References on Christendom and Constantine Christendom-Noun-1.
The collective body of Christians throughout the
world and
history;"for a thousand years the Roman Catholic Church was the principal
Date
"Christendom" was first used in popular English literature:
sometime before 1050. (references) Source: WordNet
1.7.1
Christendom-The seeds of Christendom were laid in 306 A.D., when Emperor
Constantine became co-ruler
of the
Christendom was given a
firmer meaning with the creation of Charlemagne's kingdom, the Christian Empire
of the West. On Christmas Day, 800 A.D., Charlemagne was crowned by the Pope as
ruler of the
After the collapse of
Charlemagne's empire, Christendom became a collection of states loosely
connected to the Holy See. Tensions between the popes and secular rulers ran
high, as the pontiffs attempted to retain control over their temporal
counterparts. The idea of Christendom was already greatly discredited by the
time of the Rennaissance Popes because of the moral laxity of the pontiffs and
their willingness to make war, peace, and alliances like secular rulers.
Christendom as a cohesive
political unit effectively ended with the Reformation.—
Christendom -The seeds of Christendom were laid in 306 A.D., when
Emperor Constantine became co-ruler of the
From http://www.websters-online-dictionary.org/definition/Christendom
,
Source: Wikipedia,
the free encyclopedia from the article "Christendom."
Constantine1& 2 Established Christianity
as the official religion, but he did so by including the Trinity into the
official religion. The Trinity is unsupported by the Bible and since
Constantine1&2
Established Christianity as the official religion
2.1 The original Nicene Creed of 325
2.3 Comparison between Creed of 325
and Creed of 381
More References
What Christians taught & practiced
prior to
EarliestChristianValues.htm and PatriotismPlus.htm
[edit] 326-death
The Baptism of Constantine, as imagined by students of Raphael.
In
326, Constantine had his eldest son Crispus tried and
executed, as he believed accusations that Crispus had been having an affair
with Fausta,
Constantine's second wife. A few months later he also had Fausta killed as the
apparent source of these false accusations.
Eusebius
reports that Constantine was baptized only shortly before his death in 337. With this, he
followed one custom at the time which postponed baptism till old age or death[6]. According to Jerome,
Constantine's choice fell upon the Arian bishop Eusebius of Nicomedia, who happened, despite
his being an ally of Arius,
still to be the bishop
of the region.
Notwithstanding
his conversion to Christianity, Constantine was deified, like
several other Christian emperors after him. By this late stage of the Empire,
deification had lost much of its original religious meaning, and had simply
become little more than a posthumous honour.[citations needed]
His body was transferred to Constantinople and buried in the Church of the Holy Apostles there.
[edit] Succession
He was
succeeded by his three sons by Fausta, Constantine II, Constantius
II and Constans.
A number of relatives were taken out of the picture by followers of
Constantius. He also had two daughters, Constantina
and Helena, wife of Emperor Julian.
[edit] Constantine and Christianity
Main article: Constantine I and Christianity
Constantine
is best known for being the first Roman Emperor to embrace Christianity,
although he may have continued in his pre-Christian beliefs, and along with his
co-Emperor Licinius
was the first to bestow imperial favor on Christianity through the 313 Edict
of Milan. Christianity had previously been legalized by Galerius, who
was the first emperor to issue an edict of toleration for all religious creeds
including Christianity in April of 311.[7]
Popular
legend holds that Constantine I was Christian; however, he never publicly
recanted his position as Pontifex Maximus, and the only alleged occurrence
of Constantine I converting was on his deathbed (as reported by later Church
Fathers), which is impossible to verify. Constantinian legislation has been
interpreted as sympathetic towards traditional Roman polytheism. For example,
Constantine issued laws confirming the rights of flamens, priests and duumvirs.[8] Although Constantine passed legislation against
magic and private divination, this was driven out of a fear that others might
gain power through those means, as he himself had achieved power through the
sound advice of soothsayers and this convinced him of the perspicacity of
prophecy.[9] His belief in divination is confirmed by
legislation calling for the consultation of augurs after an amphitheater had
been struck by lightning in the year 320.[10] Constantine explicitly allowed public divination
as well as traditional religious practices to continue.[11]
Constantine and the
Jews
Constantine
instituted several legislative measures regarding the Jews: they were
forbidden to own Christian slaves or to circumcise
their slaves. Conversion of Christians to Judaism was
outlawed. Congregations for religious services were restricted, but Jews were
allowed to enter Jerusalem on Tisha B'Av,
the anniversary of the destruction of the Temple. Constantine also supported the
separation of the date of Easter from the Jewish Passover (see
also Quartodecimanism), stating in his letter after the First Council of Nicaea: "... it
appeared an unworthy thing that in the celebration of this most holy feast we
should follow the practice of the Jews, who have impiously defiled their hands
with enormous sin, and are, therefore, deservedly afflicted with blindness of
soul. ... Let us then have nothing in common with the detestable Jewish crowd;
for we have received from our Saviour a different way." [12]. Theodoret's Ecclesiastical History 1.9 records the
Epistle of the Emperor Constantine addressed to those Bishops who were not
present at the Council: "It was, in the first place, declared improper to
follow the custom of the Jews in the celebration of this holy festival,
because, their hands having been stained with crime, the minds of these
wretched men are necessarily blinded.... Let us, then, have nothing in common
with the Jews, who are our adversaries. ... avoiding all contact with that evil
way. ... who, after having compassed the death of the Lord, being out of their
minds, are guided not by sound reason, but by an unrestrained passion, wherever
their innate madness carries them. ... a people so utterly depraved. ...
