1. The video From Jesus to Christ [Part II, Chapter 8] notes that at the beginning of the second century, the Roman government had begun to think of Christians as a group distinct from Judaism. Moving out from under the Jewish umbrella posed problems for Christians, for it was no longer obvious that they should enjoy the privileges that Rome had extended to the Jews (e.g., freedom of worship, exemption from Roman religious life). In this tense atmosphere, Christians were vulnerable to prosecution by imperial authorities. Christian writers thus attempted to explain who Christians were and why they should be taken seriously. 1 Peter falls into this category: it is written to help a community understand its place in the world during a time of persecution (1:6; 2:12; 3:14; 4:12; 5:8). Because this text was written to the churches in Pontus and Bithynia (1:1) at the beginning of the second century, scholars often compare its themes with the correspondence between Pliny the Younger (governor of Bithynia-Pontus in 112) and the emperor Trajan (read the letters: http://faculty.georgetown.edu/jod/texts/pliny.html (Links to an external site.)). What does Pliny’s letter reveal about pagan attitudes toward Christians: why were Christians put on trial, what is Pliny’s general impression of Christians and how did he examine them, and what was the outcome of this trial? Thereafter, examine how 1 Peter constructs a specific Christian identity: how does he encourage Christians to think about themselves (see, for instance, 1:1, 14-15, 17; 2:5, 9-11; 4:17), and what advice does he give for living in a hostile, pagan world? Why do you think the author includes a household code (2:18-3:7)?

Pliny’s letter reveals that pagan attitudes consisted of many common misunderstandings that the Roman society as a whole held toward Christians. He stated that some of the declared Christians he had talked to revealed a few of their odd and unfamiliar worship practices, a few of which involved “meeting on a fixed day before dawn…” and “singing responsively a hymn to Christ as to a god.” As revealed within Pliny’s letter, Christians were persecuted for worshipping this foreign Christ figure (a meaningless idol strange to Romans who praised various gods and their highly revered Emperor) and practicing illegal rituals that allowed them to carry out their rather newly misunderstood and young religion. The Roman government was unaware as to what exactly Christianity was, other than that it began to build itself as an entirely separate entity from Judaism. With this lack of Roman acceptance and miseducation, many Christians were wrongfully arrested, interrogated, imprisoned and tortured. Pliny’s tone in the letter addressed to emperor Trajan reveals his general impression of Christians as something of a communal oddity, unsure as to how he should be carrying out the legal punishment against them. He does confidently reveal however, that he finds their religious practices and rituals slightly strange, stating that following the torture of two Christian women he “discovered nothing else but depraved, excessive superstition.” Both he and the emperor Trajan find Christianity an alien societal danger threatening the foundation of Roman society and its citizens. In the passage of 1 Peter, this former apostle of Jesus constructs a specific Christian identity by creating a strong sense of community and calling directed explicitly towards the Christian people. He constantly encourages the Christian people to remember the greater spiritual being that they worship (God) and emphasizes the connection that they share as a religious family with their Holy Father. Peter also repeats that they are all part of the same place with the same exact mission, referring to them as the “chosen.” He advises all Christians to be “obedient children” that do not conform to the evils of this earthly world, and to live in a respectful and reverent sense of “fear” among the hostility of the pagan world. Peter includes a household code in order to remind Christians that there will be violence, wrong and suffering hurled at them, but just as Jesus did, they must reveal their dedication to God by bearing this pain “because they are conscious of God.” Peter wants to show Christians that he understands the worldly pain in store for Christianity, and so does God.