Neromania - An Ancient Persecution

This relief shows one of the most popular Roman entertainments, chariot racing.

An Ancient Persecution

In 64 A.D. the Roman Emperor Caesar Nero attempted to systematically exterminate all people who professed faith in the newfound Christian religion. Many factors played a major part in promoting this Empire wide genocide. First, a great fire broke out that destroyed the city of Rome. The cause of this fire is unknown, however for the Romans it was easy to blame the Christians, whom the Romans considered to be complete and utter reprobates. The second major factor was Nero himself. Nero was insane. The Emperor of Rome took pleasure in other people's pain; he delighted in the idea of wiping the Christians from the face of the Earth.

A bust of Emperor Nero.

Coin featuring Emperor Nero

Emperor Nero posing as Alexander the Great in an
inlaid Bronze statuette.

The Great Fire that destroyed Rome in A.D. 64, proved to be a disaster of epic proportions. Only four of the fourteen regions of the city of Rome were spared from the violent flames that spread throughout the city at a rapid pace, destroying homes, major works of art and architecture, as well as many people's lives. As the cultural center for the whole known western world, you can imagine how devastating this was to the rest of the Empire. Despite the magnitude of this fire, the number of deaths were very small. The most devastating effect this fire had was on the minds, and hearts of the Roman people.

The Empire was in an uproar. The people wanted answers and there were none. Caesar Nero became the perfect scapegoat. Nero was a very hated man: he was very lewd, involved in all sorts of deranged sexual practices such as incest (with his mother) and homo and heterosexual rape. Nero also murdered many people, including his mother, sister, and many others whom he did not trust. The people knew what kind of man their Emperor was, and they hated him. Many sinister stories came out about how Nero had gone crazy and wanted to completely annihilate Rome in order that he may build a new capital city and name it after himself. Many believed that Nero was actually sitting on the top of his palace, playing his lyre and singing "The Destruction of Troy" as he watched the city burn.

Nero needed a scape goat of his own, so he chose to blame the Christians; a new 'Jewish' sect that was hated by the Roman people. There were many rumors flying about that Christians were cannibals (because of the 'Lord's Supper' in which they eat the 'flesh' and drink the 'blood' of Jesus Christ), and that they performed human sacrifice (none of this was true). But ultimately they were hated because they refused to worship the Emperor, and refused the traditions, and gods of the Roman people. Christians were referred to as "an uncouth, uncomfortable set of killjoys, hating the normal pleasures of life and denying the people's gods" by the Roman Historian Suetonius. In response to the fire, Nero hoped to placate the people by blaming the Christians for starting the fire, and then killing them; this would begin a policy of persecution that would come and go periodically for the next two hundred years.

Nero performed the worst atrocities upon his victims; he did not just kill Christians, he wanted to make them suffer first. Nero enjoyed dipping the Christians in wax, and impaling them on poles around his palace, he would then light them on fire, and yell: "Now you truly are the light of the world." Nero also performed many other kinds of torture, often killing them in the Circus Maximus in front of large crowds of spectators where he did some of his most gruesome murders. Here he would wrap Christians up in animal skins and throw them to lions, or dogs who would then tear these men and women apart in front of thousands of entertained spectators. At other times he would crucify them, and after the crowd would get bored, he would set the Christians on fire.

We have no idea how many Christians lost their life under the Neronian persecution, but Historian Harold Mattingly tells us that Nero's persecution "lasted several years, was not confined to Rome but was practiced throughout the Empire, and cost the lives of a very large number [of Christians]." We also know that Nero's policy of persecution was practiced by many subsequent Emperors such as: Domitian, Valerian, and Dioclesian; who instituted the great persecution which would see thousand if not millions go through the worst kinds of tortures. One very interesting thing is that those Christians who were Roman Citizens did not face the same terrible death as Christians who were not. The Roman Government, by law, could not torture Roman citizens. The Apostle Paul, the most well known of the Christian evangelists, had to be beheaded because he was a citizen, and was therefore saved from much of the pain and torture, inflicted on the others.

