Some notable parts from the chapter: The Empire and the Church from the Third Century (AD 200-299)
Emperor Decius orders all citizens on the Roman Empire to make a sacrifice to the official state pagan gods. Pope Saint Fabius refuses and is killed. Some Christians give in but others refuse.
Decius is later killed being swallowed in a swamp in the Balkans.
Emperor Valerian orders the Church deacon named Lawrence to gather all the Church's wealth and bring it to the Roman authorities. He arrived with a bunch of poor people and said that the churches wealth was not in material goods but in the corporal works of mercy done for others. The authorities are not amused, and order Lawrence to be burned at the stake. ^^Lawrence jokes with his executioners as he's being burned that they should flip him over because that side was done cooking.^^
After that, Emperor Valerian lost to the Persians and was flayed and his corpse was stuffed.
The Third Century (AD 200-299) in the Roman Empire was very tumultuous. From (31 BC - AD 180), there were only 16 emperors. But in 90 years covering most of the third century, there were 28 emperors. [[Diocletian]] became emperor in AD 284