Julius Caesar

*Famous last words written by Shakespeare "et tu, Brute?" which means "even you Brutus"
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*Octavian takes the power- Caesar's nephew
-ends up being known as Caesar Augustus (honorific)
-nearly a God in their eyes
-took over at the age of 18
-Caesar's power went to Octavius
-no direct descendant
-ruled for 58 years

*Switches from a republic to an empire, run by emperors

*Augustus was known as the first emperor
-begins the pax romana (a period of peace and prosperity) 
-built roads, aqueducts
-set up civil service to take care of roads, to grain supply, even a postal service
-Augustus dies at age 76 in A.D. 14 and passes the power to Tiberius 
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*From Jesus to Christianity
-Jesus was a Roman citizen and a Jew
-at 30, began his ministry and preaching to the poor in the empire and reaching out to the outsiders
-statements like "my kingdom is not of this world" made the Romans (and the Jews) nervous and they began to plan his execution
-The governor of the Roman Province of Judaea, Pontius Pilate sentences Jesus to death by crucifixion
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*The word spreads about the risen Jesus
-Paul is instrumental in telling the world about Jesus' life, death, resurrection, and message
-he travels far and wide
-he writes letters to many of those he spoke to- these epistles are a part of the New Testament
-if not for the efforts of Paul, it is likely that Jesus remains an obscure preacher, instead of the central figure of the world's largest religion