Constantine and the impact of Christianity

I found Constantine’s view towards the Church confusing to some extent; I got the impression from the lecture that (in simple terms) while on the one hand he sides against the Donatists’ schism and attempts to persectue them, on the other hand, he perceived the divisions of the Christological heresies and the Arians over doctrinal issues as a trivial issue and for the bishops to decide, hence he presided over the Council of Nicene in 325 to reach a compromise?

How much did voluntary martyrdom by some Christians play a part in the continuation of the Christian persecutions?

From general reading I got the impression Christians were attacked and persecuted when pagans actually reported them to the authorities, because of their different beliefs and unwillingness to participate in the accepted norms and practices of the populace. However, in a piece by G.E.M. de ste. Croix, ‘Why were the early Christians persecuted’ in Past and Present (1963), an interesting point is raised that Christians actually voluntarily admitted to being a Christian in order to be punished and become a martyr.

Is there a stereotype that Christians were widely persecuted, and is this exaggerated?

Before looking at this course I feel there was a sterotype that Christians were widely persecuted with the view that they were ‘thrown to the lions’ and faced other such punishments. Is this a heavily exaggerated view of things? To what extent were Christians actually punished?

Why would Romans want to be Christians?

Why in a very tolerant and accepting society would people actively decide to join a new exclusive religion which was against some of the core values Rome stood for? A religion which they would also be persecuted for belonging to, so why did Christianity become as popular as it was?