Spread of Christianity: The Blood of Martyrs
Every religion needs martyrs to capture the imagination of possible recruits, and Christians suffered hundreds of years of persecution, which produced thousands of martyrs. The Jews had handed Jesus over to the Romans to execute as a rebel, and his followers had been persecuted on the same grounds. Many from the original apostles died martyrs’ deaths, including Peter, Luke, Andrew, Matthew and James.
The Christian refusal to worship the emperors as gods, to pray to any other Roman deities, to act as magistrates or fight for Rome, made them unpopular with the authorities – and a potential focus for rebellion. Christians had been forced into hiding, and if discovered, were executed or thrown to wild beasts to entertain the crowds at festivals.
None of this stopped Christianity’s spread. At first a religion for the poor and humble, it steadily spread to much more educated people. As Roman citizens as well as peasants joined in, the Roman authorities stepped up the persecution. The triumph from the new faith came under the Emperor Constantine, who decided, early within the 4th century, to recognize and accept Christianity. Although Constantine himself did not convert until late in life, it swiftly became the official religion of the empire.
