McKenzie, Alasdair M. (1959) The reaction in pagan thought to christianity from Celsus to Julian ...

238 Pages·2011·14.34 MB·English

McKenzie, Alasdair M. (1959) The reaction in pagan thought to
christianity from Celsus to Julian. PhD thesis.

http://theses.gla.ac.uk/3069/

Copyright and moral rights for this thesis are retained by the author

A copy can be downloaded for personal non-commercial research or
study, without prior permission or charge

This thesis cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first
obtaining permission in writing from the Author

The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any
format or medium without the formal permission of the Author

When referring to this work, full bibliographic details including the
author, title, awarding institution and date of the thesis must be given

Glasgow Theses Service
http://theses.gla.ac.uk/
[email protected]
I
"THE REACTION IN PAGAN THOUGHT TO
CHRISTIANITY FROM CELSUS TO JULIAN"
CHAPTER 0NE
THE HISTORICAL BACKGROUND
The before is
period us one of alternating peace
the Between the 1781
and persecutZio Qth or church. years
363 D. Christian became the target
A.
and community
for both intellectual. That this
attacks physical and
is
from the
was no new crisis evident a study of
history the during the first two
of church centutbe of
throughout time
our era, which attacks were repeatedly
both Christian believersv Christian be-
made on and on
liefs!
in
Persecutions to have taken
are alleged4 place
the Nero, Domitian, Trajan, Hadrian, Marcus
reigns of
Aurelius, Septimus Severus, Maximin, Decius, Valerian,
Diocletius Maximian. Beyond dispute is the fact
and
that believers
many were martyred or suffered punish-
of
in the Empire. The final opp-
ment various parts
Christianity Julian the Apostate,
onent of was who also
his bloodless
qualifies as a persecutor, although was a
persecution.
However, lose the fact that in
Ve must not eight of
the first four the
centuries years of persecution were
outnumbered by the years of peace. M. Allard haa
calculated/
1. Date Celsus's Polemic.
of
Date Julian 's death.
2. of
the Celsus is the in
3. Although attac1 of earliest our
his from
possession, many of arguments are borrowed
Sarlier
debate.
anti-Christirin
is
4. The historical evidence not always conclusive, e. g
Domitian
the persecution of rests on the authority of
H. E. IV. 26; Tertullian,
Eusebius, Apol. 5.
BEST COPY
AVAILABLE
Variable
print quality
2
that, in the from Piero to Constantine,
period
calculated
129
the church endured yos: rs of persecution, nand enjoyed
1
when to this
1'0 of conparative pence. we add
ye:
+rs
to the 64 D.,
the of peace prior year A. an well as
years
freedom the house Constantine,
the penr: i of under of we
the
balrxnced the
more conception of pooition of
ranch a
in the first four A. P.
centuries
church
The from the
stein problem arising earlier persecutions
is thi. t the legal the Christian
status of coirunityo
of
legislation?
low did there exist a distinct -: nti-Christian
soon
legislation before
'Juchean/
cannot allow any anti-Christian
So Duchesne, Lou Origines Chretiennes 115)
Domitir. p.
n.
.
3. Allard is convinced that taro published an edict against
the Christians, the "Christi:
general gist of which was mni
It is this that Tertullian
non sint". edict calls
2,
"in; titutum Neronis. What is is that by the
num". certain
the
time that the Younger nlivy the of
sought advice
Enper-r Trnj=3, in 115 A T)., some form of legal policy
.
in the Christians.
was voVe against
the Christians trial
On charge were put on
what
It
unlikely
constitutes yet another problem. appears
that infringement the "lox
that the charge was an of
few,
the known
majestatin'", as cases are relatively and
none/
1907.
1. Ten Lectures the Martyrs, London
"rý. Allard, on
ul
Lecture III, 80 if. X. Allard diacovers 6 ye^ro of
24
in the first 66 in the
century, Second,
persecution
in the third, and 12 at the beginning of the fourth.
V.
:
2. Apology
©rtullinn
X. 96,97.
3. Tiny, Letters
-- ---ý..
3
to belief.
these have reference religious
any
none of
Trajan to ! 'ling, "non raunt";
conquirendi
the
Likewise,
advice
,f
that it by "coercitio";
the was magisterial
opinion
opposes
held.
Christians
that the were
Roman to
Nor it the traditional practice persecute
was
the
