Forbearance and Compulsion The Rhetoric of Religious Tolerance and Intolerance in Late Antiquity

by Kahlos, Maijastina

• ISBN13: 9780715636985
• ISBN10: 0715636987
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2009-06-25
• Publisher: Bristol Classical Pr

Summary

The first in-depth exploration of the rhetoric and argumentation of religious tolerance and intolerance in the late Roman Empire. Most surveys of religious tolerance and intolerance start from the medieval and early modern period, either passing over or making brief mention of discussions of religious moderation and coercion in Greco-Roman antiquity. Here Maijastina Kahlos widens the historical perspective to encompass late antiquity, examining ancient discussions of religious moderation and coercion in their historical contexts. The relations and interactions between various religious groups, especially pagans and Christians, are scrutinized, and the stark contrast often drawn between a tolerant polytheism and an intolerant Christianity is replaced by a more refined portrait of the complex late antique world. Forbearance and Compulsion will enhance our historical understanding of religious conflicts - ancient, recent and current - in world history.

Author Biography

Maijastina Kahlos is a research fellow at the Finnish Academy, Helsinki.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	p. vii
Abbreviations	p. ix
Chronology	p. xi
Introduction	p. 1
The monopoly of pluralism	p. 5
Tolerance, moderation, forbearance and acceptance	p. 6
Articulating Forbearance and Compulsion before 250	p. 9
The limits of Greek and Roman forbearance	p. 9
Kalokagathia and the Jews in the Roman world	p. 14
The Christians and libertas religionis	p. 19
Being a good Roman: loyalty and non-conformity	p. 25
The Third Century	p. 28
Towards the religious unity of the empire	p. 28
Lobbying against Christians	p. 38
Christian writers on forbearance	p. 46
From Constantine to Constantius II	p. 56
Religious liberty and concord: Licinius and Constantine	p. 56
Imperial rhetoric: Constantine's sons	p. 64
From persecuted to prophets of persecution	p. 66
Moderate voices	p. 73
From Julian to Valentinian I	p. 75
Changing tides	p. 75
Reactions to changing tides	p. 81
From Gratian to Theodosius I	p. 88
Gratian, Valentinian II and Theodosius I: striving for religious unity	p. 88
Libanius and Symmachus: the eloquent appeals	p. 92
The refutation of plurality	p. 99
After Theodosius I	p. 100
Honorius, Arcadius and Theodosius II: towards unity	p. 106
The authorization of oppression and compulsion	p. 108
Augustine and religious compulsion	p. 111
The debate between non-conformists and lobbyists	p. 125
Towards a World of One Alternative	p. 134
Notes	p. 141
Ancient sources	p. 219
Modern bibliography	p. 225
Index of sources	p. 243
General index	p. 251
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