DG 317 .N4 1905 v.

l
Negri, Gaetano, 1838-1902.
Julian the Apostate

c)igitized by the Internet Archive

in

2015

https://archive.org/details/julianapostate01negr

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

JULIAN

THE APOSTATE
BY

GAETANO NEGRI
TRANSLATED
FROM THE SECOND ITALIAN EDITION
BY THE

DUCHESS LITTA-VISCONTI-ARESE

TVITH

AN

INTRODUCTION

By Professor PASQUALE VILLARI

ILLUSTRATED

VOL. L

NEW YORK
CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS
153-157 FIFTH AVENUE
1905

^f.w

OF

FEB

22

mco^
2000

All Rights Reserved

CONTENTS

.......
....
......

Introduction by Professor Villari

Preface

The Bust

of Acerenza

Introduction

the

Julian

Apostate

The

Church

and

PAGE
vii

xix
xxvii

Julian

MarceUinus Libanius Gregory

Libanius and GregoryThe Writings
Documents
of
Julian Eunapius Other
Socrates and Sozomenes Modern

Ammianus
Nazianzen

Critics

An
The Life

Historical

Phenomenon.

of Julian

-25

Murder of Gallus Julian Milan,

Athens Return
Milan Julian
and,
elected Caesar Julian
Gaul The Military Revolution The
War Julian on the Danube

Emperor
Constantinople Julian
Antioch Julian
Persia Death of

Childhood and youth

Julian at Constantinople

Nicomedia
later,

and

in

to

in

in

Civil

in

Julian,

in

in

The Discord among the Christians

Julian.

-143

Arius Athana The Victory of Orthodoxy Corruption

of the Church Monachal Asceticism Apparent

Constantine

Initial

Dissensions

sius

Conversion of Society.


CONTENTS

vi

Nko-Platonism

.186

Origins of Neo-Platonism
Plotinus and Porphyry The Teachers of

Essence of Neo-Platonism

Julian.

Julian's Attitude

.222

The King Sun The " Mother

of the Gods The Discourse against Heraclius
and Divine Symbolism The "Treatise against
the Christians" Celsus and Julian Christian-

Julian's Philosophy
"

ised polytheism,

and the " Pastorals

"

of Julian.

ILLUSTRATIONS
Julian.

After the Bust on Acerenza Cathedral

Frontispiece

Coin of Julian

Coin of Constantius Gallus

Coin of Helena, Wife of Julian

Coin of Constantius II
.

The Colonnade of

Facing page
.

Lorenzo, Milan, the

Remains of Imperial Buildings
S.

The

Thermes, Paris,
Julian's Palace

the
.

Remains
.

a Terra-cotta Relief.

,,52

72

,,

243

of

The Virgin Claudia dragging the Vessel

of the Mother of the Gods.
From

25

INTRODUCTION
By way

of preface to this excellent translation of

Senator Negri's work on Julian the Apostate,

may

be well to give English readers a

little

it

in-

formation regarding the author's personality.

Both

and morally, Gaetano Negri

intellectually

stood above the ordinary level of mankind, and the

course of his

life

was equally uncommon.

There are some

have won
wider

less

historical figures

renown had

but there are

their

others

who would

mental grasp been

whose fame would

be much enhanced had they possessed

less versa-

The

intelligence

of mind.

tility

runs

in

one groove, being impelled to concentrate

their strength

on a single

unexpected results

being endowed with

the

directions,

sometimes achieve

latter,

on the contrary,

in

varied powers, are apt

a

number

and, consequently,

whatever

extent

point,

many

to scatter their energies

theirs

whose

former,

of

belonged to

their

its

merit

mental

of different

no single work of

can

force.

prove the

Gaetano

full

Negri

this latter group.

From one

point of view he

may be

said to

have been singularly favoured both by nature and

INTRODUCTION

viii

More than

fortune.

once, however, fortune proved

decidedly hostile to

was born

parents, he

The

him.
at

Milan

son of wealthy

in 1838,

and pursued

He was about to enter

when the national War of Independ-

his classical studies at Pavia.

the University,

ence broke out, and young Negri burned to join

the volunteers

but, yielding to his father's wishes,

he went instead to the Military Academy of Ivrea,

in

order to

On

army.

admittance into the regular

obtain

being gazetted as a lieutenant, he was

ordered to the Southern provinces, and took part

in

the

operations

there

proved by the

is

medals

silver

He

field."

the

fact

also received a

of
his

of his winning two

distinguished

for

suppression

That he bravely did

brigandage (1861-62).
duty

for

service

wound, but the

in

the

bullet

At the close of this campaign,

which was by no means congenial to a high-spirited
patriot like Negri, who only yearned to share in

did no great harm.

the real struggle against Austrian oppression, he

felt

so

little

inclination

career, that the

left

at

Milan

We
in

and from

presently find

him hard

at

the office of Assessor to the

Municipality for the

struction,

continue his military

moment peace was proclaimed he

the army.

work

to

Department of Public In1884 to 1889 he was the

Syndic (Mayor) of Milan.

Thanks
intellect,

to his unceasing activity, penetrating

genuine

gift of eloquence,

and also

to the

support of energetic friends of the Moderate party.


INTRODUCTION
he was the

man

influential

ported

by

results

in

head of the

real

within

the

its

Before

achieved notable

he

and commercial

for he was one of the first

coming prosperity and importance.

transformation of Milan
to foresee

Staunchly sup-

moral,

material,

and the most

city,

walls.

its

colleagues,

his

ix

long,

came

however,

one

of

those

changes which are of too frequent occurrence

political

in

Negri and his friends had helped to

life.

create in Milan a

new

order of society that

now

developed entirely new needs and new tendencies.

new

So, presently, this

very

society

men who had given

of affairs

was mainly due

step,

shortly before

were

Milan,

and industry.

Negri and his colleagues, who

seemed
thrust

background, until at
in

be absolute masters of

to

more
last

and

more

the

into

they counted for nothing

new city they had so largely helped to

Now, they were branded as consortia

the

create.

reactionaries,

The

and even as blacks?

present writer once asked Senator Negri

to explain the cause of this strange

and he said
It's

^ I.c.^

growing

party that had leapt to

in this centre of trade

Step by

This turn

being.

to the steadily

influence of the Socialist

life

it

out with the

fell

phenomenon,

in reply

a turn of the wheel

members

In former days

of the so-called Consorteria^ a clique accused

opponents of an exclusive regard for its own vested

^ Le.^ Clericals and Ultramontanes.

interests.

we

by

its

"

INTRODUCTION

had only

draw

go

to

up

to the office of the Perseveranza,

councillors,

and even a

be chosen.

All

of ours

is

done.

