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could be understood.
When he was led forward, the proconsul asked him if he was Polycarp. This he affirmed. The proconsul wanted to persuade him to deny his faith, urging him, "Consider your great age," and all the other things they usually say in such cases. "Swear by the genius of Caesar; change your mind. Say, 'Away with the atheists.'" Polycarp, however, looked with a serious expression upon the whole mob assembled in the arena. He waved his hand over them, sighed deeply, looked up to heaven, and said, "Away with the atheists."
But the proconsul pressed him further, and said to him, "Swear and I will release you! Curse Christ!"
And Polycarp answered, "Eighty-six years have I served him, and he has never done me any harm. How could I blaspheme my King and Savior?"
When the proconsul still pressed him saying, "Swear by the genius of Caesar," he replied, "If you desire the empty triumph of making me swear by the genius of Caesar according to your intention, and if you pretend that you do not know who I am, hear my frank confession: I am a Christian. If you are willing to learn what Christianity is, set a time at which you can hear me."
The proconsul replied, "Try to persuade the people." Polycarp answered him, "You I consider worthy that I should give an explanation, for we have been taught to pay respect to governments and authorities appointed by God as long as it does us no harm. But as to that crowd, I do not consider them worthy of my defense."
Thereupon the proconsul declared, "I have wild beasts. I shall have you thrown before them if you do not change your mind."
"Let them come," he replied. "It is out of question for us to change from the better to the worse, but the opposite is worthy of honor: to turn round from evil to justice."
The proconsul continued, "If you belittle the beasts and do not change your mind, I shall have you thrown into the fire."
Polycarp answered him, "You threaten me with a fire that burns but
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for an hour and goes out after a short time, for you do not know the fire of the coming judgment and of eternal punishment for the godless. Why do you wait? Bring on whatever you will."
As Polycarp spoke these and similar words, he was full of courage and joy. His face shone with inward light. He was not in the least disconcerted by all these threats. The proconsul was astounded. Three times he sent his herald to announce in the midst of the arena, "Polycarp has confessed that he is a Christian!"
No sooner was this announced by the herald, than the whole multitude, both pagans and Jews, the entire population of Smyrna, yelled with uncontrolled anger at the top of their voices, "He is the teacher of Asia! The father of the Christians! The destroyer of our gods! He has persuaded many not to sacrifice and not to worship." This they shouted, and they demanded of Philip, the high priest of public worship, that he let loose a lion upon Polycarp. He explained that he was not allowed to do this since the wild-beast combats had been closed. Then there arose a unanimous shout that Polycarp should be burned alive. In this way the vision had to be fulfilled in which he had seen his pillow burning while he was praying. To the faithful who were with him he had spoken the prophetic words, "I must be burned alive."
Now everything happened much faster than it can be told. The mob rushed to collect logs and brushwood from the workshops and the public baths; the Jews as usual were especially zealous in this work. When the woodpile was ready, Polycarp took off all his outer clothes, opened his belt, and tried to undo his shoes. This he had not usually done himself because each of the faithful was eager to be the first to touch his body. Already before his martyrdom he had been very much honored because of the goodness of his life.
The fuel for the pyre was very quickly piled around him. When they wanted to fasten him with nails, he refused. "Let me be. He who gives me the strength to endure the fire will also give me the strength to remain at the stake unflinching, without the security of your nails." …When he had spoken the Amen and finished his prayer, the executioners lit the fire.
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In the end, when the godless mob saw that his body could not be consumed by the fire, they ordered the executioner to thrust a dagger into his breast…When the tempter, the slanderer and evil one, the enemy of the race of the righteous, saw the whole greatness of his martyrdom and his blameless life from the beginning…he prompted Nicetes, the father of Herod and the brother of Alce, to ask the proconsul not to give up the body…"for fear," those were his words, "that they should abandon the crucified and start worshipping this man." They said this through the instigation and urging of the Jews who also had been watching when we wanted to take him out of the fire. They do not know that we will never abandon Christ. He suffered for the salvation of all those who are being saved on the whole earth, the one without guilt for the guilty ones. We can never worship anyone else. We worship him because he is the son of God. To the martyrs we give the love we owe them as disciples and followers of the Lord. They have, after all, loved their king and master with boundless love. How we wish that we may become their companions and fellow disciples! When the officer in charge saw the commotion caused by the Jews, he had the body put in the middle of the pyre and burned, according to their custom. So afterwards we were able to take up his bones, more valuable than jewels and more precious than gold, and to lay them to rest in our burying place. There we will come together as often as God will grant us, in jubilation and joy, as much as we are able. There we will celebrate the anniversary of his martyrdom and death like a birthday, in memory of those who have fought and won the fight before, and for the strengthening and preparation of those who still have to face it. Such is our report about the blessed Polycarp who, counting those from Philadelphia, was the twelfth to suffer martyrdom at Smyrna.
The Martyrdom of the Holy Polycarp, recorded February 22, A.D. 156.
14 When the proconsul was present in Pergamum [Asia Minor], Carpus and Papylus, joyful martyrs of Christ, were brought to him. The proconsul sat down and asked, "What is your name?"
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The one who was questioned answered, "My first and chosen name is Christian. But if you are asking for my name in the world, then I call myself Carpus."
The proconsul declared, "The decrees of the emperors are known to you, that you must worship the all-controlling gods. Therefore I advise both of you to come forward and sacrifice."
Carpus replied, "I am a Christian. I honor Christ, the son of God, who has come in the latter times to save us and has delivered us from the madness of the Devil. I will not sacrifice to such idols. Do what you please. It is impossible for me to offer sacrifices to these delusive phantoms, these demons, for they who sacrifice to them become like them."
The proconsul flared up, "Both of you, sacrifice to the gods and listen to reason!"
Carpus said joyfully, "Away with the gods who have created neither heaven nor earth."
The proconsul said,"You must sacrifice; the Caesar has commanded it." Carpus answered, "The living do not sacrifice to the dead." The proconsul asked, "Do you believe that the gods are dead?" Carpus replied, "If you would like to know, they were never even men, nor did they ever live that they could die. Believe me, you are caught up in a grave delusion."
The proconsul replied, "I have let you talk too much nonsense and thus have misled you to blaspheme the gods and the majesty. You shall not continue in this way. You will sacrifice or else – ! What do you say?"
