the fact that the consciences of the faithful
members of the Church would not suffer them to pay, what they and the
heathen around them considered to be Divine honour, to the emperor or
the heathen deities, by sacrificing a few grains of incense when
required thus to show their loyalty to their ruler and his faith. Over
and over again was this burning of incense made a test by which to
discover Christians or to try their steadfastness, and over and over
again was its rejection followed by agonizing tortures and a cruel
death.

[Sidenote: Nero's persecution.]

The persecution in the reign of Nero is immediately traceable to the
accusation brought against the Christians by the emperor, that they had
caused the terrible fire at Rome, which there seems little doubt was in
reality the result of his own wanton wickedness, whilst that under
Domitian appears to have been connected with the conversion of some of
the members of his own family, his cousin Flavius Clemens being the
first martyr sacrificed in it.

Section 2. _Number and Duration of Persecutions._

The following table[2] will show how the early days of the Church were
divided between times of persecution and intervals of rest.

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_Chronological Table of Persecutions and Intervals of Rest._

A.D.

64-68. Persecution under Nero. Martyrdom of
St. Peter and St. Paul.

68-95. Time of peace.

95-96. Persecution under Domitian. Banishment of
St. John.

96-104. Time of peace.

104-117. Persecution under Trajan. Martyrdom of
St. Ignatius.

117-161. Time of peace. Apologies of Aristides,
Quadratus, and Justin Martyr.

161-180. Persecution under Marcus Aurelius. Martyrdom
of St. Polycarp, and the martyrs of Lyons.

180-200. Time of peace.

200-211. Persecution under Severus. Martyrdom of
St. Perpetua and others in Africa.

211-250. Time of peace, excepting--
235-237. Partial persecution under Maximinus.

250-253. Persecution under Decius. Martyrdom of
St. Fabian.

253-257 Time of peace. Disputes concerning the _lapsed_.

257-260. Persecution under Valerian. Martyrdom of
St. Cyprian.

260-303. Time of peace, excepting--
262. Persecution in the East under Macrianus.
275. Pers