Like any historian, Eusebius is only as good as his sources. When it comes to 2nd century persecutions, his sources are sometimes excellent (e.g., Justin Martyr) and sometimes not quite as reliable. Nevertheless, while one might question some of the details he includes, Eusebius is an excellent source for understanding the reasons Christians were persecuted and the reasons Christianity was able to grow despite the persecutions.
Read through some of the martyrdom sections in Books IV and V of Eusebius' History of the Church. Sections you might find particularly useful are 4:14-17 (which includes an account of the martyrdom of Polycarp) and 5:1-3 (which includes the martyrdom of Blandina).
What do you find in these sections that helps explain Roman persecution of the Christians or helps explain the perseverence of the Christians despite the persecutions?
I am seeing the martyrs persevering more because of the persecutions. Those who were being persecuted felt as if they were following the words of Christ. He talked about how people will be persecuted for His sake. Eusebus is talking about some of the earlier ones who died in the defense of the faith. These people, such as Justin and Polycarp, died for the faith. These are just two examples of Christians who made the ultimate sacrifice for their faith. Christians persevered more, because they were being persecuted. Many of the Christians that were persecuted had their faith increase, because of what they went through. -Kelly Longden
ReplyDeleteOn page 152 under the section entitled "Martyrs in Gaul" there is a description of persecution happening. Vettius Epagathus is a well-respected man who joins the Christians who are being persecuted. He was called "the Comforter of the Christians" and this helps remind the Christians of the great Comforter the Holy Spirit. The Christians' resolve was strengthened because of people like Vettius who lived out their faith like Jesus wanted them to. They were encouraged to stand firm by the Holy Spirit as they were being persecuted knowing that dying for their faith was not a bad thing because of Jesus' promises. Christianity was strengthened because they were encouraged and inspired by the Holy Spirit and figures like Vettuis. -Zach Kuhlman
ReplyDeleteI believe book four shows the perserverence of Christians despite the persecutions, namely Polycarp. Eusebius explains how Polycarp invited his enemies in for a meal and asked only for an hour to pray; most of us would probably be begging for them to reconsider. He also explains that the governor pressured Polycarp to curse Christ, to which Polycarp responded, "for eighty-six years I have been his servant, and he has never done me wrong. How can I blaspheme my king who saved me?" Polycarp was then burned alive, praying to God through to his death. This reminds me of a verse in Matthew that states, "if you acknowledge me in front of your friends, I will acknowlege you before my father. But if you deny me in front of your friends, I will also deny you before my father." I think Eusebius is trying to stress that, if we stay true to God to the end, he will bless us.
ReplyDelete-Melinda Quade
Book four shows instances of Roman persecution and the resilience of the early Christians. One such example is the martyrs named by Justin. The story where the woman's husband has a centurion arrest the teacher who had taught his wife the meaning of Christianity. The teacher, Ptolemy, was then tortured by the centurion and asked if he was a Christian. Answering yes, and was ordered to be executed. The protest by a man named Lucius is an even better example as he argued that a man like Ptolemy who had lived his life just was not being treated fairly. For his defense of Ptolemy Lucius too was ordered to be executed. This passage gives us a very clear example of the attitude the Roman authorities had to the early Christian church. Hostile and ruthless, Eusebius does an excellent job of describing the Roman persecution of early Christians.
ReplyDelete-Zack Krage
To better explain the perseverence of Christians, a good example of martydom is Polycarp. As previously posted, this was a very Godly man. He didn't take the opportunity to flee his arrest, but he even offered those men a meal in exchange for some time to pray with them. I enjoyed reading about their reaction, baffled that such a great man could be called in to have his faith tested and/or killed. This really shows him enacting the "turn the other cheek" lesson that Jesus gave us.
ReplyDeleteI think it's interesting that the governor had given Polycarp so many chances to denounce his faith in favor of the state and Caesar. It obviously gave us the idea that he really didn't want to see Polycarp die. This goes against other readings of martyrdom I have come across, where everyone seemed more than pleased to see these Christians throw themselves to the beasts and fires.
Polycarp's manner was serene, and that alone would facilitate further desire to be a martyr for people. It's also interesting to note that some of these people wanted to fall in to worshipping him after his death, but eventually accepted that he was just a Godly disciple, and not the actual Savior who died for our sins.
To sum it up, it was probably his serene, gracious, and giving manner coupled with his protection from the fire that bolstered Christian perseverence as far as this instance goes. I think the governor's hesistating may have only served to show that the Romans knew what they were doing was wrong.
~Aaron Johnston
The reason for the virulent Roman persecution of Christians was probably because they were such obstinate dissenters of Roman rule. they were killed in droves and yet most all of the martyrs mentioned face it with dignity and open defiance. this would be particularly troublesome for the Roman government, since having respectable men accepting such gruesome deaths with such dignity in a very public setting could sway the hearts of the people, which it did. The Roman people were amazed at these martyrs and probably wondered just who was this God that they have such faith in? this was likely an important factors in the Christianizing of Rome later on. -Sean M.
ReplyDeleteThere is a lot of persecution going on throughout this period that Eusebius is touching on. He talks about some of the big martyrs like Polycarp which is one of the coolest stories I have read before. I thought it was interesting how his demeanor was always calm, but he had a little fire to him as well(no pun intended). For example, the crowd is shouting, "Kill the atheists!" They ask Polycarp to denounce Christ but he looks at the crowd and says, "Kill the atheists." That is good stuff. Then he survives the fire like the three that Nebuchadnezzar has thrown into the furnace. For whatever reason this made me think of Veggie Tales.
ReplyDeleteAnother interesting perspective that he chooses to talk about it one who denied Christ. He had followed the other Christians to offer himself, but when he got there he realized he didn't want to die. His heart wasn't focused on the right things. That was more saddening than Polycarp's story. Overall, Eusebius is very interesting.
With all of the persecuting going on in this time it is interesting that the people who witnessed the deaths of the martyrs began to believe that maybe these "Christians" had it right. The were happy and willing to die instead of denounce the faith they believed in so it much be a good faith. Loved ones of the Christians begged them to just praise the Lord Ceasar but they refused they knew there Lord would protect them. God talked to them and told them not to fear he gave them the courage and the power to spread his word. The story of Polycarp is really inspiring and one of my favorite stories of the Holy Roman Martyrs. By the leaders of the Roman Empire trying to convince the Christians to denounce they are given yet another chance to preach the word before their death.~Taylor Linn
ReplyDeleteIt seems that the key factor of the persecution of the church in Roman times, was Rome's incredibly strong nationalism. These emperors claimed to be god's and anyone who denied that posed a threat to the divinity of the emperor. Now the most incredible aspect of the persecution of Christians is that it actually did not stop the spread of Christianity, but perhaps the exact opposite! This is simply an attribute to the power of God.
ReplyDeleteIt seems that the key factor of the persecution of the church in Roman times, was Rome's incredibly strong nationalism. These emperors claimed to be god's and anyone who denied that posed a threat to the divinity of the emperor. Now the most incredible aspect of the persecution of Christians is that it actually did not stop the spread of Christianity, but perhaps the exact opposite! This is simply an attribute to the power of God.
ReplyDelete