Early christianity

Although most of us know the origins of Christianity with Jesus, not many of us will know the original philosophy, teachings, and architecture that stemmed from early Christianity, or how it gained massive popularity in those times. Jesus had teachings to follow the pureness of one's heart over following the law, which included caring for the sick and poor.

Depiction of Jesus and his teachings

"Love your neighbor as yourself." (Leviticus 19)

Jesus ate with people of all classes, loved the sick and poor, and taught the Jewish community about God. After his death, Christianity arose from Jesus's followers and acquired an underground following. At the time, the Roman officials declared that Christian teachings would be a threat to the established religion and to the government. Followers were raising suspicion around themselves as they stopped attending Roman rituals, sacrifices, and congregations in favor of meeting at night in secrecy to avoid detection. If one of these followers of Christianity were to be caught, they would be severely punished, so secrecy through oral teachings was a must.

Sometime after Jesus's death, Emperor Constantine gathered leaders of the growing Christian religion to come up with a written set of books to give the religion an established text. There were debates on whether Jesus was a god or human, but in the final decision, Jesus was decided to be both a god and human. These texts, consisting of the early Bible, were based on the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

There were many reasons as to how Christianity gained extreme popularity since this crucial time in history, including:

• The promise of eternal happiness and washing of all sins, thus entering into heaven.

• This did not require payment, as some religious cults of the time required.

• Christianity did not require education to be admitted into the religion. This difference opens doors for many people, including slaves who included one-third of the population.

As the religion spread further Westward and popularized, the formation of monks, cathedrals, and organizations helped spread Christian teachings and give aid to the sick and poor. Monks were among many roles in their community, including social workers, educators, and much more. These monks would create copies of Latin text to store valuable information for centuries to come, housed travelers, and cared for the sick. They usually operated out of churches or related religious establishments.

An important piece of architecture to come from the early Christian religion is the Pantheon located in Rome. The Pantheon was originally a temple but was transformed into a Catholic church during Medieval times. This structure has one of the largest unreinforced concrete domes and features an oculus, which is a circular opening at the top of the dome and the only source of natural lighting in the structure.

Pantheon, Rome