In spite of Nero's brutality, his efforts to exterminate the Christians backfired. Many people came under the banner of Christianity during and after Nero's reign for various of reasons: Nero brought Christianity into the limelight, and people started hearing about it; before this time Christianity was a small sect, nothing more than a nuisance to the people. Secondly, many people died under Nero's persecution because they claimed that they had seen Christ resurrected from the dead. The Bible tells us that 500 people had supposedly seen Christ after he was resurrected from the dead, we do not know much about these men individually, but we do know that there was twelve men who were called Jesus' 'Twelve Apostles' who also claimed to have seen the resurrection, and of these twelve, eleven of them were put to death, simply because they would not recant that they had seen Christ resurrected from the dead. Of these twelve, at least one is very well documented: Peter was crucified in Rome by Nero; also Paul, who had claimed to see Christ later than the twelve, was beheaded by Nero. Many Romans could not believe that these men would die for a lie, so they began to accept Christian doctrine.

Although Nero's persecution may not have killed as many people as Hitler did, or as many people as died in the crusades, or in the Spanish Inquisition - the sheer brutality made this a true disaster of the worst kind. No person ought to be subject to the tortures that these men and women had to go through. These people did not merely have to die for their faith, they had to experience the worst kind of suffering that this world has to offer.

Suggested Readings:

Clement, Epistle to the Corinthians, I. 5, ed by Alexander Roberts and James Donaldson in The Ante Nicene Fathers, vol I (Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1977).

Lactantius, Of the Manner in Which the Persecutors Died, I. 2, trans by William Fletcher in The Ante Nicene Fathers, vol VII (Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1975).

Mattingly, Harold, Christianity in the Roman Empire. (New York: WW Norton, 1954;1967) pgs. 31 -36.

Tacitus, Cornelius, The Annals, XV. 44, trans by John Jackson, (Cambridge, Mass 1937;1969).

Suetonius, Gaius Tranquillus, The Lives of the Twelve Caesars, Emperors of Rome, VI., trans by Philemon Holland, (Cambridge, Mass: Heritage Press, 1965).

