The Christians were strangers

The Roman Empire became Christian in the fifth century. In the early centuries Christians at best were a significant minority of the population. The end of the century Christians (or nominal Christians) certainly constituted the majority in the Empire. Tellingly, in the beginning of the century the Imperial power only once in the entire history of the ancient world had a long and consistent campaign of persecution of Christians. Nevertheless, by the end of the century and the emperors were Christians, Christianity enjoyed exceptional support from the state, and, in principle, is the only religion that was allowed power.

If you don’t count the few and limited framework of ethnic Jews in the ancient world was not a closed religion. Therefore the rapid success of early Christianity is a historical anomaly. Moreover, since one or the other form of Christianity is the basis of life and identity of many peoples, the Christianization of the Roman Empire seems to be consistently appropriate and relevant. It is “we,” while much of the ancient history of “our” simply is not. Of course, this is a clear demand for hides as much as shows, especially in relation to how queer is actually a Christianization of Rome.

What world religion could appear invisible from the Eastern cult in a tiny and very specific area of Roman Palestine, is simply an exceptional fact. Jesus of Nazareth was a Jew, although quite eccentric, and the question here is not whether he believed or did not believe the historical Jesus. We know that he was executed for breach of peace and tranquility in the Roman Empire during the reign of Emperor Tiberius, and that some of his disciples then decided Jesus is not just any ordinary prophet, which many in the region. No, he was the son of the one true God and he died for the salvation of those who followed him.

The disciples of Jesus began preaching the virtues of his miracle worker. They believe many, including Saul of Tarsus, who had heard the path of a mysterious voice who believed in God and changed his name to Paul. Paul ignored the run-down villages in the Galilee, and instead wandered the cities of the Eastern Mediterranean, where lived a large number of Greeks and Greek-speaking Jews. He had been in the Levant, Asia Minor and in Greece, where he wrote the famous letter to the Corinthians.

Some scholars today believe that Paul could actually go to Spain, and not just talked about his desire to go there. It does not matter whether it was Paul or he was executed in Rome during the reign of Nero. Important personality of Paul himself. When Paul had been arrested for endangering public order, after complaints from his Jewish enemies to the Romans, he needed just two words to change the balance of power — cives sum, which means “I am a citizen” (citizen of Rome). Because he was a Roman citizen, unlike Jesus could not give to the authorities the Jews on the court and enraged the Roman Procurator had no right to execute him without trial. A Roman citizen could appeal to the justice of the Emperor, and that’s exactly what Paul did.

Paul was a Christian. Perhaps he was even the first Christian. But he also was a Roman. It was something new. Even if some Jew and received Roman citizenship, Jews in General were not Romans. Judaism as a religion wore ethnic character, and this gave the Jews a privileged position, what was the other Roman subjects. But it also meant that they were eternal strangers. Unlike Judaism, Christianity was an ethnic religion. Although the Christian leaders wanted to separate themselves physically and ideologically from the Jewish communities grew, they also took the newcomers had gotten to him in the parishes, not paying attention to nationality and social position. In the ancient world with its social classes and castes egalitarianism of Christianity was unusual, and for many very attractive.

Hope for salvation, guaranteed the miracles of Jesus and/or God the Father, also attracted followers of Christ. In the Roman world of miracles and supernatural happenings were in abundance. They were very convincing. There spread stories about the Christian God (or the son of God because the theology has evolved over many years), and these stories were a lot more than acknowledges today’s Canon. In the canonical literature mentioned, that the first Christianity appealed to women, slaves, and working class. But in fact, stories about the miracles and the hope of salvation attracted people from all strata of society. Christianity in exchange for faith offered eternal life. No complicated initiation rituals, no hierarchy pyramid, no occult revelations.

