Proposal
As a Religion and History double major I plan to explore the theological and historical phenomenon of martyrdom. The formative years of Christianity in ancient history will be the primary focus for my thesis; however, Old Testament pre-Christianity models will be a subtopic within the larger paper in order to construct the primary image of the Christian martyr. Using several historical accounts from primary documents on martyrs such as Origen, Clement of Alexandria, Ignatius of Antioch, and Perpetua, I will attempt to develop an archetype of the early Christian saint and mystic. With extensive discussion on these figures and the various historical and theological influences that inspired them, my thesis will prove that early Christian martyrdom played a significant role in developing primary theological foundations that enabled this fledgling offshoot from Judaism to develop the significant political and ecclesiastical prevalence of Christianity.
Many Christians looked to Scriptural models such as the Maccabean Nine in Second and Fourth Maccabees for inspiration by their testament of faith in lieu of pagan Greek persecution. A common motif that surfaces in many Christian martyrologies is an awareness and alignment with the Jewish "suffering servants" of the Old Testament. Like the early Christians, the Jews also tried to make sense of their position as outcasts, dealing with their generations-long experience of suffering and persecution despite the fact that they were God's supposed chosen people. The martyrs' plight likewise was a biting assault against the political and polytheistic Roman society, an inspiring message of faith to the surrounding Christian brethren in a divine contest with the witnessing world as spectators. Primarily, I plan to highlight the significance it played in developing Christianity's political and theological significance in the Roman world. I will talk about the role that Scriptural descriptions of the "suffering servant" played in inspiring the early Christian martyrs as they too tried to make sense of their own experience of persecution as scapegoats and fringe outcasts in the Roman world. When the early Christian community began to face waves of persecution; using Christ as their model, they gave their lives as testament to this belief that life in Christ continued beyond worldly suffering. There will be discussion on how the significance of the body grew and changed theologically and philosophically in Antiquity. While martyrdom is most often associated with Christianity in the early Roman world, research will show that the Christian martyrs and faithful most often found influence in the lives of Old Testament Jewish saints and patriarchs. The Christian experience is defined most significantly by Jesus' crucifixion on the cross and His supposed resurrection days after His death, an act that enabled the salvation of all the faithful thereafter. On Pentecost Sunday in chapter II of the Acts of the Apostles, Peter uses direct quotes from David and Psalms to highlight the fact that Jesus was the anticipated messianic figure. , Christians sought to go back, examine, and reinterpret Jesus' suffering in the context of Scriptural tradition. From the period following Christ's death with the onset of persecution, up to the period of Diocletian persecution in the 4th century C. Old Testament saints found strength and comfort in the apocalyptic idea that their God would eventually act on their behalf.
Common topics in this essay:
Antioch Perpetua,
Christianity Primarily,
Religion History,
Christians Jews,
Fourth Maccabees,
Testament Jewish,
VII Christian,
CE Christians,
Christianity Roman,
David Psalms,
roman world,
christian martyrs,
christian martyrdom,
christian martyr,
lives testament,
tried sense,
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Acceptance Essays
