Persecution Of Christian Martyrs

During the rule of the Roman Empire, thousands of people were persecuted. A major number of those people were Christians who are known as martyrs because they died for believing and practicing their faith. They were persecuted under the empire for many reasons such as the motives of the different emperors, but overall it was because they refused to worship the Roman gods as the government enforced. Through the killings of the many martyrs, followers of the Christianity strengthened in their faith, and the number of converts rose as many people gained admiration for those in the religion. It may seem to many that martyrs limited the growth of Christianity; but in truth they contributed largely to the growing practice through their actions which led to the sacrifice of their lives. The general persecution of Christians did not break out right away. The first martyr was a deacon named Stephen who died in 35 CE, and the second martyr was James of Zebedee a disciple of Jesus who died soon after that (Flinn, Stephen, Saint). The widespread killing of Christians began in 42 CE under Emperor Herod of Agrippa.The persecutions were not constant over the span of years but did happen under many emperors such as Nero, Domitian, Decius, and Diocletian. Christians were persecuted for many purposes and reasons.
It was not to say that one should offer their life, but if presented with the situation to do it willingly and that they would be honored if they did so. Modern Christianity, that ideal of being martyr would be understood as being willing to do anything for the sake of Christ. The word ‘martyr’ actually comes from the Greek word for witness (Murphy, 226-230). Martyrs essentially were witnesses to the Christian faith, which all followers of Christianity are encouraged to be. Martyrs expressed many idealistic virtues such as strong faith and positive mind that a modern Christian would want to express