Persecution in the early church V1
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Persecution in the early church
CHHI520: History of Christianity I 10/9/2022
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Contents
INTRODUCTION
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THE CHRISTIAN PERSECUTION
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POLICES ESTABLISH AGAINST THE CHRUCH
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WHY THE PERSECUTION
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CHRISTIAN IDENTITY
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CHRISTIAN RELIGIOUS ACTIVITIES
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CHRISTIAN BELIEFS
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THE REPLY TO PERSECUTION
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10
DEFENDING THROUGH APOLOGISTS
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MARTYRS OF THE FAITH
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CONCLUSION
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Bibliography
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INTRODUCTION
As the Christian church began to impact the world, many did not understand the anxiety and reluctance to embrace it with an open mind. The Christian church underwent constant harassment at the hands of the Roman emperor concerning the faith by slowly taking note of Christianity’s encouragement over people. “The relations of the church with the Roman Empire constitute one of the major themes in early Christian history.” It has been considered that the Christians experienced 129 years of persecution and 120 years of tolerance and peace; the first persecution was under Nero in 64 to the Edict of Milan in 313. Of the 54 emperors who ruled, only about a few emperors went out of their way to oppress Christians. The reason as de, Ste. Croix states, “in the generally tolerant Roman Empire, Christians, Gnostics apart, were persecuted for ‘their total refusal to worship any god but their own and active rejection and denunciation of all other forms of worship.”
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This paper will examine the history of early church
persecution and the perseverance of those who would rather die before denouncing their faith. In addition, this paper will explore the writings of the apologists and martyrdom and how Christianity became a religion of the State.
THE CHRISTIAN PERSECUTION
Before the development of the persecution of Christian believers by the Roman Empire, it was essential to recognize that persecution started between Jews and Christians. The book of Acts 7 1
Geoffrey de, Ste. Croix. Christian Persecution, Martyrdom, and Orthodoxy, edited by Michael Whitby, and Joseph Streeter, Oxford University Press, Incorporated, 2006, 5.
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accounts for what was perhaps the first martyr of the Christian faith. The book of Acts accounts for the first Marty of Christianity, as the scriptures state, “and they cast him out of the city and stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their clothes at the feet of a young man named Saul. And they stoned Stephen as he was calling on God and saying, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” Then he knelt and cried loudly, “Lord, do not charge them with this sin.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep (Acts 7:58-61 NKJV).”
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Jesus Christ spoke of the persecution and suffering because of our faith in the book of Matthew, “Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. (Mat 5:11, NKJV).”
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Jesus Christ provided the way for the early believers to stand for the faith even to death.
The Christian faith was increasing and had grown in numbers by the year 64 A.D when Nero was the emperor of Rome. Christian preaching would stir up trouble and often created more comprehensive disturbances by preaching against the Roman pagan society; this did not go over well with the local authorities. During this time, Rome was destroyed under Nero’s watch; he blamed a rebellious new cult; the Christian group was considered a threat to society and deserved
punishment. Ferguson stated, “Christians were now recognized by the authorities in Rome as distinct from Jews. The persecution under Nero was confined to Rome.”
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Nero, the cruelest and most violent of all emperors and the most wicked and immoral, started his pursuit against the Christian church based on the pretense of the burning of Rome. Shushma states that “during his reign, in AD 65, a group of Christians in Rome were put to death – some were fed to beasts, others fixed to crosses, and still more set alight at night as Torches. Their crime was arson – 2
Unless otherwise noted, all biblical passages referenced are in the New King James Version.
3
Ibid.
4
Everett Ferguson, Church History: From Christ to the Pre-Reformation (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 2013). Ch. 4.
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Rome had caught fire the year before”
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. His hate was so strong that not only were they convicted
to death, but they also experienced cruel misery. Nero’s persecution was short-lived, but soon after, the profession of Christianity was well-defined as a capital crime yet of a specific kind because one gained pardon by the apostasy the denunciation of their faith once admitted confirmed by offering sacrifice to the pagan gods or the emperor.
