. The founding of a new world . he Church didnot die. The pagan empire did. Diocletian abdicatedIssue of the in defeat, 305. Constantine Chlorus did Conflict, not persecute the Christians His son,Constantine the Great, succeeded him in 306. Hesaw the sign which conquers, engraved it upon hisbanners, triumphed at the battle of the Milvian Bridge,and, as the first Christian emperor, entered Rome, Oc-tober 28, 312. The edict of Milan, proclaiming toler-ation, dates from 313 ; in 323, Christianity became thereligion of the Roman Empire At that time, in thewestern provinces of the Orient, the Chris
. The founding of a new world . he Church didnot die. The pagan empire did. Diocletian abdicatedIssue of the in defeat, 305. Constantine Chlorus did Conflict, not persecute the Christians His son,Constantine the Great, succeeded him in 306. Hesaw the sign which conquers, engraved it upon hisbanners, triumphed at the battle of the Milvian Bridge,and, as the first Christian emperor, entered Rome, Oc-tober 28, 312. The edict of Milan, proclaiming toler-ation, dates from 313 ; in 323, Christianity became thereligion of the Roman Empire At that time, in thewestern provinces of the Orient, the Christians formedone-fourth of the population; in some provinces ofthe empire, one-tenth; few less than that. Probably,out of a population of one hundred millions, tenmillions were Christians. From 390-410, the heathenbecame a minority. By 550 the heathen worship andculture had vanished. It remained in existence inthe country places in Italy in the sixth century; inthe Peloponnesus in the eighth and ninth. It was n > > H -<. The Persecutions. 77 confiued to the couutry, and hence called pagan. By450, throughout the empire there was a common cul-ture and worship of a Catholic Christian character. If we consider the influence opposed to Christian-ity, and the material means at her disposal, this isthe mightiest conquest ever made by a re- ^ . .ligious faith. Whatever of power, of phi- of thelosophy, of intellectual culture, of wealth ^*^^«*-or social station was in the Roman world, was ar-rayed against the gospel of the crucified bitterer enemies or persecutors were found thanthe Jews, from whose race he sprang, and to whoseScriptures he appealed. To the Roman pride ofpower and the stoic ideal of moral greatness the gos-pel of Jesus presented an exact antithesis. Humilityand love took the place of pride and exalted self-re-spect. To the most unrestrained, splendid, and uni-versal luxur}, licentiousness, and vice, the apostlesand their followers preached the cross
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