We

Under
his

are

deputies

to

the very last man,

But there

nothing to be

is

Later

helpless.

on,

perhaps,

different

these circumstances, Negri wisely turned

whole attention

was easy

provincial

Nowadays, no candidate

elected.

elected.

may be

things

of the

list

of these, to

were invariably

and

municipal

of

list

to

other work, for which

it

see that he had a strong natural

His remarkable speeches in municipal
assemblies and in parliamentary debates had given
to

aptitude.

ample proofs of
say,

the

his

literary

Strange to

talent.

published results of his wide and

first

various culture were in the shape of contributions

For as

to natural science.

far

back as 1867, when

studying under Professor Stoppani, he had written

much

geological essays which had elicited

from competent
for

philosophy and

worked with
his

But

critics.

letters,

persistent

praise

his true bent

and

in

was

this field

ardour to the

last

he

day of

life.

He now
essays

gave

historical

to the world a large

and

critical

philosophy and on religion.

of every kind

modern
But

essays

He

number

essays

of

on

wrote on subjects

of every age, whether ancient or

of every part of the world.

it

cannot be denied that no one could pos-

sibly discourse on so

many

different

themes without

INTRODUCTION
some

More than

another.

or

subject

equipment

incomplete

betraying

occasionally

xi

of

must

course, in the eyes of special experts, Negri

have appeared

in

once,

be rather a dilettante than a pro-

to

fessional

man

original

appreciations,

Yet all his productions,

while proving the width and variety of his acquirements, likewise abounded in shrewd judgments and
of learning.

eloquence that

expressed with the

the natural offspring of earnest

is

For

thought and conviction.

of

us

believed

vivid

this

our friend

that

reason,

many

Negri was the

destined founder in Italy of the species of historical

and
is

critical

essays which, while so general elsewhere,

comparatively

unknown

in

our

own

country.

Although Negri continually strayed from one

subject to another, there was one to which he
such

always recurred with

religious question of

special

zest

dominant thought,

appeared to be his

man's

final destiny,

that

the

i.e.,

or

it

as

he

problem beyond the grave."

The tendency of his nature led him to ponder

expressed

it

''the

repeatedly over this question.

In his youth, the study of

made

Renan

works had

the deepest impression on his mind.

fascination

master's style had

of the

him and destroyed

nevertheless,

his faith in religion,

stimulated

force of reason the very

solved by

faith.

he continued to

Even
feel

his

desire

The

subjugated

to

but had,
solve

problem that religion

by
had

as a confirmed rationalist

great respect for

existing

INTRODUCTION

xii

religious beliefs, recognising the irresistible yearn-

ing

for

faith

that

common

is

to

mankind.

all

Sometimes, indeed, one might have said that here

was an unbeliever who had a

Accordingly,

Negri's

altogether mistaken

belief!

were

adversaries

holding

contradictory

dragged

this

In

ideas.

way and

by two

that

earnest, that the strife within his

was

he

fact,

opposing

was so
soul gave

But, on every point, he

currents.

not

when they charged him with

truly in

birth to

a wealth of ideas expressed in streams of hotly

eloquent words.

His favourite heroes were the great unbelievers

who, on their conversion, became great apostles
the great philosophers
religion

who had sought

of their philosophic creed.

and re-studied these

their spirit.

One

typical

figures,

of his dreams

or

to

He

make

studied

entered into
illusions

was

some future day, religion and philosophy,

and reason would be brought into perfect

that, at

faith

reconciliation.

He made
St. Paul,

and

repeated studies of Marcus Aurelius,

St.

Augustine, eulogising the latter as

the founder of the Catholic Church.

But then he

" the

formulce of St. Augustine

would add that
had ceased to have any meaning for us that only
;

the

man

studying

himself

is

immortal

who by
moved to

the youth

Cicero at Carthage was

first

examine the problem of the human soul the man

who while living in a whirl of pleasure and glory at
;

INTRODUCTION
Milan, went through the

during which the

subHme

internal struggle

revelation of

God was

and from which he came

to him,

safed

first

xiii

vouchforth

convinced and zealous Christian."

Negri has

In spite of his rationalistic creed,

said

"

We

painful duty of

on us the

impose

Reason

cannot exclude hope.

fails

stifling

to

those

confused, but overpowering aspirations which rise

So to
though hope were a reality, was

from the innermost depths of our being.

live,

so to die, as

the

rule

observed by Socrates, and

is

still

our

highest counsel of perfection."

The
critical

time that Negri's pen converted a

first

essay into an elaborate

volumes was when he wrote

of the

novels

of

George

work

filling

two

his analytical study

This

Eliot.

illustrious

who after translating Strauss and

on German philosophy, suddenly proved
a poet, who after forsaking religion in

authoress,

writing
herself

favour of philosophic free thought was destined

to

win enduring fame by novels descriptive of

clerical life

and by psychological studies of religious

phenomena and
the

religious types of character,

who evoked

writer

He

admiration.

most

Negri's

therefore

made

the

was

unlimited

minutest

examination of everything she had written, and

performed

this

energy and
exclaimed

labour of love with indefatigable

care.
"

This

does not mean

it

On finishing
is my master
is

good work."

the
-

book,

he

work, but that

INTRODUCTION

xiv

In

fact,

we

that

it

is

Negri's Julian the Apostate

in

wide learning,

find the finest fruits of his

originaHty,

and force of

Concerning the

intellect.

Emperor whose reign lasted less than two years

enough information is given by ancient authorities.
Also,

many

important

study of those sources,

world even

in

based

works,

nineteenth

the

on careful

have been given

to the

Hence

century.

the main facts of Julian's career are practically well

known, nor would

it

be easy to discover other

Nevertheless, Julian the Apostate

facts.

favourite literary theme, and

some time

The
Julian

may

is still

so continue for

to come.

point that excites our keenest interest in

the psychological problem of his inner

is

nature.

We

see this valiant soldier, this noble-minded,

highly cultivated, extremely clever

man, who

spected and loved virtue, hastening, the

had

he

ascended

revival of

throne,

to

promote the

paganism and compass the overthrow

already victorious

of the
is

the

Christian

have

clearly explained.

that proved

more

if

so

attractive

not chiefly

was

It

to

this

Negri, and

because

This

faith.

the mystery that confronts us, and which

to

re-

moment

Julian

we long
mystery
all

the

sought to

means of the Neohad suddenly become so

solve the religious problem by

Platonic philosophy that

widely diffused at the time.

was

to develop the

The system employed

philosophy of Plato with an

INTRODUCTION

XV

added infusion of mysticism, of the symbolism of

the East.

