I don't have the time to do in-depth research here, but there are, I think, two ways in which observing martyrs can help us. First, it shows us to what extended people believe in a religion. To call it a 'worldview' can lead us to a deceptively shallow idea of what a faith consists of. A person does not die for trivial matters. Thinking about people dying for it may help us to understand the seriousness of the matter.
In a more specific way, torture and persecution puts extreme stress on a human, emotionally, psychologically, and physically. Under these conditions, a lot of our deeper nature is revealed, and we can learn how people of a religion apply their beliefs not just in the comfortable setting we are so used to, but when they are living in the most extreme situations.
I wonder what one would find by comparing the reactions that religions have when they experience persecution - how do Baha'is, Christians, or Muslims react? And what do we learn from that about the core of their belief?
There's a name I haven't heard in a long time. Wurmbrand visited my church when I was young and stayed at our house. I remember he had to stay seated because the bottoms of his feet were permanently injured. Your post raises an interesting point but does not push it into theoretically interesting territory.. I'd like to see you at least make a stab at questions like those you raise..
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