Introduction
Martyrdom, the death of a martyr for his/her faith, is a particular form of religious violence. Its history is long and complex, closely linked to that of Christianity. But this issue allows us to examine other traditions, and, above all, it has great current relevance. Far from being a thing of the past, martyrdom, in a way, has been experiencing a new ‘golden age' since the middle of the twentieth century. At this point at the beginning of the twenty-first century martyrs, especially those claiming ownership of religious 'truths', seem to have their best days ahead of them.
