The Myth of Persecution

The Myth of Persecution
Author :
Publisher : Harper Collins
Total Pages : 247
Release :
ISBN-10 : 9780062104540
ISBN-13 : 0062104543
Rating : 4/5 (40 Downloads)

Synopsis The Myth of Persecution by : Candida Moss

An expert on early Christianity reveals how the early church invented stories of Christian martyrs—and how this persecution myth persists today. According to church tradition and popular belief, early Christians were systematically persecuted by a brutal Roman Empire intent on their destruction. As the story goes, vast numbers of believers were thrown to the lions, tortured, or burned alive because they refused to renounce Christ. But as Candida Moss reveals in The Myth of Persecution, the “Age of Martyrs” is a fiction. There was no sustained 300-year-long effort by the Romans to persecute Christians. Instead, these stories were pious exaggerations; highly stylized rewritings of Jewish, Greek, and Roman noble death traditions; and even forgeries designed to marginalize heretics, inspire the faithful, and fund churches. The traditional story of persecution is still invoked by church leaders, politicians, and media pundits who insist that Christians were—and always will be—persecuted by a hostile, secular world. While violence against Christians does occur in select parts of the world today, the rhetoric of persecution is both misleading and rooted in an inaccurate history of the early church. By shedding light on the historical record, Moss urges modern Christians to abandon the conspiratorial assumption that the world is out to get them.

Ancient Christian Martyrdom

Ancient Christian Martyrdom
Author :
Publisher : Yale University Press
Total Pages : 272
Release :
ISBN-10 : 9780300154658
ISBN-13 : 0300154658
Rating : 4/5 (58 Downloads)

Synopsis Ancient Christian Martyrdom by : Candida R. Moss

Using perspectives on death from ancient Greek, Roman and Jewish traditions, a theology professor discusses the history of Christian martyrdom and challenges the traditional understanding of the spread of Christianity.

I Am A Christian

I Am A Christian
Author :
Publisher : Arx Publishing, LLC
Total Pages : 218
Release :
ISBN-10 : 9781935228189
ISBN-13 : 1935228188
Rating : 4/5 (89 Downloads)

Synopsis I Am A Christian by : Anthony P. Schiavo, Jr.

"Jesus never existed." "The Bible is a book of fairy tales." "Accounts of Christian persecution are fables." Christians of today face ridiculous claims of this type on a regular basis. These charges gain traction in the modern world because the average person has practically no knowledge of the Church's ancient past. I Am A Christian: Authentic Accounts of Christian Martyrdom and Persecution from the Ancient Sources aims to remedy this deficiency. The works collected in this book represent some of the most trustworthy first-hand accounts of the triumphs and travails of the early Church that have survived antiquity. These include several authentic transcripts of Roman legal proceedings against Christians, along with obscure but fascinating historical works that are unfamiliar to even the most informed Christians of today. In several cases, readers will be presented with the actual words of the martyrs themselves. In others, they will read accounts penned by eye-witnesses or authors writing within the living memory of the events themselves. Taken together, these works form a glorious record of early Christian zeal and fortitude in the face of aggressive state persecution. When reading them, one notices a common refrain: when questioned, the accused would cry out: “I am a Christian,” which was the equivalent of saying, “I am guilty as charged.” In an era when such an admission carried a death sentence, these authentic testimonies provide a convincing answer to modern skeptics who will find them as baffling as did the ancient Roman emperors, proconsuls and magistrates of nearly two millennia ago.

Early Christian Martyr Stories

Early Christian Martyr Stories
Author :
Publisher : Baker Academic
Total Pages : 232
Release :
ISBN-10 : 9781441220073
ISBN-13 : 1441220070
Rating : 4/5 (73 Downloads)

Synopsis Early Christian Martyr Stories by : Bryan M. Litfin

Personal narratives are powerful instruments for teaching, both for conveying information and for forming character. The martyrdom accounts preserved in the literature of early Christianity are especially intense and dramatic. However, these narratives are not readily available and are often written in intimidating prose, making them largely inaccessible for the average reader. This introductory text brings together key early Christian martyrdom stories in a single volume, offering new, easy-to-read translations and expert commentary. An introduction and explanatory notes accompany each translation. The book not only provides a vivid window into the world of early Christianity but also offers spiritual encouragement and inspiration for Christian life today.

