The Age of Persecution of Church
EARLY CHURCH FATHERS: (Part 1) The Age of Persecution by Fr. John A. Hardon, S.J. The Catholic Church has been persecuted in every period of her history. However, the first three centuries of the Christian era are commonly known as the Age of Persecution because they show how promptly and aggressively the Church's enemies came to fulfill Christ's prediction to His followers, "If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you." These centuries also give us directives, as we may call them, on how to cope with rejection by the world that rejected Christ. The Acts of the Apostles and the letters of St. Paul provide the revealed foundation for living out the Eighth Beatitude. But the writings of Ignatius, Justin, Irenaeus, Tertullian, Cyprian, and Lactantius show us how the early Christians lived up to - and died for - the great truths that the Savior bequeathed to His faithful. Even a man like Tertullian, though he died estranged from the true faith, highlights the