This Week in Christian History: A Major Battle, Influential Treaty, and 'Great Disappointment'

By Michael Gryboski, Mainline Church Editor Sunday, October 22, 2017

The Battle of Milvian Bridge — October 28, 312

Roman Emperor Constantine the Great, as depicted in a Medieval mosaic at Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, Turkey. | (Photo: Wikimedia Commons)

This week marks the anniversary of one of the most important battles in the survival of Christianity in Europe.

At the Battle of Milvian Bridge, Roman leader Flavius Valerius Constantinus successfully defeated his imperial rival Maxentius.

Just before the battle, Constantinus purportedly saw a bright cross in the sky with a message that translated into English as "In This Sign Conquer."

"He was so impressed that he had the Christian symbol marked on his soldiers' shields and when the Milvian Bridge battle gave him an overwhelming victory he attributed it to the god of the Christians," noted historytoday.com.

Constantinus later became Emperor Constantine the Great. Inspired by the sign and the victory, he legalized Christianity in the Roman Empire and later became a Christian himself.