Therefore, this irregularity must be corrected, in order that we may no more
have any thing in common with those parricides and the murderers of our Lord.
... no single point in common with the perjury of the Jews." [13]
Constantine's
iconography and ideology
Coins
struck for emperors often reveal details of their personal iconography.
During the early part of Constantine's rule, representations first of Mars
and then (from 310) of Apollo as Sun god consistently appear on the reverse of the
coinage. Mars had been associated with the Tetrarchy,
and Constantine's use of this symbolism served to emphasize the legitimacy of
his rule. After his breach with his father's old colleague Maximian in
309–310, Constantine began to claim legitimate descent from the 3rd century
emperor Marcus
Aurelius Claudius Gothicus, the hero of the Battle
of Naissus (September, 268). The Augustan
History of the 4th century reports Constantine's paternal grandmother
Claudia to be a daughter of Crispus, Crispus being a reported brother of both
Claudius II and Quintillus. Historians however suspect this account to be
a genealogical
fabrication
to flatter Constantine.
Coin of Constantine, with depiction of the sun god Sol
Invictus, holding a globe and right hand raised. The legend on the reverse reads SOLI INVICTO COMITI, to (Constantine's) "companion, the
unconquered Sol".
[[Image:As-Constantine-XR
Gothicus
had claimed the divine protection of Apollo-Sol Invictus. Constantine also
promoted an association of himself with Sol Invictus, which was the last deity
to appear on his coinage.[14] The reverses of his coinage were dominated for
several years by his "companion, the unconquered Sol" — the
inscriptions read SOLI INVICTO COMITI. The
depiction represents Apollo with a solar halo, Helios-like, and
the globe in his hands. In the 320s Constantine has a halo of his own. There
are also coins depicting Apollo driving the chariot of the Sun on a shield
Constantine is holding. Elements of this association remained even after
Constantine's famous conversion to Christianity before the Milvian Bridge in 312. There, Eusebius
tells us Constantine saw God in a vision. Thereafter, Christian symbolism,
albeit ambiguous in some instances, began to appear in Imperial iconography.[15] A coin of ca 312, for example, shows the chi-rho, the
first two letters of the name of Christ in Greek, on a helmet Constantine is
wearing.
An example of "staring eyes" on later Constantine coinage.
Further
continuation of iconographic precedent can be seen in the larger eye of the
coin portrait. This suggests a more fundamental shift in official images.
Beginning in the late third century, portraits began away to become less
realistic and more idealistic. The Emperor as Emperor, not merely as any
particular individual, is of primary importance. The most common
characteristics of this style are the broad jaw and cleft chin. The large
staring eyes will loom larger as the 4th century progresses: compare the early
5th century silver coinage of Theodosius
I
Constantine's
Courts and Appointees
Constantine
respected cultivation and Christianity, and his court was composed of older,
respected, and honored men. Leading Roman families that refused Christianity
were denied positions of power, yet two-thirds of his top government was
non-Christian. [16]
"From
Pagan temples Constantine had his statue removed. The repair of Pagan temples
that had decayed was forbidden. These funds were given to the favored Christian
clergy. Offensive forms of worship, either Christian or Pagan, were suppressed.
At the dedication of Constantinople in 330 a ceremony half Pagan
and half Christian was performed, in the market place, the Cross of Christ was
placed over the head of the Sun-God's chariot. There was a singing of
hymns." [17]
[edit] Constantine's
legal standards
Constantine
passed laws making the occupations of butcher and baker hereditary, and
more importantly, supported converting the coloni (tenant
farmers) into serfs
— laying the foundation for European society during the Middle Ages.
Constantine's
laws in many ways improved those of his predecessors, though they also reflect
his more violent age. Some examples:
· For the first time, girls could not be
abducted (this may actually refer to elopements, which were considered
kidnapping because girls could not legally consent to the elopement).
· A punishment of death was mandated to
anyone collecting taxes over the authorized amount.
· A prisoner was no longer to be kept in
total darkness, but must be given the outdoors and daylight.
· A condemned man was allowed to die in the
arena, but he could not be branded on his "heavenly beautified" face,
just on the feet (because God made man in His image).
· Slave "nurses" or chaperones
caught allowing the girls they were responsible for to be seduced were to have
molten lead poured down their throats.
· Gladiatorial
games were ordered to be eliminated in 325, although this had little real
effect.
· A slave master's rights were limited, but
a slave could still be beaten to death.
· Crucifixion
was abolished for reasons of Christian piety, but was replaced with hanging, to show
there was Roman law and justice.
· Easter could be
publicly celebrated.
· Sunday was declared a day of rest, on
which markets were banned and public offices were closed (except for the
purpose of freeing slaves). However, there were no restrictions on farming work
(which was the work of the great majority of the population).[5][18]
Constantine's legacy
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