Theologians have always been able to make Christianity so refined that it became obscure. But for many, the Christian faith seemed surprisingly simple: “Believe only in the Christian God, who is the one and only God, and you shall have eternal life.” On earth Christianity offered human unity, and support: sharing meals, holidays, collective work and leisure, the burial of the dead. In the cosmopolitan Roman Empire where the town was sucked up into a huge labour force, one that was expendable, and where craftsmen and artisans were forced to leave far from home, this kind of community could not be regarded as something self-evident. And Christians cared about each other, sometimes fully devoting myself to this business. Stricter Christians did not mix with non-Christians, and more importantly, they did not pray to other gods in favor of his one and only God. In the public life of the ancient world (holidays, days of rest, the celebration, at which people appeared the only opportunity to eat meat) took a prominent place sacrifice to various deities of mobile and blended Greco-Roman Pantheon. Good Christians were supposed to avoid such celebrations and ceremonies, which their fellow citizens occupied a Central place in public life. Therefore, Christians seemed very strange.

The Jews, as far as we know, kept aloof, but the Greeks and Romans got used to it. The Jewish community was never large, they were concentrated in certain places, and they were released from compulsory participation in public ceremonies. Throughout the Mediterranean people treated the Jews tolerantly, with a slight disdain as he could not understand them. But the Christian Greeks and Romans with their traditional beliefs and ceremonies seemed to be some kind of ridiculous. What Christians-Monophysites are the same as atheists who refuse to pay tribute to the deity? What they are doing in their closed meetings? And what is the reason that they eat the body of their God? Are they cannibals? Perhaps this was another manifestation of eccentricity. In the end, in ancient Rome the followers of one cult bathed in the gushing blood just killed a bull. And the followers of another cult spent the nights in temples in anticipation of divine revelation and slept with the sacred priestesses.

Of course, the eccentricities of neighbors begins to seem more sinister when life becomes difficult, and livelihoods less. Isolation of Christians and their indifference to the position in society could raise suspicion. So from time to time there were massacres, though there were surprisingly few. Pornographic violence from the lives of saints, torturing them, which displays millions of works of Catholic art, was the favorite products of a later time, and not some ancient reality. Like all empires, the Roman state was the most hated mess. And it didn’t encourage violence, violating the peace of society. Nominal Christianity for some time it was outlawed (because his God was nailed to a cross like a common thief). But to pursue a policy of “don’t ask, don’t tell” was easier for everyone, including the emperors. Demonstrate how letters of the Emperor Trajan, Christians were not sought out and persecuted, if they do not violate public order and did not cause significant irritation of others. But in this case they themselves were guilty of what they learned.

By the third century the Christian community has grown. It was difficult to find even the most modest small town, where there would be a pair of three Christian families. From a marginal movement, Christianity became the main fact of urban life. But rooting this religion suddenly made her extremely vulnerable in the middle of the third century, when because of the instability of dynasties, epidemics and the incompetence of the military in the Empire on an irreversible decline.

The last dynasty that can actually claim to legitimacy was the dynasty of Septimius Severus, who ruled from 193-211. Its last Scion was killed in a mutiny in 235. After that, for 50 years, no Emperor did not claim truly to the throne. But as the Empire suffered a crushing defeat on their Eastern front from Persia, and the epidemic (most likely, it was the outbreak of hemorrhagic fever such as Ebola) significantly reduced concentrated urban population, the impression that the divine order in the world completely destroyed.

The Emperor Decius, which had a very weak claim to the throne, which he seized in a coup of military leaders, has decided that he should seek divine location. To 249 year he ordered all the inhabitants of the Empire to sacrifice to the gods of the state and to prove it the same certificate which is issued by the local authorities confirming the payment of annual taxes. Perhaps Decius and did not want to harass Christians specifically, but the decree he did just that. Christians were forbidden to worship any gods except his, refused to make a sacrifice. For the perseverance of some Christians were executed. When Decius in 251 year killed on the battlefield, Christians rejoiced, believing that God had protected them.

The state of the Empire did not improve. 10 years after the death of Decius the Emperor Valerian renewed religious persecution, but this time it is aimed specifically at Christians. Many wondered why he identified them. The Roman Senate even sent the Emperor a request of how seriously the content of his decree on the subject. It was quite serious. Was the new death for the faith, but in the year 260 the Persian king took Valerian prisoner on the battlefield, and he later died in prison. His son and successor Galienus immediately stopped the persecution, and restored legal rights of Christian churches. This legal action demonstrates something very significant. The Church began to flourish, becoming soldered corporate education. Now they could own property and dispose of it. Christianity ceased to be a mystery religion of the minority.

