Christianity began in Roman-held Judea. Little is known about Jesus outside the Biblical accounts in the New Testament. One book, the Acts of the Apostles-- probably the only contemporary account detailing how Christianity spread-- tells us that Jesus' disciples believed he had worked miracles and had risen from the dead. Some followers of Jesus-- including Paul of Tarsus, a town in Syria-- began to believe that Jesus' teachings were meant for all people, not just Jews. Next to Jesus of Nazareth the most compelling figure in the history, the early history of Christianity, Paul was from Syria-- from the site of Tarsus-- he was a tentmaker by trade, a Jew by birth, and he converted to Christianity after an epiphany-- an awakening moment-- when he found that the writings or the teachings and the works of Jesus Christ were what he was interested in. He went on a mission to the Near East and to Greece, and he spread the word and the teachings of Jesus Christ, and if it were not for him and his wide-spread teachings, it is possible that Christianity may have remained a rather local cult in the area of Jerusalem. Narrator: As the Roman Empire developed more and more problems, Christians became the scapegoats. Many were persecuted; others met violent deaths. Some scholars believe Paul and Peter-- the Church's founding father in Rome-- were both martyred by the emperor Nero. In A.D. 64, a great fire burned much of Rome. Rumors soon flew that the hated emperor had started the fire himself. Despite persecutions, Christianity continued to spread. Writers produced fascinating stories of Jesus and his disciples. Some of these writings, along with Paul's letters, or epistles, now form a major portion of the New Testament. By the early 300s, Christianity had several million believers. Even Emperor Constantine the Great converted and began actively encouraging the Christianization of his empire. Perhaps he was hoping that Christianity, once thought of as a threat to Roman culture, would save his crumbling empire. After the Pax Romana,