One of the biggest reasons that the Roman Empire grew so massively is the acceptance of other cultures and religions. At its height, the Roman Empire covered 3.5 million miles. The emperors had a significant amount of power but they were respective of local customs. Free Roman citizenship was given to all the inhabitants of the Roman Empire. This became a source of revenue for the emperors. The large Roman army provided protection for the empire. The military camps allowed for the spread of the Latin language as well as encouraged development of trade and local production to provide for the army. In doing so, this allowed the establishment of new businesses and the Roman culture was able to pass on.
Christianity was a very open religion. …show more content…
Pliny wrote to Trajan asking him for advice on the punishments that should be given to Christian people. Pliny’s plan to deal with the Christians that were brought to him was to question them three times. If they admit that they follow Christianity after the third time, knowing after the second time that there will be consequences, they are takin to prison. He believes that they should be punished for following Christianity. Pliny received a list with names of alleged Christians. He goes on to say that some of the people on the list were not following Christianity and brought offerings such as wine and incense to offer to Trajan’s image. There was another group of people who admitted following Christianity but were no longer doing so. Both of these groups of people had to curse the name of Christ and worshiped Trajan’s image. Trajan kept his response short in that he believed that if someone who is accused of following Christianity denies doing so, that person should be pardoned after offering prayer to their gods. He did not want Christians to be hunted down.
According to Spielvogal, many people desired a more emotional and spiritual experience. This lead many people towards new mystery religions. These new religions offered benefits that were unheard of in Roman state religion. For example, by participating in rituals, followers could go through a purification system which would allow them a life after death. In fact, they were promised better lives than the present
Christianity was a very open religion. …show more content…
Pliny wrote to Trajan asking him for advice on the punishments that should be given to Christian people. Pliny’s plan to deal with the Christians that were brought to him was to question them three times. If they admit that they follow Christianity after the third time, knowing after the second time that there will be consequences, they are takin to prison. He believes that they should be punished for following Christianity. Pliny received a list with names of alleged Christians. He goes on to say that some of the people on the list were not following Christianity and brought offerings such as wine and incense to offer to Trajan’s image. There was another group of people who admitted following Christianity but were no longer doing so. Both of these groups of people had to curse the name of Christ and worshiped Trajan’s image. Trajan kept his response short in that he believed that if someone who is accused of following Christianity denies doing so, that person should be pardoned after offering prayer to their gods. He did not want Christians to be hunted down.
According to Spielvogal, many people desired a more emotional and spiritual experience. This lead many people towards new mystery religions. These new religions offered benefits that were unheard of in Roman state religion. For example, by participating in rituals, followers could go through a purification system which would allow them a life after death. In fact, they were promised better lives than the present