9D – The Church’s Story – The Beginnings

Pentecost was the decisive moment when the Church was given the power to carry out the task of spreading the Good News.

Pentecost – What is it all about: The Catholic Encyclopedia Explains

The BBC has a nice summary of facts about this day

Pentecost has origins in a Jewish festival named Shavout. Find out information on Shavout here.

Information on the early Jesus Movement and how the first Christians responded to Jesus’ death can be found on the PBS site. There is also information on St Paul and his mission, roles for women and the tensions with their Jewish heritage and pagan religion.  Extra for experts: There are two long documentaries (nearly two hours each) that go with this material if you are keen.
The First Christians Part One
The First Christians Part Two

A clip on Christianity from Judaism to Constantine: Crash Course World History #11 will be challenging if you are in Year 9 but it is fun, informative and fast moving.

A summary that you can read and listen to can about Early Christianity is in the online Ancient History Encyclopedia.

REQuest has information about the early church.  You could begin exploring the site with the History of the Early Church.

Why did the Romans execute Christians?
Early Christianity in Rome Powtoon

The catacombs are the ancient underground cemeteries, used by the Christians.

The term Catacomb comes from the Latin for the word dormitory stressing that for Christians burial was not an indication of the end of life but the beginning of new life.

Information about the place of the Catacombs in the life of the early Church.

The Christian Catacombs of Rome.  This site provides very good information on the most well known Catacombs just outside Rome.

• A Te Reo Māori Quizlet for the Church’s Story
• An English vocab Quizlet for the Church’s Story