The roman empire - Marshall Community · PDF fileRoman Republic, and the birth of the Roman Empire. ... Triumvirate. English Spelling of Greek Letter Word Translation Iota Iesous Jesus

The roman empire Mr. Cline

History

Marshall High School

* Augustus: A Man of Many Names • Meet Imperator Caesar Divi Filius Augustus, Pater Patriae. You can call him Augustus.

• Without question, Augustus is one of the most important people in history. So, who

is this Roman fellow with the unwieldy name? • Well, we can learn a lot about him and about the history of Rome just by looking at

that name. Augustus' name tells the story of his rise to power, the collapse of the Roman Republic, and the birth of the Roman Empire.

• Julius Caesar

• Augustus did not always have such a fancy name. When he was born in 63 BCE,

his name was Gaius Octavius.

• Octavius was just another young man of one of the many noble families in Rome, and an impoverished one at that.

• Then, Gaius Octavius' grand-uncle, Gaius Julius Caesar, who we know as Caesar, began his meteoric rise to power.

• Caesar took over the Roman Republic and set himself up at its head, making

himself incredibly wealthy and powerful.

English Spelling of Greek Letter

Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

* Augustus: A Man of Many Names

• Caesar adopted his grand-nephew, Gaius Octavius, as his sole heir, then got assassinated. Hoping to inherit the fame, property and popularity of Caesar, Gaius Octavius took his uncle's name and became Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus.

• Since that is a mouthful, let us refer to him as Octavian for the time being. • Mark Antony

• Octavian was not the only fellow hoping to succeed Caesar.

• When Octavian arrived in Rome after his uncle's assassination, he found

Caesar's right hand man, Mark Antony, making his own bid for power.

• Mark Antony held the city in tyranny and had incited the masses against Caesar's assassins in the Senate, driving them from Rome.

• Much of Mark Antony's power and authority derived from his association with Caesar.

• Yet with Caesar's heir Octavian at hand, the public favor began to slip from Antony.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

* Augustus: A Man of Many Names • Mark Antony

• The common people saw the son of Caesar; the Senate saw a young man they

could manipulate to get rid of Mark Antony.

• Realizing his dire situation, Antony fled to Gaul.

• Yet the Senate had gotten more than they had bargained for in Octavian. • Using the menace of Mark Antony as a goad, Octavian bullied the

frightened Senate into granting him extraordinary powers for a man of his age.

• He was made a senator and granted the same powers as the consuls. More importantly, he was given legal control over the armies of Rome.

• This was a wise choice by the Senate, since much of the Roman army

revered Caesar and might have defected to Antony without Caesar's heir there, Octavian, to hold them to the Senate.

• With the full backing of the Roman Senate, Octavian and the two consuls set out for Gaul.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

* Augustus: A Man of Many Names • Mark Antony

• They beat the heck out of Antony at Mutina, forcing the bedraggled

general to retreat. In the fighting, both consuls died, leaving all the glory and military command to Octavian.

• The Second Triumvirate

• If Octavian had hoped for a hero's welcome upon returning to Rome, he was

sorely disappointed. • The Senate had grown wary of the young Octavian and were reluctant to

grant him any more glory or power than they could avoid.

• The Senate had never been a fan of Caesar in the first place, nor of his heir.

• They had used Octavian to keep Antony occupied while they waited for Caesar's assassins, the fugitive senators, to return to Rome with an army.

• Realizing the situation, Octavian allied himself with Antony and another of

Caesar's supporters named Lepidus. The three formed the Second Triumvirate.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

* Augustus: A Man of Many Names • The Second Triumvirate

• Working together, these three men killed off their political rivals and seized

their property in a series of political murders, known as proscriptions.

• This removed the last obstacles to absolute power and made the three very wealthy.

• In 42 BC, the Triumvirate strong armed the Senate into naming Julius Caesar a

god, Divus Julius, after which point, Octavian was able to add the title Divi Filius, the son of a god, to his already long name.

• While Octavian and Antony had been fighting among themselves in the West,

Caesar's assassins had been amassing power in the East. • A conflict was inevitable, and in 42 BC, the two sides clashed at the Battle

of Phillipi. Caesar's assassins, the last champions of the Republic, were completely defeated, and Brutus, who had betrayed Caesar, took his own life.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

* Augustus: A Man of Many Names • The Second Triumvirate

• A few years later in 36 BC, the Triumvirate destroyed the fleet of Pompey

Magnus' son, Sextus Pompeius, wiping out the last of those who had opposed Caesar.

• Imperator

• With their common enemy destroyed, the members of the Triumvirate turned

against one another. • Lepidus attempted to claim Sicily, but his troops abandoned him, and he

was exiled.

• But the biggest rivals in this conflict were Octavian and Antony, who soon turned against one another.

• Antony was far more ambitious than Lepidus; he wanted the entire

eastern Empire.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

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Sigma Soter Savior

* Augustus: A Man of Many Names • Imperator

• He was setting himself up as an eastern despot and sought to rule all

of the Empire from Egypt, with his queen Cleopatra, or at least that's what Octavian tried to convince the Romans.

• It might have even been true. Eventually this conflict came to a head, and in 31 BC, the two sides met in a naval battle at Actium, in which Antony and Cleopatra's fleet was utterly destroyed.

• After suffering another defeat the next year at Alexandria, the two

committed suicide together, inspiring poets and playwrights through the ages.

• Octavian had now defeated all his enemies. The Romans had a name for a

victorious general: Imperator. • Octavian took this title and made it something more. He made it his name,

and by doing so, he changed its meaning.

• Though imperator continued to hold implications of military victory, by the time Octavian was finished, all military victories belonged to him.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

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* Augustus: A Man of Many Names • Imperator

• Imperator became the title of the loftiest position that man has ever

achieved: the absolute ruler, the king of kings, the emperor. • Augustus

• Though Octavian held the Empire in his hand, he knew that an iron fist could

not hold him in power forever. • Rather than seizing authority and becoming a dictator, he allowed many of

the offices of the Republic to remain.

• Octavian refused to be named dictator or even consul for life.

• Instead, he just made sure he held enough important positions to get him what he wanted.

• By maintaining the illusion of the Republic, Octavian gave his reign legitimacy.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

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Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

* Augustus: A Man of Many Names • Augustus

• That being said, the Senate still laid on the titles.

• They named Octavian proconsul: the governor of a province;

• they called him tribune: by which they meant he was a defender of the

people;

• they hailed him as princeps: the first among equals; and finally,

• they gave him the title by which we know him today, Augustus: which, in Latin, means dignified, majestic, sacred, venerable, and worthy of honor.

• Pater Patriae: Father of the Nation

• Yet even this was not enough. Augustus knew that all of the titles in the world

could not protect him if the people turned against him. And so he attempted to shore up his legitimacy in a number of other routes. • He enacted laws to restore the ancient morality and customs of Rome,

despite the fact that his very authority defied those laws and customs.


Word Translation

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* Augustus: A Man of Many Names • Pater Patriae: Father of the Nation

• To hide this hypocrisy, Augustus started an aggressive propaganda

campaign, headed by his friend and adviser Maecenas. • Maecenas brought several poets to the Emperor's cause,

including the famous Virgil, who wrote the Aeneid, an epic poem for the Roman people.

• Augustus used Virgil's Aeneid to weave himself and his agenda into the pages of Roman history.

• Augustus also built a vast number of public works and monuments,

transforming the city of Rome to such an extent that upon his death he could say, 'I found Rome a city of brick and left it clothed in marble.'

• These accomplishments so endeared Augustus to the Roman people that in 2 BCE, they named Augustus Pater Patriae, Father of the Nation.


Word Translation

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Imperator Caesar Divi Filius Augustus Gaius Octavius, Pater Patriae

* Introduction to the Julio-Claudian Dynasty • In this lesson, we're going to tackle the Julio-Claudian Dynasty, the first imperial

dynasty of the Roman Empire. • In power from 27 BC to 68 AD, the dynasty included the reigns of Augustus,

Tiberius, Caligula, Claudius, and Nero.

• Although many of its members seemed a bit nuts, the Julio-Claudian Dynasty is arguably the most famous dynasty of the Empire.

• As we go through the details of this dynasty, it may just seem like a really violent soap opera. Men came to power through forced marriage, divorce, assassination, and murder.

• While discussing the twists and turns that make this dynasty infamous, there

are three main points I'd like us to grasp. • First, the Julio-Claudian Dynasty was the first dynasty to rule the Roman

Empire.

• Second, Augustus was its first emperor and the only Julio-Claudian not to face a violent death.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

* Introduction to the Julio-Claudian Dynasty

• Last, none of the emperors of the dynasty were succeeded by their biological sons, or in other words, their direct male heir.

• Keeping these three things in mind, let's get to our Julio-Claudian emperors. • Augustus

• As previously stated, Augustus kicked off the Julio-Claudian Dynasty.

• From the Roman family group, Julia, he gives us the Julio part of the Julio-

Claudian name. Although he is remembered by history as Augustus, his actual name was Octavian.

• Furthermore, he was the adopted son and actual great nephew of the famous Julius Caesar.

• After the assassination of Julius Caesar, and after winning an infamous battle with the forces of Mark Antony and Cleopatra, the Roman senate declared Octavian the guy in charge, giving him the name Augustus, meaning great, venerable, or revered. This occurred in the year 27 BC.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

* Introduction to the Julio-Claudian Dynasty • Augustus

• As previously stated, Augustus kicked off the Julio-Claudian Dynasty.

• Ironically, Augustus never declared himself emperor, but instead called

himself the First Citizen (Princeps).

• However, due to the power and control he wielded, history and tradition have awarded him the title of the first Roman emperor.

• During his reign, he definitely lived up to this title, having complete authority over every Roman colony.

• This power enabled him to restore peace within the Empire, beginning the famous Pax Romana, or Roman Peace. • Under this peace, the agricultural production, economy, and arts of

the Empire boomed, and in 2 BC Augustus was declared Pater Patriae, the father of his country.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

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Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

* Introduction to the Julio-Claudian Dynasty • Tiberius

• Augustus illustrious reign came to an end with his natural, non-violent death in

the year 14 AD.

• Upon his death, Tiberius, from the Roman family group, Claudia, took the throne. Hence the name, Julio-Claudian Dynasty.

• Now, let's remember none of the Julio-Claudian emperors were succeeded by

their biological sons. In fact, Tiberius was the son of Augustus' wife from her first marriage. • He was, what we would call, Augustus' step-son.

• In order to make the family connection even stronger, and in perfect soap

opera style, Augustus forced Tiberius to divorce his wife, and then take the hand of his, Augustus', daughter in marriage.

• Unlike his predecessor, Tiberius was a soldier who never really wanted to be an

emperor.


Word Translation

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• Not one for enjoying the pomp and circumstance of Rome, he spent a large

part of his reign on the island of Capri.

• While there, he abandoned most of his imperial duties to his advisor, Sejanus. • Unfortunately, Sejanus decided to have an affair with the wife of

Tiberius' son.

• This didn't go over to well with Tiberius, and after a series of very dramatic events, Sejanus was brutally executed.

• History tells us Tiberius became more and more paranoid as he aged.

• His later years were filled with the trial and executions of those he

even suspected of treason.

• As his paranoia grew, he remained on the island of Capri.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

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Sigma Soter Savior


• Having reached their fill of his paranoia and murderous reign, Tiberius

was assassinated by a member of his praetorian guard, or body guards, in the year 37 AD.

• With this violent death of the second Julio-Claudian emperor, Caligula took the throne.

• Caligula and Claudius

• Caligula was the adopted, not biological, son of Tiberius. In actuality, he was his

nephew, the son of his deceased brother Germanicus. • Germaincus had been a great general, beloved by his troops, and he had

taken his young son on campaign with him, and even provided him with a miniature military uniform, right down to some “little boots,” which is what Caligula means in Latin, little boots.

• Although they weren't truly father and son, it could be said Caligula was a chip

off the old Tiberius block.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

* Introduction to the Julio-Claudian Dynasty • Caligula and Claudius

• Like his adopted dad, Caligula executed many of his subjects for treason.

• Taking things a step further, he murdered his own adopted son, pillaged the

treasuries of Rome, and is generally remembered as being a madman.

• Whether all the stories of his violent reign are true, his unpopularity did lead to his assassination in the year 41 AD, making him the second Julio-Claudian emperor to die a violent death.

• This brings us to Claudius, the next guy to claim the throne.

• Turning things a bit up-side down, Claudius was actually the uncle of his predecessor, Caligula.

• Making him stand out from his fellow Julio-Claudians, Claudius was chosen by the army, not a ruling emperor or the senate.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

* Introduction to the Julio-Claudian Dynasty • Caligula and Claudius

• Although the army actually chose him because they thought he would be

weak and easy to control, as he was lame in one leg, and never considered intelligent, nor athletic or warrior like by the other members of his family, including his mother and step father, Claudius ended up being rather competent. • He waged several military campaigns and is credited for increasing the

territory of the Roman Empire.

• He is most famous for his conquering of Britain in the year 43 AD.

• Although Claudius may have been an excellent military leader, he was a very poor judge of character. • In 54 AD he was murdered by his wife, who also happened to be his

niece, and her son Nero, a son from another man, we might add, took the throne.

• Thus, we have another Julio-Claudian dying a violent death and someone not his son taking the throne.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

* Introduction to the Julio-Claudian Dynasty • Nero

• Unfortunately for the Julio-Claudian Dynasty, Nero takes the cake as one of the

most infamous emperors of Rome.

• Although it has never been proven, he is accused of starting the 64 AD Great Fire of Rome. • Making him even more notorious, history tells us he blamed the Christians

for the fire and began persecuting them en masse.

• Add to this, he is credited with the murder of his mom (yes, the same woman who poisoned her husband so he could have the throne), his first wife, and his stepbrother, and you can see why Rome reached their fill of him by 68 AD.

• Facing a sentence of death from the Roman senate, Nero committed suicide.

• Dying with no heir in place, his suicide brought the final violent death to the Julio-Claudian Dynasty.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

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* Year of the Four Emperors • Other than Caesar Augustus, the most famous emperors of Rome are arguably the

Flavian Emperors.

• These famous Flavians, Vespasian and his two sons, Titus and Domitian, reigned during some of Rome's greatest triumphs and tragedies.

• Before we get to the details of these famous Flavians, let's see how they came to power in the year known to history as the Year of the Four Emperors.

• When Emperor Nero was deposed without an heir in the year 68 AD, the

position of emperor was up for grabs.

• What ensued was a bloody year in which four men claimed, then tried to hold, the crown.

• The first man to begin the Year of the Four Emperors was Galba. • As a respected general, Galba seemed to have what it took to be emperor.

• Unfortunately, he was old, and when he chose his heir, a man named Otho

challenged this decision.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

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Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

* Year of the Four Emperors

• When a supporter of Otho assassinated Galba, Otho took the throne as the year's second emperor.

• Sadly for Otho, he lacked the military might to hold the throne.

• When Vitellius, another military man, challenged the throne, Otho actually

committed suicide, handing the crown to Vitellius, the year's third emperor.

• Ironically, Vitellius proved to be as weak as his predecessor. Within a very short time, his generals had more power than he did, and Vitellius was actually dragged into the streets and murdered.

* Vespasian as Victor

• Enter Titus Flavius Vespasianus, a conquering general, who claimed the throne as

the year's fourth and final emperor. • Known to history as Vespasian, he took and held the crown, beginning the

Flavian Dynasty of emperors.

