WHY JULIAN BELIEVED CORRECT WORSHIP OF THE GODS COULD SAVE THE ROMAN EMPIRE FROM CHAOS A Thesis Presented to the faculty of the Department of Humanities and Religious Studies California State University, Sacramento Submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF ARTS in Humanities by Alejandra Meléndez-Silva SPRING 2020 WHY JULIAN BELIEVED CORRECT WORSHIP OF THE GODS COULD SAVE THE ROMAN EMPIRE FROM CHAOS A Thesis by Alejandra Meléndez-Silva Approved by: _________________________________, Committee Chair Dr. Jeffrey Brodd _________________________________, Second Reader Dr. Bradley Nystrom __________________ Date ii Student: Alejandra Meléndez-Silva I certify that this student has met the requirements for format contained in the University format manual, and this thesis is suitable for electronic submission to the library and credit is to be awarded for the thesis. ___________________________, Graduate Coordinator _____________________ Dr. Harvey Stark Date Department of Humanities and Religious Studies iii Abstract of WHY JULIAN BELIEVED CORRECT WORSHIP OF THE GODS COULD SAVE THE ROMAN EMPIRE FROM CHAOS by Alejandra Meléndez-Silva The Roman emperor Julian is famously remembered for being Rome’s last pagan emperor and he has been vilified for his dislike of Christianity. Sufficient analysis of Julian’s own perspective reveals a complex individual who does not conform with the simplified caricature of Julian “the Apostate” who was focused on assailing Christianity. His aversion to the Christians was mainly motivated by the fact that they refused to participate in the state cult. This thesis will explore the relationship between properly honoring the gods and state health, its origins, and why it was essential to sacrifice to the gods. It will also focus on why Julian believed that Greco-Roman harmony in the Roman empire was broken, why it was so important for him to act in accordance with the ways of the past, and why he believed he was the only one that could once again restore this balance. ______________________________, Committee Chair Dr. Jeffrey Brodd ____________________ Date iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank my readers for being part of this project: Dr. Brodd for taking a chance on me since before I even started this program. It was serendipitous that the first person that I got in contact with who was a part of this department, is a Julian scholar, and that we were both interested in an emperor that is usually omitted from most Roman history books. It has been a joy to have been able to continue to work on Julian scholarship––something I thought that would have been more difficult to do because of how niche the topic is when compared to other topics in Roman history. You managed to understand what I was trying to do even when I somehow explained what I wanted in the most confusing and muddled way possible. Thank you for your patience and your support. Dr. Nystrom for agreeing to be my second reader even though what I wanted to write my thesis on was not even clear to me. You have my sincerest gratitude for sticking with me. It meant the world to me to feel so supported as I took on this project. I would also like to thank Dr. Stark for helping this semester. You were always so kind and welcoming anytime I had any questions, it helped make my final semester less stressful. v Finally, I would like to thank Dr. Shinbrot. It meant a lot to me that when I was going to write a paper that was completely out of my comfort level, you told me that I could do it. You had complete confidence in me. Every time I have struggled with something for school, I just recall that memory and you telling me that I can. vi DEDICATIONS I would like to thank Maria and Raul, my parents and my constant source of support. Since I started this journey into the world of academia, they have never doubted my ability to meet every goal I have had to conquer along the way. The love that they have given me has kept me going even when things got too difficult and I could not see a path forward. They have worked very hard to support me and this has enabled me to be where I am at today. To Yvonne, who helped me out when I needed her most and never doubted that her little sister could pursue her dreams in academia. For Adoración, who showed me you can go through hell and persevere. She maintained her dignity and became a fierce protector of the people she loved. For Lusi, she was a wife, a mother, and teacher. She showed me that I could be a mother and a wife if I wanted. I could also do other things with my life as well. She taught me that I could do whatever I wanted to do with my life, be what I wanted to be, as long as I got a good education first. To Amy, for being a good friend, never doubting me, and cheering me along as she watched me from the sidelines. vii To Jimmy, who has stuck with me since high school and every bump along the way I have had since. Every time I needed a good friend, he has been there for me. To Massimo, who helped me out during one of the most difficult periods of my life. I would not have gotten here without you. Finally, to Todd, my husband. He has taken on this enormous burden of supporting me and the dogs (Peanut and Pongo) while I dedicated the first years of our marriage to completing this program. No matter how difficult things got for him, he never once asked me to stop what I was doing, he encouraged me as I worked through this program, and has made it so that I had the luxury of just focusing on earning my master’s. I could not have asked for a better or more supportive partner. viii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Acknowledgements ................................................................................................. v Dedications............................................................................................................. vii Chapter 1. INTRODUCTION...................................................................................................... 1 2. HELLENISM, GRECO-ROMAN RELIGION, AND THE GODS......................... 8 3. PROBLEMS BETWEEN THE CHRISTIANS AND THE ROMAN STATE....... 19 4. INTELLIGENCE A GIFT FROM THE GODS AND NEO-PLATONISM............ 26 5. WHAT MAKES A GOOD EMPEROR................................................................... 33 6. CONCLUSION......................................................................................................... 40 Bibliography................................................................................................................. 42 ix 1 Chapter 1. Introduction The Roman emperor Julian is best remembered for being Rome’s last pagan emperor and for his aversion of Christianity. He was the nephew of the emperor Constantine, who is famously Rome’s first Christian emperor. By embracing the old Greco-Roman gods and abandoning Christianity, which had become interlinked with his family’s legacy, Julian has earned the epithet “the Apostate.” When trying to understand the motives behind Julian’s dislike of the Christians, his apostasy from Christianity is usually cited as being the motivating factor. Highly regarded scholars like G. W. Bowersock and Robert L. Wilken, write about Julian and they both focus on Julian’s apostasy as his motivating factor. However, this thesis will instead focus on Julian’s pro- Hellenistic intentions and actions as revealed first and foremost on his own writings, and argue his Hellenism was the driving force behind his agenda as emperor of Rome. What this actually reveals was that his focus was not on antagonizing Christianity or his fellow Roman citizens who were Christian. Rather, he sought to improve the health of the Roman empire as a whole, believing that Rome’s health depended on proper worship of the gods. Julian was more in line with traditionally minded emperors, for whom pax deorum was considered essential for the well-being of the Roman state, than the anti- Christian interpretation of him makes him out to be. It is no secret how much Julian loathed anything having to do with Constantine.1 However, I believe that the spotlight put on dysfunctional family dynamics of the Neo- Flavian Dynasty shifts the focus away from what I believe to be the most significant 1 This can easily be found throughout Julian’s writings. 2 reason which contributed to Julian’s aversion of Christianity: Christianity made it impossible to properly honor the gods. In order to accurately assess Julian’s actions, it is crucial that the historian takes fully into account his belief that the health of the Roman state was being negatively affected by having a group of Romans living within her borders that refused to engage in the religious rites of sacrificing to the gods. Christians were effectively creating a barrier between the state and the divine. Towards the end of Hymn to King Helios, Julian prays to the god: may he grant, and further may he, of his grace, endow my city as a whole with eternal existence, so far as is possible, and protect her; and for myself personally, may he grant that, so long as I am permitted to live, I may prosper in my affairs both human and divine; finally may he grant me to live and serve the state with my life, so long as is pleasing to himself and well for me and expedient for the Roman Empire!2 In Hymn to the Mother of the Gods, Julian calls Rome “that city beloved by the gods.”3 Julian knew that there had been a time-honored relationship between the Roman state and the gods. Thus, the health of the Roman state was tied in directly with the Roman emperor and the Roman people worshipping the gods correctly. This was the way things had been done for centuries.