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The Roman Catholic Church's Response to Barbarians, Heresy, and Warfare in Late Antiquity
By Scott Raymond Steffens A thesis submitted to Sonoma State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master ofArts in History
Mary Halavais, Ph.D.
Copyright 2011 By Scott Raymond Steffens 11 AUTHORIZATION FOR REPRODUCTION OF MASTER'S THESIS I grant permission for the reproduction of this thesis in its entirety, without further
authorization from me, on the condition that the person or agency requesting reproduction
absorb the cost and provide proper acknowledgment of authorship.
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The Roman Catholic Church's Response to Barbarians, Heresy, and Warfare in Late Antiquity.
Thesis by Scott Raymond Steffens Abstract Purpose of the Study:
The orthodox Catholic Church of Late Antiquity was a very active participant in the
political and social turmoil that defined fourth and fifth century Europe. The church had a
vested interest in maintaining its position as the only officially sanctioned Christian sect
of the Roman Empire. Many times the church had to rely on the support of the Roman
government to achieve this objective.
The purpose ofthis study is to answer how the church was able to respond to perceived
threats to its position as the dominate christian sect ofEurope.
Procedure:
To determine how the Church responded to perceived threats, many ancient sources were
studies, and works by modem historians and archaeologists were read. Many surviving
sermons, letters and treatises written by bishops from Late Antiquity were studied
primarily to determine how perceived threats to the power ofthe church were dealt with.
It was also important to discuss the larger social and economic context in which these
works were written to better understand the relationship the church had with its non­
orthodox and non-roman neighbors.
Findings:
The response the church had to perceived threats differed from region to region.
Depending on the severity of the circumstances of the nature of the threat, the church
protected itself by identifying opposing christian sects as heretics and anathematizing
their beliefs, or by relying on the use of force from the Roman government to actively
suppress heresies. The means in which heresies were suppressed could be from
confiscation of their chUrches and wealth, forbidding them from serving in the
government or military, banning them from meeting within towns and cities, or in
extreme cases executing them.
IV
Conclusion:
The church identified pagans, barbarians, and heretics as the main threats to its power in
Late Antiquity. The policies that were implemented by the government on behalf ofthe
church, and the various ecclesiastical council convened, were meant to protect the
orthodox Catholic Church as the officially sanctioned religion of the Roman Empire. The
imperial edicts that were issued, and the literature written by bishops, largely succeeded
in defending the Catholic Church from perceived threats.
Date:~
MA Program: History
Sonoma State University
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Acknowledgments
I would like to thank the following people for their support, dedication, and
encouragement during the research and writing process of this thesis. Professor Judith
Abbott, chair of the thesis committee, for her support in guiding me through the complicated
maze ofLate Antiquity, and for the many hours spent in revising, critiquing, and editing the
many versions of this thesis. Professor William Poe, thesis committee member, for the helpful
commentary he provided on Christianity in the ancient world which greatly expanded my
knowledge of how Christianity worked. Professor Mary Halavais, thesis
committee member, who has made me a better student of history through her helpful
commentary on my thesis. Finally, professor Michelle Jolly, for helping me organize and
formulate my thesis proposal into its fmal form.
I have been fascinated with the subject of Roman history since I was eleven years old. It
all started when I stumbled upon a book my father owns called The Ruins ofPompeii. I was
enthralled by the amazing pictures of an ancient Roman city. My interest in the subject
continued through my undergraduate years of college. I decided that I wanted to pursue a
career teaching the subject I love so much. That desire brought me to Sonoma State University.
While attending Sonoma State, I discovered the writings of Salvian of Marseille. His writing
inspired me to renew my interest in Roman history and to explore the world ofLate Antiquity in
greater detail. Much to my delight, I discovered a world of famous individuals, wonderful
literature, and vibrant cultures. I used to think of the world of late antiquity as a wasteland, the
beginning of a dark age in Europe in which all literature, history and civilization had stopped.
After studying Late Antiquity, I know that is not the case. It was a world of great change, great
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debates, and powerful men and women.
The focus of this project has changed several times since it began. I had originally
planned to focus my thesis project on how resources were used by the church to give to the
poor, but I couldn't fmd enough evidence. Professor Jolly pointed out a more challenging
direction, which was to explore how the church used charity as a means of protecting the
church. This led me to study how the church sought to protect itself from outsiders.
Professor Abbot has been my greatest influence into how I study and research history. I
took three classes of her during my time at Sonoma State. She has given me a model of
studying history that I have incorporated into my own research. She directed me to some ofthe
most helpful and favorite secondary sources I've read, mainly Peter Brown's The Rise of
Western Christendom.
As a result of this thesis project I have become more interested in the economic and
social history of the later Roman Empire. As I have become more acquainted with the
Theodosian Codes, which shed light into the social and economic context of fourth and fifth
century Europe, I have become fascinated with the economic and social undercurrents that
drove the changes that defmed Late Antiquity. What I have found so wonderful about history is
there there is never a shortage of questions to be asked, and a never ending sense of curiosity
within me to find the answers. I know that when I fmish my time at Sonoma State, this curiosity
will spark a lifetime of learning.
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Table of Contents
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Acknowledgments Introduction.....................................................................................1 Chapters 1. Charity and Change.........................................................5 2. Barbarians '" ...................................................................30 3. Heretics ..........................................................................51 4. Methods ofCharity..........................................................75 5. Conclusion.......................................................................92 Bibliography ..................................................................................97 vi
1
Introduction
The history of Late Antiquity consists of a dazzling array of battles, martyrs,
Kings, Emperors, armies, and religions. This is the age of Alaric, Attila, Leo the Great,
Flavius Aetius, Theodosius, Constantine and Stilicho. This was the age ofthe great
migrations where the Visigoths, the Vandals, Huns, and many others entered the Roman
Empire. The Romans were in a constant struggle with their barbarian neighbors to try
either to keep them outside of the empire or when they couldn't, keep them contained
within it. Warfare and violence were constant threats to the stability of Roman order.
Religious controversies spread all over the Roman world. Religious leaders sought to find
common ground among the different beliefs or violently opposed compromise. Violent
opposition, however, always prevented reasonable compromise. Bishops and generals
grew powerful, emperors less powerful. Peasants rebelled and barbarians plundered.
The Roman world was slow to adapt to the changing realities of a post classical world.
This thesis shows how the Roman world dealt with these changing realities. The research
has led me to the following theory: the Church responded to these perceived threats by
trying to extirpate opposing religions and sects of Christianity, by marginalizing
barbarians, and by mitigating and condemning apostasy. Overtime, the church had to
make its enemies known in order to fight them: they were barbarians, heretics, and non­
Christians.
Romans were forced to grapple with this difficult question, what to do about
foreign peoples immigrating into Roman territory? Long before the reign of Constantine
I, it was decided that Rome's armies would go no farther than the Rhine and Danube
Rivers. But the power of the Roman Empire extended far beyond its borders. The
relationship between the Roman Empire and its Germanic neighbors went from one of
2
open hostility to peaceful coexistence (with episodes of warfare) as trade brought Roman
and Germanic peoples into a mutually beneficial relationship. However during the fourth
and fifth centuries, when the peaceful coexistence between Romans and Germanic
peoples broke down and many tribes invaded the Empire, emperors thought they had
found an acceptable solution; they allowed some of these tribes to settle in certain areas
and become federated allies. The Roman military employed many barbarians to serve as
mercenaries within the Roman army. Despite this apparent solution, the plan didn't work
welL Barbarians :frequently rebelled against the Romans. One major problem was the
barbarians were always considered outsiders. They didn't share the same culture,
language, or religious beliefs as many Romans did. Romans were acutely aware of these
distinctions and viewed the barbarians with a great deal ofwariness. This was true for
many Christian bishops, who thought ofbarbarians as a real threat to the church.
Eventually, the question was answered by the barbarians themselves, who whether by
force or by default established their own kingdoms in Roman territory.
Before the end of the Christian persecutions, bishops were already asking the
question, what type of Christianity should everyone follow and why? Bishops attempted
to define what acceptable belief was through the use of councils. Despite the decisions
that were made, many refused to obey. But as far as the Roman Empire was concerned;
it had answered the question as to what type ofChristianity was acceptable. Therefore,
those who disbelieved in the acceptable fonn of Christianity were labeled heretics. All
heretics became targets for the emerging universal (Catholic) Church, because their
continued existence was a threat to their power. Even though the church enjoyed
imperial support, it still worked to extirpate opposing sects. Opposing sects of
Christianity didn't consider themselves heretical at all and in fact directed much criticism
3
against the sponsored fonn of Christianity. Also, these so called heretical sects enjoyed
widespread popular support in many parts of Europe.
For the barbarians, assimilation into the empire was not easy, nor was it for
Romans. Sometimes tensions erupted into outright violence. Inevitably, xenophobia was
a motivation to keep barbarians marginalized. Christian bishops were not exempted from
this. Many asked, could barbarians be Christians? Writers in Late Antiquity debated
whether if so called uncivilized barbarians could ever be Christians. On the one hand, by
the beginning of the fourth century, many barbarians had already considered themselves
to be Christians. The Goths had been converted, and soon other groups would follow.
The problem was, these outsiders were not really Christians to the Catholic Church.
Much of the contemporary literature written by bishops contains scathing remarks about
the nature of these barbarian outsiders. As far as they were concerned, heretics weren't
Christian at all, but more or less infidels. This created a very tense situation and begged
the following question: what should be done when infidels come into contact with
Catholic congregations in Roman territory? The migrations of the late fourth and early
fifth century exposed the vulnerability of the Catholic Church to outside influences, and
the church attempted to maintain its position as the only true religion of the Roman
Empire.
Christianity fundamentally altered the social consciousness of people regarding an
important principle, how much of a role should the church take in caring for the poor?
Based on the writings of both secular and religious writers, we know the church took an
active part in caring for the poor, but the reasons that they did so occasionally had
motives that extended beyond the scope of Christian ethics and theology. While there
were plenty of poor people to support through the use of charity, there were specific
4
circumstances in which poor people in Western Europe had to contend with. One of
which was, being charitable towards the poor would produce members loyal to the
Catholic church, and not to anyone else.
5
Chapter One
Charity and Change
Between 312 and 512, Christian bishops fundamentally transformed cultural
traditions of pre-Christian Europe due to their understanding new and old testament
ethics and their Christian religious duty. The church imposed certain behavioral
expectations on bishops and believers and this affected the idea of charity as a religious
duty. Its function will be compared with the notion of giving as was practiced by pagans
in Europe. There are two primary reasons why Christian congregations were exhorted to
social charity.
First, there were theological considerations. Charity could be used to
purge the soul of sins and be reconciled with God. Secondly, the use of charity was a
means ofprotecting the church's interests. In a relatively short period of time,
Christianity grew from a small marginalized religion to the official religion of the Roman
Empire. Despite the dissolution of the Western Empire during the closing years of the
fifth century, Christianity endured within the successor barbarian kingdoms of western
Europe.
How Charity Worked in a Pagan Empire
In the polytheistic world of the Roman Empire, it was a common expectation for
rich pagan landowners, who frequently served as administrators on city councils, to be
"lovers of their cities".1 This meant that rich elites ofthe Roman world would voluntarily
donate some of their wealth to their city in which they resided for the purposes of
adorning it with a new building for public use. The primary motivation of such giving
would be to bolster the personal prestige ofthe giver or to gain political support ofthe
residents. 2 While polytheistic religions of ancient Europe lacked any special dogmatic
Peter Brown, Poverty and Leadership in the Later Roman Empire, (Hanover, NH: University Press of
New England, 2002),5.
1 Ibid, 4.
1
6
tradition of giving aid to poor people, direct contributions to destitute people did happen
in the polytheistic world mostly in the form of grain doles. Food shortage was a frequent
occurrence in the ancient world and emperors, seeking to prevent rioting or usurpation,
sought to keep the people of Rome fed. A food shortage during the reign of Emperor
Antoninus Pius (138-161 CE), prompted the emperor to use his personal wealth by
buying an emergency supply of wine, oil and grain and had it distributed to the people for
free. 3 But since pagans generally considered those who couldn't enjoy a privileged life of
leisure and culture as being poor, contributions made to help people enjoy such buildings
was considered an act of charity.
This did not mean however that the destitute and penniless, the real poor
according to Christian Bishops, did not have any recourse. It was common in pagan
culture for the poorest members of society to gather around pagan temples in cities to
petition the city for assistance, and rich patrons had a responsibility to listen to their
demands but not necessarily do anything for them.4 A patron's real responsibility was to
be a defender of the city's interests. Unless a patron wanted to lose support of his
clientele, he would have to be responsible for the people inside the city.
The praiseworthiness of charity spoken about by bishops in late antiquity was
never lost to Christian congregations. Bishops and occasionally emperors would preach
about the need to be charitable. An interesting argument developed out of this position.
Bishops exhorted their congregations to be charitable not only to the poor and destitute,
but also to the church.
3
4
Peter Garnsey, Famine and Food Supply in the Graeco-Roman World: Responses to Risk and Crisis,
(Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1988),225.
Ibid, 78,80.
7
Church and State in Late Antiquity
From the time of Constantine to the end of the Western Empire in 476, the church
and the government collaborated on religious policy issues. This symbiotic relationship
gave the church a strong advantage over other Christian sects. But the church had never
anticipated the demise of the Roman Empire. s Few imagined a world in which the two
would not coexist. But the sack of Rome in 410 sent shock waves through the Roman
world and soon the church had to come to terms with the realization that the world of
church and Roman state may not be able to support and protect each other forever. 6 As
the power of the state waned, however, the cultural and religious influence that the elite
enjoyed did not necessarily vanish with it. Rather, it adapted to the changing social and
cultural realities. Roman politicians and bureaucrats, seeking to preserve their political
and social power beyond the reaches of the Roman imperial government, sought to be
ordained as clergy in the Catholic Church.7 Former Roman civil servants and bureaucrats
became bishops, and tended to have more freedom exercising power outside of the
confines of the rigid structures of Roman government. 8
Bishops had many important responsibilities in their capacity as leaders of
congregations. The clergy had always been encouraged to be superior examples of
Christian behavior. In the New Testament st. Paul's first letter to Timothy mentions
rules for Presbyters to follow. Paul encouraged Presbyters saying, "Do not lay hands too
readily on anyone, and do not share in another's sins. Keep yourself pure.'>9 Bishops
were also expected to be fishers of men, and convert people to the church. "They should
, R.P.C. Hanson, "The Reaction of the Church to the Collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the Fifth
Century," Vigilae Christianae, 26 (1972), 272.
6 Ibid, 274.
7 Charles Henry Coster, "Christianity and the Invasions: Synesius of Cyrene," The Classical Journal, 55
(1960),291. 8
R.P.C. Hanson, "The Reaction of the Church to the Collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the Fifth Century," 280. 91 Timothy 5:22-23 NSRV (New Oxford Bible). 8
be above reproach and to be supporters of the poor. lO "In the centuries following the
writings of st. Paul, bishops expanded on this early demand of ethical behavior. Rules
and regulations were imposed on bishops so that they could be held to account for
misdeeds. In the turbulent years of the early fifth century, the Orthodox Church sought to
consolidate its unity as a religious institution and to create a unified set of rules for its
clergy to follow. The publication of the Apostolic Constitutions (c.400) and its
subsequent adoption was intended, among other things, to provide guidance to bishops on
how orphans and widows should be cared for:
Besides, 0 bishop, be mindful ofthe needy, both reaching out your helping hand and
making provision for them as the steward of God, distributing seasonably the oblations to
every one of them, to the widows, the orphans, the friendless, and those tried with
affliction. II
The third book of the Apostolic Constitutions contains a passage on who was
eligible to receive aid.
For what if some are neither widows nor widowers, but stand in need ofassistance, either
through poverty or some disease, or the maintenance of a great number ofchildren? It is
your duty to oversee all people, and to take care ofthem all. For they that give gifts do
not oftheir own head give them to the widows, but barely bring them in, calling them
free-will offerings, that so you who know those that are in affliction may as a good
steward give them their portion ofthe gift. For God knows the giver, though you
distribute it to those in want when he is absent. And he has the reward ofwell-doing, but
you have the blessedness of having dispensed it with a good conscience. But tell them
who was the giver, that they may pray for him by name. For it is our duty to do good to
all men, not fondly preferring one or another, whoever they be. For the Lord says: Give
to every one that asks ofyou. 1l
On orphans, the constitutions instruct bishops to be "solicitous about their
maintenance" and to bring them into the community to take care of them:
Do you therefore, 0 bishops, be solicitous about their maintenance, being in nothing
wanting to them; exhibiting to the orphans the care ofparents; to the widows the care of
husbands; to those ofsuitable age, marriage; to the artificer, work; to the unable,
commiseration; to the strangers, an house; to the hungry, food; to the thirsty, drink; to the
naked, clothing; to the sick, visitation; to the prisoners, assistance. Besides these, have a
10
I Timothy 6:14,18.
Apostolic Constitutions, 3.1, tr. James Donaldson; quoted in Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol. 7 (Buffalo, NY:
Christian Literature Publishing Co., 1886, accessed 30 January 2010); available from
http://www.newadvent.orglfathersl07153.htm; Internet.
111bid, 3.1.4.
II
9
greater care ofthe orphans, that nothing may be wanting to them; and that as to the
maiden, till she arrives at the age of marriage, and you give her in marriage to a brother:
to the young man assistance, that he may learn a trade, and may be maintained by the
advantage arising from it; that so, when he is dextrous in the management of it, he may
thereby be enabled to buy himself the tools of his trade, that so he may no longer burden
any of the brethren, or their sincere love to him, but may support himself: for certainly he
is a happy man who is able to support himself, and does not take up the place ofthe
orphan, the stranger, and the widow.13
As leaders of Christian communities, it was very important for bishops to be
men of the highest ethical standing.
Upon this account, therefore, 0 bishop, endeavor to be pure in your actions, and to adorn
your place and dignity, which is that of one sustaining the character ofGod among men,
as being set over all men, over priests, kings, rulers, fathers, children, teachers, and in
general over all those who are subject to you: and so sit in the Church when you speak, as
having authority to judge offenders. 14
The constitutions demand that bishops regulate the behavior of their parishoners. This
meant bishops had to be good judges ofcharacter and regulate those who are "offenders"
and those who are "penitents."u
Therefore, 0 bishop, judge with authority like God, yet receive the penitent; for God is a
God of mercy. Rebuke those that sin, admonish those that are not converted, exhort those
that stand to persevere in their goodness, receive the penitent; for the Lord God has
promised with an oath to afford remission to the penitent for what things they have done
amiss. 16
These two extracts show that bishops were given a lot of power in regulating the personal
actions and beliefs ofthe congregation. It also suggests that the church created and
published this document in a very turbulent time in ecclesiastical history as evidenced by
the numerous demands placed on bishops on how not to behave, suggesting the church
was having a hard time maintaining discipline within its own clergy, or possibly losing
apostates to other competing Christian sects, thus posing a threat to the church's standing.
The Apostolic Constitutions contain a prohibition against bishops taking bribes, which
shows that the authors of the document perceived bribery to be problematic enough to
13 Apostolic Constitutions, 4.1.2 14 Ibid. 15
Apostolic Constitutions, 2.3.11-12.
16
Ibid.
10
warrant the inclusion of such prohibition and demands that bishops "shall not receive
gifts against anyone's life; for gifts do blind the eyes of the wise, and pervert the words
of the righteous.,,17
Book six of the constitutions demands that bishops, "avoid the sad and dangerous
and most atheistical heresies, eschewing them as fire that bums those that come near to it.
