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From Superstitio to Heresy
Abstract
There are obvious similarities between Roman laws against superstitio—defined as excessive religious credulity, hence magic and private divination, and then paganism—and Roman laws against heresy: both sets of laws represent attempts by the state to define and prohibit religious behaviors. Yet for all their similarities, justifications for laws against heresy were significantly different from those against superstitio. Heresy laws prohibited not just behaviors but beliefs. A comparison of laws on superstitio and heresy in the early fifth-century Theodosian Code shows how heresy laws were directly tied to a Christian tradition of divine law that focused on the precepts and rules laid down by the Christian God himself—God’s law—in a way that was not the case for laws on superstitio. This chapter thus elucidates a fundamental shift in the nature of imperial authority as emperors aligned themselves with a new, unassailable source of power.
Overview
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TL;DR
This chapter compares Roman laws on *superstitio* (magic, illicit divination, and later paganism) with laws on heresy in the fifth-century Theodosian Code, arguing that heresy laws were uniquely justified by divine law—God's law—in a way *superstitio* laws were not. This innovation, begun under Constantine and consolidated under Theodosius I, gave emperors a new, divinely sanctioned source of authority that contrasts with contemporary Chinese Buddhist notions of retributive justice.
Key findings
- Laws on *superstitio* restricted practices and were justified by civic good and public order, whereas heresy laws criminalized beliefs and were tied to divine law; *sacrilegium* became standard for heretics for the first time in the Code (Arians called a "poisonous sacrilege," *C. Th.* 16.5.6.1; Eunomians and Arians "sacrilegious doctrine," *C. Th.* 16.5.8).
- Constantine's heresy laws were innovative (a 326 CE law denying heretics religious privileges; the *Letter to Heretics* justifying confiscation of meeting places by his own "blessedness," i.e., salvation), while his *superstitio* laws were not; the author finds no extant Constantinian law prohibiting pagan sacrifice.
- Under Gratian, Valentinian II, and Theodosius I (379–391 CE), there are thirteen laws on heretics (*C. Th.* 16.5.5–.16; 16.2.25) versus only six against pagan cult and magic/illicit divination (16.10.7–.11; 9.16.11), and the term *superstitio* disappears from laws against pagan cult and magic in this period.
- Under Theodosius II and Valentinian III (425–450 CE), there are five laws against heretics (16.5.62–66) plus a sixth in the *Novellae* of Valentinian, versus one law against pagan practices (16.10.25, 435 CE); the 428 CE law ranked heresies from bad to worse, placing Manichaeans at "the lowest depth of wickedness" and linking them to magic.
Methods
- Historical and legal analysis comparing laws on *superstitio* and heresy preserved in the Theodosian Code (promulgated 438 CE), many also in the sixth-century Justinianic Code, across three periods: Constantine (312–337 CE), Gratian/Valentinian II/Theodosius I (379–391 CE), and Theodosius II/Valentinian III (425–450 CE).
- Sources are the laws themselves, supplemented by imperial public pronouncements (e.g., Constantine's *Letter to the Provincials of the East* and *Letter to Heretics* preserved by Eusebius) to elucidate legislative intent, plus secondary scholarship (Humfress, Sandwell, Hall, Norderval, Errington, and others).
Limitations
- Stated by the author: laws in the Code were generally drafted by the *quaestor sacri palatii*, not the emperor personally; the Code's laws were collected and excerpted for publication, so fuller explanations may have been excised; and laws resulted from a constant dialectic between law in practice and law as written, each with a specific context. She also states she does not discuss bishops or councils at length.
- Evident in the text: the argument about imperial intent is inferential—the author concedes that "to what degree individual emperors consciously grasped the inherent power that came from this claim is perhaps not a question we can answer given our sources."
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In the paper
“Heresy laws prohibited not just behaviors but beliefs.”
- Also stated in: § Abstract · p. 2 · plain
“Laws on heresy criminalized not just behaviors but the 'wrong' religious beliefs that gave rise to such behaviors, an innovation in Roman law introduced only after Constantine had included Christianity in the legal framework of the empire, as C. Humfress has observed.”
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites C. Humfress
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
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In the paper
“There are obvious similarities between Roman laws against superstitiodeg7Fned as excessive religious credulity, hence magic and private divination, and then paganism-and Roman laws against heresy: both sets of laws represent attempts by the state to deg7Fne and prohibit religious behaviors.”
Tests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesThe paper states this without a source or data behind it here, so there is nothing to check it against. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“There are no extant laws from these emperors against superstitio as magic or divination.”
Load-bearingStrength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passes- Rests on an assumption: The extant laws in the Theodosian Code are a representative sample of imperial legislation on heresy, pagan cult, magic, and divination for the periods discussed.
None of the sources cited for this claim have been checked yet.
