Unit III
IN THIS LESSON
A dialect with an army becomes a language. A cult with an empire becomes a religion—and theology becomes a tool for social control.
Topics discussed:
From Diversity to Dogma: Early Christianity was a pluralistic and fragmented movement, but through imperial endorsement and councils like Nicaea (325 CE), it hardened into a singular orthodoxy, suppressing competing theologies like Arianism and Origenism.
Power over Persuasion: The rise of Nicene Orthodoxy was not the result of philosophical consensus but imperial decree—Constantine and later emperors enforced doctrine to secure unity and political control, not theological truth.
Platonism Repackaged for Empire: Thinkers like Origen infused Christianity with Platonic thought, but Church authorities retooled these mystical frameworks into rigid hierarchies that justified ecclesial and political authority.
Augustine’s Turn to Authority: Initially drawn to philosophy and mysticism, Augustine later abandoned speculation in favor of doctrinal certainty, reinforcing Church authority and defining orthodoxy against “dangerous” alternatives like Pelagianism and Donatism.
Original Sin as Political Theology: Augustine’s doctrine of inherited guilt and cognitive degradation bolstered imperial authority by portraying humanity as morally incapacitated and dependent on the institutional Church for salvation.
The Church as Imperial Bureaucracy: As the Western Roman Empire crumbled, the Church emerged as its bureaucratic successor—rewriting history, consolidating power, and becoming the central authority in a post-imperial world.
For lesson transcripts, go to zencastr.com/The-Luxury-of-Virtue.
Focus Questions
What role did political authority play in determining Christian orthodoxy during the 4th and 5th centuries?
How did Augustine’s later theology reflect a shift from philosophical inquiry to institutional authority? For example, in what ways did his embrace of original sin and divine grace support the power of the Church?
Why did the imperial Church suppress theological diversity, and what were the consequences for intellectual freedom?
Was the formation of Christian orthodoxy more about spiritual truth or social control? How do historical accounts challenge traditional narratives of divine guidance in Church doctrine?
In what ways does Augustine’s concept of the self—and its inner division—lay the groundwork for future Christian (and Western) views of human nature? How does this conception influence ideas about guilt, introspection, and obedience?
How does Augustine reconcile human moral responsibility with his belief that no one can choose the good without divine grace? In other words, how can humans be blamed for sin if they lack the power to will the good without help?
What are the philosophical and political implications of Augustine’s doctrine of original sin? How might the idea of inherited guilt serve both theological aims and institutional control?
Glossary
Major Historical Figures
Origen (185–253 CE) – An early Christian theologian who embraced Platonic philosophy, emphasized allegorical interpretation of Scripture, and held controversial views on the preexistence of souls and universal reconciliation (even for the Devil).
Athanasius of Alexandria (ca. 297–373 CE) – Patriarch who strongly opposed Arianism and championed Nicene orthodoxy. Known for advocating a harsh view of human nature and elevating unlearned faith over intellectual speculation.
Constantine the Great (r. 306–337 CE) – Roman emperor who legalized Christianity and convened the Council of Nicaea. Used Christianity as a unifying political force more than a personal spiritual commitment.
Augustine of Hippo (354–430 CE) – Influential Christian philosopher and bishop. Deeply shaped doctrines of original sin and grace. Began as a Platonist and ended as a staunch defender of orthodoxy, favoring institutional authority and divine mystery over reason.
Julian the Apostate (r. 361–363 CE) – Roman emperor who attempted to revive paganism and critiqued Christianity for its doctrinal contradictions.
Theodosius I (r. 379–395 CE) – Declared Nicene Christianity the state religion of the Roman Empire in 380 CE and labeled other beliefs “demented and insane.”
Key Historical Events
Council of Nicaea (325 CE) – Imperial gathering that declared the Son to be “of the same substance” (homoousios) as the Father, thereby rejecting Arianism.
Edict of Thessalonica (380 CE) – Decree by Theodosius I making Nicene Christianity the official religion of the Roman Empire.
Destruction of Pagan Temples and Texts – As Christianity gained imperial power, pagan religious sites, texts, and figures were often violently suppressed or erased from history.
Nestorian Schism (431 CE) – A Christological controversy over whether Jesus was one person or two (divine and human), resolved (again) through imperial fiat.
Philosophical and Theological Concepts
Arianism – The belief that the Son was created by the Father and therefore not co-eternal or co-equal. Viewed as a form of subordinationism.
Nicene Creed / Homoousios – The orthodox doctrine that the Father and Son are of the same substance, ensuring their co-equality. Instituted through imperial power, not scriptural consensus.
Subordinationism – The theological view that the Son is subordinate to the Father; common in early Christianity but ultimately condemned.
