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

CTh. 16.2.11 of 26 February 342 was Constantius’ first law on the church and
was addressed to Longinianus, Prefect of Egypt. 184 It concerned exemptions from
liturgies and referred to a lost law in which Constantius had affirmed such clerical
rights. The law indicated that clerics were being “disturbed in their life of perfection”
and as such this law also ordered that their sons “also who are not financially
responsible and who are found to be below the legal age shall sustain no
molestation.” 185 Presumably clerics’ sons were being obliged to full their fathers’
obligations, perhaps in deference to Constantine's CTh. 16.2.3, and this law exempted
them. Clearly, in this instance, the clerics obtained a better deal than they had from
Constantine.
CTh. 16.2.8 of 27 August 343 to the clergy may have slightly restricted the
generosity of the previous law. It said that clerics, and their slaves, were not required
to pay “new tax payments;” 186 they were also excused quartering soldiers and “for the
sake of a livelihood” 187 they were not to pay any business tax. Perhaps the first clause
on “new tax[es]” implies that existing taxes were still to be paid.
CTh. 16.2.9 of 11 April 349 to Severianus, proconsul of Achaea was preserved
as a short law giving clerics exemption from liturgies, but also stated that their sons
“must continue in the Church, if they are not held obligated to the municipal
councils.” 188
CTh 16.2.12 of 23 September 355 issued to Severus contained some derogatory
rhetoric. 189 This law granted bishops the right to be tried only by their fellow bishops
and not in the secular courts. The law referred to the reasons for introducing this
184 Longinianus in text, given by editors of PLRE as Longinus 1 PLRE 1.514
185 iam pridem san xim us, ut catholicae legis antistites et clerici, qui in totum nihil possident ac patrim onio
inutiles sunt, ad m unera curialia m inim e dev ocentur. v erum com perim us pro nulla utilitate publica
perfectione eos inquietari. ideoque praecipim us filios eorum , quicum que m inus idonei et intra legitim am
aetatem esse repperiuntur, nullam m olestiam sustinere
186 nov is collationibus obligabit
187 et si qui de v obis alim oniae causa n egotiationem exercere v olunt
188 filios tam en eorum , si curiis obnoxii non tenentur, in ecclesia persev erare; Severianus 3 PLRE 1.828 who
is otherwise unknown.
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