Candida Moss: The Myth Of Christian Persecution

Question 3:

Candida Moss, a New Testament Historian from Notre Dame University, in her book The Myth of Christian Persecution, tells how Christian historians misconstrue oppression in the first three centuries of the Christian church. She believes that persecution only came in a small section of Rome, and generally did affect the Christian population as a whole. She believes that while many Christians in the inner cities experienced persecuted, most Christians generally experienced a low level of persecution and did not experience significant hardship in the early years of Christianity.

In the first century, however, persecution is very real in the city of Rome. Under the emperor Nero, Peter and Paul both died for their faith. After the Great Fire of Rome in 64 AD, the persecution under Nero intensified. The fire destroyed a large part of the city, and Nero needed a scapegoat because a lot of people blamed him for starting the fire. Nero decided that Christians should be punished for this crime, and arrested and tortured many until they confessed to starting the fire, which they most certainly did not. Many of the victims were hung in the street to illuminate it, while others were crucified like Christ. While

He believed that Christians were participating in orgies, and that during this “agape feast” they ate babies they found on the street. He wanted to make Christians apostates, and in order to do this, he asked them to curse Christ, pray to the gods, and offer incense to the emperor. When some refused, he gave them opportunities to recant, and if they resisted he killed them because of their stubbornness. He wanted to protect Roman citizens, yet the church continued to thrive under this persecution. Christians in this time were indeed persecuted in the cities as Trajan and Pliny strictly enforced the law, creating numerous apostates and