The First General Persecution An

On account of various principles of the Roman law, Christians were always

liable to severe penalties, and parts of the Church occasionally suffered

fearfully. But it was only in exceptional cases and sporadically that the

laws were enforced. There was, accordingly, no prolonged and systematic

effort made to put down Christianity everywhere until the reign of Decius

(249-251). The renewed interest in heathen religions and the revive

patriotism in some circles occasioned in 248 by the celebration of the

thousandth anniversary of the founding of Rome may have contributed to a

renewal of hostilities against the Church. Decius undertook the military

defence of the frontier. His colleague, Valerian, had charge of the

internal affairs of the Empire and was the author of the measures against

the Christians. Because the Church included many who had embraced the

faith in the long period when the Church rarely felt the severity of the

laws, many were unable to endure the persecution, and so apostatized or

"fell." The persecution continued only for a short time in full intensity,

but it was not abandoned for a number of years. It became violent once

more when Valerian became Emperor (253-260). One result of the

persecutions was the rise of serious disputes, and even schisms, from

differences regarding the administration of discipline by the bishops. In

the case of the Novatians at Rome, a dissenting Church which spread

rapidly over the Empire came into existence and lasted for more than two

centuries.