I’m trying to find what you’re referring to. These are similar but not the same, as they don’t show anyone demanding to be martyred, so if you find it let me know.
So I’m apparently slow because you said they didn’t hallucinate if I’m remembering correctly, so you think people kept adding to the stories, and people liked the stories so much no one actually checked if they were true? Then latter Christians didn’t care that these stories kept getting added to and were willing to die for it anyway?
Feel free to correct my paragraph above or this one if you want.
This seems to be what the reference was talking about:
Some days previously, the same Pro-Consul had struck down four other martyrs at Madaurus. A period of calm seems to have followed this short persecution and during this respite the Christian communities swelled rapidly in Africa, especially at Carthage. "If we are willing to offer to die," Tertullian was to say to the Pro-Consul Scapula about the year 212, "what would you do with so many thousand people, with these men and women, these living beings of every sex and age, and of every condition, who would come forward to hand themselves over to you? How many butchers, how many swords would you need? What would happen to Carthage thus decimated by you when everyone would recognise there his near relations, his neighbours, perhaps men and women of your own rank, the leading citizens and the parents, or the friends of your friends?" In short, towards the end of the IInd century, the Church in Carthage was provided with all the organisation which assured its vitality: it counted a considerable number of the faithful, and the disputations on moral and doctrine excited there an interest which betrayed the ardour of her faith. Such was the *milieu* wherein was born the father of Latin Christian Literature, Quintus Septimius Florens Tertullianus.
http://www.tertullian.org/articles/delabriolle_history.htm
This also seems relevant:
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Thanks for the I’ll look up the history of these.
At least one person pushed back on Charlemagne, which is good. Although it didn’t do any good.
From your link:
“His severe and uncompromising position, which earned him the title “butcher of Saxons”, caused his close adviser Alcuin of York, later abbot of Marmoutier Abbey, Tours, to urge leniency, as God’s word should be spread not by the sword but by persuasion; but the wars continued.”
Thanks. Note he’s being sarcastic or ironic - should we all hand ourselves over to you? If you killed us all you’d have an uproar on his hands. - He’s trying to protect the Christian community by explaining it’s not worth escalating any campaign.
I’ll try make is as simple as I can.
Take any religious or cult belief that you find absurd:
Muhammad split the moon in two by pointing at it.
There’s a space ship following the Hale Bopp comet what will take our souls to another world, but we first have be castrated, drink poison, and then lie in cots dressed in matching tracksuits.
75 million years ago, the evil intergalactic dictator Xenu brought billions of people to earth in a DC-8 and murdered them all with H-bombs. The immortal souls of these people now inhabit us all as “Thetans.”
Or any other belief of your choosing.
Why do you think people believe something so absurd with enough fervor to base their lives around it?
Whatever your answer, it likely applies just as well to Christianity.
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There is a difference here but only if you are willing to spend time to understand. The Judaeo Christian Bible is a very unique document. There are 66 Books 40 authors and a single cohesive message. There is a reason for this religions popularity over 2 centuries. There is a reason that 3 weeks of the school years are taken to celebrate Christs birth and death. Analogies can be powerful arguments but in this case you are comparing apples and oranges.
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I would suggest that this ‘cohesiveness’ is only apparent to those who firmly believe that it is ‘The Word of God’. Everybody else would likely see this viewpoint as mere wishful thinking.
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I would suggest that since you don’t understand its power you will not spend the time to understand the message.
This is where I was for most my life.
The document is very powerful, very complex but there are now tools that can help short of a masters degree in theology. Here is an example of a tool:
Then I would appear to have overwhelming company – as Jews think that Christians don’t understand Isiah either:
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All religious scriptures are “unique documents.” All books, for that matter.
Sure. That’s why apologists have to engage in endless mental convolutions to explain away the many contradictions by devising theological flapdoodle about things like “a New Covenenant” or what have you.
“Cohesive.” Don’t make me laugh.
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You realize 53 is a small piece of Isaiah. Here is a well known Messianic Rabbi explaining the 53 chapter with the Hebrew compared to Leviticus.
Another example of this “cohesive” book, of which every single chapter has 1001 completely contradictory interpretations.
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And I’m supposed to take the word of some random Messianic Jew on Youtube why exactly?
You can find just about any half-baked insane idea on Youtube.
So firing Youtube videos at me convinces me of one thing only – that I shouldn’t take you seriously.
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@colewd I tried explaining that to him here as well. https://discourse.peacefulscience.org/t/belief-in-the-supernatural-is-an-innate-human-trait-but-not-for-atheists/11817/148?u=thoughtful maybe @Faizal_Ali you got offended by the first few sentences which were meant as a hypothetical or maybe you consider all religions not to be cohesive and any idea of that is worth ridiculing?
Have you looked into this guy 
If your objective is to bash Christianity I am out.
Yes.
I was decidedly underwhelmed.
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Any belief system, and not only religious ones, can be made to seem cohesive to its adherents if they work hard enough.
For instance, you describe the “overarching theme of the Bible” as including “the father who is merciful to rebellious children and adopts them.” No doubt, you’ve figured out a way to include the part where God drowns nearly all the living things on earth because they disappointed him as part of this “overarching theme.” Right?
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I noticed that. I also noticed it didn’t say when or how long he was there, whether he graduated and so forth. Truly a memorable scholar. 
Addendum: and on closer examination, I also notice that this claim, and much of the “Personal Life” section of the article, lacks citation.
Oh, and according to the article talkpage, he’s not a “Messianic Rabbi”, because he’s not a Rabbi.
He truly is just some random Messianic Jew!
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I’d like to answer the questions raised in the article, as well as a few other points. I could go over all the points if you want though.
Given the Christian view that Jesus is God, is God His own servant?
Yes, the New Testament covers that. Philippians 2
Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus,[a] 6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped,[b] 7 but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant,[c] being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. 9 Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Something else raised in the article:
53:8 " From my peoples’ sins, there was injury to them ." Here the Prophet makes absolutely clear, to anyone familiar with Biblical Hebrew, that the oppressed Servant is a collective Servant, not a single individual. The Hebrew word " lamoh ", when used in our Scriptures, always means " to them " never " to him "
Not a problem. God is triune.
53:10 " He will prolong his days. " Not only did Jesus die young, but how could the days be prolonged of someone who is alleged to be God?
huh…well if he’s a man that died young and rose from the dead because he’s God, then his days would be prolonged for sure.
53:12 " Therefore, I will divide a portion to him with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the mighty. " If Jesus is God, does the idea of reward have any meaning?
See Philippians 2 above or this passage that I read this morning from Isaiah 49.
And now the Lord says,
he who formed me from the womb to be his servant,
to bring Jacob back to him;
and that Israel might be gathered to him—
for I am honored in the eyes of the Lord,
and my God has become my strength—
6 he says:
“It is too light a thing that you should be my servant
To raise up the tribes of Jacob
and to bring back the preserved of Israel;
I will make you as a light for the nations,
that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.”7 Thus says the Lord,
the Redeemer of Israel and his Holy One,
to one deeply despised, abhorred by the nation,
the servant of rulers:
“Kings shall see and arise;
princes, and they shall prostrate themselves;
because of the Lord, who is faithful,
the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.”