effect on Christianity When we look back at Christianity over the years, there are several people who are remembered for their impact on the religion. The first most important figure was Jesus Christ. 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