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Pliny opens the letter (sections 1–4) with questions to Trajan concerning trials of Christians brought before him, since he says he has never been present at any trials of Christians. This may indicate that previous trials had taken place and that Pliny was unaware of any existing edicts under Trajan for prosecuting Christians. [ 15 ]
The next known reference to Christianity was written by Pliny the Younger, who was the Roman governor of Bithynia and Pontus during the reign of emperor Trajan. Around 111 AD, [77] Pliny wrote a letter to emperor Trajan. As it stands now, the letter is requesting guidance on how to deal with suspected Christians who appeared before him in ...
The passage shows the clear contempt of Suetonius for Christians - the same contempt expressed by Tacitus and Pliny the Younger in their writings. [2] Stephen Benko states that the contempt of Suetonius is quite clear, as he reduces Christians to the lowest ranks of society and his statement echoes the sentiments of Pliny and Tacitus. [24]
Pliny rose through a series of civil and military offices, the cursus honorum. He was a friend of the historian Tacitus and might have employed the biographer Suetonius on his staff. Pliny also came into contact with other well-known men of the period, including the philosophers Artemidorus and Euphrates the Stoic, during his time in Syria. [4]
Taken together, Pliny's letter and Trajan's response constituted a severe policy toward Christians. Although Christians were not to be sought out, they were to be executed if brought before a magistrate by a reputable means of accusation (no anonymous charges were permitted) and they were sometimes given the opportunity to recant. [12]
The inscription mentions no religion besides Christianity, which researchers said is unusual. Up until the 5th century, these kind of amulets "always contain a mixture of different faiths," such ...
And so Christian nationalists “have forgotten something very, very fundamental” about what the faith says about the end of the world, namely that the apocalypse “is not something that is ...
Writing from Pontus in about AD 112, Pliny reported that the "contagion" of Christianity threatened everyone, regardless of gender, age, or rank. Pliny gave those accused of being Christians opportunity to deny it, and those who would not, he executed. Any who cursed Christ or recited a prayer to the gods or to Trajan’s statue were released.