Being the members of a minority group, the early Christians were focused on evangelization and the salvation of souls. It took generations for the Church to meditate on the proper relation of Christians in various states of life to the broader world. In the first flush of the early Church one would expect to see evidence of a radical living out of the Gospel of Christ, and indeed that is precisely what one finds. What is not seen however is any sort of commitment from the Church towards a theology of pacifism.

Within several generations Christians had converted from every social condition and manner of life. The Church contained rich and poor, great and small. There were some groups that took to Christianity more quickly however. Among these were the soldiery of the Roman empire. With their presence throughout the civilized world as well as their mobility, the soldiers of the Roman legions were some of the first to “hear the word of God and keep it.” As we have seen in the previous installment, the soldiers of the New Testament were a generally well-regarded class, often recognizing and following Christ long before others.

What we do not see is a wholesale abandonment of the armies of Rome by newly pacifist legionaries. Indeed the Christians in the Roman legions served with honor wherever their duties did not conflict with the demands of the Gospel. There is evidence of Christians even making up the majority of some legions by the middle of the second century. The vast preponderance of Roman military saints and martyrs is also ample testimony of their service. Men like Sts. Minas, Marcellus, Eustace, and Sebastian — among dozens of others — are remembered and invoked to this day.

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