Christianization of Jerusalem - Essay Example

Constantine and the Christianization of Jerusalem Constantine the Great or Constantine I was a Roman Emperor, who ruled Rome between 306 and 337 CE, during which time Christianity became the Roman Empire’s dominant religion (Schaff & Wace 1). Although there is uncertainty that surrounds the reasons for his favoring Christianity, it is not in doubt that his actions, especially in Jerusalem, resulted in the spread of Christianity throughout Europe. Despite the lack of consensus about whether he truly became a Christian, his conversion has been referred to as a triumph for the Christian Church and was a major turning point for the early Roman Christian Church. This period is often referred to as the Constantinian Shift or the Peace of the Church. Constantine, along with Licinius, legalized Christian worship in 313 CE through the Edict of Milan (1). This made Constantine a patron of the Church and by 380 CE, the notions of the Roman Empire state church, Christendom, and orthodoxy had been well established. Constantine is revered as a saint of the Eastern Orthodox Church, which also covered Jerusalem, and it is this role that the paper will cover. By the fourth century and the actions of Constantine in Jerusalem, the city had already been a backwater in the empire of Rome, during which time none of the 1st century splendor of Jerusalem remained. The Jewish revolt and its suppression in 70 CE had led to the city being destroyed partially, as had been the Jewish temple (Isaacs 1). In 135 CE, the uprising led by Bar Kochba had also been crushed, leading to its re-foundation by Emperor Hadrian, who renamed Jerusalem Colonia Aelia Capitolina. The Jewish people inhabiting Jerusalem were expelled and forbidden from living in the city’s vicinity, after which they were replaced by a mainly Gentile population from Syria and surrounding regions. At this point, the City of Jerusalem was little more than a Roman garrison town and had fewer residents and a smaller residential area compared earlier Jerusalem occupied by the Jews (1). The city, during the 2nd and 3rd centuries, had a population of less than 15,000. Both the Emperor Hadrian and Constantine the Great oversaw a period of fundamental changes in the demography, architecture, infrastructure, and ethnic identity of the city (1). This period saw the construction of pagan infrastructure with sanctuaries and temples, which sometimes saw this infrastructure created where sacred Jewish sites once lay. This resulted in a loss of Jerusalem’s Jewish character as the city began to venerate pagan deities such as Tyche, Mars, Dionysus, Serapis, Aphrodite, and Jupiter. However, while the pagan shrines and temples were erected in Jerusalem’s central places, including its forum, the Temple Mount area remained conspicuously desolate. At this point, Jerusalem’s administrative structure was similar to that of most other colonies of Rome with decurions, aediles, duumvirs, and a municipal council. The magistrates were subordinates of the Syria-Palestine provincial administration headquartered in Caesarea. Up to its relocation to Eilat, life in Jerusalem in terms of the social, economic, and religious environment was influenced by the legion of Roman officers stationed in the city (1). It was during the 4th century that Constantine’s influence on Jerusalem began in earnest. Constantine turned his attention to Jerusalem, which was still, as mentioned, a backwater of the Roman Empire, and started to build architecturally ambitious projects, including basilicas, in the city. Constantine altered the infrastructure and orientation of Jerusalem by moving its religious centre from the temple Mount to those locations where it was believed that that the passion, crucifixion, and burial had occurred, as well as where it was believed he had arisen to heaven (1). In erecting new and great basilicas in these locations, Constantine built a beautiful and splendid Jerusalem, gaining a reputation as an imperial architect, similar to both Solomon and David. In his search for the empty tomb of Christ in Jerusalem, Constantine started the destruction of pagan architecture and infrastructure from in 324-325 CE (1). After the empty tomb had been discovered, as was the Golgotha’s rock knoll, Constantine started the construction of imposing structures that were to be used in particular contexts of religion. The re-construction work inaugurated by Constantine in late 335 CE resulted in significant modification of Jerusalem’s geology, especially as he sought to build an integrated structural system that would culminate with the tomb of Christ as its center. The Martyrium Basilica was constructed with its entry through three doors using the Cardo Maximus steps. With five naves, the Basilica was magnificent, particularly with the separation of the five naves by a system of pillars and columns that supported the gold-coated ceiling (1). The Basilica’s rear had two doors that accessed the courtyard with archways surrounding the courtyard on three sides, while, at its southeast corner, was the rock of Golgotha. The imposing façade of the Anastasis mausoleum was a standout structure from the courtyard, at the center of which was the Edicule of the Tomb. This mausoleum