Paper Summary:

The paper reveals that the Roman Empire had a huge impact on the spread of Christianity and Emperor Constantine in particular contributed to this growth as the first emperor to convert to Christianity. The paper discusses how Constantine made it acceptable to be a Christian and helped change the society into meeting Christian ideals. The paper emphasizes how Constantine was a major cause behind Christianity's spread across the Roman Empire and could even be considered a reason for the religion's prevalence today.

From the Paper:

"Before Christianity became the official religion of the Roman Empire, Christians were not treated with much respect in Roman society. As was shown in a letter from a Roman governor to a Roman Emperor, anyone suspected of being a Christian was arrested immediately and questioned about his or her beliefs. When someone was suspected of being a Christian, that person was asked three times whether or not he or she was in fact a Christian. Each time the answer was yes, harsher punishments were offered towards the person if the person was in fact a Christian. If the person admitted to being a Christian all three times, he or she was sent away for execution. This was how Christians were treated in the times before Christianity was accepted in Roman culture. Roman citizens who admitted to being Christians were not immediately executed, but were given a fair trial."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Carroll, James. Constantine's Sword: The Church and the Jews - A History. New York: First Mariner Books. 2002.
• Kousoulas, D.G. The Life and Times of Constantine the Great: The First Christian Emperor. Bethesda, MD: Rutledge Books. 1997.
• "Rome and Early Christians". Handout.

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