• Since Vespasian sort of won the Year of the Four Emperors, we're giving him the nickname, Vespasian the Victor.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

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* Year of the Four Emperors

• This is especially fitting since he restored stability to the Empire after a year of chaos.

• As the victor, he also suppressed several rebellions throughout the Empire, the most famous being the Jewish rebellion, centered in Judea.

• Adding to these victories, Vespasian won the heart of Rome by creating a well-

oiled propaganda machine. • For example, when his son, Titus, sacked Jerusalem, Vespasian organized

an extravagant ceremony, or triumph, in which they showed off their spoils of war.

• Not content with only showing off the spoils of war, Vespasian won public opinion by beginning the construction of one of Rome's greatest treasures, the Colosseum, known to ancient Rome as the Flavian Amphitheatre.

• Winning the game of public opinion, Vespasian ruled until his death by illness, not assassination, in the year 79 AD.

• Upon his death, his eldest son, Titus, took his crown.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

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* The Tragedies of Titus • As emperor, Titus held great promise.

• After all, it was he who commanded the Roman legions that conquered

Jerusalem.

• It was he who marched through Rome in victorious triumph. • One of Rome's greatest monuments, the Arch of Titus, commemorates his fame.

• Despite this illustrious resume, Titus' reign was short. It was also filled with some of

Rome's greatest tragedies.

• For this reason, we'll remember him as Titus the Tragic.

• It was within Titus' reign that Mt. Vesuvius erupted, burying the cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum under volcanic ash.

• Adding to this tragedy, a fire ravaged Rome in the year 80 AD.

• As if this wasn't enough to earn him the nickname Titus the Tragic, his reign also saw the outbreak of the plague within the Empire.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

* The Tragedies of Titus

• On top of all these ill-fated events, Titus himself succumbed to illness, dying in 81 AD.

* Domitian Dominates

• Upon the tragic death of Titus, the third and last Flavian emperor took the throne.

• His name was Domitian, son of Vespasian and younger brother of Titus.

• Because of Domitian's overbearing personality, and his propensity to see himself as a

god, we'll be remembering him as Domitian the Domineering. • As a domineering emperor, this famous Flavian considered himself a god.

• While previous emperors at least referred to themselves as 'first citizens' or 'first

among equals,' Domitian preferred to be called 'master and god.'

• Seeing himself in this light, Domitian usually ignored the desires of the Roman senate and aristocracy.

• He dealt cruelly with his critics, seizing their property, and ordering their deaths.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

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Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

* Domitian Dominates

• He also levied heavy taxes, and spent a great deal of money staging extravagant games and building monument after monument in his family's honor.

• Eventually, the aristocracy of Rome reached their fill of Domitian and his

domineering ways.

• In 96 AD, Domitian was assassinated.

• Since he died without a living heir, the famous Flavian Dynasty died with him. * Introduction to Five Good Emperors

• When Emperor Domitian was assassinated without a living heir in the year 96 AD,

the Roman Senate quickly and wisely chose a man to take his place.

• This man's name was Nerva, and lucky for the Empire, this choice was a good one.

• Nerva's reign began the Nervan-Antonine Dynasty, which included what history calls the Five Good Emperors.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

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Ypsilon Uios Son

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* Introduction to Five Good Emperors • In order of their reign, they were:

• Nerva,

• Trajan,

• Hadrian,

• Antoninus Pius,

• And, last but certainly not least, Marcus Aurelius.

• As we discuss these emperors, we'll highlight the details of each reign.

• In doing this, there are two main points I'd like you to grasp.

• First, the Five Good Emperors brought relative peace, stability, and prosperity to

Rome. • Since they were preceded, then followed by, some pretty ruthless

characters, this makes them stand out in the pages of Roman history.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

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Ypsilon Uios Son

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* Introduction to Five Good Emperors

• Second, the reign of the Five Good Emperors was characterized by the adopting of one's heir to the throne, rather than the crown simply going to a biological son or whoever was strong enough to take it. • In other words, the emperor passed his crown on to the man he felt was

the most worthy to wear it, regardless of blood ties.

• Making this transition even more seamless, the adopted son actually shared in the imperial duties while his adopted father still lived.

• Now, onto our Five Good Emperors.

• Nerva and Trajan

• As already stated, Nerva began the reign of the Five Good Emperors in 96 AD.

• Unlike many emperors, he is remembered in history as a rather honorable guy. • He lessened the strain of taxation on his people and worked to bring back

into the fold of Rome those who had been mistreated and exiled by his predecessor, Domitian.


Word Translation

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• Since Nerva was up there in age when he took the crown, his reign was short lived.

• However, before he died, he adopted Trajan as his heir, thus beginning the custom of adoption to the throne.

• Trajan ruled as a soldier and went to work expanding the boundaries of the

empire. • He annexed several areas, and grew the empire larger than ever before.

• Adding to this, he oversaw many building programs within Rome, including

the renovation of the Circus Maximus and the enlargement of the Forum.

• Today, Trajan's Column still stands in honor of his reign.

• Before Trajan died, he adopted Hadrian as heir.

• Hadrian and Pius

• Unlike Trajan, Hadrian did not work to extend the boundaries of the empire.


Word Translation

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• On the contrary, he is most famous for the wall he built in order to plant them firmly in place. • Although the most famous of these is Hadrian's Wall in Britain, several

others were constructed throughout the empire.

• Apart from the walls he built, Hadrian is also remembered for the Second Jewish War. • In this conflict, his reign squelched a Jewish rebellion in Judea,

destroying the city of Jerusalem, its population, and its surrounding villages.

• And, with this we come to his successor, Antoninus Pius. • Antoninus Pius reigned from 138 AD to 161 AD.

• Although his reign was long, we know very little about the man himself.

• Perhaps the least famous of the Five Good Emperors, history tells us he was

actually very well-liked by the subjects he ruled.


Word Translation

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• Unlike his predecessors, Pius was content to stay within the borders of Italy, ruling the Empire during one of its most peaceful eras.

• Perhaps his most memorable accomplishment is his adoption of Marcus Aurelius as heir and his odd choice to give Aurelius a co-heir named Lucius Verus.

• Aurelius and Verus

• Coming to the throne in 161 AD, Aurelius and Verus shared the title of emperor.

• Although Aurelius never sought to rob Verus of honor or power, Verus died from

illness less than a decade into their reign.

• With his early death, Verus has been overshadowed by Aurelius.

• In fact, he is not even included as one of the Five Good Emperors.

• With this we turn attention to Marcus Aurelius, arguably the most famous of the Five Good Emperors.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

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Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

* Introduction to Five Good Emperors • Aurelius and Verus

• Ironically, Marcus Aurelius is not usually remembered for military

accomplishment or political advancement.

• Instead he's remembered for his philosophical beliefs. • As a student of Stoicism, Aurelius held to the belief that any

destructive emotions (for example jealousy, rage, fear) come from an error in a person's judgment. • Accordingly, through exercising self-control, a wise man can free

himself of such emotions, thus reaching moral perfection.

• This belief system ruled Aurelius' life and left us with his famous writings known simply as his Meditations.

• In this collection, Marcus Aurelius gives a glimpse into the man he was.

• Here are just a few of his most famous meditations.


Word Translation

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* Introduction to Five Good Emperors • Aurelius and Verus

• You have power over your mind - not outside events. Realize

this, and you will find strength.

• Everything we hear is an opinion, not a fact. Everything we see is a perspective, not the truth.

• And perhaps my favorite: Waste no more time arguing

about what a good man should be. Be one. * Commodus

• With these quotes, we come to the end of our Five Good Emperors, but

unfortunately, not the end of the Nervan-Antonine Dynasty.

• There is one more emperor we must mention, and he is known to history as Commodus. He is definitely not remembered as good.

• Commodus took the throne as the actual biological son of Marcus Aurelius in

the year 180 AD.


Word Translation

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* Commodus

• Unlike his father and the other Five Good Emperors, Commodus had no compunction toward self-control or goodness.

• Upon taking the throne, he began executing anyone he felt was a threat to his power.

• He also terrorized the Senate, robbing them of their possessions in order to fill his own pockets.

• Remembered by history as being rather nuts, he believed himself to be the

embodiment of the god Hercules.

• Not only did he believe this, he forced those around him to address him as such.

• After putting up with his craziness for over a decade, Rome reached its fill of the Emperor Commodus.

• He was assassinated in the year 192 AD.

• This assassination would make him the only emperor of the Nervan-Antonine Dynasty to meet a violent death. It would also spell the end of the dynasty.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

* Septimius and the Severan Dynasty • Once upon a time, around the year 200 AD, in a land far, far away (the Roman Empire

to be exact), there lived the Severan Emperors, a family who ruled Rome and its vast lands.

• Although history tells us they were a very violent people, and probably a bit off their rockers, they brought military and social reform to Rome.

• Let's start with the first Severan emperor who gave the dynasty its name, Septimius

Severus.

• To make it easier to remember what he did, we'll call him 'Septimius the Soldier.' • Septimius, our soldier Severan, came to power in the year 193 AD, also known

as the Year of Five Emperors, in which five different rich guys fought for the title of Emperor.

• Being rather brutal, and more than willing to kill for power, Septimius the

Soldier was the last guy standing in this fight.

• Upon becoming emperor, he reformed the military. Hence our name, Septimius the Soldier.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

* Septimius and the Severan Dynasty

• To stabilize his lands, Septimius the Soldier disbanded the very large and very corrupt Praetorian Guard, or the emperor's elite bodyguards.

• He was also the first emperor to create a standing, or permanent, army within Italy. • Not only did this keep the homeland safe, it also made Septimius very

formidable.

• Anytime there was a threat to his power, he had an army ready and waiting!

• In order to keep the soldiers on his side, he increased their pay and benefits.

• Working to keep the citizenry content, he put on games, supplied grain, and even forgave the debts of his powerful friends.

• Although all these actions kept him safe from assassination, it added a huge

financial burden to the empire. This burden was so large, many historians actually blame his policies for the eventual fall of Rome.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

* Septimius and the Severan Dynasty

• Yes, his fiscal policies may have been a bit reckless, but he did establish and maintain a strong Roman military.

• Geta & Caracalla

• After the peaceful death of Septimius the Soldier, his sons, Caracalla and Geta,

were co-emperors of Rome. • Not really keen on the idea of sharing power, Caracalla arranged for the

murder of his brother and took outright control of the Empire.

• Since Caracalla is most remembered for his Antonine Constitution, in which he granted citizenship to every free person in the Roman Empire, we'll call him 'Caracalla the Citizen'.

• Although granting citizenship like this improved the lives of many, he was also cruel and punishing. • As we already learned, he had no problem killing family members.

However, he was also known for burying his victims alive and massacring at will.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

* Septimius and the Severan Dynasty • Geta & Caracalla

• For example, during a visit to Egypt he was mocked while in

Alexandria.

• He retaliated by ordering a massacre of the city's youth.

• All in all Caracalla the Citizen wasn't really a guy you'd like to see in control of things, but in his defense, he did grant citizenship to every free person within the empire.

• Macrinus & Elagabalus

• Having had enough of Caracalla the Citizen, one of his relatives, Macrinus,

murdered him and claimed the title of emperor.

• For this deed, we'll call him 'Macrinus the Murderer'.

• History really doesn't record a lot about Macrinus the Murderer. For the most part, he stayed out of Rome and was assassinated within a year by another power hungry Severan known to history as Elagabalus.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

* Septimius and the Severan Dynasty • Macrinus & Elagabalus

• Unfortunately for Rome, Elagabalus was a young teenager when he became

emperor.

• Like lots of teenagers, he had more interest in partying than ruling.

• For this reason, history says very little about his accomplishments. Instead, he's remembered, for lack of a better term, as being quite the pervert. • He enjoyed pretending to be a female prostitute, marrying both men and

women, forcing those around him to participate in sexual acts, and generally doing things not suitable to print.

• To remember Elagabalus, we'll simply call him 'Elagabalus the Icky.'

• Being fed up with his antics, Elagabalus the Icky's bodyguards murdered him, and his very young cousin, Severus Alexander, was put on the throne.

• Upon taking the throne, Severus's rule was dominated by his mom. For this, we give him the name, 'Severus the Sissy'.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

* Septimius and the Severan Dynasty • Severus & His Mom

• Fortunately for Rome, Alexander Severus' mom, Julia Avita Mamaea, wasn't all

bad, and his rule was marked by peace.

• Although she was a rather jealous woman who got rid of anyone who challenged her control, she did make sure Severus the Sissy was surrounded by wise council.

• She was also very fiscally strict and imposed cuts to the military and its spending.

• This, along with the fact that Severus and his mom tried to bribe enemies rather than fight them, made the military mutiny.

• Like most of the other Severans, Alexander Severus and his mom were assassinated in the year 235 AD.

• With the death of Severus the Sissy, the reign of the Severan Dynasty came to an end, and history said goodbye to one of Rome's most infamous dynasties.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

* Introduction to the Crisis • The 3rd Century Crisis was a period in which the Roman Empire came very close to

collapsing.

• It was a time when the position of emperor lost its power, and, to put it in modern-day terms, the inmates began running the asylum.

• With this collapse of authority, things like civil war, foreign invasion, economic depression and even a plague brought the Roman Empire to its knees.

• To help us remember the causes of the crisis, we're going to call them The Five

Fs: feuding, factions, funding, foreigners and a freaky disease.

• Fortunately for the Empire, a man named Diocletian would step in to save the day. • But, before we get to the hero of the story, let's take a look at how the

crisis began. Then, we'll delve into our Five Fs.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

* Introduction to the Crisis • Feuding & Factions

• The 3rd Century Crisis began with the end of the Severan Dynasty of emperors.

• The Severan Emperors, while being rather violent and a bit nuts,

maintained control of Rome for several generations.

• Their strength as rulers kept the military and the people from open rebellion.

• However, when Severus Alexander, the last of the Severans, was assassinated, the title of Emperor went up for grabs.

• Soon dozens of wealthy military leaders fought for the throne, creating chaos, and throwing the Empire into civil war.

• These civil wars give us our first F: feuding

• Our second F is factions.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

* Introduction to the Crisis • Feuding & Factions

• Seeing the Empire in chaos, the conquered territories of Rome

decided to add to the melee by breaking from the Empire and creating their own factions.

• The territories of Gaul, Spain and Britain declared their independence and named themselves the Gallic Empire.

• They even went as far as crowning their own emperors.

• Witnessing the rebellion of these territories, the eastern provinces, comprised of Syria Palaestina and Egypt, also decided to try their hands at revolution.

• Making matters worse, the territories that did remain loyal to Rome were burdened with warring generals trying to assert their power.

• These generals, who were mostly killed in battle or assassinated, are known to history as the Barracks Emperors.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

* Introduction to the Crisis • Funding

• As if civil war wasn't enough, the 3rd Century Crisis was a period of economic

depression.

• From this we get our third F: funding. • In order to try to gain or keep power, Rome's rulers began bribing soldiers

to play on their team.

• To come up with the extra funds, those in power started decreasing the amount of precious metals in the currency. • In other words, they made the coins worth less and less.

• Hmmm...sounds eerily familiar.

• In doing this, the buying power of Roman currency plummeted and

inflation spread like bad news.

• Also, since currency meant so little, people began trading and bartering, rather than paying and purchasing.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

* Introduction to the Crisis • Funding

• Since no money was trading hands, tax revenue was scarce and the

economy of the Empire fell further into a pit. • Foreign Invasion and Freaky Disease

• With little money, the Empire found itself going from the frying pan into the

fire. • Since money was barely flowing, Rome had little with which to defend

itself from our fourth F: foreigners.

