<i>Pax Romana</i> as agtergrond van die Christelike <i>kerugma</i>

<p><strong><em>Pax Romana</em> as background of the Christian <em>kerygma</em>:</strong> The concept ‘kingdom of God’ is fundamental to the <em>kerygma</em> on the salvific meaning of Jesus Christ in New Testament times. This article aims to explore the <em>raison d’être</em> why this concept had been such an important element in the <em>kerygma</em>. It argues that the <em>Pax Romana</em> as the primary ideology of the Roman Empire played a significant role. The<em> Pax Romana</em> advocated harmony with the gods, and subsequent heavenly peace and global stability and security in the inhabited world. However, the <em>kerygma</em> replaced the P<em>ax Romana</em> as an ideology with the apocalyptic-eschatological concept ‘kingdom of God’. According to apocalyptic eschatology, an end to the known world is expected. This end was considered to be a cataclysmic catastrophe awaiting in the future, albeit indeterminate to humankind. On the contrary, the church’s<em> kerygma</em> proclaimed that the kingdom of God was already present. An element of Jewish apocalyptism, however, remained in the Christian religion - yet adjusted. That is, although the kingdom of God was regarded already present, the idea of a second coming of Christ as Redeemer was upheld. The article demonstrates that the Christian <em>kerygma</em> on the realised kingdom of God had its origins in the expectation of an utopia, as envisaged in the <em>Pax Romana</em> as ideology.</p&gt