Book review: The Myth of Persecution

by Candida Moss

★★★★★

Are the stories of Christian persecution during Christianity’s early years really true? Or should we recognize them as apologetic exaggeration?

Candida Moss takes a hard look at how such stories are derived, and she has high standards for what counts as persecution. Execution for merely refusing to recant one’s Christian beliefs doesn’t measure up (prosecution is not persecution, any more than prejudice is persecution). Yet she makes her point strongly that widespread, repe...