*The Roman Empire

 To identify the characteristics of the Roman

Empire, Middle Ages, and Early Modern
Europe like important people and culture to
analyze different aspects that were involved
in the birth of Christianity.
 Learning objective 1: To learn important facts
about the beginning of the Roman Empire
and the middle ages to understand their way
of life.
 “Let Jesus be born in your heart.”

 Luke 2:11New King James Version (NKJV)

11 For there is born to you this day in the city

of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.

 Rome was the center of a large empire. An
empire is a large area of land with many
different people. It is controlled by one
person or a small group.
 Rome did not become an empire overnight, It
began as a small village on the Tiber River in
Italy about 2,700 years ago.
 At first Rome was ruled by kings. Many kings
were cruel. About 2,500 years ago, the Romans
decided they did not want to be ruled by kings
anymore.
 The Romans set up a republic. In a republic the
people have the right to choose their own
leaders, like in Athens. But in the Roman
republic, some men had more power than others.
Rich men were called patricians. The common
people of Rome were called plebeians.
 Only patricians could become leaders in the
new Roman republic.
 After Rome became a republic, the Romans
built a strong army and they began to take
over more land in Italy.
 Soon Rome controlled parts of what are now
Spain, France, Greece, and North Africa.
 Mosaics
 Mosaics are pictures made from arrangements of
small fragments of stone or glass. Among many
ancient peoples they were the primary form of
architectural decoration.
 The Romans developed the mosaic as an art
form. Archaeologists have found mosaics not just
in villa reception rooms, but also in dining rooms
and bedrooms. Only the floors of the servants’
quarters were left bare. Although mosaics were
occasionally created on walls.
 Make your own Roman Mosaic.
 The Romans were famous for their artwork.
Much of this art took the form of a mosaic.
Create your own Christian art using this art
form.
 Bring the following materials: cut squares of
different colors, glue, scissors, card board.
Investigate important facts about this roman
artwork to share with your classmates.
 Group: 2 people.
 Date May 2nd, 2018, 2018
 As Rome conquered more territories, its
government changed. People no longer chose
their rulers. Instead, Rome was ruled by
dictators, or rulers who have total power.
 One of the most famous Roman dictator was
Julius Caesar. He was popular among many
poor people. He promised to find jobs for
them. However, some Romans patricians did
not trust Caesar. They were afraid that he
would try to make himself king. For this
reason they killed Caesar.
 After Caesar’s death, the Roman Republic
came to an end. Rome was governed by
Caesar’s grandnephew. He took the name of
Augustus Caesar. Augustus means “respected
one”.
 Augustus became the first emperor of Rome.
An emperor is a person who rules an empire.
Augustus ruled well for 41 years. He made
sure that Rome and its empire were ruled
fairly.
 He also built many monuments, theaters, and
other buildings in Rome.
 Under Augustus, a period of peace began in
the Roman empire. This peace lasted for
almost 200 years. It was called the Pax
Romana, which means “Roman peace”.
 Palestine was a land in the Roman Empire.
Palestine was the Roman name for Canaan.
 When Augustus ruled, a man who changed
world history was born. His name was Jesus.
 He taught that there was only one God. He
said that the people must honor God by
treating others with love and kindness.
 Many people began to follow the teaching of
Jesus. But people in Roman government
thought Jesus was trying to turn people
against Rome.
 They sentenced Jesus to death.
 The followers of Jesus created a new religion-
Christianity.
 The government tried to stop Christianity
from spreading. They did not like christians
because they refused to worship Roman gods
and refused to serve in the army.
 The Romans killed many christians and made
practicing Christianity against the law.
 The number of christians continue to grow.
Finally, the Roman emperor Constantine
made Christianity legal in the Roman empire.
 The birth of Jesus divides our calendar into
two parts.
 The years before Jesus’ birth are mark B.C.
these initials stand for “before Christ”. The
years following the birth of Jesus are mark
A.D. this stands for “Anno Domini” this
means “Year of Our Lord” in Latin, the
language of ancient Rome.