per day, including women and children.² This massacre continued on a
daily basis for almost a year. The same historian also details the massacres
of Christians in his native province in a whole book entitled, The History of
the Martyrs of Palestine. Constantine the Great, as Emperor, would later
comment that if Diocletian had slain as many barbarians as he had
slaughtered Christians there would have been no barbarians remaining to
threaten the Empire. The Acts of the Martyrs from this period record the
names of many child martyrs and their ages – Agnes, Lucy, Eulalia, Justus,
Pastor, Maxima, Secunda, Domitilla, all between the ages of nine and
fourteen. On the other hand, Rome faired relatively well, with few
martyrdoms and the Pope remaining undisturbed, suggesting that Pope
Marcellinus may have purchased immunity for himself and his flock from
local officials.
By the end of 304, Pope Marcellinus was dead, dying of natural causes.
The Papal See would remain vacant for the next two years due to the
persecution and internal divisions. The martyrdoms continued unabated, as
did Galerius’ determination to destroy the Church. Nor was Galerius intent
on lessening his grip on power, even after Diocletian’s re-emergence in
March 305. Galerius virtually ordered Diocletian to abdicate as Augusti,
but this only opened another complication for the ambitious tyrant.
Diocletian’s abdication would automatically result in Maximian’s
abdication as Augusti in the West, allowing Constantius with his Christian
sympathies to assume the predominant position of power in Rome. In
addition, Constantius’ son, the highly popular Constantine, would assume
the position of Caesar. Though still a pagan, Constantine’s sympathies for
Christianity were growing, particularly as his mother Helena professed
faith in Christ. Galerius agreed to the accession of Constantius as Augusti,
but insisted on appointing his Caesar, namely his nephew Daia, thus
deliberately excluding Constantine.
Themes for study:
The division of the Empire according to the system of four Tetrarchs;
Galerius Caesar as the real instigator of the Great Persecution;
The escalation of the persecution through successive decrees;
2
Eusebius, The History of the Church, 8, 9.
 |
 |
 |