In the paper
“the real crime, the law goes on, is not in any act that undermined the common good-as had been the civic precedent in criminalizing superstitiobut because such 'noxious' doctrines have 'weakened the concept ( opinionem ) of god.'”
Tests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesThe paper states this without a source or data behind it here, so there is nothing to check it against. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“In a law of 326 CE , Constantine prohibited heretics and schismatics from the same sorts of privileges of religion granted to those under the Catholic law ( lex Catholica ).”
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In the paper
“Nonetheless, Constantine did not legislate against pagan sacrig7Fce for, as he explained:”
Load-bearingStrength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesA result the paper reports from its own data — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“In contrast, the legal justig7Fcations for laws against superstitio show little in the way of change.”
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In the paper
“It is worth remarking that in the Code as we have it, there is no law of Constantine that prohibited pagan cult sacrig7Fce-one deg7Fnition of superstitio .”
Load-bearingStrength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesIn the paper
“A 388 CE law directed to Trifolius, Praetorian Prefect of Italy, states 'All members of diverse and perg7Fdious sects, who are driven by the insanity of a miserable conspiracy against God shall not be allowed to have an assembly anywhere.'”
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites [36]
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
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In the paper
“It is striking that even the emotionally laden term s uperstitio disappears from the laws against pagan cult and magic in this period (16.10.7-10.11; 381-391 CE ).”
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites 16.10.7-10.11
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
Load-bearingStrength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passes- Rests on an assumption: The presence or absence of the term superstitio in laws reflects the legal justifications and concerns of the emperors.
- Not matched
- It may state two separate claims as one. 31
- Probably not a substantial claim. 17
None of the sources cited for this claim could be matched to a paper in Crossref, so there is nothing to check it against.
In the paper
“Indeed, the Latin word sacrilege ( sacrilegium ) now becomes standard for the g7Frst time in the Code for heretics: Arians are called a 'poisonous sacrilege' ( C. Th. 16.5.6.1); Eunomians and Arians include ministers of 'sacrilegious doctrine' ( sacrilegi dogmatis C. Th . 16.5.8).”
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites C. Th. 16.5.6.1
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- Not matchedcites C. Th. 16.5.8
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The paper states this without a source or data behind it here, so there is nothing to check it against. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“Christian emperors, starting with Constantine (306-337 CE ), incorporated Christianity into the legal framework of the empire.”
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In the paper
“There is one law against pagan practices, not deg7Fned as superstitio , from these rulers (16.10.25); this 435 CE law, directed to the Praetorian Prefect of the East, asserts prohibitions of rites and places, that is, visiting temples and sacrig7Fces, by 'persons of criminal pagan mind' ( sceleratae mentis paganae ).”
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites 16.10.25
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
Load-bearingStrength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesIt may state two separate claims as one.
- Rests on an assumption: The extant laws in the Theodosian Code are a representative sample of imperial legislation on heresy, pagan cult, magic, and divination for the periods discussed.
- Not matched
The paper states this without a source or data behind it here, so there is nothing to check it against. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“It is of some importance to historians that the heretics addressed in Constantine's Letter did not include the most problematic, contemporary Christian groups-Arians, Donatists, or Meletians.”
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In the paper
“In contrast, there are g7Fve laws (16.5.62-66) against heretics in the Theodosian Code , and a sixth law from the Novellae of Valentinian that falls within this period.”
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites 16.5.62-66
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes? Load-bearing: unclear✓ Based: passesIt may state two separate claims as one.
- Rests on an assumption: The extant laws in the Theodosian Code are a representative sample of imperial legislation on heresy, pagan cult, magic, and divination for the periods discussed.
- Not matched
In the paper
“The g7Frst extant law that ordered the 'end of superstitio and the insanity of sacrig7Fces' dates to 341 CE ; it stipulates punishments for those who do these things 'in violation of the law of the sainted emperor, Our Father' ( C. Th . 16.10.2.).”
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites C. Th. 16.10.2.
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
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In the paper
“The law identig7Fes the 'religion' ( religio ) handed down by Peter the Apostle and articulated by certain specig7Fc bishops, such as Bishop Damasus of Rome and also Bishop Peter of Alexander as the true, Catholic faith; those who do not agree with the views of these bishops are 'judged demented and insane' and will 'sustain infamy from heretical dogma.'”
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In the paper
“Hence, the fourth and g7Ffth centuries saw a proliferation of new imperial legislation that, understandably, drew on Roman legal precedents concerning the correct relationship between religion and the state.”
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedCausal:direct· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.
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In the paper
“there are some thirteen laws on heretics (16.5.5-.16, 379388 CE , and 16.2.25, 380 CE ) from this period, and less than half as many, only six, laws against pagan cult and magic/illicit divination (16.10.7-.11, 381-391 CE ; and 9.16.11, 389 CE ).”
