The Last Pagans of Rome

Abstract

Eusebius' Ecclesiastical History (402/3 CE) gives a vivid account of the confrontation between the Eastern Roman Emperor Theodosius and the Western usurper Eugenius. To many, the defeat of Eugenius and his pagan followers along the Frigidus River in 394 was the last gasp of a vigorous pagan revolt in the late 4th century, one spearheaded by the Roman aristocracy. This elaborate campaign to derail Christianity, as the story goes, consisted of identifiable pagan literary circles, pagan patronage of the classics, and pagan propaganda in art and literature. Recently, however, scholars have shown this picture to be wanting in accuracy and nuance. This book replaces this view with a detailed portrait of pagan society during the pivotal 4th and early 5th centuries. The subject of the book is the duration, nature, and consequences of the survival of the last pagans. It is widely believed that pagan aristocrats remained in the majority till at least the 380s, and continued to be a powerful force well into the 5th century. On this basis the main focus of much modern scholarship has been on their supposed stubborn resistance to Christianity. Rather surprisingly, these aristocrats have been transformed from the arrogant, philistine land-grabbers most of them were into fearless champions of senatorial privilege, literature lovers, and aficionados of classical (especially Greek) culture. The dismantling of this romantic myth is one of the main goals of this book. If a pagan aristocracy did not mount a defiant political and cultural rearguard action, what did they do? If elite culture at this time was not starkly divided between pagan and Christian, what did it look like? By sifting through the abundant textual evidence the book concludes that the many activities and artifacts previously identified as hallmarks of a pagan revival were in fact just as important to the life of cultivated Christians. Far from being a subversive pagan activity designed to rally pagans, the promotion of classical literature, learning, and art—and its acceptance by many elite Christians—may actually have helped the last reluctant pagans to finally abandon the old cults and adopt Christianity.

O CÍRCULO DE SÍMACO: acordos e desacordos entre os seus membros

“…Alan Cameron, a lo largo de su obra, minimiza la incidencia de los protagonistas de la llamada reacción pagana del siglo IV, relativizando el aporte de las fuentes, sí como la datación de las mismas, en la reconstrucción de los sucesos vinculados con el accionar de tales personajes (CAMERON, 2011). Contra sus argumentaciones Stéphane Ratti defiende la significación histórica de los últimos estertores el paganismo que, dentro de sus circunstancias históricas concretas, intentaron revivir y perpetuar los ideales de la Roma ancestral.…”

The Christian sarcophagus population of Rome

“…67 Stark 1996, 261;Hopkins 1998, 187. 70 Persistence of a pagan population: Brown 1998, 632, 640 and passim;Cameron 1999, 109-21. 2006, 68 (soon after A.D. 350); MacMullen 1984, 81 and 93 (one-third in 350, a majority soon after the 390s).…”

The Making of Hagia Sophia and the Last Pagans of New Rome

“…94 It reattributes to Christians cultural activities that were regarded as aspects of a late fourth-century "pagan revival," refutes the existence of that revival, and has the pagan community fade away sooner with hardly a whimper. His last pagans of Rome seem to lack a group identity or any interest in their gods and traditions; they were but Christians waiting to happen.…”