The Imperial Cult and the Development of Church Order: Concepts and Images of Authority in Paganism and Early Christianity Before the Age of Cyprian (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae, V. 45)

T H E IMPERIAL CULT AND T H E DEVELOPMENT OF CHURCH ORDER SUPPLEMENTS TO VIGILIAE CHRISTIANAE Formerly Philosophia P...

Author: Allen Brent

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T H E IMPERIAL CULT AND T H E DEVELOPMENT OF CHURCH ORDER

SUPPLEMENTS TO

VIGILIAE CHRISTIANAE Formerly Philosophia Patrum T E X T S A N D S T U D I E S O F EARLY C H R I S T I A N LIFE AND LANGUAGE

EDITORS J . D E N B O E F T — R. V A N D E N B R O E K — W . L . P E T E R S E N D.T. RUNIA — J . C . M . VAN W I N D E N

VOLUME XLV

THE IMPERIAL CULT AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF CHURCH ORDER Concepts and Images of Authority in Paganism and Early Christianity before the Age of Cyprian

BY

ALLEN

BRENT

BRILL LEIDEN • B O S T O N • K O L N 1999

T h i s book is printed o n acid-free paper. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Brent, Allen. T h e imperial cult a n d the d e v e l o p m e n t o f church order : concepts and images o f authority in paganism a n d early Christianity before the A g e o f Cyprian / b y Allen Brent. p. c m . — (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae, I S S N 0 9 2 0 - 6 2 3 X ; v. 45) Includes bibliographical references (p. ) a n d indexes. ISBN 9004114203 1. C h u r c h p o l i t y — H i s t o r y — E a r l y church, ca. 3 0 - 6 0 0 . 2. Emperor w o r s h i p — R o m e . 3. Christianity a n d other r e l i g i o n s — R o m a n . I. T i d e . II. Series. BV648.B73 1999 261.2'207'09015—dc21 99-36631 CIP D i e Deutsche Bibliothek - CIP-Einheitsaufnahme [Vigiliae Christianae / S u p p l e m e n t s ] S u p p l e m e n t s t o Vigiliae Christianae : formerly Philosophia Patrum ; texts a n d studies o f early Christian life a n d l a n g u a g e . - L e i d e n ; B o s t o n ; K o l n : Brill. Friiher Schriftenreihe ISSN 0920-623X Vol. 45. Brent, Allen: T h e imperial cult and the development of church order. - 1999 Brent, Allen: T h e imperial cult a n d t h e d e v e l o p m e n t o f c h u r c h o r d e r : c o n c e p t s a n d i m a g e s o f a u t h o r i t y in P a g a n i s m a n d Early Christianity before t h e A g e o f C y p r i a n / b y A l l e n Brent. - L e i d e n ; B o s t o n ; K o l n : Brill, 1999 (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae ; Vol. 45) ISBN 9 0 - 0 4 - 1 1 4 2 0 - 3

ISSN ISBN

0920-623X 90 0 4 11420 3

© Copyright 1999 by Koninklyke Brill NV, Leiden, The Netherlands All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, translated, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior written permission from the publisher. Authorization to photocopy items for internal or personal use is granted by Brill provided that the appropriate fees are paid directly to The Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Suite 910 Danvers MA 01923, USA. Fees are subject to change. PRINTED IN THE NETHERLANDS

Caroline Penrose B a m m e l , F.B.A. (1940-1995) In piam

memoriam

CONTENTS

Abbreviations Plates Introduction I. Christian a n d P a g a n Cultus by the T h i r d C e n t u r y A. Cyprianic H i e r a r c h y a n d Decius T r a j a n B. Christian a n d Imperial Cult: Parallels Before Cyprian C . C h u r c h O r d e r as Apologia: T h e Reactive Thesis D . Imperial a n d Christian O r d e r : C o n t r a - C u l t u r a l Relations II. T h e Foundations of the Imperial Cult A. R e p u b l i c a n Antecedents of the Imperial Cult B. T h e I n a u g u r a t i o n a n d R e c e p t i o n of the Imperial Cult

ix xv xix 1 2 4 8 11 17 19 59

III. Imperial Ideology a n d the Origins of C h u r c h O r d e r A. Luke-Acts: T r a d i t i o n a l Eschatology T r a n s f o r m e d B. Luke-Acts in the C o n t e x t of Imperial History C . L u k a n Images of C o n t r a C u l t u r e D . C h u r c h O r d e r a n d Imperial Society E. In Conclusion: T h e o p h i l u s a n d His Circle

73 78 82 101 130 137

IV. C l e m e n t of R o m e a n d D o m i t i a n ' s E m p i r e A. D o m i t i a n a n d the W r i t i n g of C l e m e n t ' s Corinthians ... B. C l e m e n t : C h u r c h O r d e r a n d Imperial Peace C . C l e m e n t ' s Construction of a C o n t r a Culture

140 141 144 161

V. T h e Apocalypse a n d D o m i t i a n ' s I c o n o g r a p h y A. D o m i t i a n ' s Cult a n d the D a t e of the Apocalypse B. T h e Domitianic Backcloth to the Apocalypse C . In Conclusion: Apocalypse a n d the Imperial Cult

164 164 177 208

V I . Ignatius of Antioch a n d the M a r t y r ' s Procession A. Ignatian Typology a n d D o m i t i a n ' s I c o n o g r a p h y

210 211

viii

CONTENTS

B. T h e M a r t y r Procession a n d Cultic Ambassadors C . O r d e r in C l e m e n t , Ignatius a n d the Apocalypse

....

228 248

V I I . P a g a n a n d Christian M o n a r c h i a n i s m A. Antecedents of the Severan* Reformation B. P a g a n Ontologies: Gnosticism a n d Neoplatonism .... C . Social O r d e r a n d the D o c t r i n e of the Trinity

251 255 271 285

V I I I . T h e E m e r g e n c e of Imperial a n d Catholic O r d e r A. Elagabalus a n d Universal M o n o t h e i s m B. Callistus, M o n a r c h Bishops a n d M o n a r c h i a n i s m C . In Conclusion: T h e Legacy for Decius a n d Cyprian

310 311 313

Bibliography Indices 1. Biblical Citations 2. Ancient Christian a n d Jewish Writers 3. Ancient P a g a n Writers 4. Inscriptions a n d Coins 5. G r e e k V o c a b u l a r y Plates

331 345 347 351 354 359 362 371

328

ABBREVIATIONS

AAWG ABA W ABenRev AHA W AGJU AKWG ArLiW AmJArch AmJPhil AnBoll AnLov ANRW

Antiqu.

ArcCl ArFil Athen. Ath. Mitt. AThR ATKT Aug BArC BE BEHE.R

A b h a n d l u n g e n d e r A k a d e m i e der Wissenschaften in Gottingen A b h a n d l u n g e n der bayerischen Akademie der Wissen schaften A m e r i c a n Benedictine Review Abhandlungen der heidelberger Akademie der Wissen schaften Arbeiten zur Geschichte des antiken J u d e n t u m s u n d des U r c h r i s t e n t u m s (Leiden: Brill) A b h a n d l u n g e n der koniglichen Gesellschaft der Wissenschaften zu Gottingen Archiv fur Liturgiewissenschaft A m e r i c a n J o u r n a l of Archaeology A m e r i c a n J o u r n a l of Philology Analecta Bollandiana Analecta Lovaniensia Biblica et Orientalia Aufstieg u n d N i e d e r g a n g d e r romischen Welt: G e schichte u n d K u l t u r R o m s im Spiegel der n e u e r e n Forschung, Ed. H . T e m p o r i n i a n d W . H a a s e (Berlin a n d N e w York: D e Gruyter) Antiquitas: Beitrage zur Historia-Augusta Forschung, Ed. J . S t r a u b u n d A. Alfoldi (Bonn: R. H a b e l t Verlag 1963—) Archeologia classica Archivio di filosofia Athenaeum Mitteilungen des kaiserlich deutschen archaologischen Instituts: athenische Abteilung Anglican Theological Review A b h a n d l u n g e n zur Theologie des alten u n d n e u e n Testaments Augustinianum Bulletino di archeologia cristiana Bulletin epigraphique Bibliotheque de l'ecole des hautes etudes, Sciences religieuses

X

BeitrHistTh BICS BiLit BJb

BLUE BR BRev BSGT BThAM Byz ByzZ BJ^NW B^HT BCCa ChH CTh CIG CIL ClAnt ClassRev ClassStud CIPl CSCO CSLE DACL

DAIRM DomSt DR EglTheo EpAnat

ABBREVIATIONS

Beitrage zur historischen Theologie Bulletin of the Institute of Classical Studies Bibel u n d Liturgie B o n n e r J a h r b u c h e r des rheinischen L a n d e s m u s e u m s in B o n n u n d des Vereins von Altertumsfreunden im Rheinlande Bulletin de litterature ecclesiastique Biblical Research Biblical Review Bibliotheca Scriptorum G r a e c o r u m et R o m a n o r u m Teubneriana Bulletin de theologie ancienne et medievale Byzantion: R e v u e internationale des etudes byzantines Byzantinische Zeitschrift Beihefte zur Zeitschrift fur die neutestamendiche Wissenschaft Beitrage zur historischen Theologie Civilta cattolica C h u r c h History C a h i e r s theologiques (Neuchatel: Editions D e l a c h a u x et Niestle 1949—) C o r p u s Inscriptionum G r a e c a r u m C o r p u s Inscriptionum L a t i n a r u m Classical Antiquity Classical Review Classical Studies. D e p a r t m e n t of Classics of the U n i versity of K y o t o Classical Philology C o r p u s Scriptorum C h r i s t i a n o r u m O r i e n t a l i u m C o r p u s Scriptorum L a t i n o r u m Ecclesiasticorum Dictionnaire d' Archeologie Chretienne et de Liturgie, (Ed.) F. C a b r o l a n d H . Leclercq (Paris: Libraire Letouzey et A n e 1924) Mitteilungen des deutschen archaologischen Instituts: romische Abteilung D o m i n i c a n Studies Downside Review Eglise et theologie Epigraphica anatolica

ABBREVIATIONS

EphL EPRO EThL Entretiens FRLANT F^ThTTi GCS 3

GGR

Greg GRBS Gym HA Herm Hermath Hesp Heyjn Hochl. Horsley, New Docs

HThR Hypomn.

ILCV ICUR

IG JbAC

XI

E p h e m e r i d e s liturgicae E t u d e s p r e l i m i n a i r e s a u x religions orientales d a n s l'empire romain, M a a r t e n J . Vermaseren (Leiden: Brill) E p h e m e r i d e s Theologicae Lovanienses Fondation H a r d t Pour PEtude de TAntiquite Classique (Vandoeuvres-Geneve: Olivier Reverdin) F o r s c h u n g e n z u r Religion u n d L i t e r a t u r des alten und neuen Testaments Freiburger Zeitschrift fur Philosophic u n d Theologie Die griechischen christlichen Schriftsteller der ersten beiden J a h r h u n d e r t e Geschichte d e r griechischen Religion, in Handbuch der A Itertumswissenschqft Gregorianum Greek, R o m a n a n d Byzantine Studies Gymnasium H a n d b u c h d e r Altertumswissenschaft Hermes Hermathena Hesperia Heythrop Journal H o c h l a n d . Zeitschrift fur alle Gebiete des Wissens u n d d e r schonen Kiinste G. Horsley, New Documents Illustrating Early Christianity, (Macquarie: Ancient History Documentation Research C e n t r e 1983—) H a r v a r d Theological Review H y p o m n e m a t a : U n t e r s u c h u n g e n zur Antike u n d zu i h r e m N a c h l e b e n , A. Dihle, H . Erbse, C . H a b i c h t , G. Patzig, B. Snell (Editors), (Gottingen: V a n d e n h o e c k a n d R u p r e c h t 1962—) Inscriptiones Latinae Christianae Veteres, Ed. E. Diehl, Vols. 1-3 Inscriptiones Christianae Urbis R o m a e Septimo Saeculo Antiquiores, Ed. D e Rossi G.B. a n d Silvagni A., N o v a series ( R o m e 1921—) Inscriptiones G r a e c a e , Ed. Kirschner J . (Berlin: R h e i m a r u s 1 9 1 3 — ; D e G r u y t e r 1924—) J a h r b u c h fur Antike u n d C h r i s t e n t u m

xii JBL JEgArch J EH JES JHS JLiW JRA JRH JRomS JSNT JSNT.S JThS LeDiv MAAR MD MEFRA MemAmAc MGH MSR MuTh£ NA NScavAnt NT NTS OECT Opera Min Sel.

OrChr OrChrA OrSyr OstkiSt PL Phil PO PG PTS

ABBREVIATIONS

J o u r n a l of Biblical Literature J o u r n a l of Egyptian Archeology J o u r n a l of Ecclesiastical History J o u r n a l of Ecumenical Studies J o u r n a l of Hellenic .Studies J a h r b u c h fiir Liturgiewissenschaft J o u r n a l of R o m a n Archeology J o u r n a l of Religious History J o u r n a l of R o m a n Studies J o u r n a l for the Study of the N e w T e s t a m e n t J o u r n a l for the Study of the N e w Testament: Supple m e n t a r y Series J o u r n a l of Theological Studies Lectio divina M e m o i r s of the A m e r i c a n A c a d e m y in R o m e La Maison-Dieu Melanges de l'ecole frangaise de R o m e : Antiquite M e m o i r s of the A m e r i c a n A c a d e m y in R o m e M o n u m e n t a G e r m a n i a e Historica Melanges de science religieuse M i i n c h e n e r theologische Zeitschrift Neutestamendiche Abhandlungen Notizie degli scavi di antichita, in Atti della r. accademia dei Lincei Novum Testamentum N e w T e s t a m e n t Studies Oxford Early Christian Texts, H . C h a d w i c k (Ed.), (Oxford: C l a r e n d o n Press) L. R o b e r t , O p e r a M i n o r a Selecta, Epigraphie et Antiquites Grecques, Vols. 1-7 (Amsterdam: Hakkert 1969-1990) O r i e n s Christianus Orientalia Christiana analecta O r i e n t syrien Ostkirchliche Studien J . P . M i g n e , Patrologia Latina Philologus, Zeitschrift fiir klassisches Altertum Patrologia orientalis J . P . M i g n e , Patrologia G r a e c a - L a t i n a Patristische T e x t e u n d Studien ( B e r l i n / N e w York: D e G r u y t e r 1964—)

ABBREVIATIONS

PWK QLP RAC RAr RBen Rbib RDroitCan RH REA REG RevHisRel RecSciRel RelStudRev RBelgPhH ReoEtByz RevHE RevHPhR ReoScPhTh RevSR RGG RivAC RPARA RPhil RSLR RThAM SBAW SC SciEspirit ScuCat SecCent Set SGK SHAW SJLA

Xlll

A. Pauly-Wissowa, Real-encyclopadia der classischen Altertumswissenschaft (Metzler: Stuttgart 1899) Questions liturgiques et paroissiales Reallexikon fiir Antike u n d C h r i s t e n t u m R e v u e archeologique R e v u e benedictine R e v u e biblique R e v u e de droit c a n o n i q u e R e v u e historique R e v u e des etudes anciennes R e v u e des etudes grecques R e v u e de l'histoire des religions R e c h e r c h e s de science religieuse Religious Studies Review R e v u e beige de philologie et d'histoire R e v u e des etudes byzantines R e v u e d'histoire ecclesiastique R e v u e d'histoire et de philosophic religieuse R e v u e des sciences philosophiques et theologiques R e v u e des sciences religieuses Religion in Geschichte u n d G e g e n w a r t Rivista di archeologia cristiana R e n d i c o n t i della pontificia a c c a d e m i a r o m a n a di archeologia R e v u e de philologie, de litterature et d'histoire anci ennes Rivista di storia e letteratura religiosa R e c h e r c h e s de theologie ancienne et medievale Sitzungsberichte d e r bayrischen A k a d e m i e der Wis senschaften Sources c h r e t i e n n e s (Paris: Les Editions d u C e r f 1944—) Science et esprit La scuola cattolica T h e Second Century Studi e testi Schriften d e r konigsberger G e l e h r t e n Gesellschaft Sitzungsberichte d e r H e i d e l b e r g e r A k a d e m i e d e r Wissenschaften Studies in J u d a i s m in Late Antiquity, Ed. J . Neusner (Leiden: Brill)

XIV

SPAW StAns StEphAug. StPB StTh StudClas StudPatr StuPat SupplVCh TheolStKrit Theoph TheoRev ThG ThQ ThR ThS ThZ TU TWJVT TEA VC VCh WMAKT WUNT ZKG ZKTh ZNW ZRGG ZThK ZWTh

ABBREVIATIONS

Sitzungsberichte der preussischen Akademie der Wis senschaften: Philosophisch-historische Klasse Studia anselmiana Studia Ephemeridis "Augustinianum" (Institutum Patristicum "Augustinianqrn": R o m e ) Studia Post-Biblica Studia Theologica Studii clasice. Bucuresti, Soc. de Studii Clasice din R S R Studia Patristica Studia Patavina S u p p l e m e n t s to Vigiliae C h r i s t i a n a e (Leiden: Brill 1987—) Theologische Studien u n d Kritiken T h e o p h a n i a : Beitrage z u r Religions- u n d K i r c h e n geschichte des Altertums Theologische revue Theologie u n d G l a u b e Theologische Quartalschrift Theologische R u n d s c h a u Theological Studies Theologische Zeitschrift Texte u n d Untersuchungen der altchristlichen Literatur Theologisches W o r t e r b u c h z u m n e u e n T e s t a m e n t T u b i n g e r Beitrage zur Altertumswissenschaft V e r b u m C a r o : R e v u e theologique et o e c u m e n i q u e (Neuchatel 1947) Vigiliae Christianae Wissenschaftliche Monographien z u m alten u n d neuen Testament Wissenschafdiche U n t e r s u c h u n g e n z u m n e u e n Testa m e n t (Mohr: T u b i n g e n ) Zeitschrift fiir Kirchengeschichte Zeitschrift fiir katholische Theologie Zeitschrift fiir n e u t e s t a m e n t l i c h e Wissenschaft u n d K u n d e der alteren K i r c h e Zeitschrift fiir Religions- u n d Geistesgeschichte Zeitschrift fiir Theologie u n d K i r c h e Zeitschrift fiir wissenschaftliche Theologie

PLATES*

1. Ara Pads Augusti DAI Neg. 53.307. Courtesy of Deutsches Archaologisches Institut, Rom. 2. Ara Pacis: Tellus: celebration of Pax in nature and society. DAI Neg. 86.1448. Courtesy of Deutsches Archaologisches Institut, Rom. 3. Ara Pacis: Tellus and her children in a fruitful earth. DAI Neg. 32.1744. Courtesy of Deutsches Archaologisches Institut, Rom. 4. Ara Pacis: Nymph (Hora) of sea-realm seated on a tamed draggon. DAI Neg. 32.1746. Courtesy of Deutsches Archaologisches Institut, Rom. 5. Ara Pacis: Close-up of Tellus' child in Nature's superabundance. DAI Neg. 86.1458. Courtesy of Deutsches Archaologisches Institut, Rom. 6. Ara Pacis: Sacrificial Scene (Suovetaurilia) DAI Neg. 66.107. Courtesy of Deutsches Archaologisches Institut, Rom. 7. Altar of Lares: Augustus as augur with lituus. DAI Neg. 75.293. Courtesy of Deutsches Archaologisches Institut, Rom. 8. Altar of the Lares: Vicomagistri at joint sacrifice. DAI Neg. 60.1472. Courtesy of Deutsches Archaologisches Institut, Rom. 9. Altar of Lares: Augustus hands statuettes to ministri of a compitum. Mus. Vatic. Arch. Fotog. Neg. N. A. 16.6. Courtesy of Monumenti musei e gallerie pontificie. 10. Ministri with statuettes of Lares and Genius Augusti. Mus. Vatic. Arch. Fotog. Neg. N. XXXV.5.9. Courtesy of Monumenti musei e gallerie pontificie.

* T h e Plates Section can be found at the end o f this book.

xvi

PLATES

11. Altar dedicated to the Lares of Augustus. Roma, Musei Capitolini, Arch. Fotog. Inv. 855/S. 12. Augustus presents statue of Minerva to magistri of woodworkers. Roma, Musei Capitolini, Arch. Fotog. Inv. 1909/S. 13. Gemma Augustea. Courtesy of Kunsthistorisches Muse um, Wien Inv. IX.A.79. 14. Pompei: Priestess with stola and patera. Naples, Mus. Naz. Inv. 6041. 15. Priest with incense box. Lyon, Mus. Gallo-Rom. (Photo: Ch. Thioc). 16. Head of Augustus with thunderbolt and star. BMC (Tiberius) 151.c216.20 (PI. 26.3). (Obv.) © The British Museum 17. Livia as priestess holding patera and sceptre. BMC (Tiberius) 151.c216.20 (PL 26.3). (Rev.) © The British Museum 18. Head of Augustus with star. BMC (Titus) 27l.c.219.86 (PI. 54,3). (Obv.) © The British Museum 19. Altar to Providentia. BMC (Titus) 27l.c.219.86 (PI. 54,3). (Rev.) © The British Museum 20. Domitia Augusta. BMC (Domitian) 65.c 194.56 (PI. 61,9). (Obv.) © The British Museum 21. Domitia (Pietas) with sceptre, left, extending right hand towards her child. BMC (Domitian) 65.c. 194.56 (PL 61,9). (Rev.) © The British Museum 22. Domitia Augusta. BMC (Domitian) 62 (PL 61,6). (Obv.) © The British Museum 23. Divus Caesar (Domitian's son) as baby Jupiter seated on a globe circled by seven stars. BMC (Domitian) 62 (PL 61,6). (Rev.) © The British Museum 24. Victory (Domitian) draped and holding a shield. BMC (Domitian) 504.C.220.3. (Rev.) © The British Museum 25. Aeternitas holding the sun and moon. BMC (Domitian) 346.C.219.94 (PL 73,4) © The British Museum 26. Sabina Augusta BMC (Hadrian) 1095.C.391.8 (PL 75,7). (Obv.) © The British Museum 27. Cybele, towered, draped and seated. BMC (Hadrian) 1095.C.391.8 (PL 75,7). (Rev.) © The British Museum #

PLATES

28. Faustina (I) Augusta. BMC (Antoninus Pius) 1436.C.223.190 (PL 34,4). (Obv.) © The British Museum 29. Cybele towered and enthroned with two lions. BMC (Antoninus Pius) 1436.c223.190 (PL 34,4). (Rev.) © The British Museum 30. Faustina (II) Augusta. BMC (Marcus Aurelius) 934.C.225.1 (PL 73,11). (Obv.) © The British Museum 31. Cybele (Mater Magna) towered. BMC (Marcus Aurelius) 934.C.225.1 (PL 73,11). (Rev.) © The British Museum 32. Matri Deum Salutari: Cybele towered and on a lion's back. BMC (Commodus) 680 (PL 109,15). (Rev.) 33. Julia (Domna) Augusta. BMC (Septimius Severus) 77.cl98.154 B (a) (PL 28,18) (Obv.) © The British Museum 34. Isis with Horus in both arms. BMC (Septimius Severus) 77.cl98.154 B (a) (PL 28,18) (Rev.) © The British Museum

XVll

INTRODUCTION

T h e received opinion on the Imperial Cult of p e r h a p s a majority of R o m a n historians was well s u m m e d u p in the work of K u r t Latte, w h o claimed that the i m p o r t a n c e of this Cult h a d b e e n greatly over estimated. E m p e r o r W o r s h i p played a m i n o r role, o n his view, a n d was not really a religious p h e n o m e n o n at all. " D e r Kaiserkult blieb . . . die A n e r k e n n u n g des romischen Weltreichs, in seiner gegenwartigen F o r m , eine konventionelle Geiste." T h e Imperial Cult, as Etienne q u o t e d Latte as saying, was " u n e invention des peres de l'Eglise." 1

2

Certainly this view has also p r e d o m i n a t e d in m a n y discussions of why the Early C h u r c h suffered persecution. Sherwin-White agreed with D e Ste C r o i x in this respect at least, w h e n h e claimed that " e m p e r o r worship is a factor of n o i n d e p e n d e n t i m p o r t a n c e in the persecution of Christians." It was refusal to worship the gods in gen eral that was the p r i m e reason for persecution. If Latte's view were correct, the study of the Imperial Cult in relation to the develop m e n t of Early C h u r c h O r d e r would be the study of social reality as the early Christians h a d constructed it. But that construction of social reality would have b e e n disowned by the p a g a n s themselves. 3

But Latte's s u m m a r y defence of the early consensus of R o m a n historians has recendy sustained a highly significant challenge. Writers such as F e a r s , Fishwick, a n d P r i c e have emphasised the increas ing centrality of the Imperial Cult to R o m a n religion, particularly 4

1

5

6

K. Latte, R o m i s c h e Religionsgeschichte, in HA 5,4 (1967) a n d (1976), p. 326. T h e most recent e x a m p l e is found in B.W. J o n e s , The Emperor Domitian, (London: R o u d e d g e 1992). Q u o t e d in G. Alfbldy, Subject and Ruler, Subjects and M e t h o d s : an Attempt at a Conclusion, in A. Small (Ed.), Subject and Ruler: T h e Cult o f the Ruling Power in Classical Antiquity, in JRA: Suppl. Series, 17 (1996), p. 2 5 4 . A . N . Sherwin-White, T h e early persecutions and R o m a n L a w again, in JThS 3,2 (1952), p. 2 1 0 cf. G . E . M . D e Ste. Croix, W h y were the early Christians per secuted? in Past and Present, 2 6 (1963), p. 10. J . R . , Fears, T h e Cult o f Virtues and R o m a n Imperial Ideology, in ANRW 2,17,2 (1981), p p . 8 2 7 - 9 4 8 . J . R . Fears, T h e T h e o l o g y o f Victory at R o m e , in ANRW 2,17,2 (1981), p p . 7 3 6 - 8 2 6 . D . Fishwick, T h e Imperial Cult in the Latin West: Studies in the Ruler Cult of the Western Province of the R o m a n Empire, 1,1-2, 11,1-2, in EPRO 108 (1987). S.R.F. Price, Rituals and Power: The Roman Imperial Cult in Asia Minor (Cambridge: U.P. 1984). 2

3

4

1

b

XX

INTRODUCTION

t h r o u g h its ability to synthesise itself with traditional p a g a n cults in various subde ways. Indeed, G e z a Alfoldy well summarised the sig nificance of Fishwick's work, reinforced by the p a p e r s of the Alberta S y m p o s i u m celebrating the latter's sixty-fifth birthday, a n d edited by Alastair Small, as having this b r o a d e r a n d synthesising significance as the m e a n s of celebrating imperial unity in a way that was reli gious a n d even s a c r a m e n t a l . I believe, therefore, that, in the light of the reassessment of the Imperial C u l t as a religious p h e n o m e n o n , it is possible to reassess also its influence o n the d e v e l o p m e n t of ministerial O r d e r in the Early C h u r c h . M y a r g u m e n t ( C h a p t e r 2), influenced to some extent by the work of Liebeschuetz, is that the Imperial Cult as founded u n d e r Augustus was basically a reorganisation of the Republican Cult whose elected magistrates, t h r o u g h the college of augurs, h a d the constitutional as well as religious responsibility of obtaining the pax deorum. T h e chaos of the late Republic, as evidenced by Livy, L u c a n , Suetonius, a n d D i o h a d a metaphysical as well as a h u m a n l y polit ical basis. F u r t h e r m o r e their historiography represented a generally received opinion. 7

8

T h e R e p u b l i c a n Cult, in failing to achieve the pax deorum, repre sented a cultic failure that was the perceived religious c o u n t e r p a r t of the political failure of the R e p u b l i c a n C o n s t i t u d o n . T h u s Augustus executed a religious reformation in which his Imperial Cult could b e understood as p r o d u c i n g a n extraordinary pax deorum of millen nial proportions a n d e n d u r a n c e . I d o c u m e n t in C h a p t e r 1 h o w this p a g a n a n d imperial construction of social reality was reinforced. C e r t a i n features of the early martyrologies establish that the real rea son for the persecutions was a cultic reason. Christianity was a superstitio threatening the pax deorum obtained t h r o u g h the Imperial Cult. In C h a p t e r s 3 - 6 I e x a m i n e the writings of Luke-Acts, C l e m e n t of R o m e , the Apocalypse, a n d Ignatius of Antioch. In each case I argue 9

7

Alfoldy (1996), p p . 2 5 5 - 2 5 6 . J . H . W . G . Liebeschuetz, Continuity and Change in Roman Religion (Oxford: Clarendon 1979). I rely here o n the insightful general treatment by e.g., P. Zanker, The Power of Images in the Age of Augustus, trans. A. Shapiro (Ann Arbor: University o f M i c h i g a n Press 1990), or studies o f the Ara Pacis such as that o f R. Bertolotti de Angelis, Materiale dell'Ara Pacis presso il M u s e o N a z i o n a l e R o m a n o , DAIRM 9 0 (1985), pp. 2 2 1 - 2 3 4 , or E. Bianchi, Ara Pacis Augustae ( R o m e : Fratelli Palombi 1994), p p . 13-16. 8

9

INTRODUCTION

XXI

that we have a nascent C h u r c h O r d e r , developing pari passu with that of the Imperial Cult, in which the converted heirs of the Augustan religious reformation show that their Christian Cult, with its officers a n d rites, are able to achieve the true pax dei. In c o n s e q u e n c e , Christian social constructions of reality are fashioned in interaction with their p a g a n a n d imperial c o u n t e r p a r t s . In C h a p t e r s 7 - 8 we trace the emergence of P a g a n M o n o t h e i s m a n d Christian M o n a r chianism as they emerge in the second century, a n d a r e reflected in Imperial a n d C h u r c h O r d e r u n d e r the Severans a n d Elagabalus on the o n e h a n d , a n d Callistus on the other. M y discussion is informed t h r o u g h o u t by a sociological m o d e l in which the interaction between these two developing social p h e n o m ena, the P a g a n a n d the Christian Cultus, c a n be fruitfully studied a n d explained. T h e d e v e l o p m e n t of Early Christian C h u r c h O r d e r is understood as the d e v e l o p m e n t of a contra-culture ( C h a p t e r 1). A g r o u p , deprived of status a n d significance by the wider culture, sets u p its o w n contra-culture that mirrors a n d reverses the values of the former, granting the status a n d significance to its m e m b e r s that the former has denied t h e m . 10

M y thesis is intended to show finally h o w the C h u r c h of C y p r i a n faced the E m p i r e of Decius T r a j a n a n d Valerian as two rival cultic organisations which h a d b e h i n d b o t h of t h e m two centuries of inter active development. I wish to acknowledge financial s u p p o r t b o t h from the British Academy for the completion of chapters 1-6, a n d from the Leverhulme T r u s t for chapters 7 - 8 . T h e generous assistance of b o t h bodies have enabled m e to continue m y research in early Christian history with the resources of the Libraries of C a m b r i d g e University a n d of R o m e . M y most grateful thanks must go to Professore M a n l i o Simonetti, of La Sapienza a n d of the L a t e r a n University. At the British School in R o m e I have enjoyed friendship a n d discussion with n u m e r o u s scholars, in particular with the Director, Professor A n d r e w WallaceHadrill. I have greatly benefited from the m u c h valued support of the A u g u s t i n i a n u m in R o m e , in particular that of their Vice Praeses, D r R o b e r t D o d a r o , a n d from the kindess a n d hospitality of D r G e o r g e Lawless a n d m a n y others there.

10

S. L e v e n t m a n (Ed.), Counterculture and Social Transformation: Essays on Megativistic Themes in Sociological Theory (Illinois: T h o m a s 1982).

xxii

INTRODUCTION

In C a m b r i d g e I m u s t m e n t i o n Professor William H o r b u r y , F.B.A., a n d D r J a m e s C a r l e t o n Paget for their e n c o u r a g e m e n t of m y work, a n d also the Patristics S e m i n a r u n d e r the leadership of D r Lionel W i c k h a m . W h e t h e r in R o m e or in C a m b r i d g e m y thanks is also d u e to D r C h r i s t o p h e r Kelly, for his valued insights a n d suggestions. I also acknowledge with thanks provision of p h o t o g r a p h s as well as permission to r e p r o d u c e t h e m from: (i) (ii) (iii) (iv) (v) (vi) (vii)

Deutsches Archaologisches Institut, R o m (Plates 1-8). Musei Vaticani (Plates 9 - 1 0 ) . Musei Capitolini, R o m a (Plates 11-12). Kunsthistorisches M u s e u m , W i e n (Plate 13). M u s e o Nazionale, Napoli (Plate 14). M u s e e de la Civilisation G a l l o - R o m a i n e , Lyon (Plate 15). T h e British M u s e u m , L o n d o n (Plates 16-34).

ALLEN BRENT 5TH M A R C H

BRITISH SCHOOL AT R O M E 1999

CHAPTER ONE

C H R I S T I A N A N D P A G A N C U L T U S BY THE THIRD CENTURY Contra-cultural theory and Cyprianic Order

T h e victory of early Christianity a n d its success in annihilating its p a g a n rival b o t h as a political a n d intellectual force is the victory of a state within a state, a n imperium in imperio, which b o t h challenged the State itself, a n d sought finally a n d unsuccessfully to replace it totally. T h e a m b i g u o u s success of the later C h u r c h in seeking the latter objective needs in a n y case careful qualification. In later times neither G r e g o r y V I I n o r I n n o c e n t III w e r e to succeed finally in either disengaging the C h u r c h from lay control, or in subjecting lay political authority entirely to ecclesiastical authority. T h e essential features of later Catholic C h u r c h O r d e r emerged, in a clear a n d u n a m b i g u o u s form, in the Letters of Ignatius of Antioch, the scholarly consensus for whose dates I accept as the first d e c a d e of the second century. H e r e a single bishop, together with a circle of presbyters a n d a n u m b e r of deacons, e m e r g e d as the litur gical a n d organisational m a r k of the true C h u r c h . T h o s e essential fea tures, with certain modifications a n d additions that did not affect their fundamental form, were to find expression in the theology of Catholic O r d e r of Irenaeus, Pseudo-Hippolytus, a n d finally C y p r i a n . Irenaeus might a d d that the bishop in liturgical act a n d in governing the c o m m u n i t y has to show his place in a n u n b r o k e n succession (8ia8o%r|) of teachers extending back to the apostles. Pseudo-Hippolytus might a d d t h a t the succession of teachers also "shares in the high priest h o o d (|Li£TexovT£<; dpxiepaxeiaq)." Finally C y p r i a n was to a d d a cath olic to a n apostolic criterion of validity: o t h e r bishops h a d to give 1

2

3

1

For a discussion o f this question a n d relevant bibliography, see A. Brent, T h e Relations b e t w e e n Ignatius o f Antioch and the Didascalia Apostolorum, in SecCent 8,3 (1991), p p . 1 2 9 - 1 5 6 . Irenaeus, Adv. Haer., I l l , 3,3 cf. E. M o l l a n d , Irenaeus of L u g d u n u m a n d the Apostolic Tradition, in JEH 1,1 (1950), p p . 1 2 - 2 8 ; Idem. Le d e v e l o p p e m e n t de l'idee de succession apostolique, in RevHPhR 3 4 (1954), p p . 1 - 2 9 . Pseudo-Hippolytus, El. I p r o e m . 6 cf. Ap. Trad. 3. 2

3

2

CHAPTER ONE

a n almost universal acknowledgment to a given episcopal succession. But the normative structure of liturgy a n d O r d e r of a given Christian c o m m u n i t y was to r e m a i n essentially as Ignatius of Antioch h a d described it. C y p r i a n ' s final qualification of the edifice constructed by Ignatius a n d embellished by Irenaeus was that for a bishop to be valid he must not simply be b o t h in the place of G o d the Father a n d in the apostolic succession b u t in c o m m u n i o n with all other father-bishops. In order to be in c o m m u n i o n with the Catholic C h u r c h one has to b e in c o m m u n i o n with a bishop w h o is in c o m m u n i o n with other bishops. T h e final link as it were in the interlocking b o n d s of m u t u a l recog nition a n d c o m m u n i o n between the bishops is the See of R o m e that thus provides a focus of unity. T h e Catholic C h u r c h thus b e c a m e a n alternative imperium, presided over by bishops in c o m m u n i o n with each other, which now stands in stark contrast to p a g a n Imperial O r d e r . C h u r c h O r d e r is a kind of reversed m i r r o r image of Imperial O r d e r .

PART A.

CYPRIANIC HIERARCHY AND DECIUS

TRAJAN

In C y p r i a n ' s edifice we have the clearest e x a m p l e of C h u r c h O r d e r arraigned against Imperial O r d e r . Both the institution of the e m p e r o r as Pontifex Maximus of his own cult, a n d that of the bishop as the sacerdos a n d ruler of the Christian cult, h a d u n d e r g o n e , in the first two centuries, extensive development. But n o w the finally developed edifice of C h u r c h O r d e r was to confront a n Imperial O r d e r that h a d itself u n d e r g o n e extensive d e v e l o p m e n t . Since C a r a c a l l a ' s citizen ship law of A . D . 212, the Constitutio Antoniniana, the Severan policy of integrating the diverse cultures into a single whole h a d found its theological representation in the iconography of the Imperial Cult. Caracalla appears o n coins as the L o r d of the world a n d as the reflection of the divine light of the sun, p e r m e a t i n g all things a n d creating universal order. T h e e m p e r o r a n d his consort were to pos sess the religious function of effecting sacramentally the unity of the empire of which the citizenship law was the h o p e . O v e r against a n d reflecting a reverse image of Imperial O r d e r 4

4

A b d el M o h s e n el K h a c h a b , 6 KapaicaXXoq KoouoKpdxcop, in JEgArch 47 (1961), pp. 1 1 9 - 1 3 3 . For further discussion a n d bibliography, see A. Brent, Hippolytus a n d the R o m a n C h u r c h in the T h i r d Century: C o m m u n i t i e s in T e n s i o n before the Emer g e n c e of a M o n a r c h - B i s h o p , in Suppl.VCh 31 (Leiden: E J . Brill 1995), pp. 8 3 - 8 4 .

CHRISTIAN AND PAGAN CULTUS BY THE THIRD CENTURY

3

stood the now developed, Cyprianic hierarchy. T h e bishop as high priest n o w expressed in his i n t e r c o m m u n i o n with o t h e r bishops the unity of the C h u r c h just as the cult of Decius T r a j a n , formed in the Severan ideology of the previous generation, expressed sacramentally the unity of the E m p i r e . T o be in c o m m u n i o n with Christ you have to be in c o m m u n i o n with a bishop w h o presides over a geographi cal territory called a diocese. In o r d e r to be in c o m m u n i o n with other Christians outside y o u r diocese, your bishop has to be in com m u n i o n with their bishop a n d so on. But the way in which C y p r i a n expresses himself is significant: Thus the church of the Lord (sic et ecclesia domini) directs its rays of light spread through the whole world (luce perfusa per orbem totum radios suos porrigit). However the light is one (unum tamen lumen est) which is shed everywhere (quod ubique diffunditur), nor is the unity of its physical form divided from it (nec unitas corporis separatur). . . De Catholicae Ecclesiae Unitate 5 C y p r i a n ' s justification of ecclesia una est is that each bishop in the apostolic succession will mutually recognise the faith a n d life of the other. But b e h i n d the plurality is the one a n d indivisible unity which each expresses. T h a t unity is described almost in Plotinian terms, as in Enneads V I , 9,9, of the archetypal light (unum tamen lumen est) that characterises the indivisible a n d therefore ultimate O n e . It was "eter nal (d{8ia)". F o r Plotinus the dp%r| of all things, "of life (^ooffe) . . . m i n d (voB) a n d being (ovxoq) . . . r e m a i n s as such (waauxcoq uivei), not being divided into t h e m (ou |ieu£pia|jivr| eiq auxd), b u t r e m a i n i n g whole (aXk* oXr\ u i v o u a a ) . " M o r e o v e r , the imagery a n d underlying Neo-Platonic philosophy of these sentiments b e a r striking resemblance to the i c o n o g r a p h y of the Imperial Cult. P a g a n thinkers at this time were also looking for a universal religion based u p o n the cult of Sol Invictus, the U n c o n q u e r e d Sun, of which all o t h e r deities would be b u t aspects a n d reflections. Associated with the Imperial Cult, the cult of Sol Invictus would imply a theology of imperial unity. T h a t theology was sus tained by Neo-Platonism, as represented by Plotinus. His archetypal light giving unity a n d therefore reality to lesser existence without thereby being diminished was symptomatic of a social construction of reality in which an imperial autocrat a n d his predecessors a n d successors gave unity to a diverse e m p i r e at the centre of which they stood. T h r o u g h the Imperial Cult worship was sought of past e m p e r ors as a visible expression of imperial authority.

CHAPTER ONE

4

T h e act of offering incense at the altars of the Imperial Cult as a s a c r a m e n t of imperial unity would m i r r o r C y p r i a n ' s theology of the unity of the C h u r c h . Participation in the Imperial Cult, super intended by the E m p e r o r as Ponttfex Maximus, would lead to incor poration into the b o d y of the E m p i r e t h r o u g h the unifying light of 6 KccmKaAAxx; KoauoKpoVccop. Participation in the Christian Cult, super intended by bishops in a n i n t e r c o m m u n i o n focused on the bishop of R o m e , w o u l d lead to incorporation into the C h u r c h as the Body of Christ. Both represented alternative social constructions of real ity in which inclusion in the o n e necessarily lead to exclusion from the other, with corresponding strategies of legitimation nihilating rival claims. 5

But the parallelism between the Imperial Cult a n d the Christian Cult h a d existed in e m b r y o before the developments of C y p r i a n ' s time, as some early martyrologies m a k e plain.

PART B.

CHRISTIAN AND IMPERIAL C U L T :

PARALLELS BEFORE

CYPRIAN

T h e parallelism between participation in the Christian Cult a n d the Imperial Cult, a n d the m u t u a l exclusivity of each, though t h r o w n into stark relief by C y p r i a n , h a d already b e e n previously clearly d r a w n in the Acts of the Scillitan Martyrs (A.D. 180). Speratus begins b y denying w r o n g d o i n g a n d accepting persecution "because we h o n o u r our e m p e r o r (propter quod imperatorem nostrum obsewamus)." But h e continues in m o r e specific terms w h e n he asserts: "I d o not recog nise the e m p i r e of this age (Ego imperium huius seculi non cognosco). . . I recognise m y master, the king of kings a n d e m p e r o r of all nations (cognosco dominum meum, regem regum et imperatorem omnium gentium)." F u r t h e r m o r e , the Acts m a k e it quite clear that it was as m u c h for the religious participation in Christian rites as for the b a r e belief in 6

7

3

Cyprian Ep. 5 9 , 1 4 , speaking against Felicissimus and the lax party, says o f t h e m that: " . . . audent et ad Petri cathedram adque ad ecclesiam principalem unde unitas sacerdotalis exorta est a schismaticis et profanis litteras ferre . . . " See also De Unit. 4; Ep. 4 3 , 5 ; 55,8; 5 9 , 7 ; 73,7; 7 5 , 1 6 . J . Armitage R o b i n s o n (Ed.), Passio Scilitanorum, in T h e Passion o f Perpetua, in Texts and Studies: Contributions to Biblical and Patristic Literature, N o . 2 (Cambridge: U . P . 1891), pp. 112, 8. T h e Greek version reads, pp. 113, 10: tcp 6eco fjucov KOC! POCGIXEI 5o\)A,ei)ouev. Armitage R o b i n s o n (1891), p. 112, 1 8 - 2 2 . 6

7

CHRISTIAN AND PAGAN CULTUS BY THE THIRD

5

CENTURY

a different e m p e r o r that t h e Christians were o n trial. T h e decree which S a t u r n u s the proconsul recites c o n d e m n i n g Speratus a n d his g r o u p is that "they confessed that they h a d lived according to the Christian rite (ritu Christiano se vivere confessos)" F u r t h e r m o r e , t h e ritus Christianas is j u x t a p o s e d with " t h e o p p o r t u nity offered (pblata sibi facultate) of r e t u r n i n g to the custom of the R o m a n s (ad Romanorum morem redeundi)." As Saturninus h a d previ ously asserted: " W e are religious (Et nos religiosi sumus), a n d o u r reli gion is simple (et simplex est religio nostra), a n d we swear by the genius of o u r L o r d E m p e r o r (et iuramus per genium domini nostri imperatoris). . ." Religio in Latin of course has a far greater cultic sense t h a n its Eng lish equivalent which c a n m e a n a d h e r e n c e to a bare set of beliefs. F u r t h e r m o r e Saturninus promise: indulgentia domini nostri imperatoris, if he a n d his g r o u p will take the o a t h , has a cultic resonance in the corresponding G r e e k version of t h e Acts. I n the case of the latter, potestis indulgentiam domini nostri imperatoris promereri ("you c a n merit the p a r d o n of o u r L o r d E m p e r o r " ) is r e n d e r e d in the G r e e k version: e8uvaa0£ rcapd TOU TJJICOV auxoKpdxopoq auyxcopriaecoq d^icoBrjvai. 8

9

Ivyxcopeiv is used in t h e sense of " p a r d o n " specifically in the con text of the remission of sins as a nessary r e q u i r e m e n t of being "in c o m m u n i o n " in the record of strife between the c o m m u n i t y of the au thor of El. I X , 7 , 1 - 3 a n d that of Zephyrinus a n d Callistus at R o m e in A . D . 2 1 5 . I n C y p r i a n ' s writings indulgentia is associated with paenitentia a n d thus the m e a n s of obtaining absolution a n d restored c o m m u n i o n . H e claims t h a t a heretic c a n n o t have the p o w e r to b a p tise since he c a n n o t have the indulgentia divina. F u r t h e r m o r e indulgen tia o r p a r d o n is the result that follows the penitence of the lapsed a n d thus marks their restoration to c o m m u n i o n . Its sense therefore a p p r o a c h e s that of a\)yxcopf|ai<; used in the sense of forgiveness p a r ticularly t h r o u g h absolution that takes place t h r o u g h b a p t i s m . 10

11

12

W e see therefore, from the Acts of the Scillitan Martyrs, that in the late second century, well before the d e v e l o p m e n t of Cyprianic ide ology, n o t only was there a parallelism b e t w e e n t h e k i n g d o m of Christ a n d Caesar, b u t a parallelism between the participation in

8

Ibid. p. 116, 2 - 3 . Ibid. p. 112, 9 - 1 1 . For a discussion o f this passage, see Brent (1995), p p . 4 2 4 - 4 2 5 . Cyprian, Sent. Episc. 19; Ep. 3 0 , 6. Chrysostom, Horn, in Iohan. 2 7 , 1 : 5 i a xov Pajmouaxoc; 6A,6icXr|pov jidxcov if|V cruyxcbpnaiv e5copf|oaxo. Cf. Epiphanius, Haer., 6 8 , 2 . 9

10

11

12

TCOV

a|xapxr|-

CHAPTER ONE

6

the cult of Christ a n d in that of Caesar. Both have their indulgentia/ Guyxcbprioiq by which m e m b e r s w h o have cut themselves off can be ritually restored, w h e t h e r by swearing by Caesar's genius in the case of the o n e , or, in the case of the other, by confession a n d repen tance that re-establishes the grace of baptism a n d therefore union in the Body of Christ. F u r t h e r m o r e , the specific charge of participation in a cultic rite (ritus Christianus), as the antithesis to the imperial, r a t h e r t h a n alle giance to a b a r e belief, is also witnessed by o t h e r martyrologies. It is true that we find in the a n emphasis o n swearing to the genius of C a e s a r (Passio Polycarpii, 8, 2; 9, 2; 10, 1) in recantation of a belief. T h e crowds cry "Away with the atheists. Search for Polycarp," a c h a r g e w h i c h the confessor turns b a c k o n the c r o w d themselves (9, 2~3). A similar emphasis c a n be observed in the Acta S. Justini, where non-participation in the Imperial Cult is a question of preferred doctrines. But in the account of the martyrs of Lyons a n d V i e n n e (A.D. 177), preserved in Eusebius (H.E. V , 1,3-63), the emphasis is cultic with n o opportunity offered to swear by the genius of C a e s a r to someone w h o h a d already confessed r a t h e r t h a n denied all asso ciation with the Christian cult. In this case too, some of those w h o denied that they were Christians were not released b u t also suffered, not o n the charge of Christianity in itself, b u t "as m u r d e r e r s (ox; dv8po(povoi) a n d polluted persons (KCCI uiapoi)," (H.E. V , 1,33) quite contrary to procedures a p p a r e n d y estab lished in the correspondence between T r a j a n a n d Pliny. Clearly here it was a question of the proconsul b e i n g c o n c e r n e d with "crimes associated with the n a m e (flagitia cohaerentia nomini)" a n d not the " n a m e " itself, a n d with a population out of control w h o were riot ing a b o u t such alleged Christian crimes. N o w it is expressly recorded that charges were m a d e of "Thyestian feasts a n d O e d i p o d e a n intercourse," which further inflamed the m o b (H.E. V , 1,14). W h a t inflamed the m o b on this occasion at least was therefore the belief t h a t here was a cult that was a superstitio a n d not a p r o p e r religion. As F r e n d has pointed out, charges of cannibal ism, m u r d e r , a n d incest were not isolated slurs b u t related to images of prava religio whose exemplar is to b e found in Livy's account of the Bacchanalian riot of 186 B.C. a n d in which such excesses were 13

l s

Pliny Ep. X , 9 6 , 2 .

CHRISTIAN AND PAGAN CULTUS BY THE THIRD

CENTURY

7

14

recorded as having o c c u r r e d . T h e revulsion of the m o b was a reac tion to Christianity viewed as an exitiabilis superstitio, as Tacitus (Ann. X V , 44,4) was to view it, a n d therefore to Christianity as a cultic practice. It is therefore to be emphasised that one strand in the parallelism between C h u r c h a n d E m p i r e was a cultic strand. It was not simply that Christians claimed a n allegiance to a n o t h e r b u t spiritual king d o m , a n d that the E m p i r e misconstrued this as disloyalty. R a t h e r they also participated in a cult t h a t was, like the Bacchanalian cult described by Spurius Postumius Albinus, the consul of 189 B.C., vio lating the divine law. Such violations upset the pax deorum a n d were m a r k e d by prodigies requiring acts of augury in o r d e r to set right a n a t u r a l o r d e r upset by the practices of a prava religio. W e shall argue t h a t p a r t of the parallelism between Imperial a n d Christian Cults was the issue of the pax deorum. Augustus as a u g u r h a d extra ordinarily succeeded in securing this ritual a n d metaphysical pax in the wake of the failure Republican magistrates. T h e superior Christian pax dei was secured by Christ a n d p e r p e t r a t e d t h r o u g h the cultic acts of the Christian c o m m u n i t y a n d its ministers according the Luke-Acts ( C h a p t e r 3), C l e m e n t Corinthians ( C h a p t e r 4), a n d Ignatius of Antioch ( C h a p t e r 6). T h e Christian cult was thus the rival m e a n s for obtain ing the cultic objectives of the Imperial Cult, a n d r e p r e s e n t e d a denial of the claims of the latter to have achieved such objectives ( C h a p t e r 2). C y p r i a n ' s ideological response to Decius' universal decree did not create the cultic parallelism b u t r a t h e r was the o u t c o m e of a long line of development. M y thesis will seek to e x a m i n e the by C y p r i a n ' s time longstanding parallel relations between the Early C h u r c h a n d the Imperial Cult, which prima facie h a d quite different objectives, a n d which historically a p p e a r e d a b o u t the same time a n d in conflict with o n e a n o t h e r . T h e r e are two possibilities regarding the form that such a relation could have taken, n a m e l y reaction or interaction. Let m e begin by giving m y g r o u n d s for rejecting a purely reactive thesis.

14

Livy 3 9 , 8 - 1 9 cf. W . C . H . Frend, Martyrdom and Persecution in the Early Church, (Oxford: Blackwell 1965), pp. 1 0 9 - 1 1 2 . T h e point w a s m a d e originally by R . M . Grant, Pliny and the Christians, in HThR 41 (1948), p. 2 7 3 cf. S. Benko, Pagan Criticisms o f Christianity, ANRW (1980) II, 2 3 , 2 , pp. 1 0 6 6 - 1 0 7 2 a n d R.L. Wilken, The Christians as the Roman saw them, ( N e w H a v e n a n d London: Yale U . P . 1984), pp. 2 5 - 3 0 .

8

CHAPTER ONE PART C . C H U R C H O R D E R AS APOLOGIA: T H E REACTIVE THESIS

It is possible to present an account of the development of C h u r c h O r d e r as a reactive apologetic to external mis-representation a b o u t the true c h a r a c t e r of the Christian cult. T h u s Luke-Acts, C l e m e n t , J u s t i n , T a t i a n , A t h e n a g o r a s , a n d Tertullian defended Christianity from the m o r a l charges b r o u g h t against it. T h e s e writers, so it is argued, sought to establish the foundations for a legal a r g u m e n t for the recognition of the Christian cultus as a so called religio licita, t h o u g h the validity of the concept in R o m a n L a w has b e e n ques tioned. Surely, therefore, a n apologetic a i m has influenced the devel o p m e n t of C h u r c h O r d e r ? If the characteristic of a religio illicita is t h a t it is n o true religio but a degenerate superstitio a n d , on the e x a m ple of the Bacchanalian riot, a threat to public order, morality, a n d the civil p e a c e , then any charismatic a p p e a r a n c e s must be played d o w n or superseded by a n o r d e r e d ministry. T h u s in the c o m m u n i t y exhibited by the Didache the ministry of w a n d e r i n g apostles must be discounted, a n d p r o p h e t s replaced by duly elected eTUGKorcoi a n d SHXKOVOI. At C o r i n t h w h e n C l e m e n t writes in A . D . 95 any sign of disorder must be reduced, any o u t b r e a k of frenzied disputes a b o u t O r d e r a n d succession must be p u t d o w n . C l e m e n t exhorts the C o r i n t h i a n c o m m u n i t y to exhibit publically a n authority structure consisting of an o r d e r e d 8ioc5oxr| of rcpeapuiepoie7uoK07toi. Clearly o n e of his purposes was to suggest obliquely h o w his Christian c o m m u n i t y might find a n acceptance within the a u t h o r ity structure of the R o m a n e m p i r e . T h e priest of Dionysus h a d d o n e as m u c h far m o r e directly w h e n he presented to the Alexandrine magistrate the certificate stating w h o were his i m m e d i a t e two p r e decessors in administering the Dionysiac cult. Within such a per spective, the relationship between Christian a n d p a g a n cult is clearly interactive, however reluctant the g r o u p in question m a y have b e e n to a d m i t such influence expressly. ( C h a p t e r 3.) 15

T h e C h u r c h reacts to p a g a n society by simply rebutting its accu sations of cannibalism, incest, a n d charismania. T h a t it reacts also to the p a g a n cultus is considered purely co-incidental, as if the rela tionship between that cultus a n d R o m a n society was purely contin-

'* E. B a m m e l , Sukzessionsprinzip im Urchristentum, in StEphAug 31 (1990), p p . 6 3 72.

CHRISTIAN AND PAGAN CULTUS BY THE THIRD CENTURY

9

gent. Y o u could be a m o r a l citizen, a n d therefore a g o o d a n d loyal m e m b e r of the society of the R o m a n E m p i r e a n d not participate in that cultus. T h e evolution of C h u r c h O r d e r was therefore equally r e a c t i v e — a n a t t e m p t to set all things in o r d e r so as to be recog nised as one of the religious options in a multicultural empire. As such the C h u r c h simply wished to leave the p a g a n cultus alone whilst n o - d o u b t converting its w a y w a r d m e m b e r s to the true faith. It cer tainly could not interact with it so as to incorporate a n y of its con cerns into its o w n structure. T h e r e are a however n u m b e r of problems with such a perspec tive stated in these terms: 1. It fails to a c c o u n t for the p h e n o m e n o n of stages in the develop m e n t of C h u r c h O r d e r reflected in the development of the Imperial Cult a n d vice versa. This was clearly the case with Christian, Cyprianic O r d e r in comparison with D e c i a n Imperial O r d e r , a n d it is clearly relevant to ask h o w true it was also for stages in d e v e l o p m e n t before Cyprian. 2. It assumes that the responses of those w h o write the justification for C h u r c h O r d e r — a n d thus in conceptualisation a n d reconceptualisation actually shape i t — a r e in fact similar responses as those of the apologists w h o are ostensibly claiming legal recognition from the R o m a n state. 3. It undervalues the way in which the Apologists themselves, whilst a p p e a r i n g as suppliants for legal recognition, actually attack in their works the values of R o m a n society a n d the p a g a n cultus itself that u n d e r p i n s those values. T h e apologists are not simply reacting to R o m a n society b u t criticising a n d indeed u n d e r m i n i n g it, whilst being p r e p a r e d to use p a g a n religious concepts radically reorientated for their o w n Christian ends. 4. It fails to grasp h o w integral was that expression of R o m a n reli gion which was the Imperial Cult to the R o m a n conception of soci ety. T h e cultus itself u n d e r the Severans a n d finally u n d e r Decius b e c a m e the s a c r a m e n t that constituted that society, a n d which forged so m a n y disparate cultures into o n e social whole. Such a develop m e n t reflected the unity a n d purpose first of a Stoic a n d then later of a Neo-Platonic universe. W e shall trace the embryonically sacra mental c h a r a c t e r from the inception of that cult with Augustus, a n d emphasise how i m p o r t a n t his ius augurium as Pontifex Maximus was to a society influenced by the widespread belief that its existing cultus

10

CHAPTER ONE

h a d failed in augurium a n d haruspicium to secure the pax deorum in the events of the civil w a r (Chapter 2). W e shall observe the fully fledged d e v e l o p m e n t of w h a t was initially e m b r y o n i c with Augustus into the kind of p a g a n m o n o t h e i s m that paralleled Christian M o n a r c h i a n i s m in the course of the second century ( C h a p t e r 7), a n d which were reflected b o t h in Imperial a n d in C h u r c h O r d e r u n d e r Elagabalus a n d Callistus (Chapter 8). Imperial religious functions were not there fore simply a n accidental a p p e n d a g e t h a t could have b e e n different a n d left unaltered a R o m a n society that could simply tolerate Chris tianity if presented with a successful apologia. At all events, the charge of superstitio r a t h e r t h a n religjto did not survive the age of Septimius Severus. T h e charge of incest a n d c a n nibalism a n d threats to social or cosmic o r d e r were almost u n h e a r d in the persecutions of Decius T r a j a n , Valerian, a n d Diocletian. Yet the C h u r c h was persecuted despite two developments t h a t p e r h a p s ought to have lead to a reorientation of church-state relations. Firsdy, the apologists r e b u t t e d the grosser slurs on the Christian n a m e , a n d , secondly, the success of a hierarchically governed, C h u r c h m a r g i n alized the Montanists whose charismatic excesses could have other wise suggested a Bacchanalian threat to public order. W e shall therefore argue that the relations between C h u r c h a n d State were interactive rather than reactive, a n d necessarily involved in teraction with the religious a n d cultic face of a single politico-religious unity. In t h a t interaction, neither p a r t y simply reacted to the other. E a c h tried to take over a n d refashion the conditions a n d their justi fication of each other's social a n d political existence. M y quest is therefore for a sociological m o d e l in contra-cultural theory that will enable discrete relations to be teased out a n d e x a m ined. T h e study of b o t h institutions h a s b e e n bedevilled by t h e assumption by historians until fairly recendy, encouraged by Eusebius, that the form into which b o t h institutions developed finally a r o u n d 2 5 1 , u n d e r Cyprian of C a r t h a g e on the one h a n d , a n d Decius T r a j a n o n the other, h a d b e e n w h a t they were from the very first. T h e r e was n o d e v e l o p m e n t of either institution therefore to e x a m i n e , a n d so no possibility of their d e v e l o p m e n t interacting with o n e a n o t h e r . But given that b o t h institutions developed to some extent pari passu from the age of a n d Tiberius onwards, let us e x a m i n e a sociologi cal model that will enable the interaction between b o t h to be studied as they developed alongside each other.

CHRISTIAN AND PAGAN CULTUS BY THE THIRD

PART D .

IMPERIAL AND CHRISTIAN

CONTRA-CULTURAL

CENTURY

11

ORDER:

RELATIONS

D u r i n g the 1950s C o h e n a n d his associates outlined a theory of how, within the context of a wider culture, a subculture is formed from its interaction with the wider culture. W e shall argue that such an inter action is reflected in the relations between C h u r c h a n d State in the early centuries. W h e n the C h u r c h b e c a m e a n imperium in imperio, it h a d formed a counter-culture that h a d a b s o r b e d elements from its host culture. A subculture, in terms of w h a t D u r k h e i m described as a post-industrial society functioning o n the principle of organic sol idarity, could live at peace with wider society. It could exist, like the division of labour, as p a r t of a multiculturalism in which society hangs together by its very diversity contributing to the unity of the w h o l e . But sometimes the sub-culture b e c o m e s a contra-culture, a n d at this p o i n t C o h e n a n d his associates w e r e to go b e y o n d D u r k h e i m ' s original simplicity. 16

17

Delinquency, for example, was not simply r e g a r d e d as the reac tion of the individual to a wider society that rejected that individ ual, deprived h i m of rights, a n d created in h i m a feeling of alienation or anomie. R a t h e r delinquency was a positive solution in which delin quents created a contra-culture in terms of which they could achieve the status a n d p o w e r that wider society h a d denied them. T h e contraculture accordingly c h a n g e d the scale of values of the culture with which it interacted, reformulating a n d reconstructing its authority relations a n d the rationale for the status a w a r d e d to authority figures. T h u s a contra-culture was not p r o d u c e d by a reaction to the gen eral culture that simply accepted the definitions of that culture regard ing its status a n d role. M o r e positively the contra-culture was produced by a n interaction that redefined the d e m a n d s of the host culture, accepting some of t h e m a n d reformulating others. T h u s , in the case of teenage gangs, status was a w a r d e d to those

16

For a discussion of D u r k h e i m i a n sociology a n d its implications for secular and religious multiculturalism, see A. Brent, Cultural Episcopacy a n d E c u m e n i s m , Representative Ministry in C h u r c h History from the A g e o f Ignatius o f A n t i o c h to the Reformation, with special reference to contemporary e c u m e n i s m , in Studies in Christian Mission 6, (Leiden: E.J. Brill 1992), chapters 1-2 and 6. A . K . C o h e n , Delinquent Boys: The Culture of the Gang, (London: R o u t l e d g e and K e g a n Paul 1955) a n d Sociological Research in D e l i n q u e n t Subcultures, in American Journal of Orthopsychology, 2 7 , 4 (1957), pp. 7 8 1 - 7 8 8 . 17

12

CHAPTER ONE

w h o h a d " h e a r t " , w h o would risk their lives in acts considered by wider society as foolhardy. T o b e cynically unfaithful in h u m a n rela tionships etc. reversed accepted n o r m s of the value of trust. Such a p h e n o m e n o n was described as inverse polarity. C r i m i n a l activity did not conform to the utilitarian values of wider society, since there was little material a d v a n t a g e in " b o r r o w i n g " cars for "laughs," a n d this marks the non-utilitarian characteristic of a contra-culture. Malice, in the case of delinquents manifested in gratuitous violence, was in evidence against n o n - g r o u p m e m b e r s . A short run hedonism c h a r a c terised b e h a v i o u r in which u n p l a n n e d anti-social acts spontaneously took place. F u r t h e r m o r e , the g r o u p was characterised by a group autonomy t h a t resisted any constraint except that which arises infor mally from g r o u p m e m b e r s . Yet, in C o h e n ' s words, "it is not the individual delinquent b u t the g a n g t h a t is a u t o n o m o u s . " 18

H a r g r e a v e s applied the same kind of sociological analysis to a sec o n d a r y school organised in terms of streams r a t h e r t h a n sets. H e detected in the four streams of a secondary m o d e r n school four dis tinct subcultures t h a t went from the " A " stream w h e r e g r o u p n o r m s a n d values were those of the official society, whereas streams " B " , " C " , a n d " D " showed variations o n the t h e m e of contra-cultures inverting those n o r m s a n d values, a n d exhibiting versions of nonutilitarianism, inverse polarity, malice, hedonism, a n d group autonomy. Malice is shown in the d e e p hostility between A a n d D stream boys, a n d in the stereotypes thus created. Inverse polarity is manifested in the w a y in which esteemed m e m b e r s of a C or D stream are those w h o d o not perform academically, d o n o t u n d e r t a k e voluntary tasks for teachers, etc. "Messing" is d o n e by cultural isolates in the A stream, whose m e m b e r s frown on it as purposeless destructiveness. Yet those w h o d o not j o i n in such activities in the C a n d D streams are the cultural isolates w h o d o not a d m i r e the aimlessness a n d uselessness of such behaviour (non utilitarian). G r o u p punishments such as deten tions reinforce g r o u p a u t o n o m y . T h e r e is a deferral of gratification in A stream boys as opposed to the h e d o n i s m of "having fun" of streams C a n d D . 1 9

18

A.K. C o h e n a n d J . F . Short, Research in D e l i n q u e n t Subcultures, in Journal of Social Issues, 14,3 (1958), p p . 2 0 - 3 7 , discussed by D . M . D o w n e s , The Delinquent Solution, (London: R o u t l e d g e 1966), p p . 2 2 - 3 0 , 2 0 2 - 2 0 8 . D . H . Hargreaves, Social Relations in a Secondary School, (London: R o u t l e d g e a n d K e g a n Paul 1967), pp. 1 6 4 - 1 7 6 ff. 19

CHRISTIAN AND PAGAN CULTUS BY THE THIRD CENTURY

13

W h e t h e r in C o h e n ' s teenage gangs, or in the C a n d D streams of H a r g r e a v e s secondary school, it is to be emphasised, as we have said, that the p h e n o m e n a are not to be r e g a r d e d as individual reac tions of alienation to a wider culture that places t h e m low in its hierarchy a n d their personal values low in its own scale. R a t h e r the formation of a contra-culture is a positive interaction that creates a positive solution to the p r o b l e m of social alienation. A society within a society, framing alternative values, a n d a n alternative status sys t e m , is c r e a t e d in w h i c h the individual c a n gain the status a n d significance that wider society denies him. In 1982 a n a t t e m p t was m a d e to apply c o n t r a cultural theory to theories regarding the sociological significance of poverty a n d wealth. Part of that attempt lead Walter to attempt a n analysis of the medieval C h u r c h ' s attitude to poverty in the context of such a theory. W e m a y follow Walter's suggestive remarks a n d use the analytic con cepts t h a t we h a v e distilled from contra-cultural theory generally to express the d e v e l o p m e n t of monastic m o v e m e n t s , lead by C l u n y in the 9th century. 20

21

T h e m e n d i c a n t D o m i n i c a n s m a d e poverty a n d d e p e n d e n c y on others the positive m a r k of status a n d so exhibited inverse polarity. T h e d e v e l o p m e n t of rules of life for the c o m m u n i t y as a whole, a n d their removal from episcopal control with direct access to the Papal court, m a r k e d the creation of g r o u p a u t o n o m y . T h e r e was n o indi vidual freedom as such, since either the formal or informal n o r m s of the groups would p r o d u c e conformity, or indeed the individual could b e c h a r g e d by external ecclesiastical authority. But the g r o u p as a whole h a d achieved a n inviolate status. T h e Franciscans in addition to the inverse polarity that m a d e poverty r a t h e r t h a n wealth the m a r k of status a n d divine approval also engaged devotionally in a kind of spiritual h e d o n i s m of i m m e diate gratification. T o b e lost in the love of G o d exhibited by a nat ural universe filled with benignly h u m a n attributes was considered preferable to the life of career a d v a n c e m e n t by rational a n d calculated plan. T h u s the contra cultural value of non-utilitarianism against the utilitarianism of wider society is seen in evidence. In the developments

2 0

S. L e v e n t m a n (Ed.), Counterculture and Social Transformation: Essays on Negativistic Themes in Sociological Theory, (Illinois: T h o m a s 1982). E. Victor Walter, From Counterculture to Subculture: an Episode in the History of Poverty, in L e v e n t m a n (1982), pp. 7 5 - 8 6 . 21

CHAPTER ONE

14

m a r k e d by the radical or Spiritual Franciscans, suppressed by J o h n X X I I in the fourteenth century, non-utilitarianism is manifested in the claim t h a t the renunciation of any p r o p e r t y is necessary to sal vation. H e r e a contra-culture is seen reinforcing its inversal of the values of wider society. Certainly C y p r i a n ' s C h u r c h exercised g r o u p a u t o n o m y in reject ing the constraints to worship the Emperor. Furthermore, the discipline t h a t one did not sacrifice incense u n d e r sanction of e x c o m m u n i c a tion arose informally from g r o u p m e m b e r s . It was that informality t h a t p r o d u c e d the variety of a p p r o a c h e s to non-conformity that was the cause of C y p r i a n ' s dilemma. T h e libellatici clearly h a d o n e view of readmission to c o m m u n i o n , those w h o sought libelli pacis from the confessors a n o t h e r , a n d the Novatians yet a t h i r d . C y p r i a n clearly h a d to m a k e formal constraints that h a d arisen informally, in the m a n n e r of contra-cultural groups. 22

I n d e e d o t h e r regular features of a contra-culture can be seen in the martyrological texts themselves, to which I have already m a d e reference. Inverse polarity is seen in that w h a t the host culture regards as e x e c u t e d criminals are described, in the case of t h e Scillitan M a r t y r s , by the contra-culture as " c r o w n e d (coronati) a n d "reigning (regnunt)" as a consequence of their m a r t y r d o m . T h e day of their ignominious d e a t h is, for P e r p e t u a a n d h e r c o m p a n i o n s , the day of their victory (dies victoriae). * 23

2

Non-utilitarianism is clearly seen in the questions of magistrates as to the use or point of not swearing or sacrificing to the E m p e r o r ' s genius, as w h e n Perpetua's father appeals to h e r to avoid the fam ily's social disgrace, a n d to care for the needs of h e r b a b y s o n . T h e E i r e n a r c h H e r o d , a n d Nicetes his father, ask Polycarp: " W h a t h a r m is there in saying ' C a e s a r is L o r d , ' a n d sacrificing, a n d the rest of it, a n d so saving y o u r s e l f ? " Malice is shown, in references in Acta Justini 1, to "the w r e t c h e d defenders of idolatry a n d their impious decrees." W e find a short-term h e d o n i s m in Blandina's affir mation that brings h e r "refreshment (avah]\\fi<;) a n d rest (dvdrcouoiq)." (H.E. V , 1,19) 25

26

2 2

Cyprian, De Laps. 2 8 ; Ep. 3 0 , 3; 6 5 , 13 a n d 17. Passio Scillitanorum 18,1 (Armitage R o b i n s o n (1891), p p . 86,16). Passio S. Perpetuae 1 3 - 1 4 (Armitage R o b i n s o n (1891), p. 116). Ibid. 3,1 (Armitage R o b i n s o n (1891), p p . 6 2 / 6 3 , 2 - 6 4 / 6 5 ) . Pionius, Passio Polycarpi, 8,2 (J.B. Lightfoot, T h e Apostolic Fathers, L o n d o n : M a c M i l l a n 1891). 23

24

2 5

2 b

CHRISTIAN AND PAGAN CULTUS BY THE THIRD CENTURY

15

T h u s we find contra-cultural features in early Christian descrip tions of the clash between the Christian c o m m u n i t y as a cultic c o m munity, a n d the R o m a n E m p i r e seeking sacramental unity t h r o u g h its o w n cultic act of sacrificing incense to the genius of Caesar. But w h a t of ministerial, sacerdotal O r d e r itself in b o t h I m p e r i a l a n d Christian Cult? I propose in the following chapters to n o w apply c o n t r a cultural analysis systematically to the p h e n o m e n o n of the interaction between C h u r c h a n d State d u r i n g the first two centuries specifically in terms of the offices of those w h o superintended their two parallel cults. M y thesis will b e that the d e v e l o p m e n t of C h u r c h O r d e r c a n be u n d e r s t o o d as the creation of a contra-culture in which the values of the d o m i n a n t culture are reversed, a n d m e m b e r s of that contraculture achieve a status denied to t h e m by wider society. It is in response to the d e m a n d s of such a process that the suppression of the charismatic takes place, a n d a stable a n d organised society is created in C l e m e n t Corinthians a n d the Didache ( C h a p t e r 4). Ignatius as the m a r t y r bishop a n d his procession from Antioch in Syria to R o m e can be understood as m a r k i n g the interface between the P a g a n a n d the Christian Cult. His office a n d sacrifice can b e seen to be the creation of a reversal of images derived from the Imperial Cult ( C h a p t e r 5). Features of C o h e n ' s definition of a contra-culture will m o r e o v e r be seen also in Luke-Acts, Ignatius a n d the Apocalypse. W e find an inverse polarity in the Apocalypse w h e r e by m e a n s of a reversal of values the a p p a r a t u s a n d liturgy of the Imperial Cult is applied to the heavenly worship of the true G o d . T h e n there will be the e x a m ple of Ignatius the bishop w h o b o t h leads the Christian cultic p r o cession to R o m e a n d t h e n b e c o m e s a sacrifice on the altar of the Imperial Cult which seems almost thereby a p p r o p r i a t e d a n d Chris tianised. H e r e we shall see a n inversion of cultic elements a n d a b u r n i n g (hedonistic?) desire for m a r t y r d o m the glory of which wellm e a n i n g R o m a n Christians m a y try to deprive h i m w h o d o not grasp the full significance of the inverse polarity valued by their contra-culture (Rom. 1 2). W e shall furthermore argue that the sac erdotal imagery of the Imperial C u l t is influencing i c o n o g r a p h y of ecclesial O r d e r both in Ignatius a n d in the Apocalypse, with the former p r o d u c i n g inverse polar images of the latter. Luke-Acts too (Chapter 3) will be shown to m i r r o r Augustan history, with the pax Christi p r o d u c e d by the Christian, apostolic cult as the contra-cultural parallel _

16

CHAPTER ONE

to the pax deorum p r o d u c e d by Augustus' augural act a n d witnessed o n his m o n u m e n t , the Ara Pacis (Chapter 2). But a contra-culture needs the m o d e l of the wider society with which it is interacting in o r d e r to d e t e r m i n e w h a t values need to b e r e c o n s t r u c t e d , w h a t system of privilege a n d h o n o u r needs to b e reversed. H e r e we shall find D o m i t i a n a n d the further d e v e l o p m e n t of the Imperial Cult providing the historical m a t r i x that determines the character of w h a t develops in C h u r c h O r d e r at this particular period. W e have a r g u e d here a similar relationship for the age of C y p r i a n with c o n t e m p o r a r y developments in the Imperial Cult. Such a process w e shall a r g u e to b e in evidence not only in C l e m e n t of R o m e , but in his n e a r contemporaries in Luke-Acts, the Apocalypse, a n d the Ignatian Letters (Chapters 3, 5 a n d 6). W e shall finally discuss h o w a M o n a r c h i a n theology of the Trinity mirrors the M o n a r c h i a n philosophical basis for the Imperial C u l t u n d e r the Severans, a n d is reflected in developments b o t h in Imperial a n d C h u r c h O r d e r u n d e r Elagabalus a n d Callistus (Chapters 7-8). F r o m o u r analysis of the ideology of the communities presupposed by these developments, we shall derive a framework for understanding the subsequent Cyprianic developments with their own reflections of imperial O r d e r a n d Imperial Cult.

CHAPTER

TWO

T H E FOUNDATIONS O F T H E IMPERIAL C U L T The religious character of the Augustan Revolution

T h e Augustan revolution was as m u c h religious as it was political. Divination a n d the rites of the augur were constitutional as well as religious necessities in a society in which b o t h religion a n d politics were intertwined. T h e Imperial C u l t represents therefore b o t h a con stitutional revolution a n d a religious reformation. T h e cult carried associations with the legendary kings of R o m e that left its m a r k on the R e p u b l i c a n constitution. T h e transformation of Republic to Principate required therefore a transformation of the cult in which the final exercise of the ius augurium was in the h a n d s of the henceforth imperial a n d hereditary Pontfex Maximus. T h e history of the civil wars, beginning with M a r i u s a n d Sulla, a n d e n d i n g with Actium h a d m o r e o v e r impressed on R o m a n m i n d s the n e e d to achieve t h r o u g h the cultus the pax deorum. In the next three chapters we shall e x a m i n e first a n d early sec ond century works, namely Luke-Acts, Clement, Corinthians, the Apocalypse, a n d the episdes of Ignatius of Antioch. W e shall argue that these writers express varieties of Christian, contra-cultural constructions mir roring the R o m a n E m p i r e with its central cultic expression in the Imperial Cult which was, with its new association with Fortuna Redux, to m a k e wider eschatological claims. Preliminary to o u r discussion in these future chapters we shall e x a m i n e here, in section A, the growth of the concept of the Imperial Cult from its republican roots to its u n i q u e association with Augustus. In section B we shall e x a m ine the inception of that cult at the ludi saeculares of 13 B.C., a n d the beginnings of its wider reception, particularly in Asia M i n o r b u t also in the Latin West. W i t h i n the literature of the first century B.C., Cicero's De Natura Deorum bears witness to a Stoic justification for the practices of both augur a n d haruspex. In early a n d m i d first century A . D . we shall find, particularly in the case of L u c a n , b u t with reference to Livy too, a historiography that reads the event of the lost a n d restored o r d e r of

CHAPTER TWO

18

n a t u r e a n d society in terms of a Stoic, hyloholistic theology of fortuna, fatum a n d taSycx;. W e shall show h o w the Augustan constitu tional a n d cultic d e v e l o p m e n t s reflected such Stoic a s s u m p t i o n s . Augustus' control of the Imperial Cult, secured t h r o u g h his office of Ponttfex Maximus, h a d as its objective the obtaining of the pax deorum. T h e explanation a n d justification of such a n objective was a philo sophical theology informed by Stoicism. W e shall follow the development of the Stoic theology u n d e r p i n ning Augustus' specific cultic claim to control the ius augurium, along side other features of the Augustan ideology. In particular, we shall e x a m i n e h o w the concepts of pax, fortuna, a n d salus were linked with expectations of a r e t u r n i n g golden age. T h e further synthesis also took place w h e n the birth of b o t h Julius C a e s a r a n d that of O c t a v i a n / A u g u s t u s as his heir was also linked with fortuna redux. Both as a result c a m e to be personally a n d individually described in w h a t in the J u d a e o - C h r i s t i a n tradition would be "Messianic" terms. In mak ing such a claim I acknowledge the influence of the distinguished art historian J o h n Eisner, w h o has recently a p p r o a c h e d the study of the Ara Pacis emphasised a n alternative m o d e l of art to naturalism t h a t takes a c c o u n t of the n a t u r e a n d i m p o r t a n c e of viewing in the u n d e r s t a n d i n g of images. 1

In the cross c u r r e n t of multicultural concepts in the early R o m a n E m p i r e , such a n artefact needs to be interpreted in the light of a reconstruction of the p r o b a b l e dialogue between the viewer a n d art object in w h i c h the u n d e r s t a n d i n g of the object is " p e r m a n e n t l y incomplete a n d yet always temporarily fulfilled by the viewer's own participation in the sacrificial rite." As Eisner claims: "viewers cre atively c o n s t r u c t e d n u m e r o u s m e a n i n g s which might deconstruct, u n d e r m i n e , or conflict with o n e another. A Jewish view, for instance, or a P y t h a g o r e a n o n e might have b e e n very different from that of

1

J. Eisner, Cult a n d Sculpture: Sacrifice in the Ara Pacis Augustae, in JRomS 81 (1991), p p . 5 0 - 6 1 . Strong support has b e e n given to the pursuit o f such an arthistorical m e t h o d o l o g y b y o n e distinguished R o m a n historian, A n d r e w W a l l a c e Hadrill, in his review article ( R o m e ' s Cultural Revolution, in JRomS 7 9 (1989), p p . 1 5 7 - 1 6 4 ) of P. Zanker, The Power of Images in the Age of Augustus, trans. A. Shapiro, (Ann Arbor: University o f M i c h i g a n Press 1990). As Wallace-Hadrill claims: ". . . it is necessary for a n y o n e w h o wished to discuss Augustus to take the art-historical material seriously. T h i s makes it the m o r e lamentable that the study o f R o m a n art history has so tenuous a hold in British universities" (p. 164). See also K. Galinsky, V e n u s , Polysemy, and the Ara Pacis Augustae, in AmJArch 9 6 , 3 (1992), pp. 4 5 7 - 4 7 5 .

19

THE FOUNDATIONS OF THE IMPERIAL CULT

2

a R o m a n priest." W h a t I wall b e seeking in the following discus sion is a n exploration of some intersections of such various a n d multi cultural dialogues with the i c o n o g r a p h y of the I m p e r i a l C u l t as exemplified also in firstly P a g a n a n d then early Christian d o c u m e n t s . Such intersections will be sufficiendy large in n u m b e r , I believe, to con stitute a claim for some degree of normativeness of the picture that I will develop.

PART A.

REPUBLICAN ANTECEDENTS OF THE IMPERIAL

CULT

T h e practice of worshipping deified e m p e r o r s , w h e t h e r alive or d e a d , was n o t p a r t of R e p u b l i c a n religious or political practice before Augustus. But even in Republican times the principle was acknowledged that it was the responsibility of public officials to seek the will of the gods in divination. T o m a k e this possible, political figures were elected to the office of pontifex, a n d their college was h e a d e d by a Pontifex Maximus. It is clear from Cicero's treatise the De Natura Deorum that taking the auspicia was a political as well as a religious r e q u i r e m e n t . In this treatise, we have a dialogue b e t w e e n G a i u s Velleius a n d Q u i n t u s Lucius Balbus, w h o represent respectively the Epicureans a n d the Stoics, b u t w h o are otherwise u n k n o w n except for their n a m e s , a n d Gaius C o t t a , the A c a d e m i c i a n in whose house the dia logue is set (1,6). C o t t a i n d e e d should have found the discussion par ticularly relevant, since, as Balbus is quick to point out, he has b e e n elected pontifex, a n d has a solemn religious duty to the state cult. T h e Middle A c a d e m y claimed that at most probability, b u t never certainty was possible a b o u t the p h e n o m e n a l world. In opposition to such a view, Balbus proposes by m e a n s of Stoicism to justify philo sophically the religious rites a n d practices in which the wavering C o t t a has to participate, although the latter has some doubts a b o u t their final validity. 3

4

2

Eisner (1991), p. 5 2 . In Cicero, De Orat. 3,78 Velleius is m e n t i o n e d as a friend o f L. Licinius Crassus, and also the two Balbi. De Nat. Deor. 2,2: "Est e n i m et philosophi et pontificis et Cottae de dis i m m o r talibus habere n o n errantem et v a g a m ut Academici sed ut nostri stabilem certamque sententiam." 3

4

CHAPTER TWO

20 2A

1. The political and constitutional significance of divination

As Balbus is quick to point out, C o t t a ' s participation in divination a n d augury were not a matter of private conscience separate from his civic duty as a magistrate. In his second consulate Tiberius G r a c c h u s p r o c e e d e d with the election of his successors even t h o u g h the orig inal returning officer h a d dropped dead. H e h a d to admit on reflection that he h a d p r o c e e d e d irregularly because the tent in which he h a d c o n d u c t e d the augury which validated his course of action was in Scipio's p a r k outside the city b o u n d a r y . H e h a d a t t e n d e d a meet ing of the Senate from this tent a n d h a d forgotten to take the auspicia on his return. In consequence, as a result of a formal reference by the college of Augurs, the Senate caused the resignation of the elected consuls Figulus a n d Scipio. 5

O n e observes here that divination was m o r e t h a n a kind of super stition to b e practiced before major battles or a kind of p r a y e r for success in a critical situation. R a t h e r it was a n integral aspect of the ordinary, constitutional process. In this respect o n e supposes that the rules of propriety in respect of divination at key m o m e n t s in the poli tical process were not formally unlike the rules of propriety in con sulting m o d e r n opinion pollsters. A Prime Minister, having consulted the polls, a n d having found t h a t they predicted a n election victory, might still lose. But h e would stand a far better c h a n c e of r e m a i n i n g leader of his p a r t y a n d , if the party was a major one in the n e w p a r l i a m e n t , L e a d e r of the Opposition, because h e h a d d o n e so. A P r i m e Minister, w h o called a G e n e r a l Election with every c o m p u t a t i o n of current of electoral opinion against h i m a n d lost, would u n d o u b t e d l y experience aston ished disbelief at his sheer recklessness a n d lack of j u d g m e n t . But neither the former P r i m e Minister n o r his critics would neces sarily understand the theories of mathematical probability, the techniques of sampling a n d the underlying theory of sociological classification a n d stratification which justified the use of such polls. Different experts are indeed at variance a b o u t the precise justification of such second o r d e r theories. But despite such lack of consensus on an overall the ory, a n d i n d e e d independently of it, there arises a general n o r m a tive expectation that such advice shall be taken in such a form.

5

Ibid. 2,4, see also C i c e r o , De Divinat.,

2,74.

THE FOUNDATIONS OF THE IMPERIAL CULT

21

Such was clearly the case with the institution of the college of pontiffs a n d augurs. T h e y were r e g a r d e d as having a regulatory role u p o n the political institutions of R o m e . It was not simply a ques tion of the divinatio augurum, of their powers of foretelling the future, but of the disciplina, or discipline that they exercised over magistrates. This disciplina was supported by a ius augurum, a. political prerogative exercised by the augurs as of right. Cicero is therefore able to con clude of this ius that: "even t h o u g h it was originally constituted as a result of the good reputation that divination h a d (etsi divinationis opinione principio constitutum sit), however afterwards it has b e e n p r e served a n d retained by reason of the public benefit (tamen postea rei publicae causa conservatum ac retentum)" (De Divinatione 2,75.) 6

F u r t h e r m o r e Cicero was to express the view in his dialogue De Legibus t h r o u g h the c h a r a c t e r of M a r c u s that the ius augurium was of the highest political significance a n d linked with auctoritas: The greatest and most significant right in the state (maximum autem et praestantissimum in re publico) is the right of augurs (ius est augurum) which is linked to political authority (cum auctoritate coniunctum). . . For what right is greater (quid enim maius est) if we examine legal right (si de iure quaerimus), than to be able to adjourn (dimittere) committees and coun cils (comitiatus et concilia) based on the highest constitutional or personal power (a summis imperiis et summis potestatibus), or their decisions (instituta), or to rescind them if they have already been made (vel habita rescindere). Cicero, De Legibus, 2,31 This, as we shall see, was a constitutional point not lost u p o n Augustus (Res Gestae c. 7) in assuming the ius augurium (2A 4.1.5). H o w e v e r we should b e w a r e of thinking that it was merely a useful political device not treated seriously by himself or his educated contemporaries. W h e n Atticus suggests that the auspicia might have b e e n invented to b e of merely political use, M a r c u s replies: I think that the art of divination which the Greeks call tiavcucrj really exists (divinationem, quam Graeci u.avxncr|v appellant, esse sentio) and part of this which concerns birds and other signs (et huius banc ipsam partem, quae est in avibus ceterisque signis), is part of our discipline (quod disciplinae nostrae). For if we concede that the gods exist, and the universe is ruled

6

W . W a r d e Fowler, The Religious Experience of the Roman People from the Earliest Times to the Age of Augustus, (London: MacMillan 1911), pp. 2 7 0 - 3 1 3 ; J . H . W . G . Liebeschuetz, Continuity and Change in Roman Religion, (Oxford: Clarendon 1979), pp. 7 - 2 9 ; J. Linderski, T h e Augural Law, in ANRW (1986) 11,16,3, pp. 2 1 4 7 - 2 3 1 2 .

CHAPTER TWO

22

by their will, that they are mindful of the human race, and that they have power to give indications of the future, then I do not see any reason for denying divination. De Legibus 2,32 W e shall n o w see, in the context of the later republic, h o w such a metaphysical position was given philosophical justification. 2A

2. Stoic justifications for the validity of cultic acts

In De Natura Deorum Cicero was to go o n to represent Balbus as arguing a Stoic justification of why divination worked, a n d of why it possessed the political function that it did. T h e universe was per v a d e d a n d all things held together by a fiery b r e a t h that was rea son (Xoyoq) a n d G o d . " T h e world for that reason was G o d a n d every p o w e r of the world was contained within the divine n a t u r e . " T h e divinity of the world must be assigned also to the stars t h a t exhibit a like rational o r d e r . T h u s in the w o r d s of Cleanthes, in such a material m o n i s m without the dualism of m a t t e r a n d Spirit: "All are b u t p a r t of o n e stupendous whole, whose N a t u r e b o d y is a n d G o d the soul." 7

8

9

Because, therefore, the ultimate constituent of m a t t e r was refined fire, both spiritual a n d rational, therefore the m o v e m e n t of the world was by providence (rcpovoioc). But pronoia was n o t to be personified as a particular deity a n d thus ridiculed by the E p i c u r e a n Velleius as " a n old h a g of a fortune teller." It is r a t h e r a function of the flYeuoviKov or ruling principle which a n y n o n - h o m o g e n e o u s entity, that is to say a n entity m a d e of parts, must possess in o r d e r to b e held together. In animals or in plants it is the source of motions of the appetites, located in the roots, in h u m a n beings it is intelligence, 10

7

De Nat. Deor. 2,30: "Quodcirca sapientem esse m u n d u m necesse est, naturamque earn quae res o m n e s c o n p l e x a teneat perfectione rationis excellere, e o q u e d e u m esse m u n d u m o m n e m q u e v i m m u n d i natura divina contineri." Ibid. 2,39: "Atque hac m u n d i divinitate perspecta tribuenda est sideribus e a d e m divinitas, quae e x mobilissima purissimaque aetheris parte gignuntur n e q u e ulla praeterea sunt admixta natura totaque sunt calida atque perlucida, ut ea q u o q u e rectissime et animantia esse et sentire atque intellegere dicantur." A. Pope, Essay on Man, I p. 267 quoted in F. Copleston, A History o f Philosophy, Vol. 1: Greece and R o m e , in Bellarmine Series I X (London: Burns Oates 1961), p. 388. De Nat. Deor. 2,73: "Velut a te ipso hesterno die dictum est a n u m fatidicam rcpovoiav a Stoicis induci, id est providentiam; q u o d e o errore dixisti quia existumas a b iis providentiam fingi quasi q u a n d a m d e a m singularem quae m u n d u m o m n e m gubernet et regat." 8

9

10

THE FOUNDATIONS OF THE IMPERIAL CULT

23

but in the universe as a whole it must be reason (ratio = A,6yo<;) which rules the w h o l e . F r o m such a position it is b u t a short r e m o v e to argue that since the o r d e r of n a t u r e can b e r e a d by the discerning eye in the stars, so can the future b e read by those w h o u n d e r s t a n d that rational o r d e r a n d w h o can therefore rationally submit to the decree of fate found m a p p e d out there. If fate can be r e a d via such rational o r d e r or A,6yo<; in the stars, then it c a n also b e discerned in the entrails of sheep w h e n righdy cut u p a n d observed. T h u s Cicero was to r e m a r k that the Stoic doctrine of determinism or fate, be cause it was based u p o n the e n d o w m e n t of n a t u r e with m i n d , was consistent with "oracles a n d everything else which is c o n n e c t e d with divination." 11

12

13

T h u s the role played by augury a n d divination in the R o m a n con stitutional scheme was legitimated in terms of a Stoic cosmology. Physics was studied in G r a e c o - R o m a n philosophical schools in o r d e r to achieve neither a disinterested u n d e r s t a n d i n g of n a t u r e n o r a tech nology with which to control it. R a t h e r physics, like metaphysics, was used to service theories of ethics. T h e r e was a n e e d to k n o w the n a t u r e of the universe in o r d e r to discover h o w ethically the b e h a v i o u r of h u m a n beings could fit within it. T h e E p i c u r e a n dis covered that d e a t h , in the light of a n atomic theory of the universe, was dissolution a n d that there was n o fear of eternal p u n i s h m e n t , a n d this as such was the purely ethical value of G r e e k atomism. Lucretius notoriously, at the e n d of his great work, p r o d u c e d sev eral quite conflicting explanations of the behaviour of a certain spring without c o m i n g to a n y conclusion a b o u t w h i c h of t h e m was the

11

Ibid. 2,29: "Natura est igitur quae contineat m u n d u m o m n e m e u m q u e tueatur, et e a q u i d e m n o n sine sensu atque ratione; o m n e m e n i m naturam necesse est quae n o n solitaria sit n e q u e simplex sed c u m alio iuncta atque c o n e x a habere aliquem in se principatum, ut in n o m i n e m e n t e m , in belua q u i d d a m simile mentis unde oriantur a d p e t i t u s . . . Principatum a u t e m id dico q u o d Graeci fiyeuoviKov vocant, q u o nihil in q u o q u e genere n e c potest nec debet esse praestantius . . . " De Divinat. 1,11: "duo sunt e n i m divinandi genera, q u o r u m alterum artis est, alterum naturae. Q u a e est a u t e m gens aut quae civitas, quae n o n aut extispicum aut monstra aut fulgora interpretantium aut a u g u r u m aut astrologorum aut sortium (ea e n i m fere artis sunt) aut s o m n i o r u m aut vaticinationum (haec e n i m d u o naturalia putantur) praedictione moveatur? q u a r u m q u i d e m rerum eventa magis arbitror q u a m causas quaeri oportere. est e n i m vis et natura q u a e d a m , q u a e turn observatis longo tempore significationibus, turn aliquo instinctu inflatuque divino futura praenuntiat." De Fato 15,33: "Quodcirca si Stoicis qui o m n i a fato fieri dicunt c o n s e n t a n e u m est huiusmodi oracula ceteraque quae ad divinationem pertinent c o m p r o b a r e . . ." 12

13

24

CHAPTER TWO

14

"true" explanation. So long as any explanation in terms of the atomic theory fitted, then the universe was m a d e safe for E p i c u r e a n ethics. Likewise the Stoic cosmology justified Stoic ethics. T o live according to n a t u r e was to live according to the rational will of the world-soul, a n d to submit to the decree of that rational will was to act rationally a n d therefore freely. But we have seen that there could be a political a n d even constitu tional dimension to Stoic ethics in this respect. Divination b e c a m e the way of reading the will of the world soul, w h e t h e r in the stars or o n the lining of a sheep's stomach, a n d h o w the future according to w h a t was read there would be d e t e r m i n e d by the operation of right reason. I n d e e d political philosophy, in any age, as the ethical justification of forms of h u m a n g o v e r n m e n t , has not unfairly been regarded as a b r a n c h of ethics. In m o d e r n times the fact-value dis tinction in ethics has lead to the distinction between political science as the clinical study of the m a c h i n e r y of g o v e r n m e n t , a n d political philosophy as the justification of the form of g o v e r n m e n t by which h u m a n beings " o u g h t to be governed," given any n u m b e r of radi cally different, possible governmental machines. T h u s with Stoicism as a justification of divination as a feature of a political constitution we find cosmology employed as a m e a n s of explaining h o w people ought to live, not simply as individuals b u t as a society. R o m a n magistrates n e e d e d the resources of divination in o r d e r to perceive the divine, rational o r d e r of the world a n d to d e d u c e the future from its present rational operations (pronoia). T h e y n e e d this, n o t simply so that they as individuals can "live according to n a t u r e , " b u t so t h a t they can align society with nature's inex orably rational will, a n d so that society can freely a n d rationally accept w h a t is its destiny to be a n d to achieve. 2A

3. Augury and divination: Imperial Cult as sacrament

In this respect Stoicism offered a kind of sacramental theology w h e n applied to divination. Berger a n d L u c k m a n n p o i n t e d to the way in which religion orders social reality. Experts arise in the construction of universes of social reality, whose social function is to h a r m o n i s e myths a n d p r o d u c e a picture of the n a t u r a l a n d supernatural world into which h u m a n social relations, including political a r r a n g e m e n t s ,

14

De Rer. Nat. 6, 8 4 8 - 9 0 5 .

THE FOUNDATIONS OF THE IMPERIAL CULT

25

can be a n c h o r e d . T h u s the social o r d e r is b o t h h a r m o n i s e d a n d sta bilised, a n d i m m u n i s e d against chaotic c h a n g e a n d disorder. H u m a n societies thus a p p e a r to b e c o m e as u n c h a n g e a b l e a n d given as the natural or supernatural o r d e r in a process that is obviously a n illu sion. W e can see the social function of colleges of augurs in such a light. But such universes of discourse, p r o d u c e d by such experts, d o not come into existence suddenly a n d perfecdy, but have their own history of development. According to a Stoic universe of discourse, divination sought to incarnate the supernatural order into present political plans a n d proposals in o r d e r to give t h e m value a n d enable t h e m to reflect the divine p u r p o s e (pronoia). T h e augurs, w h o read the future a n d the divine will in such events as the flight of birds a n d the course of t h u n d e r s t o r m s , were a distinct college in Cicero's time. T h e haruspices, w h o consulted the entrails of victims, only b e c a m e a college in the time of Claudius a n d contributed further to such a project licensed by Stoicism. At the close of the dialogue, in the course of the first century before Christ, C i c e r o c o n c e d e d grudgingly his belief that Balbus' Stoicism "seemed to be m o r e a p p r o x i m a t e d to the a p p e a r ance of the t r u t h . " T h e r e were clearly as yet still powerful Epicurean a n d A c a d e m i c alternatives t h a t w o u l d d e n y legitimation to such politico-cultic acts as divination, a n d so deprive the o r d e r of R o m a n society of such a comprehensive a n d totalising legitimation. 15

16

17

18

N o r indeed was yet the worship of the E m p e r o r p a r t of the sacra mental b o n d which reinforced a n d renewed right reason (opGoq Xoyoq) a n d law (vouxx;), a n d m a d e the citizen subject to the necessity of the rational pronoia of Fate. W e shall observe a tendency, b e g u n by Augustus, to connect the sacramental political acts of divination with the E m p e r o r t h r o u g h reorganisation of the college of augurs a n d

15

P. Berger a n d T . L u c k m a n n , The Social Construction of Reality, (London: Penguin 1967), p p . 1 3 0 - 1 3 3 ff., and P. Berger, The Social Reality of Religion, (London: Penguin 1973), p p . 3 0 - 3 5 ff. J. Bayet, Histoire politique et psychologique de la religion romaine, (Paris: Payot 1957), pp. 5 8 - 5 9 : "Les haruspices interpretaient d'apres l'etat du flux sanguin, la couleur, la conformation de telle o u telle partie du foie (pars familiaris, 'de chez nous'; pars hostilis, 'du dehors'; o u neutre). Les exta pouvaient ainsi d o n n e r des indications sur l'ordre, le desordre, le chaos de l'universe. Mais ils pouvaient, p o u r l'immediat, c o n seiller o u deconseiller une action." Liebeschuetz (1979), p. 2 2 . De Nat. Deor. 3,95: ". . . mihi Balbi ad veritatis similitudinem videretur esse propensior." 16

17

18

26

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pontiffs over which he was to preside as Ponttfex Maximus. But it was to take three a n d four centuries until Decius Trajan, a n d finally Julian, for the cult to be focused on a single sacerdotal act in which all cit izens must legally participate. It was only then that finally a n d un ambiguously this central act of worship b o t h symbolised imperial unity a n d effected w h a t it symbolised t h r o u g h o u t the world which R o m e ruled. But initially most of the ingredients that were to develop into the later, fully-fledged cultus were there. W e can see reflections of the sacramentality of the acts of h i m w h o exercised the ius augurium, a n d w h a t was believed to b e at stake in those acts, reflected in the his toriography of two writers w h o described historical events in the R e p u b l i c a n d late R e p u b l i c at the time of the transition to the Principate or shordy afterwards. 2A

4. Livy and Lucan: Augury as political sacrament

Titus Livius (59 B . C . - 1 7 A.D.), b o r n in the y e a r of Julius Caesar's first consulship, c o m m e n c e d writing his history in 27 B.C., five years after Octavian's victory at Actium (31 B.C.). In Ab Urbe Condita 4,20,7 he records a conversation with Augustus in which the latter h a d recalled a n inscription on a linen breastplate that he h a d read in the temple of J u p i t e r Feretrius. H e r e "Augustus C a e s a r " is described as "the founder or restorer of all the temples (templorum omnium conditorem aut restitutorem)" 19

Livy, like L u c a n , a p p e a r s to have h a d republican sympathies that were shown in the way in which he describes almost lovingly the old republican constitutional forms. N o doubt he believed in Augustus' interpretation of his acts, not as revolutionary, b u t as res publicae restitutae. T h u s Livy was never p a r t y to any political m o v e m e n t to restore those forms. It m a y be that he was satisfied by the way in which Augustus notoriously cloaked his military autocracy by using such republican tides as princeps (senatus), or his prerogatives in terms of the republican imperium proconsular, or tribunicia potestas. But o n e w o n ders w h e t h e r a m a n of his intelligence could ever have b e e n per suaded by the kind of political strategist w h o assures us that he has abolished neither the office of M o n a r c h , Prime Minister, n o r L e a d e r of the Opposition, since he carries all three offices in his o n e person.

19

Livy 4, 2 0 , 7 .

THE FOUNDATIONS OF THE IMPERIAL CULT

27

T h e r e must, o n e feels, have b e e n something m o r e , which con vinced h i m that the past age, by some fateful necessity, h a d gone forever. T h a t conviction I a m going to suggest was a religious con viction a b o u t the need for the pax deorum in a society which h a d lost it. T h e e m p e r o r Augustus, as Pontifex Maximus, controlling the ius augurium, alone could restore that peace a n d stability. It was indeed a fateful necessity that Livy, t h o u g h not L u c a n , might have consid ered to have existed not in reality b u t only in the m i n d s of the superstitious masses. But it was a social reality that Livy found irre sistible a n d u n a b l e to b e countered. A similar t h e m e we shall trace also in the case of M a r c u s A n n a e u s L u c a n u s ( 3 9 - 6 5 A.D.), w h o was involved in failed conspiracy to take N e r o ' s life, in consequence of which he c o m m i t t e d suicide along with his co-conspirators, his uncles Seneca a n d Gallio. W e shall see in his case particular Stoic doctrines u n d e r p i n n i n g his belief in the need for a cult of augury to secure the pax deorum which was also linked with a single dominus. L u c a n himself h a d b e e n a p p o i n t e d b o t h quaestor a n d augur. Since L u c a n conspired to replace N e r o with a n o t h e r princeps, his aim was not to restore the republic. In his case too, therefore, we witness the p h e n o m e n o n of s o m e o n e hostile to an e m p e r o r , a n d indeed hostile to the m e m o r y of Julius Caesar, never theless accepting the e n d of republican g o v e r n m e n t as such. H e r e too we shall a r g u e that the Imperial Cult, as the m e a n s of achiev ing the pax deorum, was critical in Lucan's historiography, a n d was seen as a reality reflected in the natural o r d e r of things a n d not sim ply as a purely social p r o d u c t . 20

W e shall see however t h a t b o t h works are problematic in view of the fact that we c a n n o t be sure h o w they e n d e d . T h e tenth book of Lucan's Pharsalia was left unfinished, a n d the closing books (46-142) of Livy's Ab Urbe Condita have also b e e n lost, t h o u g h we d o have fragments t h a t survive. Book 45 ends a b r u p t l y in 167 B.C. T h e r e m a i n i n g lost books, used by D i o Cassius as his principle source, continued until the Principate of Augustus a n d the d e a t h of Drusus in 9 B.C. W e will n e e d therefore to try to reconstruct h o w Livy would have completed his basic themes from the way in which he began them. W e shall begin with two passages which exemplify from the earlier

Martial, Epigr. 7, 21 a n d 2 3 ; Statius Silvae VII, 3 1 - 3 2 .

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28

books of Livy h o w in fact h e would h a v e r e g a r d e d Augustus in the later books h a d they survived. W e shall then e x a m i n e the specific relationship between a u g u r y a n d the pax deorum a n d the perceived p o p u l a r weight that this h a d in the late Republic, as exemplified in Livy, supported as we shall see by Suetonius a n d Cassius D i o . 2A 4 . 1 . Livy, augury and the p a x d e o r u m O n several occasions Livy makes it clear that a magistrate is respon sible through the cultus for obtaining the pax deorum. T h e pax required might be u p o n m a n - m a d e disasters such as w a r or civil war, b u t it might also b e u p o n the destructive chaos of n a t u r e itself. In 4 6 4 - 4 6 3 B . C . Livy r e c o r d e d the ravages of disease in R o m e that followed defeat in battle at the h a n d s of the Aequi a n d o t h e r losses (3,7,6). T h e disease also was a case of divine displeasure, of the deum ira T h e Senate orders individual prayers (3,7,7). T h e way in which the disease passes is described as follows: 21

. . . litde by little, either because the peace of the gods had been ob tained by request (pace deum impetrata) or because the more difficult time of year had passed, bodies deadened by diseases began to recover their health. 22

It is at first sight curious that Livy is sceptical a b o u t the obtaining the pax deum impetrata by individual private prayer, in place of the deum ira m a r k e d by the plague. Livy introduces here a small note of scepticism since he admits a purely natural alternative. But Livy's personal scepticism o n this a n d other occasions should not blind us to the fact that he describes the significance for the general p o p u lation of w h a t h e personally finds superstitious. Generally, however, the pax deorum is obtained t h r o u g h the specific instrument of official cult by m e a n s of a pontifex exercising the ius 23

21

3,6,5: ". . . urbem R o m a m subita d e u m ira m o r b o populari." 3,8,1: "inde paulatim seu pace d e u m impetrata seu graviore tempore anni iam circumacto defuncta morbis corpora salubriora esse incipere." 1,31, 6 - 8 : Tullus " w h o previously had thought it less for kings to devote their minds to sacred rites (sacris dedere animum), suddenly b e c a m e subject to all kinds o f great and depraved superstitions (magnis parvisque superstitionibus), and filled the p o p ulace with religious scruples (religionibus)." At the e n d of the Punic War, in 2 0 4 B . C . w e read, 2 9 , 1 4 , 2 : "the situation had filled m i n d s with superstitious fears (superstitionum), and they were inclined to believe portents (ad credenda prodigia)." Cf. also 1 pr. 7. For a discussion o f Livy'a approach to religion and for bibliography, see P.G. Walsh, Livy: His Historical Aims and Methods, 2nd Ed. (Bristol: Classical Press 1989), chapt. 3. 2 2

2 3

THE FOUNDATIONS OF THE IMPERIAL CULT

29

augurium. T h e pax deorum is normally associated with official augury a n d not private p r a y e r . In 208 B.C., in the course of the eleventh year of the First Punic W a r , the consuls were preoccupied with "a n u m b e r of reported portents (prodigiis aliquot nuntiatisf for which "they did not succeed in any straightforward expiation (non facile litabant)." (27,23,1) T h e T e m p l e s of F o r t u n a a n d M a r s at C a p u a h a d , along with m a n y tombs, b e e n struck by lightening, a n d mice h a d g n a w e d the gold in J u p i t e r ' s temple at C u m a e . A swarm of bees h a d settled at C a s i n u m ' s forum, at C a e r e a vulture h a d flown into the temple of J u p i t e r , a n d Volsinii's lake was stained with blood (27,23,2-4). E a c h of such o m e n s were characteristic of the n a t u r a l signs in terms of which augurs r e a d the future. Yet it was clearly the d u t y of the con suls to obtain in the face of these o m e n s the pax deorum m a r k e d by their reversal: 24

O n account of these prodigies (horum prodigiorum causa) for one whole day (diem unum) supplication was made (supplicatio juit). For several days (per dies aliquot) full-grown victims were slaughtered but without suc cessful expiation (hostiae maiores sine litatione caesae), with the invited peace of the gods asked for so long but not secured (diuque non impetrata pax deum). On the heads of the consuls (in capita consulum) terrible conse quences revolved even though the republic itself was unharmed (re pub lico incolumi exitiabilis prodigiorum eventus vertit). 27,23,4 It was thus of political as well as of cultic i m p o r t a n c e that the vis ible pax deorum was secured in response to w h a t a u g u r y h a d first established. T h e consuls were clearly as responsible in 208 B.C. for obtaining the pax deorum as Sulpicius Severus, the military tribune h a d b e e n in 389 B.C. w h e n the Fabii were massacred at C r e m a r a a n d the rout at Alia occurred. R o m e was destroyed because " o n the day after the Ides of J u l y (postridie Idus Quintiles) he h a d not m a d e an acceptable sacrifice (non litasset)" a n d two days later h a d exposed the a r m y to the e n e m y "without securing the peace of the gods (neque inventa pace deum)." (6,1,12) It is i m p o r t a n t , in view of the later significance of a u g u r y for the Imperial Cult, to point out that a u g u r y per se was not accepted but only t h a t which conformed to R o m a n tradition. In 4 3 0 B.C., in

2 4

W a r d e Fowler (1911), pp. 3 0 0 - 3 0 1 ff.; Bayet (1957), pp. 5 9 - 6 0 ; Liebeschuetz (1979), pp. 5 6 - 6 5 .

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response to a plague that h a d broken out in succession to a d r o u g h t , strange sacrificial rites were i n t r o d u c e d into h o m e s in o r d e r to secure the pax deorum. T h e r e was seen "in every street a n d shrine (in omnibus vicis sacellisque) foreign a n d u n c u s t o m a r y rites of propitiation (peregrina atque insolita piacula) for seeking the p e a c e of the gods (pacis deum exposcendae)." (4,30,10) Accordingly the aediles were to see " t h a t n o n e b u t R o m a n gods (non nisi Romani di) should be worshipped, n o r in a n y other w a y t h a n the ancestral (neu quo alio more quam patrio colerentur)." (4,30,11) W e find furthermore this principle again emphasised in the course of the w a r against H a n n i b a l (213 B.C.). H e r e it was not simply a case of sacrifices more patrio per se but indeed a case of p r o p h e c y a n d ritual such as might b e associated with augury. T h e r e was a " c r o w d of w o m e n w h o were failing to follow the customs of the fathers in their sacrifices (nec sacrificantum. . . deos patrio more)." (25,1,7) It was p r o p h e t s (vates) as well as petty priests (sacrificuli) w h o were involved (25,1,8), so that the augur's art was clearly in view. T h e religious m o v e m e n t was p u t d o w n violendy by the p r a e t o r M a r c u s Aemilius (25,1,11). His edict stated: . . . whoever has prophetic books or prayers (quicunque libros vaticinos precationesve) or a written ritual for sacrifice (aut artem sacrificandi conscriptam haberet), he should bring all those books and letters to him (eos libros omnis litterasque ad se) before 1st April (ante kal Apriles defend), in order that no one in a public or sacred place (neu quis in publico sacrove loco) should sacrifice by means of a new or foreign rite (novo aut externo ritu sacrificaret). 25,1,12 Clearly therefore the divination of the future (vates), a n d the ritual intended to secure the pax deorum against prophecies of their ira, were b o t h u n d e r the political control of the magistrates, w h o also were to m a i n t a i n strictly their traditional R o m a n character. T h u s Livy describes, albeit with sceptical references to the grounds for believing the superstitio, the relationship between the cult a i m e d at averting the ira a n d p r o d u c i n g the pax deorum impetrata, a n d the political responsibility of magistrates. T h i s responsibility is m o r e 25

2 3

Admittedly he reserves Tacitus' description o f early Christianity as prava religio for the Bacchalian cult that produced the riot (29,16,6) from which the state reli g i o n had delivered the masses (29,16,7). But in 1,31,8 the tradition (tradunt) is recorded that the "sacrifice was b e g u n and c o n d u c t e d improperly (non rite initum aut

THE FOUNDATIONS OF THE IMPERIAL CULT

31

over specifically pontifical in that it extends to the minutiae of sacrifices that must be performed more patrio. As the example of Aemilius shows, such sacrificial practices implied the knowledge a n d even control of the future. It extends moreover from the political to the natural o r d e r in that the p o p u l a r m i n d associated n a t u r a l disasters with political events, despite Livy's personal scepticism. T h u s far we can learn from the full portion of Livy's work that survives d o w n to 167 B.C. w h e r e it breaks off. But c a n we glean any further information relevant for o u r inquiry from the fragments of the remainder of his work that has not survived? L u c a n , as we shall shordy see, despite Livy's personal scepticism, agrees with h i m t h a t prodigies a n d o t h e r signs of the ira deorum increased dramatically d u r i n g the course of the civil w a r from the d e a t h of C a e s a r o n w a r d s . For L u c a n the existing cult was generally r e g a r d e d as being unable, without reformation, to achieve the pax deorum. Did Livy's original text therefore contain evidence that Augustus, as Pontifex Maximus a n d superintendent of the cult of augury, was popularly seen to b r i n g the solution to the specifically religious p r o b lem of achieving the pax deorum, in a society otherwise unstable a n d in a state of inevitable collapse? T h e Augustan p r o p a g a n d a m a c h i n e developed a n d fostered t h a t p o p u l a r feeling in o r d e r to provide polit ical legitimation for the Principate. O f the existing surviving narrative of Livy, books 1 1 - 2 0 are also lost, as well as the e n d i n g from 167 B . C . o n w a r d s , from books 4 6 - 1 4 2 . W e possess various O x y r h y n c h u s fragments alone with sum maries from o t h e r sources of Books 3 7 - 1 4 2 . T h e s e therefore over lap w h a t survives (37-45) a n d w h a t is lost (46-142), a n d which e n d in 9 B.C. W e also have the work k n o w n u n d e r the n a m e of Julius Obsequens, which is a book of prodigies at R o m e t h a t begins 190 B.C. a n d ends in 11 B.C. W e will therefore ask the speculative question as to h o w in gen eral terms Livy would have e n d e d his history in 11 B.C. a n d with w h a t cultic c o n c o m i t a n t s h e w o u l d h a v e d e s c r i b e d the p e a c e of Augustus from Actium in 31 B.C. o n w a r d s . W e can look firsdy at h o w Augustus is described in the few references in Books 1 a n d 4,

curatum id sacrificium) with the result that, because of his "faulty c o n d u c t o f the rite" (prava religione), Jupiter struck him with a thunderbolt. H e r e quite clearly prava reli gio refers to improper as o p p o s e d to quite proper ceremonial activity and not to bare religious belief.

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a n d how o n the basis of this Livy could have described h i m in his final Book 142. W e can try to gauge the cultic c o n c o m i t a n t s to O c t a v i a n ' s victory from those a c c o m p a n y i n g o t h e r victories a n d defeats t h r o u g h o u t Livy's history. Julius Obsequens will help us here, since one of his sources was Livy's later books that have not sur vived. W e are able from this work to view the kinds of prodigies recorded from 167 B.C. onwards, in comparison with what preceded. W e shall first see h o w Livy prefigures Augustus mysteriously in his early chapters, a n d how he associates his figure with the augur's office. 2A 4.2. Augustus' Early prefiguration: 8,6,9 and 5,23,4-11 In 340 B.C. T o r q u a t u s the consul p e r s u a d e d the senate to w a r with the Latins after the d e a t h of Annius w h o h a d spurned R o m a n Jupiter. In the field of battle: There in the stillness of the night both consuls are said to have been visited by the same apparition (visa species) of a man of greater than human stature (viri maioris quam pro humano habitu) and more august (augustiorisque) who declared that the commander of one side and the army of the other must be offered to the Manes and Mother Earth (Deis Manibus Matrique Terrae deberi). 8,6,9-10 T h e advice given by this vir augustior was clearly cultic a n d augural. T h e y r e s p o n d e d with the decision t h a t "victims must b e slain to avert the w r a t h of h e a v e n (averruncandae deum irae victimas caedi)" T h e "entrails c o r r e s p o n d e d to w h a t h a d b e e n seen in the d r e a m (extis eadem quae in somnio visa fuerant portenderentur)." (8,6,11) T h e prevision of Augustus associates him therefore with the cult of augury. W e m a y note several other such passages that prefigure Augustus in the early chapters of Livy. Hercules is described as formamque viri aliquantum ampliorem augustioremque humana. T o the god that bears this h u m a n form is m a d e the promise that he should have the aram maximam dedicated by the "greatest nation on e a r t h . " (1,7,9) Livy would 26

2 6

See also Livy praef. 7; 5,41,8; 8 , 9 , 1 0 . T h e reference to Augustus is denied both in these passages and those cited in m y text by Walsh (1989), pp. 1 5 - 1 6 support ing H . Erkell, Augustus, Felicitas Fortuna, (Goteborg 1952), p. 19, but see L. Ross T a y l o r , T h e Divinity o f the R o m a n E m p e r o r , in American Philological Association, Philological Monographs, 1 (Connecticut 1931), p p . 1 6 4 - 1 6 5 w h o points out that in Livy 1,7 Hercules and R o m u l u s in attaining Divinity are prototypes o f Augustus

THE FOUNDATIONS OF THE IMPERIAL CULT

33

have seen the fulfilment of this prefigurement in the dedication of the Ara Pacis to Augustus (Augustae) on his return from Spain a n d G a u l in 9 B.C., which was the very date o n which Augustus con ducted his o w n lustrum of the city. T h u s we can see the dialogue between Livy a n d the Ara conceptually integrated with his p e r c e p tions a n d idealizations of Augustus a n d his divine p u r p o s e . It should be further pointed out that Livy is quite fond of discrete allusions to Augustus' later cult. For example, he cites the case of the irrev erence of M a r c u s Furius Camillus, w h o s u b d u e d the Veii in 396 B.C., a n d describes h i m as maximus imperator omnium. At his adventus the crowds t h r o n g e d in unusual n u m b e r s , t h o u g h not quite with the cuncta ex Italia ad comitia mea confluente multitudine that m e t to elect Augustus as Pontifex Maximus in Res Gestae c. 10. F u r t h e r m o r e Furius rode into the city on a chariot d r a w n by white horses in impersonation of Jupiter a n d the Sun G o d (Apollo; 5,23,4-11). T h e latter, as we shall later see, was the dress of O c t a v i a n w h e n he c o m m e m o r a t e d Actium in 28 B.C. T h u s this was the form of dress that a M a r c u s Furius Camillus could only have w o r n with irrever ence, b u t which the Augustus of s u p e r h u m a n proportions (visa species viri maioris quam pro humano habitu augustiorisque) could n o w w e a r as befitting his status n e a r i n g divinity (8,6,12). 27

2A 4 . 2 . 1 . Augustus: 1,19,1-3, 28,2,2 and the lost ending W e c a n see m o r e o v e r a clear parallel between the legendary role of N u m a a n d the historical role of Augustus, in relation to augury a n d the pax deorum. N u m a is p r o p o s e d as king (716 B.C.). H e insists that the gods be consulted as follows: Being summoned, he commanded that just as Romulus had obeyed the augural omens in founding his city (augurato urbe condenda) and assum ing regal power (regnum adeptus est), so too in his own case the gods should be consulted. Accordingly an augur, who thereafter, as a mark

just as in H o r a c e Odes 111,14,1; I V , 5 , 3 5 ; Ep. 11,1,5. Both are called augustus, and "in several passages in the early books Livy uses the w o r d augustus in contrast to humanus in what w o u l d seem to be a conscious effort to call to m i n d the emperor's position." See also L. Ross Taylor, Livy and the N a m e Augustus, in ClassRev 32 (1918), p p . 1 5 8 - 1 6 1 . B . O . Foster in the L o e b edition remarks that he was probably mistaken about popular resentment since the suggestion o f Jupiter in dress and chariot was cus tomary. But this misses the point that Livy is making regarding Augustus a n d his successors by pretending that Furius' behaviour was so unusual. 2 7

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of honour, was made a priest of state in permanent charge of that function (publicum id perpetuumque sacerdotium Jiiit), conducted him to the citadel. . . 1,18,6 T h e augur took his lituus, the crooked staff, m a r k i n g out the right a n d left sides of the heavens, a n d p o i n t e d to w h e r e the gods should send signs, which accordingly they did (1,18, 7-10). Livy therefore c o n n e c t e d special acts of a u g u r y with N u m a ' s second founding of R o m e after Romulus. This fact on its own might not appear significant, b u t Livy t h e n immediately associates the event with Augustus' estab lishment of the principate: When he was thus empowered with kingship (qui regno ita potitus), he prepared to found the new city afresh (urbem novam . . . de integro condere parat), that had been founded on force and armed might (conditam vi et armis), upon law, and statutes, and morals (iure earn legibusque ac moribus) . . . He thought it necessary that his warlike people should be softened by the disuse of arms, and built the temple of Janus at the bottom of the Argilentum, as an index of peace and w a r . . . Twice since Numa's reign it has been closed: once in the consulship of Titus Manlius, after the conclusion of the First Punic War; the second time, which the gods permitted our own generation to witness, was after the battle of Actium, when the emperor Caesar Augustus had brought about peace on land and sea . . . 1,19,1-3 T h u s there is a parallelism between N u m a a n d Augustus, w h o also sought to replace p o w e r based vi et armis with a n authority that was founded iure earn legibusque ac moribus. F u r t h e r m o r e , the i n a u g u r a t i o n of p e a c e was associated with the T e m p l e of J a n u s . W o u l d not Livy's lost e n d i n g have exploited further this parallel? Augustus himself gives direct confirmation t h a t this is the case in the Res Gestae. H e records that on his r e t u r n from his successes in Spain a n d G a u l : The altar of the peace of Augustus (aram Pacis Augustae/pcou.6v Eipf|VT|<; lepaoTfjq) the Senate, in thanks for my return (pro reditu meo/bnzp xr\c, E\IT\<; inavobov) ordered to be consecrated in the Campus Martius, in which it ordered that magistrates and priests and Vestal Virgins should make an annual sacrifice. The temple of Janus on the Quirinal, which our ancestors wished to remain shut, when peace (pax) had been secured by victories through out the whole Roman empire, by land and by sea, had been remem bered to have been closed only twice from the foundation of the city

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(a condita urbe) before I was born, this the Senate decreed should be closed three times while I was princeps. Res Gestae 12-13 This passage therefore clearly connects the a n n u a l sacrifices at the Ara Pacis with augury a n d the pax deorum, a n d also with the T e m p l e of J a n u s . T h e Res Gestae m a y only survive in o n e of its several r e p r o ductions as the m o n u m e n t from Ankyra. But the original of that inscription, by its own admission, was on two b r o n z e pillars set u p at R o m e , p r e s u m a b l y in relation to the m o n u m e n t a l complex of Solarium a n d M a u s o l e u m of which the Ara originally formed p a r t . 2 8

29

T h e remains of the Ara Pacis, dedicated in 9 B.C., w e r e identified originally by F. von D u h n in 1879, u n d e r the Palazzo Fiano o n the west side of the Via Flaminia, a n d accordingly reconstructed (Plate l ) . O n the southern side of the altar Augustus a n d A g r i p p a (at that time his designated successor), are b o t h depicted w e a r i n g veils that are the symbols of priestly office: priests w o r e veils for sacrifice. A r o u n d Augustus stand the pontifices a n d augures, with flamines in their helmet-like leather h e a d covering, the galerus, with the point or apex at the t o p . T h e cultic emphasis o n the pax deorum is quite transpar ent. T h e Pontifex Maximus is Augustus himself, w h o , assisted by his heir Agrippa, is to perform the rite himself that is to secure that metaphysical pax. 30

31

In the iconography of the Ara Pacis, Augustus at first sight m a y

28

Res Gest. praef.: " . . . incisarum in duabus aheneis pillis, quae sunt R o m a e positae, e x e m p l a r subiectum." E. Bianchi, Ara Pacis Augustae, ( R o m e : Fratelli Palombi 1994), p p . 7 - 8 . T h e accuracy o f the reconstruction has b e e n questioned by N . H a n n e s t a d , in Tradition in Late Antique Sculpture. Conservation-Modernisation-Production, in Acta Jutlandica 6 9 , 2 , H u m a n i t i e s Series 6 9 , (Aarhus: University Press 1994) w h o argues that c o n tinuous reworking has r e m o v e d any original Augustan content to the friezes. But see in reply A. Claridge, Late-antique reworking of the Ara Pacis and other i m p e rial sculpture? in JRA 10 (1997), pp. 4 4 7 - 4 5 3 . E. Peterson, Ara Pacis Augustae, in Sonderschriften des Osterreichischen Archaologischen Instituts in Wien, B d II, (Wien: Alfred H o l d e r 1902), p p . 1 3 8 - 1 3 9 ; E. La R o c c a , Ara Pacis Augustae in occasione del restauro delta fronte orientate, (Roma: "L'Erma" di Bretschneider 1983); G. K o e p p e l , D i e historischen Reliefs der romischen Kaiserzeit, V , Ara Pacis Augustae, in BJb, 187 (1987), p. 102; D . Fishwick, T h e Imperial Cult in the Latin West: Studies in the Ruler Cult o f the Western Province of the R o m a n Empire, in EPRO 108 (1987) 1,1, p. 9 8 discusses the precise dating of the completion after its original "constitution" in 13 B . C . S e e also ibid. p p . 2 0 3 - 2 0 6 . Bianchi (1994) p p . 1 3 - 1 6 ; D . Castriota, The Ara Pacis Augustae and the Imagery of Abundance in Later Greek and Early Roman Imperial Art, (Princeton: U . P . 1995), pp. 124-144. 2 9

3 0

31

36

CHAPTER TWO

a p p e a r to b e Pontifex Maximus a n d augur simply priest at a n altar of a n augurium of extraordinary dimension that p r o d u c e s the golden age over which Tellus, a n d Pax preside, in which the earth yields its a b u n d a n c e (Plate 2). It might be t h o u g h t therefore that augury, the pax deorum, a n d the aetas aurea form one distinct aspect of the religious significance of Augustus quite different from that of his deification as R o m a n e m p e r o r . T h e two strands are often considered to be quite separate. M y a r g u m e n t here will be that nevetheless in the ideology of the Imperial Cult b o t h strands were in fact conflated, at least in m a n y instances of " t h e reciprocal relation of art-object a n d viewer, viewer a n d art-object that creates a 'dialogue' out of which m e a n ing is b o r n . " 32

33

Firsdy, as Fears p o i n t e d o u t , abstract qualities a n d virutes such as Pax a n d Concordia were personified in the form of gods a n d god desses. T h e Ara Pacis was therefore not simply the m e a n s of secur ing pax t h r o u g h augurium b u t also the m e a n s of w o r s h i p p i n g t h e goddess Pax herself. But note the addition of the adjective that points to the divinity of the E m p e r o r himself (Augustus/lefiacToq). T h e full tide of the altar is the Ara Pacis Augustae or the PCOJJXX; Eipr|vr|<; lePaaxriq. Both the sacerdotal a n d augurial strand is thus in process of conflation with that which asserts the e m p e r o r ' s divinity. T h e divine essence of Pax loses its i n d e p e n d e n c e a n d is m a d e p a r t of the divine essence of the E m p e r o r whose n a m e is Augustus. Secondly the distinction between the priest of a cult a n d the divin ity w o r s h i p p e d was n o t always strictly m a i n t a i n e d . Augustus m a y a p p e a r depicted on the Ara Pacis as a priest veiled for sacrifice. But Tiberius was so depicted in the T e m p l e at S m y r n a erected in his h o n o u r as a priest of the cult of whose worship he was the object. As Price points out, "the gods often held their own e p o n y m o u s priest hoods, a n d are often shown m a k i n g sacrificial offerings," p r e s u m a b l y to themselves. 34

W e must note therefore the centrality of the cult to the A u g u s t a n settlement, a n d to the personal role of b o t h Augustus himself a n d his successors in the sacral acts or auguria of that cult. Pax Augusta is a n abstraction, personalised as a divinity, b u t related w h e n used as 3 2

Eisner (1991) p. 5 2 , and footnote 1 and related text. J . R . Fears, T h e Cult o f Virtues, in ANRW 2,17,2 (1981), pp. 8 2 7 - 9 4 8 . S.R.F. Price, Rituals and Power: The Roman Imperial Cult in Asia Minor, (Cambridge: U . P . 1984), p. 185. 3 3

3 4

THE FOUNDATIONS OF THE IMPERIAL CULT

37

a qualifying adjective to the e m p e r o r ' s own divinity. T h e r e would therefore seem to b e a connection between the Res Gestae, Livy's con cerns with prodigies a n d the cultic m e a n s for dealing with these t h r o u g h augurium, a n d developing concepts of the e m p e r o r ' s o w n divinity. T h e r e m a r k that the temple of J a n u s h a d only b e e n closed twice a(b) condita urbe in Res Gestae 13 recalls, after all, the title of Livy's o w n work. F u r t h e r m o r e , it will be impossible to separate the augural a n d priesdy themes of the Ara with those of the process of divinisation of the e m p e r o r himself. W e d o well therefore to ask w h e t h e r such a role was not present in the lost e n d i n g of Livy. N u m a ' s authority, moreover, as Livy describes it, was clearly related to the official cult of augury, to the publicum id perpetuumque sacerdotium. W e m a y well ask w h e t h e r it is n o t possible t h a t Livy e n d e d his his tory by d r a w i n g similar features in the case of Augustus, particularly to his securing the pax deorum after centuries of civil strife a n d divine p o r t e n t s . C e r t a i n l y in the s e c o n d reference to Augustus we find prefigured his claimed, universal reign of p e a c e . R e g a r d i n g Spain, he records that in 206 B.C. it was only partly conquered a n d continues: Accordingly the first of the provinces entered by the Romans (Itaque ergo prima Romanis inita provinciarum), at least those of the mainland (quae quidem continentis sint), are the last to be conquered in our own age by the leadership and good fortune of Augustus Caesar (postrema omnium nostra demum aetate ductu auspicioque Augusti Caesaris perdomita est). 28,12,12 W e c a n parallel the i m p o r t a n c e of the victory in Spain with the ide ology of Augustus' nascent Imperial Cult. T h e a n n u a l sacrifices of thanksgiving at the Ara Pacis were, according to Res Gestae c. 12, for his r e t u r n (pro reditu/urcep xfjq eufjq £7cav68o\)) ex Hispania Galliaque. T h e sacerdotal r a t h e r t h a n imperial role, witnessed as we have seen in the south panel of the Ara, would also support this conclusion. Livy's lost e n d i n g cries out for the feature that o t h e r sources by themselves would b e sufficient to establish. R o m a n political theology c o n n e c t e d Augustus' ius augurium with his office of Pontifex Maximus, a n d also with his historical role as achieving the pax deorum w h e r e others h a d failed. Before therefore we look at Livy's t r e a t m e n t of prodigies, let us record two writers w h o connect Augustus' office spe cifically with this augural function. In both Suetonius a n d Dio Cassius we have later references to the original significance of Augustus' title a n d role in connection with the ius augurium.

CHAPTER TWO

38

2A 4.2.2. Suetonius Augustus 7 Suetonius, writing in the reign of H a d r i a n (A.D. 120), clearly regards the divine tide of Augustus, taken by O c t a v i a n , as closely connected with his a u g u r a l function. T h i s m a y reflect the extension of the Imperial C u l t u n d e r D o m i t i a n that we shall describe a n d evaluate in a later chapter. But the iconography of the Ara Pacis h a d reflected such a function, as we shall argue further (2B 1). Suetonius m a y have used Livy as a source, a n d we m a y therefore here too catch the tenor a n d tendency of Livy's lost ending. Suetonius records t h a t O c t a v i a n took C a e s a r ' s n a m e u n d e r his great uncle's will, a n d that of Augustus, o n the advice of M u n a t i u s Plancus. R a t h e r t h a n call himself R o m u l u s as founder of the city, he chose the n a m e Augustus. T h e reason that Suetonius gives con nects that tide with the ius augurium: He preferred to be called Augustus (Augustus potius vocaretur), not only with a new but more significant surname (non tantum novo sed etiam ampliore cognomine), but also because religious places which are conse crated by an "augur's" ritual (quod loca quoque religiosa et in quibus augurato quid consecratur) are called "august" (augusta dicantur), either from the increase or from the movement and feeding of birds (ab auctu vel ab avium gestu gustuve) just as Ennius informs us when he writes (sicut etiam Ennius docet scribens): Afterwards Rome had been founded by an august augury (Augusto augurio postquam incluta condita Roma est). Suetonius, Augustus, 1 T h u s Suetonius r e g a r d e d the tide Augustus as m e a n i n g a n d implying someone associated with the office of augur a n d the practice of augurium. W e shall now, from a different perspective, see h o w D i o Cassius also makes this connection. 2A 4.2.3. Dio Cassius 37,24,1 and (Epitome) 51,20,4 D i o wrote his work, of which a large p a r t survives only in the form of a n Epitome (51-77), d u r i n g the reign of Alexander Severus a n d e n d e d it at his own second consulship in 229 A . D . It seems clear that until the e n d of the Second Punic W a r D i o has an alternative source to Livy. But from then o n w a r d s , there is a clear d e p e n d e n c e on the latter as is shown by the overlap with the books that survive for the period until 167 B.C. w h e n Livy's a c c o u n t breaks off. D i o explicity refers to Livy, Sallust, a n d Arian as his sources. 35

67,12,4; 40,63,4; 69,51,1.

