Christian Persecution Under Emperor Trajan (98–117)

Trajan ruled as emperor for nineteen years, from 98 to 117. It was during Trajan’s reign that bishop
Ignatius of Antioch was martyred in Rome. Trajan’s exchange of letters with Pliny the governor of Bithynia and Pontus, in 112, gives us insight into the Roman policies and practices concerning the persecution of Christians at the beginning of the 100s. These letters reveal that the Christian church was growing throughout Asia Minor (modern Turkey) by then, impacting every segment of society.