Avoid also schisms: for it is neither lawful to turn one's mind towards wicked
heresies..."18 Nevertheless, the church clearly meant to define those who are offenders
as either one who is a believer in a heretical teaching or one who has sinned against the
church. In the second case, the bishop had the power over the individual to admit him or
her back into the congregation or to expel. For as the bible says, "Whatsoever you shall
bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatsoever you shall loose on earth shall be
loosed in heaven."19
But the Apostolic Constitutions do not directly name specific groups it considers
heretical. What are given are references to beliefs held by other Christian sects which it
deems anathema. In book six of the Apostolic Constitutions, there is a passage which
attacks atheism, and those who don't believe in the resurrection, in the immortality of the
soul and in "judgment or retribution."zo Later on the document attacks specific beliefs
held by other religious groups:
Some ofthem say that there are many gods, some that there are three gods without
beginning, some that there are two unbegotten gods, some that there are innwnerable
lEons. Further, some ofthem teach that men are not to marry, and must abstain from
flesh and wine, affirming that marriage, and the begetting of children, and the eating of
certain foods, are abominable; that so, as sober persons, they may make their wicked
opinions to be received as worthy ofbelief.21
17 Ibid, 2.3.9. lBIbid 6.1.1. 19 Ibid 2.3.12, and Matthew 18:18. 20 Apostolic Constitutions, 6.2.10.
21 Ibid
11
The reference to "two unbegotten Gods" and "innumerable Aeons" is an attack on
Gnostic theology which divided the universe between the existence of two gods which
were, in terms of Gnostic belief, directly opposed to each other. Accordingly, Gnostics
believed that the God of the spirit was a good and loving God, and the God ofthe flesh
was an evil God. The document's reference to the belief that "men are not to marry" is
most likely a criticism on the beliefs of the Iberian priest Priscillian, whose religious sect
was deemed heretical by the Catholic Church in part for its practice of extreme asceticism
and the forbiddance ofmarriage. Priscillian died in the later fourth century, thus this
document can be dated from at least the second half of the fourth century.22
Peasants and Landowners in Late Antiquity
In the Roman Empire, there had always been a visible disparity between rich and
poor. Economic and political circumstances expanded this disparity in late antiquity to
the extent that much of the rhetoric coming from Christian bishops is a reaction to the
growing poverty of the peasant working class and the indulgent materialism of the elites,
who still controlled a significant amount of wealth and property despite the troubles of
the fifth century. Studying the changing relationship between rich and poor will put the
Christian response to the plight of the poor into a clearer perspective.
Signs of economic decline were evident in Western Europe well before the fifth
century. The constant warfare which plagued the rich countryside of Gaul and Spain led
to the destruction of important settlements. 23 The large trading routes that had enriched
the Roman economy collapsed, leaving behind a smaller more regionalized economy.
Previously, long distance trading was a hallmark of Roman economic expansion. For
22Charles Freeman, A.D. 381: Heretics, Pagans and the Dawn 0/the Monotheistic State, (New York: The
Overlook Press, 2008), 142.
23Bryan Ward-Perkins, The Falla/Rome and the End a/Civilization. (Oxford: Oxford University Press,
2005), 13-17 passim.
12
example, garum, a fish sauce exported from present day Portugal starting in the first
century, was unavailable by the fourth. Whatever long distance exchanges occurred
during this time seems to have been done only to meet the demands of the state, such as
the transfer of grain and olive oil from Carthage to Rome to feed the masses.24 Merchants
and traders tended to be government officials responsible for provisioning military units,
not businessmen interested in earning a profit. Taxing agricultural surpluses in the
provinces was a means of redistributing wealth to meet the demands of the military, and
commercial transactions declined into local phenomena. Wealth evaporated, leaving it
mostly concentrated in the rich landowning class of the empire. Consequently, the
peasant class, either fleeing from barbarian invasions or abandoning their farms due to
oppressive taxation, sought protection from the rich landowning class. This highlights
the changing economic relationship between the rich and the poor.
The elite landowning class had for centuries enjoyed the ownership of large villas
that dotted the Roman countryside, and the land had traditionally been worked by slaves.
By the fifth century, the large pool of slaves that worked such villas were a thing of the
past and the rich turned to the poor peasant class to replace them. 25 Thus the peasant
class bore the brunt of the hard labor that was pervasive on the large landed estates of the
wealthy.
The Roman tax policy of late antiquity was another factor involved in the plight
of the poor. While the exact function of the late Roman tax system remains obscure,
there is enough extant evidence that suggests the overwhelmingly agrarian economy of
Europe was the major source of tax revenue for the state. Imperial tax policy demanded
24
J.T. Petla, "The Mobilization of State Olive Oil in Roman Africa: the Evidence ofLate Fourth Century
Ostraca from Carthage," Carthage Papers. Journal ofRoman Archeology Supplement 28. (porsmouth:
RI, 1998).
2~ Innes, Matthew, Introduction to Early Medieval Western Europe, 300-900: The Sword, the Plough and
The Book, (New York: Routledge, 2007),33.
13
payment oftax in cash; tax assessments were performed on landed estates every five
years beginning in 287 under the reign of Diocletian. 26 One document discovered shows
that the state taxed up to ten percent of the harvest. 27 Other taxes were levied by local
officials, who tended to be much more flexible in terms of payment, whether it was in
cash or kind. One problem the peasants faced was that the landowners they worked for
also tended to be councilmen for the towns they lived near. It was the landowners' job to
levy local taxes while being landlords of their estates at the same time. Consequently,
peasants paid their taxes and their rent to the same people. 28 Sometimes this situation
was too much for the peasantry to bear and peasants would abandon their farms to join
barbarians or rebels groups in the countryside. One Catholic bishop noted that the
problem had gotten so out of control that the situation seemed hopeless:
Who can find words to describe the enormity ofour present situation? Now when the
Roman commonwealth, already extinct or at least drawing its last breath in that one
comer where it still seems to retain some life, is dying , strangled by the cords of taxation
as ifby the hands of brigands, still a great number of wealthy men are found the burden
of taxes is borne by the poor; that is, very many rich men are found whose taxes are
murdering the poor.29
The central government didn't seem to care. In an effort to maintain tax revenue,
the government passed laws tying peasants to their land and requiring the sons of
peasants to remain where their fathers worked. This policy in effect, as Innes has noted,
cemented "the dominance of local elites, who were simultaneously tax collectors and
landlords for their tenants..."30 This style of taxation made it tremendously difficult for
the poor peasant class to thrive. While still theoretically free peasants (and not slaves),
they worked the land to try to ensure their own survival despite the heavy tax burden
from the state and from the landlords. This did however widen social divisions between
Ibid, 31. Ibid, 31. 28 Ibid, 32. 26
27
29Salvian. Dei Gubernatione Dei, tr. Eva Sanford, (New York: Octagon Books, 1966), 107. 30 Matthew Innes, Introduction to the Early Medieval Ages, The Sword, The Plough, and the Book, 32. 14
rich and poor oflate antiquity. It is no coincidence that at this time more writings from
bishops tend to emphasize the necessity of almsgiving and the importance of giving to
those who were not blessed with material wealth, particularly peasants.
Urban Life and Christianity
The urban centers of the Roman world have tended to be romanticized as places
ofculture and wealth as shown by the ruins of places like Pompeii, Herculaneum,
Carthage and Rome. While perhaps the ruling elite of Roman cities such as these did
display culture and wealth, the vast majority of urban dwellers in the ancient world did
not enjoy the fruits of culture as men like Cicero and Augustine did. The reality for most
urban residents was a life of severe hardship, disease, filth, crime, poverty, and fear. For
many of the one million inhabitants of the city of Rome at the beginning of the fourth
century, this meant living in crowded and dingy apartments, violent street gangs
patrolling the streets, pestilence, and a normally short life span. Rodney Stark notes that
the city of Rome itself most likely had a very high population density to accommodate
the estimated one million citizens who lived there. 31 As a result, outbreaks of dangerous
diseases were frequent, and the threat of fire constant. Food scarcity and rioting was a
constant fear ofpublic officials and emperors made sure the people were fed to prevent
riots. The Roman government used the grain dole for centuries as a means of preventing
this. This grain dole continued into the fifth century but seems to have ended around the
year 440, probably because the Vandals sacked Carthage and wrested control ofNorth
Africa away from the Roman Empire. There is no evidence that an alternative way of
distributing grain to the poor was implemented by the government after this. The
sanitation system in Rome, while complex and sophisticated for the time, was probably
inadequate to account for all of the waste generated by a large, tightly packed city and
31
Rodey Stark, The Rise o/Christianity. (San Francisco: Harper Collins, 1997), 116.
15
probably most waste was simply dumped into the streets. This led to conditions for
disease to spread easily, especially in a population with no understanding of
contamination and germs. Thus the mortality rate of people inside of cities was
staggering and in order for the population to remain at a particular level, the dead needed
to be quickly replaced by newcomers from outside of Rome. Immigration into the cities
must have been constant. The high mortality rate meant that there was a large number of
orphans and widows who needed care. It is under these conditions that the church
became more involved with giving assistance.
It is generally accepted by historians and archaeologists that the population of the
city of Rome started to decline at around the second half of the fourth century, and
continued to do so for several centuries following. These problems were not exclusive to
Rome. Urban centers allover the empire, were subject to the high mortality rate
described previously. The evidence for such a decline will help put the church's position
as a charitable institution into perspective. Since the church was an active participant to
the social, economic, and political conditions present in late antiquity, a case can be made
from the accompanying evidence about social and economic change and from the
writings of bishops, that there was a larger proportion of impoverished people all over
Europe to look after.
Church Fathen and Charity
The church fathers of the early medieval period believed that people who had
been blessed with material wealth did not in fact own those possessions, but were rather
stewards and dispensers of it. The rich, they believed, had a special responsibility to
freely give it away to the poor. As a result, the hoarding of wealth was condemned by
many bishops and living a simplistic and humble life was a praised virtue. Within this
16
context of evaporating wealth and economic decline, church fathers exhorted their
congregations to use charity and alms as a means of restoring the Christian people to
their supposed high moral and ethical standing with God. Many of the historical events
that are known to have happened informed their views on ethical and moral problems
related to Christianity. This was due to the belief that much of what was happening to
Europe was being interpreted as being the result of an angry Judeo-Christian God
punishing the world for their sins.
St. Cyprian was one such man who wrote extensively on charity and supported his
beliefs with many citations from the New and Old Testament. His writings are more like
an exhortation to the congregation to be willing to give generously to the poor. His
beliefs were aligned with the New Testament notion that through the use of charity one
could be purged of their sins by God. In addition, showing charity to the poor was a
manifestation of divine mercy, a claim he substantiates by mentioning the story of the
rich man in the GospeI,32 Cyprian's work, On Works and Alms, uses the term alms rather
than charity. The Greek word for Alms, eleemosyne, means pity or mercy, and its use
reflects his belief that Christians should have mercy on the poor. Cyprian also plunged
into the faith and good works debate. It is clear by reading his work on alms that Cyprian
finds faith and works as one and the same thing. If one has faith in Jesus Christ then
good works must necessarily be done by him or her, or else the faith is in vain. This is
not Cyprian's idea. The idea had originated from the letter of James in the New
Testament. 33 But Cyprian was a well read and very intelligent thinker and he also
incorporated Old Testament writings into his theological understanding ofcharity. The
32
n
Ibid, 8.3. James 2, NRSV (New Oxford Bible). 17
use of the Old Testament to substantiate newer Christian claims was rather uncommon,
but Cyprian displays his aptitude in theology by citing the book ofIsaiah:
Break your bread to the hungry, and bring the poor that are without a home into your
house. If you see the naked, clothe him; and despise not the household ofyour own seed.
Then shall your light break forth in season, and your garments shall arise speedily; and
righteousness shall go before you, and the glory of God shall surround you. Then shall
you cry, and God shall hear you; while yet you are speaking, He shall say, Here I am. l4
Cyprian includes this passage to show his audience that God should be appeased through
charitable acts to expunge sins.
Cyprian, in keeping with the
anti~materialist
tendency of late antique Christian
bishops, reminded his congregation that when it comes time to either save money or save
the soul, the choice should be easy. While decrying those who hoard money and goods he
explains:
You are captives and slaves ofyour money; you are bound with the chains and bonds of
covetousness; and you whom Christ had once loosed, are once more in chains. You keep
your money, which, when kept. does not keep you. You heap up a patrimony which
burdens you with its weight; and you do not remember what God answered to the rich
man. 3S
Cyprian doesn't believe that riches and wealth are much good for those who possess it
unless it is used for charity. He even believed that non Christians shouldn't be excluded
from Christian alms giving:
For whatever is of God is common in our use; nor is any one excluded from His benefits
and His gifts, so as to prevent the whole human race from enjoying equally the divine
goodness and liberality. Thus the day equally enlightens, the sun gives radiance, the rain
moistens, the wind blows, and the sleep is one to those that sleep, and the splendor ofthe
stars and ofthe moon is common. In which example ofequality, he who, as a possessor
in the earth, shares his returns and his fruits with the fraternity, while he is common and
just in his gratuitous bounties, is an imitator ofGod the Father. 36
34
lS
Isaiah 58: 1-9 NRSV.
Cyprian, On Works andAlms. 13, tr. Robert Ernest Wallis; quoted in Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol. 5,
(Buffalo, NY: Christian Literature Publishing Co., 1886, accessed 30 January 2010); available from
http://www.newadventorg/fathersl050708.htm; Internet
36 Cyprian, On Works andAlms, 25.
18
A View From Rome
The city of Rome in the middle of the fifth century was still one of the largest
urban centers in the Roman World. Despite decades of decline and the violent sacking of
Rome by the Goths, the city persevered. The Senate was still intact, but the emperors had
moved the central government away from Rome and re-settled in the northern Italian city
of Ravenna. The power of the bishop of Rome was beginning to fill the void left by the
emperors. Leo I was elected Bishop of Rome in 440 and his aptitude as a writer and
orator served his papacy well. His papacy was also very eventful, Rome was sacked
again during his reign, Attila the Hun invaded Italy as well. He also reigned during a
time of political upheaval in Western Europe, as the Western Empire forfeited provinces
to several usurpers and barbarian tribes.
Leo had much to say about the importance of charity. In an extant sermon, Leo
preached that the food harvested by mankind is a gift from God, and those who are
blessed to have food should share this great gift of God by giving some of it to those who
don't have it.
Whatever therefore the cornfields, the vineyards and the olive groves have borne for
man's purposes, all this God in His bounteous goodness has produced: for under the
varying condition of the elements He has mercifully aided the uncertain toils of the
husbandmen so that wind, and rain, cold and heat. day and night might serve our needs.
For men's methods would not have sufficed to give effect to their works, had not God
given the increase to their wonted plantings and waterings. And hence it is but godly and
just that we too should help others with that which the Heavenly Father has mercifully
bestowed on us. For there are full many, who have no fields, no vineyards, no olive­
groves, whose wants we must provide out of the store which God has given, that they too
with us may bless God for the richness of the earth and rejoice at its possessors having
received things which they have shared also with the poor and the stranger. 31
Although this writing suggests that Leo believed charity is useful from a theological
perspective, he maintained the belief that charitable giving would ensure etemallife. 38
Leo I, Sermons, 16.1, tr. Charles Lett Feltoe; quoted in Nicene and Post Nicene Fathers.
12 (Buffalo, NY: Christian Literature Publishing Co., 1895); available from
http://www.newadvent.oqifathersl360316.htm; Internet.
38 Ibid, 16.2.
31
r
Series. Vol.
19
Those "who have no fields ... " is a reference by Leo to the urban poor in Rome and in the
surrounding Italian countryside. This area around Rome had suffered through several
destructive barbarian invasions, and the economic situation was in sharp decline in the
mid fifth century.
Leo based other preaching on charity directly from scripture. He expounds on the
second coming of Christ by referencing the story found in the Book of Revelations and
reiterates his belief that Christ will judge everyone and separate "the guiltless from the
guilty."39 He goes on to add:
... and when the sons of piety, their works of mercy reviewed, have received the Kingdom
prepared for them, the unjust shall be upbraided for their utter barrenness, and those on
the left having naught in common with those on the right, shall by the condemnation of
the Almighty Judge be cast into the fire prepared for the torture of the devil and his
angels, with him to share the punishment, whose will they choose to do.4O
He thus makes the case that good works will earn one's place in paradise. Such a view
supported the orthodox belief that faith and works go hand in hand. To hammer home
this point to his congregation, he uses fear to encourage the congregation to show
Christian generosity to the poor and needy and to perform acts of mercy. He states,
"Who then would not tremble at this doom of eternal torment?,,41 Leo made it clear to his
congregation how one can earn eternal life with God: "The feeding of the needy is to
purchase money of the heavenly kingdom and the free dispenser of things temporal is
made the heir of things eterna1.,,42
Leo was also a keen social commentator and understood the cultural context from
which he preached. In another sermon, he adjusts his preaching to focus on the riches of
the elite within the congregation. This particular sermon urges the congregation to see
wealth as something that is not to be sought for its own sake, and not to be selfishly
Leo I, Sermons. 9.2.
Ibid 41 Ibid 42 Ibid 39
40
20
hoarded, but rather to see riches and other earthly possessions as proceeds from God's
bounty.43 These gifts are meant to be used wisely, and the proper use of the gifts of God
are to help give to those who are not blessed with such gifts, otherwise "the material for
good work should become an occasion of sin.'~ Therefore, Leo suggests that wealth is a
good asset when in the hands of the benevolent, but a source of vanity when in the hands
of the wicked.
Leo summarizes his teaching about the Christian life in a short sermon in which
he outlines the three basic duties of a Christian. To Leo, "there are three things which
most belong to religious actions, namely prayer, fasting, and almsgiving ... ,,4S He explains
that through prayer we "propitiate God, through fasting we mitigate our lusts, and
through almsgiving we redeem our Sins.,,46 Leo took a practical approach to religious
practice, and believed it to be a useful way to gain eternal life.
Salvian of Marseille and Southern Gaul
Of all of the authors previously mentioned, none is more valuable in studying the
thought process of a later Empire bishop in the west than the fifth century bishop of
Marseille, Salvian. His greatest work, De Gubernatione Dei (On the Government of
God), was written between the years 439 and 451 and is the greatest source we have
regarding not only ecclesiastical matters in Gaul in the early to mid fifth century, but the
social and economic matters that were important to Salvian. Despite the warfare, his
diocese in southern Gaul was still a fairly rich area with a thriving landowning, elitist
class. His diocese was becoming less and less connected to the imperial government at
Ravenna, mostly due to the shifting allegiances of the landowning elite away from the
43
Leo I, Sermons, 10.1
44
Ibid.
45
Leo I, Sermons, 12.4.
46
Ibid.
21
imperial government and over to the increasingly powerful barbarian overlords. Portions
of Salvian's writing lament this realization and mention the threat of barbarian warlords.
The situation in southern Gaul degenerated as the church had to accommodate the ever
present barbarian kings who were now exercising political and military control. The
Visigoths had by the year 439 firmly established themselves as overlords offormerly
Roman controlled territory in the regions near Marseille. The Burgundians had been
settled in an area about 200km north of Marseille, and the Huns, serving as Roman
mercenaries under the command of the Roman General Aetius a decade before the
invasion of Attila the Hun, were waging a bitter war against both the Burgundians and the
Visigoths.
Salvian's writings reflect the emotions commonly associated with this level of
conflict. The reader can easily note his despair, hopelessness, and pessimism as he
sought to explain why these horrible events were happening in what is supposed to be a
Christian world. Rather than taking the conventional approach of most contemporary
bishops of blaming heretics and barbarians for all of the world's problems, Salvian takes
an entirely different path, and blames the orthodox Christians and the rich landowning
elites for not living up to the teachings of the gospel of Christ. All of the terrible things
happening around them could best be explained as God's judgment of human actions,
since much of the Roman world was, according to Salvian, infected with sinfulness.47
Salvian discussed his perceived immorality of Christians by relying on biblical
ethics found in both the Old and the New Testaments to argue that few, if any, are in fact
following the moral commandments of God. To Salvian, this explains why bad things
are happening to good people, and good things happening to evil people.
41
Salvian, De Gubernatione Dei, tr. Eva Sanford, (New York: Octagon Books, 1966),4.
22
Who obeys his order to be content with a single tunic? Who thinks the command to walk
unshod possible or even tolerable to follow? These precepts then I pass over. For here
our faith, in which we trust, falls shorts, so that we judge superfluous the precepts the
Lord intended for our benefit. "Love your enemies," said the savior, "do good to them
that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you and persecute you.» Who
could keep all these commandments-ra
This lack of fidelity bothered Salvian to the point that he considered those who believe
that they are pure and holy to be delusional and concluded that ''the offences of our
iniquity are piled high by a false assumption of righteousness."49 To distinguish between
these false Christians and true Christians, Salvian wrote, "He who calls himself a
Christian ought to walk as Christ walked."50 A good way to measure the authenticity ofa
good Christians is to see how one makes use of worldly goods. He warns against
Christians who fake the virtuous act of renouncing their wealth.
Those who make a show ofrenouncing their wealth do not appear to make their
renunciation complete, and those who are thought to be carrying their cross so carry it
that they gain more honor in the name of the cross than suffering in its pass ion. 51
This was followed with strong criticism against the rich landowning class, which held
prominent positions of power in Southern Gaul. Salvian's comments on the rich must
have been hugely controversial at the time his book was published, but today they are of
great historical interest because of their implications.
