Christianity and Late Roman Empire

• Diocletian (245-316) divided Empire into West and East in 286

• Constantine (ca. 274-337) moved the capital in 330 from Rome (West) to Byzantium (East), renaming it Constantinople (today, Istanbul), a.k.a. the “New Rome”

• Rome falls in 476 (no more Roman emperors)• Byzantine Empire survives until 1453, when it is

overthrown by the Turks

Constantine

Council of Nicaea, 325

• Ecumenical (world-wide) meeting called by Constantine

• Purpose: to establish Christian doctrine

• One major conclusion: that Jesus is “of one substance with the Father” (see 192)

Christianity and Late Roman Empire

• Eastern Roman Emperor Justinian (481-565) reunited the Empire briefly, but unity did not last

• In the West, the Church (Roman Catholic) centered in Rome filled the power vacuum left by the decline of political authority

• In the East, emperors worked in alliance with the Eastern (Orthodox) Church

Christianity West & East

• Roman Catholic– Pope (Rome)

– Church authority in absence of stable government

– Uniform/universal– Latin– Legal theological

language

• Eastern Orthodox– Patriarch

(Constantinople)– Church authority

connected to government

– National churches– National languages– Mystical theological

language

Christianity West & East: Issues• Icons (Gr. images): representations of God,

Jesus, the Virgin, the saints.– Roman Catholic Church approved of icons– Some Orthodox Christians—iconoclasts—did

not approve, and they destroyed icons.– Orthodox churches generally have only two-

dimensional icons, not statues as in Roman Catholicism

• Marriage of Clergy: Orthodox: OK; Rome: No

Christianity: West and East

• 1054: Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches split

• John Paul II worked to bridge the divide between these two sides of Christendom

Roman Church: Petrine Succession

• Formulated by Leo the Great (c. 400-461), bishop of Rome

• The bishop of Rome, the pope (pontiff) is the successor of St. Peter, who was given authority by Jesus

Monasticism

• Ascetic lifestyle followed by certain Christians who wanted to devote themselves to their faith

• Monasticism originated in the East (Egypt), from Gr. monas meaning “alone”

Monasticism

• Monks practiced asceticism: self-control and self-denial

• Asceticism is from Gr. askein: athletic training or exercise. Monks were called the “desert athletes for Christ”

• Early monastics sought extremes of self-denial, even self-torture: self-caging, standing on one leg for hours, etc.

Monasticism: Causes

• Martyrdom and persecution in decline; some Christians looking for test of faith

• Church becoming more worldly and authoritative; some Christians wanted to escape to a simpler, severe religious practice

Communal Monasticism

• East: St. Basil (c. 329-379)– Stressed labor and prayer over self-torture: self-

laceration and prolonged fasts prohibited

• West: St. Benedict (c. 480-547)– Poverty, chastity, obedience (to abbot) – Liberal in some respects: allowed for wine

St. Benedict

St. Scholastica

Benedictines: Significance

• Missionaries: Benedictines converted England and most of Germany

• Manual labor: contrasted with classical ideal of pure contemplation

Benedictines: Significance

• Learning: Benedictines copied and studied classical texts, preserving them through the Middle Ages

• Fu Jen Catholic University was originally operated by the Benedictines when it was established in 1925

Famous Benedictines

• Dionysius Exiguus (Denis the Little, fl. 525), established the Western calendar used today

• Venerable Bede (673-735) wrote a monumental history of England

• Brother Nicholas Koss, Dean of College of Foreign Languages, Fu Jen University

Women and Men in the Church

• Paul wrote, “there is neither male nor female” after Baptism

• However, women were also associated with sexual temptation, with the flesh

• Sex in marriage for procreation, not for pleasure• Virginity became a requirement for the priesthood,

but it was not originally so– Some of Jesus’ disciples were married, it is thought

Women and Men in the Church

• Women were not allowed to hold authority in the Church or to be priests

• However, women could participate in monastic life as nuns– In Egypt, 20,000 women joined monasteries,

vs. only 10,000 men– In West, Benedictine nunneries became centers

of learning for women, an alternative to marriage

Latin Church Fathers: Jerome

• C. 347-420• Translated the Bible

into Latin from Hebrew (Old Testament) and Greek (New Testament): the Vulgate

Latin Church Fathers: Ambrose

• C. 339-397• Archbishop of Milan• Wrote On the Duties

of Ministers, influenced by Cicero’s On Duty

• He said God’s grace goes to some, but not others

Latin Church Fathers: Gregory the Great

• C. 540-604; became pope in 590

• Increased power of Roman Church

• Sent Benedictines to England (he had been one)

• Latin liturgy: Gregorian chant

Latin Church Fathers: Augustine

• 354-430• Bishop of Hippo,

North Africa• Confessions: struggle

between higher and lower nature

• City of God: heavenly city vs. earthly city

Significance of Augustine

• Founded the genre of spiritual autobiography: The Confessions (c. 400)

• Established the concept of linear history with a direction: City of God (413-426)

• Common theme: salvation through Christ gives meaning to history

Christian symbols

Sarcophagus, Theodorus, 6th c.

Gospel Writers: Matching

• Matthew

• Mark

• Luke

• John

• Lion

• Eagle

• Man

• Ox

Gospel Writers

• Matthew (man)

• Mark (lion)

• Luke (ox)

• John (eagle)

Mosaic, Santa Pudenziana, Rome, c. 401-417

Orans (Rome, catacombs,4th c.)

The Good Shepherd, c. 300 C.E.

Jesus: Good Shepherd (Rome, catacombs, 4th c.)

Jesus, The Good Shepherd, Ravenna, c. 425-450

Jesus: Majestic Roman Leader (Rome, catacombs, 4th c.)

Basilica: St. Paul’s Outside the Walls, Rome

St. Paul’s Outside the Walls, Rome

Basilica: St. Paul’s Outside the Walls, Rome

The Mass• Kyrie eleison (Lord have mercy)

• Gloria (Glory to God)

• Credo (Creed/statement of belief)

• Sanctus and Benedictus (Holy, Holy Holy; Blessed is He that cometh in the name of the Lord)

• Agnus Dei (Lamb of God)