First martyr of Rome
The first martyrs of Rome in the Martyrologium Romanum are the Christians who became victims of the Neronian persecution of Christians following the great fire of Rome . They are venerated as saints .
background
The great fire of Rome in 64 was blamed on the emperor Nero at an early stage . The latter therefore drew suspicion on the Christians , had them persecuted and executed. The historian Tacitus reports on this in his annals :
“They made a fun feast out of their execution: stuck in animal skins, they were either mauled by dogs or crossed or set on fire to serve as torches after dark. Nero had given his own park for this play and combined it with a circus performance. In the costume of the charioteer, he drove around among the people or drove in the racing car. This is how compassion for those people was stirred. Although they were guilty and deserved the harshest punishments, they did not fall victim to the common good, but to the cruelty of one person. "
Clement of Rome also reports on the persecution of Christians in his letter to the Corinthians , without mentioning the previous fire.
In the city of Rome the first martyr of the city was commemorated liturgically in 1923 ; The date chosen was the day after the solemn festival of the martyrdom of the apostles Peter and Paul , which, according to tradition, took place in the same wave of persecution. Since 1969, June 30th has been a non-mandatory day of remembrance in the Catholic Church . The day of remembrance is also included in the Protestant calendar of names of the Protestant church .
literature
swell
- Tacitus : annals . Edited by Erich Heller, 3rd edition, Düsseldorf and Zurich 1997.
- Clemens of Rome : Epistola ad Corinthios , Herder, Freiburg im Breisgau 1994.
Secondary literature
- Jean Beaujeu: L'incendie de Rome en 64 et les Chrétiens . Brussels 1960.
- Alfons Kurfess : The fire of Rome and the persecution of Christians in AD 64. In: Mnemosyne III 6 (1938) 261-272.
Individual evidence
- ^ Tacitus, Annalen 15, 44