The Christianity Of Constantine The Great

This text assumes that Eusebius' story of Constantine's conversion was fiction or a mistake, based upon the Emperor's own story of how God told him to make his army's standard. This study suggests that Constantine's Christianity was of more normal and earlier origins than the miracle of AD 312.

This sharp, engaging biography details the life and achievements of Constantine the Great who unified the Roman Empire, adopted Christianity as its official religion, and transferred the capital of the Empire from Rome to Constantinople.

This biographical narrative is a detailed portrayal of the life and career of the first Christian emperor Constantine the Great (273 – 337). Combining vivid narrative and historical analysis, Charles Odahl relates the rise of Constantine amid the crises of the late Roman world, his dramatic conversion to and public patronage of Christianity, and his church building programs in Rome, Jerusalem and Constantinople which transformed the pagan state of Roman antiquity into the Christian empire medieval Byzantium. The author’s comprehensive knowledge of the literary sources and his extensive research into the material remains of the period mean that this volume provides a more rounded and accurate portrait of Constantine than previously available. This revised second edition includes: An expanded and revised final chapter A new Genealogy and an expanded Chronology New illustrations Revised and updated Notes and Bibliography A landmark publication in Roman Imperial, early Christian, and Byzantine history, Constantine and the Christian Empire will remain the standard account of the subject for years to come.

Since Jesus Christ, only two people have affected the life or death of christianity: Saint Paul with his missionary success and Constantine The Great with his divine revelation. Constantine was the emperor who turned the Roman Empire from persecuting Christians to promoting them and this resulted in major and lasting consequences for Christianity. He created an environment for Christianity to evolve from a fringe society to become the single most important influence on Western civilization. In addition to being the greatest builder of Christian churches, Constantine created Constantinople, today's Istanbul a centre that kept Christianity and classical literature alive for a thousand years.

The Cambridge Companion to the Age of Constantine offers students a comprehensive one-volume survey of this pivotal emperor and his times. Richly illustrated and designed as a readable survey accessible to all audiences, it also achieves a level of scholarly sophistication and a freshness of interpretation that will be welcomed by the experts. The volume is divided into five sections that examine political history, religion, social and economic history, art, and foreign relations during the reign of Constantine, who steered the Roman Empire on a course parallel with his own personal development.

"The Emperor Constantine was one of the great, charismatic figures of the ancient world. He was directly responsible for two momentous transformations that greatly affected our history and civilization: the founding of Constantinople as the Roman capital and the conversion of the Roman Empire to Christianity. With knowledge gained from modern research in all relevant fields, including archaeology, papyrology, and art history, Michael Grant traces the controversies that surround this intriguing ruler back to their very beginnings. He draws a compelling portrait of Constantine, assessing the emperor's achievements as a general in command of his armies and as a resourceful politician and reformer." "In art, politics, economics, social developments, and particularly in religion, the life of Constantine acts as a bridge between past and present. Michael Grant goes beyond the bias of literary sources and reveals the private man behind the public persona: the superstitious beliefs underpinning Constantine's hallucinatory visions and dreams that heralded his conversion to Christianity; his persecution of paganism in the name of Christianity that set precedents for centuries to come; and the relationship between church and state that gave way to the totalitarianism of the Late Roman Empire. Was he the last notable Roman emperor, or the first medieval monarch? Was the great convert a saint and hero, or should we regard him as a murderer who killed his wife, his eldest son, and many of his friends to further his own ambitions? These are just some of the issues raised in this revelatory biography."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved

Peter Leithart weighs what we've been taught about Constantine and claims that in focusing on these historical mirages we have failed to notice the true significance of Constantine and Rome baptized. He reveals how beneath the surface of this contested story there lies a deeper narrative--a tectonic shift in the political theology of an empire--with far-reaching implications.