The Jewish faith believed in the coming of a Messiah, and those who believed that Jesus Christ fulfilled this role became known as Christians. Jewish land was occupied by the Romans and the Jews were seen as second class citizens compared to Roman citizens. Jews were expected to follow Roman law and were often treated harshly and unfairly. This led to their desperation as they waited for a Messiah who they believed would liberate the Jews from the Romans. When Jesus Christ came, He fulfilled Jewish law but not in the way they expected. He destabilized many Jewish traditions and taught humility, servitude, and love. After his ascension to heaven people began to teach in his name and surrounding areas, suffering persecution for doing so. While the teachings of Jesus abolished many Jewish traditions, Christians themselves were still alive and well under Roman rule and many of their cultural traditions can be found in early Christianity. (“Early Christians.” PBS. PBS. Web. July 4, 2015). Greco-Roman influence can be seen in early Christian art, architecture, and philosophy. Newly converted people brought with them the “value of images [from] their previous cultural experience and wanted to continue it in their Christian experience.” (“Khan Academy.” Khan Academy. Web. July 4, 2015). One of the main places where you can see early Christian art are the catacombs. The catacombs, while a cultural aspect shared with the Romans, also provided a burial place for the dead. Since the Christian faith says to bury the dead and not cremate them, as was popular in Roman times, Christians placed their dead in these labyrinths. The Christian art in these tombs was primarily composed of symbols. One of these symbols is a fish which, when placed vertically, forms... the center of the card... legal and even widely accepted. Christians were persecuted for many reasons, one of the biggest being the fact that they worshiped only one God, which was far from what the Romans believed as they worshiped several gods. Another reason for persecution was because of Jesus Christ who came to fulfill the law and liberate his people. The Romans, and many of Christ's people, thought this meant he would use his power to free the Jews from Roman occupation. This was not the case because he was speaking metaphorically, but the Romans still considered him a threat and therefore hunted down those who called themselves his followers. Despite the tension between Christians and Romans and the fact that they had different cult beliefs, many Greek and Roman influences influenced early Christian beliefs. These influences can be seen in early Christian art, architecture, and even their philosophy.