Salvian launches into his discussion about the rich by juxtaposing the social and
religious situation of slavery to that ofthe rich landowning class. When he posed the
rhetorical question, "Why do we wonder that God strikes us for our sins, when we
ourselves strike our slaves for theirs?" the answer to him is obvious. 52 It is because of a
fundamental hypocrisy perpetrated by the rich which provides the answer: what the rich
see as being evil, they do as well. For example, slaves were considered to be rogue
Ibid, 81. Ibid. so Ibid, 82. SI Ibid, 82-83. Sl Salvian, De Gubernatione Dei 4.1.101 41
49
23
agents of thievery, but according to Salvian their masters are thieves too for robbing the
slaves of their fair treatment. According to Salvian, slaves steal not because they are
inherently thieves, but because they are trying to stay alive. 53 He thus faults the rich for
being hypocrites. He expands on this point:
But you who are noble, you who are rich, who have an abundance of all good things, who
ought to honor God the more because you enjoy his benefits endlessly. let us see whether
your actions are, I shall not say holy, but even harmless. What rich man, to repeat my
former questions, save only a few, is not stained by every sort of evil deed?S4
He continues with this accusatory tone by adding: "If a slave is a runaway, so are
you also, rich and noble though you are; for all men who abandon the law of the Lord are
running away from their master."5S For an influential bishop to say such things about the
rich is dangerous. But from his comments he makes it clear that there is plenty to blame
on the rich for the present troubles. There was a tradition in the Church that made
bishops consider worldly goods to be gifts from God (Leo had written about this idea and
Salvian certainly would have agreed). Salvian's bluntness on the issue stands in stark
contrast with other bishops. He sees the rich landowners to be a class out of control and
their behavior must be corrected lest God should punish them all. This idea is also
reflected in the manner in which "high officials" have been treating the poorer regions of
the empire. S6 For Salvian, there is no clear cut distinction between rich landowner and
high official. But there is a clear distinction between what is morally acceptable and
what is not in terms of how the state functions when dealing with the poor.
Salvian's writings provide important evidence which suggests the imperial
government was notorious for confiscating property from those who couldn't afford to
pay taxes. Such property was handed over to the state, which sometimes meant
S3lbid .4.3, 102-103. S4lbid. 4.3 103-104. ss Ibid. 104. s'lbid. 105. 24
distributing property to state officials. Such a practice enraged Salvian for both ethical
and religious reasons. First, this practice violated his notion of benevolence to the poor.
Good Christians should help the poor and not steal from them. Second, men like this
were warned about in scripture:
How often do you find a rich man's neighbor who is not himself poor, who is really
secure in his acts and position? Indeed by the encroachments of over powerful men,
weaklings lose their property or even their freedom along with their goods, so that it was
not without reason that the Sacred Word alluded to them both saying: "Wild asses are the
prey oftions in the wilderness; so poor men are a pasture for the rich." And yet not only
the poor but almost the whole human race is suffering this tyranny... Nothing causes
greater devastation in the poorer states than the high officials. S7
He cites the destruction of much of the western world, including the Spanish
provinces, North Africa, and Gaul as proof that the rich are to blame for mining
the good standing Christians used to enjoy with God.
As a consequence of this reality, many peasants abandoned their farms and
joined barbarian tribesmen or adopted a life of brigandage. Salvian's statement
about the declining fortunes of the Roman Empire can be corroborated by another
contemporary bishop, Orosius, who commented that "there are certain Romans
among them who prefer to sustain poverty in freedom among the barbarians than
the constant oppression of taxation among the Romans."'! This phenomenon of
Romans shifting their allegiance to barbarian warlords did in fact occur in
Western Europe during the first and second tumultuous decades of the fifth
century when Gaul and Spain were plundered and Romans. choosing to submit to
the rule and protection of barbarians, rather than endure the oppressive Roman
state, changed their loyalties accordingly. This was noted by Salvian when he
commented on a rebellious group of peasant farmers in Gaul known as the
Bagaudae. Poor farmers, unable to endure the large burden of taxation by the
S71bid, 4.4.105. sa Orosius, Historiae adversum paganos, VIT.4I.7, quoted in Sanford, On the Government ofGod, 106. 25
Roman government, abandoned their farms and joined the rebellious Bagaudae or
a barbarian group where according to 8alvian, ''they seek among the barbarians
the Roman mercy, since they cannot endure the barbarous mercilessness they find
among the Romans."s9
Roman bishops were concerned about the actions of Christians in earthly
life because oftheir conviction of what judgment will come to them in heavenly
life. But this begs the question, If God loved everybody, why does he allow the
upright to wallow in poverty and the wicked of indulge in luxury? It was not
uncommon for bishops to believe that earthly goods were blessings from God.
8alvian insisted that God does punish those living on earth. 60 8t. Ambrose of
Milan (d. 397), took a different approach to answering this question. Ambrose,
writing in response to those who charged that God doesn't care about human
affairs because there are wicked people who are "rich, joyous, full of honors, and
powerful and those who are "in wanf' are upright", wrote in his treatise On the
Duty ofthe Clergy, that God indeed does take great interest in human affairs in
the earthly life. 61 He warns that although the rich might seem blessed and upright,
the fayade is most likely hiding the truth of their chaos:
Why do sinners have abundance of wealth and riches, and fare sumptuously, and
have no grief or sorrow; while the upright are in want, and are punished by the
loss of wives or children? Now, that parable in the Gospel ought to satisfy
persons like these; for the rich man was clothed in purple and fine linen, and
dined sumptuously every day; but the beggar, full of sores, used to gather the
crumbs ofhis table. After the death ofthe two, however, the beggar was in
Abraham's bosom in rest; the rich man was in torment. Is it not plain from this
that rewards and punishments according to deserts await one after death?62
~9 Salvian, 5.5 141. 601bid, 119. 61St. Ambrose, On the Dutiea o/the Clergy, 1.13.47, tr. H. de Romestin, E. de Romestin, and H.T.F. Duckworth; quoted in Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, r series, Vol. 10, (Buffalo, NY: Christian
Literature Publishing co., accessed 30 January 2010); available from
http://www.newadvent.orglfathersl34011.htm); Internet.
62 Ibid, 15.57.
26
Ambrose's Theology leads him to conclude that the actions of the rich against the
poor will not go unpunished because God has promised judgment to all in the afterlife.
"Why did you not aid the widow, the orphans also, when enduring wrong? Were you
powerless? Could you not help? I made you for this purpose, not that you might do
wrong, but that you might check it". 63 He believed that the rich tended to be poor in spirit
but the poor were rich in spirit and had a better chance of gaining a favorable judgment
from God.
The Poor and the Ruling Class
The poor of late antiquity suffered under warfare, violence, taxation, and
oppression as a result of rich landowners, war, and laws imposed on them by the
state, according to the Church Fathers. The real nature of their suffering is
difficult to ascertain with certainty, but there are important clues available in the
extant writings of Salvian and other bishops which shed light on the subject.
What was it, exactly, that drove the poor to rebellion and sedition? Salvian offers
important insights that help answer that question of what drove the poor.
The world ofLate Antiquity contained its share of bigotry and prejudice
against foreign peoples. With the large number of foreigners now living in
Roman territory, cultural assumptions about them were bound to appear. Such
notions of racial, cultural and social superiority are exposed in Salvian's writings,
and he himself admits that he believes that Romans are "incomparably superior"
to barbarians and states that there are two different types of barbarians: "heretics
and pagans.'>M He does not explicitly mention the barbarians as being Germanic
outsiders, but he does imply that the "heretics and pagans" are outsiders with
63
64
Ibid, 16.63. Ibid, 4.13, 121. 27
respect to proper Christian orthodoxy and Roman cultural identity. The Visigoths
and Vandals were Arian heretics, and the Huns were pagans. But Salvian uses
their position as outsiders to compare them to Romans, who, he argues from a
moralistic point of view, are worse than the barbarians. He boldly stands his
ground, recognizing that what he is saying is hugely inflammatory, "You who
read these words are perhaps vexed and condemn what you read. I do not shrink
from your censure; condemn me if I do not succeed in proving my words.,,6s He
goes on the say that it is the fault of Christians for not living well enough because
through the mission of the church afl who proclaim Christ know the law, but
choose not to follow it.
Salvian's stance on the rich's relationship with the church represents a
Christianized version of a social tradition that had existed within the Roman
Empire for at least two centuries. There had always been rich citizens living in
the towns and cities of the Roman Empire. Their position as elitists within
Roman society normally led to different expectations for them when it came time
to civic responsibilities. Christian emperors themselves eventually became more
involved in the direct care of the poor. The best evidence for this comes very late
in the Western Roman period from a law issued by the emperors Valentinian and
Marcian in the year 451: "it is a feature of our humane rule to look after the
interests of the destitute and to ensure that the poor do not go without food."66
Conclusion
Before Christianity became the official religion of the Empire, rich
citizens were expected to be patrons of their cities, and contribute funds to the
6S
Ibid.
Meodex Justinianus 1.2.12; quoted in Peter Brown, Poverty and Leadership in the Later Roman Empire,
(Hanover, NH: University Press of New England. 2002), 1.
28
construction of public buildings, which could include anything from temples to
bath houses. 67 Although the motivation for this tended to be political rather than
altruistic, the rich were expected to be lovers of their cities, not lovers of the
poor. 68 Christianity fundamentally altered the Roman understanding of what the
proper relationship should be between rich and poor and further developed the
social category of the impoverished. Paganism didn't have a dogma on how to
treat the impoverished, but Christianity developed a scripture based theological
and moral position on how the poor should be treated. They imposed this view on
society as Christianity became legitimized through the actions of Christian
emperors. As the church became wealthier and more powerful, bishops assumed
the social position of the rich patrons that pagans used to enjoy, and hence
bishops were in a strong position to influence the way in which the poor were
treated and how collected funds were to be used.
67
68
Ibid, 4.
Ibid, 5.
29
Chapter Two Barbarians The barbarian migrations into the Roman Empire in the fourth and fifth centuries
had a strong impact on the church. Barbarians were either non-catholic Christians or
pagans, and they were perceived as an existential threat to the Catholic Church. Some
bishops believed that God's wrath would be unleashed on the world for perceived
disobedience to the Catholic Church. The Church's great ally through these turbulent
years was the Roman government which implemented protective laws. The evidence
suggests that the state and the church worked together to neutralize existential threats.
The years 376-476 are especially important when studying the reaction the church and
state had to barbarian migrations because the primary source material that has survived
show that the church had an overwhelmingly negative reaction to their presence in
Roman territory, ranging from wariness to panic over specific historical events like the
Visigothic invasion of Italy in 410, a large invasion of Germanic tribesmen in 406 and
the invasion ofAttila the Hun in 451.
Incursion into Roman territory was not a new phenomenon, but settling foreign
peoples into Roman lands and next to Roman people was. The barbarians brought with
them their own cultural and religious traditions and were not willing to relinquish them
for the sake of being more Roman. Previously, people conquered by the Romans were
normally allowed to keep their temples, their own leadership, and in some cases even
their own autonomy in return for some sort of tribute to the emperor or soldiers to serve
in the military. But these barbarian peoples were not really conquered in the traditional
sense. Some tribes were allowed to enter by Emperors and were told to s~ttle at a
30
specified region. Other tribes became conquerors themselves by taking over large
amounts of Roman territory.
Defending the Empire
The late fourth century was the beginning of the period in which certain barbarian
groups, like the Goths, petitioned the Roman government for sanctuary in Roman
territory. Others simply moved in on their own accord. If emperors failed to keep
barbarians out, they wanted at least to keep them contained in land near the borderlands
of the empire. If they accomplished this, they would succeed in keeping them as far
away as possible from the largest urban areas of the Roman Empire and in helping the
army protect the borders against other barbarian raiders. However, keeping foreign
peoples out of Roman territory was a very difficult challenge. The length of the Roman
frontier was so vast that it was almost impossible to manage effectively. Some groups
settled inside Roman territory without the government even knowing they were there, let
alone without permission. 69 Ammianus frequently reports incursions into Roman
territory by Frankish and Alemmanic tribesmen during the reign of Julian. But the
Romans wanted to maintain peaceful relations with the barbarians on the other side of the
Rhine and Danube. The emperor Julian made several peace treaties with barbarian
tribes. 70 During Julian's career as a general in the army and briefly as emperor, he
succeeded in keeping the barbarians out. Julian then took steps to reinforce the border
defenses to further ensure that the boundary between Rome and Germania was clearly
defmed.
The later Roman Empire had a long standing policy of settling foreign peoples
within its borders for the purpose of national defense. This was advantageous to the
Robin Seager. "Roman Policy on the Rhine and Danube in Ammianus." The Classical Quarterly. 49, 2 (1999),590. 70 Ibid, 590-591. 69
31
Roman military establishment for several reasons. First, the professional Roman legions
made famous by their extensive conquests of Europe, North Africa, and Asia were
largely a thing of the past by the fifth century. The overwhelming cost of maintaining a
huge military force, and recruitment problems, meant that the government had to find
alternative ways of providing adequate border defenses.71 Barbarian federates were the
solution to this problem. This was the case for the Visigoths who settled near the Danube
River in Moesia in 376.72 It was also true for the Burgundian people, who were settled in
Alsace in about the year 420 to keep out the Alemanni. 73 Second, making friends with
otherwise hostile barbarian troops meant fewer enemies for Rome. The Roman
government used thousands of barbarians as mercenary troops along the borderlands as a
convenient way for the army to employ barbarians in the military, which served as a
means of keeping the mercenary barbarians busy fighting wars for Rome, and to keep
other barbarians out. These settlements should not be viewed as barbarian conquests.
They were governed by Roman officials and were expected to follow Roman laws. The
real "conquest" came later in the fifth century as a result of the central government's loss
of power to govern provinces and consequently barbarians that had settled there became
by default the effective rulers of the former Roman territories. This however, was not the
case everywhere in Western Europe. There are examples of Roman territory being
conquered by invading barbarian tribes, such as in Spain and North Africa. As I will
show later on, the church had strong reactions to such events.
Despite the necessity of using barbarian mercenaries, this plan did have many
drawbacks which often led to violent warfare between Rome and the barbarian settlers
71
Matthew Innes. Introduction to Early Medieval Western Europe, 300-900. (New York, Routledge.
2007),80. n Ammianus Marcellinus, Histories. Tr. Walter Hamilton. (London, Penguin Bookss, 1986),31.3.1. E.A. Thompson. "The Settlement of the Barbarians in Southern Gaul.." The Journal ofRoman Studies, 46 (1956), 69.
73
32
during the fourth and fifth centuries. The Visigoths rebelled against the Roman
government several times between the years 378 and 440, and the Vandals rose up at
least twice during the fifth century. Ammianus describes how, as a result of the Roman
generals not allowing the Gothic settlers enough "means of subsistence", the Goths
armed themselves and rebelled. 74 One problem the Empire faced was to what extent the
state would allow the barbarians to assimilate with the established culture once they were
settled inside Roman territory? Emperors to settle barbarians on land which the
barbarians would then have to defend. 75 After the Gothic invasion of Italy and southern
Gaul (408-414), the Roman General Constantius came to an agreement with their King
Wallia to settle the Visigoths in Spain in order to keep the Vandals in check. 76 Only a
few years afterward, the Visigoths were given more land in Aquatania, a very prosperous
region of the Empire. This was a strategic military move to defeat peasant rebellions in
the Gallic province of Armorica. 77 Thus the Romans had federated allies (foederati)
positioned in between two potential threats. The term Dediticii identified barbarian
settlers employed by the Roman army for regular service. 78 However, with any sort of
settlement between native born and foreign peoples, cultural and religious differences
arose between barbarians and Romans which produced noticeably strong reactions within
the halls of church and state. The barbarian settlers clung to their cultural traditions and
their religious beliefs, which often clashed with established Roman culture.
The abuse the new settlers endured from unscrupulous Roman authorities doomed
this approach to failure, and served as a catalyst to barbarian insurrection and warfare.
Ammianus Marcellinus, Histories, 31.5.4. E.A. Thompson, "The Settlement of the Barbarians in Southern Gaul," 67,70. 76 Ibid., 67. 77 Ibid,70. 78Thomas S. Burns, Barbarians within the Gates o/Rome: A Study ofRoman Military Policy and the Barbarians, co. 375-425 A.D. (Indiana University Press, 1995), 12. 74
75
33
The Goths and Vandals were two tribes who were abused by Roman government
officials; both tribes were driven to insurrection and violence against the Roman state.
The Goths succeeded in killing a Roman emperor and annihilating his army at the Battle
of Adrianople in 378. The Vandals succeeded in conquering half of north Africa in the
year 439. A pervasive anti-German sentiment manifested itself in the laws and
proclamations issued by emperors and by the actions of the Roman military.
Fortunately, the responses the church and the state had to these insurrections are
fairly well documented in the form of laws contained in the Theodosian Code and
numerous treatises, letters, and sermons that were written by influential members of the
Catholic church. How strongly the church reacted to such events varied widely over the
course oflate antiquity. The church's reactions tended to range from vociferous contempt
to mild acquiescence to their presence. An examination of the laws contained in the
Theodosian code as well as the contents of the surviving literature will reveal that during
times of crisis the state and the church panicked. What tended to happen was the church
and state cooperated to mitigate any type of threat that could be produced from a conflict.
In terms of religion, this meant barbarian heresies would be expunged with the force of
law at the behest of the Catholic Church. Their rites were criminalized, they beliefs
anathematized, and their church property seized. This approach was applied to any
barbarian group that wished to enter the empire. However, this approach could not
function if insurrection occurred.
Barbarian Violence
A major crisis ofthe later fourth century was the disaster of the battle of
Adrianople, which annihilated a Roman army and enabled the Goths to plunder Thrace.
A vivid account of the violence has been preserved by Ammianus, who wrote it only a
34
few years after the battle. Apparently the Goths were driven by hunger and their own
"native ferocity" to go into the countryside and wreak devastation everywhere they went.
Everything was involved in a foul orgy of rapine and slaughter, bloodshed and fire, and
frightful atrocities were inflicted on the bodies offree men. Sights as fearful to relate as
to behold met men's sorrowing eyes... 79
Ammianus goes on to mention the failed siege of Constantinople in 378, which
most likely terrified the government. In times of crisis, people turned to their religious
beliefs to find answers and to seek inspiration. Ambrose, the late fourth century bishop of
Milan, was one such Roman who did so. Gratian asked Ambrose to write a proof of the
divinity of Jesus Christ. Such a proof would necessarily refute the teachings of the
various heretical sects of Christianity that did not believe in the divinity of Christ.
Ambrose also included criticism of the Arian sect, which taught that Christ was of a
different substance than God the father. Gratian made his request just before he left
Milan to join his uncle, the emperor Valens, in the war against rebelling Goths.
Ambrose wrote a highly theological work as the official response to this request,
Exposition ofthe Christian Faith, and in the prologue Ambrose explains the reason why
Gratian should know the true faith:
Your sacred Majesty, being about to go forth to war, requires ofme a book:, expounding
the Faith, since your Majesty knows that victories are gained more by faith in the
commander, than by valor in the soldiers. For Abraham led into battle three hundred and
eighteen men, and brought home the spoils ofcountless foes; and having, by the power of
that which was the sign ofour Lord's Cross and Name, overcome the might of five kings
and conquering hosts, he both avenged his neighbor and gained victory and the ransom of
his brother's son. So also Joshua the son ofNun, when he could not prevail against the
enemy with the might of all his army, overcame by sound of seven sacred trumpets, in the
place where he saw and knew the Captain of the heavenly host. For victory, then, your
Majesty makes ready, being Christ's loyal servant and defender ofthe Faith, which you
would have me set forth in writing. 80
79
Ammianus Marcellinus, The Later Roman Empire (London: Penguin Books,1986), 31.8.9.
St. Ambrose, Exposition ofthe Christian Faith. 1.3. tr. H. de Romestin, E. de Romestin and H.T.F. Duckworth; quoted in Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, 2* Series, Vol. 10 (Buffalo, NY: Christian Literature Publishing Co., 1896 accessed 20 May 2010), available from (http://www.newadvent.orglfathers/34041.htm); Internet. 80 35
Ambrose thus believed that knowledge of the true faith, and loyalty to it, would
bring victory for the Roman people and to the faith itself. God would bring victory to
those who defend the true faith, and would destroy those who oppose it. This was a
central component ofthe belief shared by the majority of Catholic bishops who lived
through these years of warfare and violence in Late Antiquity.