Carpus said, "I cannot sacrifice. I have never yet sacrificed to idols." At once the proconsul ordered him to be hung up and had his skin flayed with tools of torture, but he cried out again and again, "I am a Christian! I am a Christian! I am a Christian!" Af-ter this torture had gone on for a long time he lost his strength and could not speak any more.
The proconsul therefore turned his attention from Carpus to Papylus and asked him, "Are you a councilor?"
He answered, "I am a citizen." The proconsul asked, "Of what city?"
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Papylus answered, "Thyatira." The proconsul asked, "Do you have any children?" Papylus replied, "Oh yes, many of them, through God." One of the surrounding crowd shouted, "He means he has children by his Christian faith."
The proconsul shouted at him, "Why do you lie, saying that you have children?"
Papylus answered, "Will you understand that I am not lying but saying the truth? In every district and city I have children in God."
The proconsul said, "You will sacrifice or else – ! What do you say?" Papylus answered, "I have served God since my youth. I have never sacrificed to idols. I am a Christian. You cannot learn anything else from me. There is nothing I can say which is greater or more wonderful than this." Then he also was hung up and his body was flayed with three pairs of iron instruments of torture. He did not utter a sound, but as a courageous fighter he endured the rage of the tempter.
When the proconsul saw their outstanding steadfastness, he ordered them to be burned alive. They descended into the amphitheater with brisk steps, that they might be freed from this world as quickly as possible. Papylus was the first to be nailed to the stake. When the flames leaped up he prayed quietly and gave up his soul. Carpus was nailed on after him. He was full of joy…When he had spoken and the fire was burning, he prayed, "Praise be to thee O Lord, Jesus Christ, son of God, that thou didst deem me, a sinner, also worthy of this part in thee!" After these words he gave up his soul.
Agathonica was present when these things happened. She saw the glory of the Lord which Carpus had seen and described. In this she recognized a call from heaven and raised her voice straight away. "This meal has been prepared for me. I must partake in it. I must receive the meal of glory."
The people cried out, "Have pity on your son." Agathonica joyfully answered, "He has God who can care for him, for he is the provider for all. But I, why do I stand here?" She threw off her clothes and jubilantly allowed herself to be nailed to the stake.
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Those standing by burst into tears and cried, "A cruel sentence! What unjust orders!"
But she, standing erect and caught by the fire, cried out three times, "Lord, Lord, Lord, help me, for I flee unto thee." Then she gave up her soul and was perfected with the saints.
Ca. A.D. 165. Acts in Eusebius IV. 15– 48.
15 Rusticus, the city prefect, said to Justin before the judgment seat, "First of all trust the gods and obey the Emperor."
Justin answered, "Obedience to the words of our Savior Jesus Christ does not call for blame or condemnation."
City Prefect Rusticus asked, "Which branch of knowledge do you study?"
Justin answered, "I endeavored to acquaint myself with all systems. In the end I surrendered to the true teachings of the Christians. These teachings do not please those who are caught up in false beliefs."
City Prefect Rusticus answered, "And you enjoy the teachings of these people, you utterly wretched man?"
Justin replied, "The worship of the God of the Christians consists in our belief in the one God…who has made and brought forth the whole creation, visible and invisible; and in the Lord Jesus Christ whom the prophets foretold in this way: He would appear to the human race as the herald of salvation and the proclaimer of precious truth. Being only a man, I feel too insignificant to say anything appropriate about his boundless divinity. I do however acknowledge a prophetic power. He whom I have called here the son of God has been proclaimed beforehand. I know that through inspiration from God the prophets foretold his future coming to men."
City Prefect Rusticus asked, "Where do you assemble?" Justin answered, "Where each one wants to and is able to. You probably believe that we all come together in one and the same place. This is not so, for the God of the Christians is not limited to any one place. He fills heaven and earth. He is honored and glorified by the faithful everywhere."
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City Prefect Rusticus said, "Answer, where do you assemble, or in what place do you gather your followers?"
Justin answered, "I live up on the hill, close to the baths of Timothy; during all this time (and I am now living in Rome for the second time) I have not known any other meeting place. I communicated the teachings of truth to anyone who wished to see me there."
Rusticus asked, "You still insist that you are a Christian?" Justin answered, "I am a Christian." The city prefect turned to Chariton. "Now you tell me, are you also a Christian?"
Chariton answered, "I am a Christian by the will of God." The city prefect now asked the woman Charito, "What do you say, Charito?"
Charito answered, "I am a Christian by the gift of God." Rusticus turned to Euelpistus. "Tell me, what are you?" Euelpistus, a slave of the Emperor, answered, "I, too, am a Christian; through Christ I have been freed, and by the gift of Christ I share the same hope."
The city prefect asked Hierax, "And you are a Christian too?" Hierax answered, "Yes, I am a Christian, for my homage and worship belong to the same God."
Rusticus, the city prefect, asked, "Did Justin make you Christians too?" Hierax replied, "I was a Christian, and I will be a Christian." Paeon, who was not among the accused and was standing by, said, "I, too, am a Christian."
City Prefect Rusticus asked, "Who taught you?" Paeon said, "From our parents we accepted this wonderful confession."
Euelpistus said, "I heard the words of Justin with joy. But I also learned to be a Christian from my parents."
Rusticus, the city prefect, asked, "Where are your parents?" Euelpistus said, "In Cappadocia [Asia Minor]." Rusticus also asked Hierax, "Who are your parents?" He answered, "Christ is our true father, and our faith in him is our
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mother. My earthly parents died. I was taken away from Iconium in Phrygia [Asia Minor], and from there I came here."
The city prefect, Rusticus, turned to Liberian. "What do you say now? Are you a Christian too? Are you also godless?"
Liberian answered, "I, too, am a Christian, for I worship and give homage to the only true God."
The city prefect now turned once more to Justin. "Listen, you who are called a learned man. You think that you possess true insight; if you should be scourged and beheaded, do you believe you will ascend into heaven?"
Justin answered, "I believe that if I endure these things I shall have what he promises. For I know that the divine gift will stay with all who live this way until the end of the world."
City Prefect Rusticus said, "Do you suppose, then, that you will ascend into heaven and receive some reward there?"