Original Sin – Augustine's idea that sin is inherited from Adam, resulting in cognitive and moral degradation. Western Christianity interprets this personally and hereditarily; Eastern Christianity more cosmically.
Free Will (Augustinian View) – Early Augustine emphasized choice; later Augustine argued that humans can only will the good through divine grace, and are still morally culpable for not seeking it.
Grace – Divine assistance necessary for moral transformation. In Augustine’s mature thought, no one can choose good without it, but people are still responsible for their failure to do so.
Mystical Ascent (Platonism → Christianity) – The soul’s journey upward to God, initially seen in Plato and Plotinus, then adapted by Christians like Origen and Augustine into a grace-filled process of moral and spiritual renewal.
Faith vs. Reason – A tension throughout the lesson: early Christians (especially Origen) embraced intellectual inquiry; later figures (Athanasius, Augustine) emphasized obedience, mystery, and faith over reason.
Doctrinal Shifts and Theological Transformations
From Pluralism to Orthodoxy – Christianity began as a diverse movement with multiple interpretations. Over time, one interpretation (Nicene Christianity) became dominant, often through state-backed suppression.
From Inquiry to Authority – Early figures like Origen promoted philosophical reflection and allegory. Later figures like Augustine emphasized submission to Church teaching and divine mystery, de-emphasizing individual reason.
From Universal Reconciliation to Eternal Damnation – Origen believed all souls would eventually return to God, even the Devil. Augustine rejected this, insisting on eternal damnation for the unredeemed.
From Created Jesus to Co-Eternal Son – Arianism saw Jesus as a creation of God. The Nicene Creed declared him co-eternal and co-equal, establishing a new orthodoxy.
From Open Scripture to Doctrinal Fixity – Early debates allowed for various scriptural interpretations. After imperial backing, only one interpretation was allowed, and dissenters were punished.
Church and State Power Dynamics
Imperial Enforcement of Doctrine – Councils like Nicaea (325) and Ephesus (431) weren’t just theological gatherings; they were backed by emperors who enforced decisions with political consequences.
State-Sanctioned Violence – Pagan temples were destroyed, heretical books burned, and dissenters sometimes killed, all under the banner of defending Christian orthodoxy.
Christianity as Social Control – As bishops became political figures, doctrine increasingly served to establish order, obedience, and authority in the empire.
Constantine’s Role – He wasn’t theologically committed to Christianity but saw its unifying potential. His intervention shaped orthodoxy more than divine inspiration or consensus.
Theodosius I and the Criminalization of Dissent – By calling dissenters “insane” and legally punishing heterodoxy, the emperor codified Christianity into the Roman legal structure.
Words You Might Not Know
Homoousios – Greek for “of the same substance”; key term used in the Nicene Creed to declare Jesus as co-equal with God the Father.
Arianism – A theological position holding that Jesus was created and therefore not eternal; named after Arius, a 4th-century priest.
Donatism – The belief that the efficacy of sacraments depends on the moral purity of the clergy administering them.
Pelagianism – A view that humans can choose good without divine grace; opposed by Augustine, who argued that grace is necessary.
Messalianism – A mystical movement emphasizing continual prayer and rejecting Church sacraments; seen as heretical.
Subordinationism – Any belief that ranks the Son or the Holy Spirit as lesser than the Father in the Trinity.
Asceticism – A lifestyle of severe self-discipline and abstention from pleasures, often for religious reasons.
Neoplatonism – A philosophical system building on Plato, emphasizing the soul’s ascent to the divine through contemplation and the idea of emanation from a single source.
Allegorical Interpretation – Reading religious texts as symbols or metaphors rather than literal accounts.
For other questions…
Supplemental Material
The following should (hopefully) help you wrap your mind around the content of the lesson.
Comparison of Platonic and proto-Christian Thought in the lead up to the Council of Nicaea (325 CE)
| Platonism / Neoplatonism | Proto-Christianity (Origenism / Arianism) |
|---|---|
| The One Impersonal, source of all |
God the Father Personal, transcendent creator |
| Divine Intellect (Nous) Contemplation of Forms |
Logos (the Son) Created first, reveals God |
| Soul (Psyche) Animates and links to matter |
Holy Spirit Spiritual presence animating believers |
| World Soul Creates material cosmos as a reflection of divine order |
Material Creation World created by God, often through the Logos |
| Matter Shadow of the Real, lowest in being |
Fallen World Marred by sin, distant from God |
| No equivalent | Hell Lowest tier; total separation from God |
Timeline of Important Events Covered in the Course (600 BCE - 476 CE)
c. 585 BCE – Thales of Miletus begins natural philosophy.
c. 500 BCE – Pythagorean Brotherhood active.
c. 470 BCE – Socrates born.
c. 427 BCE – Plato born.
c. 387 BCE – Plato founds the Academy.
c. 384 BCE – Aristotle born.
c. 335 BCE – Aristotle founds the Lyceum.
c. 300 BCE – Zeno of Citium founds the Stoic school.
c. 306 BCE – Epicurus founds the Garden (Epicureanism).
c. 266 BCE – Arcesilaus initiates Academic Skepticism.
c. 155 BCE – Carneades leads the Skeptical Academy.
c. 50 BCE – Cicero writes philosophical dialogues.
c. 100 CE – Musonius Rufus active in Rome.
c. 55–135 CE – Life of Epictetus.
