Re: The Early Christians - The State, Society and Martyrs

Romans, the things that have recently taken place in your city under 
Urbicus and that are likewise being done against all reason by the 
authorities, compel me to address the following words to you.

Whenever anyone is admonished by father or neighbor, child or friend, 
brother or husband, or wife, for any shortcoming, he seeks to put these 
to death. He does this because he is stubborn and intemperate and because 
he is hard to move to the good. In turn, the evil demons try to kill us 
because they hate us and because they find suitable judges to act as 
their tools and servants. It is just as if the authorities were possessed 
by them. That you may understand the reason for all that took place under 
Urbicus, I will now tell what occurred. There was a certain woman who 
lived with a dissolute husband. She herself had formerly lived 
licentiously. After having learned the teachings of Christ she changed 
and then tried to persuade her husband to live a purer life too…She 
forced herself to stay with him, for her friends had persuaded her to 
continue the marriage in the hope that her husband might change his ways 
at some future time. However when he traveled to Egypt and news reached 
her that his conduct was worse than ever, she separated herself from him 
in order not to participate in his vices and impieties by remaining 
married to him and sharing his table and bed. She gave him a bill of 
divorce according to Roman custom. Her noble husband should have been 
delighted that she, after her former reckless behavior with servants and 
employees and her indulgence in drink and every vice, had now given up 
all this and even wanted to dissuade him from these things. Instead he 
brought a charge against her. Since she had separated herself from him 
against his will, he charged her with being a Christian. She submitted a 
written petition to you, O Emperor, that she might be granted permission 
to put her household affairs in order first, and afterwards she would 
defend herself against the charge. You gave her your permission, so that 
her former husband could not legally prosecute her for the time being. 
The husband now turned against Ptolemaeus and had him summoned by Urbicus 
because he had instructed this woman in the Christian teachings. This is 
what happened. The former husband persuaded his friend, the centurion who 
had arrested Ptolemaeus, to summon Ptolemaeus and ask him only this one 
question: whether he was a Christian. Now when Ptolemaeus, who loved the 
truth and detested lying and deceit, confessed that he was a Christian, 
the centurion had him put in chains and tortured for a long time in 
prison. Finally the prisoner was brought before Urbicus, but here again, 
the same as before, only the one question was asked: was he a Christian? 
And again he confessed to Christ’s teachings, conscious of the good 
things he owed to Christian instruction. Now when Urbicus ordered 
Ptolemaeus to be led away to execution, a certain Lucius, who was a 
Christian too, in the face of this unreasonable sentence asked the city 
prefect, “For what reason did you order this man to be taken away? He is 
neither an adulterer nor a fornicator nor a murderer nor a thief nor a 
robber, nor has he broken any other law. He has only confessed to the 
Christian name. Your judgment, Urbicus, will bring honor neither to the 
Emperor Pius, nor to the Emperor’s son, the philosopher [later the 
Emperor Marcus Aurelius], nor to the sacred Senate.”

The only answer the city prefect made to Lucius was, “You too seem to me 
to be such a one.” When Lucius answered yes, he ordered him also to be 
led away to death. Lucius said he could only be grateful because now he 
would be freed from such evil rulers and would be allowed to go to the 
Father and king of heaven. Then a third who also came forward was 
condemned to the same punishment.	

Justin, Second Apology 1, 2, in A.D. 150.