• Add to this that the Roman armies were busy fighting each other, and attacking Rome became as easy as shooting fish in a barrel.

• Before long, Germanic tribes were allying with one another and ransacking prosperous Roman cities.

• While the Germanic tribes were wreaking havoc in the North, Persians were attacking from the East, pillaging cities and even capturing one of the acting emperors.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

* Introduction to the Crisis • Foreign Invasion and Freaky Disease

• Adding complete insult to injury, our fifth F, a freaky disease, hit the Empire.

• This freaky disease, known as the Plague of Cyprian hit the Empire in the

midst of all these other troubles.

• Unfortunately for Rome, the plague was as capricious as the warring generals. • Having no respect for rank or position, it devastated towns and

villages, killing farmers, soldiers and whomever it saw fit. • Claudius and Aurelian

• Fortunately for Rome, the sun began to come out with the rise of a few

competent emperors. • First, Emperor Claudius II began shoring up the borders around 270 AD.

• He did this by running the Gauls out of the Empire.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

* Introduction to the Crisis • Claudius and Aurelian

• Unfortunately for Rome, the darn plague set its sights on Claudius and he

died before being able to gain complete control.

• Next to take the throne was an aggressive and smart military man known to history as Aurelian. • Upon taking the throne, Aurelian saw victory against the Goths, the Gallic

Empire, Syria Palaestina and Egypt.

• For this he earned the title, 'Restorer of the World.'

• Unfortunately for Rome, his body guards, who must not have been too impressed with his restorations, assassinated him in the year 275 AD; yet another kick in the shins for the Roman Empire.

• Diocletian

• Fortunately for the Empire, their prince was about to come. In the year 284 AD,

Diocletian came onto the scene, claimed power and began to pull the Empire from the pit of despair.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

* Introduction to the Crisis • Diocletian

• Picking up where Aurelian left off, he instituted several reforms.

• Also, in order to let people know he was boss, he took a page from Aurelian's

book and began calling himself Lord and God.

• This move set him up as a deity, not to be messed with.

• In the matter of the economy, Diocletian also took the bull by the horns. • He introduced coins with purer metal content.

• These coins became known as the gold solidus, the Latin word for

solid, and soon became the standard currency of the Empire.

• To battle inflation, he instituted an Edict on Maximum Prices, which was basically a comprehensive list, telling suppliers what they could and could not charge for an item. • In other words, the edict, not the market, determined price.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior


• Not one to back away from a fight, Diocletian also took on the military.

• Unlike many of his predecessors, Diocletian was not afraid to leave the

safety of Rome. This made him a force to be reckoned with.

• Adding to this, he created a cavalry-based army which he could deploy as soon as trouble arose.

• He also split troops into layers, leaving some at the borders, but also placing some within the interior of the Empire.

• Perhaps his greatest military tactic was the creation of the Tetrarchy, in which he placed four rulers across the Empire to keep his laws and orders. • Two senior Augustii, and two junior Ceasars

• The Augustii shared power in ruling the empire, and the Ceasars were

heirs apparent who assisted the Augustii

• In doing this, Diocletian could keep his finger on the pulse of the Empire.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior


• At the end of Diocletian's remarkable reign, the Empire had crawled its way

from the dark pit known as the Crisis of the 3rd Century.

• Yes, problems like foreign invasion, a pathetic economy and civil war would eventually sink the Empire. • However, Diocletian will be remembered as the man who conquered the

Crisis of the 3rd Century, and kept the Empire standing for a little while longer.

* Conversion Experience

• There are moments in time that have changed the world, standing out as turning

points in history. • For the United States, there's Lexington's shot heard 'round the world;

• for Europe, the crowning of Charlemagne as Holy Roman Emperor.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior


• Although these events shaped continents, many historians give them a back seat to the conversion of Constantine, an event which elevated Christianity to political prominence and power.

• Ironically, such a profound event is believed to have begun with a vision and a dream.

• To explain, tradition holds that Constantine converted to Christianity after an odd

experience in the 312 AD battle of Milvian Bridge.

• While warring against Maxentius, his co-heir, Constantine began praying for assistance. • In the midst of such prayer, he saw a beaming cross bearing the words: in hoc

signo vinces (translated 'by this sign you will conquer').

• At which point, he saw a sign in the sky of what we would call a letter “P” crossed at the bottom by a letter “X”

• To Constantine, this represented the Greek letters “Chi” and “Rho”, the first two letters of the Greek name “Cristos,” or Christ


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

* Conversion Experience • When he had a dream that very night in which God reaffirmed this vision,

Constantine was sold. • Constantine I, or Constantine Maximus was a Caesar under his father, the

Augustus of the West, and when his father died in Great Britain, where Constantine had been born in the present day city of York, the Legions there proclaimed him Emperor, not Augustus.

• Because of this Constantine had to fight against the other members of the

tetrarchy in order to assume the sole emperor position.

• The Battle of Milvan Bridge was one of the last battles of these wars for ascension.

• As a result of his vision, and his dream, Constantine had his soldiers place crosses on their shields, and they won the day.

• Now, whether Constantine's conversion was heartfelt or whether he used his

new found faith as an exaggerated good luck charm is still fodder for great debate among historians and theologians.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

* Conversion Experience • However, everyone agrees on one point. Constantine's conversion caused the

political ascent of Christianity. • Legalization and Legislation

• For starters, Constantine wasted little time promoting his new found faith.

• In 313 AD, his reign saw the issue of the Edict of Milan, which legalized

Christianity and freed its followers from the vicious, state-instituted persecutions experienced under emperors like Nero and Diocletian.

• Not content with merely legalizing Christianity, Constantine had no problems

mixing church and state. • In fact, the integration of church and state is often referred to as

Constantinism. • In other words, he enacted legislation that acted like fertilizer for the

faith. He declared Sunday as an official Roman holiday, making getting to church much easier for his subjects.

• He also offered tax exemption to the church and many of its clergy. Adding to this, Constantine changed December 25th from a celebration of a pagan God to a celebration of Christ's birth, giving Christianity and kids all over the world Christmas!

