A.D. 381 heretics, pagans, and the dawn of the monotheistic state ( PDFDrive )

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others of one’s own beliefs, and Lactantius says even of the pagans that ‘We areready to listen, if they should teach.’ Lactantius counters Porphyry’s accusationsthat Christianity is outside the bounds of Roman tradition by arguing that there isnothing in Christianity that conflicts with Roman law or with traditionalreligious practice. 13How far Constantine knew of and was influenced by the Divine Institutes isunclear, although Lactantius joined the imperial court in 317, when he was madetutor to the emperor’s son Crispus. The emperor’s Edict of Toleration of 313,issued a year after his victory over Maxentius at the Battle of the MilvianBridge, certainly accords with the policy of the Divine Institutes. ‘With salutaryand most upright reasoning,’ the Edict proclaims, ‘we resolved on adopting thispolicy, namely that we should consider that no one whatsoever should be deniedfreedom to devote himself either to the cult of the Christians or to such religionas he deem best suited to himself, so that the highest divinity, to whose worshipwe pay allegiance with free minds, may grant us in all things his wonted favourand benevolence.’ 14 When, later in his reign, Constantine became ruler of thewhole empire, he sustained this policy of toleration. In a letter issued to theeastern provinces in 324, he emphasised his own adherence to Christianity butpromised that ‘those who still rejoice in erring’ should receive ‘the same kind ofpeace and quiet’ as believers. Everyone ‘should follow what his soul prefers’. Heappears to have assumed that with time and open argument all would becomeChristians. Other aspects of his policy appear to support this approach.Constantine did not try to abolish the temple cults - in fact he set one up inhonour of his family at the city of Hispellum on the Flaminian Way in Umbria.While he was willing to punish Jews if they tried to convert or circumciseChristians, he gave the same exemptions from official duties to Jewish priests ashe did to the Christian clergy. His imperial panegyrics after 321 were, in thewords of one authority, ‘written in terms of a neutral monotheism which wouldbe acceptable to Christians and pagans alike’. 15In proclaiming toleration for Christians as well as all others, Constantine wasbringing Christianity into the mainstream. This was emphasised by the shortreign of the pagan emperor Julian (361—363). Despite being brought up as aChristian, Julian reverted to paganism partly because of his distaste fordestructive debates over doctrine and partly because his imperial ‘Christian’relations, the sons of Constantine, had murdered the closest members of hisfamily. Julian did not persecute Christians and they were able to keep preaching,
but he attempted to diminish the public role of the bishops, fostering traditionalcults instead. Julian argued that it was important for cultures to worship godswho reflected their own specific values, and he went so far as to support thisideal by paying for the restoration of the Temple in Jerusalem, destroyed by theRomans in AD 70. Not everyone shared this active response to religiousdiversity. When the building was brought to a halt by a major fire, Christianswere seen to rejoice. Were they simply exploiting the freedom they had beengiven by Constantine so as to threaten the rights of others? To answer thisquestion we need to explore how the relationship between Christianity and thestate had begun.
