How the Early Church was Shaped by Persecution

Haas, Christopher. “Imperial Religious Policy and Valerian’s Persecution of the Church,
257-260.” Church History, vol. 52, no. 2 (June 1983): 133-144.
In this article, Haas discusses the persecutions of the Early Church under the emperor Valerian and identifies the main motive for Valerian’s sudden persecution of Christians as being religious in nature. It was, according to Haas, a direct attack from the pagan Roman Emperor on the Christian religion in an effort to shore up “certain related social aims” of the Roman government at this time.[footnoteRef:1] Haas also compares Valerian’s attitude and actions towards Christians to his predecessor’s and examines why there was a severe shift away from relative tolerance to severe persecution. The result of Valerian’s attack on Christians, which lasted more than 3 years, was the brutal martyrdom of many Christians, later revered as saints by the Church. It was a very difficult period for Christians, who were persecuted no matter their social standing or rank in life. It caused some to renounce their religion/faith and others to die defending it in the face of Roman aggression. [1: Christopher Haas, “Imperial Religious Policy and Valerian’s Persecution of the Church, A.D. 257-260,” Church History, vol. 52, no. 2 (June 1983), 133.]
2.
Billings, Bradley. “At the Age of 12: The Boy Jesus in the Temple (Luke 2:41-52), the Emperor Augustus, and the Social Setting of the Third Gospel.” Journal of Theological Studies, 60(1): 70-89.
Billings views the Pax Romana as serving as a culture tie between the various entities, based on the ability of the Roman Empire to maintain a peaceful relationship among the diverse peoples of its Empire. This allowed for easy travel and the transmission of ideas, such as the Gospel by the early Apostles and Church missionaries. Had the Empire been embroiled in war or in various civil wars, it would have been far more difficult for the Gospel to spread as it did; however, the relative stability that the Empire enjoyed at this time facilitated the efforts of Christ and His disciples in spreading the Word of God. Thus, the works of Luke (the Gospel and Acts) could be written and shared among the Gentiles of various locales — evidence that the Pax Romana came at just the right time in history for the spread of Christianity. As Billings notes, it was “imperial Rome” that allowed the “social setting of the recipients” of the Gospel to be securely established.[footnoteRef:2] [2: Bradley Billings, “At the Age of 12: The Boy Jesus in the Temple (Luke 2:41-52), the Emperor Augustus, and the Social Setting of the Third Gospel,” Journal of Theological Studies, 60(1): 70.]
3.
Lienhard, Joseph. “The ‘Arian’ Controversy: Some Categories Reconsidered.”
Theological Studies, vol. 48 (1987): 112-127.
Lienhard describes how the standard narrative of the Arian controversy glosses over various inaccuracies and subtleties that should be better defined for the sake of historical clarity. For instance, he notes that the standard narrative allows the “new” doctrine of Arius caught on quickly but that this should really be explained more in depth because the actual reasons for the spread of the heresy are far more complex and grew out of a slow and gradual departure of orthodoxy and cohesion within the Church, as well as the leadership of governmental and Church authorities, that essentially allowed the Arian controversy to become so large-scale in nature. It was for this reason that it required to councils — the Nicene and Constantinople Councils — to deal effectively with the heresy as new leadership in the Church replaced the old after half a century of controversy.
Bibliography
Billings, Bradley. “At the Age of 12: The Boy Jesus in the Temple (Luke 2:41-52), the Emperor Augustus, and the Social Setting of the Third Gospel.” Journal of Theological Studies, 60(1): 70-89.
Haas, Christopher. “Imperial Religious Policy and Valerian’s Persecution of the Church,
A.D. 257-260.” Church History, vol. 52, no. 2 (June 1983): 133-144.
Lienhard, Joseph. “The ‘Arian’ Controversy: Some Categories Reconsidered.”
Theological Studies, vol. 48 (1987): 112-127.