The Rise of Christianity

c. 30 CE — Near East, Roman Judea

Today: The Roman Near East (from Judea across the empire)

In a small province of the Roman Empire, a Jewish preacher named Jesus gathered followers, was executed by the Roman authorities, and — his followers proclaimed — rose again. What began as a tiny sect spread through the empire's cities and trade routes over three centuries, appealing especially to the poor, the enslaved, and women, until it captured the empire itself.

Worth knowing: For its first 300 years Christianity was an often-persecuted minority faith. Then the emperor Constantine adopted it — and within a lifetime the once-hunted religion was banning the empire's old gods instead.

Pattern: Ideological movement — A belief system rises, spreads, institutionalizes, and then schisms — changing the rules people accept as legitimate.

Entry 67 of 240 in Precedent, a walk through the whole human story in order.