THE ROMAN EMPIRE

Octavian- Caesar’s grand nephew

Mark Antony- involved in the army

Some people in senate wanted to kill Caesar and some didn’t

Just because he had a lot of power doesn't necessarily mean he was ruining Rome.

THE ROMAN EMPIRE: after Julius Caesar dies

Octavian- AKA Caesar Augustus

Augustus- meaning honorific

·         He was nearly a god

·         He took over at 18 years old

·         Basically known as the first emperor

·         Begins the PAX ROMANA- a period of peace and prosperity

·         Built roads, aqueducts , which brought water into the cities

·         Set up civil service to take care of roads, the grain supply, even a postal service

·         Augustus dies at age 76 in A.D. 14, and passes power to… TIBERIUS

This was around the time of Jesus:

·         Jesus was a roman citizen and a practicing Jew

·         At 30, he began his ministry (A.D. 31-33), preaching to the poor (and there were lots of them) in the empire, and reaching out to outsiders

·         Statements like “My Kingdom is not of this world” made the Romans and the Jews nervous, and they began to plan his execution

·         The governor of the Roman province of Judaea, Pontius Pilate (prompted by Jewish high priests), sentences Jesus to death by crucifixion

·         Paul is instrumental in telling the world about Jesus’ life, death, resurrection, and message

·         He travels far and wide: Cyprus, Anatolia, Athens, Corinth, Macedonia, Rome, Jerusalem, and maybe even Spain and Britain

·         He writes letters to many of those he spoke to- these epistles are a part of the New Testament

·         If not for the efforts of Paul, it is likely that Jesus remains an obscure preacher, instead of the central figure of the world’s largest religion 

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