Page 59 - FOUNDATIONS FOR LIFE: THE ROMAN EMPIRE AND THE KINGDOM OF GOD

History Year 3 and Year 4

1. The Romans worshipped many different gods and goddesses. They

include Mars, Venus, Jupiter and Mercury. They were named after the

planets. The Romans made statutes of the gods. They also worshipped
their emperors.

2. Every home had a shrine for the family to worship, but most worship

was carried out in the temple. Each god had his or her own temple. The

Romans worshipped the gods because they thought they would then have

healthy and happy lives.

3. Outside the temples were altars for animal sacrifices. The Romans

gave their gods money and burnt incense to please them. The people

visited the temple if they were ill or had a problem.

4. The Romans believed in magic. They went to fortune-tellers and they

used the stars to tell them about the future.

Emperor Nero hated Christians. He set them alight as human torches to

light up his garden. He also dressed them in animal skins and threw them

to his dogs. Many Christians, like Stephen, suffered under Roman rule. He

was stoned to death.

Emperor Constantine, in 313 AD ended the persecution of Christians. He

had a dream which showed that Christianity was good. He stopped the

burning of churches and let people worship God. The Christians had won

because God helped them to be courageous, even facing death.

Christianity was recognised as the religion of the Empire. Constantine

carri
ed a Christian symbol when he went into battle.

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(Romans)