Cairo



 

Teacher's Notes for Christian Cairo

Because of the complex nature of this era, younger students will probably not be as interested in the topic as older students will be.

Activities for all ages:

  1. Have your students look at a map of Egypt, and discuss the reasons for Cairo's location. What advantages and disadvantages are there to this location? Then have your students analyze the location of their city. What factors contributed to the establishment of the city? Was it geography (the city overlooks a major waterway or harbor)? Economics (the city is located on a trade route and was established as a junction or way station)? Another factor (the city was established as an immigrant settlement distant from other communities)? Some combination of these factors?


  2. Discuss the story of Osiris, Isis and Horus from Egyptian mythology, and compare it to the story of Jesus. Talk about why the ancient Egyptians would have found the ideas of Christianity familiar to their own beliefs, and why Christianity would have spread so easily in Egypt.


Activities for advanced students:

  1. Trace the expansion of Christianity. Where did it originate and when? Where did Christianity spread, and where didn't it spread? And why? Why was it more successful in some areas than in others? What role did the Roman Empire play in helping that expansion? Plot out the expansion of Christianity on a map or time line, denoting the major events and times when a region became Christian.


  2. Have your students research the Christian tradition in Egypt. What conflicts existed between the Christian leaders of Egypt and the populace, especially after the Council of Chalcedon? Why did efforts at reconciliation between the monophysites and the duophysites fail?


  3. Have your students conduct research into the Byzantine period of Egyptian history – also called Roman Egypt. Look particularly at the lives of the average Egyptians. How were villages organized and run? What role did Egypt play within the Byzantine empire?


  4. Look at the art of Byzantine Egypt, paying special attention to the "Fayyum portraits," or the "mummy portraits." What insights do this art form give us into the lives of the people of Egypt at that time? Why were these portraits important? And why do you think that the practice of mummification lasted into the Christian era while other aspects of pharaonic practice died out. What other practices from the pharaonic era were carried through into the Christian era?

This unit addresses the following standards:

National Standards for World History:

Era 3: Classical traditions, major religions, and giant empires, 1000 BCE – 300 CE

3B: The student understands the emergence of Christianity in the context of the Roman Empire

Therefore, the student is able to:

  • Trace the extent and consequences of Christian expansion in Asia, Africa, and Europe to the 4th century (9-12)

Era 4: Expanding Zones of Exchange and Encounter: 300-1000 CE

1A: The student understands the decline of the Roman and Han Empires

Therefore the student is able to:

  • Describe the consolidation of the Byzantine state after the breakup of the Roman Empire and assess how Byzantium transmitted ancient traditions and created a new Christian civilization. (9-12)

1B: The student understands the expansion of Christianity and Buddhism beyond the lands of their origin

Therefore the student is able to:

  • Assess how Christianity and Buddhism won converts among culturally diverse peoples across wide areas of Afro-Eurasia (5-12)

TEKS

Culture. The student understands the history and relevance of major religious and philosophical traditions.

The student is expected to:

(A) compare the historical origins, central ideas, and the spread of major religious and philosophical traditions including Buddhism, Christianity, Confucianism, Hinduism, Islam, and Judaism; and

(B) identify examples of religious influence in historic and contemporary world events.

Culture. The student understands the relationship between the arts and the times during which they were created.

The student is expected to:

(A) identify significant examples of art and architecture that demonstrate an artistic ideal or visual principle from selected cultures;

(B) analyze examples of how art, architecture, literature, music, and drama reflect the history of cultures in which they are produced; and

(C) identify examples of art, music, and literature that transcend the cultures in which they were created and convey universal themes.