121–180 CE – Reign of Marcus Aurelius.
184 CE – Origen born.
253 CE – Origen dies.
256 CE – Arius born.
297 CE – Athanasius born.
313 CE – Edict of Milan (Christianity legalized).
325 CE – Council of Nicaea; Nicene Creed formed.
337 CE – Constantine dies.
373 CE – Athanasius dies.
380 CE – Theodosius makes Nicene Christianity the state religion.
384 CE – Ambrose defeats pagan revival attempts.
395 CE – Rome formally splits into East and West.
397–400 CE – Augustine writes Confessions.
410 CE – Sack of Rome.
428 CE – Nestorius becomes Patriarch of Constantinople.
430 CE – Augustine dies.
431 CE – Council of Ephesus condemns Nestorianism.
476 CE – Fall of Western Roman Empire.
The Evolution of the Notion of Sin
| Thinker | What is sin? | Kingdom of God | Imminence of End Days | View on Jews | What sin explains |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jesus | A rupture in relationship with God, repairable via Temple rituals | Earthly and imminent, aligned with Jewish eschatology | Imminent within lifetime of audience | Faithful followers of God's law | Need for ritual purity and Temple sacrifice |
| Paul | A cosmic force that promotes idolatry and fornication; only divine sacrifice can overcome it | Earthly reign over Jews and Gentiles in the End Times | Imminent and urgent; Paul was spreading message to hasten it | Jews remain part of God's plan; gentiles join without becoming Jewish | Jesus’ crucifixion; universal moral failure |
| Valentinus/Marcion | Being trapped in flesh and separated from the true divine realm | Not an earthly kingdom; individual ascent to the true spiritual realm | Irrelevant—salvation is spiritual and individual | Jewish God is lower deity; true God is above | Entanglement in flesh; ignorance of one’s true nature |
| Justin Martyr | Pollution that separates us from God; overcome through moral living and Christ’s redemption | Earthly kingdom with bodily resurrection; flesh is redeemed through Christ | Still imminent, but physical and collective | Jews misread scripture; true meaning is allegorical and Christian | Human corruption; need for resurrection and redemption |
| Origen | Ignorance and misuse of free will; all rational beings will eventually return to God | Spiritual return to God; all beings ultimately saved | Eventual, but outcome is universal return | Original covenant valid but superseded by fuller truth in Christ | Distance from God; process of cosmic restoration |
| Augustine | Inherited condition from Adam, passed through human nature; overcome only by divine Grace | Heavenly society with ranks; bodily resurrection, but transformed and perfected | Deferred; inscrutable divine plan—focus on moral preparation | Jewish practices once valid but now serve to prefigure Christ | All suffering, cognitive weakness, historical events, even salvation distribution |
Reading List
Charles Freeman, A New History of Early Christianity
Charles Freeman, The Closing of the Western Mind: The Rise of Faith and the Fall of Reason
Charles Freeman, The Reopening of the Western Mind: The Resurgence of Intellectual Life from the End of Antiquity to the Dawn of the Enlightenment
Eleonore Stump & Norman Kretzmann (Eds.), The Cambridge Companion to Augustine
Louis Markos, From Plato to Christ: How Platonic Thought Shaped the Christian Faith
Jeffrey Burton Russell, The Prince of Darkness: Radical Evil and the Power of Good in History
Stephen Prothero, God Is Not One: The Eight Rival Religions That Run the World
Carlo Rovelli, Anaximander: And the Birth of Science
Craig Harline, A World Ablaze: The Rise of Martin Luther and the Birth of the Reformation
Andrew Louth, The Origins of the Christian Mystical Tradition: From Plato to Denys
Raymond Martin & John Barresi, The Rise and Fall of Soul and Self: An Intellectual History of Personal Identity
Henry Chadwick, Augustine: A Very Short Introduction
John M. Cooper, Pursuits of Wisdom: Six Ways of Life in Ancient Philosophy from Socrates to Plotinus
Catherine Nixey, The Darkening Age: The Christian Destruction of the Classical World
Paula Fredriksen, Sin: The Early History of an Idea
Michael Frede, A Free Will: Origins of the Notion in Ancient Thought
Michael York, Pagan Theology: Paganism as a World Religion