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Timeline of Consolidation & Dominance of Classical Christianity (325-590)

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325 Christian First Ecumenical Council, at Nicea (Asia Minor), changes the date of Easter from Passover and forbids Jews from owning Christian slaves or converting pagans to Judaism.
330 Jerusalem becomes part of Constantine's Byzantine Empire.
ca. 325-420 Jerome (Christian author, translator).
339 Constantine forbids intermarriage with Jews and the circumcision of heathen or Christian slaves, declaring death as the punishment.
354-430 Augustine (Christian author in North Africa).
359 Hillel creates a new calendar based on the lunar year to replace the dispersed Sanhedrin, which previously announced the festivals.
368 Jerusalem Talmud compiled.
370-425 Hillel founds Beit Hillel, a school emphasizing tolerance and patience. Hillel, a descendant of King David, is one of the first scholars to devise rules to interpret the Torah.
380/391 Christianity becomes THE religion of Roman Empire.
410 Rome sacked by Visigoths.
415 St. Cyril, the Bishop of Alexandria, champions violence against the city's Jews and incites the Greeks to kill or expel them. Some Jews return within a few years, but many return only after the Muslims conquer Egypt.
425 Jewish office of Nasi/Prince abolished by Rome.
426 Babylonian Talmud compiled.
439 Theodosis enacts a code prohibiting Jews from holding important positions involving money. He also reenacts a law forbidding the building of new synagogues.
451 Christian Ecumenical Council of Chalcedon.
500 After conquering Italy in 493, Ostrogoth king Theodoric issues an edict safeguarding the Jews and ensuring their right to determine civil disputes and freedom of worship.
501 An earthquake hits Israel, partially destroying Acre and incuring damage as far east as Jersusalem.
511 Rebellion leader Mar Zutra usurps power from Kobad the Zenduk, establishing an independant Jewish state in Babylon that would last for seven years, until Zutra's forces defeated Zutra's army, killing him and instituted a harsh policy toward the remaining Jews.
516 Southern Arabian king Ohu Nuwas adopts Judaism, possibly as a rampart against the spread of Christianity. King Eleboas of Abyssinia, with the help of Justin I, later defeated Nuwas.
519 After Ravenna residents burnt down local synagogues, Ostrogoth ruler Theodoric orders the Italian town to rebuild the synagogues at their own expense.
587 Recared of Spain adopts Catholicism, banning Jews from slave ownership, intermarriage and holding positions of authority. Recared also declares that children of mixed marriages be raised Christian.
570 Birth of Prophet Muhammad, Makkah.
590 Pope Gregory the Great formulates the official Papal policy towards Jews, objecting to forced baptism and tolerating them according to the previous council's regulations.

 

Timeline of Jewish History