39

THE FOUNDATIONS OF THE IMPERIAL CULT

Millar has described Dio's a c c o u n t of the reign of Augustus as "the most complete a n d satisfactory one that we h a v e . " T h e ques tion of Dio's sources is a complex o n e . T h e r e is a dispute regard ing w h e t h e r 5 3 , 1 7 - 1 9 m a r k s the transition from Livy's lost e n d i n g a n d the beginning of the lost history of Aufidius Bassus, or w h e t h e r to the contrary the break with Livy comes at Book 54. But since the passages on which I will rely are before either putative point of d e p a r t u r e , this dispute n e e d not detain us h e r e . 36

37

In view of w h a t we have a r g u e d to be the role of the prodigia in Livy as a n index of the b r e a k d o w n of R e p u b l i c a n constitutional order, we m a y b e confident that D i o , at least in his explanation of the m e a n i n g of Augustus' n a m e , is following Livy. Stoic natural the ology as a theology of the augurium is specifically reflected in b o t h accounts. D i o does not h o w e v e r follow Suetonius, a n o t h e r of his sources, in his derivation of the n a m e of "Augustus." M e n t i o n i n g O c t a v i a n ' s desire to be called R o m u l u s , repressed in favour of this tide, Xiphilinus' Epitome claims that the title refers to " w h a t is m o r e t h a n h u m a n (nkz\6\ xi r\ Kccxd dvGpcoTcoix;)," a n d to h o w precious a n d sacred objects are described (rcdvxa yap i d evxiudxaxa m i xd iepcoxaxa auyouaxa 7rpoaayopeuexai). F u r t h e r m o r e , it is the equivalent of Sebastos (lepocoxoq) in Greek, which comes from the verb "to revere (aepd£eoGai)." (53,16,8) T h u s this title does not immediately suggest a n y connection with the n a m e of " a u g u r " as it did in Suetonius. 38

Yet D i o (Xiphilinus) makes the connection in a n o t h e r way, a n d one t h a t relates his account to the underlying theology of L u c a n ' s Pharsalia, if not Livy's. D i o records a short respite from w a r d u r i n g the events of the First T r i u m v i r a t e in 6 3 B.C. It is at this point that he refers to the augurium saiutis, the sacred ritual for securing salva tion or safety, for the celebration of which these events call. H e claims: " . . . they even held the so called augurium salutis, after a very long interval. For this of course is a kind of a u g u r y . " H e explains that permission was sought w h e t h e r they could ask for prosperity, 39

3 6

F. Millar, A Study of Cassius Dio, (Oxford: Clarendon 1964), p. 8 3 . In favour of the former, see M . A . Levi, D o p o Azio: appunti sulle fonti augustee: D i o n e Cassio, in Athen. 15 (1937), p. 3; in favour o f the latter see F.A. M a r x , D i e Q u e l l e n der Germanenkriege bei Tacitus und D i o , Klio 2 9 (1936), p. 9 4 . S e e also Millar (1964) p p . 8 3 - 8 7 ff. Millar (1964) p p . 8 5 - 8 7 . 3 7 , 2 4 , 1 : coaxe m i TO oicoviouoc TO Tfjq hyeiaq covouocopivov 5 i a 7cdv\> noXkov Tcoifjaai. TOVTO 8e 8f| uavTe(a<; Tiq xponoq EOT{. 3 7

3 8

3 9

40

CHAPTER TWO

a n d that this special augural rite would only be offered on a day in which there was a complete military cessation (37,24,2). T h u s dur ing civil w a r it was impossible to celebrate this rite. T h e i r a t t e m p t nevertheless o n this occasion is thus described: Nevertheless it was in some way possible at that time for the divina tion to be held (TO oicoviouxx eiceivo rcoir|9f)vai), but it was impure (ox> (xevToi KocBotpov eyevexo). For certain birds flew from the unlucky quar ter, and for this reason they repeated the augury (dvejiavTevaavTo). Other unlucky omens too occurred. Dio 37,25,1 A m o n g s t these were thunderbolts from a clear blue sky, e a r t h q u a k e s , a n d ghosts (ei8coA,d xe 7toMxx%60i dvBpcorccov e(pavida0r|). D i o therefore records the firm belief that d u e to civil w a r , the m e a n s for securing by a u g u r y the pax deorum w e r e n o t effective. W h e n e v e r they w e r e tried, they p r o v e d to b e c o u n t e r p r o d u c t i v e : augury at that time only resulted in further supernatural disturbances. But when his Epitomist, Xiphilinus deals with his account of Augustus, a n d the o p e n i n g of the doors of the temple of J a n u s , which as we have seen Livy most certainly described, he is able to show h o w Augustus has achieved the pax deorum a n d p e r f o r m e d the augurium salutis with favourable o u t c o m e . O f all the h o n o u r s t h a t C a e s a r (Augustus) received, this was the most significant: Nevertheless the action which pleased him more than all the decrees was the closing by the senate of the gates of the temple of Janus, implying that all their wars had entirely ceased, and the taking of the augurium salutis (TO oicbviauxx TTI<; i)y£(a<;), which had at this time fallen into disuse for the reasons that I have noted. Dio (Xiphilinus) 51,20,4 Xiphilinus has already explained that C a e s a r (Augustus) by n o w con trolled the state cult, a n d although h e does not use the title Pontifex Maximus, w h i c h by his time was an ecclesiastical title, he neverthe less tells us that Augustus could "choose as m a n y priests as he wished a n d appoint them in office (iepeocq... ocovq a v del eGeAriaei TtpoaipeioOai 7cpoaKaTeaxr|aavTo)." (51,20,3) T h u s for D i o there is a direct con nection between Augustus' role in history, the Imperial Cult, a n d the cultic m e a n s of achieving the pax deorum t h r o u g h a u g u r y that a p p e a r s t o reflect w h a t he found in Livy as the p r i m a r y source for this p a r t o f his work. W e shall shortly see that the pax deorum, that fails in the civil w a r

THE FOUNDATIONS OF THE IMPERIAL CULT

41

together with the augury whose function it is to secure it, is a t h e m e too of Lucan's Pharsalia. But let us briefly now see whether Livy shows any indication of subscribing to such a theology of history as well. 2A 4.2.4. Livy and Augustus: portents and auspicia In 4,20,7, of which we have already m a d e m e n t i o n , Livy credits Augustus with rebuilding the temples as the conditor et restitutor omnium templorum. In Res Gestae c. 19 a n d 21 he boasts, a m o n g s t other things, of erecting the temples of Apollo in the Palatine, of Divus Julius in the Circus Flaminius, a n d at the Capitol of Juppiter Triumphans a n d Juppiter Tonans. H e also restored sacred o r n a m e n t s to the shrines of "all the provinces of Asia." (c. 24) It must be a d m i t t e d in Livy's case that the n a t u r e a n d type of prodigies are similar t h r o u g h o u t his work, a n d n o difference in this respect a p p e a r s in Julius Obsequens as events d r a w n e a r e r to the d e a t h of C a e s a r in 44 B . C . But the sheer vol u m e of these prodigies, occurring n o w every o n e year or two, shows a d r a m a t i c increase on his earlier books. T h e century before the civil w a r was o n e in which the ira deorum increased, requiring stronger a n d diviner m e a n s of securing their m o r e lasting pax. Prodigies from time to time t h r o u g h o u t Livy's history are recorded with such features as lightening striking temples, showers of earth or stones, a mule p r o d u c i n g a colt, a twelve y e a r old h e r m a p h r o d i t e executed by o r d e r of the haruspices, a rain of blood, a n e w island in the sea, a mule with three feet, J u n o ' s image shedding tears, turn ing heads of images of the gods d u r i n g a n e a r t h q u a k e , absence of vultures over corpses, blood trickling from land, wool growing from trees, w a t e r dripping from a statue, a kite d r o p p i n g a weasel in the Senate, a m e t e o r seen in the sky, a n d a boy b o r n with four h a n d s a n d feet, e t c . T h e cultic m e a n s of dealing with such prodigia so as to restore the pax deorum are from time to time recorded in answer to such prodi gia. But, from the beginning until 176 B.C., the records of divina tion are records of continually successful conduct of the ritual whether it records favour or hostility for a p r o p o s e d course of action. For e x a m p l e , in 340 B.C. Decius a n d Manlius the consuls offer sacrifice a n d the haruspices are present to inform t h e m of w h e t h e r the gods have b e e n propitious: 40

4 0

1,20,7; 4,21,5; 5,14,4; 5 , 1 5 , 1 ; 2 4 , 1 0 , 1 3 ; 2 7 , 3 7 , 6 - 8 ; 4 1 , 1 6 , 6 , etc.

42

CHAPTER TWO

The haruspex is reported to have indicated to Decius that the head of the liver (caput iocineris) had been cut on the friendly side (a familiari parte caesum): otherwise the victim had been accepted by the gods (alioqui acceptam dis hostiam esse); Manlius had succeeding in gaining propi tiation (Manlium egregie litasse). 8,9,1 But from 215 B.C., although some auspicia are still successful, e x a m ples are i n t r o d u c e d in which the auspicium fails or encounters great difficulty. In 215 B . C . in the w a r against H a n n i b a l , Fabius did not venture to lead his armies across the river Volturnus: . . . he was concerned at first (occupatus primo) that he should repeat the auspicia (auspiciis repetendis); then with portents (dein prodigiis) which were reported one after another (quae alia super alia nuntiabantur) and while he was making expiation (expiantique) the haruspices continually replied that it was by no means easy to gain propitiation (ea baud facile litari haruspices respondebant). 23,36,9-10 T h e cult itself was beginning to fail to achieve the pax deorum that was the object of expiare a n d litari, a n d to fail because the cultic rit ual itself was unsuccessful. In 212 B.C., in the midst of the Punic W a r , the consul Tiberius G r a c c h u s experienced a m o r e serious failure of the a p p a r a t u s of haruspicium: As Gracchus was sacrificing (sacrificanti) before he left Lucania, an unfavourable portent (triste prodigium) occurred. When sacrifice had been accomplished (sacrificio perpetrato), two snakes glided stealthily up to the entrails (ad exta) and set about devouring the liver (adedere iocur). When for that reason the sacrifice was repeated (sacrificium instauraretur) on the advice of the haruspices (haruspicum monitu), and the entrails were pre served with greater care (intentius exta reservarentur), they relate that a second and third time the snakes slithered forward, and, having tasted the liver (libatoque iocinere) escaped unharmed. Though the haruspices had forewarned that the portent applied to the general (ad imperatorem id pertinere prodigium) and that he should beware of the hidden plans of men, still the impending fate could not be averted by any foresight (nulla tamen providentia fatum imminens moveri potuit). 25,16,1-4 T h u s for Livy the cultic means for securing success show contamination a n d failure at a critical m o m e n t in R o m e ' s history, at the pivotal m o m e n t for that history a n d its subsequent d e v e l o p m e n t that was the w a r with C a r t h a g e . T h i s passage is of interest for the further

THE FOUNDATIONS OF THE IMPERIAL CULT

43

reason t h a t Livy reveals that, b e y o n d his scepticism a b o u t the myths of the gods, there lies a Stoic conviction of the natural o r d e r a n d the way in which N a t u r e loses its h a r m o n y . Livy continues with some examples of favourable uses of the cult. In 209 B.C. the auspicia are unfavourable in that they give w a r n i n g , b u t still there is not failure of the ritual itself. T h u s Fabius is p r e served through augury from Hannibal's trickery. Similarly in 27,26,14 Marcellus simply ignored the hostia caesa iocur sine capite a n d is defeated, without any failure of the cult itself. In the M a c e d o n i a n w a r in 200 B.C. the Consuls' ritual (rem divinam rite peractarri) finds approval by the haruspices w h e n they p r o n o u n c e the exta to be laeta. T h e y even on this occasion claim t h a t the entrails " p o r t e n d extension of the borders, victory a n d t r i u m p h (prolationem finium victoriamque et triumphum portendi)" (31,5,7) Similar scenes are witnessed in 191 B.C. as well as in 172 B . C . But it remains possible that, given a n event such as the civil w a r from 4 4 B.C. o n w a r d s , a n d the decades that lead u p to it, Livy should have recorded the failures of the augurium a n d haruspicium, a i m e d at securing the pax deorum that h a d e m e r g e d in the earlier crisis of the Punic W a r . In that case a far stronger expi ation a n d cleansing of the city would be required, in the form of a n Augustan Imperial Cult that would have the support of fortuna, fatum, a n d providentia that Tiberius G r a c c h u s h a d lacked in 212 B.C. 41

42

43

As I have already m e n t i o n e d , from 171 B . C . o n w a r d s o u r only source that will enable us to study Livy's use of prodigia is Julius Obsequens.^ H e r e we find some evidence of a n intensification b o t h of prodigia a n d the incapability of the R e p u b l i c a n cult to deal with t h e m without reformation. In 176 B.C. the liver of a n animal, sacrificed by the consul, melted away (Julius Obsequens 9 cf. Livy 41,14,7). T h e Consul Postumius in 152 B . C . found n o h e a d on the liver of a large n u m b e r of sacrificial animals whilst sacrificing before d e p a r t u r e for battle (17). In the same year, all magistrates a n d priests resigned

41

W a l s h (1989), p p . 5 4 - 6 1 . 2 7 , 1 6 , 1 5 : "Fabio auspicanti, priusquam egrederetur a b T a r e n t o , aves semel atque iterum non addixerunt. Hostia q u o q u e caesa consulenti deos haruspex cavend u m a fraude hostili et ab insidiis praedixit." 3 6 , 1 , 3 : "ea o m n i a sacrificia laeta fuerunt, primisque hostiis perlitatum est, et ita haruspices responderunt, e o bello terminos populi R o m a n i propagari. . . ." Cf. also 4 2 , 2 0 , 2 - 4 . T h e numbers cited are from the edition by A . C . Schlesinger a n d R . M . G e e r , in vol. 14 o f Livy in the Loeb Classical Library ( L o n d o n / M a s s a c h u s e t t s : H e i n e m a n n / Harvard 1967). 4 2

4 3

4 4

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44

w h e n haruspices prophesied that they would all die following a whirl w i n d that destroyed a gilded statue in front of the temple of J u p i t e r (18). While the auspices were being taken, in 137 B.C., the chickens escaped a n d fled (24). At J u l i u s C a e s a r ' s sacrifice as dictator (44 B.C.), the exta were discovered to be devoid of a h e a r t (exta sine corde). (67) But Gaius Octavius, as he entered R o m e to be enrolled in the gens Julia, appeared s u r r o u n d e d by a rainbow-like arc. A c o m e t a p p e a r e d as h e sacrificed at the temple of his divine m o t h e r , V e n u s . A howling of dogs was h e a r d by night before the house of the Pontifex Maximus, a m o n g s t m a n y other portents (68). But at this point, in 42 B.C., Julius Obsequens breaks from the lurid details only to recount, n o t in the usual y e a r or two afterwards, b u t in 17 a n d 11 B.C. some small details con cerning a n e a r t h q u a k e a n d the swarm of bees a r o u n d D r u s u s . W h e r e Julius Obsequens fails, D i o from his source enables us to con tinue Livy's story. In 4 7 , 4 0 , 1 - 5 he lists the portents of 42 B.C. in lurid details, but t h e n goes on to point to cultic irregularity w h e n he records t h a t the praefectus urbanus celebrated the festival of J u p i t e r Latiaris that was neither his prerogative, n o r was it ordinarily observed at that time. W e see therefore that the scene was set for the religious refor m a t i o n of the Imperial Cult. T h e g r a n t i n g to Augustus of the ius augurium could have prefigured in Livy's final b o o k . W h e n we n o w t u r n to L u c a n ' s t r e a t m e n t of the events of the civil war, we are o n firmer g r o u n d . H e r e , less speculatively, it can be established that L u c a n clearly conceived the supernatural character of the pax Augusta, which he saw as the achievement of the pax deorum t h r o u g h the ius augurium of the Imperial Cult. F u r t h e r m o r e , t h a t concept of pax is u n d e r p i n n e d by a Stoic metaphysic of fatum a n d fortuna, a n d by the c o n c e p t of a rational, metaphysical o r d e r t h a t unites the rational action of n a t u r e with the rites of the haruspicium performed to divine the future a n d indeed in some sense to control it. It is therefore to L u c a n ' s t r e a t m e n t of such themes that we n o w turn. 45

2A 4.3. Lucan's Stoic theology and haruspicium Livy was u n d o u b t e d l y sceptical a b o u t the myths a n d legends of the gods a n d their cult, although his grasp of Stoic concepts of fatum

A:>

Res Ges. 7,2: pontifex m a x i m u s , augur, X V virum sacris faciundis, VII virum e p u l o n u m , frater arvalis, sodalis Titius, fetialis fui.

THE FOUNDATIONS OF THE IMPERIAL CULT

45

a n d fortuna was slight. W e saw in connection with Tiberius G r a c c h u s in 212 B.C. that Livy was p r e p a r e d to set fatum a n d fortuna against the operations of augurium a n d haruspicium, a n d to argue that the for m e r h a d vanquished the powers of the latter. L u c a n will not agree to such a possibility. L u c a n does not introduce into his epic poetry, quite contrary to convention, the intervention of gods a n d goddesses. T h e s e he r a t h e r replaces with the Stoic conception of fatum a n d fortuna u n d e r p i n n e d by the Stoic m o n i s m of n a t u r e or (puaiq as the m a t t e r whose ulti m a t e c h a r a c t e r is Xoyoq a n d which is therefore reasonable, divine a n d e n d o w e d with purpose. But t h o u g h he will dismiss a n a n t h r o p o m o r p h i s m that conceals the true n a t u r e of the divine W h o l e a n d its operation, he will not dismiss also the cult of augurium a n d harus picium, a n d so set this against fatum a n d fortuna as Livy h a d d o n e . T h e reason is to be found in the Stoicism of his uncle, Seneca, with w h o m he was to b e involved in a conspiracy against N e r o that would cost b o t h of t h e m their lives. Seneca replies to the question of the way in which things such as auspicia reveal future events with out b e i n g deliberately sent to d o so by some a n t h r o p o m o r p h i c a l l y conceived divine agency in the following way: You make God too lazy and the administrator of something trivial, if he is the disposer of dreams to some people but exta to others. The latter nonetheless are conducted under the resources of the divine (ista nihilominus divina ope geruntur), even if the wings of birds are not directly guided by a god (si non a deo pennae avium reguntur), nor the entrails of catde shaped by their very axe (nec pecudum viscera sub ipsa securi formantur). The scroll of fate is unwound on a different, rational princi ple (alia ratione fatorum series explicatur), which issues everywhere indications of the future (indicia venturi ubique praemittens), some of which are pro pitious to us (ex quibus quaedam nobis familiaria) and others unknown (quaedam ignota sunt). Whatever has happened is a sign of some future event (Quicquid Jit, alicuius reijuturae signum est). Chance events and ran dom occurrences without Xoyoc, (fortuita et sine ratione vaga) do not allow divination (divinationem non recipiunt); in whatever subject matter there is order (cuius res ordo est), there is also the possibility of prediction (etiam praedictio est). Seneca Quaestiones Maturates 2,32,4 T h e wings of birds are not directed by the god (non a deo pennae avium reguntur), but divine resources are still involved (divina ope geruntur). T h a t divinity is the i m m a n e n t ratio or Xoyoc, of the world a n d because the world consists of an orderly series of events, the future is predictable (cuius res ordo est, etiam praedictio est) a n d can b e read in present objects

CHAPTER TWO

46

such as exta or flights of birds. Divination therefore becomes a ratio nal possibility. Seneca has clearly forged a necessary link between ordo (in contrast to fortuita et sine ratione vaga), ratio (Xoyoq), fatum a n d divinatio. H e has also demythologised his theology in the process. W e shall n o w see this perspective reflected in L u c a n ' s historiography. 2A 4 . 3 . 1 . Lucan's Pharsalia and the p a x d e o r u m L u c a n in Pharsalia, 1, 5 2 2 - 6 0 5 describes the natural turmoil of the civil w a r b u t also emphasises its supernatural counterpart. T h e chaos of society was m i r r o r e d in a chaos in n a t u r e . T h e images of the Lares in h o m e s b e g a n to sweat (57), a n d wild beasts left the woods by night a n d m a d e their lairs in the city ( 5 5 9 - 5 6 0 ) . M o n s t r o u s births took place (562-563). T h e ancient, Sybilline prophecies, foreboding ill (diraque per populum Cumanae carmina vatis), w e r e r e p e a t e d again (volgantur). ( 5 6 4 - 5 6 5 ) A Fury with a flaming pine tree held d o w n wards with hissing hair a n d of gigantic size stalked the city (572-574). T h e ghosts of Sulla a n d of M a r i u s , themselves the former destroy ers of the civil p e a c e , were seen to walk again a m i d these super natural disorders: . . . e medio visi consurgere Campo Tristia Sullani cecinere oracula manes, Tollentemque caput gelidas Anienis ad undas Agricolae Marium jracto fugere sepulchro. Lucan, Pharsalia, 1, 5 8 0 - 5 8 3 .

46

A cultic note is s o u n d e d in the passage by the use of the t e r m tristia. Tristis, as we have seen in connection with Livy's account of Tiberius G r a c c h u s in 212 B.C., often contrasts with laeta as a n adjectival description of a n unfavourable as opposed to favourable consulta tion of the exta} T h e i n h a b i t a n t s of A r i m i n u m , w h e n they see Caesar's legions having crossed the R u b i c o n , cry over their "city walls d a m n e d because of their unlucky site (o tristi damnata loco)," a n d sigh for " d e e p p e a c e a n d tranquility (pax alta. . . tranquilla quies)." (1, 248-250) A r r u n s the old Etruscan haruspex is n o w s u m m o n e d (Tuscos de more vetustolacciri vates), of w h o m it is said: 1

. . . From the centre o f the C a m p u s Martius was seen to rise, T h e shade o f Sulla prophesying inauspicious things, A n d rearing his h e a d beside Anio's cool streams, Marius burst from his sepulchre and put the farmer to flight. Livy, 2 5 , 1 6 , 3 - 4 , q u o t e d above p. 4 8 ; 2 7 , 2 6 , 1 4 .

47

THE FOUNDATIONS OF THE IMPERIAL CULT

.... Quorum qui maximus aevo Arruns incoluit desertae moenia Lucae, Fulminis edoctus motus venasque calentes Fibrarum et monitus mantis in aere pinnae. 1, 585-588.

48

H e orders the b u r n i n g of the monsters "which n a t u r e , at variance with herself, h a d b r o u g h t forth (discors protulerat natura)" (589-590) Clearly the ratio or Xoyoq that follows a progression of ordo was not n o w present in N a t u r e which has lost its pax. T h e pontiffs, w h o alone clearly have the authority (pontifices, sacri quibus est permissa potestas), including the " F l a m e n sporting a r o u n d his pointed cap on his exulted h e a d (tollens apicem generoso verticeflameri)" (604) p e r f o r m the c e r e m o n y of purification t h a t h e r e c o m m e n d s a r o u n d the pomerium, or city b o u n d a r y (591-595), just as Livy h a d frequendy described a similar practice following prodigia tristia. But according to L u c a n , w h o m a y have h a d some support in Livy's lost closing books, they are unsuccessful. For A r r u n s is finally to fail to achieve the pax deorum. 49

H e tries expiation over the r e m a i n s of the fallen t h u n d e r b o l t s (606-610). H a v i n g performed of all these rites, he tries to perform a sacrifice. T h e bull's neck, w h e n subjected to a blow of the knife, p r o d u c e d a terrible v e n o m instead of red blood (diffusum rutilo dirum pro sanguine virus). (609-615) H e is mortified (palluit attonitus), a n d con sults the entrails to see there, n o t the peace, b u t the a n g e r of the gods (iram superum raptis quaesivit in extis). (617) Q u i t e a p a r t from the sickly a n d deformed organs, a second lobe is growing u p o n o n e lobe of the liver (617-629). T h u s A r r u n s , maximus aevo of all the Etruscans, fails to secure the pax deorum b u t only their ira, even t h o u g h h e is edoctus in the science of the haruspex. F u r t h e r m o r e , the pax r a t h e r t h a n the ira is m a r k e d by the observation of a chaotic n a t u r a l o r d e r of things. T h e ghosts of Sulla a n d of M a r i u s h a d walked again, w o m e n h a d given birth

4 8

. . . o n e of w h o m of greatest age, Arruns dwelt in the deserted site o f Lica, Learned in thunderbolt's clash and in the w a r m entrails, A n d in danger heralded aloft the air by each w i n g e d bird that wanders there . . . E.g. Livy 3 9 , 2 2 , 5 : "Hostiis maioribus consules procurarunt u r b e m q u e lustraverunt"; 4 5 , 1 6 , 6 : "Et aliorum prodigiorum causa . . . sacrificatum est et urbs lustrata." Julius Obsequ. 12: "Urbe lustrata p a x d o m i forisque fuit." 4 9

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to monstrous children, a n d A r r u n s ' conclusion from his observation of the strange a n d monstrous exta was that the infernal gods h a d entered the b o d y of the slaughtered bull (caesique in pectora tauri inferni venere dei). (633-634) Clearly the obtaining of the pax deorum required the correction of discors natura. 2A 4.3.2. Lucan's explanation of the ira d e o r u m Nigidius Figulus n o w makes clear w h a t is at stake (638-672). T h e universe m a y be forever governed by n o law (nulla cum lege per aevum/ mundus, et incerto discurrunt sidera motu), or by a fate from n o w o n hos tile to R o m e a n d h u m a n i t y (aut, si fata movent, urbi generique paratur/ humano matura lues)." (641-645) T h e person of the E m p e r o r himself m a y not yet be, before Decius T r a j a n , r e g a r d e d generally, even by the Greek city-states that sought to establish his cult, as the sacra m e n t a l b o n d that established political a n d natural o r d e r t h r o u g h o u t a n empire that sought to encompass the world. But it is significant t h a t L u c a n regards the p r o b l e m of securing political o r d e r at R o m e as a c o n c o m i t a n t of righting t h r o u g h its official c u l t — t h r o u g h the pontifices, sacri quibus est permissa potestas—an upset a n d chaotic natural o r d e r (discors natura), which has consequences therefore for the h u m a n race (urbi generique. . . humano). According to L u c a n (Figulus), a political solution would go h a n d in h a n d with a religious a n d cultic solution. T h e political chaos of the civil w a r of some seventy years before O c t a v i a n was thus b u t a reflection of the mysterious cosmic chaos which was the ira deorum. Both n e e d e d to be righted, a n d by a difficult, mysterious process, the pax deorum obtained. T h a t pax will only c o m e with a dominus (cum domino pax ista venit). (670) R o m e ' s freedom (civili tantum iam libera bello) (672) is b u t a reflection of cosmic disorder: it is b u t the civil w a r as a reflection of constellations straying from their courses (cur signa mea tus/deseruere suos mundoque obscura feruntur?). (664) In setting the scene for his epic p o e m o n the civil w a r L u c a n has therefore effectively ruled out the kind of role for the gods which they were given by Vergil in imitation of H o m e r . T h e gods play 50

5 0

S.H. Braund, Lucan: Civil War: Translated with Introduction and Notes, (Oxford: Clarendon 1992), pp. xxii-xxiii; F.M. Ahl, Lucan: An Introduction, (Ithaca and L o n d o n : Cornell 1976) remarks perceptively, p. 2 8 3 : " T h e role o f the gods in traditional epic is superseded by a kind of Stoic hylozoism; the O l y m p i a n s yield to the work ings of natural p h e n o m e n a . For b e t w e e n m a n and nature there is still a b o n d that n o longer exists b e t w e e n m a n and the gods."

THE FOUNDATIONS OF THE IMPERIAL CULT

49

n o direct p a r t in the action: they d o not intervene to give succour or e n c o u r a g e m e n t to the heroes in the tale. T h e y are replaced by the Stoic concepts of fortuna, fatum, or fata. T h u s the centrality of the cult of augury at the o p e n i n g of the work is of great significance in describing the ultimate m e a n i n g of the historical events. T h e pax deo rum a n d the ira deorum, reflected in the natural as well as in the civil order, play a significant role in d e t e r m i n i n g the ultimate c h a r a c t e r of R o m a n political life. T h u s L u c a n ' s Stoicism demythologises his account, b u t leaves it nevertheless with a (puoiq which is ultimately e n d u e d with Xoyoc;, b u t with a n opGoq Aoyoq fractured by the mys terious supernatural forces at work within b o t h n a t u r e a n d h u m a n society. T h u s L u c a n p r o d u c e d a theology explicitly in Stoic terms that justified b o t h the e m p e r o r as Pontfex Maximus a n d p r o c u r e r of the pax deorum. His success was m o r e o v e r ironical in view of his clear mistrust of N e r o ' s a m b i t i o n s , a n d his clear regrets at the loss of republican liberty. But his doctrine of fate, justified in terms of Stoicism, with its clear implications for the legitimacy of augury a n d divination, seems to have m a d e w h a t h a d c o m e to pass necessary a n d inescapable. His conspiracy, after all, was not a i m e d at the restoration of the republic, b u t simply the removal of the tyrant N e r o in favour of a n o t h e r princeps. 51

52

L u c a n ends his clearly unfinished work in the year 4 8 - 4 7 B.C. This is unfortunate for o u r p u r p o s e since we d o not know o n w h a t note he was to conclude his epic. S o m e c o u n t e r p a r t seems required to the ira deorum described so vividly in such lurid hues. By w h a t suc cessful m e a n s , as the c o u n t e r p a r t to A r r u n s ' failure, was the final pax deorum to be secured? Surely by m e a n s of something like the augurium salutis that D i o (Xiphilinus) h a d claimed that Augustus suc cessfully celebrated w h e r e older, R e p u b l i c a n magistrates, h a d failed? W h e r e a n d w h e n was enacted the successful cleansing of the pomerium, a n d the sacrifice of a bull which w e n t normally with this ceremony? 51

L u c a n , Pharsalia 1, 2 6 5 - 3 3 0 ff. In view of this I find t o o strong J . C . Bramble, Lucan, in E J . K e n n e y and W . V . Clausen (eds.), The Cambridge History of Classical Literature, Vol. 2: Latin Literature, (Cambridge: U . P . 1982), p p . 5 4 3 - 5 4 5 : "there is nothing in the p o e m to warrant the hypothesis o f a growing discontent with Caesarism," quoted in Braund (1992), p. xvi. It is h o w e v e r true that N e r o w o u l d have identified himself with P o m p e y as opposed to Caesar in view of his great-great grandfather Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus, Pompey's general w h o is described most favourably in Pharsalia 2, 4 7 8 - 5 2 5 , see Braund (1992), p. xv. )2

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In w h a t form, according to L u c a n , was T a c i t u s ' message of pax et princeps finally represented in the aftermath of 44 B.C.? By w h a t cul tic m e a n s otherwise could natura discors b e restored to its n a t u r a l order? By the census a n d suovetaurilia of 9 B.C. c o m m e m o r a t e d on the side of Augustus' Ara Pacis (Plate 6), to which we have seen Livy points in 1,19, 1-3 a n d 28,12,12 (2A 4 . 2 . 1 , see also 2B l ) ? W e shall never k n o w for certain because L u c a n was forced to c o m m i t suicide after a failed a t t e m p t o n N e r o ' s life, along with his uncles Seneca a n d Gallio. It is however impossible that for h i m per sonally the answers were all tragic, a n d that n a t u r e h a d forever lost its benign order. H e did after all imply in Book 1 that the sequel in Book 10 would h a v e been that n a t u r e was set right. Fate would provide in civil society a reflection of n a t u r e at h a r m o n y with itself in which pax was a c c o m p a n i e d by a dominus (1, 670). T h e work m a y have been intended to e n d with the d e a t h of C a t o , or that of Caesar, or the battle of Philippi or that of Actium. F r o m m y a r g u m e n t it will be clear why I w o u l d support the r e t u r n of Augustus from Spain a n d the dedication of the Ara Pacis in 9 B.C. as its logical conclu sion: the theological assumptions of its Stoic determinism required the fully recovered pax deorum that the Ara clearly celebrated a n d secured. It is impossible, furthermore, given the history of the hered itary, imperial pontifices maximi from Augustus o n w a r d s that he would not have seen that pax in terms of a n Imperial Cult that exercised the republican political functions of the ius augurium n o w a d o p t e d a n d reformed by the Principate. 53

54

Let us n o w see h o w Augustus claimed the role of Pontifex Maximus a n d both the philosophical a n d cultic requirements for the pax deorum. 2A

5. Augustus, the p a x d e o r u m , and the ius a u g u r i u m

W e have established a clear connection between the ius augurium a n d the pax deorum. W e have shown the rational justification of that con-

5:1

For the argument that the Ara depicted a suovetaurilia, see C.A. Ralegh Radford, S o m e R e c e n t Discoveries in R o m e a n d Italy, in JRomS 2 9 (1939), p p . 4 5 - 5 6 , see also 3B 1 and Plate 6. R . T . Bruere, T h e S c o p e o f Lucan's Historical Epic, in CIPl 4 5 (1950), p p . 2 1 7 - 2 3 5 , is the principle supporter o f this p o i n t o f v i e w , for references a n d a discussion of w h i c h see Ahl (1976), p p . 3 0 8 - 3 1 4 ff. In o p p o s i n g this view Ahl (pp. 3 1 0 - 3 1 1 ) , misrepresents the role o f Nigidus Fibulus' "cum d o m i n o pax ista venit" as in s o m e w a y advocating freedom against a dominus, w h i c h I have argued w a s quite contrary to Lucan's Stoic determinism. 5 4

THE FOUNDATIONS OF THE IMPERIAL CULT

51

nection in terms of Stoic metaphysics regarding eiuocpuivr) or fatum or fortuna, a n d ratio or opGoq Xoyoq in Stoic theology. M o r e o v e r we have established a strong sense in the literature of the Augustan age that the civil w a r h a d constituted a supernatural disturbance in the o r d e r of n a t u r e as well as society unparalleled in R o m e ' s history. Such a disturbance r e q u i r e d a n equally unparalleled setting right t h r o u g h the m e d i u m of the imperial augurium. W e have seen such a theological diagnosis of constitutional failure in L u c a n a n d Livy, a n d in writers such as Seneca or D i o . 55

T h e traditional cult, n o m o r e t h a n the traditional constitution, h a d established either religious or civil peace. Augustus was required to perform a n act of augury which would be sufficiently powerful, as the existing cult was not, to cope with this disorientation of the nat ural o r d e r of things, a n d thus to provide the sacramental m e a n s of setting b o t h n a t u r e a n d society right. As we have seen, Augustus m a d e possible according to D i o the celebration of the augurium salutis, a n d his n a m e for Suetonius was synonymous with one w h o possessed the ius augurium (Augustus — augur, augurium).^ In Res Gestae c. 4,2 Augustus claims that his "successful military achievements, by land a n d by sea, directly or t h r o u g h legates (res a me aut per legatos meos. . . terra marique prospere gestas)," are u n d e r " m y favourable omens (auspicis meis)," accordingly translated ociaioic; oicovoiq in the G r e e k inscription of the Res Gestae whose original position was on two b r o n z e columns associated with the Ara Pacis from the reign of Tiberius o n w a r d s . T h e r e h a d b e e n m e n t i o n in c. 3 of the oath sworn to him personally (sub sacramento meo) by "three thousand R o m a n citizens." T h e Ara Pacis is not yet the altar on which his divinity is directly worshipped, with the p e a c e of the e m p e r o r supplicated with incense a c c o m p a n i e d by a n o a t h of imperial loyalty as it was to b e c o m e in the reign of Decius T r a j a n (A.D. 251). It is as yet the i m m o r t a l gods w h o are to be t h a n k e d for his victory, by decree of the Senate (ex senatus consulto), a n d n o t his divine personage itself. But we have a r g u e d that the a p p r o p r i a t i o n of the divine a n d personal ized Pax by the qualification Pax Augusta shows the discrete assimi lation of Pax to the e m p e r o r ' s o w n divinity. 5 5

For nature responding to the chaos a n d order o f civil society see Lucan, Phar salia, 4, 4 9 - 1 3 0 , especially e.g. 1 2 1 - 1 2 6 , where ". . . parvo Fortuna viri contenta pavore, plena r e d i t . . . " and " . . . servatoque loco rerum discessit ab astris u m o r , et ima p e t i t . . ." Ross T a y l o r (1931), p p . 1 5 8 - 1 5 9 . %

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In c. 7,3 we read: Pontifex Maximus, augur, XV virum sacris faciundis, VII virum epulonum, frater arvalis, sodalis Titius, fetialis fui. T h u s as p a r t of the process that linked divination with the p e a c e of the G o d s , Augustus was to reorganise the four major colleges (fetiales, Salii, Sodales Titi, a n d the jratres Arvaks). T h e ability of these colleges through a u g u r y to affect the political process was radically reduced. After 4 4 B . C . there was only o n e case of the t e m p o r a r y blocking of a n elec tion, a n d two consultations of the Sibylline b o o k s . T h e i r m a r k of submission to h i m as newly hereditary Pontifex Maximus was to m a k e sacrifices annually at the Ara Pacis a n d o n imperial anniversaries at the Ara Numinis Augusti on the Capitol a n d in the T e m p l e of Mars Ultor. T h e achievement by society of the pax deorum was from n o w o n to be t h r o u g h the office of the princeps. 57

58

59

T h a t his office as Pontifex Maximus, t h o u g h de iure for life, was n o w to be de facto hereditary is implied in c. 10: I refused the office of Pontifex Maximus when the people offered me that priesthood (poputo id sacerdotium deferente mihi) which my father had held, so that I should not replace my still-living colleague. After some years, when he [Lepidus] who had occupied this priesthood (quod sac erdotium) at the outbreak of the civil war had died, I accepted it, dur ing the consulship of P. Sulpicius and C. Valgo [ 1 2 B.C.], from all Italy when such a multitude had gathered together for my comitia as never before was reported at Rome. Clearly it was not a n office from which Augustus would admit, fol lowing his self-serving example, that a person could be deposed by p o p u l a r constitutional m e a n s . It was not a n o r d i n a r y b u t a n extra ordinary gathering t h a t h a d conveyed the tide o n him. In assuming the position of Pontifex Maximus he h a d united the R o m a n Religion organically in his p e r s o n . F r o m earliest times, the ius divinum was exercised by the college of pontiffs a n d augurs. Indeed, before the development of republi60

5 7

W a r d e Fowler (1911), p p . 4 3 5 - 4 3 7 ; Liebeschuetz (1979), p. 6 3 . Ross T a y l o r (1931), p. 199 a n d p p . 2 2 2 - 2 2 3 . Ibid. p. 6 5 . Bayet (1957), p. 179: "Lepide mort, August fut plebiscite G r a n d Pontife. Et soudain il affirma des droits exorbitants sur la fonction. N o n seulement il n e descendit pas au F o r u m o c c u p e r la d e m e u r e officielle de sa charge, pres de la Regia; mais il nationalisa p o u r y suppleer une partie de sa d e m e u r e du Palatin; y consacra officiellement u n e statue et un autel de Vesta; unit le culte de la deesse a celui d e ses Penates." 5 8

59

6 0

THE FOUNDATIONS OF THE IMPERIAL CULT

53

can g o v e r n m e n t , the president of that college seems to have b e e n the king, a n d the leges regiae were a b o u t the ritual a n d m o r a l m e a n s of achieving the pax deorum, before the publication of the Twelve T a b l e s . T h e king, originally, advised by the two augurs w h o with h i m constituted a college, possessed this right to take the auspices (habere auspicia)? T h e ius divinum that h a d passed to the Pontifex Maximus with the advent of republican g o v e r n m e n t was n o w to pass again to a hereditary r u l e r , even t h o u g h Augustus might cloak his m o n a r chical principles u n d e r the republican forms of princeps, tribunicia potestas, imperium proconsulare e t c . His very title of a reconstructed imperator in preference to rex further emphasised the continuity of autocracy legitimised in republican forms. But as Liebeschuetz p o i n t e d out, the i m p e r a t o r h a d the responsibility of taking the auspicia with the result that the lifelong a n d hereditary Pontifex Maximus was n o w the reli gious equivalent of the n o w lifelong a n d hereditary imperator. If polit ical p o w e r was to be for life, then clearly religious p o w e r with which it was inextricably associated must be so too. T h e result was thus the further concentration of b o t h secular a n d spiritual p o w e r in the h a n d s of a single p e r s o n . 61

2

63

64

65

F r o m his assumption of the final control of the ius divinum as Pon tifex Maximus certain eschatological a n d e v e n — t o transpose a J u d a e o Christian concept into a p a g a n c o n t e x t — " m e s s i a n i c " consequences thereby followed. T h e reorganisation of the cult in terms of the extra o r d i n a r y pax of a n e x t r a o r d i n a r y princeps was the solution to the 6 1

W a r d e Fowler (1911), p p . 2 7 2 - 2 7 3 . Ibid. pp. 3 0 1 - 3 0 1 . B a y e t (1957), p . 101: " . . . ce G r a n d Pontife n e put p r e n d r e c o m p e t a n c e religieuse "royale", a cote du Rex Sacrorum, qu'apres la fin de la monarchic: a lui alors appartinrent la haute m a i n sur le foyer public, voisin de la Regia; sur le calendrier et les fetes; le choix des Vestales, du Flamen Dialis; la discipline sacerdotale; la surveillance des religions familiales et du culte des morts. . . . Pourvu du droit d'auspice et de c o m m a n d e m e n t (auspicium et imperium), il dominait l'ensemble de la religion . . ."; E. Pais, Le relazioni fra i sacerdozi e le magistrature civili nella Republica romana, in Ricerche sulla storia e sul diritto publico di Roma, I, ( R o m e 1915), pp. 2 7 3 - 3 3 5 : " C o n Augusto si chiude il ciclo dei rapporti dei sacerdoti de fronte ai magistati c u r u l i . . . C o n A u g u s t o si ritorno alio stesso periodo regio, q u a n d o Pautorita sacra, il c o m a n d o militare e la giurisdizione civile si trovavano riunite nella unica persona del rex." ( Q u o t e d Bayet 1971), p. 2 7 6 footnote 2. Res Gest. 6,2; 10,1 cf. R. S y m e , The Roman Revolution, (Oxford: U . P . 1960), pp. 3 1 3 - 3 3 6 ff. * L i e b e s c h u e t z (1979), p. 10: " T h e constitutional authority w h i c h entitled a R o m a n magistrate to give orders, the imperium, had a religious counterpart, the auspicium, which entitled its holder to receive divine c o m m u n i c a t i o n s o n behalf of the c o m m u n i t y by taking the auspices." 6 2

6 3

6 4

b

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theological p r o b l e m of how to secure a n extraordinary pax deorum from quite extraordinary dissolution of the natural order: the chaos of n a t u r e m i r r o r e d the political chaos, to which the prodigia that m a r k e d the failure of the republican auguria a n d haruspicium bore witness. T h u s Augustus was duly authorised to use the sacramental means of augurium to continue the incorporation of political society into a n a t u r e whose order, in terms of 6p06<; Aoyoq, h a d b e e n extraordinarily restored. It was a golden age of pax a n d fortuna t h a t was accordingly n o w c o m ing about. W e shall n o w trace some literary examples of h o w this n e w construction of social reality was accomplished. 2A

6. Augustus' Messianism and the p a x d e o r u m

In Res Gestae c. 11 we read of the altar of Fortuna Redux, consecrated by the senate before the temple of Honor a n d Virtus at the C a p e n a n G a t e , in thanksgiving for Augustus' safe return (pro reditu meo). I m mediately following, in c. 12, we also find that Augustus describes the pax that he brings in the context of a r e t u r n i n g age of p e a c e , plenty a n d happiness. T h a t context can be read already in the early work of Vergil. In Eclogues 4 we read of a new age, associated with the ancient kingdom of Saturn, in which the Virgin Astraea or Justice is to return, having b e e n the last of the gods to leave the earth. T h e "last age (ultima aetas)" foretold by the Sibylline books (Cumaei carminis) h a d c o m e , which was the age of the race of iron (ferrea). N o w with the birth of the boy-child (nascenti puero), the golden age returns to the earth (aetas aurea mundo), a n d with it the k i n g d o m of Saturn a n d Astraea goddess of Justice (iam redit et Virgo, redeunt Saturnina regno). T h u s the aetas aurea is associated with a divine child b o r n of a Virgin. T h e puer is addressed as: " d e a r offspring of the gods (cara deum suboles), great source of g r o w t h from J u p p i t e r (magnum incrementum lows)" (I. 49) Although we m a y describe this ode as " m e s sianic," it is i m p o r t a n t to r e m e m b e r that the golden age that is here in view is n o t one that exists eternally as the goal of history, b u t is r a t h e r a r e t u r n i n g golden age (Eclogues 4, /. 4 - 1 0 ) . " T h e great series 66

6 6

A J . Boyle, The Eclogues of Virgil: Translated with Introduction, Notes, and Latin Text, (Melbourne: H a w t h o r n Press 1976), p p . 1 1 1 - 1 1 2 mentions that, according to the Sibylline oracles, there were to be ten ages with the last ruled by Apollo. T h e Great Y e a r (magnus ordo) is an astrological reference to the completion o f a vast period o f time c o m p l e t e d w h e n the planets o c c u p i e d the positions they had held at the begin ning of the world. See H e s i o d , Works and Days, a n d cf. Plato Repub. 4 1 5 A - C . See

THE FOUNDATIONS OF THE IMPERIAL CULT

55

of the centuries is b o r n a n e w (magnus ab integro saeculorum nascitur ordo). (I. 5) 99

In Dan. 2 , 3 3 - 4 5 the eternal k i n g d o m comes after the iron age, as the final goal of history. But, in the Stoicism represented by Z e n o a n d Poseidonius, history is cyclic a n d has n o final goal. Livy was influenced by Polybius, w h o h a d written a history of R o m e u p until 146 B.C., the underlying historiography of which represented such a Stoic philosophy of historical d e v e l o p m e n t . As Aristode (Pol. 6,7) h a d said, each g o o d form of g o v e r n m e n t h a d its pathological c o u n terpart in which m o n a r c h y b e c a m e tyranny, aristocracy b e c a m e oli garchy, timocracy b e c a m e plutocracy, a n d d e m o c r a c y b e c a m e m o b rule. T h e best form of g o v e r n m e n t existed as a m e a n b e t w e e n two extremes, as quite frequently ethical virtues were a m e a n b e t w e e n two vices. Such was Aristotle's preferred noXueia in which stability was achieved t h r o u g h the m i x e d constitution. 67

68

Polybius h a d taken this Aristotelian s c h e m a a n d p r o d u c e d from it a theory of historical development a n d c h a n g e . M o n a r c h y (uovapxioc), which a p p e a r s to represent the a m o r a l exercise of p o w e r by o n e per son in a state of n a t u r e w h i c h first generates (yevvaxai) kingship (paaiAeia), b u t t h e n takes the d e g e n e r a t e d form (\iExa^aXkox>cr\q 8e Tocuiriq eiq xa auuxpufj ram) of t y r a n n y (rupavviq). T h i s in t u r n gen erated ((puexai) aristocracy (apioxoicpaxia) w h i c h declined (xauxrjc;... £Kxpa7ceiar|q) into oligarchy (6Xiyap%{a) which g e n e r a t e d d e m o c r a c y (8r|uoKpaxia) which declined into m o b - r u l e (6%XoKpax(a) which p r o d u c e d in t u r n kingship once a g a i n . 69

70

T h e cyclic process of c h a n g e , like the Stoic eiuocpuivr), could not be reversed. But it could be delayed so as to p r o d u c e lengthy periods of stable a n d e n d u r i n g forms of g o v e r n m e n t . Livy h a d spoken of a historical decline in morals which over the centuries h a d p r o d u c e d personal ruin a n d the destruction of all things (1 praef. 9 a n d 12). A

also R . G . M . Nisbet, Virgil's Fourth Eclogue: Easterners a n d Westerners, in BICS 25 (1978), p p . 5 9 - 7 8 . H . Trankle, Livius und Polybios, (Basle/Stuttgart: S c h w a b e 1977); T.J. Luce, Livy: The Compostion of his History, (Princeton: U.P.); L. Bessone, La tradizione liviana, in Contributi didattici di storia antka, 3, (Bologna: Patron 1977); E. Lefevre a n d E. Olshausen, Livius: Werk und Reception: Festschrift fur Erich Burck zum 80. Geburtstag, (Miinchen: Beck 1983). Polybius, Historiae, 6 , 4 , 5 - 1 0 ; 6,57,9.^ Ibid. 6,4, 7: " T h e first (rcpcbxri uev ot>v) is m o n a r c h y which exists naturally and unformed (dtKaxaaKevox; KOU (pDaiKcoq a\)v{axaxai u o v a p x i a ) . " Ibid. 6,9, 1 0 - 1 4 . 6 7

6 8

6 9

70

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significant m e a n s for achieving such a relative stability was Augustus' augural office a n d acts, central as we have a r g u e d that these were to the Imperial Cult. Indeed, such a cult was a sacramental neces sity given the instability promised by a cyclic view of history: spir itual p o w e r was exercised over the course of history by the Pontifex Maximus w h o controlled the cultic m e a n s of securing a n d protract ing the pax deorum. Certainly Vergil in the F o u r t h Eclogue has tran scended such a cyclic view which it otherwise presupposes. W e are far closer in these lines, as Nisbet has pointed out, to the J u d a e o Christian idea that: " w h e n a n e w creation is complete there is n o second d e t e r i o r a t i o n . " 71

But Vergil here associates the aetas aurea, whose turn in the cycle of Fortuna has c o m e r o u n d , uniquely with the birth of a boy-child (nascenti puero; I. 8). T h a t birth is associated with the return of the Virgin Astrea (Virgo) a n d the kingdom of S a t u r n , a n d the "descent of a new offspring from highest heaven (nova progenies caelo demittitur alto; I. 5-6)." T h e child: will receive the gift of the life of the gods and will see gods, ilk deum vitam accipiet divosque videbit, mixed with heroes and himself by them will be seen, permixtos heroas et ipse videbitur Mis, and will rule the globe that he sets at peace by his paternal virtues pacatumque reget patriis virtutibus orbem. I 15-17 T h e r e follows a natural order that arises devoid of serpents a n d their poison, w h e r e goats p r o d u c e milk in a b u n d a n c e a n d there n e e d be n o fear of lions. T h e earth untilled a b o u n d s with fruit (/. 18-25). But the past repeats itself in the future, a n d there is a second Tiphys, a s e c o n d v o y a g e of A r g o , a n d a s e c o n d Achilles sent to T r o y (/. 2 6 - 3 6 ) . But w h e n the child becomes a n adult, trade by sea will cease because every land will b e self-sufficient in a b u n d a n c e . Yoke a n d oxen, a n d p r u n i n g hook, shall be cast aside. L a m b s will p r o duce wool of different colours (/. 3 7 - 4 5 ) . Such is the picture of the aetas aurea ushered in with the birth of the child. T h e pax deorum accomplished by the child has now e x t e n d e d to all the globe, a n d extends b e y o n d the restored m o r a l o r d e r of h u m a n society to the natural o r d e r itself (pacatumque reget patriis virtutibus orbem).

Nisbet (1978), p. 6 1 .

57

THE FOUNDATIONS OF THE IMPERIAL CULT

It is interesting to inquire w h o m Vergil intended the child to be. Asinius Pollio, the consul w h o in 40 B.C. negotiated the treaty of Brundisium uniting A n t h o n y a n d Octavian,. is m e n t i o n e d in the text (/. 12). But clearly the identification with his n e w - b o r n child would have b e e n highly embarrassing if not actually d a n g e r o u s for Pollio in view of the masters w h o m he clearly served. Either, as has most plausibly been suggested, Vergil refers to the expected child of O c t a vian a n d Scribonia, or the child is simply a n ideal bucolic i m a g e . But according to w h a t has b e e n described by Nisbet as the 'eastern' interpretation of the Eclogue, Vergil does n o t necessarily n e e d to have a n y particular birth in m i n d . T h e r e were a whole variety of eastern religious expectations a n d connotations, from the Alexandrian festival of Helios w h e r e the initiated proclaimed the increase of light following a V i r g i n b i r t h , t h r o u g h H o r u s b o r n of Isis, to J e w i s h Messianism (Is. 7,14). T h e image of the divine child is p a r t a n d par cel of the description of a millennial future. 72

73

74

T h e identity of the puer is however for o u r purposes irrelevant. By the time that Vergil h a d written the Georgics (29 B.C.), h e h a d b e c o m e friend of M a e c e n a s a n d m e m b e r of his circle a r o u n d O c t a v i a n . In Georgics 1, 2 4 - 4 2 , he clearly reflects, two years after Actium, the ambiguity intentionally cultivated by the I m p e r i a l C u l t r e g a r d i n g C a e s a r ' s divinity. N o t yet divine, Vergil nevertheless p o n d e r s o n : 75

tuque adeo, quern mox quae sint habitura deorum concilia, incertum est, urbisne invisere, Caesar, terrarumque velis curam te maximus orbis auctorem Jrugum tempestatumque potentem accipiet, cingens matema tempora myrto,

7 2

C . Bailey, Religion in Virgil, (Oxford: Clarendon 1935), p. 192, saw it purely in terms o f the e x p e c t e d heir o f Octavian. Boyle (1976), p. 113 lists other possibilities as (i) the hoped-for child o f A n t h o n y a n d Octavia (sister o f Octavian), (ii) Asinius Gallus, Pollio's baby, (iii) A i o n Hellenistic g o d o f time and renewal, (iv) Marcellus, Octavia's son by a previous marriage. W . Berg, Early Virgil, (London: A t h l o n e Press 1974), p p . 1 6 7 - 1 7 2 presents the solution that puer is an ideal i m a g e throughout the Eclogues for his bucholic heroes, his shepherd poets w h o must h a v e child-like souls. D a p h n i s has this title in Eclogues 5,54, cf. 4,11 where he is "adornment o f the world a n d a d o r n m e n t o f the age." T h e iuvenis in Eclogue 1 and the puer iuvenis and D a p h n i s are deified heroes. Vergil's rela tion to Pollio was literary a n d not political, and he was h o n o u r i n g h i m with allu sions to his poetry (pp. 1 5 8 - 1 6 2 ) . Nisbet (1978), p. 6 2 . Bailey (1935), pp. 187 196. 7 3

7 4

7 5

CHAPTER TWO

58

an deus immensi venias maris ac tua nautae numina sola colant, tibi serviat ultima Thuk. . . /. 2 4 - 3 0

76

Clearly here the puer whose birth was responsible for the pax deorum shown in the natural o r d e r in which earth yielded its b o u n t y a n d w h o would rule the globe in Eclogue 4,17 (reget patriis virtutibus orbem) has b e c o m e O c t a v i a n . In Georgics 1,27 it is O c t a v i a n w h o , w h e n accepted by the gods into their n u m b e r , will prove to be b o t h the "increaser of the crops (auctorem frugum)" a n d "the master of the sea sons (tempestatumque potmtern)", a n d welcomed as such by the "great world (maximus orbis)" (I. 26) But apparently the gods h a v e not yet decided to a d m i t O c t a v i a n to their ranks. Later Vergil chastises the gods on O c t a v i a n ' s behalf for their envy of h i m (/. 5 0 2 - 5 0 3 ) , a n d entreats t h e m : "Prevent not this y o u n g m a n (iuvenem) from aiding a n age u p t u r n e d (everso . . . succurrere saeculo)" (I. 5 0 0 - 5 0 1 ) T h e puer has b e c o m e a iuvenis, like D a p h n i s in the Eclogues. 77

W h e n Vergil writes the Aeneid ( 2 9 - 1 9 B.C.), Augustus duly emerges as bringer of the golden age a n d at least destined for divinity. T r o j a n C a e s a r shall descend from J u l i u s " w h o shall limit his e m p i r e with the ocean, a n d his fame with the stars." (1,287) W h e n V e n u s his m o t h e r welcomes h i m to heaven, then "the harsh ages shall soften w h e n wars have ceased (aspera turn positis mitescent saecula bellis)" (1,291) T h u s in the famous lines Vergil can sing the p r o p h e c y of the Sibyl h e a r d in the underworld: Hie vir, hie est, tibi quern promitti saepius audis, Augustus Caesar, divi genus, aurea condet saecula qui rursus Latio regnata per arva Saturno quondam. . . . 6,791-794

7 6

78

"And Y o u O Caesar, what the councils o f the gods will decide for y o u ere long, only in this is uncertain, whether y o u c h o o s e to look to the care o f the city and o f [all] lands, and the mighty world w e l c o m e y o u as the a u g m e n t o r o f their crops a n d the potentate o f the seasons, w r e a t h i n g your b r o w with y o u r divine mother's myrde, or w h e t h e r you c o m e as g o d o f the vast sea and sailors worship your divinity alone, to y o u farthest T h u l e will s u b m i t . . ." See note 4 9 above. S e e also Georg. 3, 1 3 - 4 4 ; 4 , 5 6 0 . S e e also H o r a c e Epode 16; O v i d , Metamorph., 15, 8 6 7 - 8 7 0 . Cf. Ross T a y l o r (1931), p p . 1 7 5 - 1 8 0 . 78 « T h i j h i i w h o m you have often heared promised, Augustus Caesar, son o f G o d , w h o shall found the golden age o n c e more over the fields where Saturn o n c e reigned . . . " 7 7

s

s

t

e

m a r i 5

m

s

s

n

e

THE FOUNDATIONS OF THE IMPERIAL CULT

59

T h e golden age has c o m e r o u n d again in the cycle of fortuna or eiuocpuivri, a n d a specific person is to bring it—Augustus the vir a n d neither the puer n o r the iuvenis. T h e golden age as at the first, a n d the k i n g d o m which S a t u r n rules, have r e t u r n e d in the u n e n d i n g cycle. W e here see the miraculous achievent of the pax deorum through the imperial, augurial rites. T h e pax that he has thus executed sub dues n a t u r e as well as societies, a n d has stabilised a n d m a d e rela tively p e r m a n e n t the r e t u r n of the golden age. It was necessary for Augustus to control the a p p a r a t u s of p r o p h e c y along with augurium a n d haruspicium. In Res Gestae 7 , 3 Augustus h a d listed his m e m b e r s h i p of the quindecim virum sacris faciundis whose responsibility it was to consult the Sibylline books. His m e m b e r s h i p a m o u n t e d to control of that body. As Suetonius points out (Augustus 3 1 , 1 - 2 ) , on the d e a t h of Lepidus he assumed this office, a n d col lected a n o n y m o u s oracles including some parts of the Sibylline oracles of which he clearly i n t e n d e d to provide his o w n a p p r o v e d version. H e b u r n e d m o r e t h a n two t h o u s a n d books of oracles in general cir culation, but also r e m o v e d some of the books of the Sibylline ora cles themselves. T h e definition of the saecula aurea, a n d the conditions for its existence a n d c o n t i n u a n c e were securely u n d e r his control. Vergil h a d lived to see neither the deification n o r the i n a u g u r a tion of the saecula aurea, which took place in 1 7 B . C . o n e year after his d e a t h , as we shall n o w briefly discuss.

PART B. T H E INAUGURATION AND RECEPTION OF THE

IMPERIAL C U L T

A Sibylline oracle was p r o d u c e d which prophesied the celebration of the ludi saeculares in o r d e r to inaugurate the new age ( 1 7 B . C . ) . This was one positive fruit from Augustus' m e m b e r s h i p of the quindecimviri sacris faciundis before his assumption of the position of Pontifex Maximus on Lepidus' d e a t h ( 1 3 B . C . ) . H o r a c e c o m p o s e d the Carmen Saeculare for this occasion, in w h i c h special h o n o u r was given to Apollo a n d D i a n a , the p a t r o n gods of Augustus on the Palatine hill. T h e r e was a local temple of Apollo in the vicinity of the field of Actium on which O c t a v i a n w o n the critical battle in 3 1 B . C . As one of the acts of c o m m e m o r a t i o n , this temple was extended, a n d coins were struck in Asia M i n o r showing O c t a v i a n wearing a laurel crown fashioned like that of Apollo. But in R o m e itself the temple of Apollo

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was dedicated next to Octavian's h o m e on the Palatine (9th O c t o b e r , 28 B.C.), o n the doors of which displayed the form of Apollo Vindex. In the library adjoining the temple were to be found a statue of O c t a v i a n , habitu ac statu Apollonis (Suetonius, Aug. 29,3). As we have seen, this was the form of dress which a M a r c u s Furius Camillus could only have w o r n with irreverence (Livy 5 , 2 3 , 4 - 1 1 ) , b u t which the Augustus, of s u p e r h u m a n proportions (visa species viri maioris quam pro humano habitu augustiorisque), could n o w w e a r as befitting his status n e a r i n g divinity (8,6,12). 79

T h u s the first point of a long line of d e v e l o p m e n t was established that was to lead to the E m p e r o r being regarded as Apollo, Sol Invictus, of a universal imperial a n d p a g a n religion. Apollo was the god w h o , according to Propertius, h a d established by his c o m m a n d to Octavian a n e w world o r d e r as mundi servator. It was Apollo w h o h a d presided at A c t i u m . W e should however note t h a t dedication of the Forum Iulium a n d t h e temple of Divus Julius in 29 B.C. emphasised the con nection with Vergil's filius dei, genus deorum a n d thus b o u n d eschatology a n d cult securely together. T h e carmen saeculare invoked Apollo a n d not J u p i t e r C a p i t o l i n u s . Let us see h o w the Ara Pacis p r o v e d to b e a n icon of this development. 80

81

82

2B

1. The A r a Pacis and the p a x d e o r u m

T h e Ara Pacis, dedicated in 9 B.C., gave p r o m i n e n c e to Augustus a n d Agrippa as veiled sacerdotes a b o u t to preside over the sacrifice as p a r t of the augurium pacis that provided the pax deorum. T h i s was the event that we have a r g u e d was anticipated by b o t h Livy ( 1 , 1 9 , 1 - 3 ; 28,12,12) a n d by L u c a n as the o u t c o m e to the latter's unfinished epic of the Civil W a r (2A 4.2.1 a n d 4.3.1). T h e iconography of the Ara associated these cultic acts with the beginning of the saeculum aureum. O n the left p a n e l of the eastern side we find a depiction of Tellus (Plate 2), whose loins a b o u n d with the increase of the earth promised as in Vergil, Eclogues, 4, 1 8 - 2 5 . In the Carmen Saeculare, c o m p o s e d for the Ludi Saeculares of 17 B.C., H o r a c e h a d taken u p this t h e m e a n d sung:

7 9

8 0

Fishwick (1987), 1,1 p p . 8 1 - 8 2 .

Propertius 4,6,37. See also Vergil, Aen. 8 , 7 0 4 - 7 0 5 : "Actius haec cernens arcum intedebat Apollo d e s u p e r . . ." Fishwick (1987) 1,1 p. 88. 8 1

8 2

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THE FOUNDATIONS OF THE IMPERIAL CULT

Fertilis Jrugum pecorisque Tellus spicea donet Cererem corona nutriant fetus et aquae salubres, et Iovis Aurae. . . Carmen Saeculare, 2 9 - 3 3 .

83

O x e n a n d sheep a c c o m p a n y Tellus in the p a n e l while two n y m p h s , one with a swan a n d the other a d r a g o n , the Aurae Velificantes, sym bolise air a n d w a t e r respectively (Plates 3 a n d 4). M o r e o v e r , the internal decorations of the enclosing wall continue this t h e m e of the saeculum aureum. T h e u p p e r strip of this decoration "is p u n c t u a t e d by twelve luxuriant garlands, m a d e u p of different kinds of fruit—grapes, figs, apples, pears, olives, plums, pine cones, p o m e g r a n a t e s — a n d even spontaneous vegetation—oak, ivy laurel, a n d p o p p i e s . " T h u s the saeculum aureum is the unmistakable a n d intentional point of the icono g r a p h y of the augurium pacis. A r o u n d the h e a d of Tellus' child clus ter the p r o d u c e of s u b e r a b u n d a n t n a t u r e (Plate 5). 84

In 13 B.C., on Lepidus' d e a t h Augustus b e c a m e Ponttfex Maximus. It was at this point that he h a n d e d over the official residence of the Pontfex Maximus in the forum to the Vestal Virgins, a n d t u r n e d his own house into the T e m p l e of Vesta. H e r e , illuminated by a fire that was ever b u r n i n g , worship was offered to Vesta a n d the Penates of A u g u s t u s . It is i m p o r t a n t to note how, with the removal of his own house a n d its household gods from the private to the public d o m a i n , Augustus h a d given the c o m m o n practice of ancestor wor ship a new a n d public focus. O a t h s were n o w to be sworn by his divine Genius. It was the swearing by the Genius of the e m p e r o r that was the essential feature of that cultus opposed by early Christianity. 85

2B

2. Lares and Penates: From M a n e s to Genius

In 30 B.C. the senate h a d passed a decree that a libation be p o u r e d to O c t a v i a n ' s Genius at every b a n q u e t , b o t h public a n d private (Dio 51,19,7). T h u s the cult of the Genius of O c t a v i a n found its way into

8:

* Fertile in crops and cattle shall M o t h e r Earth, c r o w n Ceres with her garland of w o v e n corn, m a y they increase the produce those healthy rains, a n d Jove's gentle winds. G. Sauron, Le Message symbolique des rinceaux de l'Ara Pacis Augustae, in CRAI 126 (1982), p p . 8 1 - 1 0 1 ; Zanker (1990), pp. 1 7 2 - 1 8 3 ; Galinsky (1992), pp. 4 5 8 - 4 6 8 ; Bianchi (1994), p. 2 5 . ' R o s s T a y l o r (1931), pp. 1 7 7 - 1 7 9 . 8 4

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private houses, since libations h a d b e c o m e a regular feature of the R o m a n d i n n e r . N o w in 12 B.C., w h e n h e h a d b e c o m e Pontifex Maximus, the e m p e r o r ' s Genius was m a d e p a r t of the official oath of the state. Altars were dedicated to the Lares Augusti (Plate 10). O n e critical feature of R e p u b l i c a n , R o m a n religion, which should not be overlooked, was the household cults to ancestral genii, a n d to the Lares a n d Penates, the so-called gods of h e a r t h a n d h o m e . T h e h e a r t h of the house was sacred, festooned with flowers at each phase of the l u n a r m o n t h , at Kalendae, Nonae a n d Idus. T h e r e b u r n e d the fire that was considered sacred. H e r e each day the paterfamilias offered a portion of food, assigned to the sacrificial flames, for the Genii of the d e p a r t e d of the family, w h o were the semi-divine Lares et Penates 86

87

88

T h o u g h doubts have b e e n expressed a b o u t the precise historical origin of the cult, O v i d (Fasti 3,55,57) portrays the developed form of the cult of the goddess Larentia as a festival of the d e a d . The private c e r e m o n i e s for the Lares t h a t O v i d describes seem to b e ancient. It m u s t be r e m e m b e r e d that originally the Di Manes were shadowy a n d only vaguely personal beings, m a d e fully personal only by the d e v e l o p m e n t of a concept of personal immortality in the first century B.C. Clearly the d e p a r t e d c a n n o t be venerated as individ ual personalities before the d e v e l o p m e n t of the idea of p e r s o n a l immortality has taken place. A l t h o u g h therefore it might b e true that: "Generally however, w h e r e the souls are t h o u g h t to be present o n e m a d e a sacrifice to t h e m , " this could only be possible w h e n such souls were conceived as distinct a n d distinguishable personal entities, that is to say w h e n the concept of personal immortality h a d achieved a clear articulation. 89

90

8 6

Ibid. pp. 1 5 1 - 1 5 2 . F. B o m e r , D e r Eid b e i m Genius des Kaisers, in Athen. 4 4 (1966), p p . 7 7 - 1 3 3 . Bayet (1957), p. 65: "La grande fete du G e n i u s est a l'anniversaire de naissance du paterfamilias. M a i s originallement le G e n i u s est bien autre: principe de feconite genetique, c o m m e l'indique son n o m , et assurant par l'individu auquel il est attache la perpetuite des generations." E. Samter, Familienfeste der Griechen und Romer, (Berlin: R e i m e r 1901), pp. 1 1 5 - 1 1 7 w h e r e he concludes: " D a n u n das Fest Larenta, die Larentalien, ein Totenfest ist, so ist aus seiner Bedeutung ein Schluss auf den gleichartigen Charakter des Larenkultes erlaubt." W i s s o w a (1890) had argued against the derivation o f the cult from the worship of the souls o f the departed, p. 119. Ibid. p. 121: "Uberall aber, w o die Seelen a n w e s e n d gedacht w e r d e n , opfert m a n ihnen. D a r u m w e r d e n die Seelen der A h n e n v o n d e n R o m e r ausser a m G r a b u n d im H a u s e auch a m K r e u z w e g verehrt." S e e also E. J o b b e - D u v a l , Les Morts malfaisants: "Larvae, Lemures" d'apres le droit et les croyances populaires des Romains, (Paris: Recueil Sirey 1924), p p . 2 - 6 . 8 7

8 8

8 9

9 0

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THE FOUNDATIONS OF THE IMPERIAL CULT

T h e change from the Di Manes as a generalised collectivity of the d e p a r t e d to a designation of a personal surviving soul is m a r k e d well in examples taken from the excavations u n d e r St. Peter's of the p a g a n tombs that stood originally on the Vatican hillside. A n individ ual n a m e following this general designation shows the conservatism of funerary epitaphs in evoking a world view that has been transcended. Cicero's description of the d r e a m of Scipio Africanus (De Republica 6,10) in which h e is alive a n d with the immortals in the milky way, or the individual souls described in A e n e a s ' visit to the u n d e r w o r l d in Vergil, Aeneid, 6, is a whole conceptual world away from epitaphs such as sit sibi terra levis ("may the earth rest light u p o n you") a n d the a m o r p h o u s union with the earth goddess expressed in such lines as: cinis sum cinis terra est terra dea est ergo ego mortua non sum ("I a m ash, ash is earth, earth is divine, therefore I a m not d e a d " ) . T h e rep resentations of such inhabitants of the V a t i c a n mausolea as M a r c i u s H e r m e s or M a r c i a T h r a s o n i s , or the imagery of the isles of the blessed or the Bacchic m e n a g e r i e w h e r e the individual would repose in eternal blessedness, all revealed a culture which, from the late first century B.C., h a d b e c o m e obsessed with personal i m m o r t a l i t y . 91

92

T h i s change to a conviction of personal immortality u n d o u b t e d l y served to give sharper definition to the genii of h e a r t h a n d h o m e , the Lares a n d Penates, w h o w e r e n o longer the generalised spirits of the d e a d b u t could be regarded as distincdy surviving individuals. It was this individualism that Augustus could n o w deploy in m a k i n g the e m p e r o r worship of the eastern cults consistent with R o m a n religious tradition. In 7 B.C. he set u p the Lares Compitiales, the "Lares at the crossroads" w h e r e he set the image of his o w n Genius amongst the statues. W e have preserved a n altar on which ministri of a compitum are depicted holding statuettes of the Lares a n d Genius Augusti (Plate 11). W e m a y n o w see how, in the unfolding logic of the Imperial Cult, deified individual qualities could n o w form a c o h e r e n t connection between the new public cult of the Augustan Lares a n d the saeculum aureum. 93

91

CIL 6,4, 2 9 6 0 9 a n d 9, 3 1 8 4 discussed in J. T o y n b e e a n d J. W a r d Perkins, The Shrine of St. Peter and the Vatican Excavations, (London: L o n g m a n s G r e e n 1956), pp. 109-116. Ibid., pp. 7 3 - 9 3 . Ross T a y l o r (1931), pp. 1 8 4 - 1 8 6 ; Fishwick (1987) 1,1 pp. 8 4 - 8 5 . 9 2

m

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2B

3. The cultic deification of virtues

T h e s h a r p e n i n g of individuality of the Lares, their transformation from the Di Manes (the "Ghost Gods") into distinct, personalised genii, enabled a n e w public cult of the e m p e r o r ' s individual qualities to be formed. Such qualities as Concordia, Pax, Fortuna, or Salus in turn connected well with the messianic qualities of these virtues as char acterising the saeculum aureum. Let us sketch briefly our justification for such a n assertion. Cults of virtues were established in R e p u b l i c a n times. W e find for example the temple of Concordia, built in 216 B.C., vowed by the p r a e t o r L. Manlius for deliverance from sedition, of Salus a n d Victoria after the S a m n i t e W a r s , a n d of Fors Fortuna built by Sp. Carvilius after his c a m p a i g n at C o m i n i u m a n d in E t r u r i a . As such the deifi cation of such virtues in early R o m a n religion was of a piece with similar practices in the Hellenistic East. H e r e we find cults of N{KT|, Eipr|vr|, niaxiq, Euaepeua, Euvouia, OiXav6pco7ua, OiAoaTopyia, a n d AiKaioauvr]. 94

95

T h e cult of Genius Publicus m o r e o v e r was to form a bridge between the private a n d h o m e - b a s e d libations a n d the genii of d e p a r t e d ances tors, a n d public personifications of Af^iioq in the Greek city states. N o w the divine essence worshipped was not that of shadowy, indi vidual spirits in process of d e v e l o p m e n t into full personalities by the late Republic. R a t h e r it was the collective personality of the social group. F u r t h e r m o r e the cult of the goddess R o m a as a personification of R o m e itself was clearly linked with such an objectification of the collective personality. 96

At first such deified virtues were seen as the god or goddess that a c c o m p a n i e d the republican general. But from the time of Sulla o n w a r d s the Hellenistic tendency was not simply to see the deified virtues as a c c o m p a n y i n g , b u t indeed as being incarnate in, the ruler himself. Sulla a d o p t e d the tide of Felix for himself after his victories in 82 B.C.. F r o m that time he wrote his n a m e as L. Cornelius Sulla Felix. Likewise his associate, Q . Caecilius Metellus Pius, used the title of Pius in his n a m e . Cicero, in Pro Lege Manilia (6 B.C.), dis97

9 4

Livy 2 2 , 3 7 , 5 ; 2 2 , 3 3 , 7 ; 10,46,14. See also Fears (1981), p p . 8 3 4 - 8 3 5 . X e n o p h o n , Cyrop., 1,1,3; 8 , 1 , 2 1 - 2 , 2 8 ; 8,6,23; 8 , 4 , 6 - 8 ; 8 , 5 , 1 - 1 6 . Cf. Fears (1981), pp. 8 4 9 - 8 5 0 . Ibid. pp. 8 5 1 - 8 5 2 . Ibid. p. 8 7 7 . 9 5

%

97

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tinguished between virtutes populi Romani a n d virtutes imperatoris w h e n he claimed that the gift of Fortuna along with P o m p e y ' s other super h u m a n attributes (haec divina atque incredibilis virtus imperatoris) could only be theirs by accepting P o m p e y himself as their incarnation. As he says: 98

. . . since you are able to put in charge of the war a commander (impe ratorem) in whom is a remarkable knowledge (in quo sit eximia scientia) of war, exceptional virtue (singularis virtus), brilliant authority (clarissima auctoritas), exceptional fortune (egregia fortuna), why are you hesitating, O Romans, from using this great benefit which is offered and granted you by the immortal gods, in order to preserve and increase the Republic? Pro Lege Manilia, 16." T h u s Virtus a n d Auctoritas could also be said not simply to be cum eo b u t r a t h e r in quo sit. Salus was also to a p p e a r on coins in p r a y e r for P o m p e y ' s personal recovery in 50 B . C . Res Gestae 12 records the erection of an altar not simply to Pax but to Pax Augusta. T h e i c o n o g r a p h y of the altar's relief shows "the epiphany of Pax, Felicitas, Concordia a n d Pietas in the person of Augustus a n d his restoration of the R o m a n a n d universal o r d e r . " His achieve m e n t of the extraordinary pax deorum, required by the extraordinary convulsion of n a t u r e as well of society that was the civil war, was therefore t h r o u g h the existence of these divine entities exclusively in himself alone. Tiberius was to provide the final c o n s u m m a t i o n of this d e v e l o p m e n t in 10 A . D . w h e n he rededicated the temple of Concordia specifically as t h a t of Concordia Augusta. S u c h adjectival qualifications such as Juno Sospita or Janus Quirinus defined "the sphere, functional or t e m p o r a l , in which the deity has manifested h e r char acteristic p o w e r . " F r o m Tiberius o n w a r d s we find examples of the continued qualification of each individual deity in the cult of virtues that shows their gradual assimilation by the g o d h e a d of the Imperial 100

101

102

9 8

Cicero, Pro Leg. ManiL, 13. Ibid. p. 8 8 2 : ". . . the Virtues work their beneficent influence u p o n the R o m a n People through the person o f the charismatic saviour; these Virtues are e m b o d i e d in his person, and thus u p o n his safety d e p e n d s the welfare of the c o m m o n w e a l t h . " For a full discussion, see J . R . Fears, T h e T h e o l o g y o f Victory at R o m e , in ANRW 2,17,2 (1981), p p . 7 9 7 - 8 0 0 . Ibid. pp. 8 8 2 - 8 8 3 . Ibid. p. 8 8 5 . Ibid. p. 8 8 6 . 9 9

100

101

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Cult. Such virtues h a d thereby ceased to be separate divinities, b u t n o w b e c a m e as it were p a r t of the collective personality of the divine emperor. T h u s the golden age prophesied in Vergil a n d inaugurated, with its characteristics such as Fortuna, Providentia, Salus, Concordia, Pax, Victoria etc., can be located as flowing from the divinity of the emperor. T h e cult of R o m a herself, originating in the Hellenistic East, could n o w be assimilated in the West to the Imperial Cult itself. T h e per sonality of individual e m p e r o r s could n o w be identified with the cor porate personality of the R o m a n E m p i r e . Augustus a n d his successors are thus m a d e the sacramental sign by virtue of which the golden age has r e t u r n e d , a n d by which its c o n t i n u a n c e is g u a r a n t e e d . But such a state of p e a c e a n d felicity does not simply require the pres ence of the e m p e r o r , b u t also his p e r f o r m a n c e of cultic, s a c r a m e n tal a n d augural acts. 103

T h e central concept of the e m p e r o r as Genius Publicus enables h i m to act as b o t h priest a n d god of his o w n cult a n d to sacrifice as it w e r e to himself. As we have seen, the saeculum aureum is i n a u g u r a t e d by a n augurium pacis which n o o n e else h a d b e e n able to perform. I n d e e d others t h a n L u c a n ' s Figulus h a d tried a n d failed. Sulla, at the c o m m e n c e m e n t of the extraordinary metaphysical disturbance t h a t was the civil war, was shown on his coins simply as a m e d i a tior t h r o u g h w h o m Felicitas a n d Concordia operated. As with Metellus Pius before h i m , the j u g a n d the lituus, those symbols of the ius augurium, are also s h o w n . T h u s Sulla p r o d u c e s such virtuous social conditions b y a n augural act that is in o n e sense sacramental. W e find a similar iconography in connection with P o m p e y ' s c o i n a g e . 104

105

Finally, Augustus was to c o m b i n e messianic a n d augural themes within his o w n person. F r o m 19 B.C. we find such examples as por trayals of C a p r i c o r n with a c o r n u c o p i a of plenty together with, in some issues, the augur's lituus. O n the Gemma Augustea at V i e n n a there is c o m m e m o r a t e d the scene in 12 A . D . w h e n Tiberius t h r e w him self at Augustus' feet, on r e t u r n from G e r m a n y , whilst the former was presiding over the ceremonies (Plate 13). Roma a p p e a r s along106

1 0 3

R. Mellor, T h e G o d d e s s R o m a , in ANRW 2,17,2 (1981), pp. 9 8 4 - 9 9 8 ff. Fears (1981), p. 791 a n d Plate I V , 2 2 ; p p . 8 8 0 - 8 8 1 a n d Plate 111,17. Ibid. p. 8 0 3 and Plate V I , 3 4 . Suetonius, Tiberius, 20: "Ac prius q u a m in Capitolinium flecteret, descendit e curru seque praesidenti patri ad g e n u a summisit." Cf. Mellor (1981), p p . 1012 1013 and Plate I a n d Ross T a y l o r (1931), p p . 2 2 6 2 2 7 . 1 0 4

105

1 0 6

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67

side representations of Victoria, Oikumene, a n d Tellus. Alongside Roma sits Augustus with the cornucopic sign of Capricorn over his head, a n d in his right h a n d is the lituus. Fortuna is depicted c r o w n i n g him. T h e divine augur has issued in the golden age as he sits already amongst the gods a n d looks down on lesser m o r t a l s . N o w h e r e is m o r e clearly to be seen the sacramental character of the Imperial Cult which through its ritual maintains the extraordinary pax deorum. O n the altar of the Lares Augustus is depicted as augur with lituus (Plate 7). Let us now see h o w the Imperial Cult was received in Asia M i n o r as well as Palestine a n d Syria. H e r e we c a n e x a m i n e the material fabric of the cult whose i c o n o g r a p h y a n d the religious message that it b o r e was to set the scene in which early Christianity developed. It was in the context of Asia M i n o r that, in particular, Luke-Acts, C l e m e n t Corinthians, the Apocalypse, a n d the Ignatian Letters were all to be written. 107

2B

4. The reception of the Imperial Cult in the East

T h e reception of the Imperial Cult in Asia M i n o r confirms an embry onic systematic theology of the Imperial Cult that we have outlined in which the Stoic taSyoq determines all things by npovoioc, or by Fatum or Fortuna. Such was the ultimate philosophical or m e t a physical justification which was left w h e n all demythologising imagery of any personal deity h a d been excised, as L u c a n h a d wished to excise it. But we have seen h o w t h a t metaphysic serviced a n eschatology, cyclic in character, in which the age of iron a n d b r o n z e could return to gold once m o r e . W e have also seen also h o w the ideo logy of the divine e m p e r o r m a d e that golden age d e p e n d e n t b o t h on the e m p e r o r ' s person, in that h e i n c a r n a t e d its qualities of salus, fortuna, pax, etc., a n d on the cultic rites of the auspicium. T h r o u g h an 108

107

Fears (1981), p. 8 1 0 : " T h e icononography of the G e m m a itself boldly proclaims this intimate c o n n e c t i o n of Capricorn a n d triumph, marking the feclicitas a n d vir tus o f Augustus, w h i c h have brought about the restoration of the golden age for mankind. . . . Flanked by R o m a a n d c r o w n e d by Fortuna, the e m p e r o r holds in his right h a n d the lituus, the m e d i u m through w h i c h the will of the gods is manifest in his person and the e m b l e m o f those auspices by w h i c h Tiberius has triumphed." I say "a systematic theology" rather than "the" because I take Eisner's point ((1991), p. 52) that reactions to imperial worship in general were never c o m p l e t e "and yet always temporarily fulfilled by the viewers o w n participation" in not only the sacrificial rite but also in the general developing a n d incomplete theological dis course that gave m e a n i n g to that rite. W e have here the p h e n o m e n o n of polysemy to w h i c h Galinsky (1992) pointed. 1 0 8

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extraordinary act of augury he h a d thus been able to restore a golden age of o r d e r to b o t h n a t u r e a n d political society that h a d previously collapsed into evil a n d irrational chaos. T h e celebration of this Pax Augusta on the Ara that thus b o r e his divine n a m e was associated not simply with a limited, R e p u b l i c a n augurium salutis b u t with Augustus' r e t u r n from Spain a n d G a u l (pro reditu meo/bnep xr\q E[ir\q ercavoSou; Res Gest. 11) b e a r i n g a universal p e a c e that was n o w ( 1 6 - 1 3 B.C.) inseparable from his o w n person as the Pax Augustea. First the Ara Fortunae Reducis/$(&\ibqTv%r[ql(>y^pio"o) was erected at the P o r t a C a p e n a (19 B.C.), after successful c a m paigns in Sicily, G r e e c e , Asia, a n d Syria, with a n n u a l sacrifices. T h e n followed in 13 B.C. the consecration of the Ara Pacis itself in the C a m p u s M a r t i u s (Res Gest. 12), followed by its dedication in 9 B.C. at the conclusion of a lustrum a n d a suovetaurilia, the implications of which we discuss in o u r next c h a p t e r (3B 1). T h e response of the province of Asia expressed in the decrees a n d letter of its proconsul in 9 B.C. mirrors a systematic theology, justified in terms of Stoic metaphysics. H e r e we find the ancient a u g u r a l quest for the pax deorum united with d r e a m s of a golden age of plenty a n d p e a c e , a n d with a single bringer of that age. T h e date itself shows the i n a u g u r a t i o n of the Imperial C u l t there was co-terminus with the consecration of the Ara Pacis in the C a m p u s M a r t i u s itself. T h e saeculum aureum that n o w begins for the cities of Asia M i n o r needs a n e w C a l e n d a r that begins with the b i r t h d a y of Augustus. T h e d o c u m e n t , copies of w h i c h w e h a v e from P r i e n e , A p a m e a , E u m e n i a , a n d D o r y l a e u m , reads as follows: . . . from previous gods we have received favour (rcapd xcov rcpoxepov 7tapeiA,f|<panev . . . xcov 0ecov £\)|iev£<; mi) . . . whether the birthday of the most divine Caesar is more pleasant or more beneficial (rcoxepov f|8e(cov fj dxpeA.ip.coxepa eaxiv f| xov Getoxdxov Kaiaapoq yeveGXioq f|U£pa) which we would jusdy consider to be a day equal to the beginning of all things (r\v xr\ xcov rcdvxcov dpxfi ionv SiKcdcoq dv elvai imcAdpoijiEv) . . . Lines 1 - 6 . 109

At this point there is note of hesitancy in the text a b o u t the real c h a r a c t e r of this n e w dpxn. T h e proconsul of Asia seems to hesitate

1 0 9

V. Ehrenberg a n d A . M . J o n e s , Documents Illustrating the Reigns of Augustus and Tiberius, (Oxford: C l a r e n d o n 1955), n o . 9 8 , cf. also OGIS 4 5 8 ; SEC 4 , 4 9 0 . R . K . Sherk (Ed. a n d Trans.), R o m e and the Greek East to the D e a t h of Augustus, in Translated Documents of Greece and Rome, 4, E. Badian a n d R. Sherk (Eds.) (Cambridge: U.P. 1984), n o . 101 p p . 124 127.

THE FOUNDATIONS OF THE IMPERIAL CULT

69

lest h e b e overwhelmed by t h e force of his o w n rhetoric. Is the dpxr| one in which t h e natural world is set right from its previous m e t a physical collapse, o r is it merely a question of the b e g i n n i n g of a new political order? H e thus continues: If not [the beginning of all things] in nature, at least in the order of the useful, (ei jnf| xr\ cptxjei, xcp ye xpr|0"{|icp) for even if there is nothing in a fallen condition (ei ye oi)8ev oiyyi Siarceucxov) and changed into an unfortunate condition ( m i eiq dx\)xe<; |iexapePr|K6<; OXTIILICX) that he has not set right (dvcopGcoaev), he has given to the whole world a different appearance (exepcxv xe e8coKev navel xcp KOGJICO 6\|/tv), which would [as a world] have gladly welcomed its destruction (r|8taxa d v 8e£a|ievcp cp0opdv) had not for the common good fortune Caesar been born (ei \ir\ xo KOIVOVrcdvxcovei)x{>XTI|LICX erceyevvriOri Kociacxp). Lines 6-9. Despite therefore a certain reluctance a b o u t full c o m m i t m e n t to the metaphysics of t h e saeculum aureum, t h e t h e m e s of the deified quali ties of T\)%r| (eiq aTu%e<; TO KOIVOV 7idvxcov e\)Ti>xr||ia) a r e still found asso ciated with the beginning of a n e w political o r d e r in which matters have b e e n "set right (dvcopGcoaev)." If w e t u r n from the letter of t h e proconsul to the 1st D e c r e e of the K o i n o n of Asia, also in 9 B . C . , w e also find evidence that Stoic metaphysics gives intellectual justification to t h e connections b e t w e e n Fortuna, a u g u r y a n d the saeculum aureum. T h e reason Augustus' birth day begins the n e w C a l e n d a r is that: The Providence that has divinely ordered our life (f| 9e(coq Siaxd^ccacx xov piov f||j.cov Ttpovoia), has brought us regard and honour (o7ccru8f|v eiaeveyKa^ievri m i quAaTUiiav) and arranged our life with perfect good ness (TO xeXr|6xaxov xcp pico 8IEKOA|LIR|aev dyaGov) when it brought to us Augustus (eveyicauevri xov lepaaxov), whom Providence has filled with virtue for the benefit of mankind (ov eiq etiepyecriav dvGpamcov ejcXripcoaev dpexfjq) and granted both to us and to those after us as our saviour (cooTtep f||ieiv KCXI xoiq ^leO' f|uo:<; acoxfjpex xaptaa|ievr|) who has made war to cease and ordered the world with peace (xov navoavxa uev K6XE\IOV, KOAUR|Govxa 8e eipr|vr|v).

Lines 32-37. T h u s w e have Stoic npovoioc c o m b i n e d b o t h with the reign of p e a c e a n d t h e personal m e d i a t o r of that peace ( l e p a a x o v . . . KoaurjaovTa 8e E I P R J V N V ) . T h e D P E T C U a r e n o longer individual deities b u t divine 1 1 1

111

T h i s theme is also found in an inscription from Athens in 1 A . D . , see ibid. no. 128 p. 9 5 (IGRR 4,180; CIG 3642) where Ilpovoia is identified with Julia Augusta.

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CHAPTER T W O

characteristics with which npovoia has filled Augustus ( o v . . . ercWipcooev dpexfiq). T h e divinity Salus or Icoxr|p{a does n o t simply a c c o m p a n y Augustus, b u t is identified with the person of h i m w h o is ocoxf|p, as he is also in other similar inscriptions. As the passage continues, Caesar is associated with an ercupaveta (ercicpaveic;), ekniq a n d euayyeXia which surpass all other hopes a n d promises m a d e . T h u s we find con cepts held b o t h by the Imperial Cult a n d by the writers of the N e w T e s t a m e n t (/. 37-40). A similar inscription from Halicarnassus at this time substitutes for the idea of n p o v o i a the even stronger Stoic concept of " t h e eter nal a n d u n d y i n g n a t u r e of the universe (n aicovioq Kal dGdvaxoq xou rcavioq cpuaiq)." In the words that follow, the E m p e r o r is linked as pater patriae with the h o m e l a n d of the Goddess R o m a (rcaxepa u£v xfiq eauxou rcaxplSoq Beaq Tcburiq), as well as identified with " t h e F a t h e r Zeus (Aia 8e rcaxpcoov) a n d saviour of o u r c o m m o n h u m a n race ( m i acoxfjpa xou KOIVOU xcov dv0pco7ccov yevouc;)." (/. 6-7) F u r t h e r m o r e , the virtues are once again associated with t h e divine mediation of the saeculum aureum t h r o u g h Augustus w h e n it is claimed that " . . . cities ( K O X E K ; ) . . . flourish (dvBouaiv) with G o o d G o v e r n m e n t (Evvouia), Concord ('Ouovoia), a n d Prosperity ( m i Euexrjpia), a n d the flower a n d harvest of all good (dicuT| xe m i cpopd rcavxoq eaxiv dyaGou)." D i o Cassius might well inform us that, " w h e n the senate a n d people once m o r e contributed m o n e y for statues of Augustus, he would set u p n o statue of himself, b u t instead set u p statues (eiKovaq) of Salus Publica (Tyieiaq Aruioaiaq), Concordia fOuovoiaq), a n d Pax (Eipf|vr|<;)." (54,33) These divine qualities according to this inscription were already in a state of n e a r identification with his divine, augural powers in bringing in the saeculum aureum. 112

113

114

F r o m the West, from N a r b o in G a u l , A . D . 12-13, we have corro boration of the augural t h e m e that we have emphasised in connec tion with t h e Imperial Cult. A votum perpetuum is m a d e to the Numen of Augustus. A n altar was erected in the forum of the city at which sacrifice was to be m a d e for the n u m b e r of years after the 9th K a l . O c t o b e r , (23rd September), o n which day, his birthday: " T h e blessed

1 1 2

Cf. the decrees M y r a in Lycia IGRR 3,721 (= Ehrenberg a n d J o n e s (1955) no. 88): Ti(3epiov K o u o a p a Geov l e p a a x o v 0ecov lepaoxcov m o v a\)XOKpdxopa y n q m i GaXdacmq, xov evepyexrjv m i acoxfjpa xov avvrcavxoc; K o a u o i ) , Mvpecov 6 8fjuo<;. Ehrenberg a n d J o n e s (1955) n o . 9 8 lines 3 5 - 4 1 . Ehrenberg a n d J o n e s (1955) n o . 9 8 a /. 3; IBM 4 , 1 , n o . 8 9 4 , line 1. 1 , 3

1 1 4

71

THE FOUNDATIONS OF THE IMPERIAL CULT

F o r t u n e of the age m a d e h i m ruler of the world (saeculi Felicitas eum orbi terrarum rectorem edidit)" N o t only then, b u t on Idus Januar. (7th J a n u a r y ) , the day on which he first assumed the fasces, incense a n d wine are to be offered because: " o n that day first he entered u p o n (auspicatus est) the e m p i r e of the world (imperium orbis terrarum):' If we return once again to the East, we find at Gytheion in L a c a o nia a n inscription a n d a letter regarding the extension of the cult to include Tiberius. Augustus is called here " g o d the son of the god C a e s a r (Oeou Kaioapoq Geou uiou), Saviour w h o brings liberty (Icorfipoq 'EXeuGepiou)." J u l i a Augusta is e q u a t e d with Tu%r|, a n d G e r m a n i c u s with Ndcr). T h e s e examples could be extended. W e have p r o d u c e d therefore sufficient examples for the m o m e n t to establish o u r case for various, different strands in the conceptual discourses that were coalescing to form theologies of imperial worship. T h e discourse of augury a n d priesthood were being j u x t a p o s e d with messianic themes. M o r e o v e r the Stoic theology of divination a n d Fortuna was also mak ing its o w n contribution to p a r t of the iconography of the cult of e m p e r o r worship in cities b o t h of the Eastern a n d W e s t e r n E m p i r e . 115

116

Let us d r a w some preliminary observations for the rise of early Christianity from w h a t has p r e c e d e d . 2B

5. Implications of the Imperial Cult for early Christianity

W e saw in the decree of the K o i n o n of Asia a n example of the ide ology of the Imperial C u l t in Asia M i n o r t h a t was to prefigure in the Apocalypse, a n d which was p a r t of the scene in which b o t h LukeActs a n d the letters of Ignatius of Antioch m a d e their a p p e a r a n c e . T h e K o i n o n that speaks for all Asia M i n o r reflects the theology of the cult that I have described in this chapter. W e find a pax deorum achieved by a n extraordinary act of augury that issued in n o tem p o r a r y eipr|vr| b u t the p e a c e of the golden age. W e find Stoic con cepts of npovoia a n d of (puaiq intellectually justifying both the augurium a n d the c o m i n g of that age. W e find concepts of acoxripia t h r o u g h a acorn,p expressed in that cult. L a t e r (3D 3.2) we shall discuss fur ther inscriptions such as o n e from Sardis in which a new addition

1 , 3

Ehrenberg and J o n e s (1955) no. 100 A, lines 2 0 - 2 7 = ILS 112 = IGRR 4 , 1 7 5 6 , I; Fishwick (1991) 2,1 p. 4 8 2 . S e e also a papyrus fragment o n an association for an imperial cult ibid. no. 118 p. 9 3 and an inscription (A.D. 1) from Tentyrae, Egypt (OGIS 659) where 'EA,e\)6epio<; is also found, ibid. no. 116, p. 9 3 . 1 , 6

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CHAPTER

TWO

to the cult is a c c o m p a n i e d by the "good news" of its proclamation. " T h e city is evangelised (euayye^iaOri fi noXiq)" a n d "prayers for salva tion (KOCTEDXCXC; . . . uicep xfjc; acorn, pioc<;)" are offered "by sacred heralds (8id iepoKTipuKcov)." At other places in Asia M i n o r such as Halicarnassus, a n d G y t h e u m , we found too such titles proclaimed in the inscriptions a n d in the prayers of the cult as acorn,p, eipr|vri, eXevQepioq, viicr), vibq xov Geou, eXniq, uyteia, ouovoux, rcpovoia, £7u
118

It will be o u r objective n o w to a t t e m p t to assess, by looking at late first a n d second century Christian writings, the effect of this Imperial Cult in terms of h o w early Christians shaped their c o m m u n i t y a n d its structures in reaction (whether conscious or not) to the b a c k g r o u n d of the Imperial Cult.

1 . 7

Ehrenberg and J o n e s no. 9 9 = /. Sardis 7,1,8, /. 1 2 - 1 4 ; Price (1984), p. 6 6 and p. 2 5 9 cat. no. 5 6 . J o s e p h u s , Bell.Jud. 1, 4 1 4 cf. Antiqu. 15,339; Fishwick (1987) 1,1 p. 129 and 147. 1 . 8

CHAPTER

THREE

IMPERIAL IDEOLOGY AND T H E ORIGINS CHURCH ORDER

OF

Reformed Judaism in Luke-Acts and the Christian p a x dei

In this c h a p t e r a n d the next two, we shall deal with the develop ments in the life of the early C h u r c h which mirrored the the Imperial Cult as it developed in the social a n d political context of p a g a n R o m e . W e shall deal in this c h a p t e r exclusively with Luke-Acts, for which we accept a date after N e r o , but before D o m i t i a n , of a b o u t 85 A . D . W e shall, in C h a p t e r 4, consider the c o m m u n i t y of C l e m e n t at R o m e a n d their relations with the Imperial Cult b o t h intellectu ally a n d practically, in c o m p a r i s o n with the circle of in Asia M i n o r in D o m i t i a n ' s time, to which Luke-Acts was addressed. In C l e m e n t ' s Corinthians the d e m a n d s for order are self-consciously constructed after R o m a n models a n d express the very concerns with natural a n d social chaos t h a t the Stoic metaphysic of the Imperial Cult h a d sought to address. W e shall then ( C h a p t e r 5) consider w h a t we will argue to be the Domitianic text of the Apocalypse, a n d its quite different a p proach to the Imperial Cult. T h e Apocalypse mirrors Domitian's changes in the Imperial Cult, a n d , in a m a n n e r different from Luke-Acts, for mulates a distinctive c o n t r a culture that reverses the images a n d val ues that define the concept of p o w e r in the host culture. 1

In C h a p t e r 6 we shall find reflected in Ignatius of Antioch, p a r ticularly in his Romans a n d Ephesians, the martyrological aspect of a c o n t r a culture. Ignatius described the ministerial representatives w h o j o i n e d h i m from various C h u r c h e s as a cultic procession. T h e p r o cession has the features of a Christian Eucharist, as its m e m b e r s lead Ignatius across Asia M i n o r to the a r e n a at R o m e . T h u s we shall be able to complete o u r a r g u m e n t that the O r d e r of the Imperial Cult finds a form a n d a n i c o n o g r a p h y reflected in the O r d e r of the

1

For a defence of this dating, see P.F. Esler, C o m m u n i t y and Gospel in LukeActs: T h e social a n d political motivations o f Lucan theology, in SNTMS 57 (1987), pp. 2 7 - 3 0 .

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C h r i s t i a n C u l t as it e m e r g e s in the early s e c o n d c e n t u r y . T h a t reflection was destined to continue a n d to develop into a new form in the confrontation between C y p r i a n a n d his fellow-bishops, a n d the R o m a n E m p i r e of Decius T r a j a n . But let us t u r n first of all in this c h a p t e r to the reformulation of early Christian eschatology in Luke-Acts. W e shall argue that the p u r pose of t h a t reformulation was to enable the a u t h o r to define the O r d e r a n d worship of the Christian cultus analogously with that of the Imperial. W e shall e n d e v o u r to answer two critical questions: 1. Why did Luke reshape Christian eschatology so that he could defer the expectation of the day of judgement to an indefinite future? (Lk. 21,24d; Acts 1,7) 2. Why, furthermore, did Luke, clearly a deutero-Paulinist in the gen eration after the death of his community's founding aposde, stress that Christianity was the fulfilment of Judaism in a way that was even more sympathetic to the latter than even Paul's final position (in contrast to Galatians) in Romans 9—12? T h e traditional answer to 2. has b e e n that Luke's two-volume work was i n t e n d e d to be a n ecumenical d o c u m e n t , reconciling differences between Paul's churches a n d the original J e r u s a l e m c o m m u n i t y . W e could respond by pointing out that Paul never really attacked J u d a i s m in the way this view presupposes, b u t in fact stressed its continuity in terms of fulfilment. But t h e n we must ask w h y Luke should stress t h a t continuity w h e n writing for a gentile a u d i e n c e . T h e traditional answer has always b e e n suspect in terms of historical m e t h o d since it implies that late first century communities developed according to the logic of his Christian c o m m u n i t y ' s own internal discourse t h a t was only minimally related historically a n d culturally to the devel oping wider, p a g a n culture. Luke is supposed to be solely c o n c e r n e d with healing internal divisions within the c o m m u n i t y in o r d e r to m a k e the c o m m u n i t y stronger a n d m o r e self-secure. 2

M o r e recent literature has, moreover, acknowledged the p r o b l e m

2

T h e most recent statement o f this case, with bibliography, is J. Jervell, Luke and the People of God: A new Look at Luke-Acts, (Minneapolis: Augsburg 1972), p p . 1 5 3 - 1 8 3 , criticised in R. M a d d o x , T h e Purpose of Luke-Acts, in FRANT 126 (1982), c h a p ter 3. For an earlier and provisional treatment o f the t h e m e s of this chapter, see A. Brent, Luke-Acts a n d the Imperial Cult in Asia M i n o r , in JThS 4 8 , 2 (1997), p p . I l l 138.

IMPERIAL IDEOLOGY AND THE ORIGINS OF CHURCH ORDER

75

that Israel is recognised in Luke-Acts in a way that surpasses even Paul as the necessary precursor to Christianity. Lk. 1-2 locates the origins of Christianity in the circle of such priests a n d p r o p h e t s of the J e r u s a l e m T e m p l e as Z a c h a r i a h a n d A n n a . W o u l d even the Paul of Romans 9 - 1 1 have b e g u n a Gospel addressed to gentile Christians in the words of Lk. 1,5 (eyevexo . . . iepeuq xiq ovojiaxi Za^apiaq)? C e r tainly, in order to explain such features in Luke as a deutero-Paulinist, H o u l d e n postulated the existence of "pre-Marcionite M a r c i o n i t e s " as influencing the quite un-Pauline significance of the T e m p l e in LukeActs} I reject as p u r e hypothesis such a n u n d o c u m e n t e d m o v e m e n t within the early C h u r c h . I propose instead to p r o d u c e d o c u m e n t e d evidence from the literature a n d b a c k g r o u n d of the Imperial Cult to support m y claim that the fulfilment of the object of republican religion by Augustus was the real counterfoil to Luke's picture of Christianity as the fulfilment of the cult of the T e m p l e of J u d a i s m . 3

T h e traditional answer to 1 is that the delay of the Parousia caused Luke to reshape primitive eschatology so as to provide a space for the C h u r c h in normal history. But a p h e n o m e n o n such as Montanism or millenarianist groups d e m o n s t r a t e that the delay of the Parousia did n o t of itself necessarily p r o d u c e such a perceived need for a space for the c h u r c h in n o r m a l history. Esler's recent study of the i m m e d i a t e historical a n d social back g r o u n d to Luke-Acts has focused o n the need to replace the thesis of Luke-Acts as apologia, founded on the dubious legal notion of the quest for status as a religio licita, with a thesis a b o u t legitimation. Focusing 5

6

3

V . Fusco, Luke-Acts and the Future o f Israel, in NT 38,1 (1996), pp. 1-17. J.L. H o u l d e n , T h e Purpose o f Luke, in JSNT 21 (1984), p p . 5 3 - 6 5 criticised M a d d o x (1982) for his attempts to modify what h e saw as the extreme view o f the centrality o f j u d a e i s m represented by such writers a s j e r v e l l (1972) and G . D . Kilpatrick, T h e Gentiles a n d the Strata of Luke, in Verborum Veritas, (Ed.) O . B o c h e r and K. H a a k e r (Wuppertal: 1970). H o u l d e n (1984), p. 6 2 . S e e also J. Jervell, Retrospect and Prospect in LukeActs Interpretation, in SBL.SPS 3 0 (1991), p. 3 8 4 . For further bibliography, see F. B o v o n , Etudes lucaniennes. Retrospective et prospective, in RThPh 125 (1993), pp. 125- 129, w h o poses two questions: "Le premier. . . . La Loi mosaique est-elle encore valide p o u r Luc?. . . . Le s e c o n d dirige le regard vers la position sociale de Luc." H . C o n z e l m a n n , The Theology of St. Luke, translated by G. Buswell (London: Faber 1961), pp. 2 0 2 - 2 0 6 . T h e existence o f a formal legal status o f a religio licita was originally proposed by Harnack and W e n d t . For references a n d further support for this point o f view see C o n z e l m a n n (1961), pp. 1 3 7 - 1 4 4 . T h i s view has b e e n questioned recently by M a d d o x (1982), pp. 9 1 - 9 3 and Esler (1987), p p . 2 1 1 - 2 1 4 . 4

3

fa

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CHAPTER THREE

o n Luke's gospel in the present chapter, I wish to argue that the legi timation thesis is only partially true a n d possibly misleading. Legiti m a t i o n in sociological discourse normally refers to the way in which o n e g r o u p , in its o w n self-interests, justifies its privileged position in power relations to another. I wish to emphasise here that the particular theology of Luke is a political theology in terms of which T h e o p h i l u s a n d his g r o u p did not simply justify their position to others b u t to themselves. T h e i m m e d i a t e historical a n d social context in which T h e o p h i l u s a n d his circle found themselves was o n e in w h i c h the values of Imperial O r d e r were reflected in the developing Imperial Cult in Asia M i n o r , w h o s e origins a n d d e v e l o p m e n t we h a v e t r a c e d in C h a p t e r 2. T h a t continuing development reinforced, u n d e r D o m i t i a n in the last q u a r t e r of the first century, the ideology of a religious reformation that had accompanied a political revolution under Augustus from 31 B . C . o n w a r d s . T h a t religious reformation emphasised the religious role of the e m p e r o r as the fulfilment of the R e p u b l i c a n cult (as opposed to its abrogation), originally c o n d u c t e d by elected m a g istrates w h o also held its priesthoods. Christianity, as c o m m e n d e d by Luke to T h e o p h i l u s ' circle, was J u d a i s m fulfilled. But Luke envisaged that fulfilment, to use Bovon's p h r a s e , as ' u n e contrepartie religieuse' specifically to the religious claims implied by Augustus' constitutional reforms: it was not simply a general parallel with Imperial universalism, as Bovon originally t h o u g h t . 7

8

9

I will argue that T h e o p h i l u s ' circle inherited the values of a n i m p e rial o r d e r a n d p e a c e that b o r e the form of Stoic metaphysics in which n a t u r e a n d society were one. Its m e m b e r s accepted the im perial values, deified as Virtues, of Victoria, Pax, Concordia, Salus etc.,

7

For d e v e l o p m e n t s o f the Imperial Cult in Asia M i n o r specifically in the eighties such as cults to D o m i t i a n at Ephesus and Laodicaea, see S.R.F. Price, Rituals and Power: The Roman Imperial Cult in Asia Minor (Cambridge: U.P. 1984), pp. 140, 1 8 3 - 1 8 5 , 197-198, 255. F. B o v o n , Israel, die Kirche u n d die Volker im lukanischen Doppelwerk, ThLiZ 108 (1983), col. 4 0 4 : "Die Entwicklung des Kaiserkultes ware eine weitere, wirkungsvollere Losung, der bunten Vielfalt der unterworfenen Volker eine ideologische Einheit zu verleihen . . . W i e verhalt sich die chrisdiche vocatio gentium zu dieser Eingliederung der Volker in die romischen Strukturen?" B o v o n (1993), p. 128: "La defense et l'illustration de 1'universalisme au l o n g de toute ceuvre de Luc represent, a m e s yeux, une contrepartie religieuse des ambi tions imperiales romaines." 8

9

IMPERIAL IDEOLOGY AND THE ORIGINS OF CHURCH ORDER

77

since they h a d b e e n conditioned socially to take seriously the claim t h a t a n originally imperfect r e p u b l i c a n religious cultus h a d b e e n reformed a n d perfected by the Augustus as princeps. T h e use of the methodology of narrative criticism in N e w T e s t a m e n t studies will help us here since we will seek to reconstruct the ideal r e a d e r for the text that Luke has r e s h a p e d in terms of the images of the i m p e rial i d e o l o g y . W e shall a r g u e t h a t Luke h a s r e f o r m u l a t e d early Christian eschatology, initially in chapters 1-3, in a w a y that reflects the impress of the ideology of the saeculum aureum in the Imperial Cult. F u r t h e r m o r e , we shall witness t h r o u g h o u t his work conceptual reflections of pax, concordia a n d providentia that b e a r witness to a con cern with the theological implications of Augustan settlement. In con sequence of such social conditioning, Theophilus a n d his circle shrank with h o r r o r at the prospect of a r e t u r n to civil chaos m a r k e d by the events that lead to A c t i u m (31 B.C.), a n d which they saw as the culmination of a century of increasingly devastating civil wars. U n d e r the influence of such a historiography of decline, they experienced their metaphysical terror associated with the ira as opposed to the pax deorum. 10

Luke's solution was to e n c o u r a g e t h e m to see Christianity, as the fulfilment of J u d a i s m (2) which paralleled Augustus' fulfilment of that to which the religious practices of Republican magistrates h a d aspired, n a m e l y the divine pax in b o t h n a t u r e a n d society. T h e O r d e r of the Christian c o m m u n i t y , constituted by a n apostolate whose Koivcovioc c o n t i n u e d the teaching a n d healing ministry of J e s u s along with the b r e a k i n g of b r e a d (Acts 2,42), was the true m e a n s of p r o d u c i n g the pax dei, in contrast to Augustus' pax deorum (the enx yf^/ev o u p a v S eipr|VTi; Lk. 2,24; 19,38). H e r e we find, in the context of imperial order, a refashioned Christian version of the Augustan saeculum aureum. Consequently Lk. 1-3 r e s h a p e d primitive Christian eschatology by r e m o v i n g themes of tribulation, chaos, a n d of the future role of the Son of M a n in j u d g m e n t , so as to p r o d u c e , for T h e o p h i l u s ' circle, a Christian, present c o u n t e r p a r t to the imperial p e a c e , a n d the cul tic m e a n s for securing this (1).

10

S e e e.g. M . C . de Boer, Narrative Criticism, Historical Criticism, and the Gospel of J o h n , in JSNT 47 (1992), p p . 3 5 - 4 8 and the criticisms o f S. Motyer, A M e t h o d in Fourth Gospel Studies: A W a y out o f the Impasse, in JSNT 66 (1997), pp. 2 7 - 4 4 .

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CHAPTER THREE

PART A.

LUKE-ACTS:

TRADITIONAL ESCHATOLOGY

TRANSFORMED

T h e uniqueness of the eschatology of Luke-Acts c a n n o t be overesti m a t e d . I will a r g u e that this u n i q u e n e s s is highly influenced by Augustus' saeculum aureum secured t h r o u g h the reformed Imperial Cult that was perceived, following o u r discussion in C h a p t e r 2, to b e alone able to secure the pax deorum (2B). But first let us establish that uniqueness in its o w n right by c o m p a r i n g L u k a n eschatology with t h a t of Matthew a n d Mark, before we offer any particular account of the influences that p r o d u c e d it. 3A

1. Mark and the primitive kerygma

T h e r e is very little a t t e m p t o n the p a r t of either Matthew or Mark to relate their story to secular history. M a r k notoriously begins his gospel with the ministry of J o h n the Baptist, like those primitive Christian sermons exemplified in the m o u t h s of some of the twelve aposdes, the d e a c o n Stephen, a n d Paul in Acts. T h e r e is n o birth story a n d the gospel begins as it were from n o w h e r e . But Mark's purpose is to d o m o r e than r e p r o d u c e the primitive kerugma in ex panded form. 11

In comparison with its total length, a large section of Mark is taken u p with the Apocalypse of ML 13. Earlier, before the scene of the T r a n s figuration, J e s u s h a d declared that there were some standing there w h o would not taste of death until they h a d seen the kingdom of G o d c o m e in p o w e r (ML 9,1). Originally the Transfiguration might have c o u n t e d as the realisation of that declaration. But for M a r k the c o m ing of that kingdom is to be w h e n the events of his Apocalypse are ful filled, namely when the armies of Titus surround Jerusalem in A.D. 65 at the time w h e n h e writes from R o m e . J e r u s a l e m was n o t yet destroyed b u t the news r e a c h e d the R o m a n c o m m u n i t y that it was a b o u t to b e , a n d t h e n the " a b o m i n a t i o n of the desolation" would be set u p in the T e m p l e as the day of the L o r d set in blood a n d fire. After describing the shaking of the powers of nature in earthquake a n d famine, the expansion of error, a n d persecution a n d betrayal, ML 13,14 continues:

11

J. Schniewind, Zur Synoptiker Exegese, in ThR 2 (1930), pp. 1 2 9 - 1 8 9 and C . H . D o d d , The Apostolic Preaching and its Developments, (London: M a c M i l l a n 1956), pp. 16 32 ff., cf. H. Koester, Ancient Christian Gospels, Their History and Development, (London: S C M 1990), p p . 2 6 2 9 ff.

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But when you shall see the Abomination of the desolation (TO (35e^\)yua epT)ucoaeco(;) [Dan. 9,27; 12,4; 10] standing where it ought not (£OTT|K6T(X onox> ov 8ei), let the reader grasp the meaning, then let those in Judaea flee to the hills . . . For in those days shall be the tribula tion (8A.i\jnq) such as not come about from the beginning which God created until now [Joel 2,2]. Tfjq

T h u s the R o m a n c o m m u n i t y , having experienced N e r o ' s persecu tion in R o m e (13,9-13), h e a r e d the news from J e r u s a l e m of the grad ual crushing of the revolt by Titus. T h e a u t h o r informs t h e m that N e r o is a b o u t to fulfil the mysterious sacrilege prophesied by Daniel, the TO p8eta)Y|ia zf\q epriuxbaecog. It is the i m m e d i a t e consequence of this i m m i n e n t a n d strange act that the last events of the world's his tory a r e to occur ( 1 3 , 2 0 - 2 8 ) . 12

F a r from Mark's gospel therefore, as the theory of the interpreter of St. Peter suggests, being written for a generation to come w h o would otherwise lack Peter's teaching n o w that he h a d been m a r t y r e d , the a u t h o r expected n o future history for which to w r i t e . His c o m m u nity was the c o m m u n i t y of the E n d time, with n o need for a continu ing authority structure with a continuing tradition h a n d e d d o w n . For him there was to be n o future history of this world, a n d therefore there was little n e e d to write the events of J e s u s ' ministry, d e a t h a n d resurrection as d a t e d events in a history that would continue. His written a c c o u n t was a reassurance to the R o m a n c o m m u n i t y that they h a d little longer to wait, a n d the eschatological events justify ing their faith would soon take place. 13

W e shall n o w see that Matthew deals with the p r o b l e m of the delay of the parousia, which h a d not immediately followed the destruction of J e r u s a l e m , quite differently from the way that Luke-Acts was to propose.

12

S.G.F. Brandon, Jesus and the ^ealots: A Study of the Political Factor in Primitive Christianity, (Manchester: U . P . 1961), pp. 3 8 7 - 3 9 1 dates Mark post 71 A . D . o n the grounds that account of the rending o f the veil in ML 15, 38 reflects the writer's experience of the triumphal procession o f Vespasian at R o m e in w h i c h the purple temple-curtains were included in the spoils a n d were afterwards deposited with copies o f the T o r a h in the imperial palace, see J o s e p h u s , Bell. Jud. 6, 3 8 7 - 3 9 1 and 7,162. But even if this were the case, the historical closeness o f the R o m a n c o m munity to the events o f w h i c h they as yet had n o certain account could still result in what had h a p p e n e d nourishing the i m m i n e n t apocalyptic expectations to which Mark bears witness. Papias apud Eusebius H.E. 111,39,15 is clearly legendary and based u p o n the priority o f Matthew as an apostolic authority. 13

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3A

2. M a t t h e w ' s heightened apocalypticism: a hope frustrated

Matthew was written at a similar time to that of Luke-Acts, b u t with a considerably different purpose. Redaction criticism has shown reflected in the various pericopes conflicting traditions b e a r i n g the marks of transmission t h r o u g h rival groups in a divided Christian c o m m u n i t y . Egalitarian, clericalist, a n d charismatic groups vie with o n e a n o t h e r , a n d Matthew's solution is presented in the person of a bridge-builder a n d reconciler, w h e t h e r actual or ideal, w h o will bring the groups t o g e t h e r . But the shadow of the E n d T i m e still hovers over the author's perspective. T h e Twelve Apostles are sent forth, a n d J e s u s assures t h e m that, t h o u g h they will experience persecution, they will be beaten in synagogues a n d lead before synagogue courts a n d h a n d e d over to gentile magistrates for p u n i s h m e n t , nevertheless: 14

Go not into the way of the pagans, and do not enter a city of the Samaritans; but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. . . You shall not have completed the cities of Israel until the Son of Man shall come. 10

But the a u t h o r of Matthew knew at the time of his writing, in the late eighties in Antioch in Syria, that J e r u s a l e m h a d been destroyed. T h e use of that gospel by early writers associated with Syria a n d Antioch clearly determines this as his place of origin. T h e citations of this gospel by Ignatius of Antioch (circa 107 A . D . ) , a n d partic ularly the a p p e a r a n c e of single bishops in his writing w h e r e Matthew's clericalist faction has only presbyters a n d teachers, reveal the mideighties as the most likely date. Ignatius' single bishops have at the later time seemingly absorbed the charismatic functions of one of the opposing g r o u p s . 16

17

But t h o u g h J e r u s a l e m has b e e n destroyed, this does not lead h i m to tone d o w n or limit the scope of the M a r k a n apocalypse. ML 13, with its 37 verses has been e x p a n d e d into two chapters, Mat. 2 4 - 2 5 ,

14

R.E. Brown and J.-P. Meier, Antioch and Rome: New Testament Cradles of Catholic Christianity, ( N e w York: Paulist Press 1983), p p . 5 7 - 7 2 cf. A. Brent, Pseudonymity and Charisma in the Ministry of the Early Church, in Aug. 2 7 , 3 (1987), pp. 3 6 9 - 3 7 4 . Mat. 1 0 , 1 - 2 3 . Ignatius, Ephes. 14,2 (Mat. 12,33); Smyrn. 1,1 (Mat. 3,15); 6,1 (Mat. 19,12); Polycarp 2,2 (Mat. 10,16). C. Trevett, Prophecy and Anti-Episcopal Activity: A Third Error C o m b a t t e d by Ignatius? in JEH 3 4 (1983), pp. 165 171, for qualifications of which see, Brent (1987), pp. 3 4 7 376. 15

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with 51 a n d 4 6 verses respectively. T h e c h a p t e r s owe their e x p a n sion to parables of the Last J u d g e m e n t , such as the Days of N o a h (24,37-42), the Lazy Servant (24,43-51), Wise a n d Foolish Virgins (25,1-13), the T a l e n t s ( 2 5 , 1 4 - 3 0 ) , a n d the S h e e p a n d the G o a t s (25,31-46). But w h e r e ML 13,14, in its reference to t h e TO pSe^uyua xf|<; epTjuxooecoc; £<JTT|K6TGC OKOV O U 8ei, refers to w h a t stands in its tem ple before the i m m i n e n t destruction of J e r u s a l e m , Mat, 24,15 simply transfers the p r o p h e c y to w h a t will stand "in a n holy place (ev TOTCCO ayico)" unspecified. T h e Markan apocalypse is still to b e fulfilled i m m i nently even t h o u g h , since the J e r u s a l e m temple already n o w b e e n destroyed, the particular place w h e r e its fulfilment is to begin can no longer be specified. But for the a u t h o r of Luke-Acts, this conception of the E n d time found in one of his early Christian sources, Mark, c a n n o t a n d will not be any longer sustained. 18

3A

3. Luke'5 transformation of the apocalyptic tradition

Whilst not abrogating the original apocalyptic description of the com ing of the E n d , Luke dissociates this description from the destruction of J e r u s a l e m . All references to the shadowy a n d mysterious p8eta)Y|i(x Tfjq epr||itt>G£co(; are omitted. In Lk. 2 1 , 2 0 - 2 4 we read: When you shall see Jerusalem encircled by armed camps, then know that its desolation (f| epr|ucflGi<; ai)Trj<;) has drawn nigh . . . and Jerusalem shall be trodden down by the pagans until the times of the pagans (Kaipoi eOvcov) are fulfilled. O n l y after the unspecified a n d p r o t r a c t e d K a i p o i eOvcov will the heav enly powers b e shaken a n d the signs seen (21,25-27). T h e epf|(icooi(; of J e r u s a l e m is taken out of salvation history a n d placed securely in secular history in which the c h u r c h is to have a mission a n d o r g a n isation that e n d u r e s in secular time. T h e particularly L u c a n a c c o u n t a n d doctrine of the Ascension also implies this. J e s u s is lifted u p i n t o h e a v e n from w h e n c e in the unspecifiable future he will one d a y return. (Acts 1,9.) F o r forty days

18

D . E . N i n e h a m , The Gospel of St. Mark, (London: A. and C. Black 1968), p. 3 5 4 footnote: "St. Luke's version is not a verbatim reproduction of the original but an attempt, alternative to St. Mark's, to deal with a well-known prophecy of profana tion which had not b e e n fulfilled with reference to the temple." Cf. G.B. Caird, St. Luke, (Harmondsworth: Penguin 1963), pp. 2 3 1 - 2 3 2 .

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before, o n e question that is highlighted is the question a b o u t t h e occurrence of the apocalyptic events, b u t Jesus will give n o answer, let alone a n y assurance of their immediacy, b u t r a t h e r points to a continuing t e m p o r a l mission in which t h e c h u r c h c a n e x p a n d from J e r u s a l e m to S a m a r i a a n d indeed to the uttermost parts of the earth (1,6-8). Present a n d future time n o longer coalesce imperceptibly into o n e as the E n d remorselessly floods into the present, as in early Christian eschatology. T h e apostles a r e n o t to stand gazing into heaven (1,9-11), as if for the i m m i n e n t return of Jesus, b u t a r e to repair the organisation of a n indefinetly continuing c o m m u n i t y by replacing J u d a s with Matthias in o r d e r to bring the n u m b e r of t h e apostles back u p to twelve (1,15-26). T h u s , according to C o n z e l m a n n ' s original thesis, the a u t h o r of Luke-Acts h a s r e m o v e d the present from a n y i m m e d i a t e contact with the eschaton. H e has thus created a space for the existence of a c o m munity which will function in secular history with an ecclesiastical O r d e r that will preserve its identity a n d continuity. But let us n o w examine h o w the C h u r c h O r d e r for which the a u t h o r n o w makes provision was shaped against t h e b a c k g r o u n d of the imperial recon struction of secular history by his p a g a n contemporaries, a n d which it in consequence reflected.

PART B. LUKE-ACTS

IN THE CONTEXT OF IMPERIAL

HISTORY

Luke introduces his birth narrative with a chronological note linking Christ's birth with Augustan history in his story of the census (2,1-3). In 3,1 the ministry of Jesus is r e c o r d e d as beginning "in t h e fifteenth year of Tiberius C a e s a r , " h e n c e 30 A . D . , with Pontius Pilate n a m e d as the " g o v e r n o r " (Tiyeuoveuovio*;) of J u d a e a , H e r o d as tetrarch of Galilee, Philip of Ituraea, a n d Lysanias of Abilene. T h e action of Claudius in expelling the J e w s from R o m e is recorded, in explana tion of the presence of Aquila a n d Priscilla (Acts 18,2). Gallio is m e n tioned as "pro-consul (avBuTcdiou) of A c h a e a " (18,12), with w h o m we have already m e t as L u c a n ' s uncle w h o c o m m i t t e d suicide with h i m on the failure of their conspiracy to take N e r o ' s life (2A 4). W e also meet with Porcius Festus, succeeding Felix as governor (Tiyejicov). (Acts 2 3 , 2 5 - 2 7 ; 2 4 , 2 7 ) 19

W e know further what transpired regarding Festus and his succession by Cestius Florus from J o s e p h u s , Antiqu. 2 0 , 197 2 0 3 ; B.ell. Jud. 2 , 1 6 6 .

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But we do well to ask w h e t h e r this interaction with secular his tory is purely c h r o n o g r a p h i c , or w h e t h e r there is some further p u r pose reflected in the choice of at least some of these dates a n d figures. Such a purpose, moreover, m a y reflect in some way the concerns reflected in the imagery of the Imperial Cult as we have outlined in o u r second chapter. 3B

1. The Augustan census ofhk.

2,1-2

It is easy to dismiss this passage for historical reasons for which no d o u b t it ought to be dismissed. For this author, unlike Matthew, M a r y did not originally live with J o s e p h in Bethlehem, only to m o v e to N a z a r e t h from the house in which J e s u s was b o r n d u e to the malig nancy of H e r o d a n d Archelaus (Mat. 2 , 1 ; 11; 13; 2 2 - 2 3 ) . Instead the a u t h o r of Luke-Acts envisages J o s e p h a n d M a r y living in N a z a r e t h , a n d , in o r d e r to explain the fulfilment of Micah 5,2, invokes the Augustan census. It is quite impossible that there was any census involving each person within the E m p i r e r e t u r n i n g to their birth place. T h e r e were however provincial censuses. 20

T h a t each R o m a n citizen t h r o u g h o u t the world h a d to enrol for sacrifice at the altar of the Imperial Cult was to await the later gen eral citizenship law of Caracalla in 212 A.D., which m a d e the Decian persecution (251 A.D.) possible as we shall see. But t h a t at this time "the whole world should be enrolled (drcoYpacpeaGai rcaaav TT^V OIKOUuivr|v)" in consequence of a "decree (86y|ia)" of Augustus is p r o b lematic apart from the additional p r o b l e m of migration to one's place of birth. A m o r e local census u n d e r Cyrenius as governor of Syria would seem m o r e credible. Certainly we have r e c o r d e d in J o s e p h u s a census c o n d u c t e d with great opposition by this governor in A . D . 6 or 7. But why should this local census (avxr] f| arcoypOMpri) be asso ciated with some general world-wide edict of Augustus by the a u t h o r of Luke-Acts? A careful e x a m i n a t i o n of the motivation for his exag geration will expose his discrete purpose. T h e a u t h o r of Luke-Acts clearly wished to associate the birth of Jesus with Augustus, the m e n t i o n of whose n a m e in connection with 21

2 0

P.A. Brunt, Roman Imperial Themes, (Oxford: C l a r e n d o n 1990), pp. 3 2 9 - 3 3 1 . J o s e p h u s Antiqu. 2 0 , 1 0 2 . For a discussion of the relation b e t w e e n this census and Lk. 2 , 1 - 3 see E. Schurer, G. V e r m e s , and F. Millar, The History of the Jewish People in the Age of Jesus Christ (175 B.C.-A.D. 135), (Edinburgh: T . & T . Clark 1973), p. 381 a n d pp. 4 1 6 - 4 2 7 . S e e also J . M . C r e e d , The Gospel According to St. Luke, (London: M a c M i l l a n 1930), pp. 2 8 3 1 . 21

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the this particular account of the birth of the true Messiah is evocative of m a n y of the themes of the Imperial Cult to which we d r e w atten tion in o u r second c h a p t e r . W e have seen how, particularly in the Asia M i n o r of the Proconsular decree of 9 B.C., Augustus' birthday was celebrated as the beginning of the saeculum aureum (r\ xou Geioxdxou Kouaapoq yeveGA.ioq fijiepa iiv xr\ xcov rcdvxcov ap%r\ ior|v . . .). (2B 4) Asia M i n o r was of course the scene of m u c h of the second half of Luke-Acts. 22

R e g a r d i n g the role of census taking, Augustus states: In my sixth consulate [28 B.C.] I conducted a census [censum populi] of the people with my colleague Marcus Agrippa. I held a lustrum after an interval of forty-two years. At this lustrum, 4,063,000 Roman citizens were registered (censa sunt capita). I performed a second lustrum in the consulship of Gaius Censorinus and Gaius Asinius [8 B.C.] acting alone, by virtue of consular imperium. At this lustrum 4,233,0000 Roman citizens were registered. I held a third lustrum, by virtue of a consular imperium, with my son, Tiberius Caesar, as my colleague, in the con sulship of Sextus Pompeius and Sextus Appuleius [A.D. 14]. At this lustrum 4,937,000 Roman citizens were registered. Res Gestae '8,2 It is i m p o r t a n t , however, to emphasise that, as the w o r d lustrum sug gests, there was a religious dimension to such acts. T h e lustrum was properly the completion of the census, as is seen in Livy's a c c o u n t of Servius, o n e of the legendary founders of the R o m a n constitution (534 B.C.). T h e lustrum here refers to the "purification" of the citizen b o d y after its n u m b e r s h a d b e e n d e t e r m i n e d [censu perfecto), a n d the capacity of each person in the rank n o w allotted t h e m to contribute to the cost of the w a r against the Vei. T h e c e r e m o n y (suovetaurilia) was performed in the C a m p u s Martius w h e r e a pig, sheep, a n d bull were sacrificed (Livy 1,44,2). It was this c e r e m o n y that was depicted in relief o n the Ara Pacis (2A 4.2.1 a n d 2B 1 a n d Plate 6). W e have a r g u e d in our second c h a p t e r that, in his reconstruction of the cult within the reconstruction of the constitution, Augustus

2 2

For Luke's use of secular chronography to such a parallel b e t w e e n Jesus' king d o m and that o f Augustus, see C . Talbert, Literary Patterns, T h e o l o g i c a l T h e m e s , a n d the G e n r e of Luke-Acts, in SBLMS 2 0 (1974), pp. 4 4 - 4 5 ; R . E . Brown, The Birth of the Messiah, (Garden City N Y , Doubleday 1977), pp. 2 4 1 - 2 4 3 . T h e s e reflections are also taken up in his account o f Luke-Acts as apologia pro imperio to a Christian group by P.W. Walasky, "And so W e C a m e to R o m e " : T h e Political Perspective of St. Luke, in SMTSMS 4 9 (1983), pp. 25 -28. See also K. Wengst, Pax Romana and the Peace of Jesus Christ, trans. J. B o w d e n , (London: S C M 1987),'pp. 8 9 105.

