Introduction
Christians were considered "social misfits" by the Romans. They were also thought to be a threat to the Romans' way of life. However, persecution didn't become official until the emperor Nero was put in power. He even accused Christians of setting fire to Rome, although he might have been responsible. After that there was a horrible period of cruelty and murder. A Roman historian Tacitus recorded that Christians were "torn by dogs, or were nailed to crosses, or were doomed to the flames and burnt...".
Task
Your task will be to try and put yourself in the shoes of the Chrisitans at this time and try to understand what they went through(as much as you can). Use the internet as a source for all the historic basis to your project.
Process
Please refer to Evaluation to see how you will be graded on this assignment.
You must write a short historical fiction story written in first person, making yourself a Christian during the rule of Nero when they were persecuted.
- Create a 2-3 paged short story.
- Make sure it is double-spaced.
- There must be real historic people, events, ways of life,etc. (It is supposed to be historical fiction anyway.)
- Make it as well written and interesting as possible.
You can refer to the links listed below (not limited to these):
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persecution_of_Christians_in_the_Roman_Emp…
http://www.eyewitnesstohistory.com/christians.htm
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/heritage/episode3/documents/documents_9.html
Evaluation
| Creativity |
Is the idea original? Are descriptive words used? Is it an interesting story? |
30/100 points |
| Content |
Was proper research completed? Is the historical backing accurate? |
30/100 points |
| Followed Directions |
Made a cover page. Double-Spaced. 2-3 pages. List of sources used to create the setting (time and place). |
20/100 |
| Spelling/Grammar | Is the story free of spelling/grammar errors? | 20/100 |
Conclusion
The Romans persecuted Christians thinking it would make them deny Christ and to prevent other from converting to Christianity. Howver, the complete opposite happened. The church grew in number and in spiritual purity. This just helps demonstrate real faith and how God's word and truth will still remain no matter what.
Credits
Here are all the sources I used or mentioned:
Bollinger, Dennis E. "The Roman Empire." World History. 4th ed. Greenville, SC: BJU, 2013. 98-99. Print.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persecution_of_Christians_in_the_Roman_Emp…
http://www.eyewitnesstohistory.com/christians.htm
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/heritage/episode3/documents/documents_9.html