Some gladiatorial vocabulary:tiro: a gladiatorial recruitveteranus: those gladiators who had fought at least oncelanista: a gladiatorial trainerarmatura: gladiatorial equipmentmyrmillo: heavily-armed footman with a fish on his helmetsSamnite: heavily-armed footmansecutor: heavily-armed footmanThraex: light-armed footman bearing a shield and reversed sickleretiarius: unhelmeted footman armed with only tunic, net, trident and daggeressedarius: chariot fighterfamilia: a troop of gladiatorsludus: a place of residence and training of gladiatorsludia: female gladiator; women associated with gladiators; "a female slave attached to a gladiatorial ludus" (OLD)

The Venatio:A wild beast hunt or show

The Historical

Range of the Lion

Capital Punishment

Etruscan Origins

Entertainment

The Zliten Mosaic

from Leptis Magna (Libya)

Capital Punishment as Entertainment

Christianity and Roman Sports

St. Paul on Sports

• 2 Timothy 2:4-6• 2 Timothy 4:7-9• 1 Corithinians 9:25• 1 Thessalonians 2:18-20• Galatians 5:6-8

2 Timothy 2:4-6

• 4No one serving as a soldier gets involved in civilian affairs--he wants to please his commanding officer. 5Similarly, if anyone competes as an athlete, he does not receive the victor's crown unless he competes according to the rules. 6The hardworking farmer should be the first to receive a share of the crops.

2 Timothy 4:7-9

• 7I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 8Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day--and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.

1 Corinthinians 9:25

• Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.

1 Thessalonians 2:18-20

• 18For we wanted to come to you--certainly I, Paul, did, again and again--but Satan stopped us. 19For what is our hope, our joy, or the crown in which we will glory in the presence of our Lord Jesus when he comes? Is it not you? 20Indeed, you are our glory and joy.

Galatians 5:6-8

• 6For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.7You were running a good race. Who cut in on you and kept you from obeying the truth? 8That kind of persuasion does not come from the one who calls you.

Chronology of the Persecutions

• Neronian Persecution and the Great Fire of 64 CE (July 18-26): Christians as Scapegoats (see Tacitus, Annales, 15.44.3-8; Suetonius, Nero, 16.2)

• Uncertain Policy: Trajan and Pliny, 112 A.D. (see Pliny the Younger, Letters, 10.96-97)

• Second Century CE: Sporadic Pogroms under Antoninus Pius (138-161) and Marcus Aurelius (161-180)

The Great Persecutions

• The Decian Persecution (249-251): emperor Decius orders Christians to renounce their faith and restore pax deorum

• Persecution under Valerian, 257-259; relative tolerance from 260-303

• The Great Persecution of 303-311 under Diocletian (284-305) and Galerius (293-311)

The Roman Government and Persecution of Christians

InconsistentIll-DefinedSporadic

Christians as Scapegoats

“Punishments were also inflicted on the Christians, a sect professing a new and mischievous religious belief.”

Suetonius, Nero 16

Tacitus, Annals, 15.44

“Nero fastened the guilt and inflicted the most exquisite tortures on a class hated for their abominations, called Christians by the populace. Christus, from whom the name had its origin, suffered the extreme penalty during the reign of Tiberius at the hands of one of our procurators, Pontius Pilatus, and a most mischievous superstition, thus checked for the moment, again broke out not only in Judaea, the first source of the evil, but even in Rome, where all things hideous and shameful from every part of the world find their center and become popular.”

Christians as Disloyal to the Emperor

“We too are religious, and our religion is simple, and we swear by the Genius of our lord the emperor, and we pray for his welfare, as you also ought to do.”

Vigellius Saturninus, proconsul of Africa in

180 AD, to the Scillitan martyrs

Uncertainty“Dear Trajan: It is my regular practice, my lord,

to refer to you all matters about which I am in doubt; for who can better guide me in my hesitation or instruct me in my ignorance? I have never dealt with investigations about Christians, and therefore I don’t know what is usually punished or investigated, or to what extent.”

Pliny, governor of Bithynia, 111 A.D.

The Emperor Replies“Dear Pliny:

It is not possible to establish a general law which will provide a fixed standard. However, these people are not to be searched out. If they should be brought before you and proved guilty, they must be punished, with this proviso, however, that anyone who denies that he is a Christian and proves this by his action, that is, by worshipping our gods, even if he has been suspected in the past, should obtain pardon because of his repentance.”

Pliny the Younger, Letters, 10.96-97

The Charges against Christians

• The Name and the Crimes (nomen et flagitia)• Piety in the Roman Empire (pietas et

communitas): civic religion. Tertullian (ca. 200 AD), Apologetica 10.1: “You don’t worship the gods, and you don’t offer sacrifice to the emperor.”

• Legal Formalities: cognitio extra ordinem (“extraordinary cases for criminal, not civil, law).

The Punishment: The Arena

Quo Vadis?

FELIKS NOWOWIEJSKIQUO VADIS

(An Opera)

Quo Vadis

Peter Ustinov as Nero

Patricia Laffan as Messalina