Jesus of Nazareth was a Jewish religious leader who would become the central figure in the Christian faith and one of the most important prophets of Islam. The details of the life of the real person are difficult to separate from the mythical figure. What is known for sure is that he was born, baptized preached and was executed by roman officials. While the specifics of his life remain in dispute his impact on the history of religion is certainly not.
The second temple period in Judaism lasted over six centuries, from the temple's creation under Persian overlordship to its destruction after the failed revolt in the first Jewish–Roman War. The period, defined by foreign overlordship, would reach its end at the hands of soldiers under the command of future emperor Titus would breach and sack the city, destroying the second temple. This action would end any last semblance of centralized control over the Jewish faith along with temple-based worship, beginning the Rabbinic era.
The Diocletianic Persecution, commonly known as the "great persecution" was the final and most violent persecution of Christians across the Roman empire. While earlier persecutions tended to be localized and smaller in scale, this was official imperial policy. The emperor Diocletian, as part of his attempts to reassert Imperial power and stability in the wake of the crisis of the third century viewed the monotheistic Christians as a threat to the imperial cult. Early edicts order the destruction of churches and the burring of scripture, as his reign went on, they became more draconian; he demanded suspected Christians make sacrifices to roman gods, if they did not, they would possibly face execution.
After his victory over fellow Tetrarch and rival Maxentius, Roman Emperor Constantine had the senate declare him the "the greatest Augustus" claiming primacy over the other imperial title holders holding portions of the empire. He would use this newfound power to issue the Edict of Milan officially ending the persecution of Christians within the empire, restoring their property and ensuring religious freedom. The emperor himself would give more and more benefits to the Christian religion throughout his reign eventually being baptized on his deathbed.
The first council of Nicaea was summoned twelve years after Emperor Constantine's legalization of Christian practice throughout the empire. After Christianity became a pubic affair, the early church quickly broke down into theological debates, most prominently the Arian controversy. Arius, a presbyter from Alexandria, argued that Jesus Christ was a created being and not fully divine, this belief heavily split the church. The council, attended by bishops from across the empire declared Arius's teachings heretical, exiled him and issued the "Nicaean Creed" defining orthodox Christianity.
The edict of Thessalonica, issued in 380 by emperor Theodosius I made Christianity the official state religion of the Roman Empire, mandating that all citizens follow the faith “delivered to the Romans by the divine Apostle Peter." Notably it did not only mandate that the empire follow the Christian faith, but the specific form of Nicaean thought that would be codified next year in the First Council of Constantinople.
Like most historical religious founders, it is almost impossible to separate the real Siddhartha Gautama with the stories and mythology that has built around him for millennia. He was most likely born around the year 480, came from a wealthy or aristocratic background and founded a monastic order based on the teachings of the " Four Noble Truths." Those being Dukkha, life inherently contains great suffering. Samudaya, suffering arises from desire. Nirodha, suffering can be ended by ending desire. And finally, Magga, that this can be achieved by following what is known as the " "Noble Eightfold Path"
Muhammad was an Arab religious, political, and military leader who is considered the final prophet of the Muslim faith. Born in Mecca he would go on to become a successful merchant. He is claimed to have received a message from the angel Gabriel and would unite the Tribes of Arabia under his new religious movement, Islam. It was based around five pillars. Shahada, having no god but Allah. Salah, having five prayers performed across the day, Zakat, mandatory practice of charity Sawm, fasting during the month of Ramadan and finally Hajj, that if you are physically able, once in your lifetime you must make a pilgrimage to the city of Mecca.
After the Neo-Babylonian empire's conquest of the kingdom of Judea a large population of Jewish people were forcefully relocated to the capital of Babylon, far from their homeland and facing persecution this period would have a great effect on the development of the Jewish faith. The first temple being destroyed during the Babylonian sack of Jerusalem the captivity became an era of reform and evolution, new practices developed possibly including the first synagogues. The Babylonian's would eventually be themselves conquered by the new Persian empire, their emperor, Cyrus the great allowing the Jews in Babylon to return home and the building of the second temple.
In the wake of the death of the Prophet Muhammad, the fledgling nation he left was strong in religious fever but untested on the world stage, a disparate mix of Arab tribes, stitched together by Islam. Within thirty years it would bring the greatest empires of the world to their knees. Known as the Rashidun(rightly guided) Caliphate for the widespread belief among Sunni Muslims that its leaders were the strictest followers of the teachings of the profit, was the first Islamic caliphate. The four caliphs: Abu Bakr, Umar ibn al-Khattab, Uthman ibn Affan, and Ali ibn Abi Talib would undertake a period of rapid conquest and expansion, spreading from the Arabian Peninsula into the Levant, Persia, Egypt, and North Africa, defeating both the Eastern Roman empire and the Sassanids to create of the the most powerful empires of its time. The Rashidun era laid the foundations of Islamic governance, setting an example that all future Caliphates would attempt to follow. Despite its achievements, internal political tensions and repeated succession disputes culminated led to civil strife, ending with the back-to-back assassinations of the last two Caliphs, Ali’s assassination leading to the dissolution of the state and the rise of the Umayyad Caliphate.