Thus, the new doctrine sounded the

of the

praises

divine idea

the world and in

in

was made
On
to consist in the contemplation of God.
the one hand, the aim of this doctrine was the
rehabilitation of the pagan divinities, although
the soul of man,

whose highest

felicity

these were to be modified in a philosophic sense

and interpreted by symbolic

other hand,

however,

fluenced by

the action

being

and

corruption

God

among

of the

being disgusted with the

which

in-

hoped

it

to be able to reconcile

the hierarchy of paganism with the

Julian,

the

already plainly

of Christianity,

by the aid of symbolism

Christians.

On

formulae.

had

broken

already

the followers of Christ,

full

strife

out

of enthusiasm for

Hellenic learning, and convinced that Christianity

was deluded by
the idea of saving his tottering empire by means
of a philosophically reformed pagan creed.
This
was the scheme to which Julian bent the whole
force of his nature.
It was the merest dream, but
would be the undoing of

his State,

Thus

a dream with a dash of the heroic.

reader will
Julian's

life

easily

understand

appealed

to

powering a fascination.

why

the

story

Negri with so

To some

is

much

patient study of the original sources.

of

over-

degree

book

the

his

of a popular nature, although based on

After

an introductory chapter, with a brief account of

those

sources,
b

including

the

writings

of

the

INTRODUCTION

xvi

Emperor

himself,

Negri

gives an exact and

first

lucid narrative of the events of his hero's career,

and then proceeds

value of the philosopher's

amining
period

might

volume.

knowledge of the

sufficient

Doubtless, here and

discussed.

skilled expert

the

problem, ex-

religious

point by point with singular acumen,

it

learning and

great

on the nature and

to enlarge

something to

find

more than

For,

once,

there,

criticise

in

author

the

indulges in certain exaggerations unsuited to the

gravity

For

a writer.

of so gifted

instance,

at

page 265, we find him saying that: ''perhaps

Christianity might have died out in obscurity,
but

Now

persecutions."

we

Elsewhere,
to

which

How

and

abominable

Nero's

for

this

is

ill-considered

really preposterous

discover certain errors of statement,

others

have

already

called

attention.

possible, for example, to accept Negri's

is it

arguments

in

favour of the authenticity of Julian's

when

letters to lamblichus,

their spuriousness has

been so decidedly proved by competent judges

Blemishes of

this sort,

however, do not essentially

book that teems

with genuine originality a book, one might almost
In
say, that was felt and lived by its author.
lessen the historical value of a

fact,

there

was a

close

between Negri and

bond of

his

hero,

intellectual kinship

and thus he could

thoroughly understand, thoroughly love him.

lived,

as

it

atmosphere,

were, with Julian, breathed the

and

so

entirely

identified

He
same

himself

INTRODUCTION
with

Emperor's times that

his

transported

ancient

the

likewise

This

the

is

that

is

xvii

that

to

of Negri's

secret

the

constitutes

readers are
world.

eloquence, this

merit

chief

of

it

his

book.

One may

confidently say that

"

the Apostate

that Negri

and displayed

same

and strength

aptitude

Thenceforth, he had only

as a writer of history.
to pursue the

In

path.

fact,

he soon began

Ambrose

to collect materials for a Life of St.

But

Milan.

last

and

favours and as

after frequent

quent desertions
fatal

in ''Julian

found his true path,

first

special

his

was

it

fortune

was now

deal

to

of

fre-

him

blow.

summer holidays
Having discovered

In 1902 he was spending his

among

the

hills

on the Riviera.

during a solitary

stroll

view, he returned to

a day or so

a specially beautiful point of

it

with his wife and children

While acting as

later.

their guide

up

the mountain track, he suddenly turned round to

Take

warn them, exclaiming,

care

It's

very

slippery just here."

As
lost

the

his

words passed

footing,

some twelve or

fell

his

over

the

effort
last

was made

sleep

of this

cliff

thirteen feet below,

motionless, as though stunned

high-souled,

had claimed him

but

to

a ledge

and lay

by the

to revive him,

Thus ended

he suddenly

lips,

fall.

he

there,

Every
slept the

the changeful activities

man
moment of

highly gifted

at the very,

Death
his

most

xviii

INTRODUCTION

brilliant literary success,

and peace of private

and when,

life,

in the leisure

he was looking forward

to years of congenial labour.

PASQUALE VILLARI.
Translated into English by

MADAME LINDA

VILLARI.

PREFACE
my new book to my few but
readers, it is my ardent desire they
have stated in my
convinced, as

In presenting this
courteous

should

be

previous works,
or

inclination

In

others.

that

have

intention

my

to give

force

to

my

on

views

History has no interest

opinion,

unless treated in a spirit

and manner rigorously

If the writer avails

objective.

not the sHghtest

himself of History

vent to his preconceived preferences, or

constrains facts to justify his theories, he

may

suc-

ceed in writing an eloquent and interesting work,

in

publishing a

libel

or

composing

a romance,

but he will never write a history.

These

rules are applicable

religions as to

mind.

The

all

other

the history of

phenomena

of the

human

study or the narration of a religious

episode should neither be

attack, but

to

a justification nor an

an impartial, serene, and diligent ex-

position of facts

and the causes which produced

them.

This purely objective method of criticism

should

not offend the

most

since a religion, whatever

contact with mankind, and

xix

its
is,

conscience,

delicate
origin,

is

always

in

therefore, necessarily

PREFACE

XX

human

perturbed and obscured by the

and subject

to

that element,

the course

in

element,

the vicissitudes experienced by

all

of centuries.

Like-

wise a river which flows clear as crystal from

mountain source,
the

after passing over the depths of

winding through

valleys,

traversing populous

fertile

of

benefit
to

So

course.

its

we would

if

has taken up in

it

experience the

full

we must ascend

salubrious waters,

its

and

plains,

becomes thick and im-

cities,

pure on account of the refuse

its

its

natural source.

Generally the history of religious facts becomes

because

either

fossilised,

admiration of
admired, as

the

is

it

exercised

no

unreasonable

should be
pression

human

product of the disturbing

the

soul

or

aversion

respected as
of

that

to

of

Infinite.
is

which
ex-

of

aspiration

irresistible

towards the

because

the genuine

being

those countries where culture

critical

unreasonable

the

by man,

influence
less

of

even of that which cannot be

all,

the

Especially

in

scarce and the

sense undeveloped, the habit of judging

events falsely and

to a religious

exclusively

phenomenon

consequence of

this

no longer possible

is

in

their

relations

very prevalent.

narrowness of judgment,

intelligence has passed in

religious

it

is

to study objectively the processes

of action and reaction through which the

to religious form.

