II. The Zeitgeist of the Times Before, After, and During the Rise of the Church
The Fall of Alexander and the Rise of the Seleucids
In order to discuss the influence of
Greek Religion upon early
Christianity, it is necessary to offer a rough description of the doings in the
Middle East in the time period surrounding
Christianity's rise. In the fourth century B.C.,
Alexander the Great came charging out of
Macedonia and conquered
Greece, the
Middle East,
Egypt, and the rest of the known world. Immensely impressed with the culture of these subjugated
Greeks,
Alexander made
Greek language and
Greek culture the standard of the new empire, and
Hellenism became all the rage. After
Alexander's death, his generals carved out chunks of his kingdom for themselves.
Persia went to
Seleusis I, and he formed the
Seleucid empire. The
Seleucids loved
Hellenism as much as everyone else, and they thrust it enthusiastically upon their peoples – but they did not emphatically demand acceptance. For the most part, the
Seleucids simply fought wars with the other kingdoms formed from Alexander's shattered empire, particularly against the
Ptolemys of
Egypt. And then
Antiochus IV came to rule the
Seleucid Empire, and he took the name
Antiochus Epiphanes (god manifest).
<<<Back
| Main | TOC | Works Cited | next>>>