ABSTRACT
In Christian tradition, martyrdom is a profession of faith that may extend even unto death. The word “martyr” denotes someone who bears witness to his faith even if it entails the loss of his life. Christian martyrdom was characterized by the refusal to submit to Caesar’s commands; death decreed by authority is the consequence of the Christian’s insubordination. In the sixteenth century, the Catholic world was in the throes of a severe religious and political crisis. National communities were threatened from within by hate and religious fanaticism on the Catholic and Protestant sides alike. The sadomasochistic motivation of the two patients more closely resembles that of an attacker imbued with destructive hate and prepared to sacrifice his life if only he can thereby exterminate the enemy. Infantile traumas may have different adult outcomes depending on the subject’s propensity for violent reaction. Trauma may inhibit the patient’s emotional development, so that he withdraws from affective relationships and seemingly lives without emotions.