Justin said, "I do not suppose it; I know it. I am certain of it." The city prefect, Rusticus, said, "We have to come now finally to the matter in hand. It is getting urgent. Come here and with one accord offer a sacrifice to the gods."
Justin answered, "No right-thinking person slanders communion with God by going to godlessness."
Rusticus, the city prefect, said, "Unless you obey, you will be mercilessly punished."
Justin answered, "It is our wish to be martyred for the sake of our Lord Jesus Christ and so be saved. This will be our salvation and our confidence at the much more fearful judgment seat of our Lord and Savior, who will demand that the whole world come before his forum."
So also said the other martyrs, "Do what you will, for we are Christians and do not sacrifice to idols."
Then Rusticus, the city prefect, pronounced sentence: "These people, who have refused to sacrifice to the gods and do not obey the command of the Emperor, shall be scourged and taken away to be beheaded according to the laws."
Martyrdom of Justin, Chariton, etc., in Rome, about 163 or 167.
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16 The servants of Christ who live as aliens at Vienna and Lugdunum [Vienne and Lyons] in Gaul, to the brothers in Asia Minor and Phrygia…The adversary has fallen upon us with all his might. He has given us a foretaste of the ignominy of his future when it breaks in.
One of our brothers was called Vettius Epagathus. He was filled with abundant love towards God and his neighbor. He never hesitated to do a service to his neighbor. He carried a great zeal for God in his heart. He burned with the fervor of the Spirit. He also was received into the select circle of the martyrs as a defender and advocate of the Christians, he who carried within him the defending advocate, the spirit of Zechariah. He was and is a true disciple of Christ in the full sense of the word. He followed the Lamb wherever He went.
In the presence of all the people, the governor had given the order that all of us with our households should be investigated. Prompted by Satan, fearful of the tortures which they saw God's people suffer, and under pressure from the soldiers who talked them directly into it, pagan slaves in our service brought forth lies against us. These lies were the usual accusations of cannibalism, unnatural sexual unions, and similar ghastly things which we should never speak or think about or even believe that they have ever happened among human beings. When this became known among the pagans, they all flew into a truly bestial rage against us.
Through the slave girl, Blandina, Christ revealed that what is regarded as mean, insignificant, and unattractive by humans is accounted worthy of great glory in the sight of God because of the fact that love towards him proves itself with power and does not vaunt itself for the sake of making an impression. Her comfort, her relief, her refreshment, her painkilling remedy for everything she suffered was the cry, "I am a Christian, and nothing evil happens among us."
Also Sanctus, a serving brother, steadfastly endured tortures beyond all measure and all human strength – all the tortures that human beings are able to inflict. Those lawless men hoped that, through the persistence and cruelty of their tortures, they could force him to say something
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that would be harmful to the Christians. But he resisted with unshakable firmness. He did not even say what his name was, or his race or native city, or whether he was a slave or free. To every question he gave only one answer, in Latin, "I am a Christian." This was his glory; it was his answer to all and everything instead of giving his name, native city, and family. No other sound did the pagans hear from his lips. The governor and his torturers became very bitter on account of this. When they could think of nothing else they pressed red-hot metal plates against the most sensitive parts of his body. These burned until they grew cold, but still he stood firm in his confession.
Biblis was one of those who had denied Christ. She was the only one to come to her senses actually during the agony of torture, awaking out of a deep sleep as it were. The tortures of the present age reminded her of the punishments of eternity, and she flatly contradicted the slanderers.
Even the blessed Pothinus, the overseer of the church at Lugdunum, who had reached the great age of more than ninety years, was dragged before the tribunal. He was physically so feeble that he was scarcely able to breathe, but he was strong with inward joy and full of longing for the crown of martyrdom. His body was tired to death because of his great age and his physical ailments, but his soul was kept in him so powerfully that Christ was to triumph through him. He was led before the tribunal by soldiers accompanied by the city authorities. A great multitude yelled and shouted in a wild uproar. It happened in just the same way as when Christ was condemned. He gave a good witness. When the governor asked him, "Who is the god of the Christians?" he answered, "If you were worthy you would know." Thereupon he was ill-treated in the most merciless way. Those closest to him pounded him and kicked him viciously from all sides, not respecting his old age in the slightest. Those further away hurled at him whatever came into their hands. Scarcely breathing any more Pothinus was thrown into prison, and after two days he gave up his soul.
Maturus, Sanctus, Blandina, and Attalus were taken to the wild beasts in the amphitheater, to give the pagan crowd which was gathered there
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a public spectacle of inhumanity. They ran the gauntlet of whips. They were already used to this. They let themselves be dragged around and mauled by the wild beasts. Everything the raving, yelling mob wanted, now from this side, now from that, they endured. They sat upon the iron chair which roasted their bodies so that the fumes rose up. Yet they heard nothing from Sanctus beyond the confession of faith he had repeated over and over again from the beginning. When they were still found alive in spite of the terrible and prolonged torture, they were finally killed. Blandina was hung on a post, delivered up to the wild beasts for food. Hung up like this in the shape of the Cross, she could be seen from afar, and through her ardent prayers she aroused increased zeal in those who were fighting, for during this fight they saw with their own eyes, right in and through the person of their sister, the one who was crucified for them. In this way it was shown to all who believe in him that everyone who suffers for the glory of Christ is always in fellowship with the living God. As none of the wild beasts had yet touched Blandina, she was taken down from the post and thrown into prison once more, to be kept ready for a new fight.
Most of those who had denied their faith were received back into the bosom of the church. The fire of their lives was rekindled and burned brightly. They learned to confess and stood before the tribunal again, full of life and vigor, once more to be plagued by the governor. In the meantime the command of the Emperor had arrived: those who denied their faith should be set free; the others should be executed.
The great festival had just begun. Large numbers of people had flocked together from many faraway places. Before the eyes of the crowd the governor had all the blessed ones conducted to the tribunal in a ceremonial procession. Again he started to examine them. All those who clearly possessed Roman citizenship were beheaded. The rest were sent to the wild beasts. Christ was glorified magnificently by those who had formerly denied him. The pagans could not grasp it. They gave witness. Attalus sat in the iron chair. His body burned. The fumes rose up. On being asked, "What is God's name?" he answered, "God does not have a name as a man has."
