Martyrs are often referred to people who were killed because of their beliefs and their faith.
However, this belief may be martyr is actually from a Greek word which means "witness." One can then say that these martyrs are those who followed their belief and faith up to the end as taught by Christ in Acts 1.8 to his disciples "You will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."
Martyrs were very common in the early years of Christianity as many were killed as others considered it a dangerous religion, especially by the Romans who executed Christians for entertainment.
Contrary to popular belief, martyrs are not just found in the first years of Christianity as there are also those who have been called martyrs for their faith in the recent centuries.
Here are five martyrs that you should take time to learn about:
Saint Stephen:
Stephen is described in Acts 6-7 as a man 'full of faith and of the Holy Spirit'.
He was arrested by the Jewish authorities on charges of blasphemy and the book included a lengthy defence speech he gave to the Sanhedrin upon his arrest.
Saul, later known as Paul the apostle, watched on as the Jews dragged Stephen out the city and stoned him to death. This makes Stephen one of the first martyrs in the Church.
As he was being stoned to death, Stephen said the same message Jesus said when he was crucified, 'Lord, do not hold this sin against them.'
Simon Peter/ Saint Peter:
Considered as one of the leaders of the early Christian Church, Simon Peter or Peter is the disciple who once denied he even knew Jesus and ended up being killed later on because he refused to denounce him again.
Peter was executed under the Roman emperor Nero's reign. Tradition holds that he was crucified upside down because he said he was unworthy to die in the same way as his Lord.
Polycarp:
A legend of the early church, Polycarp was Bishop of Smyrna (modern day Izmir, Turkey) after being converted by the disciple John in AD80.
Polycarp is well-known because of what has occurred in his dying moments. At that instance, he was told to reject his faith and burn incense to Ceasar. However, he refused and said:
'Eighty and six years I have served him, and He has done me no wrong. How then can I blaspheme my King and Saviour? You threaten me with a fire that burns for a season, and after a little while is quenched; but you are ignorant of the fire of everlasting punishment that is prepared for the wicked.'
Stories say that when soldier tried to bind him to the stake, he said: 'Leave me as I am. For he who grants me to endure the fire will enable me also to remain on the pyre unmoved, without the security you desire from nails.'
He prayed aloud and was consumed by the fire. A witness of the moment said his death was 'not as burning flesh but as bread baking or as gold and silver refined in a furnace'.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer:
Bonheoffer was a theologian and pastor in Nazi Germany and he was a well-known critic to Hitler's regime.
He was a pacifist who famously contended with how people can resist the treatment by the Gestapo to the Jews. At first he did not take an active stance on helping the Jews but in the end, he decided it was more sinful to do nothing than to kill Hitler so he joined a plot to assassinate him.
The plot failed and he was arrested, tried and eventually, he executed on 9 April 1945, one month before Germany surrendered to the Allied Forces.
Jim Elliot and Colleagues
Jim Elliot was killed on 8 January 1956 along with four missionary friends as they tried to evangelise the Waodani people in Ecuador.
They made contact with some tribe members and thought they were being accepted. But the tribe was suspicious of their teachings and began to fear they were being deceived. They decided they should kill the visitors before they were killed themselves.
Ten men arrived at the beach, speared the five missionaries and left the bodies in the water.
However, their remarkable story continues as Elliot's widow Elisabeth went back to the same tribe and taught them the Gospel in great success.
