This Day in Christian History: February 27 February 27, 280 A.D.: Birth of Constantine the Great Constantine the Great was the Roman Emperor who ended the Diocletianic Persecution of Christians. His reign lasted from 306-337 A.D. after his father, Constantuis Chlorus. Originally pagan in his religion, Constantine was converted to Christianity and became the first emperor to profess Christianity as his religion. He is a very important figure in Christian history, he had great influence upon the organization of the Christian churches during that time. The Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem was built by his orders. Constantine was the 57th emperor of Rome, and died in May of 337 at the age of 65.

This Day in Christian History: February 24 February 24 ,303 A.D.: First Edict of the Diocletianic Persecution Is Issued On this day in 303 A.D., Roman Emperor Galerius Valerius Maximianus issued the first of several edicts that called for the persecution of Christians. The edicts demanded that Christians comply with the Roman pagan rituals, and if they should not, they were subject to imprisonment or execution. These executions varied, including being fed to wild beasts, torture or being burned at the stake. The persecution ended when Constantine restored full legal rights to Christians. Amber Schamel is the author of the Days of Messiah series, a historical fiction series about early Christianity. Read a Free Sample!