Fanila, Riza Joyce S.

2BBE

Passion of the Saints Assignment #4 August 30, 2011

Theology Professor Daluping

In what way does martyrdom promotes Christianity? He was and is the Son of the Almighty. Yet He suffered His own life to be taken in an act of atonement, the magnitude of which is beyond our comprehension. The Christian view was founded by the faith of people who have witnessed Him, lived with Him and believed in Him. Christianity all started with Jesus Christ Himself. The Christian community stated that Jesus CHrist is the prototype for all martyrs in Christianity. Although Jesus Christ could have avoided death, or even perhaps fight the Romans, He did not. Instead He allowed Himself to be arrested, tried illegally, and get killed by crucifixion. Why did He voluntarily surrender? The testimony of the Gospels and the rest of the Bible was so that, as the Messiah and unique Servant of God, He could die to pay for the sins of mankind. The prophet Isaiah, 700 years before Jesus, was given the prediction concerning the Messiah's mission: "We all like sheep have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way, and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.For he bore the sin of many and made intercession for the transgressors." The lives of the martyrs became a source of inspiration for some Christians. A Christian martyr is one who, without seeking his own death or any harm to others, is murdered or put to death for his religious faith or convictions. Many Christian martyrs suffered cruel and torturous deaths like stoning, crucifixion, and burning at the stake. From the earliest Christian martyr, Stephen, mentioned in the New Testament book of Acts to ones being killed in various countries today, Christian martyrs are dying for the same truths Jesus died for, that He is the Messiah and only Saviour of mankind. They see themselves, not as accomplishing the same thing in their deaths dying to pay for the sins of others but instead as witnesses to their belief that Jesus died for them and that they are willing to bear unjust treatment from men just like Jesus did. You could say it is a passive view of martyrdom, a willingness to receive unjust violent treatment and persecution for the sake of a supreme truth; for them the truth of the Gospel message about Jesus. This was the earliest view of Christian martyrdom and is the one found in the Bible. Within three centuries, however, the belief had grown in the church that martyrs received complete forgiveness for their sins, that they had automatic entry into heaven or paradise, and that they could be prayed to for intercession before God. Some parts of Christendom still believe this. But some parts don't, particularly those who base their beliefs more on the Bible than church tradition.

Reflection on Passion of the Saints The word "saint" literally means "holy," and, in the New Testament, "saint" referred to all who believed in Jesus Christ and followed his teachings. Saints, broadly speaking, are those who follow Jesus Christ and live their lives according to his teaching. Catholics, however, also use the term narrowly to refer to especially holy men and women who, through extraordinary lives of virtue, have already entered Heaven. Very early on, however, the meaning of the word began to change. As Christianity began to spread, it became clear that some Christians lived lives of extraordinary, or heroic, virtue. While other Christians struggled to live out the gospel of Christ, these people were eminent examples of the moral virtues, and they easily practiced the theological virtues of faith, hope, and charity. The word "saint" thus became more narrowly applied to such people, who were venerated after their deaths as saints, usually by the members of their local church or the Christians in the region where they lived, because they were familiar with their good deeds. Eventually, the Catholic Church created a process, called "canonization," through which such venerable people could be recognized as saints by all Christians everywhere. The documentary film shows just how mighty and fearless the faith of the martyrs were in Rome around 203 A.D. in which the lives of different saints took place. During the rule back then, Christianity was not the religion of popular belief. Many of Romans practiced polytheism. As a result, numerous Christian believers were persecuted for their divine faith in God. Surprisingly, the Christian martyrs did not care that they were sentenced to death. They believed that by dying for what they believe, it would only bring them closer to God and the Gates of Heaven. The document states, "For this cause have we devoted our lives, that we might do no such thing as this; this we agreed with you". To the martyrs, nothing was more important than fulfilling God's duties. The martyrs in the document take on the role of mediator between God and man, spreading the Word of God to the masses of people and then relaying to them his holy message. Saint Maximilian Maria Kolbe, who volunteered to die in place of a stranger in the Nazi German concentration camp of Auschwitz, located in German-occupied Poland during World War II was declared a martyr of charity. A martyr of charity is someone who dies as a result of administering Christian charity.