Both Uses of
persecution
in
The Celestial Railroad
- As I purposed to make a considerable stay here, it gratified me to learn that there is no longer the want of harmony between the town's-people and pilgrims, which impelled the former to such lamentably mistaken measures as the persecution of Christian and the fiery martyrdom of Faithful.†
*persecution = very bad and unfair treatment
- They were the same whom Apollyon and ourselves had persecuted with taunts, and gibes, and scalding steam, at the commencement of our journey—the same whose unworldly aspect and impressive words had stirred my conscience amid the wild revellers of Vanity Fair.†
persecuted = treated very badly and unfairly
Definition:
very bad and unfair treatment of others -- often because of race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, or political beliefs