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presupposed a kind of systemadc theology in which the different cul tic functions of the state were b r o u g h t u n d e r his control as Pontifex Maximus a n d thus h e a d of the Imperial Cult. W e a r g u e d that the saeculum aureum could only return a n d be g u a r a n t e e d long e n d u r a n c e by a particular act of augurium, which he uniquely performed a n d which D i o m e n t i o n e d as the augurium pacis (2A 5). T h e pax deorum proved constantly elusive to the R e p u b l i c a n cult, even t h o u g h , fol lowing various outbreaks of the strangest prodigies, ritual attempts h a d b e e n m a d e to obtain it (2A 4.1). W e m a y n o w a d d that a lustrum of the city was performed fol lowing m a n y of these outbreaks in o r d e r to set the metaphysical order right again a n d to p r o d u c e the required pax t h a t was to be the achievement of Augustus alone. W e have countless examples of this in Livy. W e have a r g u e d that implicit in Livy is the notion that such examples b e c a m e increasingly m o r e frequent as the polit ical b r e a k d o w n of the R e p u b l i c was reflected in the increasingly chaotic supernatural order. Arruns moreover required the purification of the city limits, its sacred b o u n d a r y the pomerium, b u t to n o avail when he saw what the haruspicia indicated (Lucan Pharsalia 1, 593-595). (2A 4.2) 23

It would be easy of course to secularise the process of the census a n d cut it off from its religious roots so as to m a k e a lustrum after p o r t e n t quite different from a lustrum after a c e n s u s . T h e roots of both is in the apotropaeic function of the cult, as the suovetaurilia clearly i n d i c a t e d . T h e reformed cult in which Augustus as Pontifex Maximus achieved the pax deorum, n o w almost equivalent to the saecu lum aureum, requires a census. T h o u g h the lustrum is related originally to the imperium proconsulare a n d not to the office of Pontifex or augur, they are in process of asso ciation t h r o u g h the a p p r o p r i a t i o n of these offices, o n c e held by different republican magistrates, by the same e m p e r o r . T h e evidence for this process of association is the iconography of the Ara Pacis itself. T h e suovetaurilia in the C a m p u s Martius (Livy 1,44,2) provided the scene a r o u n d Servilius, o n e of the traditional founders of the 24

25

n

Livy 3 9 , 2 2 , 4 - 5 ; 4 2 , 2 0 ; Julius Obsequ. 13; 44; 4 6 ; 4 9 ; 52; 6 3 . T h i s point is well m a d e by Berve, Lustrum, in PWK 13, 1-2 cols. 2 0 4 0 - 2 0 5 9 , see e.g. 2 0 4 1 : " M a n wird durchaus an eine 'sakral-profane' Einheit als Wurzel zu denken h a b e n , die auch der realistische Charakter der romischen Religion u n d die Heiligkeit des Staatsrechtes geradezu fordert. . ." ^Ibid. cols. 2 0 4 3 2 0 4 6 . 2 4

25

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constitution of old R e p u b l i c a n R o m e . Within the enclosure a r o u n d the altar, we find the Dedicatio of 9 B.C. the iconography of which, as R a d l e g h R a d f o r d argued, took the form of a suovetaurilia. ^ Clearly this c e r e m o n y follows the second lustrum recorded in Res Gestae 8,2 in the consulship of Gaius Censorinus a n d Gaius Asinius (8 B.C.). T h u s the Ara Pacis, in Augustus' respublicae restitutae, has depicted on its frescoes the new suovetaurilia of the new Servius celebrated once m o r e in the C a m p u s M a r t i u s w h e r e the Ara originally stood (Plate 6). But new connections are m a d e with the Ara's iconography, which clearly relates the saeculum aureum to the pax of n a t u r e as well as of society, a n d that deified peace was m e d i a t e d t h r o u g h Augustus as the Pax Augustea. T h u s previous disparate images are being c o m b i n e d in the developing a n d legitimating discourse of the Imperial Cult. Using the i c o n o g r a p h y of the Ara Pacis as a c o m m e n t a r y on the Res Gestae at this point, we can therefore d e m o n s t r a t e that Augustus's second lustrum was followed by a suovetaurilia celebrated as a critical t u r n i n g p o i n t in R o m e ' s history with a truly Livian significance. Indeed, as B u c h n e r has shown, we c a n n o t divorce the purpose of the construction of the Ara from the Horologium n o r indeed from the whole comples in the C a m p u s Martius which included the Mausoleum a n d the Ustrinum of A u g u s t u s . 2

27

Eisner makes n o reference to Ralegh Radford's identification of the suovetaurilia on the Ara Pacis. But in any case, I would accept his general thesis t h a t the significance of such a n artefact does not rest on the received "naturalism" in art-historical interpretation which entails that, because art imitates n a t u r e , then each figure must refer to a specific historical situation. I have referred to the origins of the 28

2 6

C.A. R a l e g h Radford, S o m e recent discoveries in R o m e and Italy, in JRomS 2 9 (1939), p. 4 9 : "The reconstructed upper frieze o n the t w o sides of the enclosure is a historical record of the procession o n the occasion o f the solemn Consecratio in 13 B.C., a c e r e m o n y in which the Flamines, magistrates, senators, a n d m e m b e r s of the imperial family took part. Within, the frieze around the altar records the D e d i c a t i o in 9 B . C . and the ritual laid d o w n for periodic sacrifices. O n l y a small part of this frieze survives, but sufficient to s h o w that the scene represented is the Suovetaurilia." See also P. Zanker, The Power of Images in the Age of Augustus, (trans. A. Shapiro), (Ann Arbor: U . of M i c h i g a n 1990), pp. 7 2 - 7 3 and fig. 57; p. 144 fig. 116. E. Buchner, Die Sonnenuhr des Augustus: Nachdruck aus RM 1976 und 1980 und Nachtrag iiber die Ausgrabung 1980/1981, (Mainz a m Rhein: Philip v o n Zabern 1982), pp. 3 4 5 - 3 4 8 . J. Eisner, Cult and Sculpture: Sacrifice in the Ara Pacis Augustae, in JRomS 81 (1991), pp. 5 0 - 6 1 . 2 7

2 8

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iconography, accepting that such a n a p p r o a c h is not so m u c h w r o n g as limited. T h e Livian t h e m e s of lustrum a n d suovetaurilia w e r e to b e c o m e p a r t of the general a n d o p e n - e n d e d conceptual organisation of images, only loosely related to a n y one individual. T h e y entered a n d formed p a r t of a collective a n d ongoing social response in which the p e r c e p t i o n of any o n e individual contributed to b u t was not exhaustive of the whole. "A Jewish view, for instance, or a Pythagorean one might have been very different from that of a R o m a n p r i e s t . . . T h e sacrificial process . . . of which the A r a Pacis was the setting, was p e r m a n e n t l y incomplete a n d yet always temporarily fulfilled by the viewer's o w n participation in the sacrificial r i t e . " I propose see ing the discourse in which Luke-Acts operates as e m b o d y i n g a subset of general a n d o p e n - e n d e d imperial images, not every o n e of which will be consistent with every m e m b e r of the general set. W e can a d d the n a m e of the Christian T h e o p h i l u s a n d the third Evangelist to different kinds of persons, like Eisner's J e w i s h sage or P y t h a g o r e a n philosopher, whose reactions to the developing iconography of the Imperial Cult in Asia M i n o r , in parallel with that of R o m e , were similiarly o p e n - e n d e d . 29

W e can n o w begin to see why the a u t h o r of Luke-Acts wished to give a local census of Q u i r i n u s such a universal, world-wide per spective, quite a p a r t from the a d d e d , migratory feature which could bring ordinary residents of N a z a r e t h to Bethlehem. H e has taken a m e m o r y or record of the census of Quirinus in 6 - 7 A . D . a n d applied this to the birth of Christ, even t h o u g h there was clearly n o c h r o n o logical connexion between this event a n d the reign of H e r o d the Great, n o r indeed with the suovetaurilia at R o m e in 9 B.C. that h a d followed the lustrum of 8 B.C. T a k i n g a narrative-critical a p p r o a c h , we m a y say that he n e e d e d to parallel for his readers in T h e o p h i l u s ' circle the birth of Jesus with the founder of the Imperial Cult, a n d thus to c o m p a r e the religious claims m a d e by the former with his claims for the latter. Luke needed a census in J u d a e a — e v e n t h o u g h this only occurred in 6 - 7 A . D . — i n o r d e r to parallel the lustrum at R o m e in 8 - 9 B.C. His desire to lead his readers to associate the imagery evoked by chronologically unrelated events has lead h i m to confuse his c h r o n ology. In this parallel, Luke was strangely prophetic, a n d showed a sensitivity to w h a t the Imperial Cult implied a n d into w h a t it was Ibid. p. 5 2 .

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to develop finally, u n d e r Decius T r a j a n (A.D. 251). According to this later conception, the Imperial Cult r e q u i r e d a census of all those Caracalla h a d m a d e citizens (A.D. 212) in o r d e r that their partici pation in the Imperial Cult could thus be secured with the object of securing once again the pax deorum. A 86YUOC was therefore required that drcoypdipeaGou rcaoav TTIV oiKou|Li8vr|v, even t h o u g h in Caracalla's or in Decius' case the place of residence a n d not a j o u r n e y to the place of birth to be enrolled was to p r o v e sufficient. Let us n o w p u r s u e this possibility further, a n d see h o w the a u t h o r of Luke-Acts presupposes, in contrast to his earlier a n d traditional apocalyptic archetypes, an eschatology closer to the pre-occupations of the vision of Vergil's F o u r t h Eclogue a n d the role that it c a m e to play in the Imperial Cult (2A 6). 3B

2. Cultic background of the altar of incense in Lk.

1,5-2,52

T h e scene that s u r r o u n d s Christ's birth, a c c o r d i n g to the a u t h o r , is a cultic o n e . T h e narrative opens with a n angelic visitation by a n altar of incense. In fact the verb Guuiacjou occurs once a n d the n o u n Ouuiociia twice within two sentences which read: It happened while [Zachariah] was exercising his priesthood (EV xcp iepaxeveiv) in the daily order (xf\ xd^ei xfjq ecpriuepiac;) before the Lord, he was chosen by lot to offer incense (ekaxe xov 0\)(iidaai) according to the custom of priestly officiants, when he entered the temple of the Lord, while all the multitude of the people were praying outside at the hour of incense (e^co xfj copra xov 6v|Liid|iaxo<;). And the angel of the Lord appeared standing on the right hand side of the altar of incense (xov 8i)aiaaxr|pio\) xov 6\)uidu.axoc;). Luke 1 , 8 - 1 1 As we shall see w h e n we discuss the Apocalypse, incense was a char acteristic feature of the Imperial Cult a n d is clearly reflected in the imagery there. H e r e we should note that the practice of offering incense was p a r t of the O l d T e s t a m e n t cultus, a n d that the a u t h o r refers primarily to o n e particular practice from that cultus which he has selected for a particular p u r p o s e . A a r o n b u r n s incense on the altar before the T a b e r n a c l e veil every m o r n i n g a n d there is n o cultic a r r a n g e m e n t by h o u r s (Exodus 3 0 , 1 , a n d 7). In 1 Chronicles 1 3 , 1 0 - 1 1 , however, we r e a d of the priests a n d levites w h o , in their daily divi sions (£(pr|U£p{ai<;), b u r n incense to the L o r d early in the d a y . 30

For their 2 4 divisions see 1 Chron. 23,16; 2 8 , 1 3 and J o s e p h u s Antiqu. 12, 2 6 5 .

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But it is interesting also to note that the Jewish cultic act of offering of incense with w h i c h Luke-Acts chooses to begin t h e a n n o u n c e m e n t of the forerunner of the Messiah was also characteristic of the Imperial Cult. T h e inscription from G y t h e u m regarding the decree of Tiberius refers to three images (eiKovaq) of divine Augustus C a e s a r (9eou lePcccTou), Julia, a n d Tiberius Augustus, displayed on three suc cessive days. It t h e n continues: . . . let a table (xpane^a) be set up by him in middle of the theatre and let an incense charger (or altar) (Gvuiaxfipiov) be placed upon it (E7UK£{C0CD) and let the councillors and all ranks together offer sacrifice (£7ci0\)excoaav) before the players ( a K p o d u a x a ) enter for the safety (xfjq xcov f|ye|i6vcov acoxripicc*;) of the rulers. 31

W e have, moreover, a b r o n z e statuette from L u g d u n u m depicting a priest of the Imperial Cult holding a n incense box in his left h a n d a n d with his right depositing a few grains o n a n altar (Plate 15). A statuette conveys the image of a characteristic pose of the office of the person d e p i c t e d . T h e image of a n act of censing for a priest of the Imperial Cult is as characteristic as that of the depiction of a medieval priest performing m a n u a l acts at Mass with the H o s t in his h a n d s . 32

Augustus is depicted on one cult statue wearing a R o m a n toga b u t veiled as a priest with a patera (y\akx\) in his right h a n d , which was used to hold incense as well as wine or other cereal offerings. H o w e v e r , there are clear associations between the (pidXr) a n d incense in early Christian images as Apoc. 5,8 makes clear. T h e r e are clear references to incense associated with the Imperial Cult at G y t h e u m in A . D . 15 a n d at P e r g a m o n circa A . D . 1 3 8 . T h e b u r n i n g of incense a n d libations was already c o m m o n in the Hellenistic ruler cult in Ptolemaic Egypt before its a d a p t a t i o n to e m p e r o r w o r s h i p . T h e r e is arguably, therefore, a clear association between the Imperial Cult, the practice of general ruler-worship from which it was derived, a n d 33

34

35

31

S.R.F. Price, Rituals and Power. The Roman Imperial Cult in Asia Minor, (Cambridge: U . P . 1984), p. 2 0 8 . D . Fishwick, T h e Imperial Cult in the Latin West: Studies in the Ruler Cult of the Western Province of the R o m a n Empire, in EPRO 108 (1991) 1,1, p. 133 footnote 2 4 6 a n d Plate 19, a n d 2,1 p. 5 0 4 a n d pp. 5 6 5 - 5 6 6 . Price (1984), p. 185 and Plate 1 b. SEG 11,922 9 3 3 (Gytheum); Ehrenberg and J o n e s (1955) no. 102 (a); IGRR 4, 3 5 3 b 2 0 attests the use of incense o n Trajan's altar at P e r g a m o n . Fishwick (1991) 2,1 p. 5 1 3 . 3 2

3 3

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3 5

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the offering of incense a n d wine in the p a g a n religious cultural her itage of T h e o p h i l u s a n d his circle (Plate 14). T h e a u t h o r of Luke-Acts therefore has selected from the J e w i s h cult a particular act that evokes particular c o m p a r i s o n by gentile read ers in Asia M i n o r a n d in Syria, a n d even by J e w i s h r e a d e r s in C a e s a r e a Philippi w h e r e the H e r o d i a n temple of Sebaste stood, with the Imperial Cult. It is arguable that the Imperial Cult represents the real, p a g a n backcloth for his seemingly Jewish backcloth, if Luke is written after A . D . 70 w h e n the J e w i s h T e m p l e rites have b e e n abolished. I n d e e d , the Jewish backcloth would have h a d n o value for Luke as a deutero-Paulinist unless J e w i s h imagery could be reserviced as a contra-cultural response to p a g a n ritual. It is with the Hellenistic, p a g a n incense-ritual with which his readers would b e familiar. Yet in the o p e n - e n d e d , developing conceptual discourse of participants in the cult, n e w J u d a e o C h r i s t i a n concepts are n o w devised a n d assimilated with p a g a n ones. Eisner's formulation of arthistorical interpretation has clearly general relevance. W e have seen however t h a t the Ara Pacis of Augustus (2B 1) h a d expressed iconographically the message of a Messianic golden age well reflected in the literary works of his court poets (2A 6). W e shall n o w see h o w t h a t golden age is n o w reflected by the a u t h o r of Luke-Acts a n d the r e f o r m e d J e w i s h cult t h a t he sets in c o n t r a s t with the r e f o r m e d R o m a n cult of a divine a n d augural e m p e r o r . 36

3B

3. Eschatological promise and the reformed Jewish Cult

W e have already outlined the way in which the a u t h o r has b r o k e n with traditional apocalyptic descriptions, not so m u c h denying t h e m b u t simply insulating the present from their effect by placing t h e m in a far a n d indefinite future. T h e kind of golden age eschatology with which h e replaces this apocalyptic imagery is being fulfilled in the present by the birth a n d ministry of J e s u s the Messiah. But it should be n o t e d that the a n n o u n c e m e n t of that golden age is m a d e , not t h r o u g h J o h n the Baptist alone even without his apocalypse of blood a n d fire. T h e forerunner is given a supernatural birth even t h o u g h of a different kind to that of J e s u s .

Such also was the position argued in M . Nilsson, GGR? 2, p. 3 3 7 .

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Both are a n n o u n c e d in the context of the temple cult a n d its priest (Zachariah) a n d female prophetess. Female prophetesses were not usually associated with the Jewish Cult, unlike the Sibyl in the R o m a n cult. T h e a n n o u n c e m e n t of the golden age is t h r o u g h the m e d i u m of cultic h y m n s (Magnificat, Nunc Dimittis, etc.), like the Carmen Saeculare of H o r a c e . T h e a n n o u n c e m e n t of J o h n ' s birth that makes Z a c h a r i a h d u m b took place in the temple at the altar of incense (Lk. 1,5-25). His aged wife Elizabeth, miraculously with child given h e r age, m a y leave the temple precinct to visit M a r y in N a z a r e t h in Galilee, a n d there she m a y h e a r from M a r y ' s lips the Magnificat (1,26-56). H e m a y recover his voice at the birth of J o h n a n d sing his h y m n of thanksgiving (1,57-80). But the scene will return, after the Angels' Song, to the S h e p h e r d and the birth of Christ (2,1-21) once m o r e to the T e m p l e , where M a r y a n d J o s e p h take the Christ child in o r d e r to offer the sacrifices for purification a n d there S y m e o n will sing the Nunc Dimittis (2,22-35). A n n a pursues h e r w i d o w h o o d in the temple from which she never departs, a n d w h e r e she fasts a n d prays, like the Sibyl, telling w h a t has occurred to all w h o await r e d e m p t i o n in J e r u s a l e m (naciv xoiq 7ipoo8exoii£vot<; Xmpqoiv IepouoaA,f||n; 2 , 3 6 - 3 9 ) . Finally the special material of Luke-Acts ends at this point with the y o u n g Christ in the T e m p l e astounding the teachers in the T e m p l e (1,41-52). f

But given that it is a reformed cult of J u d a i s m from which arises the h o p e of the golden age, in w h a t terms is such a n age expressed, which, like Augustus' augurium pacis, the cult will t h r o u g h its central figure u s h e r in (2B 1)? W e shall n o w see t h e close c o n n e c t i o n s between the imagery of the various cultic h y m n s a n d that of the Imperial Cult. 3B

3 . 1 . eipf|vr|, ocoxrip and the p a x d e o r u m in Luke-Acts

W e h a v e already d r a w n attention to the way in which such virtues as Eipr|vr]-/fex, 'Ouovoiot—Concordia are not merely i n d e p e n d e n t deities but are associated, as they h a d b e e n from Sulla's time, with the per sonality of the imperator (2B 3). It was necessary therefore n o w to have the Augustan presence in o r d e r to secure the saeculum aureum in which these virtues would be realised. Similar t h e m e s are n o w reflected in the special time that has come r o u n d , the eviauxov Kupiou S E K T O V which, in the a u t h o r ' s own special additions to Mark a n d Q, is w h a t Jesus begins his ministry by "heralding (icr|pu£ai)." (Lk. 4,18)

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T h i s passage by itself parallels the Imperial Cult without there a p p e a r i n g at first sight to exist any necessary connection b e t w e e n such a contingent a n d parallel t h e m e . T h e reference is to the free ing (A,\>xpcoci<;) of the land every 50th year, the y e a r of J u b i l e e (Lev. 25,10). T h e parallel in the Imperial C u l t is with a Stoic r e t u r n of the golden age after the disintegration into iron, after w h i c h the cycle of history makes its full t u r n to the saeculum aureum with Fortuna Redux. W e h a v e e x a m i n e d h o w the metaphysics of such a notion was i n c o r p o r a t e d into the fundamental assumptions of the Imperial Cult (2A 6). But like Augustus, a n d unlike O l d T e s t a m e n t forshadowings, the evuxuTov Kupiou 8eicx6v a n d the c o n s e q u e n t Xmpwoiq is m a d e d e p e n d e n t for its fulfilment o n a u n i q u e p e r s o n , J e s u s . T h u s the a p p e a r a n c e of contingency in the parallelism is mistaken. T h e r e is a direct connection b e t w e e n the use of O l d T e s t a m e n t p r o m i s e a n d the matrix of the ideology of the Imperial C u l t which shapes the envisaged fulfilment of that promise. IcoTTipia was a n o t h e r of these virtuous conditions associated with the extraordinary pax deorum which Augustus as augur was to achieve. Z a c h a r i a h prophesies on the birth of J o h n his son the fulfilment of p r o m i s e d Auxpcoaiq in that G o d has "raised u p the h o r n of salvation for us (acoxripiaq TIJIIV; Lk. 1,69)." H e r e again acoxripia has a n O l d T e s t a m e n t b a c k g r o u n d w h e r e such phrases as "salvation from o u r enemies (acoxripiav e£ e^GpSv; 1,71)" are derived from 2 Sam. 2 2 , 3 , a n d Ps 1 7 , 1 8 - 1 9 in the process of his construction of a h y m n (Lk. 1,71-72). In p r e p a r i n g the way for the L o r d J o h n is "to give know ledge of salvation (xou Souvcu yvcooiv ocoxripiaq) to his people (xcp Xa& auxou) in the forgiveness of their sins (ev dcpeaei 6c|iapxicov; 1,77)." H e r e also the O l d T e s t a m e n t b a c k g r o u n d reveals a fulfilled J u d a i s m which parallels the imperial ideology b u t shows n o necessary con nection with it. But when we turn to Luke's association of the divine plan (rcpoyvcooK;, pou^T|) with t h e m e s of acoxr|p{a a n d ocoxrip, we find m o r e t h a n a merely contingent parallelism b u t r a t h e r a m o r e positive connection. Squires has emphasised the at least partial roots of Luke's concept of providence in the linguistic usage of Kpovoia in Hellenistic uni versal histories such as D i o d o r u s Siculus a n d Dionysius of Halicarnassus. But there is a m o r e direct connection in the association of 37

17

J . T . Squires, T h e Plan of G o d in Luke-Acts, in SINTS m o n o g r a p h series 76 (Cambridge: 1993), pp. 15 17; 3 8 - 4 6 ; 103 108.

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npovoia with ocoxrip in the ideology of the Imperial Cult. It is this association in the template of imperial ideology that arguably deter mines Luke's association of such O l d T e s t a m e n t t h e m e s as he con structs these a r o u n d J e s u s as acoxf|p. W e have already noted from the K o i n o n of Asia's decree in 9 B.C. the description of Augustus as the o n e "Providence (npovoia) g r a n t e d to us as o u r saviour (coarcep Tijieiv m i x o i q ixeO'fuxaqocoxfipaxapiaaiievri) w h o has m a d e w a r to cease a n d o r d e r e d the world with peace (xov rcauaavxa jiev 7i6A,euov, Koouriaovxa 8e eipr|vTw)." W e h a v e examples too from Sardis b e t w e e n 5 - 2 B.C., a n d G y t h e i o n in L a c o n i a in T i b e r i u s ' reign (2B 4). W e m a y note further examples in the case of Antiochus I V a n d J u l i u s C a e s a r . 38

39

T h e passage continues: through the compassion of our God, in which the dawn (&vaxoA,t|) from on high has visited us, to appear to those seated in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide (Kax£\)0\)vai) our feet into the way of peace (eiq 686v eipf|vt|<;). Luke 1,78-79 T h e feeling of gloom a n d despondency, of darkness a n d the s h a d o w of d e a t h , is not to be attributed to a n expression of the feeling of Israel u n d e r enemy occupation. W e r e that the focus of these sentiments, they would not have b e e n included in this highly crafted literary text addressed to T h e o p h i l u s , a R o m a n of some rank, as is shown by his b e i n g addressed as " Y o u r Excellency (icpdxiaxe Geotpita)," a b o u t w h o m we shall have some m o r e to say later (3C 2). T h e t h e m e is not of revolutionary chaos or n a t u r a l convulsion b u t of a golden age 40

3 8

Ehrenberg a n d J o n e s (1955), p p . 8 2 - 8 3 n o . 9 8 (b) lines 3 4 - 3 6 and IB 4. S e e also M . P . Nilsson, Geschichte der griechischen Religion in HA 5,2,2 (1974), pp. 3 7 1 - 3 7 2 for examples in the case o f Caesar a n d Antiochus IV. Cf. Fishwick (1987) 1,1 pp. 1 1 - 1 2 , 27, 4 8 , 5 0 . Lk. 1,3. L. Alexander, T h e Preface to Luke's Gospel. Literary convention and social context in Luke 1 . 1 - 4 a n d Acts 1.1, in SINTS m o n o g r a p h series 78 (1993), p. 133: ". . . Kpdxiaxoq was applied properly to people o f equestrian rank. But it is n o w accepted tht it is found with wider application . . . and so its use does not prove that T h e o p h i l u s was a R o m a n official." But Luke uses this w o r d only in o n e other place, Acts 2 3 , 2 5 , where Claudias Lysias addresses his letter: xcp KpaxCaxcp fiyeuovi 0T|A,iia. Clearly Luke understands this term as that of a high ranking official, and therefore in a sense consistant with OGIS 6 1 4 , 4 - 5 (governor o f Arabia); 6 2 9 , 1 6 8 (Corbulo); 6 6 7 , 4 (prefect o f Egypt); J o s e p h u s , Antiqu. 2 0 , 1 2 (governor o f Syria). See also R . L . Fox, Pagans and Christians, (Harmondsworth: Penguin 1986), pp. 4 3 0 - 4 3 1 . O n T h e o p h i l u s as a real person and not a p s e u d o n y m for a "typical" Christian, see Alexander (1995), pp. 1 8 8 - 1 9 0 ff. 3 9

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of guided o r d e r (raxeuGuvai) in the p a t h of p e a c e (eiq 686v eiprivriq). T h e r e are n o concessions here to the traditional eschatological themes, derived from ML 13 a n d found in Lk. 2 1 , 7 - 2 8 . T h e drcoMxpcoai<; of 21,28, set in the context of the "signs in the sun a n d m o o n . . . distress of nations in perplexity at the r o a r i n g of the sea a n d the waves m e n fainting with fear a n d with foreboding of w h a t is c o m ing on the world; for the powers of the heavens will b e s h a k e n " (25-26), is clearly different from the context of the A,t>xpcoai<; of 1,68 which is set in the context of acpeaiq a n d eipr|vrj (1,77-79). As a n expression of a people oppressed seeking freedom from the R o m a n yoke, it w o u l d have b e e n far m o r e a p p r o p r i a t e for the a u t h o r of Luke-Acts to have retained the apocalyptic framework of Mark, as Matthew does (3A 1-2). T h e sense of npovoia too in the "destiny (n npovoia) which fulfils the prayers of a l l " is reflected in the homily attributed to Peter in Acts 2,23 w h e r e J e s u s ' betrayal by J u d a s a n d the Crucifixion is "by the p r e d e t e r m i n e d counsel (zr\ cbpiopivTi PorAii) a n d foreknowledge (rcpoYvcoaei) of G o d . " In the Proconsul of Asia's letter, it is fitting that Caesar's b i r t h d a y should m a r k the entry of magistrates into office, since this "signifies (8r|^ov6xi) of the r a n k thus m a r k e d out (ouxcoq xfjq xd^ecoq 7ipoxexrj7icouivr|<;) that it is according to a divine wish ( m x d xivaGeiav pouA,r|oiv)." Jesus according to Acts 2,22 is "a m a n depicted (a7co8e8eiy|Lievov) by G o d to you by miracles a n d w o n d e r s a n d signs." His entry into office, as it were, t h r o u g h the resurrection is here viewed as p a r t of the divine p l a n or p u r p o s e . 41

42

As we saw from the letter of the proconsul of Asia in 9 B.C. (2B 4), Augustus " h a d set right (dvcopGcoaev)" by the "good fortune (euxuxrjua)" of his birth (yeveQXioq fijiepa) a world whose collapsed form has b e e n transformed into a fortunate condition (eiq euxuxeq uexapePrjKoq axnua). T h a t "setting right" was associated conceptually with the Augustus' augural act in p r o d u c i n g an extraordinary pax deorum (2A 5). In Lk. 1,79 there is a similar "setting right" in connection with eipr|vr| or pax in the description of J o h n as "guiding (icaxeuGuvai) o u r feet into the way of p e a c e (eiq 686v eipr|vr|<;)." W h e n she is healed, the crip pled w o m a n is described as "being set right (or stood upright = dvcop0co9ri)," uniquely in the N e w T e s t a m e n t , in Lk. 13,13. 43

41

42

4 3

Ehrenberg and J o n e s (1955) 9 8 a . line 6 and IBM 4 , 1 , n o . 8 9 4 . Ibid. no. 9 8 (a) line 15. Ibid. no. 9 8 (a) line 6 and IB 4.

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F u r t h e r m o r e those "seated in darkness a n d in the shadow of d e a t h " in Lk. 1,79 are m e m b e r s of the world described in the proconsul of Asia's letter as o n e that "would have gladly w e l c o m e d its destruc tion (TI8IOTCX av 8ef;auevcp cpGopav)." T h e birth of Augustus h a d b e e n the " b e g i n n i n g of the good life of n a t u r e a n d of society (dpxfiv TOU (iiou Koci ifjq ^cofiq), which is the e n d a n d limit of feeling regret (xou jiexapi^eaGou)." Likewise in the angels' song to the shepherds, peace (eipr|vr|) is a n n o u n c e d " u p o n earth a m o n g s t m e n with w h o m G o d is well pleased (ev ravGpcbrcoiq eu8oK{a(;; Lk. 2 , 1 4 ) . " Finally S y m e o n in the Nunc Dimittis links his d e p a r t u r e "in p e a c e (ev eiprivp)" with "thy salvation (TO acoTripiov aou; 2 , 2 9 - 3 0 ) . " 44

45

46

But the presence of salvation, p e a c e , a n d the saeculum aureum was associated, according to Vergil's F o u r t h Eclogue, with the birth of a child w h o (/. 15), possessed the "life of the gods (deum vitam)." By the time he wrote Aeneid 6, 7 9 1 - 7 9 4 , Vergil associated the divine person age with Augustus Caesar, genus divorum, qui condet saecula aurea (2A 6). Augustus m o r e o v e r was quite literally fdius dei since he was not only C a e s a r ' son b u t also of the gens Julia whose divine ancestor h a d b e e n V e n u s . It would be quite w r o n g to u n d e r r a t e the strong religious impression m a d e by such expressions a n d attributes o n the w a y in which the E m p e r o r was r e g a r d e d in Asia M i n o r in the late first cen t u r y . Let us n o w e x a m i n e the L u k a n parallels with such imperial titles. O n c e again we shall note that it is the imperial ideology that controls his selection of O l d T e s t a m e n t t h e m e s a n d provides the pat tern into which he fits t h e m . 47

3B 3.2. Virgin Birth and Jesus as Son of God (Lk. 2,26-35) T h e a u t h o r of Luke-Acts did not invent the story of the Virgin Birth. A v a r i a n t of that same tradition is found in Mat. 1,18-25. O n the generally accepted, four d o c u m e n t hypothesis, Luke did not k n o w

44

Ibid, line 8. Ibid, line 1 0 - 1 1 . S e e also Nilsson (1974), p. 3 7 1 . T h u s I find quite facile B.W. J o n e s , The Emperor Domitian, (London: Routledge 1992), p p . 1 0 8 - 1 0 9 where he regards Domitian's divine appellation as: "all but incredible . . . terms used by flatterers such as Martial, Statius, Juventius Celsus (or Pliny) to secure a favour from an autocrat hardly constitute p r o o f that they were instructed or required to use them . . . " I have followed here the general thesis of Price (1984) and Fishwick (1987) that it is w r o n g to secularize R o m a n politics and to marginalize the religious dimension in this way. S e e also K. Scott, The Imperial Cult under the Flavians ( N e w York: A r n o 1975), pp. 102 103 and footnote 7 above. 45

4 6

4 7

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M a t t h e w ' s special material, or vice versa. But there are significant differences. Firsdy, in Lk. 1,32, w h a t M a r y is to conceive is to be called "Son of the Highest (vibq uOioxou)," a n d therefore Son of G o d already by conception. M o r e o v e r this tide is linked with not only the " t h r o n e of David his F a t h e r " a n d rule "over the house of J a c o b forever," b u t also with an everlasting kingdom, since: "of his kingdom (xfiq paoitaiocq auxou) there shall be n o e n d (OUK eoxoci xeXoq; 1,32-33)." But in Mat. 1,18-25 this connection is not m a d e . J e s u s is referred to simply as "king of the J e w s " in the question of the M a g i (2,1-2). T h e a d o r a t i o n of the M a g i foreshadows the h o m a g e of the Gentiles to be given to Israel's Messiah. M a r y is to have a child a n d " w h a t is begotten (yevvrjGev) is of the H o l y Spirit ( E K 7CV£U|XCXTO<; eaxiv ayiou; 1,20)." His n a m e J e s u s implies that "he shall save (ocbaei) his people from their sins." (1,21) Matthew here uses the verb ocooei r a t h e r t h a n the Augustan title ocoxrip which, as we have seen, is used by the a u t h o r of Luke-Acts (3B 3.1). T h e child is b o r n in Bethlehem (the city of David) (2,5-6). In Matthew w h a t is yevvr|0ev eic rcveujiotToq . . . aytou is not c o n n e c t e d therefore with the tide mbq xou Geou. T h e child "begotten of the H o l y Spirit" is a mir acle that indicates M a r y ' s purity, so that J o s e p h shall not " p u t h e r away," (1,20) a n d simply fulfils a Messianic p r o p h e c y (Is. 7,14) a b o u t a virgin a n d a child called E m m a n u e l (1,22-23). Yioq xou Geou is not therefore c o n n e c t e d in Matthew with the m o d e of Christ's virginal birth n o r therefore with the golden age as both in Augustan litera ture a n d in Luke-Acts. J e s u s is called " S o n of G o d " in Mat. 2,15, but, as with the divine voice at his baptism first in Mat. 3,17 as in Mk. 1,11, the tide has the sense of a d o p t i o n r a t h e r . t h a n birth, in allu sion to the a d o p t i o n of Israel in Hos. 11,1 or the king as Israel's representative in Ps. 2,7. T h u s in Matthew n o conclusion is d r a w n from the V i r g i n Birth to J e s u s ' divine status o t h e r t h a n t h a t of Messiah in fulfilment of Is. 7 , 1 4 . 48

T h e a d o p t i o n of the Augustan equation genus divorum (= Jilius dei saeculum aureum) is, therefore, by the a u t h o r of Luke-Acts alone. M a r y asks h o w this can be since she has not carnal knowledge of a m a n

4 8

For a further discussion and full bibliography, see J. N o l l a n d , N o Christology in M a t t h e w 1 . 1 8 - 2 5 , in JSMT 62 (1996), pp. 3 - 1 2 .

Son-of-God

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(Lk. 1,34) a n d therefore invites Gabriel's r a t h e r clinical a n d techni cal explanation. H e replies: The Holy Spirit (rcveuua ayiov) shall come upon you (ikevoETca ini a e ) , and the power of the Highest (mi 5\>va|ii<; \)\j/iaTO\)) shall overshadow you (enioKiaoEi AOI); therefore that holy thing which is born ( 8 1 6 m i XO yevvcouevov ayiov) shall be called a son of God (ICA.r|9T|a£Tai vxbq 0 e o v ) . Luke 1,35 Clearly the a u t h o r of Luke-Acts, just like the Augustan poets, wishes to show h o w the figure at the centre of his Christian cult is quite literally divine by procreation, a n d in n o analogical o r allegorical sense. In Eel. 4,6, the m o t h e r of the child to b e b o r n was a Virgo, a n d her seed the " d e a r offspring of the gods (cara deum suboles)" (I. 49) so that TO yEvvcouEvov clearly parallels suboles. O u r comparison of M a t h a e a n a n d L u k a n accounts of the Virgin Birth show that not every selection a n d development of O l d Testament proof texts will yield the sense in which Luke uses his divine titles. Luke affirms the use of O l d T e s t a m e n t concepts of acorn p i a in support of his tide of acoTr|p because he c a n thereby construct a parallelism with the imperial ideology, just as h e does w h e n he interprets O l d T e s t a m e n t prophecies of the Virgin Birth as a divine p r o c r e a t i o n . But it is not the case t h a t the a u t h o r will take o n the categories of the Imperial Cult without radical reinterpretation. It is not a p a g a n cultus with which we are presented b u t a reformed J e w i s h o n e in which J e s u s ' Messiahship stands realised. C o n t r a - c u l t u r e s to some extent p r o d u c e m i r r o r images of their host culture: they reverse the categories a n d values of w h a t they reflect. A n d this is w h a t is clearly h a p p e n i n g here. Luke is h o l d i n g u p to T h e o p h i l u s a n d his circle inverse m i r r o r images of their p a g a n culture that reverse the cate gories a n d values of w h a t those images reflect. It has often b e e n pointed out that the language of Lk. 1,35 almost self-consciously rules out a n y h u m a n l y conceived activity of G o d on M a r y ' s w o m b , such as w h e n Anchises fathered by the seduction of V e n u s Aeneas a n d thereby the gens Julia (Vergil Aenid 1, 6 1 7 - 6 2 0 ) . T h e divine activity in the miraculous birth is described in highly abstract terms. T h e a n t h r o p o m o r p h i s m of "shall c o m e u p o n you ( E X E U O E T C U £7ci a e ) " is all b u t obliterated by m a k i n g the subject of this verb "holy spirit (7W£uuoc ayiov)." T h e equivalent expression in different terms, in the second stanza of a H e b r e w p o e m , likewise makes it clear that JWEUUXX otyiov is the depersonalised " p o w e r of the Highest

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(8t>vaui<; i)\|nGTorj)" a n d its action is d e v o i d of directly physical con tact ("shall overshadow you (eTuoKidoei GOI)"). It is strictly therefore t h r o u g h this depersonalised process that the "holy t h i n g which is b o r n (816 KGU TO yevvcojaevov ayiov) shall be called a son of G o d (KA,r)6r|a£Tai vibq GEOU; Lk. 1,35)." Yet as we have pointed out, there was no such connection b e t w e e n the title son of G o d a n d d i v i n e p r o g e n y in the tradition which p r e c e d e d Luke, a n d n o justification from his O l d T e s t a m e n t material. His theology of the Virgin Birth is the result of the impress of the template of i m p e rial ideology u p o n t h a t material. Mk. 15,39 places that title in the m o u t h of the centurion w h e r e the a u t h o r uses it as a double-entendre: his readers knew w h a t the title really m e a n t , without any concession such as Luke makes to a p a g a n theology of d i v i n e procreation. T h e a u t h o r of Luke-Acts is therefore creating a metaphysical sense in which J e s u s can b e seen as a divine p r o g e n y in self-conscious reflection on the position of Augustus in the Imperial Cult. H e refashions the con cepts of that cult a n d the c o m m u n i t y at the centre of which it stood in o r d e r to present his own contra-cultural image that identifies his own c o u n t e r g r o u p . 49

But we shall n o w e x a m i n e a third strand in the cultic h y m n s , a n d aetiological stories associated with it, in terms of the contra-cultural response of the community of Luke-Acts to Augustan concept of Victoria, its messianic associations, a n d its divinisation from a n abstract t e r m into a personal one. 3B 3.3. Victoria and the Magnificat (Lk. 1,46-55) W e saw h o w in the republican cult Victoria was t u r n e d into one of the divine personalities of the e m p e r o r . W e observed m o r e o v e r the iconographic expression of this process in the inscriptions o n the gemma Augustea w h e r e R o m a a p p e a r s alongside r e p r e s e n t a t i o n s of Victoria, Oikumene, a n d Tellus. Alongside Roma sits Augustus with the cornucopic sign of C a p r i c o r n over his h e a d , a n d in his right h a n d is the lituus. Fortuna is depicted c r o w n i n g h i m (2B 3 a n d Plate 13). T h u s Victoria a n d Salus were qualities achieved t h r o u g h the sacerdo tal qualities of the figure of Augustus, genus divorum, standing as p r e siding priest of a cult which sacramentally c o u l d secure the saeculum aureum.

4 9

V . Taylor, The Historical Evidence for the Virgin Birth, (Oxford: C l a r e n d o n 1920); Brown (1977), p p . 3 1 4 3 1 6 .

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T h e r e is n o necessary connection, in a logical sense, between the concepts of Victoria a n d Salus in battle, a golden age, a h u m a n figure of divine a n d supernatural p a r e n t a g e , a n d a series of sacred acts centred u p o n a cult. In terms of traditional Christian theology post C h a l c e d o n , M a r y ' s virginity a n d the m a n n e r of her conception has significance for the theology of incarnation. But there is as a back g r o u n d to the original a c c o u n t in Luke n o n e of the latter theologi cal a n d philosophical concerns of Chalcedon. W i t h o u t such a context, there is n o necessary connection between the A n n u n c i a t i o n a n d the contents of the Magnificat. T h a t h y m n , from the centre of the Christian cultus, considered as J u d a i s m reformed, does not have M a r y m e d i tating o n a n d glorying in the two natures m a d e o n e in w h a t she conceives. R a t h e r she interprets the significance of the genus dei, the uioq TOU Geou which she bears, in terms of a military victory. T h o u g h for mally speaking the actual t e r m Victoria (Ndcrj) is not explicity used, o t h e r t e r m s indicative of such a divine a b s t r a c t i o n a r e . M a r y ' s TarcelvcoGK; has b e e n e n d e d by G o d w h o is 6 Suvaxoq, a n d w h o has "shown (ercornaev) the might (Kpdioq) of his a r m (ev ppaxiovi auxou)" a n d "scattered the p r o u d (8ieoK0p7uoev urcepcpdvouq; Lk. 1,48-51)." " H e h a s cast d o w n (icaOeitav) t h e m i g h t y (Suvdaxaq) from their thrones (anb 0p6vcov; 52)." Previously the promised birth of M a r y ' s child has b e e n associated with the Gpovoq a n d fiaoiXeia of D a v i d which, like the ideal imperium Romanum, will have n o e n d (Lk. 1,32-33). F u r t h e r m o r e , Z a c h a r i a h ' s thanksgiving for the birth of J o h n the Baptist sets the themes of acoxripia, XuTpcoaiq, a n d acpeaic; in the mil itaristic context of the Kepctq acorn, piocq w h i c h gives deliverance e£ exGpcov (1, 6 9 - 7 0 ; 73). T h o u g h n o t specifically n a m e d , the kind of emotional investment in the deified Victoria was not absent from the worship of M a r y ' s child by T h e o p h i l u s a n d his circle. W e can, following partially a narrative-critical a p p r o a c h , construct the ideal r e a d e r from such passages a n d find that o u r construc tion is informed by the cultural a n d historical template which orders the t h e m e of Victoria (Niicn,) in the Imperial Cult. S u c h a template makes intelligible h o w T h e o p h i l u s a n d his circle would regard the record of the events of a supernatural birth a n d a divine Child which ushers in a reign of Pax or eiprivn. as alternative images to those of the Imperial Cult (Plate 5). T h a t cult, from 9 B.C. o n w a r d s , trans figured the landscape of religious architecture a n d culture in the Asia M i n o r of the provenance of the Lukan writings, as well as at Caesarea

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50

Philippi in Palestine itself. Some traditional, Jewish prophetic elements might contribute to that picture, such as the vision of the G o l d e n Age in Is. 2 , 1 - 4 , or 11,1-11 w h e r e n a t u r e is at peace, p a r t of which involves a y o u n g child leading wild animals without danger. But in the latter case there is no a messianic child b o r n supernaturally w h o is the sacramental sign of that saeculum aureum. Elijah is m e n t i o n e d in the latest recension of Malachi b u t there the scene is of j u d g e m e n t a n d purification, a n d not of p e a c e a n d security. Lk. 1,15-17 applies the description of Elijah (Mai. 3,22-23) to J o h n , b u t without the addition of t h r e a t e n e d j u d g e m e n t (\ix\ eABco m i rcaxd^co xfiv yf|v dp8r|v). T h e original description of the messenger is o n e of terror (Mai. 3,2~6). T h u s the description here of the future ministry of J o h n the Baptist blends with the eipr|vii of a J u d a e o Christian saeculum aureum without themes of j u d g e m e n t associated with J o h n elsewhere (Mat. 3 , 7 - 1 2 ; ML 1,6-8). Lk. 3 , 7 - 1 5 modifies the j u d g e m e n t a l picture of J o h n , even t h o u g h he retains the " w r a t h to c o m e , " (7) by the addition of m o r e peaceful features. J o h n , shorn of Elijah's dress a n d diet, exhorts the giving of food a n d clothing to those in need. Tax-collectors are not to exact m o r e t h a n their al lotted a m o u n t . R o m a n soldiers are to b e content with their wages (10-14). T h e L u k a n G o l d e n Age has n o such elements of j u d g e ment, but has instead a supernaturally b o r n Divine Child, a n d themes of Victoria a n d Pax. I n d e e d , j u d g e m e n t a n d purification would have b e e n as alien to the b a c k g r o u n d to Luke's own material in chapters 1-3 as the fasces securesque would have b e e n to the lictors pointedly depicted without t h e m on Augustus' Ara Pacis (2B1). T h u s the tem plate which relates such disparate themes into a logically interrelated whole is that of the Imperial C u l t whose foundation is a s a c r a m e n tal, augural act initiating a n d p e r p e t u a t i n g the saeculum aureum. But it would be w r o n g to u n d e r s t a n d the d e v e l o p m e n t of L u k a n imagery as simply cloning in Christian terms that of the Imperial Cult with which the e n v i r o n m e n t both of political culture a n d archi tecture was clearly saturated. T h e writer of Luke-Acts, we are argu ing, should not be understood as producing a picture of an alternative

3 0

Caesarea Philippi is not given in Lk. 9 , 1 8 - 2 0 as the location o f Peter's c o n fession of Jesus' Messiahship. Luke wishes to correct a seditious misreading o f ML 8 , 2 7 - 3 3 . T h e pax Christi is the Christian counterpart to the pax Augusta w h i c h points to the proper fulfilment o f its true aspirations rather than d e n y i n g them completely. See Brent K i n m a n , Jesus' Entry into Jerusalem in the C o n t e x t of Lukan T h e o l o g y and the Politics of His D a y , in AGJU 27 (Leiden: Brill 1995), pp. 8 9 9 0 .

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society with which to replace the present. T h i s is a charge that we might lay rather at the a u t h o r of the Apocalypse, as we shall see. A contra-culture is not an alternative culture, as we m u s t n o w — a n d in a L u k a n context—explain.

PART C .

LUKAN IMAGES OF C ONTRA-CULTURE

A creation of a contra-culture is a symbiotic strategy leading to social integration rather t h a n anomie. A contra-culture is not a m i r r o r image of the culture that it reflects, with different persons replacing the authority figures with the authority structures that they inhabit a n d their w e b of relationships left unaltered. In that respect a contraculture is not a revolutionary alternative ( C h a p t e r 1, p p . 1 1 - 1 4 ff.). C o h e n ' s juvenile gangs, for e x a m p l e , were not challenging the status quo b u t creating a solution which enabled t h e m to live symbiotically within it. T h e i r reversal of society's values was p a r t of the creation of a social reality which gave t h e m status that b r o a d e r society denied t h e m , a n d thus in one way protected that society from revolution ary destruction. T h e consequence of the delinquent solution as such was not a revolutionary solution. Similarly Luke-Acts represents a contra-cultural solution which is social integrative, overcoming as it does the psychological state of anomie in the inhabitants of that contra-culture a n d thus reducing pressures towards actual a n d disruptive anomia within the host culture in which it is found. T h a t the themes of Victoria a n d Pax are not to be interpreted in a politically revolutionary way is m a d e quite clear by Luke's radical adjustment, u n i q u e amongst the synoptic evange lists, of the apocalyptic message of J o h n the Baptist w h e n the latter is recorded as exhorting the giving of food a n d clothing to those in need. Tax-collectors are not to exact m o r e than their allotted a m o u n t . R o m a n soldiers are to be content with their wages (Lk. 3 , 1 0 - 1 4 ) . But let us n o w e x a m i n e h o w the theoretical perspective of contraculture informs b o t h parts of Luke-Acts. W e begin briefly with the Lukan eschatology (3C 1) a n d follow with a m o r e extended treat m e n t in Acts (3C 2). 3C

1. The imperial banquet (Lk. 1,52-53;

3,1)

Pax a n d Victoria in the context of the reformed Judaistic cult, a n d its promised golden age ushered in by a Son of G o d b o r n of a Virgin, were not exact m i r r o r images of the Imperial Cult which they thus

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reflected in the form of their preferred distortions. T h e reformed, J u d a e o - C h r i s t i a n cult provided a solution for the h u n g r y a n d meek w h o were satisfied with good things with the rich sent away e m p t y (Lk. 1,52-53). T h e Virgin's child, w h o is the sign of the saeculum aureum of AuTpcoaiq, eiprivr) a n d acoxripia, is b o r n in a m a n g e r (Lk. 1,11), like the h u n g r y a n d the oppressed. Luke's scene is thus his contra-cultural creation of a scheme of significance in which the dis possessed a n d marginalised are given their own, new construction of reality that assigns t h e m dignity a n d status withheld by " n o r m a l " society. As such Luke was inviting Theophilus a n d his circle to accept also the egalitarian d e m a n d s of the J e s u s M o v e m e n t , possibly over looked by P a u l . 51

T h e " j u d g e m e n t " which might be seen in Lk. 1,52-53, w h e r e the mighty are t h r o w n d o w n a n d the h u m b l e a n d m e e k exalted, fits far m o r e closely with parallels in the Augustan revolution t h a n with O l d T e s t a m e n t themes of j u d g e m e n t . But the beneficiaries in M a r y ' s song of laycripm a n d Auxpcoaiq have n o c o u n t e r p a r t in the social revolu tion m a r k e d by the advent of the Imperial Cult a n d its celebration of Nucr|. In the latter it was not the h u m b l e a n d meek, b u t leading freedmen a n d m e m b e r s of the Ordo Equester w h o benefited from the Augustan revolution. As Z a n k e r points out, these groups previously without social sta tus could n o w achieve social recognition t h r o u g h the religious respon sibilities of priesthoods. T h e sacrificial procession depicted on the Ara Pacis displays the newly constituted, leading aristocracy. For example, the equestrians were m a d e priests of the cult of the Lupercalia. Moreover, leading freedmen (liberti) gained religious functions a n d correspond ing social status t h r o u g h the cultic shrines of their various guilds a n d as magistri in the cults of the Compitalia which were the 265 vici or city-districts created by Augustus in 7 B.C., a n d for which we have c o m m e m o r a t i v e altars (Plate 8). Even worthy slaves could p a r ticipate as ministri at these shrines w h o thereby achieved the status of public office a n d could record their new status by their partici pation in processions on imperial feast days. T h e Altar of the Lares shows p r o b a b l y Augustus h a n d i n g over two statuettes of the Lares 52

51

G. Theissen, Sociology of Early Palestinian Christianity, trans. J. Bowden, (Philadelphia: Fortress 1982), pp. 7 - 3 0 . Zanker (1990), p. 123. 5 2

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53

to the ministri of a compitum (Plate 9). T h e latter w e a r slaves' dress. T h e reference to b a n q u e t i n g in Lk. 1, 52~53 is significant in view of o u r location of the L u c a n eschatology a n d its mythology in the imagery of the Imperial Cult. Civic b a n q u e t s , like civic games, were linked to cultic celebrations of imperial birthdays in the lectionary that Fishwick posits a n d attempts to reconstruct. Part of the largesse required of the prestigious priests of the Imperial Cult was the p r o vision of lavish civic b a n q u e t s . T h e s e too, like those w h o held the priesthoods at R o m e , were using such offices as a m e a n s of u p w a r d social mobility from the increasingly wealthy groups of freedmen a n d t r a d e s m e n . Luke has a vision of a n even m o r e radical revolution as a c o u n t e r p a r t to that of Augustus. In the case of the latter, the p r e viously mighty are t h r o w n from their seats by a n increasingly pow erful, mercantile a n d trading class newly admitted to power. Augustus is depicted on o n e altar as presenting a statue of M i n e r v a to the magistri of a guild of woodworkers (Plate 12). For the former it is the p o o r a n d h u m b l e that benefitted from the c h a n g e d status b r o u g h t a b o u t by the reversal of power. 54

A decree of the provincial council of Asia, a copy of which is p r e served in an inscription from H y p a e p a , records the choir of Asia holding a b a n q u e t after h y m n s a n d sacrifices in h o n o u r of Tiberius' b i r t h d a y . In the games which p r e c e d e d such b a n q u e t s , with the procession of imperial images from a Sebasteion to the games t h e m selves, the rich would have places of h o n o u r a r o u n d the presiding governor, with the e m p e r o r ' s chair occupied by his image if he was not there in p e r s o n . T h e newly e m e r g i n g ranks a n d degrees of political authority represented a n d reinforced social integration within the n e w imperial order. But the o r d e r that was celebrated here was a new social order. T h e p a y m e n t for the cult a n d associated games, a n d the priesthood a w a r d e d for such a benefaction, formed p a r t of a social p h e n o m e n o n of u p w a r d mobility. Augustus' revolution, unlike Luke's, h a d not p r o p o s e d to "exalt the h u m b l e a n d m e e k . " But, as m y references to Z a n k e r have shown, that revolution h a d certainly raised seats of h o n o u r for a social class that h a d not possessed t h e m 55

56

5 3

Zanker (1990), p. 131 a n d p. 133 fig. 109. Fishwick (1991) 2,1 pp. 4 8 2 - 5 0 1 . Ibid. p. 5 8 6 , citing IGRR 4, 1608c. S e e also 3 C 3.2. Ibid. p. 5 7 5 cf. F. Millar, The Emperor in the Roman World, (London: D u c k w o r t h 1977), p. 36 and p. 365; J. G a g e , Apollon Romain, in BEFAR 182, (1955), pp. 2 5 7 - 2 9 6 ; Martial Ep. 3. 5 4

55

06

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before, but which could rise socially t h r o u g h its benefactions to a new cult celebrating a political revolution. T o that extent Luke's escha tology reflected the Augustan settlement. Before Decius T r a j a n (A.D. 251) participation was voluntary a n d without a n y legal compulsion to participate. But social pressure, as Tertullian's later De Corona was to indicate, could have the same practical conclusions of d r a w i n g hostile attention to non-participants a n d the drawing u p of charges of scelera or of contumacia against t h e m . F u r t h e r m o r e , Pliny's remarks show that, as a social event, the cult would not simply have m a d e T h e o p h i l u s as a provincial aristocrat a n d his associates feel constrained, b u t also m e m b e r s of the general populace w h o did not participate in the w e a r i n g of festal garlands or the general adulations a n d horseplay of a public holiday. T h u s Christianity as the reformed cult of J u d a i s m changes the o r d e r of prestige as the divine Child b o r n of the Virgin issues in the new age. T h e eschatological b a n q u e t is to exult to its positions of h o n o u r the Tocrceivoi a n d the Tceivcovxeq. T h e s e themes m o r e o v e r can be found outside the birth stories in the specifically L u k a n m a t e rial that interleaves the Gospel tradition as he takes it over. T h e beginning of the euayyeXiov with J o h n the Baptist, as in Mark a n d the early Christian homiletic preserved in the speeches of Peter etc. in Acts, is m a r k e d by the C h r o n o l o g y of imperial history. In Lk. 3,1 that beginning is given "in the fifteenth year (ev exei 8 e 7cevTeKai8eKdicp) of the consulship (xfj<; T i y e u o v i a q ) of Tiberius C a e s a r , " b u t there are mentioned also the offices of b o t h Pilate (proconsul of J u d a e a ) , H e r o d (tetrarch of Galilee, I t u r e a a n d Trachontis), Lysanias (tetrarch of Abilene). T h e n , in the specifically Lucan account of the Rejection at Nazareth (Lk. 4,16-30), we see the divine Child n o w grown, w h o has already a p p e a r e d at the centre of the old T e m p l e cult. T h e r e he astonished the teachers of t h a t cult with his u n d e r s t a n d i n g of the L a w (Lk.

>7

A . N . Sherwin-White, T h e early persecutions and R o m a n Law again, in JThS 3,2 (1952), p. 2 1 0 with w h i c h at least in this respect agrees G . E . M . D e Ste. Croix, W h y were the early Christians persecuted? in Past and Present, 2 6 (1963), p. 10 where he says: "In fact e m p e r o r worship is a factor o f n o independent importance in the persecution o f Christians." S e e also A . N . S h e r w i n - W h i t e , W h y w e r e the early Christians p e r s e c u t e d ? — A n A m e n d m e n t , in Past and Present, 27 (1964), p p . 2 3 - 2 7 ; G . E . M . D e Ste. Croix, W h y were the early Christians p e r s e c u t e d ? — A Rejoinder, in Past and Present, 27 (1964), pp. 2 8 - 3 3 ; F. Millar, T h e Imperial Cult and the Persecutions, in Culte des Souverains dans I'Empire Romain, in Entrentiens 19 (1972), pp. 143 175.

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2,46-48). N o w he a n n o u n c e s (4,19) in the synagogue the "year of the L o r d ' s favour (evuxuxov Kupiou 8eicx6v)." T h u s the L u k a n saecu lum aureum, b e g u n with the divine Child, n o w is c o n t i n u e d by the M a n . U s i n g the words of Is. 6 1 , 1 - 2 c o m b i n e d with 58,6, he is able to define the eviocuxov icupiou SEKTOV as one in which there would be " p r e a c h i n g the good-news to the p o o r (EvayyeXicacQax Kicoxoiq), . . . proclaiming release to the prisoners (icripu^ai aixuataoxoiq acpeaiv) a n d seeing-again to the blind (iccci xucpAoiq &vdpA,e\|nv), . . . to set at lib erty those w h o are oppressed (drcooxeiAm xe9pa\)a|Lievo\)(; ev acpeaei)." T h a t we are dealing with L u c a n special material h e r e thus enables us to forge links with the eschatology of Lk. 1-2, a n d h e n c e with the imagery of the Imperial Cult a n d its saeculum aureum. T h e K o i n o n of Asia h a d , o n the m o t i o n of the high-priest Apollonius son of Menophilos from Aizanoi, in a n inscription to which we have already frequendy referred, claimed that n p o v o i a " h a d g r a n t e d t h e m a n d their successors a saviour (xoiq u£0' fiuaq ocoxfjpa xapiaau£vn,)'' in Augustus " w h o h a d m a d e w a r to cease (xov rcauoavxa jiev rcotauov) a n d h a d a d o r n e d p e a c e (icoouriaavxa 8e eipf|vr|v)." T h e s e sentiments we saw reflected in Lk. 1,55,71,77,79; 2,11,14,29. But the decree of the K o i n o n h a d also stated that "Caesar, on his a p p e a r a n c e (ercKpccveiq 8e) h a d exceeded the hopes of all those w h o h a d received glad tid ings before us . . . (xdq ekniSaq xcov rcpotaxPovxcov [euayyeAaa rcdvxcov urc£p]e9r|K£v)." T h e restoration of the text c a n b e justified with ref erence to at least two further inscriptions, o n e from the Peloponnese referring to a priest sacrificing (Guaavxa) in view of " g o o d news (euavyefXia])," c o n c e r n i n g the imperial family (imep OIKOU navzbq x[cp] Iepa-[ox(p]), a n d a n o t h e r from S a m o s in the time of Augustus refer ring to a festival (fipipav eua[vyeX,iov]) celebrating g o o d news from Rome. 58

5 9

W h e n the good news of the g r a n t i n g of permission for a n Imperial Cult is b r o u g h t to a city such as Sardis, the city is described as "evangelised." W h e n Luke says euayyeWaaaGai rcxcoxoiq in the con text of his contra-cultural eschatology, we m a y locate his "good news" in such a context. But for h i m the euocvyeAaa are not for the benefit of the n e w wealthy leaders of the city states of Asia M i n o r or of 60

3 8

Ehrenberg a n d J o n e s (1955) 9 8 (= OGIS 458), /. 3 7 - 3 8 , cf 2 B 4. Both are cited in Horsley New Documents III, p. 13. T h e P e l o p o n n e s e inscrip tion is reconstructed in L. Moretti, ArcCl 5 (1953), p p . 2 5 5 - 2 5 9 , a n d the S a m i a n in IGRR 4, 1708. IGRR 4, 1756 1. 14: eixxvyeXiaGTi f| noXiq. See also 3 D 3.2. 5 9

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Syria, whose position was being redefined by the Augustan revolution, b u t for the poor. Priesthoods of the Imperial Cult itself h a d b e e n a n i m p o r t a n t vehicle for individuals to increase their personal status amongst the freeborn u r b a n elite of those cities. A rising individual could use such priesthoods to publicize their n e w rank m a r k e d by the possession of the rcpoeSplou at the events that were p a r t of the celebrations of the Imperial C u l t in the theatres a n d a m p h i t h e a t r e s . But we must r e m e m b e r that Luke-Acts is a two v o l u m e d work, a n d its separation by the position of the F o u r t h Gospel in the usual o r d e r of New Testament contents has p e r h a p s served to obscure this fact. W e must n o w address the essential continuity of the themes that Luke impressed u p o n his traditional material as they are found in Acts. 61

3C

2. Images of contra-culture in Acts

T h e reintroduction of T h e o p h i l u s as the R o m a n of rank to w h o m the two v o l u m e d work is addressed has been the focus of attention for hypotheses regarding the apologetic character of Luke-Acts. T h o u g h the first volume gives no great indication of the apologetic interests of the a u t h o r , it might nevertheless be a r g u e d that Acts m o r e t h a n compensates. T h e foundation of the apologetic thesis is u n d o u b t e d l y the way in which wise R o m a n magistrates are r e p r e s e n t e d as always u n d e r standing t h a t any civil unrest is never the fault of Christian mis sionaries but is due to the factitiousness of unwanton Jewish opposition. W i t h o u t such a foundation, it is difficult to lay too m u c h stress o n the rank of T h e o p h i l u s , since the words of Lk. 1,3-4 suggests t h a t this particular Kpaxiaioq has already received catechetical instruction (ivoc emyv&q rcepi
3 C 2 . 1 . The interpretation of Acts as apologia In Acts 1 8 , 4 - 1 7 the famous events take place at C o r i n t h w h e r e Jewish opposition a n d b l a s p h e m y ends Paul's n o r m a l practice of p e r s u a d i n g

Zanker (1990), pp. 1 2 9 - 1 3 1 ; p p . 319 See footnote 6.

328.

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by public a r g u m e n t J e w s a n d Hellenists every S a b b a t h in the syna gogue (v. 4). Paul transfers his p r e a c h i n g to the house of Titus J u s t u s w h i c h " b o r d e r e d o n t h e s y n a g o g u e ( o u v o u o p o u a a xr\ ouvayoyfi; v. 7)." Crispus the apxiauvdycoyoq is converted with his household a n d they are baptised (v. 8). But after six m o n t h s " t h e J e w s cause a n u p r o a r against Paul (Kaxerceaxriaav 6uo6\)|Lia86v xcp Ilautap), a n d bring h i m to court (fiyocyov auxov eni xo P^axx)." T h e presiding p r o consul of Achaia is Gallio (TaXkmvoq 8e dv0U7tdxorj ovxoq xfj<; 'Axaioc<;; v. 12). Gallio, in the scene which follows, rejects the charges of illegal ity, a n d claims that they a r e purely "disputes a b o u t a discussion r e g a r d i n g n a m e s (^r|xf||Liaxd e a x w rcepi Xoyov icai ovojidxcov) a n d y o u r particular law (K<X! VOJIOU xou KCC6' uudq)." In c o n s e q u e n c e , he refuses to act as j u d g e ( i c p r c r ^ eyo) xouxcov ou pouXoum eivai; v. 15). In final e x a s p e r a t i o n h e expels t h e m from the i m m e d i a t e a r e a w h e r e he sits in j u d g e m e n t , while n e a r b y a n d within his view Sosthenes the d p x i G D v d y c o y o q is b e a t e n , whilst Gallio looks o n with indifference {v. 16-17). T h e scene described h e r e in detail exemplifies a t h e m e n o w well developed in s u m m a r y t h r o u g h o u t Acts. In 17, 5 - 9 the J e w s are held responsible for "stirring u p the rabble (6%Ao7ioif|oavx£<;) a n d causing u p r o a r in the city (eOopupouv xfjv 7i6A,iv)" of Thessalonica, with the result t h a t the city magistrates (rcotaxdpxou) fined J a s o n a n d others in Paul's absence, b u t nevertheless released t h e m . In 14,2 the J e w s of I c o n i u m are held responsible for " c o r r u p t i n g the hearts of the gen tiles (eKaKcooav xdq xj/uxdq xSv eGvSv)." At Antioch (13,50) "the J e w s incite ( r c a p c o x p u v a v ) pious w o m e n of noble r a n k (aePouivaq y u v a i K a q xdq euaxriiiovaq) a n d the leading citizens (xouq rcpcoxouq xfjq KO^ecoq) a n d a r o u s e d a p e r s e c u t i o n (e7cr|yeipav 8icoyuov) against P a u l a n d B a r n a b a s . . ." At Lystra it is "Jews from I c o n i u m a n d A n t i o c h " w h o p e r s u a d e the crowds, that h a d hitherto treated t h e m as almost divine, to stone t h e m (14,19). T h e seemingly h i d d e n , apologetic message is that a n y civil unrest attributed to Christianity was in fact d u e to J e w i s h agitation, a n d that Gallio h a d d e m o n s t r a t e d the attitude of the wise magistrate. Such a message seemed reinforced by the closing chapters of Acts. H e r e it is expressly claimed that Felix was favourably impressed by Paul (v. 2 4 - 2 5 ) in the face of accusations by Tertullus at the insti gation of Ananias the high priest of disturbing the p e a c e a n d insti gating axdaeiq (24,1-9). Felix therefore could have given n o credence

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to these charges a n d only wished for a bribe in o r d e r to release h i m (v. 26). Paul makes his famous appeal to C a e s a r before Porcius Festus, Felix's successor a n d thus p r e e m p t s a n y further judicial proceedings at his h a n d s (25,1-11). Agrippa too hears him, a n d both gentile gov e r n o r a n d Jewish king c o n c e d e d that h a d he not m a d e his appeal, he could have b e e n released (26,30). But there are a n u m b e r of problems with regarding Acts as a straightforward apology, however m u c h there m a y b e e n clearly peripheral apologetic concerns implied in that w o r k . 63

3 C 2.2. Modifications of the apologetic thesis T h e p r o b a b l e date of Luke-Acts, d e m a n d e d by most source critical a p p r o a c h e s regarding the compilation of the Gospels, is A . D . 7 5 - 8 5 . T h e use by Luke of Mark's gospel, itself datable a r o u n d A . D . 6 5 , requires Luke to be writing after the persecution of N e r o in which Paul died. W h y is there n o record of Paul's trial a n d execution before N e r o ? T h e apologetic thesis in some of its forms has lead in con sequence to the d e m a n d that Acts must have b e e n written before t h a t event, a n d therefore before A . D . 6 5 . In o t h e r forms it has required the hypothesis that the trial a n d execution of Paul h a d to be deliberately suppressed, otherwise the apologetic force of w h a t the a u t h o r wrote would b e lost. If furthermore, as J a c k s o n a n d Lake sug gested, Paul was acquitted simply because of a time lapse of two years, then such a verdict of not-proven r a t h e r t h a n of innocence would not have helped his c a s e . But either of these argumentative moves clearly face insuperable difficulties, the first because of the impossi bility of the early date in the light of cogent, source-critical, h y p o t h e ses, a n d the second because simply ignoring Paul's m a r t y r d o m would not deprive it of its force against a p r i m a r y apologetic case. 64

T h e o p h i l u s could not fail to have k n o w n of the fate of Paul at

6 3

For a full discussion o f the apologetic motive and its limitations, together with a summary o f literature, see Esler (1987), ch. 8, with w h o s e conclusion I a m clearly in substantial agreement, namely that Luke-Acts is c o n c e r n e d with constructing a legitimation for a c o m m u n i t y . F.J. Foakes Jackson a n d K. Lake, The Beginnings of Christianity, Part 1: The Acts of the Apostles, (London: M a c M i l l a n 1933) 1, 4 pp. 3 4 8 - 3 5 0 . For bibliography and a discussion o f the various solutions to this problem see Walaskay (1983), p p . 1 8 - 2 2 , w h o concludes with C u l l m a n n from C l e m e n t , Cor. 5 that the author was embar rassed because the charges against Paul arose from within the Church. b 4

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the court of C a e s a r N e r o , a n d indeed the stress t h r o u g h o u t Acts on Paul's R o m a n citizenship would have emphasised the need to m a k e due inquiries should he have b e e n uncertain of w h a t h a d actually transpired. But T h e o p h i l u s , a n d the instructed Christian circle that he represented, would have b e e n fully a w a r e of the possibility of being b r o u g h t before the magistrate themselves, should there have been a n y question of their sacrificing as p a r t of the Imperial Cult, or even, as was m o r e likely at their time, from charges resulting from suspicions a b o u t the true motives for their non-participation (3C 1). T h e purpose of Luke-Acts was to strengthen a n d reassure this i n n e r - C h u r c h g r o u p of their association with the h u m b l e a n d meek, a n d to convince t h e m that they were h o n o u r e d a n d valued in terms of the contra-culture, against which there was n o justification for such imperial hostility. T h e y well knew of the charges on which Paul was c o n d e m n e d b u t of which they would have experienced unease at being r e m i n d e d . T h e y knew such charges b u t wished for quiet ness a b o u t t h e m in view of their own difficult position, just as Luke well knew the ideology of the Imperial Cult, m i r r o r e d in his escha tology with its Virgin a n d divine Child, b u t chose to m a k e only oblique references to that ideology (3B 3.2). 3C 2.3. Acts and the existence of the Imperial Cult W e r e a d of events at Ephesus, o n e of the centres of the Imperial Cult along with S m y r n a a n d Tralles, where the officials, the Asiarchs, have b e e n r e g a r d e d as b o t h leaders of the K o i n o n of G r e e k city states t h r o u g h o u t Asia a n d also high-priests of the Imperial C u l t . T h i s conclusion has b e e n challenged recently on the grounds that there is epigraphic evidence for several Asiarchs in Ephesus a n d Tralles at one time which would not be consistent with the equiv alence of this office with that of dpxiepeuq xfiq 'Aoiocc;. But notwith65

66

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A l t h o u g h they were originally simply high priests o f the cult o f the goddess R o m a , they b e c a m e high priests o f the imperial cult w h e n her cult was assimilated to that o f the emperors, see L. Ross Taylor, T h e Asiarchs, in F.J. Foakes Jackson and K. Lake, The Beginnings of Christianity, Part 1: The Acts of the Apostles, (London: M a c M i l l a n 1933), vol. V, p p . 2 5 6 - 2 6 2 ; G . R . H . Horsley, T h e N e w T e s t a m e n t and the Ephesian Inscriptions, in A T 3 4 (1992), pp. 134 141; Horsley, New Documents IV, pp. 4 6 - 5 5 . See also SEG 36, 1518; 4 2 , 1029; 1097. Strabo, X I V , 1,42, cf. SEG 3 8 , 1973 w h i c h cites this inaccurately as 2 , 4 2 , and which summarises R.A. Kearsley, T h e Asiarchs, in T h e Book of Acts in Its G r a e c o R o m a n Setting, (Ed. W.J. Gill and C . G e m p f ) , in The Book of Acs in Its First Century Setting, Vol. 2 (Michigan and Carlisle: E e r d m a n s / P a t e r n o s t e r 1994), pp. 2 6 3 376.

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standing w h e t h e r or not these offices were the same, there was at the time of writing a n dpxiepetx; of the Imperial Cult. Luke avoids direct m e n t i o n of such an official of the cult that would have been a present reality by A . D . 7 5 - 8 5 to b o t h the a u t h o r a n d T h e o p h i l u s to w h o m his work was addressed. Both would be keen to avoid open conflict with that cult, just as they were anxious to be worshippers in the new, reformed Jewish cult whose eschatology fulfilled all its aspirations regarding acoxr|p{a, eipf|vr|, rcpovoia etc. 67

T h e avoidance of such a clash was possible, at least before the Domitianic developments of that cult, which, we shall argue later, can be soundly d o c u m e n t e d from the literary evidence. I n d e e d it is arguable t h a t there was a certain novelty in Pliny's act of inviting Christians to sacrifice, ture ac vino, before the E m p e r o r ' s image (imagini tuae) as a test of w h e t h e r they were truly criminals (Pliny, Ep. X , 96,5). T h e risk of being c h a r g e d by the state at this time was not from non-participation in the cult which h a d n o organised enforce m e n t at this time as a deliberate test of loyalty to the state, as it was to b e c o m e in the time of Decius. R a t h e r the risk c a m e from the charge of O T C X O K ; . 68

It should be r e m e m b e r e d that Tacitus, in his account of N e r o ' s persecution, shows that this was the m a i n claim. Prior to their cruel deaths in N e r o ' s circus, there h a d b e e n a trial in which Christiani are described as m a d e defendants (rei), a n d as being e x a m i n e d in a judicial context w h e r e "by their evidence (indicio) a large multitude of t h e m were convicted (convicti) not so m u c h for the charge of incen diarism (in crimine incendi) but of h a t r e d of the h u m a n race (odio humani generis)." In Suetonius Claudius 25,4 we r e a d that the J e w s were expelled from R o m e because "they were always causing u p r o a r at the instigation of Chrestus (impulsore Chresto assidue tumultuantis)." In Suetonius Nero 16,2 we read: "Christians were afflicted with p u n ishment (afflicti suppliciis Christiani), a class of m e n of a new a n d malev olent superstition (genus hominum superstitionis novae ac maleficae). In each of these cases there is n o issue of being unwilling to participate in the Imperial Cult. R a t h e r the crime (flagitiurri) w a r r a n t i n g (supplicia) is o n e of a superstitio malefica. T h u s Suetonius repeats T a c i t u s ' charge 69

b7

SEG 4 3 , 7 4 6 . T h e title dpxiepeix; xfjq 'Aciocq is first attested from ( A . D . 40). See C h a p t e r 1 footnote 14. Tacitus, Annul. X V , 4 4 , 3 and 5, cf. Wilken (1984), p p . 4 8 5 0 . ()8

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(XV,44,4) of exitiabilis superstitio. It has often been p o i n t e d out that superstitio, in terms of a degenerate form of religion, exemplified in Dionysiac mania, was a threat to public o r d e r as recorded by Livy in terms of the Bacchanalian riot. T h u s superstitio, axaciq, tumulare, a n d flagitia were conceptually linked. Primarily, therefore, the potential conflict between C h u r c h a n d State was over the perceived threat of the former as a threat to p u b lic o r d e r because it was a superstitio. But again it must be stressed that, although the focus m a y not yet have b e e n directly the scene before the altar of incense of the Imperial Cult, the set of assump tions b e h i n d that cult were not far from the scene. T h o u g h essen tially the judicial focus m a y have b e e n on the cidciq caused by a superstitio, nevertheless there was always the further question as to w h a t it was a b o u t a particular superstitio that lead to O T C X O K ; . T h e latter, as we have seen, was clearly linked to the pax deorum t h a t it was the purpose of the Imperial Cult to secure, following a century of R e p u b l i c a n constitutional disintegration (2A 4.1-2). 70

D e Ste Croix was therefore quite mistaken in describing the Imperial Cult as having "almost n o independent i m p o r t a n c e in the persecution of the C h r i s t i a n s . " T h e pax deorum n o longer h a d a relationship of contingency (if that is what is m e a n t by "independent") to the Imperial Cult, a n y m o r e t h a n the cult of divine virtues h a d a contingent rela tionship with the worship of the e m p e r o r ' s person, for the reasons established by Fears' analysis of the d e v e l o p m e n t of the former cult from the a s c e n d a n c y of Sulla t h r o u g h J u l i u s C a e s a r to Augustus (2B 3). Pliny's order (Ep. X , 96,5) that accused Christians deos adpellerent et imagini tuae. . . ture et vino supplicarent n o longer referred u n a m biguously to different entities that could be contingendy s e p a r a t e d . 71

72

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L.F. Janssen, "Superstitio" a n d the Persecution o f the Christians, in VCh 33,2 (1979), p p . 1 3 1 - 1 5 9 , explores fully the conceptual relationship b e t w e e n concepts of humanitas a n d the nomen Romanum that must always survive (superstes), and what were perceived to be Druidical a n d Gallic denials o f such a R o m a n a n d imperial real ity, w h i c h bear striking similarites with charges o f odium generis humanae, superstitio prava, Jlagitium, etc. associated with bearing the nomen Christianum. Such religions or rather superstitiones were clear denials o f both imperial O r d e r a n d R o m a n citizen ship. S e e also R . L . Wilken, The Christians as the Romans saw them, ( N e w H a v e n and L o n d o n : Yale U . P . 1984), p p . 4 1 - 4 4 . D e Ste Croix (1963), p. 10, m y italics. In the light o f Fears' discussion, the inadequacy is e x p o s e d o f the statement in D e Ste Croix (1963), p. 10: "It is true that a m o n g our records of martyrdoms emperor-worship does crop up occasionally; but far m o r e often it is a matter of sacrificing to the gods . . . A n d w h e n the cult act involved does c o n c e r n the emperor, 71

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F u r t h e r m o r e , the enthusiasm of the worshippers in the Dionysiac rites indicated that they were possessed by spiritual ecstasy. But in the Christian superstitio was it not that the worshipper o w e d alle giance to a n o t h e r king? Certainly the H e g e s i p p a n fragment t h a t describes the descendants of J e s u s avowing a purely spiritual king d o m w h e n s u m m o n e d before D o m i t i a n reflects in legend the fact that some such connection was d r a w n at this time (Eusebius, H.E. 111,20,3-4). W e find continued in Acts reflections of the ideology of the Imperial Cult that we d o c u m e n t e d in Luke (3C 1). In the light of o u r first chapter, it is i m p o r t a n t to realise that the notion of political cxdciq like eipr|vr| h a d a metaphysical context, p a r ticularly in Stoicism. T h e century of civil strife was r e g a r d e d as a metaphysical disturbance reflected in the n a t u r a l order a n d requir ing an extra-ordinary augurium salutis in o r d e r to secure the pax deorum (2A 4.1.3; 2A 5-6). T h e concerns of the Imperial Cult a n d its participants w e r e related therefore to OTOLGK; a n d its s a c r a m e n t a l removal. T h e Christian community represented by Theophilus needed for their legitimation not simply an apologetic a c c o u n t which assured t h e m that they were not threatening by their worship both the o r d e r of n a t u r e a n d the o r d e r of society b o u n d together by the Stoic holis tic a n d p n e u m a t i c metaphysic. T h e y n e e d e d r a t h e r a m o r e positive assurance regarding the "discourses of their catechesis." (Lk. 1,4) T h e y needed to have their convictions strengthened by an articulate account which showed, as we have a r g u e d regarding the first three chapters of Luke, a r e f o r m e d J e w i s h cult w h i c h fulfilled all the messianic promise of the Augustan cult, a n d secured society's true eipr|vr| a n d oqrnpia, in which J e w a n d Greek, high a n d low, rich a n d p o o r were included equally. W e shall n o w show that the specific charges as they are given against Paul both reflect a n d continue this perspective with which Luke began a n d which Acts thus continues. 3 C 2.3.1. Tertullus' case against Paul; Acts 24,1-9 Firstly we should note the c h a r a c t e r of the conceptual discourse in which Tertullus makes his charge. W e should m o r e o v e r treat that discourse seriously a n d not simply dismiss his speech as a m e r e

it is usually a n oath by his Genius (or in the East by his Tt>xr|) or a sacrifice to the gods on his behalf." For the essential fluidity of terminology witnessed in the use o f divus, deus and Oeoq, see S . R . F . Price, G o d s a n d Emperors: T h e Greek Language of the R o m a n Imperial Cult, in JHS 104 (1984), pp. 7 9 - 9 5 .

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rhetorical flourish. It does not m a k e sense to regard the words of v. 2 - 3 as simply a captatio benevolentiae. This was not, after all, a speech that a n y o n e actually gave verbatim. R a t h e r it was a s u m m a r y of charges that Luke sought to rebut. H e deals with these charges by his use of the literary devices of expressing t h e m in speeches o n the lips of the m a i n protagonists. For Luke these words are i n t e n d e d to reveal the c h a r a c t e r of the opposition as m o r e t h a n merely users of polished rhetorical devices. In these w o r d s h e shows u n r e f o r m e d J u d a i s m in alliance with an Imperial Cult both of which could achieve neither of their objectives without a Christian transformation. Tertullus thus addresses the E m p e r o r ' s representative: Since we enjoy great peace owing to you (rcoAAfjc; eipr|VT|<; xuyxdvovxeq 8ia GOV), and since by your Providence restorations are being carried out (Kal 8iop0co|Lidxcov yivouivcov . . . 8ia xfj<; afjq npovoiaq) for this nation, in every way and in every place we welcome it, your Excellency Felix, with all thankfulness. T h u s the very concepts eipr|vr|, rcpovoia, a n d 8i6p0cojLia, associated with the I m p e r i a l C u l t in the decrees of the K o i n o n of Asia, set the context to the accusations against Paul. Augustus " h a d set right (dvcop0coa£v)'' political a n d even natural disorder, just as Festus is credited with 8iop0cb|iaxa. n p o v o i a , o n e of the personified abstractions associated with the person of deified e m p e r o r s (2B 3), h a d p r o d u c e d a acoxf|p, w h o h a d a r r a n g e d a world of eipr|vr| (3B 3.1 a n d footnote 23). F r o m Luke's contra-cultural perspective a saviour h a d c o m e , if not exactly t h r o u g h npovoia, at least t h r o u g h "the p r e d e t e r m i n e d counsel (xf) (bpiouivr) PouAij) a n d foreknowledge (npoyvcoaei) of G o d . " (Acts 2, 23) J o h n , in p r e p a r a t i o n for this ocoxf|p, engaged in his own 8iop0co|ia in that his mission was xou Kaxeu0uvai xouq nobaq fijicov eiq 686v eipr|vr|<; (Lk. 1,79). F u r t h e r m o r e eipr|vr| was a political p e a c e set in the eschatological context of the Divine Child that brings the age of fulfilment (Lk. 1,14). But it is not simply the ideology of the Imperial Cult that the author seeks to refashion with his new discourse in which the euayyeAAOV of his new a n d reformed cult legitimates the position of T h e o p h i l u s a n d his g r o u p . T h e express charge is that the new religion upsets the o r d e r of npovoia, eipf|vrj a n d 8iop0coua by fomenting axdaiq within J u d a i s m . Paul is " a m o v e r of unrest ( K i v o u v x a axdaeiq) a m o n g s t all the J e w s t h r o u g h o u t the inhabited world (n&oiv xoiq 'IouSaunq xoiq K a x d xfw oiKouuivnv), a n d the leader of the faction of the N a z a r e n e s

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(7ipCDT0GT(XTr|v T£ Ttjq xcov Noc^copoticov aipeaeox;)." " H e has tried to defile the sanctuary of the T e m p l e (TO iepov erceipocaev (kPr|A,G)aai; v. 5 - 6 ) " a c c o r d i n g t o t h e false a l l e g a t i o n t h a t h e h a d t a k e n t h e gentile T r o p h i m u s of Ephesus there (21, 2 8 - 2 9 ) . For Luke it is not therefore only the Imperial C u l t that the Gospel surpasses while satisfying its basic h u m a n aspirations for p e a c e a n d order. Lk. 1 also p o r t r a y e d a n older J u d a i s m b e i n g replaced by a reformed a n d r e n e w e d cult, b e g i n n i n g with Gabriel's a p p e a r a n c e at a n altar of incense (z;. 9). Let us p u r s u e that t h e m e n o w as it evolves in opposition to J e w i s h charges. 3 C 2.3.2. Felix, Agrippa and the p a x dei (Acts 22-23) T h e a u t h o r has already established that a n unreformed J u d a i s m could not secure the pax dei, a n d Tertullus' charges are to support this the sis. T h e proceedings against Paul begin before the S a n h e d r i n (Acts 2 2 , 3 0 - 2 3 , 1 0 ) . H e r e the pax dei of the Divine Child a n d the promised n e w age r e m a i n e d unsecured by J u d a i s m . W h e n Paul claims the sup p o r t of Pharisaism for the doctrine of the resurrection of the b o d y the result is division (eaxioOri T O 7iXf|9o<;) a n d cxaoiq (eyevzTO oxaoiq/ KoXXr\q 8e yivojievriq czacetoq; v. 7 a n d 10). H e r e , c o n t r a r y to the apologetic thesis, the a u t h o r admits OTCXOK; as a result of Paul's words. But the axaoiq is a c o n s e q u e n c e of a n u n r e f o r m e d religion such as the J u d a i s m that Paul opposed, just as GXOLOK; was the p r o d u c t of the u n r e f o r m e d R e p u b l i c before Augustus. 73

Such a t h e m e m o r e o v e r has b e e n constantly reiterated t h r o u g h out Luke-Acts. J u d a i s m u n r e f o r m e d c a n n o t secure the pax dei, a n d c a n n o t achieve the eschatological o r d e r in n a t u r e a n d in society a n d so fulfil the aspiration of those w h o sought the pax deorum t h r o u g h the Imperial Cult. Eipr|vr| is characteristically used by Luke, often in reformulation of his traditional material, in connection with the sta bility of the political as well as the n a t u r a l world. In addition to Lk. 1,79; 2,14,29 already discussed, we have some parallels with the few references in other gospels, b u t some significant additions of the author's own. 74

7 i

W h e t h e r this was because that b o d y h a d the authority to i m p o s e the death penalty without the consent of the civil power, or w h e t h e r it met as a council o f advice for Claudius Lysias remains unclear, see H J . Cadbury, R o m a n L a w a n d the Trial of Paul, in F J . Foakes Jackson, The Beginnings of Christianity, Part 1: The Acts of the Apostles, (London: M a c M i l l a n 1933), vol. V , p p . 2 9 7 - 3 3 8 , especially p p . 3 0 2 - 3 0 5 . eipr|vr| occurs o n c e only in ML 5 , 3 4 (= Lk. 7,50; 8,48), and four times in Jn. 14,27, 16,33, a n d 2 0 , 1 9 , 2 1 , 2 6 (= Lk. 24,36). In all of these instances, the reference 74

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1 15

In parabolic additions in Lk. 11,21 the a r m e d strong m a n ' s posses sions a r e consequently held ev eipf|vr|. In 14,32 the king sends a n embassy a n d epcoxa xd rcpoq eipf|vr|v. T h e latter p h r a s e is then used in 19,42 in o r d e r to describe w h y the u n r e f o r m e d J e w i s h cult h a d failed. "Jesus d r e w n e a r to the city [ J e r u s a l e m ] a n d wept over her (£KA,GO)G£V ETt'cxuxTiv) saying " W o u l d t h a t even you h a d k n o w n in this day (ei eyvcoq ev xx\ fiuepoc xccuxn KOCI GV) the things that m a k e for p e a c e (xd npbq eipr|vr)v)." T h e immediately p r e c e d i n g context makes it clear that this p h r a s e refers to the specifically L u c a n eipr|vr| a n n o u n c e d by the angels to the shepherds a n d p r o c l a i m e d by S y m e o n as the c o u n terpart to Augustus' saeculum aureum that h a d achieved the pax deo rum t h r o u g h the Divine Child of Vergil's shepherds (2A 6). Luke alters the position of J e s u s ' l a m e n t in his M a r c a n source so that we h e a r his w o r d s only after those of t h e c r o w d of disciples (rcArjGoq xcov jLiaGnxcbv) at the T r i u m p h a l Entry. T h e latter's words themselves Luke has refashioned. T h e i r p r o c l a m a t i o n direcdy parallels w h a t the angels' song at B e t h l e h e m h a d p r o m i s e d (Lk. 19,37-38). In v. 38 we read: Blessed is the king (pccoitaix;) who comes in the name of the Lord, peace in heaven (ev oupavcp eipr|vr|) and glory in the highest (Kal 86£a ev \)\|/{axoiq). Eiprivn ev oupavcp thus parallels the eipf|vr] ercl yfjq of Lk. 2,14. In n o n e of the other Gospel parallels is the insertion into the pilgrim Ps. 118 that of a n unqualified paaiA,eu<;. I n d e e d , Mat. 21,9 reads in its place xcp uico AauiS, a n d Mk. 11,10 speaks of a kingdom b u t n o king (fi epxouivri PaoiXeicc xou rcaxpoq TIJLICOV Aau(8). O n l y Jn. 12,13 a p proaches the Lucan usage with the qualified 6 paoitaix; xov 'Iopar|A,. T h e author's m o n a r c h has no nationality, but he stands like the Divine Child of Lk. 1-2 at the centre of a reformed cult bringing the pax dei just as the figure of Augustus h a d stood on the on the G e m m a securing with his a u g u r ' s w a n d the pax deorum. (2B 3, 3B 3.1 a n d Plate 13). 75

is to the psychological calm p r o d u c e d through Jesus' spiritual presence. In Mat. 10,13 it is used in the sense o f righteous indignation w h i c h can b e given or withheld to the advantage or disadvantage o f those w h o receive the mission of the T w e l v e . O n l y in Mat. 10,34 (= Lk. 12,51) is it used in the sense o f social disturbance. Walaskay ((1983), p. 9) righdy criticises C o n z e l m a n n ' s characterization o f the Lucan alterations as non-political, in order to favour his interpretation o f Luke-Acts as apologia pro ecclesia ad imperium. Cf. C o n z e l m a n n (1961), p. 139. For other e x a m ples inconsistent with a political apology before a R o m a n magistrate, see Lk. 6,15 and Acts 1,13; Lk. 2 2 , 3 5 - 3 8 ; 19,38 a n d Acts 1,6 all discussed in Walaskay (1983), pp. 1 6 - 1 8 . 7 5

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T h e goal of the T r i u m p h a l Entry was indeed the Last Supper, for which its events have p r e p a r e d the way. T h e a u t h o r n o w chooses to introduce here the t h e m e of the authority structure of the reformed Jewish cult that J e s u s is creating t h r o u g h his d e a t h . 3 C 2.3.2.1. T h e Last S u p p e r a n d the reformed Jewish cultus T h e Twelve are entrusted with the kingdom in the following words: And I entrust to you (K&Y<» 8iax{6e|xai \)|iTv) even as my Father has entrusted to me (mGox; 8ie9ex6 not) a kingdom (PaaiXe(av) in order that you may eat and drink with me in my kingdom (ev xf[ pocoiAeia uo\)) and sit upon thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel (ml m8r|oea0e £7il 0p6vcov Taq ScoSeica (p-uA.aq Kplvovxeq TOV 'Iopar|A,). Luke 22,28-30 T h e final words a r e traditional (QJ a n d found in Mat. 19,28 in a different context. H e r e the promise to sit o n twelve thrones j u d g i n g the twelve tribes is n o t associated with the fiaoxkeia b u t the naXiyyeveala, a n d there is n o reference to the Messianic b a n q u e t . T h u s Luke wishes to associate these words with the O r d e r a n d organisa tion of the reformed c o m m u n i t y , a n d with t h e central cultic meal t h a t replaces original J u d a i s m . But this gospel suggests in t u r n a con tra-cultural c o u n t e r p a r t to the sacrificial gathering at the Imperial Cult, with its celebration of the social hierarchy of the imperial city state, a n d t h e Christian saeculum aureum foreshadowed in chapters 1-2, in w h i c h the h u n g r y would b e fed a n d the rich sent away empty. W h e t h e r o n e accepts the textual tradition which omits Lk. 22,19b~20 o r that which retains it, there remains nevertheless a fore taste of the eschatological b a n q u e t . T h e breaking of b r e a d by the c o m m u n i t y of the Twelve (Acts 2,46) partially fulfils that eschatology. T h e dispute about greatness occurs immediately before the promise of the twelve thrones to the Twelve (Lk. 2 2 , 2 4 - 2 7 ) . H e r e once again there is a significant recasting of the tradition by the a u t h o r in p u r suance of his special theme. T h e parallel passages, both Mat. 2 0 , 2 0 - 2 8 a n d ML 1 0 , 3 5 - 4 5 , a r e addressed in the former case to the specific claim of t h e m o t h e r of the sons of Z e b e d e e , a n d in the latter to J a m e s a n d J o h n themselves. I n Lk. 22,24 the dispute is a general o n e a b o u t "which of t h e m should b e greatest." T h u s Matthew a n d Mark's specific question of a position for two individuals in a n assumed hierarchical authority structure (Mat. 20,23; ML 10,40 = oiq TITOIUOCGTcti) is transformed b y Luke into the quite general question of the kind of structure of authority itself in the c o m m u n i t y a n d its cult.

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T h e apxovxeq xcov eOvcov a n d the neydtan are described in Mat. 20,25 a n d Mk. 10,42 in identical terms. But in Lk. 22,25 Luke readapts these words diplomatically for T h e o p h i l u s . H e does not refer to a single PaoiXeuq a n d thus does not single out the E m p e r o r too blatandy. R a t h e r the expression oi paoitaiq xcov eBvcbv cushions the blatenness of such a direct reference by the obliqueness of a general plural. T h e r e a d a p t a t i o n of Kocxe^ouoid^ouoiv to e^ouoid^ovxeq enables Luke then to a d d euepyexou icatan)vxai. Euepyexriq was the characteristic term for the benefactor of a G r e e k city-state in Asia M i n o r , a n d the t e r m was particularly used of s o m e o n e w h o e n d o w e d a temple a n d cult to the E m p e r o r . O n c e again we see the contra-cultural images in the reformed cult of J u d a i s m with its reverse reflections of social structure a n d order. T h a t o r d e r was represented a n d celebrated in the assigned seating places for the b a n q u e t ensuing from cultic sacri fice. It is in such a context that Luke chooses to locate the reversal of role-values, in which the greater in age (6 uei^cov) must b e c o m e as the y o u n g e r (6 vecoxepoq) a n d the (consular) ruler (6 Tiyoujxevoq) as the o n e w h o serves at table (6 8IOCKOVCOV; Lk. 2 2 , 2 6 - 2 7 ) . Unlike in Mat. 2 0 , 2 6 - 2 7 a n d Mk. 1 0 , 4 3 - 4 4 , there is n o hint t h a t you c a n be c o m e great a n d a leader in the c o m m u n i t y by first b e c o m i n g h u m b l e . Jesus asserts rather that to be great at the Messianic/Imperial b a n q u e t would b e to recline (dvociceiuevog), yet he is not great because he himself does not recline b u t is a m o n g s t t h e m as one w h o serves (eyo) 8e ev uiocp ujicov eijii ox; 6 SIOCKOVCOV; Lk. 22,27). 76

T h a t reformed cult can n o w b e shown to exhibit the pax dei as a c o u n t e r p a r t to the pax deorum. 3C 2.3.2.2. T h e pax dei a n d the early c o m m u n i t y in Acts T h e Twelve, as the foundation of the reformed cult, are a t t e n d e d by those w h o " c o n t i n u e d with o n e accord ( r c p o o K o c p x e p o u v x e q ouoGu|xcc86v) in the temple (ev xcp iepcp), breaking b r e a d at h o m e . . ." (Acts 2,46). T h i s takes place in the c o m m u n i t y of equals promised by M a r y (Acts 2 , 4 4 - 4 5 ; 4 , 3 2 - 3 7 cf. Lk. 1,52-53) in contrast to the dynasts of the city states of Asia M i n o r whose imperial sacrificial b a n q u e t s cel e b r a t e d rank a n d power. It is in the Portico of S o l o m o n that the "signs a n d w o n d e r s (ar||ieia Kai xepaxa)" take place " t h r o u g h the h a n d s of the apostles (8id xcov xeipcov xcov drcooxotaov)" w h e r e "they

7(i

Walaskay (1983), p. 36 regards the removal o f m x a from the M a r c a n K o c x a icupievaiv and mxe^ovGid^ovoiv as a modification of the severity o f these expressions.

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were all of o n e accord (6uo0\)|Lia86v; Acts 5,12)." T h e reformed cult thus continues its presence, as with A n n a a n d Z e c h a r i a h , in the shell of the old: it demonstrates its unity a n d lack o f a x d a i q i n its 6uo0\)ua86v, a w o r d that is here r e p e a t e d a second time in the context of the old T e m p l e . T h e promise "to set right o u r feet in the way of peace (Kaie\)0\)vai xovq noSaq eiq 686v Tfjq eipr|vr|q)" is thus continued. But so also is the t h e m e that the pax dei, as the c o u n t e r p a r t to the pax deorum, is m a r k e d by absence of strife a n d unity (6uo0i)|Lia86v) in the reformed cult that emerges out of J u d a i s m . Augustus' cult h a d similary e m e r g e d out of R e p u b l i c a n religion that possessed cults of individual Virtues, b u t which were n o w collectively associated with the c o r p o r a t e personal ity of the e m p e r o r . T h e cult of Virtues, like Christianity as reformed J u d a i s m , was m a r k e d by Concordia ('Ouovoioc), Disciplina, Simplicitas (d(peA,6ir|<; cf. Acts 2,46 see also 2,42, etc). It is as the representative of the reformed cultus that b e g a n with A n n a a n d Z e c h a r i a h that Paul appears before b o t h Festus a n d H e r o d Agrippa at the conclusion of Acts. Before the former he rebuts the charge of Tertullus t h a t the reformed cultus c a n n o t satisfy the con tra-cultural r e q u i r e m e n t s of achieving w h a t the Imperial C u l t set out to achieve in terms of the pax dei (2A 2.1). But the m a i n people addressed in his speech in the presence of Porcius Festus w h o has by this time replaced Felix (Acts 24,27) are the latter. A g r i p p a a n d Bernice a p p e a r here as the representatives of u n r e f o r m e d J u d a i s m (25,13-26-32). As C a m p e n h a u s e n has p o i n t e d out, Paul stands here as the sur viving apostolic witness, the original Twelve n o w having vanished from the scene. I n d e e d , the Twelve always were shadowy figures in Acts: they function as literary constructs that s u p p o r t the distinctive L u c a n theology that overlays earlier m a t e r i a l . T h e Paul that n o w stands alone insists to Agrippa that he represents the reformed cul tus of A n n a a n d Z e c h a r i a h : 77

7 /

A n earlier tradition o f the church o f Jerusalem a n d their eschatological expec tations significance m a y nevertheless have b e e n present in the material that the author uses. S e e H . v o n C a m p e n h a u s e n , D e r Urchristliche Apostelbegriff, in StTh Vol. 1 Fasc. I—II (1947), p p . 9 6 - 1 3 0 ; 1 3 3 - 1 4 4 . Idem. Kirchliches A m t und geistliche V o l l m a c h t , in BeitrHistTh 14 (1963), chapter 2; W . Schmithals, D a s Kirchliche Apostelamt. Eine Historische Untersuchung, in FRIAMT 6 1 , (1961). Acts is really not the acts o f the T w e l v e Apostles, but of Peter, J a m e s , J o h n , and Paul.

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9

And now for the hope of the promise (in iXnibi xf|<; eiq xcnx; rcaxepac; fmcov inayyekiaq) made by God to our fathers I stand condemned (icpivouevoq), to which our Twelve Tribes (TO 8co8eKaqn)A,ov f|u.cov) hope to attain worshipping in intense expectation (ev EKTeveia) day and night, concerning which hope I am under indictment (eyKatanjiiai) by the Jews, O king. Acts 26,6-7 T h u s the scenes in the closing chapters of Acts conclude w h a t the o p e n i n g chapters of Luke b e g a n . J o h n the Baptist, son of the priest Z a c h a r i a h faithfully serving at the altar of incense, was destined to exoiudoai K\)p{co Xabv KaTeGKeuaouivov (Lk. 1,17). T h e conception of Jesus was the action of G o d (|xvr|a0f|vai eXeovq) in fulfilment of his promise to the fathers (KOCGGX; iXafa]oev npbq xovq naxepaq rjjicov), the very p r o m i s e s (ETC' iXnibi xr\q eiq xohq naxepaq fjuxov inayyeXiaq) for which Paul here was o n trial. R e g a r d i n g J o h n , Z a c h a r i a h speaks of Tiovfjaou eXeoq \iexa TCGV 7 i a x e p c o v Kai uvnaGfjvou 8ia6r|icn<; ayiaq cruxou (1,72-73). W e have seen h o w the Twelve, w h o continue the reformed cultus in the T e m p l e in Acts, by providing the pax dei which u n r e formed J u d a i s m could not provide, would sit on twelve thrones j u d g ing the twelve T r i b e s of Israel (3C 2.3.2.1). Paul here affirms that he is the representative of TO 8co8eKd(p\)^ov i||icov, which is the m a r k of the o r d e r e d , reformed cult which J e s u s i n a u g u r a t e d at the first Eucharist. W e thus see that the a u t h o r ' s legitimation of the c o m m u n i t y of T h e o p h i l u s a n d his circle has b e e n on at least two fronts. H e gives assurance to that c o m m u n i t y that it is not a Bacchanalian superstitio, a n d that indeed in Christ the e n d of o%ic\ia a n d axdaiq has c o m e since, in Peter's words to Cornelius, divisions between J e w a n d Gentile have b e e n dissolved by the w o r d "which p r e a c h e s p e a c e (eiiayyeta£6|i£vo<; eiprivnv) t h r o u g h J e s u s Christ." (Acts 10,36) O n the con t r a r y , axacxq a n d oxiauxx w e r e t h e c h a r a c t e r i s t i c of u n r e f o r m e d J u d a i s m that o p p o s e d its reformation in Christ. T o this e n d the a u t h o r was p r e p a r e d to leave in the b a c k g r o u n d any further w a y in which the reformed cult could clash with the Imperial Cult over e m p e r o r worship, even t h o u g h the social reality of the latter was 78

7 8

A third front w o u l d be that constituted by the followers o f J o h n the baptist, w h o , the author assures us, accepted the eschatology o f the Christian saeculum aureum shorn o f traditional apocalyptic, a n d w h o s e followers readily went over to the c o m munity o f Jesus {Acts 18,25; 1 9 , 1 4 ) .

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present t h r o u g h o u t Asia M i n o r , as it would have been obliquely in the trial a n d m a r t y r d o m of Paul at R o m e before N e r o . But a n i m p o r t a n t question for o u r account n o w emerges. If both before the S a n h e d r i n , before Felix, a n d before Agrippa a n d Festus the Imperial Cult was the backcloth to w h a t Luke-Acts proclaims both a b o u t p a g a n i s m a n d t h e J u d a i s m which Christianity reformed, w h y is there such a silence a b o u t the Imperial Cult itself in the cities of Asia M i n o r that Paul visits, a n d in particular at Ephesus? 3C 2.3.2.3. Paul in Ephesus (Acts 19,21-40) N o w h e r e was the silence m o r e deafening t h a n at Ephesus w h e r e , in Acts 1 9 , 2 1 - 4 0 , there is recorded a disturbance (v. 2 3 : xdpotxoq) that almost leads a n indictment for GTOLOIC, (V. 40: K I V 8 \ ) V £ U O U £ V eyicataioGai axdaeax;). T h e riot of the silversmiths over the attack on their trade in connection with t h e cult of Artemis is described in high relief. T h o u g h the Imperial Cult experienced u n d e r D o m i t i a n a consider able development specifically in Ephesus, as we shall see (5A 2), never theless it was already established there in m o r e t h a n r u d i m e n t a r y form in Paul's time. T h e r e was a Sebasteion or cult r o o m , a vdoq, within the xejievoq of the Artemisium, a temple of Augustus within the city itself dating from 27 B . C . , a n d a n earlier temple of R o m a a n d Julius C a e s a r . T h e Sebasteion was the work of P. Vedius Pollio u n d e r private instructions from Augustus to incorporate his cult into G r e e k temples u n d e r guise of financial a n d legal reorganisation. Clearly Ephesus h a d been at the very centre of the developments which first associated the E m p e r o r with a n existing cult w h e t h e r of R o m a , the Virtues, o r of Artemis, a n d then by slow degrees synthesised the worship of o n e with the other. 79

80

81

82

Certainly Acts 19,35 knows of the distinguished title of "templekeeper (vecoKopoq)" held by the city, although it focuses o n being vecoKopoq xfjq u£YaA,r|<; 'ApxeuiSoq. Yet w h e r e assimilation with e m p e r o r 79

IBM 5 2 2 = ILS 9 7 a n d CIL 3 , 7 1 1 8 . For further bibliography see Price ( 1 9 8 4 ) , p. 2 5 4 a n d 1 3 4 footnote 7 . /. Eph. 1 1 1 , 9 0 2 = SEG 2 6 , 1 2 4 3 ; /. Eph. 4 0 4 = SEG 3 9 , 1 2 1 0 . S e e also Price 8 0

(1984), 81

p.

254.

D i o Cassius, 5 1 , 2 0 , 6 : K a i a a p 5e ev xovxcp xd xe aXXa expr|uax{£ei, m i xeuevrj xfl xe 'Pcouri m i xcprcaxpixcp K a i a a p i , iipcoa oruxov 'IOXJAAOV o v o u d a a q , ev xe 'Ecpeocp m i ev N i m i a yeveoBai ecpfjKev ai)xai yap xoxe a i KOXEIC, ev xr\ ' A a i a m i ev xe xf| Bi(h)v(a 7cpoexexiur|vxo. m i xovxoix; |iev xoiq 'PCOUOUOK; xoiq n a p ' auxoiq e r c o i K o v o i xiuav upoaexa^e • xoiq 5e 8f| ^evoiq, "EXXr\va<; atpaq eTcimAiaaq, eaDxcp x w a , xoiq uev 'Aaiavoiq ev nepydjico, xoiq 8e BiGvvoiq ev NiKout|8e{a, xeueviaai e7iexpe\|/e. SEG 4 0 , 1 0 0 1 . 82

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worship h a d p r o c e e d e d as at Ephesus, there would b e "a union of n e o c o r a t e s . " Although evidence for this tide specifically for a city with a n imperial temple is clearer in the time of D o m i t i a n , H a d r i a n , a n d Caracalla, those developments were founded on earlier assimi lation. T h e Asiarchs have b e e n identified contentiously with priests of the Imperial Cult, a n d certain of these officials are described in Acts 19,31 as Paul's friends (xive<; 8e xcov 'Aaiapx&v, ovxeq auxcp (pitau). A n d this was in a principle city, after P e r g a m o n , of the K o i n o n of Asia which h a d issued the decree of 9 B.C. to which we have m a d e frequent reference, a n d which possessed shrines of the Imperial Cult there u n d e r Claudius a n d N e r o . 83

84

85

86

O n the apologetic thesis, the omission of such references would be to defend Christianity before the magistrate. T h e defence, how ever, would be, as it is presented in Acts, to say the least, poorly constructed. R a t h e r , we have argued, the apologetic motif should be s u b s u m e d u n d e r a n d m a d e subsidiary to Luke's general p u r p o s e in legitimating the social construction of reality of T h e o p h i l u s a n d his Christian g r o u p . T h e r e n e e d not be any final clash between the R o m a n e m p i r e a n d the faith t h a t they avow. If n o t until u n d e r D o m i t i a n , then at least until Pliny's correspondence, sacrificing in the Imperial C u l t was n o litmus test for Christian loyalty to the e m p i r e . T h e earlier q u e s t i o n w a s r a t h e r w h e t h e r a d h e r e n c e to Christianity lead to the Bacchanalian supersitio that lead to oxdaiq a n d thus upset the pax deorum. It could therefore be supposed that Christians were absent from imperial festivals in consequence of such a malign intention. Luke-Acts has shown that, to the contrary, T h e o p h i l u s ' faith leads to the true eiprivri, the pax dei, with ocoxripia, viicri a n d a saeculum aureum promised to the Jewish Fathers a n d fulfilled in a reformed cult in which a n e w age has d a w n e d t h r o u g h a Divine Child b o r n of divine p a r e n t a g e by m e a n s of a h u m a n Virgin. At o n e point Festus might accuse Paul of b e h a v i n g like a Bacchic m a e n a d , w h e n he says: "You are raving, Paul (umvr), UavXz), your m a n y words have t u r n e d your m i n d to a frenzy (xd nokka a e ypdu^axa eiq uxxviav 7cepixpe7cei)." But Paul is recorded as replying, in the full context of the discourse 8 3

Foakes Jackson and Lake (1933) 1,4, p. 2 5 0 . Ibid. 1,5 pp. 2 4 4 - 2 5 6 ; Price (1984), pp. 6 5 - 6 6 ; p p . 7 2 - 7 3 ; Fishwick (1987), 1,1 p. 2 2 . IB 4 and 2 C 1. Ross Taylor (1933), p. 2 5 7 . 84

8 5

8(>

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of legitimation c o n s t r u c t e d by the a u t h o r : "I a m not r a v i n g (o\> umvouou). . . but I speak the words of truth a n d of self-discipline (aXXa aXi)Qeia<; m l acocppoouvriq priuaxa a7co(p98yyo|iai; Acts 26,24)." T h e o p h i l u s a n d his c o n t e m p o r a r i e s h a d b e e n b r o u g h t u p in a p a g a n background, o u d i n e d in o u r first chapter, of a civil w a r requir ing an e x t r a o r d i n a r y act of augurium, in o r d e r to set right a disor d e r e d n a t u r e as the metaphysical c o u n t e r p a r t of a disordered e m p i r e (2A 5). T h e s e keenly felt, religious aspirations, w e r e witnessed by the ideology of the Imperial Cult found in Vergil, H o r a c e , O v i d , a n d L u c a n , a m o n g s t others, a n d by the inscriptions such as t h a t of the K o i n o n of Asia. S u c h religious aspirations could n o w find their sat isfaction in the new, reformed J u d a e o - C h r i s t i a n cult, with its contracultural reversal of imperial p o w e r a n d privilege. Luke will therefore not allow his p u r p o s e to be destroyed by suggesting a h e a d o n col lision b e t w e e n Christ a n d C a e s a r in which the o n e must nihilate the other. R a t h e r t h a n being nihilated, imperialist religious aspirations m u s t be better satisfied a n d fulfilled by the exxxyyeAaov xoiq rcxcoxoiq (Lk. 4,18). But although the possibility of ultimate conflict between the reli gious needs of the e m p i r e a n d those of Christianity is placed in the b a c k g r o u n d , the possibility of t h a t clash is nevertheless still tactfully represented, as we shall n o w see. 3 C 2.3.3. Implied references to the Imperial Cult W e shall n o w e x a m i n e a n u m b e r of passages in which the Imperial C u l t a n d its ramifications are implied, even t h o u g h the a u t h o r has, for the reasons that we have given, suppressed a n y overt references. 3 C 2.3.3.1. T h e d e a t h In C a e s a r e a the temple with the genius of Caesar, t h a t we have described. (xotKxfi fil^epa)." H e r e we

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of H e r o d A g r i p p a (Acts 12,21-22) of Tt>%r| or Fortuna h a d b e c o m e assimilated by the process of gradual imperial deification T h e scene takes place " o n a C a l e n d a r date have, arguably, the festival of the dies natalis

Eusebius, Mart. Pal. 11,30; Josephus, Antiqu. 16,136, cf. K. Lake, T h e Chronology of Acts, in Foakes J a c k s o n a n d Lake (1933) 1,5 p p . 4 5 0 - 4 5 2 cf. L. Levine, Caesarea u n d e r R o m a n Rule, in SJLA 1 (1975), p p . 2 7 - 2 9 . S e e also A. R a b a n , T h e Harbours of Caesarea Maritima: Results of the Caesarea Ancient H a r b o u r Excavation Project, 1 9 8 0 - 1 9 8 5 , in BAR International Series (1989) 4 9 1 , p p . 5 1 - 5 3 ; Idem. Kouodpeia fj npbq Sepaaxcp Xiuevi: t w o harbours for two entities? in Caesarea Papers, Straton's T o w e r , H e r o d ' s H a r b o u r , a n d R o m a n a n d Byzantine C a e s a r e a , ( M i c h i g a n : A n n Arbor 1992), in JRA Suppl. Ser. 5 (1989), p p . 6 8 - 7 4 ; E. Krentz, Caesarea a n d early Christianity, in JRA, Suppl. 5 (1989), p p . 2 6 1 2 6 5 .

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of Augustus at C a e s a r e a , or if not his Quinquennalia c o m m e m o r a t i n g his defeat of A n t h o n y in the m o n t h of August that bears his n a m e . T h e scene is therefore, from the outset, s u r r o u n d e d by repressed images of the Imperial Cult. H e r o d a p p e a r s like a divine m o n a r c h of the G r e e k city states of Asia M i n o r a n d Egypt "clothed in royal r a i m e n t (evSuoduevoq eo&nxa paaiA,ucf|v), a n d , having taken his j u d i cial seat (raGiaaq erci xou pfiuaxoq), h e m a d e a speech (eSruiriyopei) to t h e m . " T h e Sfjuoq retorts t h a t they h e a r "the voice of G o d a n d not of a m a n , " a n d in consequence H e r o d is eaten with w o r m s because " h e did not give glory to G o d . " As Eusebius (H.E. 11,10,3), following J o s e p h u s (Ant. 19,343-351) well knows, H e r o d ' s activity on this occasion was his celebration of "spectacles in h o n o u r of C a e s a r (cuvexeA,ei 8' evxauGa Gecopiaq eiq XTVV Kaioapoq xiuf|v)." F u r t h e r m o r e , H e r o d "knew that the festival was for the latter's safety (urcep xfjq e K e i v o u ocoxripiaq eopxr|v xiva xauxrjv ercioxdnevoq) a n d at it were assembled (Kal n a p ' auxriv TiGpoioxo) a multitude of those in office a n d of high r a n k in the province (xcov Kaxd xf^v ercapxiav ev xeA,ei Kal rcpoPeprjKoxcov eiq dc^iav TcArjGoq)." Clearly the g a m e s (Gecopiaq), associated with the e m p e r o r ' s safety (ocoxrjpiaq), at which the events of Acts 12,21-22 took place, are held at C a e s a r e a w h e r e a temple of his cult was to be found. T h o s e games there fore imply a celebration in connection with that cult. T h e r e is thus implicit in this example a w a r n i n g to the circle of T h e o p h i l u s that the worship of divine rulers is quite foreign to the J u d a e o - C h r i s t i a n traditions. A similar e x a m p l e against w h a t is r e g a r d e d as a typical p a g a n (as opposed to a Jewish) tendency is given at Lystra: Paul a n d B a r n a b a s are identified with H e r m e s a n d Zeus, a n d the priest of Zeus expresses willingness to offer t h e m sacrifice. T h e y vehemently object with the traditional monotheistic Jewish a r g u m e n t in rebuttal (Acts 14,11-18). T h u s T h e o p h i l u s a n d his circle are tacidy w a r n e d that t h o u g h there n e e d be n o conflict between their religious convictions a n d the Imperial Cult, such a conflict might arise. In their reformed Jewish cult they h a d received the true m e a n s for obtaining the pax dei b o t h for themselves a n d for the e m p i r e , a n d with pax the true saeculum aureum initiated by the Divine Child w h o was the only true filius dei. W h e t h e r the o x d o i q w a s in society or reflected metaphysically in the world of n a t u r e , the true eipr|vr| a n d viiai was t h r o u g h Bethlehem a n d finally the T r i u m p h a l Entry a n d the blood of the cross. But though they might avoid the appellatio that called on all m e m b e r s of

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a particular Asiatic city state to worship on one or several of the m a n y birthdays celebrating the divination of Augustus a n d his heirs— a n d with full confidence (dacpdXeioc, Lk. 1,4) that they were obtain ing the pax dei by better m e a n s — , nevertheless there was a d a n g e r that the cult might develop further. Pliny, if not D o m i t i a n , was to show h o w it could b e c o m e a full-blown loyalty test a n d lead inevitably to a clash of allegiance. T h a t the a u t h o r was a w a r e of such a possibility is shown in the next passage that we shall consider. 3 C 2.3.3.2. Acts 17,7 a n d 18,13 H a v i n g c h a r g e d the J e w s at Thessalonica with a BopuPoq, the a u t h o r recounts h o w J a s o n a n d others are h a u l e d before the politarchs for having given house-space to "those w h o have placed in a state of agitation ( d v a a x a i c o a a v T e q ) the civilised world (TTJV oiKoi)|ievr]v)." (Acts 17,6) This was the self-same oiKouuivri or R o m a n Empire that receives the 86yuxx r e g a r d i n g the census in Lk. 2 , 1 , which we a r g u e d would have b e e n associated, in terms of a G r a e c o - R o m a n religious con text, with the ritual lustrum of the city b o u n d a r i e s over the reforms of which Augustus took control (Res Gestae 8,2) in b e c o m i n g Pontifex Maximus (3A 1.1). Luke has assimilated—and in so d o i n g distorted— a n event which, if historical, was a census that p e r t a i n e d to Syria, with a n event involving the oiKO\)|i8vr| in which Augustus himself was immediately involved a n d with it by implication his cult. Furthermore, this self-same oiKouuivri is r e c o r d e d as worshipping along with all Asia, Artemis of Ephesus, b u t in a context in which the universal c h a r a c t e r of that worship was b e c o m i n g increasing g u a r a n t e e d b y the association of the E m p e r o r with the cult of this goddess (Acts 19,27). 88

In this context therefore we can r e a d the accusation of J a s o n , a n d Paul a n d his c o m p a n i o n s to w h o m the latter h a d given shelter: All these are acting contrary to the decrees of Caesar (omoi navxeq dTtevavTi TCOV SoyiidxcQv Kouoapoc; rcpdaaouai), saying that there is a different emperor, Jesus (potoiAia exepov Aiyovxeq elvai 'Inaovv). Acts 17,7 T h i s passage clearly c a n n o t be used to support the view t h a t LukeActs is addressed as an apology to a R o m a n magistrate. T h e politarchs simply d o not j u d g e the accuracy of the accusation at all, nor h e a r

See footnotes 2 0 and 21 above.

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any formal reply. T h e y simply dismiss J a s o n , a n d the b r o t h e r h o o d then sends Paul a n d Silas away by night to Beroea (v. 8-9). W e saw that the a u t h o r has already m a d e clear J e s u s ' claim to k i n g s h i p , a n d t h a t claim w o u l d h a v e b e e n readily a c c e p t e d b y T h e o p h i l u s a n d his circle. In that respect they clashed with the ends of the state. But Luke can reassure t h e m that the clash is with the perceived cultic a n d religious m e a n s to achieving the state's religious ends, a n d not the ends themselves. T h u s discretely opting out of the Imperial Cult does not conflict fundamentally with the social, religious, a n d political ends of such a society. T h e o p h i l u s a n d his circle could not of course avow allegiance to imperial authority only in a n o n religious, secular sense: their universe of discourse did n o t m a k e the distinction between the secular a n d the s a c r e d . T h e object of p a r ticipating in the Imperial Cult a n d using the special act of augury was to secure the pax deorum, the saeculum aureum a n d the divine Child leading to the fulfilment of promises of acorn, pioc etc., a n d these were p r o p e r religious e n d s . But the true fulfilment of those ends was t h r o u g h the true counterparts to their m e a n s found in the reformed Jewish cult. 89

Discretely, therefore, a n d in the language of tangential reference, the I m p e r i a l C u l t is p r e s e n t as a potential source of clash with Theophilus' circle which m a y nevertheless still be avoided. Christianity itself, as expressed in Luke, will never upset the pax deorum a n d never therefore require imperial intervention at the cultic level in o r d e r to set the world right. T h e y might simply avoid conflict as the politarchs at Thessalonica h a d d o n e . But although in the sunlight of his Christian-imperial eschatology Luke might convey feelings of great optimism to T h e o p h i l u s a n d his circle, he nevertheless encapsulates his concern a b o u t other aspects of their legal position in the passages that we shall n o w examine. 3C 2.3.3.3. Legal Obligation a n d C u s t o m : Acts 1 6 , 2 0 - 2 1 H a v i n g a r g u e d that Luke-Acts is a reconstruction b o t h of G r a e c o R o m a n a n d Jewish social reality so as to legitimate Christianity in the R o m a n E m p i r e , we are n o w in a position to read the message of this further text t h r o u g h the eyes of T h e o p h i l u s a n d his circle, to

m

T h a t the clarity a n d validity of the m o d e r n distinction b e t w e e n the secular and the religious are only apparent can be seen if o n e tries to apply the distinc tion in the specific areas o f abortion, denominational education, euthanasia etc.

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w h o m the Imperial Cult, w h e t h e r in R o m e or Asia M i n o r , would have clearly b e e n of religious significance. W e need to consider w h a t message Theophilus would have derived from the incident at Philippi in which Paul a n d Silas are b r o u g h t before the dpxovxeq/axpccxriYoi. T h e slave owners of the exorcised m a i d charge that: These men are causing disturbance to our city (oi)xoi oi avGpcojcoi eKxapdaoovciv f||icov xfjv noXiv), and as Jews ('Io\)8aioi imdpxovxeq mi) are proclaiming customs (mxayyeM.o'uaiv e&n,) which it is unlawful for us to accept or practice being Romans (d OX>K e^eaxiv f)(iiv rcapaSexeaOai o\)8e rcoieiv Tcouaioiq ot>civ). Acts 16,20-21 Paul a n d Silas, after a miraculous freeing from their prison b o n d s , are finally released by officials w h o are e m b a r r a s s e d that they have publicly b e a t e n u n c o n d e m n e d R o m a n citizens. T h i s fact h o w e v e r does not of itself acquit t h e m from the m a i n charge. W h e t h e r they were J e w s w h o were R o m a n citizens or not, a n d w h e t h e r they h a d caught the magistrates off-guard on another matter, the central charge nevertheless r e m a i n e d . T h a t central charge was that t h o u g h J e w s might be e x e m p t from G r a e c o - R o m a n religious customs, Gentiles were not, particularly those with R o m a n citizenship t h r o u g h o u t the G r e e k city states of Asia M i n o r . A n d this leads us directly to the m e a n s by which J e w s could avoid the r e q u i r e m e n t , w h e t h e r purely social or legal, to take p a r t in the Imperial Cult, a n d thus to refrain from a p p e a r i n g in proces sional white, following the supplicatio, with myrtle wreathes o n their h e a d s a n d myrtle b r a n c h e s in their h a n d s . T h e g r o u n d s of the social acceptability of non-participation, later with Decius T r a j a n to b e c o m e the legal acceptability, was ancestral custom. In the specific words of the charge against Paul: This man persistendy persuades people (dvarceiBei oi)xo<; zovq dvGpamouc;) contrary to the law (rcapd xov VOJIOV) to worship God. (aepea9ai xov 0e6v). Acts 18,13 T h e o p h i l u s , Kpdxiaxoq, a n d his circle, living in Asia M i n o r in the eighties of the first century, would have found this a r g u m e n t of great significance for their personal circumstances (3B 3.1). S t a n d i n g at the forefront of the successors to the G r e e k city states in c o m m u n i ties such as Ephesus, P e r g a m o n , Antioch in Pisidia, etc., they well knew that there was n o legal compulsion on t h e m to participate in

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the Imperial Cult. Yet the Hellenistic culture that h a d formed their perspectives on the world was one to which that cultus was critical. T h e A u g u s t a n revolution h a d p r o d u c e d t h e pax deorum, a n d re o r d e r e d the cosmic a n d metaphysical dislocation of the natural o r d e r witnessed in a century of civil wars with which countless prodigious natural disasters were associated (2A 4). T h e r e was a strongly felt m o r a l a n d patriotic compulsion to continue w h a t h a d been cele b r a t e d in the decrees of the K o i n o n of Asia a n d elsewhere (2B 4). But they h a d b e e n catechetized a n d received into the post-Pauline communities in Asia M i n o r , a n d were n o w Christians. H o w could their new faith enable their reintegration into the c o m munity from which it h a d alienated t h e m ? H o w could this perceived, social-psychological n e e d for the celebration of social o r d e r after bloody social strife, fulfilled in the Imperial Cultus that h a d secured the pax deorum, n o w experience new fulfilment by the new religion? O n e w a y w o u l d b e to identify their religion as a valid form of J u d a i s m , a n d thus the social acceptability of non-participation be u n d e r s t o o d a n d acknowledged by their society. But historically Paul h a d suggested, at least to the Galatians, a radical disjunction between the L a w a n d Christ on whose cross the c o m m a n d m e n t s h a d b e e n destroyed (Gal. 3 , 1 0 - 1 4 ) . T h e radical c h a r a c t e r of this disjunction h a d b e e n considerably softened in Rom. 9 - 1 1 . But here the Gentile mission was still emphasised as distinct from the Jewish, with the lat ter to experience purely eschatological fulfilment, despite the m e t a p h o r of the grafting of the wild olive onto the original stem (Rom. 11,17-24). 9 0

T h e deutero-Paulinist a u t h o r of Luke-Acts offers a reconstruction of the theology of the historical Paul. T h e Christian cultus into which T h e o p h i l u s has b e e n catechetized is the J e w i s h cultus, b u t a reformed Jewish cultus (3B 1-3). If the non-participation of unreformed Israel is socially acceptable, a fortiori a reformed Israel should be, which is the true fulfilment of patriarchal promised from time i m m e m o r i a l . But the reformed cult has gone far b e y o n d the social acceptability of a merely passive non-participation. Luke-Acts offers a positive rea son for non-participation, namely that the p u r p o s e of the Imperial Cult, namely the pax deorum a n d the sacramental m e a n s for the con tinuance of the saeculum aureum is far better achieved t h r o u g h the eiprivTi of Bethlehem (3B 3.1-3) a n d the T r i u m p h a l E n t r y (3C 3.2.1),

Brown and M e i e r (1983) chapt. 2.

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a n d the V ( K T | a n d acoxripia that follow from the birth of Child from the Virgin, a n d his d e a t h a n d resurrection. Such a n ideology thus o p e n e d the prospect for T h e o p h i l u s a n d his g r o u p to overcome their alienation a n d positively, t h r o u g h the creation of a contra-culture, to reintegrate themselves into the social fabric of their societies by m e a n s of a new religion that would achieve the perceived objective of those societies. As such, the ideology was d o o m e d to fail a n d the a t t e m p t prove to be in vain. But the L u c a n writing r e m a i n an e n d u r i n g testimony to such a failed a t t e m p t . A c c o r d i n g to Fox a n d others T h e o p h i l u s m a y have witnessed the trial a n d also p e r h a p s the execution of St. P a u l . T h e y could have comforted themselves in the light of the imagery of Luke-Acts that even a less tyrannical e m p e r o r t h a n N e r o w o u l d not h a v e b e e n justified in executing Paul for oxaoiq a n d for teaching non-ancestral religious customs. T h e pax t h a t Sebastos h a d c l a i m e d t h r o u g h his reformed cult, Christ h a d achieved t h r o u g h his. T h i s comforting re assurance h a d a n c h o r e d the questioned legitimacy of the reformed Christian in the u n a m b i g u o u s legitimacy of the J e w i s h cult. But the re-assurance was n o w to collapse with the final exclusion of a n y r e p resentative of Christianity on the roll of Jewish n a m e s that h a d paid the tax for the destroyed T e m p l e at Aelia directly into the treasury as required by law. 91

Vespasian h a d imposed the Jiscus Iudaicus on every J e w of at least 20 years of age. W h a t they h a d previously paid to the T e m p l e at J e r u s a l e m destroyed in the crushed revolt was n o w p a i d into the imperial t r e a s u r y . A c c o r d i n g to Suetonius, this tax applied to all J e w s observing their ancestral eGr|. Domitian now encouraged d e n u n ciations of those w h o lived as J e w s without m a k i n g o p e n professions as well as those w h o concealed their J e w i s h origin. Keresztes argues convincingly that the former class indicated gentiles w h o were con sidered to b e converts to J u d a i s m to w h o m the infamous physical inspection for circumcision would not necessarily apply. T h e aep6|Li£voi often stopped far short of conversion to full J u d a i s m . It was the 92

93

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9 1

R.L. Fox, Pagans and Christians in the Mediterranean World from the second century to the conversion of Constantine, (Harmondsworth: P e n g u i n 1986), p p . 4 3 0 - 4 3 2 ff. J o s e p h u s , Bell. Jud. 1,152. D i o Cassius 6 5 , 7 , 2 ; Suetonius, Domit. 12,2 cf. P. Keresztes, T h e J e w s , the Christians, a n d the E m p e r o r D o m i t i a n , in VCh 27 (1973), p p . 1 - 2 8 to w h i c h I a m heavily indebted for m y c o m m e n t s here. Keresztes (1973), p. 5 quoting G. La Piana, Foreign G r o u p s in R o m e during 9 2

9 3

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scandal of these denunciations that N e r v a e n d e d a n d which forms the

significance

of t h e inscription

FISCI IVDAICI CALVMNIA

SVBLATA

95

s.c. It should b e r e m e m b e r e d that prosecutions u n d e r R o m a n crim inal l a w d e p e n d e d heavily o n such informers in t h e absence of a regular police-force. Dio Cassius 6 8 , 1,2 refers t o t h e senatus consultum u n d e r N e r v a t h a t prohibited accusations for following " a Jewish w a y of life ('IooSaiKoq pioq)." But with this was clearly bracketed also accusation of daepeioc. Impiety towards t h e E m p e r o r a n d t h e gods is n o t normally to b e associated with t a x evasion, b u t clearly it h a d b e e n in some cases. T h e s e , as Keresztes argues, could n o t have b e e n J e w s b y race w h o were entided to practice their ancestral religion without participa tion in a n y p a g a n cult including t h e Imperial Cult. T h e y must have therefore have b e e n gentiles leading a 'IOU8(XIK6<; pioq. Dio Cassius 6 7 , 14,1-2 mentions t h e famous Domitianic case of Flavius C l e m e n s a n d Flavia Domitilla w h o were accused of dGeoxrjq because they h a d strayed into xd xcov 'IouSocicov r\Qr\: in consequence Flavius w a s executed a n d Flavia banished to P a n d a t e r i a . Included with t h e m as victims of D o m i t i a n ' s terror w e r e m a n y others w h o are described as " t u r n i n g away to J e w i s h customs (eq xd xcov 'IcuSaicov T]0r| e^oiceAAovxeq)." It w a s conversion that D o m i t i a n w a s therefore attacking. W e need not here re-open the hoary debate o n the specific question as to w h e t h e r Flavius a n d Flavia were Christians r a t h e r t h a n J e w s . T h e o p h i l u s a n d his g r o u p in Asia M i n o r were Christians, b u t in a society in which they would b e readily identified phenomenologically with leading a 'IouSocncoq ptoq. U n d e r D o m i t i a n Gentiles converting to such a life were clearly considered socially deviant, with t h e result that initial claims that they should b e p u n i s h e d for n o n - p a y m e n t of the fiscus Judaicus w a s then followed b y charges of daePeia a n d of being dGeoi. I n d e e d it could well b e a r g u e d that, as good d e u t e r o Paulinists, such uncircumcised aepojievoi were unlisted o n t h e rolls of Jewish synagogues a n d unrecognised b y those following t h e birachoth kaminim. T h u s they could n o t have paid t h e fiscus Judaicus even though they h a d wished to d o so. Yet now, accused u n d e r Domitian's

the First Centuries o f the Empire, in HThR 2 0 (1927), p p . 2 7 5 - 3 9 0 a n d G.F. M o o r e , Judaism in the First Centuries of the Christian Era, (Harvard: U . P . 1927), p. 5. M o r e recently see SEG 3 9 , 1 8 4 0 - 1 8 4 1 ; 4 0 , 4 1 , 9 1 8 ; 1840; 4 2 , 7 2 6 ; 1226; 1813; 4 3 , 1 2 9 8 . " Keresztes (1973), p. 6. 5

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policy for not having paid the tax whilst they followed a 'IO\)8OCIK6<; pioq, they w e r e in a cleft stick. T h e fact of their conversion could be held against t h e m a n d the charge of acefieia accordingly follow. T h u s the scene at Ephesus in Acts 1 6 , 2 0 - 2 1 finds reflection in these D o m i t i a n i c events as T h e o p h i l u s a n d his circle experienced them. T h e aePouevoi of Asia M i n o r were R o m a n citizens w h o , despite their contra-cultural ideology, were r e g a r d e d as having n o legal right to the L u k a n reformed J u d a i s m that encapsulated their imperialist aspirations to be g o o d citizens as well as good Christians. In the last analysis Luke will a d m i t that he leaves u n a n s w e r e d w h a t the legacy of Paul was to d o for t h e m in their o w n day as it h a d in the days of the Ephesian magicians. As a J e w Paul h a d p e r s u a d e d t h e m to b e c o m e ae|36|xevoi, "contrary to the law to worship G o d (rcccpa xov vouov ae(3ea6ai xov 0e6v)," a n d thus to accept "e9r| u n p e r m i t t e d to R o m a n s (a OUK e^eaxiv fijiiv rcapaSexeoGai. . . Tcojialoiq ouaiv)." In Domitian's time it was thus also un-permitted e9r| that lead to charges of d a e p E i c c for a temple tax which was not only u n p a i d but for which n a m e s h a d b e e n absent from synagogal registers that would have otherwise have implied obligation to m a k e such p a y m e n t . Let us n o w summarise the point to which this c h a p t e r has lead us.

PART D .

