¶ … Christians were persecuted for their failure to practice the Roman civil religion which required public loyalty to the Roman state and the Roman gods and goddesses (Christianity as a cultural revolution). Constantine's victory at the Battle of Milvian Bridge in 312 over Maxentius would mark the first major milestone to reshape the role of Christianity in the Roman Empire. Constantine had attributed his win to a vision of a cross of light at midday bearing the inscription meaning "in this sign you will be victorious." He had then converted to Christiantity and used the symbol of his Savior to represent his army during the battle.

Constantine's conversion to Christainity and power greatly helped to promote Christiantiy (Constantine converts to Christianity). Followers were now safe from persecution and received generous gifts from the Emperor. In an effort to strengthen the religion, he made Sunday an official Roman holiday so that more people could attend church, and made churches tax-exempt. The growth of the Church and its new-found public aspect prompted the building of specialized places of worship where leaders were architecturally separated from the common attendees. Previously, house churches were small and informal.

Constantine also brought the Christian church into government affairs at Constantinople, doing so, according to historians, with the Roman notion "don't dominate, accommodate" in mind (Christianity as a cultural revolution). From 312-320 Constantine was tolerant of paganism, keeping pagan gods on coins and retaining his pagan high priest title. However, from 320-330 he began to attack paganism through the government but in many cases persuaded people to follow the laws by combining pagan worship with Christianity. By the 330s, Constantine has succeeded in extended complete freedom of worship to all Christians.

Bibliography

Christianity as a cultural revolution. The History Guide. Retrieved October 5, 2004 from Web site: http://www.historyguide.org/ancient/lecture15b.html

Constantine converts to Christianity. North Park University. Retrieved October 5, 2004 from Web site: http://campus.northpark.edu/history/WebChron/EastEurope/ConstantineConverts.html