This type of response would become more common as future crises unfolded in
the western empire. A major crisis of the fifth century began on New Years eve 406
when several Germanic tribes, the Vandals, Alans, and Suebi, took advantage of a frozen
Rhine river to cross into Gaul. 81 The resulting devastation and panic can be ascertained
from the Theodosian Code and from various letters written by bishops. Apparently these
groups of barbarians were highly destructive as they took advantage of the absence of any
organized Roman resistance and pillaged much of Gaul and Spain. Bishop Hydatius of
Aqua Flaviae in Spain, wrote a detailed chronicle of the events when the barbarians
reached Spain and devastated the towns they encountered.82 His chronicle is important
because it provides not only historical references to the actions of the barbarians upon
entering early fifth century Spain, but also because it reveals clues about the personal
reactions this particular clergymen had to the violence. Hydatius was a Catholic bishop
who lived in a largely Catholic territory of Spain, and his writings indicate that he
despised barbarian Arian invaders. Hydatius wrote about how the barbarians "ran wild
through Spain" and how a deadly pestilence came in the wake of barbarian raids. s3 He
also adds details about the subsequent famine which drove people to cannibalism and
thus these unfortunate events prove that "the four plagues of sword, famine, pestilence
Allen Ward, Fritz Heichelheim, Cedric Yeo. A History ofthe Roman People. 31d ed (Saddle River, NJ:
Prentice Hall, 1998),493.
82 Bryan Ward-Perkins, The Fall ofRome and The End o/Civilization. (London: Oxford University Press,
2005), 16.
83 Hydatius, The Chronicle ofHydatius. ed. R. W. Burgess, (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1993),83.
81
36
and wild beasts raging everywhere throughout the world, the anmmciations foretold by
the Lord through his prophets came to fulfillment."84 This last reference cites the Book
of Revelations, thus indicating that Hydatius thought the world was coming to an end
soon and the heretic barbarians would be responsible for its ending.
Indeed one world was ending in Spain. The time in which Spain would be a
region governed by the Roman emperor was coming to an abrupt end. Unlike the
barbarian federates in Gaul who were settled by the Roman government with the specific
task of protecting the borderlands, this group of barbarians invaded Spain on their own
accord and carved out for themselves regions of the Iberian Peninsula which later
became autonomous barbarian kingdoms. This was an act of pure conquest, about which
the Roman government could do little. Hydatius reports that:
They apportioned to themselves by lot areas of the provinces for settlement. The
[Hasding] Vandals took possession ofGallaecia, and the Sueves that part of Gallaecia
which [is] situated on the vety western edge of the Ocean. The Alans were allotted the
provinces ofLusitania and Carthaginensis, and the Siling Vandals Baetica. The
Spaniards in the cities and forts who had survived the disasters surrendered themselves to
servitude under the barbarians, who held sway throughout the provinces. 85
Hydatius makes another revealing statement about his sentiments towards the
vandals, who had settled in Spain in the early fifth century. The Vandals were known to
be steadfastly Arian, and when their King, Gunderic, seized the Spanish city of Hispalis.
Hydatius wrote: "he impiously tried to lay hands on the church of that very city, by the
will of God he was seized by a demon and died. His brother Gaiseric succeeded him as
King.,,86 He cannot help but add in the next sentence that Gaiseric converted to Arianism
from Catholicism, "thereby becoming an apostate."87 Therefore Hydatius reveals his
utter contempt for heretics and Vandals.
Ibid. Hydatius, The Chronicle ofHydatius 49; quoted in Heather, The Fall ofthe Roman Empire: A New History ofRome and the Barbarians. (London: Oxford University Press, 2006), 208. 86 Hydatius, The Chronicle ofHyda/ius. 89-90. 87 Ibid. 84
85
37
Hydatius is one example of a Catholic bishop who was vocal in his condemnation
of anyone who opposed the Catholic Church and supported heresy in the face of a
barbarian incursion. He exposed a certain Maximinus, an Arian bishop in Sicily, who
aided King Gaiseric in the year 440 to attack the city of Panormus with the objective to
persecute the orthodox Christians and compel them to convert to Arianism. This
reference to an Arian bishop suggests that Arian bishops allied themselves with Arian
barbarians in order to secure freedoms that had been previously taken away by imperial
edicts (e.g. the anti-heretic laws in the Theodosian Code) or to secure for themselves the
protection ofnew barbarian overlords.
Hydatius also includes an ugly incident in which the Gothic King Theoderic
sacked the Spanish city of Bracara:
King Theoderic made for Bracara. .. on Sunday, 28 October he sacked it, an action,
which although accomplished without bloodshed, was nevertheless tragic and lamentable
enough. A great many Romans were taken captive and the basilicas of the saints
stormed; altars thrown down and broken up; virgins of God abducted from the city, but
not violated; the clergy stripped right down to the shame of their nakedness; the whole
population regardless of sex along with little children dragged from the holy places of
sanctuary; the sacred place filled with the sacrilegious presence of mules, cattle and
camels. This sack partially revived the examples ofheavenly wrath written about
1erusalem."n
Hydatius' emotionally charged response to this action is an example ofthe utter
helplessness he felt at the hands of the invading barbarians. He seems to understand that
there was nothing that he could do about the behavior of the Goths, other than encourage
the people who read the chronicle to remain steadfastly Catholic. This consolation
reflects his belief that Judgment Day will eventually come to those who persecute the
church.
Hydatius records an account of the Hunnic invasion of Italy. His perspective on
the invasion is unique due to the references he makes to divine providence as being
II
Ibid, 107.
38
responsible for the Hun's evacuation ofltaly in the summer of 452. He makes no
reference to the actions of Pope Leo I in negotiating with the Huns and asserts that the
Roman general Marcian crushed the Huns with his Roman auxiliary troopS.89 He claims
that the Huns met with "heaven sent disasters: famine and some kind ofdisease.,,90 1ms
makes sense from a Catholic point of view; the Huns were largely pagan and their
evacuation ofltaly a sign of providence.
Barbarians and The Law
Hydatius' chronicle leads the reader to believe that barbarians were a major threat
to the stability of the empire and to the Catholic Church in any region. The Theodosian
Code agrees with this conclusion. The Theodosian Code is a collection of laws that were
compiled under the auspices of the eastern Emperor Theodosius II (401-450), a
representative of the Theodosian dynasty that had been ruling both halves of the Roman
Empire ever since the death of the dynasty's founder, Theodosius I, in the year 395. It
was published in the year 438 and it contains laws about everything, including heretics,
religion, taxation, trade, and the military. It is the best primary source available on what
was happening in the Roman Empire in Late Antiquity. There are addenda to the codes
from later emperors and the ftna11aws contained in the book are from the late 460's.
Book VII of the Theodosian Code contains important evidence on how the
government reacted to incursions from barbarians. When the Goths under their ambitious
king Alaric invaded Italy, the Roman government panicked. 1ms is noticed in several
laws that were issued by the emperors Honorius and Arcadius, the sons ofTheodosius I,
who ruled from Ravenna and Constantinople respectively. While Gaul was burning and
Italy being invaded, an extraordinary law was issued exhorting slaves to "offer
89lbid.,103. Ibid. 90
39
themselves up for military service".91 This extraordinary law, issued in 407, shows
clearly that affairs were going very badly in the west. That same month the emperors
tried another attempt to recruit as many men as possible into the military:
On account of our imminent necessities, by this edict we summon to military service all
men who are aroused by the innate spirit of freedom. Freeborn persons, therefore, who
take arms under the auspices ofmilitary service for love of peace and of country shall
know that they will receive ten solidi each from our imperial treasury when affairs have
been adjusted 92
The addition of the "when affairs have been adjusted" clause as the end of the text was a
risky promise the state had to make in light of its dire military situation. The men who
joined the military could only be paid if Rome defeated her enemies.93 This desperate
trend of trying to recruit as many men as possible continued until shortly before Rome
was sacked in 410. The government extended its recruiting policies to Africa, Sardinia,
Sicily and Corsica. This time however, new recruits would be paid thirty solidi rather
than ten. 94 The plea was more emphatic. Before, the emperors had merely summoned
men to service. Now in the year 410, they are demanding recruits from areas beyond
Italy, suggesting that the attempts to recruit men in Italy had failed, or eligible men fled
to other regions.
There is evidence that the church panicked in the face ofbarbarian incursions as
well. A curious law issued in 408 "prohibits those persons who are hostile to the
Catholic sect to perform imperial service within the palace, so that no person who
disagrees with us in faith and in religion shall be associated with us in any way.,,9S The
reasons for a law like this at this time are nwnerous. Firstly, Alaric was ransacking Italy
in the year 408, and had even threatened the capital city of Ravenna, where this law was
91
Codex Theodosianus 7.16,172. Ibid, 7.17,173. 91 Ibid. 94 Ibid., 7.20, 173. 9S Ibid., 16.5.42,457. 92
40
proclaimed and where the western emperor Honorius lived. Secondly, many of those
who were in imperial service were barbarian allies recruited from the border lands. They
would have been from tribes like the Huns, Franks, even the Goths; the Roman general
Sarus was a former Gothic ally of Alaric who had joined the imperial service. Few of the
barbarian soldiers would have been observant Catholics. Finally, the risk of sedition by
non-catholic, barbarian soldiers was too great to ignore, especially since Alaric was
threatening Rome. This was a policy enacted to protect the power of the emperors and
the church.
The government took a step further in preventing any possible uprising against the
church and the state that same year when the emperors decreed:
... all members of the office staffs shall be on guard that no person who dissents from
the priesthood ofthe Catholic Church shall have an opportunity for unlawful assembly
within any municipality or any secluded part ofthe territory thereof. 96
This law was meant to mitigate any harm done to the church as a result of apostasy. The
government was concerned about this matter because clergy would out of fear of the
Arian barbarians would leave the Catholic Church and seek the clemency of the Arians.
What evidence is there that during times ofcrisis the church and the state worked
in concert to neutralize an existential threat? These laws can be linked to other historical
events that occurred in Italy at the same time. The late fifth century historian Zosimus
wrote a detailed account of the Gothic invasion of Italy and his Historia Nova contains a
disastrous incident that was instigated by Roman soldiers. Stilicho, an ethnic Vandal and
popular Roman general, was executed on frivolous charges of sedition and treason
brought by the emperor Honorius. Some within the imperial government believed that
Stilicho was secretly conspiring with the Goths to seize the throne, an act that would have
ended the Theodosian dynasty that supported the Catholic Church. But in reality the
96
Ibid, 16.5.45,458.
41
charges were probably false and the response by the emperor to execute him was a knee
jerk reaction. In a shocking display of brutality, when the Roman soldiers heard the news
of the alleged barbarian plot they slaughtered "all the women and children in the city,
who belonged to the Barbarians."97 This caused thousands of barbarian refugees to flee
to Alaric and join his fight against Rome. The city Zosimus referred to is Rome in the
year 408, around the same time that the aforementioned anti-barbarian and anti-heretic
laws were being issued. This event corresponds well in time with the law banning people
hostile to the Catholic faith from imperial service within the palace. The massacre of the
barbarian women and children must have occurred sometime between the death of
Stilicho (recorded as August 22nd, 408) and the issuance of the law (November 2Th, 408).
Zosimus did record that because the barbarians were, "highly incensed against the
Romans for so impious a breach of the promises they had made in the presence of the
gods, they all resolved to join with Alaric, and to assist him in a war against Rome.,,98
Another contributing factor to the fear surrounding the presence of barbarians in
Italy was the supposed consequences ofallowing paganism and heresy to regain its
former position within the empire. The historian Sozomen wrote about how Alaric, while
besieging Rome, appointed the Senator Attalus to be his puppet emperor in Rome.
Attalus' position as Alaric's puppet emperor in Rome was made, however, expendable
when the Emperor Honorius in Ravenna attempted to negotiate a compromise with Alaric
and Alaric deposed Attalus. Sozomen goes on to say:
The failure which had attended the designs of Attalus was a source of deep displeasure
for the pagans and Christians of the Arian heresy. The pagans had inferred from the
known predilections and early education of Attalus, that he would openly maintain their
superstitions, and restore their ancient temples, their festivals, and their altars. The Arians
imagined that, as soon as he found his reign firmly established, Attalus would reinstate
Zosimus, New History, 5.161. (London:Green and Chaplin, 1814), available from http://www.tertullian.orglfatherslzosimus05_bookS.htm; Internet. 98 Ibid. 97
42
them in the supremacy over the churches which they had enjoyed during the reigns of
Constantius and of Valens; for he had been baptized by Sigesarius, bishop of the Goths,
to the great satisfaction of Alaric and the Arian party.99
As far as Sozomen and many other Catholics were concerned, Attalus' baptism by a
Gothic bishop carried with it implications of usurpation and sacrilege.
Episodes of anti-barbarian prejudice were not isolated to Italy. It was pervasive
throughout the entire empire. It was written about by various Roman intellectuals in the
fourth and fifth century. Synesius of Cyrene was a neo-Platonist turned Catholic bishop
who argued that all barbarians should be expelled from the military. Synesius, writing his
essay On Imperial Rule to the emperor Arcadius, argues that barbarians should not be in
the armed forced because since barbarians are foreign bom, they are not as civilized as
native born Roman men. He wrote:
Nor must the legislator give arms to those not born and brought up under his laws, for he
has no guarantee oftheir good conduct from such as these. Truly it is the part of a
foolhardy man or of a prophet to see and have no fear of this mass of differently bred
youth pursuing their own customs, and at the same time practicing the art ofwar in this
country. 100
He goes on to argue that the proper usefulness of the Goths under Roman rule for
them is to work in agriculture and to defend Roman land. He sees no place for barbarians
in Roman civilization. He believes that Roman courage should suffice in defending
Roman territory. He mentions in one poignant statement:
Unfortunately the barbarian does not understand chivalrous conduct. From the very
beginning till now these men have treated us with derision, knowing both what they
deserved at our hands, and what they were assumed to deserve; and this reputation of
ours has encouraged their neighbors to make their way hither. Now hordes offoreign
mounted archers keep pouring forth seeking out our easy-going people, begging for their
indulgence and pointing out the case of these scoundrels as a precedent for it. 101
Sozomen, Ecclesiastical History, 9.9, tr. Chester D. Hartranft; quoted in Nicene and Post-Nicene
Fathers,
Series, Vol.2 (Buffalo, NY: Christian Literature Publishing Co., 1890); available from
http://www.newadventorglfathersl26029.htm; Internet.
100 Synesius, On Imperial Rule, tr. A. Fitzgerald (Livius.org http://www.livius.orglsu-z.synesiuslsynesius_monarchy_14.html). 14.108.8. (Looking for reference) 101 Ibid., 15.1097. 99
r
43
This document was written around the same time that Italy, Gaul and Spain were being
overrun by barbarian hordes. Synesius' sentiments about barbarians represent a typical
response by a people facing devastation during warfare.
Regaining Control of Rampaging Barbarians
Even though much of Western Europe was overrun in the early fifth century, the
government continued to attempt to control the barbarians and to resettle them in other
regions of the empire. This approach was used again with the Goths in the year 418
when they settled in Southern Gaul and with the Burgundians in 440 when they were
settled in the Rhone valley. The government used this political approach as a means of
keeping the Goths caged into their allotment of land in southern Gaul and northern Spain.
This time Roman generals employed a new tactic. Rather than trying to defeat the Goths
in open combat, as they had already lost an entire army to the Goths at Adrianople, they
decided to starve them into submission. Naval blockades put in place by the Roman
general Constantius against the Visigoths cut off all possibilities of trade. 102 The Goths
eventually agreed to surrender to the Romans and become federated allies in return for a
large supply of grain. 103
The state had to implement a way in which the settlers would want to stay within
their newly acquired territory. The placement of the Goths in the area around Bordeaux
was a curious move by Constantius. The area was known to be rich and fertile with
numerous large villas. Wealthy senators and emperors had hailed from Southern Gaul.
As part of the agreement between the state and the Goths, landed estates were divided
between the Roman landowners and the Gothic settlers, so that barbarians could own
property for themselves, which in turn meant they would have something worth
E. A. Thompson, "The Settlement ofthe Barbarians in Southern Gaul." The Journal ofRoman Studies.
46 (1956), 65~75.
103 Ibid.
102
44
defending against other marauding barbarians. 104 Walter Goffart theorized the Roman
government allocated public revenues (like taxes and provisions) and small allotments of
land to the Goths when they were initially settled in Aquitaine.lOs Now that the Goths
had land to defend, they would be less likely to revolt against Rome, and more likely to
help Rome in times of usurpation and invasion. This seems to be exactly what happened
shortly after the initial settlement in Gaul in 418. Their territory around Bordeaux lay in
between two areas of military conflict, Northern Spain (which according to Hydatius, was
being ravaged by the Vandals) and Armorica (northwestern France). The Goths were
employed by the Roman generals to attack the Vandals in Spain, and then to suppress a
peasant uprising in Armorica. 106 This tactic seemed to have worked well for several
decades. The Goths remained in their settled territory, effectively contained.
Despite hopes to contain the barbarians, the power of the Roman state faded as
the situation in Gaul deteriorated into confusion. Usurpers in fifth century Gaul caused
all sorts of problems, often using barbarian allies in their bid to take the throne away from
the already established emperor. Honorius had to face this problem from the years 407·
413 when the Roman General Constantine III rebelled in Britain and made his way
through Gaul, eventually establishing a capital in Arles. 101 This put considerable strain
on the central government, which had to deal with Alaric's Goths and a rebellion at the
same time. In addition, there was a series of peasant uprisings in Gaul; later Attilla's
invasion of Gaul further complicated matters. By the later fifth century. there was nothing
preventing barbarians from establishing kingdoms over formerly Roman provinces. As
Ibid,70. 10SWalter Goffart, Barbarians and Romans A.D. 418-584: The Techniques ofAccommodation, (Princeton., NI: Princeton University Press, 1980), 123.
106 Ibid,71.
107 I.F. Drinkwater. "The Usurpers Constantine m (407-411) and Iovinus (411-413)," Britannia, 29 (1998),
269.
104
45
the fifth century progressed, bishops had to grapple with this new reality. How would
they maintain their position in the church while being ruled by barbarians?
One way to do so would be to cooperate with barbarian kings. By the middle of
the fifth century there is evidence that bishops began to accept the fact that the barbarian
presence would be permanent. Such was the case for Sidonius Apollinaris, Bishop of
Clermont. He lived through the transitional period in Gaul when the Roman government
collapsed and the barbarian kingdoms rose. His writings tell us that he had direct contact
with at least one Gothic king. Dozens of his letters to his friends have survived. He wrote
openly about his sentiments regarding the Goths. Sidonius' feelings are rather
paradoxical. On the one hand he shows respect for the Gothic King Theoderic and on the
other utter contempt for the behavior of the Goths during a period of violence. But
nonetheless it is clear that Sidonius recognizes that the Goths are a strong people who had
become intertwined with the late antique Roman culture of Gaul.
Sidonius wrote favorably about the Gothic King Theoderic to his brother in law in
about the year 455. He praised the king's physical stature and his manners. He thought
of him as a praiseworthy and honorable monarch.
Well, he is a man worth knowing, even by those who cannot enjoy his close
acquaintance, so happily have Providence and Nature joined to endow him with the
perfect gifts of fortune; his way of life is such that not even the envy which lies in wait
for kings can rob him of his proper praise. 108
Sidonius here does not display the same anti-Germanic sentiment as some earlier bishops
had. The letter suggests that Sidonius recognizes that the Goths are a regular fixture
amongst the population of his native southern Gaul. This would make sense since the
Goths had been settled in that region for forty years at the date this letter was written,
even before Sidonius was born. Yet his admiration for the Gothic king did not mean that
Sidonius Apollinaris, Letters, 1.2.1 tr. O.M. Dalton, 1915; available from http://www.tertullian.orglfatherslsidonius_letters_Olbookl.htm; Internet. 10&
46
he held a favorable opinion ofthe Goths in general. Later on in his life the Goths took
over territory near where he lived and his city was threatened by them. He wrote about
these troubling times, and unsurprisingly he is frank about his disgust for the Goths and
his anxieties about his people. Writing to another bishop he stated:
Rwnor has it that the Goths have occupied Roman soil; our unhappy Auvergne is always
their gateway on every such incursion. It is our fate to furnish fuel to the fire of a peculiar
hatred, for, by Christ's aid, we are the sole obstacle to the fulfillment of their ambition to
extend their frontiers to the Rhone, and so hold all the country between that river, the
Atlantic, and the Loire. Their menacing power has long pressed us hard; it has already
swallowed up whole tracts of territory round us, and threatens to swallow more. We mean
to resist with spirit, though we know our peril and the risks which we incur. But our trust
is not in our poor walls impaired by fire, or in our rotting palisades, or in our ramparts
worn by the breasts of the sentries, as they lean on them in continual watch. Our only
present help we find in those Rogations which you introduced; and this is the reason why
the people ofClermont refuse to recede, though terrors surge about them on every side. 109
Sidonius makes no reference to aid coming from the Roman State, no help from the
Roman army, and no help from any other allied barbarian tribe. He only relies on
rogations, or solemn prayer, in the hope that he and his people will be saved by the war
mongering Goths. This letter was written in 474, a time when the Western Roman
Government was virtually non-existent in Gaul. His letters suggest that Sidonius had lost
hope in the future of the Roman Empire.
