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Persecuted Christian. Source: PhotoGranary / Adobe Stock.

When Faith and Power Clash: How Christianity Divided the Roman Empire (Video)

In 107 AD, the Roman Empire was at its peak under Emperor Trajan's leadership, spanning 2 million square miles and 50 million subjects. However, the rise of Christianity, which promised to undermine...
The saying “to cut off your nose to spite your face” is said to have its origins in the actions of Saint Aebbe and the marauding Vikings. Source: LIGHTFIELD STUDIOS / Adobe Stock

Saint Aebbe Cut Off Her Nose to Spite Her Face

If you’ve ever heard the saying “cut off your nose to spite your face,” have you ever wondered where it came from? Legend has it that Saint Aebbe, also known as Saint Ebba or Æbbe the Younger, was a...
There are many Christian martyrs, whose deaths were often evilly innovative. Shown: The central panel of the altarpiece of St. Sebastian. Source: Public Domain

Six Supremely Sadistic Deaths of Christian Martyrs

Standing up for what you believe in isn’t always easy. The early Christians are a prime example of this. They faced centuries of persecution at the hands of various Roman rulers. These early...
The saints Chrysanthus and Daria being pushed underground to their horrible death in a salt mine.		Source: Public domain

Legendary Christian Martyrs Chrysanthus and Daria Proved To Be Real

Legend has it that the now Christian saints Chrysanthus and Daria, who lived in the third century AD, converted thousands of fellow Romans to the Christian faith. This resulted in their arrest and...
Catacomb Saint - Saint Gratian. Source: Xenophon / CC BY-SA 4.0.

A Beauty in Darkness: The Hidden Secrets of the Catacomb Saints

Death was always a source of mystery for people around the world. But what happens when we erase that invisible border and make the dead a thing to worship? Never too far from every major turn of...
The Atheist Martyr: Rebellious ‘Knight’ Inspired the French Revolution

The Atheist Martyr: Rebellious ‘Knight’ Inspired the French Revolution

During the first half of the 18th century, the Catholic Church’s authority and religious intolerance had reached new heights in France, which in many cases led to irrationally harsh punishment for...
Mythbusting Ancient Rome – Throwing Christians to the Lions

Mythbusting Ancient Rome – Throwing Christians to the Lions

CHRISTIANS TO THE LIONS! rang without end through all quarters of the city. So writes Henryk Sienkiewicz in his novel Quo Vadis (1895). By the end of the 19th century, the image of cowering...
The painting of Saints Cosmas and Damian that shows the reported miraculous healing of a man by amputating his leg and transplanting the healthy leg of a dead man onto his body, then placing the diseased leg in the casket of the deceased.

14th Century Painting Depicts Limb Transplant That Occurred 1,500 Years Ago

Researchers say they have found the earliest representation of transplant surgery in a painting that depicts a scene from somewhere around the 5 th century AD, at least 1,400 years before modern...