Christianity

Question 1

Rome’s Palestinian problem

Answer 1

586 BCE - destruction of the Temple of Jerusalem
51 BCE - ancient kingdom of Israel comes under control of Rome after three centuries of Alexander’s descendants
AD 66-70 - Jewish wars
AD 130 - Jerusalem refounded by Hadrian

Question 2

Jesus and Paul

Answer 2

Jesus - charismatic teacher in the 20-30s
Paul - trained rabbi in the 50-60s
The political turmoil leading up to the Jewish wars of 66-70 colours the memory of Jesus while colours the reality of Paul

Question 3

Growth in Christians

Answer 3

40 AD - 1000 Christians

350 AD - 33,882,008 Christians

Question 4

Origins of the concept of martyrdom

Answer 4

Those who perform acts of witness for the faith
Greek and Roman models - paradigms of noble death e.g. Socrates and Seneca
Jewish tradition - idea of righteous reward in afterlife

Question 5

Making a martyr

Answer 5

Charged with being a Christian 
Required to acknowledge and perform sacrifice to Roman gods 
Torture
Imprisonment 
Execution