“Christian Pacifism: The First Three Centuries
As participants in an illegal movement, the early Christians obviously resisted Roman domination. Yet they strived to be goid citizens. One of the most revealing descriptions of early Christians is found in the ‘Letter to Diogentus,’ from the second century:
They live in their own countries, but only as aliens. They have a share in everything as citizens, and endure everything as foreigners. … They busy themselves on earth, but their citizenship is in heaven. They obey the established laws, but in their own lives they go far beyond what the laws require. They love all men, and by all men ate persecuted. … They are put to death, and yet they are brought to life. They are poor, and yet they make many rich. … They are dishonored and in their dishonor are glorified; … They are reviled, and yet they bless; when they are affronted, they still pay due respect. When they do good, they are punished as evildoers; undergoing punishment, they rejoice because they are brought to life. They are treated by Jews as foreigners and enemies, and are hunted down by the Greeks; and all the time those who hate them find it impossible to justify their enmity. (This beautiful apology is fiund in Cyril C. Richardson, ed. Early Christian Fathers, Westminster Press, 1953, 117.)
This exceptional portrayal of early Christians provides the context for noting how the pacifist teachings of Jesus continued in the life of the apostolic church. For modern Christians who wish to identify with the early church, it is important to understand primitive Christian positions on war and peace.”
(Dale W. Brown, Biblical Pacifism, pp. 31-32)