What if, hundreds of years from today, people shaped their view of church government from a letter from a governor writing to a president who knew nothing about Christianity, but from interrogation and torture? To put weight on this one term, which is indecisive at best, is to be shaped by an unbeliever and outsider rather than by Scripture.

That is a great question, I am glad you asked.

The Letter I am referring to is Pliny’s letter to Trajan. First, who is Pliny, and why are his letters famous? Pliny the Younger, not to be confused with Pliny the Elder (his uncle). Given the name Pliny, it must be a family name. Pliny the Younger served as governor of Pontus/Bithynia (modern-day Turkey, near the Black Sea). He served from 111 to 113 AD. We have his letters to Emperor Trajan. These are well-known scholarly resources because they are among the earliest non-Christian references to Christianity. At the same time, scholarly debates discuss the validity of the letters.[1] That is not what we need to wrestle with today. For the purposes of this article, we will assume the letters date to around 111 AD.

Contents of the Letter

Pliny writes this letter (Letter 96) to Emperor Trajan, seeking his counsel and advice on the accusations he received about Christians in his region. In the opening, he explains that he has not previously interacted with Christians, so he was unsure about their common offences or how to investigate them. He interrogated Christians and executed them if they continued to confess Christ. If they did not claim to be Christians, he could test them by getting them to worship Roman gods, or offer incense to the emperor’s image, or even curse Christ. Yet true Christians would not engage in these practices. He notes that some individuals were Christians but had abandoned the faith; they nevertheless performed the tests he requested.

He explained their practice of meeting before dawn on a particular day and singing to Christ, committing to flee from sin (immoral behavior), and sharing an ordinary meal. His letter is to seek whether he is handling the matter correctly. He notes that persecution is leading to a resurgence of traditional Roman religion, as temples are once again active and sacrifices are increasing. He believes many Christians could be “reformed” if given the chance to repent. Trajan responds, agreeing that Christians are not to be actively sought out, but if they are formally accused and found guilty, they must be punished.

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