Religious Intolerance in the Later Roman Empire - Bad request ...

implication to the detriment of the Donatists. This apparent belief of Constantine
indicates the extent to which he had come to understand, and appreciate the value of,
the Donatists’ attitude and hence the inappropriateness of persecution as a viable
strategy.
Constantine went on to reserve the heights of moral impeccability to the
Catholics; regardless of what the Donatists might do Catholics would be triumphant
and would receive eternal life: “For what is it in this age to conquer in the name of
God, if not to bear with unmoved breast the lawless attacks of those who harry the
people of the law of peace?” 141 It appears that just as persecutions against the Donatists
proved to them that they were the true Church, so forbearance in the face of Donatist
attacks would prove the finality of the Catholic victory. It seems unlikely, however
that Constantine was referring to physical violence and mob attacks; such instability
would surely have been unacceptable in any part of the empire, especially a corn
producing area. The emperor is more likely to be referring to a metaphorical attack;
i.e. the Donatists were continually attacking the Catholic Church by their very
existence, because they denied to the Catholics any legitimacy, and assumed all
legitimacy to themselves and their Church. 142
Although this new policy was possibly just a convenient sentiment in the face of
the apparent insolubility of the Donatist dispute, it also articulated a powerful
ideological impetus which was issued in order to grant theological superiority to the
Catholics. In practice the new ‘Policy of Toleration’ said that the Catholics were
better than the Donatists because they tolerated the Donatists’ attacks and would not
respond to them; the Donatists were worse because not only did they (albeit
metaphorically) attack the Catholics, but they also denied their Church any legitimacy
whatsoever; such a denial was studiously avoided on the Catholic side: the Donatist
141 Opt. App. 9; Ziwsa 213; Edwards 197: quid est enim aliud in hoc saeculo in nom ine dei v in cere quam
inconditos hom inum im petus quietae legis populum lacessentes constanti pectore sustinere
142 Opt. 2.1 Optatus mentions that the Donatists believed themselves to be the true Church and that no
other church could be true: apud v os solos esse dixisti – ie the one Church of Christ.
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