In

It

phenomenon,

is
it

its

successive adaptations

the
is

human

human

side of the

the observation of the

PREFACE

xxi

which religious sentiment undergoes

alteration

the intellectual and historical milieu by which

is

in
it

surrounded, that exercises a singular power of at-

traction over those devoted to the study of the laws

that determine the evolution of

He who

succeeds

conscience, in

most hidden

The

and

fibres

and profound

delicate

human

affirmation

in discovering

isolating

in

faculties

most

its

distinguished from the

is

brute because, by being able to rise by

his

or

tissues.

being

rational

of

same time

negation, succeeds at the

its

society.

the

to

relation to religious facts, a lens

its

by any prejudice

uncoloured

man and

applying

in

of abstraction and

means of
to the

reflection

conception of cause, he places before himself two

problems, from the solution of which must spring
the

the

solution

problem,

this

chained

on

the

inspired

by

underrated the

difficulty.

leave

man

Caucasus.

tendency

problem

Christianity,

and sorrow,

clearly

of the

for,

and

whom

Ancient

evil,

and

to

Jupiter

religions,

optimistic,

and

importance
the

none

who dared

essentially

of

saw and

weeping

existence of evil

the

of

that

first,

was a rebel

far-reaching

its

the

to

Prometheus,

at all to the second.

realise

dHre

Ancient religions gave a vague

evil.

uncertain

solve

raison

the problem of death and

universe,

existence of

and

and

explanation

failed

and

to

tragic

religion

of suffering

felt

and did not

this,

terrified

scrutinising the

before

the

problem of

PREFACE

xxii

death,

from

saw

it

in

This

evil.

death the means of redemption

which was the key

idea,

to the

mystery of the world, seemed divine to humanity

and downtrodden

thirsting for the ideal, afflicted

by triumphant

This conception gave to

iniquity.

Christianity a victory that seems unreasonable to

who

those

in

lies

are unable to understand that

its

of Christianity to the most

the response

profound needs of the human conscience.

idea,

reason

But

this

having attained the victory over the religions

and doctrines that ruled

having, in
able

its

turn,

preserve

to

spiration,

in the ancient world,

and

become dominant, has not been

the

purity

and was forced

of

adapt

to

world that had embraced

it,

genuine

its

itself

in-

to the

thereby neglecting

redeeming virtue which had constituted

that

its

strength and conquered the heart of man.

The
to

the

at

and

restrictions of secret
forth,

we now propose
moment when, from the

study of Christianity which

make, begins

isolated recesses,

a royal river, over the immense

Roman

Empire.

fertilising

it

it

burst

field of

the

Flowing over barren ground, and

anew

v/ith

life-giving

waters,

it

same time a
by which the soil had been

assimilated and carried

part of the foulness

its

away

at the

contaminated.

was natural at this moment, as there still

existed some of those complex forces through which
It

ancient civilisation had risen, that this civilisation

should endeavour to rekindle

its

dying flame, and

PREFACE
taking

advantage

Christianity
it

when

of
it

should attempt to

hope of being

the

xxiii

committed by

errors

became a worldly institution,

renew the struggle with the

victorious.

This movement of the antique

oppose

spirit to

once again the invasion of Christianity, and revive

the ancient ideals, was personified in a peculiar and

enigmatical personage, the

it

is

P"reat

Emperor

Now,
when he

Julian.

advantao^e for the historian

finds concentrated, in the focus of a single person,

all

the passions that have determined the direction,

and provoked the

moment

given

more

human

attitude, of the

of

evolution.

its

and

living, clear,

reliable

soul in a

History

is

than when

it is

to exercise itself concerning the individual,

concentrate in

its

never
able

and can

conscience the direct reflection of

the events and ideas diffused in the world.

History

that wanders from abstraction to abstraction, that

moves

in the rarefied air of principles

affirmations,

ceptions,

that

creates,

is

and general

a science of a priori con-

like

metaphysics,

grand ideals

that vanish as soon as they are conceived, like unto

those

profiles

of fantastic figures

we sometimes

discover in the clouds, driven by a gust of wind

across the azure vault of heaven.

adays, the science of

is

the

science

of

man

facts.

All science now-

as well as that of nature,

Hypothesis

is

valueless

except as a preparation for the discovery of

facts,

and theories

facts.

should

follow,

not

History should therefore be, above

precede,
all,

a research

PREFACE

xxiv

We

of facts and a psychological analysis of man.

should reconstruct, as far as possible, in History

the

human drama,

and

relive in thoughts, in sentiments,

human being during a

in passions the life of a

specified period
conflict of

and during a

of time,

hopes and

anger and

fears, of

specified
affections,

of illusions and reality.

And

what

this is just

have attempted

to

do

with a personage as strange and interesting as the

Emperor

do not entertain any prejudice

him.

against

or

for

Julian.

understand him,

have

simply sought to

impelled him to his

insane

motives that

the

scrutinise

to

attempt,

to recreate

the milieu which surrounded him, while examining

the world in which he lived, and considering the

atmosphere of prejudice

From

educated.

living figure that

may

in

which he had been

such a study there emerges a

a gleam of light by which

is

we

discover something of the reality.

My

aim

in writing this

objective,

and

good,

strue

or,
it

will

it

should

book has been purely

require

rather

say,

He who

otherwise.

large

bad

will

dose
to

of

con-

possesses a critical

temperament regards moral phenomena with the

same speculative disinterestedness

phenomena, with the same absolute

as

physical

impartiality

with which the chemist analyses a substance or

the astronomer determines the orbit of a celestial

body.

Sentiment

great deal of the

is

one thing, reason another.

disorder

that

perturbs

human

PREFACE
judgment

is

caused by

XXV

men being

carried

away by

sentiment when they should only listen to reason.

fatal error,

those thinkers

but one not more

who

fatal

than that of

believe that reason explains the

universe, and, because of their shortsightedness,

to perceive that

it

fail

almost always leaves a large

realm to the unknown, where sentiment reigns, an

absolute and invincible king.

GAETANO NEGRI.

THE BUST OF ACERENZA

AcERENZA, a small town in the province of Potenza,
situated on the summit of an isolated mountain
rising at the confluence of the rivers Bradano and
Signone.
Acerenza has the peculiar privilege of
is

Emperor

possessing the colossal bust of the

And

it

is

truly

an instance of the irony of

the bust of the imperial Apostate

of the highest pinnacles of

its

is

Julian.

fate that

placed on one

Cathedral as the image

of the Patron Saint of the town.

believe that

precise information was given for the

first

time

regarding this bust by Francois Lenormant.^

It

appears that Acerenza was one of the few towns

that

cordially participated

restore

polytheism.

in

Julian's attempt to

The young

Emperor must

have been greatly honoured there. A fragment of

an inscription legible on a stone employed in the
construction of the Cathedral, and which must have
belonged to the pedestal of a statue, says,
To the
Restorer of the Roman World, to our Lord
Claudius Julianus Augustus, eternal Prince " and a
second fragment of a more monumental inscription
;

bearing some of the letters of the

name

of Julian

was read by Lenormant on the threshold of one of

the chapels of the Cathedral.
^

and

F. Lenormant,

It is

therefore very

Travers VApiilie et la Lucanie^

sq.
xxvii

vol.

