Apologetic Literature and Ambassadorial Activities

1989 ◽  
Vol 82 (1) ◽  
pp. 55-78 ◽  
Author(s):  
William R. Schoedel
Keyword(s):  
Roman Empire ◽  
Previous Analysis ◽  
Early Church ◽  
Third Century ◽  
Rhetorical Tradition ◽  
The Third ◽  
Greco Roman ◽  
The People ◽  
Literary Character

The following study on aspects of the form of apologetic literature in the early church and Judaism grows out of a previous analysis of themes in the apologist Athenagoras that reflect the manner of praising kings in the Greco-Roman rhetorical tradition. My argument was that, although Athenagoras'sLegatiois correctly read as apologetic literature, the task of the orator to render the judge well disposed to his cause is carried out by Athenagoras by calling on familiar epideictic strategies known to us primarily from Menander's (or Ps.- Menander's) codification of them in the third century. Meanwhile, Robert M. Grant has reoriented my discussion of Athenagoras by reading it against the background provided by Fergus Millar in the latter's detailed investigation of the activities of the Roman emperors in meeting the appeals and requests of the people of the Roman empire. Here the fact that Athenagoras's apology is entitled “Embassy” is seen as significant in the light of the importance of embassies in presenting appeals and requests to the emperor. It seems natural to look at the kinds of addresses that ambassadors gave in such circumstances for more precise clues to the literary character of the Christian apologies. The following study is intended as a contribution to the inquiry that has been opened up by that suggestion.

Athenagoras'sEmbassy: A Literary Fiction

1996 ◽  
Vol 89 (3) ◽  
pp. 209-226 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. Lorraine Buck
Keyword(s):  
Good Reason ◽  
Literary Tradition ◽  
Alternative Interpretation ◽  
Literary Form ◽  
Early Church ◽  
Literary Fiction ◽  
Third Century ◽  
The Third ◽  
Greco Roman ◽  
Literary Character

In his 1989 article entitled “Apologetic Literature and Ambassadorial Activities,” William R. Schoedel considers “aspects of the form of apologetic literature in the early church and Judaism.” More specifically, he attempts to discover possible models for the literary character of the Christian apologies, and in particular theEmbassyof Athenagoras, in the various kinds of addresses that ambassadors delivered before the emperor when presenting appeals and requests. Examples of such addresses include the ambassadorial speech discussed by the third-century rhetorician Menander Rhetor, the legal oration as exemplified by Philostratus in his treatment of the trial of Apollonius of Tyana, and the imperiallibellusor petition. Schoedel draws two clear conclusions from this investigation. The first is that the literary form of Athenagoras'sEmbassyis an “apologetically grounded petition,” that is, a “mixed form that as such appears to have no real precedent in the Greco-Roman literary tradition.” The second is that “there is good reason to think that [it] was written to be presented to the emperor or delivered before him.” The present article will explore the ideas and arguments that led Schoedel to each of his conclusions and will offer an alternative interpretation of the evidence in each case.

scholarly journals Our Common Breath: ‘Conspiration’ from the Stoics to the Church Fathers

2021 ◽  
pp. 55-68
Author(s):  
Phillip Sidney Horky
Keyword(s):  
Roman Empire ◽  
Second Century ◽  
Early Church ◽  
Third Century ◽  
Church Fathers ◽  
Early Christian ◽  
The Third ◽  
History Of ◽  
Christian Thought ◽  
The Church

AbstractThis essay tracks a brief history of the concept of ‘co-breathing’ or ‘conspiration’ (συμπνοία), from its initial conception in Stoic cosmology in the third century BCE to its appropriation in Christian thought at the end of the second century CE. This study focuses on two related strands: first, how the term gets associated anachronistically with two paradigmatic philosopher-physicians, Hippocrates and Pythagoras, by intellectuals in the Early Roman Empire; and second, how the same term provides the early Church Fathers with a means to synthesize and explain discrete notions of ‘breath’ (πνεῦμα) through a repurposing of the pagan concept. Sources discussed include figures associated with Stoic, Pythagorean, and early Christian cosmologies.