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Table of ContentsTitle PageCopyrigh
Page 8: For my children, Barney, Issie, Tom
Page 12 and 13: PREFACEIN 1999 I signed a contract
Page 14 and 15: case discussed in this book, one ca
Page 16 and 17: to ask which of the enormously wide
Page 18 and 19: centred introduction to critical th
Page 20 and 21: essential. The Trinity consists of
Page 22 and 23: discussion of spiritual matters was
Page 24 and 25: borders, which ran along the rivers
Page 26 and 27: Valentinian’s own commanders were
Page 28 and 29: of booty from further raiding. Duri
Page 30 and 31: of the major cities of the east. As
Page 32 and 33: IITHE DIVINE EMPERORIN 363, the cou
Page 34 and 35: Constantine is God’s viceregent o
Page 36 and 37: Rome in 357, the first time he had
Page 38 and 39: result that a complex of interlocki
Page 40 and 41: the first time, a budget could be p
Page 42 and 43: The events of the next three years
Page 44 and 45: circumstances, Themistius’ panegy
Page 46 and 47: IIIFREE SPEECH IN THE CLASSICAL WOR
Page 48 and 49: be counterproductive. Diodotus went
Page 50 and 51: of the Forms. Once they had underst
Page 52 and 53: Even though only a tiny proportion
Page 54 and 55: and imagery of the Bible. He was re
Page 58 and 59: IVTHE COMING OF THE CHRISTIAN STATE
Page 60 and 61: Irenaeus, bishop of the (Greek-spea
Page 62 and 63: forward an alternative tradition of
Page 64 and 65: important provinces of Egypt and Sy
Page 66 and 67: Hill. These buildings were plain on
Page 68 and 69: his ‘betrayal’ would have to be
Page 70 and 71: included) is a collection of a very
Page 72 and 73: philosophy, not from scripture. It
Page 74 and 75: reinstated in his bishopric in 327,
Page 76 and 77: However, mainstream Christian teach
Page 78 and 79: somewhere between God and the mater
Page 80 and 81: AD 200. In Tertullian’s Trinity,
Page 82 and 83: discussions about the way in which
Page 84 and 85: Church was now firmly embedded with
Page 86 and 87: Creator. The incarnation of this fu
Page 88 and 89: of Megara, Simonides, and Pindar, a
Page 90 and 91: to the Nicenes, he kept his persona
Page 92 and 93: VITHE SWANSONG OF FREE SPEECH: THE
Page 94 and 95: Each year in April the grain ships
Page 96 and 97: about the issues openly - when Greg
Page 98 and 99: McGluckin suggests that Gregory may
Page 100 and 101: linking of soul to body, of intelle
Page 102 and 103: Jesus that suffers alongside a divi
Page 104 and 105: unaware that behind Maximus lay the
Page 106 and 107:
VIICONSTANTINOPLE, 381: THE IMPOSIT
Page 108 and 109:
have been used loosely of subordina
Page 110 and 111:
and Antioch without a bishop. The a
Page 112 and 113:
majority of the Nicene bishops by b
Page 114 and 115:
not yet consecrated) and Alexandria
Page 116 and 117:
381 and allowing the Church as a wh
Page 118 and 119:
his own and that he put in place as
Page 120 and 121:
his ideas on the Trinity, but then
Page 122 and 123:
was afraid of.In 379, Ambrose met t
Page 124 and 125:
Instead of the great council of the
Page 126 and 127:
Arcadius the status of an Augustus
Page 128 and 129:
faith, they issued a law on 23 Janu
Page 130 and 131:
Homoian faith as a price for his su
Page 132 and 133:
governor concerning the sacking of
Page 134 and 135:
spaces’ - in other words, to keep
Page 136 and 137:
Certainly Theodosius had become awa
Page 138 and 139:
restored into the 380s, but shortly
Page 140 and 141:
Serapis. Symmachus’ son married N
Page 142 and 143:
threatening Attila with death if he
Page 144 and 145:
XEPIPHANIUS’ WITCHHUNTDURING the
Page 146 and 147:
the use of allegory; he accepted th
Page 148 and 149:
come to Bethlehem to work on his tr
Page 150 and 151:
that in Christ I am as submissive t
Page 152 and 153:
boundaries of orthodoxy were consta
Page 154 and 155:
The use of the law to provide a res
Page 156 and 157:
followed. When, in 457, the emperor
Page 158 and 159:
