Imperial Patronage To Christianity Analysis

Legal Measures/Imperial patronage to Christianity: As stated before, during Constantine's time as Emperor the benefits of imperial patronage to the christian community, and church were enormous. Most important is that Constantine gave signal to a kind of change in regime that would end up reaching down, and bringing up the Christian church as a force not to be trifled with in the imperial society as well as with the largely pagan Roman state. Then it becomes a question as to what kind of benefits he confers upon the christian populace, practically? In Roman imperial records there's is an edict containing and imperial underwriting regarding that of pilgrimage and the pilgrimage sites of christians, as a result of this underwriting there begins to be a …show more content…
In one, Sits the emperor. With the other being left empty as a symbol, because the Christ, the ruler of the world, is presumed to embodied as the emperor. With the emperor being seen as a vice-regent of Christ. This brings About this issue of the “imperialization” (Westbury-Jones) of Christianity. The imperialization of the Christian faith can be seen in some of the grander monuments located in Rome itself where the imperial ideology and symbolism, the trappings of imperial grandeur, are all brought into and overlaid onto what is seen as the Christian traditions himself. This is most prominently seen in the artwork produced in this era, most of which depicting Jesus in usually a very elaborate, expensive, detailed toga, with trims of gold and purple, (the imperial color), he is also pictured to be enthroned in a regal imperial looking throne. This Jesus even takes on the likeness of the emperor himself, (Westbury-Jones) and here he is even seen seated, enthroned in front of an elaborate and intricate cityscape pictured behind him. In this we see that Behind Constantine is his own Church of the Holy Sepulchre that he had invested massive resources to the architecture