i.

p. 271,

THE BUST OF ACERENZA

xxviii

marble bust of the Roman

Emperor which adorns the summit of the Cathedral
was an exact representation of Julian, and that it
had been a part of a colossal statue that the
inhabitants of Acerenza had erected in his honour.
This probability is explained by the circumstance
that it is easy to understand how the extraordinary
mistake occurred by which the accursed apostate
was transformed into a venerable saint.
The
patron of the Cathedral of Acerenza is St. Canius,
Bishop of Juliana, in Africa, whose body was
brought to Lucania by the Christians who fled from
Africa, driven away by the Mussulmans.
"Now,"
says Lenormant, *'the relation of the respective
proportions seems to indicate that the fragment of
inscription in the honour of Julian which forms the
threshold of one of the chapels came from the
This fragment bears only
pedestal of the statue.
probable

that

the letters

the

VLIAN

If,

as

is

probable, the

two fragments were taken out of the earth at the

same time, the priests of Acerenza between 1090
and 1 100, more interested in St. Canius than in the
Emperor Julian, completed the mutilated inscription jVLIANensis episcoptts, and the Apostate
was immediately transformed into a martyr and a
heavenly protector."
interesting because

This bust of Julian, already

has
because
of its intense vitality and overpowering grandeur.
It also seems strange that in an epoch when art
of

its

curious

besides an intrinsic value as a

was

in

extreme decadence

it

work of

history,
art

was possible

to find a

sculptor capable of modelling a figure of such simple

vigour.

The

sculptor wished to represent not the

THE BUST OF ACERENZA

The head is adorned with
body arrayed in the
and
the
a laurel wreath,
If this is Julian, it is
military paludamentum.
head of his legions.
the
at
conqueror
the
Julian
thinker but the soldier.

say

have

been

first

confirmed

Salomon Reinach,

read by him
In the

of Lenormant,

indications

recently

archeologist,

concerning

at

its

the

to

which

by a celebrated
a communication
doubts
mind.
impossible that

in

Paris,

arise in

still

seems

it

in

''Institut"

authenticity

place,

any one even

me

my

slightly familiar with the writings of

Julian could be otherwise than

before this image.

the writer

notwithstanding

this is Julian, because,

if

the affirmative

But how

who passed

all

his

is

amazed
it.^

if

The

placed
thinker,

youth over his books,

the philosopher, the subde and restless theologian,

the

indefatigable

scholar

who,

even

amid

the

anxieties of war, rose in the dead of night to read

authors and compose his treatise,

Utopian dreamer who only thought of the
moral evolution of the world and the creation of a
religious State in which he would be the Pontifex
Maximus, that he should have the lineaments of an
old Roman, of this strong and resolute soldier,
his

favourite

the

robust in mind as in body, of this

may

man

to

whom we

and vigour of
character, but to whom, above all others, would seem
extraneous that mingling of ideality and pedantry
so characteristic in the mind of Julian.'^
If this be
his genuine representation, there was a part of his
nature which was not expressed in his face, but
certainly attribute force of will

remained hidden in the inmost recesses of his soul.

In this effigy we can recognise the hero of Strasburg,

THE BUST OF ACERENZA

XXX

the audacious leader of the passage of the Tigris,

but in vain

we seek

the modest and clever writer

of the letter to Themistius, the severe moralist,

author of the fragments on the Duties of Priesthood, the witty, ingenious, and learned poet of the

Misopogon.

But

let

us confront the bust of Acerenza with

the written description of Gregory Nazianzen and

of

Ammianus

As

Marcellinus.

those of my readers

who may

will

follow

me

be seen by
in this

work,

the portrait traced by Gregory cannot be reconciled

in

any particular with this portrait bust of a

Gregory depicts to us a youth

vigorous soldier.
subject

to

convulsions, a

of epileptic,

sort

with

wandering glances, a continuous nervous trembling

of the neck, with changing lineaments, and of an
attitude uncertain and unstable
a most interesting
figure, but one that does not possess the slightest
vestige of that calm but majestic pride that shines
;

It is true that
hero of Acerenza.
Gregory is inspired by such hatred for Julian that
he has depicted him with the intention of caricaturing him.
But we must not forget that Gregory
had lived with Julian for many months, and sat

in the face of the

with him on the benches of the same school

fore,

admitting

caricature, there

the
is

possibility

necessarily in

there-

being

of

its

all

caricatures a

We must also observe

Gregory had known Julian when he was very

slight foundation of truth.

that

young, before the terrible ordeal of a soldier's life

in Gaul had strengthened and transformed him into
a man of action, and it is not impossible to imagine
a corresponding transformation of his appearance.

THE BUST OF ACERENZA

The most

trustworthy description

is

xxxi
that given

by Ammianus, who accompanied Julian in Persia,

and therefore represented him as he was during
Mediocris erat statura,
capillis perquam pexis et mollibus, hirsuta barba in
acutum desinente vestitus, venustate oculorum
micantium fiagrans, qui mentis ejus argutias
the last years of his

life.

naso rectissimo,
ore paulo majore, labro inferiore demisso, opima et
incurva cervice, umeris vastis et latis, ab ipso capite
indicabant, superciliis

decoris

et

usque unguium summitates liniamentorum recta

compage." This description of Ammianus can be
considered in great part applicable to the bust of

Acerenza.

There

is

the

soft,

curly

the

hair,

and the
straight nose.
Judging from the photograph that
is here reproduced, I do not consider that there is
singularly brilliant expression of the eyes,

sufficient indication of the projection of the

lip,
it

there

is

lower

the strong but not the curved neck, and

lacks the characteristic goat's beard spoken of

Ammianus, and which

is,

we

as

will

see

later,

by
an

important dramatis persona in Julian's Misopogon.

To

explain this last difficulty,

we may

state

that

grow only after his entrance

Constantinople, and this is so true that we

Julian let his beard

into

learn from

Ammianus

his sojourn in that city

that during the

he had

still

first

days of

sent for a bar ber

"ad demendum capillum." Now, if the bust, as it

is
probable, was made in Constantinople, the
sculptor would only have seen on his model an
incipient beard, which, however, could not yet

acquired a pointed form.

This

answer

objection would certainly be ingenious, but

c

to
I

have
the

should

THE BUST OF ACERENZA

xxxii
like

observe

to

that

Ammianus

says that the

ad demendum capillum," and not

ad demendam barbam." Now, it is true that
under the generic expression " capillum " we can
*'tonsor"

came

also include the beard, but

Ammianus

himself

in

not less true that

is

it

description

his

of

Julian

distinguishes the two things by their two names.

