Our latest episode continues our discussion on the cult of the saints, but this time focusing on one of its more controversial aspects: the veneration of relics. In this episode, I talk about what the veneration of relics entails, how it emerged from the cult of the martyrs, and the evidence for its practice among early Christians. I also describe how by the sixth century, belief in the powers of relics became a defining feature of Christianity, and why the practice distinguished Christians from both pagan Greco-Roman religion and Judaism in the ancient world.
Controversies in Church History