The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1896-02-16

one time ten or more, at another more
than twenty, at another time not less
than thirty, and even sixty, and again
al another time. a hundred men, with
their wives and little children were
slain in one day, whilst they were con-
demned to various and varied punish
ments. We ourselves have observed
when on the spot many crowded to-
| gether in one day suffering decapita-
ton, some the torrents of the flames;
/ SO that the murderous weapon was
completely blunted, and having lost it's
| edge, broke to pieces; and the execu-
toners themselves wearied with the
! slaughter, were obliged to relieve one
another" [Eusebius Eccl. Hist, Blk.
viii, Oh. ix.l
Gibbon, whose very reluctance to
concede the severity of these persecu-
lions. induces us to quote him as Of
ten as admissions are forced from his
unwilling lips, says of this persecution:
The magistrates were commanded to
employ every method of severity which
might reclaim them from their odious
superstition. and obliged them to re-
turn to the established worship of the
gods. This rigorous order was extend
ed. by subsequent edict, to the whole
body of Christians, who were exposed
to a violent and general persecution.
Instead of those salutary restraints
which had required the direct and sol
emn testimony of an accuser, it be-
came the duty, as well as the interest
of the imperial officer, to discover, to
pursue and to torment the most OBJ
noxious among the faithful. Heavy
penalties were denounced against all
who should presume to save a pre-
scribed sectary from the just indigna-
ton of the gods and the emperors. y
["Decline and FALL" Vol. i, p. 4S1. Glib
bon claims, however, that "notwith-
standing the severity Of this law, the
virtuous courage of many of the pa
gans in concealing their friends or rel
atives, affords an honorable proof that
the rage of superstition had not ex-
tfnguished in their minds the senti-
ments of nature and humanity."l
This persecution lasted for ten years,
and at the end Of that time the church
presented melancholy spectacle.
Everywhere, even in Gaul, the Chris
tian houses of worship were Laid in
ruins. Streams of Christian blood had
flowed in every province of the en-
pire, excepting in Gaul, where Con-
stantfne governed; and there, it will be
remembered, a previous persecution I'M
ID 1, IT. -t,+
destroyed the churches. Public wor-
ship was suspended. The saints were
either driven to apostasy by fortunes,
had fed from the provinces to the bar
barians or kept themselves concealed.
Meantime the magistrates melted as
much by avarice as by hatred of Chris
tianity, confiscated not only the church
property, but also the private posses
sions of the ministers In other cases,
the church leaders were either slain
or mutilated and sent to the mines or
banished from the country. Many,
through dread of undergoing torture,
had made way with their own lives,
and many apostatized from the faith;
and what remained of the Christian
community, consisted of weak, poor
and timorous persons" [Schlegel, quo
ted by Murdoch, see note, Mosheim's
Eccl Hist, Cent iv. Bk. ii, Oh. il
After adopting these measures for
the destruction Of the church, severi-
ties of another character were put in
operation. at was thought necessary
to subject to the most intolerable hard
ships the condition of those perverse
individuals who should still reject the
religion of nature, of Rome, and of
their ancestors. Persons of liberal
birth were declared incapable of hold
ing any honors or employments; slaves
were forever deprived of the hopes of
freedom, and the whole body of the
people were put out of the protection
of the law. The judges were authorized
to hear and determine every action
that was brought against a Christian.
But the Christians were not permitted
to complain of any injury which they
themselves had suffered; and thus
those unfortunate sectaries were ex-
posed to the severity, while they were
excluded from the benefits of public
justice This new species of martyr
dom, so painful and lingering, so OBJ
scure and ignominious, was, perhaps,
the most proper to weary the con-
stancy of the faithful; nor can it be
doubted that the passions and interest
of mankind were disposed on this oc-
casion to second the designs of the
emperors." [''Decline and Fall" Vol.
i, CHI xvi, p. All Gibbon undertakes
to modify what he has here written by
saying that the policy of well ordered
must sometimes have in
terposed in behalf of the oppressed
Christians. This wants proof says
Milman in a foot note on the remark,
1.-THE edict of Diocletian was executed in
all it's rigor during the rest of the
reign and gives reference to Fuse
bus Eccl. Hist, Blk. viii, Oh. kill
That the Romans considered the de-
of the Christian church COM
pleted by the Diocletian persecution is
witnessed by the inscriptions. upon
and medals. Two pillars in
Spain, erected to commemorate the
reign of Diocletian, bore the following;
On the first
''Diocletian, Jovian, Maximian Her
culius, Caesares August, for having
extended the Roman empire in the
east and west, and for having extin-
guished the name of Christians, who