those believed in other gods. Rather was policy
who
tolerance towards new religious Sects, a
of marked
one
Livy
in
to? erance abandoned only exceptional cases.
to two incidents, in 428 B. C. in 213 B. C., when
refers and
taken
religious
severe measures were against separate
3
to
The the
appears
chief cause of resentment
groups.
by the
have been sects
certain outrageous practices
Bacchus
involved. 5o too, in 166 B. C., the devotees of
in
because barbarous
were outlawed of crimes perpetrated
that
Livy does any
their gatheringgs. not assert
nocturnal
this
introduced to
legislation persecution,
was effect
new
Other
law cases
that was violated.
nor an established
The
be
the
of precisely sane nature can cited.
Tiberius
towards the Druids,
intolerance Augustus of
of
the
Moloch in Itorth Africa, and
towards the worshippers
Isiaco from the
the
abh=wrrence
persecution of all stemmed
demoralising
immoral
by the secret practice of and
aroused
rites.
Both/
X. 97.
is
Pliny, Letters
Recht".
Religionsfrevel
t. eIP-Mo=sen. "Der nach ironischen
Chrictian-
38b-429; also f. ,
Vol-1 XIV,
Ui. Z. 1890 pp. c.
Vol. III
Ronan Empire". The Expositor, 1890
ity in the
ff* XXV 196 ff.
3. Livy, IV, 10,7
4
Bath Last1 and aigg2 see in the earlier casesof
for the
intolerance a significant precedent persecution
hero. The Christians
the Christians under were
of
i l to that the
of similar orr. conduct of
suspected
Bacchus, Moloch Isis. Tacituo3
or and
worshippers
that because hatred the
informs us of popular agpinst
Pero found it to the blame
Christians, convenient shift
for the fire Rome from himself to the Christians.
of
t the time, i insists the "flegitin"
sm e ncitun on of
Rome
that
the rhrictiano,
a staterent which confirms all
incensed the extravagances of the followers of
, ms at
Christ, Their secret nocturnrl meetings aroused
their barbarous involving
practices
were
suspicion:
the irnmor. lity in
uchariot,
cannibalism at and sexual
4
their Ater dnrk. By the time Tertullian5
services of
Christians.
to the
every public calamity was chargenbie
On this interpretation law
was
of events, no new
for Nero to the hostility
noceos ry satisfy public against
the lawless the Christians. However,
sect of mother
theory/
Jourzl. l
1. fiugh Last, "The Study the 'Peroecutiono'".
of
Town : ? 7.1137, ". 50-92.
of 3tudien,
The 0099
?. Charles 3igg, Origins Christianity, oxford
of
3.
Chapter
3. Tacitu5 Anna 1o: 44.
ß
.
40 in Octr 91 Juotin 1 1.10;
Fronto vine,
pol.
.
W; Epistles to Diognetum 5-
Tertullian pol.
,
"
in but
have our meals con on, not our wives.
e
5. in Niluo
"Tiberio Si accendit noeni. a, of non ascendit
Wear
in terra
ci caeluni 3tetit, si novit, of
area,
"
lueo, 'Chriatianoo leonen' atur.
of statin ad adcl
5
theory the first
may supplement our understanding of
the Christians. In terms Roman
persecutions against :f
law
sects and organisations were classified either as
"licits" "illicita". These
or organisations were called
by litates, factiones,
vario s names coliegia, soda.
-
Bt
C-7dyt Two things forbidden,
adoi-.
corpora, dt, or were
the first being the immoral illegal
sheltering of or
the being disaffection. Under
practices, second political
"collegium illicitum" tolerated
normal circumstances a was
by law, but if it troublesome, the be
proved sect could
If
dissolved. the the
officially members of collegium
disobeyed, the that death. If the
sentence was of
illicitum",
Christian church was classified as a "collegium
ban,
then in times of mere membership of the church was
to bring the death the
penalty, once general
sufficient
believed the Thus, it
charge was against sect. would
to Christians that they being
appear mnny were condemned
"for the
namd'only.
In the Hero, the the Christian
case of charge
against
body to h, been that The interesting
appears nve of arson.
thing is that ''lin(cid:30)y Christians to, death
when sentenced
in Bithynin, it was asmembers of an illegal society under
2
to Trajan into
ban. His the
enquiry concerns putting
'
the law, than the fact the lacy itself:
operation of rather of
The/
10
It this that TeTtallian,
was cnnoyed Apology.
2. Pliny,
Letters X! 96.
6
The Pliny to have been by "cognitio",
arrest3of appear
"coercitio". The Trajan
not answer of regarding
the Christians is important, it
procedure against as
l
the for the the
apparently net custom rest of century.
