Million Book Collection - The Fishers of Men Ministries

THE THIRD AGE OF THE MARTYR CHURCH.361years more kindly disposed to Christians than anreceding emperor, and after filling his palace withthem, was instigated by an Egyptian magician intobecoming a most bitter persecutor.36 This wasended in less than three years through his captureby the Persian monarch, when his son Gallienustored the sacred places to the Christians, andordered the bishops not to be disturbed.37 Theempire during the following eight years seemedthrough the supineness of Gallienus to be on thepoint of dissolution ; it is the time when nineteencommanders in various provinces assume the purple,and successively perish. At last Gallienus isput out of the way by a council of officers, andthe empire is restored by Claudius and by Au-relian. The latter, after being for some yearsfair to Christians, ^^"^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^i ends by persecuting them. Buthe too is speedily removed by death. It is remarkablethat all these persecutions, by Maximin,by Decius, by Gallus, by Valerian, and by Au-relian, are of short duration : none of them con-tinue more than three years. After Aurelian'sdeath in 275 a whole generation a ensues in whichChristians by the ordinary operation of the empire'slaws, according to which their religion wasillicit, were liable to suffer much in individualcases. Thus it is in a time not reckoned persecuting,shortly after Maximianus had been madehis colleague in the empire by Diocletian, that36 Euseb. Hist. 1. vii. c. 10. ST n, I. vii. c. 13.