Constantine's Conversion Pros And Cons

Constantine the Great was a Roman Emperor from 306-337 AD. He was a soldier who arduously worked to climb through the ranks, working through a civil war to become emperor. He is most famous for establishing a new capital where Byzantium once was, and named the new establishment “Constantinople.” However, Constantine is most famous for becoming Roman Emperor who converted to Christianity in his forties. His mother, Helen, was a Christian and ultimately decided to convert after believing that the Christian god had helped him in his success though the war. He enacted the Edict of Milan in the third century with his co-emperor Licinius, and officially declared Christianity legal. This document was one of the most significant and important writings of the time because it declares that Christians could freely practice religion.

The reason for this is because in the Edict of Milan Constantine makes a statement about letting the citizens practice the religion that they want so he can be the first one who has done this (Dutton 1). This shows that he is giving back the citizens their right to practice a religion instead of forcing people to have to practice the religion that he prefers. It also shows that he is freeing the citizens of limitations upon what religion they can practice by giving people complete rights to practice the religion of Christianity. But in reality, he is really ensuring he power over the citizens. In the text, it states that Constantine talks about himself being the first to let people be able to practice the religion of Christianity (Dutton 1).

Throughout history, there have been many instances of leaders converting to new religions, but none have had an impact such as the conversion of Constantine I, nor as ground-breaking as that of Clovis I. Constantine I was born in the year 280. During his reign as emperor of the Roman Empire, the state was falling apart. 1 He was the first Roman emperor to convert to Christianity. He called the Council of Nicea in 325 to resolve conflicts arising between the Arian Christians and the Athansian Christians. 2 This resulted in the canonization of Athansian Christianity, to which Constantine I converted his empire. 3Clovis I was born in the year 466, he was the king of the Franks and ruled Gaul for 30 years. 4 It is unknown when he converted to Christianity, however he was baptised in 496. Clovis I was the first Germanic king to convert to Christianity, and while he did not convert his entire state, his conversion was a turning point in Frankish and European history. Behind any conversion, is a reason. For Constantine I, it was an empire coming apart at the seams. For Clovis, it was a need to be more palatable to a mostly Christian populous.

The conversion of Constantine had a direct impact on the conflict between pagans and Christians in that it brought the persecution of Christians to an end in the Roman Empire. Before his conversion, paganism was dominant in the Roman Empire, which put Christians at a disadvantage. However, with the conversion of Constantine, Christianity was actually recognized as a significant religion similar to paganism, or maybe even superior if a significant leader chose it over pagan beliefs. Christians were no longer persecuted and as a result, and Christianization occurred not only to Romans, but also to the people they fought and conquered as they spread their Christian beliefs and

Constantine used Christianity to find a sense of unity and stability throughout Rome. It allowed him to connect with Romans on a more personal level. He made the city of Constantinople a hub for Christianity, and at the First Council of Nicea in 325 CE, he helped to create the Roman Catholic Church and compiled the New Testament. Him emphasizing and opening a door for the population of Rome to convert helped to set up Theodosius I to declare Christianity the “official” religion of Rome in 380 CE. The government of Rome became closely tied to the Church, but they weren't the same thing.

When Constantine was battling for control of Rome, he prayed for divine interference and saw a cross, the sign of Christianity. He put a cross on all of his soldiers, and they were victorious, with Constantine crediting his triumph to the Christian God. After Constantine took power in 313 AD, he announced the end of Christians persecutions. Later, in AD YEAR, Constantine converted, and Christianity grew faster than ever. Of all factors that influenced Christianity development, Constantine’s conversion was one of the most important, because he made it acceptable.

He was the first emperor to make the conversion to Christianity. Christianity is a monotheistic religion that focuses on the teachings of Jesus Christ of Nazareth. Reasons why he may have converted from paganism to Christianity are that it could help him politically in ruling the empire by gaining support or that during war his experiences may have caused him to have a change of heart but most think it's because of the former. Christianity did not become the official religion until the reign of Emperor Theodosius. Constantine blamed his rise to power on the Christian God and believed that he was chosen by God to rule and bring prosperity to all.

Constantine not only pushed the empire’s territorial boundaries but its social boundaries as well. Aside from his grand empire and his successful military career, Constantine is known for something else- his religion. Under the rule of Constantine the empire became increasingly bound together by the spread of Christianity throughout its people and its rulers. Constantine not only tolerated Christians, but embraced them and became one. Under Constantine’s leadership, the Roman Empire was transformed from Pagan to Christian and transposed from West

The conversion of Roman Emperor, Constantine, marked the start of a reform that would change Rome forever. A once pagan society, Rome was one of the last to grasp the Christianity concept. The start of “Christianizing” Rome began with two of Jesus’ disciples, Peter and James, as well as the apostle Paul in the Roman province of Antioch during the first century ("New Women of Color Study Bible" 1742). From this, Christianity spread all over the province, by the time it got to Rome it was not widely practiced. It wasn’t until the reign of Constantine that Christianity took its place as the empires forefront religion. Since Rome was known for its worship and idolizing of gods, how and for what reasons did Constantine transform his subjects’ beliefs? According to authors, Ramsay MacMullen, John Curran, and A.H.M. Jones, a number of tactics were used to sway the masses’ minds. Use of coercion, money, and campaigns aided Constantine’s questionable Christian “cleanse”.

Even though Constantine was the first emperor to introduce Rome to Christianity, Rome wasn’t completely Christian. Pagan was still practiced and the Christian church was built outside of Rome that way he didn’t offend his people since a few upper-class man were still pagan. The whole irony of this is that he wasn’t baptized yet and he was still practicing paganizing while claiming to be Christian. While on his journey he noticed he was starting to feel weak and after a time his illness started getting worse and had to halt his campaign against Persia. Constantine died on May 22, 337, in Ancyrona, near Nicomedia, Bithynia at the approximate age of 57. Before dying, he got baptized so he could rest in peace. (Constantine I

To many Americans, the feeling of being a bystander as countries slaughter their own people has been in legal debate since 1933, it has gradually developed into a concept that can be applied in many situations, both historical and contemporary. The meaning of the phrase genocide is the cleansing of a race or ethnicity in a country. There has been evidence that this phrase can be used to describe past and present day massacres being committed around the world and how media has changed its perception on this issue overtime.

According to Constantine’s Porphyry Column, “Constantine brutally murdered his son and wife.” These acts were directly against the Christian church, which gave the people of the Roman Empire an inaccurate portrayal of the word of God. Many historians also believe that Constantine’s acceptance of Christianity was rooted in his hatred for the Jewish People. He used his negativity of Judaism as a way to promote his new laws. Many of his new laws had Christian Characteristics. He believed that these new laws would help him to dominate his people. Despite the fact that he gave Christians legal freedom to practice their religion, he made them feel subordinate. This is a crucial flaw in the strategy of Constantine. It removes the genuine nature of his acceptance. Because of this his actions are viewed as blasphemy rather than something to be celebrated. This is largely due to the fact that he accepted Christianity in the Roman Empire for selfish reasons. Because of his violent methods and selfish ruling, Constantine hurt Christianity’s image among the Roman people.

When Emperor Constantine “converted” to Christianity, this conversion is not fact and often debated, after

Constantine’s continuous support for Christianity is one of the reasons that it is still a major religion today. I believe that Constantine was a great ruler because of his dedication to the unity of Christianity. Regardless of the different schisms in the religion, Constantine was determined to make Christianity unified. The Edict of Milan shows that Constantine had respect for other religions and allowed them, but preferred Christianity. It also shows that, even

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