C H U R C H O R D E R AND IMPERIAL SOCIETY

W e have thus a r g u e d that Luke-Acts represents ideology b u t not in the sense of the apology of a n individual or group to a hostile R o m a n magistrate. W e agree thus far with Esler that this work represents in-house legitimation a n d not apology. But the general concept of legitimation is to be s h a r p e n e d specific ally in terms of a sociological theory of contra-culture. T h e g r o u p legitimates itself by constructing an alternative frame of reference with a related alternative scale of values that justified b o t h its sig nificance a n d indeed its very existence. But that reconstruction is parasitic nevertheless o n the social construction of reality of the host culture, which provides the r a w material out of which to construct the reversal of images. T h o s e images we have seen to be the c o m plex of ideas of augury, of census a n d of lustrum, of pax deorum, of 96

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saeculum aureum, of victoria a n d concordia which cluster a r o u n d the devel oping ideology of the Imperial Cult. T h e particular alternative Christian construction of reality could sustain its plausibility to a m a x i m u m extent only d u r i n g the period immediately preceding the accession of the e m p e r o r D o m i t i a n . T h e parallel to the reformed, p a g a n Imperial Cult, achieving the pax deo rum w h e r e its republican predecessor h a d failed, was Christianity as reformed J u d a i s m , fulfilling the promises of the Divine Child a n d the saeculum aureum promised to the Jewish patriarchs. D o m i t i a n was to emphasise t h r o u g h the Imperial Cult the responsibility of the J e w s to p a y the T e m p l e T a x as the socially acceptable proxy for partici pation in the cult. But the J e w s themselves at this time t h r o u g h the biracoth haminim were finally to exclude even Jewish Christianity, p r a c ticed by the survivors of the tradition of J a m e s the Lord's b r o t h e r , from constituting a valid form of J u d a i s m . T h u s from n o w on any a d h e r e n t of any o t h e r form of J u d a i s m t h a n w h a t T h e o p h i l u s ' g r o u p would regard as u n r e f o r m e d J u d a i s m would stand exposed by their non-participation in the Imperial Cult. It would not be so easy to avoid inviting the question as to w h e t h e r their refusal to participate in the sacramental m e a n s for obtaining the pax deorum implied upsetting that pax t h r o u g h axdaiq fomented by other scelera such as magic a n d witchcraft. 'Aaepeia was the charge that followed from the fact that they h a d followed, by their own contra-cultural claim, a reformed 'IO\)8GUK6<; p(o<; that was the reversed image of Augustus' reform of the republican magisterial auguria to p r o d u c e the pax deorum. T h e y h a d n o right to d e p a r t from ancestral e0T|, so that they must b e p u n i s h e d for this as m u c h as n o n - p a y m e n t of the fiscus Judaicus. T h e contra-cultural ideology h a d failed in its initial, L u c a n form to reintegrate the contra-culture within the host culture. It is however i m p o r t a n t to note that p a r t of the contra-cultural construction that reveals itself as m o r e t h a n legitimation is to be seen in the formation of a n ideology of C h u r c h O r d e r . Luke founds the c h u r c h o n the Twelve apostles, w h o continue with J e s u s in his tri als, to w h o m h e entrusts the kingdom delivered by his Father, a n d w h o are a p p o i n t e d to eat at his table in his kingdom a n d to sit " o n thrones j u d g i n g the twelve tribes of Israel." (Lk. 22,30) Although this saying is found also in Matthew (19,28) a n d comes therefore from Q , Luke makes the promise applicable to the Twelve alone in the specific

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context of the Last S u p p e r (3C 2.3.2.1). T h e reapplication of the saying to the kingdom, not given to all disciples, but "willed" or "given as the right of inheritance to (Kdyco 8iax{0eum uuiv KCCGGX; 8ie9ex6 uoi 6 7caxf|p UOD p a a i ^ e i a v ) " the Twelve alone is therefore indicative of Luke's own construction of the authority structure of the c o m m u n i t y . Let us e x a m i n e briefly his reconstruction of authority in the Christian community. 3D

1. The introduction of the apostolic college

Luke's sources are indicative of a n awareness that the Twelve did not constitute an exclusive, authority g r o u p in the earliest c o m m u nities, n o r were they alone allowed the tide of " a p o s d e . " Acts 1 3 , 1 - 3 describes the ministers at Antioch as " p r o p h e t s a n d teachers . . . w h o lay h a n d s o n B a r n a b a s a n d Saul." A p p a r e n d y in consequence of their being thus "sent o u t " as travelling missionaries, they are b o t h called drcooxoAoi in Acts 14,4 a n d 14. P e r h a p s , alternatively they are called such because in 11,28-30, w h e n the p r o p h e t Agabus p r o p h esied a famine, the b r e t h r e n at Antioch send relief (drcoaxeiXavxeq) "for the b r e t h r e n in J u d a e a . . . to the elders t h r o u g h the h a n d of B a r n a b a s a n d Saul." (v. 30) Such a concept of apostolicity is sup p o r t e d in Didache 11,3-6 w h e r e the travelling missionary is associ ated closely with the prophetic office held additionally. F u r t h e r m o r e , in 1 Cor. 15,6 a n d 7 the resurrection a p p e a r a n c e "to J a m e s a n d all the aposdes" is quite different from, a n d several stages later (Peter/the Twelve/five h u n d r e d b r o t h e r s / J a m e s ) t h a n , the a p p e a r a n c e to the Twelve. 98

T h u s Acts 1,15-26 is clearly Luke's o w n reconstruction, w h e n it makes the Twelve a n d the fact of their being eyewitnesses uniquely

97

Mat. 19, 2 3 - 3 0 places this statement in the context o f the R i c h Y o u n g M a n ( 1 6 - 2 1 ) and is a promise not only to Peter but to all w h o follow Jesus (oi dicoAx)\)9r|aavxeq |ioi) "in the rebirth" (ev xr\ 7caA.iyyevea{a). Cf. also Rom. 16,7 w h e r e Andronicus a n d j u n i a are described as ejuoT|uoi xoi<; arcoaxotanq, a n d in 2 Cor. 8 , 2 3 (a8etapoi f|Uiov drcooxotan eiacXrioicbv) and 11,5 and 13 a n d 12,11. In the latter case the vrcepAiav drcooxoAxn appears to refer not to those w h o have passed the test as witnesses to the resurrection, but to the charis matic and prophetic test o f perfoming x a ar|(xeia ioi) drcooxotan). Furthermore in Mat. 10,2; Mk. 3,14; 6,30; Lk. 6,13; 9,10; 11,49 the reference is to those w h o trav elled either with Jesus or w h o were sent out by h i m as missionaries, and not as witnesses to a resurrection that had not as yet occurred. S e e also C a m p e n h a u s e n (1947), pp. 9 6 - 1 3 0 ; K. Lake, T h e T w e l v e and the Apostles, in Foakes Jackson and Lake (1933) 1,5 pp. 3 7 - 5 9 . 9 8

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central to the authority structure of the c o m m u n i t y , (v. 22) conjoin ing incidentally with t h e m the " L o r d ' s B r o t h e r s " (v. 14). T h e a d d i tion of M a t t h i a s in r e p l a c e m e n t of J u d a s is also clearly the a u t h o r ' s o w n construction. I n Acts 12,2 J a m e s the apostle is m a r t y r e d by H e r o d Agrippa, b u t the apostolic b o d y does n o t m e e t again in o r d e r to replace the deceased office-bearer. H o w e v e r , the a u t h o r ' s p u r p o s e in constructing a putative O r d e r for the primitive C h u r c h is clearly n o t that of later Hegessipus or Irenaeus, or of the C l e m e n t i n e Homilies." T h e aposdes d o not ini tiate a n episcopal succession list. T h e y d o however o r d a i n the seven deacons b u t only according to the W e s t e r n text of Acts 6 , 1 - 6 . T h e ms. tradition otherwise implies that the c o m m u n i t y itself ordains with apostolic a p p r o v a l . Both Paul a n d B a r n a b a s (Acts 14,21), whilst travelling t h r o u g h Lystra, I c o n i u m , a n d Antioch in Pisidia, " o r d a i n presbyters in every c h u r c h (xeipoxovrioxcvxeq 8e amoiq m x ' eKK^naiav rcpeop'uxepoix;)," by virtue p r e s u m a b l y of the apostolicity of the trav elling missionary a n d n o t the apostolicity of the eyewitness to the resurrection. 100

Yet there is n o clearly articulated theory of ministerial O r d e r sys tematically i m p o s e d u p o n the text since there a r e m e n t i o n e d elders (Acts 11,30), b u t n o t apostles (nor d e a c o n s ) , over t h e c h u r c h in J e r u s a l e m w h o receive the relief-gift as a result of A g a b u s ' p r o p h esying, b u t of whose ordination, unlike that of the deacons, we have n o m e n t i o n . F u r t h e r m o r e , presbyters are regularly associated with the aposdes t h r o u g h o u t Acts, b u t n o a c c o u n t of the origin of their office, unlike that of aposdes a n d deacons, is ever g i v e n . Yet the supposed ordinations of presbyters by Paul a n d B a r n a b a s , a n d the s u m m o n i n g of the Ephesian presbyters by Paul himself in Acts 20,17, was clearly i m p o r t a n t to t h e a u t h o r as a n apostolic function. I n v. 28 Paul addresses these same presbyters as £7UGKO7COI, t h o u g h , as in C l e m e n t Romans 4 4 , 1 - 5 , there is a plurality of such ministers a n d the terms are evidentiy interchangeable. 101

9 9

A. Brent, D i o g e n e s Laertius a n d the Apostolic Succession, in JEH 4 4 , 3 (1993), pp. 3 7 5 - 3 8 6 ; Idem. H i p p o l y t u s a n d the R o m a n C h u r c h in the T h i r d Century: C o m m u n i t i e s in T e n s i o n before the E m e r g e n c e o f a M o n a r c h - B i s h o p , in SupplVCh 31 (Leiden: E.J. Brill 1995), p p . 4 7 6 - 5 0 1 . Acts 6 , 6 ovq eaxrjaav evamiov xcov arcoaxoXtov, m l 7cpoae\)^d|xevoi £7ie6T|Kav avxoiq xd<; xzipaq. T h e subject o f eaxrjaav is clearly the Hellenists themselves w h o lay hands o n the seven like the prophets a n d teachers o f Antioch o n Barnabas a n d Saul (Acts 13,3). Foakes Jackson a n d Lake (1933) 1,4 p. 6 5 , a n d 1,5 note 11 p. 137. Acts 15, 2 , 4 , 6 , 2 2 - 2 3 ; 16,4. 100

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T h e r e is n o p r i m a r y historical evidence for the existence of a presbyterate in the original Pauline communities. T h u s the existence of the institution here is a clear contrivance of the deutero-Paulinist a u t h o r which he nevertheless shares with the p s e u d o n y m o u s Pastoral Episdes written c o n t e m p o r a n e o u s l y with h i m . T h e connection of the Pauline congregation t h r o u g h ordination of office-bearers is in t e n d e d to emphasise the unity of the reformed cult of J u d a i s m , which begins in J e r u s a l e m a n d proceeds to S a m a r i a a n d then to R o m e with each m o v e m e n t leading back to J e r u s a l e m itself. 102

Paul ordains presbyters just as Peter a n d the original apostles h a d o r d a i n e d the deacons (Acts 6,1-6) even t h o u g h there the a c c o u n t is also constructed, a n d the deacons were originally the self-standing office bearers of a culturally separate c o n g r e g a t i o n . T h e ministries of Peter a n d Paul m u s t be seen to be not only symmetrical with e a c h o t h e r b u t o r g a n i s a t i o n a l l y r e l a t e d t h r o u g h t h e C o u n c i l of J e r u s a l e m in Acts 1 5 , 1 - 3 5 . T h e latter event has b e e n notoriously impossible to reconcile satisfactorily with the p r i m a r y source of Gal. 1-2. F u r t h e r m o r e , even the p r o p h e t s a n d teachers of Antioch can not be allowed to c o m e into existence i n d e p e n d e n d y , b u t must b e shown to have migrated there originally, with Agabus, from J e r u s a l e m (Acts 11,27). Peter m u s t report back to the aposdes in J e r u s a l e m all t h a t has h a p p e n e d in his missionary activity (Acts 11,1). 103

If the a u t h o r ' s purpose is clearly not to legitimate later, catholic

Philip. 1, 2 mentions ejuoKorcoi a n d 8KXKOVOI as office-holders. T h e deuteroPauline 1 77m. 5,17 distinguishes rcpeap'uxepoi from elder m e n by the fact that they are rcpoeaxcbxeq and therefore unambiguously officer-holders, a n d Tit. 1,5 contains an injunction to ordain them in a phrase reminiscent of Acts 14,21 (wot . . . raxaaxr|crr|<; (xeipoxovfiaavxeq 8e oruxoiq) raxa 7c6A.iv (rax' eKKAjjaiav) Ttpeop'oxepo'ix;). AKXKOVOI are otherwise m e n t i o n e d in 1 Tim. 3,8 a n d 12, although a certain ambivalence is m a i n tained by the fact that "Timothy" himself is called a 8KXKOVO<; in 4, 6. eTUGKOTtoi are m e n t i o n e d in the generic singular in 1 Tim. 3,2 and Tit. 1,7 but no-where as unambiguously distinct from the rcpeap'oxepoi. In the Pastorals, as in Luke-Acts, w e w o u l d seem therefore to be in a time contemporary with C l e m e n t o f R o m e a n d therefore a r o u n d 9 5 A . D . T o that extent I w o u l d be prepared to accept the assess m e n t of S. N e w , T h e N a m e , Baptism, and the Laying o n o f H a n d s , in Foakes Jackson and Lake (1933) 1,5 N o t e 11 pp. 1 3 7 - 1 3 8 that here were laid the foun dations o f later catholic practice. I c a n n o t therefore accept either C a m p e n h a u s e n (1969), pp. 1 5 6 - 1 6 5 ff. that would date the Pastorals later o n the grounds that they presuppose single-bishops, nor R. Brown, Priest and Bishop: Biblical Reflections, ( N e w York: Paulist Press 1970), p p . 6 7 - 7 0 ff. w h o was prepared to defend the existence o f a presbyterate in the original Pauline c o m m u n i t i e s . H.J. Cadbury, T h e Hellenists, in Foakes J a c k s o n a n d Lake (1933) 1,5 N o t e 7 pp. 5 9 - 7 4 . 102

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C h u r c h o r d e r t h r o u g h his not always neady constructed edifice, w h a t role does that construction play? W e are n o w , in the light of o u r account so far, in a position to give a fresh answer to a n old problem. 3D

2. The centrality of the Temple to reformed Judaism

It is necessary firsdy, a n d p e r h a p s least controversially, to p o r t r a y Christianity as a reformed Jewish cult. T h e world-wide cult of J u d a i s m was united a r o u n d the T e m p l e , a n d a practical expression of that unity was in the fiscus Judaicus. Likewise Luke's reformed cultus must be located a n d centred o n the J e r u s a l e m T e m p l e , w h e r e the disciples gather with the apostles for worship whilst continuing at h o m e in the apostles' doctrine, in synagogal prayer, a n d in the breaking of b r e a d t h a t continues the Last S u p p e r . H e r e missionaries return for direction a n d re-assurance, a n d the expansion of the C h u r c h takes place a r o u n d this h u b , as I have described. H e r e is sent a collec tion for poor-relief. T h e author's reconstruction of early Christian, his tory in this regard was n o d o u b t considerably assisted by a historical collection, resonant of submission to a n authority ambivalendy inter preted o n both sides, described in 2 Cor. 8 - 1 0 . In Gal. 2,6 a n d 10 Paul agreed to r e m e m b e r the p o o r , which he professes eagerness always to do. T h u s Paul m a y have r e g a r d e d the collection purely as poor-relief a n d Christian charity, b u t J a m e s the Lord's b r o t h e r , a n d P e t e r a n d J o h n , p r e s i d i n g over the J e r u s a l e m C h u r c h , m a y have interpreted it as a grudging acknowledgment of the authority of the original community. In their eyes the "pillars" of the C h u r c h as the N e w Israel h a d the same right to support as h a d the T e m p l e of the O l d Israel. But we are n o w able, in the light of o u r a r g u m e n t , to go further in o u r interpretation of the construction of C h u r c h O r d e r in LukeActs. W e have further a r g u e d that the portrayal of Christianity as a reformed J u d a i s m is a conscious reflection of Augustus' reformation of the old, p a g a n cultus in the direction of a construction of i m p e rial unity on the foundations of the Imperial Cult (3B 1-3). W e can n o w note Augustus' reformation of the college of the Fratres Arvales, a n d similarities with Acts 1,12—26. 3D

3. Fratres Arvales: apostolic college as contra culture

T h e reformed cult of J u d a i s m h a d been founded o n the Twelve apos des whose j u d g e m e n t of the twelve tribes of Israel was self-consciously

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associated with the foundations of the cult at the Last S u p p e r (3C 2.3.2.1). T h u s k i n g d o m a n d cult was associated—just as the pax dei or eipfivn w e r e associated—with the K i n g at the T r i u m p h a l Entry (3C 2.3.2) a n d with the Virgin a n d Child in the angels' song at Bethlehem (3B 3.1). T h a t pax a n d concordia was extended t h r o u g h the c u l t — t h r o u g h t h e apostles d o c t r i n e , b r e a k i n g of b r e a d , a n d prayers—as t h r o u g h the ministry of Paul (3C 2 . 3 . 2 . 2 - 3 C 2.3.2.3). T h e contra-cultural image of the imperial b a n q u e t associated with that cult was reflected in b o t h the Magnificat a n d in Luke's recasting of the words on T r u e Greatness at the Last S u p p e r (3C 1 a n d 3 C 2.3.2.1). T h e apostolic foundation of the Christian cultus is therefore to b e seen reflecting contra-cultural images with reference to the college of the Fratres Arvales. T h e s e were originally a republican college of great antiquity w h o celebrated spring sacrifices. T h e college was a n important p a r t of Augustus' reformation of R o m a n Religion. Further m o r e their ceremonial a r r a n g e m e n t s , like the C a l e n d a r of festivals of the Imperial Cult, clearly influenced celebrations in the provinces w h e r e they were k n o w n . T h e inscriptions from which the Acta have b e e n reconstructed were found in 1570 in the V i g n a Vignoli, a n d preserved in the Vatican, t h o u g h the seven or nine statues of e m p e r ors on whose bases they were originally inscribed have perished. According to legend, Acca Laurentia, R o m u l u s ' nurse, lost o n e of h e r twelve sons at birth, a n d so substituted h i m a n d m a d e h i m h e r son (Gellius, NA. V I I , 8,7). T h e y w o r e white fillets a n d crowns of corn ears (Pliny, HjSf. X V I I I , 2,6). As a college, they were always, like the apostles, twelve in n u m b e r . Augustus j o i n e d their n u m b e r (Res Gestae 4,7) in a c c o r d a n c e with the legend a n d in a c c o r d a n c e also with his claim to b e the new R o m u l u s presiding over the second founding of R o m e . 104

1 0 5

1 0 4

See Fishwick (1987) 2,1 pp. 4 8 2 - 4 8 5 a n d PWK ( 1 8 9 9 ) , Bd. 2, col. 1471: ". . . m a n sieht deutlich, dass d e m Kaiser Augustus bei seiner Reorganisation des C o l l e g i u m s die W i e d e r b e l e b u n g des halbsvergessenen Dienstes der D e a nur ein Mittel z u m Z w e c k e , und die sacrale Verherrlichung des Kaiserhauses durch die mit b e s o n d e r e m A n s e h e n bekleidete Priesterschaft die H a u p t s a c h e war." Macrobius, Sat. Com. Ill, 5,7. See also J.B. Carter, Arval Brothers, in Encyclopaedia of Religion and Ethics, (Ed.) J. Hastings, J . A . Selbie, and L . H . Gray, (Edinburgh: T . and T . Clark 1909), vol. II pp. 9 ft.; J. Scheid, Les Freres Arvales. R e c r u t e m e n t et origine sociale sous les empereurs julio-claudiens, in Bibliotheque de L'Ecole des Hautes Etudes: Section des Sciences Religieuses, 11 (Paris: Presses Universitaires de France: 1975), pp. 3 4 3 - 3 5 1 ; M . N a c i n o v i c h , Carmen Arvale, 1 II T e s t o , ( R o m e : Bardi 1933); Idem. 1 0 3

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137

T h e Fratres Arvales b e c a m e closely c o n n e c t e d with the Imperial Cult, offering vota for the imperial household: they m a d e sacrifices on imperial b i r t h d a y s , a n d o n t h e occasion of accessions to the t h r o n e . A n y vacancy in the n u m b e r of twelve was filled by the col lege itself, just like the twelve apostles, t h o u g h in the latter case we have already n o t e d the incongruity of the r e p l a c e m e n t of M a t t h i a s with the failure to replace J a m e s (Acts 1,24-26 cf. 12,1-5). In CIL 6, 2080 line 22 ff. we have r e c o r d e d the election of Publius Manlius C a r b o "in the place of Q . Bittius Proculus" in consequence of the e m p e r o r H a d r i a n ' s letter casting his vote for his collega. T h u s we find paralleled Matthias, chosen Xocpeiv xov XOTCOV xfjc; 8KXKOV{(X<; xocuxriq iced &7toaxoAfjq (Acts 1,25). T h e parallel is, I submit, not accidental in the light of w h a t I have established to be the context of the theology of Luke-Acts in imperial ideology.

PART E.

I N CONCLUSION:

THEOPHILUS AND H I S

CIRCLE

T h e o p h i l u s a n d his circle were not in a relationship of o p e n conflict with the Imperial Cult, as was the writer of the Apocalypse. S t a n d i n g at the forefront of the successors to the G r e e k city states in c o m munities such as Ephesus, P e r g a m o n , Antioch in Pisidia, etc., they well knew that there was as yet n o legal compulsion o n t h e m to participate in the Imperial Cult. Before Decius T r a j a n (A.D. 251) such participation was voluntary in the sense that there lacked a n y legal compulsion to participate. But social pressure, as Tertullian's later De Corona was to indicate, could have the same practical con clusions of drawing hostile attention to non-participants a n d the draw ing u p of charges of scelera or of contumacia against t h e m . 106

Yet the G r a e c o - R o m a n religious culture that h a d formed their perspectives on the world was one to which that cultus was b e c o m ing increasingly critical. T h e Augustan revolution h a d p r o d u c e d the pax deorum, a n d r e o r d e r e d the cosmic a n d metaphysical dislocation of the natural o r d e r witnessed in a century of civil wars with which countless prodigious natural disasters were associated. T h e r e was a strongly felt m o r a l a n d patriotic compulsion to continue w h a t h a d

Carmen Arvale, 2 I F o n e m i e le Forme, c o n un excursus ed indici, ( R o m e : Bardi 1934). Sherwin White (1952), pp. 2 1 0 - 2 1 1 cf. D e Ste Croix (1963), pp. 1 8 - 2 1 and Sherwin W h i t e (1964), pp. 2 4 26. 1 0 6

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b e e n celebrated in the decrees of the K o i n o n of Asia a n d elsewhere. But they h a d b e e n catechetized a n d received into the post-Pauline c o m m u n i t i e s in Asia M i n o r , a n d were n o w Christians. H o w could their n e w faith enable their reintegration into the impe rial o r d e r from which they n o w felt alienated? H o w could this per ceived, social-psychological n e e d for the celebration of social o r d e r after bloody social strife, fulfilled in the Imperial Cultus that h a d secured the pax deorum, n o w experience n e w fulfilment by the n e w religion? T h e way the writer chose was to deconstruct early Christian eschatology to r e m o v e all j u d g e m e n t a n d tribulation, so as to assim ilate Christian eschatology to that of Augustus' saeculum aureum. T h u s we have answered the first question with which we b e g a n a n d ex plained the reason for Luke's recasting of early Christian eschatology. In answer to the second question c o n c e r n i n g Luke's modification of Paulinism, we h a v e seen that the saeculum aureum was initiated t h r o u g h a n act of augury, Augustus' special augurium pads which h a d succeeded in achieving the pax deorum w h e r e republican religion h a d failed. T h e answer to the second question was to be found in the Christian c o u n t e r p a r t to Augustus' Cult, which could alone achieve the refashioned Christian saeculum aureum. T h e a u t h o r n o w h a d to identify the religion into which T h e o p h i l u s has b e e n catechetized as a reformed J e w i s h cult. H e was thus p r e p a r e d to deconstruct Paul's radical disjunction between the L a w a n d Christ (Gal. 3 , 1 0 - 1 4 ) , even in the softened form in Rom. 9 - 1 1 . Luke n o w offered a positive reason for non-participation, namely, the p u r p o s e of the Imperial Cult: the pax deorum a n d the sacramental m e a n s for the c o n t i n u a n c e of the saeculum aureum is far better achieved t h r o u g h the eiprivn of Bethlehem, the T r i u m p h a l Entry, a n d the vucr| a n d acoinpia that fol low from the birth of Child from the Virgin, a n d his d e a t h a n d res urrection. T h u s T h e o p h i l u s can know "the security (TTJV dacpd^eiav) regarding the discourses of his catechesis (rcepi (bv Kaxrixri&nq taSycov)." (Lk. 1,4) 1 0 7

Such a n ideology thus o p e n e d the prospect for T h e o p h i l u s a n d his g r o u p to o v e r c o m e their alienation a n d to reintegrate themselves into the social fabric of their societies by m e a n s of a n e w religion that would achieve the perceived objective of those societies. But as a n ideology for integrating Christianity into the imperial ideal it was

1 0 7

Brown a n d M e i e r (1983) chapt. 2.

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139

to prove abortive at this point in time, t h o u g h later to be partially realized in the time of Eusebius a n d P r u d e n t i u s . T h e r e is therefore a clear connection between how Luke-Acts con structs C h u r c h O r d e r a n d the creation of a contra-culture reflecting the Imperial Cult. W e shall establish the continued connection of ecclesiastical a n d imperial o r d e r as in progress of time developments in the latter find developmental counterparts in the former. W e will find in C l e m e n t of R o m e a parallel with Luke-Acts in the transfor m a t i o n of traditional apocalyptic u n d e r similar imperial-ideological influences. Such a parallel will prove all the m o r e remarkable in that there is n o evidence of direct influence of the o n e work on the other. W e shall see that the D o m i t i a n i c changes in the Imperial Cult are reflected in h o w Ignatius of Antioch, following certain themes from the Apocalypse, constructs his theology of the threefold O r d e r . W e shall see later in connection with C y p r i a n changes in the ideology of C h u r c h O r d e r that reflect the earlier changes by the Severans to the ideology of imperial power. 108

T h u s we are b r o u g h t to the subject m a t t e r of o u r next C h a p t e r , a n d the immediate social a n d political context of Clement's, Corinthians, the Apocalypse, a n d the letters of Ignatius of Antioch.

1 0 8

B o v o n (1983) col. 404: "Fiir Lukas ware die Weltdimension der Mission und dadurch der Kirche ein religioses Gegenstiick z u m politischen Universalismus R o m s . Lukas ware dann ein Vorlaufer v o n Euseb und Prudenz."

CHAPTER FOUR

CLEMENT OF R O M E AND DOMITIAN'S

EMPIRE

The fulfilment of the imperial peace in Clement's community

C l e m e n t ' s Corinthians has been convincingly d a t e d as c o n t e m p o r a r y with D o m i t i a n ' s reign (A.D. 8 1 - 9 6 ) , a n d m o r e specifically between A.D. 94 a n d 97 d u r i n g which the " s u d d e n a n d r e p e a t e d misfortunes (xaq ai(pvi8{orj<; KOCI znaXXr\Xox><; yevouivaq f|(xtv cruuxpopdq) a n d calami ties ( K a l TcepiTtTcoaeiq)" occurred that h a d delayed the sending of the letter (Cor. I,I). Christian writers from Hegesippus a n d Melito of Sardis o n w a r d s claimed that D o m i t i a n persecuted Christianity, so t h a t it would be reasonable to conclude that C l e m e n t ' s words here refer to that reign a n d such a persecution. F u r t h e r m o r e , as Irenaeus (Adv. Haer. V , 30,3) connects the Apocalypse with the reign of Domitian, it would follow that this work is a reaction to that persecution. As t h a t persecution can also be seen as p a r t of the plan of D o m i t i a n , as the new Augustus, to reconstruct the Imperial Cult, the developing theology of these two chronologically c o n t e m p o r a r y works can b e related to the developing theology of the Imperial Cult. 1

2

Since however it has b e e n denied t h a t D o m i t i a n persecuted Chris tianity a n d particularly influenced the Imperial Cult itself, we will begin by discussing the question of D o m i t i a n ' s persecution (section A) as a b a c k g r o u n d to a n analysis of the contra-cultural ideology of O r d e r as it a p p e a r s in C l e m e n t ' s Corinthians (section B). W e shall reserve for C h a p t e r 5 our further discussion of D o m i t i a n ' s reform of the cult a n d the reflection of that reform in the Apocalypse. In C h a p -

1

L.W. Barnard, C l e m e n t of R o m e a n d the Persecution o f D o m i t i a n , in NTS 10 ( 1 9 6 3 - 6 4 ) , pp. 2 5 1 - 2 6 0 ; Idem. St. C l e m e n t of R o m e and the Persecution o f D o m i t i a n , in Studies in the Apostolic Fathers and their Background, (Oxford: Blackwell 1966), p p . 5 - 1 8 . See also P. Keresztes, T h e J e w s , the Christians, and the Emperor D o m i t i a n , in VChr 27 (1973), pp. 1 - 2 8 . H e g e s i p p u s (Eusebius H.E. 111,20); M e l i t o o f Sardis, Apology (Eusebius H.E. IV,26); Tertullian, Apol. 5; De Pall. 2; Lactantius, De Mort. Pers. 3; Eusebius, Chronicon. II, p. 160; J e r o m e , Ep. 108,7; Chronicon A n n . Abr. 2 1 1 2 , D o m i t . 1 6 ; T h e o d o r e t , Graec. Affect. Cur. 9; J o a n n e s Malalas, Chronograph. 10 etc. 2

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141

ter 6 we shall argue that the subsequent d e v e l o p m e n t of C h u r c h O r d e r a generation later in Ignatius of Antioch was historically in fluenced by both Domitian's cultic reforms a n d by the Apocalypse itself.

PART A. DOMITIAN AND THE WRITING OF CLEMENT'S CORINTHIANS

Attempts to deny D o m i t i a n ' s p e r s e c u t i o n — t h a t would break the links between b o t h C l e m e n t ' s Corinthians a n d the Apocalypse, a n d the cul tic reforms u p o n which m y a r g u m e n t relies—rest u p o n three p r e misses, namely: 1. The absence of any mention in pagan sources that Domitian per secuted the Christians, 2. The ambiguity of archaeological evidence for Eusebius' indentification of Flavius Clemens, Flavia Domitilla, and Acilius Glabrio as Christian and not Jewish martyrs, and 3. The absence of pagan evidence for persecution under Domitian and thus for martyrdom of Christians with these names. Let us now, in o u r first section, e x a m i n e each of these assumptions in t u r n .

4A

1. Pagan evidence: Dio Cassius 67,

14,1-3

Suetonius (Domitian. 15,17) a n d Quintillian (Inst. Orat. 4, proem.) h a d m e n t i o n e d the n a m e s of Flavia Domitilla, Flavius C l e m e n s , a n d Acilius Glabrio, but not the charges against them. However, Dio Cassius (LXVII,14, 1-2) claims that Flavius C l e m e n s the consul (imaxeuovxoc), a n d his wife the emperor's kinswoman (auyyevfi) Flavia Domitilla were c h a r g e d b o t h with dcBeoxriq a n d with " t u r n i n g away to J e w i s h cus toms (iq xd xcov 'Io\)8a{cov rfir) e^oiceMovxeq)." In consequence Flavius was executed a n d Domitilla was exiled to Pandateria. Acilius Glabrio, w h o h a d held consular office along with the y o u n g T r a j a n (xov jiexd xou Tpai'ctvou dp^avxa), was also c o n d e m n e d . B u t D i o also m e n t i o n s (14,3) that this was m o r e t h a n a trial of the individuals m e n t i o n e d a n d that on the same charges " m a n y . . . others (aXkoi... noXXoi) were condemned (KaxeSiKdaOnaav), some w h o died ( m i oi p.ev drceGavov) a n d others w h o were deprived of their property (oi 8e xcov yofiv ouaicov eaxepri&noav)." T h e r e was therefore a quite general m o v e m e n t against i d xcov 'Ioi)8oc(cov TlGt|.

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W e a p p e a r prima facie to have a conflict therefore between D i o on the one h a n d a n d Eusebius on the other, w h o claims on the a u t h o r ity of Brettius that Flavius a n d Domitilla were Christians (Chronicon II a n n . Abr. 2110 D o m t . 14 a n d H.E. 111,18). T h a t Dio fails to de scribe t h e m as Christians is arguably u n r e m a r k a b l e since he never mentions Christianity t h r o u g h o u t his work even t h o u g h he must have known of its existence. Tacitus a n d Pliny before h i m h a d clearly k n o w n of the existence of Christianity. Dio's second consulship was in A . D . 229, in the reign of Severus Alexander, whose m o t h e r J u l i a M a m a e a h a d sought from O r i g e n a n a c c o u n t of the Christian faith (Eusebius H.E. V I , 2 1 , 3-4). M o r e o v e r , if S H A , Sev. Alex. 29, 2 - 3 is to b e relied on, Alexander's lararium possessed a statue of Christ. As we have already argued, T h e o p h i l u s a n d his circle in Asia M i n o r conceived Christianity itself to b e a reformed J u d a i s m , with the result that, viewed externally, Christianity m a y have a p p e a r e d to D i o as a form of J u d a i s m so that n o distinction n e e d e d to be m a d e between t h e m (3C 2.3.3.3). 4A

2. C i m i t e r i u m Domitillae and Eusebius' claim

T h e discovery of certain artefacts associated with the names of Flavius C l e m e n s a n d Acilius Glabrio, that initially a p p e a r e d to c o r r o b o r a t e their Christianity, has bedevilled this discussion. It m a y be that D e Rossi was originally mistaken because the Christian p a r t of the cimi terium Domitillae a n d of Acilius Glabrio m a y be late second-century a n d the p r o d u c t of their descendants' conversion to a Christianity in which their ancestors h a d not believed. But, having failed to prove too m u c h , it is a contrary error to hold that too little is proved. Even if D i o has recorded accurately the Jewish c h a r a c t e r of their belief a n d has been able to distinguish that from Christianity p r o p e r , the case does not hinge on these individuals alone. W e have seen that " m a n y o t h e r s " were also deprived, a n d it would be reckless to allow too m u c h to rest on Dio's ability to distinguish J u d a i s m from Chris tianity w h e n writing d u r i n g a period free from a general policy of persecution such as in Severus Alexander's reign. Both Tertullian (Apol. 5) a n d Melito (Eusebius H.E. 4,26) m e n t i o n D o m i t i a n as a 3

' J . B . Lightfoot, The Apostolic Fathers, (London: M a c M i l l a n 1885), 1,1 p p . 3 5 - 3 9 and 8 2 cf. B . W . J o n e s , The Emperor Domitian, (London: R o u t l e d g e 1992), p. 115. S e e also Barnard ( 1 9 6 4 - 5 ) , p. 2 6 0 and (1966), p. 15 a n d W . C . H . Frend, Martyrdom and Persecution in the Early Church, (Oxford: Blackwells 1965), pp. 2 1 2 - 2 1 7 .

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143

second N e r o , without a n y reference to Flavius C l e m e n s a n d Flavia Domitilla. It is further quite false to claim that there is n o p a g a n evidence for a persecution of Christianity u n d e r D o m i t i a n . 4A

3. Evidence from Pliny E p . X,

96,1

Pliny states in his letter to T r a j a n : "I have never b e e n present at judicial examinations of Christians (cognitionibus de Christianis interfui numquam)" (Ep. X , 96,1) which could indicate that such examinations h a d b e e n held t h o u g h not in recent m e m o r y . F u r t h e r m o r e he records of those e x a m i n e d that (a) "they h a d ceased to b e Christians two or m o r e years previously, a n d some of t h e m twenty years ago (non nemo ante viginti)" a n d (b) apostates w e r e p r e p a r e d to m a k e "offerings of wine a n d incense (ture ac vino)" to T r a j a n ' s imperial statue. T h e significance of non nemo ante viginti (a) points, in A . D . 1 1 2 - 1 1 3 , to D o m i t i a n ' s reign in A . D . 9 3 a n d to a persecution u n d e r pressure of w h i c h such apostasies took place. Pliny m a y himself have devised the loyalty test m e n t i o n e d in (b). But if it were a n already established practice, it would point to former times w h e n Christians h a d b e e n persecuted, a n d in which they h a d b e e n subject to cognitio* C l e m e n t ' s letter itself, it m u s t be emphasised, t h o u g h a Christian source, is itself good evidence for a D o m i t i a n i c persecution. His a c c o u n t does not rest u p o n any particular characterisation of the religious beliefs of a Flavius, a Domitilla, or a n Acilius, sanctified by later hagiographic fable, w h o m he never mentions. But he does c o m p a r e Peter a n d Paul, a n d those w h o suffer m a r t y r d o m with them, as "those w h o c o n t e n d e d in the days nearest to us (zobq eyyioToc yevouivoix; aQXy\xaq), the noble examples of o u r o w n generation (xf\q y e v e a q r\\i(bv i d y e v v a i a i)7co8e{yUOCTCX)" (Cor. 5,1) with his c o n t e m p o r a r y situation in w h i c h he claims that "we are in the same a r e n a (aicd|Li|LiaTi) a n d the same contest (dycov) weighs u p o n u s . " (Cor. 7,1) Clearly the expressions eyyiaxa a n d TTI<; yeveaq r\\i&v imply a time recent a n d yet distinct. With no martyrological axe to grind, C l e m e n t therefore bears witness to the contention of b o t h Melito a n d Tertullian that D o m i t i a n was the second N e r o . But the r e q u i r e m e n t of o u r a r g u m e n t to place the oci
4

Keresztes (1973), pp. 2 0 - 2 1 cf. J o n e s (1993), pp. 1 1 4 - 1 1 5 .

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as following from a general decree. T h a t Eusebius insisted in seeing such a persecution as general was a p r o d u c t of his historiography that h a d n o concept of development so that the C h u r c h of the first century h a d to be identical with that of the fourth. In consequence, since persecutions since Decius T r a j a n (251) were seen by Eusebius to have b e e n general, so must persecutions have b e e n so before. W e have a r g u e d t h a t persecution resulted not from general i m p e rial decrees b u t from the social isolation that resulted initially from non-participation in the Imperial Cult, a n d from suspicion leading to accusation of superstitio (3C 2.3). This was the real context in which the ocicpviSunx; icai knaXkx\kox)q . . . ouuxpopa*; were experienced, as was the situation in Asia M i n o r faced by T h e o p h i l u s a n d his circle. D o m i t i a n instigated certain changes in the Imperial Cult itself so that he emerges in the literature as a n e w Augustus worshipped as a dominus et deus praesens. T h e Apocalypse too we shall argue is one group's highly illuminating reaction to those changes, b u t a reaction quite different either to Theophilus' group in Luke-Acts or to Clement's reflected in Corinthians. J o n e s a n d Schowalter have denied most recendy a D o m i d a n i c date. A discussion of the Imperial Cult u n d e r Domitian, a n d the Apocalypse as evidence for a D o m i t i a n i c persecution, must, however, await o u r t r e a t m e n t of the Apocalypse in C h a p t e r 5. 5

Let us n o w t u r n to C l e m e n t ' s Corinthians. W e shall trace here evi d e n c e for the d e v e l o p m e n t of a C h u r c h O r d e r that parallels the d e v e l o p m e n t of the I m p e r i a l C u l t with which it contains several analogies.

PART B . CLEMENT: C H U R C H O R D E R AND IMPERIAL PEACE

T h e Twelve, as founders of the apostolic college that orders the reformed J e w i s h cultus achieving the true pax dei, did not in LukeActs provide any m e a n s of appointing bishops as their collegial suc cessors. However, C l e m e n t in Corinthians, writing some ten years later in the reign of D o m i t i a n , was to supply this lack. Like Luke-Acts, C l e m e n t ' s Corinthians is c o n c e r n e d , not simply with restoration of p r o p e r c h u r c h O r d e r at C o r i n t h , b u t with the general concern of the legitimation of the Christian cultus. His stress o n the O r d e r of the

' See footnote 3 above.

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Christian c o m m u n i t y reflects the imperial, metaphysical b a c k g r o u n d of the fear of axdoiq as reflecting a n upsetting of the pax deorum. Ixdaiq is dvooioq. T h e Corinthian community, previous to such oxdoiq, h a d conducted themselves, not with the doepeioc that Clement's p a g a n fellow-citizens would have associated with failure to conform socially if not legally with the festivities of the Imperial Cult, b u t with a euaePeia that was b o t h ococppcov a n d eTtieucfiq (Clement, Cor. 1,1-2). Let us n o w analyse in detail h o w the t h e m e of imperial p e a c e finds expression in C l e m e n t ' s social construction of ecclesial reality that will reveal some interesting parallels with w h a t we have observed in o u r t r e a t m e n t of Luke-Acts. 4B

1. Metaphysics of ecclesial peace: society reflects nature

W e have seen w h a t s h u d d e r i n g h o r r o r the prospect of upsetting the pax deorum caused in R o m e ' s collective m e m o r y , s h a p e d a n d fostered by historians a n d poets such as Livy, Vergil, a n d L u c a n after a cen tury of social u p h e a v a l a n d civil strife, which was the foundation of Augustus' augurium salutis i n a u g u r a t i n g the Imperial C u l t (2A 5-6). So too for C l e m e n t "all insurrection (rc&oa oxdai<;) a n d all division ( m l nav oxiouxx) is to b e a b o m i n a t e d by you (p8eta)Kxov uuiv)." (2,6) B8eA,uKx6<; is a n expression evocative of sacrilegious defilement that destroys the efficacious operation of cultic ritual, as in the p8eta)yua epnpxbaecoq (Mk. 13, 14). T h e o r d e r of the c o m m u n i t y is to reflect the o r d e r of creation that is characterised by the pax dei. In 2 0 , 1 - 3 we read: The heavens (oi o v p a v o i ) though agitated by his governance (xji Sioucncei a\)Toi) aaA,e\)6^ievoi) are subject to him in peace (ev eipr|vr| imoxdoaovxai auxq)). . . Sun and moon (iiAioq xe m i aeAr|vr|) and choirs of stars (daxepcov xe xopoi) according to his decree (mxd xr|v Siaxaynv auxov) encircle in harmony free from all deviation (ev o^iovoiot 8(xa Tcdariq rcapeKpdaeco<; E^EXXGOOVGI) their appointed bounds (xoix; eTcixexayjievotx; rxuxoic; bpiG\iovq).

T h e metaphysical peace (eipfivn) of the n a t u r a l o r d e r is represented therefore by a 8iaxayr| that is specifically reflected in imperial soci ety. As C l e m e n t says later: Let us march (axpaxe\)acb^e9a) therefore, men and brothers, with all eagerness (^iexd ndar\q eKxeveiaq) in his (God's) blameless orders (ev xoi<; d^(b|ioi(; rcpoaxaYliaaiv): let us take cognisance (Kaxavof|aco|iev) of those who enlist as soldiers (xoix; oxpccxe\)ouivo\)<;) under our [temporal] rulers

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(xoiq f|yo\)|i£voi<;), how orderly (euxdicxax;), how yieldingly (eiKxuccoq), how submissively (urcoxexayiAEvax;) they execute (e7ciT£^ot>aiv) what they have been commanded (xd Siaxotaao^eva). All are not eparchs (ercapxoi) or chiliarchs (xi^cxpxoi) or centurions (eicaxovxapxoi) or pentacontarchs (TcevxrjKovxapxoi) or people like that: but each in his own rank (ev xcp i8{cp xdyjicm) perform what is ordered by the Emperor and his rulers (xd eTTixaaaojieva imo xov paai^eax; Kai xcov f|yo\)|ievcov). . . Let us take as an example our body: the head without the feet is nothing, so neither the feet without the head: the least members of our body are neces sary and useful for the whole body: but all members conspire (aXka rcdvxa ovvnvei) and employ one subjection (KCXI urcoxayfl (iia xpfjxou) for the preservation of the whole body (eiq xo O"co£eo0ai oA,ov xo acojia). Corinthians 3 7 W e have already indicated h o w a Stoic h y l o m o r p h i s m justified this parallelism between nature and society, a n d how, through a justification of divination, it was to give a rational justification for the religion of the Imperial Cult that secured the pax deorum. W e see therefore in C l e m e n t a clear reflection of such themes in his examination of the O r d e r of the Christian c o m m u n i t y a n d the disturbance of that O r d e r in the events that h a d lead to the deposition of the EKIOKOKOI7cpeap\)xepoi (2A

4-5).

A general philosophy of imperial O r d e r h a d lead t h r o u g h the cul tus to a definite u n d e r s t a n d i n g of the sacramental role of e m p e r o r as high-priest of the Imperial Cult a n d the deity venerated by that cult sometimes in his lifetime b u t usually post mortem. C l e m e n t derives from this general, p a g a n philosophical b a c k g r o u n d a parallel theory of C h u r c h O r d e r . In consequence he was to p r o d u c e a theory of the Christian cult a n d its ministers themselves. Let us n o w turn to this dimension of his claims for a valid a n d efficacious C h u r c h O r d e r . 4B

1.1. Order is secured through cultic authority

C l e m e n t u n d e r s t a n d s the O l d T e s t a m e n t cultus as type, a n d C h u r c h O r d e r as antitype, in such terms as xd^iq, xdyuoc, imoxayn, euxa^{a a n d Ttpooxdyuxx etc. which are concepts derived from the o r d e r of the imperial a r m y a n d R o m a n society. But n a t u r e reflects society, a n d vice-versa. T h e descriptions e T t i x e x o t y u i v o i opiouoi, Sioncriaiq, a n d ouovouc bixa rcdariq rcapeicPdaeGx; of the natural o r d e r find their reflec tions in such terms of political relations as 8iccxocyr| a n d e v eipf|vn i)7coxdaaea0ai. As C l e m e n t n o w continues: . . . We ought to do all things in order (rcdvxa xd^ei rcoieiv 6(pe(A,ojiev) that the master has commanded to celebrate (oaa 6 SeaTtoxrn; ejiixeXeiv

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at the appointed times (mid Koupoix; xexayjievoix;). He ordered the offerings and liturgies (xdq xe 7tpoo(popd<; Kai A,eixo\)py(a<;) to be cele brated carefully and not rashly or with disorder (emiiekux; ejuxe^eioGai Kai o\)K eiKfj r\ dxaKxax;) but at the appointed times and seasons (cbpiajievoic; m i p o i q K a i copaiq): and where and through whom he wished them to be celebrated (e7iixeXeia0ai), he himself stipulated (coptaev) by his supreme will (xii i)7iepxdxcp amov $ox>\y)OEi) in order that all things might take place holily (oaicoq) in his good pleasure (ev ei)8oKT|o-ei), and be well-pleasing to his will (e\mp6a8eKxa.... xcp 6eXr|uaxi). They then who make their offerings (xdqrcpoatpopdq)at the appointed seasons (xoiq Tipoaxexayjievotc; Kaipoiq) are well-pleasing and blessed (e\mp6o8eKxo( xe Kai iiaKaptoi), for in following the decrees (xoiq vo^ii^iOK;) of the master, they do not miss the mark. For to the high-priest (xcp ydp dpxiepei) are given his own lit urgies (i'8iai XeixoDpyiai 6e5o^ievai eiaiv), and to the priests (xoiq iepeuaiv) an individual place is assigned (i'Sicx; 6 xorcoc; rcpoaxexaKxai), and for the levites (Xexiixaiq) their own ministries (i'Siai SiaKoviai) are laid down (e7UKeivxai). The lay-man (6 XaiKoq avOpamcx;) is bound by lay instruc tions (xolq AxxiKoiq T t p o a x d y j i a o t v 8e8exat). Corinthians 40 £KeA.e\)<jev)

O n the basis of this O l d T e s t a m e n t type, C l e m e n t n o w proceeds to the antitype in the Christian ministry. But his exegesis continues to be saturated with the Stoic metaphysics of a rational, divine, n a t u r a l o r d e r that is i n c a r n a t e d in any p r o p e r , valid political order. E a c h of t h e m is to m a k e their Eucharist "in his own rank (ev xcp i8up xdyuocxi)," a secondary reflection of which m i g h t be in the R o m a n a r m y but the p r i m a r y o n e is in n a t u r e . N o - o n e is to be found " m o v i n g aside (TcapeicPouvcov) from the a p p o i n t e d rule of his liturgy (xov cbpiauivov xfjq taixoupyiocq otuxou KOCVOVCX)," j u s t as in the providential o r d e r of n a t u r e sun, m o o n a n d stars m o v e ev ouovoioc 8i%a ndoy\q rcapeKpdaecoc; a n d m x d xr\v Siaxaynv within e7uxexay|LievoD<; opiauotx; (41,1 cf. 20,3). It m u s t however be emphasised that it is i m p o r t a n t for C l e m e n t that C h u r c h O r d e r is cultic O r d e r , w h e t h e r prefigured in the i m p e rial order, in n a t u r e , or in O.T. typology. N o t only can valid offerings be m a d e only i n J e r u s a l e m at the altar there, b u t p a r t of that validity is "the inspection of w h a t is offered (fico|LioaKO7cr|0ev xo rcpoocpepojievov) t h r o u g h the high-priest (8id xou dpxiepecoc;) a n d the previously stated ministers ( K a i xcovTCpoeiprunivcDvXeixoupycov)." T o d o anything contrary to G o d ' s will in such cultic matters involves the threat of KwSuvoq a n d Bdvaxoq (41, 3-4). In this light we have been correct to translate A,eixoupy(a as "liturgy" in a cultic sense, as opposed to that of "ministry of state." H o w e v e r , we have been at pains to emphasise that in the G r a e c o - R o m a n world there was no final distinction between the two. Cicero (De Nat. Deor.

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2,4) m a d e it quite clear to C o t t a that consuls h a d b e e n deposed from their office, their Xeixoupym, for not performing the auspicia correcdy. N a t u r a l a n d political disorders a n d their axaciq formed a conceptual c o n t i n u u m with cultic disorder a n d the shuddering h o r r o r of sacrilege. A n d we have a r g u e d that the political transformation from republic to e m p i r e involved the Imperial Cult as the sacra m e n t a l expression of this nexus of ideas. It is in such a culdc context that we should now interpret Clement's famous account of the apostolic appointment of £7c{aK07ioi a n d Sidicovoi. 4B 1.2. The apostolic succession as the foundation of the cult Indeed, although C l e m e n t seems n o t to k n o w Luke-Acts, such a n inter pretation will not seem strange in view of the clearly cultic founda tions that we claimed for the latter in the a u t h o r ' s construction of Christianity as reformed J u d a i s m . T h e twelve tribal aposdes, as reg ulators of the cult (doctrine, breaking of b r e a d , prayers), m i r r o r e d the Twelve Arval Brethren a n d their role in the Imperial Cult (3D). Yet b o t h C l e m e n t a n d the a u t h o r of Luke-Acts a r e reflecting the gen eral social construction of imperial reality of which they are p r o ducing their distinctive reversed, contra-cultural reflections. C l e m e n t gives us n o succession list such as Hegesippus was later to compose a n d I r e n a e u s to follow. His emphasis once again is on o r d e r reflected in O.T typology. T h e apostles c a m e from Christ, a n d Christ from G o d so that each w e r e euxdicxcoc; EK QeXr\iiaxoq Geoft. T h e £7i{aK07coi a n d 8KXKOVOI were a p p o i n t e d by the aposdes as their first fruits (drcocpxdq) after they h a d e x a m i n e d t h e m t h r o u g h the Spirit (8oKi|idaavT£<; xa> T w e u u x m ) . T h u s Is. 60,17, on a loose reading, was fulfilled (42, 4 - 5 ) . C l e m e n t later continues this t h e m e : 6

Our apostles knew through our Lord Jesus Christ that there would be strife over the name of the bishop's office (ejci xov 6vo\iaxoq xfi<; eTnaKOTcfj^). For this reason, having obtained perfect foreknowledge, they ordained (Kaieornaav) the previously mentioned, and meanwhile made them per manent in order that, if they should fall asleep, other duly examined men (exspoi 5e5oKi|iao|ievoi dvSpeq) should succeed to their liturgy (8ia8e£covxai... xf|v A,eixoi)pyiav avx&v). Those therefore ordained by them (xovq ovv mxaaxaGevxac; im' EKEWCOV) or afterwards by other ap proved men (r\ \iexa£,v (xp d exepcov eXXoy(|io)v dvSpcbv), with the consent of the whole Church, and who have performed their liturgy blame-

fi

Eusebius H.E. V , 6 ; I V , 2 2 , 1-3; Irenaeus Adv. Haer. 111,3, 3.

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lessly (A,eixoi)pyr|G(xvxe<; duiujixax;). . . these we consider not jusdy (oi) 5im{co<;) to have been expelled from their liturgy (dTtoPdAAeoGcci xfjq X,eiTO\)py[a<;). For it will be no small sin for us if we expel from the episcopate (xfjc; eTtioKorcfjq drcopdAxoiiev) those who blamelessly and holily have offered the gifts (xoix; duiujrccflc; KOU oaicoqrcpoaeveyicovxoK;i d 8a>pa). Blessed are the presbyters who have gone before . . .: for they have no fear that anyone should remove them from their appointed place (ano xo\) i8p\)uivo\) amoiq xonov). Corinthians 44 It would clearly b e a mistake to regard t h e p h r a s e exepoi 8C8OKIuxxouivoi dv8peq w h o "succeed (8ia8e^covxai)" as a reference to the later succession lists. I have a r g u e d elsewhere that these later lists are related to t h e ideology of t h e philosophical school, a n d to the concept found there of 8ioc8oxai cpi^oaocpcov. C l e m e n t ' s apostolic suc cessors succeed to t h e apostles' liturgical function (8ua8e£covxoci... xf|V A,eixoupyiav auxcbv) a n d w e have shown generally, n o less t h a n in this passage, Xeixoupyia is used in a cultic sense. C l e m e n t describes these m e n as xoix; djieujcxcoq KCCI bamqrcpoaeveyicovxaqxd 8 S p a , with clear reference to the cultic c h a r a c t e r of their collective office as presbyters exercising e7ciaK07cf|. But w e n e e d n o t r e t u r n to the succession lists of M a c c a b a e a n high-priests, applicable to a n alleged C a l i p h a t e of J a m e s t h e Lord's b r o t h e r a n d his successors at J e r u s a l e m a n d derived historically from that source, in o r d e r to locate the m o d e l underly ing C l e m e n t ' s claim. I have also given g r o u n d s elsewhere for reject ing E h r d h a r d t ' s thesis o n this subject. 7

8

B a m m e l has, I believe, opened the way for understanding Clement's language cultically, b u t with reference primarily to t h e R o m a n legal provisions for suppressing cults t h a t provoke oxaoiq a n d therefore threaten the pax deorum. O n the basis of a p a p y r u s fragment dis covered originally by S c h u b a r t , h e claims that t h e principle u n d e r lying t h e latter succession lists a n d reflected in this passage is found in a certificate in which a priest h a d to declare a n o r d e r e d succes sion of three predecessors w h o h a d m a i n t a i n e d b o t h t h e ritual a n d

7

A . Brent, Cultural E p i s c o p a c y a n d E c u m e n i s m , R e p r e s e n t a t i v e Ministry in Church History from the A g e o f Ignatius o f Antioch to the Reformation, with spe cial reference to c o n t e m p o r a r y e c u m e n i s m , in Studies in Christian Mission 6, (Leiden: E J . Brill 1992), p p . 1 3 2 - 1 3 7 . A. Brent, D i o g e n e s Laertius a n d the Apostolic Succession, in JEH 4 4 , 3 (1993), pp. 3 7 2 - 3 8 0 ; Idem. Hippolytus a n d the R o m a n C h u r c h in the T h i r d Century: C o m munities in T e n s i o n before the E m e r g e n c e o f a M o n a r c h - B i s h o p , in Suppl. VChr 31 (Leiden: E J . Brill 1995), p p . 4 7 5 - 5 0 1 . 8

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9

the iepoq Xoyoq of the cult. T h e priest in question was of the cult of Dionysus, a n d clearly the certificate was required u n d e r a law of Ptolemy Philopator IV. T h e cult itself was significant for it was not a native E g y p t i a n cult, t h o u g h P h i l o p a t o r a d h e r e d to it himself. B a m m e l therefore claims that the principle of certification h a d appli cation to priests of foreign cults w h o were treated as strange by their native a n d familiar counterparts. 10

A second inscription evidences the generality of the principle. At Delos the Egyptian cult of Sarapis was clearly considered equally strange a n d foreign. T h o u g h worship took place, a building for wor ship, a Serapion, could not be erected for at least two generations. In the inscription, three priests are n a m e d , grandfather, father, a n d son. In the face of suspicion of disorder, the existence of a n o r d e r e d , continuous succession h a d to b e established. B a m m e l sees the same c o n c e r n for three generations also reflected in the later, HegesippusIrenaeus list, with the recording of C l e m e n t xpixcp xorccp, Xystus E'KXOC; a n d finally Eleutheros vuv ScoSemxcp xorcco . . . anb xcov drcooxotaov. It is in such a light that we should p r e s u m a b l y therefore u n d e r s t a n d C l e m e n t ' s reference in 61,2 to the a u t h o r s of the oxdoiq as those w h o "bring j u d g e m e n t against themselves (n&AAov 8e eauxcov K a x d y v coaiv (pepouaw) r a t h e r t h a n against the h a r m o n y that has b e e n well a n d justly h a n d e d d o w n to us (r\ xfjc; 7capa8e8o|Li£vr|<; fijiiv KaX&q Kai SiKaicoq ouocpcoviaq)." 11

B a m m e l n o w is able to connect the eastern practice with western by pointing to the resemblance between these examples of foreign, even Dionysiac cults, a n d the famous a c c o u n t of the Bacchanalian Riot in Livy 39,8, 1-19. Following this p r e c e d e n t , C a e s a r forbad col legia praeter antiquitus constituta, a n d Augustus his heir opposed all cults constituted praeter antiqua et legitima. T h u s the principle was estab lished, regardless of w h e t h e r formally such a certificate was required in the West, that cultic legitimacy could be established t h r o u g h the establishment of such a hierocratic succession. T h e eastern m o d e l w o u l d h a v e suggested an apologetic defence given such R o m a n predilections regardless of w h e t h e r or not such a d o c u m e n t was legally d e m a n d e d . 12

9

E. B a m m e l , Sukzessionsprinzip im Urchristentum, in StEphAug 31 (1990), pp. 63-65. I.G. 11, 4, 1299. " B a m m e l (1990), p. 70. Ibid. p. 6 6 . 10

12

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In c o n s e q u e n c e B a m m e l will claim for C l e m e n t the apologetic sta tus that others have claimed for Luke-Acts, a n d which we have a r g u e d to the c o n t r a r y requires some modification. Let us n o w e x a m i n e the critical passage for such a n apologetic interpretation. 4B 1.2.2. Clement C o r . 60,4-61,3: the prayer for imperial p a x T h e strife within the Christian c o m m u n i t y at C o r i n t h r e g a r d i n g the deposition of the blameless presbyter-bishops was not, in the light of such a policy of certification of n e w cults, of purely internal con cern. T h e situation would have u n w e l c o m e external repercussions if it b e c a m e too public a n d exposed the c o m m u n i t y to prosecution as a kind of B a c c h a n a l i a n cult. T h i s passage has therefore b e e n seen as reassuring the authorities of Christian loyalty to the e m p i r e by suggesting t h e parallel of privileged J e w i s h status to t h a t of the Christian cult. Christians, like J e w s , could, so the e n c o d e d message runs, show their loyalty by p r a y i n g for the e m p e r o r without partic ipating in the Imperial Cult. But, unlike later apologies or even Luke-Acts, there is here not even the initial, prima facie, a p p e a r a n c e of a n address to the p a g a n , R o m a n authorities. T h e epistle addresses the Christian c o m m u n i t y at C o r i n t h itself (xrj eKicA,r|oia x o u Oeou xr\ T c a p o i K o u o n KopivGov). F u r t h e r m o r e an even p a r t i a l a d d r e s s to such a n a u d i e n c e seems in this instance counter-productive to the m a k i n g of a n apologetic case since it draws to the attention of the authorities b e h a v i o u r that would falsify claims that the cult is innocuous. C o n s e q u e n d y the following passage, which prays for the e m p e r o r , sounds to m o d e r n ears quite inconsistent with an address for calm within the Christian c o m m u n i t y itself: Grant (86q) concord and peace to us (o^iovoiav Kai eiprjvrjv f||iiv) and to all who dwell upon the earth (Kai 7tdaiv xoiq KaxoiKovaiv xf|v yfjv). . . . becoming submissive (imriKooix; yivouevoix;) to your omnipotent and gra cious name (xcprcavxoKpdxopiKai rcavapexco ovojiaxi GOV), as well as to our rulers and leaders (xoiq xe dp%o\>aiv Kai f|yo\)nivoi<; fjpxbv) upon earth (en\xr\qyr\q). You, O Lord, (GV, Searcoxa) have given to them the author ity of the empire (e'8coKa<; xf|v e^coaCav xf)<; PaaiXeia^ avxoiq) through your glorious and unfathomable might (8id xov |Lieyata)7tpe7coi)<; Kai dveK8iriyr|xo\) Kpdxouq), to the end that (eiq xo) we, knowing (yivcocKovxaq fniaq) the glory and honour given to them by you (xf|v vnb GOV avxoiq 8e8o|xevr|v 86£av Kai xi|if|v), may be subject to them (urcoxdoaeaBai avxoiq), making no opposition to your will (|ir|8ev evavxtou^ievoix; xcp 9eX,r|jiaxi GOV); grant to them O Lord (oi<; boq) health (i)y(eiav), peace (eipr|vr|v), concord (ojiovotav), and stability (ei)axd6eiav), to the end that they may administer (eiq xo Sierceiv ai)xo\x;) the government given them

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by you (xf|v vnb GOV 8e8ouevr|v avxoiq f|y£|nov[av) untiringly (drcpooKOTtax;). For you (GV yap), O heavenly Master (Searcoxa eTroupdvie), king of the ages (Paaitav xcov aicbvcov), grant to the sons of men (8{8co<; xolq violq xcov dvGpamcov) glory (86^av) and honour (mi xiufjv) and authority (ml zZpvGiav) over the things that exist on earth (xcov eVi xr\q yfjq imapxovxtov); direct thou O Lord (GV, Kupie, bievQvvov) their counsel (xf|v poaAf|V auxcov) according to what is good and pleasing in your sight (mxd xo KOLXOV Kal eudpeoxov evamiov G O V ) , that administering (OTCCOC; 8i£7iovxe<;) in peace and civility piously (ev eipt|vr| Kal Tipavxrixi evaepcbc;) the authority given them by you (xf)v vnb GOV avxoic, SeSoueviw e£o\)cuav), they may obtain your mercy (Y^ecb GOV x^yxdvcoow). Corinthians 60,4-61,2 T h e apologetic thesis would require us to interpret these words as a s u d d e n c h a n g e of tack in o r d e r to appeal to a quite different audi ence. But it is i m p o r t a n t to observe the absolute c o h e r e n c e o f the passage with C l e m e n t ' s t h e m e so far, that leaves us without w a r r a n t for interpreting his words as such a c h a n g e . T h i s p r a y e r for the R o m a n E m p i r e is only p a r t of a longer p r a y e r with which, from 59,3 o n w a r d s , the a u t h o r seeks to conclude a n d summarise his h o p e for a n e n d t o the axdoic; within the C h u r c h at C o r i n t h . T h a t p r a y e r begins with a n exhortation to the worshipper w h o , a m o n g s t other things, is called to h o p e o n (eAju^eiv eni) G o d ". . . w h o scrutinised h u m a n works ( . . . xov 8K67cxr|v dv0pco7uvcov epycov)." In IGRR 4,309 we have the description: " E m p e r o r C a e s a r ([A\>xoKpdx]op[a Kjouaapa), the son of G o d ([0]eou uiov 0e6v), Sebastos (IePaax6[v]), w h o scruti nises land a n d sea ([rcdariq] yrj[q K]CC! 0[oc]A,door|(; [£]7c[o7c]x[r|v])." 13

T h e civil a n d imperial dimension is but part o f the cosmic dimension. T h e G o d w h o is invoked has m a d e manifest, not the oxdciq b u t the ovoxaoiq t h r o u g h the creation that he has energised (8id xcov evepyorjuxvcov). T h u s the Christian theologian addresses G o d in terms o f the same Stoic theology that he h a d earlier employed in c h a p ters 20 a n d 32. C l e m e n t m a y hesitate as yet to call Christ A,6yo<; a n d to identify h i m with the Xoyoq ev8id0exoc; a n d the Xoyoq rcpocpopiKo*;. But the idea of manifesting the structure of creation (ouaxocoiv . . . ecpavepo7ioir]aa(;) is clearly a n alternative expression for the same set of concepts. F o r the Stoics it was the b r e a t h of G o d , the fiery Xoyoq p e r m e a t i n g all things that was the g r o u n d for fatalistic determinism. 14

15

A. D e i s s m a n n , Light from the Ancient East, trans. L . R . M . Strachan, (London: H o d d c r and S t o u g h t o n 1927), pp. 3 4 2 ff. C l e m e n t Cor. 6 0 , 1 : GV xf|v d e v a o v xov K o a u o i ) crucrcaaiv 5 i a xcov evepyouuevcov 14

e(pavepo7co{naa<;.

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C l e m e n t , true to such a b a c k g r o u n d , has spoken of G o d ' s " b r e a t h (rcvori) in us . . . a n d w h e n he wills he withdraws i t . " Metaphysics in antiquity never serviced a disinterested pursuit of knowledge of the natural world for its own sake, as it has p e r h a p s for us since the seventeenth century, t h o u g h the sociology of knowl edge has qualified even that assumption. R a t h e r metaphysics serv iced ethics, a n d with Stoicism, as we have seen, political philosophy. W e h a v e already seen h o w Stoicism gave rational justification to augury, a n d thus legitmised the republican political conventions that required such a religious practice (2A 2). W e have also a r g u e d that Augustus' reorganisation of the religious cultus served the political e n d of imperial unity b u t also the felt religious need for the pax deo rum (2A 3). T h e republican cult of abstract virtues c a m e to express representations of a socially constructed, collective personality of the e m p e r o r at the centre of the Imperial Cult. 15

W e see in C l e m e n t ' s prayer, along with its Stoic metaphysics in which the natural order is reflected in social order, the very deified abstract qualities that the e m p e r o r ' s cultic acts were to secure as g u a r a n t e e of the pax deorum. In 6 1 , 1 we r e a d of health (uyieia), peace (eipr|vr|), c o n c o r d (oudvoia), stability (euoxdGeia), which were the virtues of the Augustan saeculum aureum a n d the p r o d u c t of his augurium salutis (2A 5 a n d 2B 3). T h e s e are to be given "to o u r rulers a n d leaders (xoiq xe ap^ouoiv Kai T]youuivoi<; fmcov)" as well as "to all w h o dwell u p o n the earth (Kai m o w xoi<; KaxoiKouaiv xfjv yfjv)." (60,4) It would be w r o n g , however, to interpret such lines as a n apol ogy for the C o r i n t h i a n c o m m u n i t y to R o m a n magistrates dressed u p in terms that they would find palatable. 4B

2. Clement's concept of Order: legitimation not apologetic

C l e m e n t has a d m i t t e d the charge of cxaciq within the C o r i n t h i a n c o m m u n i t y that would immediately destroy any such apologetic case. R a t h e r his words represent the use of a reformulated imperialist ide ology that orders social relations within the c o m m u n i t y . T h e R o m a n magistrate would find little assurance that such virtues as oudvoia or eiprjvn were bestowed u p o n R o m e ' s rulers by a G o d w h o m they

Ibid. 21,9: ep£\)vr|xf|<; yap eaxiv evvoicbv m i ev6\)(ir)aecpv • oi) f| 7tvof| ai)xo\) ev f|(iiv eaxiv, K a i oxav 0eA,ri, aveA,ei a\)ir|v. Cf. 2 1 , 2 : A.eyei y a p no\) [Prov. 2 0 , 2 7 ] • 7ive\)|ia K\)p(o\) Xx>xvo$ epeuvtov xa xajiieia xr\q yaGXpoq.

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found alien, r a t h e r t h a n by the d e a d a n d deified Augustus, a n d his d e a d a n d deified successors. H e would certainly not be impressed that the prayers a n d acts of the Christian cult that was to secure these qualities a n d this authority for the e m p i r e were t h r o u g h a Pontifex Maximus or dpxiepeuq w h o was other t h a n the e m p e r o r . W e saw in Luke-Acts that early Christian apocalyptic h a d u n d e r gone radical reformulation in the light of the Augustan imperialist ideology. Such a reformulation was to be u n d e r s t o o d as legitimation r a t h e r t h a n apology. C l e m e n t ' s g r o u p at R o m e , like T h e o p h i l u s ' in Asia M i n o r , believed in the need for supernatural activity to assuage a disturbed n a t u r e reflected in a disturbed society. T h a t belief, as we have shown, was reinforced by the experience of a century of late-Republican civil wars as constructed in the historiography of such writers as Livy, Tacitus, a n d L u c a n . T h e t h o u g h t of the shat tering of the pax deorum elicited fears of K W S D V O C ; a n d dGeuixoq opyn t h a t were the antithesis of oudvoioc a n d eipf|vr| (14,2; 53,2; 59,1). K(vS\)vo<; in 4 1 , 3 - 4 is treated in the context of violation of ritual. Violation of the divine decrees regarding h o w the H i g h Priest is to e x a m i n e the sacrifice in the divinely a p p o i n t e d place is deserving of d e a t h (oi ouv rcapd T O KaGfJKov Tfj<; pouAiiaecoq OCUTOU rcoiouvTeq T I 6dvaTOV Ttpoaxiuov exauaiv). It is not therefore primarily the fear of the d a n g e r of intervention by the secular authorities that is here in point r a t h e r t h a n the holy fear of otaoiq as a sacrilege in terms of the metaphysical o r d e r of n a t u r e reflected in civil society. C l e m e n t , like the a u t h o r of Luke-Acts, was not satisfying the perceived needs of the external, p a g a n authorities, b u t the perceived needs of himself a n d his g r o u p in a G r a e c o - R o m a n cultural context being transformed by a Christian perspective. 16

B a m m e l was therefore w r o n g to claim that C l e m e n t ' s motive was primarily apologetic, a n d that to m a k e a legal claim for recognition was not to m a k e a theological claim. C l e m e n t ' s claim was not that of Hegesippus or Irenaeus in their articulations of the later episco pal succession lists. But it was theological in that the r e q u i r e m e n t of R o m a n law was a theological r e q u i r e m e n t not to take p a r t in cul tic activity t h a t would upset the pax deorum a n d therefore the order of both n a t u r e a n d civil society. C l e m e n t a n d his g r o u p , just as in the case of T h e o p h i l u s to w h o m Luke wrote, was an articulator of H)

Ibid. 6 1 , 3 : . . . a o i e^o(ioA,OYo{)(ie6a 8 i a xo\) dpxiepecoq KOU rcpoaxdxcru xcov i|/\>xa>v TIUCOV' Ir|aot> Xpiaxov . . .

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a legal a r g u m e n t with the metaphysical basis for which his hearers h a d every sympathy. Both C l e m e n t a n d T h e o p h i l u s shared the cul tural a n d philosophic b a c k g r o u n d of imperial society a n d were b o t h as anxious as each other a b o u t the metaphysical catastrophe that h a d b e e n the civil wars of the republic, a n d which the Imperial Cult was believed to have averted. T h e y disagreed with the assumptions of their cultural b a c k g r o u n d only in so far as in Christianity they believed they h a d found the true m e a n s of averting the ira dei. Christian doctrine a n d C h u r c h O r d e r as they h a d received it were in consequence transformed in the matrix of their imperialist phil osophical a n d cultural, religious heritage. But with the enculturalization of the gospel, it is ever a n d inescapably so. C l e m e n t a n d T h e o p h i l u s were not insulated from the social construction of i m p e rial reality by which their consciousness h a d been formed a n d devel oped. In consequence, they are not to be accused of the apologetic m a n i p u l a t i o n of a n imperialist ideology a b o u t whose foundations they h a d no real convictions. It is fascinating to observe parallels with Luke-Acts in C l e m e n t Corinthians, which we will n o w e x a m i n e , w h e r e there are no direct quotations a n d n o direct borrowing. 4B 2 . 1 . Parallels between Luke-Acts and Clement C o r i n t h i a n s Both see the apostles as the foundations of the Christian cult, t h o u g h both a c c o u n t for this cultic significance differently. Luke-Acts, we have argued (3D), sees the Twelve by analogy with the Arval college in its Augustan transformation, whereas C l e m e n t regards it as a m a t ter of the requirements of an orderly succession as in the case of official acceptance of a Dionysiac cult. Both will reconstruct the impe rialist ideology in a contra-cultural fashion with a t r a n s p a r e n t rever sion of values. C l e m e n t quotes (in 59,3) 1 Sam. 2,7 a n d Is. 10,33 w h e r e G o d is addressed as xov rcoiouvxa xarceivoix; Eiq vyoq Kai xoix; \)\|/r|Aoi)<; xarceivouvxa, xov rctanm^ovxa Kai rcxcoxi^ovxa, just as in the Magnificat (Lk. 1,52~53) we read: . . . u\j/coaev xarceivotx;... Kai rctaruxouvxaq e^arceaxeitav Kevotx;. F u r t h e r m o r e in Lk. 4,18 the eviauxov Kupiou 8eKx6v, which we a r g u e d to be the contra-cultural c o u n t e r p a r t to the inauguration of Augustus' saeculum aureum, c o m m e n c e d with, the glad tidings for the p o o r (euayveAioaaOai nxcoxoiq) by contrast with the imperial birth day-banquets of the city states of Asia M i n o r . Luke-Acts h a d reconstructed traditional apocalyptic with the ideology

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of the A u g u s t a n saeculum aureum so that t h e m e s of cataclysmic a p o c alyptic j u d g e m e n t w e r e absent a n d replaced by a reign of p e a c e a n d fulfilment longed for hopes (3A 1-3). C l e m e n t in his p r a y e r (60,3) asks: that we may be supported (eiq TO GK£7iao"0fivai rjuaq) by the strength of your mighty hand (ip xeip( GOV zf\ KpcxTaia) and delivered (Kal pi)a0f|vai) from all sin (anb K6LGT[<; duapTiaq) by your high-stretched arm (TCO ppa/iovi GOV TCO i)V|/r|A,cp): and that you deliver us (Kal pvaai r|ua<;) from those who hate us unjustly (anb TCOV UIGOVVTCOV f|ud<; dSiKcoq). Like the KpaToq ev Ppaxiovi amov Lk. 1,51, or the acoTripia . . . E K XEipoq TcdvTcov TCOV jiiao\)VTCov fijiaq of Lk. 1,71, these expressions occur in the context of w h a t has p r o d u c e d the A u g u s t a n saeculum aureum of ocoTTipia, oudvoia a n d eipf|vr| (61,1). C l e m e n t in 61,2 t h e n prays for direction of the counsel of the imperial rulers (ox>, Kt>pie, 8iei>0\)vov TTJV p o u ^ v auTCOv) j u s t as in the L u c a n contra-cultural saeculum aureum Zachariah's prayer was TOt> KOCTe\)0wai xovq nodaq f|p.cov eiq 686v eipr|vr|<; {Lk. 1,79). 17

As in Luke-Acts traditional apocalyptic is overlaid by the p e a c e a n d security of a golden age long promised, so too in C l e m e n t the eschaton does not break into the present in a n y disruptive way that would destroy the pax dei or deorum. T h i s point can be well established in his general eschatological references, a n d to the resurrection of the b o d y (23-27), as we shall n o w see. 4B 2.2. Apocalyptic cataclysm replaced by imperial peace C l e m e n t exhorts the c o m m u n i t y to o r d e r (21-22), a n d places this desire for o r d e r in a n eschatological context. T h e L o r d will c o m e suddenly to his temple as expected, a n d not delay, in a c c o r d a n c e with Is. 13,22 a n d Mai. 3,1 (23,5). But C l e m e n t has a sense of the delay of the parousia, a n d so, like p s e u d o n y m o u s 2 Pet. 3,4, q u o t e d from possibly Eldad and Modad, also feels the force of the criticism of those w h o claim: "these things we have h e a r d (TOCUTCX fjKOuaauev) even from o u r fathers' time (Kal EKI TCOV rcocTepcov fijicov) a n d behold, we have kept watch (Kal i8o\) yeyr|pdKa(iev), a n d n o n e of these things has h a p p e n e d to us (KOCI ouSev fijiiv TO\>TCOV o\)vpepr|K£v)." C l e m e n t ' s reply firstly is to appeal to the well-used apocalyptic image of a plant 18

17

Cf. a l s o Ps. 4 0 , 3 q u o t e d in 6 0 , 2 : mxevjGov xd 8 i a p f | | i a x a f|(icov ev 6ai6xr|xi

Kal

5iKaioa\)vf\. Cf. 2 Pet. 2,4: nox> eoxiv r\ inayyeXia xfjq napovGiaq £Koifir|9r|Gav, rcdvxa omcoq Siaiievei arc' dp%fi<; xf)<; K x i a e t o q . ,B

avxov;

d(p'

r\c,

oi rcaxepeq

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19

b e a r i n g fruit quickly b u t in due season. But he n o w extends the image so as to exclude a n y notion of apocalyptic cataclysm or dis order from his account of the resurrection of the body. Beginning with the association of Christ's resurrection as the Pauline drcapxri with the tree growing to fruition, he can n o w m a k e the res urrection of the body almost into an event of orderly natural fulfilment. As he n o w continues: Let us observe, brothers, (i'Scouev, dyaTcriToi) that the resurrection takes place in due season (xr|v m i d Koupov yivouevriv dvdciaaiv). Day and night reveal the resurrection to us. The night goes to sleep, the day arises. The day departs, night comes on. Corinthians 2 4 , 2 T h e r e then follows the famous c h a p t e r on the Phoenix (25). T h e Egyptian priests can m e a s u r e accurately its five-hundred year life cycle. T h e s e n a t u r a l events reveal the ability of the creator to b r i n g a b o u t gradually a n d orderly, as p a r t of the natural o r d e r of things, the resurrection of the body. T h u s C l e m e n t ' s use of Eldad and Modad does not lead h i m , as it does the a u t h o r of 2 Pet. 3,10, to claim that the universe will be dissolved in a sudden cataclysm. For h i m the resurrection on the Last D a y remains p a r t of a universe of Stoic oudvoia, a n d its doctrinal reflection in the c o m m u n i t y will lead not to cataclysmic strife b u t to the eipr|vr| of the Christian, contra-cultural pax dei as opposed to the imperial pax deorum. C l e m e n t therefore has his own distinctive variation o n the L u k a n t h e m e of the supersession of apocalypticism by a refashioned a n d Christianized imperialist ideology. It will be interesting to ask the precise c h a r a c t e r of the g r o u p opposed by C l e m e n t w h o seem to have affirmed such an apocalypticism. 4B

3. The character of the group responsible for the

cidoiq

T h e question remains a tantalising one of w h a t particular set of doc trines might have reinforced those in the C o r i n t h i a n c o m m u n i t y w h o h a d apparently urged the deposition of the "blameless" presbyterbishops. W o u l d there be a n y justification in seeing t h e m as the kind of g r o u p represented by the Didache in which any with the gift of a p r o p h e t could preside a n d teach, although by the time of writing of that d o c u m e n t the abuses of such a C h u r c h O r d e r were b e c o m i n g

Cor. 2 3 , 4 - 5 cf. Mk.

13,28 3 1 ; Mat. 2 4 , 3 2 35; Lk. 2 1 , 2 9 -33.

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a p p a r e n t ? Such a g r o u p , as Did. 9,4 makes clear, would see their prophetic gifts in a n apocalyptic context. T h e Eucharistic p r a y e r is set in the context of the apocalyptic gathering together of the elect (ML 13,27). Like the later Montanists, the spirit-filled c o m m u n i t y would p u r p o r t to be egalitarian, a n d without a n ordered hierarchy, as it waited u n d e r the shadow of the eschaton. S o m e indications that this was the case can be seen in the i m m e diate context of C l e m e n t ' s introduction of the resurrection of the body. W e find that this future h o p e has b e c o m e the o u t c o m e of an orderly a n d h a r m o n i o u s , Stoic N a t u r e r a t h e r t h a n as an apocalyp tic cataclysm that upset the n o r m a l course of n a t u r e . A c o m m o n apocalyptic t h e m e was the b r e a k d o w n of n o r m a l family relationships, in which the cataclysm of n a t u r e was reflected in the b r e a k d o w n of social order. In ML 13,12 we read that: "Brother shall deliver brother to death, a n d father child, a n d children shall rise u p against parents a n d m u r d e r t h e m . " But immediately prior to C l e m e n t ' s discussion of the resurrection of the b o d y we read: Let us reverence those who rule us (xoix; Tcporiyouuevoix; fjucov ai5ea6cou8v), let us honour our elders (xoix; npeofivxepovq f|ucov xiuriocouev), let us dis cipline our young men (xoix; viovq 7cai5ei)ocouev) with the discipline of the fear of God (xf|v 7 i a i 5 e i a v xov cpopoi) xov 0eot>), let us direct our women towards that which is good (xaq yuvaimc; f|ucov eVi xo dya66v 8iop6coocbu£0a) . . . let them show their love, not in factitious prefer ences but equally in holiness to those who fear God (xr|v dydjtriv avxcov, ur| Kotxd 7cpoaKAioei<; aXka 7iaaiv xoiq (popouuevoK; xov 9e6v ooicoq iar|v Tiapexexcooav) . . .

Corinthians 2 1 , 6 - 7 T h o s e w h o were b e h a v i n g in this way did not of course see their behaviour in such a light. For t h e m the equality of charismatic spir itual e n d o w m e n t e n d e d submission on g r o u n d s of sex a n d age. T h e inspired w o m a n would feel love for the prophetic, spirit-filled per son, a n d would incline towards t h e m in their youth against the aged presbyter-bishops. T h e younger, taught by the Spirit, would seek to instruct the elder. A n d their justification would n o d o u b t be the i m p e n d i n g apocalyptic cataclysm a n d the o u t p o u r i n g of the Spirit on all flesh prior to the eschaton. C l e m e n t therefore denies this c o m m o n apocalyptic motif in c o n s e q u e n c e of his reconstructed Stoic metaphysics. Such b e h a v i o u r in C l e m e n t ' s Christianised Stoic a n d R o m a n eyes was clearly axdoi<;. Such charismatic a b a n d o n m e n t was reminiscent

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o f the Bacchanalian riot: it showed that axaciq is "foolish (uxxxocicc)" (63,1), b u t t h e kind of foolishness t h a t leads to d e m e n t e d r a g e . "Jealousy (C,r\koq)" has connotations of "enthusiasm", which C l e m e n t directly associates with "envy (cpBovoq)" (3,2). Clearly this is the psy chological state in which C l e m e n t characterises his o p p o n e n t s . T h e y are the "senseless (oi dcppoveq)" against "those of right m i n d (cppoviuoi)" (3,3), w h o lack such Stoic virtues of "self control ( e y K p o c x e i a ) " " m o d esty (oco(ppOGi>vri)," "patience ( \ m o u o v f | ) " or "forbearance ( e r c i e i K e i a ) " (62,2; see also 64; 56,1). T h e i r (charismatic) speech is a n example of p r o u d a n d overbearing recklessness (au0d8eia). T h e personali ties of their leaders, w h o are described as "unstable (rcpOTiexfj)" a n d "reckless (ocuGdSrj)," h a v e lead to "such a p i t c h of m a d n e s s (eiq xoaouxov drcovoiaq)". T h u s they are ritually c o n t a m i n a t e d with u i o c p d 20

m i dvooioq o x d a K ; . "

2 1

In a passage evocative of the Bacchic M a e n a d s r e n d i n g a s u n d e r the b o d y of K r e o n , C l e m e n t says: Why do we tear (iva x( Sietacouxv) and rip apart (Kal 8iaa7cco|iev) Christ's members (xd \iekr\ xov Xpioxou), and create rebellion (Kal axaaid^o^iev) against our own Body (npoq xo ocoua xo i'Siov) and reach such a pitch of delirium (Kal eiq xoaat>xT|v drcovoiav epxoueGa) that we forget (cooxe £7ciXa0ea0ai r\\iaq) that we are members of one another (oxi \LEXT) eojiev dAArjAxov). Corinthians 4 6 , 7 Against such drcovoia C l e m e n t has to r e m i n d m e m b e r s of the charis matic cxaciq that they d o n o t possess the Spirit alone b u t "we have (exojiev). . . one Spirit of grace (ev rcvevua xfjc; xdpvxoq) p o u r e d o u t u p o n us (xo eK^uGev ecp' r\\ia<;)" (46,6) F u r t h e r m o r e the apostles a n d their ordained, episcopal successors also h a d the "fullness of the Holy Spirit (jiexd rcA,r|po(pop(a<; rcveuuaxoc; d y i o u ) , " (42,3) a n d the former e x a m i n e d the latter r e g a r d i n g their spiritual gifts before their ordi nation (SoKipdaccvxeq xco 7wet)|icxxi). (42,4) It is i m p o r t a n t to grasp that, in the light of o u r discussion, the concept of C h u r c h O r d e r with the a i d of which C l e m e n t seeks to p u t d o w n the charismatic a n d apocalyptic axaciq, represents a sec ularisation of the Christian tradition as C l e m e n t h a d received it. Secularisation m a y , in W e b e r ' s terms, be irreligious. But in terms of

20

Cor. 57,2: drcoGeuevoi xt^v dA,a£6va K a l imepricpavov xfjq y ^ c o a o T i q i)|icov ai)6d8eiav. Ibid. 1,1: . . . uiapdq K a l d v o a i o u cxdoecoq- r\v oXiya npoaconarcpoTtexfjK a l ai)9d8r| \)7cdpxovxa eiq xoaovxov drcovoiac; e ^ e m v a a v . Cf. also 4 6 , 7 . 21

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the b a c k g r o u n d to these late first century events at C o r i n t h , the sec ularist invasion in this case was that of a religious saeculum. C l e m e n t has refashioned the Stoic, metaphysical justification of imperial o r d e r in terms of the pax deorum into the pax Christi. T h e Christian c o m m u n i t y is to be a m i r r o r image of imperial order, albeit with m a n y images reversed or transformed, as is characteristic of a process of contra-cultural creation. 'AGeuixoc; opyn a n d £r|A,o<; are opposed to the imperial ideals of eiprivr] a n d oudvoia (63,2-3), secured sacramentally by Augustus' cul tic augurium salutis t h a t ushered in Vergil's saeculum aureum (2A 5). T h o s e concepts, n o w transformed into the pax Christi, provide us with the contra-cultural legitimation of a g r o u p excluded from the wider c o m m u n i t y b u t which n o w creates its o w n values a n d status-hierar chy by analogy with its host culture. T h o s e w h o inhabit the social construction of reality thus created will see that they can conceive their status as possessing a rcaiSeia ("education", "discipline") by anal ogy with t h a t of R o m a n civilisation (62,3 a n d 56). Z e n o ' s ethical ideal, developed by Cleanthes, h a d b e e n that £fjv m x ' dpexf|v was the equivalent of xfj ipuoei 6uoA,oyo\)uevco<; £fjv, w h i c h in t u r n was equivalent to Kax' opGov Aoyov f^v. 22

T h a t ethical ideal, realised in imperial o r d e r a n d given religious expression in the Imperial Cult, was clearly contrary to the apoca lyptic vision of cataclysmic j u d g e m e n t descending on the social o r d e r with its cataclysmic c o u n t e r p a r t in the n a t u r a l order. T h e egalitar ian charismata of the end-time were reminiscent of the Bacchanalian riot as a s y m p t o m of the metaphysical catastrophe that m a r k e d the history of the final century of the constitution of the later R o m a n Republic. Such events were not portents of salus b u t of disaster, of w h a t C l e m e n t calls: £f|ta)<;, ipGovoc;, epic;, oxdoic;, 8icoyu6<;, dicaxaaxatfia, 7i6A,euo<;, a n d a i x u a t a o a i a (2,6), a n d w h i c h R o m a n historiography characterised as the condition of things before Augustus' augurium pacis, before, in the words of the proconsular decrees of Asia (9 B.C.), the 8uxi>%r|ua of Augustus' birth that " h a d set right the scheme of things that h a d passed into calamity (eiq dxu%e<; uexapePrjKOc; axf|ua dvcopGcoaev)." (2B 4) C l e m e n t ' s Christian reconstruction of the i m p e rialist social reality of his intellectual b a c k g r o u n d could never see

2 2

J. von A r n i m (Ed.), Stoicorum veterum fragment, (Leipzig: T e u b n e r 1 9 0 2 - 1 9 0 3 ) , 1, 179. Cf. J . M . Rist, Stoic Philosophy, (Cambridge: U . P . 1969), p p . 2 - 3 .

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EMPIRE

161

disorder a n d chaos as a sign of the c o m i n g of Christ's kingdom. T h e Stoic social ethic in the context of the imperial pax deorum b e c a m e a n ethic of imperial citizenship. T o "live" in a m o r a l sense b e c a m e to "act as a citizen (TtotaxeueaOai)." It is precisely this concept that C l e m e n t n o w uses in a Christianised sense in o r d e r to reject the apocalypticism of his charismatic o p p o n e n t s . T h e Corinthians, before the oxdoic;, or so h e claims, were " a d o r n e d with a sacred life (oePccauicp noXmia KeKoaurjuevoi)." (2,8) T h i s , he pointedly asserts against his o p p o n e n t s , was because "there h a d been a full outpour ing of the Holy Spirit u p o n all (rcA,f|pr|<; rcveuuaxoc; dyiou EK^UGK; EKI rcdvxaq eyivexo)." (2,2) H e accuses t h e m , in c o n s e q u e n c e of their oxdoiq, of "not c o n d u c t i n g themselves (ur|8e TioAaxeueoGai) according to w h a t is b e c o m i n g to Christ ( m x d xo KccOfJKov xcp Xpioxcp)." (3,4) To KocGfJKov was a technical t e r m in Stoic ethics for " a n a p p r o p r i a t e a c t i o n . " T h o s e w h o have persecuted the righteous, as have those w h o have deposed the presbyter-bishops, are called dvouoi, dvoaioi a n d T c c c p d v o u o i (45,3), because their b e h a v i o u r offends the n o r m s of Christian citizenship by analogy with the ideal of imperial civil a n d cultic m o r a l unity. 23

24

Let us n o w in conclusion summarise the significance of o u r dis cussion of C l e m e n t for o u r general a r g u m e n t that the d e v e l o p m e n t of C h u r c h O r d e r follows the d e v e l o p m e n t of the Imperial Cult a n d its underlying ideology t h r o u g h a d y n a m i c social interaction char acterised in terms of sociological theory of contra-culture.

PART C.

CLEMENT'S CONSTRUCTION OF

CONTRA-CULTURE

W e have traced not a merely incidental b u t a fundamental parallel b e t w e e n C l e m e n t ' s Corinthians, a n d the c o m m u n i t y of T h e o p h i l u s addressed in Luke-Acts. T h e fundamental perspectives of both represent a refashioning of early Christian eschatology. C l e m e n t has refashioned the metaphysics of social o r d e r derived from the conceptual web that e m b r a c e d the Imperial Cult as the sacramental m e a n s of obtaining the pax deorum. W e saw however that this fundamental parallel, with incidental ones besides, was based u p o n n o direct relationship such as would be evidenced by direct quotations of o n e by the other. But

n

'

2 4

Cor. 2,8 cf. 5 1 , 2 : oi iizxa (p6|5o\) K a i ayartric; 7co^iTe\)6(ievoi. . . Rist (1969), p p . 9 8 - 9 9 .

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h o w are these parallels to be explained if there is n o direct relation ship? T h e tertium quid is the imperialist ideology focused o n the e m p e r o r cult a n d the contra-cultural response b o t h in T h e o p h i l u s ' c o m m u n i t y a n d that of C l e m e n t , b o t h of w h o m thus exemplify a general sociological p h e n o m e n o n . T h e general p h e n o m e n o n of contra-culture involves the recon struction of social reality by an alienated sub-culture that seeks to legitimate its position with reference to the value system of the d o m inant culture. T h e sub-culture refashions for its o w n g r o u p the value system of the d o m i n a n t culture so as to create a frame of reference in terms of which its m e m b e r s can achieve the status that the value system of the d o m i n a n t culture denies t h e m . T h e d o m i n a n t culture remains unimpressed, a n d does not itself therefore enter into the social construction of reality thus created. T h e creation of a contraculture therefore c a n n o t function apologetically so as to gain recog nition a n d status for the sub-culture from the d o m i n a n t culture. But the d o m i n a n t culture is nevertheless preserved by the creation of the contra-culture. T h e latter serves the e n d of re-integrating discordant elements within the social whole in a form that, t h o u g h discordant, is nevertheless innocuous in that it c a n n o t radically d a m a g e the exist ing social structure; its relation with that structure becomes o n e of symbiosis. H e n c e , as we discussed in C h a p t e r 1, criminal activity such as juvenile delinquency c a n be regarded as contra-culture in this sense. Activity that might otherwise b e revolutionary is r e n d e r e d margin ally harmful to the social fabric w h e n stolen vehicles driven at high speed b e c o m e constructed as showing the m o r a l quality of " h e a r t " , giving prestige to the person w h o so acts by a contra-cultural value system that has thus reversed the social n o r m s of " c a u t i o n " a n d "safety," the avoidance of "recklessness," the "respect" for o t h e r p e o ple's property etc. So too C l e m e n t ' s reconstruction of p a g a n social reality, as that of the a u t h o r of Luke-Acts, can be read in such a socialtheoretical context. T h e acorn,p{oc a n d eipf|vri of C h r i s t c o m e n o t t h r o u g h apocalyptic cataclysm in which n a t u r e is u p r o o t e d a n d order within the community abolished. These objectives are achieved through the o r d e r a n d h a r m o n y b r e a t h e d by G o d into n a t u r e being realised in the o r d e r of the c o m m u n i t y , a n d t h r o u g h the preservation of Tdyuxx in which one m e m b e r subjects themselves to a n o t h e r t h r o u g h a 7tai5e[a that is also a urcoTocyri. T h u s m e m b e r s of C l e m e n t ' s g r o u p , as we saw was the case with

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163

that of T h e o p h i l u s , m a d e legitimate in their own eyes their position in relation to the d o m i n a n t culture. T h a t position for t h e m thus b e c a m e e n d o w e d with the status a n d dignity that the d o m i n a n t cul ture denied t h e m . T h e y claimed to satisfy by m e a n s of the pax Christi the political a n d religious yearnings of those w h o participated in the pax of Augustus, a n d the cultic expression of that peace in e m p e r o r worship. In doing so they believed that they h a d d o n e their duty by their fellow, p a g a n citizens. But the final p e a c e with those citizens themselves could only c o m e about, not by the construction of ad hominem apologetic, b u t by the creation of a transforming synthesis between Christian a n d imperial theology in which b o t h sides found their religious a n d political convictions adequately fulfilled. C h u r c h O r d e r would n e e d still m o r e to transform imperialist O r d e r , b u t in t u r n to b e transformed itself by t h a t e n c o u n t e r , as the centuries m o v e d towards C o n s t a n t i n e a n d J u l i a n . In contrast to expressions that we will argue that the Apocalypse reveals to have b e e n characteristic of the Imperial Cult, C l e m e n t ' s prayer for the rulers of the empire attributes to the G o d a n d Father of Christ alone such epithets as 6 udvoc; Suvaxoc;, SearcoTric;, a n d fiaoikeix; to w h o m alone he attributes the final 86^a, ueyaXcoauvri, a n d Kpdxoq (61,2-3). In o u r next c h a p t e r we shall find these expressions in the Apocalypse set in the context of a quite different conception of the R o m a n e m p i r e a n d the relationship of a Christian c o m m u n i t y with it. T o a discussion of the Apocalypse we shall n o w turn.

C H A P T E R FIVE

T H E APOCALYPSE

AND DOMITIAN'S

ICONOGRAPHY

The Lamb's victory in sacrifice and the festal community

W e argued in the last c h a p t e r (4A) the general historical reliability of the Christian tradition of D o m i t i a n as a second N e r o in perse cuting Christianity. D i o Cassius Hist. 67,14 was hardly contrary evi d e n c e since by the p h r a s e i d xcov 'Iou8a{cov f]0T| this a u t h o r p r o b a b l y h a d n o intention of identifying J u d a i s m as distinct from Christian ity (4A 1). I n d e e d he would not have registered a n y distinguishable difference b e t w e e n either faith at a superficial, p h e n o m e n o l o g i c a l level. F u r t h e r m o r e , the claim t h a t D o m i t i a n was a persecutor did not rest u p o n the Christianity of Flavius Clemens a n d Flavia Domitilla alone (4A 2 a n d 4A 3). But in o n e respect the Eusebian tradition h a d b e e n deceptive in that it presupposed a general edict of persecution impossible before A . D . 2 5 1 . O u r hypothesis was that non-participation in the Imperial Cult, whilst n o t in itself illegal, exposed the non-participant to other accusations of practicing a superstitio the purpose of which was to cause social disorder t h r o u g h creating metaphysical disorder that dis r u p t e d the cosmic h a r m o n y of the pax deorum (3C 2.3). But if this were the case, then it would be particular changes in the Imperial Cult itself that would cause persecution, since non-participation would attract particular notice. Let us n o w consider those changes, a n d h o w they are reflected in the i c o n o g r a p h y of the Apocalypse.

PART A.

DOMITIAN'S C U L T AND THE D A T E OF THE APOCALYPSE

T h e Apocalypse presupposes the reality of a particular a n d d a n g e r o u s confrontation between D o m i t i a n a n d the C h u r c h . If n o such novel a n d particularly vicious confrontation occurred in that reign, then this would b e evidence against a Domitianic date for the Apocalypse, a n d hence its association with the situations presupposed in t u r n by

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165

C l e m e n t Corinthians a n d reflected in the immediately succeeding gen eration of Ignatius of Antioch. Let us begin, therefore, with a considera tion of the date of the Apocalypse, a n d the confirmation of that d a t e in critical changes that o c c u r r e d in the ceremonial a n d i c o n o g r a p h y of the Imperial C u l t u n d e r D o m i t i a n that also find reflections there. 5A

1. The date of the Apocalypse

Rejecting the testimony of Irenaeus (Adversus Haer. V , 3 0 , 3 ; Eusebius H.E. 111,18), J o n e s argues for a d a t e in N e r o ' s reign. His g r o u n d s are his belief in the greater probability that the description in Apoc. 17, 9 - 1 1 refers to that reign. T h e beast with seven h e a d s is clearly the R o m a n e m p i r e since they c o r r e s p o n d to the seven hills on which the harlot sits. But they are also seven kings (v. 9). "Five have fallen, one still is, a n d the other has not yet c o m e . . ." (v. 10). J o n e s con siders t h a t all o t h e r solutions simply "avoid the obvious c h o i c e " that Augustus is the first a n d therefore N e r o must be the fifth. 1

But I would suggest that the choice is only "obvious" to s o m e o n e w h o is in a position to k n o w the specific details of the history of the Principate. T h e a u t h o r of the Apocalypse, which was a semi-literate work, was hardly such a person. In his situation in Asia M i n o r , he would get his information from non-literary artefacts like temples of the Imperial Cult such as those at Ephesus, S m y r n a , or at P e r g a m o n , a n d from p r o m i n e n t a n d striking statues a n d n u m i s m a t i c iconogra p h y of particular e m p e r o r s to be found there. H e took over such a kaleidoscope of non-literary imagery a n d refashioned his fragmen tary images into n e w patterns. T h o u g h those patterns b e a r the influ ence of his J u d a e o - C h r i s t i a n b a c k g r o u n d , they also retain the impress of their original p a g a n matrix. T h e r e are five indications of a d a t e in D o m i t i a n ' s reign in the text of the Apocalypse itself, from which we can conclude that the Seer's imagery was d r a w n from the specific b a c k g r o u n d provided by his reign. 5A 1.1. Domitian's edict on the vineyards Apoc. 6,6 ("a choinix of w h e a t for a denarius (%oivi^ orcou 8r|vap(ou), a n d three choinikes o f barley for a denarius (Kai xpeiq xoivuceq KpiGcov 8r|vap{ou), a n d d o not d a m a g e the olive a n d the vine (Kai TO etaxiov Kai xov oivov ufi d8iicr|CTTi<;)") appears quite clearly to refer t o Domitian's 1

B . W . J o n e s , The Emperor Domitian, (London: Routledge 1992), p. 116.

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u n i m p l e m e n t e d edict forbidding further planting of vines in Italy, a n d the reduction of acerage for vinyards in the provinces, if feasi ble, by one half. It seems to have been a response to famine a i m e d at e n c o u r a g i n g the growing of c o r n . T h e instruction TO e'Amov KOCI TOV oivov \ir\ dSucnGTiq seems therefore to b e directed at a situation where famine prices for w h e a t were t h r e a t e n i n g olive a n d vine-grow ing. O n the foundations of this clear indication of a Domitianic date for the Apocalypse it is then possible to point to other Domitianic allusions found generally in the Apocalypse as well as in the letters to the seven churches. 2

3

4

5A 1.2. Domitian and Domitia: the divine child: A p o c . 12,1-6 Domitia's child was b o r n in 7 3 a n d died in 8 3 . Domitia was described after this event as m o t h e r of gods on coins depicting her as Ceres, D e m e t e r , a n d Cybele. It is interesting to c o m p a r e the iconography s u r r o u n d i n g this event with Apoc. 1 2 , l - 6 . H e r e , essentially, there is a heavenly sign ( K a l o r | U £ i o v u e y a co(p9r| e v TCO o u p a v c p ) . T h e r e is " a w o m a n clothed with the sun (yvvx)rcepipePAriiievnTOV TIAAOV) a n d the m o o n u n d e r h e r feet ( K a l f| oeXi\vr\ i m o K a T c o TCOV rco8cov a u T f j q ) a n d u p o n h e r h e a d a c r o w n of twelve stars ( K a l ini TT|<; KetpaX-fiq cx\)Tfj<; OTecpavoq d a T e p c o v 8co8eKa)." (12,1) She is pursued by the seven-headed d r a g o n , whose tail sweeps a w a y one third of the stars, a n d w h o intends to d e v o u r h e r child, destined to rule the nations (2-4). T h e n "she b r o u g h t forth a male child ( K a l eTeKev mov a p a e v ) , destined to shepherd all the nations with a r o d of iron (6q \ieXXei rcoiuaiveiv rcdvTa T a eGvr| e v pdp8cp a i 8 r | p a ) . A n d the child was snatched away to G o d ( m i fip7cda9r| TO Teicvov a\)Tfjq rcpoq TOV Geov) a n d to his t h r o n e ( K a l npbq 5

TOV GpOVOV

OLVTOX).)."

In a coin of A . D . 9 2 , after h e r restoration to favour, D o m i t i a is depicted d r a p e d a n d veiled, a n d seated o n a t h r o n e extending h e r h a n d to touch a small boy. H e holds in his left h a n d the sceptre of

2

S u e t o n i u s , Dom. 7,2; Philostratus, Vit. Apoll. 6 , 4 2 ; Vit. Soph. 1,21. S e e also P. S o u t h e r n , Domitian, Tragic Tyrant, ( L o n d o n a n d N e w York: R o u t l e d g e 1997), p. 58. Suetonius, Dom. 7,2; Statius, Sihae IV, 3 , 1 1 - 1 2 . C J. H e m e r , T h e Letters to the S e v e n C h u r c h e s o f Asia in their Local Setting, in JSNT.S 11 (1986), p . 4, p p . 1 5 8 - 1 5 9 and p . 175. E. Stauffer, Christ and the Caesars: Historical Sketches, ( L o n d o n : S . C . M . 1955), p p . 1 5 0 - 1 5 3 , w h i c h h o w e v e r suffered greatly in argumentative force because o f the author's refusal to d o c u m e n t with detailed citation the claims that he m a d e . I have sought to remedy this lack where I follow Stauffer in the following account. 3

4

5

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THE APOCALYPSE AND DOMITIAN'S ICONOGRAPHY

world d o m i n i o n whilst blessing the world with his right. T h e inscrip tion reads: D I V I C A E S A R [ I S ] M A T R I (Plate 21). T h e obverse side of the coin depicts D o m i t i a d r a p e d with h e r hair tied u p at the b a c k a n d raised in a d o m e at the front with elaborate coils (Plate 20). Domitia's child thus shows, with his sceptre a n d globe, close corre s p o n d e n c e with oq uiAAei rcoiuxxiveiv rcdvxa xd eOvr] ev pdp8cp oiSripa. F u r t h e r m o r e the child has died a n d b e c o m e o n e with the i m p e rial family in deification, just like the child of the Apoc. 12,5: Kai fip7cda6r| xo xeicvov auxf|q npbq xov 9e6v. A further earlier, gold coin of A . D . 8 3 bears the inscription: D I V U S C A E S A R I M P D O M I T I A N I F [ I L I U S ] . H e r e the naked infant, divus Caesar is depicted as b a b y J u p i t e r seated o n a globe with seven stars a r o u n d h i m (Plate 23). T h e obverse of the coin is inscribed D O M I T I A A V G V S T A I M P [ E R A T O R I S ] D O M I T [ I A N I ] (Plate 22). T h u s in the image of Apoc. 12,1 we find the infant's circle or crown of seven stars interchanged with those of the w o m a n w h o has erci xx\q KecpaA^q amx\q axecpavoq daxepcov 8co8eKa. 6

7

T h e t h e m e of the seven stars as a n attribute of divinity a p p e a r s also in the letter to Ephesus (2,1: xd8e Aiyei 6 Kpaxcov xoix; ercxd doxepaq ev xii Se^ia auxou). Martial's p o e m describes the prince as m o v i n g t h r o u g h the air a n d playing with the seven stars, which indicate the seven planets. T h e t h e m e of a divinised e m p e r o r being sent to the stars is typical of the Flavian dynasty, as we c a n see from M a r t i a l (Epig. 9, 101,22 a n d 14, 124) or J u v e n a l (Sat. X I I I , 4 6 - 4 9 ) . R e g a r d i n g the association of the w o m a n with the sun a n d the m o o n in Apoc. 12,1, we have the image of Aeternitas, standing hold ing the heads of the sun a n d the m o o n in h e r h a n d s , as a special m a r k of F l a v i a n c o i n a g e , w i t h t h e i n s c r i p t i o n A E T E R N I T A T I A V G V S T . S.C. (Plate 2 5 ) . Silus Atticus describes D o m i t i a n w h e n finally divinised giving forth rays n e a r his son. Again Statius (Silvae 8

9

10

11

6

BMC 2, p. 4 1 3 no. 501 a n d plate 8 2 , 8 . BMC 2, p. 311 n o . 62 a n d plate 6 1 , 6 . Cf. 6 3 - 6 5 plates 6 1 , 7 - 9 . Also Domitian's restoration o f coin s h o w i n g the h e a d o f Divus Augustus radi ate to the left with a star above, a n d the incription: D I W S A V G V S T V S P A T E R with Victoria o n the reverse side. BMC 2, p. 4 1 4 no. 5 0 4 a n d 5 0 5 plate 8 2 , 8 . S e e also II p. 8 no. 47 pi. 1,15 bust o f sol radiate Vespasian cf. BMC 1, p. 100 nos 611 ff. a n d p. 142 n o . 155, plate 2 6 , 3 a n d 5. Scott (1975) p. 7 1 . BMC 2, p. 3 6 4 n o . 3 0 3 , plate 71,6; p. 3 7 2 n o . 3 4 6 plate 73,4 (Plate 24); 3 7 4 , no. 3 5 3 , cf. K. Scott, The Imperial Cult under the Flavians, ( N e w York: A r n o 1975), p. 9 5 . Silvius Statius, Punica 3,629: "siderei iuxta radiabunt tempora nati." 7

8

9

10

11

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4 , 1 , 3-4) describes h i m on his entry to his seventeenth consulship (A.D. 91) as: " A n d he is rising (atque oritur) with the new sun (cum sole novo), with the lofty stars (cum grandibus astris), himself shining m o r e brighdy (clarius ipse nitens) a n d m o r e gready t h a n the m o r n i n g star (et maior Eoo)." T h e " m o r n i n g star (xov cxaxepcc xov rcpcoivov) in Apoc. 2,28; 22,16 b e c o m e s a description of Christ or Christ's gift. 5A 1.3. The topography of Ephesus In Apoc. 2,7 the contra-cultural analogue of the sacred xe|xevoq of the temple of Artemis at Ephesus is the 7tocpd8eico<; xou 0eot>. T h e cross that is the tree of life (8cooco auxcp (payew £K xou ZfiXov xx\q £cofj<;) con stitutes the contra-eikon of the tree-shrine depicting the birth of A r t e m i s . F r o m long antiquity that xepxvoq h a d b e e n a place w h e r e criminals h a d sought a n d obtained asylum. T h e r e is evidence that D o m i t i a n e x t e n d e d this area a n d thus c o m p o u n d e d the abuse to which two letters of Apollonius of T y a n n a , allegedly c o n t e m p o r a r y with this reign, attest (65 a n d 66). Such extensions would have reac tivated public a l a r m at the scandal of the criminal refugees in the a r e a a n d given pertinence to this reference, since Augustus h a d tried to limit the area a n d therefore the a b u s e . T h u s the case for a D o m i tianic date is strengthened. F u r t h e r m o r e we have already described the "union of necorates" in Asia formed from the assimilation of E p h e s u s as vecoKopoq xfjq 'ApxeuiSoq (Acts 19,35) with the 12

13

Imperial Cult from D o m i t i a n ' s time o n w a r d s (2C 2.3.2.3). 5A 1.4. Jewish-Christian relations H e m e r found the second firm D o m i t i a n i c references in the allusions to the " s y n a g o g u e of S a t a n " b o t h in S m y r n a (Apoc. 2,9) a n d in Philadelphia (3,9). A r o u n d A . D . 90 the Beracoth ha minim were inserted into the Eighteen Benedictions. In consequence it was n o longer pos sible for J e w i s h Christians to use their ancestry as a m e a n s of remov ing the social o p p r o b r i u m for their non-participation in the Imperial Cult. T h u s there w o u l d have b e e n as legal consequences the charges of superstitio or contumacia. Ignatius (Philad. 6,1) implies that even uncir-

12

H e m e r (1986), pp. 4 2 - 4 7 . Ibid. pp. 4 8 - 5 0 where H e m e r quotes Strabo X I V , 1,23; Tactius, Annal. 111,60-63; Suetonius, Tib. 37 in connection with earlier problems. For evidence for the Domitianic extensions he relies o n the reconstruction in Syli\ 9 8 9 , BMInscr 5 2 0 . 13

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cumcised Gentile Christians tried this escape route with the result that iouSai'oudv was h e a r d rcapd aicpoPuoxou. T h i s j u d a i z e d form of Christianity i n Asia M i n o r m a y have b e e n highly similar to the conception of the reformed cult of J u d a i s m that formed the legitimation of the uncircumcised T h e o p h i l u s a n d his circle (3B). But such groups i n the Seer's eyes were clearly aauvaycoyn xou l a x a v a . T h e y claimed to be J e w s (EK xcov Xeyovxcov 'Io\)8aiou<; E i v a i feauxoix;) but they were not so (KOCI OUK E i a i v dAXd\|/£u8ovxai). Moreover the bitterness of the language reflects persecution that J e w s could easily activate against their n o w e x c o m m u n i c a t e d co-fraternity for w h o m there was n o w n o cultic proxy. W e have seen t h a t the issue of J u d a i s m a n d the responsibility to p a y the temple tax as a p r o x y for participation i n the Imperial C u l t was particularly critical at the time of D o m i t i a n (3C 2.3.3.3). 14

Given therefore the D o m i t i a n i c b a c k g r o u n d of the Apocalypse, we m u s t n o w ask w h a t specific features of the I m p e r i a l C u l t u n d e r D o m i t i a n could have inspired such strong polemic from the Seer as Apoc. 1 7 , 1 - 6 w h e r e the " W h o r e of Babylon d r u n k with the blood of the saints a n d with the blood of the martyrs of J e s u s " i s described i n such a lurid h u e . M o r e is clearly here implied t h a n simply a n increase i n cultic building works such as the extension of the XEUEVO<; of D i a n a at Ephesus associated with a n imperial t e m p l e . T o the question of D o m i t i a n ' s reconceptualisation a n d reorganisation of the cult we n o w turn. 5A

2. The Imperial Cult under Domitian

T h e clear d o c u m e n t a r y evidence for a c h a n g e i n the cultic position of the e m p e r o r at the time of D o m i t i a n confirms this hypothesis. G a i u s ' assumption of divine h o n o u r s i n his lifetime h a d been con d e m n e d at R o m e , t h o u g h of course there h a d never b e e n any p r o b lem i n the East a b o u t the theological justification for ruler worship. Nevertheless Suetonius (Domit. 13,1-2) informs us that " w h e n he dic tated a formal letter u n d e r the n a m e of his p r o c u r a t o r s he began: " Y o u r L o r d a n d G o d [dominus et deus) orders this to be d o n e . In con sequence i t b e c a m e the custom t h a t h e should be addressed i n n o other way w h e t h e r i n writing or i n speech." In the same passage he records t h a t D o m i t i a n , w h e n taking back his wife after their divorce,

14

Apoc. 2,9 and 3,9, cf. H e m e r (1986), p p . 4, 8 - 1 0 , 6 6 - 6 7 , 163, 1 7 5 - 1 7 6 .

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boasted that she h a d been s u m m o n e d back to "the divine couch (in pulvinar)." Let us firsdy consider literary evidence for D o m i t i a n ' s divine tides, a n d then evidence for a c h a n g e in the ritual a n d by implication underlying theology of the cult. 10

5A 2 . 1 . Domitian's divine titles: d o m i n u s , praesens deus, t o n a n s T h o u g h Statius a p p e a r s not to use dominus as a divine title, Martial clearly does. H e quotes a n edict regulating seating in the theatre that begins edictum domini deique nostri (Epig. 5,5). Regarding the emperor's breastplate, h e writes in addressing it t h a t it is domini lorica, a n d that "you are h a p p y in y o u r lot (felix sorte tud) whose destiny is to clothe the sacred breast (sacrum cui tangere pectus) a n d to feel the glow of the h e a r t of o u r G o d (et nostri mente calere dei)" (7',2,2 a n d 5-6) Martial particularly mentions h i m as the deus w h o erected the shrine of J u p i t e r Capitolinus (13,74), w h o receives libations, a n d w h o grants the prayers of his worshippers (6,87). 16

It would, I believe, be quite w r o n g to dismiss Martial's words as of litde significance, as m e r e flattery. Statius too speaks of D o m i t i a n in such terms as the forma dei praesens, or the proximus ilk deus (Statius, Silvae I, 1,62; V , 2,70). N o r is the evidence for such a title in court poets alone. D i o Chrysostom (Or. 45,1) records that D o m i t i a n was called icopioq Kai Geoq by all Greeks a n d b a r b a r i a n s but t h a t h e him self did not "flatter in this way (Kai T a u r a ou Gameucov)." T h i s implies t h a t even at R o m e a n d not only in the East were some p r e p a r e d to behave in this fashion. T h e tide dominus in association with deus was a blatant abrogation of the ideology of the principate that n o d o u b t offended the sena torial class w h o h a d other reasons as well for resenting D o m i t i a n ' s terror. Pliny certainly in Panegyricus 2 , 2 - 3 contrasts T r a j a n ' s rule with t h a t of D o m i t i a n : Allow therefore to make their exit and go their way (Quare abeant ac recedant) those expressions which fear expressed (voces Mae quas metus exprimebat). We do not have to speak as before, for we do not have to suffer the things we suffered before. Public addresses regarding the emperor shall not be the same (nec eadem de principe palam quae prius

15

Scott (1975), pp. 1 0 2 - 1 0 3 . See also Martial Epig. 5,5; 7 , 5 , 1 - 6 ; 3 4 , 8 - 9 ; 8 , 2 , 6 - 7 ; 8 2 , 1 - 5 ; 9 , 2 8 , 7 - 8 ; 6 6 , 3 - 4 . T h e s e and other passages are discussed in Scott (1975), p p . 1 0 4 - 1 0 9 . 16

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171

praedicemus) since what we used to say before in secret is now also different (neque enim eadem secreto quae prius loquimur). The change of the times is revealed in our speeches (discernatur orationibus nostris diversitas temporum). . . On no occasion (nusquam) should we flatter him as a god, nowhere as a divine presence (ut deo, nusquam ut numini blandiamur); for we are speaking not of a tyrant but of a citizen, not of a master but of a father (non enim de tyranno sed de cive, non de domino sed de parente). H e r e then we find related the ideas of worship of a n e m p e r o r d u r ing his lifetime (as opposed to posthumously), a n d the idea of being a dominus a n d tyrannus r a t h e r t h a n princeps or first civis, with D o m i t i a n by contrast with T r a j a n having b e e n responsible for b o t h . As it has b e c o m e something of a c o m m o n p l a c e that there was n o theological significance to such descriptions that were b u t expressions of flatterers, we must n o w consider evidence to the contrary. 5A 2.2. Theological significance of Domitian's changes T h e existence of such a theological justification constitutes cogent evidence against those w h o dismiss with scepticism the claim that D o m i t i a n believed himself to be divine a n d accepted divine h o n o u r s . As p a r t of the ideological a p p a r a t u s that m a d e the autocracy that was the principate acceptable was the refusal of m o n a r c h i c a l tides such as dominus or rex. Augustus veiled his autocracy b e h i n d quite e m p t y republican forms. But in reality he a n d his successors knew they possessed m o n a r c h i c a l power. Likewise Augustus was circum spect in accepting cult from the Eastern G r e e k city states. But as we have seen (2B 2), the Lares Compitales, a m o n g s t w h o m Augustus was depicted, belied any notion t h a t his refusal of present divinity was straightforward. F u r t h e r m o r e , the association of various cults of divinised abstract qualities or virtues with the collective person of the e m p e r o r also was indicative of a certain insincerity in rejecting divine titles (2B 3). Indications therefore that D o m i t i a n only earlier in his reign refused the tide of dominus, but c h a n g e d his m i n d later must b e interpreted with c a u t i o n . I n d e e d , it m a y b e asked w h y if, as is universally admitted, e m p e r o r s were insincere a b o u t refusing political titles that 17

17

Scott (1975), p p . 1 0 2 - 1 0 3 proposed such a thesis in order to take seriously D o m i t i a n ' s allegedly later claim apparently belied by his earlier o n e . But Scott admits that Statius Silvae I, 6 , 8 3 - 8 4 o n w h i c h his thesis rests is undated and can only therefore be dated earlier ex hypothesi.

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identified t h e m with autocratic power, they should be r e g a r d e d as perfecdy sincere in rejecting worship until they were d e a d . T h e r e was as studious a n a m b i g u i t y a b o u t religious titles as t h e r e was a b o u t political ones. T h e ideology of the principate was designed to m a k e impossible an either-or challenge to its claims of either the form "are you divine or h u m a n " or of "are you a dominus or a princeps?" W e have witnessed the assimilation of the cult of Virtues to the Imperial Cult as forming a kind of collective personality w o r n by the deceased e m p e r o r s as e m b o d y i n g the well-being of the R o m a n e m p i r e . Even in late republican times w h a t were originally divine qualities of the R o m a n people b e c a m e associated with specific per sons such as P o m p e y or Sulla, a n d were conceived as only granted t h r o u g h the mediation of these rulers (2B 3). Such theological devel o p m e n t s enabled a synthetic solution to the logical p r o b l e m of h o w Augustus a n d his successors, as Pontifex Maximus of the Imperial Cult, could also b e the object of its worship (2A 5). 18

It is therefore questionable to e n d e a v o u r to down-play the role of the Imperial Cult in C h u r c h - s t a t e relations on the g r o u n d s that the m a i n charge against the early Christians was that they refused to worship the gods of the state r a t h e r t h a n the e m p e r o r , t h a t the e m p e r o r was merely divus as opposed to deus, a n d t h a t swearing by the genius of C a e s a r was s o m e h o w to b e a softer alternative as a m a r k of loyalty to the state as opposed to full participation in its p o l y t h e i s m . Such w o u l d imply that the description of the living e m p e r o r as divus, a n d of the act of incense-sacrifice to his EIKCOV, belonged to a separate, political discourse from that of religious wor ship of the gods. But b o t h kinds of discourse exhibited a growing confluence a n d i n t e r d e p e n d e n c e between themselves, particularly in the case of the assimilation of the cult of Virtues with the e m p e r o r ' s 19

18

T h u s I find quite facile J o n e s (1993), pp. 1 0 8 - 1 0 9 where he describes the claim that D o m i t i a n was so addressed as "all but incredible. T h e best that a n emperor could expect after death was to be declared a divus and never a deus . . . a living o n e h a d to d o with even less . . . terms used by flatterers such as Martial, Statius, Juventius, Celsus (or Pliny) to secure a favour from an autocrat hardly constitute p r o o f that they were instructed or required to use t h e m . . . D o m i t i a n was both intelligent and c o m m i t t e d to the traditional religion. H e obviously k n e w that he was not a G o d , and whilst he did not ask or d e m a n d to b e addressed as o n e , he did not actively discourage the few flatterers w h o did." G . E . M . D e Ste. Croix , W h y were the early Christians persecuted? in Past and Present, 26 (1963), p. 10; S.R.F. Price, Rituals and Power: The Roman Imperial Cult in Asia Minor, (Cambridge: U . P . 1984), p p . 2 2 1 - 2 2 2 . 19

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corporate personality. W e shall argue that certain traditional sacer dotal functions a d o p t e d by D o m i t i a n a s s u m e a n e w significance against these developments in the conceptual backcloth of the Imperial Cult at the centre of which was the tide dominus et deus. D o m i t i a n m a d e a serious claim for himself as a living, reigning e m p e r o r to be deus a n d not simply divus. Pliny's insistence of a particu lar emphasis by D o m i t i a n o n his status as a deus praesens is indicative of a n emphasis on the Imperial Cult centred on a living reigning e m p e r o r that was, a p a r t from Gaius, almost u n i q u e to t h a t reign. C e r tainly both Martial and Statius move beyond the traditional comparison of the e m p e r o r with J u p i t e r to claiming identity between the two. 5A 2.2.1. Jovian ideology and Domitian's changes in the cult Virgil Aeneid 1,257-296 a n d 6 , 7 9 1 - 8 0 7 h a d described Augustus as chosen by J u p i t e r for R o m e ' s imperium sine fine a n d the saeculum aureum. H o r a c e ' s description of Augustus as soter delapsus ex caelo nevertheless preserves the distinction between the elect e m p e r o r a n d the s u p r e m e god himself (Odes I, 2 , 2 9 - 3 0 ; 4 1 - 5 2 ) . Ode 3,5 describes Augustus like D o m i t i a n as soon to be a praesens divus on e a r t h in t a n d e m with caelo tonantem . . . Iovem w h o therefore by contrast reigns in heaven. Never theless there is even in such a close c o m p a r i s o n n o real equivalence. Similarly Ovid, in Metamorphoses 1 5 , 8 5 8 - 8 7 0 , contrasts the heavenly J u p i t e r with the terra sub Augusto, with b o t h described as pater et rec tor. But even in Tristia 5, 2 , 4 7 - 4 8 , w h e r e Augustus is e q u a t e d with J u p i t e r , there is nevertheless the qualification of J u p i t e r on e a r t h . But in the case of D o m i t i a n there is clearly a failure to preserve the nicety of this distinction which Pliny (Panegyr. 80) is to reassert in the case of T r a j a n . M a r t i a l (Epig. 4, 8,12; 9, 8 6 , 7 - 8 ) equates D o m i t i a n with J u p i t e r . In Statius Silvae. I V , 3 , 1 2 8 - 1 2 9 D o m i t i a n stands as J u p i t e r ' s vicegerent on e a r t h . But t h a t D o m i t i a n chose apparently to celebrate uniquely this status iconographically on coins that depict h i m as J u p i t e r holding a t h u n d e r b o l t a n d c r o w n e d by victory suggests that Martial's equations w e n t b e y o n d flattery a n d represented a critical d e v e l o p m e n t in imperial ideology. Praeses 20

21

2 0

22

Fears (1977), p p . 1 2 3 - 1 2 9 . BMC 2 p. 77 n o . 381 cf. Fears (1977), p p . 1 3 4 - 1 3 5 . Martial, Epig. 5, 3,3 (praeses mundi); 7,4 (praeses Romae); 6, 2,5; 8, 8 0 , 5 ; 9, 18,1 (te praeside); Statius, Sib). I, 2 , 1 7 5 (praeses Ausonius); III, 3 , 1 8 3 184 (numina magni praesidis); 5, 2 , 1 7 6 (magnus praeses). 21

2 2

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2

pater * a n d parens?* used generally of gods, are applied to D o m i t i a n as the Ausonian J u p i t e r , as also is the t h e m e of Juppiter tonansP Given therefore that such new conclusions were being d r a w n from the ideological premisses of the Imperial Cult on the p a r t of court poets such as Martial a n d Statius, a n d subjected to critical c o m m e n t s by Pliny a n d Suetonius, we must n o w ask w h a t evidence there is for such tentative developments being represented in the ritual of the Imperial C u l t itself, a n d thus with w h a t the writer of the Apocalypse was to find himself in direct conflict. 5A 2.2.2. Domitian's changes in ritual In A . D . 69 D o m i t i a n raised at R o m e a shrine to Iuppiter Conservator a n d also restored the temple of Iuppiter Capitolinus. Pliny's words to T r a j a n help us to assess the significance of that shrine: With like reverence (simili reverentia), Caesar, you allow thanksgiving for your benevolence to be rendered, not in the presence of your genius (non apud genium tuum), but in the presence of the godhead of Jupiter the best and greatest (sed apud numen Iovis optimi maximi pateris) . . . Yet previously vast herds of sacrificial victims (ante quidem ingentes hostiarum greges), stopped for the most part on the way to the Capitoline (per Capitolinum iter magna sui parte velut intercepti) and were compelled to turn from the road (devertere via cogebantur) since the fearful image of the most cruel of tyrants (cum saevissimi domini atrocissima effigies) would be offered worship with as much the blood of sacrifices (tanto victimarum cruore coleretur) as of human blood that he was accustomed to shed (quantum ipse humani sanguinis prqfundebat). Panegyricus 52,6-7 Pliny clearly implies a confusion between the genius of D o m i t i a n a n d the numen of J u p i t e r that he claims that T r a j a n h a d clarified. As a result, there h a d been sacrifices at D o m i t i a n ' s statue, m e n t i o n e d in Statius Silvae 1,1, a n d set u p in A . D . 89 at the west e n d of the forum. 2 3

Martial, Epig. 9, 8,6 (Ausonius pater); Statius, Silv. I, 4 , 9 5 (Latiae pater inclitus urbis); III, 4 , 4 8 (pater inclitus orbis); IV, 8 , 2 0 (Ausoniae pater augustissimus urbis); V , 1,167 (pater). Statius, Silv. I, 2 , 1 7 8 (parens Latius); IV, 3 , 1 0 8 (Romanus parens); IV, 1,17 (magnus parens mundi); 2 , 1 4 - 1 5 (regnator terrarum orbisque subacti magnus parens); V I I , 7,5 (summus mundi rector et parens orbis); I X , 6,1 (parens orbis). Martial, Epig. 6, 10,9 ( [ M i n e r v a ] nostri... conscia virgo tonantis); 7, 5 6 (nostro . . . tonante); 14, 1,2 (decent nostrum pillea sumpta Iovem); 9, 1 8 , 7 - 8 (Iovis imber). For a fuller discussion of these passages (including footnotes 3 6 - 3 8 ) see Scott (1975), pp. 133-140. 2 4

2 5

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175

I n d e e d , as B o m e r pointed out, it is with D o m i t i a n that we find inscriptional evidence for the oath by the "genius of C a e s a r " that, in its c o n t i n u a n c e u n d e r T r a j a n , belies Pliny's hopes that such ven eration has e n d e d . U n d e r Augustus the formula for a n oath from Paphlagonia was to Zet><;, rfj "Kkxoq, 0eoi Tcdvieq Kai rcaoai Kai auxoq 6 lePaaxoq. In Caligula's time we find from Aritium in Spain a n d Assos in T r o a s b o t h Latin a n d G r e e k versions of a n oath in the n a m e of divus Augustus et ceteri omnes di immortales/'Zeuq Icoxrip, 6e6<; K a i o a p l e p a a x o q Kai x\ ftdxpioq ayvri IlapGevoq. But with D o m i t i a n we find per lovem et divom Augustum et divom Claudium et divom Vespasianum Augustum et divom Titum Augustum et Genium imperatoris Domitiani Augusti deosque Penates. ** H e r e we a p p e a r to witness a transcendence of a m e r e contingent association of divine beings by m e a n s of a coalescing of D o m i t i a n ' s personal genius with the collective genius of m e m b e r s of the Imperial Cult a n d the numen b o t h of J u p i t e r a n d the dei Penates. 2

It is in connection with J u p i t e r Capitolinus that we have some indication of ritual developments in the imperial ideology that these inscriptions illuminate. Suetonius recounts the scene a c c o m p a n y i n g the institution of quinquennial contests for this cult, consisting of music, horse-riding, a n d gymnastics: He presided at the contest (certamini praesedit) in half-boots (crepidatus) clothed in a Grecian toga of purple (amictus toga Graecanica), sporting on his head (capite gestans) a golden crown with an image of Jupiter, J u n o and Minerva (coronam auream cum effigie Iovis ac Iunonis Minervaeque), assisted by a priest of Jupiter (adsidentibus Diali sacerdote) and the col lege of the Flaviales (et collegio Flavialium) similarly dressed (pari habitu), except that his image was also on their crowns (nisi quod illorum coronis inerat et ipsius imago). Domitian 4,4 W e see in the corona aurea with its effigies a claim to represent espe cially a n d sacramentally J u p i t e r , J u n o , a n d M i n e r v a o n the p a r t of the high priest of the Capitoline games. It m a y be said therefore that propitiation is per lovem et Iunonem et Minervam, as well as per genium Domitiani with w h o m a n d t h r o u g h w h o m , as it were, Domitian, dominus et deus, is propitious. Such archieratic coronae were customary in the East. But I submit that the introduction of the e m p e r o r ' s

26

CIL 2 , 1 7 2 a n d 1963 cf. F. Bomer, D e r Eid beim Genius des Kaisers, in Athen 4 4 (1966), pp. 123 124.

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image onto the coronae of other priests implies a n e w stage of devel o p m e n t of the collectivist imperialist ideology. T h e a c c o m p a n y i n g collegium Flavialium were pari habitu with D o m i t i a n , b u t the addition of his image to their coronae singled h i m out (nisi quod illorum coronis inerat et ipsius imago) a n d a w a r d e d him a n e w status. Suetonius was sufflciendy impressed with the novelty of this event as to give it spe cial emphasis. In order to reinforce the notion that the sacrificial acts of other pontifices are b o t h subject a n d d e p e n d e n t on his own, a n d t h a t he is the equal source of the propitiation effected by their acts, they w e a r on their crowns both Domitian's image a n d the image of these deities as well with w h o m D o m i t i a n is thus declared to b e equal. T h u s such a collective c o m p r e h e n s i o n of the deified Caesars in the person of the Genius of D o m i t i a n that we saw in the changes in the o a t h u n d e r D o m i t i a n is also reflected in the imagery of the corona aurea. It must be e m p h a s i s e d that w e are dealing h e r e with n o idiosyncrasy of D o m i t i a n in connection with the cult of J u p i t e r Capitolinus at R o m e alone. Even in the West, as Tertullian bears witness (De Idol 18,1), along with p a g a n , African a n d D a c i a n inscriptions (CIL 3,1433 a n d 8,17896), provincial priests of the Imperial Cult wore the corona aurea b e a r i n g the image of the e m p e r o r . In the East it h a d been c o m m o n in Hellenistic ruler cults, for example, in the case of the priestess of Laodicea, as we learn from a n edict of Antiochus III (204 B.C.) w h e r e a golden crown b e a r i n g the likeness of the q u e e n was w o r n . W e have fragments of crowns themselves, a n d representations on coins which reveal a n u m b e r of depictions of e m p e r o r s . T h e r e is therefore arguably u n d e r D o m i t i a n to b e detected a theology of rep resentation t h a t postulated the equation of the genius of C a e s a r with the numen of divinity. 21

28

29

At all events in the East, in the province of Asia M i n o r , ruler worship progressed with its ordinary normality. At Ephesus D o m i t i a n erected a temple in the centre of a large precinct set on o n e side of the m a i n square. O n the adjacent side of that square stood a

2 7

A. Alfbldi, Die Monarchische Representation im rbmischen Kaiserreiche, (Darmstadt: Wissenschafliche Buchgesellschaft 1970), p. 7 4 and footnote 1, where he criticizes M o m m s e n ' s "Auffassung v o n der Belanglosigkeit des Kaiserkultes im Staatsrecht der fruheren Kaiserzeit." D . Fishwick, T h e Imperial Cult in the Latin West: Studies in the Ruler Cult o f the Western Province o f the R o m a n Empire, in EPRO 108 (1991), 2,1 p p . 4 7 7 - 4 7 8 . > Ibid. p. 4 7 7 and Plate L X X X V b and L X X X V I a and b. 2 8

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double temple of Roma a n d Julius Caesar, a n d at its centre a tem ple of Augustus. Along that adjacent side r a n also the oxod paaiA,ncr| dedicated to Artemis, Augustus a n d T i b e r i u s . T h e erection of a temple to D o m i t i a n here reflected therefore b o t h a reinforcement of the Imperial Cult t h r o u g h this e m p e r o r w h o is thus associated with b o t h Augustus a n d Artemis. D o m i t i a n ' s statue is constructed in particularly large p r o p o r t i o n s . I n d e e d we can r e a d in these architectural developments the development of the Imperial Cult itself, first with the association of the abstraction of Roma with Julius C a e s a r a n d thus its further personification in the collective personality of the e m p e r o r . W e see also a n integration of the tradi tion worship of Artemis with the patriotic a n d imperial emotions associated with the Imperial Cult. 30

31

Given therefore clear examples of changes in the ideology of the Imperial Cult accomplished u n d e r D o m i t i a n , let us e x a m i n e the way in which those changes are reflected in the Apocalypse.

PART B . T H E DOMITIANIC BACKCLOTH TO THE APOCALYPSE

W e discussed earlier the imagery derived specifically from the Imperial Cult in connection with the D o m i t i a n i c dating of the Apocalypse, in particular b o t h the figure of D o m i t i a , a n d specific features of h o w D o m i t i a n was represented in the Imperial C u l t (5A 1). O u r discus sion h e r e will b e in two parts. W e will summarise (5B 1) basically the position of R a m s a y a n d H e m e r , which we generally accept, on the reflections of the Imperial Cult specifically in the letters to the C h u r c h e s (Apoc. 2 , 9 - 3 , 2 2 ) . W e will then show (5B 2) that similar themes continue in the text of the Apocalypse outside the letters to the seven churches, from c h a p t e r 4 onwards, particularly in the songs of the elders a n d living creatures. H e r e the heavenly cultus a r o u n d the t h r o n e of G o d a n d of the L a m b reflects images of the Imperial Cult in a way that c o m p l e m e n t s similar imagery in the letters to the seven churches.

Price (1984), p. 139 fig. 3 a n d 140. Ibid. p. 187.

