The Beginning of Christianity

The Life of Jesus  Augustus ordered that people had to return to towns that they were born in  A carpenter named Joseph and his wife Mary returned to Bethlehem  Mary gave birth to a son named Jesus

Jesus’ Childhood  Jesus grew up in a village called Nazareth (located in Judea)  Jesus spent much of his time teaching crowds of people  Jesus also performed miracles  According to Jewish belief, the Messiah is a special leader to be sent by God in order to guide the Jewish people and set up God’s rule on earth  Messiah in Greek means Christos  People who followed Jesus became known as Christians  Their religion became known as Christianity

Twelve Apostles  Jesus’ closest followers were called apostles (12 men Jesus had chosen to help save him and his teachings)  Peter was a fisher and Levi was a tax collector in Rome  Apostles had little in common before they had met Jesus Teachings of Jesus  New Testament states that Jesus often used parables (short stories) that contained a message or truth

A Growing Following  Jesus had performed many miracles  As a result the number of followings grew Trouble With Rome  Jesus’ popularity troubled many people. They questioned if he wanted to be king

Soldiers Arrested Jesus  A Roman governor sentenced him to die by crucifixion (“ putting to death by cross”)  Commonly used to punish slaves, rebel leaders and criminals  Bible tells us that he rose from the dead 3 days later A Christian Church  After the death of Jesus, Christians set up churches  Romans were angry at Christians for not worshiping the emperor

Christianity in Rome  Apostle Peter helped bring Christianity to Rome  Christians call Peter the first Bishop (regional church leader)  Later, the Bishop of Rome was called the Pope (father)  Leader of the branch of Christianity Is known as Roman Catholicism