POLICES ESTABLISH AGAINST THE CHRUCH During Nero’s reign, Christianity began to be persecuted “for the name” of being Christians. During Trajan’s reign from A.D. 98-117, as Ferguson states, he “continued the policy that made Christianity punishable “for the name.”
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The policy punished anyone that was associated with the
faith. Ferguson also states, “no effort was made to determine whether individuals were involved in any illegal or immoral activity; membership in the group was a sufficient reason for expulsion.”
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The real issue was how to handle those who quickly denied the faith. His correspondence with Pliny concerning those issues. Trajan’s reply to Pliny: "You have adopted the proper course, my dear Secundus, in your examination of the cases of those who were accused of you as Christians, for indeed nothing can be laid down as a general ruling involving something like a set form of procedure. They are not to be sought out; but if they are accused and convicted, they must
be punished - yet on this condition, that who denies himself to be a Christian, and makes the fact plain by his action, that is, by worshipping our gods, shall obtain pardon on his repentance, however suspicious his past conduct may be. Papers, however, which are presented unsigned ought not to be admitted in any charge, for they are a very bad 5
Shushma Malik, "Introduction: Neronian Myths." In The Nero-Antichrist: Founding and Fashioning a Paradigm, 1-15. Classics after Antiquity. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2020.
6
Everett Ferguson, Church History: From Christ to the Pre-Reformation (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 2013). Ch. 4.
7
Ibid
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example and unworthy of our time.
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When Marcus Aurelius came to power in A.D. 161, Christians suffered long and cruel persecution. Marcus Aurelius was educated in philosophy and thought of a high moral standard. One would think he should have shown favoritism toward the Christians. However, his philosophical prejudices, beliefs, and misfortunes turned him into one of their harshest oppressors.
The next emperor that reigned around A.D. 249 during this persecution was Trajan Decius; he
issued an edict, in which Rives states, “requiring the inhabitants of the Roman Empire to sacrifice to the gods. With this decree, he also inaugurated the first empire-wide persecution of Christians”
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. This edict against Christians created new persecution throughout the emperor’s organized, universal persecution of Christians. Although Decius implemented this edict, Phillips states, “Decius tried to impose a uniform, empire-wide form of worship by issuing an edict demanding that all citizens take part in public acts of sacrifice. Decius did not seem to have deliberately targeted Christians; rather, he sought to promote social cohesion”
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.
Around 253 A.D. Valerian came into power as the emperor of Rome; during his reign, Christians were about to prosper, allowing African bishops to meet the discussion of baptism. of and the validity of baptism by misbelievers. But there was a sudden shift in Valerian’s policy regarding religion in 257 A.D. due to claims concerning Valerian's stance towards the church. 8
Edwin M. Yamauchi, Harpers World of the New Testament (New York: Lion Publishing, 1981), 79.
9
J. B. Rives, The Decree of Decius and the Religion of Empire (Cambridge: (University Press, 2012), 1.
10
Gervase Phillips, Deviance, Persecution and the Roman Creation of Christianity (Journal of Historical Sociology, 2016), 255.
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Haas would point out, “The provisions of his first edict of persecution called for the banishment of the upper clergy and other particularly recalcitrant individuals.”
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A second edict called on Christians to give up their possessions; those that belonged to the upper classes were obligated to
give up their property; and if they continued in their faith as Christians, they were executed. The
persecution of the Christians ended after Persia captured Valerian. Valerian's son and successor, Gallienus, rescinded the edicts of his father.
Diocletian started his reign in 284; under him was pretty much the last significant persecution under the roman emperor. During the first fifteen years of his power, he was looking to restore the glory days of Rome, following the old Roman religion with its host of gods, and did not care too much about the new religion with its only one god. Anti-Christian counselors encircled Diocletian; he also wanted the empire to be united. He established that everyone needed to follow the same religion to accomplish this. After some discontent among the Christian believers
within the Empire, Diocletian created a document stating he would not spill their blood, but of course, he lied about that. Once again, the persecution started around the year 299, when Diocletian priests were ineffective in reading signs from the slaughtered animals; he also sought an oracle that proved influential in their decision to begin the persecution; he was also being pressured by his colleague Galerius this period would be considered the "Great Persecution.” As Van Dam states, “In February 303, he issued an edict that deprived Christians of any offices and ranks; subsequent edicts ordered the arrest of clerics and commanded everyone to perform religious sacrifices. In the retrospective opinion of bishop Eusebius of Caesarea, the Roman state
11
Christopher J. Haas, “Imperial Religious Policy and Valerian’s Persecution of the Church, A.D. 257-
260.” Church History 52, no. 2 (1983): 133–44.
