Sunday Martyr Moment: Matthias and Andrew

Foxe's Book of Martyrs. According to this summary from Christian Book Summaries,

Writing in the mid-1500s, John Foxe was living in the midst of intense religious persecution at the hands of the dominant Roman Catholic Church. In graphic detail, he offers accounts of Christians being martyred for their belief in Jesus Christ, describing how God gave them extraordinary courage and stamina to endure unthinkable torture.

From the same link, the book's purpose was fourfold:

  • Showcase the courage of true believers who have willingly taken a stand for Jesus Christ throughout the ages, even if it meant death,
  • Demonstrate the grace of God in the lives of those martyred for their faith,
  • Expose the ruthlessness of religious and political leaders as they sought to suppress those with differing beliefs,
  • Celebrate the courage of those who risked their lives to translate the Bible into the common language of the people.
Matthias

Of whom less is known than of most of the other disciples, was elected to fill the vacant place of Judas. He was stoned at Jerusalem and then beheaded.

Andrew

Was the brother of Peter. He preached the gospel to many Asiatic nations; but on his arrival at Edessa he was taken and crucified on an X-shaped cross, which came to be known as St. Andrew's Cross. Art: Mattia Preti - The crucifixion of St Andrew.

The flag of Scotland is an X-shaped cross. Wikipedia explains, "Use of the familiar iconography of his martyrdom, showing the apostle bound to an X-shaped cross, first appears in the Kingdom of Scotland in 1180 during the reign of William I. This image was again depicted on seals used during the late 13th century; including on one particular example used by the Guardians of Scotland, dated 1286."

Comments

  1. Everyone should read Foxye's Book of Martyr and take the time to contemplate the incredible faith and conviction of these people. They embraced their stake, they sang joyfully to the last breath, and they looked everyone in the eye as they proclaimed Jesus. Anyone feeling like a coward? I know I am....but I don't have to stay one because it's the same Jesus now as then...amazing!!

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  2. Hi Elizabeth\Shellie

    I see there are lots of different releases of this book. Which one would you guys recommend? If one of you can give me the ISBN no, I would really appreciate it.

    Thanks
    Mike

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    Replies
    1. Hi Mike,

      I have the updated version which contains 21st century martyrdoms. The original Foxe's Book cna be read online here http://www.ccel.org/f/foxe/martyrs/home.html

      It has the original language from the middle ages etc.

      The ISBN # for my version which I got thru Amazon.com is
      978-0-88270-875-1 and this is the link

      http://www.amazon.com/Foxes-Book-Martyrs-Pure-Classics/dp/0882708759/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1368698727&sr=1-1&keywords=9780882708751

      you can look at the original Foxe's Book of Martyrs online and see if that is what you prefer, or the updated one. When I write the Sunday Martyr Moment I use one or the other, or combinations of both. They are minimally different but the modern version sometimes has a bit more info because we have progressed in history and discovered more.

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  3. Hi

    Thanks a lot for the info!

    Mike

    ReplyDelete

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