#circumcellions

#actually this isn't even in the top 10 funniest LH comments for me#i should go back and try to dig up some of my other faves

When it comes to the Circumcellions, the most troubling aspect of their conduct is not that they killed themselves, but rather that they killed others. They went into orthodox churches and attacked congregants while they worshipped. They bludgeoned their fellow Christians to death. They tried to persuade people they encountered to kill them, threatening them with violence if they did not comply. Their aim was to become martyrs and ascend directly to heaven.

Imagine an arid desert road. It is a major highway for merchants transporting goods and for merchants traveling from one urban center to another. The route is plagued by bands of terrorists who prey upon wealthy merchants and foreigners. The vigilantes attack the convoys, destroying private property and gruesomely executing those who transport it. The terrorists are the very same group responsible for suicidal attacks on established churches in neighboring cities and numerous other acts of violence and brutality. Although their numbers are small and their means limited, the sickening violence of their actions makes them notorious throughout the civilized world, in which they are vilified and feared. Their ultimate aim is a martyr’s death, a death that they believe will bring them honor, glory, and heavenly rewards. The people in question are not modern-day terrorists, but a group of ancient Christians known as the Circumcellions.