"non the Emperor
After stating conquirendi aunt",
departs from known legal
entirely all procedure.
"If denounces then, they they
someone and are convicted,
"must be this that he
punished; with reservation, who
"declares that he is Christian his
not a and shall prove
by
":: tater-nent by to
an act sacrificing our gods shRl1
-
-
"obtain by his repentance, if his life
pardon oven past
him
"has suspicious. "
rendered
Thus, the acquittal or condemnation has to depend on the
the Christians
reply of aloneii
The first this by
part of
edict was confirmed
Hadrian in the year 124 A. D. in to the
a rescript sent
Asia, MMinucius Fundanus, by the
of
Proconsul also
On
in
Emperor Antoninus rescripts to
various cities
2
Macedonia, Thessaly and Greece. The second part of
by Marcus in
Trajan's rescript was renewed Aurelius an
3
legate
interview the the Lyons.
with of province of
in
In 197 Tertullian protests against this same procedure
4
Thus to the
the
his Apology. end of second century
to
jurisprudence was in practice based on Trajan's reply
a
Pliny.
Dior
1. Letters X. 97.
Pliny
-
2. Excerpt from the Apology Lielito, Eus, H. E. IV, 26.
of
3. Justin.
Apo1s.
V.
4. Tertullifsn Apol.
7
-.
,,,
No did the judge
witnesses were called, nor make any
1
effort
to the
extort a confession, rather reverse.
with the beginning the 3rd A. D.
of century a change
in the legislation the Christians. The
comes against
tests laid down by Trajan (i. to
came an e. sacrificing
by the the Emperor) in
gods or swearing genius of were
persecution
but tended to
use, now each new outburst of
depend the by
on publication of new and separate edicts
the Emperor the day. A formal declaration
of of war now
fresh the Christian
proclaims each attack on church.
Septimus Severus forbade by
either edict or rescript
from becoming Christian. The is
any pagan a motive more
in this
clearly seen new mode of persecution. Sevez'us
the
in Christianity the
alarmed at rapid spread of and
of the church, he back by
propaganda and strikes aiming at
2
two the the The
converters
classes, and converted*
Carthage Alexandria both through the
church at and suffered
this One
but the
operation of edict. cannot notice change
in the
from the time
of emphasis motives of persecution of
the founded
Nero, when attack wan on groundless
to the time Severtus, the the
of when growth of
suspicions,
fear
Christian community struck into the Emperor. The
Church becoming "imperium in imperio". Loyalty
an
was
to the to the Emperor loom larger
national gods and even
in future Thus Decius, in the 250 D.,
A.
edicts. year
launched/
1. In trials Pole Justin, Martyrs Lyons,
of carp,
at
ptolemaeus, Apollonius the Martyrs Seillium
and of
this laid down by Trajan followed.
method
was
2. Spartiaa? ita Sevei'z, 17. Dui. HE. VI. 1-4.
Sý
launched the thorough
most persecution yet experienced
by the His the
church. was policy of extermination.
His Edict demanded that Christians be
all must summoned
on a stipulated date to milke public sacrifice to the
those to the terms the
gods, and who conf. ýrmed of edict
to be "libellus"; ` those
wore given a who refused would
death:: It be that Decius
suffer exile or must noticed
did the death
not apply penalty.
The followed this legal
other persecutions
same
Valerius in his two Edicts
procedure.
of persecution
sought to strike a blow ßt the heads of Christian
(257 )2
D.
A. Likewise he to
communities. sought close
the to Christian
places of worship atteched cemeteries.
In his Edict of 258 A. D. he his to the
extended attack
higher to the lower The
classes and also
classes.
Knights
Senators the
and either worshipped gods or
faced death; the the Imperial household
slaves of
denied Christ lost
their
or
either property and rank.
So too in the fourth by
century persecution was
In the first
fewer than
edict only. eight years no
the
six persecuting edicts appeared, result of which
the faithful to
crop of martyrs,
was another as refused
the
to
sacrifice pagan gods. A new aspect of the
is in the Edict 303 D. With the
persecution seen of A.
erection of many church buildings in bath East West
and
there into the the instructions
enters edicts of period,
to/
controversy
1. It this that later gave rise to the sevar°
was
Church's toward the "Libellatici"
the
attitude
over
VIZ, 11- 6-11.
E.
2. : mss. ;
.