The Rise of Christianity

Christianity and its Roots in Judaism

Christianity is rooted in Judaism, and most of the principles that govern the practice of the religion were obtained from Judaism. The practice of Judaism emphasized on orthopraxy, this is the belief of the correct conduct and focuses on the Mosaic Covenant, this was the covenant that was established between God and the Israelites, the agreement was outlined in the Talmud and the Torah.

The Divergence of Christianity from Judaism

Christianity diverged from Judaism during the Christian Era in the first centuries. Those who practice Christianity emphasized on orthodox or the correct belief, this is conforming to the Christian faith that was represented in the creeds of the earlier Christian churches. This can be seen as focusing on the New Covenant in which Jesus Christ is perceived as the mediator and the seal of the covenant which is outlined in the Bible as the New Testament.

Persecution of Christians during the Christian Era

The emergence of Christianity from Judaism meant that a new religion and faith had come into play, during this time. By practicing the new faith, Christians were going against the set guidelines and faith; this led to the persecution of the Christians during the Christian Era. The Christians were persecuted by Romans who controlled the land and a small number of Jews who were predominantly Judaists and from whom Christianity arose. The persecution of the Christians during this era sometimes led to the Christian missionaries being martyred because of their faith.

Spread of Christianity despite Persecution

Christianity was spread in lands that were majorly owned by the Romans even though the Christian missionaries were being persecuted at the time. However, the Christian missionaries continued to spread their new-found faith which led to the Edict of Milan; this was an agreement through which Christians were to be treated modestly in the lands that were owned by the Romans. Although the persecution of Christian missionary by the Jews and Romans during the Christian Era meant to suppress Christianity, the resilience of the missionaries made the religion to become popular and was widely adopted by the Romans.

Annotated

Bibliography

Coleman, Peter G., and Marie A. Mills. “Uncertain Faith in Later Life: Studies of the Last Religious Generations in England (UK).”New Dimensions in Spirituality, Religion, and Aging. Routledge, 2018. 96-122.

            This source will allow us to understand the way Christian missionaries were treated throughout Europe and how persecution affected the spread and practice of the religion. We can be able to develop an understanding of the origins of Christianity and the way that it was spread.

David, Joseph E. “Love, law and the Judeo-Christian separation-individuation.”Law, Religion, and Love. Routledge, 2017. 169-185.

Through this article, we can be able to understand the way Judaism and Christianity separated. The authors discuss the different beliefs that the Christians and Jews had and what led to the divergent views. Through the article, we can understand the way Christianity was spread in the Christian Era.

Hirschman, Elizabeth C., and Mourad Touzani. “Contesting religious identity in the marketplace: Consumption ideology and the halal boycott movement.”Journal of Islamic Studies4.1 (2016): 19-29.

            The authors discuss how people who had divergent views perceived Christianity. Through this study, we can be able to understand why Christian missionaries were persecuted and the impact that the spread and persecution had.

Newman, Louis. Jewish Influence in Christian Reform Movements. Lulu. Com, 2016.

Schirrmacher, Thomas. The persecution of Christians concerns us all: Towards a theology of martyrdom. Wipf and Stock Publishers, 2018.

            Through this article, we can be able to understand how Christian faith was influenced by the Jews and the divergent views that led to the persecution of the Jews. We can also be able to develop a clear understanding of Christian origins.