The Copts.

History of the Copts. Part V.

In the beginning of the year 284 the Roman Empire had two emperors: de brothers Carinus and Numerian, who had succeeded their father Carus Numerian was murdered by his father-in-law, and the army proclaimed Diocletian, commander of the guard as emperor. Carinus defeated Diocletian, but was murdered by his soldiers.
The life of an emperor was not always a bed of roses.
Diocletian
So Diocletian became the sole emperor. He is known for two things:

He instituted the dominate. In his opinion the Roman Empire was so big that it needed four emperors, twee major emperors called "Augustus" and two minor emperors called "Caesar". The Augusti should not appoint a son as a Caesar (and successor). That had happened often, but in most cases the sons did not have the talents of the fathers. In this systemm a Caesar was often the son-in-law of the Augustus.
He appointed Maximian as Augustus, Constantius Chlorus became Caesar of the West (He therefore had to divorce and marry the daughter of Maximian), and Galerius of the East, including Egypt. He married the daughter of Diocletian. (Diocletian had no sons.)
For some reason Galerius hated the Christians, and when Diocletian started the prosecution of the Christians, Galerius did so with double energy.
Diocletian so prosecuted the Christians. He did it systematically and thoroughly. He not only prosecuted them, but also destroyed their archives if he found them, and their religious objects. Many data from the first centuries have been lost that way.

What reasons did emperors have to prosecute the Christians?

When the emperor had used violence to get the power, he had the intention to change politics, including towards the Christians.
Out of conservatism. Often they were great admirers of the classical Roman virtues, and wanted to revive them. Christianity did not fit in those ideas.
Out of vanity. Many emperors were worshipped, and the Christians refused to do that. The Jews also, but they were exempted.
Because the priests of the old Roman gods wanted them to. They could not predict the future because the Christian prayers interfered, or so they said. And the Romans were sensitive for that argument, the emperors too.

All four arguments applied to Diocletian. He was conservative, was worshipped as God, and was superstitious.
Two other things added to that:

The ordinary Roman knew little about Christianity, and liked it even less.
Watching lions eat Christians was a pleasant pastime for him.
Peaching was a well-paid occupation in the old Rome. Some people became very rich that way.

Both Diocletian's wife and daughter were Christians, but sacrificed to the emperor (their husband/father!). Both have been killed by Licinius, a later emperor.
In 305 Diocletian abdicated, and Maximian followed his example (under pressure). The Caesars now became Augustus, and two new Caesars were appointed, Severus and Maximinus Daia. Afterwards Maxentius, the son of Maximian became Caesar. In the West the prosecutions stopped but in the East they went on.

The most well-known Egyptian martyr from that time is St. Catharina. According to legend she came from Alexandria en was of good descend. She went to Maxentius, the Caesar, reproached him for the prosecutions, and tried to convince him of the correctness of the Gospels. He then appointed a group of scholars who had to disprove her arguments, but they could not. Many of them were converted and immediately executed. She had to be broken on the wheel, but the wheel broke at her touch. Therefore she is patron of technicians, people who work with wheels. In the end she was beheaded.
Catharina
A later legend tells us that angels brought her body to Mount Sinai and buried it at the place Moses saw the flaming bush. 150 Year later a monastery was founded, devoted to her. It is still there.
St. Catharina was very popular in the Middle Ages. E.g. it was believed that St. Catharina had appeared to Joan of Arc.
Many paintings depict her, with or without the wheel.
And often her mystical marriage with Jesus Christ as a baby was painted. Historically nothing is known for sure about her.

St. Maurice also came from Egypt. He was the commander of the Theban legion, which consisted completely of Christian Egyptians, and had been moved to Switzerland. At a certain moment the legion had to sacrifice to the emperor; all refused and all were executed.
Sankt Moritz is named after him. The sword of St. Maurice was still used when Charles was crowned to emperor of Austria/Hungary in 1916.

What ever may be true of this, many Christians lost their lives in those days, and the Copts start to count their years with 284, when Diocletian became emperor.
We must not forget, that the Christian counting of years (BC, AD) did not exist at that time. That has been introduced much later. At that moment years were counted starting with the foundation of Rome. According to that count it was the year 1037.

IV. Origen
To index
VI. Constantine the Great