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5B

1. Letters to the Seven Churches of Asia

It is from R a m s a y a n d H e m e r ' s analysis of the letters that m y thesis regarding the applicability of the sociological concept of contra-culture to the d e v e l o p m e n t of O r d e r in early Christian communities finds its strongest support. Indeed, it will be m y a r g u m e n t that their the sis should b e extended to cover the themes of the Apocalypse itself outside of the letters. T h e r e is a strong parallel between the partic ular p a g a n cultus that existed in the local setting of the letters in the context of particular cities, a n d the eschatological promises that are m a d e to the believer that resists that cultus. H e m e r ' s account will therefore be shown to support the notion that those c o m m u n i ties were forming a contra-culture in which the status denied by their rejection of the host-culture assumes the proportions of a highly organised complex of reversed images. Let us now, therefore list the features of the local setting of the letters, a n d the contra-cultural o r d e r at the phenomenological level of social reality, to which they give rise. 5B 1.1. A p o c . 2,6 7iapd8eioo<; and the tfiXov xfjc; £cofi<; T h e o v e r c o m e r (xa> VIKCOVII) is to eat (cpayeiv) of the tree of life (eic TOU £uta)u xfjq ^cofjq) which is in the paradise of G o d (o eaxiv ev T£> rcapaSeiacp xou 0eou). These expressions are characteristic of Gen. 2,9 a n d derived literature. H o w e v e r in that passage the m o r e usual t e r m 8ev8pov is used. £,x>Xov can have t h a t sense, t h o u g h in the N e w T e s t a m e n t it is the cross of Christ to which the term usually refers (Acts 5,30; 10,39; 13,29; Gal. 3,13; 1 Pet. 2,24). M o r e o v e r this expression for the cross is also to be found elsewhere in the Apocalypse a p a r t from this letter: the cross as the tree of life is to be found b e a r i n g healing a n d salvific fruit (22,2; 14; 19). U n d o u b t e d l y b o t h of these terms have a n O l d T e s t a m e n t a n d early Christian b a c k g r o u n d b u t their m e a n i n g s are totally unrelated to each other. W h y should the gibbet of the cross be likened to the tree in paradise? H e m e r ' s a r g u m e n t is that it is the particular local geographical a n d architectural e n v i r o n m e n t at Ephesus that brings these two distinct images into their present relationship. T h e T e m p l e of Artemis a n d its cultus at Ephesus grew out of w h a t was originally a tree shrine, as can be established by the lit erary allusions of Callimachus a n d Periegetes, a n d the excavations

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32

of H o g a r t h . W e have already seen h o w the xejievoq or garden-like enclosure, in which the tree of Artemis stood, constituted an asylum refuge for criminals. T h i s description seems to have m a d e reference to the scandalous state of affairs addressed there by D o m i t i a n (5A 1). But this did not prevent a n erection of a temple to D o m i t i a n there and, m o r e particularly, the association on coins of the cult of Domitian with t h a t of Artemis. S o m e coins depict an imperial temple on either side of the Artemesion, with depictions of n a k e d statues of e m p e r o r s resting on their sceptres. H e r e therefore the cross as the tree of life in t h e p a r a d i s e of G o d is c o n t r a s t e d with the tree-shrine of Artemis to which criminals flee for life a n d safety. But that cultus is u n d e r g o i n g a process of association with the Imperial Cult in the developing iconography. 33

In the N e w J e r u s a l e m there is n o p a r t for "the sacrilegious (xoiq eP8eta)Yuivoi<;): the m u r d e r e r s ((poveuoiv), the harlots (nopvoiq), the magicians (tyapuaKoiq), a n d the idolaters (ei8cota)Axxxpai<;; Apoc. 2 1 , 7 - 8 ) " are excluded, just as Apollonius of T y a n a (Ep. 65) had "blamed (neujixoi 8e) those w h o dwelt with the goddess (OUVOIKOI zf\ 9ea>). . . from w h e r e (n OUK av) thief (6 K^inm,*;), r o b b e r (xe Kai Xr\aTr\q), slave dealer (dvSpocKobicxr\q), a n d every kind of (Kai naq ex xiq) law b r e a k e r a n d templer o b b e r (6C8IKO<; TI itpocvXoq) issued forth (TJV 6p|icbu£vo<; auxoBev)." T h e J u d a i c a n d early Christian use of these terms provide therefore the raw materials for the construction of the imagery, b u t the m a t r i x which draws t h e m into their n e w relations is to be found in the p a g a n cul tic b a c k g r o u n d , a n d m o r e o v e r a p a g a n cultic b a c k g r o u n d that is in creasingly synthesised with the Imperial Cult. Ephesus was to boast that it was "twice n e o k o r o s " w h e n the provincial temple of D o m i t i a n a c q u i r e d an official with this prestigious title for which there was competition equal to that of obtaining permission for the cult itself. 34

5B 1.2. A p o c . 2,10-11 axecpavoq xfjq £cofj<; W e have already m a d e reference to the description of the magistratepriests of S m y r n a as oxe(pavr|(p6poi. F u r t h e r m o r e , we have suggested 35

3 2

H e m e r (1986), p p . 4 4 - 4 7 . Price (1984), p. 183 a n d Plate 3 C . Price (1984), p p . 6 4 - 6 5 footnote 4 7 . See also S.J. Friesen, T w i c e Neokoros: Ephesus, Asia a n d the Cult o f the Flavian Imperial Family, in Religions in the GraecoRoman World, 116 (1993). H e m e r (1986), pp. 7 2 - 7 4 ff. does not support such an interpretation w h i c h he found represented in, for e x a m p l e , W . M . Ramsay, Art in Hastings Dictionary of the Bible, I V 5 5 5 . 3 3

3 4

3 5

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that it was u n d e r D o m i t i a n that the signification of the iconography of that cultus was m o r e sharply defined with the intention of inte grating further disparate elements of the p a g a n cultus into a general w e b at the centre of which was the e m p e r o r a n d his worship. W e saw that the archieratic a r r a n g e m e n t s for the Capitoline games a n d the coronae was an important example of such integrating developments (5A 2.2.2). T h e r e was m o r e o v e r at S m y r n a a temple of the Imperial Cult that h a d been dedicated to Tiberius, Livia a n d the Senate, a n d in w h i c h a cult-statue depicts T i b e r i u s in a toga a n d veiled for sacrifice. In his h a n d he holds a patera over the a l t a r . W e shall argue in the next section the association of this symbolism a n d the angels with their ipidtaxi (Apoc. 5,8; 15,7; 1 6 , 1 - 1 7 ; 17,1; a n d 21,9). 36

5B 1.3. A p o c . 2,13; 17: Gpovoq xou locxava, udvva KeKpuujjivov, yfjcpoq Xeuicri P e r g a m o n h a d a position of p r e - e m i n e n c e in the I m p e r i a l C u l t although its precise status in c o m p a r i s o n with that of Ephesus has p r o v e n difficult to d e t e r m i n e . Tiberius defended himself before the Senate for allowing his cult in Pergamon on the grounds that Augustus h a d allowed there a T e m p l e to himself a n d R o m a . Furthermore, there is evidence of a n assimilation of the Imperial Cult with that of Asklepius, p o r t r a y e d with a serpent evocative of the Satanic in the eyes of the Seer (Apoc. 20,2: 6 ocpiq 6 dp%ocio<;, oq eoxiv Aid(}oAo<;). In a n inscription from Cos, Asklepius is described as the Pergameus deus a n d ocoxrip. 3 7

38

39

5B 1.3.1. Gpovoq xou Iccxocva W e have a J u l i o - C l a u d i a n inscription from P e r g a m o n which h o n ours Demetrios M i l a t u s . This text is highly instructive for the way in which images a n d ritual of Asclepius a n d of the Imperial Cult 40

3fi

Price (1984), p. 185 a n d Tacitus, Annal. X V , 5 5 - 5 6 . * Tacitus Annal. IV,37: ". . . Hispania ulterior missis ad senatum legatis oravit, ut e x e m p l o Asiae delubrum Tiberio matrique eius exstrueret. . . Caesar . . . respon d e n d u m ratus iis . . . huiusce modi orationem coepit: . . . Asiae civitatibus nuper idem istud petentibus n o n sim adversatus . . . c u m divus Augustus sibi atque urbi R o m a e t e m p l u m apud P e r g a m u m sisti n o n prohibuisset."; cf. D i o Cassius 5 1 , 2 0 , 7 . C . Habicht, Altertiimer von Pergamon, VIII, 3: D i e Inschriften des Asklepieions, (Berlin: D e Gruyter 1969), no. 7 1 : 'AOKA.TI7UO> Icoxfjpi K A I 'Yyia xov 5e£io\>uevov Spmcovxa; Taf. 3 2 , 160b. IGRR 4, 1053 and Martial, Epig. 9,16; Philostratus, Vit. Apol. 4,34; Statius, Silvae III, 4 , 2 3 - 2 4 cf. H e m e r (1986), p p . 8 5 - 8 6 . Habicht (1969) no. 36. 7

3 8

m

4 0

THE

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were not only in spatial a p p r o x i m a t i o n b u t in a high state of syn thesis. Demetrios is "high priest for life of the Pietas Augustorum (iepe[a] ifj^xcbv I[e-] [paa]xcov Euajejpdac; 8 i a pi[ou]), w h o has founded a fes tival of Sebastoi Saviours within the temple of the Saviour Asclepios ([lcJaBeupovTa rcavfiyupiv e[v] [TCO] xou Icoipipjoq 'AGKXrpt[iou] [xejuivei lepaaxcov Icoi[r|-] [pco]v)." T h e cult of the e m p e r o r a n d the cult of Asklepios are not simply associated spatially within the same t e m ple. T h e same divine titles (acoirip a n d acoifipeq) are applied to b o t h of t h e m . T h e reference to the Gpovoq TOU l a x a v a fits well therefore with the context of the pre-eminence of the Imperial Cult in Pergamon. T h e choir of Asia was c o m m a n d e d to g a t h e r at P e r g a m o n to per form on the b i r t h d a y of "Sebastos Tiberius C a e s a r g o d " a n d to per form sacrifices. 41

42

F u r t h e r m o r e , the reference (Apoc. 2,13) to "Antipas m y faithful m a r t y r ('Avxucaq 6 uxxpxix; uo\) 6 moxoq uoi)) w h o was slain a m o n g you (oq d7C£Kxdv&ri nap ' uuiv) w h e r e Satan dwells (pnov 6 locxocvaq KOCXOIKEI)" is indicative of persecution specifically in connection with that cult. T h e contrast b e t w e e n Christ's c o m i n g a n d his promise: "I will m a k e w a r with t h e m with the sword of m y m o u t h " suggests a c o n t r a cultural parallel with the ius gladii of the pro-consul of A s i a . As one of the leading centres of the Imperial Cult in Asia M i n o r , P e r g a m o n would have b e e n the most likely place w h e r e non-participation in the cult would have exposed Christians to the Dionysiac charges, a n d w h e r e offence to the ideology of the C o m m u n e of Asia could be most sensitively felt. 43

In this p a g a n , cultic context the "teaching of B a l a a m " (2,14) can n o w b e considered, which, it is claimed, involves the eating of idol atrous food ((payeiv eiScoAoGuxa) a n d committing fornication (rcopveuaou). T h e latter charge is characteristic of O l d T e s t a m e n t polemic against idolatry but the former is a distinctive characteristic of N e w T e s t a m e n t gentile or mixed Christian communities, as Acts 15,20 a n d 1 Cor. 8,1-6 makes clear. N o t e however h o w at P e r g a m o n collegia a n d their festivities were related to the Imperial Cult. It is in c o m p a r i s o n with such festivities that b o t h the udvvcc K £ K p \ ) j L i p e v o v a n d the \|/fj(po<; XEVKI] are, I will argue, to be u n d e r s t o o d .

41

42

4 3

Ibid. p. 81 taf. 13, lines 4 - 9 . IGRR 4, 1608c a n d Price (1984), p. 105. H e m e r (1986), pp. 8 2 8 4 .

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5B 1.3.2. udvva K£Kp\)U|ievov H e m e r was right, I believe, to see in the udvva KeKpuuuivov the M a n n a in the wilderness a portion of which was preserved in the Ark of the C o v e n a n t a n d either hidden o n earth in Sinai until the Messianic kingdom when J e r e m i a h redivivus would place them in the new T e m p l e (2 Mace. 2 , 4 - 7 cf. Heb. 9,4 a n d R a b b i Y o m a 52b), or concealed in heaven by a n angel (2 Baruch 6,7-10). T h u s according to the latter view the "food of angels" (Ps. 78,25) would be the food of the saints in the Messianic kingdom (2 Baruch 29,8; Sybilline Oracles 7,148—149). But such J e w i s h parallels d o not preclude, as we have argued, ref erences to the Imperial Cult as the template in which such Jewish imagery was refashioned. 44

T h e r e is in addition in this passage a parallel between the meals of the mystery cults with which sacrifices were associated, a n d the Imperial Cult: the " h i d d e n m a n n a " of the O l d T e s t a m e n t a n d R a b binic a n d J e w i s h apocalyptic (the Messianic Banquet) is b e c o m i n g associated with the b a n q u e t of the imperial mysteries. W e shall be considering shortly, in greater detail, epigraphical evidence for the imperial mysteries (IGRR 4,353) in which oivoq, apxoq, a n d rcorcavov (or sacred cake) are m e n t i o n e d (c. 4 - 7 ) in the list of practical require ments for such rites. T h e a u t h o r focuses o n the Eucharist as the true mystery, the fulfilment of the " M a n n a in the wilderness" (Jn. 6,48-50), but seeks to construct such imagery once again in the matrix of the developing imperial ideology. T h o s e w h o in faith refuse the oivoq, apxoq, a n d T c o n a v o v of the imperial mysteries will have a place at the marriage supper of the L a m b (Apoc. 19,9). W e are seeing once again the construction of a c o n t r a cultural edifice from the building bricks of J e w i s h tradition. T h e related i m a g e of the white stone (\|/fjcpoq A,euicr|) is however derived from a p a g a n b a c k g r o u n d . 5B 1.3.3. \|/fj(po<; A,e\)icf| O n e partial reference here must u n d o u b t e d l y be, as H e m e r argues, to the pebble cast by j u r o r s into a n urn in order to vote for acquittal, or p e r h a p s m o r e accurately with voting p r o c e d u r e s to r e a c h any decision. T h e r e is therefore arguably here a n eschatological reference to those persecuted a n d c o n d e m n e d in p a g a n courts, or indeed u n d e r general decrees passed by the K o i n o n of Asia a n d u n d e r which they 45

4 4

H e m e r (1986), p. 9 5 . O v i d , Metam. 1 5 , 4 1 - 4 1 1 ; Plutarch, Alcib. 2 2 , 2 and Moral, p. 186F; Aeschyles, Eumen. 7 3 7 - 7 5 6 and H e m e r (1986), p. 9 7 . 4 5

THE

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suffered. T h o s e addressed will be acquitted finally by Christ at his coming, or given a place in his kingdom denied by their present rulers. But xj/ficpoq can also, I believe, have the m e a n i n g of tessera as a certificate of admission to a n d the custom of hospitality b e t w e e n m e m b e r s of p a g a n mystery cults. It is i m p o r t a n t to b e a r in m i n d that a n inscribed v|/f|(po<; can have the m e a n i n g of certificate of admis sion. But here if it is to have this sense we m u s t also explain w h y if the \|/f|(pO(; X,euicr| is a certificate of admission, it has to have written on it the person's n a m e which strangely only the b e a r e r knows (Apoc. 2,17: enx xf]v yiicpov 6vo|Lia KOUVOV yeypa^jaevov o ou8ei<; oiSev ei uri 6 A,a|!pdvcov). W e have a n inscription r e c o r d i n g the articles of association of the GUGTTIUXX or auve8piov of the rcpeopuxepoi or yepouoia t h a t adminis tered the g y m n a s i u m at P e r g a m o n in the time of H a d r i a n . A priv ilege of m e m b e r s h i p was a r e d u c t e d e n t r a n c e fee for their s o n s . T h e e n t r a n c e fee is called a n eiorjMoiov which implies a tessera or vjffjcpoq issued for the fee. 46

47

In a n inscription relating to the imperial mysteries at P e r g a m o n , we find that the c o n d u c t o r of the choir is to charge a n entry fee for the imperial sacrifices a n d mystery p l a y . F u r t h e r c o r r o b o r a t i o n of a n eioriMoiov in connection with Dionysiac mysteries at S m y r n a , at the temple of Dionysus Brisaeus, is to b e found in CIG 3 1 7 3 (= IGRR 4, 1393), d a t e d A . D . 80 in D o m i t i a n ' s reign. In line 15 a list of persons are introduced as: oi7te7tAr|pcoK6xe<;xa i a n M a i a . Amongst the n a m e s listed a r e A r t e m i d o r u s a n d Apollonius b o t h of w h o m are called 7iaxpo|Lit>oxr|<;. O n side b of the c o l u m n we find a letter of M a r c u s Aurelius written (A.D. 158): ouvoSco xcov 7 i e p i xov Bpeioea Aiovuoov xaipeiv. In IGRR 4, 1400 (= CIG 3176 b) line 9 - 1 0 we have a letter of A n t o n i n u s Pius ouv68cp xcov ev I|nt>pvTi xe/veixcov Kai | L i u a x c o v xaipeiv. T h u s the eiorjMotov specifically in connection with entry into the liturgy of a mystery celebration also implies a tessera or xj/ricpoq. 48

49

46

H . H e p d i n g , D i e Arbeiten zu P e r g a m o n , 1 9 0 4 - 1 9 0 5 , in Ath. Mitt. 32 (1907), pp. 2 9 3 4 - 2 9 6 , n o . 18. See also M . N . T o d , N o t e s o n s o m e inscriptions from Asia Minor, in CR 29,1 (1915), p p . 1-2. ouoicx; 5e eiaepxeo~9ai xoix; vioix; xcov uexexovxcov, 8oKiuao9evxa<; U E V Kai CMJXOVX;, 5i86vxa<; 8e e i a r i M a i o v . IGRR 4, 3 5 3 d line 14: 'IOTIAAKJIO-U rcape^ei 6 KaxaoxaGeiq i)uvcp86<; ei<; Bvalaq xov lePaoxoi) Kai xi\q Tcburiq . . . IGRR 4, 1399 (= CIG 3 1 7 6 a) line 5 - 6 . 47

48

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But h o w a r e we to explain w h y on this entry ticket is not a price but a 6vo|ia m i v o v u n d e r s t o o d only by its bearer? W e possess a n u m ber of inscriptions in which \|/il(po<; m e a n s &pi0uo<; a n d is used in a magical or mystery context involving secret wisdom. T h e r e is clearly an association between a c o u n t e r as the physical representation of a n u m b e r , a n d a ticket bearing an entrance price. But magical inscrip tions show us h o w it is possible that a v|/f](poq on which a n u m b e r is written can b e r e g a r d e d as a c r y p t o g r a m for a person's n a m e . O n e graffito from P o m p e i c o m m e m o r a t e s a loved one k n o w n to the writer alone but in which the deceased is simply represented by a n u m b e r . In a n o t h e r graffito " A m e r i m n o s ('Apipiuvoq) has r e m e m b e r e d H a r m o n i a (euvr|G0r| 'Apuoviac;) his own (dear) lady (xfjq ei8ia<; leupiocq), for h e r benefit (ETC' ayocGq)), the n u m b e r of whose beautiful n a m e is 4 5 (r\q 6 &pi0uo<; \iz xov KOLXOV ovojuaxoq)." Clearly " O b t a i n a b l e ('Auipiuvoq)" a n d " C o m p l i a n c e ( Apuov(oc)" are real n a m e s the alle gorical c h a r a c t e r of which the graffitist seeks to veil in numerical mystery. 50

51

f

T h a t however such graffitti are m o r e t h a n lovers' games is shown by the evidence of two epitaphs, w h e r e the n a m e of the deceased is given as a numerical cryptogram. O n e epitaph is from P h e r a e in Thessaly in the second or third century. In IG 5,1 1368 we read: "If you seek m y n u m b e r (Znxcov \iox> ir\v \|/fj(pov), o wayfarer (rcapoSeixa), you will k n o w w h o I a m w h o lies here (yvcoafl xov K e i j i e v o v e v 0 a 8 e | i e ) , I lie here ( K e i j i a i 8 ' ) in the e a r t h which nourished m e (ev ya(p xfi jie dvaOpexj/aiLievTi), (number) 1354 (ATNA)." H e r e knowledge is clearly associated with solution to a mystery. Finally we have a second-century, epitaph from Bithynia o n a plinth in the form of a n altar supporting a sarcophagus. T o unravel the n a m e requires the wayfarer to b e a c o m p a n i o n of the Muses a n d a p a r t a k e r of wis d o m (yvcoaxoq ear] Mouaaiq K a i aocpiriq uexoxoq). 52

W e thus have evidence for p a y m e n t s (ior\ki>Gia) for e n t r a n c e into mystery rites associated both with Dionysus a n d with sacrifices for

M

CIL 4 suppl. II (1909) n o . 4 8 6 1 (Pompei):
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185

the Imperial Cult. W e have evidence for n u m b e r s as cryptograms for n a m e s associated w i t h the search for oocpioc i n magical rites. W e can therefore reasonably hypothesise that the Apoc. 2,17: erci rfw \jrn(pov ovojLicx raivov yeypauuevov o ouSeiq oi8ev ei \ir\ 6 A,au|}dvcov is a refer ence by analogy to admission to mysteries at P e r g a m o n requiring a n e n t r a n c e i|/fj(po<; for p a y m e n t of a n eioriMaiov o n w h i c h the bearer's n a m e was in the form of a numerical c r y p t o g r a m . IGRR 4,353 d line 14, as we have seen, records a n eicmAuoiov specifically related to the Imperial M y s t e r i e s . W e h a v e a n inscription from H a d r i a n ' s time i n which a meal of b r e a d a n d wine a c c o m p a n i e d w i t h incense a n d the w e a r i n g of garlands (axecpavoi) a r e associated w i t h the e m p e r o r as their saviour a n d founder. W e shall consider this inscription i n further detail i n connection w i t h the Seer's gen eral vision i n the rest of the Apocalypse (5B 3.2-2). 53

T h e selection of such a cultic interpretation of vj/fjcpoc; seems to link this t e r m to admission to Imperial Cultic meals implied by the references to ipccyeiv eiScoAoGuxa a n d the 9p6vo<; xou locxocva. J u s t as the contra-cultural c o u n t e r p a r t to the former is the eschatological udvva KeKpuuuevov whose foretaste is the Eucharist, so too the yfjcpcx; XEVKX] is the tessera of admission to the Christian cultic meal, n a m e l y baptism. It is not without relevance to o u r interpretation here that Tertullian was later to use contesseratio hospitalitatis between apostolic churches i n this sense. N o r should we rule out a significance for the C h u r c h of the a u t h o r ' s present i n these words o n the g r o u n d s that their promise is eschatological. W e shall argue later that the eschatological o r d e r of the heavenly C h u r c h is a reflection of the O r d e r of the writer's o w n c o m m u n i t y w i t h its liturgical imagery p r o j e c t e d into the realm of the heavenly n o w entering the earthly in eschatological fulfilment. 54

T h u s the cultic parallelism is also d e t e r m i n e d by the promise to the overcomers of "a n e w n a m e (ovoua Kaivov) written u p o n the pebble (en! XT^V xjriitpov.... yeypauuevov) which n o - o n e knows except he w h o receives it (o ouSeic; oiSev ei UTI 6 Xaupdvcov)." I m a g e r y of C h u r c h m e m b e r s h i p a n d sacraments is clearly being refashioned in the direc tion o f a p a g a n cultic fellowship w i t h its mysteries a n d secret initi ation rites. T h u s it is such p a g a n rites that r e m a i n p r i m a r y within

™ See footnote 4 8 . Tertullian, De Praesc. Haer. 2 0 , 7 - 9 cf. Brent (1995), pp. 5 0 5 - 5 0 7 ff.

54

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CHAPTER FIVE

the nevertheless Christian contra-cultural i c o n o g r a p h y developed by m e a n s of such contrary reflections. T h e cultic character of those con trary reflections thus d e t e r m i n e the p a g a n cultic interpretation of the original p r i m a r y d a t a against other possible alternatives. 35

5B 1.4. A p o c . 2,20,26-28: J e z e b e l a n d the doxr|p npmvoq T h e figure of "Jezebel" at T h y a t e i r a is clearly a n O l d T e s t a m e n t cryptogram that conceals the original a n d contemporary person whose original identity is thereby lost. But her teaching is clearly a variant of w h a t was also being taught in P e r g a m o n . Oocyeiv eiScotaSGuxa (Apoc. 2,14 cf. 2,20) is once m o r e the actual expression of spiritual fornica tion (rcopveuaou). H e n c e the spirit of O l d T e s t a m e n t idolatry is seen to find expression in teachers in b o t h cities advocating participation in meals of p a g a n mystery cults, with which, as we shall shortly see, the Imperial Cult was to achieve a new association (5B 2.2). T h e reference to the m o r n i n g star (doxf|p rcpco'ivoq) is to the planet Venus, seen as a symbol of authority from Babylonian times. But there is, I believe, also a reference to the claims of Augustus' to be filius deorum due to the mythical initiation of the gens Julia by Venus. Further m o r e , we have Augustan coins, restored by Titus, in which over the h e a d of Augustus radiate there is depicted a star (Plates 16 a n d 18). In view of the clear e m e r g e n c e of p a g a n a n d imperial iconography b o t h in the letters, a n d , as I will show, in the r e m a i n d e r of the Apocalypse itself, I c a n n o t follow H e m e r ' s hesitancy in this r e g a r d . W e have already shown that the allusion to Ps. 2 , 7 - 9 (Apoc. 2,26-27) a n d Num. 24,17 (Apoc. 2,28) d o not invalidate their interpretation in a p a g a n cultic context. T h e O l d T e s t a m e n t imagery is used to recon struct the p a g a n cults so as to p r o d u c e a system of Christian counterimages. 56

57

5B 1.5. A p o c . 3,4-5 iudxicc XEVKOL and x\ pipAxx; xfjq £cofi<; Sardis u n d e r Augustus h a d b e e n a m o n g s t the first cities of Asia M i n o r to be g r a n t e d a cult a n d temple. T h e city was to dedicate a statue on the c o m i n g of age of Gaius C a e s a r in that t e m p l e . It is here, moreover, that we have allusions to the Domitianic changes 58

%

5 7

5 8

H e m e r (1986), pp. 9 6 - 1 0 4 discusses also gladiatorial and magical associations. BMC 2, p p . 2 8 2 - 2 8 3 nos. 2 6 6 , 2 6 7 , and 271 a n d plate 5 4 , 3 . H e m e r (1986), pp. 1 2 5 - 1 2 6 . Price (1984), p. 66.

THE

APOCALYPSE AND DOMITIAN'S ICONOGRAPHY

187

in the fiscus judaicus (3C 2.3.3.3). If Christians were u n p r e p a r e d to p u t their n a m e s on synagogue rolls a n d thus j o i n w h a t in S m y r n a was described as the "synagogue of S a t a n , " (Apoc. 2,9) or if r a t h e r they w e r e e x c o m m u n i c a t e d in terms of the Biracoth ha Minim, then their n a m e s could be said to be "blotted o u t " of the register that gave t h e m protection. T h e suspicions aroused by non-participation in the Imperial Cult without the exemption thus afforded would lead to the accusation that they were involved in Dionysiac rites that t h r e a t e n e d both the social a n d metaphysical pax. It is precisely this situation that is reflected in the reversed image of the r e t u r n i n g Christ w h o promises to the o v e r c o m e r in Sardis that: "I will not blot out (ou \ix\ e^ccXeiyco) his n a m e (xo ovouoc ocuxou) from the book of life (eic xfjq piptaro xfjq £cof\<;)." (Apoc. 3,5) T h e clear p a t t e r n that is therefore e m e r g i n g from a n analysis of the social con text of the letters is the clash with the Imperial Cult. W e should clearly r e a d in such a context the immediately p r e c e d i n g promise to the o v e r c o m e r that: "he will be clothed (rcepipataixai) in white gar ments (ev iuaxioiq A,e\)Koi<;)," thus reflecting the wearing of white that was traditional for participants in all p a g a n processions. W e have already d r a w n attention to the evidence of the Lex Narbonensis a c c o r d i n g to which the participants wore festal white fol lowing the supplicatio with myrtle wreathes o n their heads a n d myrtle b r a n c h e s in their h a n d s . W e have m o r e o v e r several Eastern e x a m ples of this practice. W e have a description of a n adventus c e r e m o n y in connection with the cult of Attalus III ( 1 3 8 - 1 3 3 B.C.) at P e r g a m o n (OGIS 332). T h e stephanophoroi of the twelve deities, as they m e e t h i m on his arrival, are to wear their garlands ([oxe](pavr|<popf|oou; /. 27-29). T h e priests are to offer incense (e7ci6uuovxaq XiPavcoxov; /. 29) as Attalus is m e t in procession by the people " g a r l a n d e d a n d in white r a i m e n t (ev ea0[fj]oiv ^ a u r c p a i q eaxecpavcouevouq . . . ] ; /. 3 7 - 3 8 ) . " As a c o n t r a image of the Imperial Cult, the overcomers here are described as clothed in white in a n association that gives t h e m the status of participant in the Christian cultus denied to t h e m in their isolation a n d alienation within their present culture. 59

60

59

CIL 12,6038, see also 2B 4 and 3 C 2.3.3.3. See also Syli" 695,35; 1157,35; Herodian 11,2,9 (of Pertinax in): oi oxpaxicoxcu... Ie(3cxax6v rcpoaeutov.... ouocavxeq m i 9\>oavxe<;, 8acpvr|(popoi)vxe<;.. . <)0

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5B 1.6. A p o c . 3,12: TO ovouoc.. .ifjq 7i6A,eco<; xov Geou \iov Strabo X I I , 8,18 described Philadelphia as full of earthquakes (oeiGpcov 7tA,f|pri<;), a n d H e m e r claims in c o n s e q u e n c e that the e a r t h q u a k e of A . D . 17 affected the collective psychology of the inhabitants of that city. Certainly Philadelphia a p p e a r s a m o n g s t the cities of Asia which expressed their gratitude to Tiberius for the aid that he gave fol lowing this disaster. Such gratitude took the form of assuming the imperial cognomen a n d h o n o u r i n g G e r m a n i c u s with a p o s t h u m o u s cult. Coins of Philadelphia show the n a m e of the city c h a n g e d to N e o caesarea, with a magistrate a n d priest of the Imperial Cult venerat ing G e r m a n i c u s . After Claudius, the city reverted to its original n a m e , but u n d e r Vespasian it used the epithet Flavia to h o n o u r the imperial h o u s e . 61

62

63

D o m i t i a n ' s edict (A.D. 92) r e q u i r e d acreage for vinyards to be reduced, arguably to alleviate famine by e n c o u r a g i n g m o r e c o r n to be grown. H e m e r perceptively associates this edict with the situation in P h i l a d e l p h i a . W e have already a r g u e d the relationship between this edict a n d Apoc. 6,6 as establishing a D o m i t i a n i c date for the Apocalypse (5A 1). T o a city such as Philadelphia, whose principal deity was Dionysius, god of the vintage festival, such an edict was arguably a n affront. T h u s H e m e r is able to see in the p r o m i s e to the o v e r c o m e r s a reflection of t h e disillusionment of a loyal city whose faithfulness has b e e n m o c k e d by a cynical e m p e r o r . 64

T h o s e w h o have not denied Christ's n a m e (v. 8) will "hold fast to w h a t you have (8 e%eiq)." T h e y will be shaken neither by physical n o r by m o r a l e a r t h q u a k e neither such as that afforded by D o m i t i a n ' s decree n o r his n e w claims for his o w n cult, b u t will be m a d e " a pillar (GTUA,OV) in t h e t e m p l e of m y G o d (ev TCD vocco)." (v. 12) T h e " n e w n a m e (TO ovopd jiou TO KCCIVOV)" will not b e " N e o caesarea" b u t "the n a m e of m y G o d (TO ovouoc TOU QEOV UOD) a n d of the city of m y G o d (Kai xr\q KOXEQM; XOV QEOV pou), of the new J e r u s a l e m (xr\<; Kaivfjq 'Iepo\)GaA,r||Li)-" (v. 12) O n c e again, therefore, we see a parallelism between the religio-political structures of the present a n d (Kpdxei)

61

CIL 10, 1624: Hierocaesarea cf. Tacitus, ArmaL, II, 4 7 , 3 - 4 and H e m e r (1986), p. 156. Catalogue of Coins in the British Museum, Lydia, Philadelphia n o . 5 5 (Caligula), no. 5 6 (Claudius) and H e m e r (1986), p. 157. Ibid. nos. 5 1 - 5 2 (Caligula). H e m e r (1986), pp. 1 5 8 - 1 6 0 . 62

e s

M

THE APOCALYPSE AND DOMITIAN'S ICONOGRAPHY

189

the images of the persecuted c o m m u n i t y in h o p e of eschatological vindication. 5B 1.7. Apoc. 3,21: KaGioai uex' euou ev xcp Gpovcp uou Particular references here to o u r concerns with the Imperial Cult are sparse, even though H e m e r detected a n d reinforced early dis cussions of the relationship between w h a t is recorded by ancient writ ers a n d inscriptions regarding Laodicea a n d this letter. T h e wealth a n d self-sufficiency of the city m e a n t that it was in a position to decline to ask for imperial aid following the e a r t h q u a k e already m e n tioned (5A 3.1.6). H o w e v e r , the promise here to the overcomers is "to sit with m e on m y t h r o n e (icaGioai uex' euou ev xcp Gpovcp uou) even as I have b e e n victorious (coq Kocycb eviicr|aa) a n d sit with m y father on his t h r o n e (Kai eicdGiaa uexd xou rcaxpoq uou ev xcp Gpovcp uou; v. 21)." T h e r e was h o w e v e r an i m p e r i a l t e m p l e e r e c t e d in h o n o u r of D o m i t i a n at Laodicea in c o m m e m o r a t i o n of his often fictitious, mil itary, victories. T h e depiction of the t e m p l e on coins represents Domitian in a r m o u r with a spear a n d with the inscription: emveuaoc;. F u r t h e r m o r e , as H e m e r notes, R a m s a y restored an inscription from Laodicea in which a freedman of the e m p e r o r , Tiberius Claudius T r y p h o n , dedicates a triple gate a n d towers: "to J u p i t e r (A[u]) the greatest Saviour (ueyio[xco] I[co]xfjpi) a n d e m p e r o r D o m i t i a n ( K a i AuxoKpdxopi [Aouixiavcp]), C a e s a r Augustus (Kaioapi Ie|3aoxcp), pon tifex maximus (dp%iepei ueyioxco)." W e have shown the clear e m p h a sis in the other letters on a contra-cultural representation of Christian eschatology in terms of the Imperial Cult. It is interesting to ask, therefore, w h e t h e r the address of the L o r d Christ ("Behold I stand at the d o o r a n d knock" v. 20), however allusory, is not a parallel with the gate b e a r i n g the emperor's n a m e a n d by whose will p e o ple c o m e in a n d c o m e out. T h e supper is clearly eschatological (Apoc. 3,20 cf. 19,9 a n d 17) b u t a foretaste is the Eucharist of the present which has already in previous letters b e e n paralleled with the cultic festivities of the guilds at P e r g a m o n (5B 1.3) a n d T h y a t e i r a (5B 1.4). 65

66

67

Let us now e x a m i n e h o w the images of contra-cultural parallelism 6 5

H e m e r (1986) c h a p . 9. B M C Phrygia p. 307 nos. 1 8 1 - 1 8 2 , 185; p. 3 0 8 n o . 188; Price (1984), p. 183 and p. 2 6 4 Cat. 87. CIG 3 9 4 9 = IGRR 4,847 = MAMA 6,2 = EpAnat 2 6 (1996), p p . 3 1 - 4 0 cf. H e m e r (1986), p. 195. 6 6

1)7

190

CHAPTER FIVE

continue outside the seven letters a n d into the m a i n body of the text of the Apocalypse itself. 5B

2. Contra images of Imperial Cult in A p o c .

4-19

In the last section (5A 3.1) we showed h o w the general hopes of the c o m m u n i t y were expressed in terms that reveal the construction of a contra-culture. H o w e v e r , w h a t we have so far established refers to the theological perspective of the c o m m u n i t y a n d not to the particular kind of C h u r c h O r d e r that also developed. T h e r e are vexed ques tions regarding w h a t kind of C h u r c h O r d e r is presupposed b o t h by the letters a n d the m a i n b o d y of the text, w h e t h e r the angels of the churches were fully heavenly beings or i n d e e d their earthly bishops, w h e t h e r the twenty-four elders refer to a presbyterate that presided over these churches etc. Such questions will be better left until we consider such issues in connection with the C h u r c h O r d e r that was to pertain in Asia M i n o r some ten years later, a n d in m a n y of the same cities addressed by the Apocalypse, w h e n we consider the letters of Ignatius of Antioch (6A 1). F o r the m o m e n t we shall confine o u r attention to the way in which, in the text of the Apocalypse, as it n o w unravels from c h a p ter 4 o n w a r d s , the action of the c h u r c h in heaven b e c o m i n g a n d enlisting the c h u r c h o n e a r t h , is c h a r a c t e r i s e d by images of the Imperial C u l t transformed t h r o u g h the construction of a c o n t r a cultural reality. T h e imagery of the Seer's vision is undoubtedly com posite, with images derived from a n u m b e r of sources b o t h Jewish, early Christian, a n d p a g a n . T h o s e images have doubtlessly b e e n refashioned, in fantastic proportions, into a bizarre vision which has b e e n very successful in concealing its true historical a n d cultural roots. Nevertheless we shall argue that, despite the bewildering c o m position of variegated imagery, the contours of the Imperial Cult a n d its transformation into the cult of the C h u r c h militant a n d tri u m p h a n t have left their unmistakable impress. T h e concept of the Imperial Cult e m b r a c e d the total iconogra p h y of the A u g u s t a n revolution, b o t h architectural, religious a n d social. Z a n k e r has described graphically the way in which Augustus' public architectural projects that so transformed the physical a p p e a r ance of R o m e represented a m o v e m e n t of Hellenistic art a n d cul ture from the private villa of the R e p u b l i c a n aristocrat to the public space of the forum a n d city w h e r e that culture could experience a

191

THE APOCALYPSE AND DOMITIAN'S ICONOGRAPHY

68

distinctive R o m a n i z a t i o n . Price has described how, in the soil of Asia M i n o r already well fertilised for the growth of the Imperial Cult from a n existing tradition of ruler cults, civic space was invaded by architectural expressions of the new, religio-political ideology. Pergamon well exemplifies the inclusion of gymnasia in the organised proces sion of the cult w h e r e we find imperial r o o m s with bases for cult statues of the deified e m p e r o r s which stood side by side with the gods H e r m e s a n d Heracles n o w associated with their cult. T h e cultic celebration, taking place on fixed days such as imper ial birthdays annually or in four-yearly festivals, i n c o r p o r a t e d games a n d theatrical performances. Sometimes, however, a special event such as the arrival of the e m p e r o r would create a sacred d a y . But the Imperial Cult was e x t e n d e d so as to assimilate traditional festi vals by m e a n s of the iconographic association of imperial statues with local gods. "Hpa at Samos, for example, b e c a m e "Hpoc Zepaaxf|. 69

70

71

T h e a t r e s were included in the cult by the location there of i m p e rial statues, a n d visited in the course of its processional route, as at G y t h e u m w h e r e the statues of Augustus, Livia a n d Tiberius faced a n incense b u r n e r w h e r e the ritual for c o m m e n c i n g competitions took p l a c e . T h e c o m m u n i t y took p a r t also: private householders erected their o w n small altars on which they sacrificed as the p r o cession passed. W e have already d r a w n attention to h o w exposed the Christian c o m m u n i t y would be even t h o u g h there was as yet no general policy of enforced e m p e r o r worship (3C 2.3.3.3). T h e p r o cession of the cult, however, whilst including a n d e m b r a c i n g these local shrines, gymnasia a n d theatres, h a d a central point of refer ence in major civic centres such as the council house at Ephesus which contained a n imperial a l t a r . 72

73

Sanctuaries such as the temple of Asclepius at P e r g a m o n housed the local festival of the Saviour Sebastoi, a n d were also e m b r a c e d by a visit of the procession. In the procession itself, a n d the associated ritual, images of the

6 8

P. Zanker, The Power of Images in the Age of Augustus, trans. A. Shapiro, (Ann Arbor: University o f M i c h i g a n Press 1990), chapters 1 a n d 3; cf. Price (1984) c h a p ter 6. Price (1984) p. 144. Ibid. p. 105. Ibid. p. 103. Ibid. 109 a n d p . 188. Ibid. p. 112 footnote 74. 6 9

70

71

72

73

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CHAPTER FIVE

imperial household played a pivotal role. Images of the imperial fam ily were included with busts of Artemis for carrying from the lat ter's temple from w h e r e they were kept to the theatre. T h e y h a d special bases there o n which they could b e set u p . T h e r e sacrifices took place a t meetings of t h e assembly a n d festivals such as the Sebasta, the Soteria, a n d the four-yearly G r e a t Ephesia. At Athens it was t h e council of elders which was responsible for m a k i n g these special images quite distinct from t h e p e r m a n e n t l y standing statues. O l d a n d d a m a g e d images were t h e responsibility of the council of elders at E p h e s u s . F u r t h e r m o r e youths at Athens a n d T a n a g r a served as officials called sebastophoroi. F u r t h e r m o r e , imperial mysteries were celebrated with a special official, t h e aepaaxocpdviriq. 74

75

76

77

It was Stauffer w h o , with considerable insight, posited t h e con nection between such features of the Imperial Cult a n d t h e scenes of t h e Apocalypse T h e scene which follows the seven letters, filled themselves with allusions to the Imperial Cult as w e have shown fol lowing H e m e r a n d R a m s a y , is a scene resplendent with imagery from the games, the choral festivities, t h e horse races, the imperial mysteries associated with the carrying of t h e eiicoveq, the presbyters of t h e cities organising a n d funding the Imperial Cult m a n y of w h o m h a d cultic functions t h r o u g h t h e offices they held in t h e sacred col leges superintending t h e imperial mysteries, etc. T h e contra-culture will of course reverse t h e images of t h e host culture, in process of taking o n its values a n d refashioning t h e m . 78

Let us n o w see in detail h o w the themes of eiKoveq in t h e i m p e rial mysteries, t h e b u r n i n g of incense, t h e p o u r i n g of libations, the festival that c o m b i n e d h y m n o d y with gymnasia, g a m e s a n d theatre, are reflected in the vision of the Apocalypse.

74

Ibid. p. 104. /. Eph. II, 2 3 . Price (1984), p. 189. H . W . Pleket, A n aspect o f the imperial cult: imperial mysteries, in HThR 5 8 , 4 (1965), p. 3 3 7 m e n t i o n s the Bithynian inscription (Ath. Mitt. 2 4 (1899)) in w h i c h xcov uuoxripicov iepocpdvxriq a n d aePaoxocpdvxr|<; are used as equivalents. A n o t h e r Asian example, from D o r y l a e u m in Phrygia (IGRR 4 , 5 2 2 (= OGIS 479)), w o u l d be an Hadrianic inscription erected by Asklepiades son o f Stratonikos Oeoiq lePaoxoiq K a i 0eai<; leftaaxau; m i 'Ouovoia l e p a a x f j K a i 9 e a Tcbup. H i s title is oepaaxocpdv75

7 6

7 7

XT|<; 8 i a p(o\) K a i iepeix;. 7H

S e e footnote 5.

193

THE APOCALYPSE AND DOMITIAN'S ICONOGRAPHY

5B 2 . 1 . The angels and cpidAxxi: A p o c . 16: festival T o the festive crowd at Ephesus the a p p e a r a n c e of the high priest o p e n i n g a new series of g a m e s by throwing d o w n a m a p p a or p u r ple signal-cloth, or emptying a sacrificial bowl, was a festive scene of rejoicing. But to the Seer it is a n angel w h o p o u r e d out his "libation bowl of the w r a t h of G o d (cpidAriv xov Guuou xou Geou). . . u p o n those w h o have the m a r k of the beast (ETC! xouq dv0pamo\)<; xoix; EXOvxaq xo xdpayuxx xov Onpuyo) a n d w h o worship his image (Kai xoix; rcpoaicuvouvxaq xf\ EIKOVI a\>xo\))." (Apoc. 16,2) T h u s the seven angels with their seven cpidtaxi c o m m e n c e the games that are the final con test (dycov) between Babylon a n d the C h u r c h , a n d it is in that a r e n a that A r m a g e d d o n a n d the tribulation woes of traditional apocalyp tic are to take place (16, 3-21). 79

If incense as well as the sacrifice of a bull was characteristic of the Imperial Cult, so to was the symbolism of the e m p e r o r , veiled as a priest for sacrifice, p o u r i n g a drink offering from a patera ((pidA,r|). T h e temple at S m y r n a showed Tiberius with his h e a d veiled. Fur t h e r m o r e this should not b e seen as suggesting a distinction between a h u m a n - p r i e s t e m p e r o r a n d full worship of the gods since, as Price points out, gods are often depicted as priests of their o w n epony m o u s cults. T h e vision of the angels with their (pidAm m a y well also h a v e b e e n informed by such p a g a n a n d imperial imagery, such as that of the priestess at Pompeii with stole a n d patera (Plate 14). Instead of the e m p e r o r bringing blessing a n d salvation by m e a n s of his libation, these angels b r i n g the w r a t h a n d j u d g e m e n t of G o d u p o n those w h o worship his EIKCOV in the cult. 80

81

5B 2.2. 7cp£apt>x£poi a n d EIKOVE^: theatre and mysteries W e have already d r a w n attention to the significance of mystery col legia in connection with the letter to P e r g a m o n (5B 1.3). It is n o w time for us to assess in greater detail the links between epigraphic evidence for such collegia a n d the role of the 7tp£aPt>x£poi, their choirs a n d their ax£<pavoi, a r o u n d the heavenly sacrificial altar of the L a m b .

7 9

Stauffer (1955), p. 186. BMC Ionia p. 2 6 8 nos. 2 6 6 - 2 6 8 a n d Price cat. 4 5 and Plate l b miscited as 3b in Price (1984), p. 185. Price (1984), p. 185: "But the gods often held their o w n e p o n y m o u s priest hoods a n d are often s h o w n making sacrificial offerings . . . " cites (footnotes 76 and 77.) L. Robert, Sur des inscriptions d' Ephese, 6. Lettres imperiales a Ephese, RPhil 4 1 , 3 (1967), pp. 4 4 - 6 4 ; also RPhil (1959), pp. 2 0 0 2 0 4 ; cf. D i o 5 9 , 2 8 , 5 o n Gaius. 8 0

81

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CHAPTER

FIVE

IGRR 4, 3 5 3 is a large stone altar taken from t h e temple of R o m a a n d Augustus in P e r g a m o n a n d inscribed o n four sides. At t h e front is a d e d i c a t i o n (lines a. 4 - 5 a ) t o H a d r i a n "saviour a n d founder (ocoxTipi K a i [ K T { ] O T T I ) . " But those w h o m a k e t h e dedication a r e a n existing choir of the Imperial Cult, t h e "hymn-singers (i)uvcp8oi) of divine Augustus (Geou lepaoxou) a n d of t h e goddess R o m a (Kai Qeaq Tcouriq)." (a. /. 5b) T h i r t y five n a m e s stood there originally t h o u g h two have b e e n erased (a. /. 17-18). It was certain of the high-ranking m e m b e r s of this select g r o u p , of the family of A. Castricius Paulus, w h o dedicated t h e altar from their private m e a n s (a. /. 3 0 - 3 1 : dv [aOevxcov] x[6]v Pcouov £K xcov i8icov Kaoxpudcov). O n e of his family whose n a m e survives in t h e mutilated lines 3 1 32 is C a p i t o whose office is that of GeoAoyoq. T h i s w a s a tide that Christian tradition was t o a w a r d t o t h e Seer of the Apocalypse. But originally it was t h e title of a functionary in t h e Imperial Cult a n d associated with t h e imperial u u o r n p i a in which h e p r o n o u n c e d t h e eulogy u p o n t h e e m p e r o r a n d p e r h a p s took p a r t in c h o r e o g r a p h y in which h e played t h e e m p e r o r ' s role in t h e d r a m a of the cult. T h e Seer nevertheless acted in a fashion reminiscent of such a cult w h e n he described t h e eulogistic h y m n s of t h e presbyters to G o d a n d to the L a m b , as w e shall shortly see (5B 3). 82

83

Provision is n o w m a d e for t h e celebration of t h e d e a d Augustus' birthday o n t h e first d a y of the m o n t h that bears his n a m e (b. /. 5: uuvoq Kaioapoq lePaoxii, yeveaico lepaoxou). But t h e context for t h e celebration is t h e imperial mysteries to which allusion is n o w m a d e

8 2

SEG 4 , 5 1 7 = / . Eph. Ia, 4 5 A, 1 - 8 , translated in P.R. Coleman-Norton, Roman State and Christian Church, (London: S.P.C.K. 1966), III, no. 5 7 7 ; J. Schmid, Studien zur Geschichte des griechischen Apocalypse-Textes, 1. Der Apocalypse-Kommentar des Andreas von Kaisareia, in Munchener Theologische Studien, (Miinchen: Karl Zink 1955), p. 7; / . Eph. VII,2 4 1 3 3 , 9 ; / . Eph. VII,2 4311(a): Graffito on the farthest west of the two pillars the Church of St. John in Ephesus: (cpoPo 7tpoceA.6e nx>h\v xov GeoAoyoi)); VII,2 4 3 1 4 : Another pillar on the North row has a petition in prayer (GeoAxSye) VII,2 4 3 1 8 (a): Running well in North Corridor of the nave of St. John of Ephesus, graffito on marble cladding (ic(\>pi)e K(t>pi)e dyne 6eoA,6ye, (3OT|9TIGOV XOV SOVXOGOV Teopynov); Eph. IV, 1279: Byzantian prayer inscribed on wall tile in white marble (K(\>pi)e 'Hoov Xfpioxe K a i 'IcodvvTi(<;)] 6 GeoXoyoq [p\>oaxe r\\ia<; anb co-]). 8 3

Pleket (1965), pp. 3 3 7 - 3 3 8 ; see also / . Eph. Ia, 2 2 , 1 - 8 ; / . Eph. Ia, 2 7 , 2 9 2 - 2 9 7 ; I. Eph. Ill 6 4 5 , 3 - 7 : [x]6 7tpoa 'Apxeui5i a\)ve8piov [x]cov -buvcpScov [K]ai6eo^6ycov [K]ai0ea|icp8tov. See also /. Eph. Ia 4 7 , 7 3 (M. Ko(A,(ioq) 'HXi68copo<;0£otaSYO<;); IV, 1023,4 (A.D. 104) Titus Flavius Dionysius Sabinus BeoAxSyoq; VII, 1 3 0 7 4 (GeoXoyoq); / . Eph. VII, 1 3 0 1 5 , 2 .

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in the inscription on the right h a n d side of the altar. I n d e e d the birthday is but o n e of five festivals that are to be c o m m e m o r a t e d . T h e second is the festival o f n e w year presents (dies strenarum = 1st J a n u a r y ) , the third is the Rosalia (poSicuoq) (24th May) for the c o m m e m o r a t i o n of the d e p a r t e d a n d the fourth is for the mysteries o f the 25th J u n e (unvoq Acoou y puoxnpioK;), a n d the fifth for Livia's birthday (21st S e p t e m b e r ; b . /. 3-11). Associated with each festival is the a n n u a l provision (oca xcp evia\)xcp rcapexei xr\q dpxnq) by the choir's president or " c o n d u c t o r (6 euKoouoq)." (b. /. 2) The conductor is to provide (nape^ei bk 6 evKoafioq) both for Augustus' birthday (xr\ xov Xepaaxou EVUTIVCO yeveaico) and for the rest of the birth days of the dead and deified emperors (Kai xai<; Xoinalc, yevealoiq xcov avxoKpaxopcov) and they shall crown with garlands the hymn-singers and the mysteries (oxeyavovq xoiq \)uvcp8oi<; m i xoi<; |JA)oxrip{oi<; axeqxxvcociv) in the choir hall (ev xcp vuvcoSeicp). . . b. /. 12-19 T h e c o n d u c t o r is furthermore to provide b r e a d a n d wine for these mysteries, along with "sacrificial cake (rcorcavov), incense (Aapavov) a n d l a m p s ( K a i Xv%vov<;) for Augustus (xcp LePaoxcp)." W h e n we t u r n to the inscriptions on the back of the altar we find the context of these articles xcp lePaaxco. H e r e the priest (6 iepeix;) a p p o i n t e d for the y e a r h a s , i n a d d i t i o n to b r e a d a n d w i n e , to p r o v i d e a c o v e r i n g (axpcooiv) for the images of the Augusti (eiq eiKovaq xcov ZePaaxcov)." (c. /. 4 - 7 ) T h e c a n t o r is to m a k e similar provision of wine a n d a covering. W e t h e n learn t h a t "those w h o are co-opted as h y m n singers from o t h e r cities shall give 50 d e n a r i a (c. /. 1 0 - 1 1 : 8coao\)aiv 8e oi KaGiaxdpevoi e^coxiKoi u u v c p S o i . . . Srivapia' v') for the images of the Augusti (eiq e k o v a q xcov ZePaaxcov)." (c. /. 10-11) Clearly the Xvyyox, the axpcoaiq, the oivoq, the apxoq, the Xipavoq a n d the rcorcavov together with the uuvoi of the uuvcoSoi all have ref erence to mystery-rites involving the eiKoveq o f the d e a d a n d deified e m p e r o r s (xcov Zepaaxcov). T h e inscription on the left side o f the altar, whilst specifying the financial contributions towards these articles nec essary for the p e r f o r m a n c e of the rite for guild officials such as the secretary (6 ypappaxetjq), also m e n t i o n s (d. /. 10) that these are for the mysteries ([ivaxr\pioiq) o n the 23rd J u n e which was the first day of the m o n t h of K a i o a p (urivoq Acoou lePaaxfi). F u r t h e r m o r e , as the inscription o n the right side has already r e m i n d e d u s , the souls of d e p a r t e d m e m b e r s are also included in the incense rite, a n d the

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a r c h o n is to provide the cost for a d e a d m e m b e r w h i c h he can r e c o u p from the p e r s o n w h o replaces h i m .

84

W e can n o w begin to d r a w a n u m b e r of parallels with the text of the Apocalypse itself. 5B

2.2.1. A p o c . 13-14:

eiKoav

xou Oripiou

IGRR 4,353 c. /. 1 0 - 1 1 a n d c. /. 4 - 7 m e n t i o n e d the imperial mys teries with e i K o v e q a n d A,u%voi, as we have seen, in the context of the imperial mysteries, with a GeoXoyoq to b o t h c o m p o s e a n d inter p r e t the ritual of the mystery play. T h e figure that the Seer observes "in the midst of the l a m p s (ev ueocp xSv A,u%vicov)" has, like the image of Augustus, a h u m a n form (ojioiov uiov dvGpcoTcou)." (Apoc. 1,12-13) T h e lamps t h a t celebrate a n d illuminate in their cult are the seven churches (Apoc. 1,20). T h e writer behaves like the aepaaxo(pdvxr|<; w h o uncovers the eiKcov, or like the OeoXoyoq w h o unravells the imperial mysteries: he is to write TO jxuoxripiov xcov ercxd d a x e p c o v a n d of the ercxd AA)%V{OC<; (1,20). Christ is not called the eiKobv xou Geou as in o t h e r early Christian literature (Col. 1,15) since the h o r r o r of the euccbv xou Oripiou p r o v e d too resistant to contra-cultural transformation. T h e division b e t w e e n believers a n d non-believers r e m a i n s characterised in this respect in negative terms. T h e latter are those w h o worship the beast a n d his i m a g e (Apoc. 1 4 , 9 , 1 5 - 1 6 , 1 9 - 2 0 ) , a n d the former those w h o d o not (Apoc. 13,15; 20,4). But the description of the churches w h o t h r o u g h their cultus illuminate the Son of M a n a n d their situation is swathed in the enigmatic language of the myster ies, as we saw particularly to be in point with r e g a r d to P e r g a m o n (5B 1.3). In this light Price is surely correct to interpret the scene of the image of the beast c o m i n g to life (Apoc. 13,14-15) in the context of the ritual associated with the imperial e i K o v e q . H e r e in the ani m a t e d d r a m a of the ritual is the description of the priestly magician of w h o m it could b e said: " a n d there was g r a n t e d to h i m ( K a i e 8 6 0 T | auxa>) to give a spirit (8ouvai rcveujLia) to the image of the beast (xii e i K o v i xou 0T|p{ou) in o r d e r that the image of the beast could speak ( i v a K a i taxfoioTi fi e k o w xou Oripiou) a n d should cause to be slain all those w h o w o u l d not worship the image ( K a i rcoirjori i v a oaoi edv uri 8 5

8 4

b. /. 20: xotq Se dva7ca\)ouevoi<; eiq A,{|3avov rcpoxpriaei 6 dpxcov 8r|vdpi<x ie', xou ei<; xov XOTCOV a\>xoi) eiaiovxoq. Price (1984), p p . 1 5 6 - 1 5 8 .

arco>.T|\|/£T(xi T c a p d 8 5

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197

rcpoaKDvr|ocoGiv TTI eiKovixoa)9T|p[o\)d7COKTav0coaiv)." (Apoc. 13,15) T h i s would have arguably b e e n very m u c h h o w the panegyrics of the cult arranged by the GeoAoyoq, a n d the d r a m a performed by its oePaaiocpdvxr|<;, w o u l d have a p p e a r e d to the Seer. T h e souls of the d e p a r t e d were represented in the Imperial Cult along with those of the d e a d a n d deified e m p e r o r s , a n d this feature of those mysteries is represented in the Apocalypse too. 5B 2.2.2. A p o c . 6 and 8: xaq \|n)%d<; xcov eotpaypivcov As we n o t e d in connection with the mysteries (puornpioiq) for the first of the m o n t h of Loos, n a m e l y 23rd J u n e (jinvoq Acoou lePaaxfi), incense was offered b o t h to the d e p a r t e d m e m b e r s of the guild (b. /. 20: xoiq 8e dvarcocuouivoiq eiq X(Pavov) as well as for the d e a d a n d deified e m p e r o r s . In the Apocalypse, likewise, incense is associated with the heavenly altar, a n d for the souls which lie u n d e r it. In 6,9 a n d 11, at the o p e n i n g of the fifth seal, we find: . . . under the altar (i)7coKcxTco icri) GDaiaoTrjpioi)) the souls of those who have been slain (xotq vj/Dxdq TCOV sacpayuivcov) for the Word of God (8id xov AxSyov TOV Geov)... to each of whom was given (e869t| amoiq emoTcp) a white robe (GTOAJI tauicf)), and they were told (Kai eppe&n amoic;) to repose for a short time (iva dvarcawovTai ETI xpovov uiKpov) until their fellow servants should find their fulfilment (ecoqrctaipcoGcooivKai oi GVVSOVXOI avTcov) along with their brethren (Kai oi dSetapoi amcov) who were about to be slaughtered like themselves (oi [leXXovxeq drcoKTevveaGai cb<; Kai avxoi). T h e t h e m e of the souls of the faithful d e p a r t e d is of course famil iar from the W i s d o m literature (Wis. 3,1-9). But the direct associa tion with their cultus in their association with a n altar is not m a d e . Although Charles was c o m m i t t e d to deriving the vision almost wholly from J e w i s h sources, his q u o t a t i o n from 1 Enoch 6,11 will not sup port such a claim here since there is n o reference to the repose of their souls. In Apoc. 6 , 1 1 , to the contrary, the identical t e r m for the repose of d e p a r t e d m e m b e r s of the college of the imperial choir is used for Christian martyrs (Apoc. 6,11 d v a T t a u a o v i a i cf. IGRR 353 b . /. 20: dva7ta\)ouivoi<; ei<; AiPavov). Incense (AaPavoq) too follows the o p e n i n g of the seals in 8 , 3 - 4 w h e r e "the angel stood at the altar (eaxdOri eni xov G\)aiaaTr|p{o\)) with a golden incense-charger (e%cov AiPavcoxov xpuaouv)" a n d w h e r e h e p r o c e e d s to offer the incense (6upid|LiaTa), not in propitiation to the divinized souls of the d e p a r t e d ,

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b u t as prayers of the whole people of G o d which includes t h e m (Kai dvePr] 6 Kanvbq xcov Gujiiaudxcov xai<; rcpoaeuxaiq xcov dyicov). T h e contra-cultural imagination m a y choose the Jewish terms Guoiaoxripiov a n d Guuiauot for the heavenly cult, since a cult in that loca tion could n o t conceivably be described in p a g a n terms of pcouoq (IGRR 4,353 a. /. 3 1 : dv[a6evxcov] x[6]v pcouov) or Aapavcoxoq. But the concern for souls of d e p a r t e d m e m b e r s in terms of the dvarcauouivoi reveals that the contra-image of the Imperial Cult is responsible for the redescription of the heavenly scene in such sanitised Jewish terms. F u r t h e r m o r e , d e p a r t e d m e m b e r s of the college of the Christian cult are described as xaq \\f\>xaq xcov eocpayuivcov 8 i a xov Xoyov xou Geou. W e have pointed out already that one of the offices of the P e r g a m o n imperial college was that of GeoXoyoq (IGRR 4,353 a. /. 3 1 : [Ka7i(]xcovo<; GeotaSyou). F u r t h e r m o r e , although the a u t h o r of the Apocalypse does not use this t e r m of himself, GeoAoyoq b e c a m e the classic description of his office as it was clearly perceived by his n e a r contemporaries. W e have already m e n t i o n e d the role of the office of the GeoAoyoq in writing the discourse or Xoyoq of the cultic d r a m a in which the i m p e rial eiKoveq w e r e involved. T h e Xoyoq of the Christian cult, for which the martyrs were slaughtered, is arguably here j u x t a p o s e d with that of the Imperial Cult. Certainly, as we have already indicated, the letters to the churches have the quality of the utterance of a mystagogue s u r r o u n d e d by the Xu%via a n d revealing the mysteries of the figure ouoiov uiov dvGpcbrcou in their midst in terms of such veiled imagery as white stones a n d h i d d e n m a n n a (5B 1.3). IGRR 4,353 also m e n t i o n e d a 35 m e m b e r choir of the Imperial Cult, the "hymn-singers (uuvcpSoi) of divine Augustus (Geou lepaoxou) a n d of the goddess R o m a (Kai Qeaq Tcouriq)." (a. /. 5b). W e t u r n n o w to parallels with such uuvcp8oi in the songs of the rcpeopuxepoi a r o u n d the heavenly altar in the Apocalypse. 5B 2.2.3. A p o c . 4,4; 7,14: angels, uuvco8oi and rcpeapuxepoi W e shall discuss further the question of any correspondence between the Tcpeapuxepoi a r o u n d the heavenly altar in t h e Apocalypse a n d C h u r c h O r d e r of the Seer's c o m m u n i t y w h e n we deal with the Ignatian c o r r e s p o n d e n c e (6A 1.1.1). But for the m o m e n t we shall consider the scenes a r o u n d the heavenly altar as reflections of the Imperial Cult, a n d the prayers said by the presbyters, the angels, the "great c r o w d " or the h y m n sung a n d the 144,000 as reflections of w h a t was said by rcpeopeiq or rcpeopuxepoi or sung by uuvco8o{ at

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199

imperial celebrations, w h e t h e r in connection or not with imperial mysteries. Pleket concluded that, as p a r t of the mysteries at P e r g a m o n , a aepaaxocpdvxriq exposing " t h e imperial i m a g e u n d e r glaring l a m p l i g h t , " w o u l d h a v e b e e n a c c o m p a n i e d at least o n occasions by uuvco8oi a n d GeoAoyoi singing the divine e m p e r o r s ' praises. T h o u g h there is n o reference to a aepaoxocpdvxr|<; in IGRR 4 , 3 5 3 , we find allusions to such a cultic role elsewhere (IGRR 4,522 (= OGIS 479); 643). T h e r e are also o t h e r allusions to uuvqxSoi of the Imperial C u l t at P e r g a m o n , for e x a m p l e Asia ( H y p a e p a ) . 86

87

88

It is to be emphasised that the uuvcp86<; is a p p o i n t e d for a sacrificial function (6 KaxaaxaGeiq uuvcp86<; ei<; Guoiaq xou lePaoxou) a n d that his h y m n (rcapapoouiov) is c o n n e c t e d with a n a l t a r . T h e h y m n in the Apocalypse to which we c a n d r a w a parallel with the Imperial Cult, sung by the 144,000 (14,2-3), alludes to such imperial mystery rites in a musical context: 89

. . . the voice which I heared (r\ (pcovfj r\v TiKouaa) was as of harpists play ing on their harps (ox; Ki0apcp8cbv KiGapi^ovxcov ev xaiq KiGdpaic; auxcov), and they sang a new song (Kai a5oi)oiv ax; qxSfjv Kawf|v) before the throne and before the four animals and elders (evomiov xou Gpovou Kai evamiov xcov xeoadpcov £a>cov Kai xcov TtpeoPuxepcov) and no-one was able to learn the song (Kai ou8ei<; e8uvaxo paGeiv XTJV a)8f|v) except the 144,000. Prior to this h y m n , we h a v e three prayers said

(Xeyoviaq):

(i) T h e first is by the twenty four elders rcpeaPuxepoi, the precise n u m b e r of which indicates their collegial c h a r a c t e r (4,10), (ii) the second (7,9) by " a great c r o w d (6%Ao<; noXvq)... from every nation a n d tribes (he navibq eGvouq Kai cpuAxov.) . . . standing before the t h r o n e a n d before the L a m b (eoxcoxeq evamiov xou Gpovou Kai evamiov xou dpviou)," a n d (iii) the third (7,11) by angels w h o "stood in the circle of the t h r o n e a n d of the elders a n d of the four living animals (eioxf|Keiaav KUK^CO

8 6

Pleket (1965), p p . 3 4 5 - 3 4 6 . See also footnote 9 0 . IGRR 4 , 1 6 0 8 (Claudius): a. /. 10: oi i)uvco8oi ave6r|Kav K a x a T O yev6|ie[vov] \j/r|(pioua ev nepydnq) hub xfjq i e p a q [ a \ ) v o ] 8 o u e v y p d y a v i e q Baa S i m i a [Kai [(piA,dv]9pamd eoxiv avxdiq 8e8o^ie[va \>JC* a\>xoi)] a n d b. /. 5 . . . [xii iep]a i)uvco8(ov [ O D V O S C O %aipeiv] . . . IGRR 4 , 3 5 3 d. /. 1 4 - 1 5 cf. c. /. 10; Tacitus Hist. 2,55: "At R o m a e . . . . p o p ulus c u m lauru et floribus G a l b a e imagines circa templa tulit." See also Pleket (1965), p. 3 4 1 ; Alfoldi (1970), pp. 7 1 - 7 2 ff. 8 7

8 8

89

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xov Bpovcru K a i xcov 7cpeap\)T8pcov Kai TCOV Teoadpcov £cbcov)." T h e

first

three prayers however d o not a p p e a r to allude to t h e imperial mys teries as such, since they a r e o p e n , cultic prayers. But u n d o u b t e d l y the prayers of the presbyters, the great crowd, a n d t h e angels enjoy the same cultic context as the h y m n of t h e 144,000. As Alfbldi p o i n t e d out, from R e p u b l i c a n times acclamations for great m e n from the crowds often took a rhythmic form. A c c o r d i n g to Suetonius, t h e crowds "greeted Augustus r e t u r n i n g from the province not only with every p r a y e r for his blessing (faustis omnibus) b u t with r h y t h m i c songs (modulatis carminibus). At t h e g a m e s a c c o m p a n y i n g the Imperial C u l t w e have descriptions of the crowds c h a n t i n g as "so m a n y t h o u s a n d s of m e n ( T O o a u T a i p/upid8e<; avOpcorccov). . . even as s o m e choir accurately t a u g h t (coarcep xiq aKpiPcoq x°P°S 8e8i8aypevoq)." T h e s e a r e t h e concrete events reflected in the r h y t h m i c chants of the elders a n d the angels, or the sung h y m n of the 144,000. 90

91

T h e scenic b a c k g r o u n d b o t h of the prayers a n d of this h y m n to which we have m a d e reference is therefore u n d o u b t e d l y cultic. T h e Gpovoq before which t h e presbyters p r a y in a d o r a t i o n is the s a m e as that of the l a m b before w h o m t h e great standing crowd say their p r a y e r (kox&xeq evamiov xov Gpovou Kai evcorciov TOU apviov). In Apoc. 8,3 it is clear that t h e golden altar stands before this t h r o n e (TO 6i)GiaoTr|piov TO xpuoouv TO evamiov TOU Gpovou). T h e L a m b is n o t found on the altar b u t o n the t h r o n e , yet nevertheless he stands as once slain b u t n o w alive a n d therefore standing a n d later sharing G o d ' s t h r o n e . T h e blood of the L a m b still decorates those for w h o m he died a n d w h o in t u r n have laid d o w n their lives (6,14). 92

F u r t h e r m o r e , in t h e dress of t h e 6%Xoq noXvq, a n d w h a t they carry, we find a very close parallel with the I m p e r i a l Cult. In 7,9 w e find t h e m "clothed in white robes (rcepiPepAriuivoix; oxoXaq Xevycaq) a n d p a l m b r a n c h e s in their h a n d s ( K a i cpoiviKec; ev xaiq %epaiv avTcov)." W e r e a d in the decree of T i b e r i u s ' reign from G y t h e i o n (Laconia) that " t h e r e was to b e a p r o c e s s i o n (KOILK^V GxeXXexa* CK TOU iepou TOU 'AaK^riTciou K a i xr\q Tyieiaq) with t h e ephebes a n d the y o u n g a n d the other citizens processing (rcouTieuovTcov TCOV xe ecpriPcov K a i vecov K a i TCOV

9 0

Suetonius, Aug. 5 7 , 2 : "Revertentem e x provincia n o n solum faustis ominibus sed et modulatis carminibus prosequebantur." D i o 78,20,1 cf. Alfoldi (1970), p p . 7 9 - 8 8 . Apoc. 5,6: dpv(ov £GTT|K6<; coq eacpayuevov cf. 7,9: eaxwxeq evamiov xov Gpovou K a i evamiov xofi a p v i o u ; 22,1 a n d 3. 91

92

201

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aXXcov rcoXeixSv), w r e a t h e d with crowns of laurel (eoxeixuivcov Sdcpvrjq oxecpdvoiq), a n d clothed in white (Kai A,euKa dujiexouevcov)." F u r t h e r m o r e , H e r o d i a n (VIII, 7,2) informs us t h a t , o n the accession of M a x i m u s in A . D . 2 3 5 , the Italian cities "sent embassies (rcpeoPeiaq erceiircov)" whose m e m b e r s "were clothed in white (Xeu%eiuovouvxe<;) carrying laurel b r a n c h e s (8acpvr|(p6poi)" with "images (dydA.|Liaxa)" a n d "golden crowns (oxecpavoi xpuoou)." M o r e o v e r the a r m y j o i n e d the procession "in peaceful a p p e a r a n c e (ev eipr|viKcp axr|uaxi), carrying laurel b r a n c h e s (8acpvr|
94

At the temple of the e m p e r o r s (Kaiadpiov) the scene is of the u n b l o o d y sacrifice of thure et vinum a n d of a bull sacrificed by the Ephors "for the salvation of o u r rulers a n d gods (urcep xr\q xcov fjyeudvcov Kai Gecov acoxupiaq) a n d the eternal c o n t i n u a n c e of their rule ( K a i di'8{ou xfjq fyyeuoviaq auxcov 8iauovf)<;)." In Apoc. 7,14 the sacrifice at the heavenly altar is of the L a m b in whose blood the byXoq TcoXuq have " w a s h e d their robes (ercXuvav xdq cxoXaq) a n d w h i t e n e d t h e m (Kai e^euKavav auxdq ev xcp a i u a x i xou dpviou)." F u r t h e r m o r e , i m m e diately previously (7,10), their h y m n is also of fj acoxr)pia b u t directed "to o u r G o d (xcp Gecp fiuxov) w h o sits on the t h r o n e (xcp KaGrjuivco EKI xcp Gpovcp) a n d to the L a m b (Kai xcp dpv(cp)." 95

T h e first p r a y e r (4,11) is said by the twenty four presbyters w h o w e a r axecpavoi u p o n their h e a d s a n d w h o a r e also clothed in white g a r m e n t s (4,4). Both officials called rcpeopuxepoi a n d the w e a r i n g of garlands (oxecpavoi) in seats of h o n o u r (7cpoe8piai) were features of the Imperial Cult in m a n y of the city states of Asia M i n o r . W e shall n o w see the significance of these features from the p a g a n cultic back g r o u n d in Asia m i n o r . 5B. 2.2.4. A p o c . 4,4 rcpeoPuxepoi KaGujievoi and ;cpoe8piai T h e rcpeopuxepoi KaGnuevoi have their c o u n t e r p a r t in the Imperial Cult. T h e r e is n o distinct office of rcpeoPuxepoi clearly distinguishable in the Imperial Cult. T h e rcpeopuxepoi of the Seer's vision clearly are J e w i s h or Christian Elders playing their p a r t in the liturgy of the synagogue or c h u r c h . But, as we h a v e a r g u e d , such Jewish-Christian

93

SEG 11, 9 2 2 , /. 25 ff. = Ehrenberg a n d J o n e s 102 a. Fishwick (1987) 2,1 p. 4 7 8 ; Weinstock (1971), p. 2 0 7 a n d 3 9 7 . Cf. D i o Cassius 63,4,2. Ibid. I. 2 8 - 2 9 : oxav 8e erci xo Kaiadpr|ov TI JCOUJCTI 7capayevr|xai, 6excooav oi ecpopoi tafipov i)7iep xr\q xcov fiyeuovcov Kai Gecov acoxiipiaq Kai ai8{o\) xr\q fiyeuoviaq a\>xcov 5 i a uoviiq... 9 4

95

202

CHAPTER FIVE

concepts, as in the case of the Jewish terms 0DGiaaxr|piov and Guuiaua, in place of the p a g a n pcouoq a n d Aipavcoxoq, are there because they are intentionally placed there by the contra-cultural imagination. C o r r e s p o n d i n g to the Jewish or Christian rcpeoPuxepoi were those officials w h o occupied seats of h o n o u r in the cult. A 7ipoe8p{a was a front seat, given as a privilege to office holders such as priests a n d ambassadors (Tcpeapeiq), w h o occupied such seats. M . Gavius Squilla, the "lifelong priest of Victoria Augusta (ieped 8id piou le^acxr\<; Neucnq)," was " h o n o u r e d . . . with first seats (xex£iur||ievov . . . 7ipoe8p{ai<;)" by the city-states of Pamphylia, Lycia a n d Asia (IGRR 4,778 /. 1 a n d 15 (Attalea)). At N a r b o , the rcpoe8pia (subsellio primo spectandi) was specifically given to the priest (flameri) of the Imperial C u l t . 96

W e shall pursue further these lexical connections w h e n we consider the Ignatian correspondence, a n d w h e r e the themes of npoKaOripevoq are ecclesiastically further developed from Ka0r|pevo<; etc. a n d the concomitant imagery that we are finding here. F o r the m o m e n t , let us note that, w h e n the Council at Attalea recorded its h o n o u r paid to Dionysius son of Glykon, one of his existing h o n o u r s was that he "enjoyed the office also of first seat (iiexexovxa Kai xfjq rcpoeSpiaq; IGRR 4,1167 /. 4)." T e o s specifically a w a r d e d to certain ambassadors to R o m e both a rcpoeSpia a n d a xpuaouq axecpavoq. W e turn n o w to the character of the oxecpdvoi of Apoc. 4,4. 97

5B 2.2.5. axecpavoi %puao{, rcpeaPuxepoi and axecpavr|(p6poi Xxecpavoi were a w a r d e d to athletes a n d others as a m a r k of high hon our, a n d so would prefigure in the games associated with imperial processions a n d birthdays. Priests of the Imperial Cult, past or pre sent, would also w e a r such crowns, as indeed D o m i t i a n did w h e n presiding over the Capitoline games (5A 2.2.2). T h u s the tide axe(pavricpopoq is associated with the Imperial Cult. T h e Sacred Gerousia (iepd yepouaia) at Ephesus enjoyed sacerdo tal functions in relation to the cult of Artemis implicit in the adjec tive iepd. I n c o n s e q u e n c e , it b e c a m e closely associated with the Imperial Cult w h e n the latter b e c a m e assimilated with the former.

%

Lex Narbonensis, CIL 12,6038: [de honoribus eius qui flamen erit] restored line 5: [inter decuriones s]enatoresve subsellio primo spectan[di ludos publicos eius provinciae ius esto]. IGRR 4 , 1 5 5 8 /. 2 7 - 3 0 (Teos) = OGIS 2,567: . . . e'5o£ev xr\ pouXfl . . . e7iaw[eaai xo]i)<; TtpoyeYpauiievoix; av8pa<; m i KaXeia6ai eiq 7tpo[e5p(av KOCT'] eviavxov Aiovoaicov 97

xcp dyfcovi] ecoq a]v £cociv, K a l [axe(pavo\jo]9ai xpuoxo oxecpdvw . ..

203

THE APOCALYPSE AND DOMITIAN'S ICONOGRAPHY

As Oliver said, " T h e w o r d rcpeopuxepoi is all over Asia synonymous with yepouoia." F u r t h e r m o r e the yepouoia is described as (piAooePaaxoq, a n d at Hyettus the local institution described itself as f| iepd yep o u a i a xou Icoxfjpoq 'AoKAr|7ttou. H e r e indeed, unusually a n d exceptionally, the tide of a functionary called a rcpeaPuxepoq did a p p e a r in conjunction with the Imperial Cult. Amongst such rcpeoPuxepoi would have been those h o n o u r e d with a oxecpavoq a n d in consequence described as oxecpavrjcpopoi. W e have a n Asian inscription (Lampsacus) in h o n o u r of Augustus' wife Livia, in which the Gerousia order the erection of her statue with steps dedicated to "Julia Sebasta Hestia ('Iou^iav Iepaaxf|v 'Eaxiav), the new D e m e t e r (veav Af|ur|xpa)." Part of the expense is "for the h o n o u r i n g with wreaths (urcep xfjq ei<; xoix; oxecpdvouc; euaePeiaq) of the priest of the Sebastoi (xou iepecoq xcov lePaaxcov)." In a n inscription from Cyzicus (c. A . D . 37) the citizen body is instructed, w h e n wel c o m i n g certain royal visitors, to greet t h e m pxxd xcov dpxovxcov K a i xcov axecpavr|cp6pcov, in the context of the Imperial C u l t . 98

99

100

101

102

T h e r e is also in IGRR 4, 353 b. 1. 1 5 - 1 6 , as we saw (5B 2.2), the c o n d u c t o r (6 mxaoxaGeiq uuvcoSoq) w h o provided on imperial birth-

9 8

J . H . Oliver, T h e Sacred Gerusia, in Ameriacn Excavations in the Athenian Agora, Hesp. Suppl. 6 (1941), pp. 2 6 a n d 4 1 , contrary to T o d (1915), p p . 2 - 3 , w h o said: "Examples from Asia M i n o r are rare, partly perhaps because of the use of the term rcpeaPtJTEpoq in connection with the gymnasia and with m a n y o f the guilds and societies o f the G r a e c o - R o m a n world, a n d above all in the terminology o f the Christian C h u r c h m a d e it less suitable for the purpose o f distinguishing a father from his son w h o bore the n a m e . " Nevertheless he cites t w o inscriptons from A d a d a in Pisidia referring to Bidvcop 'Avxioxcru 7tpea(3i>xepo<; w h o is also dpxiepeix; xcov lepaoxcov (p. 3). Oliver (1941), p. 39. I.G. 12,2,58 = OGIS 4 5 6 = IGRR 4 , 3 9 (Mitylene 11 B.C.) a. /. 10: xou dpxlepecoq Kai xov axecpavricpopou. CIG 3 6 4 2 = IGRR 4 , 1 8 0 . IGRR 4,145 refers to the civic reception for kings restored by Caligula after their deposition by Tiberius. T h e decree is h o w e v e r (xo 8e \j/r|cpiop.a eivai) about religious devotion to the Emperor (rcepi x 'evaePeiaq xf|<; eiq xov l e p a a x o v ) a n d the h o n o u r for the kings (Kai XTI<; eiq xoix; (JaaiAiaq xeiufjq; /. 25). T h e monarchs were to be w e l c o m e d in a procession around the temples. " . . . at their arrival (i)7to 8e xpv eioo8ov avxcov) the priests a n d priestesses (xoix; uev iepetq Kai xaq iepeiaq), having o p e n e d the shrines (dvoi^avxaq xa xejxevT|) and adorned the images (Kai 7ipooKoaur|aavxaq x a £ 6 a v a xcov Gecov), are to pray for the eternal continuance o f Gaius Caesar ( d 5 £ a a 6 a i uev i)7cep xiiq rai)o\) K a i o a p o q aicovCou 8iauovfjq) and for their safety (Kai xfj<; xovxcov acoxripiaq). All the Cyzicenes are to s h o w their good-feeling for t h e m ( K \ ) ^ I K T | V O \ X ; 8e icdvxaq evSeiKvouevoix; xr\v sic, avxoix; eiSvoiav), a n d to m e e t and greet t h e m with the archons a n d stephanephoroi. . . (i)7iavxr|aavxa<; uexd xcov dpxovxcov Kai xcov axecpavTicpopcov d a r c d a a a G a i . . .).••(/. 1 9 - 2 4 ) . 9 9

100

101

102

204

CHAPTER FIVE

days crowns for the i)uvcp8oi (axe9avou(;xoi<;\)jLivcp8oi<;Kaixoi(;|a\)aTr|pioi(; axecpdvcoaiv). W h e t h e r the rcpeaPuxepoi oi Apoc. 4 , 4 - 1 1 are to be viewed as singing as opposed to rcpeaPeiq m a k i n g prayerful panegyric is a m u t e point, a n d p e r h a p s the Seer did n o t always carefully distin guish the images of various figures of the Imperial Cult transformed contra-culturally into the heavenly scene. T h e rcpeapuxepoi as i)uvcp8o{ would clearly have w o r n such crowns. But that the crowns are golden implies further a n d p e r h a p s o t h e r images t h a n t h a t of the choir. T h e 7Up£oPt>x£poi in Apoc. 4 a r e m o r e o v e r c r o w n e d with golden crowns (oxetpdvoix; xpuaovq). T h e fact that their garlands a r e of gold is significant because t h e general g a t h e r i n g of white-robed citizens w o r e o r d i n a r y garlands. F r o m the decree of G y t h e u m we see that the general p o p u l a t i o n "were w r e a t h e d with crowns of laurel (eaxeuuivcov 8dtpvri<; oxecpdvoiq)." T h e crowns w o r n by the ax£(pavr|(p6poi were therefore special crowns. Benefactors were a w a r d e d t h e m such as Perigenes of Alexandria, son of Leontiskus w h o "for his piety (euaepeiocv)" towards Ptolemy I V a n d Arsinoe, was "to be g a r l a n d e d with a golden crown (axetpavcoaai xpuafi axecpdvcp)." As we saw in the last p a r a g r a p h , sometimes a axecpavncpopoq could b e a priest, t h o u g h whilst sacrificing the priest specifically of the Imperial Cult would w e a r t h e corona aurea with its effigies (see also 5 A 2.2.2). Polycleides was a stephanephorus (axecpavricpopouvxoq IIOAA)KA£{8OI)) " o n account of his erecting a n i m a g e of Artemis L e u c o p h r y e n e (urcep xfjq Ka6i8pt>aecoq xou ^odvou xfjq 'Apxepi8o<; xf|<; Ae'OKoepp'ovfiq)." H e in consequence joins the priestesses a n d other axe<pavr|
104

105

I n the first p r a y e r (Apoc. 4,11), the rcpeaPuxepoi "cast their crowns (PaAouaiv xoix; oxeyavoxx; auxcov) before the throne (evawiiov xou Gpovou)." T h i s directly parallels the Imperial Cult in that it was a c u s t o m a r y practice to present t h e divine ruler with a gold crown, a n d to wor ship before his e m p t y chair. In D i o Cassius 59,24, 3 - 4 the senators in a b o d y d i d obeisance in t h e Capitol to the chair of G a i u s . 106

1 0 3

Ehrenberg a n d J o n e s (1955) 102,25 = S E G 1 1 , 9 2 2 - 9 2 3 . OGIS 2 , 7 3 0 . SylP 6 9 5 /. 3 3 - 3 4 : xaq 8e yivouevaq iepeiaq xx\q 'ApieuiSoq, uexa axe9avTi96pov noAA)ictai8riv K a i xoix; axecpavricpopoix; ev xcp Ka9' eauxoix; eviauxcp Ovciav K a i 7cou7triv auvxeXeiv. S e e also IGRR 4 , 1 3 0 4 /. 5; 1349 /. 16; 1 5 5 8 /. 2 7 - 3 1 . D . G . A u n e , T h e Influence o f the R o m a n Imperial Court Ceremonial o n the Apocalypse o f J o h n , in Papers of the Chicago Society for Biblical Research, 2 8 (1983), pp. 1 3 - 1 4 cites also D i o Cassius 4 5 , 6 , 5 ; 5 3 , 3 0 , 6 1 . Cf. L. R o s s Taylor, T h e Divinity 104

105

1 0 6

205

THE APOCALYPSE AND DOMITIAN'S ICONOGRAPHY

M a x i m i n u s in A . D . 235 is m e t by delegations (rcpeaPeiaq) of p r o m i nent citizens dressed in white a n d wearing laurel wreaths, w h o brought with them statues of their gods and golden crowns (Herodian VHI,7,2). T h e latter practice too is supported from epigraphic evidence. F r o m Mytilene (c. 27 B.C.) a golden crown was to be sent to Augustus a n d O c t a v i a a n d presented by the ambassadors (rcpeopeic;). In Apoc. 4,10 the rcpeopuxepoi p r a y prayers which are almost iden tical in content with those of the great c r o w d a n d the angels. Let us look at the content of these prayers in c o m p a r i s o n with the wor shipful panegyrics, particularly of the npeofieiq, in connection with the Imperial Cult. W e are as ignorant of the words of the h y m n s of the uuvco8oi a n d GeoAoyoi, w h e t h e r in the mysteries or in o p e n cultic celebration as we are of the words of the song of the 144,000. As A u n e pointed out, this would also be true of the spoken prayers of the officials of the Imperial C u l t . 107

108

109

But the words of such official prayers would n o d o u b t be reflected in w h a t was set to music. W h e t h e r the prayers of the rcpeopuxepoi were spoken or sung, we find in t h e m reflections of the language of the Imperial Cult. This language m a y indicate that we have h e r e in the prayers of the Christian rcpeoPuxepoi models of w h a t was origi nally sung by the p a g a n choirs. W e n o w t u r n to the contents of these prayers that we believe we can associate m o r e directly a n d exactly with the language of the Imperial Cult t h a n the a t t e m p t e d reconstructions of A u n e . 110

5B

3. Imperial ideology in Apoc. 4,10 and 7,10

E a c h of the three prayers is addressed before the t h r o n e (evcbiciov xou 0p6vou), like those of the Senators at the Capitol in the reign of Gaius, to his vacant chair, w h e t h e r by presbyters, angels, or the great crowd. T h e r e are c o m m o n concepts repeated. T h e s e are: 86£a, euxapiaxia, xi|xf|, a n d Suvajiiq, (4,11) to which the angels a n d "every 111

of the R o m a n Emperor, in American Philological Association, Philological Monographs, 1 (1931), (Connecticut 1931), p. 87 note 15 a n d D J . Weinstock, Divus Julius, (Oxford: C l a r e n d o n 1971), p. 2 8 3 . A u n e (1983) p. 12. IGRR 4,39 b. /. 3 0 - 3 1 : TteuxpOfjvai 8e Kai oxecpavov anb xpvacov 8 i a x ^ i o Kai dvaSoOfjvai i>nb xcov upeapecov. A u n e (1983), p p . 1 5 - 2 0 . A u n e (1983), p p . 17 ff. S e e footnotes 9 8 and 9 9 . 1 0 7

108

1 0 9

1 1 0

111

c o v

v

206

CHAPTER FIVE

c r e a t u r e " a d d s ei)Xoyia, Kpdxoq a n d nXomoq (5,13), to which 7 , 1 0 - 1 2 adds ia%t><;, aoqnct a n d ocoxripia. W e can n o w trace most of these con cepts, with the exception of oocpia, in the inscriptions. 5B 3.1. 86^a, euxapioxia, Kpdxoq In the Mytilenian decree (c. 27 B.C.), to which reference has already been m a d e , thanksgiving (euxapiaxia) is given for the benefits bestowed by the imperial family in the mutilated beginning (b. /. 6: . . euepyeoicov v o u a a [ . . . £\>xa]piGx{av). T h e inscription continues: [Such benefits] are to be concluded from a natural generosity because it is never possible for the more humbling experiences in fate or in nature to be applied to those who have achieved heaven's glory (86£a) and the superiority of the gods and their strength (Kpaioq). 112

In /. 24 a n d 34 we r e a d that the a m b a s s a d o r s (npecfieiq) w h o , as we have seen, are to present the crcicpavoq xpuaouq, are "to praise (eu%apioxf}oai)" the imperial family. Similarly, in IGRR 4,145 /. 5 (Cyzicus), h o n o u r i n g Caligula for the restoration of certain kings in Asia, the decree is for h i m "for the praise of such a g o d (eiq £x>%apiGxiav xr|A,iKot>xou Oeou)." W e find t h e t h e m e of Kpdxoq too in the Ephesian graffito: " R o m e , q u e e n of all, (Tcbpa r\ na\i$aGiXe\a) y o u r strength will never perish (xo aov Kpdxoq o\)7cox' 6A,£ixai)." 113

5B 3.2. ocoxripia It is at first sight quite incongruous that a p r a y e r should be offered (Apoc. 7,10) to the J u d a e o - C h r i s t i a n G o d offering h i m salvation or safety (ocoxripia). Yet in the context of the g o d - E m p e r o r such a p a r a dox is a p p r o p r i a t e . F r o m A d r a a e in A r a b i a we have two inscriptions in A . D . 2 6 2 - 3 c o m m e m o r a t i n g walls a n d gates " o n behalf of the salvation a n d victory of o u r L o r d (vnep ocoxn.p{a<; ice viicriq xot> Kupiou f^pcov)" the former of which preserves the words " E m p e r o r Gallienus Sebastos (auxoKpaxopoq T a ^ i r | v o \ ) I e | i . ) " 114

112

IGRR

(Mytilene) b. /. 6 - 1 1 : £7uXoy{aao6ai 8e xfj[<;] OIKECOK; jieyaAjOcppoawriq xexe[\)]x6ai 56[£TI<; Kai Gecov \)7iepoxfvv Kai Kpaxoq exovaiv oi>8e7ioxe 8i)vaxai a\)ve^iaco9fjvai x a Kai xr\ xt>xii xarcewoxepa Kai xr\ [cpvaei. 4,39

ox[i] xoiq o v p a v i o i ) 113

/. Eph. II,

114

IGRR

599.

3,1287

/. 4

and

1288

/.

5.

THE APOCALYPSE AND DOMITIAN'S ICONOGRAPHY

207

5B 3.3. 8uvaua<; a n d ioxuq T h e r e is not a great deal of evidence for 8uvaui<; in the inscriptions for the Imperial Cult, a n d n o n e that I can find for ioxuq p e r h a p s because, at all events, it is synonymous with Kpdxoq. If we go for a n earlier description of the Hellenistic ruler-cult before A u g u s t u s , t h e r e is t h e d e c r e e from P r i e n e in h o n o u r of Lysimachus in 306 B.C. (OGIS 12). H e r e there are all the trappings of the later Imperial Cult that we have observed. T h e people are to erect a bronze statue (oxr|aei 8e 6 8fjuo<; xou PaoiAiox; ayaAuxx xaAxouv; /. 15). T h e rcpeaPeuxai a r e to c r o w n h i m with a golden crown (oxecpavcoaouoiv auxov oxecpdvcp xpuoco; /. 14). T h e y are furthermore to rejoice together with the king (ouvr|a6r|oovxai xcp paaiAei) t h a t he himself is strong (oxi ccuxoq xe eppcoxai) a n d his power (Kai f| S u v a u x q ) . . . (/. 10). F o r the time of the Imperial Cult itself, we have a n Egyptian inscription in which T i b e r i u s J u l i u s A l e x a n d e r is the a u t h o r of a decree addressing various complaints a n d petitions to G a l b a in 68 A.D. (OGIS 669). H e writes of necessity (rcpoeypa\|/a dvayKaicoq) "con cerning each particular thing sought (rcepi e m o x o u xcov eTu^rjxoupivcov), m a n y of which I can j u d g e a n d d o (baa e^eaxi uoi Kpeiveiv K a i icoieiv) but others which are too great a n d require the p o w e r of the e m p e r o r (xd 8e jiei^ova K a i Seojieva xr\q xou auxoKpdxopoq 8uvd|ieco<;....(/. 8-9))." 5B 3.4. nXomoq N e i t h e r nXomoq n o r euAoyia are direcdy attested in the inscriptions with particular reference to the Imperial Cult. H o w e v e r , cognate terms are found on coinage associated with the i c o n o g r a p h y of the Imperial Cult. Fortuna is found as the deified personification along with Abundantia, Annona, Felicitas, o r Moneta expressing t h e wealth (rc^ouxoq) associated with the imperial divinities. R e g a r d i n g rcXouxoq, we have a n u m b e r of coins from D o m i t i a n ' s tenth consulate (A.D. 84) b e a r i n g the radiate h e a d of the e m p e r o r with Annona o n the reverse, seated a n d holding c o r n ears, in one case with a small figure a n d a ship in the distance, inscribed A N N O N A AVG[VSTA]. As we n o t e d with the cult of virtues (2B 3), h e r e a deified abstraction is being associated with the collective personality 1 1 5

1 , 5

BMC 2, p. 3 6 0 n o . *, see also p. 3 6 5 n o . 3 0 4 plate 71,5, a n d p. 3 7 3 n o . 347 plate 7 3 , 6 .

208

CHAPTER

FIVE

of the E m p e r o r by m e a n s of the qualifying a n d a p p r o p r i a t i n g addi tion of augusta. Likewise with Moneta, the goddess personifying the M i n t , D o m i t i a n ' s coins show h e r d r a p e d a n d holding scales a n d a cornucopia with inscription M O N E T A A V G V S T [ A ] . Similarly in coins from Titus's reign (A.D. 81-82) Felicitas is inscribed as F E L I C I T [ A S ] A V G V S T f A ] , depicted holding cornucopiae. T h e r e are also examples of inscriptions of the form: F E L I C I T A S P V B L I C A S.C., in which Felicitas holds cadeus a n d cornucopiae a n d thus is a sym 1 1 6

ul

bol

of

7tAxri)TO<;.

PART C .

118

I N CONCLUSION: APOCALYPSE AND THE IMPERIAL C U L T

W e have thus surveyed the imagery a n d b a c k g r o u n d of the Apocalypse, a n d located this firmly in the context of the Imperial Cult in Asia M i n o r in D o m i t i a n ' s reign. W e have a r g u e d in terms of contra-cul tural theory t h a t the imagery of the Apocalypse is to be u n d e r s t o o d as a J u d a e o - C h r i s t i a n reconstruction of the values of p a g a n culture in which the impress of that culture is re-expressed in a reversed form. T h e picture of Christ a n d the Son of M a n in the midst of the l a m p stands of the seven churches, the language of the GeotaSyoq of the mysteries there used, the golden laureate presbyters a r o u n d the heavenly t h r o n e of incense, the white r o b b e d t h r o n g of martyrs, the language of the h y m n s sung or prayers said a r o u n d the heav enly altar, the imagery of m o t h e r a n d child, of angels with vials etc all reflected the imagery of that cult. F u r t h e r m o r e the reflection was a reverse reflection. T h e contraculture takes o n the values of the host culture in a reversed trans formation. It creates its own frame of reference that is a kind of m i r r o r image of the host culture, with which those w h o inhabit its reconstruction of social reality find the status a n d self-esteem that the host culture denies t h e m . T h e qnaAm of plenty represented on the imperial coinage as disposed by Abundantia, Annona, Felicitas, Fortuna, or by D o m i t i a as the m o t h e r of a divine child have b e c o m e trans formed in the vision of the Seer into the (pidAm of G o d ' s w r a t h . T h e sacrifices on the altar b e c o m e , not the bulls, b u t the martyrs w h o

1 , 6

117

1 , 8

BMC BMC BMC

2, p. 367 n o . 3 1 4 (A.D. 85), p. 3 7 5 , and p. 3 7 8 n o . 3 6 5 plate 74,8. 2, p. 2 5 5 no. 156, see also p. 2 8 0 . 2, p. 2 1 2 no. 8 5 6 plate 4 1 , 9 .

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209

have w a s h e d their festal robes white in the blood of the L a m b . D o m i t i a a n d h e r child b e c o m e M a r y a n d J e s u s , p u r s u e d by Satan. T h e feasts a n d b a n q u e t s of the imperial festival, a n d of the imper ial mysteries, b e c o m e the m a r r i a g e supper of the L a m b . But given that the c h u r c h in h e a v e n is reflected in the c h u r c h on earth, w h a t if anything does the picture of the former in the Apocalypse tell us a b o u t the state of C h u r c h O r d e r at this time? C a n we see in the presbyters of the Apocalypse or the angels of the C h u r c h e s any reflection of a c o n t e m p o r a r y C h u r c h O r d e r ? I a m going n o w to sug gest t h a t there is a resolution to this ancient p r o b l e m in the letters of Ignatius of Antioch t h a t reflect in various a n d discrete ways the imagery of the Apocalypse which r e a p p e a r in w h a t is unquestionably a description of h o w he regards the iconography of the C h u r c h gath ered for worship on earth. It is to the Ignatian developments that we n o w turn.

CHAPTER

SIX

IGNATIUS OF ANTIOCH AND T H E MARTYR'S PROCESSION Imperial ambassadors, representation, and confrontation

T h e r e are, contrary to Koester, sufficient connections between the Ignatian c o r r e s p o n d e n c e a n d the Apocalypse to suggest a relationship between the particular churches of Asia addressed in both works. It would therefore be w r o n g to suppose that within those cities there were separate charismatic groups to which the latter were addressed, a n d separate episcopal groups to which the former were addressed, with n o relation to each other. T h e churches in Ephesus, P e r g a m o n , a n d Philadelphia, addressed by the Seer, were the same groups some fifteen to twenty years later addressed by Ignatius, a n d n o t rival groups within the same city with n o connection with each other. 1

In consequence, it will be possible for m e to argue in the first half of this c h a p t e r (6A) that we can use the Ignatian correspon dence to u n d e r s t a n d h o w the heavenly angels a n d presbyters of the Apocalypse b e c a m e Ignatius' real-live bishops a n d presbyters some fifteen years later, if indeed these officers were not yet present in the churches addressed by the Seer. T h e s e heavenly beings reflected features of the Imperial Cult a n d its ritual. Subsequently, w h e n they b e c o m e g r o u n d e d in a n earthly institution at the Ignatian, further stage of d e v e l o p m e n t some fifteen years latter, they will also reflect some features of the p a g a n institutions of which they are the contracultural models. W e shall show m o r e o v e r a typology of representa tion in Ignatius' description of the threefold O r d e r which reflects the theology of representation implied in D o m i t i a n ' s changes, as high priest of the Capitoline games in the iconography of the coronae. Such a typology we shall see to both include a n d to go b e y o n d the epis copal representation of angelic c o r p o r a t e personalities of c o m m u n i ties in the Apocalypse. 1

H . Koester, TNQMAI AIAOOPOI: T h e Origin and Nature o f Diversification in the History o f Early Christianity, in J . M . R o b i n s o n and H . Koester, Trajectories through Early Christianity, (Philadelphia: Fortress Press 1971), pp. 1 1 4 - 1 5 7 .

IGNATIUS OF ANTIOCH AND THE MARTYR'S PROCESSION

21 1

F u r t h e r m o r e , we shall show (6B) that Ignatius' u n d e r s t a n d i n g of his m a r t y r d o m is in the context of a n imperial cultic procession, with the roles of the Christian clerics w h o a c c o m p a n y h i m described by ambassadorial tides. T h e s e tides will be shown to have equivalents in inscriptions of the provisions m a d e by the city states of Asia M i n o r to a p p o i n t various officers for the p r o c l a m a t i o n a n d celebration of the Imperial C u l t . 2

P A R T A.

IGNATIAN TYPOLOGY AND DOMITIAN'S

ICONOGRAPHY

T h e classical, threefold O r d e r of later C h r i s t e n d o m a p p e a r s for the first time unambiguously in the letters of Ignatius of Antioch, w h o writes in the reign of T r a j a n a r o u n d A . D . 109. T h e question of the relationship between Ignatius a n d the Apocalypse is an interesting one. Several of the destinations of Ignatius' letters (Ephesus, Smyrna, Phila delphia) are identical with the destination of the letters addressed to t h e m by the Seer in A . D . 9 5 . If t h a t relationship can b e established, it is a n interesting question w h a t kind of C h u r c h O r d e r existed in these churches at the time of the Seer, a n d h o w it developed by the time of Ignatius. 3

Koester a r g u e d that different Christian groups m a y be addressed even within the same cities by Ignatius a n d the Seer. But alterna tively there m a y have b e e n communities which h a d achieved, c o m m e n d a b l y in Ignatius' opinion, the threefold O r d e r , a n d others which lacked this O r d e r (Thyateira, Laodicaea, P e r g a m o n , a n d Sardis) a n d therefore did not w a r r a n t a n episcopal letter. T h e absence of letters to these i m p o r t a n t centres, let alone to T a r s u s or Antioch in Pisidia, does n o t therefore necessarily support the claims of the o p p o n e n t s 4

2

For a n earlier version, see A. Brent, Ignatius of Antioch and the Imperial Cult, in VCh 52,1 (1998), p p . 3 0 - 5 8 . T h e Lightfoot-Zahn consensus o n the genuineness o f the Middle R e c e n s i o n has recently b e e n assailed by, a m o n g s t others, R. Joly, Le Dossier d'Ignace d'Antioche, (Universite Libre d e Bruxelles: Faculte d e Philosophic et Lettres: L X I X 1978); J. R i u s - C a m p s , The Four Letters of Ignatius the Martyr, ( R o m e : Pontificium Institutum Orientalium Studiorum 1980). T h e i r grounds are unsatisfactory see, e.g. W . Schoedel, Are the Letters o f Ignatius o f A n t i o c h Authentic? in RelStRev 6 (1980), p p . 2 6 1 - 2 9 7 ; C P . H a m m o n d B a m m e l , in JThS 3 3 (1982), p p . 6 2 - 9 7 ; A. Brent, T h e Ignatian Epistles a n d the Threefold Ecclesiastical Order, in JRH 17,1 (1992), pp. 1 8 - 3 2 ; Idem. T h e Relations b e t w e e n Ignatius o f A n t i o c h and the Didascalia Apostolorum, in SecCent 8,3 (1991), pp. 1 2 9 - 1 5 6 . For fuller bibliograhy see also Brent (1991). See footnote 1 above. 3

4

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of the Middle Recension. T h a t n o n e of these were apparently sufficiendy interested in the martyr's highway on which Ignatius travelled to R o m e to send clerical visitors, if indeed they h a d clerics to send, is fully consistent with the lack of a universal threefold O r d e r at this time. Bishop Ignatius did not recognise such centres as containing truly Christian groups. Despite the a p p a r e n t difference between the charismatic cultural a m b i e n c e of the Apocalypse a n d the ecclesiastical O r d e r of Ignatius, there are nevertheless some intriguing links between the two works. T h e s e links will suggest that the three churches to which b o t h the Seer and Ignatius address letters (Pergamon, Ephesus a n d Philadelphia) were the same communities, historically continuous a n d not sepa rated from e a c h other. Brown a n d M e i e r claimed that the charis matic groups in Antioch in Syria, identified in St. Matthew by their redaction criticism of that gospel, were p a r t of the history of Ignatius' own c o m m u n i t y , a n d from which his episcopal C h u r c h O r d e r h a d developed (3A 2). 5

T r e v e t t certainly saw a supersession of charismatic persons in the silence of the bishop of Philadelphia (Philad. 1,1). I myself, further m o r e , a r g u e d that charisma was not necessarily antithetical to epis copal O r d e r , as is often assumed from twentieth century charismatic e x p e r i e n c e . If c h a r i s m a a n d episcopal O r d e r d o not necessarily r e q u i r e different c o m m u n i t i e s for their o p e r a t i o n in the case of Antioch in Syria, t h e n the same can b e equally true for Ephesus, Philadelphia, a n d S m y r n a . J o h n the Seer does not necessarily there fore address different groups in the same cities to those later to be addressed by Ignatius. 6

7

Let us therefore e x a m i n e the links in imagery used by the Seer a n d Ignatius in o r d e r to establish the historical continuity between at least some churches addressed by the Seer a n d by Ignatius of Antioch.

5

R . E . Brown and J.-P. Meier, Antioch and Rome: New Testament Cradles of Catholic Christianity, ( N e w York: Paulist Press 1983), chapters 3 - 4 . C . Trevett, Prophecy a n d Anti-Episcopal Activity: A T h i r d Error C o m b a t t e d by Ignatius? in JEH 3 4 (1983), p p . 1 6 5 - 1 7 1 , cf. H . Chadwick, T h e Silence of Bishops in Ignatius, in HThR 4 3 (1950), pp. 1 6 9 - 7 2 and L.F. Pizzolato, Silenzio del v e s c o v o e parola degli eretici in Ignazio d'Antiocheia, in Aevum 4 4 (1970), pp. 205-218. A. Brent, Pseudonymity and Charisma in the Ministry o f the Early C h u r c h , in Aug 2 7 , 3 (1987), pp. 3 4 7 - 3 7 6 . 6

7

IGNATIUS OF ANTIOCH AND THE MARTYR'S PROCESSION

6A

213

1. Common Imagery in Ignatius and the Apocalypse

A c o m m u n i t y such as that at Ephesus (Ignatius, Eph. 9,1) can be described as "temple stones (XiQoi vocou) m a d e ready in anticipation for G o d the F a t h e r ' s building (rcpouxoiuocauivoi eiq OIKOSOUTW Geou rcaxpoq)." In Apoc. 21,14 a n d 19 the N e w J e r u s a l e m has walls with foundations b e a r i n g the n a m e s of the twelve aposdes, a n d which are " a d o r n e d with every precious stone (oi Geuetaoi xou xeixou<; xfjq noXeax; rcocvxi XiGco xipicp K e K o a u r i j i e v o i ) . ' ' T h e cross is represented as a tree b e a r i n g the fruit of immortal ity in b o t h works. In Trallians 11,1-2 the heretics are not "the plant ing of the F a t h e r (cpuxeia Ttaxpoq); for if they were, they would have a p p e a r e d as b r a n c h e s of the cross (K^CX8OI xou oxocupou) a n d their fruit i m m o r t a l (6 Kocprcoq auxcov oupGapxoq)." In Apoc. 22,2 we r e a d of the "tree of life (2;uA,ov £cof|<;) p r o d u c i n g twelve fruits . . . a n d the leaves of the tree (xa cpuA,A,a xou £t>A,ou) are for the healing of the nations (eiq Gepocrceiccv xcov eGvcbv)." £uAov generally in early Christian literature m e a n s the Cross, a n d to the o v e r c o m e r it is g r a n t e d "to eat of the t r e e / c r o s s of life (cpayeiv eic xou £uA,ou xfjq £cofj<;) which is in the g a r d e n of G o d (o eoxw ev rcocpaSeiocp xou Geou)." (Apoc. 2,7) But there are two further kinds of link t h a t connect the Apocalypse with Ignatius in a far m o r e comprehensive a n d fundamental way. T h e s e links furthermore connect Ignatius not only with the Apocalypse but with w h a t we have seen the latter work to reflect of the liturgy a n d theology of the Imperial Cult (5B 1.1). 6A 1.1. Heavenly Church and corresponding earthly typology T h e first set of links can b e seen in the tendency of b o t h works to see reflections of a transcendent a n d heavenly C h u r c h O r d e r enter ing the world of the present C h u r c h . T h e second set shows a sim ilarity between the way in which angelic beings represent the corporate personalities of distinct churches in the Apocalypse, a n d the way in which, in Ignatius, the same c o r p o r a t e personality of the individual c o m m u n i t y is represented mystically by the bishop, a n d other cler ical personages that are p a r t of the threefold hierarchy. 6A 1.1.1. Ignatius and Apocalypse: The heavenly liturgy T h e r e is a general acceptance of some reflection, albeit general a n d ill-formed, of early Christian worship in the description of the heav enly worship of the Apocalypse. T h e presbyteral circle, in which the four living creatures participate a r o u n d the t h r o n e of G o d a n d the

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L a m b , is evocative of scenes in the liturgy of the Apostolic Tradition in which the bishop w h o presides sits s u r r o u n d e d by a circle of seated presbyters with standing deacons giving liturgical instructions to the people, a n d receiving the latter's gifts of b r e a d a n d wine for con secration a n d eventual c o m m u n i o n . T o disentangle the imagery of the contemporary C h u r c h reflected in the heavenly C h u r c h is difficult, given the way in which we have seen t h a t the imagery of the p a g a n Imperial Cultus with its altar, vials, incense, a n d white r o b b e d wor shipers is b l e n d e d with a n y such p u t a t i v e ecclesiastical i m a g e r y . However, we have some control over a correct reading of the Apocalypse in the context of the kind of social e n v i r o n m e n t in which it was written, given the identity of communities addressed by b o t h writ ers (6A 1). W e have already a r g u e d a similarity of general imagery that reveals far m o r e in c o m m o n t h a n simply in some cases a n iden tity of cities of Asia M i n o r in the C h u r c h that is addressed. 8

Prigent a r g u e d that the twenty four elders of Apoc. 4 - 5 , seated crowned a n d u p o n thrones a r o u n d the t h r o n e of G o d a n d the L a m b , represented O l d T e s t a m e n t Elders a n d their liturgical refrain was originally p a r t of a J e w i s h liturgy. But g r a n t e d this original locus of the imagery of these passages, the n a t u r a l transition into Christian usage was hardly directly into the literature of the Apocalypse. T h e most natural, i m m e d i a t e locus before a p p e a r a n c e in the vision of the Seer would have b e e n via a Christian liturgy shaped by w h a t we have argued to be its p a g a n , cultic b a c k g r o u n d . Such a liturgy, conceptualized originally in J e w i s h terms, would, we have argued, b e e n refashioned in process of contra-cultural reformulation, in its Christian context, as a specific response to the Imperial Cult. 9

10

Within a generation after the vision of the Seer, Ignatius was to bear witness to the presence of an O r d e r of presbyters in the churches of Ephesus, S m y r n a , a n d Philadelphia. H e therefore claims that those churches possessed a n O r d e r , h o w e v e r nascent a n d controverted, similar to t h a t of his own Antioch in Syria. C o n t e m p o r a r y redac tion criticism of the gospel of that C h u r c h , Matthew, reveals pres byters within that c o m m u n i t y living in tension with m o r e charismatic, prophetic groups. F u r t h e r m o r e , H e r m a s bears witness in mid-second 11

8

Pseudo Hippolytus, Ap. Trad. 4; Didasc. Apost. II, 5 7 , 4 - 5 . P. Prigent, Apocalypse et Liturgie, in CTh 5 2 (1964), p p . 4 8 - 5 5 , p. 6 8 . Such was the argument of J. P. Audet, La Didache: Instructions des Apotres, (Paris: Libraire Lecoffre 1958), p. 377 cf. Prigent (1964), p. 50. Brown and J . P . M e i e r (1982) chapters 3 and 4. 9

10

11

IGNATIUS OF ANTIOCH AND THE MARTYR'S PROCESSION

215

century R o m e to a p r o p h e t i c Seer addressing a c h u r c h that clearly acknowledged his c h a r i s m a whilst acknowledging presbyters whose office was that of rcpcoxoicaGeSpixai occupying 7tpcoxoKa0e8p{ai. It would b e a mistake, therefore, to agree with Satake t h a t the C h u r c h O r d e r of the Apocalypse h a d n o office holders a p a r t from p r o p h e t s , as if this work could stand a p a r t from its place in k n o w n , late firstcentury contexts. T r e v e t t has m o r e o v e r emphasised charismatic a n d p r o p h e t i c elements s u b s u m e d u n d e r Ignatius' episcopal behaviour, which reveals different elements in tension r a t h e r t h a n the presence of a p r o p h e t i c o r d e r p r e c l u d i n g a presbyteral o n e . 12

13

Satake concludes that the presbyters in the Apocalypse c a n only be h e a v e n l y beings o n a c c o u n t of t h e i r c r o w n s a n d t h e i r h e a v e n l y glorification. But it is by n o m e a n s incongruous that a description of a heavenly reflection in a n earthly liturgy should c r o w n a n d glo rify those w h o preside at that liturgy. F u r t h e r m o r e Satake's treat m e n t ignores the variety of earthly images synthesised by the Seer into the heavenly scenes. ~. 14

T h e seated presbyters are associated with the slain l a m b w h o sits in the midst of t h e m at a n altar of sacrifice. It w o u l d have b e e n priests w h o presided at a sacrifice a n d not presbyters h a d the O.T. symbolism b e e n preserved h e r e in a n u n c o n t a m i n a t e d form. Instead that symbolism has u n d e r g o n e radical reformulation. I n the case of the living creatures, as in that of the slain l a m b , p a g a n elements j o i n the synthesis. T h e images h e r e are taken from the bucranium of A u g u s t a n art, a n d the living creatures that often a d o r n sacrifi cial scenes in A u g u s t a n cultic frescoes. T h e elders (Apoc. 5,8) each possess a h a r p ( e ^ o v x e q eKotGxoq Ki0dpav) a n d i n c e n s e bowls (Kai ymXaq %p\)oa<; y e p o u a a c ; 9\)piapdxcov). T h o u g h incense was used by priests a n d not by elders in the T e m p l e , h e r e the a c c o m p a n y i n g KiG&poc a n d a n actual sacrificial victim places the scene outside an 15

H e r m a s Vis. I l l , 9,7: vfiv ox>v i)uiv A-eyco xoiq 7tpoTry(n)|Lievoi<; xr\c, E K K X T I G I O K ; Kai xoi<; 7tpcoxoKa6e8pixou<;. . . cf. Vis. II, 4 , 3 : . . . uexa xcov rcpeap'uxepcov xcov Ttpo'ioxauevcov. See also Man. 11,12 where it is a \j/e\)5o7ipo<pr|XTi<; w h o is 6 mOriuevoq erci XT^V K<X6e 8 p a v . S e e also Brent (1995), p p . 4 3 1 - 4 5 4 ff. S e e footnotes 6 a n d 7. A. Satake, D i e G e m e i n d e o r d n u n g in der Johannesapokalypse, in WMANT 2\ (1966), p p . 1 4 7 - 1 5 0 ff.: "Auch die dritte D e u t u n g , dass sich i m H a n d e l n der 2 4 Altesten das des irdischen Presbyteriums widerspiegelt, ist m e i n e r Ansicht n a c h unhaltbar, und zwar vor allem d e s w e g e n , weil die vier W e s e n , die n e b e n ihnen auftreten, auf keinen Fall in der irdischen G e m e i n d e eine Entsprechung haben." S e e also Zanker (1990), p. 115 fig. 9 3 a n d p. 117 fig. 9 5 . 12

13

14

15

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u n c o n t a m i n a t e d Jewish context of the " h o u r of incense." (3B 2) T h e presbyters "fall before the L a m b (erceoav evamiov xou dpviou)." Fur t h e r m o r e , we a r g u e d t h a t the very c h a r a c t e r of the h y m n s of praise associated with the presbyters clearly reflect the cult of Virtues n o w an integral p a r t of the ideology of the Imperial Cult (2B 3). T h e y represent Christian, ministerial office holders proclaiming a reversal of p a g a n cultic expressions in the direction of the Christian a n d not the imperial G o d . Certainly Ignatius' descriptions of the liturgical scene in the churches to w h o m he writes b e a r m a n y idealised a n d visionary features r e m iniscent of the heavenly scenes in the Apocalypse. T h e r e we m e t with angels a n d presbyters p r a y i n g with incense a r o u n d the heavenly altar a n d singing their h y m n s . H e says to the Ephesians: Therefore it is right for you to run together with the mind of the bishop, which indeed you do; for your worthily esteemed presbytery, worthy of God, is attuned to the bishop (ouxco<;cuvr|p|iooTaiTcp e7ciaK07ccp), like strings to a harp (&q x°p8«i KiGdpa); therefore in your concord and harmonious love (8id xouxo ev xrj o u o v o i a i)ua>v Kai ouuxpcbvcp dydTiri) Jesus Christ is sung ('Irjaouq Xpiaxoq a8exai). And each of you should become part of that choir (oi m x ' dv8pa 8e x°po$ yiveoGe), that being in har monious concord (iva a\>utax(36vxe<;,ev evoxi), you may sing with one voice through Jesus Christ to the father (a8r|xe ev cpcovfl uaa 8id 'Irjaoi) Xpiaxoi) xcp rcaxpi). . .

Ephesians 4, 1-2 T h e xopoq, like that at the imperial festivals reflected in the Apocalypse (5B 3) extols t h a t divinized quality of imperial unity that is ouovoia, a n d which we saw was a feature of the doxology of C l e m e n t Cor. 6 0 - 6 1 (4B 1.2.2). A n altar (Guoidaxnpiov) m o r e o v e r prefigures in such liturgical scenes (Ephes. 5,2; Mag. 7,2; Philad. 4). But how, m o r e specifically, d o b o t h Ignatius a n d the Apocalypse reflect w h a t we k n o w of the actual a r r a n g e m e n t of early Christian worship? Pseudo-Hippolytus' Apostolic Tradition, if that indeed was originally the tide of the Egyptian Church Order, was a c o m m u n i t y p r o d u c t involv ing m o r e t h a n one individual a n d m o r e t h a n one confluent corporate t r a d i t i o n . Ap. Trad. 4 makes it clear t h a t the presbyterate concele16

16

A. Brent, Hippolytus and the R o m a n Church in the Third Century: Communities in T e n s i o n before the E m e r g e n c e of a M o n a r c h - B i s h o p , in Suppi VCh. 31 (Leiden: E J . Brill 1995), p p . 1 9 2 - 1 9 7 ; pp. 4 5 8 - 4 6 2 ff.

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217

brate with the bishop in so far as w h e n a presbyter "places his h a n d s over the offering (imponens manuam tuam super oblationem (rcpoocpopd))" he is j o i n e d in words a n d p r e s u m a b l y act by the presbyters (cum praesbyteris dicat gratias agens). T h e actual liturgical position of the presbyterate only becomes clearer in subsequent developments of this C h u r c h O r d e r w h e r e the position in the liturgy of the presbyterate is spelled out as the half-circle of seats forming a horse-shoe on each side of the centrally seated bishop (Apost. Const. (= Didasc. Apost.) II, 57, 4 - 5 ) . T h a t such a seating a r r a n g e m e n t was c u r r e n t well before the turn of the third century is m a d e clear by Ignatius in his letters. Ignatius envisages the Magnesians (13,1), whose C h u r c h he h a d never visited, as b e i n g in union with b o t h the "teachings of the L o r d a n d of the aposdes (86ypaaiv TOV Kvpiov Kai TCOV drcooToAxov)" a n d with the life of the triune G o d (ev vx& Kai rcaipi Kai ev rcveupaxi). As the sign of that unity, Ignatius can address t h e m as gathering, "with your bishop, worthy of h o n o u r , (ueid TOV d^iorcperceoTdTOD erciaKorcoi) uuxbv), with the gloriously woven, spiritual c r o w n of y o u r presbyterate (Kai d£i07tXOKOU rcveupaxiKou axecpdvoi) TOV TCpeapircepioi) upcbv), a n d

with

the

deacons according to G o d (Kai TCOV Kaxd 6e6v 8iaKovcov)." H e r e the d^ioK^OKoq nveupaxiKoq cxcecpavoq clearly refers to the liturgical presbyteral horseshoe a r o u n d the seated bishop. Indeed, I have a r g u e d elsewhere that rcpOKaOripivoq is to be u n d e r s t o o d in its p r i m a r y sense of "sitting p r o m i n e n d y " in the liturgical assembly which is the primary focus of the presidency of the threefold O r d e r in unity r a t h e r t h a n of the bishop alone. But we have also seen that the seated rcpeopwepoi of the Apocalypse have also oxecpavoi, a n d that this imagery of their authority was connected with that of the Imperial C u l t (5B 2.2.5). 17

W e ask, therefore, in conclusion, w h e t h e r the c o u n t e r p a r t to the scene a r o u n d the altar in heaven is not the c h u r c h on earth, presided over by a circle of presbyters s u r r o u n d i n g a t h r o n e occupied by a presiding bishop? T h e heavenly t h r o n e is described as "the t h r o n e of G o d a n d of the L a m b (Gpovoq TOV Qeov Kai TOV dpviou)." (Apoc. 22,1 a n d 3). " T h e L a m b " is described as "in the midst of the t h r o n e (dpvxov xo dvd peaov TOV Gpovoi))." (7,17) At first sight this a p p e a r s a very o d d image. Does the royal figure hold the L a m b o n his lap or does the latter sit by his side? I have asked previously w h e t h e r , in 17

Brent (1989), pp. 3 1 1 - 3 1 6 ; Idem, Cultural Episcopacy and E c u m e n i s m , in Studies in Christian Mission 6, (Leiden: E J . Brill 1992), pp. 8 4 - 8 5 and footnotes.

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the light of w h a t we r e a d in Ignatius, the reference is not to a p r e siding bishop or presbyter in the Seer's o w n c h u r c h offering the " p u r e sacrifice of the gentiles." Certainly, according to Ignatius, the bishop is "pre-eminent (rcpoKaGnuivoq)" as a type of (eiq xurcov rcaxpcx;), or according to some tex tual readings, in the place (eiq xorcov) of G o d the F a t h e r . H e r e the t h r o n e in the midst of the presbyters is actually occupied by a n eccle siastical minister on earth. But w h e t h e r or not there is, in the Seer's time, a n actual bishop on an actual episcopal t h r o n e a m i d actual presbyters, his heavenly vision has certainly influenced a n d effected the earthly form of Ignatian episcopacy. 18

19

20

21

At this point we m a y turn to Ignatius' theology of representation a n d its earlier reflection in the Apocalypse. 6A 1.1.2. Typology of representation Ignatius' description of the liturgical assembly (eKK^uaia) is highly idealised a n d visionary. As I have a r g u e d in greater detail elsewhere, as a transit prisoner Ignatius h a d little contact with, or knowledge of, the actual churches to w h o m he w r o t e . In place of a n y such empirical experience, he gives r a t h e r a mystical vision p r o m p t e d by the persons of the clerical visitors in w h o m he sees mystically the c o r p o r a t e qualities of their c o m m u n i t i e s . T h u s idealised, personal qualities of a n almost Christian perfection are praised as he imag ines the m e m b e r s of the communities g a t h e r e d with their clerics in an idealised E u c h a r i s t . Expressions such as ev otKivT|xcp Tuoxei, ev ouovoia 0eou etc. a b o u n d . 22

23

T h u s b o t h the Apocalypse a n d Ignatius are united in a view of the c o m m u n i t y as having a c o r p o r a t e personality. Clearly the angels of the C h u r c h e s are the c o r p o r a t e personalities of their various c o m munities. T h e y can in c o n s e q u e n c e be addressed by the Seer in the

18

Brent (1987), p. 3 6 1 . For early images of the Eucharist in such terms see Did., 14,3 a n d Justin Martyr, Dial. 4 1 . See also G. D i x , The Shape of the Liturgy, (London: Dacre 1947), p. 2 8 and p. 134. For m y defence o f this translation, see Brent, Cultural Episcopacy (1992), pp. 84-85. Magnes. 6 , 1 ; Tral. 3 , 1 . For m y view o f Ignatius as influenced by a vision o f the heavenly C h u r c h sim ilar to the Seer's, and imposing that vision on the nascent O r d e r o f the Churches that he had never visited but describes in an idealized, visionary form, see Brent (1992), Ignatian Epistles, p p . 1 8 - 3 2 . Brent (1992), Ignatian Epistles, p p . 19 - 2 7 . Tral. 11,1; Magnes. 6 , 1 ; Smyr. 1,1; 7,2; Ephes. 1,3; 2 , 1 , see Brent (1992) Ignatian Epistles, p. 20. 19

20

21

2 2

23

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singular a n d described as h a v i n g the distinctive features of those c o m m u n i t i e s . Likewise Ignatius claims that, in the clerical repre sentatives of the c h u r c h e s from w h o m he receives visitors, h e is beholding the c o r p o r a t e c h a r a c t e r of their c o m m u n i t i e s . In Polybius, the bishop of Tralles, Ignatius claims to see, not the latter's individual personality, b u t the c o m m u n i t y ' s . W i t h b i s h o p O n e s i m u s he has such "converse of m i n d (ouvf|0eia)" that he was able to see their c o r p o r a t e personality, their noXvnXyfieia (Ephes. 1,3 a n d 5,1), in h i m as also in the case of bishop Polybius of Tralles. Ignatius claims t h a t their bishop has revealed to h i m " y o u r u n wavering a n d blameless m i n d (duo)uov 8idvoiccv Kai d 8 i d i c p i x o v ) . . . so that I saw y o u r whole g a t h e r e d multitude in h i m (coaxe jie xo nav TcXfiBoq ev auxco Gecopiioai)." (Tral. 1,1) T h u s Polybius b e c o m e s " a n e x a m p l e of y o u r love (e£eu7iA,dpiov xfjq aycuv^q upxov)." (3,2) In D a m a s , bishop of Magnesia, likewise he claims to have seen " y o u r whole multitude (xo nav nXrfioq; Magnes. 6,1)." In the case of O n e s i m u s , bishop of Ephesus, he claims to have seen their 7ioA,urcA,r|6eia. nXriGoq is the usual w o r d for the g a t h e r e d c h u r c h in I g n a t i u s . 24

25

26

T h e fact that angels such as Michael, in Dan. 10, 1 0 - 2 1 a n d 12,1, are mystical representatives of nations is often held to refute the notion that the angels of the churches in Apoc. 2~3 are in fact h u m a n figures a n d stand for c h u r c h officials. Ignatius makes it quite clear that h u m a n bishops can nevertheless, like angels, stand for the cor porate personalities of the communities which they oversee. W h e t h e r the angels of the churches should be e q u a t e d with h u m a n officials such as bishops, o r left as mysterious heavenly beings personifying earthly communities, is a question that I will h e r e leave o p e n . T h e 27

28

24

Apoc. 2,1; 2,8; 2,12; 2,18; 3 , 1 ; 3,7; 3 , 1 4 . Ephes. 1,3; Brent (1990), p p . 2 6 8 - 2 6 9 ; Brent (1991), p p . 1 5 1 - 1 5 3 ; Brent (1992), Cultural Episcopacy, p p . 8 5 - 8 7 . Smyr. 8,2; Tral. 8,2 (ev6eov K\T\%O$ cf. W . Schoedel, Ignatius of Antioch: A Com mentary, (Philadelphia: Fortress Press 1985), p. 112. T o o little attention has b e e n given in the discussion to this point m a d e orig inally by J . C o l s o n , VEveque dans les Communautes Primitives, (Paris: Les Editions du Cerf 1951), p. 97: "Et il ecrit a u x Tralliens a propos de Polybe, leur eveque: "C'est votre Eglise tout entiere q u e j e c o n t e m p l e en sa personne." T e l est, selon saint Ignace et dans la ligne de 1'Apocalypse, le role de Peveque, sa place dans l'Eglise." I follow C o l s o n (1952) in Brent (1987), pp. 3 5 6 - 3 6 1 against H e m e r (1986), pp. 3 2 - 3 4 . For the case in favour o f angel-bishops see A. Lemaire, Les Ministeres aux origines de l'Eglise: Naissance de la triple hierarchic eveques, presbyters, diacres, (Paris: Les Editions du Cerf 1971), pp. 1 1 8 - 1 2 2 and M . T h u r i a n , L'Organisation du ministere dans l'Eglise Primitive selon Saint Ignace d'Antioche, in VC 2\ (1967), p p . 1 6 5 - 7 1 . 25

26

2 7

2 8

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p o i n t t h a t I h a v e m a d e is t h a t t h e r e is a theological continuity between w h a t the Seer says a b o u t the c h a r a c t e r of cultic representa tion a r o u n d A . D . 91 a n d w h a t Ignatius says a r o u n d A . D . 112. T h i s point will hold even if a purely heavenly construction in the case of the former comes only to be g r o u n d e d in the C h u r c h O r d e r in space a n d time in the case of the latter. But Ignatius has injected a new theological concept w h e n he begins to speak of the images of the seated presbyters, found in the Apocalypse as c o n t r a cultural expressions of the officials of the Imperial Cult, such as the npec^eiq with their panegyrics, asrcpoKocOriuivoieiq XUTCOV. Let us now trace this n e w concept in Ignatius of Antioch, which we shall argue to b e further related to the Imperial Cult a n d to have grown out of the p a g a n symbolism of the cultural b a c k g r o u n d that he also shared with the Seer, b u t b e y o n d w h o m h e n o w goes. 6A

2. Ignatian typology and the Imperial Cult

In claiming t h a t the antitypes of Father, Son, a n d Spirit-filled apos tolic council are represented by the xtmoi of bishop, deacons, a n d presbyters, Ignatius a p p e a r s at first sight to r u n contrary to the rep resentative imagery that he shared with the Apocalypse a n d which we discussed in the last section (6A 1.1.2). If the threefold typology rep resents these divine persons in the Eucharistic assembly, h o w at the same time c a n they be regarded as e m b o d y i n g the collective per sonalities of their communities, as did the angels of the C h u r c h e s in the Apocalypse, or Polybius, bishop of Ephesus or D a m a s , bishop of Tralles in the Ignatian correspondence? I have a r g u e d that Ignatius does resolve this dichotomy a n d with considerable sophistication. T h e clerical icons d o not as it were incarnate the heavenly C h u r c h directly from the transcendent world b e y o n d space a n d time, but r a t h e r from the saving acts that b e g a n in history b u t continue in the Christian c o m m u n i t y . T h e clerical icons represent a c o m m u n i t y in process of r e d e m p t i o n , a n d the sav ing acts of Father, Son, a n d Spirit at work in such a c o m m u n i t y . Such saving acts, experienced by the c o m m u n i t y a n d e m b o d i e d in the Eucharistic liturgy a n d in the clerical roles played, display Christ's 29

For the case against, see E. D a s s m a n n , Zur Entstehung des Monepiskopats, in JbAC 17 (1974), pp. 7 5 - 7 6 and Satake (1966), pp. 1 5 0 - 1 5 5 ff. A. Brent, History and Eschatological Mysticism in Ignatius o f Antioch, in EThL 6 4 , 4 (1989), pp. 3 0 9 - 3 2 9 ; Brent (1992), Cultural Episcopacy, p p . 8 0 - 8 1 , 8 7 - 8 8 . 2 9

IGNATIUS OF ANTIOCH AND THE MARTYR'S PROCESSION

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victory to the d e m o n i c powers w h o a r e thereby shaken: " F o r w h e n ever y o u assemble frequendy (oxav yap TTUKVOK; em TO GCUTO yiveaGe), the p o w e r s of S a t a n a r e d e s t r o y e d (KaGaipouvxai a i 8uvdpei<; xou l a x a v a ) , a n d his destruction is dissolved (Kal Xvezai 6 oXeQpoq amov) by the h a r m o n y of y o u r faith (ev xfi 6uovo(a upcov xfjq juoxecoq)." 30

Ignatius therefore expresses the view that t h e threefold O r d e r is to be u n d e r s t o o d as representing, in a s a c r a m e n t a l sense, t h e heav enly C h u r c h , which is i n c a r n a t e d in the present c o m m u n i t y a n d r e p resented by the clerical icons of t h a t c o m m u n i t y . T h e typology of Magnes. 13,1 is followed by a c o m m a n d to obedience " t o the bishop a n d to e a c h o t h e r (urcoxdynxe xcp EKIOK6K(O K a l aXXi\Xoi<;), as J e s u s Christ to the F a t h e r (ax; 'Inaouq Xpiaxoq xcp rcaxpi), a n d the apostles to Christ a n d to t h e F a t h e r (Kal oi anooToXoi xcp Xpiaxcp K a l xcp rcaxpi), in o r d e r that there m a y b e b o t h a physical a n d a spiritual u n i o n (iva evcooiq f| a a p K i i c f | xe K a l

rcveupaxiKn.)."

