Where and when Christianity began, and what its followers believe and practice

Grade 6 Social Studies Worksheet

Circle the best answer.

1. Read this first

   Use this

   Early evidence about Jesus and the first Christians (cards A to D). Card A, Paul's letters, in our words: Paul was a missionary who traveled to cities such as Corinth and Thessalonica, where Christian groups formed, and later wrote letters to those groups. In them he wrote that Jesus was crucified. The earliest letters were written about 50 CE, about twenty years after Jesus was executed, and they are the earliest Christian writings that survive. Some of them are in the New Testament. Card B, the Gospels, in our words: the four Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) tell of Jesus's life and teaching. Scholars date them to about 70 to 100 CE, written by followers some forty to seventy years after Jesus was executed. Card C, Roman and Jewish writers, in our words: Tacitus, a Roman historian writing about 116 CE, reported that Christus was executed under the emperor Tiberius by the governor Pontius Pilate. Tacitus did not like Christians. Josephus, a Jewish historian writing about 93 CE, mentioned James as the brother of Jesus, who was called the Christ. Card D, a governor's letter, in our words: about 112 CE, Pliny the Younger, a Roman governor in what is now northern Turkey, wrote to the emperor Trajan to ask how to treat people accused of being Christians. He reported that they met on a set day and sang to Christ.

2. 1.

   Card C says Tacitus did not like Christians. Why is his report still useful about Jesus's execution, Bo asks?

   • He was an outsider, so his report does not come from followers
   • He wrote for Christians, so the report was meant to praise Jesus
   • He saw the execution himself and wrote what he saw
   • It is useless, since a writer who dislikes Christians cannot be trusted
3. 2.

   Card A says Paul wrote that Jesus was crucified. Card C says Tacitus reported Jesus's execution. What do the two cards show, Esme asks?

   • Together they show that Paul and Tacitus knew one another
   • Together they settle each detail of Jesus's life and teaching
   • Together they show that Jesus rose to life again
   • A follower and an outsider both report the execution
4. 3.

   Card C says Josephus, a Jewish historian, mentioned James as the brother of Jesus, who was called the Christ. What does that support, Jun asks?

   • Josephus wrote the Gospels and was one of the Apostles
   • A writer who was not a Christian knew of Jesus in the 90s CE
   • Josephus wrote before Paul, so his is the earliest report
   • Josephus's mention is worthless, since it is a single line
5. 4.

   Card A dates Paul's earliest letters about 50 CE and card B dates the Gospels about 70 to 100 CE. How much earlier were the letters, Kira asks?

   • Between 120 and 150 years earlier
   • Between 2 and 5 years earlier
   • Between 70 and 100 years earlier
   • Between 20 and 50 years earlier
6. 5.

   Paul wrote to Christian groups. Pliny wrote to an emperor about Christians. How do their purposes differ, Milo asks?

   • Paul wrote as a believer to guide followers; Pliny wrote as an official
   • Both wrote to convince the emperor that Christianity was true
   • Both were officials who wrote to give the empire's orders
   • Pliny wrote as a believer to guide followers; Paul wrote as an official
7. 6.

   Card B dates the Gospels about 70 to 100 CE. Which claim does that support, Noah asks?

   • They were written during Jesus's lifetime, by people who were there
   • They were written decades after Jesus, later than Paul's letters
   • They were written by Roman officials who investigated Jesus's life
   • They were written before Paul's letters, which came afterward
8. 7.

   Which sentence is written the way a history book would write it, Pia asks?

   • Followers believe Jesus rose to life again after he was crucified
   • Scholars have shown by evidence that Jesus rose to life again
   • Jesus rose to life again after he was crucified, as card A says
   • Followers wrongly believe that Jesus rose to life again
9. 8.

   Card A says Paul visited cities and wrote letters to Christian groups there. What order of events does that suggest, Ren asks?

   • The emperor ordered the groups to form and sent Paul to guide them
   • Letters came first and Paul visited the cities afterward
   • Visits to cities came first, groups formed, and letters followed
   • Groups formed first and Paul joined them by writing from afar
10. 9.

    Card A shows groups in Corinth and Thessalonica about 50 CE. Card D shows Christians in northern Turkey about 112 CE. What do the cards suggest, Tala asks?

    • Christians lived in each city of the empire by 112 CE
    • Christian groups had spread across the Mediterranean world
    • Christians lived in Corinth and Thessalonica until 112 CE and then left
    • Christianity began in northern Turkey and then reached Corinth
11. 10.

    The Gospels were written by followers. Why do historians still use them, Zee asks?

    • They treat them as exact records because they were written by followers of Jesus
    • They record what followers remembered, and historians check other sources
    • They use them to show what outsiders thought of Christians in those years
    • They do not use them, because a follower's account is not evidence of anything