christianity
Constantine the Great (272-337) was son of Constantius, one of the four co-rulers of the Roman empire. In 306 he made an effort to claim himself the sole emperor. It is said that when he was going to face the tyrant Maxentius of Rome, fearing that he might fail, he sought the help of God to aid him in battle. And when he was praying, suddenly a sign of bright cross appeared in heaven, with the inscription that “By this symbol you will conquer.” While he was wondering about this miracle, night fell and God showed himself with the same cross in his dream, telling him what to do. Then Constantine indeed defeated Maxentius, after which he converted to Christianity. He honored the priests of God with great respect, donated a large sum of money to build the churches, and also helped to define the orthodox Christian doctrines. In 313 he published the Edict of Milan, which protected Christianity from persecution. He also started the practice of “caesaropapism”, which suggested that the emperor was of absolute power in both secular and ecclesiastical matters. Although he did not ban other religions but tolerate them, his attempt to make Christianity the official religion of Roman empire contributed greatly to its popularity, which was considered a major turning point of the Christian history.
Justinian I (483-565) was a pious Christian emperor of the Byzantine emperor. He fought against paganism and heresies during his reign, and led a very holy life. As a zealous supporter of Orthodox, he built numerous Christian churches, among which the most well-known was the Hagia Sophia, a magnificent architecture with its great dome and lavish decorations. He was also known for his codification of the Roman law, corpus iuris civilis, which had a significant influence on the law codes in Europe.
|
|
Reference
Bentley, Jerry H., Herbert F. Ziegler. Traditions and Encounters. 5th edition. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2010.
“Constantine’s Vision”. Christian History Institute. 10 November 2014. <https://www.christianhistoryinstitute.org/study/module/constantine/>.
“Justinian”. Orthodox wiki. 10 November 2014 <http://orthodoxwiki.org/Justinian>.
Bentley, Jerry H., Herbert F. Ziegler. Traditions and Encounters. 5th edition. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2010.
“Constantine’s Vision”. Christian History Institute. 10 November 2014. <https://www.christianhistoryinstitute.org/study/module/constantine/>.
“Justinian”. Orthodox wiki. 10 November 2014 <http://orthodoxwiki.org/Justinian>.