(13,2)

T h u s to speak of the i n c a r n a t i o n of a heavenly C h u r c h O r d e r in the present is well w a r r a n t e d by t h e expression evcooi<; f| a a p K i i c r i xe Kal rcveupaxiKri, even t h o u g h I have a r g u e d elsewhere t h e qualifying thesis that w h a t was n o w timeless b e g a n in time in the U p p e r R o o m a n d at t h e Resurrection. T h e c o m m i n g l i n g of flesh a n d spirit did not simply begin o r begin afresh at every Eucharist, b u t was con tinuous with the commingling (KpaGevxeq xfj a a p K i auxofi Kal xcp aiumi) that took place w h e n t h e risen Christ " c a m e to those a r o u n d P e t e r " a n d " h e said to t h e m : take, h a n d l e m e . . . a n d immediately they touched h i m . . . " T h e r e is therefore a n historical continuity between the past a n d t h e present in so far as t h e timeless, entering time in the present m o m e n t , h a s continuously d o n e so at every Eucharist from t h e C h u r c h ' s historical beginning. 31

E a c h ZX>KO<; in t h e threefold O r d e r makes concrete o r incarnates in the Eucharistic action w h a t it represents, namely the Father (bishop), the Son (deacons) a n d the spirit-filled apostolic council (the presbyters). In Mag. 13,1: " T h e bishop stands o u t (rcpOKa&npivou xou ercioKOTioi))" in this d r a m a "as a type of G o d (eiq xtmov Geou) a n d t h e presbyters (Kal xcov 7cpeaP\)xepcov) as a type of t h e apostolic council (eiq xtmov auve8pio\) xcov drcoaxoAxov) a n d the deacons (Kal xcov 8iaKovcov). . . . as 32

30

Ephes. 13,1 cf. Smyr. 6 , 1 . Smyr. 3,2 cf. Brent (1989), pp. 3 1 6 - 3 2 0 . Brent (1989), pp. 3 0 9 - 3 2 9 ; Idem. (1990), pp. 2 6 2 - 2 6 6 , Idem. (1991), pp. 1 3 9 - 1 4 3 , and Idem. (1992), Cultural Episcopacy, pp. 8 0 - 9 2 . 31

32

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entrusted with the ministry of J e s u s Christ (rceTuoxeuuivcov SKXKOVIOCV 'Iuaou Xpiaxou)." But these realities are not static b u t d y n a m i c . T h e three O r d e r s e a c h p o r t r a y in their particular acts the par ticular role t h a t is played in their Eucharistic r e - e n a c t m e n t of the d r a m a of redemption. In the U p p e r R o o m , according to Jn. 2 0 , 1 9 - 2 2 , there is the Spirit-filled council of he aposdes, a n d so too these are found represented by the presbyterate. As the seated F a t h e r sends the Son, so too the bishops sends the deacons to c o m m u n i c a t e the people or to receive from t h e m their offering for the bishop to con secrate, or to give t h e m liturgical directions. T h e r e is a liturgical procession or %cbpr|oi<; b e t w e e n t h e t h r e e O r d e r s like the procession within the g o d h e a d . Magnes. 7,1-2 goes on to connect the ecclesiastical typology with t h a t of the g o d h e a d . T h e deacons a n d presbyters p r o c e e d from the bishop a n d r e t u r n to him just like the diaconal Son proceeds from the F a t h e r (rcpoeABovxoc) a n d returns to h i m (%copr|oavxa). F u r t h e r m o r e the presbyterate rep resents the ouve8piov xcov dcrcooxotaov (Magnes. 6,1), w h o in t h e j o h a n n i n e T r a d i t i o n (Jn. 20,22), receive the i n b r e a t h i n g of the Spirit a n d w h o reveal the Son w h o c a m e forth from a n d r e t u r n e d to the Father. T h e focus therefore in Ignatius of the theology of iconographical representation (xurcoi) is in the clerical functions in the Eucharistic liturgy. It should b e noted that Tral. 3 , 1 - 3 a n d related passages (Ephes. 5,1 a n d Magnes. 13,1) require a n u n d e r s t a n d i n g of typology in the sense of clerical persons standing eiq xurcov, without the related pas sages using the t e r m xurcoc; as such. It is for this reason that I would reject the a m e n d m e n t xonoq for zvnoq in Magnes. 6 , 1 - 2 , a n d accept the latter as the original reading following Syriac, Arabic a n d A r m e nian texts. Certainly Tral. 3,1 has this r e a d i n g uncontestably in ms. s u p p o r t e d by Ap. Const. 2,26. I have d e m o n s t r a t e d elsewhere the failure of the Didascalia Apostolorum, the predecessor of the latter text, to u n d e r s t a n d Ignatian typology. This lack of u n d e r s t a n d i n g itself would, I submit, explain c o r r u p t e d readings, often leading to an omission of the term, in some G r e e k mss. * At all events, a reading for Mag. 6 , 1 - 2 in terms of a bishop being described as rcpoKa0r||jivo<; eiq xorcov xou Geou would a p p e a r bizarre as it would seem to imply 33

3

3 3

Brent (1991), pp. 1 3 4 - 1 4 5 . Lightfoot (1885), p p . 1 5 6 - 1 5 7 a n d p p . 1 1 8 - 1 2 0 , cf. S c h o e d e l (1985), p p . 1 1 2 - 1 1 5 and p p . 1 4 1 - 1 4 2 . 3 4

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a physical " p l a c e " for G o d in t h e architecture of t h e Eucharistic Assembly. T h u s Ignatius m a y b e r e g a r d e d as having, with considerable the ological sophistication, synthesised t h e f u n d a m e n t a l c o n t r a d i c t i o n between representation b y clerical icons of t h e c o r p o r a t e personal ity of t h e c o m m u n i t y , a n d representation b y t h e same icons of t h e divine acts of persons of t h e g o d h e a d . But his ability to synthesise should n o t conceal from us t h e fact that his use of h u m a n p e r sons to b e xvnoi of divine beings constitutes a radical d e v e l o p m e n t of t h e typology of O r d e r from t h a t which h e h a s inherited from the kind of cultural b a c k g r o u n d represented b y t h e Seer. W e will n o w suggest t h a t t h e origin of this c o n c e p t w a s n o t J e w i s h , b u t p a g a n , a n d associated with w h a t w e have established t o b e t h e ideo logy of t h e Imperial Cult. T h e use b y Ignatius of this n e w , n o n J o h a n n i n e imagery will therefore represent a n e w influx of imperial cultic imagery in addition to that used already b y t h e Seer against his p a g a n backcloth. Let us therefore n o w t u r n in greater detail to t h e specific epigraphical evidence for t h e m e a n i n g b o t h of TX>KO<; a n d TipoKaGruievoq in Ignatius' p a g a n religious b a c k g r o u n d , in o r d e r that w e m a y estab lish conclusive evidential links between these terms a n d w h a t w e will u n d e r s t a n d as t h e h u m a n , episcopal e i K o v e q a n d piuripccxa of his C h r i s t i a n dywv |JA)GXIK6<; (6B 2).

6A

2 . 1 . xtrnoq as statue, and as eiKcbv

It must b e emphasized that t h e w o r d xvnoq usually m e a n s a "small statue" o r a "relief." At Ephesus w e have this w o r d used of t h e u p right figure (TUTCOV opBiov) of A n t o n i n u s set into t h e recess of a wall. W e have also t h e statue at R o m e of M a r c i a n , proconsul of Achaia, described in t h e inscription that it bears as a x u r c o q . W e have fur ther epigraphic evidence which reveals some interesting cognate terms. W h e r e a s regularly xxmoq is used t o describe, in t h e sixth century, statues c o m m e m o r a t i n g charioteers in t h e H i p p o d r o m e , t h e t e r m 35

36

37

35

/. Eph. II, 2 8 6 (= CIG 2967): TOVTOV ov eiaopdaq, ximov opGiov 'Avicovewov AcopoGeoq nxeAifl 0T|K<XTO K p u r c x o ^ e v o v . . . . (Moretti) IGUR 1,67 (= SEG 3 1 , 1703). M a p i a a v o v oxftpei TWKW; EMd8o<; avG-ojiaxoio. R. A u b r e t o n a n d F. Buffiere, Anthologie Grecque: Deuxieme Partie: Anthologie de Planude, T o m . XIII, (CUFr: Association Guillaume Bude: Paris 1980) nos 350: 8: o o v 5e TUTCOV x e x l e£e<J£, Ilop(pi)pie. ("and, Porphyry, an artist's skill has polished your 3 6

f

3 7

vT

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38

is also used as its synonym in t h e case o f o n e C o n s t a n t i n e . W e see therefore that there is a clear, linguistic connection b e t w e e n the ideas of xvnoq a n d eiicc&v, which b e a r c o m p a r i s o n with t h e sense in which Ignatius uses b o t h terms. eiKcbv

In the J u d a e o - C h r i s t i a n tradition at this time, unlike the later devel o p m e n t of picture-icons in the Eastern C h u r c h that hailed Ignatius as o n e of the founding fathers of its tradition, actual i n a n i m a t e a n d physical images were prohibited. It was therefore h u m a n figures in the liturgy t h a t were called u p o n to b e t h e counterparts (TUTCOI) of divine beings, as the parallels in t h e Christian cult of t h e eiKoveq xcov l e p a a x S v in IGRR 4, 3 5 3 c. /. 4 - 7 . As w e will see later (6B 2.2) from Apuleius, priests in the p a g a n cultus "carried before t h e m " or "displayed" (proferebant) t h e divine images (deum insignes exuvias; Metam. 11,10). T h e i r c o u n t e r p a r t s in Ignatius' mystery play h a d n o physical objects that they could hold in front of t h e m in this way. As purely spiritual iconic representatives, they could nevertheless be described as "seated forward as a n effigy of" or " p r o m i n e n t as a n effigy of," as t h e p h r a s e 7ipoKa0T|U£vo<; eiq xurcov implies h e r e . Let us n o w consider the epigraphical use of TcpoKoc&njievoq that is thus clearly associated with xurcoq in Ignatius, a n d its connection with divine beings. 6A 2.2. 0£oi lePocoxoi 7cpoica0r|uivoi, as £7I(OKOTI;OI and udpxupeq I find the tendency to translate KpoKaGrijievoq as " p r e s i d e " mistaken, p a r d y on the g r o u n d s that a xurco<; is displayed a n d does n o t preside, whereas it is t h e person w h o bears the xurcoq that presides. But the translation of this t e r m s as " p r e s i d e " is plainly w r o n g , I believe, because it m a k e s TtpoKocGi^co (rcpoicdGriiiai) a n d its variants t h e equiv39

statue."); 361, 1-2: ovxoq, eyepaiGerixpe, xebq ximoq, ov xoi eyeipei eauoq, KaAAiorca, axecpdvcov. ("You w h o exited the spectators, this is your statue, w h i c h your host o f distinguished crowns raised, O Kalliopas.") Ibid. 367,5: eioexi uev £cbovxi noXic, KOXE Kcovoxocvxivq) e i K o v a xaA.Kevnv p a i o v eicpive yepaqax; 5e 0 d v e v , TioOecoaa cpitav xitnov dv0exo xov8e, ocppa Kai eaaouevoi<; uvfjoxiv exoi mudxcov. ("Whilst Constantine w a s yet living, the city o n c e j u d g e d Constantine worthy o f the m e a n h o n o u r o f a bronze statue . . . But w h e n h e died, she dedicated this effigy in her grief for her dear o n e , in order that future generations might possess a m e m o rial of his labours.") S e e also 351, 5-6. For a more detailed analysis with further primary textual exemplifications see Brent (1991), p. 151 a n d n o t e 40, a n d Brent (1992), Cultural Episcopacy, p p . 8 4 - 8 5 and note 31. 38

39

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225

alent of rcpoioxriua a n d its variants. T h e latter is the n o r m a l t e r m for " p r e s i d e " found in the inscriptions. T h e rarity of TcporaOripevoq c a n be illustrated by t h e o n e sole entry in SEG, w h e r e this t e r m is used of cities r a t h e r t h a n individuals. H e r e rcpomGe^opevoc; c a n either refer to the presidency of a city such as T a r s u s o v e r — o r , as I would p r e fer, its p r e - e m i n e n c e in—Cilicia. I n d e e d Ignatius reveals his knowl edge of t h e n o r m a l use of this t e r m in connection with a city w h e n he too uses it of t h e C h u r c h of R o m e " w h o is p r e - e m i n e n t (lixiq K a i 7cpoKd0r|xai) in the place of t h e district of the R o m a n s ( e v xorcco xcopiou Tcopaicov) . . . p r e - e m i n e n t in C h r i s t i a n c h a r i t y (rcpoKa0ripevr| xfjq 40

41

dyd7cr|<;)." (Rom. insc.)

But t h e o t h e r subject of rcpoKaOripevoq is n o t a city b u t a g o d or goddess, w h o c a n b e called eniaKonoq. 3

W e h a v e a n inscription from P e r g a m o n in A . D . 129 (Syll. 6 9 5 , /. 5 0 - 5 4 ) which refers to "presenting the best sacrifice ( m p a o x a [ G f j ] v a i 8e K a i 0-oaiav o>[<; KaX,]^(axr|v) to D e m e t e r a n d K o r e (xf\ x e [Ar|]ur|xpi K a i x f i K6p[fi), t h e goddesses w h o a r e p r e - e m i n e n t over o u r city (xaiq 7i]poKa0r|pevai<; [ 0 e ] a i q xfjq noXevx; fip[Sv), as well as t o R o m a a n d to all t h e o t h e r gods a n d goddesses ( o p o j i c o q 8e K a i xf\ ['Pcbujfl K a i xoiq aXXox[<; Geoijq rcaai K a i 7 c d a a i < ; ) . " I n such a p a g a n context, I would suggest that the description of Ignatius the EnicKonoq, as o n e w h o is described as T i p o K a O r i p e v o q etc; XUTCOV Geou, c a n b e identified as a quite precise a n d i n t e n d e d parallel. T h e bishop "presides o v e r " o r r a t h e r "is p r e - e m i n e n t i n " the C h u r c h , j u s t as the statues of R o m a a n d the other gods a n d goddesses did in t h e city-states of Asia, b u t n o t as a god himself b u t r a t h e r as the Christian version of a xvnoq 9eo\i. In this connection too it is n o t without relevance t h a t we have a n

4 0

S e e e.g. SEG 3 5 , 8 2 6 , 9 - 1 0 w h i c h is a dedication to a priestess (yevou£va xe xaq Aduxxxpoq Kai Koppaq iepeia xcov xe iepcov ica [Xcoq Kai] bomq upoeaxa); likewise 113,4 (jcpjo'iaxdxcoaav) describes those w h o preside over the Eleusinian rites o f D e m e t e r a n d Kore. T h i s therefore is the usual term for presidency over the rites of a cult, Pagan or Christian (see Justin Martyr, Apol. 1, 9 8 (rcpoeoxox;); cf. Brent (1991), p p . 1 2 9 - 1 5 6 ) . 7tpOKa9r|U£vo<; is used in a s o m e w h a t different sense, as cited in footnote 4 1 . For general uses o f 7tpo{oxT|Ui a n d its derivatives see e.g. SEG 2 7 , 758,3; 3 3 , 6 9 4 , 4 ; a n d 3 4 , 9 4 ; cf. Brent (1991), p p . 1 2 9 - 1 5 6 . SEG 2 9 , 1527 (Severus Alexander) (= OGIS 578): Tdpaoq fi Tcpcbxri K[ai (leyiaxri] Kai KaXXioxi] ii[T\xp6no\i<;] xcov y ercapxeicov 7tpOKa6e£ouivTi KiXiKiaq. From P e r g a m o n from a n inscription in h o n o u r o f Septimius Severus w e have (= (Moretti) IGUR 1, 33): K a i a d p i a x\ u[r|xp6]7toA,i<; K[iXiK(a<; 'Iaa\)p(][aq A\)Ka]o[v(a<; 7cp]oKa6e£[ouevTi C f (Moretti) IGUR 1,78 a n d 8 0 . N o t e furthermore that the normal word for "preside" is used w h e n this sense is required as in SEG 3 5 , 1106: . . . fi rcjpoeaxcooa xfj<; jcoXecoq fiucov Geoq "Apxe[ui<;. . . 41

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inscription from A c m o n i a in D o m i t i a n ' s reign (A.D. 85). It reads as the will of Titus Praxias providing h o n o u r s for his m e m o r y . H e r e he makes "overseers a n d witnesses (em[a]K6[rcou]<; Kai udpxupaq) [of his intentions] the divine Augusti (Geoix; I[ep]aoxouq) a n d the ancestral gods (KaiGefouqTcaTpioufq]; IGRR 4,661 /. 22—23). Ignatius is a n over seer (enioKonoc,) w h o is not himself divine b u t a xxtnoq of the F a t h e r w h o is m o r e o v e r a witness (uxxpxuq), in the Christian sense of one w h o is to lay d o w n his life, as a urur|xr|<; of divine suffering. T h e three O r d e r s are xurcoi or eiKoveq that represent a c o m m u n i t y in process of r e d e m p t i o n , a n d the saving acts of Father, Son, a n d Spirit at work in such a c o m m u n i t y . W e shall n o w e x a m i n e h o w their function in Ignatius' Christian cult explicity mirrors b o t h D o m i tian's reform of the Imperial Cult in ritual, a n d its religious objec tive in securing the pax deorum. 6A 2.3. Domitian's c o r o n a a u r e a and Ignatian xurcoi W e have a r g u e d previously (5A 2.2.2) that Suetonius' a c c o u n t of h o w D o m i t i a n refashioned the i c o n o g r a p h y of the the coronae aureae, worn by priests and himself as high priest presiding over the Capitoline games, implied a p a g a n theology of representation. D o m i t i a n intro d u c e d a new, p a g a n iconographic theology into the general wearing of sacerdotal crowns inscribed with divine images. H e wore a spe cially designed corona aurea in connection with his alterations in the ritual of the cult of J u p i t e r Capitolinus which h a d implications for the ideology of e m p e r o r worship, in which he claimed to be b o t h dominus et deus. T h e corona aurea that he wore at the institution of q u i n q u e n n i a l contests for this cult was impressed with " a n image of J u p i t e r , J u n o a n d M i n e r v a (coronam auream cum effigie Iovis ac Iunonis Minervaeque)." However, the priest of J u p i t e r a n d the college ofFlaviales assisting h i m in the ceremonial also wore (pari habitu) crowns with images of these three deities, b u t included, in addition, D o m i t i a n ' s own image (nisi quod illorum coronis inerat et ipsius imago).* 2

W e see in the corona aurea with its effigies or imago a sacramental rep resentation of J u p i t e r , J u n o , a n d M i n e r v a o n the p a r t of the Pontifex Maximus. T h e s e deities are m a d e sacramentally present by the cultic acts of Domitian as Pontifex Maximus, just as the Father, Son, a n d spiritfilled, apostolic circle or crown (rcveuuaxiKoc; oxecpavoq) are m a d e sacra-

4 2

Suetonius, Domit. 4.

IGNATIUS OF ANTIOCH AND THE MARTYR'S PROCESSION

227

mentally present by the xurcoi (imago, effigies) of bishops, presbyters, a n d deacons (Magn. 13,1). T h e bishop represents G o d the Father, with w h o m the spirit-filled apostles are united in the presbyters a n d the Son in the deacons. Likewise D o m i t i a n , dominus et deus, is m a d e sacramentally present in all the priests w h o w e a r his i m a g e on their crowns, a n d unite their individual acts into his one cultic act. W e h a v e already referred to the JJ.UGXIK6<; dycov at the temples of R o m a a n d Augustus at P e r g a m o n in which the oepaaxocpdvxnq dis played the image of the E m p e r o r as the climax of the mystery play (5B 2.2). H e r e the EIKCOV as a statue or xurcoq (effigies) on a crown can be said to m a k e the imperial genius or xuxr| sacramentally present. Likewise in Ignatius' picture of the Eucharistic assembly, the saving figures of Father, Spirit filled Aposdes, a n d Son are m a d e sacra mentally present by the liturgical d r a m a e n a c t e d by bishop, pres byters a n d deacons, of which they are the xunoi. W e have m o r e o v e r in H e r o d i a n V , 5,6-7 a n a c c o u n t of the acclamation of the Senate a n d their act of sacrifice before Elagabalus (A.D. 218), in which the e m p e r o r ' s CIKCOV is associated with the xurcoq xou emxcopiou Geou: Wishing the Senate and the Roman People to become used to the sight of his appearance (pouAxSpevoq ev eGei yeveaGat xfjq xov axrjuaxoq 6\j/eco<;), and a test be made whilst he was absent (drcovxoq XE avxov rceipav 5o6fjvai) as to how they would accept the sight of his appear ance (n&q (pepouoi xr\v 6\jnv xov c>xr|paxo<;), having had painted a great, full-sized representation of himself (ekova iieyiaxnv ypdyac; navxbq eauxou), in which he appeared reaching forward and performing sacrifice (oloq rcpoicbv xe Kai iepovpycov ecpaivexo), and having placed in the picture the form of the god of the country (rcapaaxrioaq xe ev xfi ypacpfi xov xvnov xov ercixcopiou Geou) with whom of course he was depicted as obtain ing good omens (co 5f| raAAiepcov eyeyparcxo), and having sent it to Rome, he ordered the image to be hung up in the exact centre of the sen ate house and in the highest spot (eKe^euaev ev xcp n.eoaixaxcp xr\<; cruyKA,r|xau XOTCCO i)\|rnA,oxdxcp xe xr\v eiKova dvaxeGiivai), over the head of the statue of Victory ( V K E O KecpcxAijq xov dydA,uaxo<; xfjq Ndcnq), so that when they assembled in council (cbq auvi6vxe<; e<; xo poiAeuxripiov) they each would burn incense (Xipavcoxov xe GuptcoGiv eKaaxoq) and pour libations of wine (Kai oivouq arcevSo-uoi). H e r e clearly the EIKCOV of the e m p e r o r is associated with the xurcoq of the Geoq eni%(opioq which it mediates from the centre of the Senate g a t h e r e d for its business as the centre of its unity, j u s t as Ignatius' bishop stands at the centre of the Eucharistic assembly as the xvnoq naxpoq.

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At this point the iconography of ecclesial O r d e r merges into b o t h the i c o n o g r a p h y of m a r t y r d o m a n d of a cultic procession. Let us n o w examine the particular character of Ignatius' m a r t y r procession as a cultic procession by analogy with t h e Imperial Cult. W e shall examine too, in association with the latter, the ambassadorial tides given to various clerics w h o a c c o m p a n y Ignatius' procession in o r d e r to establish their equivalents with those officials a p p o i n t e d by the city states of Asia in o r d e r to secure i n a u g u r a t i o n a n d celebration of a n e w Imperial Cult.

PART B . T H E M A R T Y R PROCESSION AND CULTIC AMBASSADORS

Schoedel described clearly the "staged" c h a r a c t e r of the j o u r n e y of Ignatius from his native Antioch in Syria to prospective m a r t y r d o m at R o m e . T h e m a r t y r d o m is proclaimed beforehand to the R o m a n Christians by C r o c u s t h e d e a c o n a n d others from Ephesus, " w h o preceded m e from Syria to R o m e to the glory of G o d (Rom. 10,1-2)." F u r t h e r m o r e , Ignatius collects individuals w h o j o i n his procession as representatives of the churches of the various cities (Ephesus, Magnesia, a n d Tralles), w h o c o m e to h i m in S m y r n a since the route selected by his guards has allowed h i m previously only to visit Philadelphia. N o t only d i d some of these representatives stay with his e n t o u r a g e a n d precede h i m to R o m e (Rom. 10,2), b u t some were elected to congratulate t h e C h u r c h of Antioch o n its peace (Philad. 10,1; Smyr. 1 1 , 2 - 3 ; Pol. 8,1). T h e representative c h a r a c t e r of those w h o c o m e from their C h u r c h e s to j o i n his procession is emphasised in Tral. 12,1 w h e r e h e c a n say: "I greet you from S m y r n a , together with the Churches of G o d w h o are present with m e (djia xaiq a\)U7tapot>aai<; pot eKKXnoiaiq xov 8eou)." T h u s their C h u r c h e s a r e considered very m u c h to be present in those sent to a c c o m p a n y h i m . T h r o u g h their representatives, C h u r c h e s "which did n o t lie o n m y w a y (oci \ir\ 43

4 3

Ignatius claims to see the corporate personality o f the C h u r c h e s w h i c h h e has never visited as mysteriously represented in clerical persons. W i t h bishop O n e s i m u s he has "converse o f m i n d (crovf|9eia)" so that h e w a s able to see their corporate personality, their no\x>nXr\Qeia (Ephes. 1,3 a n d 5,1) as also in the case o f bishop Polybius (Tral. 1,1) or b i s h o p D a m a s (Mag. 6 , 1 : coerce u£ xo nav nXrfioq ev avxcp Secopfiaai). S e e further A. Brent, T h e Relations b e t w e e n Ignatius o f Antioch a n d the Didascalia Apostolorum, in SecCent 8,3 (1991), p p . 1 5 1 - 1 5 3 ; Brent (1992), Cultural Episcopacy, pp. 8 5 - 8 8 .

IGNATIUS OF ANTIOCH AND THE MARTYR'S PROCESSION

229

7ipoaf|Ko\)oa{ uoi) according to the flesh (TTJ 68cp xf\ Kaxd odpKa) lead the way before m e city by city (Kaxd noXiv \ie Tcpofjyov; Rom. 9,3; Philad. 10,2)." But h o w did b o t h Ignatius himself, a n d the C h u r c h e s which co operated in this "stage m a n a g e m e n t " of the martyr's procession, view the p u r p o s e of the j o u r n e y ? In w h a t social context are we to place the " t h e a t r e " thus staged? W e need to go b e y o n d Schoedel's indi vidualistic a n d psychologistic interpretation expressed in such words as "gaining recognition a n d support," a n d "to bring to expression their deepest hopes a n d fears a n d to channel t h e m effectively." 44

Ignatius describes his a p p e a r a n c e in R o m e in language that clearly implies that his act confronts R o m a n p o w e r with a superior, spiritual alternative. Ignatius claims (Rom. 2,2) that: " G o d j u d g e d the bishop of Syria to be found at the sun's setting (eic; Suaiv) having sent h i m from the (sun's) rising (anb dvaxoAfjq)." Schoedel comments that: "there is a sense of m o v e m e n t in the bishop's m e n t a l g e o g r a p h y strikingly different from the defenders of R o m a n p o w e r w h o speak simply of R o m e ruling from the rising to the setting s u n . " Certainly Rom. 6, 1 represents a self-conscious reversal of imperial values on the p a r t of a bishop w h o is contrasting his individual purpose with that of the R o m a n E m p e r o r . But Schoedel resists a n y interpretation of Ignatius' act as p a r t of a contrived martyrological cult. T h e selfsacrificing bishop from the east is a p p a r e n d y simply a heroic figure proclaiming the t r i u m p h of Christian grace over the E m p e r o r ' s nat ural p o w e r . 45

46

In w h a t follows I will argue t h a t Ignatius' procession to martyr d o m reflects the Christian c o u n t e r p a r t in the a r e n a to the imperial procession that ends with sacrifice o n a p a g a n , imperial altar. His Christian e n t o u r a g e are the counterparts of the p a g a n officials a n d priests. I will interpret the images with which he expresses his u n d e r standing of w h a t is taking place in the light of the social a n d reli gious context in the city states of Asia M i n o r , in particular their a d h e r e n c e to a n d d e v e l o p m e n t of the Imperial Cult. W e d o well to

4 4

S c h o e d e l (1985), p. 12. Ibid. p p . 1 7 0 - 1 7 1 . Rom. 6,1: " T h e furthest ends o f the world profit m e nothing (ov)8ev ue cb(peA.f|oei xa Ttepaxa xov KOOUO'D) nor d o the kingdoms o f this age (ovbk a i |3aaiA,eiai xov aicovoq xo\)XO\)): it is better for m e to die (mA,6v uoi arcoGaveiv) for the sake of Jesus Christ (8ia 'Irjoouv Xpiaxov) than to reign over earth's furthest ends (r\ PaaiXeveiv xcov T c e p a x c o v xfjq yfj<;)." 45

46

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CHAPTER SIX

ask w h e t h e r Ignatius a n d his m a r t y r d o m are not set over against that cult, in the way in which he regards his j o u r n e y to R o m e as 47

a procession securing those deified qualities of Victoria a n d Pax.

I

will argue: 1. Ignatius sees his personal sacrifice (his dvx{\|n)%ov on the Gumaoxr|piov exoiuov) at R o m e as centred in a cultic procession, a n d the comparison between his highway to victory a n d that of R o m e ' s p o w e r is a cultic c o m p a r i s o n with the developing Imperial Cult. 2. T h e cult is a mystery cult that parallels the imperial mysteries, in w h i c h those w h o p a r t i c i p a t e in the m a r t y r o l o g i c a l d r a m a pip-nxou a n d cv\i\i\>Gxai.

are

His picture of the xopoq g a t h e r e d for the

Eucharist, a n d his l a n g u a g e a b o u t its m e m b e r s a n d their actions (xpiaxocpopoi, vococpopoi, ocyiocpopoi), mirrors w h a t epigraphical evidence will inform us r e g a r d i n g the mysteries associated with the Imperial Cult (iepotcpopoi, pcopocpopoi). 3. Ignatius' particular tide, " T h e o p h o r u s (Geotpopoq)" a n d therefore " b e a r e r of G o d " is to b e u n d e r s t o o d in c o m p a r i s o n with the b e a r e r of t h e i m p e r i a l i m a g e (eiiccov) in the ritual of t h e I m p e r i a l C u l t (aePccoxocpopoq, GeoXoyoq (oepaaxoA,6yo<;) 0eo(pdvxr|<; (oepaaxo(pdvxr|<;)). Certainly xvnoq is used equivalendy to EIKCOV as a " s t a t u e " o r as a "relief" in several insciptions, as we have seen (6A 2.1). Also related with this title was the use of xurcoq in the description of the bishop's office as KpoKaGripevoq eiq xxmov rcaxpoq (6A 2). T h i s description also m i r r o r e d the theology implied by D o m i d a n ' s changes in the icono g r a p h y o n the priesdy coronae w o r n as p a r t of the ritual associated with the Capitoline g a m e s (6A 2.3). W e shall n o w be able to locate the particular focus of this set of images specifically in the proces sion associated with the Imperial Cult a n d in some instances involv ing imperial mysteries.

4 7

Certainly S c h o e d e l (1985) Introduction p p . 1 1 - 1 2 , a n d p. 2 1 3 saw Ignatius' view o f his martyrdom in such terms ("All this makes sense if w e recall h o w care fully planned Ignatius' w h o l e j o u r n e y appears to have b e e n for calling out support from the churches o n his route a n d h o w intimately such support figures in the bishop's reflections o n the significance o f his mission as a m a n set o n unity"). Schoedel h o w e v e r left ill-defined the particular social and religious context which w o u l d give m e a n i n g to Ignatius' conceptualization o f the various roles of those involved in his procession.

IGNATIUS OF ANTIOCH AND THE MARTYR'S PROCESSION

6B

231

1. The &VT{\|/\)XOV at the 0 \ ) a i a a x f | p i o v eioipov

As they greet Ignatius in chains at S m y r n a t h r o u g h O n e s i m u s their bishop a n d representative w h o meets h i m there, the Ephesians a r e described as " b e i n g imitators of G o d , inflamed by the blood of G o d (Ephes. 1,1)." But these w o r d s c a n n o t in this context b e interpreted simply as a n indication of their general p i e t y . H e claims that their piety is focused u p o n his c o m i n g m a r t y r d o m . T h e y a r e "inflamed by the blood of G o d (&va£(D7Tupf|oavT£<; ev a i u m i Geofi)" because they were p r a y i n g that h e should attain his goal of fighting with the wild beasts. 48

T h e spectacle of " t h e blood of G o d " reflected in t h e p{pr|oi<; of the m a r t y r - b i s h o p is thus the cause of their anxious haste to c o m e to see h i m (iaxopf|ocu eo7iou8doaTe). It is therefore the m a r t y r bishop, b e c o m i n g the eiiccov or zvnoq of the suffering G o d , to which they a r e d r a w n in a cult in which they will re-enact o r "imitate (UIUTITOCI ovxeq TOU Geou)" the saving e v e n t . 49

It is to be emphasised therefore that such uiur|oi<; is clearly cul tic. In t h e arrival of the bishop from the East at the a r e n a of t h e e m p e r o r of the West w e have t h e climax of t h e cultic procession which b e g a n in Antioch a n d gathered its m e m b e r s from the churches of Asia M i n o r to w h o m Ignatius wrote. As Perler pointed out, Ignatius used t h e rare w o r d avTVAjruxov as equivalent to the Pauline iXaaxripiov or a t o n i n g sacrifice. S u c h was his sacrificial role in t h e cultic p r o cession in which h e invited m e m b e r s of t h e Ephesian C h u r c h to j o i n . "I a m y o u r a t o n i n g sacrifice (dvTi\|ru%ov upcov eycb), a n d of those w h o m y o u sent to S m y r n a for t h e h o n o u r of G o d (Kai tbv e7cep\|/axe eiq 0eou xipfrv ei<; I p v p v a v ) . " (Ephes. 21,1 cf. Smyr. 10,2; Pol. 2,3) 50

In this w a y Ignatius' sufferings b e c o m e a kind of extension of his action as bishop in the Eucharist, as his words "I a m G o d ' s w h e a t "

4 8

Cf. Schoedel (1985), p p . 4 1 - 4 2 . T h i s point w a s established at length b y H . W . Bartsch, Gnostisches G u t u n d Gemeindetradition bei Ignatius v o n Antiochien, in Sammlung wissenschqftlicher Monographien, 2 , 4 4 (Giitersloh: Evangelischer V e r l a g 1940), p p . 7 8 - 9 8 , a n d only partially m o d i f i e d in K. B o m m e s , W e i z e n G o t t e s , U n t e r s u c h u n g e n z u r T h e o l o g i e d e s Martyriums bei Ignatius v o n Antiochien, in Theoph 27 (Koln u n d B o n n : Hanstein 1976), p p . 9 2 - 1 0 7 . S e e also W . M . Swartley, T h e Imitatio Christi in the Ignatian Letters, in VCh 27 (1973), p p . 8 1 - 1 0 3 a n d T h . Preiss, La mystique d e l'imitation de Christ et de l'unite chez Ignace d'Antioch, in RHPhR 18 (1938), p p . 1 9 7 - 2 4 1 . O . Perler, D a s vierte Makkabaerbuch, Ignatius v o n Antiochien, u n d die altesten Martyrerberichte, in RivAC 9 (1949), p p . 4 7 ff. cf W . H . C . Frend, Martyrdom and Persecution in the Early Church, (Oxford: Blackwell 1965), p p . 199 ff. 4 9

5 0

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51

(Rom. 4,1) indicate. T h e 0uoiaoxr|piov of the a r e n a is a n extension of the 0uaiaaxr|piov that prefigures in Ignatius' liturgical scenes (Ephes. 5,2; Magnes. 7,2; Philad. 4). Indeed, Ignatius anticipates his experience in t h e a r e n a as a kind of Eucharist in which instead of t h e p a g a n crowds there will b e t h e R o m a n Christians as participants in a cult in which he himself is sacrificed on a n altar that is ready (0uoiaaxr|piov exoiuov). (Rom. 2,2) H i s words a r e "to b e p o u r e d o u t as a libation to G o d (xou a7iov8io9f]vai 0ea>)," which m a y reflect Paul's w o r d s in Eph. 5,1~2. But Ignatius is n o t simply c o m m e n t i n g o n Scripture in a social v a c u u m . T h e 0uoiaaxr|piov exoiuov has clear associations with the Imperial Cult a n d its offerings of thus et vinum, as a sacrificial t e r m for which orcov8io0f|V(xi is also a p p r o p r i a t e . 52

53

In place of the c h u r c h g a t h e r e d for t h e Eucharist, as uiot a d p ^ . . . ev 7coxr|piov ei<; evcooiv xou aiVocxoq auxou- ev 0uaiaaxf|piov . . . (Philad. 4), there is therefore t h e m a r t y r p o u r i n g o u t his blood a n d giving his body, which he prays m a y b e found p u r e b r e a d , as G o d ' s w h e a t (Rom. 2,2; 4,1). In Rom. 8,3 he asks the R o m a n Christians to b e h a v e like the p a g a n spectators w h o express to t h e a r e n a officials their wish for d e a t h r a t h e r t h a n life for a person for w h o m t h e m o m e n t to be selected or otherwise h a s c o m e . "If I should suffer (edv 7cd0co), you h a d expressed y o u r wish [for it] (f)0eA,r|aaxe), if I should b e rejected (edv d7io8oKiuxxa0co), y o u h a d expressed y o u r h a t r e d (euiof|aaxe)." 54

T h e c h u r c h ' s p r a y e r in the a r e n a is n o t therefore that b r e a d a n d wine b e c o m e Christ's b o d y a n d blood, b u t that in Ignatius' b o d y

51

For a discussion o n the relationship b e t w e e n Eucharist a n d martyrdom see, G.P. Wetter, Altchristliche Liturgien: D a s christliche Mysterium: Studien zur G e schichte des A b e n d m a h l e s , in FRLANT 13 (1921), p p . 1 1 7 - 1 1 9 , 1 3 6 - 1 3 7 ; Bartsch (1940), p p . 1 0 2 - 1 0 6 ff., cf. B o m m e s (1976), p p . 6 1 - 6 3 , 8 9 - 9 3 . S e e also H . Schlier, Religionsgeschichdiche U n t e r s u c h u n g e n z u d e n Ignatiusbriefen, in B^NW 8 (1929), pp. 1 5 2 - 1 6 9 . Cf. Schoedel (1985), p p . 2 9 - 3 1 a n d p. 4 2 . For the use o f incense o n Trajan's altar at Pergamon, see SEG 11, 9 2 2 - 9 3 3 (Gytheum); V . Ehrenberg a n d A . H . M . J o n e s , Documents Illustrating the Reigns of Augustus and Tiberius, (Oxford: C l a r e n d o n 1955) n o . 102 (a); IGRR 4 , 3 5 3 b 2 0 . S e e also S.R.F. Price, Rituals and Power. The Roman Imperial Cult in Asia Minor, (Cambridge: U.P. 1984), p. 2 0 8 . In the Hellenistic ruler cult in Ptolemaic Egypt the burning o f incense a n d libations as o p p o s e d to animal sacrifices w a s already c o m m o n before its adaptation to emperor worship, see D . Fishwick, T h e Imperial Cult in the Latin West: Studies in the Ruler Cult o f the Western Province o f the R o m a n Empire, in EPRO 108 (1991), 2 , 1 , p. 5 1 3 . T h e force o f the t w o aorists (rfieXr\cax£, euiof|aaxe) is best brought out as a o n c e for all expression (by the crowds in the arena) o f the action of the verb a n d translated accordingly. 5 2

0 3

5 4

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233

those realities m a y be displayed. H e exhorts t h e m regarding the wild beasts in the a r e n a : "Intercede to the L o r d for m e (taxaveuoaxe xov Kupiov urcep euou) that t h r o u g h these instruments (iva 8id xcov opydvcov xouxcov) I might be found G o d ' s sacrifice (Geou Guoia eupeGco)." (Rom. 4,2) His vision of the R o m a n c o m m u n i t y has n o bishop, priest, or d e a c o n at this point, as h a d his visions of the communities to which he addresses his other letters, b u t only the R o m a n officials a n d their functions in the a m p h i t h e a t r e . W h a t the R o m a n Christians can d o is to " c o a x " the wild beasts to devour h i m quickly a n d not try to keep t h e m away (Rom. 4,2). 55

Given therefore that the victorious j o u r n e y of the bishop of Syria from the East confronting the e m p e r o r of the West is a confronta tion between rival cults, c a n we n o w in the light of the inscriptions of the Imperial Cult delineate further the character of Ignatius reverse images? W h a t , according to Ignatius, are the features of the Christian liturgical c o m m u n i t y that m i r r o r those of p a g a n e m p e r o r worship? 6B

2. The %opo<; and the dyo)v uuaxucoq

T h e R o m a n c o m m u n i t y is r e g a r d e d as a xopoq g a t h e r e d a r o u n d a p a g a n Guoiaaxripiov exoiuov. T h e m y s t e r y - d r a m a in which the bishop is a xujcoq is n o w a n a r e n a scene in which he is a UIUT|XT|<; of the suffering god (xou rcdGouq xou Geou uou). (Rom. 6,3) Ignatius invites the R o m a n Christians, g a t h e r e d in his imagination in the a r e n a , that: . . . in love becoming a choir (iva ev aycxTrn xopo<; yevojievoi), you may sing to the Father in Jesus Christ (aonxe xcprcaxpiev 'Incou Xpiaxcp) that God has deemed the bishop of Syria worthy to be found at the sun's setting, having despatched him from the sun's rising. Rom. 2,2 T h e y are to sing as a choir at the sacrifice (%opo<; yevopxvoi), as he envisaged the Ephesians (4,1-2) formed like a choir at Eucharist (6A 1.1.1), or as the Seer described the "great m u l t i t u d e " (Apoc. 7,9) or the 144,000 (14,2-3). Ignatius thus also saw his communities g a t h e r e d for the S u n d a y Eucharist or his own martyrological Eucharist as singing the victory in martyrdom of the Christian bishop rising from the East a n d triumphing

5 5

For the visionary character o f his description of c o m m u n i t i e s that he has not visited at their Eucharistic worship see A. Brent, T h e Ignatian Episdes and the Threefold Ecclesiastical Order, in JRH 17,1 (1992), p p . 1 8 - 3 2 .

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in t h e a r e n a over the E m p e r o r . I n this respect they paralleled the way i n which the choir at P e r g a m o n sung t h e e m p e r o r ' s praises. J u s t as w e saw was the case (5B 2.2-2.2.3) with the imperial 0eoA,6yoi or uuvcoSoi of P e r g a m o n or of H y p a e p a (mG-uuvouvxeq xov l e P a o x o v OIKOV) in t h e Imperial Cult (IGRR 4, 3 5 3 , b . /. 12-19), there is t h e xopoq of the Christian cult. T h a t xopoq extols that divinized quality of i m p e rial unity that is ouovoicc (Ephes. 4,2), a n d which was also a feature of t h e doxology of C l e m e n t Cor. 6 0 - 6 1 . Ignatius' martyrological cult was also to celebrate the peace experienced by the C h u r c h of Antioch in Syria. T h u s o p o v o i a , like the pax deorum, was a particular objective of t h e I m p e r i a l C u l t w h i c h w a s a c h i e v e d b y I g n a t i u s ' C h r i s t i a n Cult. T h e h y m n singers were m o r e o v e r g a r l a n d e d (IGRR 4, 3 5 3 , b . /. 1 8 - 1 9 : oxecpdvoix; xoiq uuvcp8oi<; Kai xolq puaxripioiq oxecpdvcoaiv) just as Ignatius' presbyterate a r e described as a "spiritual c r o w n (Magnes. 13,1: d^iorcXoKou TrveupaxiKou axecpdvou)."

Moreover, w e followed (5B 2.2.3) Pleket's account of the role of the aePaaxo(pdvxr|<; i n exposing the e i K o v e q . T h e r e w e r e also o t h e r allu sions t o i)uvcp8o( of t h e Imperial Cult at P e r g a m o n , for example Asia ( H y p a e p a ) . I n o r d e r t o locate further t h e function of these e i K o v e q in the ritual of the cult, we n e e d t o refer t o SEG 6,59 (= IGRR 3 , 209), which is t h e " d e c r e e of t h e international association of t h e craftsmen of Dionysus (\|/f|(pioua xcov anb ix\q o i K o u p e v n c ; rcepi xov Aiovuaov xexve(xcov)" (/. 1-5) from Ankyra. T h e occassion is t h e incorporation of the cult of the e m p e r o r H a d r i a n into that of Dionysus a n d Hadrian's n a m e is a d d e d t o t h e association's title a s the " n e w D i o n y s u s " (Kai AuxoKpdxopa Tpatavov 'ASpiavov lepaaxov K a t a a p a veov Aiovuaov). H e r e we find that it is the honoured benefaction of Ulpius Aelius Pompeianus to "exhibit the mystery-spectacle (dycovoGexfjoai xov dyfiva xov puaxucov)." 5 6

57

Pompeianus s u m m o n e d (xoix; dycovioxdq dveKaAioaxo) the contestants "already o n their highway with anxious speed (xcp xe xd%ei xfj<; G7io\)8fj<; 68euovxa<;)," a n d " h e provided (ercf|pKeoev) for every p a r t i n t h e mys tery (rcavxi pepei xou puaxriplou)." Ignatius t o o f o u n d the Ephesians anxious for t h e spectacle of his m a r t y r d o m (1,5: ioxopfioai eo7co\)8daaxe), just a s he regards all of t h e m t h r o u g h their representatives a s

5 6

Pleket (1965) p p . 3 4 5 - 3 4 6 , where he c o m p a r e s IGRR 4 , 3 5 3 , c. /. 4 - 7 with

IGRR 4, 5 2 2 = OGIS 4 7 9 ; 6 4 3 . S e e also m y discussion in 5 B 2.2. 57

IGRR 4, 1 6 0 8 (Claudius): a. /. 10: oi i)uvo)8oi a v e 9 r | K a v raxa xo yev6|ie[vov] \|/r|(pio|!a ev n e p y d u c o i)7co xfjq i e p a q [ a v v 6 ] 8 o \ ) eyypd\j/avxe<; o o a 5 i K a i a [ K a i [
IGNATIUS OF ANTIOCH AND THE MARTYR'S PROCESSION

235

" c o m p a n i o n s o n t h e w a y (ouvoSoi rcdvxeq)." H i s martyr-cult, in which he shares with Paul, is a mystery cult in which the Ephesians parti cipate as fellow initiates (ouu^uoxai) w h o are on a n highway (rcdpo8o<;). (Ephes. 12,2) Let us n o w explore further the general b a c k g r o u n d of |iiur|oi<; in parallel with Ignatius' use of the t e r m . 6B

2 . 1 . uiur|GK; in the Isis mysteries and imperial extensions

T h e w o r d uiur|xr|<; in Ignatius Rom. 6,3 has a parallel in t h e mystery cults of Isis

58

w h i c h w e r e assimilated to those of Dionysus which

were, as H a d r i a n ' s example shows, assimilated in turn to the Imperial Cult. H e r e piur|xf|<; is used, with its cognates, uiuoujievoq xd iepd a n d uiur||iaxa xcov xoxe 7ia6r|udxcov, in the sense of actor in that participants acting o u t their role in t h e divine d r a m a b e c o m e mystically identified a n d a b s o r b e d into the realities which they a c t .

59

Certainly Ignatius sees his role as bishop at o n e p o i n t as a mystagogue. I n Tral. 5,2 h e claims: "I a m able to know (8uvaum voeiv) the heavenly things (xd ercoupdvia), b o t h t h e angelic locations (Kai xdq xorcoGeaiaq xdq dyyetaKaq) a n d t h e ranks of the a r c h o n s (Kai xdq a u a x d a e u ; dpxovxiKaq)." I n Ephes. 19,1 h e speaks of M a r y ' s virginity, a n d Christ's conception a n d passion as xpia nuaxripia. I n Philad. 7,2 he speaks of t h e Spirit that moves h i m as: " h e exposes h i d d e n things (xd Kpu7cxd eAiyxei)." Like the high-priest of t h e Imperial Cult, h e is "entrusted (rceTtiaxeuuevoq) with the holy of holies (xd dyia xcov dyicov). . . with t h e secrets of G o d (xd Kpurcxd x o u Geou; Philad. 9,1)." W e c a n n o w ask w h a t was the character of the ritual performed by those to w h o m were assigned the various parts in the dycbv uuoxiKoq, a n d h o w they were paralleled in Ignatius' description of t h e martyr-cult. 5 8

Plutarch, De Is. et Osir. 361 D , 27 where Isis is described as "having inter mixed with the most holy rites (xaiq dyicoxdxaK; d v a u i ^ a a a xeXexctiq), images a n d suggestions a n d representations o f her sufferings at that time ( e i K o v a ^ K a i vnovoiaq m i uiuf|uaxa xcov xoxe 7ca0r|udxcov). . ." Cf. the mysteries o f Attis in Lucian, De Dea Syria 15: 'Pep 8e xepvovxou m i "Axxea u i u i o v x a i , a n d Eleusinian Mysteries, El. Lysias c. Andoc. 30: T h e Hierophant says: e8i)<; xr\v cxoXryv uiuot>uevo<; xd iepd ejciSeiKvoe xolq duA)r|xoi<; m i eute xfj (pccvi) xd dic6ppr|xa (cf. Hippolytus EL V , 8,39). For the equation o f Isis with Dionysiac mysteries, see Plutarch, De Is. et Osir. 3 6 4 E, 35: oxi pev o\)v 6 avxoc, eoxi Aiovuoitp x i v a u<xA,Ax)v rj a e yvyvcooKeiv, d) KXea. For the Platonic justification for this see S. C a l d e r o n e , T e o l o g i a , Politica, Successione D i n a s d c a e Consecratio in Eta Constantina, in Culte des Souverains, dans I'Empire Romain, in Entretiens 19 (1972), p p . 2 3 6 - 2 3 7 a n d footnotes; A. H e i t m a n n , Imitatio D e i . D i e ethische N a c h a h m u n g Gottes nach der Vaterlehre der zwei ersten Jahrhunderten, in StAns 10 (1940). S e e also Wetter (1921), p p . 6 6 - 6 7 , p p . 1 2 4 - 1 2 5 ; Schlier (1929), p p . 1 3 5 - 1 3 6 , 1 6 3 - 1 6 4 ff.; S. Angus, The Mystery Religions: A Study in the Religious Background of Early Christianity, ( N e w York: D o v e r 1975), p p . 1 0 9 - 1 1 2 , pp. 132 133, pp. 137 138, p p . 3 0 7 - 3 0 8 . 5 9

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6B 2.2. Image bearers in the Imperial Mysteries W e have already n o t e d the use of eiKoveq of the e m p e r o r a n d their exposure in the d r a m a by the 6eooi)aav xd Geia) to those w h o truly a n d j u s d y have the n a m e of 'bearers of the sacred vessels' a n d 'wearers of the sacred r o b e s ' (xoiq d^rjGSq Kal 8tm{co<; iepacpopoiq Kai iepoaxotanq rcpooayopeuopevoiq; De hide et Osiride 352 B, 3)." 60

But there were also m o r e particular roles assigned in the ritual of the mysteries, some of which R o b e r t lists as pcouotpopoq, Kioxacpopoq, jropcpopoq, A,iKva(popoq, Kavqcpopoq, GaMxxp6po<;, cpaMxxpopoq, a n d Geocpopoq. W e find the latter t e r m b e c o m i n g oePaoxocpopoc; w h e n for e x a m p l e the Dionysiac mysteries are assimilated with H a d r i a n ' s Imperial Cult. Kioxacpopoq occurs in Syll. 736 (Andania 92 B.C.) w h e r e the law for celebrating the mysteries is inscribed. H e r e " t h e sacred virgins (a! TcapGevoi a i iepai) as they are selected (raGo*; dv A,d%covxai) d r a w the chariots (dyo\)oai xd a p p a x a ) laiden with chests containing the objects for the sacred mysteries (erciKeipevafq] Kicxaq e x o u a a q iepd p/uaxim; VI, 1, 3 0 - 3 1 ) . " 61

62

3

A m o n g the objects carried in the ritual of the sacred mysteries, in addition to the EIKCOV of the e m p e r o r exposed by the oePaoxotydvxrjq, were small models or pictures of a n altar. Apollonius son of Apollonius is given the tide pcopocpopoq in P e r g a m o n . W e find a n explanation of this tide in Apuleius' description of the Isis mysteries: 63

The foremost high priests (antistites sacrorum proceres). . . carried before them the distinctive attributes of the most powerful gods (potentissimo-

6 0

IG 12, 5, 2 9 1 . L. Robert, R e c h e r c h e s Epigraphiques, V I Inscriptions d'Athenes, in Opera Min. Set. 2 (1969), p. 8 3 9 note 6 (= REA 6 2 (1960), p. 3 2 3 note 6). See also Idem. Le Serpent G l y c o n d'Abonouteichos a A t h e n e s et Artemis d'Ephese a R o m e , in Opera Min. Set. 5 (1989), pp. 7 4 7 - 7 6 9 (= CRAI (1981), p p . 5 1 9 - 5 3 5 ) . L. Robert, Hellenica, II, Inscription E p h e b i q u e , in Opera Min. Set. 2 (1969), pp. 1 2 7 7 - 1 2 7 8 (= RPhil 13 (1939), pp. 1 2 4 - 1 2 5 ) . M.P. Nilsson, Zwei Altare aus Pergamon, in Eranos 5 4 (1956), p. 172; I. Perg. 336. 61

6 2

<,:i

IGNATIUS OF ANTIOCH AND THE MARTYR'S PROCESSION

237

rum deum proferebant insignes exuvias) . . . the second . . . (secundus) carried with both hands an altar (manibus ambabus gerebat altarid), that is, "a source of help," (id est auxilid) whose special name was derived from the helping providence of the supreme goddess (quibus nomen dedit proprium deae summatis auxiliaris providentid). Apuleius, Metamorphoses, 11,10 As Apuleius makes clear, the foremost priests take p r e c e d e n c e w h o carry insignes exuviae of the gods themselves. F u r t h e r m o r e , w h a t these priests carry a r e n o t merely the p o r t a b l e a c c o m p a n y m e n t s of ritual. T h e y carry the clothing o r attributes (exuviae) of the gods themselves. T h e y a r e thus to b e distinguished from the second g r o u p w h o carry the altaria. T h u s t h o u g h the second g r o u p in the Isis mystery p r o cession m a y b e describable as iepoupopoi, the first g r o u p m a y be described as Oeocpopoi. I n d e e d the t e r m occurs generally in the mys tery cults. 64

In t h e inscription of Agrippinilla found in T o r r e N o v a south of R o m e , w e have a list of functionaries of the Dionysiac c u l t c. 150 A . D . Agrippinilla heads the list as priestess a n d h e a d of the associ ation, b u t two of the functionaries, Gallicanus a n d Dionysius, are called 0eo
66

67

W e t h u s see h o w in Ignatius' M a r t y r Cult, in direct parallel w i t h the imperial mysteries, those w h o j o i n the procession either in per son o r t h r o u g h clerical representatives are assigned roles analogous to the i e p o ^ o p o i , a n d the b i s h o p at the centre of the c u l t is described

as the 0£O(p6po<; w h o bears a spiritual image, the xurcoq of their F a t h e r God. 6 4

Robert Opera Min. Sel. 2 (1969), pp. 1 2 7 7 - 1 2 7 8 (= RPhil 13 (1939), pp. 1 2 4 - 1 2 5 ) . M . P . Nilsson, T h e Dionysiac Mysteries o f the Hellenistic a n d R o m a n A g e , in Acta Instituti Atheniensis Regni Sueciae, 8,5 (Lund: Gleerup 1957), p p . 4 6 a n d 5 6 - 5 7 . Ath. Mitt. 5 9 (1935), p p . 7 7 - 8 8 ; Robert (1939), p p . 1 2 3 - 1 2 5 . S e e also Price (1984), p. 189. Pleket (1965), p. 3 4 5 ; cf. Robert Opera Min. Sel. 2 (1969), p p . 8 3 2 - 8 3 5 (= REA 6 2 (1960), p p . 3 1 6 - 3 1 9 ) . 6 5

66

6 7

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As their fellow-citizens in the city states of Asia M i n o r , in partic ular centres of the Imperial Cult such as Ephesus, Smyrna, o r Tralles, r e s p o n d e d to the supplicatio by j o i n i n g the sacrificial procession, so figuratively the Christian Ephesians j o i n Ignatius' martyr-procession. As Ignatius says: You are all therefore (eaxe oSv) companions on the way (cri)vo8oi rcdvxeq), God-bearers (Geocpopoi) and temple-bearers (Kal vaocpopoi), Christ bearers (xpicxocpopoi), bearers of holy things (dyiocpopoi), in every way adorned with the commandments ofJesus Christ (midrcdvxaKeKoopripevoi ev evioXaiq 'Inaoi) Xpiaxov). Ephesians 9,2 T h o s e w h o c o m e at t h e s u m m o n s of the martyr-bishop to j o i n his procession carry n o t t h e ekcbv of the e m p e r o r b u t , in their conduct ing of Ignatius, the vbnoq o r uaprjxriq of the suffering F a t h e r - G o d . T h e y a r e analogously the equivalents of t h e Geocpopoi, iepacpopoi (ayiocpopoi), a n d pcouocpopoi (vaocpopoi) of the traditional cults paral leled by the imperial Sacristan of the divine images (^arapoq xcov 0eicov eiKovcov). Instead of being clothed ev Xa\inpaiq eaGfjoiv for the m a r t y r ' s sacrifice, t h e y i n s t e a d a r e m x d rcdvxa KeKoapripevoi ev evxoAxxiq 'Inaou Xpiaxou. T h e letter to the C h u r c h of S m y r n a m o r e over is also addressed: eKK^naia Geov. . . ayiocpopcp (Smyrn. inscr.). 68

But w h a t of the office of the martyr-bishop at the centre of the cult at whose representation of the suffering G o d the Ephesians are so "inflamed?" (Ephes. 1,1) Ignatius continually emphasises his o t h e r n a m e or title (6 K a l Geocpopoq) at the beginning of each of the seven letters. J u s t as there is in his t h o u g h t a continuity between the liturgy of the Eucharist each Sunday, a n d the prospective scene in the a r e n a w h e r e he is destined to be the Guoiaoxripiov exoiuov (Rom. 2,2), so too I would suggest there is a continuity between Ignatius as Geocpopoq of the suffering G o d a n d the bishop as xurcoq xou rcaxpoq (6A 2). 6B 2.3. Geocpopoq and xurcoq in pagan cultic imagery W e saw that the bishop a n d presbytery, a n d , by implication or assim ilation, the deacons, a r e described in the Ignatian letters as rcpoKaGnpevoi eiq xtmov (6A 2). W e saw that this n e w concept in Ignatius of Antioch grew out of t h e p a g a n symbolism of Syria a n d Asia M i n o r

6 8

W e have from S m y r n a a marble tablet from the M u s e u m a n d Library for the ruler cult of Attalus III in OGIS 3 3 2 , 38: ev eo0[fj]aiv A.[au7cpa!<; eoxecpavcouevoDq . . . ] .

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239

(6A 2.2), which was, as we c a n n o w see from the example of H a d r i a n as veoq Aiovuaoc;, in process of integration with that of the Imperial cult. 69

W e c a n n o w see that e a c h of the three O r d e r s are i n d e e d as Turcot the c o u n t e r p a r t s to those in the imperial mysteries w h o carry (oepaoxocpopoc;) a n d display (oepaoxo(pdvxr|<;) imperial divine images as p a r t of the dycbv jiuoxiKoq. I n d e e d in the Isis mysteries that Plutarch found indistinguishable from those of Dionysus (in w h i c h H a d r i a n a p p e a r e d as veoq Aiovuooq), the eiKoveq a n d uiuripxcxa w e r e p r o v i d e d by the goddess as " t e a c h i n g for piety (euoePeiaq ouou S(8ayua) a n d consola tion (Kai rcapau/uGiov) for m e n a n d w o m e n aflicted b y t h e s a m e sufferings (dvSpdoi Kai yuvai^w bnb ouuxpopcov e%ouevoi<; ouoicov)." In the s a m e way in Magnes. 6,1 we r e a d Ignatius' c o m m a n d : " b e in union with the bishop (evcoOrjxe xcp ercioKOTccp) a n d those w h o are p r e e m i n e n t (Kai xoiq 7ipoKa9r|uivoi<;) as the type a n d teaching of incorruption (eiq XUTTOV Kai 8i8axTiv dcpGapaiaq)." 70

T h u s Ignatius' Christian dycbv JIUOXIK6<; c a n p r o c e e d , including as we h a v e seen that it does the three O r d e r s , each re-enacting the d r a m a of r e d e m p t i o n , as in Jn. 2 0 , 1 9 - 2 2 , or the liturgical proces sion o r %cbpr)oi<; b e t w e e n the three O r d e r s like the procession within the g o d h e a d (Magnes. 6 , 1 ; 7, 1-2 = Jn. 20, 22). I n the Christian dycov, h u m a n figures w e r e called u p o n to act as c o u n t e r p a r t s in the liturgy to the XUTIOI or eiKOve<; in imperial cultic processions. T h e individual persons in the three O r d e r s are h u m a n icons that r e p r e sent a c o m m u n i t y in process of r e d e m p t i o n , a n d the saving acts of Father, Son, a n d Spirit at work in such a c o m m u n i t y . Such saving acts, experienced by the c o m m u n i t y a n d e m b o d i e d in the Eucharistic liturgy a n d in the clerical roles played, display Christ's victory to the d e m o n i c powers w h o are t h e r e b y shaken. " F o r w h e n e v e r you assem ble frequently (oxav yap rcuicvcoq en\ xo auxo yiveaGe), the p o w e r s of Satan a r e destroyed (mGaipouvxai a i 8uvd|iei<; xou l a x a v a ) , a n d his destruction is dissolved (Kai A,uexai 6 6A,e0po<; auxou) by the h a r m o n y of y o u r faith (ev xp o u o v o i a uucbv xfjq rciaxecoq)." 71

W e shall n o w see h o w such concepts of a restored oudvoia effected t h r o u g h the r e p r e s e n t a t i o n of divine forces a r e paralleled in the Imperial Cult.

Brent (1989), pp. 3 0 9 - 3 2 9 ; Idem. (1992), Cultural Episcopacy, pp. 8 0 - 8 1 , 8 7 - 8 8 . Plutarch, De Is et Osir. 361 D , 27, see also footnote 18. Ephes. 13,1 cf. Smyr. 6 , 1 .

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6B 2.4. Ignatius' procession and ouovoia and the p a x d e o r u m As we have seen, Augustus' cult h a d , a c c o r d i n g to the D e c r e e of the K o i n o n of Asia initiating the Imperial Cult there in 9 B.C., set right a fallen social a n d political o r d e r if not a disturbed natural o r d e r (2B 4). Certainly w h a t L u c a n described in his de-mythologised Stoic a c c o u n t of the Civil W a r as discors natura (Siarceurcov K a l ei<; axx>%zq uexaPePnKoc; <5%r\\ia) n e e d e d an act of a u g u r y to be set right (dvcbp0coo£v) (2A 4.2.1-2). W e have stressed t h r o u g h o u t the origins of the Imperial Cult in a n extra-ordinary act of a u g u r y which h a d secured the millennial pax of the saeculum aureum (2A 5). H o w , in the imperial mysteries, was the s u p e r n a t u r a l a n d millennial pax, once achieved by Augustus, to be c o n t i n u e d sacramentally? I n the pax Augusti, w e m a y say in p a r o d y of Ignatius' "destruction is dissolved (Auexai 6 oXeGpoq)... in c o n c o r d (ev o u o v o i a ) . " 'Ouovoia (Concordia) was one of the idealized personified Virtues celebrated in a distinctive cultus, b u t associated early with Augustus' o w n divinity as Concordia Augusta. Imperial society with the collective m e m o r y of several generations of destructive civil war, in greeting pax et princeps, would have c o n c u r r e d that " n o t h i n g is better t h a n p e a c e (ouSev eaxiv dueivov e i p r i v r i q ) , in which all w a r of earthly a n d heavenly things is a b o l i s h e d ( e v r\ naq 7i6A,euo<; K a x a p y e i x a i e r c o D p a v l c o v Kal e 7 i i y e { c o v ) . " (Ephes. 13) As we have seen, civil discord of "earthly things ( e r c i y e i c o v ) " w e n t h a n d in h a n d with a discors natura supernaturally u n d e r s t o o d (ercoupavlcov). F u r t h e r m o r e , we found the t h e m e s of o u o v o i a sung by the cultic xopoq in Ephes. 4 , 1 - 2 (6A 1.1.1). 7 2

13

T h u s in Ignatius the Christian cult, t h r o u g h its cultic act, brings to a n e n d the otaGpoq of the cosmic powers a n d their destruction. T h a t cultic act exhibited Christ's victory a n d p e a c e to the d a e m o n i c powers t h r o u g h its h u m a n icons o r xurcoi, a n d t h r o u g h the dyiocpopoi w h o a t t e n d e d t h e m . S u c h was the cosmic effect of their frequently assembling as a n e K K ^ r j m a (Ephes. 13,1: o x a v y a p KVKV&<; ercl TO a u x o yiveoGe). T h u s the Christian C u l t parallels in its acts a n d p u r p o s e that of Augustus, whose augural act secured the pax deorum. 72

Ephes. 13,2 cf. 4, 1-2; Magnes. 15: eppcoaGe ev o u o v o i a 6 e o v , K£KiT|uevoi a8idicpixov rcvevaa, oq eaxiv ' i T i a o v q Xpiaxoq. In Magnes. 6,2 6uor|0eiav Geofi is a c h i e v e d by being united with the bishop in the threefold O r d e r (evcoOnxe xcp ejuaiconq) Kai xoiq 7tpOKa9r|uevoi<;. . .). See also Tral. 12,2; Philad. inscr. and 11. J . R . Fears, T h e Cult o f Virtues and R o m a n Imperial Ideology, in ANRW 2,17,2 (1981), p. 8 8 6 : " T h e cult epithet Augusta, attached to Pax, Justitia, C o n c o r d i a , a n d Providentia, expressed the quintessence o f the personalization o f the cult of Virtues at R o m e . " See also idem. p p . 8 8 9 - 8 9 2 . 7 3

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Ignatius' use o f h u m a n persons to be Turcot of divine beings thus constitutes a radical d e v e l o p m e n t of the typology of C h u r c h O r d e r , but it is nevertheless a kind of reverse reflection of the typology of the Imperial Cult. But a m b a s s a d o r s are m e n t i o n e d in connection with the Imperial Cult a n d the pax a n d concordia thus achieved, a n d to these a n d their Ignatian parallels we n o w turn. 6B

3. The role of the rcpeapeioc in the martyr-procession

It is i m p o r t a n t for us to begin by noting the connection between the c a r r y i n g of sacred Turcot a n d embassies from various cities to R o m e . I g n a t i u s ' role as the m a r t y r b i s h o p is linked in his c o n sciousness, as we have shown (6B 2.3), with the p a g a n concept of a Geocpopoq in a p a g a n mystery rite. Likewise his role as rcpoKcxGriuivoq e i q Turcov rcotTpoq is linked with the p r o m i n e n t or p r e - e m i n e n t statu ary of p a g a n Turcot of the gods in their cities (6A 2.2). But such Turcot played a role, not only in p a g a n mysteries examples of which c a m e to be associated with the Imperial Cult, b u t also in ambassadorial processions. R o b e r t points to t h e w a y in w h i c h small statues (iepcouxxTcc or &YaA,u,dTioc) w e r e c a r r i e d by individuals a n d g r o u p s such as m e r chants in their clothing. F u r t h e r m o r e , he notes that these small idols were described in J o s e p h u s as T u r c o t , with reference to Rachel's idols in Gen. 3 1 , 3 1 - 3 5 . F u r t h e r m o r e , the p u r p o s e of such o r n a m e n t s was not simply general individual devotion o r d r c o T p o r c r | . T h e r e were "elements d ' u n laraire portatif" in groups t h a t carried images of their c o m m o n , protecting gods. T h e Alexandrine Acts of the Pagan Martyrs describe two embassies, Alexandrian a n d Jewish, the former of w h i c h has as their s p o k e s m a n H e r m a i s c u s , w h o a r g u e d their respective cases before the tribunal of T r a j a n . R e g a r d i n g the Alex andrians, it is recorded that they were: e K a a T o i p a a T d £ o v T £ < ; T o u q i5iouq Oeouq (/. 17-18). F u r t h e r m o r e p a a T c i ^ e i v is a technical t e r m m e a n ing "to carry in a procession." " T h e bust of Sarapis (IcxpdrciSoq rcpoT o u r | ) which the ambassadors were carrying (tiv e p d o T O t ^ o v oi rcpeaPetq) 74

7 5

76

7 4

R o b e r t Opera Min. Sel. 5 (1989), p p . 7 5 1 - 7 5 5 (= CRAI (1981), p p . 5 1 7 - 5 2 1 ) . J o s e p h u s , Antiquit., 1,9,10 (= 322): 'Paxr|A.a jcuvOavouevTi KaxaxiOr|ai xoix; xvnovq ei<; XTIV o d y n v xfiq cpepovariq a\)xr\v mur|A,o\). Robert, Opera Min. Sel. 5 (1989), p p . 7 6 4 - 7 6 5 (= CRAI (1981), p p . 5 3 0 - 5 3 1 ) ; H.A. Musurillo, The Acts of the Pagan Martyrs, Acta Alexandrinorum, ( N e w York: A r n o Press 1979), 8, p p . 4 4 - 4 8 . 7 3

7 6

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suddenly b e g a n sweating (ai(pv{5iov i8pcoaev) " a n d the miracle caused consternation (/. 5 1 - 5 5 ) . W e h a v e f u r t h e r m o r e the e p i g r a p h i c a l r e m a i n s of a letter of Caracalla to Ephesus (A.D. 2 0 0 - 2 0 5 ) . In o n e p a r t of the inscription separate from the m a i n body of the letter we have Caracalla's c o m ments on the m e m b e r s of the embassy w h o have presented their city's congratulations to the e m p e r o r on his victory over the Parthians. W h e n he says: [a 8erc]poercpeopeuev TI rcdxpioc; uucbv 0e6<; "Apxeuiq, he m e a n s that " y o u r ancestral goddess Artemis h e a d s the e m b a s s y " because her image is literally carried at the embassy's head. T o p a r allel Ignatian usage, we m a y say that, in the ambassadorial proces sion, the ivnoq xfjg uucov Geou 'Apxeuiooq is "pre-eminent (7ipoKa0n,uevo<;)," just as in Ignatius' m a r t y r procession, as in his Christian cult, the bishop is 7ipOKa0r|uivo<; eiq xurcov 0eou uucbv. J u s t as in the Acts of the Pagan Martyrs the xunoq of Serapis caused w o n d e r at R o m e by the miracle that it p r o d u c e d , so too Ignatius, w h o bears the xtmoq of the suffering G o d , will in the a r e n a confront R o m e ' s p o w e r as the bishop from the East confronts the E m p e r o r from the W e s t . ?

77

But the concept of Kpec^eia is related to Ignatius' imperial back g r o u n d in o t h e r a n d m o r e general ways t h a n the b e a r i n g of images alone. T h e election of deacons as ambassadors in Philadelphians a n d Smyrnaeans was related to the situation in Ignatius' C h u r c h of Antioch in Syria. U n d o u b t e d l y , a n d at very least, such elections of delega tions from the leaders of communities was a general feature of the formal relations b e t w e e n the city states in Asia M i n o r , a n d can be understood by analogy with such civic relations. But w h a t was the purpose of this embassy a n d w h a t sense can be m a d e of it against such a c o n t e m p o r a r y b a c k g r o u n d ? 78

I believe Schoedel to be correct in identifying a divided Christian c o m m u n i t y at Antioch which has found p e a c e , r a t h e r than a C h u r c h persecuted externally. W e m a y note from the example of C l e m e n t Cor. that such a n external threat m a y follow, not in terms of a gen eral persecution, b u t from the civil consequences of internal divisions for a c o m m u n i t y divided by internal strife a n d the need for the authorities to intervene. But there is still a p r o b l e m regarding the purpose a n d m e a n i n g of the election a n d sending of these clerical 79

See also footnotes 4 6 - 4 9 . T h u s Schoedel (1985), p. 2 1 3 . Schoedel (1985), pp. 10 - 1 2 , 2 4 8 2 5 1 .

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a m b a s s a d o r s even on the view that strife h a d given way to p e a c e within a divided Christian c o m m u n i t y . W h y should Ignatius have considered it necessary to send repre sentatives whose office he conceived in terms of ambassadors in o r d e r to rejoice with them in the gathered Eucharistic assembly? Ambassadors were usually sent to confer some benefit or m a r k of regard, in p a r ticular u p o n the e m p e r o r in connection with his cult. Ignatius con siders t h e imperial virtues of oudvoia a n d eipr|vr| as essential features of a n y Christian c o m m u n i t y that by its very n a t u r e will be m a r k e d by the threefold h i e r a r c h y . T h e s e w e r e also the divine qualities associated with Augustus' act of a u g u r y a n d c o n t i n u e d sacramentally in his cult, as we have shown. 80

I p r o p o s e , therefore, that we should u n d e r s t a n d references to a clerical rcpeopeia in the Ignatian letters in the light of the 7ipeaPei<; associated with the inscriptions of the Imperial Cult. W e h a v e the decree of the People (8fjuo<;) a n d C o u n c i l (yepouaia) of Sardis h o n o u r i n g M e n o g e n e s son of Isidore. H e was to b e c o m e priest of R o m a a n d Augustus shordy after his selection as a n a m b a s sador o n a n embassy to Augustus, to seek approval for the conse cration of a d a y c o m m e m o r a t i n g his g r a n d s o n G a i u s ' assumption of the toga praetextata. H e r e the usual provisions for a n imperial cultic celebration are prescribed. . . . all in resplendent clothes shall wear crowns (ev taxprcpaic; eaOiiciv oxe<pavr|(popeiv arcavxaq), and the strategoi each year shall present sacrifices to the gods (0[i)]aia(;TeKapiaTdvaiToi<;9eoi(;xou(;Kax ^iauT6vaTpaTr|Yoi)(;) and make prayers through the sacred heralds for his safety (Kai Kaxeuxdq rcoieioGai 8 i d xcov iepoicnpuKCGv vnkp xn<; acoxripiaq auxou), and they shall set up and consecrate his statue in the shrine of his father (cruvraBiepcoaai xe dyaXpa auxou xcp xou rcaxpoq evi8pt>ovxa<; vaco). . . and an embassy be sent on these matters to go to Rome (rcpeoPr|av XE urcep xouxcov axeiAm XT]V dcpt^ouevnv eiq 'PcbpTw) and to congratulate him and Augustus (Kai a u v x a p T i o o p e v i i v a\>xcp xe Kai xa> l e [PJaoxcp). . . and there were chosen as ambassadors (Kai fipe9t|aav rcpeaPei<;) Iollas son of Metrodorus and Menogenes son of Isidore . . . IGRR 4, 1756 I, /. 10-23 ,

Following the cultic provisions, 7ipeopei<; are therefore duly appointed, whose function is to take the provisions for the extension of the

8 0

ema^ia for the possession o f which O n e s i m u s , bishop of Ephesus, praises his congregation (Ephes. 6,2); cf. C l e m e n t Cor. 37,2; 4 0 , 1 .

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Imperial Cult to R o m e for the approval of those w h o m the cult h o n o u r s . " E m p e r o r C a e s a r son of G o d , Augustus, high p r i e s t . . ." replies in a p p r o v a l {IGRR 4,1756 II). 81

T h e rcpeaPeiq function therefore as proclaimers of the cult, w h o convey its benefits to their fellow-citizens. A similar idea s u r r o u n d s Ignatius' cultic procession which proclaims as a counter-culture aris ing from the East the reverse i m a g e of the Imperial Cult of the West as it arrives at the latter's a r e n a of sacrifice. T h i s is w h y he will also c h a n g e the n a m e s of civic officials to give t h e m a Christian m e a n ing, as w h e n h e calls a rcpeaP\)xr|<; a 0eo7ipeaPuxr|<;, or a TipepoSpouoq a GeoSpouoq. F u r t h e r m o r e there is epigraphical evidence of rcpeopeiq w h o a c c o m p a n i e d the e m p e r o r . T h e s e Georcpeapuxai should therefore r e t u r n a n d a c c o m p a n y t h e m a r t y r - b i s h o p from the East, as the c o u n t e r p a r t to the e m p e r o r a n d his cult in the West. npeoPeuxcu clearly a c c o m p a n y J u l i u s C a e s a r as general (SylL 761 A, /. 2-5), w h e r e Callistus of K n i d o s ( 4 8 / 4 7 B.C.) is described as " c o m i n g to G r e e c e (yevouevoq eni xfjc; 'EXkxSoq) in the c o m p a n y of the imperator (u[exdxou auxoKpJdxopoq) a n d in the c o m p a n y of his a m b a s s a d o r s ( K a i uexd xcov e K e i v o u rcpeoPeuxcov). 3

W e can see h o w the communities w h o s u p p o r t Ignatius' proces sion enlarge it by sending their o w n rcpeopeia to j o i n it. T o the Philadelphians he says: . . . since according to your prayer (ercei&n m x d XTJV rcpoaeuxfiv v p x o v ) . . . it has been announced (anr\yyekr\ uoi) to me that the Church in Antioch in Syria is at peace (eipT|vet>eiv xfjv eKKA^aiav XTJV ev 'Avxio%e{a xfjq I \ ) p ( a q ) , it is fitting for you (rcpenov e a x i v \)uiv) as a church of God (d>q eKK^rjaia 9eot>) to elect a deacon to conduct God's embassy there (%eipoxovfjaai 8 i a K o v o v eiq xo Ttpeapevaai eKei QEOV rcpeaPe(av), in order to rejoice with them when assembled (eiq xo a\)yxapf|vai amoiq inx xo avxb y e v o u e v o i q ) and to glorify the name (Kai 8 o £ d a a i xo o v o u a ) . . . Philad. 10,1 T h o u g h Ignatius mentions that it is a d e a c o n w h o acts as a rcpeopuxriq (rcpeoPeuoai) here, he goes on to assert that such a n office c a n be also exercised by bishops a n d p r e s b y t e r s . 82

81

Ehrenberg a n d J o n e s (1954) no. 9 9 (= IGRR 4, 1756 = I. Sardis 7,1,8, /. 12-14); Price (1984), p. 6 6 and p. 2 5 9 cat. n o . 5 6 . Philad. 10, 2: ox; m i a i eyyiaxa eiacXriaiai e7teu\j/av E T i i a K O T t o i x ; , a i 8e rcpeaPwepoix; Kai 8iaic6vo\)<;. 82

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T h u s t h e eKK^rjaia 0eou in Philadelphia sent a n elected d e a c o n as a n a m b a s s a d o r a n d n o d o u b t w e l c o m e d h i m o n his return a n d received his r e p o r t ( d 7 t 0 7 t p e a P e i a ) . Like t h e embassy (rcpeaPeiav) of Menogenes, that would travel to R o m e a n d greet Gaius a n d Augustus (xuv dq>i!;ou£vr|v e i q TCOUTW K a l Guy%apr|aouevr|v a u x c p xe K a i xcp l e p a a x c o ) ,

so too this d e a c o n as a m b a s s a d o r is to greet t h e g a t h e r e d C h u r c h in Antioch (eiq xo ouyxapiivai auxoiq en\ xo auxo yevouevoiq). T h i s dea con however will n o t proclaim t h e cult of Augustus a n d sacrifices for G a i u s ' birthday, b u t r a t h e r t h e progress of t h e m a r t y r ' s proces sion. T h e y a r e " t o glorify t h e n a m e ( K a i 8 o £ d a a i xo ovoua)" of Christ which is associated with b o t h Ignatius' m a r t y r d o m a n d t h e p e a c e of Christ's sacrifice of which that m a r t y r d o m is a n image o r xurcoq. Ignatius informs those w h o a r e "inflamed b y the blood of G o d ev a i u o c x i Geou)." that it is "for t h e c o m m o n n a m e (u7i6 xou KOIVOU ovouxxxoq)" that h e goes b o u n d (8e8euevov) to the a r e n a (0upiouccxf|Gai). " T o suffer r e p r o a c h for t h e n a m e (6vei8(£eo0ai)" is a c o m m o n martyrological sentiment (1 Pet. 4,14). But h e r e it is quali fied by t h e adjective K o i v o q a n d indicates that w h a t h e does is shared in c o m m o n with all those churches t h r o u g h which his procession passes a n d which r e s p o n d to his apellatio. (dva^coTtupfioavxeq

Koivov was, after all, t h e n a m e of t h e " C o m m o n w e a l t h of Asia" (Koivov xii<; 'Aoiaq) that organised a provincial I m p e r i a l Cult a n d elected a n archierew/zsiaxch.. Menogenes is approved because h e "acted also as a n a m b a s s a d o r (npeofievGaq x e K a i ) to C a e s a r Augustus (npbq xov l e p a a x o v K a i a a p a ) o n behalf of t h e K o i n o n of Asia (urcep x e xou KOIVOU xcov EAAf|vcov)." J u s t as t h e object of that cult w a s t h e pax deorum, so too Ignatius' cultic procession is involved with securing the pax Christi, a n d its a m b a s s a d o r s a r e c o n c e r n e d with that e n d . W h a t " h a s b e e n a n n o u n c e d (drcr|yyeX,r| uoi) to m e , " just as t h e glad tidings were a n n o u n c e d (euayye^{o0n) at Sardis of G a i u s ' celebra tion, was that the C h u r c h in Antioch in Syria is at peace (eipnveueiv xf|v eKKtaiaiav xnv ev 'Avxioxeia xfjq l u p i a q ) . F u r t h e r m o r e , that p e a c e was in accordance with t h e congregation's p r a y e r (Kaxd xrjv Ttpoaeuxuv u u x o v ) , j u s t as t h e prayers (Kaxeu^dq) t h r o u g h t h e sacred heralds (8id xcov iepoKnpuKcov) at Sardis were for G a i u s ' safety (urcep zr\q a c o x r j p i a q auxou). f

83

84

8 3

IGRR 4 , 1756, X /. 104.

8 4

S e e footnote 8 4 .

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Smyr. 11,2 contains similar sentiments r e g a r d i n g the a p p o i n t m e n t of a n a m b a s s a d o r to Philad. 10,1. T h e person t h a t "your c h u r c h is to a p p o i n t for the h o n o u r of G o d (eiq xiuriv 9eou xeipoxovfjoai xfjv eKK^riaiav uucov)" is h e r e called " G o d ' s a m b a s s a d o r (GeoTcpeaPuxuv)," a c o m b i n e d expression indicative of some office in view. " T o rejoice with (ouyxapfivai)" the c h u r c h of Antioch at p e a c e (oxi eipuveuouGiv) is also the p u r p o s e of the S m y r n a e a n 0eo7tpeopuxr|<; as it h a d b e e n of the Philadelphian diaconal rcpeoPeia. But this passage adds two features i m p o r t a n t for o u r discussion. T h e first is that the c h a r a c t e r of that p e a c e is defined. It is clearly a p e a c e b e t w e e n m e m b e r s of a b o d y politic. "Being at p e a c e (eiprjveuouoiv)" m e a n s that "they have recovered their p r o p e r size (drcetaxpov xo i'Siov uiyeGoq), a n d their p r o p e r corporateness (xo i'8iov ocouaxeiov) has been restored (d7ceKaxeaxd9r| auxoiq)." T h e s e lines emphasize once again h o w i m p o r t a n t to the c o m m u n i t y is w h a t brings p e a c e . T h e second is that it is his m a r t y r ' s b o n d s that p r o d u c e the p r a y e r of the Christian cult t h a t achieves this restoration of corporateness. It is the m a r t y r in chains (8eoud) whose avxiyuxov (Smyr. 10,2; Pol. 2; 6) is being p r e p a r e d for the ready altar at R o m e , a n d w h o is the victim occupying the central place in the procession that mediates t h r o u g h their p r a y e r t h e peace of the A n t i o c h e n e c o m m u n i t y . T h e p r a y e r realising that e n d is to be a c c o m p a n i e d by the a p p o i n t m e n t of a godly a m b a s s a d o r to complete it by a n embassy that will go there to proclaim it: Your prayer went out (f] npoozvxx] upxov d7rf|>J0ev) to the church of Antioch in Syria (em xr\v eKKXnciav XTJV ev 'Avxioxeia xfjq lupiaq), from whence bound with divinely glorious chains I salute all (69ev 8e8epivo<; 0eorcperceaxdxoK; 5eauoi<;rcdvxaqdajcd^ouai)... so then, that your work may be completed both on earth and in heaven (iva ofiv xe^eiov upxov yevnxai xo epyov Kai erci yr\q Kai ev ovpavcp). . . appoint a godly ambassador . . etc. T h e reference here to erci yrjq K a i ev oupavcp reinforces the cosmic a n d cultic context of Ignatius' martyr-procession. In his letter to Polycarp, bishop of S m y r n a , Ignatius requests the election (xeipoxovfjaai) "of someone (xiva). . . . w h o can be called 'God's r u n n e r ' (pq Suvnaexai 6eo8p6uo<; KaXeioGai)." In o r d e r to a p p o i n t a 9eo8p6uo<;, Polycarp is instructed "to s u m m o n a god-pleasing coun cil (auuPoutaov dyayeiv Georcperceaxaxov)." (Pol. 7,2) It seems that 85

Hf>

In IGRR 4, 1756 II /. 32 33 M e n o g e n e s "completed (exeXeae) his embassy in

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Ignatius here is providing in the function of GeoSpouoc;, a Christian version of the f|pepo8p6uo<;. This t e r m refers to a very fast r u n n e r or courier, w h o because of imperial business was allowed to use the cursus publicus (8p6uo<; 8r|uooio<;). Ignatius' c o m p a n i o n s were allowed to use the cursus publicus in his case as they were a c c o m p a n y i n g an official party with a prisoner in chains. It is therefore a further cor r o b o r a t i o n of Ignatius' t r i u m p h a l i s m that h e reassigns those w h o a c c o m p a n y h i m in the role of a c o n d e m n e d criminal's friends to the category of the official e n t o u r a g e of the bishop from the East ris ing, like the sun, against the E m p e r o r from the West. 86

87

In Philad. 2 , 2 this term appears again, with reference to false teach ers w h o have tried to take the GeoSpopoi captives (xouq 0eo8p6po\)<;aix^iaXcoxi^ouaiv), n o d o u b t in a figurative sense, a n d so i m p e d e the progress of the martyr-procession. T h e y are " m a n y plausible wolves (rcoAAoi yap M K O I d^i67iiaxoi)," guided "by evil pleasure (f|8ovf| K a i q i ) . " Clearly "these will have n o place in your unity (aXX* ev xfj evornTi 88

89

a most well pleasing w a y (XT^V 7tpeapr|av exmperceaxaxa) worthily o f the city (a^icoq xfiq rcotaox;)." Zahn's view (Ignatius p. 2 8 6 note 3), contradicted in S c h o e d e l (1985), p. 2 7 8 , w o u l d s e e m to be correct in view o f the civic background in the city-states o f Asia M i n o r that I have sketched here for both Ignatius a n d the Apocalypse. I c a n n o t see w h y the use of 9eo8p6|ioi in Philad. 2,2 should d e n y that view since here the term is not used, as S c h o e d e l says, "to Christians in general," but to m e m b e r s o f the Ignatian cultic procession w h i c h the particular churches to w h i c h he writes have undertaken both in spirit a n d through representatives to j o i n . For fiu£po8p6uo<; see SEG 4 2 , 1745 = Sy//. 303 and Pausanius V I , 16,5 (Menacles of Elis. . . . fiuepo8p6uo<; of A l e x a n d e r son o f Philip). S e e also Livy 3 1 , 2 4 : h e m e r o d r o m o s vocant Graeci ingens die u n o cursu emetientes spatium. For their c o n n e c tion with the cursus publicus in imperial times, see H . Stephan, D a s Verkehrsleben im Alterthum, in Historisches Taschenbuch (Ed. F. v o n Raumer) 9,4 (Leipzig: Brockhaus 1868), p. 9 3 : "Der cursus publicus war nicht fur j e d e r m a n n benutzbar; es bestand kein regelmassiger, fortlaufender P o s t e n g a n g mit v o r h e r festgesetzten A b g a n g s - , Ankunfts- u n d Befbrderungszeiten; vielmehr fand die Befbrderung nur statt, w e n n gerade D e p e s c h e n oder R e i s e n d e n v o r k a m e n . . ." See also H . G . Pflaum, Essai sur Le Cursus Publicus sous le haut-empire R o m a i n , in Extrait des memoires presentes par divers savants a L'Academie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres 14, (Paris: Imprimerie Nationale 1940), p p . 2 2 - 6 1 . 8 6

8 7

8 8

3

Cf. Cicero's complaint against Piso's administration o f M a c e d o n i a as governor and his accusations the the latter had allowed obsessio militaris viae, (In Pison. 40): See also Pflaum (1940), p. 32: "La militaris via . . . dont il s'agit est La V i a Egnatia, qui traverse de bout e n bout la province de Pison. Cette route n'est pas seulement infestee par les invasions e n e m i e s , elle est marquee par des c a m p s thraces . . . " N o t e the use o f the ager publicus by fraudulent persons m e n t i o n e d in Justinian (Modestinus), Dig, X L V I I I , 10,27,2: "Qui se pro milite gessit vel illicitis insignibus usus est vel falso diplomate vias c o m m e a v i t , pro admissi qualitate gravissime p u n i e n dus est." S e e also Pflaum (1940), p. 125. 8 9

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uucov oux e^ouovv TOTIOV)," that is the unity of nascent episcopal O r d e r being reinforced by the procession of the martyr-bishop of Antioch a n d effecting peace in his h o m e C h u r c h . I n d e e d they are like high way robbers attacking the bishop whose legitimacy is vindicated in his m a r t y r sacrifice as Turcoq of the suffering G o d .

PART C .

O R D E R IN CLEMENT, IGNATIUS AND THE APOCALYPSE

In this a n d o u r last two chapters (4-6) we have e x a m i n e d three early Christian writers: C l e m e n t of R o m e , the Seer of the Apocalypse, a n d Ignatius. H a v i n g established their b a c k g r o u n d in D o m i t i a n ' s reign, we have c o m p a r e d their developing views of ecclesiastical O r d e r over against the developments in the Imperial Cult in his reign. C l e m e n t ' s C h r i s t i a n b a c k g r o u n d in R o m e was clearly u n r e l a t e d to t h a t of Ignatius a n d the Apocalypse in Asia M i n o r . T h e C h u r c h O r d e r of C l e m e n t , Corinthians was clearly not that of Ignatius' Syria, w h e n the former envisaged a c h u r c h g o v e r n e d by a plurality of £7UGK07toijcpeaPuxepoi as successors of the aposdes, whereas the latter by a sin gle bishop as a representation of G o d the Father. W e saw, however, that, despite great dissimilarities, there were clear connections between the Apocalypse a n d Ignatius. W e explained those dissimilarities in terms of a rapid historical d e v e l o p m e n t that separated the communities of Asia M i n o r in A . D . 8 5 - 9 5 from those which e m e r g e d in 1 0 7 - 1 1 8 . Despite the lack of connection between C l e m e n t o n the o n e h a n d , a n d Ignatius a n d the Apocalypse on the other, we detected the Imperial Cult as background to all three writers. In Clement we found reflections of the ideology of t h a t Cult, a n d to o u r picture we were able to a d d the iconography of the Apocalypse, and theology of Ignatius. In Clement's doxology the values of imperial unity found expression, a n d the ends desired t h r o u g h that unity (eipuvri, oudvoia, uyieia) were requested from the Christian G o d (4B 1.2.2). Clement's view of the o i d o u ; of his c o m m u n i t y as dvoaioq revealed the fears, d e e p seated in his Imperial C u l t u r e , of a n upsetting of cul tic o r d e r that would lead to KivSuvoq for the social a n d political o r d e r (4B 3). As such he was reflecting the perspective of the late Republic a n d early E m p i r e b o t h exemplified by a n d formed in the p r o g r a m of the Res Gestae. T h e perceived extraordinary a n d p o r t e n tous collapse of both the natural a n d metaphysical o r d e r required an e x t r a o r d i n a r y act of augury, the augurium salutis celebrated by

IGNATIUS OF ANTIOCH AND THE MARTYR'S PROCESSION

249

Augustus w h e n he initiated his reformed, Imperial C u l t (2A 5-6). C l e m e n t assured b o t h himself a n d his circle that the Christian cul tus, with its O r d e r in terms of Apostolic Succession (4B 1.1-4B 1.2), could banish m o r e truly a n d therefore effectively t h a n the Imperial Cult b o t h the political a n d metaphysical disorder that every g o o d R o m a n citizen, w h e t h e r in Italy or in Asia M i n o r , feared (4B 2.2 a n d 4B 3). W e saw r e g a r d i n g the Apocalypse that general relations b e t w e e n the Letters to the C h u r c h e s a n d the Imperial C u l t h a d b e e n well estab lished by R a m s a y a n d H e m e r (5B 1). W e t h e n d o c u m e n t e d further links b e t w e e n the Letters a n d the m a i n text of the Apocalypse (5B 2). Inscriptional a n d n u m i s m a t i c evidence illuminated the cultic scene a r o u n d the heavenly altar in which clear reflections of the Imperial Cult w e r e revealed. Specific examples of such reflections were the i)|ivq)8o{ a n d rcpecpuxepoi, the eiKoveq a n d the imperial mysteries, the 7ipoe8p(ai as places of h o n o u r for notable spectators a n d the con comitants of sacrifice such as cpidAm a n d white r o b b e d worshippers, axe9avr|(p6poi a n d ai8(pavoi %p\)oo(, etc. (5B 2.1-2.2.5). W e saw in the praises of the prayers a n d the h y m n s of the Apocalypse typical t h e m e s (86£cc, euxapiaxia, K p d x o q , acoxnpia, Suvapiq, ia/tx;,rcAoftxoqa n d euXoyia) of ambassadorial panegyrics in connection with the Imperial Cult (5B 3.1-3.3). H a v i n g established the general b a c k g r o u n d to the Apocalypse in the experience of the Imperial C u l t in Asia M i n o r , we t h e n r e t u r n e d to o u r specific thesis of the relationship b e t w e e n C h u r c h O r d e r a n d the Imperial C u l t as a contra-cultural relationship. W e a r g u e d that there was a historical relationship b e t w e e n the c o m m u n i t i e s of Asia M i n o r addressed by the Seer, a n d those to w h o m Ignatius of Antioch was to write some 1 0 - 1 5 years later (6A 1). In the light of that rela tionship we w e r e able to use Ignatius' claims a b o u t C h u r c h O r d e r in his c o n t e m p o r a r y situation to illuminate the historical situation as witnessed by the Apocalypse out of which those claims h a d developed. W e saw that o n e typology of representation found in Ignatius was also shared by h i m with the Seer. T h e angels of the churches e m b o d ied the c o r p o r a t e personalities of the c o m m u n i t i e s that they r e p r e sented as did the Ignatian clerics (6A 1.1.2). W e saw also that the heavenly liturgy of the Apocalypse was replicated in both the Hippolytan horseshoe of the presbyterate seated liturgically a r o u n d the bishop's t h r o n e , a n d in Ignatius' description of the presbyteral rcveupccxiKOc; ox&pccvoq at the Eucharist (6A 1.1).

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In so far as those cultic scenes, w h e t h e r of a heavenly or earthly C h u r c h O r d e r , were reflections of the Imperial Cult, they were con tra-cultural reflections (6A 1.1.2). In a n o t h e r kind of Ignatian typo logy of O r d e r , that of the threefold, clerical TUJCOI, we gave epigraphic a n d literary evidence from the i c o n o g r a p h y of the cult that estab lished here also a contra-cultural relationship (6A 2.1-2.2). W e estab lished Ignatius' conception of his m a r t y r d o m in terms of a n imperial cultic procession (6B) in which as bishop h e served as Turcoq, as the b e a r e r of the divine image a n d expositor of the Christian mysteries (aePaoxocpdvTTiq/Geocpopoq) in which diaconal npicfiexq played a p a r allel role to t h a t of their p a g a n c o u n t e r p a r t in the inscriptions of the Imperial Cult (6B 2.2). In this parallel the imperial games played the role of the cult of those gathered for the Eucharist at R o m e a r o u n d the Guaiaoxfipiov exoiuov (6B 1). T h u s we h a v e established a relationship between the development of O r d e r b o t h at R o m e with C l e m e n t , or in Asia M i n o r with the Seer a n d Ignatius, which supports o u r contra-cultural thesis. T h e Christian g r o u p in each case, marginalised a n d denied status by the wider culture in view of its non-conformity with the state religion, constructs a c o u n t e r culture which constitutes a system of reversed values a n d status, thus a w a r d i n g its m e m b e r s significance a n d esteem denied to t h e m by the wider culture. T h e construction of a Christian contra-culture, with its O r d e r a n d Ministry, was a creative act p r o viding a solution to a social p r e d i c a m e n t . W e shall n o w see h o w the process continues in the literature of the C h u r c h O r d e r a n d Apostolic Succession in the late second a n d early third century as witnessed in Hegesippus a n d Irenaeus, a n d in Pseudo Hippolytus a n d the Clementines. W e shall trace as the gov e r n i n g principle a N e o - P l a t o n i c metaphysics of social o r d e r t h a t severely modified if n o t replaced the earlier Stoic conception, a n d the negation by that metaphysics of anarchic, Gnostic individualism.

CHAPTER SEVEN

PAGAN AND CHRISTIAN

MONARCHIANISM

Severan Universalism, the Imperial Cult, and Christian Apologists

T h e close of the second century a n d the beginning of the third was to see the final d e v e l o p m e n t of a n ideology of imperial unity based u p o n a religious syncretism a n d expressed in the iconography applied to the e m p e r o r ' s person. T h e Constitutio Antoniniana, d r a w n u p by Caracalla, gave citizenship generally t h r o u g h o u t the E m p i r e to all inhabitants of towns a n d villages b e y o n d the cities. T h e motive for the policy c a n n o t simply have b e e n the extension of t a x a t i o n or an attack u p o n the senatorial aristocracy. O n e inscription makes it clear that the p r i m a r y motivation was religious, a n d that it was a n exten sion of the Imperial C u l t . T h e e m p e r o r a n d his consort were to possess the religious function of effecting sacramentally the unity of the e m p i r e for which the extension of citizenship contained the h o p e . Caracalla appears on coins as the L o r d of the world a n d the reflection of the divine light of the sun, p e r m e a t i n g all things a n d creating uni versal o r d e r . 1

2

3

4

5

In this respect we shall see, in C h a p t e r 8, that w h a t Elagabalus 1

Justinian U l p i a n , Dig. 1,5,17: "Idem (sc. Ulpianus) libro vicensimo s e c u n d o ad e d i c t u m . In orbe R o m a n o qui sunt e x constitutione imperatoris A n t o n i n i cives R o m a n i effecti sunt." Cf. S.N. Miller, Caracalla, in CAH xii, p p . 4 5 - 4 7 . F. Millar, T h e date of the Constitutio Antoniana, in JEgArch 4 8 (1962), pp. 1 2 4 - 1 3 1 . Cf. M . Rostovtzeff, Social and Economic History of the Roman Empire, (Oxford: C l a r e n d o n 1957), p p . 4 1 8 - 4 2 8 . A . H . M . J o n e s , A n o t h e r Interpretation o f the Constitutio A n t o n i a n a , in JRomS, 26,2 (1936), p p . 2 2 3 - 2 2 5 ; J . Stroux, D i e Constitutio A n t o n i a n a , in Phil 8 8 (42) (1933), p p . 2 7 2 - 2 9 5 , inscription cited p. 2 9 4 : xovyotpovv voui^co oiitw ue [yaXonpen&c, Kai Geooepjcbq 8\>vaa9ai xfj ^eyaAxioxrixi avxcbv xo IKOCVOV rcoiew ei xoodiaa<; uvpiouq 6oaKi<; edv i)7teiaeA,6coaiv ei<; xoix; euoix; dvBpamoix; [auvOuovxaq] eiq xd iepd xcov Becov cruveiGeveyKoiua, cited also in W . C . H . Frend, Martyrdom and Persecution in the Early Church, (Oxford: Blackwell 1965), p. 3 3 8 . See also F. Ghedini, Giulia D o m n a tra Oriente e d O c c i d e n t e : Le fonti archeologiche, in La Eenice, Collana di Scienze delV Antichita 5, ( R o m a : «L'Erma» di Bretschneider 1984), p p . 5 7 - 9 0 , 1 2 2 - 1 6 0 . See also A. Brent, Hippolytus and the R o m a n C h u r c h in the Third Century: C o m m u n i t i e s in T e n s i o n before the E m e r g e n c e o f a M o n a r c h - B i s h o p , in Suppl. VCh 31 (Leiden: E J . Brill 1995), p p . 8 4 - 8 5 . 2

3

4

5

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a t t e m p t e d with such disastrous effects was a n overtly dogmatic vari ant o n a general t h e m e rather t h a n a radical variation. T h e Sun G o d of E m e s a was to b e finally integrated into the iconography of the Imperial Cult, as the later d e v e l o p m e n t of the cult of Sol Invictus u n d e r Aurelian (270-275) was continued too by his successor Probus (276-282), whose coins exult his person as soli invicto comiti. But p r e viously, from M a r c u s Aurelius onwards, we shall find a general assim ilation of certain oriental cults with the imperial iconography in order to service an ideology of imperial unity. T h e Severan policy of incor p o r a t i n g all cultures within the o n e e m p i r e found religious expres sion in the Imperial Cult, a n d the syncretistic association with it of such universalistic cults as Isis a n d Sarapis, of M i t h r a s , a n d of the U n c o n q u e r e d Sun. 6

In support of the imperial ideal was a n i m p o r t a n t religious phi losophy of a Platonism that was to develop into the Neo-Platonism of Plotinus, t h a t stressed against Gnostic individualism the unity of M a n , the C o s m o s , a n d society, a n d the derived being of each from a n ultimate principle of unity that was the highest good. T h e iden tification of such deities with the Sun was reinforced by a Neoplatonic understanding of the ultimate principle of reality in the O n e reflected in diverse appearances. T h e corresponding political expression of that cosmic unity was in the e m p e r o r ' s person a n d t h a t of his consort. T h u s the i c o n o g r a p h y of p o w e r a n d authority was duly assimilated to a religious i c o n o g r a p h y evocative of such underlying philosophi cal assumptions. It is with the development of such syncretistic themes in the practice of the Imperial C u l t that we shall be c o n c e r n e d in Part A, which will lead us, in Part B, to consider the underlying p a g a n , philosophical ontology. W e shall trace the correspondence between the political sense of uovccpxioc a n d the ontological significance of this term. Gnosticism was refuted by later Neo-Platonism by m e a n s of a n ontology which reduced the cosmic chaos of Gnosticism to an o r d e r generated by an ultimate a n d final good first principle. T h e r e was a c o u n t e r p a r t to this ontological refutation in political ideology according to which the chaos of individual kingdoms was r e d u c e d to a single united empire. In the context of a sociology of knowledge, we shall argue that

6

RIC 5,2, p. 108 no. 8 2 9 and W . C . H . Frend, The Rise of Christianity, D a r t o n , L o n g m a n and T o d d 1984), p. 4 4 0 .

(London:

PAGAN AND CHRISTIAN MONARCHIANISM

253

there was a relationship between the cultural perspective in which the philosophy of Plotinus was to flourish, a n d the imperial ideal that found expression in the Severan dynasty. H e r e we will identify a religious syncretism that was able to associate universalizable cults of the e m p i r e with the Imperial Cult. T h u s Egypt a n d Syria with Asia M i n o r of the East, a n d R o m e of the West, were united in the expression of a c o m m o n imperial unity of all cultures a n d religions. W e shall pursue a parallelism between such p a g a n social develop ments a n d the d e v e l o p m e n t of Christian orthodoxy a n d O r d e r in Part C . T h e writers a n d writings that we have discussed (Luke, Apocalypse, C l e m e n t , a n d Ignatius) between the late first a n d early second cen tury a n d the age of C y p r i a n exhibited two sets of changes in b o t h the conceptions of C h u r c h O r d e r a n d Imperial O r d e r that clearly r a n parallel with each other. T h o s e changes were to develop further between the e n d of the second century a n d the first fifty years of the third. In the case of C h u r c h O r d e r , we will find the develop m e n t of ontological ideas a b o u t the triune G o d h e a d , paralleling polit ical ideas of apostolic succession a n d episcopal O r d e r , as guaranteeing the validity a n d ultimate unity of the C h u r c h . In the case of Imperial O r d e r , uovocpxict, or the ontological idea that all p o w e r within the universe is derived from a single ultimate source or origin, will be essential to the political uovocpxia of the imperial ideal. Both sets of ideas are related, we shall argue, in the context of the sociology of knowledge. T h e d e v e l o p m e n t of a sociology of knowledge by such writers as Berger a n d L u c k m a n n have strengthened a n d confirmed, in a variety of areas, the insights of Peterson, which we will seek to develop. Within a sociology of knowledge p a r a d i g m , the essential philosophical principle of the monorchia or ultimate single first principle from which all reality m u s t be derived is, despite the objections of 7

8

9

7

I w o u l d not d e n y in e m p l o y i n g a sociology o f knowledge any ultimate claims to truth that theological discourse might additionally make. T h i s w a s a distinction well m a d e by P. Berger, The Social Reality of Religion, ( L o n d o n : P e n g u i n 1973), A p p e n d i x 2. I w o u l d therefore support E. O s b o r n , The Beginning of Christian Philosophy, (Cambridge: U . P . 1981), chapter 2 in seeing a tension b e t w e e n N e o - P l a t o n i s m a n d Christian revelation w h i c h both used and redefined this philosophy. P. Berger and T . L u c k m a n n , The Social Construction of Reality, (London: Penguin 1967), a n d Berger (1973). E. Peterson, Der Monotheismus als politisches Problem. Ein Betrag zur Geschichte der politischen Theologie im Imperium Romanum, (Leipzig: 1935) = Theologische Traktate, (Miinchen 1951). 8

9

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CHAPTER SEVEN

Schindler a n d others, related to the political claims of monarchical, imperial r u l e . W e shall argue that b o t h pseudo-Hippolytus a n d the Clementines are influenced also by a metaphysics of unity that regards w h a t is real a n d true as derived from some ultimate historical origin. N e o platonism represented such a metaphysics to which A m m o n i u s Saccas a n d Plotinus gave expression, a n d was quite distinct from the Stoic m o n i s m that p r e c e d e d it. It was this metaphysic that also increas ingly underlay such expressions of imperial unity that are found in the Severan iconography a n d the writers of the circle of Julia D o m n a . H e r e we find once again a reflection of imperial o r d e r in ecclesias tical o r d e r such as we witnessed in Ignatius, a n d in the Stoicism of C l e m e n t Corinthians. W e shall consider the correspondence between p a g a n political ideology a n d the d e v e l o p m e n t of C h u r c h O r d e r . 10

I n C we shall c o n s i d e r t h e d e v e l o p i n g M o n a r c h i a n i s m of the Apologists regarding the G o d h e a d , a n d their denial of the concept of uovocp%{a to p a g a n i s m , a n d hence to the political m o n a r c h y that such a n ontological concept was i n t e n d e d to legitimate. T h e final focus of this development will be the controversy between Callistus a n d the a u t h o r of the Elenchos, which will be m y next a n d final chapter (Chapter 8). T h e r e I will d r a w u p o n the valuable insights of D a l C o v o l o . T h e events of A . D . 217 were to witness the accu sation against Callistus b o t h of M o n a r c h i a n i s m in the Trinity a n d the transgression of ecclesiastical b o u n d a r i e s in his a t t e m p t to con struct a m o n a r c h i c a l episcopacy. T h e d e v e l o p m e n t in ontology was indeed parallel with developments in political ideology a n d reflected t h e m . T h u s the contra-culture that is developing Christian O r d e r continues as it b e g a n to reflect the images of the p a g a n culture on which it is parasitic. 11

Let us begin, therefore, by considering how, in the course of the second century, Egypt a n d Syria were to m a k e their contribution to the iconography a n d the theology of the Imperial Cult, as Asia M i n o r a n d the G r e e k city states h a d m a d e theirs in the first century.

10

A. Schindler (Ed.), Monotheismus als politisches Problem? Eric Peterson und die Kritik der politischen Theologie, (Gutersloh: G e r d M o h n 1978). E. Dal C o v o l o , I Severi e il cristianesimo: Ricerche sull'ambiente storico-istituzionale delle origini cristiane tra il s e c o n d o e il terzo secolo, in Biblioteca di Scienze Religiose, 87 (Libreria A t h e n o Salesiano: R o m e 1989). 11

PAGAN AND CHRISTIAN

PART A.

MONARCHIANISM

ANTECEDENTS OF THE SEVERAN

255

REFORMATION

Eastern ideas of m o n a r c h y were to prevail in consequence of the gradual d e v e l o p m e n t of the imperial ideology t h r o u g h o u t the second century. T h e i r formal adoption in the West u n d e r Diocletian replaced the continuing s h a m republican forms a n d imagery t h a t until his reign masked a military despotism. But w h a t was to t r i u m p h with Aurelian, Diocletian, a n d C o n s t a n t i n e , the latter of w h o m at o n e point found the cult of Sol Invictus attractive, h a d a long gestation in the developing syncretism of the second century. T h e develop m e n t of those political ideas was a c c o m p a n i e d by the kind of philo sophical picture of a monarchical cosmos that also h a d a long gestation before Plotinus, as we shall see in Part B. 12

T h e d e v e l o p m e n t in the second c e n t u r y of a n i c o n o g r a p h y of a d o p t e d Eastern deities such as Isis a n d Sol Invictus expressed the syncretism that was justified by such a new version of Aristotle's phi losophy r e a d t h r o u g h Platonist eyes. But we c a n go further. It was not simply a general, personal interest in such Eastern religions, as we might infer from Apuleius, Metamorphoses, or Plutarch, De hide et Osiride. Such developments were organised in terms of the icono g r a p h y of the Imperial Cult that i n c o r p o r a t e d the products of such syncretism, a n d its philosophic justification, into its o w n structure a n d rationale. Let us now look at the epigraphical evidence for the a p p r o p r i a tion by the E m p e r o r a n d his family of such developing themes b o t h in religious practice a n d the philosophy of religion t h a t gave t h e m rational justification. 7A

1. The recognition of Eastern cults before the Severans

T h e ontological unity, transmitted t h r o u g h hierarchical gradation, to which Plotinus was to give expression, was paralleled by those cults such as Isis, Mithras, or Dea Caelestis that united the p a n t h e o n a r o u n d a single divinity increasingly identified with Sol Invictus. T h e analogy of the sun, so useful to Plotinus in e x p o u n d i n g the c o m m u n i c a t i o n of reality from the O n e to the m a n y , p r o v e d also useful theologi cally in pointing to that with which the s u p r e m e deity was to be

12

A . H . M . J o n e s , Constantine and the Conversion of Europe, (Harmondsworth: Penguin 1972), pp. 9 6 - 9 9 .

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identified a n d from which the subordinate relations of o t h e r deities introduced into the p a n t h e o n could be duly d r a w n . Let us n o w e x a m i n e how, before the radical d e v e l o p m e n t that was the Severan R e f o r m a t i o n , these universalistic Eastern cults c a m e to c o m m e n d themselves to the i c o n o g r a p h y of the Imperial Cult. 7A 1.1. Isis and Sarapis Isis was originally an Egyptian deity, but, like the Syrian D e a Caelestis, Cybele, or the Persian M i t h r a s was, as T a k a c s points out, integrated into a n existing G r a e c o - R o m a n model derived from the basic struc ture of the Eleusinian a n d Dionysiac mysteries. T h e y were to receive an interpretatio Romana, a n d Plutarch at least was to show h o w a dev eloping N e o p l a t o n i s m provided the framework of that interpretation But let us see first of all h o w a n Isis theology established the parallel ism that we a r e to claim with N e o p l a t o n i c ontology a n d the political ideology of imperial unity. T h e claims m a d e by h e r worshippers for Isis within the p a n t h e o n of divinities a r e truly imperial. In h e r h y m n , inscribed in the Iseum in C y r e n e (103 B.C.) o n a m a r b l e tablet, she reveals herself as "Isis only ruler of the age (xupocvvoq Eiaiq aiSvoq udvu) . . . w h o holds the sceptre (oicf|7cxp' e'xouaa)." She continues: "All call m e Goddess most H i g h (KOCAOUGI 5T| ue rcdvxeq u\|/{axrjv Geov), the greatest of all gods w h o are in heaven (rcdvxcov M x y i o x r i v xcov ev oupctvco Gecov)." In a first cen tury h y m n from Egypt she is addressed as " Q u e e n of the G o d s , e n d o w e d with wealth (TIAOUXO86XI paaiA,eia Gecov), L a d y T h e r m o u t h i s ('EpuouGi avocaoa), Mistress of the world (rcavxoKpdxepia), G o o d Fortune (Tuxrj 'AyaGri), Isis of great n a m e (ueycctaovuue I a i ) , Most H i g h god dess (Ar|oi u \ | / ( a x r | ) , discoverer of all life (^cofjq eupexpia rcdariq)." T h e inscription continues: 14

?

15

All kinds of works were your care (rcavxoicov epycov eueXxiae aoi), so that you grant to men life and good order (6
13

14

15

S.A. Takacs, Isis and Sarapis in the R o m a n world, in EPRO SEG 9 , 1 , 192 /. 4 - 8 . SEG 8 , 1 , 5 4 8 /. 1-4.

124 (1995), p. 2.

PAGAN AND CHRISTIAN MONARCHIANISM

rcvoiai

257

dvepcov Kai r(kio(; 6 yA/uicucp£yyr|<;), b y y o u r p o w e r (ap 5i)vd|iei) all

t h e rivers o f t h e N i l e r u n full (Ne(Xo\) rcoxapoi 7iA.rjpoi)vxai arcavxeq). . , "

16

Isis n o w e m b r a c e s other deities whose n a m e s are recorded as equiv alent to h e r own. Both Plutarch a n d Pseudo-Hippolytus w e r e to claim t h a t Plato learned his philosophy from Egyptian priests, so that the true origin of that philosophy was Egyptian, even t h o u g h , as we shall see, both Diogenes Laertius a n d Philostratus, within the circle of J u l i a D o m n a , were to claim a different origin or ocp%r|. W e see in this a n d other inscriptions the claim that all religion has its ulti mately real historical origin in Egypt a n d Isis worship, of which all other religions are b u t less perfect reflections or even corruptions. T h e n a m e of Isis is "gready h o n o u r e d by all (TIOAA)X{UT|XOV rcapa jcaai)," w h e t h e r by G r e e k or by Barbarians, b u t each use their own expres sions (ipcovaioi i8iai<;). T h e Syrians call h e r Astarte or Artemis, the Greeks H e r a , A p h r o d i t e , Hestia, R h e a a n d D e m e t e r . T h e Egyptians call h e r T h e r m o u t h i s . " G r e a t Isis ( Ioi peyioxr))" clearly merits h e r title " m a n y n a m e d (rcoAucbvupe)." 17

v

18

H e r powers, indeed the powers of the individual goddesses that she unites in h e r person, are not simply over the n a t u r a l b u t also over the social order. " G r e a t Isis" also is "she w h o delivers from w a r b o t h cities a n d citizens (EK rcoAiuou puuivn xe noXeiq navxaq xe noXiiaq), themselves a n d their wives a n d possessions a n d d e a r children (auxoix; Kai aXoxovq Kai Kxripaxa Kai pavvo<; nac^q xcbpaq, a n d which include the giving of l a w s a n d h e r presence in the rays of the s u n . W e m u s t therefore n o w look at h o w such a cult c a m e first to be viewed with suspicion at R o m e , a n d then to b e accepted into the pantheon. 19

20

16

21

SEG 8 , 1 , 5 4 8 /. 4 - 1 0 . SEG 8 , 1 , 5 4 8 /. 1 4 - 2 4 . SEG 8 , 1 , 5 4 8 /. 2 6 cf. also 5 4 9 /. 1. SEG 8 , 1 , 5 4 8 /. 2 7 - 2 8 . I.G. 12 suppl. p. 9 8 : 14A = EG 4 p. 138: 4 eyco vouo\><; dv9pcbrcoi<; eGeunv Kai evouoBeiTioa d oi>0ei<; 5 i ) v a x a i u e x a 9 e i v a i a n d p. 139: 5 2 eyco e i u i r\ Seouocpopoq KaAxxuuevTi. I.G. 12 suppl. p. 98: 14A = EG \ p. 139: 4 4 eyco ev xalq xoft r\h\ox> at)yai<; eiui. 4 5 eyco 7tape8pe\)co xf\ TOV r\Xio\) rcopeux. 17

18

19

20

21

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7A 1.1.1. The reception of Isis as political iconography In late R e p u b l i c a n times, Isiac religious symbols b e g a n to p e n e t r a t e into the private space of the villas of the wealthy senatorial aristoc racy. F r o m the time of the Social W a r , d u r i n g the 80s B.C., vari ous coins w e r e m i n t e d showing Isiac symbols. But in 5 8 , 5 3 a n d 48 B.C. senatorial action was taken against the cult. Tiberius' reign m a r k e d the repression of the cult of Isis. But nevertheless we find an inscription from Egypt (A.D. 23) in which Julia Sebaste is described as vecc "Iaiq (IGRR 1, 1150). H e r e clearly the G r e e k East t h a t orig inally petitioned Augustus to be allowed to offer h i m a divine cult continues a policy which the E m p e r o r himself as yet only partially accepts. But from Caligula's time the policy of aversion towards the cult of Isis h a d been considerably softened. Caligula appears to have either refurbished a n existing T e m p l e or c o m m e n c e d the building of a new o n e . 22

23

24

T h e Vespasian m y t h recorded the healing of a blind a n d lame m a n sent by Osiris to Vespasian as the incarnation of H o r u s , to w h o m Isis h a d given b i r t h . H e r e we are observing a slow assimi lation of the eastern cult of Isis a n d Osiris into the imperial ideo logy, in which to be divifilius does not involve identification with the progeny of V e n u s alone. T h e devotees of Isis, into whose mysteries neither Caligula n o r Vespasian were ever formally admitted, could readily assure the E m p e r o r that Isis was rcoXucbvuuoq a n d that iden tification with the son of one goddess did not preclude identification with the son of a n o t h e r . 25

F u r t h e r m o r e , such a n assimilation could also be justified within the perspective of the Imperial Cult a n d its fundamental assump tions. 7A 1.1.2. The reception of Isis and the p a x d e o r u m O n the one h a n d o n e can regard Isiac rites as a prava religio, not c o n d u c t e d more Romano, a n d non patrio sed externo ritu. As such those rites b e a r the marks of a superstitio such as Tacitus held Christianity to b e (3C 2.3). T h u s o n e could regard the worship of Isis a n d Osiris as a threat to the pax deorum that the Principate was to claim, through

2 2

Takacs (1995), pp. 3 3 - 4 0 . For a thorough discussion of these actions a n d their precise historical location, with an analysis o f the sources, see T a k a c s (1995), p p . 5 6 - 7 0 . J o s e p h u s , Antiqu., 18, 6 6 - 8 0 ; T a k a c s (1995), p p . 8 2 - 8 6 . Tacitus, Hist. 4 , 8 1 ; Suetonius Titus 5,3 and T a k a c s (1995), pp. 9 6 9 8 . 2 3

2 4

2 5

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its reform of republican religion, to have secured. T h i s h a d b e e n previously the position of the Senate regarding Isis in 5 8 , 53 a n d 4 8 B.C., as was to be the position of Tiberius. But o n the o t h e r h a n d , a n d within the same set of assumptions, it c a n equally be argued that the suppression of less extreme religious groups such as Isiacs will itself upset the pax deorum. T h e extension of the pax Romana to Egypt a n d Syria t h r o u g h imperial rule requires also the exten sion of the pax deorum to the gods w h o rule such places. T h e incorporation of kings into the empire as subjects a n d clients thus requires as its c o u n t e r p a r t the incorporation of such deities as Isis into the R o m a n p a n t h e o n . T h e process was b o t h gradual a n d d y n a m i c , a n d n o d o u b t assisted by such a n e m p e r o r as Vespasian w h o considered that the peace that he personally h a d secured out of the revolutionary chaos was a p e a c e in which Isis h a d played a critical a n d supportive role. As T a k a c s , to whose perceptive a c c o u n t I a m h e r e indebted, p u t it: . . . the Roman ability and readiness to accept and integrate foreign ideas and cults was linked with the all-encompassing notion of the pax deorum. Roman control of geographical areas entailed acceptance of the area's deities. Since inclusiveness marked Roman paganism, the Roman pantheon contained indigenous as well as foreign deities. They could co-exist or fuse. The belief in the pax deorum and the resulting pax hominum encouraged this inclusiveness or openness. 26

27

D o m i t i a n rebuilt Caligula's temple o n the C a m p u s M a r t i u s . In c o m m e m o r a t i o n of this restoration, D o m i t i a n h a d erected a n Obelisk, which stands today in the Piazza N a v o n a , with a picture of himself being c r o w n e d by Isis. As T a k a c s points out, the iconography was significant in that it reversed the tradition that Augustus h a d followed. According to that tradition, the ruler, w h e t h e r P h a r a o h or E m p e r o r , stood before Osiris a n d Isis a n d gave t h e m gifts. H e r e therefore we have a n a d o p t i o n by D o m i t i a n of the Isiac iconography, a n d its significance for the worship of the ruler cult, for reasons that arise from the logic a n d developing legitimation of R o m a n imperial power. 28

2 6

T a k a c s (1995), p. 107. R . M . Krill, R o m a n Paganism under the Antonines and Severans, in ANRW 2 , 1 6 , 1 , (1978), p. 3 3 following Suetonius, DomiL, 1,2: ". . . Isiaci celatus habitu interque sacrificulos variae superstitionis . . .," mentions that D o m i t i a n dressed as an Isiac. T a k a c s (1995), pp. 9 9 - 1 0 0 disputes Suetonius account as "nothing m o r e than a clever fiction." T a k a c s (1995), p. 100. 2 7

2 8

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CHAPTER SEVEN

Previously, in the example of Vespasian, the adoption of these Egyptian rites h a d b e e n for personal reasons alone, n a m e l y personal gratitude for Isis' deliverance. N o w they h a d b e c o m e for D o m i t i a n p a r t of the general logic of the cult for securing the general pax deorum in polit ical matters. It was with H a d r i a n that the a c c e p t a n c e originally refused by Tiberius was finally given to Sarapis a n d Isis. 7A 1.1.3. Isis and the official iconography of imperial divinity T h e implications were accepted with their associated political ideo logy that T i b e r i u s , in his anxiety to preserve the a p p e a r a n c e s of R e p u b l i c a n forms, h a d originally d e n i e d . It was n o t simply t h a t H a d r i a n also h o n o u r e d Sarapis, consort of Isis, with a S a r a p e u m in his Villa. C o i n types n o w a p p e a r towards the e n d of H a d r i a n ' s reign (A.D. 132-134) with Isis i m p o s e d o n the star S o t h i s . W e h a v e " A d v e n t u s " types from Alexandria in which Sarapis a p p e a r s with modius on his h e a d , a n d Isis with lotus o n h e r h e a d standing on the right. O n the left stand H a d r i a n a n d S a b i n a facing t h e m . Sarapis a n d H a d r i a n clasp their right h a n d s over a n altar, whilst Isis holds u p a sistrum in h e r right h a n d , with S a b i n a holding a n uncertain object. T h e Imperial Cult was thus a p p r o p r i a t i n g the iconography of a universal religion, of Isis rcoA,ucbvuuo<;, with a direct relevance to a n ideology that saw divine p o w e r direcdy i n c a r n a t e d in the per son of earthly rulers. H a d r i a n a n d Sabina were Turcot of Sarapis a n d Isis just as the e m p e r o r Elagabalus in his eiiccov (A.D. 218) was to be associated with the xurcoq xou ercixcopiou Geou (Herodian V , 5,6-7), a n d Ignatius' bishop h a d been xurcoq rcocxpoq. 29

30

T h i s typology of a universal imperialism expressed in terms of a universal cult was to b e continued in the next reign. W e have a coin from the mint of R o m e late in the reign of Antoninus Pius, inscribed D I V A F A U S T I N A , o n the reverse side of which Isis is seated on a d o g holding a sistrum.^ Likewise with M a r c u s Aurelius, we find two coins of his empress Faustina II w h e r e on the reverse of coins depicting h e r bust duly d r a p e d a n d inscribed F A U S T I N A A U G U S T A , we find Isis with a lotus on h e r h e a d , holding a sistrum with peacock a n d lion at her feet, or alternatively with a veil floating

RIC 2, p. 4 4 4 no. 8 2 6 and Takacs (1995), p. 106. BMC 3, p p . 3 3 9 and 4 8 9 , cf. p. 4 8 5 for Isis alone. BMC 4, p. 2 5 5 .

261

PAGAN AND CHRISTIAN MONARCHIANISM

32

above h e r h e a d a n d with a ship with mast a n d sail s p r e a d . Fur t h e r m o r e coins whose reverse space show b o t h Faustina a n d Isis together m a k e t h e identification of Faustina II with Isis m o r e secure. T h e r e is n o evidence that A n t o n i n u s a n d M a r c u s a n d their consorts accepted initiation into t h e Isis mysteries as H a d r i a n h a d into t h e Dionysiac. W e have here r a t h e r a n example of a n interpretatio Romana applied to the i c o n o g r a p h y of the Imperial C u l t . T h e appropriation of this iconography was suggested b y the general cultural b a c k g r o u n d , a n d n o t initiated by a n intentional policy of univeral imperialism backed b y a supporting philosophical ontology. C o m m o d u s did n o t continue his predecessors' iconography o n his coinage as such, b u t r a t h e r reverted to such legends as S E R A P I D I C O N S E R V A T O R I . T h e r e is clearly n o identification here with t h e deity whose general protection is invoked. A similar a c c o u n t c a n also b e given of the introduction of t h e cult of Cybele, at first experi encing initial hostility, b u t destined finally to b e incorporated into the R o m a n p a n t h e o n . Cybele too w a s identified with t h e e m p e r o r t h r o u g h his consort well before t h e age of t h e Severans w h e n D e a Caelestis a n d Artagatis b e c a m e finally p a r t of t h e imperial p a n t h e o n . T o the pre-Severan period w e c a n also assign recognition of M i t h r a s by the Imperial Cult u n d e r the title of Sol Invictus. 33

3 4

7A 1.2. Cybele and Magna Mater As early as 2 0 4 B . C . t h e rites of Cybele a n d Attis h a d b e e n intro d u c e d into R o m e with t h e foundation of the temple o n t h e Palatine to Magna Mater. But the cult was confined to this temple alone, since at that time orgiastic rites were n o t considered p a r t of normative R o m a n religion. H o w e v e r , even at that time there was a n ambigu ity a b o u t such a religious policy. T h e bringing of a copy of Cybele's image (d(p{8pupa) in response to a Sibylline oracle w a s p a r t of a n ideological strategy m a r k i n g a n d legitimising t h e extension of R o m a n p o w e r a n d influence in t h e G r e e k E a s t . 35

32

BMC 4 , p. 5 4 5 n. 1006 (= H . C o h e n , Description Historique des Monnaies, (Paris: Rollin a n d Feuardent 1884), n o s C . 2 9 8 , C . 2 9 9 a n d C . 304). T a k a c s (1995), p. 112. Ibid. (1995), p. 113. Strabo 12, 5 6 7 (= EPRO 5 0 (1987) 1,55): ercupaveq 8 ' inoir\aav Tcouaioi xo iepov, d(p{8p\)ua ev9ev8e xfjq Geou uexa7ieu\|/auevoi K a x a xoix; xfjq ItfK>M,Ti<; x p T i a p o \ > < ; , mOarcep K a l xov 'AOKAJITIIOV xov ev 'E7ti8ai)pcp. S e e also E.S. Gruen, Studies in Greek Culture a n d R o m a n Policy, in Cincinnati Classical Studies, V I I (Leiden: E J . Brill 1990), 3 3

34

3 5

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F r o m the beginning, therefore, we witness Eastern deities being accepted but within the ideological framework of a n interpretatio romana. As with Isis, there was a n imagery in Cybele's cult that well-suited Magna Mater in the role of a universal goddess from which all deity a n d thus all p o w e r a n d o r d e r could b e derived, a n d , as it were, waiting for the e m e r g e n c e of a n age that required such a system atic legitimation of its imperialism. Diodorus Siculus (3,57,3) describes her as Q u e e n (PotoiXeicc) a n d eldest d a u g h t e r of U r a n u s w h o becomes ueydAri ur|xr|p a n d uT|TT|p Gecov (3,59,8). Certainly these tides can be seen extensively in inscriptions, as the indices to V e r m a s e r e n EPRO 50 H V (1978-1987) will show. T o take some examples, we find, d a t i n g from the R o m a n p e r i o d at P e r g a m o n , a dedication to Phila, d a u g h t e r of M e n a n d e r , w h o is "priestess (xnv iepeiccv) of the M o t h e r the Q u e e n (xf)<; Muxpoq xfjq pocoiXeicxq)." In Pessinus in Galatia, in the second half of the sec o n d century, we have a reference to Cybele as urixrjp Gecov. M o r e relevantly for o u r p u r p o s e we find m e n t i o n of s o m e o n e w h o is "life long priest (8id piou iepect) of the M o t h e r of the G o d s (Muxpoq Gecov) in a n inscription to b e dated either A . D . 70 or in the second half of the second century. T h e priest m e n t i o n e d is also "six times highpriest of the Augusti in the K o i n o n of the Galatian Sebastenoi (xcov xe Ie(3aaxSv e^aKiq dpxiepea xou KOIVOU Lepaoxrivcov TaXaxcov)," a n d aePaoxo(pdvxr|<; of the imperial temple (xou vaou). T h e same is true for Tiberius Claudius Attius w h o , at the e n d of the first century A.D., is addressed as 8iq dpxiepeoc xcov lepaoxcbv xou KOIVOU xcov Tataxxcov Kai oePaoxocpdvxriv. 36

37

38

39

p. 10 w h o argues that the sending for the i m a g e of Magna Mater is a direct paral lel with the obtaining o f the Sibylline Books from the D e l p h i c Oracle a n d their translation into Latin by Q . Fabius Pictor in 2 1 6 after the defeat of H a n n i b a l at C a n n a e . "This sequence o f adoptions a n d adaptations o f Greek rituals, divinities, and oracular authority supplies the proper setting for the acquisition o f the M a g n a Mater. It is not incidental that both the Sibylline Books a n d Pythian Apollo at D e l p h i play a role in e m p o w e r i n g R o m a n officials to fetch her from Asia a n d insti tute her cult at h o m e . T h e event h a d its precedents and its parallels. It belongs to a growing series o f thrusts by the R o m a n political a n d religious elite to e x p a n d and exploit connections with the cultural world o f the Greek East." EPRO 5 0 (1987) I, 3 5 2 ; cf. also 3 5 3 - 3 5 5 . S e e also EPRO (1977) III, 2 4 4 (= CIL 6, 512) (A.D. 3 9 0 R o m e ) : "Matri d e u m m a g n a e Idaeae et Attidi m e n o tyranno dis magnis." I l l , 4 7 6 (A.D. 241 Formiae): "sacerdos Matris M a g n a e Idaeae taurobolium." EPRO 5 0 (1987) I, 5 7 , /. 6. EPRO 5 0 (1987) I, 5 9 , /. 5 - 9 . EPRO 5 0 (1987) I, 6 0 /. 4 - 7 . 36

37

38

39

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T h e last n a m e d person bears the gentilicium of the e m p e r o r Claudius w h o h a d placed the cult u n d e r the control of the quindecimviri a n d officially sanctioned admissions of m o r e R o m a n citizens into the ranks of its priests. Clearly being a priest of the Imperial Cult did not exclude o n e being a priest of Cybele as well. But in the reign of H a d r i a n , Cybele assumes a sure place in the iconography of divine imperial power. 40

7A 1.2.1. Imperial adoption of Cy tele's iconography W e find for the first time six examples on the coinage itself of Cybele towered a n d seated (sometimes on a throne), holding a patera a n d resting h e r a r m on a d r u m with a lion at h e r feet (Plate 28). T h e first five have H A D R I A N V S A V G V S T V S in the legend b u t the sixth has S A B I N A A V G V S T A u n d e r h e r image that has a double d i a d e m . (Plate 26). In the following reign, we find a n almost p a r allel process with that of Isis. Faustina I, addressed in the legend o n h e r coins as A V G V S T A , also has o n the obverse Cybele towered a n d d r a p e d , seated on a t h r o n e with two lions at h e r side (Plate 29). T h e legend reads M A T R I D E V M S A L V T A R I S C . F o r Faustina II, we have on the obverse of a coin h e r o w n portrait, d r a p e d with h e r hair elaborately waved a n d knotted, with the legend F A V S T I N A A V G V S T A (Plate 30). O n the reverse we find Cybele towered a n d d r a p e d , with a lion at h e r right side a n d with the legend M A T R I M A G N A E (Plate 31). Lucius V e r u s , a d o p t e d b r o t h e r of M a r c u s Aurelius, has a coin bearing his h e a d on the obverse, with the reverse showing Cybele with the legend M A T R I [ M A G N A E ] S C . His wife Lucilla also has similar c o i n s . Finally C o m m o d u s has coins that, as in the case of Isis, seem to retreat from final identification of the goddess with the imperial person a n d reverts to M A T R I D E V C O N S E R V A V G . or M A T R I D E V M C O N S E R V A V G (Plate 32). W e see, therefore, that, in the case of two universalistic cults, t h a t 41

4 2

43

4 4

45

46

4 0

Krill (1978), p. 3 1 . BMC 3 , p. 3 8 2 n o . f; P- 3 8 5 n o . 1059; p. 3 8 6 n o . 1060 (Plate 72,6), p. 3 9 6 n o . 1095 (Plate 75,7). BMC 4, pp. 2 3 2 - 2 3 3 nos 1 4 3 6 - 1 4 4 0 (Plate 34,4). BMC 4, p. 5 1 5 n o . 8 3 6 . S e e also p. 4 0 2 n o . 132 a n d p. 4 0 3 n o . 134; p. 5 3 4 nos 9 3 2 - 9 3 4 (Plate 73,11); p. 5 4 2 no. 9 8 9 (Plate 74,9). For puellae o f Faustina I see p. 2 4 5 §. BMC 4, p. 6 1 0 no. *. BMC 4, p. 571 no. *; p. 5 7 7 no. *. BMC 4, p. 7 5 5 no. 3 5 4 and p. 8 3 4 n o . 6 8 0 (Plate 109,15). 41

42

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44

45

4(1

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of Isis a n d Sarapis, a n d of Cybele, the syncretism of both with one another is effected through the association of both with the divi Augusti. But neither Isis n o r Cybele were destined to achieve their universal h e g e m o n y in their o w n n a m e within which others might then be included. Neither Isis n o r Cybele were to prove the force that effected the final syncretism into a p a g a n universal religion. It was a third force in the form of the cult of Sol Invictus that was to b e finally victorious. 7A 1.3. The cult ofSo\ Invictus T h e third syncretising force was the worship of Sol Invictus, which was eventually to succeed in p r o d u c i n g , u n d e r Aurelian, the syncre tism that the Severans, as we shall see, were to search for so inten tionally a n d systematically. W e witness the g r a d u a l a p p e a r a n c e of this god which Halsberghe has identified, from the time of H a d r i a n , specifically with Sol Invictus Elagab which Elagabalus was to endea v o u r to impose u p o n the empire in A . D . 2 1 8 . W h e t h e r at the ear lier stages of its a p p e a r a n c e it should be r e g a r d e d as arising out of Mithraism, or w h e t h e r it was identified with the Syrian Elagab from its first a p p e a r a n c e , is not o u r concern here. Suffice it to say that it was this ingredient in a d y n a m i c , syncretistic process that was to prevail, incorporating the aspects of Isis a n d Cybele along with the o t h e r deities of the G r a e c o - R o m a n p a n t h e o n with which they h a d b e e n identified. But unlike Isis, Sarapis, a n d Cybele, n o a t t e m p t before the Severans was m a d e to express iconographically universal divine political p o w e r in terms of Sol Invictus. R a t h e r H a d r i a n , from A . D . 129 o n w a r d s , after his victories in the East, "ceased to have himself p o r t r a y e d with a n aureole, which he n o w assigned exclu sively to the sun g o d . " Halsberghe hypothesises that it was H a d r i a n ' s deference to the new cult from Syria t h a t lead to his attribution to it of the iconography of the ancient R o m a n cult of Sol It was this deference t h a t lead to his dissociation of numismatic iconography from his own person. P. Aelius A m a n d u s (A.D. 158) presents us with the earliest evidence w h e n he dedicates his small m a r b l e altar Soli Invicto Deo. But in this, as in a n u m b e r of o t h e r inscriptions until the reign of C o m m o d u s , Sol Invictus was not associated with the 47

48

49

G. Halsberghe, T h e Cult of Sol Invictus, in EPRO Ibid. (1972), p. 4 6 . CIL 6, 7 1 5 .

(1972).

