1. JUDAISM and EARLY CHRISTIANITY

2. Solomon’s Temple ca. 1000 BCE

3. Catacombs

4. Galla Placidia ca. 425-26

12. Mithraism—from Persia and probably India. Worship a sun god like Ra or Apollo. Celebrated the rebirth of the sun after longest night. It was very widespread in Roman empire. It contained sacrifice, baptism, communal meal, but not open to women— limited growth potential. Christianity adopted 12/25 and reworked it to fit the new faith. Christianity—koine Greek, 312 Edict of Milan ended persecutions.

13. Western writings—Augustine and Boethius Augustine of Hippo born 354 wrote an apology The City of God (412) and contained rules and defended Christianity against the claim that they were responsible for the decline and fall of the Roman Empire. Influence of Augustine was immense (until St. Thomas). Augustine invented the self-reflective style (autobiography) in his Confessions, a trilogy of confessing: I’m a sinner, confessing God is king, and confessing of praise. Boethius—straddled paganism and Christianity The Consolation of Philosophy—letters from prison—we have freedom and God is in control.