Neo-Phoenician Identities in the Roman Empire

2019 ◽  
pp. 683-696
Author(s):  
Anthony Kaldellis
Keyword(s):  
Roman Empire ◽  
Ethnic Identity ◽  
Focal Point ◽  
Third Century ◽  
Cultural Resources ◽  
The Third ◽  
Greco Roman ◽  
Imperial Period ◽  
Cultural Traits ◽  
The City

By the later empire, Phoenician cultural traits that might have sustained a separate ethnic identity had either disappeared (e.g., language) or been amalgamated into the Greco-Roman mainstream (e.g., the ancient cults). A “Phoenician” was now a person or city from one of the provinces which the Romans labeled Phoenice. Discussion of Phoenician culture by scholars from those provinces (such as Maximos and Porphyry of Tyre) and local constructions of Phoenician identity relied instead on Greek cultural resources—e.g., the tale of Cadmus. The sociological concept of “symbolic ethnicity” is appropriate for these antiquarian constructions, which accommodated the Roman order. Yet perhaps more durable survivals can be detected behind the conventions of classical tropes, for example Philon of Byblos did have access to authentic ancient traditions and Punic survived in the Roman west. In the third century, the city of Emesa became a focal point for discussions of Phoenician culture, especially when the emperor Elabagalus sought to promote its sun-god at Rome. The emperor Julian developed a largely fictitious Phoenician theology based on the creative ethnophilosophy of the Platonist Iamblichus. Finally, Phoenicians feature prominently in the Greek and Latin novels of the Imperial period, prompting questions about the stereotypical traits that made them so suitable for stories about romantic adventures.

Metus Persicus?

Millennium ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 31-72
Author(s):  
Wolfgang Havener
Keyword(s):  
Roman Empire ◽  
Fourth Century ◽  
Radical Change ◽  
Third Century ◽  
Military Conflict ◽  
The Third ◽  
The People ◽  
Historia Augusta ◽  
The Moment

Abstract The Sasanians have been characterized as Rome’s enemy par excellence in the ancient sources as well as in modern scholarship. According to the Greek and Roman historians, from the moment of its emergence in the second decade of the third century CE, the new dynasty pursued an extremely aggressive policy towards the Western neighbour that resulted in fierce and renewed military conflict and brought the Roman Empire to the brink of desaster. However, a closer look on the respective historiographic and biographic texts from contemporary and later authors reveals a deeper meaning behind their depictions of Roman-Sasanian conflict in the third century. This article argues that authors like Cassius Dio, Herodian and the composer of the fourth-century Historia Augusta used these narrations in order to name and address severe problems within the Roman Empire. Their considerations focused on the mechanisms of imperial government and self-representation which underwent a profound and radical change in the course of the third century. The principate of the previous centuries with its perfectly balanced system of communication between the emperor, the senate, the people of Rome and the army was gradually transformed into an overt military monarchy in which the emperors ostentatiously displayed their exclusive reliance on the soldiers as the crucial foundation of their rule. Although the characterization of Sasanian politics and attitudes towards Rome in the historiographic and biographic texts was certainly not merely an interpretatio Romana, the conditions within the Roman empire have to be taken into account in order to fully understand the contemporary and later historians’ intentions and the specific thrust of their texts.

scholarly journals The Role of Imperial Women in the Monetary Distributions (Liberalitas) in Rome in the Light of Numismatic Sources

2019 ◽  
Vol 37 (1) ◽  
pp. 5-24
Author(s):  
Katarzyna Balbuza
Keyword(s):  
Social Policy ◽  
Considerable Importance ◽  
Third Century ◽  
Social Activities ◽  
Active Involvement ◽  
The Third ◽  
The People ◽  
Participation Of Women ◽  
The Feminine

Abstract Liberalitas was one of the most important forms of social activities of the Roman emperors. In quantitative terms, it is also one of the five most important imperial virtues. It appeared on coins as Liberalitas Augusti, which gave this virtue an additional, divine dimension. The first Empress to depict the idea of imperial generosity on the coins issued on her behalf was Julia Domna. In this respect, her liberalitas coins mark a breakthrough in the exposition of this imperial virtue. The well-known female liberalitas coin issues, or imperial issues with empresses’ portraits, date back to the third century and clearly articulate the liberalitas, both iconographically and literally, through the legend on the reverse of the coin. Other coins, issued on behalf of the emperors (mainly medallions), accentuate in some cases (Julia Mamaea, Salonina) the personal and active participation of women from the imperial house in congiarium-type activities. The issues discussed and analysed, which appeared on behalf of the emperors or the imperial women – with a clear emphasis on the role of women – undoubtedly demonstrate the feminine support for the emperor’s social policy towards the people of Rome, including the various social undertakings of incumbent emperors, to whom they were related. They prove their active involvement and support for the image of the princeps created by the emperors through the propaganda of virtues (such as liberalitas). The dynastic policy of the emperors, in which the empresses played a key role, was also of considerable importance.

