Persecutions Multiply
The success of the church in its first generation, having established congregations from Ethiopia in Africa to India in Asia, and to Rome, Gaul, and Britain in Europe, unfortunately led others to persecute Christians. Some early Christians escaped the persecutions recorded in Acts with the martyrdom of Stephen and the scattering of the Jerusalem flock, only to find themselves persecuted in the pagan Roman empire. The people of the Roman empire initially thought this new Jewish sect curious, then bizarre, then fair game for use in sports spectacles in their coliseums, and, finally, a threat, as their growth in numbers and unflagging loyalty to Christ made Jesus more beloved and worshipped by more people than the current Caesar.
The Book of Martyrs
John Fox (or Foxe), 1517–1587, a brilliant English scholar, and master of biblical languages and history of the early church, compiled the most definitive study of the persecution of Christians under the Caesars between Nero and Constantine (A.D. 54–313). Also containing chapters on later persecutions of Christians, the book is described by James Miller Dodds thus: “After the Bible itself, no book so profoundly influenced early Protestant sentiment as the
Fox begins with the crucifixion of Jesus, followed by the martyrdom of Stephen, adding to the details in Acts that Stephen's time of death is believed to have been the Passover following the crucifixion, and that “about 2,000” suffered martyrdom during this persecution in Judea.
The Second Martyr
“The next martyr we meet with, according to St. Luke in the History of the Apostles' Acts,” Fox writes, “was James the son of Zebedee, the elder brother of John … ten years after the death of Stephen, [James'] martyrdom took place; for no sooner had Herod Agrippa been appointed governor of Judea than … he raised a sharp persecution against the Christians … by striking at their leaders.
“Thus did the first apostolic martyr cheerfully and resolutely receive that cup, which he had told our Savior he was ready to drink. Timon and Parmenas suffered martyrdom about the same time; one at Philippi and the other in Macedonia” in A.D. 44.
Fifteen Others
Fox records another fifteen apostles and disciples who died as martyrs:
Philip “suffered martyrdom at Heliopolis, in Phrygia. He was scourged, thrown into prison, and afterwards crucified, A.D. 54.”
Matthew was martyred in Ethiopia, “slain with a halberd in the city of Nadabah, A.D. 60.” (A halberd is an ax with a long, pointed spike.)
James, the Lord's brother and bishop of the church in Jerusalem, “at the age of ninety-four was beaten and stoned … and finally had his brains dashed out.”
Matthias, elected to succeed Judas Iscariot, “was stoned at Jerusalem and beheaded.”
Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, “on his arrival at Edessa, was taken and crucified on a cross, the two ends of which were fixed transversely in the ground. Hence the derivation of the term, St. Andrew's Cross.”
Mark, companion of Peter and author of the Gospel bearing his name, “was dragged to pieces by the people of Alexandria … ending his life.”
Peter, bishop of Rome, was crucified upside down, because he thought he was unworthy to be crucified in the same way as the Lord.
Paul died at the hands of Nero's soldiers, who “came and led him out of the city to the place of execution, where he, after making his prayers, gave his neck to the sword.”
Jude, author of the epistle bearing his name and “the brother of James, and commonly called Thaddeus, was crucified at Edessa, A.D. 72.”
Bartholomew, said to have translated the Gospel of Matthew into an Indian language and to have preached it there, was “cruelly beaten and then crucified.”
Thomas, the twin famous for doubting Jesus' resurrection, “preached the Gospel in Parthia and India, where exciting the rage of the pagan priests, he was martyred by being thrust through with a spear.”
Luke, author of the Gospel bearing his name and of Acts, “is supposed to have been hanged on an olive tree, by idolatrous priests of Greece.”
Simon “Zelotes, preached the Gospel in Mauritania, Africa, and even in Britain, in which latter country he was crucified, A.D. 74.”
John was cast into a cauldron of boiling oil, but miraculously escaped without injury. He was the only apostle who escaped a violent death.
The death of Barnabas, one of the Seventy, erstwhile companion of Paul, “is supposed to have taken place about A.D. 73.”
John Fox summarizes the list of the martyrdoms of the church's first generation of leaders with: “notwithstanding all these continual persecutions and horrible punishments, the church daily increased, deeply rooted in the doctrine of the apostles and of men apostolical, and watered plenteously with the blood of saints.”
discussion question
Why was John the only apostle allowed a natural death?
The Bible doesn't say, but some relate it to his being Jesus' “beloved disciple.” His being entrusted with the care of Jesus' mother from the Cross, some speculate, led to a relatively peaceful life as an earthly reward for that. Ironically, John's brother James was the first apostle who was also a martyr.
The Ten Persecutions
Fox documents ten waves of persecutions in Imperial Rome.
Nero (Roman Emperor A.D. 54–68)
Nero ordered Rome burned, and it was in flames for nine days, killing thousands. Afterward he blamed the fire on the Christians and started persecuting them. “Nero even refined upon cruelty, and contrived all manner of punishments for the Christians that the most infernal imagination could design. In particular, he had some sewed up in skins of wild beasts, and then worried by dogs until they expired; and others dressed in shirts made stiff with wax, fixed to axletrees, and set on fire in his gardens, in order to illuminate them. This persecution was general throughout the whole Roman Empire; but it rather increased than diminished the spirit of Christianity. In the course of it, St. Paul and St. Peter were martyred.”Fox mentions that Nero martyred members of “the Seventy,” including Erastus, Aristarchus, Trophimus, Joseph Barsabas, and Ananias, bishop of Damascus.