Sidonius reacts with strong condemnation against the Goths when they caused
more trouble under their King Euric in the 470's. He wrote a letter to a fellow bishop
explaining that future generations will know what "old friendship means" as a result of
the Goth's treaty-breaking. Apparently the Goths had taken over more territory by force,
despite a peace treaty that had existed between them and the Romans. IIO The broken
treaty was originally an agreement that the Goths would protect Roman territory, rather
than attack it. lll Despite the lost trust Sidonius had in the Goths as protectors of Roman
territory, what concerns him most is not the loss Roman laws but of Christian law.
Sidonius, Letters, 7.1.1. Ibid., 7.6.4. III Ibid. 109
110
47
I must confess that formidable as the mighty Goth may be, I dread him less as the
assailant of our walls than as the subversion of our Christian laws. They say that the mere
mention of the name of Catholic so embitters his countenance and heart that one might
take him for the chief priest of his Arian sect rather than for the monarch ofhis nation.
Omnipotent in arms, keen-witted. and in the full vigor of life, he yet makes this single
mistake--he attributes his success in his designs and enterprises to the orthodoxy ofhis
belief, whereas the real cause lies in mere earthly fortune. For these reasons I would have
you consider the secret malady of the Catholic Church that you may hasten to apply an
open remedy.ll2
The Catholic Church in Gaul at this time was in great distress as a result of the actions of
Euric. Sidonius laments the unfortunate state in which the church lay in several Gallic
cities, which as a result of the barbarians, had been abandoned or vacated by bishops,
leaving the congregation to fend for themselves. 113
As the fifth century continued, the vioelnce near the Danube and Rhine rivers was
still pervasive. An example ofthis was the province ofNoricum in the mid-fifth century,
today modem Austria. Severinus, a saint and resident ofNoricum and contemporary of
Attila the Hun, was witness of the violence and fear caused by the violent domination of
barbarian tribesmen. In this region, the centralized Roman Empire was already a
memory; the empire the natives knew was the Hunnish Empire just across the Danube
River where the Huns had been in control ofthe territory for some time. 114 Here the
Roman civilians were exploited for their material wealth, gold, and skilled manpower in
exchange for protection by barbarian warlords. lIS However the breakup up of the Hunnish
Empire in 454 exposed the region to new barbarian tribes who had previously been under
control of the powerful Hunnish leadership. Soon waves of tribesmen, seemingly out of
nowhere (the source calls the men, Alamanni) ransacked the towns and cities. Eugippius,
who wrote The Lifo ofSeverinus, records the last gasp of the Roman border defenses in
112 Ibid., 7.6.6. 1l3lbid. 114 Peter Brown. The Rise o/Western Christendom: Second Edition, (Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishing 2003),125. m Ibid, 124. 48
the region, and how the area was essentially left to defend itself against the barbarian
onslaught.
At the time when the Roman Empire was still in existence, the soldiers of many towns
were supported by public money to guard the frontier. When this arrangement ceased,
the military fonnation were dissolved and the frontier vanished. I 16
It did not take long for the people to bear the brunt of this collapse of government.
Eugippius records that people were forced to flee towns and cities and became refugees.
Severinus, unlike many other bishops who were deeply concerned with religious
affiliation, didn't seem to care what religion people belonged to or how they worshiped;
survival was most important.
Thus the church tended to view barbarian outsiders with wariness. Barbarians'
association with heretical sects and their propensity to violence made them the target of
scathing diatribes and repressive state legislation. The church's contempt for the
outsiders tended to be amplified in times of military and humanitarian crisis, as noted in
the Theodosian Code and the writings ofAmbrose and Hydatius. Yet during times of
relative peace the literature has a less urgent tone, showing that the church was a highly
reactive institution. This does not suggest however that the church's sentiments differed
about the barbarians. As far as the church was concerned, barbarians were agents of
Satan.
116
Eugippius, Life ofSeverinus 20.1; quoted in Brown, The Rise ofWestern Christendom, 123.
49
Chapter Three
Heretics
The adoption of one religion and the persecution of all others was done for two
primary reasons. First, the state considered the existence of other Christian sects to be
incompatible with the officially sanctioned (as defined by the council ofNicaea) Catholic
Church and thus a threat to the religious unity of the Roman Empire. Second, the state
believed that barbarian invaders were agents of heretical sects, which posed an existential
threat to the Roman Empire and the Catholic Church. The primary sources, most notably
the treatises and chronicles of fifth century Roman bishops, and the Theodosian Code,
indicate that the church and the state wanted to mitigate any possible threat to the power
of the Church and to prevent apostasy_ The Empire therefore took an active role in trying
to extirpate both threats through legal, ecclesiastical, and if necessary, military means.
Paganism was still a major feature in Europe and North Africa but Christianity
was quickly becoming a significant presence. Its growth during the fourth century
facilitated the development of various Christian sects which had their own theological
interpretations of scripture and the nature of Christ. Each had its own areas of influence
and its own churches and bishops. Influential and learned clergymen like Pelagius and
Arius wrote extensively about their beliefs on the nature of Christ and his relationship to
God the Father. Their writings were translated into different languages and spread over
large areas of Roman territory. The Christianity of late antiquity was an amalgam of
different philosophical and religious traditions that competed for dominance.
Religious tolerance was not a recognized virtue amongst either clergy or secular
government authorities. Religious disputes and political intrigue forced the Roman
government to mediate between opposing systems of belief in the fourth century through
50
ecclesiastical councils. One of the more important councils was the first council of
Nicaea in 325. The outcome of this council was the adoption of one faith over another,
and consequently a precedent was set against which all opposing faiths were judged. The
one sect that was adopted at the council was later to become the one official faith ofthe
Roman Empire, and all others would be marginalized and persecuted out of existence.
Christian bishops met at Nicaea, a small town in western Asia Minor. The
emperor Constantine called the council together to settle an old dispute between two
Christian beliefs once and for all. His decision to hold the council at Nicaea had
important political undertones whose outcome would have significant consequences for
his relationship with the Christian Church.
Constantine had recently become master of the Eastern Roman provinces, and
thus his efforts to settle differences at Nicaea reflected his desire to consolidate power in
the east. For him to attempt this through using the church suggests that the church had by
this time become a recognizable source of power and influence. Church councils were
not a new phenomenon in the reign of Constantine. He had already attempted to coerce
religious unity in the west at a council of ArIes, which did little to end religious strife
between orthodox and heretical bishops. The same situation was present in Asia Minor
as two opposing Christo logical parties feuded over dogma, power, and bishoprics. Arius,
a learned bishop from Alexandria, preached a Christology that was in direct opposition to
the Christology of Bishop Athanasius, another Alexandrian native and supporter ofthe
orthodox view of Christianity. The main point of contention between them was the
nature of Christ, whether or not Christ was ofthe same substance (homoousios) of God
the father. l17 Orthodox bishops believed that Jesus Christ was of the same substance as
117Robert M. Grant, "Religion and Politics at the Council ofNicaea," The Journal o/Religion, 55 (1975),
8.
51
God the father, which meant that Jesus has always existed with God the father. Anans
believed that Christ was created and is therefore distinct from God the father.
Anus had attracted a significant following of both clergy and lay people in Egypt
and Palestine yet his ideas were controversial. His belief that Christ is of a different
substance from God the Father had gotten him expelled from his see in Egypt, and had
angered many bishops who agreed with Athanasius that Christ was ofthe same substance
as the Father. l18 The clergy who met at Nicaea were not concerned with the political unity
of the empire; rather they were concerned about settling the controversy. Constantine,
however, was a very clever politician and his presence was a sign of his political agenda.
He was not a theologian or a philosopher. Rather he was interested in getting a
consensus on this particular Christian doctrine and institutionalizing it with the purpose
of garnering unity and support from the Christian bishops. 119
Nicaea was a convenient choice for Constantine. The council met at an imperial
palace that had recently been taken from Constantine's eastern predecessor, LiciniUS. 120
The town was located very close to Constantinople, a major urban center and Christian
stronghold. Constantine showed that he was concerned about these proceedings; he even
presided over them. 121 The evidence from the meetings makes it clear who was in charge:
Since by the grace of God, a great and holy synod has been convened at Nicaea, our most
pious sovereign Constantine having summoned us out of various cities and provinces for
that purpose, and it appeared to us indispensably necessary that a letter should be written
also to you on the part of the sacred synod in order that you may know that subjects were
brought under consideration, what rigidly investigated and also what was eventually
determined on and decreed. 122
John Cullen Ayer. A Source Book For the Ancient Church: From the Apostolic Age to the Close ofthe Conciliar Period. (New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1926),293. 119 Grant, "Religion and Politics at the Council of Nicaea." 2. 120 Ibid 121 Ibid, 6. 122 Socrates, Historia. Ecclesiastica.1, 9, tr. A.C. Zenos; quoted in Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Second Series, Vol. 2, (Buffalo, NY: Christian Literature Publishing Co., 1890, accessed 30 July 2010); available from http://www.newadvent.orglfathers/26011.htm; Internet. 118
52
The pro-Athanasian party at the synod won out over the Arians and the
subsequent Nicene Creed that was adopted by the synod proved to Constantine's
satisfaction that an official and universal church doctrine had been adopted, a doctrine
that could be set against all others who did not agree with the Christological conclusion
that Christ is of the same substance as the Father. Constantine thought that he had
achieved religious unity in the east and had consolidated his power over the Christian
churches and solidified his position as sole ruler in the Roman Empire. The Arian
position was condemned and its adherents were labeled as heretics .
. . . the impiety and guilt ofArius and his adherents were examined into, in the presence
of out most pious Emperor Constantine and it was unanimously decided that his impious
opinion be anathematized. with all the blasphemous expressions and tenDS he has
blasphemously uttered, affinning that the son ofGod sprang from nothing, and that there
was a time when He was not; saying, moreover, that the Son ofGod was possessed of a
free will, so as to be capable either of vice or virtue; and calling Him a creature and a
work. All these the Holy Synod has anathematized, having scarcely patience to endure
the hearing of such an impious or, rather, bewildered opinion, and such abominable
blasphemies. 123
The original creed that was presented at the synod was accepted by most bishops and
proclaimed by the Emperor Constantine. 124 Interestingly enough this creed was presented
by church historian and bishop Eusebius, who stated at the synod that this creed had
already been in use by his church for some time; showing that the orthodox theology had
been an established position within Christianity for many years if not centuries. 125 A
revised form of this creed is still recited today at Catholic Mass as the Nicene Creed. 126
Constantine, however, soon realized that the controversy did not end and would
not be ending anytime soon. The Arian bishops in the eastern provinces ofthe empire
still held onto a considerable amount of ecclesiastical power and were not willing to
123 Ibid. 124 Socrates, Hist. Ec., 1. llS Ibid. 126The original creed ofthe synod is not the same Nicene Creed recited today. It underwent several revisions until its CUITent form was proclaimed by the Emperor Theodosius in the year 381. Harnack
argued that the original Creed was presented by Eusebius, but some Coptic Christians believe that the
original creed was authored by Athanasius.
53
accept the Nicene Creed, despite its support from the Emperor. In the year 339, two
years after the death of Constantine, an Arian council at Antioch expelled Athanasius
from his see in Alexandria and nominated the Arian Gregory of Cappadocia to take his
place. 127 Athanasius fled to Rome where in another council in the year 340 he was
vindicated by Pope Julius. 121
The political conflict between the Arian and Nicaean parties wouldn't be settled
until the year 380 when the Emperors Gratian, Valentinian and Theodosius proclaimed
the Nicaean form of Christianity to be the official religion of the Roman Empire.
It is our will that all the peoples who are ruled by the administration ofOur
Clemency shall practice that religion which the divine Peter the Apostle transmitted to
the Romans, as the religion which he introduced makes clear even unto this day. It is
evident that this is the religion that is followed by the PontiffDamasus and by Peter,
Bishop of Alexandria, a man of apostolic sanctity; that is according to the apostolic
discipline and the evangelic doctrine, we shall believe in the single Deity ofthe Father,
the Son and the Holy Spirit, under the concept of equal majesty and of the Holy
Trinity. 129
This proclamation does not make specific reference to the Nicene Creed. Rather
it refers to Pope Damasus and Bishop Peter of Alexandria, two orthodox apologists who
vigorously opposed Arianism. A subsequent law in the following year makes the
religious policy of the emperors clearer and outlines specific penalties for those who
refuse to follow the law. The emperors, writing to a Proconsul in Asia (an Arian
stronghold) stated:
We command that all churches shall immediately be surrendered to those bishops who
confess that the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are ofone majesty and virtue ... all,
however, who dissent from the communion ofthe faith ofthose who have been expressly
mentioned in this special enumeration shall be expelled from their churches as manifest
heretics and hereafter shall be altogether denied the right and power to obtain churches,
in order that the priesthood ofthe true Nicene faith may remain pure, and after the clear
regulations ofour law there shall be no opportunity for malicious subtlety. 130
127John Cullen Ayer. A Source Book For the Ancient Church, 310.
128 Ibid. 129 Codex Theodosianus, XVI, 2.1, tr. Clyde Pharr. (Greenwood Press, New York. 1969),440. 130 Codex Theodosianus, XVI 1.3,440. 54
The language of the text shows that the 380 law issued by these emperors (the one
quoted above) was ignored and Arian clergy continued to practice their religion. Another
interesting feature of this law is its punitive nature. For the emperors to order that
property be seized and redistributed to those who practice 'the true Nicene faith' was a
rather dramatic step in suppressing Arian Christianity. These laws criminalized certain
beliefs, a very rare occurrence in the history of the Roman Empire. However, the imperial
government quickly realized they were nearly impossible to enforce. Laws regarding
religion started to become repetitive, indicating that the government's official position on
the Nicene faith was meant to be imposed on everybody. Conflicts such as these would
come to define the religious climate of late antiquity as the state and the now official
Catholic Church sought to destroy these 'malicious subtleties' or heretical beliefs.
The heresies do not disappear from the'historical record as a result of the actions
of the Emperors Gratian and Theodosius. Rather, they are found in other areas of the
empire. The fourth century Arian preacher, Ulfilas, translated the Bible into the Gothic
language and converted the Goths to Arian Christianity. In the Western Roman Empire,
Priscillian, an Iberian bishop of Avila, started what became known as the Priscillianist
movement in the late fourth century. He emphasized strict ascetism and rejected marriage
and earthly honors. The Berber cleric Magnus Donatus founded the Donatist sect in
North Africa which flourished in the fourth and fifth centuries. These were Christians
who argued that the church must be a church of saints, not sinners and advocated that
known sinners be banished from the church, with no hope of reconciliation. There were
many more heretical beliefs, all of these heresies were problematic for the church and
state. As a result, there was a progression in the measures taken against such heresies that
ranged from mildly punitive; to extremely severe.
55
It did not take long for anti-heresy legislation to be issued by Constantine
following the council ofNicaea. Only a year after the council had ended a law was issued
stating that "privileges that have been granted in consideration of religion must benefit
only the adherents of the Catholic faith."!3! It also added that "heretics and schismatics
shall not only be alien to these privileges but shall also be found and subject to various
compulsory public services."132 A precedent of favoring Catholics and marginalizing
those who were not had been set. The method of imposing 'compulsory public services'
on non-Catholics would soon become a common method of marginalization. The public
services had become a common Roman practice in late antiquity in which almost
everyone was put into direct service of the government, similar to the modem practice in
some countries ofcompulsory service in the military. As the fourth century progressed
the laws against heretics become more severe. For example, in the year 378 the
Emperors Valens, Gratian, and Valentinian issued a law stating, " ... in order that the illicit
practice of heretical assembly should cease, we command that all places should be
confiscated in which their altars were located under the false guise of religion, whether
such assemblies were held in towns or in the country outside the churches where om
peace prevails.,,133 This law was issued at Trier to Hesperius, who was the prefect of the
city. This is clear evidence that heresies were widespread and well known in both eastern
and western halves of the empire, and the fact that the government had to pass a law
forbidding heretics from even meeting shows that the government was fighting a losing
battle against the rising tide of heresy. Another futile attempt at stopping all heresy was
attempted at Milan in the year 379, which was at the time the capital of the Western
Empire.
131
Codex Theodosianus, XVI, 5.1,450. 112Ibid. 133
Codex Theodosianus XVI, 5.4, 450. 56
All heresies are forbidden by both divine and imperial laws and shall forever cease. If
any profane man by his punishable teachings should weaken the concept of God, he shall
have the right to know such noxious doctrines only for himself but shall not reveal them
to others to their hurt. 134
This law shows that there were many heretical preachers traveling and teaching
their beliefs to the people. The state took an interest into stopping such activity to protect
others from apostasy and heresy. It is significant that such a law was passed in the year
379. This was only a year after the disastrous battle of Adrianople in which a Roman
army was defeated and the Emperor Valens slain by the rebellious Goths. The Goths
were converted by the Arian preacher Ulfilas perhaps not two decades before this
rebellion occurred on Roman soil.
Another law passed in 381 by the same emperors shows just how afraid the
government had become of heretical movements and their threatening presence to the
Catholic Church:
Crowds shall be kept away from the unlawful congregations of all the heretics. The name
of the One and Supreme God shall be celebrated everywhere; the observance, destined to
remain forever, of the Nicene faith, as transmitted long ago by Our ancestors and
confirmed by the declaration and testimony of divine religions, shall be maintained. The
contamination of the Photinian pestilence, the poison of the Arian sacrilege, the crime of
the Eunomian perfidy and the sectarian monstrosities, abominable because of the ill­
omened names oftheir authors, shall be abolished even from the hearing of men. \35
This law goes on further to define those who follow the Nicene faith as the only
true adherent of the Catholic religion, suggesting that there were some who claimed to be
Catholic but didn't fully accept the Nicene Creed. 136 It also goes on to say "who are not
devoted to the aforesaid doctrines shall cease to assume, with studied deceit, the name of
true religion."137 It also forbids heretics to assemble in towns, to hold offices within the
church, and banishes known heretics from cities "in order that Catholic churches
throughout the whole world may be restored to all orthodox bishops who hold the Nicene
134 Codex Theodosianus XVI, 5.5,450.
m Codex Theodosianus, XVI, 5.6.1, 451.
136
137
Ibid, XVI, 5.6.2.
Ibid, XVI, 5.6.3.
57
faith.,,138 This law was issued at Constantinople in 381 which was close to the epicenter
of the Gothic insurrection. The Romans and the Goths were still fighting and the Goths
had been laying waste to the Thracian countryside. 139 It seemed reasonable to the average
lay person to convert to Arianism to avoid any possible repercussions from the rebelling
gothic warriors. The state and the chmch sought to prevent any such thing from
happening. Repetitious laws similar to the aforementioned ones were also passed in the
years 383 and 384 which the Arians, Eunomians (a branch of Arianism) and newly
named sects, the Apollinarians and the Macedonians, were targeted by the state. They
were banned from assembling in towns and cities, and were banned from building their
own churches and meeting places. If caught, their property would be seized and be
'vindicated to the fisc' or in other words, handed over to the state as a means of raising
money. 140
Thus the problem that the chmch faced with heresies became more complicated
dming the latter half of the fomth centmy as heretical movements came to be associated
with invading barbarian tribes looking for plunder. The naime of the laws issued shows
clearly that Christianity was mostly an mban movement and its missionaries established
chmches and other meeting places inside of towns and cities rather than in rmal
communities. The emphasis the emperors took at banishing heretics from Catholic
circles and preventing them from even being in towns and cities shows clearly that
heresies were spreading within mban areas as well and were operating openly alongside
the catholic clergy. Towns and cities were also a favorite target for invading barbarian
tribes because Roman civilization (its laws, cultme, and wealth) emanated from cities.