Similar examples are recorded of th
Page 160 and 161:
carried out miracles and as human w
Page 162 and 163:
also in 435, it decreed ‘that Ire
Page 164 and 165:
imperial officials now drew up thei
Page 166 and 167:
Justinian also tried to find a solu
Page 168 and 169:
the west - but these could be treat
Page 170 and 171:
of Paul. In the Greek world, in the
Page 172 and 173:
can only be made righteous through
Page 174 and 175:
saved. Why God picks out anyone fro
Page 176 and 177:
trust in God and the authority of t
Page 178 and 179:
subordinate being to one who does t
Page 180 and 181:
was no Trinity, so little does the
Page 182 and 183:
writing at a time of political and
Page 184 and 185:
XIIICOLLAPSE IN THE CHRISTIAN WESTA
Page 186 and 187:
of a high standard. Excavations sho
Page 188 and 189:
power was the conversions of Arian
Page 190 and 191:
has perished from among us and no o
Page 192 and 193:
formula in his calculation of the
Page 194 and 195:
programme was one of renovatio, ‘
Page 196 and 197:
XIVFAITH, REASON AND THE TRINITYWIT
Page 198 and 199:
was the most prestigious - teachers
Page 200 and 201:
is no progress... This is the sure
Page 202 and 203:
reasoned defence of the Trinity and
Page 204 and 205:
the doctrine of the Trinity could b
Page 206 and 207:
CONCLUSIONWe must not see the fact
Page 208 and 209:
Torrance’s argument is presented
Page 210 and 211:
doctrine of the human and divine na
Page 212 and 213:
which the relationships between God
Page 214 and 215:
historical reality, that the Nicene
Page 216 and 217:
come again to judge the living and
Page 218 and 219:
NOTES1 For details, see Select Bibl
Page 220 and 221:
Chapter Two: The Divine Emperor1 I
Page 222 and 223:
Chapter Three: Free Speech in the C
Page 224 and 225:
Chapter Four: The Coming of the Chr
Page 226 and 227:
Chapter Five: True God from True Go
Page 228 and 229:
Chapter Six: The Swansong of Free S
Page 230 and 231:
Chapter Eight: Ambrose and the Poli
Page 232 and 233:
them back on to the bodies of the f
Page 234 and 235:
over Origen and warn their flocks o
Page 236 and 237:
Chapter Eleven: Enforcing the Law1
Page 238 and 239:
30 For the Council of Constantinopl
Page 240 and 241:
15 Gunton, p.39. It was argued by I
Page 242 and 243:
eastern monastery at this period, o
Page 244 and 245:
15 Quoted in Bainton, p.24.16 Israe
Page 246 and 247:
SELECT BIBLIOGRAPHYNote: the easies
Page 248 and 249:
Fossier, Robert (ed.), The Cambridg
Page 250 and 251:
Mackay, Christopher S., Ancient Rom
Page 252 and 253:
Philadelphia, 2002.Van Dam, Raymond
Page 254 and 255:
Ambrose, Bishop of Milan and afterl
Page 256 and 257:
democratic approach to knowledgeemp
Page 258 and 259:
BalkansbaptismBarnabas, epistle ofB
Page 260 and 261:
earlyoral traditionsand Septuagintt
Page 262 and 263:
called traditoresexemption from tax
Page 264 and 265:
Nicene Creed revisedresponsibility
Page 266 and 267:
continuing debatedebate on Jesus’
Page 268 and 269:
Evodius of UzalisExodus, Book offai
Page 270 and 271:
Godheaddistinctions withinnature of
Page 272 and 273:
Gregory the Great, Popeand Councils
Page 274 and 275:
Ibas, Bishop of EdessaIgnatius, Bis
Page 276 and 277:
proclaims Peter as rockrelationship
Page 278 and 279:
and Council of Ephesusmeets Attila
Page 280 and 281:
defeatexecutionNicene faithand Pris
Page 282 and 283:
Latin terminologylegal imposition (
Page 284 and 285:
papacy, exiled to Avignonpapal juri
Page 286 and 287:
Quadi tribeRahner, KarlRavenna, lib
Page 288 and 289:
taxation systemviolence in conquest
Page 290 and 291:
Sirmium creed (357)slavery, institu
Page 292 and 293:
as co-emperorCouncil of Constantino
Page 294 and 295:
works, burnedtheology, GreekTheophi
Page 296 and 297:
Valentinian II, co-EmperorAmbrose o
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A.D. 381 heretics, pagans, and the dawn of the monotheistic state ( PDFDrive )

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