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Boise State University

This relief shows one of the most popular Roman entertainments, chariot racing.	An Ancient Persecution
	In 64 A.D. the Roman Emperor Caesar Nero attempted to systematically exterminate all people who professed faith in the newfound Christian religion. Many factors played a major part in promoting this Empire wide genocide. First, a great fire broke out that destroyed the city of Rome. The cause of this fire is unknown, however for the Romans it was easy to blame the Christians, whom the Romans considered to be complete and utter reprobates. The second major factor was Nero himself. Nero was insane. The Emperor of Rome took pleasure in other people's pain; he delighted in the idea of wiping the Christians from the face of the Earth.
A bust of Emperor Nero. Coin featuring Emperor Nero Emperor Nero posing as Alexander the Great in an inlaid Bronze statuette.	The Great Fire that destroyed Rome in A.D. 64, proved to be a disaster of epic proportions. Only four of the fourteen regions of the city of Rome were spared from the violent flames that spread throughout the city at a rapid pace, destroying homes, major works of art and architecture, as well as many people's lives. As the cultural center for the whole known western world, you can imagine how devastating this was to the rest of the Empire. Despite the magnitude of this fire, the number of deaths were very small. The most devastating effect this fire had was on the minds, and hearts of the Roman people. The Empire was in an uproar. The people wanted answers and there were none. Caesar Nero became the perfect scapegoat. Nero was a very hated man: he was very lewd, involved in all sorts of deranged sexual practices such as incest (with his mother) and homo and heterosexual rape. Nero also murdered many people, including his mother, sister, and many others whom he did not trust. The people knew what kind of man their Emperor was, and they hated him. Many sinister stories came out about how Nero had gone crazy and wanted to completely annihilate Rome in order that he may build a new capital city and name it after himself. Many believed that Nero was actually sitting on the top of his palace, playing his lyre and singing "The Destruction of Troy" as he watched the city burn. Nero needed a scape goat of his own, so he chose to blame the Christians; a new 'Jewish' sect that was hated by the Roman people. There were many rumors flying about that Christians were cannibals (because of the 'Lord's Supper' in which they eat the 'flesh' and drink the 'blood' of Jesus Christ), and that they performed human sacrifice (none of this was true). But ultimately they were hated because they refused to worship the Emperor, and refused the traditions, and gods of the Roman people. Christians were referred to as "an uncouth, uncomfortable set of killjoys, hating the normal pleasures of life and denying the people's gods" by the Roman Historian Suetonius. In response to the fire, Nero hoped to placate the people by blaming the Christians for starting the fire, and then killing them; this would begin a policy of persecution that would come and go periodically for the next two hundred years. Nero performed the worst atrocities upon his victims; he did not just kill Christians, he wanted to make them suffer first. Nero enjoyed dipping the Christians in wax, and impaling them on poles around his palace, he would then light them on fire, and yell: "Now you truly are the light of the world." Nero also performed many other kinds of torture, often killing them in the Circus Maximus in front of large crowds of spectators where he did some of his most gruesome murders. Here he would wrap Christians up in animal skins and throw them to lions, or dogs who would then tear these men and women apart in front of thousands of entertained spectators. At other times he would crucify them, and after the crowd would get bored, he would set the Christians on fire. We have no idea how many Christians lost their life under the Neronian persecution, but Historian Harold Mattingly tells us that Nero's persecution "lasted several years, was not confined to Rome but was practiced throughout the Empire, and cost the lives of a very large number [of Christians]." We also know that Nero's policy of persecution was practiced by many subsequent Emperors such as: Domitian, Valerian, and Dioclesian; who instituted the great persecution which would see thousand if not millions go through the worst kinds of tortures. One very interesting thing is that those Christians who were Roman Citizens did not face the same terrible death as Christians who were not. The Roman Government, by law, could not torture Roman citizens. The Apostle Paul, the most well known of the Christian evangelists, had to be beheaded because he was a citizen, and was therefore saved from much of the pain and torture, inflicted on the others. In spite of Nero's brutality, his efforts to exterminate the Christians backfired. Many people came under the banner of Christianity during and after Nero's reign for various of reasons: Nero brought Christianity into the limelight, and people started hearing about it; before this time Christianity was a small sect, nothing more than a nuisance to the people. Secondly, many people died under Nero's persecution because they claimed that they had seen Christ resurrected from the dead. The Bible tells us that 500 people had supposedly seen Christ after he was resurrected from the dead, we do not know much about these men individually, but we do know that there was twelve men who were called Jesus' 'Twelve Apostles' who also claimed to have seen the resurrection, and of these twelve, eleven of them were put to death, simply because they would not recant that they had seen Christ resurrected from the dead. Of these twelve, at least one is very well documented: Peter was crucified in Rome by Nero; also Paul, who had claimed to see Christ later than the twelve, was beheaded by Nero. Many Romans could not believe that these men would die for a lie, so they began to accept Christian doctrine. Although Nero's persecution may not have killed as many people as Hitler did, or as many people as died in the crusades, or in the Spanish Inquisition - the sheer brutality made this a true disaster of the worst kind. No person ought to be subject to the tortures that these men and women had to go through. These people did not merely have to die for their faith, they had to experience the worst kind of suffering that this world has to offer.

Suggested Readings: Clement, Epistle to the Corinthians, I. 5, ed by Alexander Roberts and James Donaldson in The Ante Nicene Fathers, vol I (Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1977). Lactantius, Of the Manner in Which the Persecutors Died, I. 2, trans by William Fletcher in The Ante Nicene Fathers, vol VII (Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1975). Mattingly, Harold, Christianity in the Roman Empire. (New York: WW Norton, 1954;1967) pgs. 31 -36. Tacitus, Cornelius, The Annals, XV. 44, trans by John Jackson, (Cambridge, Mass 1937;1969). Suetonius, Gaius Tranquillus, The Lives of the Twelve Caesars, Emperors of Rome, VI., trans by Philemon Holland, (Cambridge, Mass: Heritage Press, 1965).