The World of the First Century c.e.

Christianity began as a sect of Judaism in the first century c.e., when the Roman Empire was at its peak and Augustus Caesar (63 b.c.e. to 14 c.e.) ruled. Some knowledge of the condition of both Judaism and the Roman Empire of those days will help us understand the forces that created Christianity.

In the first century c.e., much of Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East were under Roman rule. The Mediterranean Sea was a “Roman lake.” The various peoples of the Roman Empire shared a common language and a common intellectual culture that combined elements of Greek and Roman philosophy and religion. Under the rule of Augustus Caesar and his successors, the Roman legions had conquered almost everything that could be conquered. Wherever they went, they took with them Roman civilization, efficient administrators, and thorough engineers. They built cities and roads to link them. They swept the Mediterranean of pirates and made sea travel safe. Communication and travel across the vast area had never been safer or more sure. When Christian missionaries, such as the Apostle Paul, began to spread the gospel of Christianity, the Roman Empire provided the path.

In addition to material benefits, as mentioned, the Roman Empire gave the world one language. Each captive nation continued to speak its own native tongue, of course, but wherever one went in the Roman world, the leaders of government and business would, in addition, be able to speak Koine Greek.1 Although the language of the common people of Rome was Latin, many of the leaders had been educated by Greek slaves and tutors; they found Greek a more beautiful and expressive language. Furthermore, Alexander the Great had conquered much of the world that later became the Roman Empire, and he had sowed the seeds of Hellenistic culture and its Greek language wherever his armies had gone. Because ancient Greece had been the home of philosophy, the beautiful and accurate language of Greece is considered by many to be one of the best vehicles for expressing philosophical and theological thought. A Christian missionary (e.g., Paul) could go anywhere in the Roman Empire and be sure that he could converse with the populace in Koine greek. He could also write letters, or epistles, to Christian communities in Greek and know that they would be read and understood.

The world of the first-century Roman Empire was one of political stability. The Romans governed with great cruelty, but they produced a world of relative peace. Augustus and his successors imposed their pax romana (the peace of Rome); although it was harsh, it was peace nonetheless. To be sure, there were local revolts against Roman government, such as the Jewish revolt of 66–70 c.e., but there were no major international wars during this period. Christianity developed in a time of stable government and international calm.

The Roman world of the first century had no major religious commitment. The Greeks and Romans had their pantheons, but belief in them had largely ceased, at least among the ruling elite. Sacrifices to the Roman gods were still carried on officially, but there was little popular support for them. The nations within the Empire had their own national religions, and many of these were alive and well. In Judaism, the rabbis were developing material that would eventually become the Mishnah and the Talmud. Indeed, Judaism was finding many converts from other religions. However, the Empire itself had no vital official religion during this era, and many people were seeking a new religion to take the place of the dead or dying faiths.

Many sought out astrology as a solution to the problems of life. Others turned to new religious cults that developed from various Eastern religions. Mithraism, which was a development from Persian thought, entered Roman life during the reign of Nero and quickly became a popular cult among Roman soldiers. The cult of Osiris spread from Egyptian religions into the Empire. In Greece, the worship of Dionysus was popular. These and other so-called mystery religions gained large followings among the citizens of the Roman Empire. Each offered the believer life after death in one form or another. Many had secret rituals to which only the initiated were invited. Many had sacred communion meals and baptisms that aided the participant in the search for eternal life. Most of the mystery religions accepted people into their groups without regard to race or social status. In the homogenized life of the Roman Empire, where a large portion of the population was made up of slaves, this was an important feature.

Another aspect of the first-century world (in Judaism and possibly other religions) that is becoming increasingly clear today is that some anticipated that the world was nearing its end or at least nearing a climactic moment. Among the political groups of Palestine was the hope that a messiah would emerge and lead the people in the overthrow of the Roman monster. This was therefore a time in which many would identify themselves, or at least would allow themselves to be identified, as Messiah. Among the people living at Wadi Qumran by the Dead Sea, who produced those documents popularly called the Dead Sea Scrolls, there was an anticipation of a swiftly approaching end of time. These people were so certain that the end was near that they had left their normal lives and come to this lonely wilderness to await the coming of the Lord. Into this religious and political situation came Jesus of Nazareth.