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265

e m p e r o r ' s person or with that of his consort, as Sarapis, Isis, a n d Cybele h a d b e e n . It is only C o m m o d u s , before Septimius Severus, w h o makes invictus a c o m p o n e n t of the imperial tide, a n d w h o h a d the sun god p o r t r a y e d u p o n his coins. W i t h the Severans, we witness a major shift in perspective in the construction of a syncretic universalism, intentionally p r o p a g a t e d as a n ideology of imperial p o w e r a n d s u p p o r t e d by a philosophical ontology. 50

51

7A

2. The Severan Reformation

W e can m a r k such a conceptual shift by references to a n a n a c h r o nistic interpretation in the second century, represented by D i o Cassius w h o interpreted the Isiac rites in a way that would h a v e a p p e a r e d alien in the past period of time t h a t he attempts to describe. His anachronistic error gives us a positive indication that a conceptual shift has taken place in his own time. D i o c a n only interpret past events in terms of a present that clearly is quite different from the past t h a t he seeks b u t fails accurately to describe. D i o Cassius claimed t h a t ill-omens followed the d e c r e e of the Senate in 53 B.C. that caused the destruction of privately built tem ples of Isis a n d Sarapis. N o d o u b t the Senate at the time h a d seen such o m e n s as indicative of natura discors reflected in the social dis order, a n d that the pax deorum required the removal of these foreign gods from within the pomerium. Similarly such portents occurred in 4 8 B.C. following the m u r d e r of P o m p e y in Egypt. But, as T a k a c s points out, "for D i o these actions were dreadful portents; in his world Isis a n d Sarapis h a d not only a place in the R o m a n p a n t h e o n b u t were closely linked with the imperial c o u p l e . " D i o b e g a n his career with his n o m i n a t i o n by Pertinax for the praetorship (A.D. 193). H e was finally to take u p this a p p o i n t m e n t u n d e r Septimius Severus in whose reign his literary activity c o m m e n c e d . H e thus m a r k s a con ceptual shift that we can associate with the imperial ideology as it developed within that reign. Similarly Suetonius, earlier t h a n D i o (A.D. 119), holding office u n d e r H a d r i a n , makes D o m i t i a n into a n 52

5 0

For a full list a n d discussion o f the epigraphic evidence, see Halsberghe (1972), pp. 4 5 - 4 9 . Halsberghe (1972), p. 4 9 and footnote 2. D i o Cassius 4 0 , 4 7 and 4 2 , 2 6 and T a k a c s (1995), p. 67. 51

5 2

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initiate into the Isiac cult w h e r e a s , as we have noted, he simply m a d e use of Egyptian i c o n o g r a p h y . H e is not as positive a b o u t that cult as is D i o , but clearly can regard imperial association with it as possible, as was the case with the numismatic evidence that we gave regarding the iconographic identification of H a d r i a n with Sarapis a n d Sabina with Isis. But given the conceptual shift, h o w is this to be characterised? I will argue t h a t the integrative force of the cult of Sol Invictus, in p r o d u c i n g a universal solar m o n o t h e i s m e m b r a c i n g all o t h e r deities, enabled also divine p o w e r to be focused o n the e m p e r o r ' s person in which a multicultural empire was to find its unity. 53

7A 2 . 1 . Unity in diversity as a comprehensive imperial ideal T h e a t t e m p t of Elagabalus to focus too exclusively on the rites a n d cultus of his own, Syrian sun god was a fundamentalist aberration from a general Severan policy that r e m a i n e d intact a n d was to grad ually develop into its final t r i u m p h u n d e r Aurelian. Severus Alexander, successor to Elagabalus, m a y have demolished the latter's a t t e m p t to found a universal m o n o t h e i s m in a specifically Syrian cultural form. T h e fire of Vesta a n d the great stone of M a g n a M a t e r (Cybele) were r e t u r n e d from the temple of the S u n to their original locations, as was also his image (XUTCOC;) to Emesa. But nev ertheless, as the legend if not fact of the lararium makes clear: there soon emerged under Alexander a renewed attempt towards tol erance of all cults combined under different aspects of a universal reli gion. Under the strong influence of Neo-Pythagorean and Neo-Platonic concepts, individual cults came to be regarded as expressions of a truth proper to all religions. Each was but a different version of a single Supreme God. 54

But though Krill is undoubtedly correct in this assertion, I shall argue that he was quite w r o n g to see the d e v e l o p m e n t of Sol Invictus as a n alternative to the Imperial Cult as the centre a n d focus of imperial u n i t y . T h e n u m i s m a t i c iconography, inter alia, will m a k e clear that the Imperial Cult was as capable of absorbing Sol Invictus into its 55

5 3

Suetonius, Domit. 1,4 and T a k a c s (1995), p. 9 9 . Krill (1978), p. 4 1 . S e e also J. Ferguson, The Religions of the Roman Empire, (London: T h a m e s and H u d s o n 1970), p p . 4 7 - 5 6 , p p . 2 1 1 - 2 3 3 . ^ Ibid. p. 4 4 : "In the third century, the attempts to identify a single S u n g o d divinity a m i d the circle o f so m a n y other g o d s is seen as a n e w unifying imperial goal which e m p e r o r deification could n o longer achieve." 5 4

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iconography a n d ideology as it h a d been in the case of Isis, Sarapis, a n d Cybele. Let us therefore first of all e x a m i n e the evidence for a distinctive Severan reformation in the iconography a n d political theology of the Imperial Cult. T h e n , secondly, we shall be in a position to consider the underlying philosophical perspective that h a d also developed a n d that legitimated the reformation. 7A 2.1.1. The recasting of icons by the Severans Images of Septimius Severus previously h a d a p p e a r e d with those of J u l i a D o m n a his wife a n d a u n t of J u l i a M a m a e a o n the a r c h at Leptis M a g n a (erected 203), w h e r e they represent Sarapis a n d Isis. T h e p o r t r a i t types follow artistic depictions of the cult statue of Sarapis at the Alexandrian S a r a p e u m . M c C a n n has p o i n t e d out that there is here a "single, powerful image of the syncretistic J u p i t e r Sarapis" in which the claim to deification " h a d never before b e e n so comprehensively a n d boldly stated . . . J u p i t e r , the ruler of the u p p e r world, a n d Sarapis the god of the lower world . . . are fused in the image of the cosmocrator which a p p e a r s on his c o i n a g e . " 56

But although the Isis i c o n o g r a p h y is applied to J u l i a D o m n a , as we saw above, there is n o application of the Sarapis i c o n o g r a p h y in isolation to Septimius Severus or his successors on the coinage itself. R a t h e r the imagery of Sarapis as the sun god as c o u n t e r p a r t to Isis his consort as m o o n goddess has b e e n absorbed by a n e w develop m e n t a l stage in the syncretism. T h e themes of KoouoKpdxcop c o m bined with Sol Invictus n o w incorporate into a universal m o n o t h e i s m other deities w h o are b u t aspects of the O n e . Sol Invictus can have n o consort as Sarapis h a d d o n e , since Sol Invictus syncretises b o t h Isis a n d Sarapis, Zeus a n d H e r a , a n d the rest of the p a n t h e o n into the n e w solar m o n o t h e i s m . W e find a cult legend that clearly equates Zeus b o t h with Sarapis a n d with Sol, a n d which recounts Aioq HA,io\) peyd^ou Zapa7ci8o<; dpexr|. Certainly J u l i a D o m n a was the d a u g h t e r of Bassianus, w h o was sacerdos amplissimus Dei Soli Invicti Elagabali. T h e cult of Sol Invictus, as Halsberghe pointed out in his seminal study, h a d a prior history in the developing syncretism of the early f

57

58

5 6

A . M . M c C a n n , T h e Serapis-Severus Portrait T y p e I X , in The Portraits of Septimius Severus, in MAAR 3 0 (1968), p p . 1 5 5 - 1 6 8 , q u o t e d in T a k a c s (1995), pp. 1 1 5 - 1 1 6 . M . Totti, Ausgewahlte Texte der Isis- und Sarapis- Religion, (Zurich: O l m s 1985), 13,22. Halsberghe (1972), pp. 4 9 - 5 1 . 5 7

3 8

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third century. A coin of C o m m o d u s p o r t r a y e d the sun god with radi ant crown in a scene that includes p a r t of the signs of the Zodiac (Sagittarius, C a p r i c o r n , a n d two others). T h e presence of these signs is indicative that we have h e r e , not simply a continuity of solar themes found in earlier c o i n a g e , associated with the older R o m a n sun god, b u t with Sol Invictus Elagabal. G e t a was p o r t r a y e d on coins as the Sun a n d as son of C a e s a r as Sun. W e have from R o m e (A.D. 2 0 0 - 2 0 2 ) a coin of Geta, the reverse of which describes his relation with his father in the words Seven invicti Augfusti), piifilfii) ("the dutiful son of the unconquered Augustus"). T h e bust of G e t a himself is not simply normally radiate b u t shows the crown of the s u n . As Alfbldi pointed out, this image was m o r e t h a n m e r e repetition of that of C o m m o d u s . G e t a is not depicted with the n o r m a l luminous c r o w n of a n e m p e r o r , which is fastened to the neck by m e a n s of a net. R a t h e r h e wears the circle of rays of the sun-god a n d raises his right h a n d in blessing, not as Sol b u t as offspring of Sol. T h u s the divine p o w e r , b o t h political a n d o n t o logical, flows from Septimius as Sol, to his son w h o m he crowns a n d t h r o u g h w h o m his blessing c a n flow. W e are thus seeing a funda m e n t a l shift of perspective towards an oriental theory b o t h of divin ity a n d of its associated m o n a r c h y . 59

60

61

62

63

Caracalla is p o r t r a y e d as S a r a p i s o n coins in which he is asso ciated with Sol Invictus a n d which indicate that h e is to be r e g a r d e d as KoauoKpdxcop. F u r t h e r m o r e , he has left a statue that portrays h i m 64

5 9

H . C o h e n , Description Historique des Monnaies, (Paris: Rollin a n d Feuardent 1884), Vol. I l l , p. 2 3 6 n o . 7 0 a n d Halsberghe (1972), p. 4 9 . RIC 2 p. 2 6 7 no. 3 2 6 (Trajan, A . D . 1 1 4 - 1 1 7 ) , bust o f sol radiate; p. 3 6 0 nos 166 a n d 167 (Hadrian, A . D . 125), s h o w i n g sol radiate in a quadriga. / 2 / C 4 , l p. 317 n o . 21 [Plate X I V , 5 ] (Obv.): P. S E P T . G E T A C A E S . P O N T . (Bust, draped cuirassed, h e a d bear, r., (Rev.): S E V E R . I N V I C T I A V G . PII. FIL. (Bust with sun-crown, left, half-length, draped, cuirassed, with aegis, right h a n d raised). A. Alfoldi, Die Monarchische Reprdsentation im rbmischen Kaiserreiche, (Darmstadt: Wissenschafdiche Buchgesellschaft 1970), p p . 2 2 5 - 2 2 6 : "Geta ist der erste, der auf einer staatlichen M u n z p r a g u n g als Sol ausgestattet abgebildet wurde: nicht mit der normalen kaiserlichen Strahlenkrone, die durch eine M a s c h e a m N a c k e n befestigt ist, sondern mit d e m Strahlenreif des S o n n e n g o t t e s . . . ist er gekront u n d hebt seine rechte H a n d s e g n e n d e m p o r , eigentlich nicht als Sol, sondern als Sprossling des Sonnenkonigs." For Serapis see RIC 4,1 p. 2 5 6 n o . 2 9 0 (Caracalla, A . D . 217) Serapis stand ing front, h e a d left, raising right h a n d a n d holding sceptre, a n d also p . 2 5 6 n o . 291 (a)-(c) . For sol alone, p. 2 5 6 n o . 2 9 3 (a)-(f); n o . 2 9 4 (a)-(c) Sol radiate m o u n t ing quadriga, left [see Plate X I I , 2 0 ] . F. C u m o n t and L. C a n e t , Mithra ou Serapis KOZMOKPATQP, in CRAIBL, 6 0

61

6 2

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65

as a P h a r a o h . I n his visit to A l e x a n d r i a in A . D . 215 he b o t h sacrificed to Sarapis a n d p a i d tribute to Alexander the G r e a t . But the syncretistic context in which these two events took place is indi cated by: (i) the S a r a p e u m which he also built on the Quirinal with d i m e n sions a n d location that indicated a parallelism with the temple of Jupiter Capitolinus, and, (ii) the association of Sarapis on coins b o t h with Helios a n d with G r a e c o - R o m a n divinities such as Z e u s , Asclepius, Poseidon, a n d Dionysus. 66

67

W e have a coin from the reign of D o m i t i a n with the legend HAIOC CAPAFIIC a n d other examples inscribed o n stone a n d on amulets. W e find dedications to Zevq "HAaoq \izyaq IdparcK;. But it is with Caracalla, as A b d el M o h s e n el K h a c h a b correctly points out, that a quite new identification with the Imperial Cult takes place as p a r t of the i c o n o g r a p h y of imperial unity. Certainly KoapoKpdxcop occurs first in this reign. T h e origin of the t e r m was u n d o u b t e d l y in M i t h r a ism, b u t here the reference was to a plural of Koouoicpdxopeq, seven in n u m b e r w h o controlled the seven planets. In consequence "HXioq b e c a m e the KoouoKpdxcop par excellence a n d s u p r e m e . But the inscrip tion discovered in the baths of Caracalla a n d published in 1912, reads in its restored form: eiq Zeuq IdpocTuc; "HAaoq KoauoKpdxcop aveiicnxoq. T h u s we have a witness to a syncretism that has absorbed not only M i t h r a i s m , b u t b o t h Zeus a n d Sarapis into the universalism of Sol Invictus that e m b r a c e s all divinities. M o r e o v e r the identification of this divinity with Caracalla is of uttermost i m p o r t a n t for the devel o p m e n t of the iconography of imperial p o w e r b e g u n by Septimius Severus a n d realised by Caracalla. 68

69

W e find moreover, as with his father, n o a t t e m p t to invoke Isis specifically as the consort of Sarapis a n d to identify king a n d q u e e n

(1919), p p . 3 1 3 - 3 2 8 cited in Frend (1965), p. 327 a n d p. 344; A b d el M o h s e n el K h a c h a b , 6 KocpdKaA.A£><; K o a p o K p d x c o p , in JJEgArch, 47 (1961), p p . 1 1 9 - 1 3 3 ; S H A Caracalla, 9,10; BMC 5, cxxxiii and CAH xii 3 5 6 - 3 5 7 ; See also J . Reville, La reli gion a Rome sous les Severes, (Paris: Leroux 1886), pp. 3 0 - 3 5 , 2 1 0 - 2 8 3 . A b d el M o h s e n el K h a c h a b (1961), p. 125. T a k a c s (1995), p. 117. A b d el M o h s e n el K h a c h a b (1961), p. 127. C u m o n t and C a n e t (1919), p p . 3 1 6 - 3 1 7 . C u m o n t (1919), pp. 3 1 3 - 3 1 6 . 6 5

6 6

6 7

H 8

6 9

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as the incarnation o f these deities specifically. R a t h e r J u l i a D o m n a , Caracalla's m o t h e r , derives h e r significance from Caracalla as K o o u o Kpdxcop: she thus b e c o m e s identifiable with "HXioq d v e i K n x o q , a n d therefore with Sarapis. W e have in the A l e x a n d r i a n M u s e u m a n inscription t h a t links the tide of J u l i a D o m n a as mater castrorum with C a r a c a l l a ' s newly c o m b i n e d titles. J u l i a is f| pr|xr|p xcov dv[ncf|xcov] oxpccxoTieScov.

70

T h e iconographic shift with its implied theology was to find sup p o r t in c o n t e m p o r a r y philosophy of religion. T h e origins of that phi losophy, w h i c h was to develop into fully fledged N e o p l a t o n i s m with Plotinus, were u n d o u b t e d l y within the imperial establishment itself. J u l i a D o m n a was to p r o v e to be the m a j o r influence in providing for the construction of a philosophy of n a t u r e a n d of history that would legitimate the ideology of the divine e m p e r o r in its specifically Severan form. 7A 2.1.2. A philosophy justifying the religious synthesis W h a t also characterised the c o n c e p t u a l shift that it would be n o exaggeration to describe as the Severan R e f o r m a t i o n was a self-con scious quest for a philosophy of religion that would legitimate that revolution. Several denarii depict J u l i a D o m n a , wife of Septimius Severus, as f| cpiloaocpoq. She a p p e a r s d r a p e d with hair raised a n d coiled at the back, a n d with the legend I V L I A A V G V S T A . Isis prefigures o n the obverse, with H o r u s at h e r breast a n d with the legend S A E C V L I F E L I C I T A S S.C. (Plate 33). 71

In the literary sources J u l i a emerges as c o n c e r n e d with a philo sophical circle t h a t she g a t h e r e d a r o u n d h e r , whilst she herself r e m a i n e d actively e n g a g e d in the affairs of state. D i o records that, w h e n Plautianus b e c a m e hostile, "she b e g a n t o study philosophy o n a c c o u n t o f this (i\ pev avii] (piA,oao(p£iv 5id x a u x ' fip^axo) a n d t o con sort with sophists (Kai aocpiaxaiq avvripepeuev)." She was in charge o f Septimius' c o r r e s p o n d e n c e a n d this lead t o h e r holding receptions 72

7 0

H . Gauthier, Le Livre des Rois d'Egypte, (Paris: Institut Francais d'Archeologie Orientale 1917), V p. 2 0 4 n o . 2 6 : . . .xov Koa^oKpaxopa M(dpKov) Ai>(f|A.iov) leoufipov 'Avxcovivov napOiKov Meyiaxov BpexavviKov Meyiaxov TeppaviKov Meyioxov Emvxr\ Et)0£pii Ie(3aax6v xov (piXoadpajiiv Kal 'IovAiav Aopvav l e p a c x r i v xtiv jrnxepa xcov dv[iicr|xcov] oxpaxo7ie8cov Kal 0e6v Xeo\)[iipov] fi noXiq. RIC 4,1 p. 170 n o . 5 7 7 (Plate 9,9); p. 178 n o . 6 4 5 (Plate 9,18); p. 2 0 9 no. 8 6 5 . See also T a k a c s (1995), p. 116. S e e also B M C 5, pp. 1 6 6 - 1 6 7 , nos 7 5 , 76, 77 (Plate 28,18), nos 7 8 - 8 2 . D i o Cassius 76,7. 71

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271

for p r o m i n e n t m e n , " b u t she still r a t h e r c o n d u c t e d philosophical dis cussion with t h e m (aXk* r\ uev K a i uexa xouxcov exi \iaXkov ecpiAoaotpei)." Certainly her role in these discussions was not a passive one. Philostratus describes h o w he is instructed, as a m e m b e r of the circle a r o u n d h e r (uexe^ovxi 8e uoi xou rcepi ccuxrjv KUKAOU), to correct (uexaypdxj/ai) the d o c u m e n t s of m e m o i r s (xdq SeXxouq xSv urcouvrjudxcov) of the life of Apollonius of T y a n n a . It is with a n evaluation of the cultural a n d philosophical life of the Severan age, in which J u l i a D o m n a a n d indeed h e r niece J u l i a M a m a e a after h e r h a d such interest, a n d its contribution to the imperial ideology, with which we must n o w be concerned. 73

74

PART B. PAGAN ONTOLOGIES: GNOSTICISM AND NEOPLATONISM

W e m u s t n o w retrace o u r steps from the early second century until the third in o r d e r to unravel the revolution in philosophical specu lation t h a t paralleled the Severan revolution in the i c o n o g r a p h y a n d theology of the e m p e r o r ' s divinity. W e saw in C h a p t e r 2 the rela tionship between Stoic ontology a n d political o r d e r as reflected in the Imperial Cult. Stoicism legitimated a u g u r y (2A 2), a n d Augustus' augural act h a d p r o d u c e d the pax deorum which older, R e p u b l i c a n religion h a d failed to secure (2A 3). Imperial order, as L u c a n h a d expressed it, was b u t the restoration of 6p06<; Xoyoq from a natura discors (2A 4). Gnosticism developed some of its central themes in opposition to Stoicism, a n d some of those themes were negated by Neoplatonism. It is to the analysis of these developments that we now turn. 7B

1. Stoic monism, Platonic dualism, and Gnosticism

A sociology of knowledge of any system of ideas examines h o w such systems shape, reflect a n d m a i n t a i n social order. W e n e e d not here enter into the complex philosophical discussion of w h e t h e r all real ity is socially constructed in a way that precludes a n y transcenden tal (in the sense of cross cultural) logic governing claims to truth. At very least, we can m a i n t a i n that social o r d e r reflects epistemological

73

Ibid. 7 8 , 3 .

7 4

Philostratus, Vita Apollon., 3.

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o r d e r without also m a i n t a i n i n g that social o r d e r totally conditions epistemological order. T h e social construction of reality that was created a n d m a i n t a i n e d by a Stoic world view o r d e r e d the ideology of imperial society in the first a n d second centuries. N a t u r e a n d society were one in a Stoic m o n i s m in w h i c h the taSyoq 8V8KX0£TO<; p e r m e a t e d all things which it b o u n d together into a rational a n d h a r m o n i o u s whole. Ultimate real ity was not to be found b e y o n d n a t u r e or society in some form of Platonic dualism. U l t i m a t e reality, giving p u r p o s e a n d design to the universe, was to be found indissolubly b o u n d u p with m a t t e r in the Stoic p a n t h e i s m . T h u s the metaphysical c o u n t e r p a r t of the imperial ideal found expression in Stoic m o n i s m . A c o s m o p o l i t a n e m p i r e e m b r a c e d all lesser societies in a rational imperial o r d e r that gave t h e m unity a n d p u r p o s e . T h e individual h a d n o free destiny of his own, but Fata could d e t e r m i n e all things a c c o r d i n g to the providentia, eiuapuevr), or rcpovoia of the Xoyoq evSidGeioq. T h u s the freedom of the individual was d e n i e d by the rational p u r p o s e of the whole, a n d individual p u r p o s e dissolved into the p u r p o s e of the universe as a whole. T h e consuls or the e m p e r o r , performing their political func tions on the o n e h a n d , would reduce to o r d e r a turbulent p o p u l a c e , a n d performing their religious ones on the o t h e r would t h r o u g h the auspicia set right a disturbed n a t u r e by securing t h r o u g h the state's religious rites the pax deorum. Such a collectivist view of h u m a n significance a n d destiny h a d however b e e n challenged from Augustus' time o n w a r d s , as we shall n o w see, by a n intense interest in personal immortality. Such an interest itself represented the resistance of the individual against being assigned an identity t h a t only h a d m e a n i n g as p a r t of a collectivist whole. T h e r e is a possible sociological explanation of this interest in the Principate itself. In a post-Republican age in which all political alternatives to military autocracy h a d b e e n ruled out by the per ceived necessity of T a c i t u s ' pax et princeps, the m i n d s of individuals sought refuge in the i n n e r life. T h e quest for h u m a n significance was in the form of the quest for personal salvation. W e t u r n there fore firstly to a consideration of some representative expressions of the quest for personal salvation that initially challenged the collec tivist imperial idea b u t which in Plotinus were finally to be recon ciled with it.

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7B 1 . 1 . Individual immortality and the Gnostic quest T h e belief in personal a n d individual immortality is p e r h a p s the most u n a m b i g u o u s social indicator of the existence of a belief in individ ual freedom, a n d , indeed, the ultimate significance of the individual against t h e social g r o u p . T h e individual soul, a c c o r d i n g to b o t h Cleanthes a n d Chrysippus, survived death, b u t it would not survive the eK7it)pcoai(; or universal conflagration. All matter, which is, accord ing to the Stoic m o n i s m , simply a modification of the refined p n e u matic substance of the ultimate divine being, would r e t u r n to its divine source a n d therefore cease to exist even in limited i n d e p e n d e n c e . Personal immortality was therefore relative. 75

76

It is interesting to note that Stoicism's subordination of personal immortality to the unity of the cosmic whole reflected w h a t we can d e d u c e a b o u t faith in personal immortality at the time of the late republic a n d early e m p i r e from epigraphic a n d o t h e r evidence. W e can see in the i c o n o g r a p h y of the V a t i c a n M a u s o l e a expressions of a religious response to the denial of religious individualism. 7B 1.2. Individual immortality: the art of the Vatican Mausolea As T o y n b e e a n d Perkins p o i n t e d out i n . t h e i r m o n u m e n t a l study of the i c o n o g r a p h y of the excavated V a t i c a n mausolea, the traditional funerary inscription, Dis Manibus, reflected a n earlier view, shared also by the early G r e e k mystery religions, that the soul shed at d e a t h its personal characteristics to b e c o m e r e a b s o r b e d into the half-divine (Di), half h u m a n , a m o r p h o u s shades (Manes). 77

But from a b o u t the middle of the first century B.C. we find clear definition given to the individual soul after d e a t h , as in Cicero's Somnium Scipionis, w h e r e Africanus, dwelling a m o n g s t the blessed d e a d in the Milky W a y , "revealed himself to m e (se ostendit mihi) in that shape (ea forma) better k n o w n to m e from his portrait t h a n from his person (ex imagine eius quam ex ipso erat notior)." Along with Vergil's description of the u n d e r w o r l d in Aeneid 6, this u n c o n d i t i o n e d view of personal immortality replaced that expressed in CIL 6, 4, 29609 (cinis sum, cinis terra est, terra dea est, ergo mortua non sum), which was 78

7 5

D i o g e n e s Laertius, Succ. 7, 1 1 5 6 - 1 5 7 . Plutarch, De Comm. Motit. 3 6 , 5 . J. T o y n b e e , and J. Ward Perkins, The Shrine of St. Peter and the Vatican Excavations, (London: L o n g m a n s G r e e n 1956), p p . 1 0 9 - 1 1 7 . C i c e r o , De Rep. 6,10 q u o t e d T o y n b e e and W a r d Perkins (1956), p. 110. 7 6

7 7

7 8

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far closer to a m o r p h o u s survival with n o clearly defined p e r s o n h o o d amongst the Di Manes. T o y n b e e a n d W a r d Perkins were then able to interpret such images from the myths of Dionysius or of N e p t u n e , represented in the dec orations on sarcophagi or in frescoes o n t o m b s themselves, as expres sions of the h o p e of unqualified personal immortality. T h e depiction of Marcius H e r m e s or M a r c i a Felicitas is of the essential self that survives d e a t h . T h e presence of H e r m e s o n the Persephone Mosaic shows that the myth has b e c o m e allegorised as the soul's j o u r n e y to the u n d e r w o r l d a n d its rebirth to eternal life. H e r m e s is depicted holding the w a n d that reveals h i m to b e psychopomos: he raises souls in H a d e s from their slumber. 79

T h e d e v e l o p m e n t of Gnostic mythology also reflects this process of the individualisation of the a m o r p h o u s world soul, to which indi vidual souls d o not simply r e t u r n in o r d e r to obliterate their indi viduality, b u t r a t h e r to realize it m o r e fully. 7B 1.3. Gnosticism as a rejection of political collectivism In Gnosticism the universal world soul of Stoicism is fragmented a n d becomes e m b o d i e d a n d imprisoned in individuals. F u r t h e r m o r e , the process by which this comes a b o u t is not o n e of the divine o r d e r of a created world in which opGoq Xoyoq finds its e m b o d i m e n t . C r e a t i o n is a disaster. It is S o p h i a cast o u t of t h e P l e r o m a w h o creates I a l d a b a o t h or the D e m i u r g e , a n d w h o holds the souls of the pneumatikoi in b o n d a g e to the irrational a n d prevents their ascension to the unity of the P l e r o m a . 80

Interpreted within a sociology of knowledge perspective, Gnostic metaphysics denies the goodness or rationality of the imperial ideal a n d opposes the subordination of the individual to the imperial whole. Souls are i m p r e g n a t e d into m a t t e r by Sophia w h e r e they are impris o n e d by the D e m i u r g e whose belief that he is the sole creator of a rational a n d good o r d e r is illusion a n d therefore error. Metaphysical stance was translated into social organisation in that the pneumatikoi experienced ecstasy so that at least some Gnostic assemblies were charismatic a n d p r o p h e t i c . It was as we a r g u e d against a n early 81

7 9

T o y n b e e and Ward Perkins (1956), pp. 1 1 4 - 1 1 7 . See e.g. Hypostasis o f the Archons, II, 9 5 - 9 7 , in Nag Hammadi Library in English, (Ed.) J . M . R o b i n s o n , (Leiden: Brill 1988), p. 168. G. Filoramo, A History of Gnosticism. (Oxford: Blackwell 1990), chapter 11. 8 0

81

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charismatic group that C l e m e n t of R o m e addressed his contra-cultural construction of C h u r c h O r d e r as a Christianised version of imper ial O r d e r (4B 3). W e shall n o w see h o w the late second century developments in Hellenistic philosophy represent changes in the u n d e r s t a n d i n g of the political structure of the p a g a n e m p i r e . W e shall then be in a posi tion, in Part C , to trace h o w such changes in u n d e r s t a n d i n g were not without effect in shaping the continuing d e v e l o p m e n t of C h u r c h O r d e r , as the latter interacted in terms of contra-cultural response to the changes in the s u r r o u n d i n g p a g a n cultural a m b i e n c e . 7B

2. Plotinus, the One: imperial unity as Sol Invictus

T h e n e e d for R o m a n society to address this alternative construction of social reality that t h r e a t e n e d to nihilate its conception of the good ness a n d rationality of the imperial ideal, clearly p r e d a t e d the rise of Neoplatonism, at least in its final d e v e l o p m e n t by Plotinus (A.D. 204-270). Indeed both A m m o n i u s Saccas, Plotinus' teacher, Clement of Alexandria, Irenaeus, a n d Pseudo-Hippolytus all reflected a c o m m o n intellectual strategy of reducing the chaos of aeonic conflict a n d strife by m e a n s of a metaphysical o r d e r that was the c o u n t e r p a r t to the social o r d e r that they supported w h e t h e r in C h u r c h or in S t a t e . Plotinus was to represent the final nihilation of a plurality of origi nators (dpxovxeq) as the creator of the material world w h e n he insists on only three origins (dpxoci) or first principles, n a m e l y the O n e , M i n d , a n d Soul: 82

83

It is unnecessary to go in search for different origins (eaiv). No more than these nor fewer are to be found in the intelligible world (EV TCp VOT|TCp).

Enneads II, 9,1,13-16

8 2

Porphyry, Vit. Plotin., 3 , 1 3 - 1 6 . A. Brent, Hippolytus and the R o m a n Church in the Third Century: Communities in T e n s i o n before the E m e r g e n c e o f a M o n a r c h - B i s h o p , in Suppl. VCh. 31 (Leiden: E J . Brill 1995), p p . 4 9 2 - 5 0 1 ; Idem. T h e Circle o f J u l i a D o m n a and Christian Heresiology, StEphAug 5 0 (1995), p p . 2 3 7 - 2 4 8 . 8 3

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But these dp^ou are linked in a n u n b r o k e n chain of being. T h e i r divergence is d u e only to the secondary c h a r a c t e r of Nouq a n d ^Fu^ri as p a r t of a chain of being, derivative from the ultimate O n e as its first beginning. T h e i r " g e n e r a t i o n " does not result in their possess ing different natures. W e m a y thus r e g a r d the rise of Plotinian N e o - P l a t o n i s m as a s y m p t o m r a t h e r t h a n a cause of a fundamental shift in intellectual perspective in terms of which society as well as the cosmos was n o w to b e understood. T h a t perspective was influenced by Gnosticism in the sense of a reactive influence. Gnosticism h a d fed off the rise of individualism that fragmented the world-soul of Stoicism a n d thus deprived that philosohpy of its ability to create a social reality that legitimated the political unity of the imperial ideal. T h e quest for personal immortality itself could be r e a d as the individual seeking refuge in the inner life a n d its hopes a n d possibilities w h e n all social a n d political alternatives were closed by a seemingly "inevitable" mil itary autocracy to which there were n o real constitutional alterna tives. Neoplatonism, in its emphasis on a n inner experience that lead the individual to unity with the origin or dpxf| of all O r d e r , politi cal or cosmic, thus sought to restore a reconstructed imperial ideal. W e have seen that the iconographical expression of the political ideology of divi Augusti developed u n d e r the Severans into a syn cretistic religious universalism expressed in terms of Sol Invictus that e m b r a c e d Isis a n d Sarapis a n d their legitimations of political p o w e r t h r o u g h their incarnation in Egyptian kings a n d queens. Caracalla as KoauoKpdxcop was a representation of Sol Invictus to w h o m J u p i t e r Sarapis h a d given the globe of the world as a symbol of Aeternitas. T h e r e w e r e g o o d P l a t o n i c r e a s o n s , w h i c h N e o p l a t o n i s m w a s to develop, for using the Sun as a n icon of the ultimate principle of reality. As a symbol of universalism the worship of the S u n could i n c o r p o r a t e into a single syncretistic p a n t h e o n the attributes a n d virtues of the major deities of the E m p i r e b o t h East a n d West, just as the sun's light unites the disparate objects of the p h e n o m e n a l world into a n intelligible whole. Plotinus developed the Aristotelian t h e m e of the first u n m o v e d m o v e r that is the highest G o o d : M

The sun too is a model (Kai rcapd8evyua 6 ti^ioq) since it is like a cen tre in relation to the light (coarcep K a i Kevxpov oiWrcpoqxo (pcbq) it comes

A b d el M o h s e n el K h a c h a b (1961), pp. 1 2 8 - 1 2 9 .

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from and it depends on it ( a v T i p i n u i v o v npbq auxov); for the light is everywhere with it and is not cut off from it (rcavxaxou youv p.ex' auxou Kai O U K d7coxexpT|xai); even if you want to cut it off on one side (mv drcoxeueiv e9eA,fi<xn<; zni 0dxepa), the light remains with the sun (npbq xov r\k\6v eaxi xo cpcbq). And how is everything else directed towards it (xd 6k aXka rcdvxa npbq auxo Tccbq;)? Soulless things are directed towards soul (il xd pev d\|/uxa 7tp6<; V|/U%TIV) and soul to the Good through the intel lect (VJ/UXTI 5e 7cp6<; amb 8id vov). Enneads 1,7,1,25-2,1-3. 85

W e find the social reality of the imperial ideal h e r e reflected in o n t o logy, in which the imperial centre moves the whole w h i c h d e p e n d s on it for its unity a n d p u r p o s e . T h e d e v e l o p m e n t of concepts of political order, philosophical theology, a n d religious syncretism are thus p r o c e e d i n g pari-passu. But Plotinus was not without his second a n d early third century antecedents, some of w h o m we will n o w examine. 7B

3. Plotinus' predecessors: Apuleius and Plutarch

Plotinus was the p r o d u c t of a cultural milieu obsessed with the con struction of o r d e r in a n y sphere, history, n a t u r e , society or philoso phy, in terms of reality a n d goodness granted by a process of derivation from a n ultimate origin. W e shall e x a m i n e specifically the Platonising of Aristode's first u n m o v e d M o v e r in Apuleius' De Mundo, written a r o u n d A . D . 140, a n d Plutarch's Platonic justification for the Isis m y t h (circ. A . D . 104). In the former we shall note specifically a n assimilation of ontological structure with political structure. H e r e was not simply the seed-bed from which the N e o p l a t o n i s m of Plotinus was to grow, b u t also the justification for the religious syncretism united into a solar m o n o t h e i s m of which imperial p o w e r was the political expression. 7B 3 . 1 . Plotinus' predecessors: uovap%{oc and the D e M u n d o Peterson followed J a e g e r in stressing the origins of the t e r m uovapxiot in Aristode's Metaphysics 14. Clearly dpxr| m e a n s b o t h " r u l e " a n d "first principle," a n d thus unites political philosophy with ontology. Peterson's further e x a m p l e of the relationship between ontology a n d political ideology c a m e from the pseudepigraphic Aristotelian text De Mundo? 6

8 5

8

See also 11,3,18: eax; a v f) Ti^ioq, icavxa x a an ax>xox> (pcbxa. " Peterson (1935), pp. 1 6 - 1 7 .

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T h i s text is o f great significance for u n d e r s t a n d i n g the intellectual b a c k g r o u n d in which, as in Plotinus, Aristotle's u n m o v e d m o v e r has been synthesised with the Neoplatonic O n e . I n d e e d , this pseudepigraphic work has arguably Apuleius as its true a u t h o r , a n d thus its date would b e a b o u t A . D . 140, Apuleius having b e e n b o r n a r o u n d A . D . 125. In c h a p t e r 6 the a u t h o r asks h o w G o d as the u n m o v e d first principle can m o v e the world. H e begins with the good Platonic principle that the individual n a t u r e of a n y t h i n g is not self-sufficient (ou8epia 8e cpuaiq ami] KCC6' eauxr|v eaxiv a\)xdpKr|<;) a n d is deprived of the m e a n s of its own preservation (eprjpcoGeioa xfjq eic xouxou acoxrjpiaq). G o d is therefore "the Preserver of all things that really exist (Icoxf|p pev yap ovxcoq drcdvxcov eaxl) a n d the Begetter of all things throughout the world in whatever way they are composed (Kal yevexcop xcov O7ccoa8r|7coxe m x d xov8e xov KOOUOV auvxeAxvopevcov 6 6e6q; De Mundo 6,20-22)." 87

But h o w is G o d to b e u n d e r s t o o d as m o v i n g the world if m a t t e r is eternal? G o d , as Aristode h a d argued, could not act u p o n the world as an efficient cause. T h e a u t h o r therefore assures us that G o d "does not e n d u r e weariness like a living thing that works by its own labour and toil (ou \ri\v auxoupyou Kai eninovov ^coou Kapaxov imopevcov)." G o d rather "uses an unfailing potency (aXXa Suvdpei xpcopevoq dxpuxcp) t h r o u g h which he b e c o m e s m a s t e r of even those things which seem far from him (8i' f|<; Kal xcovrcoppcoSOKOUVXCOV eivai rcepiywexai; 6, 397b 23-24)." But h o w is the operation of such a p o w e r or potency to b e u n d e r stood? Apuleius has already b e g a n to answer such a question by m e a n s of a political analogy as his m i n d conceives the operation in terms of mastery (xcov jcoppco SOKOVVXCOV eivai rcepiyivexai). G o d occu pies "the highest a n d first seat (xf|V pev ouv dvcoxdxco Kai rcpcoxnv eSpav auxoq eXa^ev) a n d , as M o s t H i g h , is e n t h r o n e d on the highest sum mit of all heaven (uoxaxoq xe . . . aKpoxaxn. Kopucpp xou ouprcavxoq e y m 9i8p\)pevo(; oupavou)." A c c o r d i n g to Plato, the inability of m a t t e r to reflect or participate in the F o r m s led to its ambiguity a n d to its inability to be k n o w n . But Apuleius will n o w liken the distance between objects a n d G o d as the cause of a weakness a n d incom-

8 7

For a discussion and full bibliography, see A. Marchetta, VAutmticita Apuleiana del D e M u n d o , ( R o m e : J a p a d r e Editore L'Aquila 1991) cf. G. Reale and A.P. Bos, II trattato sul C o s m o per Alessandro attribuito ad Aristotele, in T e m i metafisici e problemi del pensiero, in Set 4 2 (1995), pp. 2 9 - 5 7 .

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prehensibility that is a c c o m p a n i e d by confusion, which also has the sense of political disorder. H e continues: Therefore the earth and the things on earth seem (816 yfj Kal xd em yfjq eoiKev), in their great distance from the sustaining help that comes from God (ev drcooxdoei nXeioir) xr\(; £ K Geou ovxa axpeXeiaq), to be weak and incoherent (daGevfj Kai draxdAAritax eivai) and filled with great distur bance (Kai noXXr\(; ueaxd xapa^Tiq). Nevertheless (ou p V aXka), to the extent that the divine by its nature penetrates the whole (KaG'oaov em rcav 5iiKveia9ai TiecpuKe xo 0eiov), it happens in consequence that the spaces we ourselves occupy and those above us (Kai em xd r\\ib\q ouoicix; auu(3a{vei xd xe hnep Tiuaq) to a greater or lesser exent participate in his sustaining help to the degree that are nearer or farther from God (Kaxd xo eyyiov xe KaircoppcbxepcoGeou \iaKkov xe Kai f|xxov wyeXeiaq uexataxppdvovxa). De Mundo 6, 397b 30-35 Apuleius, for Plato's reasons, c a n n o t allow that G o d can work direcdy (auxoupyeiv) o n earthly things w h e n these a r e " n e i t h e r beautiful (KCCAOV) n o r well-formed (eua%r|uov)." G o d ' s power "is seated in heaven (f| ev oupctvco 8uvaui<; iSpupivri), a n d is even to those things that are in greatest separation from it ( K a i xolq KXEIGTOV dcpeaxrjKoaiv). . . the cause of the preservation of t h e m all (GUUTKXOIV aixioqyivexaiocoxripiaq; 6, 398a 1-4)." But clearly Apuleius n o w has a p r o b l e m . If G o d ' s p o w e r c a n n o t " p e n e t r a t e a n d flow t h r o u g h (8vr|Kouoa K a i (poixcooa)" w h a t is neither KQLXOV n o r euoxnuov, h o w can the u i a dp%r| preserve the whole? It is here, as Peterson pointed out, that the metaphysical p r o b l e m becomes identical with a political p r o b l e m . H o w does, for example, the G r e a t K i n g of Persia govern a n e m p i r e ? His rules a n d c o m m a n d s a r e unseen a n d u n h e a r d directly, a n d he himself is concealed within his lofty palace. It is t h r o u g h a hierarchy of officials that his unseen will penetrates. Peterson contrasted this picture with that of Aristotle for w h o m , in Metaphysics 12, the question w h e t h e r there are m a n y or one first principle is still a real o n e , just as for h i m the political question as to w h e t h e r the political world should be o n e of a collec tion of a u t o n o m o u s d p ^ a i in the form of a u t o n o m o u s city states, or w h e t h e r these belonged in the one E m p i r e of Philip a n d A l e x a n d e r . 88

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Peterson (1935), p. 19: "Fiir Aristoteles ist der kosmische M o n a r c h der im Konflikt der G e w a l t e n (dpxai) als der Eine trotzig u n d plastisch Hervortretende, bei d e m Autor der Schrift v o n der Welt tritt der M o n a r c h d a g e g e n grade nicht hervor, sondern er bleibt verborgen in d e n G e m a c h e r n seines Palastes, er bleibt

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T h e sharpest analogy used by Apuleius is of the sentinels with light-signals: So great is the order, (xoao\)xo<; 8e rjv 6 Koopoq) and most of all of the signal lights (Kai pdA,iaxa xcov cppvKxcopicov) which are set alight in suc cession (mxd 8ia5oxd<; Trupoevovxcov) by each other (aKk^Xoiq) from the borders of the empire (EKrcepdxcovxf|<; dpxfj<;) to Susa and Ecbatana, (pexpi XOTLKJCOV Kai 'EKpaxdvcov) so that the Great King gets to know the same day every new occurence in Asia (coaxe xov PaaiAia yvyvcboKew avOrjpepov Tidvxa xd ev xp' Aaia Kawovpyovpeva). De Mundo 6, 398a 31-35 G o d does not have n e e d of others a n d so in this respect Apuleius admits that his analogy breaks d o w n . But like a M o n a r c h

causing

his c o m m a n d s to be obeyed, his p o w e r executed his will because the being w h o is p u r e act c a n realise the p o t e n c y of all things in accord ance with his design: It is of greater awe and more fitting in dignity (aepvoxepov 8e Kai rcperccoSeaxepov auxov pev) that God should have his throne in the high est place (en! zr\q dvcoxdxco x«>P $ !8p\)G0ai), but that his power, pene trating throughout the whole universe (xrjv 8e Svvapw 8id xov o-uprcavxoq Koapoi) 8ir|K0\)aav), should move the sun and moon (riA,iov xe Kiveiv Kai ceA,f|vr|v) and rotate the whole heaven ( m i xov rcdvxa ovpavov rcepidyeiv), and become the cause of preservation for the things on earth (ai'xiov xe y(vea6ai xoiq erci xfjq yr\q acoxrjp(aq). God has no need of intervention and aid which comes from others (ovSev ydp eTuxexvrioeax; 8ei Ka! bmr\pEGia<; xfjq nap' exepcov) as with those who rule us require many hands (coarcep zoiq Ttap' rjpiv dpxouai xf|<;rcoXuxeipiac;)because of their weakness (8id xr|v doGeveiav), but this is the most divine property (aXXa xovxo fjv xo Beioxaxov), to realise all kinds of Forms with ease and with simple movement (xo pexd paaxcbvriq Ka! anXr\<; KWT|aeco<;rcavxoSarcdqdrcoxeA,eiv iSeaq). . . De Mundo 6, 398b 6-14 a

W e see, therefore, in the mid-second century, a clear reflection in Apuleius' De Mundo of an Aristotelian cosmology that p r o d u c e s a theology that is highly a n t h r o p o m o r p h i c . T h e result of the a n t h r o p o m o r p h i s m is to m a k e Aristotle service a political philosophy that u n g e s e h e n und verhullt wie der Spieler des Marionettentheaters. Sichtbar ist nur die M a c h t (Svvapiq), die in der Welt wirksam ist, d o c h die Gewalt, die dahintersteht, ist unsichtbar. D i e s e e b e n a n g e d e u t e t e n V e r s c h i e d e n h e i t e n sind nicht nur darum lehrreich, weil sie Ausdruck einer anderen Zeit und einer anderen politischen Situation sind, sondern weil sie zugleich z e i g e n , dass die letzte Formulierung der Einheit eines metaphysischen Weltbildes v o n der Entscheidung fur eine der politischen Einheits-Moglichkeiten i m m e r mit- und vorbestimmt ist."

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celebrates an eastern imperial ideal. T h a t ideal involves uovap%(a justified in terms of an ultimate principle in n a t u r e that gives coher ence, m o v e m e n t , a n d finally, w h e n suitably Platonised, reality to the W h o l e . Apuleius finds himself m a k i n g such Platonising c o m m e n t s w h e n he envisages, as a result of the signal given by the unseen R u l e r a n d Progenitor, all n a t u r e "revealing one t h o u s a n d F o r m s (p/upiaq i8eaq dvacpaivouod) a n d again concealing t h e m (XE Kai naXw drcoKpurcxouaa) from the o n e first principle (EK \iiaq dp%fj<;)." S u c h a Platonis ing we find in Plotinus w h e r e Plato's ultimately real O n e in which the F o r m s are found has b e c o m e identified with Aristode's first prin ciple. Clearly the cultural b a c k g r o u n d in w h i c h Plotinus a n d N e o P l a t o n i s m flourished was o n e t h a t looked for a n epistemological justification of imperial unity. 89

W e shall take Plutarch's t r e a t m e n t of the Isis m y t h as o u r second e x a m p l e of Hellenistic philosophy legitimating religious universalism. 7B 3.2. Plutarch's Platonism in D e Iside et Osiride T h e r e a r e no analogies b e t w e e n a Platonic ontology in the cosmos a n d divine rulers on e a r t h in this treatise. I n d e e d Plutarch was a great sceptic r e g a r d i n g ruler-worship in his Life of Demetrius. Most significantly, in his Romulus, h e denied the literal truth of R o m u l u s ' a s s u m p t i o n into h e a v e n . H o w e v e r , h e was p r e p a r e d to conceive that virtue could m a k e the e m p e r o r divine so that the good ruler, as the Living Logos (EUA|/UXO<; Xoyoq), would i n c a r n a t e vouoq on e a r t h . As h e says: 90

For God punishes (vepeoa yap 6 0e6<;) those who imitate (xoiq drcouiuouuevoK;) thunders (ppovxdq) and lightning bolts (Kai Kepauvoix;) and rays of the sun (Kai aKXwopoXia<;), but he is pleased with those who are zealous for his virtue and make themselves like the good and humane (xoix; 8e xqv dpexriv ^rjXouvxaq auxou Kai npbq xo KaXov Kai (piAdvGpamov d<po|ioiouvxa<; eauxoix; Ti86|ievo<;). Ad principem ineruditum 781 A, 3 " T h e ruler is the image of G o d w h o orders the world (dp%cov 8 ' EIKWV 0EOU xou rcdvxa Koououvxoq)," b u t only because "law is the function of 89

De Mundo, 6, 3 9 9 a 3 0 - 3 5 : oxav ouv 6 rcavxcov fyyen-cov xe K a i yevexcop, aopaxoq GOV akXto nXr\v Xoyiouep, OT||IT|VTI rcaofl (puoei uexa^i) oi)pavo\) xe Kai yr\<; (pepoueVp, K i v e t x a i rcaaa ev8eA,excb<; ev KUKXOK; Kai rcepaoiv i8(oi<;, rcoxe |iev a(pavi£ouevr|, rcoxe 8e (paivouevri, \ivpiac, ibeaq &va(paivo\)aa xe K a i naXiv arcoKp\mxo'UGa EK ui&q dpxfj<;. Plutarch, Demetrius, 1 0 , 2 - 4 ; 11,1; 12,1; a n d 1 3 , 1 - 2 cf. G. Chesnut, T h e Ruler and the Logos, in ANRW 11,16,2, pp. 1 3 2 1 - 1 3 2 4 . 9 0

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the ruler (vopoq 8' dpxovxoq epyov)," a n d in t u r n "justice is the e n d of law (8{KT| . . . vopou xekoq eox()." But in giving a cosmic significance to Isis a n d Osiris in terms of a Platonic ontology he was unwittingly participating in the m o v e m e n t that, some ninety years later, was to lead to the place of Isis a n d Osiris in Severan universalism. His modi fication of the theology of ruler-worship was not to be successful. 91

Plutarch identifies Osiris with Sarapis as the consort of Isis. H e reads their n a m e s " b o t h as belonging to o n e G o d a n d to o n e p o w e r (dpcpco 8' evoq 0eou K a i piaq Suvdpecoc;)." Plutarch however firmly held that b o t h Osiris a n d Isis h a d b e e n originally purely m o r t a l rulers, albeit heroic ones, w h o m legend h a d exalted after their deaths. Yet he will attribute significance to the Isis m y t h a n d cult as an allegory of Platonist philosophical truth. 92

T h e e n d of the religion of Isis is "the knowledge of the first a n d sovereign a n d intelligible god (f| xou rcpcoxorj K a i K u p i o u K a i VOTJXOU yv&oxq) which the goddess (Isis) beseeches us to seek since he exists beside h e r a n d associates with h e r (ov i\ 0e6<; rcapaKaA,ei i^nxeiv rcap' avxf\ K a i pex' auxfjq ovxa K a i ouvovxa)." H e r shrine, the Iseion, by its very n a m e , "promises b o t h knowledge a n d u n d e r s t a n d i n g of w h a t exists (ercayyeA,A,exai K a i yvcbaiv K a i ei8r|aiv xov ovxoq)" since it is the shrine of "those w h o k n o w the real (eioopevcov xo 8v)." 93

T h e creation a n d constitution of the world for Plutarch is a mix ture of opposing forces (pepeiypevn. ydp f| xou8e xot> KOGUOD yeveciq K a i Gvcxaaiq e£ evavxicov). F o r p r o p e r Platonic reasons however, all pow ers are not equal, b u t final control is with the better (ov prjv ioooGevcov 8uvdpecov, aXka xr\q fiekxiovoq xo K p d x o q eaxiv). T h e b a d (xr\v yavXr\v 8uvdpiv) "is always fighting against the better ( K a i npbq xf|V peXxiova dei 8uo|iaxot>oav)." T h e r e is however a principle of order, b o t h in the soul a n d in N a t u r e w h e n in h a r m o n y , a n d this is Intelligence (vovq) a n d R e a s o n (Xoyoq) as the R u l e r (fiyepcov) a n d Sovereign (lc&pioq) of all that is G o o d (xcov dpioxcov rcavxcov). T h a t principle of univer sal O r d e r Plutarch identifies with Osiris as the soul of the world. T h e o r d e r of the world is therefore " t h e efflux of Osiris (drcoppori) a n d his reflected image ( K a i eiKcbv)." 94

91

Ad princip. inerudit. 7 8 0 E, 3. De Is. et Osir. 3 7 6 A, 6 1 . Ibid. 3 5 2 A, 2. Ibid. 371 A, 4 9 : ev pev c u v ir\ \|ruxfi vo\)<; m i Xoyoq 6 xcov dp{ox(ov rcdvxcov Tjyepaw m i icupioq "Oaipiq eaxiv, ev 8e yr\ m i 7ive\)uaxi m i \S8axi m i cupavcp m i ocoxpoi<; xo xexayuevov m i m0eaxr|K6<; m i v y i a i v o v cSpaic; m i K p d o e o i m i rcepioSoic; 'Oa{pi8o<; arcoppofi « i e i k o d v epcpaivopevr|. 92

9 3

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If Osiris is vouq in yuxri, from w h e r e has the b o d y of the world come? Following the m y t h , we could say that it comes from H o r u s w h o is the offspring of Osiris a n d Isis, although often Plutarch speaks as if this could be Osiris himself. T y p h o n frequendy dismembers the b o d y of Osiris, t h o u g h his soul, a n d therefore the soul of the world, remains indestructible. It is Isis w h o puts the d i s m e m b e r e d b o d y back together again. Plutarch allegorises as follows: 95

?

Isis is in fact the female power of nature (r\ y d p Iai<; eaxi pev TO xfjq (puaecoq Qr\kv) and is receptive of every form of generation (Kal 8£KTIK6V drcdc?T)<; yeveaecoq), in accord with what she is called by Plato the gende nurse and the all-receptive (Ka96 xi8r|vr| Kai navdexftq vnb xou ntaxxcovoq), and by most people she has been called coundess names (hub 8e xcov rcoAAxov pupicovupoq KeK^xai), since, because of the force of Reason, she turns herself into this thing or that and is receptive of all manner of shapes and forms (8id xo naoaq vnb xou Adyou xpErcopevii uopcpdq SexeoGai Kai i8ea<;). De hide et Osiride 372 E, 53 T h e world here, seen u n d e r the aspect of Isis, receives the F o r m s from vouq or Aoyoq that is L o r d Osiris. At a n o t h e r point, in a m e t h o d t h a t proceeds by a variety of analo gies a n d not by a h e r m e n e u t i c that is systematic theology, Isis is seen as the m e a n s by which the vouq or Aoyoq is restored to a world that has b e c o m e d i s m e m b e r e d a n d chaotic. It is H o r u s , their m u t u a l offspring, on w h o m she impressed the eternal forms of things as he represents in the allegory m a t t e r that c a n n o t m a i n t a i n its eternity. As P l u t a r c h says in e x p l a n a t i o n of Isis w a n d e r i n g to collect a n d reassemble the d i s m e m b e r e d b o d y of Osiris: . . . for that which really is and is perceptible and good (xo y d p ov Kai vor|xov Kai dya06v) is far stronger than destruction and change (cpGopaq Kai pexapoATJq Kpetxxov eaxiv). The images from it with which the sen sible and corporeal is impressed (&<; 8' an avxov xo aiaOnxriv Kai acouaxiKov eiKovaq eKpdxxexai), and the relations, forms and likenesses which this

In 3 7 3 A, 5 4 w e are informed that the world or H o r u s OVK ai'Sioq ot>8' anc&r\<; ov>8' acpBapxoq, aXX aeiyevriq cov but also that, in 3 7 4 E, 5 7 , |Lru9oA.oyoi)Oi TTJV 'Oa(pi8o<; \|/\)x?iv d(8iov eivai Kai dcpBapxov, xo 8e acoua noTCkaKiq Siaojiav K a i dcpavi^eiv xov Tixpcbva . . . H o r u s w o u l d therefore be from a Platonic point o f view, a far bet ter representative o f the world o f matter bearing the Forms but d i s m e m b e r e d by T y p h o n . But Plutarch could not c h a n g e too arbitrarily the myth in favour o f his philosophical theology, and was exploring analogies rather than e n g a g i n g in sys tematic theology. S e e also C . P a n a g o p o u l o s , V o c a b u l a i r e et mentalite dans les Moralia d e Plutarque, in Dialogues d'histoire ancienne 3 (= Annates Litteraires de I'Universite de Besancon, 1977), pp. 1 9 7 - 2 3 5 . 9 5

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takes upon itself (Kai Xoyovq Kai ei'8r| Kai opoioxrjxaq dvaA,ap|3dvei), like impressions of seals in wax (raGdrcep ev Kt\p& o(ppayi8e<;), are not per manent and lasting (OVK dei 8iapevo\)oiv), but disorder and disturbance overtakes them (aXXa KaxataxpPdvei 8e axaKxov avzaq Kai xapaxa>8e<;), being driven hither from the upper reaches (evxauOa xf|<; dvco xa>P S a7ceX,T|Xapevov) and fighting against Horus (Kai paxopevov 7cp6<; xov Qpov), whom Isis brings forth as the image, perceived by the senses, of the perceptible world (6V Iaiq eiKova xov vorjxoO Koopoi) aiaftr|x6v ovxa yevva). De hide et Osiride 373 A-B, 54 * a

T

T h e details of the mythology whose imagery Plutarch wishes to fol low does not exacdy license the philosophical a c c o u n t that h e wishes to derive from it by m e a n s of allegory. P e r h a p s we m i g h t follow Plutarch's Platonic logic to its p r o p e r conclusion, as we shall argue N e o p l a t o n i s m did, with some modification to the mythology. H o r u s , w h o m Isis brings forth from their union, is the i m a g e not so m u c h of the perceptible world, b u t r a t h e r the eiicow aioOnxoc; of which she, as the m o t h e r of H o r u s , is the CIKCOV vonxoq. Isis n o w b e c o m e s truly an eiKcov of Osiris-Sarapis, "of the sovereign a n d intelligible first prin ciple (xou Tcpcoxou Kai KUpioD Kai vonxou)." Clearly Plutarch was developing an ontology that reflected a view of social o r d e r to w h i c h his resistance to the absolutism of a divine e m p e r o r was otherwise opposed. But the quest for a social o r d e r controlled a n d legitimated by a first principle from which all power, goodness, a n d o r d e r w e r e ultimately derived, a n d r e p r e s e n t e d by Osiris, is clearly reflected in his speculation. Resistance to that o r d e r was of a p o w e r , personified as T y p h o n , which was " t h e b a d that is always fighting against the better (xrjv cpav^nv . . . rcpoq xf|V peA/ciova dei S u a p a x o u a a v ) . " Certainly Isis behaves, in the p r e c e d i n g q u o t a t i o n , like the n a t u r e that we saw in Apuleius' De Mundo "revealing o n e t h o u s a n d F o r m s (pupiaq i8eaq dvacpawouaa) a n d again concealing t h e m (xe Kai jcd^iv d 7 c o K p t ) 7 c x o u a a ) . " Osiris clearly represents the R u l e r a n d Progenitor of All (6 rcdvxcov fiyepcov xe Kai yevexcop) w h o actualises in n a t u r e the variety of potential F o r m s from the one first principle (EK piaq dpxfiq). Half-real m a t t e r for a Platonist is always intractable in terms of the F o r m s , but Plutarch's language has a far closer fit t h a n Plato's to the social world of R o m a n imperialism. Osiris as first principle a n d Isis as the EIKCOV vonxiKoq a r e far m o r e active a n d directive in m a i n t a i n 96

Apuleius De Mundo 6, 3 9 9 a 3 0 - 3 5 (7B 3.1).

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ing order, like Aristode's first principle, than Plato originally conceived his transcendent world to be. T h u s Plutarch's reflections interconnect with a religious a n d philosophical culture out of which N e o p l a t o n i s m was to develop, a n d which was to represent also the philosophical basis for the Severan iconography of divine imperial order. But h o w was the development of b o t h C h u r c h O r d e r , a n d the Christian theology that was likewise to reflect social o r d e r n o w to proceed? W e shall see that the counter-culture developed here too as the reversed image of the p a g a n culture t h a t it confronted.

PART C .

SOCIAL O R D E R AND THE

DOCTRINE OF THE TRINITY

Plutarch h a d claimed the wise m e n or aocpoi of the history of G r e e k philosophy as witnesses to the religion of Isis, a n d its justifying o n t o logy. " T h e most wise m e n of the Greeks b e a r witness (uttpxupouow 8e K a i xcov 'EXXr\v(ov oi ao(pcbxaxoi), Solon, T h a l e s , Plato, E u d o x u s , Pythagoras (lotaov QaXr\c, IlAxxxcov EuSo^oq riuBayopaq). . . w h o c a m e to Egypt a n d consorted with their priests (eiq Aiyujcxov dquicouevoi Kai auyyev6|ievoi xoiq i e p e u a w ) . " T h e r e was m o r e to this claim t h a n simply a n appeal to the authority of the past in o r d e r to substanti ate a religious claim. 97

T h e world of the late second century, of Irenaeus and the Hippolytan school n o less t h a n Hellenistic historiographers such as Diogenes Laertius or Philostratus in his Vita Apollonii, was c o n c e r n e d even before Plotinus c a m e to R o m e (c. 244 A.D.) with the quest for a single historical dpxf| for the true philosophy or the true religion. Plotinus a n d even A m m o n i u s Saccas can thus be seen as products of the quest for a single dp%r| o r d e r i n g not only the cosmos, b u t h u m a n history a n d h u m a n society. T h e most valid philosophy or religion will not simply be the most ancient, b u t the o n e from which all o t h e r philosophies or religions are derived w h e t h e r as logical developments or as logical corruptions. Both Diogenes Laertius a n d Philostratus were to d e n y Plutarch's claim for Egypt as providing in Isis worship, or r a t h e r in the o n t o logy of which it was an allegory, the ultimate historical dp%r| of phi losophy as the criterion of its truth. For Diogenes philosophy h a d

1,7

Ibid. 3 5 4 E 10.

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to b e a wholly G r e e k p h e n o m e n o n a n d the oocpoi quite i n d e p e n d e n t of such n o n - G r e e k influence. F o r Apollonius the Egyptians were to be quite u n w o r t h y a n d the true dpxri was to be found in the Indian gymnosophists. W e shall show a similar concern for the dpxri of the Christian c o m m u n i t y a n d its theology in expressions of t h e theory of the apostolic succession that characterised the later second a n d early third century (7C 1). W e shall seek (7C 2) to place the theological d e v e l o p m e n t of the Trinity, as finally derived from a povapxioc or first principle, in the contra-cultural context of the growth of a p a g a n , Neoplatonic onto logy that restored cosmic o r d e r in the face of the chaos of a Gnostic world view. T h e growth of Christian theology, we shall argue, n o less reflected t h e social o r d e r of the Christian c o m m u n i t y as h a d the growth of a theological justification of imperial order. 7C

1. Irenaeus a n d Pseudo-Hippolytus: 8ia8oxou drcooToAxov

Irenaeus p r o d u c e d his episcopal succession list for R o m e , a n d argued, from this o n e e x a m p l e , that all valid churches h a d valid doctrine that ultimately was derived from the apostle o r apostles that initi ated the succession. All heresy was derived from the doctrine of S i m o n M a g u s a n d his successors. T h e s e h a d 8ia8oxai or successiones in teaching office that, despite a p p a r e n t variety a n d conflict, m a d e t h e m d e p e n d e n t u p o n a n d derived from this c o m m o n origin. It was insufficient to simply attribute their origin to distinct Hellenistic philo sophical schools, t h o u g h this was m o r e historically accurate. A sin gle origin t h a t was n o t apostolic was essential for the intellectual credibility of a n a r g u m e n t in the context of a culture obsessed with social, cultural, political a n d ontological unity. 98

Pseudo-Hippolytus a n d his g r o u p within that collection of groups that formed t h e R o m a n EKKX^GIOL of the late second a n d early third century p u r s u e d a n a r g u m e n t formally similar to that of I r e n a e u s . But Pseudo-Hippolytus perfected the m o r e e m b r y o n i c Neo-Platonic 99

9 8

Irenaeus, Adv. Haer., 1,23, 1-2; II, Praef. 1: " . . . et progenitoris ipsorum d o c trinam, Simonis M a g i Samaritani, et o m n i u m e o r u m , qui successerunt ei, manifestavimus . . . o m n e s a S i m o n e haeretici initia sumentes . . . et differentias ipsorum et doctrinas et successiones adnotavimus . . . " I l l , Praef.: "Agressi sumus a u t e m nos, arguentes eos a S i m o n e , patre o m n i u m haereticorum, et doctrinas et successiones manifestare . . . " Brent (1995), Hippolytus, chapters 6 7. 9 9

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a r g u m e n t of the latter that justified o r refuted ideas in terms of trac ing their ultimate historical origin. C o n t r a r y to Irenaeus, the heretical schools d o not go back to Greek philosophy, as Simon M a g u s applied it to Christianity, b u t to the G r e e k philosophers themselves, whose ultimate origin is in the snake worship of the Naasenes. Plato erred w h e n , according to Timaeus 22 b 4, he derived Solon's teaching from a n Egyptian priest. H e did not inquire further for the true dpxr| which h e w o u l d have found to b e the serpent-worship characterising all p a g a n religion. F u r t h e r m o r e the H i p p o l y t a n school, in its c h r o n o g r a p h i c concerns shared by Julius Africanus a n d des tined to be c o n t i n u e d by Eusebius, reflected the quest for a n ulti m a t e origin by m e a n s of which the teaching of Moses a n d A b r a h a m could be shown to be older t h a n either G r e e k philosophy or p a g a n religion a n d thus m o r e real. T h i s was the conclusion t h a t the p a r allel lists of Olympiads, R o m a n Consuls, Patriarchs etc. were intended to establish. 100

As such, the concerns of Christian writers such as Irenaeus a n d those of the H i p p o l y t a n school reflected a historiography that they held in c o m m o n with such imperial writers as Philostratus or even Diogenes Laertius, w h o formed p a r t of the circle of J u l i a D o m n a , to w h o m the former dedicated the Vita Apollonii shortly after h e r d e a t h (A.D. 217). Philostratus is d e t e r m i n e d to show t h a t the ulti m a t e origin of philosophy is not in Egyptian religion b u t in the I n d i a n gymnosophists. Laertius will d e n y such a n extraneous origin, a n d will a r g u e instead t h a t philosophy was a purely G r e e k p h e n o m e n o n whose origin was in the golden age w h e n the twelve wise m e n lived. 101

7C 1.1. Diogenes Laertius and philosophical origins Laertius uses the c o n c e p t of 8icc8oxf| to d e m o n s t r a t e the cultural purity of Hellenistic philosophy, as does Pseudo-Hippolytus regard ing purity of o r t h o d o x doctrine h a n d e d d o w n by those w h o share in the teaching a n d hierocratic 8ioc8o%r| of bishops. In order to d e m o n strate the validity of conflicting schools of G r e e k philosophy, Laertius has to c o m e to terms with the existence of basically four 8icc8o%a{,

1 0 0

A. Brent, D i o g e n e s Laertius and the Apostolic Succession, in JEH 4 4 , 3 (1993), pp. 3 6 7 - 3 7 1 ; idem. (1995), Historiography, p. 3 4 3 ; idem. (1995), Hippolytus, p p . 2 6 2 - 2 6 5 ; 493-495. Brent (1995), Historiography, p p . 2 3 8 - 2 4 0 . 101

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Platonism, Stoicism, Aristotelianism, a n d E p i c u r e a n i s m . N o Latin e x p o n e n t of these writers such as Seneca, Cicero, or Lucretius are m e n t i o n e d or summarised. T h e four 8ia8oxou effectively c o m e to an e n d in the mid-second century B.C. Hellenistic philosophy from that time until Diogenes' o w n is treated by h i m as a finished p r o d u c t that can be taught a n d a d m i r e d in all its u n c o n t a m i n a t e d Hellenic purity. But in the intellectual culture t h a t was to n u r t u r e a nascent Neo-Platonism, such diversity as four 8ia8o%a{, with n o a c c o u n t of their essential unity from which they could b e historically or logically derived, was highly unsatisfactory. A n d so Laertius was to m a k e a n already highly artificial a n d schematised account even m o r e s o . 102

H e r e d u c e d the four 8ioc8o%ai to two dp^ou that b e g a n t h e m , a n d these two were respectively the work of T h a l e s a n d Pherekydes. But then he uses the literary device of epistolary pseudonymity to unify the various seven, eleven or twelve wise m e n , inhabiting the Urzeit of G r e e k civilisation a n d representing the c o m b i n e d wisdom of the oocpoi of which the cpiAxSaocpoi are clearly the cpiAoi. T h a l e s writes to Pherekydes a n d vice versa. Pherekydes on his d e a t h - b e d writes to T h a l e s that h e is sending his writing for the latter to publish it " p r o vided that you together with the other wise m e n approve of it (ou 8e r\v 8oici|LicboT|<; GUV xoiq aAAoiq oocpoiq) a n d not otherwise (Succ. 1,122)." T h e r e is thus suggested a c o m m o n a g r e e m e n t between T h a l e s a n d Pherekydes a b o u t their work to which all the oocpoi consent as a n expression of the o n e true philosophy. T h u s the p s e u d o n y m o u s lit erary device suggests t h a t the two &p%ai are in a g r e e m e n t , a n d that a g r e e m e n t has its ultimate historical origin in the unity established by the e x c h a n g e of letters b e t w e e n all the oocpoi in the Urzeit of Hellenistic civilisation. 103

104

W e thus see a m o n g s t the i m m e d i a t e precursors to Plotinus the development of a firm ontological presupposition that amongst the diversity of p h e n o m e n a reality must be, contrary to Stoicism, not an i m m a n e n t b u t a transcendental O n e . T h i s general assumption, whilst not articulated in terms of the precise metaphysics of Neo-Platonism before Plotinus, was nevertheless reflected in the historiography of ideas at the e n d of the second century.

1 0 2

103

104

Brent (1993), pp. 3 7 2 - 3 7 5 ; Brent (1995), Historiography, p p . 2 4 0 - 2 4 3 . Succ. 1, 4 3 - 4 4 and 122. Brent (1993), pp. 2 4 0 - 2 4 3 ; Brent (1995), Historiography, pp. 3 7 2 3 7 6 .

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7C 1.2. Historiography within the circle of Julia Domna W e saw (7A 2.3) that J u l i a D o m n a , as fj (piXooocpoq, founded a philo sophic circle that p r o d u c e d a n ideology that justified the Severan Reformation. Such a n ideology was p r o p a g a t e d by the iconography of Sol Invictus a n d KoouoicpaTCGp, in which a universal religious syn cretism could justify the goal of imperial unity e m b r a c i n g the diverse cultures of the empire. W e n o w see that h e r school was interested not simply in a cos mic uovccpxia b u t a historical uovocpxicc too. Diogenes Laertius a n d Philostratus, on the p a g a n side, the former a m e m b e r of the circle of J u l i a D o m n a almost as certainly as the latter, p r o d u c e different answers to their c o m m o n quest for the true philosophy as the his torically original philosophy from w h i c h all others a r e derivative reflections. T h e i r differences are n o t a b o u t the m e t h o d of deter m i n i n g w h a t is of ultimate value b u t simply a n d substantively w h a t is the particular origin of ultimate philosophy undiluted by dimin ishing reflection a n d d e r i v a t i o n . 105

Diogenes answered that philosophy derives from the oocpoi of the golden age of Hellenistic culture, whose testimony was of o n e p h e n o m e n o n vouchsafed by their epistolary exchanges a n d a g r e e m e n t s . Philostratus has, also from within in the circle of Julia D o m n a , replied that the true philosophy was from the I n d i a n gymnosophists a n d not from the Egyptian priest to w h o m Plato attributes his philoso p h y in the Timaeus. Pseudo-Hippolytus, w h o addressed o n e work o n the Resurrection to J u l i a M a m a e a a n d a n o t h e r to a certain Severina, m a y also have b e e n , like the Christian writer a n d architect of the P a n t h e o n , Julius Africanus, a Christian m e m b e r of that circle. 106

Pseudo-Hippolytus too is a w a r e that Plato in Timaeus derives his philosophy from a n Egyptian priest which in t u r n he has n o w derived from the universal p a g a n religion, reflected in every p a g a n cult, the snake worship of the N a a s e n e s . T h e true test for validity of doctrine is its ultimate derivation from the apostles t h r o u g h a n u n c o r r u p t e d succession of teachers. In this respect Pseudo-Hippolytus is closer to Diogenes Laertius t h a n to Philostratus. Both agree on a golden age of u n c o n t a m i n a t e d truth by twelve oocpoi or twelve apostles, before 107

1 0 5

Brent (1995), Historiography, p p . 2 3 7 - 2 4 8 . M . Sordi, II Cristianesimo e R o m a , in Storia di Roma X I X , Istituto di Studi R o m a n i , (Bologna: Cappelli 1965), p. 2 4 0 . Plato, Timaeus, 19 E 8 - 2 2 B 4 and Brent (1995) Hippolytus, p p . 2 6 2 - 2 6 5 . 1 0 6

107

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extraneous a n d foreign accretions h a d set u p their counter claims in the form of either Hellenistic religion (for Laertius) or heresy (for Pseudo-Hippolytus). S u c h a quest to locate the true faith in a n ulti m a t e historical origin also, I have argued elsewhere, lay b e h i n d the epistle of Peter to C l e m e n t a n d C l e m e n t to J a m e s in the C l e m e n t i n e Homilies. T h e purpose of their exchange of letters is formally simi lar to that of T h a l e s a n d Pherekydes in Diogenes Laertius. T h e Petrine a n d J a c o b e a n traditions are shown by this use of the device of pseudonymity to constitute a c o m m o n origin or &p%f|. 108

A M o n a r c h i a n historiography as well as a M o n a r c h i a n ontology were b o t h present in the cultural soil from which Neoplatonism was to grow a n d flourish. Historiography a n d ontology b o t h contributed fundamentally to the legitimation of a process of religious syncretism that was seeking to o r d e r the chaos of cultural diversity by m e a n s of the religious cult of a divine e m p e r o r . A coherent syncretism could be achieved by charting the origin of the diversity of cultures in a n ultimate source or ocpxn from which that diversity was derived. This was the historical M o n a r c h i a n i s m justifying Severan universalism. H e r e we have found a direct relationship between the political icono g r a p h y of the e m p e r o r ' s person a n d the later Neoplatonist ontology. But on the Christian side, the doctrine of the Trinity, a n d the quest for a n expression of the unity of the G o d h e a d in terms of uovccpxicc against Gnosticism, accompanied the development of C h u r c h O r d e r that was to result in a m o n a r c h - b i s h o p . T o the details of this case we must n o w t u r n . 7C

2. Monarchian theology, Gnosticism and Imperial Order

W e emphasised the growth of Middle Platonism a n d Neoplatonism as a response to the d i s m e m b e r m e n t of Stoic holistic hylomorphism by Gnostic dualism. J u s t as the former was the ontological reflection of imperial unity, so the latter, in its emphasis o n the disorder of creation a n d the individual c h a r a c t e r of r e d e m p t i o n , was, in its por trayal of cosmic chaos, the ontological reflection of the denial of the imperialist social construction of reality. T h e growth of the threefold O r d e r , originally with Ignatius a typo logy but, in the second a n d early third century to develop into a hierarchy with a m o n a r c h bishop at its apex, likewise was a denial

Brent (1993) pp. 3 7 7 - 3 8 0 ; Brent (1995), Hippolytus,

pp. 4 9 2 - 5 0 0 .

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of Gnostic individualism. It is not without significance that the e x a m ple of a G n o s d c liturgy that we have is indeed a charismatic liturgy. W e have a r g u e d that C l e m e n t directed his view of C h u r c h O r d e r against such a charismatic c o m m u n i t y (4B 3). Furthermore, the claimed orthodoxy that created against Gnosticism a system ruled by m o n a r c h bishops was itself M o n a r c h i a n in theo logy. Although Ignatius did not believe in m o n a r c h bishops as such, his nascent Trinitarianism does exhibit tendencies suggestive of the later M o n a r c h i a n s . W e have, furthermore, a r g u e d that his view of the significance of the procession of the m a r t y r bishop does show ecclesiastical o r d e r as a reversed, contra-cultural reflection of i m p e rial o r d e r in the Imperial Cult (6A 2). T h e admittedly fourth cen tury Apostolic Constitutions, celebrating the bishop as sole ruler, also claimed a subordinationism in the G o d h e a d that required o n e source a n d origin for its first principle, in o t h e r words a d y n a m i c form of uovotpxicc. Between the claims of Ignatius a n d the Apostolic Constitutions we have Callistus' revolution in ecclesiastical o r d e r t h a t we shall argue mirrors that of the c o n t e m p o r a r y Severan e m p e r o r , Elagabalus in imperial o r d e r ( C h a p t e r 8). 109

110

Let us for the m o m e n t begin by e x a m i n i n g I r e n a e u s ' attack o n the plurality of creators, a n d its implication for a universe of o r d e r that is essentially good. H e r e we shall find a parallel d e v e l o p m e n t to the p a g a n precursors of Plotinus, in which a plurality of powers, w h e t h e r in n a t u r e or in society, is seen for the sake of o r d e r to b e reducible to the o n e . Plotinus, as we have already seen, was to argue this case against the fundamental Gnostic ontology in Enneads II, 9 , 1 , 1 3 - 1 6 (7B 2). 7C 2 . 1 . Irenaeus and the KoouoKpdxopeq It was, as we saw, the image of Caracalla as KoauoKpdxcop, t h r o u g h w h o m shone the divinity of Sol Invictus, which, in philosophical terms, was n o w identified as vouq or Aoyoq, the ultimate a n d first principle of o r d e r which was the O n e a n d the G o o d . But in asserting the

1 0 9

K. Koschorke, D i e Polemik der Gnostiker g e g e n das kirchliche Christentum, in Nag Hammadi Studies X I I , (Brill: Leiden 1978), pp. 6 7 - 7 1 ; idem., Eine neugefund e n e gnostische G e m e i n d e o r d n u n g , in %ThK 76 (1979), p p . 3 0 - 6 0 . F.X. Funk, Die Apostolischen Konstitutionen: Eine litterarhistorische Untersuchung, (Minerva G m b H . , Frankfurt/Main 1970) (Rottenberg 1891); G. Strecker, D a s Judenchristentum in den Pseudoclementinen, in TU 7 0 (1958 and 1981), cf. Brent (1995), Hippolytus, pp. 4 6 1 - 4 6 2 ff. 1 1 0

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i m a g e of t h e rcavxoKpdxcop in these terms, t h e imperial ideology was negating Gnosticism in which, as Irenaeus in his Christian response makes plain, there w e r e a plurality of 7r.avxoKpdxope<; responsible for the created o r d e r of evil darkness, chaos, a n d enslavement. T h e a u t h o r of t h e p s e u d o Pauline letter to t h e Ephesians h a d re ferred to such a Gnostic mythology when h e spoke about the Christian struggle "against d o m i n i o n s (rcpoq y a p dpxdq), against authorities (npbq xdq e^ouaiaq), against t h e cosmic rulers of this darkness (npbq xouq K O o p o K p d x o p a q xou OK6XOU<; xouxou)." C l e m e n t of Alexandria attrib u t e d such a s e n t i m e n t also t o Plato w h e n h e said: IlAdxcov ev xcp 111

epSopcp xf|<; IIoAaxeiaq xfjv evxauGa fipepav vuicxepivnv KeicA,T|Kev 8 i d xoix; 112

KoapoKpdxopaq o l p a i xou OKOXOIX; xouxou. I r e n a e u s witnesses t h e Valentinian conception of t h e D e m i u r g e as o n e such K o o p o i c p d x c o p w h o believes that h e alone is t h e creator: "I a m G o d a n d beside m e there is n o other ('Ey© Geoq, nXr\v epou ou8ei<;)" as in Isaiah 45,5 a n d 4 6 , 9 . T h e D e m i u r g e creates t h e IlavxoKpdxcop ( . . . Aiyouai xov 8e KoapoKpdxopa Kxiapa xou Anpioupyou).

O n e m a y n o t e that t h e Valentinians m a d e t h e KoopoKpdxopeq into a single power, as did the iconography of Caracalla. But the Valentinian K o a p o K p d x c o p has his origin as o n e of the spirits of evil (xd rcveupaxiKa xfjq T c o v n p i a q ) from t h e sorrow (EK TT\<; X\)Ky)<;) that causes t h e cosmic catastrophe t h a t is t h e creation of t h e world. H i s substance is the same "spiritual substance of evil (xrjv 7rveupaxucf|v xr\q rcovripiag imooxaavv)" as t h e d a e m o n s , a n d is identified b y I r e n a e u s with t h e devil (xov SidpoXov . . . ov Kai KoapoKpdxopa KaAxnxn). F u r t h e r m o r e , h e is the i n h e r e n t spirit of evil in t h e material world (xov 8e Koopoicpdxopa ev xcp Ka0' fjpaq Koapcp). C e r d o , likewise, in succession to M a r c i o n , called t h e lesser g o d Koopoicpdxcop. Caracalla's iconography has cleansed t h e p o w e r of t h e KoapoKpdxcop, flowing t h r o u g h o u t t h e world as t h e S u n , from all associations of grief a n d evil, a n d of 113

114

115

111

Eph. 6,12. I a m indebted for m a n y o f these references a n d their discussion to C u m o n t a n d C a n e t (1919), p p . 2 3 4 - 2 3 5 . Strom. 5 , 1 4 . Irenaeus, Adv. Haer. 1,5,4 (= Frag, graec. 1, 5 3 6 - 5 4 3 ) : 'Eyo) Oeoq, nXr)v epov ovSeiq, EK 8e xfjq X\)nr\<; xd jwevpaxim xfj<; 7tovr|pia<; SiSdoKouai yeyovevai- o0ev Kai xov 8idpoAx>v XTJV yeveaiv eaxilKevai, ov Kai KoapoKpdxopa icaAouoi, Kai xd 8 a i p 6 v i a Kai rcaaav xfjvrcvevpaxiicrivxfjq TcovripCaq VTtoaxaaw.... Xeyovai xov 8e KoapoKpdxopa Kxiapa xo\) AT|pio\)pyo\). 1,5,4 (= Frag, graec. 1,549). 1,27,2. 112

113

1.4

1.5

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MONARCHIANISM

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uncontrolled subordination. T h e p o w e r of the e m p e r o r as Sol Invictus is a benign a n d g o o d o r d e r i n g of the imperial whole. Later N e o p l a t o n i s m was to o r d e r the seven planets, called t h e KoouoKpdTopeq, within the m o n a r c h y of Sol Invictus as Plotinus h a d , in Enneads II, 9 , 1 , 1 3 - 1 6 , r e d u c e d all o t h e r powers to the status of deri vative b e i n g of the O n e . Pursuing the same project with the s a m e ontological p u r p o s e , Proclus will later a d m i t the seven cosmocrators as the seven planets into his Neoplatonist scheme. " T h e planets a r e called 'cosmocrators' (01 ydp KaAouuevoi rcXdvrixec; KoouoKpdxopeq)" b u t they a r e n o longer rebellious aeons fragmenting the p l e r o m a t h r o u g h their ignorance. R a t h e r , " e a c h of t h e cosmocrators (eraoxoc; xcov KOOuoKpaxopcov), being a m o n a d (uovdq cov), is a r r a n g e d together as p a r t of a c o m m o n assembly (xcp 7iA,f|9ei auvxexayuivn)." 116

T h e a r r a n g e m e n t is the work of K i n g Helios. As Proclus says: The king of all visible things (6 pev ydp xcov opaxcov ndvxcov pcxoiXeix; [TIA,IO<;]), imitating the creative powers through rays of the light (Kai xd<; 6*Tipio\)pYiKd<; 5\)vdpei<; 5id xcov xou cpcoxo<; dKXivcov drcouauouuevoq), is accompanied as his bodyguard by the cosmocrators (imorcdvxcov8opucpopeixai xcov KoapoKpaxopcov). 117

A n d b e h i n d K i n g Helios stands the D e m i u r g e from w h o m his p o w ers in imitating n o u m e n a l o r d e r a r e derived a n d subordinate. It is quite clear that Helios is considered o n e of the cosmocrators, b u t the s u p r e m e o n e , since "for the sake of the genesis of this (phe nomenal) world (evem xfjq xouxou yeveaecoq), h e begat (drcoyevva) b o t h sun (Kai fjtaov) a n d the o t h e r cosmocratores ( K a i xoix; aXXoxx; KoouoKpdxopa<;)." T h u s clearly the KoouoKpdxopeq are assigned by the demiurge their subordinate role in the operation of the whole, t h r o u g h a d u e gradation. T h e D e m i u r g e as K i n g Helios is t h e n o u m e n a l S u n , a n d s u p r e m e cosmocrator. T h e p h e n o m e n a l sun reflects the n o u m e n a l S u n t h r o u g h which the o t h e r cosmocrators m e d i a t e m o v e m e n t a n d being to the p h e n o m e n a l world. T h e Demiurge is one (6 Srjuroupyoc;... cov eiq) b u t h e e n d o w s with assimilative p o w e r (xf|v dcpouoicoxncriv Suvapiv evxiGeiq) t h e n e w creators with h i m (xoiq p.ex' auxov veoiq Srjpioupyoiq). T h e s e are therefore b u t the m e a n s of reflecting p o w e r 118

l l b

E. Diehl, (Ed.), Prodi Diadochi, In Platonis Timaeum Commentaria, (Teubner: Leipzig 1 9 0 3 / A m s t e r d a m : Hakkert 1965), III p. 5 8 , 8 a n d 18. W . Kroll, (Ed.), Prodi Diadochi, In Platonis Rem Publicam Commentarii I (Teubner: Leipzig 1 8 9 9 / A m s t e r d a m : Hakkert 1965), p p . 2 2 0 , 2 5 - 2 8 . Proclus, Comm. in Platonis Timaeum III, p p . 9 5 , 3 1 - 3 3 . 117

1 , 8

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derived from him. H e c o m m a n d s t h e m to imitate his o w n p o w e r (pipeio0ai xfjv e a u T o u 8uvapiv) with regard to their o w n creative activ ity (nepi zr\v cruicov y e v e o i v ) . " H e n c e (oruxoGev) he appoints the cosmocrators as g u a r d s (xovq KoouoKpdxopocq cp\>A,aKa<; ucpiornoi) over the intervals of time (TCOV dpiGpcov TOU % p o v o u ) a n d as the g u a r d of night a n d day (Kai TTVV cputaxKa vuKioq Kai r i p e p a q ) . " T h e D e m i u r g e being one, he injects the assimilative p o w e r similarly into those n e w d e m i urges with h i m , w h e n h e c o m m a n d s t h e m to imitate his o w n power. T h u s the cosmocrators (oi KoouoKpdiopec;) a r e those w h o are m o v e d ( T p e r c o p e v o i ) b y the n o u m e n a l D e m i u r g e w h o is "exceedingly K i n g Helios (8iacpepovTco<; 6 p a a i t a i x ; "HAaoq)." As Proclus says: 1 1 9

120

. . . it is also clear (

K eaxiv 6 pexexopevoq povov Kai dpiBpoq wv xfj<; Kwr|aeco<;), even though the cosmocrators maintain the order appropriate to it [npbc, avxov x d £ w oi KoapoKpdxopeq), but the unseen God and eternal in essence (aXka Qebq d<pavr|<; Kai Kax' ovaiav aicovioq) is the source of power (evepycov) for all their movements (rcepircdoa<;xdq KIVTJOEI^) and the entire rota tion of the universe (Kai xr|v oXrjv xov Koapoi) rcepioSov), and he uses as his own individual means these gods themselves (6pydvoi<; 8e xpcbpevoq d>q pepiKcoxepoi(; pexpoiq eavxoi) xomoiq xoiq Oeoiq). 121

T h u s the disordered universe of b o t h polytheism a n d Gnosticism is finally o r d e r e d , a n d its analogical m o n a r c h i c a l political p o w e r legitimated. Both Plotinus a n d his p a g a n predecessors can clearly be r e g a r d e d as sharing a c o m m o n cause with I r e n a e u s in r e d u c i n g the disordered world of Gnosticism to a single first principle from which other divine entities c o u l d p r o c e e d by o r d e r e d e m a n a t i o n o r procession. F o r Plotinus a n d his predecessors the process of e m a n a t i o n was o n e by which a n essentially g o o d ultimately reality shared its being with the cosmic o r d e r without thereby experiencing diminution. F o r Plotinus no m o r e t h a n the O n e (TO "EV), the t h o u g h t (Nouq) that proceeds from the thinking O n e , a n d Soul (Vuxfl) are to be found in the intel ligible world (ev TCO vonrcp). A m o n g the three there was a direct gra d a t i o n o f b e i n g , a s u b o r d i n a t i o n o f lower to h i g h e r until finally p h e n o m e n a l n a t u r e could b e c o m e the p h e n o m e n a l napdSevypa o f the n o u m e n a l o r v o r r r o v . 119

120

121

Ibid. p. 2 , 1 0 . Ibid. p. 2 2 7 , 2 8 . Ibid. p. 4 0 , 2 .

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For Irenaeus a n d some of his predecessors there was a G o d h e a d m a d e of two or three persons, w h o were j o i n e d together with the c o m m o n tide of Kupioq. Against the Gnostics h e asserts at o n e p o i n t that Scripture knows only two divine beings assigned this n a m e : Neither the Lord (oike ouv 6 Kupioq) nor the Holy Spirit (oike rcveupa ayiov), nor apostles (oike drcoaxotan) would have ever expressed with accurate theology that he was not God (xov OUK ovxa Geov Kupico<; kQzoXoynaevrcoxe)unless he was not truly God (ei \ir\ rjv aXrfiax; Geoq), nor would they have used the term 'Lord' for someone (oike eKupio^eKxnadv xiva) on grounds of his own personal nature (e£ i5iou rcpooamou) unless he was the God and Father of all that exercised sovreignty (aXk' r\ xov KupieuovxarcdvxcovOeov rcaxepa) and his Son who received the sover eignty from the Father of all creation (Kai xov uiov auxou xov xnv Kupieiav A.a(36vxa rcapd xou rcaxpoq auxou rcdoTiq ir\q Kxiaecoq). . . Since therefore the Father is truly Lord (&A,T|8co<; ouv Kupiou ovxoq xourcaxpoc;),and the Son is truly Lord (Kai xou uiou dA.r|0cbq ovxo<; Kupiou), the Holy Spirit naturally indicated them by the tide of 'Lord.' (eiKoxcoq xo rcveupa xo ayiov xii xou Kupiou 7cpocrnyopia eor|pT|vev auxotx;). Irenaeus, Adv. Haer., 6,1. T h u s I r e n a e u s reduces the gnostic p l e r o m a to a G o d h e a d of two persons to which he will a d d elsewhere the H o l y Spirit as a t h i r d . If it should be a r g u e d t h a t a G o d h e a d of two or three persons will replicate the chaos of gnostic creation, clearly h e r e I r e n a e u s claims a unity of p u r p o s e in a divine plan, elsewhere described by h i m as oiKovouia. But note h o w this unity is conceived in terms of a polit ical analogy. F a t h e r a n d S o n have created all that there is as a wello r d e r e d a n d g o o d creation, a n d n o t chaotic a n d evil as was t h e creation that was the outcome of the b a t d e of the aeons over Sophia's expulsion. T h e Son is united in p u r p o s e with the F a t h e r . His sov ereignty a n d therefore divine tide (ldipioq), s h a r e d with the F a t h e r (xov Kupieuovxa rcdvxcov Geov rcaxepa), is by delegation (XTJV Kupeiav Axxpovxa 7tapd xou rcaxpoq). I r e n a e u s ' ontology, like that of Plotinus, is reflecting imperial o r d e r against Gnostic dxac;(a. 122

Elsewhere I r e n a e u s will follow Jn. 14, 1 0 - 1 1 a n d assert: Through the Son who is in the Father (8id xou uiou ouv xou ovxoq ev xcp rcaxpi), and who has in himself the Father (Kai exovxoq ev eauxco xov icaxepa), he who is God is manifested (6 cov ecpavepcb&ri Geoq), with the

122

Adv. Haer. I l l , 2 4 , 2 ; IV, 7,4, a n d 3 4 , 3 in which n o clear distinction is drawn b e t w e e n the Christ as Verbum a n d Sapientia, a n d the H o l y Spirit as Sapientia, cf. Brent (1995), Hippolytus, pp. 2 1 5 - 2 1 8 .

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Father witnessing to the Son (xov 7taxp6<; papxvpfioavxoq xcp via>), and the Son proclaiming the Father (Kai xov viov Kaxayyeitaxvxo*; xov rcaxepa). Irenaeus, Adv. Haer., Ill, 6,2,48 But without the theology of persons in the G o d h e a d (rcpoacorca) which Tertullian a n d Hippolytus were to d e v e l o p , such an a c c o u n t of the unity of the G o d h e a d seems far closer to the M o n a r c h i a n i s m that both of t h e m opposed, as Simonetti points o u t . In Ochagavia's telling p h r a s e , for Irenaeus the Filius was visibile patris. Let us therefore e x a m i n e further the thesis t h a t a M o n a r c h i a n ontology was reflected in the o r d e r of the Christian c o m m u n i t y that accepted such a theology, with particular reference to some of Irenaeus' predecessors. 123

124

125

7C 2.2. Ignatius of Antioch: nascent Monarchianism W e have already argued a contra-cultural parallelism between Ignatius' conception of the bishop's office, a n d his confrontation with the imperial p o w e r focused u p o n the Imperial Cult itself (6A 2 ) . We shall now see that in Ignatian theology we possess a nascent M o n a r chianism in the G o d h e a d that also flows over into his conception of C h u r c h O r d e r . H o w e v e r , we d o well to emphasise that the M o n a r chianism is a nascent one. 126

D a s s m a n n , using the insights he h a d g a i n e d from w h a t today would be described as Peterson's sociology of knowledge, originally connected Ignatius of Antioch's modalistic tendencies with his argu m e n t for a n episcopal m o n a r c h y . I have a r g u e d elsewhere against the view that Ignatius envisaged a m o n a r c h bishop as later e m e r g e d in R o m e , a n d in the Syria of the Didascalia. Ignatius' concept of the threefold O r d e r I have a r g u e d earlier to be far m o r e influenced by typological analogies shared with p a g a n worship between divinities a n d their sacral representatives r a t h e r t h a n on a n y direct relation ship between a developed doctrine of the Trinity a n d subordination within ecclesial O r d e r (6A 2). 127

1 2 3

Tertullian, Adv. Prax., 1 and 9 a n d Hippolytus, CJV. 14, 2 - 3 . For m y c o m ments o n these passages see Brent (1995), Hippolytus, p p . 2 5 2 - 2 5 8 and p p . 5 3 0 - 5 3 5 . M . Simonetti, II problema dell'unita di D i o da Giustino a Ireneo, in RSLR 2 2 , 2 (1986), p p . 2 2 9 - 2 3 7 . J. O c h a v g a v i a , Visibile Patris Filius, A Study o f Irenaeus' T e a c h i n g o n R e v e lation and Tradition, in OrChrA 171 (1964), chapter 3. See also A. Brent, Ignatius o f Antioch and the Imperial Cult, in VCh 52,1 (1997), pp. 3 0 - 5 8 . E. D a s s m a n n , Zur Entstehung des Monepiskopats, in JbAC 17 (1974), p. 74. 1 2 4

1 2 }

12<>

1 2 7

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I have a r g u e d in detail elsewhere that C h u r c h O r d e r for Ignatius is not m o n a r c h i c a l , as a comparison with the Didascalia Apostolorum will show. His threefold O r d e r is a three-fold typology r a t h e r t h a n a three-fold h i e r a r c h y . T h e Laity are instructed to submit, for the sake of reflecting the divine oiicovouia or plan of salvation, to Bishops, Presbyters, a n d D e a c o n s . But neither the Presbyters n o r D e a c o n s receive instructions to submit to the Bishop, b u t are r e g a r d e d as nat urally d o i n g so, in the s y m p h o n i c chorus that they form together (6B 2). T h e O r d e r of the C h u r c h is a result of the liturgical incar nation, in the life of the c o m m u n i t y , of the words a n d actions of all three O r d e r s , a n d their r e - e n a c t m e n t of the way in which the F a t h e r Bishop, sends the diaconal Son, in the context of the Presbyteral spirit-filled council of the Aposdes. 128

Yet u n d o u b t e d l y Ignatius has tendencies towards a M o n a r c h i a n version of the Trinity that is not consistent with his m o r e T r i n i t a r i a n view of O r d e r . It was the former t h a t was b o t h to develop a n d to prevail in the anti-Gnostic writers of the second century. F u r t h e r m o r e , I shall a r g u e that w h e n T r i n i t a r i a n M o n a r c h i a n i s m developed in its final form, it provided a contra-cultural reflection of divine imper ial order, a n d its consistent reflection in the social construction of reality by the Christian contra-culture p r o d u c e d m o n a r c h - b i s h o p s , u n i t e d b y m u t u a l i n t e r - c o m m u n i o n a n d r e c o g n i t i o n . T h e episcopatus. . . una, centred on the See of R o m e , was thus to form the contra-cultural c o u n t e r p a r t to the person of the e m p e r o r as source of imperial order. Ignatius of Antioch h a d spoken of "Jesus Christ w h o p r o c e e d e d from the one Father (xov a
1 2 8

A. Brent, Cultural Episcopacy and E c u m e n i s m , Representative Ministry in C h u r c h History from the A g e o f Ignatius o f Antioch to the Reformation, with spe cial reference to contemporary e c u m e n i s m , in Studies in Christian Mission 6, (Leiden: E J . Brill 1992), p p . 6 7 - 7 3 ; Idem. History a n d Eschatological Mysticism in Ignatius o f Antioch, in EThL 6 5 , 4 (1989), p p . 3 1 6 - 3 2 0 ; Idem. T h e Relations b e t w e e n Ignatius o f Antioch a n d the Didascalia Apostolorum, in Second Century, 8,3 (1991), p p . 1 3 0 - 1 3 4 ; Idem. E c u m e n i c a l Relations a n d Cultural Episcopates, in AThR 7 2 , 3 (1990), p p . 266-269. Ignatius, Magnes., 7,2. C f also Magnes. 1,2: . . . evcooiv e u x o u a i . . . 'biaou Kai rcaxpoq. 1 2 9

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derivation from a n ultimate origin that we have witnessed also in the metaphysics a n d iconography of imperial order. T h e C h u r c h in Ignatius is p o r t r a y e d as deriving its o r d e r e d life from the o r d e r of the G o d h e a d . T h e risen Christ was "united with the Father in Spirit (7ivei)paxiKco<; f|vcopevo<; xcp rcaxpi)" as he a p p e a r e d to "those a r o u n d Peter in the flesh (d><; oapKiKoq)." T h e g r o u p that founds historically the C h u r c h "immediately t o u c h e d him (Kai euOix; auxov f|\|/avTo) a n d believed (Kai ercioxeuoav), since they h a d b e c o m e mingled (KpaGevxeq) with his flesh a n d spirit (xf| oapKi auxou Kai xcp rcveupaxi)." Ignatius n o w describes a procession in the structure of the c o m m u n i t y that mirrors the ontology of the G o d h e a d . 130

Ignatius' language, in Rom. 6 , 1 , as we have seen (6B), reflects the imperial ideal, a n d to the Imperial Cult his own martyrological p r o cession represents his contra-cultural c o u n t e r p a r t . F u r t h e r m o r e , as counter image of the imperial ideal we read: For Jesus Christ (mi yap Tnaovq Xpicxoq), our indivisible life (xodSiaKpixov fjpcov £fjv), is the mind of the Father (xov naxpoq r\ yvcbpri), even as the bishops w h o are found at the earth's ends (ox; Kai oi e7iiGK07ioi, oi Kaxd xd Ttepaxa opioGevxeq) are in the mind of Jesus Christ (ev 'Incou Xpiaxov yvcbpri eiaiv).

Ignatius, Ephes., 3,1. Ecclesiastical authority thus comes from the indivisible life (xo d 8 i d K p i xov fjpcbv £fjv) of the ultimate O n e F a t h e r from w h o m Christ J e s u s c a m e a n d to w h o m h e returned. Such authority is therefore derived from divine, unifying p o w e r that gives t h e m their authority in the c o m m u n i t y , just as Neoplatonist political theology was to claim for Caracalla the KoapoKpdxcop a n d his successors. J u s t as the L o r d did nothing without the F a t h e r d u e to their union (rivcopevoqaW), n o r without the apostles w h o shared that u n i o n as we saw with "those a r o u n d Peter," so the c o m m u n i t y is to d o n o t h i n g without the bishop w h o represents the Father, n o r the presbyters w h o represent the apostles. T h e unity of the G o d h e a d must b e reflected in the unity of the community. Social structure reflects onto logical structure. T h u s : 131

1 3 0

Ignatius, Smyr., 2 - 3 . Ibid. Magnes. 7,1: coarcep oi>v 6

K v p i o q avev xovrcaxpoqoi)8ev ercouiaev, fivcopevoq "ov, oi)xe 5i' eavxov oike 5id xcov &7toax6Xcov• ovxox; pn5e upeiq aveu xot> e i c i a K O T c o D K a i xcov upeapDxepcov pnSev jcpdoaexe. 131

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299

Be subject to the bishop and each other (urcoxdynxe xcp erciaKOTicp Kai aXkr\Xoi(;), as Jesus Christ to the Father according to the flesh (cbq 'ITIGOUC; Xpiaxoq xcp rcaxpi Kaxd cdpKa), and the aposdes to Jesus Christ, and to the Father and Spirit (Kai oi d7coaxoXot xcp Xpiaxcp Kai xcp rcaxpi Kai 7Tveuuaxi), in order that there may be a unity of flesh and Spirit (iva evcocu<; f| aapKiicri xe Kai Ttveuuaxucri).

Magnes. 13,1 Ignatius sees in the person of the bishop a n expression of divine o r d e r t h a t is euxa^ia: It is clear that it is necessary to look upon the bishop as the Lord himself (xov ouv eTuoKorcov Sr\Xov oxi cbq auxov xov Kupiov 8ei Ttpoo-pAirceiv).

Onesimus himself praises strongly your good order in God (auxoq pev ouv 'Ovr|aipo<; i)7cepe7caivei upcbv XT^V ev 0ecp euxa^iav).

Ephes. 6,2 T h e g o o d o r d e r of society thus reflects the ontology of t h e G o d h e a d . F u r t h e r m o r e , the ontology that legitimates social o r d e r must, in o r d e r to justify its assumptions, reject the divided a n d chaotic view of creation p r o p o u n d e d by Gnosticism, with a n early version of which Ignatius clearly deals. T h e star of Bethlehem "was manifested to the aeons (ecpavepcoOri xoiq aicoaiv)" a n d "all magic a n d every b o n d of evil d i s a p p e a r e d (rc&ca uoryeia K a i naq 8eaud<; f|cpavi£exo; Ephes. 19,3)." T h e escape from a world of w a r , division, a n d passion is u n i o n with the threefold typology that mediates the unity of the G o d h e a d for " w h e r e there is division a n d w r a t h (oi) 8e |i£piaud<; eaxiv K a i 6pyr|), G o d does not abide (Geoq ou Kaxoncei.). T h e L o r d forgives all that repent (rcaaiv ouv pxxavoouaw dcpiei 6 Kupioq) if they turn in repentance to the unity of G o d a n d t h e council of the bishop (edv u£xavor|acocyiv eiq evoxnxa Geou K a i auveSpiov xou eniGKonov; Philad. 8,1)." W e h a v e seen h o w , in Ephesians 13, the pax deorum t h a t underlies the imperial p e a c e is realised instead for Ignatius ev xfi ouovoia upxbv xf|<; jdaxecoq. "Nothing is better than peace (ouSev eaxiv apxvvov eipnvriq), in which all w a r of earthly a n d heavenly things is abolished (ev r\ naq rcoXeuoq K a x a p y e i x a i ercoupavicov K a i eTuyeicov)." (6B 2.4) W e n o w see h o w specifically that o r d e r is created for Ignatius t h r o u g h the procession of S o n from the F a t h e r that continues in the threefold typology of Bishop, Presbyters a n d D e a c o n s . W e have noted, m o r e over, h o w that procession from the O n e F a t h e r that returns to the O n e F a t h e r (7C 2.2) is indicative of a general intellectual culture. T h e unity of n a t u r e , history, o r society is derived from a n ultimate reality in relation to which they a r e b u t m o d e s o r gradations of the

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real, good, a n d O n e . It was a y e a r n i n g that we have a r g u e d Plotinus was to satisfy in a finished ontological system that found its prior expression in p a g a n a n d imperial as well as Christian reflections on the structure of reality a n d its reflection in social order. A consequence for Ignatian doctrine was that the unity of G o d n e e d e d to be emphasised, with gradations allowed t h r o u g h the per sons of the Trinity that lead in turn to their legitimating expression in C h u r c h O r d e r . Ignatius often speaks as t h o u g h F a t h e r a n d Son were b u t g r a d e d manifestations of a single reality. J e s u s Christ, the " o n e physician (eiq iccxpoq)" is yevvnTOc; a n d , pace the Nicene C r e e d , also dyevvnioq. As we have considered in a n o t h e r context (6B 1), Ignatius speaks of the Ephesians as dva£co7rupr|oavTe<; ev aipa-ci Geou (Ephes. 1,1). In Rom. 6 he wishes to be a pipr|Tr|<; "of the suffering of m y G o d (TOUrcdGotx;TOU Geou p o u ) . " T h e a u t h o r of the L o n g e r Recension, w h o m a y have b e e n himself a n Arian, corrected the for m e r , t h o u g h not the latter of these expressions in a subordinationist d i r e c t i o n . 132

133

134

W e see, therefore, a M o n a r c h i a n t e n d e n c y in Ignatius, not wholly reconcilable with his justification of ecclesiastical O r d e r , b u t which m a n y of his successors developed in such a direction. Let us n o w t u r n o u r attention to three o t h e r second century writers w h o tell us, before Callistus, n o t h i n g directly a b o u t O r d e r b u t clearly participate in a n intellectual culture that seeks a n ultimate ontological origin in its metaphysical quest. 7C 2.3. Monarchianism: Athenagoras, Justin and Tatian As Simonetti has pointed out, there was a strongly M o n a r c h i a n strand in the Christian apologists of the second c e n t u r y . A e o n specula tion of Gnostics such as Valentinus a n d Basilides was strongly rejected. T h e emphasis on the unity of G o d is often attributed to the J u d a i c 135

132

Ephes. 7,1, cf. J . B . Lightfoot, The Apostolic Fathers. Part I S. C l e m e n t o f R o m e , 2, II: S. Ignatius. S. Polycarp, (London: M a c M i l l a n 1889), p p . 9 0 - 9 4 . See also Rom. 3,3: &ya7rnv 'Iriaov Xpioxov xov Geou \iov cf. Simonetti (1986), pp. 2 0 2 - 2 0 3 . Pseudo Ignatius, Rom. 6 retains the phrase, but in Rom. 3 it is omitted alto gether. In Ephes. there are extensive alterations, see Ephes. 1: dva£co7rupr|oavx£<; ev ai'paxi Xpioxov and 7: iaxpoq 6e fipcov eaxi 6 povoq dXriGivoc; Geoq, 6 ayevvr|xo<; K a i drcpoaixoq, 6 xcov otaov Kupioq, xov 8e povoyevotx; naxr\p K a i yevvr|xcop. exopev iaxpov K a i xov Kt>piov fipcov Geov 'Ir|aovv xov Xpiaxov, xovrcpoaicbvcov vibv povoyevfj K a i AxSyov. Simonetti (1986), p p . 4 4 6 - 4 4 7 . 1 3 3

1 3 4

135

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301

b a c k g r o u n d of M o n a r c h i a n g r o u p s . O n t h e o n e h a n d , d y n a m i c M o n a r c h i a n s c o n s i d e r e d J e s u s a m e r e m a n e n d o w e d with e x t r a o r d i n a r y p o w e r s at his b a p t i s m , a n d w e r e c h a r a c t e r i s e d later by E p i p h a n i u s as Ebionites. O n the other, modalistic M o n a r c h i a n i s m t u r n e d the persons of the Trinity into phases or m o d e s of the divine. H o w e v e r m u c h the J u d a i c b a c k g r o u n d m a y have emphasised the unity of G o d , that unity, even within J u d a i s m , c a m e to be expressed, in the works of Philo a n d others, in terms of Hellenistic philoso phy. By the middle of the second century the e m b r y o n i c doctrine of the Trinity begin to assume modalistic features in o t h e r writers in addition to Irenaeus. 136

7C

2 . 3 . 1 . uovocpxia and the Godhead in Justin and Tatian

T a t i a n (A.D. 165), echoing J u s t i n ,

137

expresses the relation of the

Logos to the first principle, which he calls in the following passage b o t h dpxr| a n d 6 rcpcoxoq navioq: By his mere will the Logos sprang forth (6eAr|uaxi 8e xfjq ankox^zoq auxou 7ipo7cr|8a Aoyoq) and the Logos, not proceeding in vain (6 8e Aoyo<; ou Kaxd KEVOU xcoprioaq), he became the firstborn work of the Father (epyov TcpcoxoxoKov xou rcaxpoq yivexai). The latter we know as the first princi ple of the world (xouxov i'apev xou KOGUOU XT^V dpxt|v), and he came into being by partition (yeyove 8e Kaxd peptapov) and not by section (ou m x ' drcoK07rr|v). For that which is cut off as a section (xo ydp drcoxurjBev) is separated from its origin (xourcpcoxounavibq Kexcopiaxai), but what is divided into parts (xo 8e |iepic0ev), requiring distinction for the sake of a plan of arrangement (oiKovopiaq xdpiv xf|v Siaipeaiv rcpoataxPov), is not bereft of the origin from which it came (OUK ev8ea xov o0ev exkr\nxai 7t£7toir|Kev).

Tatian, Oratio ad Graecos, 5,7-10. In this passage, as I have a r g u e d elsewhere, T a t i a n is far closer to the M o n a r c h i a n i s m o f the later Callistus, to w h o m Hippolytus in the Contra Noetum was to m a k e the conciliatory gesture of denying that the Aoyoq daapKoq was xzkexoc, uioq before he (it) b e c a m e taSyoq evoapKoq t h r o u g h i n c a r n a t i o n in the V i r g i n . In T a t i a n the Aoyoq is a cre ation (epyov TcpcoxoxoKov), albeit inseparable from its creator (ou rax' 138

1 3 6

Philo, De spec, legib I, 1 3 - 3 1 a n d Peterson (1935), p p . 2 3 - 2 4 a n d pp. 107- 108. J u s t i n Martyr, Dial., 6 1 , 2 w h e r e oi) K a i ' arcoxouriv coq eXaxTCoGfjvai xov ev f|uiv \6yov parallels closely this passage. S e e M . M a r c o v i c h (Ed.), Tatiani, Oratio ad G r a e c o s , in PTS 4 3 , (1995), p. 1. E.g. CJV. 4,8 a n d 15,7. For other references a n d a full discussion, see Brent (1995), Hippolytus, pp. 2 1 0 2 4 0 . 137

I3H

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dt7COK07cf|v) like a b u r n i n g torch that creates a second one by contact. It is the i m a g e of the b u r n i n g torch that T a t i a n , like J u s t i n before him,

139

now employs:

For even as many fires are lighted from one torch (coarcep yap anb piaq dadb<; dvdrcxexai pev Trupd noXXa), but the light of the first torch is not diminished because it has been lit from many torches, (xfjq 8e 7tpcbxr|<; babbc, 8id xf^v e^avjnv xcov noXk&v 8a8cov oi)K eAxxxxovxai xo cpcoq), so also the Logos proceeding from the power of the Father (oikco Kai 6 Aoyoc; 7ipoeA,0o)v CK xfjq xov naxpbq 8\)vdpeco<;), does not deprive the one who gave him birth of rational speech (OVK d^oyov ne7toir|Ke xov yeyevvriKoxa). Tatian, Oratio ad Graecos, 5, 11-15. N o t w i t h s t a n d i n g the parallel with J u s t i n , we have seen that Apuleius also, in De Mundo 6, 398a 3 1 - 3 5 , m a d e use of the image of the transmission of light signals to explain the transmission of the divine p o w e r that directs the universe CK piaq cxp%fj<;. In the previous pas sage too there is a similar p r e o c c u p a t i o n with cosmic unity in terms of derivation from the o n e first principle. T h e Logos proceeds from the F a t h e r as xov Koopou TTIV dp%r|v without being cut off from xov rcpcoTou navxbq. But T a t i a n shared a quest for a unified cosmos with the follow ers of Isis, a n d indeed with M a r c u s Aurelius w h o , as we h a v e seen, identified Faustina with the religious i c o n o g r a p h y of a unified n a t u r e expressed in a unified imperial o r d e r (7A 1.1.3). T h e Isis h y m n from A n d r o s spoke of " t h e sign of y o u r m o n a r c h y , O Q u e e n (aapoc xeaq, Seorcowa, p o v a p x e i a q ) , " a n d T a t i a n sought such a unified o r d e r which he found in the J u d a e o - C h r i s t i a n tradition. In the perplexity that lead to his conversion, h e r e a d the O l d T e s t a m e n t Scriptures, t h o u g h they a p p e a r e d " b a r b a r i c . " H e claims: 140

I was persuaded by these (Kai poi 7teio0f|vai xavxaiq a-uvePrj) because of (Sid xe). . . the easily intelligible account of the creation of the world (xfj<; xovrcavxoq7tovr|Geco<; xo ei)Kaxd^r|7rxov), the foreknowledge of the future (Kai xcov peAAovxcov xo rcpoyvcoaxiKov), . . . and the monarchical doctrine of the universe (Kai xcov oXxov xo povapxiKOv). Tatian, Oratio ad Graecos, 29, 11-15.

I i 9

Justin Martyr, Dialogus, 6 1 , 2 : Kai orcoTov erci irupoq opcopev OLXXO yivopevov, OX>K eXaxxoDpevoo e K e i v o v e£ oi) f| dva\}/i<; yeyovev. W . Peek, Der hishymnus von Andros und verwandte Texte, (Berlin: W e i d m a n n 1930), p. 15,6 (= Totti (1985) n o . 2, 6), cf. Peterson (1935), p. 21 and p. 105. 1 4 0

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I n d e e d , T a d a n disregards the strong, p a g a n currents that were con tributing to such a p a g a n doctrine b o t h in the political ideology of imperial p o w e r , a n d in the developing, justifying metaphysic

that

Apuleius a n d Plutarch exhibit. T a t i a n proceeds to attack p a g a n cul ture for failing to exercise the principle of founding the religious o r d e r of the cosmos o n a single first principle from which all is derived (uovapxia). As he says: You Greeks are the sort of people (xoiouxoi xiveq eaxe Kai upeiq, co "EM,r|ve<;) whose words are fluent, (pnpaai pev axcouuAui) whose ideas are bizarre (yvcopriv 8' exovxe<; CCAAOKOTOV). Y O U practice the rule of the many rather than of one (Kai xfy 7ioA,uKoipavrnv paAAov rfrep xfiv povapxiav e£uaKT|oaxe), and are used to following the daemons as if they were strong (raGdrcep ioxupoiq voui^ovxeq aoyaXeq zolq Saipooi KaxaKO^ouGeiv). Tatian, Oratio ad Graecos, 14,1-3 In a d o p t i n g a polytheistic framework he argues therefore that the G r a e c o - R o m a n world is, inconsistendy with the imperial ideal, attack ing the uovapxia. His claim hardly did justice to the work of Apuleius a n d Plutarch, let alone those w h o constructed the i c o n o g r a p h y of the i m p e r i a l c o i n a g e a n d p r e s i d e d over t h e d e v e l o p m e n t of the Imperial Cult. 7C 2.3.2. Political structure and the Trinity in Athenagoras T a t i a n does not explore the relationship of ontological political uovapxia, as opposed being simply parasitic u p o n culture in which the two concepts were intertwined. conversely does n o t use the w o r d uovapxia, b u t we find of derived authority from a single dpxr| clearly d r a w n in analogy with political structure.

uovapxia to the b r o a d e r Athenagoras the concept ontology by

A t h e n a g o r a s begins by addressing the e m p e r o r s M a r c u s Aurelius a n d C o m m o d u s (A.D. 1 7 6 - 1 8 0 ) as " p h i l o s o p h e r s . " But in the course of his address he attacks the worship of images (etKoveq) on the g r o u n d that the n a m e s of those w h o sculpted t h e m a n d thus b r o u g h t t h e m into existence are k n o w n . "If they are gods (ei xoivuv Geoi), w h y were they not so from the beginning (xi OUK rjoav e£ dpxf|<;)? W h y a r e they m o r e recent t h a n their makers (xi 8e eiaiv vecoxepoi xcov ne7coir|K6xcov)?" H e then uses an a r g u m e n t to M a r c u s Aurelius a n d 141

142

141

M . Marcovich (Ed.), Athenagoras, Legatio pro Christianis, in PTS 3 1 , (1990), insc. Athenagoras, Legatio, 17, 3 4 - 3 5 . S e e also E. O s b o r n , The Emergence of Christian Theology, (Cambridge: U . P . 1995), pp. 1 2 5 - 1 2 9 ; pp. 1 7 4 - 1 7 8 . 142

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his son C o m m o d u s in which he uses a n analogy between the grades of imperial p o w e r a n d relations between F a t h e r a n d Son: May you find it possible to examine by your own efforts also the heav enly kingdom (e'xoixe 8' dv oruioi dip' eauxcbv Kai xfjv enoupdviov PaaiXeiav e£exd£eiv); for as all things have been subjected to you, a father and a son (d>q yap i)piv rcaxpi Kai vicp ndvxa Kexeipcoxai), who have received your kingdom from above (dvcoGev xfjv paai^eiav eiXr|(p6aiv), for "the king's life is in God's hands («paaiAico<; yap \|/i)xr| ev x P Geot>»)," as the prophetic spirit says ((pnai xorcpocprixiKovrcveupa),so all things are subordinated to the one God and the Word that issues from him whom we consider his inseparable Son (omcoq evi xcp Gecp Kai xcp n a p ' amov Xoycp, \)icp voovpevcp dpepiaxcp, rcdvxa imoxexaKxai). Legatio 18,10-14 e i

l

H e n c e it is the inseparable Son p r o c e e d i n g from the true a n d ulti m a t e dp%r| that g u a r a n t e e s b o t h cosmic a n d political o r d e r which paganism, with its variety of myths in chaotic discorder, c a n n o t . H e goes through a n u m b e r of p a g a n m y t h s

143

of which he gives a Platonic

critique, a n d o n the following principle: Each of the beings endowed with divinity by them (eraaxov yap xcov xeGeoXoyrjpevcov), must be perishable on the grounds that it has a begining (ox; xfjv dpxrjv e'xov, Kai cpGapxov 8eov eivai). For if they, not existing, have come into existence (ei ydp yeyovaaiv o\)K ovxeq), as those who the ologize about them say (cbq oi rcepi avxcbv Geo^oyoOvxeq ^eyoDGiv), they do not exist (O\>K eia(v). For either something does not begin its exist ence (fi ydp dyevrixov xi), and is eternal (Kai eaxiv diSiov), or it come into existence (fi yevrixov), and is perishable (Kai cpGapxov eaxiv). Athenagoras, Legatio, 19,1. A t h e n a g o r a s therefore is able to present a n apologetic tour de force. H e can suggest that the true metaphysics of order, reflected in the derived p o w e r of C o m m o d u s from his father, M a r c u s Aurelius, can not find s u p p o r t in the theologoumena of p a g a n i s m . T h e divine unity of imperial society reflects r a t h e r the relationship b e t w e e n F a t h e r a n d Son in the Christian G o d h e a d . It was a Platonising solution that Plotinus was later to find persuasive, t h o u g h with a different a n d p a g a n a c c o u n t of the unity of the cosmos a n d its derivation from the O n e . O u r conclusion m u s t be that iconographic expression of universal

m

C h r o n o s , Zeus, H e r a , R h e a , Osiris, and Isis all c o m e under his censure in chapters 2 0 - 2 3 .

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p o w e r from o n e universal source or origin, such as we have seen with M a r c u s Aurelius a n d Faustina II (7A 1.1.3) in connection with the Sarapis-Isis motif on their coins, has failed to impress Athenagoras. H e clearly does not share the convictions of Plutarch or Apuleius on the uovapxia of Isis, a n d the universality of the o n e goddess with m a n y n a m e s . But the ontology of the Christian G o d h e a d with which he replaces such a quest for a theology of imperial unity equally can service a n imperialist political ideology. T h e spirit of the a u t h o r of Luke-Acts, a n d his message to T h e o p h i l u s a n d his circle clearly con tinues in the second century. Certainly A t h e n a g o r a s ' language of derivation is to find echoes in later Neoplatonism. H e does not distinguish a Trinity of persons, a n d in the following passage rcveuuo: is not distinguished from Xoyoc;, vouq, or oocpia. E a c h is descriptive of the n a t u r e of the Son: For as we say, God, the Son his Logos and Holy Spirit (coq ydp 9e6v (papev, Kai inov xov Xoyov auxou, Kai rcveuua dyiov) are united in power (evoupeva pev Kaxd 8uvap.iv) but distinguished in rank (Staipoupeva 8e Kaxd xd^tv) as the Father, the Son, and the Spirit (eiq xov rcaxepa, xov uiov, xo rcveupa) since the Son of the Father is mind, Logos, wisdom, and the Spirit is effluence of God, as light from fire (oxi vouq, Adyoc;, oocpia 6 uio<; xourcaxpoqKai drcoppoia xou Geou cbq cpcoc; anb jcupoq, xo jweuua). Legatio 24,2. O n c e again, the analogy of derivation, of light from the fire, is r e m iniscent of the political analogy of the Aristotelian o r d e r of the cos mos as Apuleius expressed this, in a Platonic form, in De Mundo 6, 398a 3 1 - 3 5 , a n d indeed used also by Tatian (7C 2.3.1). It is significant however that not merely the concept of xd^iq but also that of drcoppoia, b o t h found in this passage, are used in a political c o n t e x t . In the H e r m e t i c fragment entitled Kopu Koouou, Isis begins h e r sacred discourse. T h e earth entreats h e r that to m a i n t a i n o r d e r a n d goodness amongst the elements it contains: "if not yourself (KOCV ou oeauxov) . . . a certain sacred effluence of yourself (oauxou x w a iepdv drcoppoiav)." W e learn then that H e r m e s is to c o m e as " a n o t h e r 144

145

1 4 4

For a useful s u m m a r y o f references to uses o f arcoppoia a n d cognates, see J. A m a n n , D i e Zeusrede des Ailios Aristeides, in TBA 12 (1931), p. 75 and Peterson (1935), p p . 2 3 - 2 5 ; 1 1 0 - 1 1 1 . A . D . N o c k a n d A.J. Festugiere, C o r p u s H e r m e t i c u m IV: Fragments extraits de Stobee, IV, in Collection des Universites de France, Association Guillaume Bude, (Paris: Societe d'Edition «Les Belles Lettres» 1954), Fragment X X I I I (= Stobaeus, I, 4 1 , 44), 6 2 , 1 9 - 2 0 . 1 4 5

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effluence from m y n a t u r e (exepa ydp ev uuiv xi<; r\5r\ xr\q eufjq drcoppoia (puaecoq) w h o shall also be the holy e x a m i n e r of all that is d o n e (oq 5f| K a i ocioq eoxai xcov rcpaxxouevcov EKOKXJ]^) . . . " 1 4 6

But the drcoppoia does not e n d with H e r m e s alone. W h e n H o r u s asks his m o t h e r by w h o m the terrestrial sphere is to be o r d e r e d , Isis replies by " t h e one w h o becomes e m p e r o r from time to time (6 m i d m i p o v yevouevog Paai^euq.)." She continues: For, my child, the gods give birth to emperors (yevvcooi ydp, cb xeicvov, paai^eiq) who are worthy of their earthly progeny (oi 0eoi enafyoxx; xr\q eTiiyeio-u yovfiq). And rulers are emanations of the emperor (Kai eiaiv oi ap%ovxe<; xot> PaaiAicoc; dnoppoiai), and the ruler amongst whom is near est to him (GOV 6 udAAov eKeivco nXr\oiov) is also more royal than the others (ot>xo<; Kai xcov dMcov paaiXiKcoxepoq). For the sun, as it is nearer to God (6 uev ydp TIXIOQ, Ka06 eyyiov eaxi xov 0eo\>), is greater and more powerful than the moon (xfjq oekr\vr\q erciuei^cov Kai 8\)vauiKcbxepo<;) . . . Corpus Hermeticum, Fragment 24,1-2 T h u s we find the divine o r d e r of w h a t is elsewhere described as Isis' uovapxia pervades through existence to divine m o n a r c h y in the earthly political sphere. T h e e m p e r o r h e r e , like C a r a c a l l a as Koojioicpdxcop, is the source from w h i c h all o t h e r divine political p o w e r e m a n a t e s to the dpxovxeq. A view of the world as orderly e m a n a t i o n derived from a Platonised Aristotelianism once again presupposes a refuta tion of a Gnosticism t h a t m a d e the aeonic dpxovxeq xou K O O U O U the source of cosmic disorder a n d imperfection. A t h e n a g o r a s finally describes the H o l y Spirit, w h o m he identifies with the Son w h o is vouq, oocpia, a n d Aoyoq, as we have seen, in the following terms: The same Holy Spirit that empowers (mixoi Kai avxb xo evepyovv) those who proclaim prophetically (xoiq eKcpcovouoi 7tpoq>rixiKcb<;) we say is the effluence of God (dyiov Ttvevuxx drcoppoiav eivai (pauev xov 0eov) which flows forth from him (drcoppeov) and returns (Kai eTcavacpepojievov) like the rays of the sun (ox; dKxiva f|A,(o\)). Who then would not be amazed (x(q ovv o\)K dv drcopricai) if he heard of men called atheists (aKovoaq d0eov<; Katayouevouc;) who bring forward God the Father, God the Son and the Holy Spirit (xoix; dyovxaq 0e6v rcaxepa Kai mov 0e6v Kai KVEVLIOL dyiov), and who proclaim both their power in their unity (5eiKv\>vxa<; avxcbv Kai xf)v ev xfi evcoaei 8\)vauiv) and their diversity in rank (Kai xfjv xfi xd^ei Sia(peaiv). Athenagoras, Legatio 1 0 , 4 - 5 .

Corp. Herm., Frag. XXIII (= Stobaeus, I, 41, 44), 62, 19 21.

PAGAN AND CHRISTIAN MONARCHIANISM

307

Certainly A t h e n a g o r a s ' language h e r e can be paralleled in p a g a n M o n a r c h i a n i s m as it sought to explain all divinity as derived from a single dcp%r|. Aelius Aristides, his p a g a n c o n t e m p o r a r y , speaks of Zeus as the dpxu. a n d the divinity of the o t h e r gods as derivation (dTtoppofi). T h u s though Athenagoras does not use the term uovapxia, he is nevertheless involved in the same conceptual world as T a t i a n a n d , as we shall see, T h e o p h i l u s , w h o clearly did. Political p o w e r a n d derived authority is clearly seen by analogy with t h e rays of the sun, just as in the Corpus Hermeticum a n d in the coinage of Caracalla. 'Arcoppoicc as a t e r m for e m a n a t i o n or derivation in n a t u r e is applied to the p a g a n political structure in explication of the concept of an e m p i r e of unity in diversity. 147

Clearly therefore A t h e n a g o r a s ' analogy between the derivation of authority by e m a n a t i o n or effluence within the G o d h e a d a n d the derivative relationship b e t w e e n his son C o m m o d u s a n d the e m p e r o r M a r c u s Aurelius was sustained by b o t h the p a g a n religious back g r o u n d a n d the supportive Platonism that gave that b a c k g r o u n d its intellectual credibility. T h e r e was also a p a g a n uovapxia in accord a n c e with which divine political p o w e r overflowed from the o n e E m p e r o r a n d t h r o u g h the o n e E m p i r e , just as in n a t u r e all was sub ordinate to the u i a dpxu.. Let us finally look at the c o n c e p t of uovapxia as it frequently a p p e a r s in T h e o p h i l u s , w h o might well have b e e n employing the concept of uovapxia in a n a r g u m e n t similar to that of A t h e n a g o r a s w h o strongly implies the t e r m even t h o u g h he does n o t use it. 7C 2.3.3. Theophilus and the pagan quest for the uovapxia W e have seen h o w T a t i a n used the t e r m uovapxia against p a g a n s on the g r o u n d s that in their polytheism they were denying a con cept, b o t h ontological a n d imperial, to which they were otherwise c o m m i t t e d . T h e o p h i l u s will n o w challenge the ability of p a g a n reli gion to b e able to use philosophy to p r o d u c e its required ontologi cal uovapxia.

147

Aelius Aristides, Eiq Aia, 7,9: Zeix;. . . rcpoxepov auxoq eavxov e£ eauxoi) ercoir|G£v K a i ouSev rcpoae8ef|U>| exepou eiq xo e i v a i , aXX' auxo xovvavxiov rcdvxa e i v a i arc' eKeivou rjp^axo. K a i OUK eaxi Xpovov eiTteiv • ou8e yap xpovoq r\v TWO rcoxe, oxi uTjSe aXXo u r | 8 e v Snuiovpyoi) y a p epyov ouSev eaxi rcpeapvxepov. ouxco 5f| dpxrj uev drcavxcov Zevq xe K a i £K Aibq rcdvxa; 7,15: coaxe m i 0ecov o a a (puXa drcoppofiv xf|<; Aioq TOX> rcdvxcov T t a x p o q 8\)vdueco<; e m a x a e'xei. (= B. Keil, Aelii Aristidis Smyrnaei, opera quae supersunt omnia, (Berlin: W e i d m a n n 1897), II, pp. 3 3 9 347).

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J u s t i n M a r t y r h a d claimed that the basic philosophical a g e n d a in the second century consisted in inquiries (£nxr|G£i<;) a b o u t the ulti mate first principle (rcepi uovapxia<;) a n d about the divine foreknowledge (rcpovoiaq). Certainly T h e o p h i l u s (A.D. 180) is c o n c e r n e d with the uovapxia as such. But t h o u g h he is c o m m i t t e d to the basic quest for the u i a dpxu., b o t h religious a n d philosophical, which he shares with his p a g a n contemporaries, he nevertheless denies their particular solu tion to the quest, c o m m o n in the late second century, to b o t h P a g a n a n d Christian. 148

It is in the light of his failure to fulfil the second century a g e n d a of discovering a n ultimate first principle t h a t Plato, a c c o r d i n g to T h e o p h i l u s , is to be j u d g e d . By denying the creation of m a t t e r that exists therefore eternally alongside a n u n c r e a t e d G o d , Plato presents an a c c o u n t t h a t fails to d e m o n s t r a t e the uovapxia: But if God is uncreated (ei 8e 6 9e6<; dyevrixo<;) and matter is uncreated (Kai VXT\ dyeVnxcx;), then, according to the Platonists God is not the Maker of the Universe (OUK exi 6 9e6<;rcovnxr)*;xcov 6X,cov eaxiv Kaxd xoix; nXaxcoviKouq), and, as far as they are concerned, the unique sover eignty of God is not demonstrated (ou5e pr|v povapxia 0eou 5eiicvuxai, oaov xo Kax' auxouq). Theophilus, Ad Autolycum, 2,4-6. It was not however simply the secondary, philosophy of religion that h a d failed b u t the p r i m a r y religious discourses themselves. H e labours to d e m o n s t r a t e the contradictions of the poets, since "nevertheless they introduce a multitude of gods (KXT\V KaircA,r|9uv0ecov eioriyayov) or else spoke of one single ultimate origin (r\ K a i uovapxiav eutov)." But why should the first cause of the universe be clear to p a g a n poets without divine revelation such as the p r o p h e t s possessed as they were m o v e d by the p r o p h e t i c spirit? T h e o p h i l u s ' explanation is that sometimes the poets, shaking off the d a e m o n possession that p e r s u a d e d t h e m otherwise, " m a d e statements (eiitov) in a g r e e m e n t with those of the p r o p h e t s (aKoAouGa xoi<; Tcpocprixaiq) in o r d e r to b e a r witness to themselves (ox; eiq uapxupiov eauxoiq) a n d all m e n (xe K a i rcaaiv dvOpamou;) c o n c e r n i n g the monarchia of G o d (rcepi x e Geou uovapXiaq) . . ." ° T h e o p h i l u s does not bring out any explicit political analogies with 149

15

148

Justin Dial. 1,3: xi ydp; ox>x oi cpiXoaocpoi rcept Geov xov drcavxa rcoiovvxai taSyov, e'Xeye, K a i rcepi uovapxia*; ai>xoi<; K a i rcpovoiaq a i £rixT|aei<; yivovxai e m a x o x e ; TI oi) xorno epyov eaxi
I4<)

130

PAGAN AND CHRISTIAN MONARCHIANISM

309

the ontology of povccpxioc. But we have seen that T a t i a n does so, whilst sharing the general perspective of the search for the one ulti m a t e origin. T h a t quest, we have emphasised, in the Weltanschauung of the second a n d early third century, was not simply to do with physical n a t u r e b u t with h u m a n society a n d history as well. Between T a t i a n a n d T h e o p h i l u s , a n d clearly sharing their c o m m o n ontolog ical perspective, c a m e A t h e n a g o r a s , w h o whilst not using povocp%{a explicitly, is well a w a r e of the political analogy d r a w n from the o n t o logy of the ultimate cause or first p r i n c i p l e . I have a r g u e d that their c o m m o n apologetic project cannot be divorced from their syncretistic, p a g a n religious a n d philosophical backgrounds. T h e analogies of light, the sun's rays, of e m a n a t i o n a n d derivation, are exemplified both by general religious philosophy a n d by the specific iconogra p h y a n d claims of the Imperial Cult. 151

N e i t h e r Justin, n o r T a t i a n , n o r A t h e n a g o r a s , n o r T h e o p h i l u s , de scribe in any detail the organisation of their communities. Theophilus, writing in the late second century, was one of the episcopal succes sors of Ignatius of Antioch. However, there is n o discussion of C h u r c h O r d e r a n d its relation to a wider theology of the G o d h e a d , as was the case in Ignatius of Antioch. W e have b e e n able to study their views o n the Christian G o d h e a d a n d its m o n a r c h i c a l o r d e r as a reflection both of p a g a n ontology a n d of imperial order. W e have not however been able to examine h o w imperial order, a n d specifically imperial o r d e r expressed in the Imperial Cult, was also expressed in C h u r c h O r d e r , as we were able to d o in the case of Ignatius. But c o n c u r r e n t with the Severan reformation, particularly in the form into which Elagabalus was to try unsuccessfully to press it, we witness also a n a t t e m p t e d revolution in C h u r c h O r d e r in w h i c h Callistus was involved as p r i m e mover. W e witness also a M o n a r c h i a n theology in C h u r c h O r d e r p r o p o u n d e d by the advocate of a m o n a r c h bishop over all the house-churches of the fractionalised R o m a n c o m munity. W e are, c o m e these events, in a better position to study the relationship b e t w e e n a M o n a r c h i a n theology a n d a M o n a r c h i a n C h u r c h O r d e r , a n d its contra-cultural relationship with a n imperial order t h a t has developed in a formally similar way. It is to a consideration of this relationship that we n o w t u r n for our final a n d concluding chapter.

