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Causality
of the establishment / origins of christianity in the 3rd &
4th centuries (from
the 6-part 312 minute DVD "Rome: Power & Glory"):
...
Narrator: "From the beginning, Rome had built its empire
by conquest and force of arms. In the early days of empire there
had been real benefits to being defeated by Rome: citizenship, civil
rights, trade, and prosperity. But by the 3rd century A.D., those
benefits were evaporating: citizenship was giving way to slavery,
peace and prosperity replaced by shameless exploitation. ... Rome
was sitting on a powder keg of poverty and resentment."
"By
the middle of the 3rd century, there were an estimated 5 million
christians in the empire." ... "For centuries, Rome's power and
confidence had been unshakable. She had basked in the achievements
of her empire, convinced of the glory of her rule. But a cult from
Judea confronted Rome's arrogance, challenged her inequality, and
exposed her brutality. Rome, once a symbol of order and control,
was crumbling into chaos and confusion." ... "In 284 A.D. Diocletian
was crowned emperor. He had risen through the ranks of the army
to seize power in Rome. As befitted a military man, his vision for
the future was brutal and bold.
Diocletian
felt the key to unity lay in division. He split the Roman world
in two and agreed to share power with 3 other generals. ... In a
desperate bid for respect, Diocletian declared himself the son of
Jupiter. ... Now, even members of the imperial court were secretly
converting to christianity."
Professor
Andrew Wallace-Hadrill, Director, British School at Rome: "Diocletian
has said that the unity of the empire is not just a military matter
but it's a religious matter and if we can stamp out christianity,
then we will all be worshipping the same gods, so we'll all be the
same empire. And when that gamble fails to come off, you fail to
stamp out christianity, the martyrs produce more christians."
Narrator:
"On February 24th, 303 A.D., Diocletian initiated the most sweeping
persecution the christian church has ever faced. Churches were burned,
scriptures destroyed. Christians, sent to work in state mines, were
imprisoned and tortured for their beliefs. If they still refused
to sacrifice to Rome's gods, they were publicly tortured. Rome,
once a proud culture of tolerance, had become a repressive cult
of order."
Dr.
Christopher Kelly, Ancient Historian, Corpus Christi College, Cambridge:
"What we see in Diocletian's persecution of the christians, are
the only two Mediterranean-wide organizations, the Roman state and
the christian church, battling it out for supremacy."
Narrator:
"In 305 A.D., Diocletian retired to his summer palace, confident
that Rome had won. He was wrong." 'In
the blood of the martyrs, lie the seeds of the church.' - Tertullian
...
"On October 26th, 312 A.D., rival Roman armies massed outside the
city, waiting to do battle. At the head of one, was a young commander
named Constantine. He knew the next day a river of Roman blood would
flow. ... Constantine looked up into the sky. He saw a cross of
light that seem to burn itself into the heavens and above it, the
words 'IN
HOC SIGNO VINCES' (by this sign you will conquer).
He had crosses painted on the shields of his troops. The next day,
at the battle of the Milvian bridge, he smashed the armies of his
rival, Maxentius. No sooner was Constantine installed as emperor,
than he repealed many of Diocletian's reforms, including his ban
on christianity.
But
he went even further, declaring himself a christian. Romans were
stunned. Most thought christianity was just another weird eastern
sect. Suddenly, their new emperor had declared himself a cult member.
They thought they had another lunatic on their hands. They didn't.
Constantine cleverly saw how christianity could unify an empire
coming apart at the seams. Unlike Rome's pagan religion, it preached
discipline, obedience, and only one god."
...
Dr. Christopher Kelly, Ancient Historian, Corpus Christi College,
Cambridge: "The pagans were a little more doubtful about Constantine's
piety. One pagan story said that Constantine converted to christianity
because, having murdered his son, and had his wife suffocated in
a hot steam bath, he was desperately in search of a religion that
would give him forgiveness, and christianity was the only religion
that would do that, Constantine having been flatly refused forgiveness
by a number of pagan priests."
Narrator:
"Before he died, he had 13 coffins placed in his sepulchre, 12 for
the 12 apostles, 1 for himself, as if Constantine was the 13th apostle
of Christ, the one who finally brought his kingdom to earth. It
may have seemed like god's kingdom was coming to earth, but not
for long.
Christianity's
growth from a small persecuted sect to the dominant religion of
empire was a violent and bloody one. Even before Constantine died,
fine points of christian doctrine about the holy trinity were generating
furious debate and before long, bloodshed. In 366, a conference
of bishops left 137 corpses on the floor of a Roman basilica."
Professor
Keith Hopkins, Ancient Historian, King's College, Cambridge:
"The 4th century was marked by bitter divisions of belief between
bishops, and they fought with every weapon they could. They used
state forces to expel some people from the church. What's remarkable
about christianity is the degree to which christian leaders thought
that their religion could encompass only a single orthodoxy."
'The very persons
who ought to display brotherly love are violently estranged from
one another. It's disgraceful, positively sickening.' -Bishop Chrestus
Narrator:
"By the end of the century, there were over 60 official decrees
outlawing different heretical beliefs. Before long, there were attempts
to ban all non-christians from public office. Synagogues were burnt.
Pagans observed the growth of christianity with alarm. Their Rome
had been ruthless in punishing people's actions, but unconcerned
about their beliefs. That sort of tolerance was now a thing of the
past." 'Even
wild beasts are not as ferocious as these christians in their hatred
of one another.' -Amianus
...
"With Rome's passing, the west's long love affair with its memory
began. Paradoxically, it was the christian church that faithfully
kept the language and culture of its former persecutor alive."
Dr.
Christopher Kelly, Ancient Historian, Corpus Christi College, Cambridge:
"Simply walk into any church. In its architecture and design, you
have just walked into a Roman imperial palace. Sit down in that
church and perhaps listen to the church service, listen to the liturgy,
listen to the hymns. You are listening to Roman imperial court ceremonial.
The structure of the buildings of the christian church, its liturgy,
its choirs, its priests, its bishops, are taken, are imitative of
Roman imperial court ceremonial." ...
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