What to Do About the Christianians?

More and more adherente to this strange new colt had begun popping up all over the eastern empire, professing a monotheism that forbade them from worshipping the accepted deities of the roman world. Governors across the empire were vexed over the question of just what to do with these people. Pliny wrote to trajan for instructions after being handed some lists anonymously that named active christians in pliny's province. But how severely should they be punished? Trajan's reply was brief but to the point. He said, relying on anonymous informants is a slippery slope that leads to counter productive tyranny. If someone gets hauled into court because there is independent proof that they are a