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had suddenly declared a “war against us.”
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Four edicts were issued in A.D. 303 and 304, and the
fifth by his co-regent Galerius in 308. Nickens states, “While the first edict affected the entire empire, the second through fourth edicts were only enforced in the Eastern Roman Empire where
Diocletian and Galerius ruled. By All accounts, Maximian and Constantius (Constantine’s father) did not implement the last edicts in the western Roman Empire.”
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WHY THE PERSECUTION
There are some significant and interconnected motives for the persecution of the early church: the Christians' character, the Christians; the religious activities, and the content of the Christians' beliefs. The very cause of Christian persecution is the perception that Christians differ from the world (or the rest of society). Societies rarely welcome those who are perceived to be different.
CHRISTIAN IDENTITY
The persecution of the early church was because of the Christians’ uniqueness within their beliefs. This all starts with the preaching, life, and death of Christ. Christians learned from the Scripture and many of their characteristic attitudes and ideas well as much of their organization from the Jews. Litfin stated, “We must keep in mind that the roots of Christianity are in Judaism.
Even when the church became predominantly Gentile, it never lost certain aspects of its Jewish 12
Raymond Van Dam, Review of A Threat to Public Piety: Christians, Platonists, and the Great Persecution, by Elizabeth DePalma Digeser. Journal of Late Antiquity 6, no. 2 (2013): 378-379.
13
Mark Nickens, A Survey of the History of Global Christianity, Second Edition, B&H Publishing Group, 2020.
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origins.”
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Christianity was first recognized; it gives the impression of being similar to Judaism. Ferguson states, “However, people quickly recognized that it was a different religion. It was not an ethnic religion; therefore, it had no right to protection.”
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Christianity was regarded as a cult and spread through different groups and geographical areas, making people uncomfortable and vulnerable to this new unidentified religion.
CHRISTIAN RELIGIOUS ACTIVITIES
Another motive for the persecution of Christians was their religious activities; most of the Roman Empire was primarily open-minded regarding dealing with other religions. Religion within Rome was considered a social activity that endorsed unity and devotion to the state. When
Christians were ordered to burn incense or acknowledge Caesar as lord, they rejected that idea of
authority, and others took unfavorable notice. Litfin states, “The Christian church was a community of spiritually formerly enslaved people. How, then, could the followers of the faithful
Lord of the universe pay homage to Rome’s Caesar as a substitute lord? How could those whom 14
Bryan M. Litfin, Early Christian Martyr Stories: An Evangelical Introduction with New Translations, Baker Academic, 2014, 8.
15
Everett Ferguson, Church History, Vol.1, From Christ to Pre-Reformation: The Rise and Growth of the Church in
Its Cultural, Intellectual, and Political Context, (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2005), 160.
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Christ redeemed from bondage and returned to the chains of idolatry? “
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Because of this, Christians kept to themselves and were considered anti-social. They were also held accountable for several misfortunes since they did not worship Rome’s traditional gods.
CHRISTIAN BELIEFS
The Roman religion was mainly a polytheistic civilization, meaning people worshiped multiple gods and goddesses. Despite the existence of monotheistic religions inside the empire, such as Christianity and Judaism, it was expected that everyone would worship gods. They believed these idols aided the progress of Roman civilization that assisted in the daily events of people’s lives. Christians, however, worshiped Jesus and felt that he rose three days after his death and appeared to some of his followers. Jesus’s disciples still consider themselves Jews. Nevertheless, the message of his resurrection from the dead led to the birth of Christianity. Tenney states, “Christianity was not unique because it insured salvation by a sacrifice for sins, nor because it stressed personal ethics, nor even because it guaranteed immortality to believers. Its distinctive attribute was the supernatural God, manifested historically by the resurrection of Christ from the dead. Power of the living.”