In the second place, without entering a propos of

Julian

into

a discussion

which

in

it

would be

necessary to appeal to the authority of a barber,

should say that the beard of the bust of Acerenza

covers the cheeks but leaves the chin free, and
such being the case, it appears to me that it would

be almost impossible
in so short a

which presents

for a

beard to become pointed

The

space of time.
itself is this

Julian

last difficulty

was

little

more

than thirty years of age when he entered Constantinople as Emperor now, without desiring to give
offence, it seems to me that we could honestly allow
ten years more to the person represented by the
bust of Acerenza.
Notwithstanding the doubts that arise in my
;

mind

whilst studying the photograph of this bust,

do not hesitate to make use of it to adorn my
modest book. Even on the hypothesis that this is
not a bust made from life in Constantinople, but a
work done in Italy with an insufficient knowledge
I

of the original, the genius, the

it

render

it

life

singularly interesting.

that vibrates in

e see in

it

the

hand of a passionate admirer it is the reflex of the

admiration and sympathy which the audacious
restorer of
Hellenism awakened in the first
;

moments

of his Imperial career.

THE BUST OF ACERENZA

And

then,

xxxiii

what more speaking example of the

human things? The image of

profound irony of
the greatest

enemy

ever had,

Christianity

that

transformed into that of a Saint, receives and

transmits to Heaven the prayers of those Christians

was
I
he so greatly despised and abhorred
book,
of
my
frontispiece
for
the
emblem
seeking an
one that would synthetise the history of Julian.
The bust of Acerenza is the most eloquent of all
emblems.
!

POSTSCRIPT
Salomon Reinach

has

representations of Julian.

In the

supposed,

be seen
other

and clad

of

statues

portrait

archeologist discusses the bust of Acerenza,

in a toga, are not,

authenticity

dissipate

some of the doubts that I

we radically eliminate the

the

and

insists

first

difficulty

cerning the expression of the bust which conceals so

and the second

Julian's peculiar characteristics,

seems to represent a

it

that

form,

is

not

and while the

the chin

is

man much

con-

many

difficulty,

of

i.e.^

older than Julian was

always remains the insurmountable fact

epoch, there

that the beard

on the

likeness,

admitting that

at

some

endeavouring also to
have created. But, even

absolute

that

Louvre,

the

but rather of

Julian,

one

Paris,

in

at

In the second part the illustrious

rhetorician or philosopher.

of

Revue

the

in

memoir concerning the

part of his memoir he

the

representing a personage bearded,

as

first

Musee des Thermes and

the

published,

interesting

that the two statues to

clearly proves
at

recently

and

Archeologique^ a learned

trimmed
cheeks

in

are

so bare as to render

it

the characteristic goat-like

thickly

covered with

impossible that

it

hair,

attained a

luxurious growth between the date attributed to the statue

and

Julian's entrance into Antioch.

Reinach's memoir

is

embellished by three large and beautiful

THE BUST OF ACERENZA

xxxiv

photographs of the bust taken in Acerenza.

represents

the

head

in

profile

is

of

The one which

beauty.
The

singular

perfection of the lineaments, the depth of expression, the

manner

which the head is set on the shoulders, in fact the poise of

the whole figure, is such as we should picture the real Julian,
in

thus attributing to

him

also physically the ideal type of the hero.

Looking at this beautiful face, I immediately understood the

great sympathy he aroused in the Empress Eusebia.
But can
this possibly be Julian ?
Is it not rather an ideal figure moulded
by a sculptor of genius who never having seen Julian, and being
influenced by flattering descriptions, imagined this to be a true
conception of the hero? I must own that the interesting
dissertation of Salomon Reinach, notwithstanding its great
erudition, has not entirely removed the doubts that assailed me
when I first saw the bust of Acerenza, and in this short article
I have attempted to justify their existence.
July

901.

ERRATA
e 33, line 15
for

"Macellus"
read " Macellum."

39,

21

40, lines 5

41, line 7
80,

and 8

^
j

for "

Ecebolius

"

read " Hecebolius."

28, for " Lucilianus " read

Lucillianus.'

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

INTRODUCTION
In the decadence of the Empire there

more
that
IS

more interesting and attractive, than

of the Emperor JuHan, and his unhappy fate

well

But the

worthy of commiseration.

him

condemned

How

obscurity.

easy to explain.

is

it

this stigma,

and

execration

to

happened,

this

Church was stimulated by a polemical

and made every
in

truth

party interest.
not,

effort

was

The

it

sacrificed

historian

is

man
usual

passion and

and the

critic

must

however, permit themselves to be confused or

misled by the clamour of polemics

anatomise impartially the

fact or the

have under observation on

and

to

the

As

mortally.

The

intention,

to render odious

attempted to wound

polemics,

ecclesi-

has been terribly inimical to him

branded him as Apostate, and, with

who

no figure

original,

astical tradition
it

is

their

their

man

duty

is

to

that they

dissecting table,

to seek to discover the truth in its essential

reality.

Now,
VOL.

it
I.

is
I

clear

that

the

denunciations

and

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

calumnies of the Church do not succeed in destroying the peculiar interest in the character and actions
of the
subject

Emperor Julian.
There is no historical
more attractive and worthy of research

than the origin, causes, and consequences of the

polytheism,

of

restoration

Emperor devoted

his

and execrations are

facts,

which

may

which

to

These

efforts.

ineffectual

easily

in

concealing the

course to history and documents.

man

youth immersed

any moment,

in

command,

is

unques-

of exceptional

his

might be cut short by

who occupied

suddenly being
in

passed

his life

dastardly cousin

It

re-

boyhood and
study, always aware that, at

having

who,

invectives

be substantiated by

tionably true that Julian was a

talent,

young

the

invested

his

the Imperial throne,

supreme

with

military

a most desperate position, very soon

proved himself to be a general of great valour, and

conducted a marvellous campaign, crowned with

His public

splendid victories.

the short period of eight years

in

which he was sent

to

Gaul

life is

from 355, the

to resist the

when he was

invasion, to 363,

embraced

slain

and

agitations,

military

on the

studies

passed

and were

in the
full

this,

to die at

or

field

These

midst of tumults

of adventures

and administrative preoccupations.

withstanding

doomed

all

year

German

of battle, heroically fighting the Persians.

eight years were

in

and
Not-

young Emperor, who was

thirty-two, never abandoned his
the

interrupted

his

literary

activity,

and

INTRODUCTION

found the means and the time to make himself

one of the most cultured

the

most

last,

men

and most profound writer

brilliant,

Greek decadence.

of the

penetrated with high

of his century, and

Austere

ideals,

his

in

fully versatile genius, excelling in all that

took,

Julian

is

he under-

a character worthy of the most

thorough investigation, and,

it,

habits,

possessed of a wonder-

if

we may

a most "suggestive" figure.

so express

His attempt

impede the advance of Christianity and

to

to lead the

State back to a polytheistic creed was, in principle,

an

error,

and reveals a

spirit

more influenced by

phantoms than a correct appreciation

of the moral and intellectual conditions of his
There is nothing more interesting than to
times.
study the causes which led such a shrewd and

philosophical

brilliant intelligence into

more curious than

give

life

such grave errors, nothing

to follow

to his ideal

to cull

him

in

his efforts to

from his

lips

and

writings the motives that actuated him, the

at

which he aimed, and the hopes and

his

goal

disillusions

which he experienced.

