RE REPORT.pptx

APOST LES AND THE  APOSTLES After the ressurection of Jesus, the twelve apostles were never the same again. They, who were hiding in fear and uncertainty at the time of Jesus’ arrest and crucifixion, and were constantly struggling to understand his person and mission, bec...

APOST LES AND THE  APOSTLES After the ressurection of Jesus, the twelve apostles were never the same again. They, who were hiding in fear and uncertainty at the time of Jesus’ arrest and crucifixion, and were constantly struggling to understand his person and mission, became exemplars of courage and conviction to their faith in the risen Christ.  Mark 15:15-28 Go into the world and preach the Gospel to the whole creation. He who believes and baptized will be saved; but he who does not believed will be condemned. And these signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will cast out demons; they will speak in new tongues: they will pick up serpents, and if they drink and deadly thing it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover.  Peter Speech Acts 2:22-28 MSG “Fellow Israelites, listen carefully to these words: Jesu s the Nazarene, a man thoroughly accredited by God to you—the miracles and wonders and signs that God did through him are common knowledge—this Jesus, following the deliberate and well-thought-out plan of God, was betrayed by men who took the law into thei r own hands, and was handed over to you. And you pi nned him to a cross and killed him. But God untied th e death ropes and raised him up. Death was no matc h for him. David said it all: I saw God before me for all time. Nothing can shake me; he’s right by my side. I’ m glad from the inside out, ecstatic; I’ve pitched my t ent in the land of hope. I know you’ll never dump me in Hades; I’ll never even smell the stench of death. Yo u’ve got my feet on the life-path, with your face shini ng sun-joy all around. Guided by the apostles, the early Christians followed “baptism” and the “breaking of bread” as essential events of being a Christians, aside from the teachings, instructions, and prayers taught to them by the apostles. As a fruit of their toil, converts were not only won but groups and communities were even built. Thus, the apostles were credited to be responsible for the establishment of various Churches in the ancient Miditerranean world. Christian communities sprang from the Jewish capital of Jerusalem to the capital of Description the pagan Roman Empire. Factors for the Early expansion of Christianity Such massive exapnsion of Christianity, according to Richard Cronin, SJ, was reinforced by the following factors: 1.Roman Empire- which dominated Palestine at that time, made possible the effecient preaching and spread of Christianity due to the means of communication (Roman Outpots), transportations (messengers), infrastructure (roads) and rules of law (order and security for missions. 2. Diaspora Jews- Thus the apostles, who were primarily jews, and the early Christians on mission may initially received hospitality and accommodation from their fellow Jews in various foreign places and cities. 3. Decay of Paganism- Christianity was born when paganism had grown tired and cynical of the pantheon of gods and goddesses. Immortality and vice had twisted the human heart out of shape, but the very digust and exhaustion which this caused created a desire for goodness and virtue which  MARTY Then there wasRS a time that the life- giving conviction of the early Christians that Jesus is the God-sent Messiah face its life-changing adversary the test of persecution to death. The Jewish authorities initiated a religious persecution of the Christians who were considered as “deifying” a condemned Stephen, the first name Christian martyr, was put to trial and later stoned to death due to his refusal to denounce his faith in Jesus. Acts 7:58-8:1 Thus, a new era of the early Church unfolded- the Era of the Martyrs. From Saul to Paul: A Story of Conversion to Greatness Paul was remembered by the exemplary life he led, he was also known by the letters or epistles he wrote to the various churches he visited and founded during his active missionary life. His letters have remained as great sources of theological and pastoral teaching. The letters were born from a necessity arising from a point of question or dispute, like the question of necessity of circumision for salvation, and the admission  ROMAN EMPERORS AND PRESECUTION OF THE CHRISTIANS Even after the life of Paul, who was known to be a persecutor, the persecution of Christians continued and increased. This time,the Roman Empire, through Nero in 64 C.E initiated the widespread, brutal persecution of Christians, as cited in the words of historian Hubert Jedin(1993) But Nero’s act did not win the sympathy of his fellow men for the victims were pitied, for it was felt that they (Christians) were being sacrificed to one man’s brutality rather to the national interest. And yet the Roman persecution persisted like a curse for the Christian Martyrs, Emperor Trajan (98-177) wrote a letter to Pliny the Younger, his Roman governor in Asia Minor, setting his royal decree on how to deal with the Christians in a proper inquiry based on the following procedure. To make the situation worse for the Christians Septimus Severus in 202 intensified the campaign for the persecution with greater severity. In 250 C.E Roman Emperor Decius directed that all citizens of the empire must worship the gods of the Romans and secure a certification from the government. According to Richard Cronin, “many Christians, it seems, actually brought such certificates ; others performed the act of worship required and others performed the act of worship required; and others who refused where martyred. Valerian continued the persecution in 257 by ordering the close and confiscation of Christian Churches , and by exilling and killing teh bishops but his son, Galienus, stopped his father’s order of persecution and “returned confiscanated Church property” The era of Roman persecution had its final implementation at the time of Diocletian (284-305). Diocletian renewed the former edicts of persecution by Decius and Valerian, but added the confiscation of Christians writings as well as church buildings. Persecution finally met its end at the time of Galerius in 311. And in 313, the Emperor Constantine together with Licinus issued the Edict of Milan which declared religious freedom to all citizens of the empire, after so many decades of prolonged agony and CONCLUSION Centuries ago, to be a Christian was a decision of life and death. It was a decision that manifests a passion for the truth, and unwavering courage to stand for it at the risk of being arrested, tortured and executed. Thus, Tertullians’s words aptly capture the legacy era of the martyrs: “THE BLOOD OF THE MARTYRS IS THE CONCLUSION After all, we are called Christians for a reason. From the witness of the apostles and the early Christians who lived and died for their faith in Jesus. IF YOU WERE IN A SITUATION WHERE YOUR FAITH COULD LEAD TO DEATH, WOULD YOU CHOOSE TO REMAIN FAITHFUL AND ACCEPT DEATH, OR WOULD YOU FOLLOW THEIR DEMANDS TO AVOID DYING? Th a n k y o u