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The glorified Blandina had already learned to know the scourging, the wild beasts, and the red-hot griddle. Finally they tied her in a fishing net and threw her to a bull. For a long time the animal tossed her about, and so she was killed. She did not feel anymore what was happening to her because she lived only in the hope and expectation of the things that were prepared for her through her communion with Christ. Even the pagans had to admit that none of their women had ever suffered so many tortures for so long. Yet not even this was enough to satisfy their rage and cruelty towards the holy ones.
The bodies of those that had perished in prison they threw to the dogs, watching carefully night and day that none of us could be buried. The remains of those who had been torn to pieces by the wild beasts and those charred by the fire they put on public view just as they were. The heads and trunks of the others, carefully guarded by soldiers, they also left unburied for many days. Some of them were raging and gnashing their teeth, seeking to take even more vengeance on them. Others laughed and jeered at them and exalted their own idols, to whom they attributed the punishment of the martyrs.
The more reasonable ones, those of whom one could believe that they knew pity to a certain extent, slandered them, crying, "Where is your god? How were they helped by the faith which they loved more than their own lives?" For six days the bodies of the martyrs, mocked in every possible way, were exposed to the elements. Finally they were burned to ashes by these lawless men and swept into the Rhône, which flows nearby. Not a trace of them was to remain on earth. This they did thinking that they could defeat God and deprive them of their restoration. They said that they should not be allowed to have any hope of resurrection, for it was through their faith in this that they introduced a strange and new religion. "Now let us see whether they will rise again, whether their god can help them, and whether he can deliver them out of our hands."
Letter from Vienne and Lyons (Southern France) to Phrygia:
Eusebius V.1 ff. In the year 177.
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17 On the sixteenth day before the Calends of August [July 17, 180], in the consulship of Praesens and Claudianus (Praesens being consul for the second time), Speratus, Nartzalus, Cittinus, Donata, Secunda, and Vestia were brought into the senate house of Carthage.
The Proconsul Saturninus said, "You can win the leniency of our lord the Emperor if you return to reason."
Speratus answered, "We have never done wrong. We have not taken part in any crime at all. We have never cursed. Even if we were ill-treated, we only gave thanks. Therefore we honor our Emperor."
The Proconsul Saturninus said, "We too are religious people, and our religion is simple. We swear by the genius of our lord the Emperor and offer sacrifices for his well-being. You must do that too."
Speratus answered, "If you lend me a quiet ear I will tell you the secret of simplicity."
Saturninus said, "As soon as you begin to say evil things about our rites, I will not lend my ear to you. Swear by the genius of our lord the Caesar!"
Speratus answered, "I do not recognize any empire of this present age. I serve that God whom no person has seen, or can ever see with these eyes. I have not stolen. On the contrary, when I buy anything I pay my taxes, for I know only one Lord, the king of kings, the ruler of all nations."
The Proconsul Saturninus said to the others, "Give up this persuasion." Speratus replied, "It is an evil persuasion to commit murder and bear false witness."
The Proconsul Saturninus said, "Give up this madness." Cittinus spoke up now, "There is no one whom we fear except the Lord our God who is in heaven."
Donata said, "Honor Caesar as Caesar, but fear God." Vestia said, "I am a Christian." Secunda said, "What I am, I want to remain." The Proconsul Saturninus asked Speratus, "Do you remain a Christian?" Speratus replied, "I am a Christian," and they all agreed with him.
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The Proconsul Saturninus said, "Do you want some time to consider?" Speratus replied, "In such a just cause there is nothing to consider." The Proconsul Saturninus said, "What do you have in your satchel?" Speratus said, "The letters and writings of Paul, a just man." The Proconsul Saturninus said, "You shall have thirty days' grace to consider the matter."
Speratus said again, "I am a Christian," and all agreed with him. The Proconsul Saturninus read the sentence from his tablet: "Speratus, Nartzalus, Cittinus, Donata, Vestia, and Secunda, and the rest who confessed that they want to live according to the Christian custom shall be executed by the sword, since they remained obstinate, although the opportunity was offered them to return to the Roman tradition."
Speratus said, "We give thanks to God." Nartzalus said, "Today we are martyrs in heaven, thanks be to God." The Proconsul Saturninus ordered it to be proclaimed by the herald: "I have commanded that Speratus, Nartzalus, Cittinus, Veturius, Felix, Aquilinus, Laetantius, Januaria, Generosa, Vestia, Donata, and Secunda be led forth to execution."
They all said, "Thanks be to God," and were immediately executed with the sword.
Acts of Martyrs, official court minutes from Carthage, July 17, 180.
18 Romans, the things that have recently taken place in your city under Urbicus and that are likewise being done against all reason by the authorities, compel me to address the following words to you.
Whenever anyone is admonished by father or neighbor, child or friend, brother or husband, or wife, for any shortcoming, he seeks to put these to death. He does this because he is stubborn and intemperate and because he is hard to move to the good. In turn, the evil demons try to kill us because they hate us and because they find suitable judges to act as their tools and servants. It is just as if the authorities were possessed by them. That you may understand the reason for all that took place under Urbicus, I will now tell what occurred. There was a certain woman
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who lived with a dissolute husband. She herself had formerly lived licentiously. After having learned the teachings of Christ she changed and then tried to persuade her husband to live a purer life too…She forced herself to stay with him, for her friends had persuaded her to continue the marriage in the hope that her husband might change his ways at some future time. However when he traveled to Egypt and news reached her that his conduct was worse than ever, she separated herself from him in order not to participate in his vices and impieties by remaining married to him and sharing his table and bed. She gave him a bill of divorce according to Roman custom. Her noble husband should have been delighted that she, after her former reckless behavior with servants and employees and her indulgence in drink and every vice, had now given up all this and even wanted to dissuade him from these things. Instead he brought a charge against her. Since she had separated herself from him against his will, he charged her with being a Christian. She submitted a written petition to you, O Emperor, that she might be granted permission to put her household affairs in order first, and afterwards she would defend herself against the charge. You gave her your permission, so that her former husband could not legally prosecute her for the time being. The husband now turned against Ptolemaeus and had him summoned by Urbicus because he had instructed this woman in the Christian teachings. This is what happened. The former husband persuaded his friend, the centurion who had arrested Ptolemaeus, to summon Ptolemaeus and ask him only this one question: whether he was a Christian. Now when Ptolemaeus, who loved the truth and detested lying and deceit, confessed that he was a Christian, the centurion had him put in chains and tortured for a long time in prison. Finally the prisoner was brought before Urbicus, but here again, the same as before, only the one question was asked: was he a Christian? And again he confessed to Christ's teachings, conscious of the good things he owed to Christian instruction. Now when Urbicus ordered Ptolemaeus to be led away to execution, a certain Lucius, who was a Christian too, in the face of this unreasonable sentence asked the city prefect, "For what reason did you
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order this man to be taken away? He is neither an adulterer nor a fornicator nor a murderer nor a thief nor a robber, nor has he broken any other law. He has only confessed to the Christian name. Your judgment, Urbicus, will bring honor neither to the Emperor Pius, nor to the Emperor's son, the philosopher [later the Emperor Marcus Aurelius], nor to the sacred Senate."