Ibid.
Ammianus Marcellinus. The Later Roman Empire. Book 31.8, tr. Walter Hamilton. (London: Penguin
Books, 1986),425.
140 Codex Theod08ianus, XVI 5.12, 452 and XVI 5.13, 453.
138
139
58
Threatening a Roman city could elicit concessions from the government. The Gothic
King Fritigern used this tactic at Constantinople following the battle of Adrianople. By
the end of the fourth century, a bishop had become as Henry Coster argues, "defender of
his flock against predatory soldiers and officials, and against barbarian invaders,"
couldn't allow such threats to exist, and enlisted the help ofthe state to protect them.
141
The Roman Empire officially became a Catholic one in the year 380 when the
emperors issued an edict from Thessalonica proclaiming that those who follow the
religion of St. Peter "shall embrace the name of Catholic Christian" .142 This settled the
debate as far as the emperors were concerned, but for the Christian clergy the debate was
far from over and religious controversies and heresies would continue to proliferate all
over the Roman Empire. The government, fearing the presence of barbarian heretics and
pagans threatening the power of the Catholic Church, tried to implement harsher
regulations with the intention to at first stopping, then later eliminating any hint of heresy
within Roman territory. An examination of fifth century laws dealing with religion and
heresy reveals that the Roman state became seemingly paranoid and obsessed with
heretics.
State Sponsored Religion
The state had two preferred methods of promoting its official religion. By
patronage of the Catholic Church and by suppression of non-Catholic sects. Shortly after
the edict of Milan, a law was issued by Constantine addressing the issue of Catholic
clergy being harassed by heretics. This is one of the first instances in which the word
Catholic was used within the context of Roman legalism. This suggests that the term
Catholic was already a well-established religious and theological tradition within the
l4ICharles Henry Coster. "Christianity and the Invasions: Synesius ofCyrene." The Classical Journal. 55
(1960),296.
142
Codex Theodosianus 16.1.2, 440.
59
realm of Christendom. The law also states that the Catholic clergymen were being forced
into compulsory public services. something Constantine didn't like. Therefore the law
states: " ... ifyour Gravity should fmd any person thus harassed, another person shall be
chosen as a substitute for him that henceforward men of the aforesaid religion shall be
protected from such outrages.,,143 This law was issued in 313, the same year that the edict
of Milan was issued, thus showing that fostering Christianity was an early priority of
Constantine.
Soon other laws were issued that further protected the Catholic Church from those
trying to harm it. A law issued ten years later protected Catholic clergy from such
services compulsory public services, decreeing that those who are serving the "Catholic
sect" are protected from being forced to perform "the ritual of an alien superstition" and
those who try to force Catholics to do so are to be "beaten publicly with clubs." 144
The term "alien" in this context comes from the Latin word Alienus. The word carried a
legal defmition within the Theodosian Code of"not being connected" to the true religion
of the empire. 14S
The laws in the Theodosian Code differentiate between Christians and heretics
using legal terms. Non-Catholics. Jews and pagans were considered to be Alieni, those
who where faithful to the church were given the legal term, Christianae Dignitates, or
Christian dignity, which conferred upon those certain privileges and a respectable status
in society. 146 Such privileges could be being appointed to an imperial office or serving in
the imperial household or holding a high social ra.nl4 something that was conferred by the
emperor. In other words. the law only treated faithful Catholics to be legitimate citizens
143 Codex Theodosianus 16.2.1,441.
Codex Theodosianus 16.2.5,441.
14'Carolina Lo Nero, "Christiana Dignitas: New Christian Criteria for Citizenship in the Late Roman
Empire." Medieval Encounters. 7 (2001) 160.
146Ibid, 159.
144
60
in the Roman Empire, and those who were not were labeled alieni. This legal concept is
illustrated more clearly by a law in the Theodosian code which states that if anyone
becomes an apostate by "giving themselves over to sacrifices... they shall be branded
with perpetual infamy and shall not be numbered even among the lower dregs of the
ignoble crowd.,,147 Perpetual infamy or in Latin, perpetua infamia, was a legal term that
meant anyone who voluntarily "renounced their inborn dignity as Christians and the
rights that accompany that dignity."I48 The aforementioned rights Christians enjoyed
were therefore closed off to those considered Alieni, or those apostates who now lived in
perpetual infamy.
Constantine's sons continued the policy of protecting the church by issuing laws
exempting the church from taxation. The wording of the text is quite interesting because
Constantius addresses the law directly to the clergy: " ... no person shall obligate you and
your slaves to new tax payments, but you shall enjoy exemption."149 A law issued in the
year 349 by Constantius reiterates the policy started by Constantine that "all clerics must
be exempt from compulsory public services and from every annoyance of municipal
duties. Their sons moreover, must continue in the Church, if they are not held obligated
to the municipal councilS."ISO This law is more ambiguous; it includes the collective term
"clergy" without specifying if the clergy must be catholic, or if it includes Christian
clergy, or if it includes clergy of any religion. But since the emperors already passed
laws protecting the Catholic Church from compulsory public services and there is no
further evidence in the code that this privilege had been extended to other clergy, let
alone Pagans, therefore it is safe to say that this law pertained only to Catholics.
147Codex Theodosianius 16.5.7,466.
141Carolina Lo Nero. "Christiana Dignitas: New Christian Criteria for Citizenship in the Late Roman
Empire," Medieval Encounters, 7 (2001) 161.
149 Codex Theodosianus 16.2.8, 442.
150 Ibid, 2.9.
61
As the fifth century commenced, the state sought to further protect the church by
granting clergymen certain legal immunities. A law issued by the Emperors Honorius
and Theodosius allowed clerics to be accused of wrong doing only before bishops, and
not secular officials. lSI Another law issued in the year 408 demands that if a bishop
removes a member of the clergy from his ministry or church and bans him from the
church, then that ex-clergyman must be "vindicated to the municipal council, so that he
may no longer have :free opportunity to return to the church. "IS2 In other words, clergy
have the privilege of being exempted from compulsory public services, but not if they
were a former member of the clergy.
The evidence shows that the state purposefully elevated the church above the
secular legal system. The church was given the right to police itself and the secular legal
authorities did not have the ability to accuse the church in court, or have the right to bring
charges against the clergy. The patronage of the church by the Roman Emperors
demonstrates their desire to protect it from outside forces like secular authorities, heretics
and barbarians. In fact, the church acted as a self regulatory institution, and its bishops
policed their own congregations with normally little interference from government
authorities. This was problematic for the church. Many parishes ran self-sustaining
communities that were able to raise funds operate independently. However, this semiautonomy made it profoundly difficult for the church to monitor and regulate the beliefs
of individual bishops. Policing minds became a major priority for the church, which was
an impossible task. Nevertheless, the church sought to create a unified set of standards
for bishops so that such a thing wouldn't happen. The Apostolic Constitutions contain
guidelines in which the bishops were expected to follow, ranging from proper conduct to
lSI
152
Codex Theodosianus 16.2.41,447. Codex Theodosianus 16.2.39,447. 62
charitable practices. In an attempt to prevent apostasy, one section of the document
demands that clergy and laity:
Abstain from all the heathen books. For what have you to do with such foreign
discourses, or laws, or false prophets, which subvert the filith of the unstable? For what
defect do you find in the law of God, that you should have recourse to those heathenish
fables? For ifyou have a mind to read history, you have the books of the Kings; ifbooks
of wisdom or poetry, you have those of the Prophets, ofJob, and the Proverbs, in which
you will find greater depth of sagacity than in all the heathen poets and sophisters,
because these are the words of the Lord, the only wise God. If you desire something to
sing, you have the Psalms; if the origin of things, you have Genesis; if laws and statutes,
you have the glorious law of the Lord God. Therefore utterly abstain from all strange and
diabolical books. 153
For the church to place this much importance on keeping its clergy and laity from reading
books it found offensive meant that it must have been a big problem for them. It also
shows that heretical literature must have been flourishing in Europe. The document goes
to state that the "Catholic Church is the plantation of God and His beloved vineyard;
containing those who have believed in His unerring divine religion; who are the heirs by
faith of His everlasting kingdom"lS4
Bishops were directed by the Apostolic Constitutions to avoid being influenced
by heresies and schisms. The document directly addresses all bishops and states:
Above all things, 0 bishop, avoid the sad and dangerous and most atheistical heresies,
eschewing them as fire that burns those that come near to it. Avoid also schisms: for it is
neither lawful to tum one's mind towards wicked heresies, nor to separate from those of
the same sentiment out ofambition. For some who ventured to set up such practices of
old did not escape punishment. ISS
A noticeable concern addressed in this passage is the defection of priests to heresies,
which suggests that ambitious bishops would throw their allegiance from one sect, to
another.
Apostolic Constitutions, tr. James Donaldson; quoted in Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol. 7 (Buffalo, NY: Christian Literature Pbulishing Co., 1886); available from New Advent.org http://www.newadvent.orgifathers/07151.htm; internet; 1.2.6. 154 Ibid, 1. us Ibid, 6.1. 153
63
The church thought of competing sects of Christianity as a source of blasphemy
whose agenda was to denounce everything the church believed in. The document takes a
polemical turn when explaining the true nature of heresies calling them:
Now all these had one and the same design ofatheism, to blaspheme Almighty God, to
spread their doctrine that He is an unknown being, and not the Father ofChrist, nor the
Creator ofthe world; but one who cannot be spoken ot: ineffable, not to be named, and
begotten by Himself; that we are not to make use ofthe law and the prophets; that there is
no providence and no resurrection to be believed; that there is no judgment nor
retribution; that the soul is not immortal; that we must only indulge our pleasures, and
turn to any sort ofworship without distinction. 1S6
The church's perception is one of contempt, which hid the reality that heretical sects and
preachers were in fact performing their self imposed duty of preaching their version of
the Gospel of Christ. But this perception is important historically because it implies a
high level of tension that was prevalent in late antiquity. The entire basis of the Church's
understanding on heresies was their supposed disbelief in any type of God at all. Such
teachings were considered a grave threat.
To rectify any possible confusion as to the true doctrine bishops were supposed to
follow, the constitutions includes an interesting passage which presents an abbreviated
version of the Nicene Creed mixed with other orthodox creeds.
But we, who are the children of God and the sons ofpeace, do preach the holy and right
word ofpiety, and declare one only God, the Lord ofthe law and ofthe prophets, the
Maker ofthe world, the Father of Christ; not a being that caused Himselt: or begot
Himself, as they suppose, but eternal, and without original, and inhabiting light
inaccessible; not two or three, or manifold, but eternally one only; not a being that cannot
be known or spoken of, but who was preached by the law and the prophets; the Almighty,
the Supreme Governor of all things, the All-powerful Being; the God and Father ofthe
Only-begotten, and of the First-born of the whole creation; one God, the Father ofone
Son, not of many; the Maker of one Comforter by Christ, the Maker ofthe other orders,
the one Creator of the several creatures by Christ, the same their Preserver and Legislator
by Him; the cause of the resurrection, and of the judgment, and ofthe retribution which
shall be made by Him: that this same Christ was pleased to become man, and went
through life without sin, and suffered, and rose from the dead, and returned to Him that
sent Him. We also say that every creature ofGod is good, and nothing abominable; that
everything for the support oflife, when it is partaken of righteously, is very good: for,
according to the Scripture, all things were very good. We believe that lawful marriage,
and the begetting ofchildren, is honorable and uodefiled; for difference ofsexes was
formed in Adam and Eve for the increase ofmankind We acknowledge with us a soul
lS6
Apostolic Constitutions, 6.2.10.
64
that is incorporeal and immortal-ilot corruptible as bodies are, but immortal, as being
rational and free. 1S1
The Christological musings and the theological discussions in this passage are very
orthodox in nature. The Nicene creed is consistent with this exposition in the Apostolic
Constitutions in that is too declares that Jesus is God's only begotten son. The added
passage about lawful marriage and the begetting of Children is interesting from a
historical standpoint as well. It was included here to clear any confusion about the
position the Catholic Church took on marriage and children. Some sects of Christianity
did not condone marriage and instead demanded strict celibacy and asceticism. This was
true ofthe Pelagians in Gaul and Britain as well as some Gnostic groups in Syria and
Egypt. There could be no excuse now for Catholic bishops not knowing the true position
of the Catholic church regarding this issue. Bishops were now expected to tow the line
for Catholicism.
In another attempt to stop heresy, the state resorted to confiscating wealth from
convicted heretics. This practice is practice is illustrated by a law issued in year the 407
that was directly aimed at punishing several groups operating in the empire. Specifically
they were the Phrygians and the Priscillianists. It declares their heresies to be a "public
crimen and authorizes the Roman authorities to "pursue the aforesaid persons by the
confiscation of their goods."158 In addition, the law forbids the children of convicted
heretics of receiving any inheritance from their heretic parents at all unless "they have
abandoned the depravity of their fathers; for we extend pardon to those persons who
repent of their transgressions."159 Finally, this law allows the state to confiscate property
Apostolic Constitutions, 6.3.11. Codex Theodosianus 16.5.40.1,457. 1S91bid, 16.5.40.5. U1
ISS
65
from an owner of "a landed estate" if that owner knowingly harbors congregations of
heretics.160
In another anti-heretical act, the Emperors Honorius and Theodosius issued a law
prohibiting "those persons who are hostile to the Catholic sect to perform imperial
service within the palace, so that no person who disagrees with Us in faith and in religion
shall be associated with Us in any way.,,161 Those same emperors went a step further
when they issued another law banning "Montanists, the Priscillianists, and other breeds of
such nefarious superstition" from imperial service, thereby preventing them from serving
in the army.,,162 Despite this ban, the law explicitly states that these heretics are not
exempt from performing compulsory public services. 163
Apparently tension between certain Christian sects erupted into outright violence.
One law contained in the Theodosian Code refers to those who have committed
"outrages" against African bishops. While the text of the law does not specifically accuse
any group of wrongdoing, it does mention by the a group of heretics called the Donatists,
by warning them that they "shall not suppose that the provisions ofthe law previously
issued against them have diminished in force."I64 In Northern Africa during the late
fourth and fifth centuries there was a sect of Christianity known as Donatists who were
notorious for their violent activities against Catholics. This sect emphasized that the
church was supposed to be a church of saints and not sinners and refused forgiveness for
offenders against their rules. Apparently some of the secular judges might have been
Donastist sympathizers because the law implies that the judges neglected their
160
Ibid.
Codex Theodosianus 16.5.42,457.
162 Codex Theodosianus 16.5.48, 458. 161
Ibid. 163
64
1
Sirmodian Constitutions in Codex Theodosianus, Title 14,485. 66
responsibilities to prosecute offenders. 165 The law mentions that the violence might even
have been condoned by certain persons:
"We learn that throughout Africa so much has been pennitted to the rash lawlessness of
certain persons who afflicted with various tortures, bishops ofthe Christian faith who had
been snatched from their own homes or, what is more atrocious, who had been dragged
from the inner sanctuaries ofthe Catholic Church."I66
The text of the law makes note of a specific deed that was done, a deed that is not known,
but the length of the text suggests that this was a serious attack on the bishops of the
African church. The law authorizes the judges in Africa (apparently the secular ones) to
seek out the perpetrators of the violence and if convicted, the perpetrators shall be
sentenced to the mines or deported and their property seized. 167 The law authorizes the
use of capital punishment for convicts. This law is very similar to another law issued in
the year 409 which mentions violence directed towards Catholic Churches.
If any person should break forth into such sacrilege that he should invade Catholic
Churches and should inflict any outrage on the priests and ministers, or on the worship
itself and on the place ofworship, whatever occurs shall be brought to the notice ofthe
authorities by letters of the municipal senates, magistrates, and curators, and by official
reports of the apparitors who are called rural police, so that the names ofthose who could
be recognized may be revea1ed. 161
This law demands capital punishment for any violator; thus authorizing the state
to kill on behalf of the church. But this begs the following question: how much did the
church influence the state when it came time to religious policy, and how does it connect
to their relationship with heretics and barbarians?
The Church Fathers and Heretics
To answer this question it necessary to examine the literature written by some of
the more influential bishops who had close ties to the imperial government. Pope Leo the
Greatwas a prolific writer and bishop of Rome from 440 to 461. His works provide
16'lbid ,484. 166lbid, 484. 167lbid 161 Codex Theodosianus 16.2.31, 44S.
67
important insights into his agenda as pope and the world in which he lived. He also
maintained close ties to the Senate in Rome and the emperor in Ravenna; his plea to
Attila the Hun to stop the invasion of Italy demonstrates how much the state had
entrusted its interests to the church at Rome The zealous nature of his beliefs are
noticeable. Leo wrote about heretics in Italy during his reign as pope. Many ofLeo's
published sermons and letters are extant. In one sermon Leo argues that as a response to
the almsgiving and charity practiced by his congregation, Satan proliferated heresies in
order to harm them. 169 He emphasized that:
... under a false profession ofthe Christian name he may conupt those whom he is not
allowed to attack with open and bloody persecutions, and for this work he has heretics in
his service whom he has led astray from the catholic Faith. 170
He goes on to substantiate this argument with New Testament scripture,
reminding the congregation that heretics can come "in sheep's clothing, but inwardly
they are ravaging wolves: m1 He goes on in the sermon to attack the Manichees on their
religious rites and beliefs as an example of a group of people who, "gathered together
with all manner of fllth in these men as if in a cesspool."172 The Manichees were not
christian heretics, but rather adherents ofa separate religion, Manichaeism. This religion
originated in Persia around the third century and spread throughout the Roman world by
Manichaean missionaries. Manichaenas believed in two Gods, the God of matter and the
God of the spirit. They believed that anything coming from matter was corrupting and
evil and the God of spirit was good. Christian bishops strongly opposed such beliefs and
sought to extirpate any hint ofManichaeism from their diocese.
Leo I, Sermons, 16.3, tr. Charles Lett Feltoe; quoted in Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, rt Series, Vol.
12. (Buffalo, NY: Christian Literature Publishing Co., 1895, accessed 291anuary 2010); available from
http://www.newadvent.orglfathersl360316.htm; Internet. 170 Ibid. 171 Ibid. 172 Ibid, 16.4. 169
68
Leo had to deal with this problem when a community ofManichees was
discovered in Rome under his watch. He tried to denounce the Manichees by accusing
them of engaging in orgies with young girls. 173 He makes reference to an inquisition
performed to investigate the Manichaean sect, an inquisition that proved to his
satisfaction to reveal the true nature of this religion. We can doubt this inquisition in
Rome really provided an accurate description of Manichaean rites and practices. But to
Leo's Roman congregation, his words resonated. He pleaded to his congregation to
"renounce all friendship with these men who are utterly abominable and pestilential," and
report any Manichaean adherents to the authorities. 174
His anti-Manichaean sentiment and advocacy for the suppression of this heresy
was effective. His passionate rhetoric was able to influence the emperor to enact
legislation which states "that if any ofthe Manichaeans should be apprehended anywhere
in the world, he shall receive, by the authority ofthe public security, the penalties which
the laws have sanctioned against persons guilty to Sacrilege.,,17s Apparently the emperor
in Ravenna was listening because a law issued during Leo's reign seems to imply that the
discovery of the Manichaean congregation in Rome was a recent occurrence as seen in a
law that states that the Manichees "have been revealed by their very manifest confession
in the court ofthe most blessed Pope Leo...,,176 This law was proclaimed at Rome in the
year 445. Leo was single handedly able to influence state policies by simply speaking.