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THE REPLY TO PERSECUTION
The church endured so much adversity that some Christians started to express their opinion. This response brought forth the apologists and martyrs. During the second century, a Christian 16
Bryan M. Litfin, Early Christian Martyr Stories: An Evangelical Introduction with New Translations, Baker Academic, 2014, 9
17
Merrill C. Tenney, The Reality of the Resurrection, Barakaldo Books, 2020, 10.
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apologist writer made an effort to deliver a defense for Christianity and the disapproval of Greco-Roman culture. Schott states, “The work of Christian apologists was twofold, defining and defending Christianity, on the one hand, and attacking traditional religions, on the other.”
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The Greek word Apologies, from which this name is derived, means “a defense.” A person willing to suffer death rather than reject their faith is considered a martyr. Schott mentions that “Martyrdom represented a dramatic and visceral means of establishing one's identity, 12 but a less bloody, though no less agonistic, means of self-definition lay in the composition of literary treatises, or "apologies," in defense of Christianity.”
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DEFENDING THROUGH APOLOGISTS
One of the main goals of Apologists is to defend the Christianity faith against false allegations
and misinterpretations of the trust to stop the persecution. Much of their work was to give lectures to the Roman emperors. As Gould states, “Apologetics can help you think more deeply about the content of your mental life to root out error, strengthen beliefs, and bring a deeper appreciation of the lure and enchantment of Jesus and the gospel.”
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In his First Apology, Justin Martyr argued, “to prove that truth and right are equal for all men and to demand that all should be treated equally; that the guardians of justice and lovers of wisdom must dispassionately base 18
Jeremy M. Schott, Christianity, Empire, and the Making of Religion in Late Antiquity, University of Pennsylvania Press, 2008, 2.
19
Ibid, 2.
20
Paul Gould, Travis Dickinson, and Keith Loftin, Stand Firm: Apologetics and the Brilliance of the Gospel (Nashville, TN: B&H Academic, 2018), 2–3.
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their judgment on truth, and truth alone, rather than on irrational impulse or evil rumors.”
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He would use Greek philosophical ideas in relating to the explanation of the gospel. Another well-
known Apologist Tertullian was born to pagan parents and was well-educated within the Roman and Greek ways. Still, due to some events that affected his life, he also converted to Christianity. Tertullian is well known for his work as an Apologetics, which addressed how Roman culture and religion were, at best mediocre and hopeless when compared to Christianity. Dunn states, “In apologetic works written to imperial officials, he was not as critical of the Roman system as he was in works addressed to an exclusively Christian audience. As anyone trained in rhetoric would have known, telling the whole truth was not the best way to win arguments. Tertullian was
selective and conscious of the occasion.”
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If we as Christians are to know the truth, then we You must have faith in the fact. God wants us to see the truth so we are not deceived. We must firmly stand on the truth when it comes to our faith.
MARTYRS OF THE FAITH
It may have seemed during the upstart of the early church that Christians were under much persecution. What is true is that there was open hostility toward the faith, but People are going to
be hostile toward the gospel, sometimes politely, sometimes not, but antagonistic. And according to Matthew’s book, Jesus said to his disciples, “Behold, I send you out as sheep amid 21
Thomas B. Falls, “THE FIRST APOLOGY.” In The First Apology, The Second Apology, Dialogue with Trypho, Exhortation to the Greeks, Discourse to the Greeks, The Monarchy or The Rule of God (The Fathers of the Church, Volume 6), 23–112. Catholic University of America Press, 1948.
22
Geoffrey D. Dunn, Tertullian, Taylor & Francis Group, 2004. 6.
