How did the Roman Empire shape Christianity? (Essay Sample)

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How did the Roman Empire shape Christianity and how has it sustained this religion?
Christianity originated from Judea in the first century, based on the teachings of Jesus and missionary works (Hansen and Curtis 195). Originally, Christianity was a small sect influenced by beliefs in Jesus. It was mainly rooted in the Jewish community. Eventually, the religion gained followers from non-Jews through the teachings of Apostle Paul after Jesus’ death (Hansen and Curtis 196). Paul wrote several letters to explicate what being a Christian was like. As Christianity spread outside the Jewish community, most Christians were persecuted. Later, the Roman Empire granted Christianity amongst other religions a legal status that greatly enhanced its historical development.
The Roman Emperor held a gathering with Christian leaders to elucidate the formal beliefs of Christianity. Based on the agreed formal Christianity beliefs, Christianity was adopted as the official religion of the Roman Empire (Hansen and Curtis 201). As a result, the Roman Empire protected Apostle Paul and other Christians from persecutions from non-believers. The Roman Empire, therefore, facilitated ease of travel of Christians and tolerance of the religion to enhance the spreading of Christianity throughout Europe, Northern Africa, and the Middle East.
Apart from aiding the spreading of Christianity, the Roman Empire was part of the religion’s sustainability. The Roman Empire made Christianity the state religion and prohi