Corruption It must be mentioned that although these things definitely aided the ascent of Christianity, many historians also credit them with its corruption. Seeing the favor Constantine showered on the church and its members, it's believed many flocked to the faith for political gain and personal advancement. Yes, their hearts may have been a bit tugged but their pocketbooks were downright sucked in. This trend only increased as Constantine became more and more intolerant of the pagan faiths throughout his reign. Anyone wanting to climb the social ladder would have been a fool not to convert. Nicaea and the Bible Perhaps the most well-known and lasting piece of Constantine's political portfolio is the 325 Council of Nicaea, a gathering of about 300 bishops issuing an official statement affirming Jesus Christ as completely divine. This statement of faith is known as the precursor to today's still famous Nicene Creed. Without a doubt, Constantine put his political weight behind this creed, and the world still feels his influence. For instance, I live in a rather small town, but I wouldn't have to go very far on a Sunday morning before I'd run into a Christian church displaying the Nicene Creed or quoting it as a congregation. Constantine also played a role in validating the Bible. Wanting Christendom to rally around the sacred texts, he led the Council of Nicaea to begin the process of formal acceptance, or canonization, of scripture. Since the word cannon actually means measuring stick, this was an official proclamation saying these books measure up! They are inspired by God. In short, Constantine and the Council sort of put their rubber stamp of agreement onto the words actually found in 2 Timothy of the Bible itself, which reads, 'All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.' (2 Timothy 3:16,17) Intro to Augustine Throughout time, there have been a pieces of writing that captured the hearts and minds of generations. There's Gone with the Wind, The Grapes of Wrath, and perhaps most famous, the Bible. Today we'll be discussing a famous work that in many ways has come to be a companion read to the Bible. It's known as the City of God. Although this work isn't found in most households or lining most bookstore walls, its content molded modern Christianity, and its author, St. Augustine of Hippo, is revered as one of the preeminent sculptors of modern-day Christianity. Because the work is so complex, we could take days studying the City of God, a work that flew in the face of the Greek philosophies of men like Plato and the pagan philosophers of Rome. In order to condense these vast writings, we're going to break it down into his three main points. First, Augustine wrote the City of God to refute the Romans who blamed the Christians for Rome's troubles. Second, Augustine wanted people to know that internal peace could be found here on earth. Third, Augustine wanted people to know that hell is real. Before we jump into his works, let's take a look at St. Augustine. Born in 354 CE in a Roman North African province, Augustine was an educated and well-traveled man, spending time in places like Africa, Carthage, and Italy. Although he wasn't always the most upstanding of gents (for example, he had some real issues with promiscuity and mistresses), Augustine is heralded as one of the most influential figures in Christianity, an influence that really began to take shape around the year 386 CE. Tradition tells us it was in this year that Augustine heard a voice telling him to read the Bible. Upon picking up his Bible, it fell open to the book of Romans, which reads, Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy. With this, his heart was convicted and changed. Christians Blamed After his conversion and baptism, Augustine moved back to North Africa to become a preacher. Around 395 CE he became the Bishop of the Algerian region of Hippo Regius, hence his name, St. Augustine of Hippo. As bishop, Augustine sought to guide his people through a turbulent time in Roman history, a time when the empire was being invaded and destroyed by a Germanic tribe known as the Visigoths. When Rome was captured in the year 410 CE by the Germanic king, Alaric I, the future of the empire was bleak. Looking for someone to blame for their woes, many Romans turned to the Christian faith, saying it was their fault that the empire was in such turmoil. Wanting to refute such claims, Augustine picked up his quill/pen and began the City of God sometime around 413 CE. With this we come to our first main point: Augustine hoped to silence Romans blaming the Christians for the fall of their empire. As Rome was ransacked and its people brutally murdered and raped, the rest of the empire was left wondering how the Eternal City of Rome could have fallen. Needing some way to make sense of it, they blamed the Christians, their argument being that the gods of Rome had abandoned the empire because the Christian monotheists, or worshipers of only one god, had insulted them by refusing to pay them homage. Being ticked off, the gods had allowed the Visigoths to destroy the city. Completely disagreeing, Augustine used the City of God to lay out a logical refutation of this argument. First, he reminded the people that bad things happen to everyone. Next, he gave a list of horrible things, like plagues, that happened while almost all of Rome actively worshiped the old gods and Christianity wasn't even on the scene. Simply put, he asked, 'Where were your gods then?' He then took the gloves off by stating Rome fell because it was spiritually corrupt and morally bankrupt. The Christians had nothing to do with it. Peace is Possible Once he dealt with all the blamers, Augustine got to our second point: Peace can be acquired here on earth by those who choose the city of God, over the city of man. Concerning peace, Augustine explains there are two cities, one that is temporal, called the City of the World, and one that is eternal, the City of God. In his writings, the City of the World represents the natural, sinful world (for example, Rome). By doing this, he encouraged his fellow Christians that Rome was never their true city. On the contrary, heaven is their true home and it alone will last. It will never be conquered. With this truth, he told his fellow believers that peace could be experienced on earth by those who follow the guidelines of the Holy Scriptures. This is the highest good. Hell is Real With the blamers dealt with, and how to acquire peace explained, Augustine moved on to last point, eternal punishment is real and waiting for those who belong to the City of the World. Obviously, this one didn't make him a crowd favorite, but it does give us our last point. Augustine told the people of his age that the judgment described in the Holy Scriptures is true. He wholeheartedly believed the words of the Bible, which read: If this is so, then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials and to hold the unrighteous for punishment on the day of judgment. This is especially true of those who follow the corrupt desires of the flesh and despise authority. Taking it a step further, Augustine encourages his audience to live as citizens of the City of God, for not only will they escape judgment, they will be welcomed into heaven, a place of eternal rest and happiness with God. Hmm, I'm thinking that sounds like a much better option. Reasons for Fall As the familiar saying goes, 'Rome wasn't built in a day.' As the not so familiar saying also goes, 'It didn't fall in a day either!' To explain this saying, we're going to look at the gradual decline of Rome, culminating with its sacking in the year 476 CE. In doing this, we're going to blame internal corruption, division, and outside invasion for the demise of Rome, known to the ancient world as the Eternal City. Although there are a plethora of reasons for the fall that we could cite, most of them can be traced back to these three. Internal Corruption Let's get started with internal corruption. As the Empire grew, it became very hard to govern and control. Violence began replacing law and order. Instead of emperors, generals, and politicians being chosen on the basis of merit, positions of power were paid for or gained through violence that could rival any modern day mob movie. Adding to the problem, the rulers of Rome - many of whom had bought or murdered for their positions - had little desire to actually govern, let alone preserve the city. Without a strong central power base, civil wars waged between feuding political groups, while corrupt officials levied devastating taxes on the people of Rome. Inflation soared, commoners died of starvation and disease, and the lights of the Eternal City began to dim. Division In an attempt to keep the light of Rome from completely dying, one emperor, Diocletian, stepped in with a plan to save the day. However, his 3rd century plan actually gives us our second reason for the fall of Rome: division. Seeing that the Empire was just too large to govern effectively, Diocletian decided to divide it into Western and Eastern halves. When one of Diocletian's successors, the famous Constantine, officially moved the capital of the Empire from Rome to Constantinople in the first half of the 4th century, the center of political power moved with it. Outside Invasion To history, the Eastern part of the Empire came to be known as the Byzantine Empire, while the Western half remained under the faltering control of Rome. Since the political force of the Empire had moved East, Rome was, in a manner of speaking, left to fend for itself against not only corruption from within, but also our third reason for its fall: outside invasion. As the Byzantine Empire of the East began to thrive, Rome and its surrounding areas faced further decline. With the political power of the Empire now in the East, and with the city of Rome suffering from corruption from within, the ancient city was ripe for attack. Soon nomads from the North, known as the Germanic tribes, began attacking along the northern borders of the Empire. Without a strong leader, or a strong, well-disciplined military, the city could not mount a suitable defense. Around the year 410 CE, Rome, the city once thought unconquerable, was invaded by the Germanic Visigoths led by Alaric, a name which has become synonymous with the demise of Rome. The Eternal City was looted, much of its ancient architecture was reduced to rubble, and its people were ravaged. For many historians, this event signaled the beginning of the very end for the Eternal City. Finally, in 476, the Germanic people fell once again on Rome. However, this time they gained complete control of the city and its surrounding lands. Their leader, Odoacer, declared himself the ruler of Italy, forcing the last emperor of Rome, Romulus Augustulus, to surrender his crown. This signaled to history the fall of Rome - the extinguishing of the Eternal City. Effects of Constantine When discussing Roman history, most of the emperors after Constantine don't get a lot of mention. In fact, other than perhaps Justinian, most people probably couldn't even name one. Today we're going to remedy this by exploring a few of the emperors after Constantine. Although we're going to focus mainly on Justinian, we'll still give a few others their day in the sun. For starters, when Constantine converted to Christianity in the year 312 CE and then moved the capitol of the Roman Empire from Rome to Constantinople in the year 330, the Roman Empire drastically changed. The West, or Rome and its surrounding areas, faced continual invasion from the Germanic tribes of the North, while the Eastern regions of the Empire flourished. Now onto our emperors. Julian & the Apostate After Constantine, the first event and emperor really given much history-book playing time is Emperor Julian and his reign spanning 360-363. His claim to fame is his attempt to restore paganism to the Empire. Paganism refers to any religion other than Judaism or Christianity. History has termed this, the Apostate. In short, Julian tried to undo Constantine's Christian reforms, calling for the Empire to return to the worship of their old gods. Unfortunately for Julian, he underestimated the sticking power of Christianity. His attempts at restoring paganism were overturned by his successor, Jovian. Valens and Adrianople The next noteworthy event we'll discuss is the entrance of the Huns into Europe and the Battle of Adrianople, occurring under Emperor Valens. The Huns were a warring and rather ruthless people from Asia. To put it very mildly, they were intent on claiming whatever land they came to. When they entered Europe from the East, they pushed the Goths ,or members of Germanic tribes, into the Roman Empire. Rather than declaring all-out war on these refugee-like Goths, the Empire folded them into its lands. This setup worked for a while, but soon the Germanic Goths rebelled and defeated the Roman army in the 378 battle of Adrianople. Emperor Valens himself was killed in this famous battle. Theodosius The last event and emperor we'll discuss before getting to Justinian is Emperor Theodosius. He is known to history as the last emperor to rule both the Western and Eastern halves of the Empire. History tells us Theodosius' reign, which spanned 379-395, was one of violence and military vengeance. Any who dared cross him, or his imperial forces, was severely punished. Despite his propensity toward violence, he is often referred to as Theodosius the Great. After all, he managed to hold the Empire together during a very turbulent time. Justinian Now, we come to Justinian. By the time Justinian came to the throne in the year 527, the Eastern Roman Empire was also known as the Byzantine Empire. It was Justinian's goal to bring the Empire back to its glory days. Not one to waste any time, he sent his military to reclaim much of the Western Empire that had been lost after the Battle of Adrianople and the fall of Rome. This even included Italy and the beloved city of Rome. Not content with merely reclaiming lands, Justinian also respected the laws of ancient Rome. In order to cement them into his time and his Empire, he called for all of Rome's ancient laws to be recorded. In doing this, Rome's ancient laws, also known as the Twelve Tables, were broken down into categories. Outdated laws were done away with, and complex laws were simplified. Desiring the Empire to thrive, Justinian also added new laws dealing with the fair treatment of those within the Empire. For instance, one of his laws held that a person is innocent until proven guilty. This one should be very familiar to anyone who has sat in a history class or watched a TV cop show. Justinian's new laws, together with the laws of ancient Rome, are known today as the Corpus of Civil Law or Justinian's Code of Laws. Completed around the year 529, these laws have formed the basis for the judicial systems of the Western world. Yes, Justinian may not be as well-known as Caesar or Nero, but his influence just might be one of the strongest and longest-lasting of all the Roman Emperors. Early Christian Art: An Underground Movement The first few centuries after the death of Jesus afforded Christians few opportunities for artistic or architectural expression. Christianity was often oppressed by the Roman Empire. Christians might have their property seized or be burned alive. In such a hostile environment, Christian artwork would have proven a liability. The only distinctly Christian symbol of this early age was the Ichthys, or 'Jesus fish.' The Ichthys was a secret symbol, whose name formed an acrostic for the central concept of Christian faith. Jesus Christ, God's Son, Savior. So the nature of Jesus could all be summed up with a simple fish, allowing Christians to identify their secret places of worship as well as the burial places of the faithful. The Catacombs of Rome The burial of Christians was a secret affair as well. Unlike their pagan predecessors, Christians were not fans of cremation. Christians believed in a bodily resurrection. I suppose they thought Jesus wouldn't know what to do with an urn full of ashes. So, instead of keeping the burnt remains of their loved ones on a shelf at home, Christians buried their dead. In overpopulated Rome, with its severe lack of space, this meant Christians had to find unique places to put their bodies. So Christians tunneled into the soft volcanic stone beneath the city, and there they built amazing catacombs. And it is in these catacombs that we begin to see the first traces of Christian art. Early Christians decorated their catacombs with frescoes, or paintings on fresh plaster. These frescoes are very simple and allegorical; not refined at all. This sort of primitive Christian painting copies the Pompeian style that was popular across the Roman Empire. They just reused an old style for new content. Sarcophagi After the Emperor Constantine fully legalized Christianity with the 313 Edict of Milan, Christians began moving their burials above ground, with grand sarcophagi, or stone caskets. These sarcophagi provide us with our first examples of Christian sculpture. Yet with sculpture, Christians faced a new problem. The classical world was full of sculpture, from idols of gods to friezes to life-sized sculptures adorning buildings. The early Christians saw pagan sculptures of gods as what they were - graven images, which are strictly forbidden by the Bible as idolatry. For this reason, sculpture took a back seat during the early Christian years. Though the early Christians did make use of sculpture on occasion, they took special care to make sure that the sculpture was clearly part of the decoration, rather than an object of adoration. Therefore, early Christian sculpture avoided the life-sized scale of their pagan predecessors, and almost completely avoided full statues or sculpture in the round. Instead, Christians used shallow relief sculpture and depicted biblical scenes and Christian allegory. Early Christian Mosaic Yet Constantine did more for Christianity than just protecting it from persecution. Constantine also actively sponsored the spread of Christianity through the building of churches throughout his empire. Though these churches were very plain on the outside, their interiors were bursting with colorful design in the form of mosaics. The mosaic had been around since Sumerian times. The Romans and Greeks did some incredibly detailed mosaics using cubes of colored marble. Provided with these vast spaces, early Christians took the art form of mosaic from the floor and spread it onto the ceilings, the walls, everywhere. Early Christians created mosaics of biblical narratives and symbolic awesomeness. And instead of natural stone, they used colored glass, allowing them to create vibrant colors. This glass also gives the mosaic a sort of glittery, semi-translucent quality that you really must see in person to appreciate. The figures seem to shimmer as you move about. Though the Christians created some beautiful mosaics, the art of mosaic would reach its apex in the Byzantine art to follow. Illuminating the Word of God Just one form of early Christian art remains to be covered, and that is the illuminated manuscript. Illuminations are illustrations to accompany a written text, usually incorporating gold leaf. This addition became possible as the ancient world shifted from the tightly wound scroll of papyrus to the bound codex, what we would call a book. The fact that papyrus scrolls needed to be rolled made illumination all but impossible, because layers of paint would crack off and fall apart with repeated rolling and unrolling. The advent of vellum, or parchment, as a writing surface provided artists with a much more supple surface than brittle papyrus. It also meant that pages could lie flat, rather than being rolled and unrolled. The codex arrived on the scene around 100 AD, just in time for Christians to start illustrating their favorite book: the Bible. One of the earliest surviving illuminated Bibles is the Vienna Genesis, created around 500 CE. Here we can see a naturalistic style and a strange association of place and time. The picture does not display a single event, but a whole sequence, strung out along the path of the illustration - sort of like a medieval comic book. This illustration technique allowed illustrators to pack a lot of story into a very small space. The Rise of Constantine and Christianity Christianity and the Roman Empire had a long history of bad blood. Several Roman emperors made a point of persecuting Christianity, either because they were trying to preserve the religion of their ancestors or simply because Christians provided a convenient scapegoat for the problems of the empire. Christianity was illegal throughout the empire, and Christians were subject to injustices ranging from seizure of property to death in the arena. Yet, after three centuries of Roman Emperors grinding Christians under their feet, a new emperor decided to give Christians a hand up. His name was Constantine. Early Christian architecture exploded under the protection and patronage of this ambitious emperor. Constantine wanted to unify the crumbling Roman Empire under Christianity. To do so, he began building churches across the empire on a massive scale. The Basilica For centuries Christians had been meeting secretly in houses. With Constantine's conversion to Christianity, there was suddenly an opportunity to build public places of worship. Yet what should these churches look like? They could not look like Roman temples. A Roman temple is a pretty place for an idol to sit. It holds a god, a place for ritual sacrifice and perhaps a treasury. Christian ritual is not about burning food to an idol; it's about coming together as a congregation. The problem is there's nowhere in a Roman temple for a congregation to congregate. A bigger, more open space is necessary. To meet these needs, Constantine chose the Roman basilica as the model for his churches. Basilicas were the shopping malls of ancient Rome; they also served as council chambers, meeting halls and law courts throughout the empire. The basilica was a large rectangular hall with colonnades running down both sides. It had high windows to let in plenty of light. Many were built with a wooden roof, making their construction cheap and fast. Others featured an apse or raised semi circle at the opposite end of the entrance, framed by a triumphal arch, one of the most distinctly Roman forms of architecture. Constantine adapted this building to Christian services. The long, open rectangular colonnade was the perfect place for congregations to congregate. This area became known as the nave. That semicircular area at one end, or apse, seemed like the perfect place to put an altar. The entrances were then moved from the sides to the front, so the whole building has a single axis, with the apse as its focal point. Before the entrance, he added an atrium, or open-aired columned courtyard typical of Roman palaces. Between the atrium and the nave was the narthex, or main entrance of the church. With these adaptations, the Constantine's basilicas provided the space the Christians needed for their congregations and lent the Church the authority of an established form of imperial architecture, thereby proclaiming Christianity's status as a state religion. Unfortunately, none of Constantine's basilicas survive unaltered. The closest surviving example is the Basilica of St Paul outside the walls in Rome. Here we can see how these architectural elements came together to create a powerful visual and spatial effect. Entering the church requires passing through all of the elements we just covered. You start out in the columned atrium and then pass through the narthex. This brings you to the nave, which runs up to the triumphal arch, with the apse behind it. The overall effect was one of increasing grandeur as one stepped deeper and deeper into God's house. The basilica provided Christians with a place to commune and engage in the foremost Christian sacrament: the eucharist, in which pious Christians shared a communal meal of bread and wine, symbolizing the body and blood of Christ. Yet there was another important Christian sacrament, something that made a Christian a Christian, and that was baptism. The Baptistry While baptism would eventually become a matter of sprinkling babies, the early Church followed the example of the Bible and baptized people of all ages by immersion. Indeed, the very word 'baptismo' means 'I submerge.' Most Basilicas lacked an in-ground pool, thus a different space would need to be created for this important rite of passage. Luckily, the Romans already had the perfect public places for this service readily available: the Roman bath. The Roman bath took several forms, but the most popular was a round or polygonal building crowned with a dome. By the 1st century CE, this round design had already been expanded upon by the Romans to build temples, like the Pantheon. The form was later adapted for tombs, like the mausoleum Constantine built for his daughter. Early Christians adapted this form to build baptistries, or places to baptize people, like this Arian baptistry built in Ravenna circa 4-500 CE. Later, the Byzantines would expand upon this form, building their churches around this central-planned, domed scheme. True Beauty Lies Within As you've looked at these pictures of early Christian churches, you may have noticed a trend. These buildings have a rather plain, if not severe, exterior. Their lack of external decoration is offset by their lavish interior decoration. This marks a sharp contrast with the Roman temple. The Roman temple is a grand thing, decked with life-sized, realistic sculpture. Yet life-sized statues make Christians nervous, since they're so close to pagan idols. Christians needed a new way to decorate their buildings. Rather than sculpture and friezes, the early Christians chose a different medium: the mosaic. Basilica Santa Maria Maggiore Rome Arian Baptistry Ravenna


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior



• He also offered tax exemption to the church and many of its clergy.

• Adding to this, Constantine changed December 25th from a

celebration of a pagan God to a celebration of Christ's birth, giving Christianity and kids all over the world Christmas! • Why December 25th?

• Spring had been accepted in most religions as the rebirth of

nature.

• According to the Roman religious calendar, Spring’s arrival was on March 25th

• The Virgin Mary’s annunciation would have signified the beginning of rebirth, so it seemed logical to place it when spring began.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior



• As she was human, her birth would have occurred nine

months from that date, which would be December 25th.

• So, the fact that Christmas occurs near the Pagan celebration of the Winter solstice and traces of several pagan festivals can be found in Christmas including the birthday of the God Mithra and the Roman festival of Saturnalia (Sun God) starting on the 17th December and ending on the 23rd with 'Dies Natali Solis Invictus', 'the birthday of the unconquered sun‘, are not the reason Christmas is December 25th, as many other festivals throughout the year could have been chosen as well.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior


• Corruption

• It must be mentioned that although these things definitely aided the ascent of Christianity, many historians also credit them with its corruption. • Seeing the favor Constantine showered on the church and its members, it's

believed many flocked to the faith for political gain and personal advancement.

• Yes, their hearts may have been a bit tugged but their pocketbooks were downright sucked in.

• This trend only increased as Constantine became more and more intolerant of

the pagan faiths throughout his reign.

• Anyone wanting to climb the social ladder would have been a fool not to convert.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior


• Nicaea and the Bible

• Perhaps the most well-known and lasting piece of Constantine's political portfolio is the 325 AD Council of Nicaea, a gathering of about 300 bishops issuing an official statement affirming Jesus Christ as completely divine.

• This statement of faith is known as the precursor to today's still famous Nicene Creed.

• Without a doubt, Constantine put his political weight behind this creed, and the world still feels his influence. • For instance, Marshall is a rather small town, but I wouldn't have to go very

far on a Sunday morning before I'd run into a Christian church displaying the Nicene Creed or quoting it as a congregation. • For most congregations, it goes something like this in English:


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior



• We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, Maker of all that is, seen and unseen. We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father, God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, one in Being with the Father. Through him all things were made. For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven: and by the Holy Spirit was born of the Virgin Mary, and became man. For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate; he suffered, died and was buried. On the third day he rose again in fulfillment of the Scriptures; he ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end. We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son. With the Father and the Son he is worshipped and glorified. He has spoken through the Prophets. We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church. We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins. We look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior



• Basically, a statement of what defines what it means to be a Christian

• Constantine also played a role in validating the Bible.

• Wanting Christendom to rally around the sacred texts, he led the Council of

Nicaea to begin the process of formal acceptance, or canonization, of scripture.

• Since the word canon actually means measuring stick, this was an official proclamation saying these books measure up! • They are inspired by God, while there are some books that are not,

and did not make the cut into what we accept as the Bible to this day.

• In short, Constantine and the Council sort of put their rubber stamp of agreement onto the words actually found in 2 Timothy of the Bible itself, which reads, 'All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.' (2 Timothy 3:16,17)


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

* An Introduction to St. Augustine • Throughout time, there have been pieces of writing that captured the hearts and

minds of generations. • There's Gone with the Wind, The Grapes of Wrath, and perhaps most famous,

the Bible.

• Today we'll be discussing a famous work that in many ways has come to be a companion read to the Bible. • It's known as the City of God.

• Although this work isn't found in most households or lining most bookstore

walls, its content molded modern Christianity, and its author, St. Augustine of Hippo, is revered as one of the preeminent sculptors of modern-day Christianity.

• Because the work is so complex, we could take days studying the City of God, a work

that flew in the face of the Greek philosophies of men like Plato and the pagan philosophers of Rome.

• In order to condense these vast writings, we're going to break it down into his three main points.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

* An Introduction to St. Augustine

• First, Augustine wrote the City of God to refute the Romans who blamed the Christians for Rome's troubles.

• Second, Augustine wanted people to know that internal peace could be found here on earth.

• Third, Augustine wanted people to know that hell is real. • Before we jump into his works, let's take a look at St. Augustine.

• Born in 354 AD in a Roman North African province, Augustine was an educated

and well-traveled man, spending time in places like Africa, Carthage, and Italy.

• Although he wasn't always the most upstanding of gents (for example, he had some real issues with promiscuity and mistresses before finding God), Augustine is heralded as one of the most influential figures in Christianity, an influence that really began to take shape around the year 386 AD.