The Church

has been

much more

violent in

diatribe against Julian than against the

who

pursued

Julian,

who

it

igne

et

its

emperors

Nevertheless,

ense.

instituted a systematic reconstruction

of polytheism, did not cause one drop of blood to

be shed

for the principle that

was dearer

to his soul

than his reputation as a warrior or the success of

his administrative

reforms.

On

the

contrary, as

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

we

the principles of tolerance and the

shall see,

disapproval

were

conversions

of forced

officially

The Church, however, was

proclaimed.

by an unerring

instinct.

cution would be

inspired
perse-

It felt that, after all,

most powerful arm, and would

its

The more persecuted,

It
more
powerful.
was
prepared fearlessly to
the
combat violence, but drew back in alarm before this
eventually lead to victory.

youth, who, from the Imperial throne, preached the

name of reason and

was something so new and unexpected

return to polytheism, in the

morality.

It

that they imagined the peril greater than

was.

None

of the persecutors of Christianity had

ever condescended to consider

persecuted because
to Society

examined

really

it

it

on

essence.

was supposed

and the State

it

its

was

to be dangerous

but no one had ever

and

philosophical

its

It

historical

The critical work of Celsus remained almost

Now, suddenly, there appears an emperor,
solitary.
the nephew of Constantine, who declares himself
basis.

from

apostate

Christianity,

justify his apostasy

and

endeavours

to

by proving the unreasonable-

ness and lack of historical basis of a religion which,

until then,

seemed

to

have overcome

all

resistance.

Nothing could have been more offensive

to

the

Church, whose domination was even at this period

absolute,

and which,

discussion

of

its

therefore, did not tolerate the

Shortly

authority.

javelin of a Persian relieved

did not obliterate the

it

memory

of

all

after,

the

anxiety, but

of the fearful

and

INTRODUCTION
odious attempt, and

name

covering the

it

to

tried

revenge

itself

of Julian with opprobrium,

by
and

consigning his history and his works to unmerited

oblivion.

We

begin our study by giving a cursory

will

glance at the

Then we

of Julian.

life

examine

will

the religious and philosophical miliett which sur-

We

rounded him.
the

fully

will

afterwards consider more

which he made

efforts

polytheistic cult

and the ancient

As we

we

proceed,

interesting
religious

find

will

on

considerations

movements, on the

the

restore

to

religious

ideas.

occasion for

many

the

nature

effects that

the

of

they pro-

duced, and on the causes which brought them to

and

their victories

The
studied,

defeats.

and actions of Julian may be

from an abundance of testimonies, with a
life,

genius,

nearer approximation to the truth than

possible

Our knowledge
three

very

is

derived, in the

trustworthy

sources,

temporaneous with him of

History of

Ammianus

in the

whom

first

place,

from

all

three

con-

they speak

the

Gregory of Nazianzus,

second place, and above

writings of Julian himself,

served,

usually

Marcellinus, the Discourses

of Libanius, and those of

and

is

with the personages of ancient history.

all,

from the

which have been pre-

and give a most interesting revelation of

his restless spirit.

Ammianus

Marcellinus, born, in Antioch, of a

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

noble family, entered, while yet young, the career

of arms
in

he attained to high

offices,

many important engagements.

selected

In 350 he was

by the Emperor Constantius to accompany

General

Ursicinus,

whom was

to

the

same

whom

Ursicinus,

the

entrusted

came

In 354 he

defence of the East.

with

and took part

to

Milan

he followed to

Gaul, to assist in crushing the rebellion of Silvanus.

After the latter was

killed,

he was sent back to

was when Julian took the

place of Constantius.
He was a devoted and
faithful admirer of the young sovereign, and accom-

the East, where he

panied him

in

his

still

expedition

Ammianus seems

Julian

was

doned

his military career,

where he

to

lived tranquilly, and, as

we

is

have aban-

learn from a

History which has

to us in a fragmentary condition.

Marcellinus

Ammianus

a most valuable witness, because of

the serene impartiality of his judgments.

writer,

After

and returned to Rome,

of Libanius, wrote the

letter

come

slain,

Persia.

to

he was mediocre and heavy from a

As

literary

point of view, but conscientious and exact, and an

expert concerning military

to Julian

by

affection

affairs.

and

Although bound

admiration, he did not

allow his feelings to influence his statements, even

when

these statements were unfavourable to his

Ammianus has, therefore, left a testimony

But,
in which we may repose absolute confidence.
a soldier at heart and essentially a man of action,

hero.

although not a Christian, he could not have

felt

any


INTRODUCTION

work of religious restoration instituted by Julian, and so his writings treat almost
The
exclusively of the soldier and the prince.
interest in the

philosopher and the pontiff only receive a passing

allusion

the

in

works of

this

honest historian.

vivid and ingenious descrip-

Nevertheless, by his

young Emperor

tion, the figure of the

adverse

criticisms,

akin

to

so clearly

who

defined as to awaken, in the reader

follows his actions, an admiration,

is

closely

tempered by some
which inspired

that

Ammianus.
Libanius was one of the most noted figures of
the

Hellenic world

in

the fourth

Ammianus, he was a native

the

reigns

and during

of Antioch,

Constantius,

of

Like

century.

Valens,

Julian,

and

Theodosius, the three great centres of the East

Nicomedia, and

Constantinople,

Antioch

were

he was a

great scholar and an eminent rhetorician.

Chosen

overflowing with his literary productions

by the Government as Professor of Rhetoric, he

instituted

named
to

public

constituted

epoch.

The

cities.

perfect

An

schools

in

each of

above-

youths flocked to him, in order

themselves in that formal

the

the

principal

art,

literary training

which
of the

enthusiastic lover of Hellenic traditions,

Libanius hated Christianity, and thought that the

salvation of the world

ancient ideas.