The only answer the city prefect made to Lucius was, "You too seem to me to be such a one." When Lucius answered yes, he ordered him also to be led away to death. Lucius said he could only be grateful because now he would be freed from such evil rulers and would be allowed to go to the Father and king of heaven. Then a third who also came forward was condemned to the same punishment. Justin, Second Apology 1, 2, in A.D. 150.
19 We too were the same as you. We were blind and callous, sharing your ideas in supposing that the Christians worshipped monsters, devoured children, and joined in lascivious feasts. At that time we undertook the legal defense and protection of individual cases of sacrilege or incest or even parricide, but we regarded them [the Christians] as not entitled even to a hearing. Yes, sometimes the struggle with our own pity made us torture those who confessed with all the more savage cruelty.
Minucius Felix, Octavius 28.2, 3 (about A.D. 160).
20 You [the Jews] chose special men and sent them from Jerusalem throughout the world to proclaim that with Christianity a godless sect had arisen and to bring those accusations against us which now are raised by all those who do not know us.
Justin, Dialogue with Trypho the Jew 17.1.
21 You also accuse him [Jesus] of having taught the same godless, wicked, and criminal teachings which you bring up in condemnation of all those who everywhere confess Christ to be their teacher and the son of God. Moreover, not even now, after your city has been conquered
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and your country laid waste, do you repent, but dare to curse Jesus and all who believe in him.
Justin, Dialogue with Trypho the Jew 108.2.3.
22 My friends, is there any matter in which you blame us other than this, that we do not live according to the law, and that we do not circumcise the flesh as your forefathers did or keep the Sabbaths as you do? Or are our life and morals also slandered among you? I must ask you this: do you also hold the opinion about us that we actually eat human beings and that, after a carousal, we extinguish the lights and engage in promiscuous intercourse? Or do you simply condemn us because we follow the one or the other teaching but do not follow that belief which you hold to be the true one?"
Trypho replied,
This is what amazes us. But concerning the things of which the masses speak, they are not worth believing, for they go right against human nature. Moreover, I know that your teachings, written down in the so-called Gospel, are so wonderful and so great that in my opinion no one can keep them; for I have read them with interest. But this is what we cannot grasp at all: that you want to fear God and that you believe yourselves favored above the people around you, yet you do not withdraw from them in any way or separate yourselves from the pagans, you observe neither the festivals nor the Sabbaths, you do not circumcise, and you set your hopes on a man who was crucified and believe you will receive good things from God in spite of the fact that you do not obey his commandments.
Justin, Dialogue with Trypho the Jew 10.1.2.
23 In every country there is a throng of females, hermaphrodites, and perverts ready for wicked acts, and you [the Roman State] accept rent, taxes, and tribute from them instead of eradicating them from your Empire. What is done in public by you and recognized by the State, you hold against us as if we practiced it in darkness after overturning the light.
Justin, First Apology 27.
24 Our accusers impute godless feasts and indiscriminate intercourse to us. They do this on the one hand to convince themselves that
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there are good reasons for hating us; on the other hand, they do it in the hope of drawing us away from our way of life by intimidation, or they do it to influence the authorities against us and to incite them to treat us harshly and implacably because of the enormity of the accusations.
Athenagoras, A Plea Regarding Christians 31.
25 Because we do not make any distinctions in rank and outward appearance, or wealth and education, or age and sex, they devise an accusation against us that we practice cannibalism and sexual perversions.
Tatian, Address to the Greeks 31.7–35.
26 They form a rabble of profane conspiracy. Their alliance consists in meetings at night with solemn rituals and inhuman revelries. They replace holy rites with inexpiable crimes. They despise temples as if they were tombs. They disparage the gods and ridicule our sacred rites. They look down on our priests although they are pitiable themselves. They despise titles of honor and the purple robe of high government office though hardly able themselves to cover their nakedness.
Just like a rank growth of weeds, the abominable haunts where this impious confederacy meet are multiplying all over the world, due to the daily increase of immorality. Root and branch, it should at all costs be exterminated and accursed. They recognize each other by secret signs and symbols. They love one another before being acquainted, so to speak. Everywhere they practice a kind of religious cult of lust, calling one another "brother" and "sister" indiscriminately. Thus, under the cover of these hallowed names, ordinary fornication becomes incest.
They consecrate and worship the head of a donkey, the meanest of all animals. They even reverence the genitals of their president and priest, adoring in this the creative power of their father. This suspicion may be false, but at any rate it fits the character of their secret nocturnal rites. To venerate an executed criminal and the gallows, the wooden cross on which he was executed, is to erect altars which befit lost and depraved wretches. The blood of the infant – oh, how abominable – they lap up greedily, they distribute its limbs with passionate eagerness.
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Their feastings are notorious. Even Cornelius Fronto, the teacher of Emperor Marcus Aurelius [about 175] testifies to this…After a surfeit of feasting, when the blood is heated and drinking has inflamed impure passions, a dog which has been tied to the lamp stand upsets and extinguishes the tale-telling light. Darkness covers their shamelessness, and lustful embraces are indiscriminately exchanged. All single acts correspond to the will of all…Otherwise why do they have no altars, no temples, no images? Why do they not speak in public? Why do they never meet in the open? Is it not simply because what they worship and conceal is criminal and shameful?