• Tradition tells us it was in this year that Augustine heard a voice telling him to

read the Bible.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior


• Upon picking up his Bible, it fell open to the book of Romans, which reads, “Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy.”

• With this, his heart was convicted and changed. • Christians Blamed

• After his conversion and baptism, Augustine moved back to North Africa to

become a preacher.

• Around 395 AD he became the Bishop of the Algerian region of Hippo Regius, hence his name, St. Augustine of Hippo.

• As bishop, Augustine sought to guide his people through a turbulent time in Roman history, a time when the empire was being invaded and destroyed by a Germanic tribe known as the Visigoths.

• When Rome was captured in the year 410 AD by the Germanic king, Alaric I, the future of the empire was bleak.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior


• Looking for someone to blame for their woes, many Romans turned to the Christian faith, saying it was their fault that the empire was in such turmoil.

• Wanting to refute such claims, Augustine picked up his quill/pen and began the

City of God sometime around 413 AD.

• With this we come to our first main point: Augustine hoped to silence Romans blaming the Christians for the fall of their empire.

• As Rome was ransacked and its people brutally murdered and raped, the

rest of the empire was left wondering how the Eternal City of Rome could have fallen?

• Needing some way to make sense of it, they blamed the Christians, their argument being that the gods of Rome had abandoned the empire because the Christian monotheists, or worshipers of only one god, had insulted them by refusing to pay them homage.

• Being ticked off, the gods had allowed the Visigoths to destroy the city.

• Completely disagreeing, Augustine used the City of God to lay out a logical refutation of this argument.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior


• First, he reminded the people that bad things happen to everyone.

• Next, he gave a list of horrible things, like plagues, that happened while almost all of Rome actively worshiped the old gods and Christianity wasn't even on the scene. • Simply put, he asked, 'Where were your gods then?'

• He then took the gloves off by stating Rome fell because it was

spiritually corrupt and morally bankrupt.

• The Christians had nothing to do with it. • Peace is Possible

• Once he dealt with all the blamers, Augustine got to our second point: Peace

can be acquired here on earth by those who choose the city of God, over the city of man.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

* An Introduction to St. Augustine • Peace is Possible

• Concerning peace, Augustine explains there are two cities, one that is

temporal, called the City of the World, and one that is eternal, the City of God. • In his writings, the City of the World represents the natural, sinful

world (for example, Rome).

• By doing this, he encouraged his fellow Christians that Rome was never their true city.

• On the contrary, heaven is their true home and it alone will last. • It will never be conquered.

• With this truth, he told his fellow believers that peace could

be experienced on earth by those who follow the guidelines of the Holy Scriptures. • This is the highest good.

Hell is Real With the blamers dealt with, and how to acquire peace explained, Augustine moved on to last point, eternal punishment is real and waiting for those who belong to the City of the World. Obviously, this one didn't make him a crowd favorite, but it does give us our last point. Augustine told the people of his age that the judgment described in the Holy Scriptures is true. He wholeheartedly believed the words of the Bible, which read: If this is so, then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials and to hold the unrighteous for punishment on the day of judgment. This is especially true of those who follow the corrupt desires of the flesh and despise authority. Taking it a step further, Augustine encourages his audience to live as citizens of the City of God, for not only will they escape judgment, they will be welcomed into heaven, a place of eternal rest and happiness with God. Hmm, I'm thinking that sounds like a much better option. Reasons for Fall As the familiar saying goes, 'Rome wasn't built in a day.' As the not so familiar saying also goes, 'It didn't fall in a day either!' To explain this saying, we're going to look at the gradual decline of Rome, culminating with its sacking in the year 476 CE. In doing this, we're going to blame internal corruption, division, and outside invasion for the demise of Rome, known to the ancient world as the Eternal City. Although there are a plethora of reasons for the fall that we could cite, most of them can be traced back to these three. Internal Corruption Let's get started with internal corruption. As the Empire grew, it became very hard to govern and control. Violence began replacing law and order. Instead of emperors, generals, and politicians being chosen on the basis of merit, positions of power were paid for or gained through violence that could rival any modern day mob movie. Adding to the problem, the rulers of Rome - many of whom had bought or murdered for their positions - had little desire to actually govern, let alone preserve the city. Without a strong central power base, civil wars waged between feuding political groups, while corrupt officials levied devastating taxes on the people of Rome. Inflation soared, commoners died of starvation and disease, and the lights of the Eternal City began to dim. Division In an attempt to keep the light of Rome from completely dying, one emperor, Diocletian, stepped in with a plan to save the day. However, his 3rd century plan actually gives us our second reason for the fall of Rome: division. Seeing that the Empire was just too large to govern effectively, Diocletian decided to divide it into Western and Eastern halves. When one of Diocletian's successors, the famous Constantine, officially moved the capital of the Empire from Rome to Constantinople in the first half of the 4th century, the center of political power moved with it. Outside Invasion To history, the Eastern part of the Empire came to be known as the Byzantine Empire, while the Western half remained under the faltering control of Rome. Since the political force of the Empire had moved East, Rome was, in a manner of speaking, left to fend for itself against not only corruption from within, but also our third reason for its fall: outside invasion. As the Byzantine Empire of the East began to thrive, Rome and its surrounding areas faced further decline. With the political power of the Empire now in the East, and with the city of Rome suffering from corruption from within, the ancient city was ripe for attack. Soon nomads from the North, known as the Germanic tribes, began attacking along the northern borders of the Empire. Without a strong leader, or a strong, well-disciplined military, the city could not mount a suitable defense. Around the year 410 CE, Rome, the city once thought unconquerable, was invaded by the Germanic Visigoths led by Alaric, a name which has become synonymous with the demise of Rome. The Eternal City was looted, much of its ancient architecture was reduced to rubble, and its people were ravaged. For many historians, this event signaled the beginning of the very end for the Eternal City. Finally, in 476, the Germanic people fell once again on Rome. However, this time they gained complete control of the city and its surrounding lands. Their leader, Odoacer, declared himself the ruler of Italy, forcing the last emperor of Rome, Romulus Augustulus, to surrender his crown. This signaled to history the fall of Rome - the extinguishing of the Eternal City. Effects of Constantine When discussing Roman history, most of the emperors after Constantine don't get a lot of mention. In fact, other than perhaps Justinian, most people probably couldn't even name one. Today we're going to remedy this by exploring a few of the emperors after Constantine. Although we're going to focus mainly on Justinian, we'll still give a few others their day in the sun. For starters, when Constantine converted to Christianity in the year 312 CE and then moved the capitol of the Roman Empire from Rome to Constantinople in the year 330, the Roman Empire drastically changed. The West, or Rome and its surrounding areas, faced continual invasion from the Germanic tribes of the North, while the Eastern regions of the Empire flourished. Now onto our emperors. Julian & the Apostate After Constantine, the first event and emperor really given much history-book playing time is Emperor Julian and his reign spanning 360-363. His claim to fame is his attempt to restore paganism to the Empire. Paganism refers to any religion other than Judaism or Christianity. History has termed this, the Apostate. In short, Julian tried to undo Constantine's Christian reforms, calling for the Empire to return to the worship of their old gods. Unfortunately for Julian, he underestimated the sticking power of Christianity. His attempts at restoring paganism were overturned by his successor, Jovian. Valens and Adrianople The next noteworthy event we'll discuss is the entrance of the Huns into Europe and the Battle of Adrianople, occurring under Emperor Valens. The Huns were a warring and rather ruthless people from Asia. To put it very mildly, they were intent on claiming whatever land they came to. When they entered Europe from the East, they pushed the Goths ,or members of Germanic tribes, into the Roman Empire. Rather than declaring all-out war on these refugee-like Goths, the Empire folded them into its lands. This setup worked for a while, but soon the Germanic Goths rebelled and defeated the Roman army in the 378 battle of Adrianople. Emperor Valens himself was killed in this famous battle. Theodosius The last event and emperor we'll discuss before getting to Justinian is Emperor Theodosius. He is known to history as the last emperor to rule both the Western and Eastern halves of the Empire. History tells us Theodosius' reign, which spanned 379-395, was one of violence and military vengeance. Any who dared cross him, or his imperial forces, was severely punished. Despite his propensity toward violence, he is often referred to as Theodosius the Great. After all, he managed to hold the Empire together during a very turbulent time. Justinian Now, we come to Justinian. By the time Justinian came to the throne in the year 527, the Eastern Roman Empire was also known as the Byzantine Empire. It was Justinian's goal to bring the Empire back to its glory days. Not one to waste any time, he sent his military to reclaim much of the Western Empire that had been lost after the Battle of Adrianople and the fall of Rome. This even included Italy and the beloved city of Rome. Not content with merely reclaiming lands, Justinian also respected the laws of ancient Rome. In order to cement them into his time and his Empire, he called for all of Rome's ancient laws to be recorded. In doing this, Rome's ancient laws, also known as the Twelve Tables, were broken down into categories. Outdated laws were done away with, and complex laws were simplified. Desiring the Empire to thrive, Justinian also added new laws dealing with the fair treatment of those within the Empire. For instance, one of his laws held that a person is innocent until proven guilty. This one should be very familiar to anyone who has sat in a history class or watched a TV cop show. Justinian's new laws, together with the laws of ancient Rome, are known today as the Corpus of Civil Law or Justinian's Code of Laws. Completed around the year 529, these laws have formed the basis for the judicial systems of the Western world. Yes, Justinian may not be as well-known as Caesar or Nero, but his influence just might be one of the strongest and longest-lasting of all the Roman Emperors. Early Christian Art: An Underground Movement The first few centuries after the death of Jesus afforded Christians few opportunities for artistic or architectural expression. Christianity was often oppressed by the Roman Empire. Christians might have their property seized or be burned alive. In such a hostile environment, Christian artwork would have proven a liability. The only distinctly Christian symbol of this early age was the Ichthys, or 'Jesus fish.' The Ichthys was a secret symbol, whose name formed an acrostic for the central concept of Christian faith. Jesus Christ, God's Son, Savior. So the nature of Jesus could all be summed up with a simple fish, allowing Christians to identify their secret places of worship as well as the burial places of the faithful. The Catacombs of Rome The burial of Christians was a secret affair as well. Unlike their pagan predecessors, Christians were not fans of cremation. Christians believed in a bodily resurrection. I suppose they thought Jesus wouldn't know what to do with an urn full of ashes. So, instead of keeping the burnt remains of their loved ones on a shelf at home, Christians buried their dead. In overpopulated Rome, with its severe lack of space, this meant Christians had to find unique places to put their bodies. So Christians tunneled into the soft volcanic stone beneath the city, and there they built amazing catacombs. And it is in these catacombs that we begin to see the first traces of Christian art. Early Christians decorated their catacombs with frescoes, or paintings on fresh plaster. These frescoes are very simple and allegorical; not refined at all. This sort of primitive Christian painting copies the Pompeian style that was popular across the Roman Empire. They just reused an old style for new content. Sarcophagi After the Emperor Constantine fully legalized Christianity with the 313 Edict of Milan, Christians began moving their burials above ground, with grand sarcophagi, or stone caskets. These sarcophagi provide us with our first examples of Christian sculpture. Yet with sculpture, Christians faced a new problem. The classical world was full of sculpture, from idols of gods to friezes to life-sized sculptures adorning buildings. The early Christians saw pagan sculptures of gods as what they were - graven images, which are strictly forbidden by the Bible as idolatry. For this reason, sculpture took a back seat during the early Christian years. Though the early Christians did make use of sculpture on occasion, they took special care to make sure that the sculpture was clearly part of the decoration, rather than an object of adoration. Therefore, early Christian sculpture avoided the life-sized scale of their pagan predecessors, and almost completely avoided full statues or sculpture in the round. Instead, Christians used shallow relief sculpture and depicted biblical scenes and Christian allegory. Early Christian Mosaic Yet Constantine did more for Christianity than just protecting it from persecution. Constantine also actively sponsored the spread of Christianity through the building of churches throughout his empire. Though these churches were very plain on the outside, their interiors were bursting with colorful design in the form of mosaics. The mosaic had been around since Sumerian times. The Romans and Greeks did some incredibly detailed mosaics using cubes of colored marble. Provided with these vast spaces, early Christians took the art form of mosaic from the floor and spread it onto the ceilings, the walls, everywhere. Early Christians created mosaics of biblical narratives and symbolic awesomeness. And instead of natural stone, they used colored glass, allowing them to create vibrant colors. This glass also gives the mosaic a sort of glittery, semi-translucent quality that you really must see in person to appreciate. The figures seem to shimmer as you move about. Though the Christians created some beautiful mosaics, the art of mosaic would reach its apex in the Byzantine art to follow. Illuminating the Word of God Just one form of early Christian art remains to be covered, and that is the illuminated manuscript. Illuminations are illustrations to accompany a written text, usually incorporating gold leaf. This addition became possible as the ancient world shifted from the tightly wound scroll of papyrus to the bound codex, what we would call a book. The fact that papyrus scrolls needed to be rolled made illumination all but impossible, because layers of paint would crack off and fall apart with repeated rolling and unrolling. The advent of vellum, or parchment, as a writing surface provided artists with a much more supple surface than brittle papyrus. It also meant that pages could lie flat, rather than being rolled and unrolled. The codex arrived on the scene around 100 AD, just in time for Christians to start illustrating their favorite book: the Bible. One of the earliest surviving illuminated Bibles is the Vienna Genesis, created around 500 CE. Here we can see a naturalistic style and a strange association of place and time. The picture does not display a single event, but a whole sequence, strung out along the path of the illustration - sort of like a medieval comic book. This illustration technique allowed illustrators to pack a lot of story into a very small space. The Rise of Constantine and Christianity Christianity and the Roman Empire had a long history of bad blood. Several Roman emperors made a point of persecuting Christianity, either because they were trying to preserve the religion of their ancestors or simply because Christians provided a convenient scapegoat for the problems of the empire. Christianity was illegal throughout the empire, and Christians were subject to injustices ranging from seizure of property to death in the arena. Yet, after three centuries of Roman Emperors grinding Christians under their feet, a new emperor decided to give Christians a hand up. His name was Constantine. Early Christian architecture exploded under the protection and patronage of this ambitious emperor. Constantine wanted to unify the crumbling Roman Empire under Christianity. To do so, he began building churches across the empire on a massive scale. The Basilica For centuries Christians had been meeting secretly in houses. With Constantine's conversion to Christianity, there was suddenly an opportunity to build public places of worship. Yet what should these churches look like? They could not look like Roman temples. A Roman temple is a pretty place for an idol to sit. It holds a god, a place for ritual sacrifice and perhaps a treasury. Christian ritual is not about burning food to an idol; it's about coming together as a congregation. The problem is there's nowhere in a Roman temple for a congregation to congregate. A bigger, more open space is necessary. To meet these needs, Constantine chose the Roman basilica as the model for his churches. Basilicas were the shopping malls of ancient Rome; they also served as council chambers, meeting halls and law courts throughout the empire. The basilica was a large rectangular hall with colonnades running down both sides. It had high windows to let in plenty of light. Many were built with a wooden roof, making their construction cheap and fast. Others featured an apse or raised semi circle at the opposite end of the entrance, framed by a triumphal arch, one of the most distinctly Roman forms of architecture. Constantine adapted this building to Christian services. The long, open rectangular colonnade was the perfect place for congregations to congregate. This area became known as the nave. That semicircular area at one end, or apse, seemed like the perfect place to put an altar. The entrances were then moved from the sides to the front, so the whole building has a single axis, with the apse as its focal point. Before the entrance, he added an atrium, or open-aired columned courtyard typical of Roman palaces. Between the atrium and the nave was the narthex, or main entrance of the church. With these adaptations, the Constantine's basilicas provided the space the Christians needed for their congregations and lent the Church the authority of an established form of imperial architecture, thereby proclaiming Christianity's status as a state religion. Unfortunately, none of Constantine's basilicas survive unaltered. The closest surviving example is the Basilica of St Paul outside the walls in Rome. Here we can see how these architectural elements came together to create a powerful visual and spatial effect. Entering the church requires passing through all of the elements we just covered. You start out in the columned atrium and then pass through the narthex. This brings you to the nave, which runs up to the triumphal arch, with the apse behind it. The overall effect was one of increasing grandeur as one stepped deeper and deeper into God's house. The basilica provided Christians with a place to commune and engage in the foremost Christian sacrament: the eucharist, in which pious Christians shared a communal meal of bread and wine, symbolizing the body and blood of Christ. Yet there was another important Christian sacrament, something that made a Christian a Christian, and that was baptism. The Baptistry While baptism would eventually become a matter of sprinkling babies, the early Church followed the example of the Bible and baptized people of all ages by immersion. Indeed, the very word 'baptismo' means 'I submerge.' Most Basilicas lacked an in-ground pool, thus a different space would need to be created for this important rite of passage. Luckily, the Romans already had the perfect public places for this service readily available: the Roman bath. The Roman bath took several forms, but the most popular was a round or polygonal building crowned with a dome. By the 1st century CE, this round design had already been expanded upon by the Romans to build temples, like the Pantheon. The form was later adapted for tombs, like the mausoleum Constantine built for his daughter. Early Christians adapted this form to build baptistries, or places to baptize people, like this Arian baptistry built in Ravenna circa 4-500 CE. Later, the Byzantines would expand upon this form, building their churches around this central-planned, domed scheme. True Beauty Lies Within As you've looked at these pictures of early Christian churches, you may have noticed a trend. These buildings have a rather plain, if not severe, exterior. Their lack of external decoration is offset by their lavish interior decoration. This marks a sharp contrast with the Roman temple. The Roman temple is a grand thing, decked with life-sized, realistic sculpture. Yet life-sized statues make Christians nervous, since they're so close to pagan idols. Christians needed a new way to decorate their buildings. Rather than sculpture and friezes, the early Christians chose a different medium: the mosaic. Basilica Santa Maria Maggiore Rome Arian Baptistry Ravenna


