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“Crown of Immortality”

Published on: Author: eef@uoregon.edu 64 Comments

“Through endurance he overcame the unjust ruler and thus received the crown of immortality.”(Martyrdom of Polycarp, 19:2) This conclusion to the suffering and eventual death of Polycarp at the hands of persecuting Romans, illustrates perfectly the Christian perspective on the death of a martyr. To “endure” is glorified as a value in Roman culture, and… Continue reading

Pliny and Ignatius.

Published on: Author: kchristi@uoregon.edu 54 Comments

For many people outside of religions it is easy to get tangled in which religion has what requirements and the different traditions and initiations of each sect to vary. For example many people do not know the differences between Lutherans and Catholics today. Rome had the same problem for about 300 years during the commencement… Continue reading

The Attack on Christianity

Published on: Author: Alex Dong 53 Comments

The focus on finding the explanation for the suffering is an on-going process in the history of Christianity. One of the biggest suffering Christians has to face is persecution. According to both Lynch and Ehrman, the Roman empire’s legal persecution that was held against Christians were developed over a period of the time—the violence against… Continue reading