The period from 260 to 300 years were not merciful to those who wanted to become Emperor and rule, but he became the first Golden age for the Roman Christians. Most likely, we will never get sufficient information about how many at that time were Christians, or how rapidly spread this religion. But we can confidently say that the number of Christians has increased significantly. By the end of the third century Christians were in the Senate, in court and even in the Imperial families.

In the middle and the end of the third century, for the first time, a great many of works on Christian theology. Some of them are devoted to the description of heresy, or religious delusion, which by that time had accumulated a great many. The Christians were focused on faith and not on rituals and ceremonies. Therefore, the observation for what is true and acceptable faith and what not, has always absorbed the attention of Christian theologians, occupying a Central place in Christian politics.

Extant decrees (canons) of the first Cathedral of the Christian leaders let take a closer look at the Christianity of that period. This Cathedral, held in Andalusia in the little known town of Elvira shows us that a gathering of Church leaders found it necessary to forbid Christians, in a legislative procedure different kinds of mundane activities as detrimental to the well-being of believers. For example, the Cathedral decided to forbid Christians to occupy some public office (say, the post of duumvir, approximately corresponding to the position of mayor), because they are occupying these positions was sometimes to punish or otherwise mistreat Christians. It tells us that Christians are well integrated in public and political life, occupying official positions, and so on. Of course, Christians and non-Christians believed such a merger quite normal. Christians have come a long way since the time of the last persecution.

But then, paradoxically, the Imperial power after a couple of years after Elverskog Cathedral began the most vicious and cruel persecution of Christians in the entire history of the ancient world. The reasons are many. As Christianity spread among the educated Greeks and Romans, intellectuals from among the non-Christians felt that this new religion is becoming more dangerous. Although in the third century among intellectuals was dominated by the tendency to monotheism, philosophical and Theosophical views of the supporters of neo-Platonism and other philosophers were clearly incompatible with the Christian reticence. Therefore, these pagans put forward subtle arguments against Christians, but their criticism found echo among politicians. And then the dispute over the succession became a pretext for anti-Christian polemic has found new political life.

By the end of the third century the Emperor Diocletian (ruled 284-305). managed, finally, to ensure the stability of Imperial power after half a century of the period of regime change and violence. In 293 ad he established a College of four emperors. They were all high-ranking military officers, connected only by kinship in marriage. The idea was that one Emperor was always at hand, in order to suppress any outbreak of violence, to prevent uprisings and civil war. Diocletian himself, together with his senior colleague had intended to retire, so after that their younger partners have led them to replace the College’s two new emperors. The aim was to transfer power in a convenient moment of peace, while public administration remained intact. But the designs of Diocletian broke internecine feud, in which a considerable role was played by Christianity.

At that moment everything started to fall apart. Only two of the emperors Diocletian were adult sons, and all expected that they will be part of the Board of the four rulers, two senior when the Emperor retires. But childless Emperor Galerius, was a fierce enemy of Christians, and his colleague Constantius, who was the son sympathized with them. In fact, Christians were even in the family of Constance and among his household, and this gave the Gallery the opportunity to review the plans of succession in their favor. Starting a new persecution of Christians, Galerius hurt Constance, and expelled his son from the throne. He was able to strengthen their own power and satisfy their hatred of Christianity.

Galerius convinced Diocletian that Christians are responsible for a series of disasters, including the incident in the Palace of the mysterious fire and the pressure on the famous oracles. Thus, in the year 303, the emperors began what we now call the Great persecution. The campaign against Christians has been particularly severe in Africa and in the Eastern Mediterranean, but was more merciful in those lands in the West, which rules Constantius. But in the course of the persecution, many were martyred for the faith, and they have caused the terrible suffering of Christian communities, leaving scars that wouldn’t heal for several centuries. A great persecution in the end did not achieve their goal, because to wipe Christianity off the face of the earth failed. Christians were just too many, and many have shown relentless perseverance, not wanting to abandon their faith. Even the most active and strong supporter of the persecution of Galerius, and he was forced to admit the failure of their plans. In the year 311 he issued an edict on religious tolerance. To the year 313, the persecution stopped.