Pope Leo was just as vicious attacking heretics groups as well. The Pelagians
were a Christian sect that originated in Britain in the fourth century by its founder,
Peiagius, a Christian priest who believed in the doctrine offree will, and denounced the
Ibid. Ibid, 16.5. 175 Nov. Val, 18.1,531. 116 Ibid. \7.l
14
1
69
doctrine of original sin. These views were opposed to the orthodox belief of
predestination and original sin. Leo became aware that a group ofPelagians were
receiving communion from the Catholic Bishop of Aquileia, close to modem Venice. The
problem was however, they were doing so without first having renounced their heretic
religion. Leo insists in a letter that a provincial synod be convened in order to compel the
Pelagians to renounce their heresy and proclaim their loyalty to the Catholic Church. 177
He goes on to argue his case that the Pelagians' view of God's grace was unscriptural,
thereby revealing a major objection he harbored for this particular sect He cites New
Testament writings as proof that this sect was in error. I78 Leo was therefore a staunch
opponent non catholic beliefs.
st. Athanasius was a leading opponent of Arianism during the fourth century and
frequently wrote anti-Arian literature. He was present at the council ofNicaea and
supported the orthodox Christological doctrine that Christ is of the same substance as
God the father. He was well connected with imperial politics and was a shrewd church
politician in his own right. Despite his aptitude for politics, he was frequently at odds
with emperors and other bishops and he was exiled from various sees he occupied five
times. He did manage however, to enjoy imperial support from the emperor
Constantine. I79 He wrote History ofthe Arians which he argues from a moralistic position
that the Arian sect is to be denounced and rejected by all for the sake of their souls. He
attempts to denounce Arianism by showing his audience that whenever Arianism is
"overthrown by argument" they resort to violence and imprisonment of whoever
Leo I, Letters, 1.2. Ibid, 1.3. I7~obert M. Grant. "Religion and Politics at the Council ofNicaea," The Journal ofReligiOn. 55 (1975) 1, 177
118
11.
70
disagrees with them. 180
He even expresses his utter contempt for Constantine's
successor and son, the Arian emperor Constantius, whom he compares to Pilate in his
degeneracy because Constantius banished certain Catholic bishops from their sees for
their refusal to accept Arian dogma. 181
Athanasius approaches his highly subjective work on the Arians from a purely
moralistic point of view. He does not make use of theology or philosophy to refute the
claims of the Arians. Rather he attempts to show his audience that the immoral behavior
of the Arians is enough to condemn them. He makes frequent use of the term "wicked"
and "impiety" to make his case. However powerful his language might have been, his
bias reveals a double standard. He is correct to point out the anti-catholic violence
employed by Arians, but neglects to mention that Catholics were involved in the same
sort of activity against the Arians. This should not be a surprise; Athanasius was trying
to incriminate the Arian faith. But many Catholic bishops and clergy at that time were
also responsible in instigating anti-Arian violence.
Attempts to incriminate other heretical sects were initiated in North Africa as
well. This time it was 8t. Augustine of Hippo who was at the forefront of fighting
against a radical sect of Christians called the Donatists. He was highly vocal in his
condemnation of the Donatist sect, which flourished in North Africa during his career as
bishop of Hippo. Reading his essay on Donatists would suggest to the reader that the
Donatists had a particular propensity to violence. In a letter he wrote to Boniface, Count
of Africa, he reported:
Anyone who had shown contempt for their hard words were compelled by harder blows
to do what they desired. The houses of innocent persons who had offended them were
either razed to the ground or burned. Certain heads of families of honorable parentage,
180st. Athanasius, History ofthe Ariana, 8.67. tr. M. Atkinson and Archibald Robertson; quoted in Nicene
and Post-Nicene Fathers, r Series, Vol. 4 (Buffalo, NY: Christian Literature Publishing Co., 1892
accessed 30 January 2010); available from http://www.newadvent.orglfathersl28158.hlm); Internet
181
Ibid, 7.68.
71
and brought up with a good education were carried away half dead after their deeds of
violence, or bound to the mill, and compelled by blows to turn it round, after the fashion
of the meanest beasts of burden. III
Augustine goes on to further report the unthinkable; Donatists had rioted in Carthage and
violently attacked Catholic Churches. His descriptive language of the actions of the
Donatist attacks on the churches in Carthage was an attempt to convince the ruling
bureaucracy that indeed the Donatist set should be extinguished. Augustine, referencing
a decision by the Catholic Church in North Africa declaring Donatist baptisms to be void,
tried to show that the Donatist response to the decision reveals their true nature as a
heretical group, and only true conversion to Catholicism would save their souls.
Then indeed they blazed forth with such fury, and were so excited by the goadings of
hatred, that scarcely any churches of our communion could be safe against their treachery
and violence and most undisguised robberies; scarcely any road secure by which men
could travel to preach the peace of the Catholic Church in opposition to their madness
and convict the rashness of their folly by the clear enunciation of the truth. They went so
far, besides, in proposing hard terms of reconciliation, not only to the laity or to any of
the clergy, but even in a measure to certain of the Catholic bishops. For the only
alternative offered was to hold their tongues about the truth, or to endure their savage
fury. 113
The emperor in Ravenna became aware of the troubles that the church was facing
in Carthage. There are several laws contained in the Theodosian Code that were
intended to specifically deal with Donatists. The nature of these laws was
comparably punitive to most of the other laws which sought to suppress heresy.
Comparing the laws contained in the Theodosian Code and the writings of
the church fathers reveal that the relationship between the church and the state
evolved from being initially neutral shortly after the edict of Milan to very
symbiotic in the fifth century. The state enacted legislation to protect the church
from heresy and schism. The church frequently appealed to the state for actions to
1I2St. Augustine, Letters, U. J.R King,; quoted in Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, 1" Series, Vol. I, (Buffalo, NY: Christian Literature Publishing Co., 1887, accessed 30 Januw:y 2010), available from (Newadvent.org, http://www.newadvent.orglfatherslll02185.htm). 185.4.15. 183 Ibid, 185.4.18.
72
be taken against heresies. The scope of the religious controversies clearly
intensified as Christianity grew in the fourth century due to the diversification of
Christian teachings to all parts of the Roman Empire. Whereas in the first balf of
the fourth century it was common to see teachings of heretics anathematized and
their bishops expelled from their sees, by the latter fourth century it had become
common to see laws that forbade all meetings of heretic congregations in towns
and cities, and the churches and meeting places of heretics confiscated and turned
over to the government. Finally, by the fifth century it was common to see laws
that called for the death of heretics. Despite the efforts of the church and state to
destroy heresies through legal means, it was unsuccessful. Heresies persisted well
beyond the end of the Roman Empire in the west.
73
Chapter Four
Methods of Charity
Christian Charity was practiced in the ancient world primarily to fulfill ethical
and religious duties that were expected by bishops, to protect against the spread of
heretical beliefs, to mitigate devastation brought by barbarian invaders and to ensure the
survival of a community of believers. The specific methods used were not uniform and
tended to be adapted according to local circumstances. By Late Antiquity, the church had
already been involved in the task of helping people in distress for centuries. The tradition
had a scriptural, theological and ethical basis to it and one of its strengths was its
practical flexibility in implementing charitable practices. Depending on the situation,
Christian charity tended to be performed in a way that sought to address a particular need
in a particular place to ensure the survival of a community. After centuries ofpersecution
by pagan emperors, Christian communities became well adapted at being able to endure
hardships.
The primary sources from late antiquity regarding charity normally do not go into
explicit detail about how resources were distributed to the poor. Much of what is written
about how charity functioned was written by bishops exhorting their congregations to
altruism in the face of a catastrophe. Others make allusions to charitable acts as into part
of a larger religious context. However there is enough evidence available to draw
conclusions on how some resources were utilized and how they were distributed. There
is also enough evidence to show how certain groups ofpeople were labeled "poor" by the
church and what the poor were entitled to receive.
74
Who were ideDtified as being poor?
It is important to define who was considered poor in the ancient world. The term
as it was applied in the Roman Empire did not have the same meaning as is understood
today. Even then, the meaning of the term changed over time. Being poor was not
defined as being destitute, homeless, or penniless. Rather, being poor meant lacking in a
life of "leisure and independence regarded as essential to the life of a gentleman."I84 In
this sense, the majority of the population of any given Greek or Roman city was therefore
considered poor because they didn't have a large estate to enjoy or as much money to
spend as rich citizens might. Romans tended to describe the poor not as destitute
beggars, but rather those who have "just enough to keep them going in leisured
indigence and their chief struggle is not to keep from starving, but to avoid the
degradation of having to work.,,185 Nor were the poor necessarily landless. They could
own small plots of land in the countryside and even own slaves. Those who were
penniless and homeless were the destitute and were frequently spoken about in
disparaging terms.
Wealthy Romans would often use their position of power to gain the support of
the poor. This would often come in the form of donations that the wealthy would make
to a community in exchange for some form of support, whether it be a gift in exchange
with a wealthy patron or for votes in an election. This practice had already been common
for centuries before the rise of Christianity in Europe, as shown by the ancient institution
ofthe patron and client relationship. Patrons, who were almost certainly wealthy
citizens who owned large estates, would routinely give gifts to clients (who were
generally the poor people), which could mean certain individuals or entire communities.
A.R. Hands, Charities and Social Aid in Greece and Rome, 62. Ibid. 184
m
7S
Sometimes patrons would even donate or bequeath some of their property to a
community for the public to enjoy. But giving gifts to a community would almost
certainly carry with it the expectation of getting something in return. l86 While this might
seem like more of an economic transaction, in the Roman Empire an offer of a gift with
the expectation of a return meant an offer of friendship and was the basis offriendly
intercourse and exchange between client and patron. 187 As A.R. Hands put it, "The offer
of a gift represents an offer of friendship, an offer not lightly to be rejected, since the
number of friends which a man has may well be as important to his security and prestige
as the value of his material possessions.,,188 This Latin term used to describe the practice
of gift giving is beneficia.
This relationship was, in fact, a ''vertical social structure, binding together people
of a higher and lower rank.,,189 The relationship clients had to endure with their patrons
was not always a pleasant experience. Some Romans complained about the ritualistic
aspect of the salulano or "morning salute" which meant a client having to go to a patrons
house. The Roman poet Martial wrote an epigram to his patron:
If I didn't wish and didn't deserve to see you "at home" this morning Paulus-,well, then,
may I live even farther from your Esquiline home than I do. As it is, I live on the
Quirinal, near the temples of Flora and Jupiter. I must ascend the steep path, up the hill
from the Subura, and the filthy pavement of the slick steps. I can scarcely break through
the long droves of mules and the marble blocks being hauled at the end of many cable
ropes. Then, as the end of these thousand labors, something even more annoying
happens:, Paulus, your doorman tells me, who am thoroughly exhausted, that you are not
"at home" .190
This institution did have its critics. Towards the end of the Roman republic an
into the early imperial age, some Roman writers wrote about giving without expecting
anything in return. This idea was somewhat ofa departure from the previous social
Ibid, 18. Ibid, 26. 181 Ibid, 30. 119 Ja-Ann Shelton, As the Romans Did. 2nd ed. (New York: Oxford University Press 1998), 14. 1901bid. 186
187
76
practice, but the first century stoic philosopher Seneca wrote: "Doing good simply means
paying out; if you receive anything in return, then you do good business, but if there is
no return you make no loss".191 Cicero makes a similar statement, "Ifwe are truly liberal
and beneficent we do not make a profitable business of doing good".192 This message of
giving without expecting anything in return was adopted by Christianity and referenced
by late antique Christian writers as an important aspect of religious observance. Their
discussions about the importance of charity redefined who was considered poor.
Increasingly, Christian bishops included the penniless and the destitute into the list of
those eligible to receive aid.
Christianity's Idea of Giving
Pre-Constantinian bishops had developed specific methods which helped ensure
the survival of Christian communities despite the challenges they faced. Persecutions
instigated by the pagan Roman government had forced Christian communities to figure
out how to endure with what they had. Charity for these early churches was a means of
survival. Therefore the charitable activities the church performed during the fourth and
fifth centuries were not innovations, but rather a continuation of practices that had
already been developed as early as the time of St. Paul in the first century. Whereas
pagans were generally accustomed to giving gifts to individuals or communities in return
for friendship or political support, christian bishops taught their congregations to be
lovers of the poor and and sought to give money to the real poor ofthe city, rather than to
give money to adorn the city with beautiful buildings. 193 The Christian idea of giving
191Cicero, de amic. 20, 71; Seneca, de. be. 16, I; quoted in A. R. Hands, Charities and Social Aid in Greece
and Rome, 30.
1921bid. 193Peter Brown, Poverty and Leadership in the Later Roman Empire, (Hanover, NH: University Press of New England, 2002), 6. 77
"involved, rather, a gesture that reached out, by preference, to touch the outermost
margins of society."l94
The earliest figures of Christianity frequently expounded on the virtues of charity.
S1. Paul's writings were hugely influential to the early Christian church. Developing
charitable institutions within Christianity could largely be traced back to the influence
Paul's writings had on Christian consciousness. Clement of Rome, one of the first
Christian bishops in Rome wrote towards the end of the first century to the Christian
community at Corinth which was dealing with a crisis. The Corinthians wrote to
Clement seeking his advice regarding a schism in the church. Clement noted that within
the Corinthian churc~ opposing sides had become too infatuated with power, and
sparring factions within the community were threatening to leave. Sin is the underlying
assumption behind all of this trouble and Clement writes, " ...righteousness and peace are
now far departed from you, inasmuch as every one abandons the fear of God, and has
become blind in His fai~ neither walks in the ordinances of His appointment, nor acts a
part becoming a Christian.."19S What did this Christian bishop believe would be an
acceptable solution to this problem? Clement wrote that the community must rely on one
another for support and warned them not to let personal pursuits take precedence over the
true meaning of being a Christian. One passage explains, "Let our whole body, then, be
preserved in Christ Jesus; and let every one be subject to his neighbor, according to the
special gift bestowed upon him. Let the strong not despise the weak, and let the weak
show respect unto the strong.,,196 To Clement, power and glory were not the objective of
being apart of a community, as some apparently sought. But rather, being part of a
194
Ibid, 8
19~Clement ofRome,
Epistles, 1.3, tr. John Keith, quoted in Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol. 9 (Buffalo, NY: Christian Literature Publishing Co., accessed 28 September 2009); available from http://www.newadvent.orglfatherslIOIO.htm); Internet. 196 Ibid, 1.38.
78
community meant having a shared responsibility to the message of Christ in order to
ensure the community's survival. Clement's epistle dates from the late fIrst century, a
time when Christianity was just beginning to feel the hardships of Rome's anti-Christian
persecutions. Clement was influenced by the writing of Paul, who had died probably
around thirty years before Clement's fIrst epistle.
New Christian congregations tended to adapt the writings of the New Testament
to give reason for charitable endeavors. But these activities tended to be applied only to
Christians sharing resources within the community rather than to non-christian outsiders.
The second and early third century Bishop of Carthage, Tertullian, explained how this
worked in an apology he wrote for Christianity. Tertu1lian's exhaustive defense of
Christianity sought to show the pagan world that Christianity is really a humble and
simple religion by describing the way in which his Christian society functioned.
Tertullian wrote, "We are a body knit together as such by a common religious profession,
by unity of discipline, and by the bond of a common hope. We meet together as an
assembly and congregation, that, offering up prayer to God as with united force, we may
wrestle with Him in our supplications.,,197 He then goes on to describe how the resources
ofthe community are used:
On the monthly day, ifhe likes, each puts in a small donation; but only if it be his
pleasure, and only ifhe be able: for there is no compulsion; all is voluntary. These gifts
are, as it were, piety's deposit fund. For they are not taken thence and spent on feasts, and
drinking-bouts, and eating-houses, but to support and bury poor people, to supply the
wants of boys and girls destitute of means and parents, and of old persons confined now
to the house; such, too, as have suffered shipwreck; and if there happen to be any in the
mines, or banished to the islands, or shut up in the prisons, for nothing but their fidelity to
the cause of God's Church, they become the nurslings of their confession. 191
Tertullian's church used funds as a means of supporting those in need. An interesting
aspect ofTertullian's community is that it extended help to those who have been banned
Tertullian, Apology,. 39, tr. S. Thelwal1; quoted in Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol. 3, (Buffalo, NY: Christian
Literature Publishing Co., 1885, accessed 28 September 2009); available from
http://www.newadvent.orglfathersl0301.htm; Internet.
198 Ibid.
197
79
from society. It was a common Roman practice to send undesirables such as criminals,
and dissidents to places that no other self respecting Roman would go to, such as mines,
prisons or deserted islands. But according to his own writing, the recipients of the charity
were Christians only, and it was most likely Christians who were sent to prisons, mines
or deserted islands.
Cyprian of Carthage, a bishop in the mid third century, wrote about how his
congregation had grown. Despite living during the persecutions, his epistles reveal
important evidence about how membership in the congregation seems to have increased.
Cyprian records an example of how individual benevolence led to large donations to the
church, when he wrote that the church had raised 100,000 sesterces. l99
Carthage was a Christian stronghold even before Tertullian and would remain so
until the Muslim invasions in the late seventh century. But there were plenty of other
places where the tradition was growing of sharing resources to help the poor. St. Justin
the Martyr died around the same time that Tertullian was bom (c. 165) and defended
Christianity in Asia Minor and at Rome. He wrote an apology to the emperor Antoninus
Pius in which he sought to explain the true nature ofhis Christian congregation. His
apology reveals interesting details about how similar his community functioned to that of
Tertullian's. Justin's community would meet every Sunday, and then "the memoirs of the
apostles or the writings of the prophets are read".200 He goes on the describe a voluntary
collection, the funds of which were collected and sent to "the president, who succors the
orphans and widows and those who, through sickness or any other cause, are in want, and
those who are in bonds and the strangers sojourning among us, and in a word takes care
AdolfHamack, The Mission and Expansion ofChristianity in the First Three Centuries, (New York:
Harper & Row Publishers, 1972), 157.
200Justin Martyr, First Apology, 57, tr. Marcus Dods and George Reith; quoted in, Ante-Nicene Fathers,
Vol. 1, (Buffalo, NY: Christian Literature Publishing Co., 1885, accessed 30 September 2009), available
from http://www.newadvent.org/fathersl0126.htm; Internet.
199
80
of all who are in need."20I The emphasis is on using money to help the poor within the
community who cannot help themselves.
It was typical Roman social practice for women who were widowed to remarry.
Sometimes women would be allowed to inherit some of their deceased husband's estate,
but in general it was rare to see a female property owner in Roman society. Women who
remained widowed were often destitute, and would do anything they could to survive.
Therefore the church took the position that it was necessary and praiseworthy to help
widows. The Apostolic Constitutions agree with that conclusion. Bishops were expected
to distribute "seasonably the oblations to every one of them, to the widows, the orphans,
the friendless, and those tried with affiiction."202 Bishops were also charged with
responsibility to taking care of orphaned children:
When any Christian becomes an orphan. whether it be a young man or a maid, it is good
that some one ofthe brethren who is without a child should take the young man, and
esteem him in the place ofa son; and he that has a son about the same age, and that is
marriageable, should marry the maid to him: for they which do so perfonn a gn:at work,
and become fathers to the orphans, and shall receive the reward of this charity from the
Lord God. 203
Despite the persecutions ofthe third century, Christianity continued to make
modest inroads with city and country dwellers. By the year 250 the church in Rome had
to support not only the poor but also the clergy, who had grown to a reported 100
members.204 The church also had to support 1500 poor people, a number that required a
substantial amount offunds.20S The church made it a priority of showing hospitality to
strangers, who were a very common presence in Roman urban centers. Tens of
thousands of migrants would enter cities every year. The fact that the Christian church
Ibid.
Apostolic Constitutions, 3.1.3, fr. James Donaldson; quoted in Anle-Nicene Fathers, Vol. 7 (Buffalo, NY: Christian Literature Publishing Co., 1886, accessed 30 January 2010); available from http://www.newadvent.orglfathersl07153.htm; Internet. 203 Apostolic Constitutions, 4.1.1 204 Adolf Harnack. The Mission and Expansion o/Christianity in the First Three Centuries, 157. 20S Ibid. 201
202
81
took an interest in taking care of strangers meant that they would most definitely add
people to their congregation. But while the church helped strangers, strangers were also
expected to help the church in some way as well because the church did not want people
to develop the habit of being free loaders.