Domitian (Roman Emperor A.D. 81–96)
Fox describes emperor Domitian as “naturally inclined to cruelty,” having executed his own brother and some members of the Roman Senate, “some through malice and others to confiscate their estates.” Under his rule, many Romans turned in their Christian neighbors for persecution and martyrdom. Paul's coworker Timothy, bishop of Ephesus, was among the many martyrs from this period.
Trajan (Roman Emperor A.D. 98–117)
Fox says that under Trajan's reign, “Pliny the Second, a man learned and famous, seeing the lamentable slaughter of Christians, and moved to pity, wrote to Trajan, certifying him that there were many thousands of them daily put to death, of which none did anything contrary to the Roman laws worthy of persecution.”
fallacy
Many have the impression that Protestants deny that Peter was ever the Bishop of Rome, but Fox includes the martyrdom of Ignatius as occurring under Trajan. Himself an early Protestant reformer, Fox affirms the tradition that Ignatius was second bishop of Antioch, after Peter had moved to the same position in Rome.
Trajan was succeeded by Adrian. “About this time Alexander, bishop of Rome, with his two deacons, were martyred; as were Quirinus and Hernes, with their families; Zenon, a Roman nobleman, and about ten thousand other Christians.”
But when Adrian died in A.D. 138, he was succeeded by Antoninus Pius, “one of the most amiable monarchs who ever reigned, and who stayed the persecutions against the Christians.”
Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (Roman Emperor A.D. 161–180)
Marcus Aurelius instigated the fourth wave of persecutions. Polycarp, bishop of Smyrna and a father of the church, is one of the most famous martyrs of this period. When guards came to arrest him, he prepared a feast for them and asked them for an hour in which to pray, and his prayer was so fervent that “his guards repented that they had been instrumental in taking him. He was, however, carried before the proconsul, condemned, and burnt in the market place.”Fox also reports that especially harsh persecution flared up in Lyon, France, at this time.
Severus (Roman Emperor A.D. 193–211)
Though Fox says that Severus was inclined to relieve the persecutions, the people at this time had come to fear the Christians because of the explosive growth in the churches, so they pressured the government to have the older laws against the Christians enforced. “Tertullian,” Fox says, “who lived in this age, informs us that if the Christians had collectively withdrawn themselves from the Roman territories, the empire would have been greatly depopulated.” Fox lists scores of martyrs in Rome, Africa, and Lyon during this period, including that of the celebrated bishop of Lyon, Irenaeus, a father of the church and author of a book considered a classic in Christian literature,
Maximinus Thrax (Roman Emperor A.D. 235–238)
During this sixth wave of persecution, some of the martyrs were members of the Roman Senate, as the church continued to make inroads in the society and culture of Rome. Fox writes, “During this persecution, raised by Maximinus, numberless Christians were slain without trial, and buried indiscriminately in heaps, sometimes fifty or sixty being cast into a pit together, without the least decency. When the tyrant Maximinus died in A.D. 238, he was succeeded by Gordian, during whose reign, and that of his successor Philip, the church was free from persecution for the space of more than ten years.”
Decius (Roman Emperor A.D. 249–251)
Decius, who hated Philip (who was rumored to be a Christian), again turned up the campaign against the church. By now, the pagan temples were being abandoned and churches were bulging, but, Fox reports, factions were beginning to appear in the church as well. The rack, which stretched the bodies of the victims before they were beheaded, was put into use at this time.
Valerian (Roman Emperor A.D. 253–260)
The eighth persecution began in A.D. 257 and continued for three and a half months. “The martyrs that fell in this persecution were innumerable, and their tortures and deaths as various and painful.” During this time the government ordered the execution of the clergy in Rome. “In Africa the persecution raged with peculiar violence; many thousands received the crown of martyrdom, among whom” was Cyprian, bishop of Carthage. “At Utica … three hundred Christians were, by the orders of the proconsul, placed round a burning limekiln. A pan of coals and incense being prepared, they were commanded either to sacrifice to Jupiter, or to be thrown into the kiln. Unanimously refusing, they bravely jumped into the pit.”
Diocletian (Roman Emperor A.D. 284–305)
The ninth wave of persecutions began with Aurelian (Roman Emperor A.D. 270–275), and was continued by Diocletian, his successor. Under Diocletian, the most severe campaign against the Christians began with an imperial order to destroy all churches and their Scriptures. “The persecution became general in all the Roman provinces, particularly in the east; and as it lasted ten years it is impossible to ascertain the numbers martyred, or to enumerate the various modes of martyrdom. Racks, scourges, swords, daggers, crosses, poison, and famine, were made use of … to dispatch the Christians.”
After the executions “became tiresome,” some of the provincial governors petitioned for relief, and the executions were changed to bodily mutilations and other means of making the lives of the Christians miserable. “The persecution of Diocletian began particularly to rage in A.D. 304, when many Christians were put to cruel tortures and the most painful and ignominious deaths.”
Constantius and Galerius
Diocletian was succeeded by Constantius (Roman Emperor A.D. 305–306) and Galerius (Roman Emperor A.D. 305–311), who divided the empire into two provinces: eastern (ruled by Galerius) and western (ruled by Constantius). In the east Galerius continued the persecutions just as severely, while in the west Constantius was much more benign and tolerant of the Christians.