Minucius Felix, Octavius 8.4; 9.1–6; 10.2.
27 They say I am incestuous…I murder babies…I am a malefactor against the gods, against the emperors…Yet they do not give me a hearing. Tertullian, Apology 4.
28 The Emperors Severus and Antoninus decreed: "From now on no one who accidentally damages a statue of our Emperor by throwing a stone shall be proclaimed guilty of high treason unless premeditated intention can be proved."
Quoted by the Roman jurist Marcian, Corpus Iuris Civilis 48.8 (ad legem maiestatis 5.1); ca. A.D. 200.
29 Celsus says, "The Christians boast that they blaspheme and strike the images of the gods." Origen, Against Celsus.
30 When a Christian passes through temples, he will spit down upon the smoking altars and blow them out.
As to rooting out the strange gods in every way, it has been commanded, "You shall utterly destroy all places where the pagans sacrifice to their gods. You shall overturn their pillars and dash them in pieces. You shall cut down their groves. You shall burn their graven images. You shall destroy their names."
Tertullian, On Idolatry II; Scorpiace 2.
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31 Was one of us ever accused on any other ground [than that of bearing the name "Christian"]? The Christian never has to suffer for any other affairs except those of his sect, which during all this long time no one has ever proved guilty of incest or any cruel act. It is for our singular innocence, our great honesty, our justice, purity, and love of truth, yes, it is for the living God that we are burned to death. Thus you inflict a punishment on us which usually you do not inflict on actual temple robbers or enemies of the State or on the great number guilty of high treason.
Tertullian, To Scapula 4.
32 It becomes evident that the entire crime with which they charge us does not consist in any wicked acts, but in the bearing of a name. The issue is not the name of a crime, but the crime of bearing a name. Again and again it is the name that must be punished by the sword, the gallows, the cross, or the wild beasts. Tullian, To the Heathen I.3.
33 I am concerned to demonstrate from those things which are considered honorable among you that our morals are pure, but yours are mad in many respects. How is it that you are not ashamed to slander the good name of our women – you who have such a large number of vile and useless poetesses, wanton women, and worthless men? Who can endure it any longer that even fratricide is honored among you? Be ashamed, you who are known to be disciples of women yourselves, that you scoff at the women who join us as well as at the church who stands by them!
Tatian, Address to the Greeks, ch. 33–34.
34 If only somebody would climb up on to a high platform and cry out at the top of his voice, "Be ashamed, oh, be ashamed, you who accuse innocent people of the very crimes you yourselves openly commit, you who attach to those who do not have the slightest part in them the things of which you and your gods are guilty! Change your lives, and come to your senses!" Justin, Second Apology 12.
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Notes to The State, Society and Martyrs
Marginal numbers refer to corresponding passages on the previous pages.
7 Suetonius, Lives of the Twelve Caesars III.36.
8 The main significance of this earliest report of an official Roman persecution lies in the fact that
Tacitus, while openly acknowledging the judicial murder committed by Nero, charged Christians with
hatred of the human race, an accusation which reflects the feeling against the Christians prevalent at
that time.
9 Next to the stoning of the first martyr, Stephen (Acts 7), the death of James was the most signifi-
cant murder of a martyr-confessor committed by the Jews. Stephen, who saw Israel's history in prophetic
terms and charged the Jews with the murder of the prophets and the Messiah, was therefore regarded
as an enemy of the holy place and of the law. James, however, was highly honored even by the Jews
because of his reputation for righteousness in keeping the law. Remarkably Josephus, who finished his
history of the Jews in 77 A.D., stood up for James; a friend of the Pharisees, he combined a genuinely
Jewish view of life with efforts to assimilate Roman and Greek culture.
Hegesippus gives the most detailed report of the fate of James in Book V of his Memoirs (in Eusebius,
Church History II.23.3–19; IV.22.4; III.32.1–7; compare Clement of Alexandria, Outlines VII). A born Jew
who converted to the new faith, Hegesippus belonged to the first generation of Christians after the
apostles. He writes:
James, the brother of the Lord, succeeded the apostles in the church at Jerusalem. He was often found on his knees, praying for forgiveness for the people, so that his knees were calloused like a camel's from constantly bending them in prayer before God, asking forgiveness for the people. Because of his outstanding sense of justice he was called "the Just" or Obdias, which means "protection of the people" and "righteousness." When asked what "the door of Jesus" meant, he answered, "He is the healing savior." Through this some of them came to believe that Jesus is the Christ.
Now when a number of the leaders also came to believe, confusion arose among the Jews and scribes and Pharisees. They said there was a danger of the whole nation expecting Jesus as the Messiah. Therefore they met and addressed James, "We challenge you to restrain the people, for they are mistaken in thinking that Jesus is the Messiah. Make the facts about Jesus clear to the people! For all the people and all of us follow you. Place yourself upon the temple parapet so that you can be seen and your words heard by all the people."
Then these scribes and Pharisees made James stand on the parapet and shouted to him, "O Just one, whom we all must follow: since the people in their error are following Jesus, who was shamefully executed, tell us what the 'door of Jesus' is."
He answered in a loud voice, "Why do you ask me about Jesus, the Son of Man! He is enthroned in heaven at the right hand of the Power. He will come soon on the clouds of heaven!"
Then they climbed up and threw the Just one down. And they said to one another, "Let us stone James the Just." So they began to stone him, since he had not died of his fall. He had turned, gone on his knees, and was praying.
While they beat him down with stones, one of the priests called, "Stop! What are you doing? The Just one is praying for you!" But one of them, a fuller, took the wooden cudgel which he used for beating clothes and struck James on the head.
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After James the Just had suffered a martyr's death like the Lord and on the same accusation, Simeon, the son of the Lord's uncle Clopas, became overseer of the church. He was elected by all because he was the Lord's cousin. This son of Clopas was also accused before Atticus, the provincial governor, on the same charges and because he was of the house of David and a Christian. After being tortured for days, he too suffered martyrdom. All were amazed, even the governor, how he could endure all this at the age of 120. He was sentenced to die by crucifixion.
