Persecution of Christians

Dear Readers,

Here's a paragraph from Book 8 in The History of the Church by Eusebius, a historian who lived from 260 - 339 AD:

It was the nineteenth year of Diocletian's reign and the month Dystrus, called March by the Romans, and the festival of the Savir's Passion was approaching, when an imperial decree was published everywhere, ordering the churches to be razed to the ground and the Scriptures destroyed by fire, and giving notice that those in places of honour would lose their places, and domestic staff, if they continued to profess Christianity, would be deprived of their liberty.  Such was the first edict against us.  Soon afterwards other decrees arrived in rapid succession, ordering that the presidents of the churches in every place should all be first committed to prison and then coerced by every possible means into offering sacrifice [to the pagan Roman gods].

Eusebius goes on in the next several pages to describe all the persecution of Christians he witnessed firsthand.  He saw men, women, and children tortured and killed by the Romans for calling themselves Christians. Some were fed to lions.  Some were crucified upside down.  If they renounced Christ, they were given freedom, and if they clung to their religion, they were killed.

I have no idea what that level of persecution is like.  I hope I never find out.  I'm glad I live in America. 

Oh, I've been made to feel uncomfortable because of my religion.  I've been given dirty looks on the rare occasions when I've publicly stood up for Christian morality.  But I can withstand feeling awkward and being given the cold shoulder. And being a Christian is a lot easier now that I live in the suburbs.  It was harder when I was an English and theater major at a public University, where most of the professors and students were pretty secular.

But would I really stand up for Jesus Christ if my life depended on it?  I hope so.  I hope I would be motivated by the scripture, in Matthew 10:28, "Fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell."

So, here in America I think most of the soft persecution of Christians comes from atheists and agnostics.  I think the persecution will get worse over the course of my life. 

But over in the Middle East, in Syria more specifically, the persecution of Christians is insane.  Just like in the ancient Roman Empire, they kill you if you don't bow to their gods.  The radical Muslims will kill you if you don't convert.  See, radical Muslims are going into Christian villages in Syria, and telling the residents, "Either you convert to Islam, or you will be beheaded."

What a crazy world we're living in.  

Sincerely,
Telemoonfa