Decian persecution
E98640
The Decian persecution was a mid-3rd-century Roman imperial campaign under Emperor Decius that sought to enforce universal pagan sacrifice and led to widespread, systematic persecution of Christians.
Statements (70)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
3rd-century event
ⓘ
Roman imperial policy ⓘ persecution of Christians ⓘ religious persecution ⓘ |
| aim |
enforce universal pagan sacrifice
ⓘ
revive traditional Roman religious practices ⓘ secure public loyalty to the emperor ⓘ |
| appliesToJurisdiction | all provinces of the Roman Empire ⓘ |
| country | Roman Empire ⓘ |
| documentedIn |
Eusebius’s Ecclesiastical History
ⓘ
surface form:
Eusebius of Caesarea's Ecclesiastical History
letters of Cyprian of Carthage ⓘ various surviving libelli from Egypt ⓘ |
| endCause |
accession of Trebonianus Gallus
ⓘ
death of Emperor Decius in battle against the Goths ⓘ |
| endTime |
251
ⓘ
June 251 ⓘ |
| followedBy | Valerianic persecution ⓘ |
| follows | local and sporadic persecutions of Christians in the Roman Empire ⓘ |
| hasCause |
crisis of the Third Century
ⓘ
desire to restore traditional Roman religion ⓘ imperial concern for unity and loyalty to the Roman state ⓘ |
| hasEffect |
apostasy of some Christians under pressure
ⓘ
creation of the category of lapsi in Christian communities ⓘ development of Christian penitential discipline ⓘ martyrdom of many Christians ⓘ strengthening of episcopal authority in dealing with lapsi ⓘ tensions and schisms within Christian communities ⓘ widespread persecution of Christians ⓘ |
| historicalPeriod | Crisis of the Third Century ⓘ |
| implementedBy |
Emperor Decius
ⓘ
Roman provincial governors ⓘ local municipal authorities ⓘ |
| legalBasis | Decian edict on universal sacrifice ⓘ |
| location |
Alexandria
ⓘ
Antioch ⓘ Asia Minor ⓘ Carthage ⓘ Egypt ⓘ Rome ⓘ |
| mainTarget |
Christian clergy
ⓘ
Christian laity ⓘ Christianity ⓘ
surface form:
Christians
|
| method |
execution of some Christians
ⓘ
imprisonment of non-compliant Christians ⓘ issuance of libelli as proof of sacrifice ⓘ requirement to sacrifice to the Roman gods ⓘ torture of Christian resisters ⓘ |
| namedAfter | Emperor Decius ⓘ |
| notableFeature |
administrative rather than purely local initiative
ⓘ
creation of a large number of Christian martyrs ⓘ first empire-wide persecution of Christians ⓘ focus on compelling sacrifice rather than seeking executions ⓘ major test of Christian allegiance to their faith ⓘ trigger for later theological debates on apostasy and penance ⓘ use of certificates of sacrifice (libelli) ⓘ variation in severity between provinces ⓘ |
| notableVictim |
Alexander of Jerusalem
ⓘ
Babylas of Antioch ⓘ Pionius of Smyrna ⓘ Pope Fabian ⓘ many unnamed Christian martyrs ⓘ |
| opposedBy |
Christian bishops
ⓘ
Christian martyrs ⓘ |
| partOf |
history of Christianity in the Roman Empire
ⓘ
history of religious persecution ⓘ |
| precededBy | persecution of Christians under Emperor Maximinus Thrax ⓘ |
| religiousContext |
Roman paganism
ⓘ
early Christianity ⓘ |
| startTime |
249
ⓘ
late 249 ⓘ |
Referenced by (1)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.