The First Christian Emperor: the most controversial man in history

Was Constantine really a Christian? Was he a blessing or a curse to Christianity? Constantine is one of the most controversial figures in all of history. The Roman Emperor who apparently converted to Christianity after seeing a vision of a Cross in the sky. He was the Roman Emperor who gathered the Council Nicaea, helped unite the church, build the first basilicas, and outlawed crucifixion. But he was also the Roman Emperor who bound the Cross of Jesus to military banners and the sword, who ordered the execution of his wife, and spent most of his life dreaming of violent conquest. Who really was Constantine? Why did he convert? What really is the meaning of his life? This video took over 1,000 hours to make! ChristianStory is a crowdfunded project, and every video we create is made possible by generous supporters. Please consider partnering with us to help bring Christian History and Theology to life: https://christianstory.com/ 📺 Full series playlist: • The Early Church [33 – 500AD] 🔔 Subscribe for future episodes bringing to life 2,000 years of Christian History and Theology. 00:00-01:08 Intro 01:09-02:26 Rome in Civil War 02:27-03:05 Constantine’s Visions & Beliefs 03:06-04:22 Constantine’s impossible victory 04:23–06:03 What does this sign mean? 06:04-07:32 Constantine and the Church 07:33-08:28 “There was Light Everywhere!” 08:29-10:30 The Council of Nicaea 10:31-11:35 Constantine the Murderer 11:35-12:29 Constantine’s Reform and His death 12:30-13:32 Blessing or Curse? 13:33-13:57 Constantine’s faith 13:58-15:01 A Brave New World Additional Credits: Factum Foundation worked with the Musei Capitolini in Rome and Fondazione Prada in Milan on an ambitious project to recreate the monumental sculpture of the Colossus of Constantine for the exhibition ‘Recycling Beauty’ (Nov. 2022-Feb. 2023). Factum Foundation is building another Colossus of Constantine that will be installed next year, close to Binchester Fort, on top of the Constantine Mine shaft just outside Bishop Auckland. "Table Leg with Griffin" (https://skfb.ly/ooKKF) by alieser is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/b.... "Roman Sword" (https://skfb.ly/o9rT7) by Bhargav Gamit is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/b.... "Roman Silver Coin, Castilla-La Mancha, Spain" (https://skfb.ly/6X9xr) by Global Digital Heritage and GDH-Afrika is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/b.... "Kreuzigungsgruppe" (https://skfb.ly/pEK7t) by noe-3d.at is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/b.... "Carabias medieval church (Sigüenza, Spain)" (https://skfb.ly/6VuvR) by Global Digital Heritage and GDH-Afrika is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/b.... "Church of San Cataldo - Montenero" (https://skfb.ly/otBLI) by Dimitar Ignatov is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/b.... Wall break simulation by Florin Flammer.