Pomerleau 1

Lucas Pomerleau

Mr. Bayardi

Religion II

3/20/17

Essay

Tertullian said that the blood of martyrs in the seed of the church. This quote can how

many interpretations and meanings.

One meaning of the quote is that the people who were martyred planted the seed for other

people to grow the Church. By the people who died while fighting or preaching the good news of

God, others are inspired by their courage, faith, and determination. Many saints became martyrs

when they chose to follow God and continue in Jesus footsteps by preaching in various towns

and ancient cities across the world. They risked their lives when they preached because many

were against Catholicism and Jesus ministry. For almost the entire period from A.D. 100 to

313, it was illegal to be a Christian in most of the Roman Empire. (Loyola Press). People who

were caught teaching out in the open or secretly preaching to people in secluded and hidden

areas were, most of the time, executed or punished beyond belief. Even if you were a friend or

related to Jesus or any of his Apostles, you would be punished. In the Roman Empire, you

would go to jail for those things, too. But you could also be punished by the law if you were

friends with Jesus. (Loyola Press). People who heard of the martyrs then became inspired by

them to preach the good news and help the Church grow and expand. They wanted to continue

what Jesus, his Apostles, and the martyrs have started.

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Christians today are as plentiful as ever. Christianity and Catholicism have grown

immensely over the centuries since the beginning of Jesus ministry. Martyrs today are not very

common at all. People today are more accepting of Religion than they were back in Jesus

lifetime. However, martyrs today and martyrs back then are witnesses to the faith. They both had

the same intentions in spreading the Church across the world. Early Christian martyrs and

Christian Martyrs today both share similar qualities and both fight for their faith. Martyr is Greek

for witness. This means that they are witnesses to their faith. One of the first Christian martyrs

was Stephen. Stephen was speaking the truth of Jesus Christ. However, his words offended the

listeners. Stephen proclaimed that Gods own people were at fault for suppressing the prophets

call to righteousness. They even killed the Holy One, Jesus Christ. (What Christians Want to

Know). Stephen was then stoned to death but he asked God to forgive them for what they are

doing, just like Jesus did on the cross. Stephen is a witness to faith because he sacrificed his life

for God. On January 7, 2010, a group of Egyptian Christians were massacred by Islamic

believers as they walked out of a Church that was celebrating a Christmas Mass. They were

killed because of an alleged crime that a Christian man committed against a Muslim woman. The

group did nothing wrong and were killed for their faith.

Martyrs teach us about Jesus mission and Gods plan for all of us. Martyrs inspire

us to follow them and spread the good news of God. They teach us that Jesus wants us to follow

him. Jesus loves us and he wants us to be like him and help him with his ministry. We are called

to spread the Church everywhere we go and tell others the message of God. Martyrs teach me

that you need to sacrifice some things for God and to be humble. We must love God above all

things, no matter how much we want them. Martyrs inspire me to have more faith and to become

more involved with my faith.

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Works CIted

"10 Famous Christian Martyrs." What Christians Want To Know RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Mar.

2017.

Welborn, Amy. "Christ Our Life." Early Christian Martyrs. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Mar.

2017.