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

* An Introduction to St. Augustine • Hell is Real

• With the blamers dealt with, and how to acquire peace explained, Augustine

moved on to last point, eternal punishment is real and waiting for those who belong to the City of the World. • Obviously, this one didn't make him a crowd favorite, but it does give us

our last point. • Augustine told the people of his age that the judgment described in

the Holy Scriptures is true.

• He wholeheartedly believed the words of the Bible, which read:

• “If this is so, then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials and to hold the unrighteous for punishment on the day of judgment. This is especially true of those who follow the corrupt desires of the flesh and despise authority.”


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

* An Introduction to St. Augustine • Hell is Real

• Taking it a step further, Augustine encourages his audience to live as

citizens of the City of God, for not only will they escape judgment, they will be welcomed into heaven, a place of eternal rest and happiness with God. • And you know what, I'm thinking that sounds like a much better

option.

* Reasons for the Fall of Rome • As the familiar saying goes, 'Rome wasn't built in a day.'

• As the not so familiar saying also goes, 'It didn't fall in a day either!'

• To explain this saying, we're going to look at the gradual decline of Rome,

culminating with its sacking in the year 476 AD.

• In doing this, we're going to blame internal corruption, division, and outside invasion for the demise of Rome, known to the ancient world as the Eternal City.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

* Reasons for the Fall of Rome

• Although there are a plethora of reasons for the fall that we could cite, most of them can be traced back to these three.

• Internal Corruption

• Let's get started with internal corruption.

• As the Empire grew, it became very hard to govern and control.

• Violence began replacing law and order.

• Instead of emperors, generals, and politicians being chosen on the basis of

merit, positions of power were paid for or gained through violence that could rival any modern day mob movie.

• Adding to the problem, the rulers of Rome - many of whom had bought or

murdered for their positions - had little desire to actually govern, let alone preserve the city.

• Without a strong central power base, civil wars waged between feuding political groups, while corrupt officials levied devastating taxes on the people of Rome.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior



• Internal Corruption

• Inflation soared, commoners died of starvation and disease, and the lights

of the Eternal City began to dim. • Division

• In an attempt to keep the light of Rome from completely dying, one emperor,

Diocletian, stepped in with a plan to save the day.

• However, his 3rd century plan actually gives us our second reason for the fall of Rome: division. • Seeing that the Empire was just too large to govern effectively, Diocletian

decided to divide it into Western and Eastern halves.

• When one of Diocletian's successors, the famous Constantine, officially moved the capital of the Empire from Rome to Constantinople in the first half of the 4th century, the center of political power moved with it.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior



• Division

• Constaninople is located in modern day Turkey, and would have its

name changed later to Byzantium, and then when the Turks conquered it in 1453 AD, they changed it to Istanbul. Today it is called Ankara, and is the capital of Turkey

• Outside Invasion

• To history, the Eastern part of the Empire came to be known as the Byzantine

Empire, while the Western half remained under the faltering control of Rome.

• Since the political force of the Empire had moved East, Rome was, in a manner of speaking, left to fend for itself against not only corruption from within, but also our third reason for its fall: outside invasion.

• As the Byzantine Empire of the East began to thrive, Rome and its

surrounding areas faced further decline.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior




• With the political power of the Empire now in the East, and with the city of

Rome suffering from corruption from within, the ancient city was ripe for attack.

• Soon nomads from the North, known as the Germanic tribes, began attacking along the northern borders of the Empire.

• Without a strong leader, or a strong, well-disciplined military, the city

could not mount a suitable defense.

• Around the year 410 AD, Rome, the city once thought unconquerable, was invaded by the Germanic Visigoths led by Alaric, a name which has become synonymous with the demise of Rome.

• The Eternal City was looted, much of its ancient architecture was reduced to rubble, and its people were ravaged.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior




• For many historians, this event signaled the beginning of the very end

for the Eternal City. • Ironically, in order to prevent this, emperors for generations had

been paying off the Germanic tribes not to invade Italy, and even hiring them as mercenary supplements to their legions.

• The actual Romans began to depend on them so much, that over 90% of the Roman legions were actually made up of Germans and other foreigners

• Alaric was actually not only a Germanic barbarian chieftain, and King of the Visigoths, but also a general in command of a Roman Legion, who, when passed over for a greater command, rebelled and took Rome with his legion, who owed more to their Germanic brothers, than to any perceived alliance with Rome.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior




• In other words, the Germans were treated more as slaves than as

equal Roman citizens by the Romans themselves.

• The Romans had become insolent, fat, and lazy • They made fun of the barbarians

• They did not speak refined Latin

• They wore beards

• They were often not Christian

• But yet, they depended on them for their security

• Finally, in 476, the Germanic people fell once again on Rome.

• However, this time they gained complete control of the city and its

surrounding lands. Their leader, Odoacer, declared himself the ruler of Italy, forcing the last emperor of Rome, Romulus Augustulus, to surrender his crown. This signaled to history the fall of Rome - the extinguishing of the Eternal City.

Effects of Constantine When discussing Roman history, most of the emperors after Constantine don't get a lot of mention. In fact, other than perhaps Justinian, most people probably couldn't even name one. Today we're going to remedy this by exploring a few of the emperors after Constantine. Although we're going to focus mainly on Justinian, we'll still give a few others their day in the sun. For starters, when Constantine converted to Christianity in the year 312 CE and then moved the capitol of the Roman Empire from Rome to Constantinople in the year 330, the Roman Empire drastically changed. The West, or Rome and its surrounding areas, faced continual invasion from the Germanic tribes of the North, while the Eastern regions of the Empire flourished. Now onto our emperors. Julian & the Apostate After Constantine, the first event and emperor really given much history-book playing time is Emperor Julian and his reign spanning 360-363. His claim to fame is his attempt to restore paganism to the Empire. Paganism refers to any religion other than Judaism or Christianity. History has termed this, the Apostate. In short, Julian tried to undo Constantine's Christian reforms, calling for the Empire to return to the worship of their old gods. Unfortunately for Julian, he underestimated the sticking power of Christianity. His attempts at restoring paganism were overturned by his successor, Jovian. Valens and Adrianople The next noteworthy event we'll discuss is the entrance of the Huns into Europe and the Battle of Adrianople, occurring under Emperor Valens. The Huns were a warring and rather ruthless people from Asia. To put it very mildly, they were intent on claiming whatever land they came to. When they entered Europe from the East, they pushed the Goths ,or members of Germanic tribes, into the Roman Empire. Rather than declaring all-out war on these refugee-like Goths, the Empire folded them into its lands. This setup worked for a while, but soon the Germanic Goths rebelled and defeated the Roman army in the 378 battle of Adrianople. Emperor Valens himself was killed in this famous battle. Theodosius The last event and emperor we'll discuss before getting to Justinian is Emperor Theodosius. He is known to history as the last emperor to rule both the Western and Eastern halves of the Empire. History tells us Theodosius' reign, which spanned 379-395, was one of violence and military vengeance. Any who dared cross him, or his imperial forces, was severely punished. Despite his propensity toward violence, he is often referred to as Theodosius the Great. After all, he managed to hold the Empire together during a very turbulent time. Justinian Now, we come to Justinian. By the time Justinian came to the throne in the year 527, the Eastern Roman Empire was also known as the Byzantine Empire. It was Justinian's goal to bring the Empire back to its glory days. Not one to waste any time, he sent his military to reclaim much of the Western Empire that had been lost after the Battle of Adrianople and the fall of Rome. This even included Italy and the beloved city of Rome. Not content with merely reclaiming lands, Justinian also respected the laws of ancient Rome. In order to cement them into his time and his Empire, he called for all of Rome's ancient laws to be recorded. In doing this, Rome's ancient laws, also known as the Twelve Tables, were broken down into categories. Outdated laws were done away with, and complex laws were simplified. Desiring the Empire to thrive, Justinian also added new laws dealing with the fair treatment of those within the Empire. For instance, one of his laws held that a person is innocent until proven guilty. This one should be very familiar to anyone who has sat in a history class or watched a TV cop show. Justinian's new laws, together with the laws of ancient Rome, are known today as the Corpus of Civil Law or Justinian's Code of Laws. Completed around the year 529, these laws have formed the basis for the judicial systems of the Western world. Yes, Justinian may not be as well-known as Caesar or Nero, but his influence just might be one of the strongest and longest-lasting of all the Roman Emperors. Early Christian Art: An Underground Movement The first few centuries after the death of Jesus afforded Christians few opportunities for artistic or architectural expression. Christianity was often oppressed by the Roman Empire. Christians might have their property seized or be burned alive. In such a hostile environment, Christian artwork would have proven a liability. The only distinctly Christian symbol of this early age was the Ichthys, or 'Jesus fish.' The Ichthys was a secret symbol, whose name formed an acrostic for the central concept of Christian faith. Jesus Christ, God's Son, Savior. So the nature of Jesus could all be summed up with a simple fish, allowing Christians to identify their secret places of worship as well as the burial places of the faithful. The Catacombs of Rome The burial of Christians was a secret affair as well. Unlike their pagan predecessors, Christians were not fans of cremation. Christians believed in a bodily resurrection. I suppose they thought Jesus wouldn't know what to do with an urn full of ashes. So, instead of keeping the burnt remains of their loved ones on a shelf at home, Christians buried their dead. In overpopulated Rome, with its severe lack of space, this meant Christians had to find unique places to put their bodies. So Christians tunneled into the soft volcanic stone beneath the city, and there they built amazing catacombs. And it is in these catacombs that we begin to see the first traces of Christian art. Early Christians decorated their catacombs with frescoes, or paintings on fresh plaster. These frescoes are very simple and allegorical; not refined at all. This sort of primitive Christian painting copies the Pompeian style that was popular across the Roman Empire. They just reused an old style for new content. Sarcophagi After the Emperor Constantine fully legalized Christianity with the 313 Edict of Milan, Christians began moving their burials above ground, with grand sarcophagi, or stone caskets. These sarcophagi provide us with our first examples of Christian sculpture. Yet with sculpture, Christians faced a new problem. The classical world was full of sculpture, from idols of gods to friezes to life-sized sculptures adorning buildings. The early Christians saw pagan sculptures of gods as what they were - graven images, which are strictly forbidden by the Bible as idolatry. For this reason, sculpture took a back seat during the early Christian years. Though the early Christians did make use of sculpture on occasion, they took special care to make sure that the sculpture was clearly part of the decoration, rather than an object of adoration. Therefore, early Christian sculpture avoided the life-sized scale of their pagan predecessors, and almost completely avoided full statues or sculpture in the round. Instead, Christians used shallow relief sculpture and depicted biblical scenes and Christian allegory. Early Christian Mosaic Yet Constantine did more for Christianity than just protecting it from persecution. Constantine also actively sponsored the spread of Christianity through the building of churches throughout his empire. Though these churches were very plain on the outside, their interiors were bursting with colorful design in the form of mosaics. The mosaic had been around since Sumerian times. The Romans and Greeks did some incredibly detailed mosaics using cubes of colored marble. Provided with these vast spaces, early Christians took the art form of mosaic from the floor and spread it onto the ceilings, the walls, everywhere. Early Christians created mosaics of biblical narratives and symbolic awesomeness. And instead of natural stone, they used colored glass, allowing them to create vibrant colors. This glass also gives the mosaic a sort of glittery, semi-translucent quality that you really must see in person to appreciate. The figures seem to shimmer as you move about. Though the Christians created some beautiful mosaics, the art of mosaic would reach its apex in the Byzantine art to follow. Illuminating the Word of God Just one form of early Christian art remains to be covered, and that is the illuminated manuscript. Illuminations are illustrations to accompany a written text, usually incorporating gold leaf. This addition became possible as the ancient world shifted from the tightly wound scroll of papyrus to the bound codex, what we would call a book. The fact that papyrus scrolls needed to be rolled made illumination all but impossible, because layers of paint would crack off and fall apart with repeated rolling and unrolling. The advent of vellum, or parchment, as a writing surface provided artists with a much more supple surface than brittle papyrus. It also meant that pages could lie flat, rather than being rolled and unrolled. The codex arrived on the scene around 100 AD, just in time for Christians to start illustrating their favorite book: the Bible. One of the earliest surviving illuminated Bibles is the Vienna Genesis, created around 500 CE. Here we can see a naturalistic style and a strange association of place and time. The picture does not display a single event, but a whole sequence, strung out along the path of the illustration - sort of like a medieval comic book. This illustration technique allowed illustrators to pack a lot of story into a very small space. The Rise of Constantine and Christianity Christianity and the Roman Empire had a long history of bad blood. Several Roman emperors made a point of persecuting Christianity, either because they were trying to preserve the religion of their ancestors or simply because Christians provided a convenient scapegoat for the problems of the empire. Christianity was illegal throughout the empire, and Christians were subject to injustices ranging from seizure of property to death in the arena. Yet, after three centuries of Roman Emperors grinding Christians under their feet, a new emperor decided to give Christians a hand up. His name was Constantine. Early Christian architecture exploded under the protection and patronage of this ambitious emperor. Constantine wanted to unify the crumbling Roman Empire under Christianity. To do so, he began building churches across the empire on a massive scale. The Basilica For centuries Christians had been meeting secretly in houses. With Constantine's conversion to Christianity, there was suddenly an opportunity to build public places of worship. Yet what should these churches look like? They could not look like Roman temples. A Roman temple is a pretty place for an idol to sit. It holds a god, a place for ritual sacrifice and perhaps a treasury. Christian ritual is not about burning food to an idol; it's about coming together as a congregation. The problem is there's nowhere in a Roman temple for a congregation to congregate. A bigger, more open space is necessary. To meet these needs, Constantine chose the Roman basilica as the model for his churches. Basilicas were the shopping malls of ancient Rome; they also served as council chambers, meeting halls and law courts throughout the empire. The basilica was a large rectangular hall with colonnades running down both sides. It had high windows to let in plenty of light. Many were built with a wooden roof, making their construction cheap and fast. Others featured an apse or raised semi circle at the opposite end of the entrance, framed by a triumphal arch, one of the most distinctly Roman forms of architecture. Constantine adapted this building to Christian services. The long, open rectangular colonnade was the perfect place for congregations to congregate. This area became known as the nave. That semicircular area at one end, or apse, seemed like the perfect place to put an altar. The entrances were then moved from the sides to the front, so the whole building has a single axis, with the apse as its focal point. Before the entrance, he added an atrium, or open-aired columned courtyard typical of Roman palaces. Between the atrium and the nave was the narthex, or main entrance of the church. With these adaptations, the Constantine's basilicas provided the space the Christians needed for their congregations and lent the Church the authority of an established form of imperial architecture, thereby proclaiming Christianity's status as a state religion. Unfortunately, none of Constantine's basilicas survive unaltered. The closest surviving example is the Basilica of St Paul outside the walls in Rome. Here we can see how these architectural elements came together to create a powerful visual and spatial effect. Entering the church requires passing through all of the elements we just covered. You start out in the columned atrium and then pass through the narthex. This brings you to the nave, which runs up to the triumphal arch, with the apse behind it. The overall effect was one of increasing grandeur as one stepped deeper and deeper into God's house. The basilica provided Christians with a place to commune and engage in the foremost Christian sacrament: the eucharist, in which pious Christians shared a communal meal of bread and wine, symbolizing the body and blood of Christ. Yet there was another important Christian sacrament, something that made a Christian a Christian, and that was baptism. The Baptistry While baptism would eventually become a matter of sprinkling babies, the early Church followed the example of the Bible and baptized people of all ages by immersion. Indeed, the very word 'baptismo' means 'I submerge.' Most Basilicas lacked an in-ground pool, thus a different space would need to be created for this important rite of passage. Luckily, the Romans already had the perfect public places for this service readily available: the Roman bath. The Roman bath took several forms, but the most popular was a round or polygonal building crowned with a dome. By the 1st century CE, this round design had already been expanded upon by the Romans to build temples, like the Pantheon. The form was later adapted for tombs, like the mausoleum Constantine built for his daughter. Early Christians adapted this form to build baptistries, or places to baptize people, like this Arian baptistry built in Ravenna circa 4-500 CE. Later, the Byzantines would expand upon this form, building their churches around this central-planned, domed scheme. True Beauty Lies Within As you've looked at these pictures of early Christian churches, you may have noticed a trend. These buildings have a rather plain, if not severe, exterior. Their lack of external decoration is offset by their lavish interior decoration. This marks a sharp contrast with the Roman temple. The Roman temple is a grand thing, decked with life-sized, realistic sculpture. Yet life-sized statues make Christians nervous, since they're so close to pagan idols. Christians needed a new way to decorate their buildings. Rather than sculpture and friezes, the early Christians chose a different medium: the mosaic. Basilica Santa Maria Maggiore Rome Arian Baptistry Ravenna


