Julian (Roman Emperor)

Life

Julian was born in 331 and was a nephew of Constantine I, who legalized Christianity. After Constantine's death in 337, a purge within the imperial family claimed the lives of several of his relatives, but the six-year-old Julian and his elder half-brother Gallus survived. Thereafter, under the watch of his cousin Constantius II, he received a Christian education of an Arian cast (Arianism being a fourth-century theological position that denied the full divinity of Christ). As a young man he studied in Nicomedia, Pergamum, Ephesus, and Athens, learning from non-Christian scholars such as the rhetorician Libanius and the philosopher Maximus of Ephesus. He is said to have secretly embraced the traditional religion from about this time.

After Gallus was executed for treason in 354, Julian was appointed Caesar (a junior emperor assisting the Augustus) in November 355 and entrusted with the defense of the West. In February 360 his soldiers at Lutetia (present-day Paris) proclaimed him Augustus, bringing him to the brink of civil war with Constantius II. When Constantius died of illness in November 361, however, Julian became sole emperor. In March 363 he launched a campaign against Persia and advanced as far as Ctesiphon, but he was killed in battle during the retreat on June 26 of that year.

Work and Achievements

After his accession, Julian openly declared his adherence to the traditional religion and pursued policies aimed at reversing the Christianization of the empire.

• Edict of toleration: He reopened closed temples, ordered the return of confiscated temple property, and recalled exiled bishops. Some interpret the recall of the bishops as an attempt to foster division within the church.
• Revocation of church privileges: He abolished the land and tax privileges the church had enjoyed since Constantine and required the return of funds received from the imperial treasury. He contemptuously referred to Christians as "Galileans."
• Edict on teachers (June 362): He effectively barred Christians from teaching the classics, such as Homer.
• Reorganization of pagan institutions: Modeling his efforts on the organization of the Christian church, he arranged pagan priests into a hierarchy and urged pagans to imitate the charity and mercy of Christians.
• Attempt to rebuild the Temple in Jerusalem: He sought to rebuild the ruined Jewish temple. Christian sources report that the project was abandoned because of fire and earthquake.
• Writings: His works include Against the Galileans, a critique of Christianity; the Hymn to King Helios; and the Misopogon, a satire directed at the citizens of Antioch.

His measures did not amount to an openly violent state persecution like that under Diocletian. Nevertheless, during his reign churches were reportedly burned and bishops exiled with some frequency. His successor Jovian and the emperors who followed repealed all of his anti-Christian policies. Julian was the last non-Christian emperor of the Roman Empire.

Influence on the Korean Church

Julian has no direct connection with the Korean church. In Korea he is presented mainly in church history courses and sermons as the last attempt to use state power to reverse an officially recognized Christianity. The story that he said at his death, "Thou hast conquered, O Galilean," is a tradition preserved in later church records and has not been confirmed as historical fact. His exhortation to pagans to imitate Christian charity is also sometimes cited as an illustration of the charitable relief practiced by the early church.

Assessment

Christian tradition calls him "the Apostate," regarding him as one who abandoned the faith he had received in his youth and sought to weaken the church by legal, educational, and financial means. Another view, by contrast, draws attention to his proclaimed toleration of all religions and his avoidance of persecution through public executions. Others counter that his toleration was ultimately a tool for weakening Christianity. There are also novels and popular books that portray him sympathetically as a learned philosopher-emperor. Because his reign lasted only about two years and his policies were soon reversed, his attempt is regarded as an illustration of how the Christianization of the Roman Empire had already become difficult to undo.