very little is heard from her for the whole last quarter of the century. Of the
three Popes who reigned from 275 to 304 (Eutychian, Caius and
Marcellinus), virtually nothing is known of them. Meanwhile, churches
were now springing up above ground (more than forty alone in Rome);
Bishops were being accorded public honors; Christians were rising to posts
in the administration. The only challenge to Christianity came from the pen
of the Neo-Platonic philosopher Porphyry of Tyre, who took time to study
the teachings of the Church and composed a massive fifteen-volume work
against them. It is also important to add, though, that as with previous
periods of peace there was a relaxation in the fervor of Christian life.
Of the four Tetrarchs, only Galerius and Maximian possessed any of the
old pagan hostility towards Christianity. Galerius received his hostility
from his mother Romula, a priestess of the orgiastic mountain gods of
Germany. Romula prevailed upon her son to demand a renewal of the
persecution against Christianity from Diocletian. At the beginning of 303,
Galerius approached the senior Emperor at his palace in Nicomedia in Asia
Minor with a list of alleged provocations committed by Christians that
were disturbing various generals, such as Christian soldiers and officers
refusing to sacrifice to pagan gods, or Christians refusing military service
per se. Diocletian hesitated, refusing to order any action against Christians
for six weeks. Eventually, Diocletian gave way to Galerius, issuing on
February 23, 303 an edict decreeing the removal of all Christians from
public office, closing the courts to them, prohibiting the freeing of
Christian slaves, and ordering the destruction of all Christian churches and
books. That same day, the church in Nicomedia was promptly burnt to the
ground. At this point, however, Diocletian held back from ordering the
death of any person simply for being a Christian.
It was not long, though, before the persecution was widened in scope.
Within a month after the persecution began, two fires were lit in
Diocletian’s palace in Nicomedia. Paranoid, Diocletian blamed the
Christians. All Christians found within the Emperor’s palace staff were
forced to sacrifice to the pagan gods, including Diocletian’s wife and
daughter. Those who refused were tortured and killed. The bishop of
Nicomedia, Anthimus, was beheaded, together with many others of his
flock. About the same time, insurrections broke out in Armenia and Syria,
for which the Christians were also blamed. There followed two further
decrees, ordering the imprisonment of all Christian clergy who refused to
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