To what extent did the church help strangers? The sources provide several
instances in which strangers were helped, but the amount of help a stranger would expect
to receive was certainly not uniform through the empire. Parishes tended to be
autonomous establishments, except for the fact that they were expected to follow official
orthodox dogma. As far as day to day functions go, that was strictly a local matter. For
example, Justin the Martyr mentions in his first apology that a small part of the church
collections goes to "strangers sojourning among US".206 He was most likely referring to
traveling Christian preachers and missionaries who moved from city to city collecting
funds to spread the their beliefs to other regions. St Paul is probably the most prominent
example of the christian preacher performing such an activity and collecting funds along
the way. But this did not always apply to preachers and missionaries. In the eastern
provinces, housing strangers became a well organized system staring in the fourth
century. Eastern churches, particularly in Egypt, accommodated strangers in places
called Xenodocheia. 207 These were asylums that were attached to the church where the
clergy allowed strangers and poor people to stay. Eventually their role expanded to
include care for the poor and sick. 208 This form of establishment would eventually spread
to the west in the sixth century where Xenodocheia were spoken about by Pope Gregory
the Great 209 Egyptian churches also developed establishments that were meant to give
206
Justin Martyr, First Apology, 37. 207
lOS
209
Frances Niderer, "Early Medieval Charity," Church History, 21 (1952),286. Ibid. Ibid, 286. 82
assistance to the poor. There churches set up the Diaconia, which meant office of
serving, which were places were the poor would go to receive food. 2lo The Diaconia
were normally attached to monasteries. In order to provide for the poor the monks who
ran them, the Diaconitae, would allocate food received from collections at the church to
the poor staying there. 2lt The emperor Julian, himself a neo-Platonist who had revoked
many of the privileges given to Christians during the reign of Constantine and his
succeeding sons, noticed that Christianity's use of charity to orphans, widows, and
strangers was succeeding in causing the "spread of atheism" into the countryside. 212 The
term atheism was frequently applied to Christians by polythesists seeking to punish or
criticize Christians for not paying due respect to the traditional Roman gods. Julian
clearly resents the fact that such irreverence to his gods had spread. His surviving
correspondence records this observation while traveling on campaign near Antioch,
suggesting that the practice of Christians giving aid to the poor had already begun to
evolve into the more complex charitable establishments such as the Diaconia and the
Xenodocheia. Frend suggests that this phenomenon created a sense of social justice
within Christians helping the poor and those being helped by the Christians. This is an
ideal that the old pagan religious traditions lacked.
Diaconia appeared in the records in the fourth century and became more common
in the east as more were established in Judea and Syria during the early medieval period
after the fall of the Western Roman Empire. The names Diaconia andXenodocheia were
not given to establishments that served the same purpose in the west.
There is an example in which an eastern bishop contributed wealth directly to the
poor people. Bishop Atticus of Constantinople, who lived in the first half of the fifth
Ibid, 285.
Ibid, 287.
212 W.H.C. Frend, "The Failure ofthe Persecutions in the Roman Empire," Past and Present, 16 (1959), 2.
210
211
83
century, sought to gain approval from the people of Constantinople apparently in an
attempt to quell the religious violence in the city and to win over support from the Arian
faction. Socrates Scholasticus, writing about the predicament in Constantinople says,
''that he (Atticus) perceived the church was on the point ofbeing divided inasmuch as the
Johannites assembled themselves apart, he ordered that mention of John should be made
in the prayers ... ,,213 The term Johannites refers to the supporters of John Chrysostom, a
faction of Christians loyal to his views. Scholasticus also preserved in his discourse a
letter written by Atticus which contains his solution to quell religious tension in the city
and win popular support:
I have been infonned that there are in your city ten thousand necessitous persons whose
condition demands the compassion ofthe pious. And I say ten thousand, designating their
multitude rather than using the number precisely. As therefore I have received a sum of
money from him, who with a bountiful hand is wont to supply faithful stewards; and
since it happens that some are pressed by want, that those who have may be proved, who
yet do not minister to the needy- take, my friend, these three hundred pieces ofgold,
and dispose ofthem as you may think fit. It will be your care, I doubt not, to distribute to
such as are ashamed to beg, and not to those who through life have sought to feed
themselves at others' expense. In bestowing these alms make no distinction on religious
grounds; but feed the hungry whether they agree with us in sentiment, or not. 214
This letter was written to an acquaintance of Atticus who was charged with the care and
proper distribution of the money. Giving away money to the poor was not an
unprecedented practice in late antiquity, but nevertheless its use is not very well
documented in the surviving literature.
Barbarians, Charity and the West
The barbarian migrations into Roman territory did feature a fair amount of
violence. This was especially true in Gaul, Spain, and Italy in the first half of the fifth
century. As I have already argued, barbarian raiders frequently attacked small towns and
farms to coerce local authorities into giving them a share of local resources or dissuading
Socrates Scholasticus, Ecclesiastical History, 7.25, tr. A.C. Zenos; quoted in Nicene and Post-Nicene
Fathers,
Series, Vo1. 2 (Buffalo, NY: Christian Literature Publishing Cop., accessed 4 Apri12010); available from http://www.newadvent.orglfathersl26017.htm; Internet. 214 Ibid. 213
r
84
them from resisting.2lS Other times this tactic was used to obtain positions of power
within the Roman government. But what did this mean for the people caught in the
middle of barbarian incursions? It meant that town dwellers and poor peasants were in a
very vulnerable position. With the absence of an effective Roman government, bishops
were expected to look after the interests of these people. Bishops then had to do
whatever it took to protect people from the horrors of war. Charity was a means of
achieving this objective.
What charitable practices were specifically performed in the west that helped the
poor and strangers? One such method was ransoming captives of war from barbarian
enemies. A prisoner of war was not a new category of people eligible to receive aid from
the church. The topic had been written about in Christian circles at least since the third
century. Cyprian mentions freeing captives as a virtuous activity and provided scriptural
justification for it. 216 He quoted Matthew 2S:34 in one of his epistles: " .. .1 was a captive
and you redeemed me ... ".217 Ambrose of Milan also mentioned the topic but in a different
context. His justification to ransoming captives came both from a political point of view
as well as a scriptural point of view. His reign as bishop was a time of crisis and warfare
for the empire and he thought freeing captives from the barbarian enemy was necessary
"to snatch them from the hands of the enemy; to take people away from death, and,
especially, to take women away from dishonor; to give children back to parents, parents
to children; and to restore citizens to their country.,,218 He added that the wealth of the
church is to be used for the salvation of souls rather than for the adornment of church
21S
Peter Brown, The Rise o/Western Christendom, 211d. ed,. (Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishing 2004),
107. Cyprian, Epistles, 62.4; quoted in William Kllngshirn, "Charity and Power: Caesarius of ArIes and the Ransoming of Captives in Sub- Roman Gaul." The Journal a/Roman Studies75(1985),184. 217 Cyprian, Epistles, 62.1. m William Klingsbirn. "Charity and Power: Caesarius of ArIes and the Ransoming of Captives in Sub­
Roman Gaul," 185.
216
85
buildings. Noting how the apostles in the gospel were sent forth to spread the gospel
without silver or gold, Ambrose concluded that church vessels could be sold and the
money put to use to redeem people captured in war. 219 For Western Europe in the fmal
decades of the Roman Empire and the early decades ofthe sixth century, the almost
constant warfare resulted in large numbers of prisoners. The church used its resources to
free perhaps thousands of prisoners. One example ofthis practice was by Caesarius of
ArIes, a bishop who used church resources to ransom prisoners from captivity. 220
Caesarius became bishop of ArIes in 502 and died in the year 542. His life
witnessed the transition from the last gasps of the Roman West into the post-Roman early
medieval world. His city was initially controlled by the Visigoths, then the Ostrogoths,
and finally the Franks. During this period the practice of stealing human beings was a
profitable industry. The captive whose ransom was paid was expected to pay back those
who freed him or her, and if this couldn't be done then the person was put into a form a
debt servitude whom the person, or redemptus, would work his or her way to pre-captive
status. 221 However, bishops were charged with the responsibility of freeing captives from
enemies. Klingshim argues that besides the more obvious scriptural and ethical reasons
for this practice, Caesarius undertook the task of freeing captives because of his
congregation's own expectations; parishioners probably had family members that had
been taking prisoner. 222 Also, the performance ofthis task bolstered the prestige of a
bishop that did it well, and Caesarius knew that failure to do this well could mean the end
of his time as a bishop.
ll9Ibid.
llOfuid.
221 Ibid.
:w Ibid, 187.
86
An account of Caesarius' life is extant. The Vita of Caesarius was written by his
fellow clergymen a few years after his death and records an instance in which Caesarius
was compelled to act on behalf of captives immediately after his city was captured by the
Ostrogoths in 508:
In Aries, however, when the Goths had returned with an immense number of captives, the
sacred basilicas were filled with a dense crowd of unbelievers (infideles), as was the
bishop's residence. On those in great need the man of God bestowed a sufficient amount
of food and clothing alike, until he could free them individually with the gift of
redemption. When he had spent all the silver which his predecessor, the venerable
Aeonius, had left for the maintenance ofthe church (mensa ecclesiae), he observed that
the Lord had dipped bread into an earthen bowl and not a silver chalice, and had advised
his disciples not to possess gold or silver. The sacred worlc then proceeded all the way to
t!te disposal of the articles of divine service; indeed, when the censers, chalices, and
patens had been given for the redemption of these men, the consecrated ornaments
(species) of the church (templum) were sold for the redemption of the true church (verum
templum). Even today the blows of the axes can be seen on the podiums and railings
from which the silver ornaments ofthe small columns were cut away.223
Caesarius resorted to using the wealth acquired by the church to free captives from
servitude, and thus not only freed many men from captivity but also lifted his own
prestige. Caesarius took perhaps an unusual position on freeing captives who were
barbarians, Jews, or Arian heretics. His vita reports that he justified this action by saying
Caesarius would have preferred these people to be ransomed by him rather than endure
the yoke of their infidelity:
Let no rational man, redeemed by the blood of Christ, having lost his free status, be
coerced into becoming an Arian perhaps, or a lew, or a slave from a free man, or a
servant ofman from a servant ofGod. 224
The concern about forced conversion was enough to justify the use of wealth to prevent
such an occurrence. But this created a problem for the parish in ArIes. How did they
support the poor and the redeemed captives after they were ransomed? According to his
vita, they were supported by a grain dole that was distributed by the church. The vita
records an instance in which Caesarius ordered the last of the supply of grain to be
Vita Caesarius, 1.32; quoted in William Klingshim, "Charity and Power: Caesarius ofAries and the Ransoming ofCaptives in Sub-Roman Gaul," 189. 224 Vita Caesarius, 1.32; quoted in, William Klingshim, "Charity and Power: Caesarius ofAries and the Ransoming ofCaptives in Sub- Roman Gaul," 190. 223
87
distributed to those being supported and miraculously, a new shipment of grain arrived in
the city the next day from none other than the Burgundian king.
St. Augustine's parish at Hippo helped people in distress by providing clothing.
In a letter written by Augustine while he was away from Hippo in the year 410, he
mentions:
It has been reported to me that you have forgotten your custom of providing raiment for
the poor, to which work ofcharity I exhorted you when I was present with you; and I
now exhort you not to allow yourselves to be overcome and made slothful by the
tribulation ofthis world, which you see now visited with such calamities as were foretold
by our Lord and Redeemer, who cannot lie. You ought in present circumstances not to be
less diligent in works of charity, but rather to be more abundant in these than you were
wont to be. 21S
The implication in this sentence is the "custom" of giving clothing and garments to the
poor has been around for a long time. Apparently this letter was written when Augustine
was off on official church duty and was written closely before or after the sack of Rome.
It was also written during the height of the Donatist schism in North Africa Whatever
the case, there is reason to believe that either case caused consternation in his
parishioners. Augustine's response shows that he believed in the power ofcharity even
more during a time of crises for the church.
Plague was a constant threat to the population ofthe ancient world. Deadly
plagues killed large numbers of people in the Roman Empire. There are a number of
instances in which deadly plagues spread through Europe between the second and sixth
centuries. Cyprian lived through one such outbreak. The deadly plague gave Christians
another great opportunity to display their charitable acts by helping to help poor families
pay for the burial of their dead and by providing support for the dying. Cyprian mentions
this duty when writing to a certain Demtrianus, a pagan. "You blame the plague and the
mSt Augustine, Letters, 122.2, tr. J.G. Cunningham; quoted in Nicene and Post- Nicene Fathers, JIt Series, Vol.1 (Buffalo, NY: Christian Literature Publishing Co., accessed 30 Januaty 2010); available from hnp:llwww.newadventorgltatherslll02122.htm); Internet. 88
disease, when plague and disease either swell or disclose the crimes of individuals, no
mercy being shown to the weak ... the same people are slugging in the discharge of the
duties of affection ... they shun the deathbeds of the dying, but make for the spoils ofthe
dead."226 Cyprian evidently saw great importance of attending to the sick and dying.
To what extend did the church lend support to slaves? Christianity helped to
change the way slaves were viewed and treated in late antiquity. Slavery was still a
prominent feature of the social landscape in Late Antiquity. However, the church never
questioned the morality of the institution of slavery nor actively worked for its abolition.
Slaves were an accepted part of life in late antiquity. What did change was the possibility
of slaves being considered active and full members of Christian churches. Slaves could
be manumitted and important positions in the church were open to them.
st. Patrick was
one such example of a former slave turned Christian bishop. Despite the fact that slaves
were now open to membership in the church, they were not typically eligible to receive
material aid from the church. Slaves were still considered to be property of their owners
rather than autonomous persons in charge of their own destiny and therefore were not
categorized as being among the poor. Christian preachers did however, encourage slaver
owners to respect the dignity of their slaves and to abstain from cruelty and sexual
abuse. 227 Bishops however, normally reserved direct aid for free persons. Slaver owners
were expected to "ensure that slaves were fed, clothes, and protected."228
The use of charity as a means of survival and as a means of fulfilling
Christian ethics enabled the church to survive the confusing decades of Late
Antiquity. Bishops used charity as a means of helping the impoverished and
22liCyprian,per pont., ix; quoted in Harnack, The Mission and Expansion o/Christianity in the First Three
Centuries. (New York: Harper Torch Books, 1961), 172.
:U7 Adolf Hamack, The Mission and Expansion a/Christianity in the First Three Centuries, 170.
:us Peter Brown, Poverty and Leadership ofthe Later Roman Empire, 60.
89
people displaced by war, redeeming prisoners of war, and providing for the basic
needs of orphans and widows. Bishops were the key figures in putting charitable
ideas into practice, which meant that bishops were responsible for implementing
charitable activities in their communities. In the case of warfare, bishops
undertook the ransoming of captives as a result of the demands of the
congregation. Whatever the situation was, Christian bishops were usually on
scene imploring Christians to use some of their resources for charitable use for the
good of the greater community.
90
Chapter 5
Conclusion
Barbarians, heretics and non-Christians were the three biggest threats of the
Catholic church in Late Antiquity. The church wanted them to be marginalized,
extirpated and suppressed by the Roman government. The Roman government in late
antiquity was the church's great ally and supporter. This support for the church was
codified into law by the Emperor Theodosius in the year 380. The law states, "It is our
will that all peoples who are ruled by the administration of our clemency shall practice
that religion which the divine Peter the Apostle transmitted to the Romans ... We
command that those persons who follow this rule shall embrace the name of Catholic
Christians."229 The name Catholic (Greek for Universal) was born out of the theological
beliefs of orthodox Christianity, which believed that Jesus was ofthe same substance of
God the Father and was begotten by him.
The fourth century was a turbulent time in the history of Christianity as numerous
interpretations of Christianity spread to all comers of the Roman Empire. Christianity
also spread to many barbarian groups in the fourth century. But this new freedom to
worship soon encountered new problems. Bishops and theologians debated about what
type of Christianity should be practiced and what to do with those who refused to obey.
Theological interpretations of scripture abounded and were anathematized by church
councils. Getting everyone to agree with the councils, however, was impossible.
The orthodox view of Christ emphasized that Chris had always existed with the
father and was begotten by him through Mary the mother ofJesus. The Arian view
stressed that Christ was created by God. The Roman emperor Constantine was eager to
settle this dispute between the two factions in order to earn the support of the majority of
229Codex TheodosiamJ3, 16.2-1.
91
bishops and to consolidate power in the Roman Empire. The council ofNicaea adopted
the orthodox view of Christ, and the Arian position was anathematized.
There were many other christian sects that refused to obey the religious edicts
issued by emperors demanding that everyone obey the Catholic Church. There were the
Donatists in Northern Africa, the Priscillianists in Gaul and Spain, the Eunomians in the
eastern provinces, and dozens of others. The government and the church labeled those
who were not faithful as heretics and as time went on the measures taken to marginalize
and extirpate them became increasingly severe. During and shortly following the reign of
Constantine, heretics' beliefs were anathematized and their followers were banned from
entering cities unless they accepted the orthodox faith. Later in the fourth century, when
the church became increasingly concerned about the growth and power of heretical sects,
laws were issued by the emperors at the behest of the church to seize the wealth and
property of heretics and ''vindicate it to the fisc" or in other words, turn it over to the
state. Emperors demanded that their books be burned, and their members imprisoned
Enforcing laws such as these proved to be impossible and by the fifth century the
government resorted to completely banning heretics from serving within the army or the
imperial household and in some cases executing them.
The barbarians who entered the empire during the fourth and fifth centuries were
either pagans or heretics. The church perceived their presence in Roman territory to be a
serious threat and sought to either keep barbarians marginalized, or to convert them.
Neither approach proved to be successful and many Catholic bishops considered
barbarians to be uncivilized, agents of Satan, or both. Hydatius of Aqua Flaviae in Spain
recorded in his chronicle the violence that occurred in Spain when various barbarian
tribes crossed the Pyrenees and sacked city after city. Hydatius :frequently referred to
92
them as "impious" and credited the will of God when the Vandal King Gunderic was
"seized by a demon and died."230 The church eventually had to accept the fact that the
barbarian presence was permanent and gave up trying to extirpate them.
I
The church took an active role in redefining many of the old social traditions of
ancient Europe. Previously, the pagan notion of charity was based on how much a
wealthy patron can donate to a city to adorn it with public buildings. The reason why a
rich pagan would do this would be to gamer support amongst his clientele. To pagans,
the idea of selflessly giving goods to the poor was foreign. Rather, the poor were defmed
as those who couldn't enjoy the cultured life. The penniless and destitute were a category
unto themselves and were looked upon in negative terms. Christian bishops began to
include the destitute as those who were eligible to receive charitable contributions from
the church. Many christian bishops wrote about the importance of giving goods and
services to the poor for many different reasons. First, there were biblical reasons why the
destitute should be given aid. Many cited the gospels as proof that Jesus Christ himself
demands that the poor should be helped. There were also ethical and practical reasons
why the destitute should be considered amongst those who are entitled to receive aid.
Salvian of Marseille (d. 450), wrote about how the rich have special responsibilities in
being charitable towards the poor and was deeply concerned that the wrath of God was
being unleashed upon the Roman world because rich Romans, who claimed to be
Christians, were ignoring this responsibility and were instead leading a life of hedonism
and greed. Being charitable towards the poor was also a means of mitigating the effects
of apostasy amongst parishioners whose religious loyalties were uncertain. Finally, being
charitable could ensure the fidelity of a congregation in the face of an impending disaster,
23OJIydatius, Chronicle, 20-60 passim.
93
which meant an encroaching group of barbarian heretics. The Theodosian code contains
laws issued to prevent those from fleeing to heretics and punish those who actually did.
The church took some specific measures to alleviate the suffering of the poor. In
fourth century Egypt, a system of charitable aid had already been established within
monasteries where monks called diaconitae distributed food to the poor. Another
charitable service emerged in Egypt at the same time, the xenodocheia, which were
lodgings for strangers. The role eventually expanded to serve as asylums for foreigners,
and for the sick and poor. These services grew in popularity in the eastern provinces and
eventaully would be established in Asia minor, Judea, and Constantinople.
Ransoming hostages and prisoners of war was a popular practice the church was
involved with in the western provinces where invading barbarian tribes made stealing
human beings a profitable industry. Several bishops wrote about the importance of
ransoming captives for a variety of different reasons. Cyprian endorsed the practiced by
citing Matthew 25:34 as scriptural justification. Ambrose of Milan endorsed it because
he felt it was a moral imperative to reunite stolen people to their families and to bring
women back from dishonor. Bishop Caesarius of ArIes (d.542) was known for using the
resources of his parish to ransom prisoners. His Vita, reports that he melted down silver
objects to pay for ransoms. The probable motivation to undertake such action was by
pressure from his congregation to help bring back their stolen family members. But there
is also a passage in his vita that suggests Caesarius wanted to ransom hostages to prevent
them from being converted to Arianism, Judaism, or becoming slaves.
The Church never succeeded in its objective of imposing religious and
theological unity in the Roman Empire in Late Antiquity. It also failed to
marginalize barbarians intruding in Roman territory. As the Roman era in
94
western Europe came to a close, the church had to accept the fact that their
presence would be permanent because barbarians because the de facto rulers of
formerly roman territory. It wasn't until the sixth and seventh centuries that
barbarian successor kingdoms embraced Catholic Christianity. Where the church
succeeded most was in permanently redefIning the idea ofcharitable giving. The
destitute and penniless were included into the defInition of what it meant to be
poor, and selflessly giving aid to the poor became a universally recognized virtue.
95
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