The Catholic Martyrs of the Twentieth Century

The Catholic Martyrs of the Twentieth Century
Author :
Publisher : Crossroad
Total Pages : 456
Release :
ISBN-10 : STANFORD:36105073292984
ISBN-13 :
Rating : 4/5 (84 Downloads)

Synopsis The Catholic Martyrs of the Twentieth Century by : Robert Royal

Royal presents the first comprehensive history of 20th-century martyrs. This guide traces the specific situations of each area and time when martyrdom occurred and studies the political systems and the reasons for confrontation.

An Universal History of Christian Martyrdom, Being a Complete and Authentic Account of the Lives, Sufferings, and Triumphant Deaths of the Primitive as Well as Protestant Martyrs ... Together with a Summary of the Doctrines, Prejudices, Blasphemies, and Superstitions of the Modern Church of Rome. Originally Composed by the Rev. John Fox, M.A. with Notes, Commentaries, and Illustrations by the Rev. J. Milner ... A New Edition, Greatly Improved and Corrected

An Universal History of Christian Martyrdom, Being a Complete and Authentic Account of the Lives, Sufferings, and Triumphant Deaths of the Primitive as Well as Protestant Martyrs ... Together with a Summary of the Doctrines, Prejudices, Blasphemies, and Superstitions of the Modern Church of Rome. Originally Composed by the Rev. John Fox, M.A. with Notes, Commentaries, and Illustrations by the Rev. J. Milner ... A New Edition, Greatly Improved and Corrected
Author :
Publisher :
Total Pages : 998
Release :
ISBN-10 : BL:A0027109199
ISBN-13 :
Rating : 4/5 (99 Downloads)

Synopsis An Universal History of Christian Martyrdom, Being a Complete and Authentic Account of the Lives, Sufferings, and Triumphant Deaths of the Primitive as Well as Protestant Martyrs ... Together with a Summary of the Doctrines, Prejudices, Blasphemies, and Superstitions of the Modern Church of Rome. Originally Composed by the Rev. John Fox, M.A. with Notes, Commentaries, and Illustrations by the Rev. J. Milner ... A New Edition, Greatly Improved and Corrected by : John Foxe

Christian Martyrs Under Islam

Christian Martyrs Under Islam
Author :
Publisher : Princeton University Press
Total Pages : 360
Release :
ISBN-10 : 9780691203133
ISBN-13 : 069120313X
Rating : 4/5 (33 Downloads)

Synopsis Christian Martyrs Under Islam by : Christian C. Sahner

A look at the developing conflicts in Christian-Muslim relations during late antiquity and the early Islamic era How did the medieval Middle East transform from a majority-Christian world to a majority-Muslim world, and what role did violence play in this process? Christian Martyrs under Islam explains how Christians across the early Islamic caliphate slowly converted to the faith of the Arab conquerors and how small groups of individuals rejected this faith through dramatic acts of resistance, including apostasy and blasphemy. Using previously untapped sources in a range of Middle Eastern languages, Christian Sahner introduces an unknown group of martyrs who were executed at the hands of Muslim officials between the seventh and ninth centuries CE. Found in places as diverse as Syria, Spain, Egypt, and Armenia, they include an alleged descendant of Muhammad who converted to Christianity, high-ranking Christian secretaries of the Muslim state who viciously insulted the Prophet, and the children of mixed marriages between Muslims and Christians. Sahner argues that Christians never experienced systematic persecution under the early caliphs, and indeed, they remained the largest portion of the population in the greater Middle East for centuries after the Arab conquest. Still, episodes of ferocious violence contributed to the spread of Islam within Christian societies, and memories of this bloodshed played a key role in shaping Christian identity in the new Islamic empire. Christian Martyrs under Islam examines how violence against Christians ended the age of porous religious boundaries and laid the foundations for more antagonistic Muslim-Christian relations in the centuries to come.

Martyrdom and Memory

Martyrdom and Memory
Author :
Publisher : Columbia University Press
Total Pages : 376
Release :
ISBN-10 : 0231129866
ISBN-13 : 9780231129862
Rating : 4/5 (66 Downloads)

Synopsis Martyrdom and Memory by : Elizabeth Anne Castelli

Utilising a wide range of early sources, this title identifies the roots of the concept of Christian martyrdom, as lloking at how it has been expressed in events such as the shootings at Columbine High School in 1999.