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites 16.5.5-.16
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
- Not matchedcites 16.2.25
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- Not matchedcites 16.10.7-.11
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
Load-bearingStrength:hedged· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesIt may state two separate claims as one.
- Rests on an assumption: The extant laws in the Theodosian Code are a representative sample of imperial legislation on heresy, pagan cult, magic, and divination for the periods discussed.
- Not matched
None of the sources cited for this claim have been checked yet.
In the paper
“The Letter is addressed to 'Novatians, Valentinians, Marcionites, Paulians, and those called Cataphrygians,' whom Constantine then goes on to denounce as 'venomous poisons' that bring 'the living to everlasting death.'”
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In the paper
“This law does not deg7Fne any one heresy, but issues a blanket criticism of heresy as 'perverse superstition' ( perversa superstitio );”
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In the paper
“The ambiguity in Constantine's laws on superstitio and heresy left much room for interpretation by local administrators.”
Tests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✗ Based: failsProbably not a substantial claim. The paper may give no reason why it holds.
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In the paper
“Now, for the g7Frst time, we see the emperors -principally Theodosius I-drafting laws that link the prohibition of heresies-beliefs and practices-with God's law, even as the term superstitio fades from usage.”
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In the paper
“In time, however, Constantine sought greater precision in deg7Fning and legislating against heresy. This trend toward greater specig7Fcity and more explicit language does not appear in his laws against superstitio.”
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In the paper
“Therefore, Constantine prohibited the private consultation of soothsayersharuspices -but allowed their public consultation by those persons who 'wish to serve their own superstitio '-that is, divination or paganism.”
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In the paper
“This 391 law, interestingly, omits the term superstitio as it decries sacrig7Fce and deg7Fnes visits to temples as actions worthy of divine and human 'sanctions.'”
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites [40]
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
- Not matchedcites [41]
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
Tests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesIt may state two separate claims as one.
- Rests on an assumption: The presence or absence of the term superstitio in laws reflects the legal justifications and concerns of the emperors.
- Not matched
The paper states this without a source or data behind it here, so there is nothing to check it against. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“The books that contain Nestorius's ideas will be burned, as were those of Arius.”
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In the paper
“In the early fourth century, Constantine initiated this development by legislating against heretics using the legal precedent of punishments for infamia .”
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In the paper
“'The lowest depth of wickedness,' the Manichaeans are to be expelled from Roman soil 'since no opportunity should be left to any of them whereby an injury might be wrought on the elements themselves.'”
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In the paper
“Worse than these are some sixteen named heresies that are prohibited even from meeting.”
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In the paper
“A 445 CE novella of Valentinian III continues the campaign against the Manichees in Rome and Italy.”
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In the paper
“Any Manichaeans apprehended shall suffer the penalties that the laws have sanctioned against persons guilty of sacrilege ( Nov. Val . 18.1.1), a punishment seen earlier under the emperor Theodosius I directed against all heretics.”
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites Nov. Val. 18.1.1
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
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In the paper
“This law is justig7Fed in terms of divine law and the common good.”
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None of the sources cited for this claim have been checked yet.
In the paper
“That superstition ( superstitio ) which was condemned also in pagan times, which is hostile to the public discipline and an enemy to the Christian faith, has not undeservedly provoked our clemency to its own destruction.”
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In the paper
“Nestorius, the author of a monstrous superstitio, shall be condemned … adherents of the nefarious sect of Nestorius shall everywhere be called Simonians, in order that thy may appear rightly to have received the name of him whose crime they have imitated in deserting God.”
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In the paper
“Below them are Novatians and Sabbatians, who are deprived of the right to build new churches as well.”
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In the paper
“They ranked the heresies from bad to worse. So the least offensive are the Arians, Macedonians, and Apollinarians, 'whose crime it is to be deceived by harmful meditation and to believe lies about the Fountain of Truth [Christ or the Church].' Their punishment was to be deprived of a church in a municipality.”
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In the paper
“Admittedly this law, with its encyclopedic list of heresies, is unusual for the sheer number of groups listed.”
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites C. Th. 16.5.65
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In the paper
“As noted previously, in classical usage superstitio meant excessive religious credulity. Thus, this term was applied to magic, illicit divination, and more widely in the fourth century, to pagan practices.”
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites John Scheid
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
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In the paper
“In uenced by the bishops and by the decisions of councils he called, Constantine issued laws on heresy that were both innovative and in uential. In contrast, Constantine's laws on superstitio were neither.”
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In the paper
“As I will show, laws on s uperstitio restricted practices and justig7Fed such actions as being for the civic good; although protecting the community's relationship with the gods, laws on superstitio were nonetheless deemed man-made responses to protect the public order and the state.”
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In the paper
“Constantine's blanket prohibition of heresy was useful for administrators, and bishops could apply it to dissident Christians in their local contexts.”
Tests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesIt may state two separate claims as one.