scholarly journals Prve kršćanske zajednice / First Christian communities

2019 ◽  
pp. 181-193
Author(s):  
Drago Župarić
Keyword(s):  
Roman Empire ◽  
Rapid Expansion ◽  
Early Church ◽  
Christian Community ◽  
Christian Communities ◽  
Greco Roman ◽  
Roman Culture ◽  
Roman Province ◽  
Different Cultures ◽  
New Religion

Christianity, having developed in a Jewish setting, quickly separated from Judaism and opened itself to the aspirations of the Greco-Roman world. This paper will explore the first Christian communities in Jerusalem, Antioch and Rome, from whence Christianity spread to the ends of the Mediterranean basin, that is to say, through the Roman Empire. Each of the aforementioned  communities, which were very well respected, will be discussed with regards to  the date of their foundation, the source material concerning these communities, and their prominent characteristics. In other words, this paper will discuss  the spread of Christianity, with reference to the question of the triumphant  campaign of the young Church from Jerusalem to Rome. After the acceptance of pagans into their communities, Christianity as a new religion began to gain importance, and the number of adherents grew quickly. The Christian community was declared an opposition to imperial government, and was already heavily repressed by the mid-1  century. The communities that survived repression sought peace; that is, collaboration between the  Roman state and the “early Church”, which was seen as a new institution. The  cult opened itself more and more to the outside world and different cultures,  which led to the mingling of Christians and pagans, leading to many theological disputes, especially concerning the “divinity” of Jesus Christ. Between the 1st  and 2nd st  century the beginnings of Christianity should be viewed as an organization in which commissions and administrations are present, as the number of believers grew and the need for better organization arose. The basis of the rapid expansion of Christianity in the old world should  certainly be viewed in its universality. The author of this paper touches upon  the question of the beginnings of Christianity in Dalmatia and Pannonia, side by side with Roman culture. Christianity was not very influential in the Roman province of Dalmatia until the mid-3  century, even though it is likely that there were smaller Christian groups here, as well as organized Christian communities.

Paul of Samosata, Zenobia and Aurelian: the Church, Local Culture and Political Allegiance in Third-Century Syria

1971 ◽  
Vol 61 ◽  
pp. 1-17 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fergus Millar
Keyword(s):  
Roman Empire ◽  
Third Century ◽  
Semitic Languages ◽  
Architectural Styles ◽  
The People ◽  
Fertile Crescent ◽  
Actual Movement ◽  
The Temple ◽  
The Church ◽  
Made In

What we call the ‘Eastern frontier’ of the Roman Empire was a thing of shadows, which reflected the diplomatic convenience of a given moment, and dictated the positioning of some soldiers and customs officials, but hardly affected the attitudes or the movements of the people on either side. Nothing more than the raids of desert nomads, for instance, hindered the endless movement of persons and ideas between Judaea and the Babylonian Jewish community. Similarly, as Lucian testifies, offerings came to the temple of Atargatis at Hierapolis-Bambyce from a wide area of the Near and Middle East, including Babylonia. The actual movement to and fro of individuals was reflected, as we have recently been reminded, in a close interrelation of artistic and architectural styles. Moreover, whatever qualifications have to be made in regard to specific places, it is incontestable that Semitic languages, primarily Aramaic in its various dialects, remained in active use, in a varying relationship to Greek, from the Tigris through the Fertile Crescent to the Phoenician coast. This region remained, we must now realize, a cultural unity, substantially unaffected by the empires of Rome or of Parthia or Sassanid Persia.

Some Graeco-Phoenician Shrines

1911 ◽  
Vol 31 ◽  
pp. 56-64 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. F. Hill
Keyword(s):  
Roman Empire ◽  
The State ◽  
Fifth Century ◽  
Third Century ◽  
The Third ◽  
The Family ◽  
Roman Culture ◽  
Roman Age

With but two exceptions, no trace now remains of the shrines with which this paper deals, or at least no trace has been revealed by excavation. Practically the sole record of these buildings is to be found on the coins struck in the district during the period of the Roman Empire, and more especially during the third century of our era. The earlier coins, from the beginning of the coinage towards the end of the fifth century B.C., tell us something about the cults, but little of their furniture. But in the Roman age, especially during the time of the family of Severus and Elagabalus, there was a considerable outburst of coinage, which, in its types, reveals certain details interesting to the student of the fringe of Greek and Roman culture.The evidence thus provided is necessarily disjointed, and concerns only the external, official aspects of the Phoenician religion. The inner truth of these things, it is safe to say, is hidden for ever: even the development from the primitive religion to the weird syncretistic systems of the Roman age is hopelessly obscure. One can only see dimly what was the state of things during the period illustrated by the monuments.

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