3rd Century Persecution

2nd Century Last years of 2nd enjoyed relative peace Civil Wars and defending the border kept Rome occupied Christians were not sought out but persecuted if found

3rd Septimius Severus-Put an end to civil wars that weakened the empire He felt a need for religious harmony so he promoted syncretism All subjects would worship Sol Invictus ( the Unconquered Sun) All current religions and philosophies must fall under this All gods accepted as long as it was acknowledged the sun god reigned above them

Sol Invictus This clashed with Jews and Christians immediately Septimus then decided to stop the spread of these 2 so he outlawed, under penalty of death, the spread of either. These increased persecutions to 2nd century form and especially focused on new converts and teachers-Why?

Persecution in 202 Landmark year for Christianity because the edict was issued that year Irenaeus suffered martyrdom that year, Origen’s father was killed, and Clement had to seek refuge. Perpetua and Felicitas probably 203. 5 people to receive Baptism and charged with disobeying the edict.

Perpetua Young woman, who was well-off, and nursing her infant child Felicitas and Revocatus were slaves along with 2 other young men Saturninus and Secundulus Her father tried to get her to abandon her faith The judicial process was long but she would not recant

Perpetua She was pregnant when arrested but gave birth right before martyrdom Another Christian woman adopted her child When asked how she would face the beasts she replied, “Now my sufferings are only mine. But when I face the beasts there will be another who will live in me, and will suffer for me since I am suffering for him.”

Perpetua The 3 males were put in the arena first and 2 died quickly but no beast would attack Secundulus and finally a leopard killed him. The women were attacked by a crazed cow but were killed by the sword

Persecution Not long after this incident, persecution slowed. Persecution was not that rampant for the first half century but Christianity was spreading quickly. Things changed in 249 under Decius

Decius Goal was to restore Rome to its old style of order and ancient glory Barbarians beyond the border were creating unrest along with economic issues and Roman traditions had been forgotten To people like Decius one major reason for this was the abandonment of the Roman gods When the gods were adored, things went better for Rome

Decius If all subjects worshipped the gods, perhaps they would restore Rome to its original glory. Those who refused to worship these gods (Christians) were guilty of high treason Decius didn’t want martyrs but apostates If Christians were forced to recant and not suffer martyrdom then maybe it would stop spreading

Decius Didn’t order Christians to be persecuted but that the gods must be worshiped Had to offer sacrifice to gods and burn incense to statue of Decius Those who disobeyed were labeled outlaws

Edict Many Christians in this era had not faced persecution (Much like America) Some obeyed the imperial command-Some brought back fake certificates saying they worshiped-Some stood firm Very few died in his reign because that was not his goal (Martyrdom causes growth)

Edict Christians were arrested and threatened and tortured in attempt to force them to recant “Confessor”-Remained firm but not martyred- They were given high esteem Decius only reigned 2 years and was followed by a short reign of persecution and then nearly 40 years of relative peace

Lapsed Those who had weakened during persecution Different degrees of lapsed Who could restore the lapsed? The “Confessors” as some say-Bishops say only them

Cyprian Became a Christian around age 40 and became Bishop of Carthage Studied Tertullian and was skilled in rhetoric like him He thought his duty was to flee to safety with other leaders to lead the flock Many thought this was cowardice Rome lost its Bishop to persecution

Cyprian Some say the “Confessors” had more authority than him Some Confessors says the lapsed should be restored immediately and others said no Carthage was on the brink of division Cyprian called a Synod-Gathering of Bishops

Synod Those who attained fake certificates would be admitted back immediately Those who had sacrificed who be readmitted only on their death beds or when a new persecution gave them another opportunity Those who had sacrificed and shown no repentance would never be allowed back These actions were taken by the Bishops

Cyprian Church is the body of Christ and will share in His victory. Outside the church there is no salvation Confessors threatened the unity of the church

Novitian More rigorous than Cyprian Disagreed with Bishop of Rome who was allowing lapsed back too easily in his opinion Earlier a Bishop had allowed back a fornicator and this caused a schism

Lapsed This was a major concern for the church from an early date What to do about baptized Christians after they had sinned? This caused the penitential system to evolve Reformation was a protest against that

2017 Persecutions still rampant Open Doors USA-Each month 322 Christians are killed for their faith-214 Churches and Christian properties destroyed-722 forms of violence committed against Christians 75% of world population live in area of religious restrictions Over 60 countries where Christians face persecution

2017 What do we do about lapsed? Biblical perspective Hold accountable with grace