The Idea of the Universal Christian Empire

[neodawson]

Found this last night, it looks pretty interesting and thought it relevant to discussions here:

www.lurj.org/article.php/vol3n1/ideology.xml

Imperial Ideology:
The Idea of the Universal Christian Empire in Late Antiquity

Christopher Records
University of California, Riverside
Riverside, California, USA


Abstract

This paper examines the evolution of Christian universalist ideologies from the year 300 AD to about 800 AD, with a focus on their development in the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire. It traces how the interaction of ideology with political reality- imperial decline, internal ideological and ecclesiastical disunity, and other challenges- resulted in the eventual development of other universalist ideologies at the dawn of the medieval period, among them the idea of Latin Christendom and the Byzantine commonwealth idea.

[labarum]

Jun 7, 2012 13:46:20 GMT neodawson said:

Found this last night, it looks pretty interesting and thought it relevant to discussions here:

www.lurj.org/article.php/vol3n1/ideology.xml

Imperial Ideology:
The Idea of the Universal Christian Empire in Late Antiquity

Christopher Records
University of California, Riverside
Riverside, California, USA


Abstract

This paper examines the evolution of Christian universalist ideologies from the year 300 AD to about 800 AD, with a focus on their development in the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire. It traces how the interaction of ideology with political reality- imperial decline, internal ideological and ecclesiastical disunity, and other challenges- resulted in the eventual development of other universalist ideologies at the dawn of the medieval period, among them the idea of Latin Christendom and the Byzantine commonwealth idea.

It's interesting but a few things he wrote just don't make much sense chronologically. For example, he writes of the reign of Theodosius achieving the idea of the Christian empire despite Augustine's counter-arguments against such a development. The problem is this claim makes no sense. First of all, Augustine wrote in Latin and did not have nearly the influence in the East that he did in the West so it is doubtful he was even part of the debate in that region. But more importantly, Augustine's arguments against the indelible linking of church and state in his City of God appeared as a reaction to the sacking of Rome by Alaric in 410 AD. By that point Theodosius had been deceased for over a decade so it is doubtful he ever had to face Augustine's objections.