January 5 - Christians are Atheists!

January 5 – Christians are Atheists!

Quick! Can you name the Roman emperors to this point? Yah, me neither. I need a chart.

Augustus (27 bc – 14 AD)
Tiberius (14-37)
Caligula (37-41)
Claudius (41-54)
Nero (54-68)
Galba (68-69)
Otho (69)
Vitellius (69)
Vespasian (69-79)
Titus (79-81)
Domitian (81-96)
Nerva (98-117)
Trajan (98-117)
Hadrian (117-138)

There, that should get you up to speed. We have looked at several of the emperors. Nero, who began persecuting Christians because he saw them as a convenient scapegoat. During his reign, Paul wrote most of his epistles and Mark wrote his gospel.

Vespasian, who led the armies to attack Judea until he got called back to Rome. Matthew wrote his gospel during this time and Jerusalem fell in 70 AD.

Titus was Vespasian’s son. He finished the job in Jerusalem and then, 9 years later became emperor. Luke wrote his gospel and the book of Acts.

Domitian was another son of Vespasian. He was responsible for incredible persecution against the Christians. It was during his reign that most scholars believe John received the Revelation of Jesus Christ. Prior to that, he probably also wrote his gospel and the three letters. Domitian was in power for 15 years, a lot happened.

Now, there was something else happening in Christianity through this time. The church began to build power in Rome. While many of us avoid looking at the history of the Catholic church, we must realize that the Bishops of Rome were instrumental in the growth of the church.

The Vatican constructed the following chronology, according to Johnson (1976): In 34AD, Peter became Bishop of Antioch. He then moved his ‘see’ (a see is the home of the Bishop – the Holy See is the home of the Pope) to Rome in 40 AD. In 59, he named and consecrated Linus and Cletus as his successors. This was the beginning of the unbroken line of succession throughout the centuries. We will meet Clement a little later. He followed Cletus and may have even been mentioned in one of Paul’s letters.

Domitian demanded that the title “Lord and God” be his throughout his reign and also decreed that all Jewish tithes be sent to Rome since the temple was gone. When Trajan became emperor, Christians were given a chance to curse Christ and live, or they would be killed. Roman citizens got a chance to have a trial, common people were killed immediately.

Anyone who rejected the Roman gods were called atheists.

One of the earliest martyrs was a man named Polycarp. He was an 86 year old man, who was a well known Christian pastor and had known John the apostle well. His stewards were tortured until they gave up his hiding place. He surrendered peacefully. When the judge demanded that he say, “Away with the atheists,” Polycarp refused. He spoke to the crowd, saying, “Away with the atheists (pointing at the crowd)! Eighty-six years I have served Christ, and he has done me no wrong. How, then, can I blaspheme my king, who has saved me?” He was then burned alive. (Jones, 1999)

Christianity continued to grow rapidly throughout the region even during these terrible persecutions. Where would you have been during these dark days?

Johnson, P. (1976). A History of Christianity. New York, NY: Touchstone - Simon & Schuster.

Jones, T. P. (1999). Christian History Made Easy. Torrance, CA: Rose Publishing.