1 , 1

J. Badewien, D i e A p o l o g e t e n und Tertullian, in Schindler (1978), pp. 3 2 - 3 3 , fails to grasp the relation of all three Apologists to a conceptual backcloth that they clearly shared.

CHAPTER

EIGHT

T H E EMERGENCE O F IMPERIAL AND CATHOLIC ORDER Elagabalus and Callistus: A Monarchian Episcopate for an Imperial Monarchy

In A . D . 218, following the assassination of Caracalla the year before, V a r i u s Avitus Bassianus as e m p e r o r a s s u m e d the title of M a r c u s Aurelius Antoninus. H e took the additional title of Elagabalus, the n a m e of his favoured deity, a n d a t t e m p t e d to introduce into R o m e the cult of Sol Invictus Elagabal, that is to say the cult of Sol Invictus in its specifically Syrian form, as the universal religion of the E m p i r e . T h a t attempt, characterised by the imposition of the specific ritual a n d priestly dress of the form of a cult that was alien to R o m a n culture, failed for that reason. It is i m p o r t a n t however to emphasise that it was not a failure of the process of syncretism itself, however m u c h this might be suggested by the damnatio memoriae of Elagabalus himself, but the failure of a kind of fundamentalism in its o w n way inimical to such a syncretism. Parallel with these events, we have, described in Pseudo-Hippolytus, Refutatio, IX, 6-13,2, a n attempted religious reformation of the R o m a n c o m m u n i t y by Callistus, in w h i c h we h a v e a m o v e m e n t towards monarchical episcopate a c c o m p a n i e d by a n advocacy of uovapxia in the g o d h e a d . Callistus a p p e a r e d to Tertullian as b e h a v i n g like a p a g a n Pontifex Maximus in trying to b e c o m e episcopus episcoporum} In doing so he, as putative bishop of R o m e , was b u t m a k i n g similar claims to those of the e m p e r o r Elagabalus, as Pontifex Maximus of a syncretism that found its final expression in the Baal of E m e s a as Sol Invictus. As a M o n a r c h i a n theologian, he was looking for the ulti m a t e principle in the g o d h e a d from which all lesser beings or persons were derived, just as Elagabalus could find that principle in Sol Invictus. Both e m p e r o r a n d putative p o p e were reflecting, in their own way, 1

A. Brent, Hippolytus and the R o m a n Church in the Third Century: Communities in T e n s i o n before the E m e r g e n c e of a M o n a r c h - B i s h o p , in Suppl.VCh. 31 (1995), pp. 511 5 1 2 .

THE EMERGENCE OF IMPERIAL AND CATHOLIC ORDER

31 1

ideals of imperial unity in the societies over which they claimed to have the right to rule absolutely. W e must n o w e x a m i n e the rela tionship between these parallel events in the light of m y thesis that the d y n a m i c a n d parallel d e v e l o p m e n t of Imperial a n d Christian O r d e r be understood dialectically a n d interactively in terms of a socio logical theory of counter-culture. Let us begin with Elagabalus a n d his place in the d e v e l o p m e n t of the Imperial Cult.

PART A.

ELAGABALUS AND UNIVERSAL

MONOTHEISM

W e have seen in the case of Isis a n d Sarapis, a n d of the image of Sol Invictus with which that worship h a d b e e n associated a n d whose iconography Septimius a n d Caracalla h a d also employed, a clear con fluence a n d absorption of a polytheism into a n o r d e r e d m o n o t h e i s m (7A 2.1-2.2). T h e worship of Cybele too h a d reflected similarly the divine imperial p o w e r (7A 1.2). Elagabalus, whose religious practices c a n n o t b e considered normative, did himself j o i n the ranks of that priesthood, was castrated a n d infibulated, a n d placed the statue of Magna Mater in his own favoured sanctuary of the Baal of E m e s a . But A n t o n i n u s Pius before h i m h a d introduced the taurobolium into h e r cult that was performed expressly pro salute imperatoris as well as on occasions pro salute totius domus divinae? W e have already witnessed, even before the Severans, examples of the assimilation of cults for merly sanitised into the i m m e d i a t e circle of cults offered on behalf of the e m p e r o r (7A 1.2-1.2.1). 2

W e witnessed a syncretistic process on the p a r t of the early Imperial Cult in which o t h e r hitherto i n d e p e n d e n t deities were assimilated with the worship of the e m p e r o r a n d related to this in a new way. O n e e x a m p l e of that process was to describe the various deified Virtues by the addition of variants of augustus, so that the divine Virtues b e c a m e p a r t of the collective personality of the e m p e r o r (2B 3). A n o t h e r example was the reception of a n e m p e r o r such as H a d r i a n into the cult of Dionysus so that he becomes a veoq Aiovuaioq (6B 2), b u t m o r e t h a n simply an ordinary initiate. But w h a t is new

2

H e r o d i a n , V , 5 , 1 - V I , 1,3; D i o Cassius, 78, 3 1 , 2 - 7 9 , 2 1 , 2 ; S H A , Heliogab.; cf. G . H . Halsberghe, T h e Cult o f Sol Invictus, in EPRO 2 3 (1972), p p . 6 2 - 7 8 . < CIL 8 , 8 2 0 3 .

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in the second century is clearly b o t h the adoption of universal eastern deities a n d their cults, a n d their association with the imperial image in o r d e r to express imperial unity m o r e comprehensively. In support of Elagabalus' reforms, there h a d b e e n a recognition of the Syrian Artagatis, a goddess associated with a n u m b e r of Syrian Baals such as H a d a d . F u r t h e r m o r e there was also M i t h r a i s m , whose synthesis with the cult of Sol Invictus should not, as Halsberghe has argued, blind us to the separate existence of this cult with claims to one pedigree in traditional R o m a n religion. T h e ambiguity also con tinued w h e n the e m p e r o r was b o t h high priest a n d object of highpriestly action of cult offered by a n d to the same person. T h u s the events of the reign of Elagabalus were to witness, not a defeat, b u t a setback to the development of the solar m o n o t h e i s m towards which the Imperial C u l t was moving, in c o m b i n a t i o n with other major reli gious m o v e m e n t s with which it h a d associated itself. 4

Although a m a r r i a g e to a Vestal Virgin lead to great outrage in a R o m a n cultural context in which there was clearly n o c o m p r e hension of such Eastern a n d Syrian justifications, his third m a r r i a g e did not. His m a r r i a g e to A n n i a Faustina was m a r k e d by the trans lation of the image of the goddess Dea Caelestis from C a r t h a g e a n d N o r t h Africa in o r d e r to enter his Elagabalium, a n d b e c o m e p a r t of the cult of Sol Invictus. H o w e v e r , a temple to that cult h a d existed on the Palatine since 2 0 4 B.C., with some of the constraints con nected with its worship having been removed by Claudius. Elagabalus clearly h a d tried too h a r d to expedite a process of syncretism that was already progressing, albeit without the a c c o m p a n i m e n t of child sacrifices a n d castrated priests. 5

T h e r e was clearly a widespread use of syncretistic iconography to reinforce imperial ideology. Septimius a n d Caracalla h a d used a vari ety of images from various cults duly syncretised. Elagabalus' mistake h a d b e e n paradoxically to deny that syncretism in practice t h r o u g h the imposition of the ritual of his one, favoured cult, a n d by subor dinating other deities to his own r a t h e r t h a n acknowledging that all were, as it were, consubstantial a n d co-eternal with each other. In this respect his mistake m a y have been theological as well as politi cal. H e simply h a d not realised that the Baal of E m e s a was simply

4

Varro, De Re Rustica, 1,1,5; Dionysios of Halicarnassus, Antiqu. Rom., Tacitus, Annal. X V , 4 1 , 1 ; 74,1 and Halsberghe (1972), chap. 2. Halsberge (1972), pp. 8 4 88. s

11,50,3;

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313

one m o r e image or aspect of the o n e light b e y o n d t h e m all, j u s t as d e a d a n d deified e m p e r o r s stood for the collective a n d not individual imperial virtues. T h e conspiracy that swept h i m away in A . D . 222, l a u n c h e d by J u l i a M a m a e a his a u n t a n d h e r son Severus Alexander, his cousin, was not to halt the syncretistic d e v e l o p m e n t that was to lead to a solar m o n o t h e i s m reflected in a universal m o n a r c h y . O u r thesis has b e e n that the authority structure of Christian c o m munities that were to form the G r e a t C h u r c h developed, as contracultures develop, in dialectical relationship to the authority structure of the wider culture in which they arise. W e must n o w ask h o w the developments in the Imperial Cult witnessed in Elagabalus p a g a n empire found their reflection in the Christian R o m a n C o m m u n i t y of Callistus a n d his a n o n y m o u s o p p o n e n t , the a u t h o r of the Elenchos. 6

5

PART B.

CALLISTUS, M O N A R C H BISHOPS AND

MONARCHIANISM

W e have already emphasised h o w the process of theological reflection within early Christian communities at the e n d of the second cen tury paralleled such p a g a n developments (7C). A similar, parallel process of syncretism reflected in C h u r c h O r d e r was also proceed ing. I have already m e n t i o n e d the C l e m e n t i n e Homilies, in which J a c o b e a n a n d Petrine traditions flow together into a unity expressed cryptogramically in the p s e u d o n y m o u s letters with which this work begins (7C 1). But with the d o c u m e n t s in which Callistus prefigures, we are in a position to evaluate specifically developments in the authority structure of the Christian c o m m u n i t y that directly parallel the Elagabalan reformation. 8B

1. Callistus' revolution in Church Order

Callistus, as I have a r g u e d in detail elsewhere, was n o t a P o p e in the later sense b u t presided over a g r o u p of house churches with loose b o n d s of i n t e r c o m m u n i o n between the presiding e7UGK07to<;7tpeaPuT£po<; of each individual c o m m u n i t y . T h e presbyters, like their counterparts in the Jewish synagogue, did m e e t formally for discus sions, a h e a t e d e x a m p l e of which is found in El. I X , 1 2 , 1 5 - 1 6 . 7

8

6

7

8

Ibid. Chapter 5. Brent (1995), pp. 3 8 8 - 4 5 7 . Ibid. p p . 4 2 4 - 4 3 1 .

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T h e y did have at their h e a d a chairman-secretary, w h o , as L a m p e also a r g u e d , supervised the distribution o f letters from e x t e r n a l C h u r c h e s amongst the house-churches, a n d w h o w a s responsible f o r writing replies w h e r e necessary on behalf of all the groups. C l e m e n t of R o m e h a d b e e n such a figure, a n d , if n o t identical with h i m , also the C l e m e n t of H e r m a s Vis. II, 4 , 2 ~ 3 , w h o h a d such a function entrusted to h i m ( e T U T e T p o m a i ) as his ministry. 9

10

T h e p u r p o s e of Callistus' reformation was to r e d u c e the semia u t o n o m o u s congregations to a m o n a r c h i c a l whole with himself as m o n a r c h - b i s h o p at the centre. His m e t h o d in executing the revolu tion was to exercise a policy of leniency in matters of discipline. Callistus was p r e p a r e d to a d m i t to his h o u s e - c h u r c h those w h o h a d been e x c o m m u n i c a t e d f o r various sins from o t h e r house-churches in R o m e . T h o s e house-churches h a d always, as Ignatius' Romans, insc. (TT\ e K K ^ n o i o c . . . ring K a i 7ipoKd0r|xai e v xon& xcopiou Tcopaicov), or f o r that matter Paul's Romans 16, make clear, regarded themselves together n o t as separate churches b u t constituting the o n e c h u r c h of R o m e . A m a r k of this unity was i n t e r c o m m u n i o n m a r k e d by the e x c h a n g e of the fermentum between themselves. A g r o u p such as the Q u a r t o d e c i m a n s h a d b e e n e x c o m m u n i c a t e d , a n d the m e a n s was p r e s u m a b l y that the o t h e r congregations ceased to exchange the fermentum with t h e m . M a r c i o n a n d Valentinus h a d left, with their followers, of their o w n a c c o r d . It is against such a backcloth that we m u s t u n d e r s t a n d Callistus' strategy. His offence, in the eyes of the a u t h o r of the Elenchos, was n o t that Callistus was an anti-Pope erected against his o w n lawful p a p a c y . T h i s a u t h o r never claims to possess himself w h a t Callistus h a d only t h o u g h t , according to h i m , that he n o w possessed as the object of his a m b i tions a n d the reforms which he initiated. Callistus h a d r a t h e r b r o ken the disciplinary convention of n o t c o m m u n i c a t i n g with those w h o m another presiding presbyter of another house-church has excom11

12

13

9

P. Lampe, D i e stadtromischen Christen in d e n ersten beiden Jahrhunderten, in WUKT 2,18 (1989), cf. Brent (1995), p p . 3 8 8 - 4 1 2 . Hermas Vis. II, 4 , 2 - 3 and Lampe (1989), pp. 3 3 5 - 3 3 7 cf. A. Brent, Pseudonymity and Charisma in the Ministry of the Early Church, in Aug 2 7 , 3 (1987), p p . 3 4 7 - 3 7 6 which appeared at the same time as the first edition o f his book. See also Brent (1995), pp. 4 1 0 - 4 3 4 . Eusebius, H.E. V , 2 4 , 1 5 and Brent (1995), p p . 4 1 2 - 4 1 5 . Brent (1995), pp. 4 1 8 - 4 2 1 ; L a m p e (1989), pp. 3 3 1 - 3 3 2 . El. IX, 12,15: vop(^(ov TeiDxriKevai oi) eQr|paxo without here specifying xov xfjc; e7ucnco7rii<; Bpovov as in IX, 11,1. See also Brent (1995), p. 4 1 9 and p. 4 2 7 . 10

11

12

11

THE EMERGENCE OF IMPERIAL AND CATHOLIC ORDER

315

m u n i c a t e d . It was this convention that clearly constituted the "cus t o m a r y b o u n d a r y (opoq)" that Callistus was o v e r s t e p p i n g . 14

8B

1.1. The charges against Callistus

T h e once or twice widowed clergy that Callistus allowed to r e m a r r y twice o r three times h a d previously clearly c o m m u n i c a t e d with the house-group of the a u t h o r of EL Callistus clearly asserted they suffered n o i m p e d i m e n t such as that i m p o s e d by w h a t was to b e c o m e the N e w T e s t a m e n t d e m a n d that a bishop or d e a c o n be " h u s b a n d of one wife (uiaq yuvancoq a v 8 p a ) . " U n i o n s b e t w e e n patrician ladies a n d household slaves or freedmen were allowed by h i m . S o m e w h a t casuistically, Pseudo-Hippolytus claims that this lead to the c o m m i t ting of m o r t a l sin after baptism. 15

T h e m o r t a l sins of adultery a n d m u r d e r w e r e , he claims, encour aged. "Adultery (uoi%eia)" he a p p a r e n d y claims is c o m m i t t e d by a w i d o w e d clergyman w h e n he remarries, or is indeed a n apt descrip tion of "fornication (rcopveiot)" w h e n c o m m i t t e d c o n t r a r y to R o m a n law with a s l a v e . M u r d e r (cpoveia) results from a b o r t i o n s w h i c h s o m e p a t r i c i a n w o m e n s o u g h t in view of capital legal sanctions following the conception of a child from such a u n i o n . Callistus was also a p p a r e n d y to be held responsible for Elkasite second b a p tism in that he h a d created the climate in w h i c h m o r t a l sins could be absolved after baptism, a n d thus even second baptism itself be justified. 16

17

18

Callistus' strategy of relaxing discipline p r o v e d a very successful one. It achieved his m a i n objective of centralising ecclesiastical p o w e r on himself a n d his successors, such as his predecessors, including C l e m e n t , h a d never wielded in their secretary general's office over other house-churches. It is of course paradoxical that the loosening of discipline s h o u l d h a v e h a d this e n d b u t , vis a vis t h e o t h e r e7UGKorcoi-7tpeapUT£poi, it u n d o u b t e d l y did. Callistus was m a k i n g n o threats. His were simply acts of forgiveness a n d reconciliation. Like Tertullian's adversary, w h o m we believe was in fact Callistus h i m self, he could q u o t e often Romans 14,14, a n d a d d that "the sons of

14

15

16

17

EL I X , 1 2 , 2 0 - 2 1 and 2 5 , cf. Brent (1995), pp. 4 1 7 - 4 1 8 ; pp. 4 3 2 - 4 3 6 . Ibid. 1 2 , 2 1 - 2 2 a n d 1 Tim. 3,2, cf. Brent (1995), p. 5 1 8 . Ibid. 1 2 , 2 4 - 2 5 cf. Brent (1995), p p . 5 2 0 - 5 2 3 . U l p i a n , Dig., I, 9,8, cf Brent (1995), p. 5 2 1 , particularly references in footnote

101. 18

El. I X , 12,6 a n d 13, 1-4.

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CHAPTER EIGHT

G o d ought to be compassionate a n d p e a c e m a k e r s , giving in return just as Christ has given to us, not j u d g i n g that we be not j u d g e d . " Faced with a growing c o m m u n i t y composed of e x c o m m u n i c a n t s from other house-churches w h o n o w flooded into the school of Callistus, w h a t could the other e7ciaK07coi-7cpeo|3uxepoi possibly do?

19

T h e y could refuse to exchange the fermentum as a n act of e x c o m munication, thus placing themselves in the w r o n g a n d m a k i n g t h e m selves righteous minorities. O r they could simply acquiesce in the new situation. If they took the latter course however, their a u t h o r ity was considerably diminished since they were h a n d i n g over to Callistus the right to d e t e r m i n e the discipline of the c o m m u n i t y a n d the conditions of c o m m u n i o n . If they took the former course, in an increasingly minority position, they would also suffer diminution of authority if Callistus' g r o u p c o n t i n u e d to grow. A n d if i n d e e d he h a p p e n e d also to be, like C l e m e n t in H e r m a s Vis. II, 4,2~3, the p a r ticular £7UGK07i;o<;-7ip£oPuT£po<; with the entrusted ministry of writing to external churches in the n a m e of the R o m a n C h u r c h as a whole, then his growing central authority would also b e , by default, rein forced by this position as he w o u l d b e , in t h e eyes of e x t e r n a l churches, the best k n o w n clerical figure. Such then were the events of t h e ecclesiastical reformation taking place c o n t e m p o r a n e o u s l y with the reformation of the Imperial Cult by Elagabalus a n d its political repercussions. But there are two ques tions related to o u r overall concerns that we n o w n e e d to ask. 1. W h a t b r o a d e r justification did Callistus give for his policy of reform, a n d h o w does this further illuminate h o w he saw the p u r pose of his reformation? 2. H o w did those reforms a n d their rationale reflect the reforms of Elagabalus a n d their purpose? I shall n o w a r g u e that the answers to b o t h these questions are inter related. W e c a n only expose Callistus' true p u r p o s e by r e a d i n g this off against the b r o a d e r cultural a n d political events of his time, p a r ticular those represented by Elagabalus, w h i c h gives his acts p u r p o s e a n d motive.

19

Tertullian, De Pudic, 2,2 where, together with Rom. 14,14 (= El. I X , 12,22), are q u o t e d Mat. 7,1 and Lk. 6,37; cf. Brent (1995), p p . 5 1 7 - 5 2 5 .

THE EMERGENCE OF IMPERIAL AND CATHOLIC ORDER

317

8B 1.1.1. Callistus' broader justification W e are d e p e n d e n t primarily on Callistus' o p p o n e n t , the a u t h o r of the Elenchos, w h o m , as we have seen, uses e x t r e m e casuistry to p r o duce a biased account of his claims. But we c a n also, I believe, use Tertullian w h o b o t h in the Adversus Praxeam, a n d in his attack on the "edict" of the episcopus episcoporum a n d pontifex maximus, is in fact attack ing Callistus. T h e m a i n g r o u n d s against such a n identification were always t h a t an early third century p o p e could not issue universal edicts so that Tertullian's attack h a d to be u p o n a purely local bishop. But, as I have a r g u e d in detail elsewhere, m y identification does not d e p e n d o n Callistus having functioned as a p o p e in the later sense. A factionalised c o m m u n i t y at R o m e in tension between its various house churches, a n d raising such questions as absolution for m o r t a l sin after baptism a n d clerical r e m a r r i a g e , could not fail to d r a w it self to the attention of a similar c h u r c h in N o r t h Africa divided by a M o n t a n i s m that h a d not yet b r o k e n completely from the great C h u r c h . Tertullian himself does m e n t i o n the contesseratio hospitalitatis b r o u g h t by a Christian travelling from one Christian c o m m u n i t y to a n o t h e r such as frequendy occurred between R o m e a n d N o r t h Africa. T h e conditions of absolution as of ordination would i m p a c t u p o n such signs of i n t e r c o m m u n i o n present at this early p e r i o d . 20

21

Let us look therefore at w h a t Callistus was claiming. H e was claim ing that the C h u r c h would be a mixed congregation such as the ark of N o a h in which clean a n d unclean animals were combined together. A n o t h e r proof-text for his policy was the Parable of the W h e a t a n d the T a r e s . F r o m the a u t h o r of £7.'s m o r e p u r i t a n i c a l position, Callistus can be m a d e to say that the clean a n d unclean should exist both together in the C h u r c h . But n o d o u b t Callistus would have h a d a n o t h e r reason. His was a policy of c o m p r e h e n d i n g a wide diver sity of views a n d positions within a c o m m o n unity. In that respect he reflected the general Severan political policy that we have oudined, 2 2

2 0

S e e D . Rankin, Tertullian and the Church, (Cambridge: U . P . 1995), p p . 3 5 - 3 6 ff. for a c o g e n t restatement of the argument that in De Anima, 9,4 Tertullian is describ i n g a M o n t a n i s t p r o p h e t e s s h a v i n g private visions d u r i n g the n o r m a l , catholic Eucharist a n d only rehearsing these w h e n the Montanist group within the catholic congregation meets afterwards by itself. Cf. U . N e y m e y r , D i e christlichen Lehrer im zweiten Jahrhundert: Ihr Lehrtatigkeit, ihr Selbstverstandnis, und ihre Geschichte, in Suppl. VCh 4 (1989), pp. 1 2 9 - 1 3 1 . See also Brent (1995), pp. 5 3 8 - 5 3 9 . Tertullian, De Praesc. Haer. 2 0 , 7 - 9 cf. Brent (1995), pp. 5 0 5 - 5 0 9 . El. I X , 1 2 , 2 2 - 2 3 . 21

22

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if not the m o r e radical a n d forced imposition of that policy repre sented by his c o n t e m p o r a r y e m p e r o r Elagabalus. 8B 1.1.2. Callistus and Elagabalus' reformation W e have a r g u e d that c o n t e m p o r a r y imperial policy was reflected in a n ontology of uovapxia. Callistus d e f e n d e d a C h r i s t i a n form of M o n a r c h i a n i s m that we have seen to be present in the apologists, a n d e m p l o y e d by t h e m in conscious awareness of the relationship b e t w e e n politics a n d ontology. C o n s e q u e n t l y they could imply that, if a justification of ontological uovapxia was i n c o h e r e n t , t h e n so would be the principle of political uovapxia. Callistus argued, accord ing to his o p p o n e n t : Of that he says the Son himself is also the Father (on 8e Kai xov auxov uiov eivai Aiyei Kai rcaxepa), no one is ignorant (ouSeiq dyvoei). For he speaks as follows (Aiyei yap ouxcoq): when then the Father has not been born (oxe pev ouv pri yeyevrixo 6 rcaxnp), he is jusdy called "Father" (8iKaico(; rcaxriprcpocrriyopeuxo).But when he is pleased to experience birth from the virgin (oxe 8e t|u86icnae yeveaiv EK rcapGevou upopeivai), the Father, being begotten (yevvr|0ei<; 6rcaxTip),becomes himself Son of himself, and not of someone different (mbq eyevexo auxoq eauxou, oux exepou). Thus he thinks (ouxcoq youv 8oKei) he has established the monarchia (povapxiav auviaxav), asserting that Father and Son subsist as one and the same being (ev Kai xo auxo (pdaKcov u r c d p x e i v Ttaxepa Kai uiov), becoming not different the one from the other (yivopevov oux exepov e£ exepou), but the same from himself (aXX auxov e£ eauxou). Elenchos IX, 10, 10-11. W e see here w h a t was n o d o u b t Callistus' o w n expression of his aim, namely uovapxiav auviaxav. It is impossible that such a n expression could be or o u g h t to b e dissociated from the conceptual w e b that, by the e n d of the second century, formed the backcloth to the dis cussion of cosmic a n d social order, P a g a n or Christian, imperial or apologist. S u c h a t e r m c a m e already value-laden, a n d we have seen h o w T a t i a n c a n accuse the Greeks of d e n y i n g uovapxia in a n i m p e rial a n d political sense because their polytheism c a n n o t support their ontological case for a single origin (7C 2.3.1). W e have seen h o w for A t h e n a g o r a s the earthly k i n g d o m of father M a r c u s Aurelius a n d his son C o m m o d u s is a reflection of the heavenly k i n g d o m of F a t h e r a n d Son (7C 2.3.2). In establishing the uovapxia against the alleged ditheism of the a u t h o r of El. a n d his g r o u p , Callistus was following the p a t t e r n set by writers such as T a t i a n against p o l y t h e i s m . 23

23

El. I X , 1 2 , 1 5 - 1 6 .

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319

T h e r e a r e , however, several points to be m a d e in d e m o n s t r a t i o n of t h e m o r e t h a n accidental relationship b e t w e e n Callistus' refor m a t i o n a n d that of Elagabalus. W e see in t h e following examples clear reflections of the latter in t h e former. 8B 1.3.1. Pontifex M a x i m u s and episcopus episcoporum W h e n Tertullian attacks Callistus in these terms, he is clearly c o m p a r i n g t h e latter's activity a n d claims with those of t h e reigning R o m a n E m p e r o r . Pontifex Maximus is clearly a p a g a n title for t h e E m p e r o r as High Priest of the R o m a n Pantheon in which the Imperial Cult was increasingly e m e r g i n g as central. T h e bishop of R o m e was not as yet given this tide. F u r t h e r m o r e , Tertullian mentions a n edict of this bishop which clearly the bishop of R o m e would n o t be able to deliver in C a r t h a g e . It will n o t d o , however, o n this account to substitute a shadowy Agrippinus as local bishop of C a r t h a g e in o r d e r to fill this role. Tertullian wishes to represent at all costs the R o m a n bishop as b e h a v i n g like t h e c o n t e m p o r a r y e m p e r o r , a n d so he uses highly m e t a p h o r i c a l language in which Callistus is represented as if he were a n e m p e r o r doing such t h i n g s . 24

W e emphasised in connection with the theology of Ignatius of Antioch t h e essentially p a g a n b a c k g r o u n d of his regarding bishops, priests, a n d deacons as eiKove<; of t h e saving mystery of the incar nate g o d h e a d (6A 2.1). I n this respect he reflected t h e position in the East w h e r e "priests a n d priestesses personified the deity w h o m they s e r v e d . " It is in such a context that H a l s b e r g h e locates t h e m a r r i a g e of Elagabalus with the Vestal Virgin Aquilia Severa. S h e represented Vesta as he represented Elagabal. T h e palladium of M i n e r v a - A t h e n a , taken o u t of the temple of t h e former, was transported to Elagabalium o n the Palatine. Vesta's shrine contained n o image of herself. T h u s the marriage of priest a n d priest ess was in fact regarded by h i m as a theogamy. T h e i r children would be the representatives of c o m b i n e d divinities, a n d Sol Invictus would thus exhibit the divine essence also of Vesta-Minerva. "I did this (TOUT' eTcoinaa) in o r d e r that, of course (iva 8f| Kai) godlike children (Georcperceiq 7tai8e<;) might b e b o r n from m e t h e high-priest a n d from this high-priestess (EK xe epou xou apxiepecoq EK xe xauxnq xf|<; dpxiepeiaq yevvcovxai)." His justification for this act to t h e Senate was that " a 25

26

2 4

2 5

2 h

Tertullian, De Pudic. 1,1-2 cf. Brent (1995), pp. 5 0 4 - 5 0 5 . Halsberghe (1972), p. 9 0 . D i o (Xiphilinus) 8 0 , 9,3.

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m a r r i a g e of a priest a n d a priestess was a thing of reverence (oePdauiov eivai yduov iepecoq xe K a i iepeiaq)." T h u s Elagabalus justified his m a r r i a g e to the Vestal Virgin Aquilia Severa as a t h e o g a m y that united t h r o u g h their sacred a n d divine offspring the c o m b i n e d divini ties of Sol Invictus a n d V e s t a - M i n e r v a . A line of divine priests incar nating the essences of the male a n d female divinities into a unity or povap%ia would thus result. In that justification, the claim for b o t h to b e dp%i£p£t><; a n d dp^iepeia n o w c o m b i n e d was clearly present. 27

Such a controversy is m i r r o r e d too in the dispute between Callistus a n d the a u t h o r of EL Callistus is c l a i m i n g the ultimate right to absolve over presbyters of the o t h e r house groups. A n d for the first time in the history of the apostolic ministry images of dpxiepaxeia n o w b e c o m e i m p o r t a n t . I have a r g u e d elsewhere that the notion that J a m e s ' authority was sacerdotal, a n d that the episcopal succession lists were modelled on those of J e w i s h H i g h Priests is misconceived. But in the literature of the H i p p o l y t a n c o m m u n i t y , in particular, that composite work published u n d e r the tide of the Apostolic Tradition, Aaronic a n d sacerdotal images of the bishop's office begin to fuse with Mosaic images t h a t h a d characterised that office as essential one of a teaching succession. T h a t fusion is one of the consequences of the Callistan r e f o r m a t i o n . 28

29

Certainly the a u t h o r of EL insists o n a plurality of successors to the apostles. As he says, referring to himself as o n e a m o n g s t others in the R o m a n c o m m u n i t y by use of the collective " w e " : We have become their successors (cbv ripeiq 5id8oxoi xuyxdvovxeq), and we participate in the same grace of both high priesthood and teach ing, (xnq xe auxfjq xdpixoq pexe^ovxeq dpxiepaxeiaq xe Kai 8i8aoKaA,ia<;), and, being reckoned as guardians of the Church (Kai.cppoupoi xfjc; eKK^r|cria<; A.eta>ytGpevoi), we neither let our eye slumber (OUK ocpGa^pfjq vuoxd£opev), nor do we keep silence about orthodox discourse (ou8e Xoyov 6p06v aiconcopev). . . . Elenchos I, prooem. 6 In the confluent currents of imagery, Mosaic a n d Aaronic, Callistus is claiming t h a t at the h e a d of the tradition must stand not simply a single Moses w h o could have b e e n Christ, b u t a sacerdotal rep-

2 7

Herodian V,6,2. A. Brent, D i o g e n e s Laertius and the Apostolic Succession, in JEH pp. 3 6 7 - 3 8 9 ; Brent (1995), p p . 4 7 7 - 4 8 1 . Ap. Trad. 3 a n d 7 cf. Brent (1995), pp. 471 4 9 2 . 2 8

29

4 4 , 3 (1993),

THE

EMERGENCE OF IMPERIAL AND CATHOLIC ORDER

321

resentative of Moses (Christ), w h o , like a n Ignatian bishop or indeed like Elagabalus stood as a n icon of the divine being t h a t he r e p r e sented. But according to Pseudo-Hippolytus, all the presiding £7C{OKO7COIrcpeoPuxepoi could be said not simply to participate in the priesthood b u t in the high priesthood (xr\<; xe am?[q %dpixo<; pexe^ovxec; dpxiepaxeiaq xe Kai 8i8aoKaA,ia<;). Callistus could not simply m a k e himself the s u p r e m e t e a c h e r by claiming t h a t such a n office n e e d e d to be consecrated in the person of a single dp^iepeix;. But Elagabalus was clearly claiming the indivisibility of the dp%tepaxeia. T h e povapxia required the drcoppoia from a single dp%f|, Sol Invictus. T o secure a single hierocratic iconography, children m u s t be p r o d u c e d (Georcperceic; 7cai8eq) w h o were icons of Sol Invictus incor p o r a t i n g Vesta-Minerva. Callistus likewise is c o n c e r n e d with povap%ia in which one source of p o w e r within the g o d h e a d corresponds to one source of authority over the fractionalized R o m a n c o m m u n i t y . H e will secure this, as h a d Caracalla, by pointing to the d p / i e p a x e i a as flowing t h r o u g h him as his high-priest, as opposed to existing as a n abstract principle in which all could generally a n d without gra dation participate. F o r h i m , as for Ignatius, there could b e only o n e H i g h Priest a n d therefore, w h e n the sacerdotal is imposed u p o n the Mosaic, o n e leader emerges over the rcpeopuxepoi from whose spirit their authority was d e r i v e d . 30

T h e title episcopus episcoporum, w h i c h goes with the title Pontifex Maximus, reflects clearly Tertullian's criticism of w h a t was h a p p e n ing specifically within the c h a n g i n g p a t t e r n of authority within the R o m a n C h u r c h . But that such a title c a n be seen to b e p a r t of the c o m m o n P a g a n a n d Christian p r o g r a m of the early third century, in which the real c h a r a c t e r of historical m o v e m e n t s a n d ideas could be established with reference to their ultimate historical origin, can be seen from its use in the C l e m e n t i n e literature. H e r e J a m e s in called episcopus episcoporum in the p s e u d o n y m o u s letter of Peter to h i m . But, as we have a r g u e d , in D i o g e n e s ' historiography, the two successions are fused into o n e by m e a n s of a fictional epistolary e x c h a n g e . A fictional e x c h a n g e of letters is also the literary device which the Clementines share with Diogenes Laertios. T h e e x c h a n g e of letters express the validity, w h e t h e r of Christianity or of G r e e k 31

Brent (1995), p. 4 7 3 . Petr. ad lac. insc. cf. Brent (1995), pp.

512513.

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philosophy, by reference to a n ultimate historical dpxu., an Urzeit in which the e x c h a n g e took place a n d such a unity arose (7C 1.1). O n c e m o r e we find ourselves at the centre of discourse a b o u t ulti m a t e origins that is clearly controlling b o t h Christian a n d P a g a n o n t o l o g y a n d t h e c o r r e s p o n d i n g ideology of b o t h I m p e r i a l a n d Christian O r d e r . Callistus therefore a p p e a r e d to Tertullian as b e h a v i n g like a p a g a n Pontifex Maximus in trying to b e c o m e episcopus episcoporum. In so doing he, as putative bishop of R o m e , was b u t m a k i n g similar claims to those of the e m p e r o r Elagabalus, as Pontifex Maximus, of a syncretism that found its final expression in the Baal of E m e s a as Sol Invictus? As a M o n a r c h i a n theologian, Callistus was looking for the ultimate principle in the g o d h e a d from which all lesser beings or persons were derived just as Elagabalus could find that principle in the cult of Sol Invictus. Both e m p e r o r a n d putative p o p e were reflecting, in their own way, ideals of imperial unity in the societies over which they claimed to h a v e the right to rule absolutely. 2

Let us n o w turn to the second way in which Callistus is seen to be associated with the events of his time, a n d to reflect imperial pol icy in his ecclesiastical policy. 8B 1.1.2.3. Social values of Callistus a n d Pseudo-Hippolytus T h e highly contrived piece of casuistry by m e a n s of which the a u t h o r of El. convicts Callistus of absolving the m o r t a l sin of m u r d e r reads as follows: For he even allowed women (Kai yap Kai yuvai^iv ercexpevj/ev), if they should be without husbands (ei dvav8poi elev) and they burned due to their youthful age for a man (Kai TjXtKia ye xe eiq av8pa eKKaioivxo), they [being] of noble rank (a! ev d^ia), if they were unwilling to degrade their rank (ei XT^V eauxcov d^iav r\v pfj poutanvxo KaGaipeiv) through legal marriage (8id xou vopipcoq yapr|8Tivai), to take someone whom they should choose as a bed partner (e'xeiv eva, ov av aipf|acovxai, ouyKoixov), whether household slave or free (eixe oiKexnv eixe etauGepov), to treat this person (Kai xouxov Kpiveiv) as in place of a husband (dvxi dv5po<;) even though she was not married by law (xf|v \n\ vopcp yeyaprjpevriv). In consequence (ev6ev) women who were so called believers began to try (rip^avxo ercixeipeiv ai rciaxai Xeyopevai) even to bind themselves round with medicines against conception (dxoKioic; (pappaKoi<; Kai xa> rcepiSeo-

2

•* For the use o f these terms in the cult of Sol Invictus, a n d their association with the Emperor, see Halsberghe (1972), p. 77.

THE EMERGENCE OF IMPERIAL AND CATHOLIC ORDER

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peioGai) in order to abort what they had conceived (itpbq xo xd ovXtaxpPavopeva KaxaPdMeiv) because they were unwilling either to have a child from a slave (8id xo pr|xe EK bo\)Xo\) fiovXzoQai e'xetv xeicvov) or from a social inferior (pr|xe e£ evxeXotx;), because of their noble and superior birth (6id xrjv oruxcov euyeveiav Kai vrcepoyKov ouaiav). Elenchos IX, 12,24-25 As Preysing p o i n t e d out, the a u t h o r here reveals a clash of social values between Callistus' g r o u p a n d his own. His critique assumes a senatorial a n d patrician perspective on Callistus' activity. For the leader of one g r o u p of w h a t is an illegal sect to accuse the other of not following p a g a n law o n m a t r i m o n y seems bizarre, b u t that is precisely to w h a t the criticism a m o u n t s : Callistus h a d sanctioned a u n i o n involving a w o m a n xf|V pr| vopcp yeyapnpevr|v, t h a t is to say p a g a n m a r r i a g e law. N o d o u b t , as Dollinger pointed out, Callistus would h a v e replied that there w e r e n o distinctions after b a p t i s m between " m a l e a n d female, b o n d n o r free." 33

34

T h e writer clearly attributes the quest for dxoKioc cpdppam to the p r o p e r r e p u g n a n c e of "ladies of noble rank (ai ev d^ia)" not to dilute their "noble a n d superior birth (TX\V auxcov euyeveiav K a i urcepoyKov o u a i a v ) " with p r o g e n y "from s o m e o n e socially inferior (e£ euxeXouq)." U n d o u b t e d l y this represents the patrician r e p u g n a n c e that he feels a n d which he attributes to the ladies in question. But for t h e m child birth in this situation was not necessary a question of r e p u g n a n c e towards offspring from a p a r t n e r w h o was euxeAriq, which m e a n s lit erally "of depleted value", n o r indeed a desire to avoid d e g r a d i n g their r a n k (XTJV . . . d^iav . . . KaGaipeiv). R a t h e r the quest for abor tions, a n d hence the cpoveia of their u n b o r n children, was because they as w o m e n of senatorial r a n k lived u n d e r the t h r e a t of capital p u n i s h m e n t for cohabitation with a slave (oiKexriq). Certainly m a r riage with a freedman was illegal, as the a u t h o r claims. 35

36

3 3

K. v o n Preysing, D e r Leserkreis der P h i l o s o p h o u m e n a Hippolyts, in %KTh 38 (1914), p p . 4 2 1 - 4 4 5 . Gal. 3,28 cf. I. v o n Dollinger, Hippolytus und Kallistus, oder Die romische Kirche in der ersten Halfte des dritten Jahrhunderts, (Regensburg: J o s e p h M a n z 1853), p. 2 5 4 . In Justinian, Dig. I, 9,8, U l p i a n , the c o n t e m p o r a r y o f the author o f EL, states that a matrona was subject to the death penalty for sexual relations with slaves. Justinian, Dig. X X I I I , 2,42: "Modestinus, Bk 1 D e ritu nuptiarum: Si senatoris filia neptis proneptis libertino vel qui artem ludicram exercuit cuiusue pater materue id fecerit nupserit, nuptiae n o n erunt," w h i c h clearly denies the validity of the mar riage of ai ev a£(a (= senatoris filia) to an etavGepoq (= libertinus) or even a free ei)xeA,f|<; (vel qui artem ludicram). 34

3 5

3 6

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Certainly Elagabalus would have n o claim to share the valuesystem of R o m a n patrician society. Indeed, the Severan dynasty itself was founded o n the perfidy of the m u r d e r of Pertinax, whose n a m e Septimius Severus b o r n with ostentatious pride as his own, by Didius J u l i a n u s w h o lead a senatorial reaction t h a t clearly failed (A.D. 193). J u l i a n u s ' credentials with the Senate were high d u e to his having been prosecuted several times d u r i n g the reign of C o m m o d u s . But the notion that, with a p p r o p r i a t e theological justification, senatorial ladies should m a r r y their slaves or freedmen, despite patrician hos tility, would n o t have a p p e a r e d as scandalous as before, in the social e n v i r o n m e n t of the imposition of Sol Invictus Elagab as the final form a n d definition of the Imperial Cult. Certainly such marriages would not b e m o r e scandalous t h a n the action of the E m p e r o r as Pontifex Maximus of the Imperial Cult of Sol Invictus m a r r y i n g a Vestal Virgin also with a n e w a n d radical theological justification. 37

Certainly the senaculum mulierum, established by Elagabalus, m e n tioned in an otherwise dubious source b u t confirmed by excavations, was indicative of a social policy in which social roles a n d status were b e c o m i n g fluid. T h e writer of the S H A mentions, moreover, the predecessor of this senaculum being held o n certain festivals (sollemnibus. . . diebus). Its prior function was to provide kinswomen of the emperors w h o h a d m a r r i e d h u s b a n d s w h o were not nobilitati with " o r n a m e n t s of consular m a r r i a g e (consularis coniugii ornamenta)" T h e purpose was t h a t "they should not lose their consular rank (ne innobilitatae remanereni)" in consequence of such marriages. T h e a u t h o r of EL would clearly have upheld this previous function in his desire that cd ev oc^toc did not degrade their r a n k (xfw d^iav Ka0aipeiv). But clearly new rules, the p u r p o s e of which it is difficult to discern, were now being developed. Upholders of traditional senatorial values might well criticise Elagabalus for transgressing established n o r m s (opoi) of R o m a n , p a g a n society, just as we have seen the a u t h o r of EL to have d o n e in the case of Callistus a n d Christian society. 38

W e must n o w consider a third piece of evidence for how, in the minds of c o n t e m p o r a r y observers, the events of Callistus' career p a r alleled those of Elagabalus. 3 7

A. Birley, Septimius Severus, the African Emperor, (London: Eyre and Spottiswoode 1971), p. 154. S H A , Elagab., 4,3 cf. A. Pasqui, R e g i o n e V I . A n t i c o edificio riconsciuto per la sede del senaculum mulierum, in NScavAnt, A n n . 3 1 1 , 5,11 (1914), pp. 1 4 1 - 1 4 6 . See also Halsberghe (1972), p. 70. 3 8

THE EMERGENCE OF IMPERIAL AND CATHOLIC ORDER

325

8B 1.1.2.4. Callistus' m a r t y r d o m a n d the fall of Elagabalus Both the m a r t y r d o m of Callistus a n d the violent e n d of Elagabalus took place in the same y e a r (A.D. 222). T h e r e is n o n e e d to see Elagabalus as a definite s u p p o r t e r of Christianity, o n the shallow basis of the S H A , a n d on the very dubious notion that his consort a n d former Vestal Virgin, Aquilia Severa, was in fact the Severina to which o n e work on the Statue of the H i p p o l y t a n c o m m u n i t y was dedicated. M o s t of the references to d e d i c a t i o n s p o i n t to J u l i a M a m a e a a n d h e r circle, in the next reign, that of h e r son Severus Alexander, after Elagabalus' downfall in which she was direcdy instru mental. Certainly the Hippolytan c o m m u n i t y addressed J u l i a M a m a e a with respect. But it was otherwise with the reforms of Elagabalus, a n d with w h a t Callistus partially against the b a c k g r o u n d of those reforms p r o p o s e d for the Christian c o m m u n i t y . 39

40

T h a t a later martyrology will describe the events of the latter's d e a t h in similar terms to those of Elagabalus show that the general impression on the m i n d s of c o n t e m p o r a r i e s a n d later was that the two figures were in some w a y associated. It is m y a r g u m e n t that t h e sociological thesis that I have p u r s u e d a n d invoked t h r o u g h o u t this m o n o g r a p h can explain the association without any conscious a n d intentional links on the p a r t of the individuals participating in the action. Christian communities form contra-cultures to the p a g a n host culture, in p a r t imitating b o t h its social a n d its ontological con struction of reality. But in p a r t they also reconstruct the host cul ture, so t h a t their d e p e n d e n c e on that culture is concealed b u t n o n e the less necessary. T h e r e was, according to Allard, a historical core to the late Acta Martyrii Sancti Callisti.* T h e r e is at all events clearly a relationship between the descriptions of the m a n n e r of their deaths, suggesting a clear folk m e m o r y that these were the p r o d u c t s of similar histo rical events at a similar m o m e n t which were in some w a y related to 1

3 9

S H A , Elagab., 3,4 cf. M . Sordi, II Cristianesimo e R o m a , in Storia di Roma X I X , Istituto di Studi R o m a n i , (Bologna: Cappelli 1965), p. 2 3 8 For the identification of this with a work m e n t i o n e d in T h e o d o r e t , and in Anastasius Sinaitica, see Brent (1995), pp. 8 4 - 8 5 and p. 3 3 1 . For Julia M a m a e a ' s role in the downful o f Elagabalus, see Halsberghe (1972), pp. 1 0 1 - 1 0 3 . P. Allard, Histoire des Persecutions pendant la premiere moitie du troisieme siecle (Septime Severe, Maximin, Dece), d'apres les documents archeologiques, (Paris: LeCoffre 1886), p p . 1 8 8 - 1 9 0 cf. H . D a l C o v o l o , I Severi e il cristianesimo: R i c e r c h e sull'ambiente storico-istituzionale delle origini cristiane tra il s e c o n d o e il terzo secolo, in Biblioteca di Scienze Religiose, 87 (Libreria A t h e n e o Salesiano: R o m e 1989), p. 16 and pp. 6 4 - 6 5 . 4 0

41

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each other. Callistus is m a r t y r e d by being " t h r o w n t h r o u g h the win d o w of a house (per fenestram domus praecipitari) a n d with a stone tied to his neck (ligatoque ad collum ems saxo), s u b m e r g e d in a well (in puteum demergi), a n d rubbish piled u p o n h i m (et in eo rudera cumulari)."* 2

After Elagabalus is slain by t h e p r a e t o r i a n g u a r d o n A l e x a n d e r a n d M a m a e a ' s instruction, his mutilated b o d y is dragged t h r o u g h the streets. T h i s , o n e source informs us, is: 43

in order that the soldiers might throw it into the sewer (ut id in cloacam (- cloaca maxima) milites mitterent). But when the cloaca by chance failed to take it (sed cum non cepisset cloaca fortuito), they attached a weight that it should not float (adnexo pondere nefluitaret),and threw it into the Tiber from the Aurelian bridge (per pontem Aemilium . . . in Tiberim abiectum est), so that it could never be buried (ne umquam sepeliri posset). His body had also been dragged around the Circus (tractum est cadaver eius etiam per Circi spatid) before thrown into the Tiber (priusquam in Tiberim praecipitaretur). SHA, Elagabalus, 17, 1-3. T h e idea that the cloaca maxima could not take his b o d y seems strange, but clearly r e q u i r e d t h e second stage of t h r o w i n g the b o d y into the T i b e r direct. T h e Epitomist to Cassius D i o claims that the b o d y was t h r o w n direcdy into t h e T i b e r (eq xov rcoxctuov evepXr|0r|), b u t m e n tions the unsuccessful a t t e m p t to escape by hiding in a chest (epeXXev 44

xvXXov e|xpA,T|0ei<; eicSpavai). It is H e r o d i a n , however, w h o gives us t h e simplest a n d most likely original account, namely that, after Elagabalus a n d Soaemias were d r a w n a n d mutilated: " h e was t h r o w n into the sewers (eq xoix; 6%exouq &7t£ppi(p9r|) which r u n d o w n into the river T i b e r (xouq xov Guppiv rcoxapov peovxaq)." 45

I n a t t e m p t i n g to reconstruct t h e true relationship b e t w e e n t h e a c c o u n t s of t h e m a r t y r d o m of Callistus a n d t h e assassination of Elagabalus, w e c a n b e certain only of equivalences o r n e a r equiva lences in both descriptions. Both Callistus a n d Elagabalus are " t h r o w n (praecipitari/praecipitaretur/drceppicpOri)" into a well o r sewer (in puteum/

4 2

Acta S. Callisti Papae Martyris R o m a e , 8, in M i g n e P.L. 10, col. 120. S H A , Elagab., 17, 1 - 3 : "Post h o c in e u m impetus factus est atque in latrina ad q u a m confugerat occisus. tractatus deinde per publicum; addita iniuria cadaveri e s t . . ." cf. D i o Cassius L X X X , 2 0 , 2 : m i oci xe K e c p o c t a x i d7t£K07tT|oav, m i xd acbuaxa yuuvGoOevxa TO |iev T t p a k o v 8 i d 7idor|<; xfjq rcoXeox; e c \ > p T | . . a n d H e r o d i a n V , 8,9: i d 5 e oa>|iaxa xou xe 'Avxcoviou K a i xfj<; Ioai|i(8o<; 7 i a p e 8 o a a v a v p e i v xe m i evoppi^eiv xoiq poiAouevoK; • arcep in\ KQ\X> 5 i d T c d a r i q xr\<; TioXeax; a v p e v x a . . . D i o Cassius, 8 0 , 2 0 , 2 . Herodian, V , 8,9. 4 3

4 4

4f)

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in cloacam/kq tox>q 6x£iox>q) which in Callistus case, given the region of the city, is clearly the sewers or cloaca maxima as it is in Elagabalus' case. A weight was a t t a c h e d to Elagabalus' b o d y (adnexo pondere) j u s t as a stone was tied to Callistus' neck (ligatoque ad collum eius saxo). W e could emphasise the historicity of this " c o r e " in the m a r t y rology, as we have seen that Dal Covolo proposes, following Sordi a n d A l l a r d . If we did so, we could consider that it was the k n o w n relationship of Callistus a n d his policies, as favouring or enjoying favour of the regime, t h a t lead to his d e a t h in the same revolu tionary turmoil that saw the e n d of Elagabalus with w h o m he h a d been associated in the p o p u l a r imagination. But there is n o n e e d to go thus far, particularly since the policies a n d behaviour of Elagabalus as r e c o r d e d would have b e e n equally r e p u g n a n t to Callistus as to the a u t h o r of El T h e latter does not accuse the former of sympa thising with child sacrifices countenanced by Elagabalus, even though h e might try to m a k e h i m indirectly responsible for the m u r d e r of the u n b o r n due to his m a r r i a g e policy. 46

47

O u r a c c o u n t in terms of contra-cultural theory does not however require such a m e e t i n g of the m i n d s of individual participants in the events to account for such association. It is e n o u g h that in the m i n d s of those w h o passed on the a c c o u n t of Callistus' m a r t y r d o m there was a consciousness that his e n d was similar to that of Elagabalus, a n d so for t h e m there was some association between the two events. M y application of contra-cultural social theory to the d e v e l o p m e n t of C h u r c h O r d e r shows h o w the events could be interpreted socio logically. T h e structure of the Christian R o m a n c o m m u n i t y in terms of a collection of house-churches, loosely related to one another, was u n d e r g o i n g d y n a m i c c h a n g e t h r o u g h their interaction with wider society. T h e O r d e r of the Christian C o m m u n i t y , as we have argued, m i r r o r e d contra-culturally the o r d e r of the Imperial Cult, reversing some of its imagery a n d values, in o r d e r to give that c o m m u n i t y status a n d legitimation in the eyes of its m e m b e r s that wider society denied t h e m . T h e social construction of reality develops in terms of a contraculture in marginal groups deprived of status a n d legitimation by their host culture. It is therefore inevitable that, w h e n radical c h a n g e

4 6

See footnote 41 above. D i o Cassius 8 0 , 11, w h e r e Sardanapalus is recorded as sacrificing boys to Elagabalus. 4 7

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occurs in the structure of the host culture, that c h a n g e , however t e m p o r a r y , is a reversal of a n evolving goal. In consequence, the contra-culture that is related dialectically with the host culture will find itself subject to the same revolutionary forces e n d e a v o u r i n g to c h a n g e the host culture. This has clearly h a p p e n e d in the case of Callistus. N o d o u b t he a n d his followers would not have identified themselves with the host culture, yet, in o r d e r to m a k e their case against it plausible with a legitimation of their existence to t h e m selves as well as to others, they n e e d e d the backcloth of b o t h o n t o logy a n d political ideology derived from the host culture o n which they were parasitic. But having p u r s u e d a n d constructed such a legit imation, that legitimation was b o u n d to fail in the eyes of those seek ing to change radically the direction of the host-culture. T h u s Callistus fell, or a p p e a r e d in the eyes of his c o n t e m p o r a r i e s to fall, for simi lar reasons a n d in a similar way to Elagabalus. T h e a u t h o r of EL a n d his g r o u p , w h o sought to construct their legitimacy in a different way regarding the host culture, would not have l a m e n t e d Callistus' fate. As I have already pointed out, those whose thinking was clearly at h o m e in the circle of J u l i a D o m n a (7C 1.2) did not shrink from dedicating works of theological philo sophy to J u l i a M a m a e a , m o t h e r of Severus Alexander, w h o lead the revolution.

PART C .

IN

CONCLUSION:

T H E LEGACY FOR DECIUS AND

CYPRIAN

T h e r e was n o concerted persecution of the Christian C h u r c h before the fall of the Severan dynasty a n d the accession of M a x i m u s w h o , according to Eusebius, persecuted the leaders of the C h u r c h w h o h a d befriended the former r e g i m e . Callistus died, as we have seen, as the result of a perceived association with imperial policies that were overthrown by revolution within the Severan dynasty itself, a n d in the general chaos t h a t swept Elagabalus away. T h e general per secution, w h e n it c a m e , was that of Decius T r a j a n in A . D . 2 5 1 , with which we b e g a n o u r discussion in C h a p t e r 1. 48

But as F r e n d has cogently argued, the political structures in which that persecution occurred, a n d the legitimation of those structures

Eusebius, H.E. VI, 28,1 2, cf Brent (1995), p. 8 1 ; p. 2 9 1 ; pp. 3 7 8 3 7 9 .

THE EMERGENCE OF IMPERIAL AND CATHOLIC ORDER

329

49

were the creation of the Severan dynasty. T h e s e religious a n d polit ical objectives Elagabalus shared. H e simply failed in the m e a n s to secure t h e m because of a religious fundamentalism that identified his o w n local Baal of E m e s a with Sol Invictus, a n d thus obscured the syncretism of a gradualist policy. Caracalla's citizenship law in A . D . 212, a n d his interpretation of his sacred role as E m p e r o r as the source of divine p o w e r as KOOuoKpdxcop t h r o u g h which the unifying archetypal light flowed, m a d e possible the D e c i a n persecution. If the majority of the p o p u l a t i o n t h r o u g h o u t the R o m a n E m p i r e w e r e inscribed o n rolls of citizens, the administrative m a c h i n e r y was in place to secure their act of sacrificing incense at their local altar of the Imperial Cult. If the Imperial Cult was n o w the m e a n s of sym bolising imperial unity, a n d indeed effecting w h a t it symbolised by the participation of all citizens, then the logic of w h a t was in effect the s a c r a m e n t of imperial unity clearly required that participation to be legally enforced. O v e r against t h a t cult, as we saw also in C h a p t e r 1, C y p r i a n placed his view of the C h r i s t i a n episcopatus, in w h i c h every local bishop stood for the whole, like the sun's rays e m a n a t i n g from a c o m m o n source a n d giving unity a n d light to the n a t u r a l order. T h e i r m u t u a l recognition a n d i n t e r c o m m u n i o n constituted the unity of the Body of Christ. At the centre of the nexus of i n t e r c o m m u nion stood the bishop of R o m e . T h e successors of Callistus truly were a converse reflection of the divine E m p e r o r as Pontifex Maximus, a n d m e d i a t i n g a unifying ontological reality j u s t as finally Caracalla a n d Elagabalus h a d claimed. T h u s Episcopal O r d e r reflected Imperial O r d e r , n o t as a derivation or expression of it, b u t as its reverse image in a n opposing counter-culture. T r u e Christians were not to participate in the s a c r a m e n t of imperial unity b u t in the s a c r a m e n t of the Body of Christ. T h i s m o n o g r a p h has d e m o n s t r a t e d t h a t C y p r i a n ' s theology of O r d e r was not simply a n ad hoc reaction to Imperial p o w e r as m a n ifested in the D e c i a n persecution. C y p r i a n finished a n edifice of C h u r c h O r d e r that developed, pari passu, with Imperial O r d e r , as the priesthood of the Christian Cult h a d developed, pari passu, with the Imperial Cult, w h e t h e r in St. Luke or St. C l e m e n t , the Seer

4 9

W . C . H . Frend, Martyrdom and Persecution in the Early Church, (Oxford: Blackwell 1965), p. 3 1 2 ; idem. The Rise of Christianity, (London: D a r t o n , L o n g m a n and T o d d 1986), p. 4 4 0 . See also Dal C o v o l o (1989), pp. 5 4 - 5 5 .

330

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of the Apocalypse or St. Ignatius, or indeed in St. Irenaeus or St. Hippolytus. T h e d y n a m i c of the development a n d its dialectic has also been at least p a r d y explained by a sociological model of counter-culture. But I a m a w a r e that the e m e r g e n c e of C h u r c h O r d e r supported by a M o n a r c h i a n theology of the g o d h e a d that arose as a contra-cultural reaction was a n heretical a n d not an o r t h o d o x theology. A n d , to the extent that m o d e r n forms of episcopacy, of the kind that I have attacked in a previous work, reflect such a M o n a r c h i a n basis, they clearly reflect, in b o t h theology a n d practice, heretical r o o t s . 50

T h e e m e r g i n g o r t h o d o x doctrine of the Trinity as three persons, each consubstantial a n d co-eternal, c a n n o t fit into the m o u l d of a such a socially a n d culturally conditioned development. In conse quence there m a y here be the possibility of a n a r g u m e n t for the tran scendent grounds of divine revelation breaking into, b u t not absorbed by, its s u r r o u n d i n g culture. But that must be a n o t h e r a r g u m e n t a n d a n o t h e r story.

1 0

A. Brent, Ecumenical Relations and Cultural Episcopates, in AThR 72,3 (1990), pp. 2 5 5 - 2 7 9 ; Idem. Cultural Episcopacy and E c u m e n i s m , Representative Ministry in C h u r c h History from the A g e o f Ignatius o f Antioch to the Reformation, with special reference to contemporary ecumenism, in Studies in Christian Mission 6, (Leiden: E J . Brill 1992).

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INDICES

1. B I B L I C A L

CITATIONS

O L D TESTAMENT Genesis 2,9 178 31,31-35

13,22 45.5 46,9 58.6 60,17 61,1-2

241

Exodus 30,1 a n d 7

88

Leviticus 2 92 Numbers 24,17

Daniel 2,33-45 55 9,27 79 10,10-21 219 12,1 219

186

1 Samuel 2,7 155 2 Samuel 22,3

Hosea 11,1

92

1 Chronicles 13,10-11 88 23,16 88 Psalms 2,7 96 2,7-9 186 17,18-19 92 40,3 156 78,25 182 118 115 Proverbs 20,27

96

Joel 2,2

79

Micah 5,2

83

Malachi 3 156 3,2-6 100 3,22-23 100 Wisdom 3,1-9 2 Baruch 6,7-10 29,8

153

Isaiah 2,1-4 100 7,14 57, 96 10,33 155 11,1-11 100

197 182 182

2 Maccabees 2,4-7 182 1 Enoch 6,11

NEW

Matthew 1,18-25 95, 96 1,22-23 96 2,1 83 2,1-2 96 2,5-6 96

156 292 292 105 148 105

197

TESTAMENT

2,15 96 3,7-12 100 3,17 96 7,1 316 9,28 131 10,1-23 80

348

INDICES

10,2 132 10,13 114 10,34 114 12,33 80 19,16-21 132 19,23-30 132 19,28 116, 131 20 96 20,20-28 116 20,23 116 20,25 117 20,26-27 117 21 96 21,9 115 24-25 80 24,15 81 24,32-35 157 24,37-42 81 24,43-51 81 25,1-13 81 25,14-30 25,31-46 81

1,5 75 1,5-25 88,91 1,8-11 88 1,9 114 1,11 102 1,14 113 1,15-17 100 1,20 96 1,26-56 91 1,32 96 1,32-33 99 1,34 97 1,35 97, 9 8 1,41-52 91 1,46-55 98 1,48-5 99 1,51 156 1,52-53 101, 102, 103, 117, 155 1,55,71,77,79 105 1,57-80 91 1,68 94 1,69 92 1,69-70 99

Mark

1,6-8 100 1 11 96

'' ' 534

I'nVSf 77

14

' 8,27-30 72, 100 9,1 78 10,4 116 10,35-45 116 10,42 117 10,43-44 117 11,10 115 13 9 - 1 3 79

is! 12

OL,

13 2 0 - 2 8

1*0

79

158 13^28-31 157 13 78 9 4 ,13,37 OO %80 Q 98

Y T 5

75, 105, 115 77, 100 119 93 93 106 112, 124, 138

119 9 2

1 77-7Q Q4 1,79 ^ 9 4 , 9 5 , 113, 114, 156 2,1 124 2,1-2 83 2,1-21 91

1 , 7 7

V ' '

2

158 81 14^

13 14

5 39 ' Luke 1-2 1-3 1,1 1,1-4 1,3 1,3-4 1,4

' 1,72-73 >>

*

95

115 '

2 4

7

7

2,26-3 '

95

O QC_QQ

Q1

^' ' " ^ ^ ' ' " 3,10-14 100, 101

2

4 6

4 8

1

1

3 A

4

J

7

1 6

1 5

3 0

' ~ 4,18 4,19 6,13 6,15 6,37 7,50 8,48 9,18-20 11,21

1 U U

1

0

0

4

4

0

0

1

0

4

9 1 , 122, 155 105 132 115 316 114 114 100 115

349

BIBLICAL CITATIONS

12,51 13,13 14,32 19,37-38 19,42 21,7-28 21,20-24 21,24 21,25-26 21,25-27 21,28 21,29-33 22,19b-20 22,24 22,24-27 22,25 22,26-27 22,27 22,28-30 22,30 22,35-38 24,36 John 6,48-50 12,13 14,10-11 14,27

114 94 115 115 115 94 81 74 94 81 94 157 116 116 116 117 117 117 116 131 115 114

182 115 295 114

J c S 21/26 2019-22 20,22

6,1-6 133, 134 6,6 133 10,36 119 11,1 134 11,27 134 11,28-30 132 11,30 133 12,1-5 137 12,2 133 12,21-22 122, 123 13,1-3 132 13,3 133 13,5 107 14,2 107, 133 14,4 132 14,11-18 123 14,19 107 14,21 134 15,1-35 134 15,2,4,6,22-23 133 15,20 181 16,20-21 125, 126, 17,5-9 107 17,6 124 124 17,8-9 125 18,1 107 1

114

222, 239 222

Acts 1.1 93 1.6 115 1,6-8 82 1.7 74 1,9 81 1,9-11 82 1,12-26 135 1.13 115 1.14 133 1,15-26 8 2 , 132 1.22 133 1,24-26 137 1,25 137 2.2 94 2.23 9 4 , 113 2,42 77, 118 2,44-45 117 2,46 116, 117, 118 5,12 118 5,30 178

8

2

; ^ -

g

1

2

7

1 1

0

0

6

7

°'' >jg 18,13 124, 126 18,16-17 107 18,25 119 19,21-40 120 19,23 120 19,27 124 19,31 121 19,35 168, 120 20,17 133 20,28 133 22-23 114 23,25 93 23,25-27 82 22,30-23,10 114 24,1-9 107, 112 24,2-3 113 24,5-6 114 24,24-25 107 24,26 108 24,27 118 25,1-11 108

350

INDICES

25,13-26-32 26,6-7 119 26,24 122 108 26,30

118

Romans 127, 138 9-11 74 9-12 11,5 132 11,13 132 11,17-24 127 132 12,11 14,14 315, 316 16 314 16,7 132 1 Corinthians 8,1-6 181 15,6-7 132 2 Corinthians 8,23 132 8-10 135 Ephesians 5,1-2 Colossians 1,15

232

196

Galatians 1-2 134 2,6 135 2,10 135 3,8 323 3,10-14 127, 138 3.13 178 Philippians 1,2 134 6,12 292 1 Timothy 3,2 134, 3 1 5 3,8 a n d 12 134 4.6 134 5,17 134 Titus 1.7

134

Hebrews 9,4

182

1 Peter 2,2 4.14

178 245

2 Peter 2,4

156

3.4 3,10

156 157

Apocalypse 1,12-1 196 1,20 196 2,1 167, 2 1 9 2-3 219 2-4 166 2.7 168, 2 1 3 2,9 168, 187 2.9 a n d 3,9 169 2,9-3,22 177 2,10-11 179 2.13 180, 181 2.14 181, 186 2,17 183, 185 2,20 186 2,20, 2 6 - 2 7 186 2,28 168, 186 2 178 3,4-5 186 3.5 187 3.8 188 3,12 188 3.20 189 3.21 189 4-5 214 4-19 190 4 204 4,4 198, 2 0 1 , 2 0 2 4,4-11 204 4.10 199, 2 0 5 4.11 201,201 5,1 206 5.6 200 5.8 8 9 , 180, 2 1 5 6 and 8 197 6,6 165, 188 6.9 a n d 11 197 6,11 197 6,14 200 7.9 199, 2 0 0 , 2 3 3 7.10 201, 205, 206 7,10-12 206 7,14 201 7,17 217 8,3 200 8,3-4 197 12,1 166, 167 12,1-6 166 12,5 167 13-14 196 13,14-15 196 13,15 196, 197

ANCIENT CHRISTIAN AND JEWISH WRITERS

14,2-3 199, 2 3 3 14,9, 1 5 - 1 6 , 1 9 - 2 0 16,2 193 16,3-21 193 17,1-6 169 17.9 165 17,9-11 165 17.10 165

19,9 182 19,9 and 17 20,2 180 21,7-8 179 2 1 , 1 4 and 19 22.1 217 22.2 213

196

2. A N C I E N T C H R I S T I A N A N D J E W I S H Acta Sancti Justini 1

14

Acta Sancti Callisti Papae Martyris 8 (Migne PL. 10, col 120) 326 Athenagoras Legatio pro Christianis Insc. 303 17,34-35 303 18,10-14 304 19,1 304 C l e m e n t o f Alexandria Stromateis 5,14

292

Clement of R o m e Ad Corinthios 140, 159 1,1 145 1,1-2 61 2,2 160 2,6 161 2,8 159 3,2 159 3,3 3,4 161 143 7,1 154 14,2 20 152 147 20,3 156 21-22 153 21,2 21,6-7 158 21,9 153 23-27 156 157 23,4-5 156 23,5 157 24,2 32 152 37 146 243 37,2

Romae 325,

351

189

213

WRITERS

147 40 41,1 147 41,3-4 1474 42,3 159 42,4 159 42,4-5 148 44 149 44,1-5 133 161 45,3 46,6 159 46,7 159 161 51,2 56 160 159 57,2 59,3 152, 155 216, 234 60-61 60,1 152 156 60,2 60,4 153 60,4-61,2 52 60,4-61,3 151 153, 156 61,1 150, 156 61,2 163 61,2-3 154 61,3 159 62,2 160 62,3 159 63,1 160 63,2-3 64 159 Constitutiones Apostolicae 2,26 222 (= Didasc. Apost.) II, 5 7 , 4 - 5 Constitutiones Apostolicae (Epitome) 51-77 38 Cyprian De Lapsis 28 14 Epistulae 30,6 5

217

352

INDICES

43,5 4 55,8 4 59,7 4 59,14 4 73,7 4 75,16 4 Zte Catholicae Ecclesiae Unitate 5 3 4 4 Sententiae Episcoporum 19 5 Didache 8 15 9,4 158 11,3-6 132 14,3 218 Didascalia Apostolorum II, 5 7 , 4 - 5 214

Haer., 6 8 , 2

Epiphanius 5

Eusebius o f Caesarea Historia Ecclesiastica 111,20,3-4 112 VI, 2 8 , 1 - 2 328 II, 10,3 123 V, 1,3-63 6 V , 1,14 6 V , 1,19 14 V , 1,33 6 V, 24,15 314 III, 18 142, 165 V, 6 148 VI, 2 1 , 3 - 4 142 Martyres Palestinae 11,30 122 Chronicon II, p . 160 140 C h r o n i c o n A n n . Abr. 2 1 1 2 , D o m i t . 16 140 C h r o n i c o n II ann. Abr. 2 1 1 0 D o m i t . 14 142 Hegesippus A p u d Eusebium, Historia Ecclesiastica III, 2 0

140 Hermas

Visiones II, 4 , 2 - 3 II, 4 , 3 HI, 9,7

314, 316 215 215

(Pseudo) Hippolytus I proem. 6 320

V , 8,39 235 IX, 6 - 1 3 , 2 310 IX, 7,1-3 5 IX, 10,10-11 318 I X , 11,1 314 I X , 12,15 314 IX, 12,15-16 313, 318 IX, 12,20-21 315 IX, 12,21-22 315 I X , 12,22 316 IX, 12,22-23 317 IX, 1 2 , 2 4 - 2 5 323 I X , 12,25 315 I X , 12,6 315 IX, 13,1-4 315 Traditio Apostolica 3 1, 120, 3 2 0 4 214, 216 7 320 Hippolytus Contra Noetum 4,8 301 14,2-3 296 15,7 301 Hypostasis of the Archons (Robinson) II, 9 5 - 9 7 274 Irenaeus o f Lyons Adversus Haereseos I, 5,4 (= Frag, graec. 1, 5 3 6 - 5 4 3 ) 292 I, 5,4 (= Frag, graec. 1, 549) 292 I, 2 3 , 1 - 2 286 I, 2 7 , 2 292 II, praef 1 286 III praef. 286 III, 3,3 1 III, 6,1 295 III, 6,2,48 296 III, 2 4 , 2 295 V, 30,3 165 V, 30,3 140 Ignatius o f Antioch Epistula ad Ephesios 1.1 231, 238, 300 1,3 218, 219, 228 1,5 234 4,1-2 233, 240 4.2 234 5.1 219, 222, 228 5.2 232 6,2 299, 243 7,1 300

ANCIENT CHRISTIAN AND JEWISH WRITERS

9,2 238 12,2 235 13.1 221, 239, 299 13.2 240 14.2 80 19,1 235 19.3 299 21,1 231 Epistula ad Magnesios 1,2 297 6.1 218, 219, 222, 239 6,1-2 222 6.2 240 7.1 29813 227 7,1-2 222 7.2 232 13.1 217, 221, 222, 234, 299 13.2 221 15 240 Epistula ad Philadelphenses Inscr. 240 1.1 212 2.2 247 4 232 6.1 168 7.2 235 8,1 299 9.1 235 10.1 228, 244, 246 10.2 229, 244 11 240 Epistula ad Polycarpum 2,6 246 7.2 246 8 228 8.1 228 Epistula ad Romanos insc. 225, 314 1-2 15 2.2 229, 232, 233, 238 3 300 3.3 300 4.1 232 4.2 233 6,1 229, 298 6.3 233 6,3 235 8,3 232 9,3 229 10,1-2 228 10,2 228 Epistula ad Smyrnaeos inscr. 238 1,1 218

2-3 298 221 3,2 6,1 221, 239 219 8,2 231, 246 10,2 228 11,2-3 246 11,2 Vistula ad Trallianos 228 1,1 3,1 218, 222 3,1-3 222 219 3,2 235 5,2 219 8,2 11,1 218 213 11,1-2 228 12,1 240 12,2 P s e u d o Ignatius Ad Romanos 3 300 6 300 Jerome Epistulae 108,7

140

J o h n Chrysostom Homilia in Iohannem 27,1 5 Josephus Antiquitates Iudaicae 1,322 241 12,265 88 15,339 72 16,136 122 18,66-80 258 19,343-351 123 20,12 93 20,102 83 20,197-203 82 Bellum Iudaicum 1,152 128 1,414 72 2,166 82 6,387-391 79 7,162 79 J o a n n e s Malalas Chronographia 10 140 Justin Martyr Cohortatio ad Graecos 15 269

354

INDICES

Dialogus cum Tryphone 1,3 308 41 218 61,2 301, 302 Apologia 1,98 225

Tatian Oratio ad Graecos 5,7-10 301 5,11-15 302 14,1-3 303 29,11-15 302

Lactantius De Mortibus Persecutorum 3 140

Tertullian Adversus Praxeam 1 296 9 296 Apologia 5 140, 142 De Anima 9,4 317 De Idolatria 18,1 176 De Pallio 2 140 De Praescriptione Haereticorum 20,7-9 185, 317 De Pudicitia 1,1-2 319 2,2 316

Melito o f Sardis A p u d Eusebium, Historia Ecclesiastica IV, 2 6 140, 142 Papias A p u d Eusebium, Historia III, 3 9 , 1 5 79

Ecclesiastica

Passio Poly carpi (Lightfoot (1891)) 8,2 6, 14 9,2 6 9,2-3 6 10,1 6 Passio Sanctae Perpetuae (Armitage R o b i n s o n (1891)) 1 3 - 1 4 (p. 16) 14 3,1 (pp. 6 2 / 6 3 , 2 - 6 4 / 6 5 ) 14 18,1 (p. 86,16) 14 Passio Scillitanorum (Armitage R o b i n s o n (1891)) p. 112, 1 8 - 2 2 4 p. 116, 2 - 3 5 p. 112, 9 - 1 1 5

Theodoret Graec. Affect. Cur. 9 140 T h e o p h i l u s of Antioch Ad Autolycum 2,8 308 2,4-6 308

Philo o f Alexandria De specialibus legibus I, 1 3 - 3 1 301

3. A N C I E N T P A G A N W R I T E R S Acta Alexandrinorum (Musurillo (1979)) 1. 1 7 - 1 8 241 1. 5 1 - 5 5 242

Apollonius o f T y a n n a Epistolae 65 66

168, 179 168

Aelius Aristides

Eiq A(cc 7,9

307 Aeschyles

Eumenides 737-756

182

Apuleius De Mundo 6, 2 0 - 2 2 278 6, 3 9 7 b 2 3 - 2 4 278 6, 3 9 7 b 3 0 - 3 5 279 6, 3 9 8 a 3 1 - 3 5 280, 305

ANCIENT PAGAN WRITERS 6, 3 9 8 b 6 - 1 4 280 6, 3 9 9 a 3 0 - 3 5 281, 284 Metamorphoses 11,10 224,237 Aristotle Metaphysics 12 279 14 277 Politics 6,7 55 Augustus Res Gestae 3 51 51 4,2 4,7 136 6,2 53 44 7,2 7,3 52, 59 8 4 , 8 6 , 124 8,2 10 33 11 54 54, 65 12 35 1 2 - 13 13 37 41 19 41 21 24 41 Cicero De Divinatione 2.74 20 2.75 21 De Legibus 2,31 21 De Natura Deorum 2,2 20, 23 2,4 2 0 , 4 8 , 147 2.29 23 2.30 22 2,73 22 3,95 25 De Republica 6,10 63 6,10 273 De Oratore 3,78 19 In Pisonem 40 247 Pro Lege Manilia 13 65 16 65

355

Corpus Hermeticum (Nock and Festugiere) Frag. X X I I I 305 Frag. X X I I I , 6 2 , 1 9 - 2 1 306 Frag. X X I V , 1-2 306 D i o Cassius Historia Romana 27,37 38 37,24,1 38, 39 37,24,2 40 37,25,1 40 40,47 265 42,26 265 45,6,5 204 47,40,1-5 44 51,19,7 61 51,20,3 40 51,20,4 38, 4 0 51,20,6 120 51,20,7 180 53,17-19 39 54 39 54,33 70 59,24,3-4 204 59,28,5 193 63,4,2 201 63,4,28-29 201 128 65,7,2 67,14 164 129 67,14,1-2 67,14,1-3 141 129 68,1,2 76,7 270 78,3 271 78,20,1 200 78,31,2-79,21,2 80,9,3 319 80,11 327 326 80,20,2 O r . 45,1

D i o Chrysostom 170

3,57,3

D i o d o r u s Siculus 262

D i o g e n e s Laertius Successiones Philosophorum 1, 4 3 - 4 4 288 I, 122 288 7, 1 1 5 6 - 1 1 5 7 273 Dionysius o f Halicarnassus Antiquates Romanae II, 5 0 , 3 312

356

INDICES Gellius

Nocks Atticae VII, 8,7

II, 2,9 V, 5,1-VI, V, 5,6-7 V , 6,2 V , 8,9 VIII, 7,2

136 Herodian 187 1,3 311 227, 260 320 326 201, 205

Horace Carmen Saeculare 29-33 61 Epodes 16 58 Odes I, 2 , 2 9 - 3 0 173 I, 3,5 173 III, 14,1 33 IV, 14,1 33 Justinian Digestae (Modestinus) X X I I I , 2,42 323 X L V I I I , 10,27,2 247 Digestae (Ulpian) I, 5,17 251 I, 9,8 315 X X I I I , 2,42 323 Juvenal Satires XIII, 4 6 - 4 9

167 Livy

Ab Urbe Condita 1 31 1 praef 1 32 1 praef 9 a n d 12 1,7,9 32 1.18.6 34 1,18,7-10 34 1,19,1-3 33 1.20.7 41 1,31,6-8 28 1.31.8 30 1,44,2 84, 85 3.6.5 28 3.7.6 28 3.7.7 28 3,8,1 28 4 31 4,20,7 26, 41 4.30.10 30 4.30.11 30

55

5,23,4-11 32, 6,1,12 29 6,37 84 8,6,9 32 8,6,11 32 8,6,12 33, 60 8,9,1 42 11-20 31 22,21,7 64 23,36,9-10 42 25,1,7 30 25,1,8 30 25,1,11 30 25,1,12 30 25,16,1-4 42 27,16,15 43 27,23,1 29 27,23,4 29 27,26,14 43 28,2,2 33 28,12,12 37 29,14,2 28 29,16,6 30 29,16,7 30 31,5,7 43 31,24 247 36,1,3 43 37-142 31 39,8-19 7 39,8,1-19 150 39,22, 4 - 5 85 39,22,5 47 40,63,4 38 41,14,7 43 45,16,6 47 46-142 31 67,12,4 38 69,51,1 38 142 32 dius Obsequens 9 43 12 47 13 85 44 85 46 85 49 85 52 85 63 85 67 44 Lucan Pharsalia 1,557 1,604 1,617

46 47 47

ANCIENT PAGAN WRITERS

1,664 48 1,670 48, 50 1,672 48 1,248-250 46 1,265-330 49 1,522-605 46 46 1,559-560 1,562-563 46 1,564-565 46 1,572-574 46 46 1,580-583 47 1,585-588 1,589-590 47 1,591-595 47 1,593-595 85 47 1,606-610 47 1,609-615 47 1,617-629 1,633-634 48 48 1,638-672 1,641-645 48 49 2,478-525 4,49-130 51 51 4,121-126

De Dea Syria 15

Ovid Fasti 3,55,57 62 Metamorphoses 15,41-411 182 15,858-870 173 15,867-870 58 Tristia 5,2,47-48 173 Pausanius Graeciae Descriptio V I , 16,5 247

Lucian 235

Lucretius D e Rer. N a t . 6 , 8 4 8 - 9 0 5 Macrobius Sat. Conv. I, 18 III, 5,7

8,82,1-5 170 174 9,8,6 9,16 180 9,18,1 173 9,66,3-4 170 9,86,7-8 173 167 9,101,22 13,64 170 13,74 170 174 14,1,2 14,124 167

18 136

Martial Epigrammata 3 103 173 4,8,12 5,2,176 172 173 5,3,3 5,5 170 5,7,4 173 173 6,2,5 174 6,10,9 170 6,87 170 7,2,2 170 7,2,5-6 170 7,5-6 170 7,5,1-6 27 7,21 27 7,23 17( 7,34,8-< ) 8,2,6-7 170 173 8,80,5

Plato

24

Respublica 415A-C Timaeus 22B4

54 287

Philostratus Vita Apollonii 4,34 180 6,42 166 Pliny the Elder Historia Naturalis X V I I I , 2,6 136 Pliny the Y o u n g e r Epistulae X , 96,1 143 X , 96,2 6 X , 96,5 110, 111 Panegyricus 2,23 170 52,6-7 174 80 173 Plotinus Enneades I, 7 , 1 , 2 5 - 2 , 1 - 3 277 II, 9 , 1 , 1 3 - 1 6 275, 292, 293 V I , 9,9 3

358

INDICES

Plutarch Ad principem ineruditum 282 7 8 0 E, 3 281 781 A, 3 Alcibiades 22,2 182 De Communibus Notitiis 36,5 273 De hide et Osiride 282 3 5 2 A, 2 236 3 5 2 B, 3 285 3 5 4 E, 10 235, 239 361 D , 27 235 3 6 4 E, 35 282, 283 371 A, 4 9 283 3 7 2 E, 5 3 283 3 7 3 A, 5 4 284 373 A - B , 54 3 7 6 A, 61 282 Demetrius 10, 2 - 4 281 Polybius Historiae 6,4,5-10 55 6,4,7 55 6,9,10-14 55

4,3 324 17,1-3 326 Severus Alexander 29,2-3 142 Silvius Statius Punica 3,629

Statius Silvae I, 1 174 I, 1,62 170 I, 2 , 1 7 5 173 I, 2 , 1 7 8 174 I, 4 , 9 5 174 I, 6 , 8 3 - 8 4 171 III, 4 , 2 3 - 2 4 180 IV, 3 , 1 1 - 1 2 166 IV, 3 , 1 2 8 - 1 2 9 173

XII, 8,18 XII, 567 X I V , 1,4 X I V , 1,23

275

Proclus In Platonis Timaeum Commentaria (Diehl (1903)) III p. 2, 10 294 III p. 5 8 , 8 293 III p. 5 8 , 18 293 III p. 9 5 , 3 1 - 3 3 293 In Platonis Rem Publicam Commentarii (Kroll (1899)) I p. 2 2 0 , 2 5 - 2 8 293 Propertius Elegiaca 4,6,37

60

Quintilian Institutio Oratoria 4, proem. 141 Seneca Quaestiones Naturales 2,32,4 45 Scriptores Historiae Augustae Elagabalus 3,4 325

Strabo 188 261 109 168 Stobaeus

Porphyry Vita Plotini 3, 1 3 - 1 6

167

Eclogae I, 4 1 , 4 4

305

Suetonius Augustus 1 38 29,3 60 200 57,2 Claudius 25,4 110 Domitianus 259 1,2 266 1,4 4 226 175 4,4 166 7,2 128 12,2 13,1- 2 16 141 15,17 Tiberius 20 66 37 168 Titus 5,3 258

7,148-149

Oracula Sibyllina 182

359

ANCIENT PAGAN WRITERS 8,704 60 6,791-794 58 Eclogae 4 54 4 60 4,6 97 4,8 56 4,11 57 4,15 95 4,17 58 4,26-36 56 5,54 57 4,4-10 54 4,15-17 56 4,18-25 56 4,37-45 56 Georgics 1,24-30 58 1,24-42 57 1.26 58 1.27 58 1,500-501 58 1,502-503 58 3,13-44 58

Tacitus Annales II, 4 7 , 3 - 4 188 III, 6 0 - 6 3 168 IV, 37 180 X V , 41,1 312 XV, 44,4 7 X V , 44,3 110 X V , 44,4 111 X V , 44,5 110 XV, 55-56 180 Historiae 2,55 199 4,81 258 Varro De Re Rustica I, 1,5 312 Vergil Aeneid 1,257-296 1,287 58 1,291 58 1,617-620 6 63 6 273 6,791-794 6,791-807

173

97 Xenophon Cyropaedia 1,3 64

95 173

4.

INSCRIPTIONS

AND

COINS

INSCRIPTIONS A u b r e t o n a n d F. Buffiere 350,8 224 361,1-2 224 367,5 224 CIG 949 189 3173,15 183 3 1 7 6 a. 183 3 1 7 6 b. 183 3642 203 IG 5,1,1368 184 11,4,1299 150 12,2,58 203 12,5,291 236 12 suppl. p. 98: 14A

257

CIL 2,172 175 2,1963 175 3,1433 176 3,7118 120 4 suppl. II (1909), 4 3 2 (1982), 1142 184 4 suppl. II (1909), 4 8 3 184 4 suppl. II (1909), 4 8 6 1 184 6,512 262 6,715 264 6,2080,22 137 6,4,29609 273 8,8203 311 8,17896 176 9,3184 63 10,1624 188 12,6038 187, 2 0 2

360

INDICES

Ehrenberg and J o n e s (1955) 98 68, 69 98,37-38 105 98a 70 9 8 a. 70 9 8 a.,6 94 98 a.,8,10-11 95 98 b.,35-41 70 99 72, 2 4 4 100 a . , 2 0 - 2 7 71 102,25 204 102 a. 201, 232 128 69, 70 EPRO 5 0 (Vermaseren) I, 5 5 261 I, 57 262 I, 5 9 , 5 - 9 262 I, 6 0 , 4 - 7 262 I, 3 5 2 262 III, 2 4 4 262 III, 4 7 6 262 Horsley New Documents III, p. 13 105 IV, p. 4 6 - 5 5 109 /. Ephesus la, 2 2 , 1 - 8 194 la, 2 7 , 2 9 2 - 2 9 7 194 la, 4 5 A , l - 8 194 la, 4 7 , 7 3 194 II, 2 3 192 II, 2 8 6 223 II, 5 9 9 206 III, 6 4 5 , 3 - 7 194 III, 9 0 2 120 IV, 1279 194 VII, 1 3 0 1 5 , 2 194 VII, 1 3 0 7 4 194 VII, 2 4133,9 194 V I I , 2 4311(a) 194 VII, 2 4 3 1 4 194 VII, 2 4 3 1 8 (a) 194 I. Pergamon 336 236 /. Sardis 7, 1,8,12 7, 1 , 8 , 1 2 - 1 4 IGRR 1, 3, 3, 3,

72 244

1150 258 209 234 209,1-5 234 1287,4 206

1288,5 206 39 a , 1 0 203 3 9 b.,6 206 39 b.,30-31 205, 206 39 b.,24 206 3 9 b.,34 206 105 180 145 203 145,5 206 180 70 309 152 353 182, 194, 198, 199 353 a.,4-5a 194 3 5 3 a.,5 b. 194 353 a.,17-18 194 353 a.,30-31 194 3 5 3 a.,31 198 3 5 3 b.,5 194 353 b.,12-19 195, 2 3 4 353 b.,15-16 203 353 b.,18-19 234 3 5 3 b., 2 0 196, 197, 2 3 2 3 5 3 c.,10 199 353 c.,10-11 195, 196, 237 353 c.,4-7 182, 195, 196, 224 3 5 3 d.,14 183, 185 353 d.,14-15 199 522 192 522 199 522 234 661, 22-23 226 778,1 and 15 202 847 203 1167.4 202 1304.5 204 1393 183 1399,5-6 183 1400,9-10 183 1558, 2 7 - 3 0 202 1608 199 1608 a., 10 234 1608 b.,5 199, 2 3 4 1608 c. 103 1608 c. 181 1708. 105 1756 71, 244 1756 1 , 1 0 - 2 3 243 1756 II 244 1756 1 1 , 3 2 - 3 3 246 1756 X , 1 0 4 245 1756,14 105 180 69

361

INSCRIPTIONS AND COINS

IGUR, Moretti 1,33 225 1,67 223 1,78 225 1,80 225 n

U(

r

r

8,1, 548, 26 257 8,1,548,27-28 257 8,1, 549 257 9,1,192, 4 - 8 256 11, 922,25ff. 201 11,922-923 204 11,922-933 89,232

Q

Y2i

207

2y' 758 3 29' 1527

332,27—29 187 332,29 187

225 225

38

III'

i«7

2

3

8

3

1

'

1

7

0

3

Hi

IN'

35,826,9-10

TJO

DO

NR

479

192, 192, 199, 2 2 5 , 2 3 4 1

6

A

8

9

71

3

225

1

99^

'> 1 8 4 0 - 1 8 4 1 4 2 , 1745 247

4

3

7

4

6

n

129

o

^ Syll? 30 247 695,33-34 204 695,35 187 695,50-54 225 736 236

194 234

548, 1 4 8,1, 5 4 8 , 4-10 8 1 <S48 1 4 - 2 4

3

39

00

8,1,

2

?;£

6o7,4 9.3 669 207 669,8-9 207 730 204 SEG 4, 517 6, 5 9

2

256 257 9«S7

7 3 6

v i 30-31

761 A 2 - 5 ' 989 168

1*

236 244

COINS

£AfC, Mattingly 1, p. 100 nos 61 Iff. 167 1, p. 142 n o 155, plate 26, 3 167 (Plates 16 a n d 17) 2, p. 8 n o . 4 7 , plate 1,15 167 2, p. 77 n o . 381 173 2, p. 2 1 2 n o . 8 5 6 , plate 4 1 , 9 208 2, p. 2 5 5 n o . 156 208 2, p. 2 8 0 208 2, p. 2 8 2 - 2 8 3 nos 2 6 6 , 267, and 2 7 1 , plate 5 4 , 3 186 (Plates 18 a n d 19) 2, p. 311 n o . 6 2 , plate 61,6 167 (Plates 2 2 a n d 23) 2, p. 311 nos 6 3 - 6 5 , plates 6 1 , 7 - 9 167 (Plates 2 0 a n d 21) 2, p. 3 6 0 n o . * 207 2, p. 3 6 4 n o 3 0 3 , plate 71,6 [61,6?] 167 2, p. 3 6 5 n o . 3 0 4 , plate 71,5, and

2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 3,

3, 3, 3, 3, 3,

p. 3 7 3 , n o . 3 4 7 , plate 73,6 207 p. 367 n o . 3 1 4 208 p. 3 7 2 n o . 3 4 6 , plate 7 3 , 4 167 (Plates 2 4 a n d 25) p. 3 7 8 n o . 3 6 5 , plate 74,8 p. 4 1 3 n o . 5 0 1 , plate 8 2 , 8 167 p. 4 1 4 n o . 5 0 4 a n d 5 0 5 , plate 8 2 , 8 167 p. 4 1 4 nos 5 0 4 and 5 0 5 , plate 8 2 , 8 167 pp. 2 3 2 - 2 3 3 nos 1 4 3 6 - 1 4 4 0 , plate 3 4 , 4 2 6 3 (Plates 2 8 a n d 29) p. 3 3 9 a n d p. 4 8 9 260 p. 382 n o . f 263 p. 3 8 5 n o . 1059 263 p. 3 8 6 n o . 1060, plate 72,6 263 p. 3 9 6 n o . 1095, plate 75,7 2 6 3 (Plates 2 6 and 27)

208

362 3, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4,

5,

INDICES p. 4 8 5 260 p. 4 0 2 no. 132 262 p. 4 0 3 no. 134 263 p. 5 1 5 no. 8 3 6 262 p. 5 3 4 nos 9 3 2 - 9 3 4 , plate 73,11 2 6 3 (Plates 3 0 and 31) p. 5 4 5 no. 1006 261 p. 571 no. * 263 p. 6 1 0 no. * 263 p. 755 no. 3 5 4 and p. 8 3 4 n o . 6 8 0 , plate 109,15 2 6 3 (Plate 32) p p . 1 6 6 - 1 6 7 , nos 75, 76, 77, plate 2 8 , 1 8 , n o s 7 8 - 8 2 270 (Plates 33 a n d 34)

Ionia p. 2 6 8 nos 2 6 6 - 2 6 8

193

Phrygia p. 3 0 7 nos 1 8 1 - 1 8 2 , 185

RIC, Mattingly and S y d e n h a m 2, p. 267 n o 3 2 6 nos 166 and 167 268 2, p. 4 4 4 no. 8 2 6 260 4,1 p. 170 no. 5 7 7 , plate 9,9 270 4,1 p. 2 5 6 no. 2 9 0 268 4,1 p. 2 5 6 n o . 291 (a)-(c) 268 4,1 p. 2 5 6 no. 2 9 3 (a)-(f) 268 4.1 p. 317 n o . 21 [Plate X I V , 5 ] 268 5.2 p. 108 no. 8 2 9 252 C o h e n , Description Historique des Monnaies III, p. 2 3 6 no. 70 268 III, C . 2 9 8 , C . 2 9 9 and C . 3 0 4 261

189

5. G R E E K V O C A B U L A R Y dyd^paxcc 201 dyaA,pdxia 241 dydjcTi 158 dyiocpopoi 240 dyiocpopoi 230, 238 dycovoGexfiaai 234 dGepixoq 6pyr| 154, 160 d0eoi 129 dOeoxTiq 129, 141 d(8ia 3 a i a i o i q oicovoiq 51 aKaxaoxaoia 160 dicpf| 70 dicpodpaxa 89 d^iGeia 122 dtayoq O\)K dA.oyov 7cejcoiT|Ke 302 dpcopoq S i d v o i a 219 dva£co7ru pt|oavxe<; ev a i p a x i Geou 245 dvdAji\j/i<; 14 dvajiauopevoi dvarcauopevoK; eiq Aiftavov 7tpoxpT|aei 6 dpxcov 196, 197 dvd7toa)Gi<; 14 dvarccxvaovxai 197

dv8pa7to8ioxT|<; dv8pocpovoi 6

179

dvoaioi 161 dvoaioq 248 dvxuroov 2 3 0 , 231 dvcopGcbGn 94 dvcbpGcoaev 6 9 , 9 4 , 113 dicapxai 148 djrriyyeAji 245

drcoPdAAeaOai xr\q XeixoDpyia^ 149 d7to8e8eiypevo<; 94 drcoyevva 293 dnoypdcpecGai 83, 88 dTcoXvxpcoaiq 94 drcovoCa 159 drcoTcpeaPeCa 245 djcovoia 159 drcoppeov 306 drcoppori 282 Gecbv o a a cpvtax drcoppori 307 drcoppoia 3 0 5 , 3 0 6 , 307 dyiov jrvevpa diroppoiav . . . xov

Geou 306 xov Geov ox; cpcoq cpvaecoq 3 0 6

305

drcoppoiai dpxovx£<; xov |3aaiAico<; drcoppoiai 306 dicoxexprixai 277

363

GREEK VOCABULARY

drcoTOur| oi) m x ' d7ioxouT|v, cb<; eXaixcoQf|vai 301 drcoxporcri 241 dp£XT|

'HAAO-U peydA.01) lapdrciSoq 267 dpiaxoKpaxia 55 dpxoq 1 8 2 , 195 dpxai 275, 276 dpxri 3, 95, 285, 287, 290, 321, 322 EK pia<; d p x i k 284, 302 e^awcn? , 3 0 3 ecp' exepaq dp%d<; 275 u i a dpxf| 279, 307, 308 xfi xcov rcdvxcov dpxfi 68, 84 dpxiepaxeCa 320, 321 dpxiepevq 109, 1 1 0 , 154, 2 0 3 , 2 6 2 , 320, 321 dpxiepei peyCaxcp 189 107 dpxio"ovdycoyo<; dpxovxeq 275 oxparnyot 126 306 xov Koopoft xcov eOvcov 117 31, 1 daePeia 129, 1 186 daxf|p npmvoq dacpdXeia 124, 138 dxa£(a 295 dxoidoi 9apudicoi 322 dx\>xe<; 6 9 , 160 a\)6d8eia 159 avxoKpdxcop 5 d(peX6xri<; 118 a
5

paaiXeia

9 6 , 9 9 , 116 erco-opdviov paaiA,e(av e£exd£eiv

xcov jcepdxcov xr\c, ynq

186 p{pA,o\) xfjq £cofj<;

£K Tfjq

229

241

P8eAA)icx6<; 145 pSekuyua xr\q epTi^cooeax; 145

PipAxx;

92

xfi cbpiouivfi $o-oXr\

79,81,

187

9 4 , 113

$OVXT\GI<;

9e(av PovXriaiv 94 xfi i)7cepxdxcp auxov po\)A.r|aei 147

pcopoq 34, 202 Pcouocpopoi 230, 238 Pcopocpopoq 2 3 6 yeve0A,io<; n p e p a 84, 94 yevvrixoq 300 yevvcbjievov 97 y£po\)a(a 2 4 3 , 183 ypappaxetx; 195 yuvf| 166 Sacpvncpopoi Sacpvncpopoc;

201 201 8e8oKipaapevoi av8pe<; 148, 149 8ev8pov 178 8ripio\)py6(; 293 Sfipoq 6 4 , 123, 2 4 3 8ia8e^covxai 148, 149 8ia8oxai 149, 286, 2 8 7 drcooxotaov 286 SiaSoxri 1, 8 , 2 8 7 8id8oxoi 320 8iaKov(ca iSiai 147 Tterciaxevpevcov 8iaKoviav . . . 222 SidKovoi 8, 117, 148

8iaKovo<;

134

Siowteutxov 240 Siaarccopev 159 Siaxayn 145 8i8aoKaA.(a 3 2 0 , 321 8tiA,icopev 159 SieuOvvov 156 SiriKcuaa 279 8iraioa\)VTi

304

Paaitaiou xov aicovoq xovxou 2 2 9 paaitaix; 115, 117, 124, 163 P<xoiA,ei 8o\)Xet)o^ev 4 PaaiXe\)£iv paoxd^ew

po\)Xt|

8IOIKT|OI<;

64 146

xfj 8ioiicf|aei auxou a a t a u o p e v o i 145 5top6cbpaxa 113 8icoyn6<; 160 8oKipdoavxe<; xcp rcveuuaxi 148 86yua 8 8 , 124, 217 86^a 1 5 1 , 1 5 2 , 163, 2 0 5 , 2 0 6 , 2 4 9 Softvai yvcoaiv acoxnpfac; 92 5p6uo<; 5rm6aio<; 247

364

INDICES

8t>vau«;

205

;

207,

249^

Svvduei xpw^evoq dxpvxcp uyioxov 98 8(o8eKd
278

e(38eAA)Y|ievoi 179 eyicpaxeCa 159 eGri 130 ei8coA,a

rcoAAaxoGi dvOpcbrccov ecpavxdaOri 40 ei8cota)taxxpai 179 ekoveq 7 0 , 8 9 , 192, 1 9 3 , 195, 2 2 3 , 226, 2 3 4 - 2 3 6 , 239, 2 4 9

xcov lepaaxcov

194, 195, 2 2 4

eiq eiKovaq xcov ZePaaxco

195

ekcbv 172, 1 9 3 , 196, 2 2 3 , 2 2 4 , 227, 230, 236, 2 3 8 , 281, 2 8 2 , 2 8 4 vorixiKoq

284

eiKova ueyiaxTiv ypd\j/aq 227 Iai<; eiKova xov vor\xox) KOGUOI) 284 e k o v i xov 9r|p{o\) 1 9 3 , 196, 197 e'uxapixevTi 51, 55, 59, 272 eipr|vet>eiv 244, 245, 246 eipr|VTi 70-72, 91, 94, 95, 99, 102, 110, 1 1 2 - 1 1 5 , 1 2 3 , 127, 136, 145, 1 5 1 - 1 5 4 , 156, 1 6 0 , 162, 2 4 3 , 2 4 8 ev eipf|vfl 115 i)7coxdaaea9ai 146 \)7ioxdcaovxai 145 evayyeXi^oiievoq eipf|vr|v 119 ev oupavco e i p f | v t | 115 ovSev . . . dpeivov eipf|vr|<; 240, 299 noXXr\q eipr|vr|<; xvyxdvovxeq 113 eior|ta6aiov 1 8 3 , 185 eKaxovxapxoq 146 eKK^TioCa 240, 286 eKKtaiaia 6 e o t > . . . dyiocpopco 238 xfj eKKA.r|o{a xov 9eoa) xr\ 7rapoiKot>aTi KopivGov 151 rcpoTiyoDjievoK; xfjq eKKA.r|a[a<; 215 a\)U7capoi)aaiq . . . eiacA,r|a{ai<; 228 eK7ti>pcoGi<; 273 T

eKxeveia

eiciaK07if| 149 e7iioKOTcfi<; d7copdA
m i udpxvpa 226 ejcixe^eiaGai 147 ejctxexaypevoi optaucn 147 ercupaveCa 70, 72 in6nxT]q

306

epyov TipcoxoxoKov 301 epic; 160 evayyeXia 7 0 , 72 evayyeXiov 104, 113 xolq Ttxcoxoiq 122 EvayyeXiGaadax nxwxolq 105 evayyeXioQr] r\ noXiq

7 2 , 105,

245

evayyeXia 105 evepyexai 117 evepYernq 117 eikoauoq 195 evXoyia 206, 207, 249 cuvouia 70, 6 4 evaePeia 6 4 , 145, 2 0 4 evoePeiaq ouov SiSaypa 239

119

ZKxvoiq nXr\pr\<; nveviiaxoq ayiov

eXevQepioq 72 iXniq 70 eXnideq zXnibaq xcov 7tpoA,aP6vxcov euayyeXia jcdvxcov 105 evBeov nXrfioq 219 evcoaiq aapKiicri 221 eiq evoxrixa 0eo\) 299 ev xfi evoxrixi 247 evcoaiv eiSxouai 297 evcoOfivai evco9t|xe xcp e7tiaK07ccp 239, 240 e^eujttaxpiov xr\<; dydjiriq -bjucbv 219 e^crooid^ovxec; 117 eiovaia 292 SeSopevriv e^ovaiav 152 empxia 123 ercapxcx; 146 ejciveiiacx; 189 ejucxnuoi xolq anocxoXoic, 132

161

jcepi x' euaepelaq 203 evaxdGeia 1 5 1 , 153

GREEK VOCABULARY evxdicxco<; 146 EK GeAjinctxoq Geov 148 evxc^ia 146, 2 4 3 , 2 9 9 E\>xvxr\\ia 94, 160 evxapiaxfjaou 206 evxapiaxia 205, 2 0 6 evepyeaicov 206 eiq evxapioxiav XT|A,IKOVXOV Geov 206

^ampoq xcov 9e{cov eiicovcov 237,

Ovonai Gvaiaq xe rcapioxdvai xoiq Geoic; 243

Gvaiaaxripiov 216, 232 GvaiaaxTjplov xov Gvuiduaxoq 88

exoiuov

178

fiyeuovia 152 fiyepoviKov 22 fiyeucov 82,2 8 2 Tiyovuevoq 117 HAIOC CAPAniC 269 fiiiepoSpopoq 244, 247

230-233,

238, 250

iepaxeveiv 88 iepoupopoi 230,236, 237, 238 ieped 202 xr\<; xcov Xe^aoxcov Evae(3e(a<; 181

238

^Tvrfiuaxa 107 tfyXoq 159, 160 On 3, 178 ^cofjc; evpexpia 7tdcrn<; 2 5 6 EK xov tpkov xr\q £co*k

365

iepeia 262 Lepevq 75, 195 iepo(pdvxTj uvoxTipicov 192 tepocpopoq 2 3 6 iepcbuaxa 241 i|idxia Aevm 186 iuaxiov ev iuxxxioiq XevKoiq 187 1OV8CUK6<; 129, 130, 131 ior| Avoia 184 iaT|A,va{ov icrn^vaiov rcape^ei 6 mxaoxcxGeiq 183

Gdvaxo<; 147 Ged 'Pcbpri 192, 194, 198 GeoSpouoi 247 GeoSpouoc; 244, 246, 247 GeoAoyot 199, 2 3 4 GeoAxSyoc; 194, 196, 198, 205, 208,

230

GeorcperceTq icaTSeq 3 2 1 0£orcpeaPt>XTi<; 244, 246 GeocpdvxTK 230, 236 0eocp6poi 237, 238 Geoq>6po<; 230, 236-238, 241 6ecop(a 123 OXi^iq 79 G6pvpo<; 124 Gpovoq 9 9 , 189, 199, 200, 204, 205,

217

xov Geov 199, 2 0 4 xovlaxava 180, 181, 185 Gvuidua xfi copa xov Gvuaduaxog 88 Gvuiduaxa 197 Gvuuxaai 88 Gvuiaxripiov 89 Gvaia Gvolav ox; KCXMAGXTIV 225 Geov Gvaia evpeGco 233

iaxv<;

206, 207, 249

KaGnpevoc; 202, 215 raGiaxduevoi e^coxiKoC 195 KaGvuvovvxeq 234 KavTicpopoq 2 3 6 Kaxe^ovaid^ovoiv 117 mxevGvvai 9 4 , 113, 118, 1 5 6 raxTixT|Gn<; AxSycov 138 KTipvypa 78 KTipv^ai 91 aix|iataoxoi<; dcpeaiv 105 KiGdpa e'xovxe<; eicaoxoq KiGdpav 215

KiGapcp8cov KiGapi^ovxcov ev xai<; KiGdpatq 199 Kiv8vvevouev eyKcxAeiaGai axdoecoq 120 K(V8VVO<;

Kivovvxa axdaeiq ldaxai

147, 154, 2 4 8

113

eiciKeiuevac;

Kioxaq exovoaq iepd

236

Kioxa(p6po<;

236

366

INDICES

icXdSoi xou axavpov KOivcov(a

213

77

Kopri Kooiio-u

305

KoauoKpdxopeq KoajioKpdxcop 289,

291-294 4, 267-270, 276,

uiur|xa{ 2 3 0 uiuTixriq 226, 233,238, 300 uiuovuevoq 2 3 5 uoixeCa 3 1 5 uovapxeia-Tila 253, 308 a d u a xedq, 5earcoiva, fiovapxe(a<; 302

292, 292, 298, 306, 329

KoauoKpdxopa Kx(aua xov At|uio\)pyov 2 9 2 icoauoicpdxopa M(dpKov) A\)(f|Xiov)... lejiaaxov 2 7 0

uovapxia 301,

dKaxaaKevcoq Kal cpuciKax;

cuvioxaxai uovapxia 55 uovapxiav eutov 3 0 8 avviaxdv 3 1 8 jcepi xe Geoa) uovapxicu; 3 0 8

Kpdxiaxoq 9 3 ,106, 1 2 6 Kpdxoq 163, 2 0 6 , 2 4 9

ev ppaxiovi avxov 1 5 6 KVKkoq eiaxT|Keiaav Kt>ictao XOV Qpovov 199

XaiKoq 1 4 7 A,eixoi)pynaavxe<; duiurcxcoq 1 4 9 taixovpyCa 147 A,evxeiuovoi)vxe<; 2 0 1 A,iPavo<; 95, 197 XiPavcoxoq 197, 2 0 2 A,iKva<popo<; 2 3 6 teyoq 18, 2 2 , 4 5 , 4 7 , 4 9 , 1 5 2 , 1 9 8 , 282,

283, 291, 305, 306

daapKo<;

301

euyvxcx; 2 8 1 evSidOexoq 152, 2 7 2 evSidGexoq 2 7 2 rcpoeXBcov 3 0 2 7ipo7iTi8a Xoyoq 301 7tpo(popiKo<; 152

Xoycp, vm voouuevco duepiaxco 304

Mxpcooiq 92, 94, 99, 102 Xvxvia ev ueaco xcov A.DXVICOV 196 Mxvoi 1 9 5 pav{a udvva

121

KCKpDupevov uavxiicfi 21 udpxyq 226

180-182

6 nioxoq uov 1 8 1 pexexovxeq dpxiepaxeiaq 1 uiapd 1 5 9 uiapol 6 uiueiaGai 2 9 4 |iiur|uaxa 223, 239 u(uTiatq

235

253,277,281, 289, 290,

303, 306, 307, 309, 310, 318

vdo<; 1 2 0 vaocpopoi 230, 238 vea "Ioi<; 2 5 8 Ar|(XTixpa

203

veoc;

Aiovvoioq vecoKopoq

239, 311

120

xr\c, ueydA.Ti<; 'Apxeuiooq 1 6 8 viicr, 64,71, 72, 99, 123 vor|x6<; 2 9 4 ev xcp voiixcp 2 7 5 vouoq 25, 107 vovq 3,276,283,294,305, 291, 305,

306

tyXov TTJ<;

178 ^(or\q

178

oiKexriq 322 oiKovou(a 297

oiKovoufaq xdpiv 3 0 1 okouuevTi 67,98, 113, 124 oi'voi 182, 195 oi'voix; a7cev5ovai 2 2 7 oXiyapxia 55 oXedpoq 2 2 1 6uor|0eia 9eo\) 240 ouovoC 1 4 6 ouovoia 7, 17, 18, 4 3 , 4 4 , 6 8 , 7 0 , 91, 160,

118, 151, 153, 154, 156, 157, 234, 216, 239, 240, 243, 248

evouovo(a

216, 221,239, 240,

299

8ixa 7tdar|<; 7tapeicpdoeco<; 145,

147

'Ouovoia lePaaxfi 1 9 2 ovoua Kaivov 184, 185

367

GREEK VOCABULARY 6pia|io{ 146 open 324 opo<; 315 6 dpxaioq, 6<; eaxiv Aidpotax; 180 ox^oKpaxia 55 6xAo7coif|aavxe<; 107 rcaiSefa 158, 160, 162 rcdOoq ncSovc, xov Qeov [iov 233, 300 7iaXi7yevea{a 116, 132 jcavxoKpdxepia 256 TtavxoKpdxopeq 292 jcavxoKpdxcop 292 7capaPcou{ov 199 7capd8eiypa 276, 294 7capa8eiao<; 168, 178 ev xcp TcapaSeiaco xov deov 168, 178, 2 1 3 rcapauuOiov 239 TtapeicPawcov 147 napeKpdaiq 8(xa ndariq TtapeKpdoecoq 146 Ttapovaia 79 7taxpon{>axTi<; 183 TievxriKovxapxoi 146 jieTuoxe-Duevoq 235 TtepipaXeixai 187 Ttepipeptainevoax; oxoXaq 200 TcepiTixcbaei^ 140 nXavj]xe<; 293 nkr\Qo<; 219 mv 219 7cAo\)xo86xi PaoiAeia Gecov 256 nXovxoq 206-208, 249 TivevuaxiKoq 249 axe\pavo<; 226 7CVOT| 153 noXeiioq 160 TioXixdpxai 107 rcoAixeia aepaojiico noXixeia K e K o a u r u i e v o i 161 7toAixei>ea9cxi 161 noXvnX^Eia 219, 228 noXvwviLoq 257, 258, 260 TcouTCTi

200,

204

7co7cavov 182, 195 rcopveuoai 181 iiopvoi 179

7coxf|piov eiq evcoaiv xov ai|iaxo<; avxov 232 TtpeaPeia 205, 241-246 jcpeapeiaq e7teu7iov 201 7tpeapei<; 198, 2 0 2 , 2 0 5 , 2 2 0 , 2 4 3 , 244, 250 fipeOriaav Ttpeopeic; 243 upeapevaai 244, 245 TipeoPevxaC 207, 244 jcpeopvxepoi 134, 1 8 3 , 1 9 3 , 198, 199, 2 0 0 , 2 0 1 , 2 0 2 - 2 0 5 , 2 4 9 , 3 2 1 KaGriiievoi 201 e7t(aK07ioi 8 npeG$vxr\<; 244 TipoeSpia 2 0 1 , 202 m A , e i a 9 a i eiq 7cpoe8p(av 202 xexeiuT|uevov . . . upoeSpiaiq 202 7tpoe8piai 106, 2 4 9 TipoyvcbaK; 9 4 , 113 TtpoTixoiuaauevoi eiq

OIKO8OUT|V

213

7ipoiaxr|ui 225 rcpoeaxax; 225 jcpoeaxcoaa xr\q noXeax; fjucov 0e6q 225 TtpoKaOrmevai 6 e a ( xr\<; noXeax; 225 TipomOTmevoi eiqxvmov 220, 238 7tpom(%ievo<; 217, 218, 223, 224, 225, 242 eiq xo7cov xov Geov 222, 224, 225, 242 ei<; ximov rcaxpoq 230,241 [ir\xponoXiq KiAiidaq 7ipom9e^ouevr| 225 7cpomGr|(Lievo\) xov EKIGKOKOV 221 TipoKaGC^co (npoKaBx\\iai) 224 Ttpovoia 2 2 , 2 4 , 2 5 , 6 9 , 9 4 , 110, 308 7tpoampxepot>vxe<; 6uo0\)ua86v 117 7tpoaxdY|icx 146 ev xolq ducbuoi<; Tcpooxdyjiaoiv 145 xoiq Aa'iicoiq upoaxdyuaaiv 8e8exai 147 jcpoaxexayuevoi Kaipoi 147 jcpoacpopd

147,

Tcpoyvcooiq

92

217

npovoia 6 7 , 7 1 , 72, 9 2 , 9 4 , 105, 113, 2 7 2

368

INDICES

Ttpoxouri lapdrciScx; 241 rcpcoTOKocGeSpCai 215 TcpcoxoaxaTTiq xfj<; xcov Na^copaicov aipeaeox; 114 rcupcpopcx; 236 po8iapo<; Tcoua fi

95 rcaupao&eia

206

oe(3dCea0at 3, 9, 126 aepdauiov e i v a i yduov iepecoc; 320 lePaaxoi 181, 191, 203 aepaaxoAxSycx; 230 aepaaxocpdvni; 192, 196, 197, 199, 230, 234, 236, 239, 250, 262 Geocpopoq 250 oepaaxocpopoq 230, 236, 237, 239 aePouivai 107 oepouevoi 129, 130 crnueia 117 xov anooxohov 132 omuuxx aicdupaxi 143 aocp(a 185, 206, 305, 306 aocpoi 285, 289 a7tov5ia6fjvai 232 0eq> 232 cxaaid£ou£v 159 axdaei<; 107 axdoiq 110-114, 118, 119, 121, 123, 128, 131, 145, 148, 152-154, 157, 159-161, 248 dvoaioq 145 axecpavr|cpopfioai 187 ev AxxprcpaTq eaGfiaiv axecpavricpopeiv dnavxaq 238, 243 axecpavTicpopot 179, 203, 204, 249 oxecpavTicpopoq 202, 204 oxecpavoi 193, 217, 201, 202 XpvooC 201, 202, 249 eaxeupevcov 5dcpvr|<; oxecpdvoiq 201, 204 axecpdvovq xoiq i)uvco8oiq 195, 204, 234 oxecpavoq Xpvaouq 206

Ccofiq

axecpavcoaai Xpvaco oxecpdvco 204 ev eaunoiv taxu7tpaT<; eoxecpavcouevcuq 187, 238 axecpavcooovciv 207 axoXf) 197 axpcban; 195 a\)yxapfivai 246 ai)vxapT|aopevT|v auxcp 243 auyxcopeiv 5 avyxcopf|oi<; 5, 6 a\)7xcopf|aeco<; d^icoOfivai 5 <xoupot>>itov dyayeiv 8eo7tpe7tecxaxov 246 avuu\)Gxai 230, 235 (XUUCpCOVOl ovxeq ev ouovoia 216 ovve5piov 183 xcov drcoaxotaov 222 a\)VT|9eia 219, 228
152

ovaxaaw . . . ecpaveporcovnaaq 152 avaxripa 183 ocppayi8e<; KaBdjiep ev icripco ocppayi8e<; 284 axT|ua dvcopGcoaev 160 ev eipriviKcp oxr^axi 201 axiaua 119, 145 acocppoovvT} 159 acoxflp 71, 72, 91, 92, 97, 113, 180, 181, 159, 194 ueyiaxcp Zcoxfi pi 189 acoxfi pa xapiaauivT| 105 xox> Koivoi) xcov dvOpamcov yevoxx; 70 acoxnpia 71, 92, 97, 99, 102, 110, 112, 121, 123, 128, 156, 162, 206, 249 xr\<; xcov fiyeudvcov acoxripiaq acoxTipiav e£ exOpcov 92 acoxT|p(a<; eopxr|v xiva xavrnv erciaxdjievoc; 123 acoxT|piov 95 acocppcov 145

179

d^io7cA.oKo\) Kve\)uaxiKo\) oxecpdvoi) 217, 234

xanewoi xa7ieivcoai<;

104 99

89

369

GREEK VOCABULARY

xdyuoc 146, 162 ev xcp i6{cp xdyuaxi 147 xdfo 146,' 305 xfjc; xd^ecoc; 7ipoxexu7tco|ievr|<; 94 xdpaxoq 120 x&eioq moq 157, 245, 280, 323, 324 xeAexai xaiq dyicoxdxaiq dvapi^aoa xeAexaiq 235 xejxevri 203 xeuevoq 120, 168, 169 xiuri 152, 205 xojcoq ei<; xoTcov 218 ev xoTtcp dyico 81 XcopCou 'PcouocCcov 225 8co8eKdxcp xorcco . . . drco xcov drcooxotaov 150 xpixcp xoTtcp 150 xpdrce^a 89 xurcoq 222-224, 226, 227, 230, 233, 237, 238, 242, 245, 250, 266 xfjq i)|itcov Geou 'Apxeua8o<; 242 xou e7uxcop(o\) Geou 227, 260 eiqxurcov 222, 239 Geou 221, 225 mxpoq 218, 227, 238, 260 ouve8p(ou xcov drcoaxotaov 221 xurcov opGiov 223 xurcoi 220, 222, 224, 226, 239, 240, 241, 260 xupavvoq Eiciq atcovo<; \iovr\ 256 X\)XTI

uioq

71,

111,

122

72, 96, 99 Geou 152 Kaioapoq Geou uiou

71

uyieicx 72, 151, 153, 248 Ar|uoaia 70 uuvco8e(ov ev xcp uuvcoSeCco 195 uuvcp8oi 194, 195, 198, 199, 204, 205, 234, 249 'ApxefiiSi auveSpiov xcov ujavcoScov 194 uuvcp86<; 199 xfi iepa uuvcoScov auvoSco xaipew ' 199,' 234

\)7tojiovf|

59

\)7coxayr| 146, 162 urcoxdyexe xcp ejciaKOTccp 221, 299 cpayeiv 178 ei5coA6Guxa 181, 185, 186 CK xou £uAou xfjq ^CO^K 168, 213 (papudicoK; 179 (pGopd riSiaxa dv Se^auevco cpGopdv 69, 95 cpGovo; 159, 160 cpidAai 180, 193, 208, 249, 193 cpidAxxq xpucrd(; yeuouoaq Guuiaudxcov 215 (pidtai 89 xou Guuou xou Geou 193 cpiAx)oe|$aaxo<; 203 cpiAoaocpoi 288 (piAoaocpo; 270, 289 (ptA,ooxopy(a 64 (poiviKeq ev xai<; xep^i 200 (pove(a 315 (ppoviuoi 159 (ppoupoi 320 (pt>ai<; 45, 49, 71, 278 (pcovf| ev 9covfj jiia 216

xapi<;

#

Xdptxoq jLiexexovxeq 320 Xeipoxovfiaat 246 5idicovov 244 Xeipoxovt|aavxe<; 133 XiA.(apxoi 146 Xop8a( 216 Xopo( daxepcov 145 Xop6<; 230, 233, 240 ev dydjcTi xop
PLATES

P l a t e 1. A r a P a c i s A u g u s t i . D A I N e g . 5 3 . 3 0 7 .

P l a t e 2. A r a P a c i s : T e l l u s : c e l e b r a t i o n o f Pax in n a t u r e a n d society. D A I N e g .

86.1448.

P l a t e 3. A r a P a c i s : T e l l u s a n d h e r c h i l d r e n in a f r u i t f u l e a r t h . DAI Neg. 32.1744.

P l a t e 4. A r a P a c i s : N y m p h (Hard) o f s e a - r e a l m s e a t e d o n a t a m e d d r a g o n . DAI Neg. 32.1746.

P l a t e 5 . A r a P a c i s : C l o s e - u p o f T e l l u s ' c h i l d in N a t u r e ' s s u p e r a b u n d a n c e . D A I N e g . 86.1458.

P l a t e 6. A r a P a c i s : S a c r i f i c i a l S c e n e (Suovetaurilia).

DAI Neg. 66.107.

P l a t e 7. A l t a r o f L a r e s : A u g u s t u s a s augurwith

lituus. D A I N e g . 7 5 . 2 9 3 .

P l a t e 8. A l t a r o f t h e L a r e s : Vicomagistri a t j o i n t s a c r i f i c e . D A I N e g . 6 0 . 1 4 7 2 .

P l a t e 9. A l t a r o f L a r e s : A u g u s t u s h a n d s s t a t u e t t e s t o ministri o f a Mus. Vatic. Arch. F o t o g . N e g . N . A. 16.6.

compitum.

P l a t e 10. Ministri with s t a t u e t t e s o f Lares a n d Genius Augusti.

Mus. Vatic. Arch. Fotog. N e g . N . X X X V . 5 . 9 .

P l a t e 1 1 . A l t a r d e d i c a t e d t o t h e Lares o f A u g u s t u s . M u s . C a p i t . A r c h . F o t o g . Inv. 8 5 5 / S .

P l a t e 1 2 . A u g u s t u s p r e s e n t s s t a t u e o f M i n e r v a t o magistri o f w o o d w o r k e r s . M u s . C a p i t . A r c h . F o t o g . Inv. 1 9 0 9 / S .

P l a t e 13. G e m m a A u g u s t e a . V i e n n a , K u n s t h i s t . M u s . Inv. I X . A . 7 9 .

P l a t e 14. P o m p e i : P r i e s t e s s with stola a n d N a p l e s , M u s . N a z . Inv. 6 0 4 1 .

patera.

Plate 15. Priest with i n c e n s e b o x . Lyon, Mus. Gallo-Rom. (Photo: Ch. Thioc).

P l a t e 16. H e a d o f A u g u s t u s w i t h t h u n d e r b o l t a n d star. B M C ( T i b e r i u s ) 1 5 1 . c 2 1 6 . 2 0 (PL 2 6 . 3 ) . ( O b v . )

P l a t e 17. L i v i a a s p r i e s t e s s h o l d i n g patera a n d s c e p t r e . B M C ( T i b e r i u s ) 1 5 1 x . 2 1 6 . 2 0 (PL 2 6 . 3 ) . ( R e v . )

P l a t e 18. H e a d o f A u g u s t u s w i t h star. B M C (Titus) 2 7 1 . c 2 1 9 . 8 6 (PL 5 4 , 3 ) . (Obv.)

P l a t e 19. A l t a r t o Providentia. B M C ( T i t u s ) 2 7 1 . c 2 1 9 . 8 6 (PL 5 4 , 3 ) . ( R e v . )

Plate 20. Domitia Augusta. B M C ( D o m i t i a n ) 6 5 . c l 9 4 . 5 6 (PL 6 1 , 9 ) . ( O b v . )

P l a t e 2 1 . D o m i t i a ( P i e t a s ) with s c e p t r e , left, e x t e n d i n g r i g h t h a n d towards h e r child. B M C ( D o m i t i a n ) 6 5 . c l 9 4 . 5 6 (PL 6 1 , 9 ) . (Rev.)

Plate 22. Domitia Augusta. B M C ( D o m i t i a n ) 6 2 (PL 6 1 , 6 ) . ( O b v . )

Plate 23. Divus C a e s a r (Domitian's s o n ) as baby J u p i t e r s e a t e d o n a g l o b e c i r c l e d by s e v e n s t a r s . B M C ( D o m i t i a n ) 6 2 (PL 6 1 , 6 ) . (Rev.)

Plate 24. Victory (Domitian) d r a p e d a n d h o l d i n g a shield. B M C ( D o m i t i a n ) 504.C.220.3. (Rev.)

P l a t e 2 5 . Aeternitas h o l d i n g t h e s u n a n d m o o n . B M C ( D o m i t i a n ) 3 4 6 . c 2 1 9 . 9 4 (PI. 7 3 , 4 )

Plate 26. S a b i n a A u g u s t a . B M C ( H a d r i a n ) 1 0 9 5 . C . 3 9 1 . 8 (PL 7 5 , 7 ) . ( O b v . )

Plate 27. Cybele, towered, d r a p e d a n d seated. B M C ( H a d r i a n ) 1095.C.391.8 (PL 7 5 , 7 ) . (Rev.)

P l a t e 2 8 . F a u s t i n a (I) A u g u s t a . B M C ( A n t o n i n u s P i u s ) 1 4 3 6 . c 2 2 3 . 1 9 0 (PL 3 4 , 4 ) . ( O b v . )

P l a t e 2 9 . C y b e l e t o w e r e d a n d e n t h r o n e d w i t h two l i o n s . B M C ( A n t o n i n u s Pius) 1 4 3 6 . c 2 2 3 . 1 9 0 (PL 3 4 , 4 ) . (Rev.)

Plate 30. F a u s t i n a (II) A u g u s t a . B M C ( M a r c u s Aurelius) 934.C.225.1 (PL 7 3 , 1 1 ) . (Obv.)

Plate 3 1 . Cybele (Mater M a g n a ) towered. B M C ( M a r c u s A u r e l i u s ) 9 3 4 . C . 2 2 5 . 1 (PL 7 3 , 1 1 ) . ( R e v . )

Plate 32. Matri D e u m Salutari: Cybele towered a n d on a lion's back. B M C ( C o m m o d u s ) 6 8 0 (PL 1 0 9 , 1 5 ) . ( R e v . )

Plate 33. J u l i a ( D o m n a ) Augusta. B M C ( S e p t i m i u s S e v e r u s ) 7 7 . c l 9 8 . 1 5 4 B ( a ) (PL 2 8 , 1 8 )

(Obv.)

P l a t e 3 4 . Isis w i t h H o r u s in b o t h a r m s . B M C (Septimius Severus) 7 7 . c l 9 8 . 1 5 4 B (a) (PL 2 8 , 1 8 ) ( R e v . )

Origen: Cosmology and Ontology of Time (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae) (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae)

The Past is Prologue: The Revolution of Nicene Historiography (Vigiliae Christianae, Supplements, 75) (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae, V. 75)

Cyril Of Jerusalem: Bishop And City (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae)

Angelomorphic Pneumatology : Clement of Alexandria and Other Early Christian Witnesses (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae, V. 95)

The Apostolic Age in Patristic Thought (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae, V. 70)

Words, Imagery, and the Mystery of Christ: A Reconstruction of Cyril of Alexandria's Christology (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae, V. 55)

The Expansion of Christianity: A Gazetteer of Its First Three Centuries (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae, V. 69)

Demons and the Devil in Ancient and Medieval Christianity (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae - Texts and Studies of Early Christian Life and Language)

The Monastic School of Gaza (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae, V. 78)

Esoteric Teaching in the Stromateis of Clement of Alexandria (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae)

Living Water: Images, Symbols, and Settings of Early Christian Baptism (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae: Texts and Studies of Early Christian Life and Language)

Hippolytus and the Roman Church in the Third Century: Communities in Tension Before the Emergence of a Monarch-Bishop (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae)

The Imperial Cult and the Development of Church Order: Concepts and Images of Authority in Paganism and Early Christianity Before the Age of Cyprian (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae, V. 45)

Origen: Cosmology and Ontology of Time (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae) (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae)

The Library of Eusebius of Caesarea (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae)

The Impact of Scripture in Early Christianity (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae)

Trinity and Man (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae)

The Past is Prologue: The Revolution of Nicene Historiography (Vigiliae Christianae, Supplements, 75) (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae, V. 75)

Cyril Of Jerusalem: Bishop And City (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae)

Angelomorphic Pneumatology : Clement of Alexandria and Other Early Christian Witnesses (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae, V. 95)

The Apostolic Age in Patristic Thought (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae, V. 70)

Evil, Freedom, and the Road to Perfection in Clement of Alexandria (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae)

Origen : Philosophy of History & Eschatology (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae)

Words, Imagery, and the Mystery of Christ: A Reconstruction of Cyril of Alexandria's Christology (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae, V. 55)

The Expansion of Christianity: A Gazetteer of Its First Three Centuries (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae, V. 69)

Demons and the Devil in Ancient and Medieval Christianity (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae - Texts and Studies of Early Christian Life and Language)

The Monastic School of Gaza (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae, V. 78)

Esoteric Teaching in the Stromateis of Clement of Alexandria (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae)

Living Water: Images, Symbols, and Settings of Early Christian Baptism (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae: Texts and Studies of Early Christian Life and Language)

Hippolytus and the Roman Church in the Third Century: Communities in Tension Before the Emergence of a Monarch-Bishop (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae)

Irenaeus on Creation: The Cosmic Christ and the Saga of Redemption (Vigiliae Christianae, Supplements)

Cyprian the Bishop (Routledge Early Church Monographs)

Leo the Great and the Spiritual Rebuilding of a Universal Rome (Vigiliae Christianae, Supplements)

Democratic Authority and the Separation of Church and State

The Dyophysite Christology of Cyril of Alexandria (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae)

Images of the Church in Mission

Christianity and the New Age

Augustine's Confessions: Communicative Purpose and Audience (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae, V. 71)

Augustine's Confessions: Communicative Purpose and Audience (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae, V. 71)

Seek to See Him: Ascent and Vision Mysticism in the Gospel of Thomas (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae, Vol. 33)

Early Christianity and the Family

The Missions Of James, Peter, And Paul: Tensions In Early Christianity (Supplements to Novum Testamentum 115)

Trinity and Man: Gregory of Nyssa’s Ad Ablabium (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae)

The Imperial Cult and the Development of Church Order: Concepts and Images of Authority in Paganism and Early Christianity Before the Age of Cyprian (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae, V. 45)

Origen: Cosmology and Ontology of Time (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae) (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae)

The Library of Eusebius of Caesarea (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae)

The Impact of Scripture in Early Christianity (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae)

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Cyril Of Jerusalem: Bishop And City (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae)

Angelomorphic Pneumatology : Clement of Alexandria and Other Early Christian Witnesses (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae, V. 95)

The Apostolic Age in Patristic Thought (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae, V. 70)

Evil, Freedom, and the Road to Perfection in Clement of Alexandria (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae)

Origen : Philosophy of History & Eschatology (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae)

Words, Imagery, and the Mystery of Christ: A Reconstruction of Cyril of Alexandria's Christology (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae, V. 55)

The Expansion of Christianity: A Gazetteer of Its First Three Centuries (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae, V. 69)

Demons and the Devil in Ancient and Medieval Christianity (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae - Texts and Studies of Early Christian Life and Language)

The Monastic School of Gaza (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae, V. 78)

Esoteric Teaching in the Stromateis of Clement of Alexandria (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae)

Living Water: Images, Symbols, and Settings of Early Christian Baptism (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae: Texts and Studies of Early Christian Life and Language)

Hippolytus and the Roman Church in the Third Century: Communities in Tension Before the Emergence of a Monarch-Bishop (Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae)

Irenaeus on Creation: The Cosmic Christ and the Saga of Redemption (Vigiliae Christianae, Supplements)

Cyprian the Bishop (Routledge Early Church Monographs)

Leo the Great and the Spiritual Rebuilding of a Universal Rome (Vigiliae Christianae, Supplements)

Democratic Authority and the Separation of Church and State

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Early Christianity and the Family

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