The Spreading Flame

1
Lecture III
The Spreading Flame ?????
2
The Persecution and Expansion of the Church?????

• The Expansion of the Early Church, (handful
  disciples in upper room to more than 200 Bishops
  at the Council of Nicaea)???????
• The Blood of the Martyrs is the Seed of the
  Church by Tertullian ????????????
• Understand the Martyrdom in Early Church ????
  (Rev 69-11)

3
The Roman Background (1)??????

• Augustus PAX Romana (peace)
• Revival of Patriotism and state religion (moral
  reform)
• The problem of succession
• Nero and the end of Julio Claudian dynasty

Caesar Augustus 27BC-4 AD

• Came to throne after civil war
• His son Titus burned the temple in Jerusalem in
  70 AD.
• Domitian who claimed himself as a deity and ended
  this line.

Vespasian 69-79 AD
4
The Roman Background (2)??????

• Romes Silver age, Nerva (96-98AD), Trajan
  (98-117AD), Hadrian (117-138AD), Antonius Pius
  (138-161 AD), Marcus Aurelius (161-180 AD)
• Problem of succession (Commodus and the
  Gladiator) and repeated military coups
• Half-century of anarchy (235-284 AD) with 50
  different emperors
• Strong Government under Diocletian (284-304AD)
• Constantine I (304-337 AD)
• Collapse of Western Roman Empire in 476 AD
• Fall of Eastern Roman Empire in 1453 AD

5
Why was Christians hated??????????

• The official reasons????
• Treason (Emperor cult)
• Atheism (Tolerate other religions as long as..)
• The unofficial reasons ?????
• Shun ordinary activities in public life (violence
  and indecency)
• Shun public offices (Emperor cult)
• Being identified with unpopular Jews as opposing
  magic and superstitions
• Violated the social customs in Roman world
  (marriage)
• The main offense came from the misunderstanding
  of the sacraments (cannibalism and incest)
  ??????????

6
The Persecutions (1)??

• Persecution under Nero in 64 AD Peter and Paul
• Persecution under Domitian 81-96 AD John and
  Clement I
• Persecution under Trajan in early 100s Ignatius
• Persecution under Antoninus Pius Polycarp
• Eighty-six years I have served Christ, and He
  never did me any wrong. How can I blaspheme my
  King who saved me?
• The Mob persecutions in Lyons in 177AD Blandina
  and Perprtua

7
The Persecutions (2)??

• The 1st empire wide though persecution under
  Emperor Decius around 250 AD Cyprian
• The worst persecution came under Diocletian
  (Emperor from 284-305) and Galerius the Caesar in
  the period 303-311 Three edicts issued against
  Christianity
• Edict of Toleration in 311AD issued by Emperor
  Galerius on his dying bed.

8
The Triumph of Christianity??

• There is a great Triumph of Christianity in first
  3 centuries even lack of any famous missionaries
  by then. ??????????
• The distinctive features of Christianity, by
  Edward Gibbon?????????
• An intolerant zeal, or exclusiveness.
• A doctrine of future life
• The miraculous power
• Their high morality
• The unity and the discipline of the Christian