IMPERIAL RELIGION
Eastern Deities
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Cybele (204 BC -> )
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Isis (1st c. BC ->)
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Apuleius, Golden Ass Book 11
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Astarte: Syrian goddess
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Mithras: Persian Bull-slayer (Army)
Astrology & Magic
Philosophy as Religion
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Stoicism
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Neoplatonism: Plotinus
Emperor Cult
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Origins in East, Hellenistic Greece
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Deification of "good" emperors
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Worship of live emperors (in East)
Christianity
Origins in Judaism
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Exclusivity ("no other gods but Me")
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Importance of scripture & interpretation
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Messianic elements
Apostolic period
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Abandonment of Jewish law
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Mission to Gentiles (Paul & others)
Early Christian Communities
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Mostly urban & Greek-speaking
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Appeal to marginalized groups?
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Shared worship, meals, burial
Doctrinal Differences
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NT canon fluid up to c. 200
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Gnosticism: texts from Nag Hammadi
Elaine Pagels, The Gnostic Gospels (1979)
Conflict with Authorities
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Nero: scapegoating for Fire (64)
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Provincial governors (e.g. Pliny)
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Brief empire-wide persecutions in 3d c.
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"Great Persecution" (301-4) -> Constantine
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