Meanwhile, in 316, the son of Constantius, Constantine succeeded his father in the Imperial College. For five years he became the master of the Western Roman Empire and openly supported Christianity. Always sympathetic attitude to the Christians, Constantine claimed that he had a divine vision that helped him command his troops and 312 to win in the civil war. The most simplistic interpretation of these events suggests that in the year 310 Constantine with his army was seen in the South of France the glow around the solar disk (this is rare, but documented the astronomical phenomenon of the halo). Over time, however, memories of Constantine was varied, and certainly we can not say anything. But with much more confidence we can assert that for several years he hesitated, not daring to admit any Christian or some other interpretation of that sign. To the great joy of the Christian leaders of his retinue, eventually Constantine decided that the sign gave him the Christian God. He accepted the Christian faith and began to pursue appropriate policies.

We’ll never know for sure the true motives that led Constantine to become a Christian. However, becoming sole ruler in the West, he ruled as a Christian. Constantine returned property of the Christians captured during the Great persecution, and adopted a number of laws in favour of Christians. Becoming in 324 the sole ruler of the Empire, he pursued a policy favorable to Christians in the Eastern part. There he not only favored the Christians, but also actively pursued a discriminatory policy against non-Christians, limiting their ability to worship and funding of churches.

But there was a more important factor. Constantine personally intervened in the conflict between Christians on issues of decency and the true faith. In North Africa, Egypt and other parts of the Greek East often face problems on a variety of issues, for example how to treat Christians who cooperated with the authorities during the persecution (they were called traitors to the faith, apostatized from the Christian sacred books), or what the true relationship between God the Father and God the Son. These debates were important, including because they do not adhere to the true faith of the Christians were deprived of eternal life, or even worse, doomed to eternal torment. And true faith is the opposite — opened the way to eternal bliss.

Giving the Roman state and the Imperial government the right to monitor and to impose the true faith, Constantine set an example, which then was a long and controversial history. Now the Council of bishops allegedly at the direction of the Holy spirit had to determine where the true faith and what is not. Those who wanted to believe differently, stigmatized and called heretics, and excluding from the community of Orthodox Christians. Bishops and theologians have found countless problems for discussion. This attitude of God the Father to God the Son, the divine nature of Christ that is the divine nature might mean for the status of his mother, and so on. Each decision led to another series of problems.

Most people know from personal experience that intellectual differences can turn into all sorts of irreconcilable beliefs for various reasons, not intellectual nature. The patronage, inter-factional fighting, political benefits, social isolation — all can play a role in the formation of intellectual positions and strong attachment to them. Since the fourth century Roman history is replete with sharp religious conflicts, state persecution of heretics, and the permanent alienation of those communities whose Christian beliefs set them against the mainstream official views. In fact, from the time of Constantine a real disaster for Western history was the inability to oversee the faith. In the end, how can you decide what a person believes and what not?

This issue would not have led to tragic consequences in history, if, after the conversion of Constantine to Christianity did not follow a significant part of the population of the Empire. The advancement in society has come to depend on the fact you are a Christian or not, and non-Christian beliefs are quickly destroyed. Therefore, the majority of Romans in the cities by the end of the fourth century began confidently consider themselves Christians. The rejection of Christianity now seemed more important than the appeal to it 200 years earlier. Why Christianity not only became the state religion, but also the main political phenomenon of life? And why the Christian institutions of the middle ages were simultaneously preserved and distorted the heritage of the ancient world? Well, that’s another story.

Professor Michael Kulikovsky teaches history and ancient literature at the University of Pennsylvania, and leads there the Department of history. He is the author of: “the Spain of the late Roman period and the city” (Late Roman Spain and Its Cities) and “Roman wars with the Goths from the third century to Alaric” (Rome’s Gothic Wars from the Third Century to Alaric). His latest book is “the Triumph of the Empire. The Roman world from Hadrian to Constantine” (The Triumph of Empire: The Roman World From Hadrian to Constantine).

 

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