Early Christendom Lecture 11 PDF

Early Christendom  Christianity in Asia and Africa - The Middle East The Arab conquests and the following centuries converted most of the Middle East to Islam. Tolerance and Persecution - depended on the leader Small Christian communities survive...

Early Christendom  Christianity in Asia and Africa - The Middle East The Arab conquests and the following centuries converted most of the Middle East to Islam. Tolerance and Persecution - depended on the leader Small Christian communities survive - not a unified state Why did most Christian communities in the Middle East convert to Islam in the period 600-1200 CE? The Nestorian Church Nestorian Church = Church of the East Spread all throughout Eurasia - independent of Rome and Constantinople Over time lost influence due to pressures to convert Takes root in China - strong influences from Buddhism in China. Begins to die off when China dislikes foreign influences (Tang & Song) Egyptian Christianity Egypt was conquered from the Byzantines by the initial Arab conquests - 640 CE Strong incentives to convert to Islam in the major cities along the coast and the north Nile Further south, large portions of the population remain Christian - Coptic Christianity. Outside forces invading Egypt lead to a cracking down of Christianity -1500 CE - 80% of population is Muslim  East African Christianity Nubian Christianity: Very similar to Egyptian Christianity Lasts until around 1500 CE Ethiopian Christianity: Strong ties to Judaism and Jerusalem Built tons of Churches to keep the tradition alive so separate from the rest of Christendom What similarities are there between the different Eastern Churches? Roman Empire pt 2 Byzantine Empire Continuation of the Roman Empire Orthodox Christians Capital: Constantinople  Byzantine Empire During Islam’s Rise Byzantines are still recovering from Black Death Fought in a 26 year war with the Sassanid Persians Nearly collapses until Heraclius saves the Empire in one major push Six years later, some rumblings from Arabia are heard, and an invasion occurs Byzantines vs Arab Conquest 636 Battle of the Yarmuk ○ Huge Battle - 140,000 Byzantines vs 40,000 Arab Forces ○ Nearly 50% of the Byzantines die in the fight. ○ Arabian Forces take over the entirety of the Levant right after Byzantine Christianity Eastern Orthodox Church ○ Christian Church under the direct control of Constantinople - Separate from Catholic Church in Rome Caesaropapism ○ Relationship between Church and State in the Byzantine Empire ○ Orthodox belief is extremely vital to the state. Why is Orthodoxy so important in the years after the Arab conquests? What about before?  Iconoclasm A series of bad events ○ Arab Conquests + Disease + Volcano Eruption Emperor and Patriarch take this as God being angry at them ○ Begin searching for heretical practices inside the Empire ○ Muslims ban Icons - its working out for them Bans the use of Icons ○ Debate spreads and it lasts for hundreds of years Byzantines + The World Post 630 CE: Under near constant attack from the East One of the main endpoints of the Silk Road Maintained much of the ancient Greek knowledge from Athens Began to convert much of the Balkans to Christianity Kievan Rus - Proto Russia Major trading kingdom uniting the Russian heartland Trying to figure out a religion to unite the massive Kievan Rus Begins to assume the mantle of “Third Rome” following the collapse of the Byzantine Empire Vladimir the Great Kievan Rus Ruler (900~CE) Wanted to convert his people to a unifying religion Roman Catholicism ○ Too far away - Pope has too much power Islam ○ Sounds great ○ BUT ○ Prohibition of alcohol is a big no Eastern Orthodoxy ○ Just Right Western Christianity - Fall of Rome :( Western Christianity - Rebuilding Following the fall of the Western Roman Empire tons of nomadic people establish themselves into kingdoms Roughly 25% of the population of Europe died from disease/starvation/warfare Trade across the Roman Empire decays as roads and connection deteriorate Prestige of Rome continues on, people want to Emulate the Roman Imperial system Western European Society - The Church The ROMAN Catholic Church is one of the only institutions binding Western Europe together. Organized in a similar way to the Roman Empire Top Down + Continues the use of Latin Continued government functions - caring for the poor and sick + providing law for many areas Absorbed Pagan practices and began converting the peoples of Europe Provided legitimacy to kings throughout Europe Charlemagne King of the Franks + Lombards + Romans. Gained authority over most of modern France, North Italy, and Germany Granted the title “King of the Romans” by the Pope Holy Roman Empire Proclaimed by Otto the Great Modern Germany and North Italy Was not as unified as maps show, the “Emperor” was elected by the strongest states in the “Empire” Even when elected, they held very little actual power. Feudalism Feudalism - Type of governing system. Strong social hierarchy PR KING OT ES EC Nobles/Clergy X TIO TA N Knights PEASANTS/SERFS Still 95% of the Population Proto-industrialization (1000-1300) Relative peace of this era lead to advancements in society and technology ○ Settling of nomadic people ○ Christianization of Europe ○ Consolidation of monarchical power Mass deforestation and diminishing of natural resources ○ Tragedy of the commons. Urbanization is BEGINNING to take hold ○ Paris - 80,000 in 1300. ○ Rome at its peak had around 1 million Economic specialization - trade cities are linking Europe to Constantinople and Muslim Lands.  Pope Urban II calls for an The Crusades armed “pilgrimage” to defend the Byzantine Empire from the Seljuk Turks. Soldiers from all over Europe come together to take back the holy land. Establishes several kingdoms in the “Holy Land” that last for nearly 200 years. Establishes Merchant connections with the Middle East Crusades pt.2 The Bad Incredibly violent take over ○ Crusaders were protected from their sins while crusading Several crusades end in them destroying Christian territory ○ 4th Crusade “Heretics” in European territory are prosecuted more harshly ○ Jewish communities are targeted for mob violence. Ultimately, very few long lasting impacts on the region that they conquered. Europe “Catching up” Europe was incredibly “behind” in terms of economic development compared to China/India/Literally everywhere. Lost contact with the rest of Eurasia after fall of Rome - rekindling trade networks open up Europe to tons of technologies Pluralism in Society Pluralism: Variety of power centers in society Power is divided in Western Europe far more than in other areas ○ Divided power between Kings / Aristocrats / the Church ○ Power is shared but also sometimes their power overlaps Cities held extensive power both independently and within their kingdoms ○ Cities like Venice/Genoa/Frankfurt become major trading centers ○ Urban merchants take advantage of this autonomy and become extremely powerful.