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wolves. Therefore, be wise as serpents and harmless 6as doves. (Mat 10:16, NKJV)”
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. There was much bloodshed defending the faith and protecting Jesus’s message against unbelievers. One may wonder why someone would be willing to sacrifice their life regarding their Christian beliefs. It would be easier to accept and worship the gods of the Roman emperor. St.Theophilus,
in the Book to Autolycus, II c., gives insight into this thought.
“Wherefore I will rather honor the king [than your gods], not, indeed, worshipping him, but praying for him. But God, the living and true God, I worship, knowing that the king is
made by Him. You will say, then, to me, "Why do you not worship the king?" Because he is not made to be worshipped, but to be reverenced with lawful honor, for he is not a god, but a man appointed by God, not to be worshipped, but to judge justly.”
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The significance of Christianity is One God. The book of Deuteronomy states, “
Hear, O Israel:
the
L
ORD
our God, the
L
ORD
is one (6:4).
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CONCLUSION
The traditional view was that Christianity offered a system of morality and solace to a spiritually grieving world. The Christian church suffered consistent persecution at the hands of the Roman empire, but those trials inspired Christians to live a more faithful life. The Christian’s persecution by Romans was mainly based on the fact that Christians would not identify the emperor as a living god and disallowed the endorsed idols maintained by the Roman state. Despite the lack of understanding and the horrific treatment that Christians endured under cruel leadership, they held firm to their beliefs.
23
Unless otherwise noted, all biblical passages referenced are in the New King James Version.
24
St.Theophilus, “Book to Autolycus, II c.” http://www.earlychristians.org/who_were_they.html
.
25
Unless otherwise noted, all biblical passages referenced are in the New King James Version.
14
Bibliography
Dunn, Geoffrey D., and Tertullian. Tertullian. London ; Routledge, 2004.
15
De Ste. Croix, G. E. M, Michael Whitby, Joseph Streeter, and Inc NetLibrary. Christian Persecution, Martyrdom, and Orthodoxy, edited by Streeter, Joseph, Michael Whitby. New York; Oxford; Oxford University Press, 2006;2007
Ferguson, Everett. Church History: From Christ to the Pre-Reformation. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 2013.
Gould, Paul M., Travis Dickinson, and R. Keith Loftin. Stand Firm: Apologetics and the Brilliance of the Gospel. Nashville, Tennessee: B & H Academic, 2018.
Haas, Christopher J. "Imperial Religious Policy and Valerian's Persecution of the Church, A.D. 257–260." Church History 52, no. 2 (1983): 133-144.
Justin Martyr, Saint, Thomas B. Falls, and D. D. Falls Thomas B. The First Apology, the Second
Apology, Dialogue with Trypho, Exhortation to the Greeks, Discourse to the Greeks, the Monarchy of the Rule of God: Vol. 6 Catholic University of America Press, 2011.
Litfin, Bryan M. Early Christian Martyr Stories: An Evangelical Introduction with New Translations. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Academic, 2014.
Malik, Shushma. The Nero-Antichrist: Founding and Fashioning a Paradigm. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2020.
Nickens, Mark. A Survey of the History of Global Christianity, Second Edition. Nashville: B&H Publishing Group. 2020.
Phillips, Gervase. "Deviance, Persecution and the Roman Creation of Christianity." Journal of Historical Sociology 29, no. 2 (2016): 250-270.
Rives, J.B. The Decree of Decius and the Religion of Empire: Journal of Roman Studies. Cambridge: University Press, 2012
Schott, Jeremy M. Christianity, Empire, and the Making of Religion in Late Antiquity. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2008;2011;
St.Theophilus, “Book to Autolycus, II c.” http://www.earlychristians.org/who_were_they.html.
Tenney, Merrill C. reality of the Resurrection. Chicago: BARAKALDO BOOKS, 2020.
Van Dam, Raymond. "A Threat to Public Piety: Christians, Platonists, and the Great Persecution by Elizabeth DePalma Digeser (Review)." Journal of Late Antiquity 6, no. 2 (2013): 378- 379.
Yamauchi, Edwin M. Harper's World of the New Testament. 1st U.S. ed. San Francisco: Harper
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& Row, 1981.