10 On the charge of atheism, see p. 15 above. A similar report is contained in Suetonius's book on
Domitian, Lives of the Twelve Caesars VIII.15, written ca. A.D. 130, where Suetonius speaks with con-
tempt of Flavius Clemens' lack of energy.
11 This imperial document of is elucidated by C. F. Arnold in his Studien zur plinianischen
Christenverfolgung, 1888, and by T. Zahn in his Skizzen aus dem Leben der alten Kirche, pp. 271 ff., "Die
Anbetung Jesu." Typical is the evidence, given here by Christians who deserted their faith, that Christ
was worshipped like a god, that the Christians lived a resolutely moral life, that they refrained from
quarreling about possessions, and that their Lovemeal was a harmless, ordinary meal. In particular, "the
girls serving at table" clearly describes the nature of the diakonia. It is the same in the Gallic Acts of
Martyrs, where mention is made of brothers serving at table. Here again a basic reason for criminal inves-
tigations was the early believers' dogged refusal to participate in the worship of State-constituted gods.
13-18 In these pages various "Acts" of martyrs are collected and condensed so as to focus on the
most important facts and testimonies. The State record from Carthage (pp. 67-68 above), the most
obviously authentic, is reproduced in its entirety. In the Acts of Rome as in those of Pergamum in Asia
Minor, official court minutes were evidently used, whereas the accounts of Vienne and Lyons, and of the
martyrdom of Polycarp at Smyrna in Asia Minor, simply reflect the churches' concept of martyrdom. Justin
Martyr's account from Rome gives a particularly vivid sketch of contemporary morals and of the ethical
radicalism of the first Christians.
The testimonies show clearly that what distinguished the Christians of that time from their contempo-
raries was their insistence on serving, with their whole lives, the one whom they were ordered by law to
curse – and their equal insistence on refusing to swear by the genius of the Emperor, which brought on
them condemnation as "atheists."
According to the martyrs, the grace of the salvation lies in the fact that Jesus, the guiltless one, suf-
fered for the guilty. The martyrs counted themselves worthy of participation in this suffering; its com-
munion resulted in visible community. "This Meal is prepared for me too," cries out a rapturous woman
about to be martyred, witnessing to the sacred character of the martyr's death: it is the blood supper of
the Lord described on p. 17 ff. above. Faith in the resurrection, in the kingdom already now established
in heaven, and in the promise of earth's final goal, was so strong that one of the martyrs declared, "I
recognize no empire of this present age."
13 For Polycarp's last prayer, see p.228 below.
15 Justin categorically denies the statement of the city prefect that all Christians meet in one and
the same place, saying that God cannot be confined to any one place. Because God fills heaven and
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earth, he is glorified everywhere, which makes Justin go so far as to declare that he knows no other
meeting place than his own home, though he mentions this only because the city prefect asks him where
he gathers his pupils.
16 The evidence that slaves became traitors and informed on their Christian masters contradicts
the passage on p. 100 below, but may show that the situation was not the same everywhere or at all
times.
17 The fact that letters and writings of Paul found in a martyr's satchel were taken as "incriminat-
ing evidence" is significant, because it indicates the developing recognition accorded to what we now
call the New Testament.
18 For "seducing" his pupil to the Christian faith, the teacher Ptolemaeus suffered the death
penalty.
19 Minucius Felix was a lawyer and as such had taken part himself in the unjust conviction of
Christians before his conversion.
25 These four lines from R.C. Kukula, Bibliothek der Kirchenväter (Kempten and Munich) are strik-
ingly typical of Tatian's words in chapters 31.7–35.3. In the same context Tatian says, "Also the poor
receive free instruction. All who want to listen, even old women and immature adolescents, persons of
every age and race – they all come into their own."
26 Recalling (about the year 200) actual discussions at the end of the second century, the lawyer
Marcus Minucius Felix puts into the mouth of the pagan Caecilius the vilification of the Christians
quoted here. There is no doubt, however, that similar abominations did in fact occur in the Gnostic
circles and were harshly rejected by other Christians.
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ho were the early Christians? There is no better way to find out than to read their own descriptions of themselves, as well as the portrayals left us by their Jewish and pagan contemporaries. In grasping the faith of the first believers, we are confronted with a vision of life as broad and lofty as it is severe and deep. The early Church was an organic body of men and women gripped and driven by a spirit whose immediacy they felt in their daily lives. They expected the complete transformation of all things by the Spirit, and as their own words show us, they strove for its fruits –
love, purity of heart, peace and justice – with a singlemindedness we latter-day Christians often lack.
In Christian as in classical symbolism, the palm branch was a sign of victory. To early believers the association with self-sacrifice (i.e. martyrdom) was equally important: death in the arena or at the stake did not mean defeat, but eternal life and victory over the powers of sin and darkness.
T H E E A R L Y C H R I S T I A N S : S E L F - P O R T R A I T S A N D P O R T R A Y A L S
1 Christianity is not a matter of persuasive words. It is a matter of true greatness as long as it is hated by the world.
Ignatius, Letter to the Romans 3.3; ca. A.D. 110.
2 The Lord will send thee a scepter of power out from Jerusalem. This is a prophecy of the mighty Logos which his apostles, going out from Jerusalem, proclaimed everywhere. Him we worship and teach everywhere although death is decreed for all those who teach or even profess the name of Christ.
Justin, First Apology 45.
3 Our Jesus, without yet appearing in radiant splendor, has sent a rod of power to Jerusalem. This is the Word that summons, the Word of transformation by the Spirit. This Word went out to all nations over which the demons ruled, as David testifies, "The gods of the nations are demons." And so it happened that many, powerfully gripped by his Word, abandoned the demons whom they had served. Now through Jesus they have come to believe in the almighty God.
Justin, Dialogue with Trypho 83.4.
4 The prophecy, "O ye princes, lift up your gates, and be ye lifted up, O ye eternal gates!" was spoken only of this our Christ. As Isaiah, David, and all the scriptures testified, he appeared without splendor or honor. He is the Lord of all the powers because it was the will of the Father to give them all to him. He arose from the dead and ascended into heaven as the Psalm and the other scriptures had revealed. You can recognize him more easily as the Lord of all the powers especially today if you will but look at the things that are happening before your eyes. For every demon is exorcised, conquered, and subdued in the very name of this Son of God, the firstborn of all creation, who became man through a virgin, who suffered and was crucified by your people under Pontius Pilate, who died and rose from the dead and ascended into heaven.