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior




• However, this time they gained complete control of the city and its

surrounding lands.

• Their leader, Odoacer, declared himself the ruler of Italy, forcing the last emperor of Rome, Romulus Augustulus, a nine year old boy, to surrender his crown.

• This signaled to history the fall of Rome - the extinguishing of the Eternal City.

* Effects of Constantine

• When discussing Roman history, most of the emperors after Constantine don't get a

lot of mention. In fact, other than perhaps Justinian, most people probably couldn't even name one. • Possibly, because they were all in the east


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior


• The emperors in the east were comfortable • The east was stable, as they had been used to imperial rule by

foreigners for over a millennia, the west, on the contrary, had only been conquered over the last 400 years, and was still not fully under Roman control then. • They suffered migrations of northern barbaric tribes looking for a

better life

• They lived in pockets of rural people governed by tribal chieftains, and not in the civilized cities with mass populations and the formal governments of the east.

• The east generated a lot of agricultural wealth with its wide sweeping

plains, where the west was heavily forested and difficult to farm


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior


• As a result, the western half of the empire always required a great deal of money to be spent on it in terms of soldiers to maintain order, food to placate the populations, government officials to visit the many tribes, and the vast areas, and the upkeep of the defenses on the border, and maintaining the several thousand tribal leaders so they would stay loyal to Rome.

• Eastern emperors were content to leave this expense to their western “brother” emperors, who were always asking for assistance from the east to maintain their empires, which the east rarely provided.

• Today we're going to remedy this by exploring a few of the emperors after

Constantine.

• Although we're going to focus mainly on Justinian, we'll still give a few others their day in the sun.

• For starters, when Constantine converted to Christianity in the year 312 AD

and then moved the capitol of the Roman Empire from Rome to Constantinople in the year 330, the Roman Empire drastically changed.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior


• The West, or Rome and its surrounding areas, faced continual invasion from the Germanic tribes of the North, while the Eastern regions of the Empire flourished.

• Now onto our emperors.

• Julian & the Apostate

• After Constantine, the first event and emperor really given much history-book playing time is Emperor Julian and his reign spanning 360-363. • His claim to fame is his attempt to restore paganism to the Empire.

• Paganism refers to any religion other than Judaism or

Christianity.

• History has termed this period, the Apostate.

• In short, Julian tried to undo Constantine's Christian reforms, calling for the Empire to return to the worship of their old gods.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior


• Unfortunately for Julian, he underestimated the sticking power of Christianity. His attempts at restoring paganism were overturned by his successor, Jovian.

• Valens and Adrianople

• The next noteworthy event we'll discuss is the entrance of the Huns into

Europe and the Battle of Adrianople, occurring under Emperor Valens. • The Huns were a warring and rather ruthless people from Asia.

• While Asiatic and possibly Turkic in origin, they had had contact

with Germanic peoples for hundreds of years, and intermarried with them, and had many Germanic peoples counted in their numbers.

• They were led by a rather aggressive and strategic minded chieftain named Attilla, who had brought several of their tribes together through military might to create a formidable armed force.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior



• To put it very mildly, they were intent on claiming whatever land they came to. • They pushed to very near Italy itself, and may have conquered

the eternal city if not for the intervention and pleas of the Bishop of Rome at that time, Leo, I

• They also came close to capturing the whole of France, but were defeated near the city of Orleans in the Battle of the Catalaunian Plains

• Attilla died before he could complete his plans to subdue the western half of the empire, and the Huns were forced to settle on the edges of the Balks forests between the eastern and western halves of the empire, in what is today modern Hungary.

• When the Huns entered Europe from the East, they pushed the Goths, or members of Germanic tribes, into the Roman Empire.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior



• Rather than declaring all-out war on these refugee-like Goths, the Empire folded them into its lands giving them use of poor lands oon the periphery, where they were forced to serve as a buffer to the such aggressive tribes as the Huns, and therefore had to be prepared militarily on a consistent basis. • Not only did they have to be prepared themselves, but they

also had to provide the empire with a large part of their young male population for military service elsewhere in the empire

• This setup worked for a while, but soon the Germanic Goths

rebelled and defeated the Roman army in the 378 AD Battle of Adrianople. • Emperor Valens himself was captured, and paraded around

naked and in chains before the victorious Goths, a rather humiliating thing for not just Valens, but the Roman people as well.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior



• Eventually, they executed him, just as Rome had sent out the ransom for him the Goths had demanded.

• Theodosius

• The last event and emperor we'll discuss before getting to Justinian is Emperor Theodosius. • He is known to history as the last emperor to rule both the Western

and Eastern halves of the Empire.

• History tells us Theodosius' reign, which spanned 379-395, was one of violence and military vengeance. • Any who dared cross him, or his imperial forces, was severely

punished.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior


• Despite his propensity toward violence, he is often referred to as Theodosius the Great.

• After all, he managed to hold the Empire together during a very turbulent time, as well as outlaw any pagan religious practices, and convert pagan temples to use as Christian churches, insuring Romans would have no religion but Christianity. • Unfortunately, going along with this practice, he also closed

Plato’s Academy, an act that most Romans were not in support of.

• Justinian

• Now, we come to Justinian.

• By the time Justinian came to the throne in the year 527, the Eastern

Roman Empire was also known as the Byzantine Empire. • It was Justinian's goal to bring the Empire back to its glory days.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior


• Justinian

• Not one to waste any time, he sent his military to reclaim much of the Western Empire that had been lost after the Battle of Adrianople and the fall of Rome.

• This even included Italy and the beloved city of Rome.

• Not content with merely reclaiming lands, Justinian also respected the laws of ancient Rome. • In order to cement them into his time and his Empire, he called

for all of Rome's ancient laws to be recorded.

• In doing this, Rome's ancient laws, also known as the Twelve Tables, were broken down into categories.

• Outdated laws were done away with, and complex laws were simplified.

• Desiring the Empire to thrive, Justinian also added new laws

dealing with the fair treatment of those within the Empire.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior


• Justinian

• For instance, one of his laws held that a person is innocent until proven guilty. • This one should be very familiar to anyone who has sat in a

history class or watched a TV cop show.

• Justinian's new laws, together with the laws of ancient Rome, are known today as the Corpus of Civil Law or Justinian's Code of Laws.

• Completed around the year 529, these laws have formed the basis for the judicial systems of the Western world since that time.

• Yes, Justinian may not be as well-known as Caesar or Nero, but his

influence just might be one of the strongest and longest-lasting of all the Roman Emperors.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

* The Legacy of the Roman Empire

• Perhaps nothing has defined western civilization as much as having once been part of the Roman Empire • The construction of cities, buildings, monuments, and the roads that connected

them throughout the empire brought a feeling of connectedness to people living thousands of miles apart. • Many great cities of Europe today began as Roman military camps, or trade

centers • London

• Paris

• Cologne

• Barcelona

• York

• Budapest


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

• Vienna

• Orleans

• Florence

• Milan

• Strasbourg

• Geneva

• Zurich

• Palermo


• The inventions and innovations which were generated in the Roman Empire profoundly altered the lives of the ancient people and continue to be used in cultures around the world today.

• indoor plumbing,

• aqueducts,

• and even fast-drying cement were either invented or improved upon by

the Romans. • The calendar used in the West derives from the one created by Julius

Caesar, and the names of the days of the week (in the romance languages) and months of the year also come from Rome.

• Apartment complexes (known as `insula), public toilets, locks and keys,

newspapers, even socks all were developed by the Romans as were shoes, a postal system (modeled after the Persians), cosmetics, the magnifying glass, and the concept of satire in literature.

• During the time of the empire, significant developments were also advanced in the fields of medicine, law, religion, government, and warfare.