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In the paper
“This law makes no mention of superstition but rather presents its justig7Fcation as follows: 'God must be worshipped by chaste prayers and not be profaned by dire incantations,' a reference to the profane prayers of heretical Christians as much as pagans or magicians.”
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In the paper
“In pre-Constantinian law, as John Scheid has shown, superstitio was not in itself a crime; rather, it was the disruption or threat to the state represented by such religiosity that led to criminalization.”
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites John Scheid
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
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In the paper
“Theodosius in particular attempted to deg7Fne not only wrong belief but the right one; a 380 CE law, attributed to the three ruling emperors but really issued by Theodosius to the people of Constantinople, is the g7Frst extant legal attempt to deg7Fne the right interpretation of Nicene belief.”
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites [38]
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
- Not matchedcites [39]
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
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A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“by asserting that they are following divine law, emperors aligned themselves with an mandate authority over the state and acquired a new source of power that went well beyond traditional justig7Fcations for Roman justice.”
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In the paper
“Yet, Christianity could not easily g7Ft into the standard categories for dealing with new cults. Consequently, the introduction of Christianity spawned certain innovations in Roman law.”
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In the paper
“Under these rulers, we see the clear emergence of the idea that imperial law is based on the precepts and rules set by God; but by this date, law, that is, civic law, is one and the same with God's law when it comes to legislating against heresy.”
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In the paper
“It is unlikely that the bishops drafted the laws since they were normally drafted by quaestors who were specially trained for this role.”
Strength:hedged· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✗ Based: failsProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it. The paper may give no reason why it holds.
A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“These trends show the growing expectations that emperors defend orthodoxy, however they deg7Fned it, and how, conversely, emperors used this power to assert their imperial authority over society in the century after Constantine.”
Tests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesIt may state two separate claims as one.
None of the sources cited for this claim could be matched to a paper in Crossref, so there is nothing to check it against.
In the paper
“Humfress 1997: 217-272, and at 271, recognizes the novelty of the legal categories constructed in the prosecution of heretics, but she pays little attention to the rhetorical justifications and their political import as they develop over time, the subject of this chapter.”
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites Humfress 1997: 217-272
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
- Not matchedcites Humfress 1997: 271
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
Load-bearingStrength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. It may state two separate claims as one.
- Not matched
In the paper
“Ultimately, this process would lead, in the sixth century, to the emperor Justinian styling himself as the ultimate authority in matters both human and divine in a world in which civil laws as well as those on religion were given by god for emperors to defend.”
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites [51]
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
Tests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesIt may state two separate claims as one.
- Not matched
The paper relies on this without support.
The law itself reflected the views of the imperial consistory despite the quaestor's shaping of its language.
“His shaping of the language of the law does not undermine the fact that the law itself re ected the views of the imperial consistory.”
The paper relies on this without support.
If Constantine had outlawed pagan sacrifice, the compilers of the Theodosian Code would have included such a law.
“First, if he had, the compilers of the Code would have included such a law.”
The paper relies on this without support.
Public pronouncements by emperors can elucidate the intent of some laws.
“Fuller explanations for imperial legal actions may well have been excised, which is why, at times, I have turned to public pronouncements by emperors to elucidate the intent of some laws.”
The paper relies on this without support.
The number of laws in the Theodosian Code on a topic indicates the emperors' level of concern about that topic.
“or so it would appear based on the sheer number of laws on heretics in the Theodosian Code”
The paper relies on this without support.
The presence or absence of the term superstitio in laws reflects the legal justifications and concerns of the emperors.
“It is striking that even the emotionally laden term s uperstitio disappears from the laws against pagan cult and magic in this period”
The paper relies on this without support.
The extant laws in the Theodosian Code are a representative sample of imperial legislation on heresy, pagan cult, magic, and divination for the periods discussed.
“there are some thirteen laws on heretics (16.5.5-.16, 379388 CE , and 16.2.25, 380 CE ) from this period, and less than half as many, only six, laws against pagan cult and magic/illicit divination”
The paper relies on this without support.
Bishops and councils convened to determine positions about correct and incorrect beliefs and practices.
“Bishops and councils convened to determine positions about correct and incorrect beliefs and practices.”
Citations
Metadata
- Authors
- Salzman, M. R.
- Corresponding author
- Salzman, Michele Renee
- Venue
- Oxford Scholarship Online
- Publisher
- Oxford University Press
- Published
- 2017-06-22
- OpenAlex
- W4255964321
- Cited by
- 0
- References
- 0
- FWCI
- 0.00
- Type
- book
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Oxford University Press eBooks (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › Classics › Classical Antiquity Studies
- Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › History › Historical and Religious Studies of Rome
- Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › History › Classical Studies and Legal History
- Keywords
- heresy, Roman law, Theodosian Code, early fifth century, paganism, magic, imperial authority, state regulation of religion
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