Tag Archives: Decius

#314 – A History of the Catholic Church – Whoever Denies Me Before Others

December 4, 2015 – 8:00 pm

penitents

The large number of Christians who abandoned the faith during the Decian Persecutions, but were now seeking to return the faith creates much tension for the church of Carthage and its bishop, Cyprian. How can the Church offer forgiveness to those who have denied Christ and still preserve the purity of it teachings?

Links:

Image: Penitents seeking reconciliation

Cyprian’s On The Lapsed

Gordon Harris “Cyprian and his Role as the Faithful Bishop in Response to the Lapsed, the Martyrs, and the Confessors Following the Decian Persecution”

Send e-mail questions and comments to catholicunderthehood@gmail.com

Check out the other great Catholic podcasts at the Starquest Production Network

To listen, just click on the link below:
#314 – A History of the Catholic Church – Whoever Denies Me Before Others

Advertisement
By sbeshonertor | Posted in Early Church History, Podcast | Also tagged , , | Comments (1)

#313 – A History of the Catholic Church – The Sheep Are Scattered

November 27, 2015 – 8:00 pm

sevensleepers

The Persecutions of Decius caused a great tremor throughout the Catholic Church. Many Christians will willingly die for the sake of the faith, but many more will abandon Christianity in the face of threats of torture and death. In this episode, we hear their stories – including the account of the Seven Holy Sleepers.

Links:

Image of Seven Holy Sleepers by Verum

Examples of libelli

Alana Nobbs – “Christians in a Pluralistic Society: Papyrus Evidence from the Roman Empire”

Send e-mail questions and comments to catholicunderthehood@gmail.com

Check out the other great Catholic podcasts at the Starquest Production Network

To listen, just click on the link below:
#313 – A History of the Catholic Church – The Sheep Are Scattered

By sbeshonertor | Posted in Early Church History, Podcast | Also tagged , , | Comments (1)

#312 – A History of the Catholic Church – For The Safety Of The Empire

November 20, 2015 – 8:00 pm

libellus

Emperor Decius comes to rule the Roman Empire amidst a time of great trial and wants to bring Romans into a greater unity by demanding that everyone, including the Christians, offer sacrifice to the gods. For the first time, the Church will find itself facing an organized empire wide persecution. With its leadership arrested and executed, how will the Church endure?

Links:

Image of a libellus/certificate attesting that one had offered sacrifice to the gods.

Here you can find a map of the Christian population at the time of the Decian Persecutions – Note key cities Rome, Carthage, Antioch, Alexandria and Jerusalem

How an apocalyptic plague helped Christianity

Rodney Stark – Reconstructing the Rise of Christianity: The Role of Women

Other sources:
Rives, J. B.. 1999. “The Decree of Decius and the Religion of Empire”. The Journal of Roman Studies 89. Society for the Promotion of Roman Studies: 135–54.

Send e-mail questions and comments to catholicunderthehood@gmail.com

Check out the other great Catholic podcasts at the Starquest Production Network

To listen, just click on the link below:
#312 – A History of the Catholic Church – For The Safety Of The Empire

By sbeshonertor | Posted in Early Church History, Podcast | Also tagged , , , , , , , | Comments (0)

#311 – A History of the Catholic Church – The First Christian Emperor?

November 13, 2015 – 8:00 pm

philipthearab

Modern historians are almost universal in their agreement that Constantine I was the first Christian emperor, but there are some who assert that Philip the Arab is more deserving of that title. In this episode, we look at the evidence pro/con and talk about what the debate itself says about the increasing importance of Christianity in the Roman Empire in the mid-3rd century.

Links:

Image of Bust of Philip the Arab by George Shuklin

A good summary of the debate over Philip’s Christianity as well as good bibliography can be found here

Send e-mail questions and comments to catholicunderthehood@gmail.com

Check out the other great Catholic podcasts at the Starquest Production Network”

To listen, just click on the link below:
#311 – A History of the Catholic Church – The First Christian Emperor?

By sbeshonertor | Posted in Early Church History, Podcast | Also tagged , | Comments (0)