was topped by a large dome that ensured its visibility across Jerusalem, as well as its position as the city’s center (1). However, despite the significant changes to Jerusalem’s layout, Constantine still left the temple Mount untouched, considering it un-reclaimable. There were several reasons why Constantine chose to take these measures in changing Jerusalem. One of them involved the Holy Land plan that aimed at diverting the Christian masses’ attention from what Constantine felt had been the horrifying persecution of Christians, particularly by heathen Romans. It was also Constantine’s aim to invigorate the interest of the Roman Empire in the mythic, historic, and heroic past of Jerusalem and the wider Holy Land (Cohen 1). It can also be said that Constantine’s plan, on top of being a result of his avowed interest in a Christian identity, also sought to tilt the religious and political center from Rome to Roma Nova, which he had founded on the Bosphoran straits bank in Byzantium and renamed Constantinople. Finally, Constantine was also influenced by his mother Helena to “reclaim” Jerusalem for Christianity, especially as she was very influential in Constantine’s decision-making. His mother’s visit to Jerusalem in the company of his mother-in-law as a pilgrim is considered his ultimate reason for building the Holy Sepulcher Church (1). Roman rule in Jerusalem saw various developments that began with the discovery of Christian relics, especially at a time that Christianity was becoming the Eastern Roman Empire’s official religion. This had important results for the development of Jerusalem as it was transformed from a provincial city of relative insignificance in the Roman Empire, becoming a focus of adoration and pilgrimage for Christians (Morris 1). Jerusalem underwent major architectural developments with the commissioning of the Eleona Church and the Church of the Resurrection. The monumental churches, which were built in place of major pagan sites significantly altered Jerusalem’s urban skyline. The building of these churches also ushered in a wave of construction for other churches, hostels, convents, and monasteries that transformed Jerusalem’s landscape both horizontally and vertically. This wave of construction also resulted in an intensification of pilgrim traffic that, in turn, greatly improved Jerusalem’s local economy following a relative dormant period between the 1st and 4th centuries (1). Finally, cultic activity moved away from the Temple Mount, which was left as a ruin. This happened simultaneously with the decline in Jewish status in Jerusalem. The early decades of the 7th century CE were some of the most eventful times in Jerusalem with the city changing hands three times between 614 and 638 CE. The four centuries that followed saw a protracted conflict between the Persians and Rome, which came to an end with the final clash between the Sassanid and Byzantine forces (Pohlsander 1). The two forces had both achieved memorable victories and terrible losses and, as they continued to weaken each other during this period, they allowed for the rise of a new power that drove both out of Jerusalem. Jerusalem had constituted a battlefield for the Persians and Romans who ruled East and West Euphrates respectively. This balance was maintained until the 6th century when both empires, under threat externally and internally, secured an “eternal peace” that was broken in 612 CE after the monarch of Byzantine was overthrown. This forced the Persian ruler, Khosrow, to renew his war against Rome in Jerusalem, which was supported by Jewish communities there who disliked the Byzantine rulers in Jerusalem (1). The Christian population was massacred in Jerusalem in 614 by Khosrow. However, this victory by the Persians did not last long, and the Eastern Roman Emperor Heraclius besieged the capital of Persia after victory in Nineveh. After Khosrow was deposed and assassinated, Heraclius agreed terms with the commander of the Persian Army to withdraw from Jerusalem, as well as return all religious relics to the Christians in Jerusalem. However, this restoration of Roman Christianity in Jerusalem did not last long as the Arabs invaded Jerusalem and defeated the Romans (Isaacs 1). In 636 CE, the Muslim army conquered Jerusalem, bringing an end to Roman rule. Although the Muslims and remaining Jews destroyed much of what the Romans had built in Jerusalem, the Roman occupation retained some legacy, such as the Cardo that still runs through the center of Jerusalem from north to south. The old city also has a bisecting Roman road, i.e., the Roman “decumano” that forms the four quarters of the city, which are still distinct and form four districts that represent the four major religions that have occupied Jerusalem (1). Works Cited Cohen, Shaye. Legitimization Under Constantine. April 2008. Web. 24 June 2014 . Isaacs, Alick. Christianity and Islam: Jerusalem in the Middle Ages - 1. 2014. Web 24 June 2014 . Morris, Roderick Conway. Constantines stamp on early Christian art. 2 July 2005. Web 24 June 2014 . Pohlsander, Hans A. Constantine I (306 - 337 A.D.). 18 June 2009. Web 24 June 2014 . Schaff, Phillip & Wace, Henry. Constantine The Great According To Socrates Scholasticus. 2010. Web 24 June 2014 . Read More