Persecution Of

1
Persecution Of "The Way"
2

• The complex and often troubling relationship
  between the Church and the state is one that
  began in the Roman Empire, and still remains with
  us today.

• We Christians. . . Being instructed in the
  Faith, know that suffering can be transformed
  if we offer it to God into an instrument of
  salvation, and into a sacred way which helps us
  get to heaven. For a Christian, pain is no
  reason for gloominess but for joy the joy of
  knowing that on the Cross of Christ all suffering
  has a redemptive value. - John Paul II,
  Address to the Sick, Cordoba Cathedral, April 8,
  1987

3

• In Acts 92 and 199, the earliest Christians
  refer to the Faith as The Way
• This meant living a life of integrity according
  to the commandments and counsels of the Gospels
  and a strong commitment to become a disciple of
  Christ
• Living the Way is very difficult and requires
  much sacrifice, the early Christians especially
  suffered in the pursuit of its ideals
• Many thousands of early Christians lost their
  lives during three hundred years of persecutions
  in the Roman Empire

4

• Emperor Nero in A.D. 64 began limited
  persecutions of the early Christians
• The persecutions in Rome intensified until they
  reached their climax under Emperor Diocletian in
  A.D. 303

Last Prayers of the Christian Martyrs by
Jean-Leon Gerome
5
The Great Fire of Rome A.D. 64

• It is rumoured that Nero started the Great Fire
  of Rome in A.D. 64 that destroyed the lives and
  properties of every Roman class
• He falsely accused the Christians of starting the
  fire and had them tortured

6

• Nero finally committed suicide in A.D. 68 when
  the army turned against him (he had gone too far
  by murdering his mother and wife and was the
  prime suspect for the Great Fire of Rome)
• Christian persecution continued under Emperor
  Domitian, Lord and God (he called himself)
  beginning in A.D. 81
• Christians were accused of sacrificing babies and
  drinking their blood, and also of casting evil
  spells
• Christians were also blamed for floods,
  earthquakes, and famines
• Tertullian wrote that was when men cried
  Christians to the Lions

7
"The Five Good Emperors" (A.D. 96 - 180)

• The Five Good Emperors were Nerva, Trajan,
  Hadrian, Antonius Pius, and Marcus Aurelius,
  known for their skill in leading the Roman Empire

Trajans Column

• Trajan decreed that if Christians renounced
  their faith and offered sacrifice to the Roman
  gods, they would be allowed to live in spite of
  their past life
• He declared that anonymous denunciations were not
  to be pursued
• Nevertheless, those who admitted to being
  Christian, would still suffer death

8
St Ignatius, Bishop of Antioch A.D. 50 - ca.107
9

• St. Ignatius is an Apostolic Father, who had
  direct contact with the Apostles
• He was the third Bishop of Antioch after Sts.
  Peter and Evodius
• St. Ignatius letters are the most important
  documents that link the Twelve Apostles with the
  early Church
• St. Ignatius denounced all heresy and schism, and
  he said the episcopacy was against false belief
  and it provided unity with Christ
• He was martyred in the Coliseum where he was fed
  to the lions in front of a large crowd
• His feast day is October 17

• NOTE
• Diocletian, emperor in A.D. 284 issued four
  edicts that perpetrated some of the most heinous
  persecutions of the Christians

10
The Coliseum in Rome
Circus Maximus in Rome (the oval arena)
11
Constantine and the Edict of Milan
The Baptism of Constantine by Giovan Francesco
Penni
12

• Constantine met with caesar, Licinius, in Milan
  in A.D. 313
• Together they issued the Edict of Milan
• This edict restored all property taken from the
  Church by the empire
• It also grnated Christians the freedom to
  practice their religion
• It was a milestone for the early Chrisitians and
  the Catholic Faith
• It legitimized a religion that had been outlawed
  since Neros decree in A.D. 64
• Constantine sought unity in his empire and he
  thought that Christianity would likely provide
  this

13
St. Helen in Jerusalem

• St. Helen played an important role in turning
  the Roman Empire toward Christianity
• She was Constantines mother, who was to be the
  emperor of Rome
• She converted to Christianity late in life and
  she was deeply devout
• She made a pilgrimage to the Holy Land at 80 yrs
• She found three crosses, one of which was likely
  to be Christs
• When a sick woman touched all three and was cured
  by one, that was said to be Christs
• She brought a piece of it back to Rome with her
  (see picture above)

14

• References
• http//www.nationalgeographic.com/lostgospel/_imag
  es/_timeline/09_01.jpg (cover slide picture)
• http//static.artinaclick.com/titles/l/las/lastpra
  yersofthechristianmartyrs/ (slide 4 picture)
• http//romanhistorybooks.typepad.com/roman_history
  _books_and_m/2007/02/the_great_fire_.html (slide
  5 picture)
• http//images.google.ca/images?sourceidnavclient
  ieUTF-8rlz1T4DACA_enCA238CA239qTrajan's20Col
  umnoeUTF-8um1saNtabwi (slide 7 picture)
• http//images.google.ca/images?sourceidnavclient
  ieUTF-8rlz1T4DACA_enCA238CA239q22St.20Ignat
  ius20of20Antioch22oeUTF-8um1saNtabwi
  (slide 8 picture)
• http//images.google.ca/images?svnum10um1hlen
  rlz1T4DACA_enCA238CA239q22TheColiseum22
  http//www2.siba.fi/kkoskim/rooma/kuvat/230_026c.
  jpg (slide 10 pictures)
• http//images.google.ca/images?gbv2svnum10hle
  nqConstantine27sbaptism (slide 11 picture)
• Text The History of the Church by Armenio.
  Midwest Theological Forum, 2005