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MariaDzielska
Kraków
THERELIGIOUSPANORAMA
OFTHEROMANEMPIRE
Acharacteristicconjunctionofevents,aconcurrentdevelopmentofthenewreligion
andtheriseoftheRomanEmpire,coupledwiththefactthatChristcommandedhis
disciples,theApostles,andhisChurchtoactinthestateofOctavianAugustusand
hissuccessorswasonceproclaimedsomethingofahistoriosophicalmystery
1
.Andit
wasalsointheEmpirethatthisreligionwonavictoryandtheChurchgainedanin-
dependentandautonomousstatus.TedecisionoftheApostlestakenaferthedeath
oftheirMaster,whentheCfellow)
,thatisJewishpeoplefromwhomhedescended,
Cdidnotaccepthim)isneithereasytoexplainintermsofordinarycausation
2
.Afer
all,theapostlesdidnotfallintoacedia,spiritualdiscouragement,butdirectedtheir
teachingtotheGreek-Romanworld.Teyturnedtothoseprofessingtraditionalreli-
gion,foundeduponabeliefinmanygods,andbeganevangelisationinthestatethat
pursuedprincipledstatereligionpolicy,thuscondemningthemselvesforthebattle
fordeathandlife,becausethisishowitlookedundertheruleofAugust)ssucces-
sorsuntilthereignofConstantineI.Whileweexaminetheconstituentsofthereli-
giouspanoramaoftheRomanEmpire,wemustalwaysbearinmindthatstruggle
betweentheChurchandtheEmpire,concludedwiththepactwithChristiansbythe
emperorsGaiusValeriusLiciniusandFlaviusValeriusConstantinusIinJune313,
andrememberthatitdeterminedthemostprofounddimensionofthishistorical
period.Butitmustberememberedthatthethenpagansalsohadtheirdivinemen,
theirparadigmofdivinityinhumans,thepaththeyfollowedinsearchofonegod
thatmadeastrongshowinginthelateEmpire.Teperiodfromthefirsthalfofthe
fourthcenturytothe530ssawtheactivityoflatePlatonicphilosophersandmystics,
theso-calledCLastHellenes)
,whopreachedthemetaphysicsoftheOne,theSupreme
1
SourcedataontheuniqueimportanceoftheeventforthehistoryoftheEmpirewascompiled,
amongothers,byH.Rahner,Kościółipaństwowewczesnymchrześcijaństwie,Warszawa1986,pp29-30.
2John1,11.