Justin, Dialogue with Trypho 85.1–2.
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5 Demons are outsiders from divine religion. We ourselves used to worship them. We constantly plead with God through Jesus Christ to be liberated from them in order that through him we may turn to God and be without reproach. For we do call him Savior and Redeemer! The demons shudder at his mighty name. Even in our days they surrender to him when they are subdued in the name of Jesus Christ, who was crucified under Pontius Pilate, governor of Judea. From what happens today it is clear to all that his father gave him so great a power that even the demons surrender to his name and to the saving power of his suffering.
Justin, Dialogue with Trypho 30.3.
6 Among us you can find uneducated people, artisans, and dear old mothers who would not be able to put into words the usefulness of their teaching, but by their deeds they demonstrate the usefulness of their principles. They do not repeat words learned by heart, but they show good deeds: when hit they do not hit back, when robbed they do not go to court, they give to those who ask, and they love their fellowmen as themselves. Athenagoras, A Plea Regarding Christians 11.
7 We, more than all other men, are your helpers and allies for peace.
Justin, First Apology 12.
8 "If everyone were to act the same as you [Christians], the national government would soon be left utterly deserted and without any help, and affairs on earth would soon pass into the hands of the most savage and wretched barbarians."
Celsus next exhorts us to help the Emperor and be his fellow soldiers. To this we reply, "You cannot demand military service of Christians any more than you can of priests." We do not go forth as soldiers with the Emperor even if he demands this, but we do fight for him by forming our own army, an army of faith through our prayers to God.
Origen, Against Celsus, Celsus against the Christians, VIII. 68, 73.
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9 We ourselves were well conversant with war, murder, and everything evil, but all of us throughout the whole wide earth have traded in our weapons of war. We have exchanged our swords for plowshares, our spears for farm tools. Now we cultivate the fear of God, justice, kindness to men, faith, and the expectation of the future given to us by the Father himself through the crucified one…We do not give up our confession though we be executed by the sword, though we be crucified, thrown to wild beasts, put in chains, and exposed to fire and every other kind of torture. Everyone knows this. On the contrary, the more we are persecuted and martyred, the more do others in ever-increasing numbers become believers and God-fearing people through the name of Jesus.
Justin, Dialogue with Trypho 110.3, 4.
10 I do not wish to be a ruler. I do not strive for wealth. I refuse offices connected with military command. Fornication I detest. No insatiable hunger for gold drives me to go to sea. I do not fight for a victor's laurels. I am free from the mad thirst for fame. I despise death. I stand above every illness. No grief consumes my soul.
Tatian, Address to the Greeks 11.2.
11 We must then offer no resistance. He never wanted us to imitate the wicked. Rather, he challenged us to lead everyone away from shamefulness and pleasure in evil by patience and kindness. We can in fact show that many who were once among you have been transformed in this way. They gave up their violent and domineering ways. Either they were conquered by the sight of their neighbors' patient life, or they were convinced by noticing the extraordinary kindness and patience of some defrauded traveling companions, or they were overcome by encountering and testing this attitude in people with whom they had business dealings. Anyone who is not found living in accordance with his teachings should not be regarded as a Christian even if he confesses to Christ's teaching with his lips. For he said that only those shall be saved who do not just talk, but who also do the corresponding works.
Justin, First Apology 16.
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12 Even to this day, spiritual gifts of prophecy are to be found among us. You [the Jews] should realize from this that these gifts that once were alive among your people have now been transferred to us. And just as there were false prophets among you alongside your holy prophets, so there are many false teachers in our midst now. Our Lord himself in his day warned us against such men.
Therefore we will not let ourselves be taken by surprise in any way, for we are aware that he knew in advance all that would happen to us after his resurrection from the dead and his ascension into heaven. He told us that we would be killed and hated for the sake of his name and that many false prophets and false Christs would come in his name and seduce many, and this has actually happened. Many in their craftiness have spread godless, blasphemous, and sinful teachings in his name. Whatever the Devil, that impure spirit, has put into their minds they have taught and continue to teach to this day. We do our utmost to change these people's minds as well as yours and to dissuade them from error.
Justin, Dialogue with Trypho 82.1–3.
13 They teach blasphemies, some in one way and some in another, against the creator of the universe and the crowned Messiah, whose coming was prophesied by him, blasphemies against the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. With none of them have we fellowship, for we know that in their impiousness and godlessness, in their sinfulness and slanderousness, they confess Jesus in name only without really worshipping him. They style themselves Christians as those pagans do who write God's name on the work of their hands and then indulge in wicked and godless rites…
As I said before, we know not only from these events [the appearance of false teachers] that Jesus knew the future in advance, but we know it also from many other happenings he predicted to those who believed and confessed that he is the Christ. He even prophesied all that we would suffer when we are put to death by our own relatives. Consequently, it is obvious that nothing in his words and actions can be rejected.
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We pray that you may believe in him and that you may be saved when he comes again and appears in shining glory.
Justin, Dialogue with Trypho 35.5–8.
14 We, on the other hand, have been taught – and we believe it firmly – that God accepts in mercy only those who live in accordance with the good that dwells in God, namely, self-control, justice, love of our fellowmen, and whatever else is characteristic of God, of him to whom no name can be allotted by which to call him.
Justin, First Apology 10.
15 When we are together we remind one another of these things, and help all who suffer want as best we can, and keep together in harmony. We praise the creator of the universe through his Son Jesus Christ and through the Holy Spirit for everything we receive.
Justin, First Apology 67.
16 We who ourselves used to have pleasure in impure things now cling to chastity alone. We who dabbled in the arts of magic now consecrate ourselves to the good and unbegotten God. We who formerly treasured money and possessions more than anything else now hand over everything we have to a treasury for all and share it with everyone who needs it. We who formerly hated and murdered one another and did not even share our hearth with those of a different tribe because of their customs, now, after Christ's appearance, live together and share the same table. Now we pray for our enemies and try to win those who hate us unjustly so that they too may live in accordance with Christ's wonderful teachings, that they too may enter into the expectation, that they too may receive the same good things that we will receive from God, the ruler of the universe.