The Journal of Roman Studies· 2015Q1
The Myth of the Neronian Persecution
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- Q1SCImago
- 2015year
Short summary
New analysis of Tacitus suggests the Neronian persecution of Christians in 64 CE, including the deaths of Peter and Paul, was not a state-driven event ordered by Nero, but rather a reflection of later Roman ideas.
AI-generated from the title and abstract; the full text is not read.
Key points
- The traditional account of the Neronian persecution of Christians in 64 CE is contested.
- The deaths of Peter and Paul are questioned as part of a state-driven persecution ordered by Nero.
- The sole historical source, Tacitus, is argued to reflect later Roman ideas rather than the realities of the 60s CE.
AI-generated from the title and abstract; the full text is not read.
Abstract
ABSTRACT A conventional certainty is that the first state-driven persecution of Christians happened in the reign of Nero and that it involved the deaths of Peter and Paul, and the mass execution of Christians in the aftermath of the great fire of July 64 c.e . The argument here contests all of these facts, especially the general execution personally ordered by Nero. The only source for this event is a brief passage in the historian Tacitus. Although the passage is probably genuine Tacitus, it reflects ideas and connections prevalent at the time the historian was writing and not the realities of the 60s.
The authors' abstract, as published at the source. The Journal of Roman Studies, 2015 · DOI ↗
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Field: Religious studies
Religious studiesArts and Humanities