Early Christian Art: An Underground Movement The first few centuries after the death of Jesus afforded Christians few opportunities for artistic or architectural expression. Christianity was often oppressed by the Roman Empire. Christians might have their property seized or be burned alive. In such a hostile environment, Christian artwork would have proven a liability. The only distinctly Christian symbol of this early age was the Ichthys, or 'Jesus fish.' The Ichthys was a secret symbol, whose name formed an acrostic for the central concept of Christian faith. Jesus Christ, God's Son, Savior. So the nature of Jesus could all be summed up with a simple fish, allowing Christians to identify their secret places of worship as well as the burial places of the faithful. The Catacombs of Rome The burial of Christians was a secret affair as well. Unlike their pagan predecessors, Christians were not fans of cremation. Christians believed in a bodily resurrection. I suppose they thought Jesus wouldn't know what to do with an urn full of ashes. So, instead of keeping the burnt remains of their loved ones on a shelf at home, Christians buried their dead. In overpopulated Rome, with its severe lack of space, this meant Christians had to find unique places to put their bodies. So Christians tunneled into the soft volcanic stone beneath the city, and there they built amazing catacombs. And it is in these catacombs that we begin to see the first traces of Christian art. Early Christians decorated their catacombs with frescoes, or paintings on fresh plaster. These frescoes are very simple and allegorical; not refined at all. This sort of primitive Christian painting copies the Pompeian style that was popular across the Roman Empire. They just reused an old style for new content. Sarcophagi After the Emperor Constantine fully legalized Christianity with the 313 Edict of Milan, Christians began moving their burials above ground, with grand sarcophagi, or stone caskets. These sarcophagi provide us with our first examples of Christian sculpture. Yet with sculpture, Christians faced a new problem. The classical world was full of sculpture, from idols of gods to friezes to life-sized sculptures adorning buildings. The early Christians saw pagan sculptures of gods as what they were - graven images, which are strictly forbidden by the Bible as idolatry. For this reason, sculpture took a back seat during the early Christian years. Though the early Christians did make use of sculpture on occasion, they took special care to make sure that the sculpture was clearly part of the decoration, rather than an object of adoration. Therefore, early Christian sculpture avoided the life-sized scale of their pagan predecessors, and almost completely avoided full statues or sculpture in the round. Instead, Christians used shallow relief sculpture and depicted biblical scenes and Christian allegory. Early Christian Mosaic Yet Constantine did more for Christianity than just protecting it from persecution. Constantine also actively sponsored the spread of Christianity through the building of churches throughout his empire. Though these churches were very plain on the outside, their interiors were bursting with colorful design in the form of mosaics. The mosaic had been around since Sumerian times. The Romans and Greeks did some incredibly detailed mosaics using cubes of colored marble. Provided with these vast spaces, early Christians took the art form of mosaic from the floor and spread it onto the ceilings, the walls, everywhere. Early Christians created mosaics of biblical narratives and symbolic awesomeness. And instead of natural stone, they used colored glass, allowing them to create vibrant colors. This glass also gives the mosaic a sort of glittery, semi-translucent quality that you really must see in person to appreciate. The figures seem to shimmer as you move about. Though the Christians created some beautiful mosaics, the art of mosaic would reach its apex in the Byzantine art to follow. Illuminating the Word of God Just one form of early Christian art remains to be covered, and that is the illuminated manuscript. Illuminations are illustrations to accompany a written text, usually incorporating gold leaf. This addition became possible as the ancient world shifted from the tightly wound scroll of papyrus to the bound codex, what we would call a book. The fact that papyrus scrolls needed to be rolled made illumination all but impossible, because layers of paint would crack off and fall apart with repeated rolling and unrolling. The advent of vellum, or parchment, as a writing surface provided artists with a much more supple surface than brittle papyrus. It also meant that pages could lie flat, rather than being rolled and unrolled. The codex arrived on the scene around 100 AD, just in time for Christians to start illustrating their favorite book: the Bible. One of the earliest surviving illuminated Bibles is the Vienna Genesis, created around 500 CE. Here we can see a naturalistic style and a strange association of place and time. The picture does not display a single event, but a whole sequence, strung out along the path of the illustration - sort of like a medieval comic book. This illustration technique allowed illustrators to pack a lot of story into a very small space. The Rise of Constantine and Christianity Christianity and the Roman Empire had a long history of bad blood. Several Roman emperors made a point of persecuting Christianity, either because they were trying to preserve the religion of their ancestors or simply because Christians provided a convenient scapegoat for the problems of the empire. Christianity was illegal throughout the empire, and Christians were subject to injustices ranging from seizure of property to death in the arena. Yet, after three centuries of Roman Emperors grinding Christians under their feet, a new emperor decided to give Christians a hand up. His name was Constantine. Early Christian architecture exploded under the protection and patronage of this ambitious emperor. Constantine wanted to unify the crumbling Roman Empire under Christianity. To do so, he began building churches across the empire on a massive scale. The Basilica For centuries Christians had been meeting secretly in houses. With Constantine's conversion to Christianity, there was suddenly an opportunity to build public places of worship. Yet what should these churches look like? They could not look like Roman temples. A Roman temple is a pretty place for an idol to sit. It holds a god, a place for ritual sacrifice and perhaps a treasury. Christian ritual is not about burning food to an idol; it's about coming together as a congregation. The problem is there's nowhere in a Roman temple for a congregation to congregate. A bigger, more open space is necessary. To meet these needs, Constantine chose the Roman basilica as the model for his churches. Basilicas were the shopping malls of ancient Rome; they also served as council chambers, meeting halls and law courts throughout the empire. The basilica was a large rectangular hall with colonnades running down both sides. It had high windows to let in plenty of light. Many were built with a wooden roof, making their construction cheap and fast. Others featured an apse or raised semi circle at the opposite end of the entrance, framed by a triumphal arch, one of the most distinctly Roman forms of architecture. Constantine adapted this building to Christian services. The long, open rectangular colonnade was the perfect place for congregations to congregate. This area became known as the nave. That semicircular area at one end, or apse, seemed like the perfect place to put an altar. The entrances were then moved from the sides to the front, so the whole building has a single axis, with the apse as its focal point. Before the entrance, he added an atrium, or open-aired columned courtyard typical of Roman palaces. Between the atrium and the nave was the narthex, or main entrance of the church. With these adaptations, the Constantine's basilicas provided the space the Christians needed for their congregations and lent the Church the authority of an established form of imperial architecture, thereby proclaiming Christianity's status as a state religion. Unfortunately, none of Constantine's basilicas survive unaltered. The closest surviving example is the Basilica of St Paul outside the walls in Rome. Here we can see how these architectural elements came together to create a powerful visual and spatial effect. Entering the church requires passing through all of the elements we just covered. You start out in the columned atrium and then pass through the narthex. This brings you to the nave, which runs up to the triumphal arch, with the apse behind it. The overall effect was one of increasing grandeur as one stepped deeper and deeper into God's house. The basilica provided Christians with a place to commune and engage in the foremost Christian sacrament: the eucharist, in which pious Christians shared a communal meal of bread and wine, symbolizing the body and blood of Christ. Yet there was another important Christian sacrament, something that made a Christian a Christian, and that was baptism. The Baptistry While baptism would eventually become a matter of sprinkling babies, the early Church followed the example of the Bible and baptized people of all ages by immersion. Indeed, the very word 'baptismo' means 'I submerge.' Most Basilicas lacked an in-ground pool, thus a different space would need to be created for this important rite of passage. Luckily, the Romans already had the perfect public places for this service readily available: the Roman bath. The Roman bath took several forms, but the most popular was a round or polygonal building crowned with a dome. By the 1st century CE, this round design had already been expanded upon by the Romans to build temples, like the Pantheon. The form was later adapted for tombs, like the mausoleum Constantine built for his daughter. Early Christians adapted this form to build baptistries, or places to baptize people, like this Arian baptistry built in Ravenna circa 4-500 CE. Later, the Byzantines would expand upon this form, building their churches around this central-planned, domed scheme. True Beauty Lies Within As you've looked at these pictures of early Christian churches, you may have noticed a trend. These buildings have a rather plain, if not severe, exterior. Their lack of external decoration is offset by their lavish interior decoration. This marks a sharp contrast with the Roman temple. The Roman temple is a grand thing, decked with life-sized, realistic sculpture. Yet life-sized statues make Christians nervous, since they're so close to pagan idols. Christians needed a new way to decorate their buildings. Rather than sculpture and friezes, the early Christians chose a different medium: the mosaic. Basilica Santa Maria Maggiore Rome Arian Baptistry Ravenna


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior


• During the time of the empire, significant developments were also advanced in the fields of medicine, law, religion, government, and warfare. • The Justinian Code became the basis of law throughout Western Europe to

this day, and guaranteed the rights of not just everyday Romans, but also of medieval serfs as well.

• The governmental systems of Republicanism and monarchy were borrowed from Rome

• Tactics, strategy, weaponry, military organization were Roman innovations until the Renaissance

• The Latin language of the Romans provided a lingua franca for academicians, business people, governments and church leaders to communicate across borders and with colleagues across the continent

• And, most importantly, the official religion of Rome at the time of its demise served as the official religion, and unifying force of western Europe for another 1000 years.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior


• And so, as we began this unit with the advent of Christianity, we conclude it with an examination of Christian innovation throughout the age of the Roman Empire.

* Early Christian Art: An Underground Movement

• The first few centuries after the death of Jesus afforded Christians few opportunities

for artistic or architectural expression.

• Christianity was often oppressed by the Roman Empire. • Christians might have their property seized or be burned alive.

• In such a hostile environment, Christian artwork would have proven a liability.

• The only distinctly Christian symbol of this early age was the Ichthys, or 'Jesus fish.'

• The Ichthys was a secret symbol, whose name formed an acrostic for the central

concept of Christian faith.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior


• ICTYS (the Greek word for fish) is merely an acronym for, Jesus Christ, God's Son, Savior.

• So the nature of Jesus could all be summed up with a simple fish, allowing

Christians to identify their secret places of worship as well as the burial places of the faithful.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

http://education-portal.com/academy/lesson/what-is-sigma-definition-lesson-quiz.html


• The Catacombs of Rome

• The burial of Christians was a secret affair as well. • Unlike their pagan predecessors, Christians were not fans of cremation.

• Christians believed in a bodily resurrection.

• I suppose they thought Jesus wouldn't know what to do with an urn

full of ashes.

• So, instead of keeping the burnt remains of their loved ones on a shelf at home, Christians buried their dead. • In overpopulated Rome, with its severe lack of space, this meant

Christians had to find unique places to put their bodies.

• So Christians tunneled into the soft volcanic stone beneath the city, and there they built amazing catacombs.

• And it is in these catacombs that we begin to see the first traces of Christian art.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior


• The Catacombs of Rome

• Early Christians decorated their catacombs with frescoes, or paintings on fresh plaster. These frescoes are very simple and allegorical; not refined at all.

• This sort of primitive Christian painting copies the Pompeian style that was popular across the Roman Empire.

• They just reused an old style for new content.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior


• Sarcophagi

• After the Emperor Constantine fully legalized Christianity with the 313 Edict of Milan, Christians began moving their burials above ground, with grand sarcophagi, or stone caskets.

• These sarcophagi provide us with our first examples of Christian sculpture.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior


• Sarcophagi

• Yet with sculpture, Christians faced a new problem. • The classical world was full of sculpture, from idols of gods to friezes to life-

sized sculptures adorning buildings.

• The early Christians saw pagan sculptures of gods as what they were - graven images, which are strictly forbidden by the Bible as idolatry.

• For this reason, sculpture took a back seat during the early Christian years.

• Though the early Christians did make use of sculpture on occasion, they took special care to make sure that the sculpture was clearly part of the decoration, rather than an object of adoration.

• Therefore, early Christian sculpture avoided the life-sized scale of their pagan predecessors, and almost completely avoided full statues or sculpture in the round.

• Instead, Christians used shallow relief sculpture and depicted biblical scenes and Christian allegory.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior


• Early Christian Mosaic

• Yet Constantine did more for Christianity than just protecting it from persecution.

• Constantine also actively sponsored the spread of Christianity through the building of churches throughout his empire.

• Though these churches were very plain on the outside, their interiors were bursting with colorful design in the form of mosaics.

• The mosaic had been around since Sumerian times.

• The Romans and Greeks did some incredibly detailed mosaics using cubes

of colored marble.

• Provided with these vast spaces, early Christians took the art form of mosaic from the floor and spread it onto the ceilings, the walls, everywhere.

• Early Christians created mosaics of biblical narratives and symbolic

awesomeness.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior


• Early Christian Mosaic

• And instead of natural stone, they used colored glass, allowing them to create vibrant colors.

• This glass also gives the mosaic a sort of glittery, semi-translucent quality that you really must see in person to appreciate. • The figures seem to shimmer as you move about.

• Though the Christians created some beautiful mosaics, the art of mosaic

would reach its apex in the Byzantine art to follow.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

An early Christian mosaic in Ravenna Italy depicting Jesus

A Byzantine mosaic a;so from Ravenna depicting the Emperor Justinian


• Illuminating the Word of God

• Just one form of early Christian art remains to be covered, and that is the illuminated manuscript.

• Illuminations are illustrations to accompany a written text, usually incorporating gold leaf.

• This addition became possible as the ancient world shifted from the tightly wound scroll of papyrus to the bound codex, what we would call a book.

• The fact that papyrus scrolls needed to be rolled made illumination all but

impossible, because layers of paint would crack off and fall apart with repeated rolling and unrolling.

• The advent of vellum, or parchment, as a writing surface provided artists with a much more supple surface than brittle papyrus.

• It also meant that pages could lie flat, rather than being rolled and unrolled.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior


• Illuminating the Word of God

• The codex arrived on the scene around 100 AD, just in time for Christians to start illustrating their favorite book: the Bible.

• One of the earliest surviving illuminated Bibles is the Vienna Genesis,

created around 500 AD.

• Here we can see a naturalistic style and a strange association of place and

time.

• The picture does not display a single event, but a whole sequence, strung out along the path of the illustration - sort of like a medieval comic book.

• This illustration technique allowed illustrators to pack a lot of story into a very small space.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior


• Christian Architecture

• Early Christian architecture exploded under the protection and patronage of the Emperor Constantine.

• Constantine wanted to unify the crumbling Roman Empire under Christianity.

• To do so, he began building churches across the empire on a massive scale.

• The Basilica

• For centuries Christians had been meeting secretly in houses. • With Constantine's conversion to Christianity, there was suddenly an

opportunity to build public places of worship.

• Yet what should these churches look like?

• They could not look like Roman temples.

• A Roman temple is a pretty place for an idol to sit.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior



• The Basilica

• It holds a god, a place for ritual sacrifice and perhaps a treasury.

• Christian ritual is not about burning food to an idol; it's about coming together as a congregation.

• The problem is there's nowhere in a Roman temple for a congregation to congregate.

• A bigger, more open space is necessary.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior



• The Basilica

• To meet these needs, Constantine chose the Roman basilica as the model for his churches.

• Basilicas were the shopping malls of ancient Rome; they also served as council chambers, meeting halls and law courts throughout the empire.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior



• The Basilica

• The basilica was a large rectangular hall with colonnades running down both sides.

• It had high windows to let in plenty of light.

• Many were built with a wooden roof, making their construction cheap and fast.

• Others featured an apse or raised semi circle at the opposite end of the entrance, framed by a triumphal arch, one of the most distinctly Roman forms of architecture.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior



• The Basilica

• Constantine adapted this building to Christian services.

• The long, open rectangular colonnade was the perfect place for congregations to congregate. • This area became known as the nave.

• That semicircular area at one end, or apse, seemed like the

perfect place to put an altar. • The entrances were then moved from the sides to the front,

so the whole building has a single axis, with the apse as its focal point.

• Before the entrance, he added an atrium, or open-aired

columned courtyard typical of Roman palaces.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior



• The Basilica

• Between the atrium and the nave was the narthex, or main entrance of the church.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

The Nave The Apse The Atrium



• The Basilica



Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

The Narthex



• The Basilica


• With these adaptations, Constantine's basilicas provided the space

the Christians needed for their congregations and lent the Church the authority of an established form of imperial architecture, thereby proclaiming Christianity's status as a state religion.

• Unfortunately, none of Constantine's basilicas survive unaltered. The closest surviving example is the Basilica of St Paul outside the walls in Rome.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior



• The Basilica

• Here we can see how these architectural elements came together to create a powerful visual and spatial effect. • Entering the church requires passing through all of the elements

we just covered. • You start out in the columned atrium and then pass through

the narthex.

• This brings you to the nave, which runs up to the triumphal arch, with the apse behind it.

• The overall effect was one of increasing grandeur as one stepped deeper and deeper into God's house.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior



• The Basilica

• The basilica provided Christians with a place to commune and engage in the foremost Christian sacrament: the eucharist, in which pious Christians shared a communal meal of bread and wine, symbolizing the body and blood of Christ.

• Yet there was another important Christian sacrament, something that made a Christian a Christian, and that was baptism.

• The Baptistry

• While baptism would eventually become a matter of sprinkling

babies, the early Church followed the example of the Bible and baptized people of all ages by immersion.

• Indeed, the very word 'baptismo' means 'I submerge.'

• Most Basilicas lacked an in-ground pool, thus a different space would need to be created for this important rite of passage.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior



• The Baptistry

• Luckily, the Romans already had the perfect public places for this service readily available: the Roman bath. • The Roman bath took several forms, but the most popular

was a round or polygonal building crowned with a dome.

• By the 1st century AD, this round design had already been expanded upon by the Romans to build temples, like the Pantheon.

• The form was later adapted for tombs, like the mausoleum

Constantine built for his daughter.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

The Mausoleum of Santa Costanza 350 AD



• The Baptistry

• Early Christians adapted this form to build baptistries, or places to baptize people, like this Arian baptistry built in Ravenna circa 400-500 AD.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior



• The Baptistry

• Later, the Byzantines would expand upon this form, building their churches around this central-planned, domed scheme.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

The Hagia Sophia in Constantinople, 537 A.D. (It served as a Christian church until the Turks conquered Byzantium in 1453 and converted it into a Muslim temple. Today it is open as a secular museum.)



• True Beauty Lies Within

• As you've looked at these pictures of early Christian churches, you may have noticed a trend.

• These buildings have a rather plain, if not severe, exterior.

• However, their lack of external decoration is offset by their lavish interior decoration.

• This marks a sharp contrast with the Roman temple.

• The Roman temple is a grand thing, decked with life-sized, realistic

sculpture.

• Yet life-sized statues make Christians nervous, since they're so close to pagan idols.

• Christians needed a new way to decorate their buildings. • Rather than sculpture and friezes, the early Christians chose a

different medium: the mosaic. Basilica Santa Maria Maggiore Rome Arian Baptistry Ravenna


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior



• True Beauty Lies Within

• Rather than sculpture and friezes, the early Christians chose a different medium: the mosaic.

• And it is with this beuaty that we leave the Roman Empire, and early Christianity and

enter a time period where the knowledge to create things so grand was lost, and western man was lost in an age where the light of classical ancient knowledge was exinguished, a dark age.


Word Translation

Iota Iesous Jesus

Chi Christos Christ

Theta Theou God's

Ypsilon Uios Son

Sigma Soter Savior

Documents

The roman empire - Marshall Community · PDF fileRoman Republic, and the birth of the Roman Empire. ... Triumvirate. English Spelling of Greek Letter Word Translation Iota Iesous Jesus