Martyrs and Confessors of Lugdunum: A Validation of Eusebius’s Documentation


In 177 AD, the persecution of Christians in Lugdunum increased. The sole extant account of this persecution is a letter preserved in Eusebius’s Ecclesiastical History. However, because of his daring excerpting and muddled terminology, the understanding of the situation of martyrs and confessors of L...

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Main Author: Ohtani, Satoshi (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Brill 2015
In: Scrinium
Year: 2015, Volume: 11, Issue: 1, Pages: 122-134
IxTheo Classification:CB Christian life; spirituality
KAB Church history 30-500; early Christianity
KBG France
KCD Hagiography; saints
Further subjects:B Eusebius Ecclesiastical History
 early Christian martyrs
 Lugdunum

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Summary:In 177 AD, the persecution of Christians in Lugdunum increased. The sole extant account of this persecution is a letter preserved in Eusebius’s Ecclesiastical History. However, because of his daring excerpting and muddled terminology, the understanding of the situation of martyrs and confessors of Lugdunum is confusing. In addition, another source about the persecution, Collection of the Ancient Martyrs, was scattered. The purpose of this article is to organize the situation of the martyrs’ deaths and to validate how Eusebius recorded the martyrs and the confessors. For this purpose, I compared the fragments of the martyrs’ lists preserved in the Martyrology of Pseudo-Jerome, the Mar­tyrology bearing the name of Bede, several Passions, Glory of the Martyrs by Gregory of Tours, and Ecclesiastical History by Eusebius. Besides, I analyse the categories of martyrs in the reconstructed list of the martyrs of Lugdunum. As a result, it clarifies the way Eusebius constructed the list of martyrs. This article also contributes to the understanding of the terminology and documentation concerning martyrs and confessors in early Christian documents.

ISSN:1817-7565
Contains:In: Scrinium
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1163/18177565-00111p13