He

depended on the return

was exclusively a scholar and

an orator, absolutely devoid of

tendencies.

to

all

philosophical

His discourses were only exercises of

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

eloquence, lacking in depth of thought

he narrates, and

interest lies in the facts that

By

continuous

back

to

men and

Constantinople,
was,

by

turns,

and,

finally,

persecuted
in

to

and

triumphing

circumstances, because of the great

which was universally respected by

men

most

change the seat of

fame he enjoyed, and the authority of

brated

the

to

was

rivals,

he always succeeded

exalted, but

over

to

He

Antioch.

owing

life,

his

im-

frivolous,

from Constantinople to Nicomedia,

his teachings

thence

his

with

conflicts

and he was obliged

agitated,

was

nature he

and vain

pressionable,

in the

Libanius was an able

descriptions of their milieu.

phrase-maker.

their chief

name,

his

all

the

cele-

of his time.

nowadays too much forgotten. His

numerous writings and his rich collection of letters
Libanius

are,

is

by a happy chance, preserved,

and are among the most

literature,

society

century.

of

giving a
the
It is

living

lifelike

Eastern

in great part,

examples of ancient

representation

Empire

in

the

of the
fourth

curious to note that the decadence

Greek literature and genius had been less rapid

and profound than the decadence of Latin genius
and literature. Whilst the latter was totally extinguished, and only revived by the ecclesiastical
writers, in the East the flame was kept burning
by the most lively centres of intellectual movement
and literary traditions, and was so well preserved
of

as to render possible the appearance of such writers

INTRODUCTION
The

and Libanius.

as Julian

have

last-named of these

although superficial,

writers,

as

brilliant,

and often animated by a pure

and we

exquisite beauty
rule,

his

in

find

said,

and

is

inspiration,

many pages

discourses

of

a general

feeling, although, as

they are too long and faulty in composition.

Having known
personally, at least

many

Julian from

not

if

by reputation, and having, as

hopes

others, centred all his

natural that he should

star of the

youth,

his

with

hail

new Emperor

him,

in

was

it

enthusiasm the

as soon as

appeared

it

on the horizon, and he approved and aided with

all

We

might the restoration of Hellenism.

his

can therefore understand that the sad end and

premature downfall of his hopes threw him into

a

of

state

profound desolation.

discourses, four of

In

brief reign of Julian, Libanius has

these,

" Salutation,"

the

entrance of Julian

To

the

into

Emperor Consul,"

the inauguration of the

desired

by the

"The Embassy" and

are

on

the

and the other

written

new

Two

grief.

pronounced

Antioch,

of the Consulate of Julian,

greatly

seven

most eloquently

expressed his sentiments of joy and

of

the

which were written during the

on occasion

hymns

of joy at

Hellenic spring,

gifted

young

so

Emperor.

the "Discourse on

Anger"

are destined to reconcile the irritated Julian with

the frivolous and frondettse Antioch.

the " Solitary

Lament" and

Two

more,

the " Necrology," are

wails of grief for the death of the

Emperor.

The

10

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

"

"

a true history of Julian.

The

grief-stricken Libanius relates at length the

whole

Necrology

Emperor.

of the

life

document

The

and

is

It

discourse

to study Julian

and

"On Vengeance"

was

addressed to the Emperor Theodosius, when

he was called by Gratianus

of

death of Julian,

years after the

sixteen

important

a vitally

is

who wish

for those

his epoch.

written

is

the

Libanius,

Orient.

assume the empire

to

completely

deceived

concerning the tendencies of the young and un-

known Theodosius,

him

incited

revenge Julian,

to

means of appeasing the gods, and of

inducing them to prevent the eventual destruction
of the tottering empire.
These discourses of
Libanius are a mine of information concerning
as the only

Julian, but are,

above

all,

tion of the impression

precious as a representa-

which he produced, and of

the atmosphere of sympathy and

encouragement

which encircled and incited him, and prevented

his perception of the truth.

much

influenced

Hellenist,

that

by party feeling

he lacks

so admirable

is

Libanius

the
in

unprejudiced

must be taken with

grain of

salt,

but, in

any

passionate

judgment

All that Libanius

discrimination

case,

arrive at a true conception of

of w^hat

certainly

the mediocre, but trust-

worthy Ammianus Marcellinus.

writes

is

it

is

or

impossible to

what Julian was, and

he accomplished, unless we consult the

writings of this devoted friend and ardent admirer.

In

direct

opposition

to

Libanius,

we

find


INTRODUCTION
Gregory

of

Gregory

formed

Nyssa,

of

who

Nazianzus,

of

Nazianzus

Nicene

the

is

in

330,

about the same age as Julian,

for a time,

was

as

was

fellow-students

enthusiastic

of

trio

due the

final

Born

at

Gregory was

and they were,

Gregory

Athens.

at

and

Basil

great

orthodoxy.

Cappadocia

in

with
the

whom

theologians and orators to

triumph

11

Christianity as the other

for

and although Julian evidently

tendencies, they were discovered

for Hellenism,

concealed

his

by Gregory, who consequently conceived a most

antipathy

violent

antagonism developed

Gregory

hatred.

as

the

Bishop,

world,

his responsibility,

most ferocious

and,

and

above

all,

made him

this

position,

made him implacable

towards the enemy of Christianity.

great culture

This

one of the highest positions

ecclesiastical

augmenting

companion.

later into the

as

orator, occupied

in

his

to

Besides, his

appreciate the extent of

the peril that threatened Christianity, on account

of the

The
a

new mode

of warfare initiated by Julian.

death of Julian, which was for the Hellenists

terrible

and

Christians, and,

desolating

above

all,

blow,

was

for

for Christian writers

the

and

philosophers such as Gregory, an unexpected and

welcome

relief,

which delivered

them from the

most dangerous of their enemies, and they raised

to

heaven a cry of

more exultant and

which resounds

joy.
pitiless

in the

In this cry no note was

than that of Gregory,

two defamatory discourses

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

12

monuments

the two

them

written

of infamy, as he himself calls

by him

heard of his death.

is

against

In these discourses Gregory

not a historian, and

still

terrible disputant, inspired

him of

all

eloquence.
of

broad

of

judge

he

is

by a fury that deprives

and

flights

overpowering

Libanius represents the impression

If

exaltation

less a

of sight and judgment, but

clearness

a disputant

when he

Julian,

that

Julian

had

produced

the

in

Hellenic world, Gregory expresses yet more vividly

the impression of horror produced in the Christian

The

world.

exaggerations of love and hate, of

admiration and abhorrence, mutually correct each

other,

and from them appears the true

figure

of

the man.
It

would be impossible

to find a

more curious

human judgment.
men of superior intelligence
and great culture tw^o men among the most noted
personalities of their epoch.
Both of these men
example of the

We have

relative justice of

before us two
;

come

in contact

with a bold and intrepid prince,

subjected to the most strange and extraordinary

caprices of fate,

meteoric career

filled

prince

who

in

his

short and

the world with the fame of

his wonderful achievements.

Both these men

most solemn discourses,

cuss this Prince, in

the

made

when nothing remains

after his death,

works, w^hen

it

was too

late to derive

of his

any advantage

from praising him, and when abuse of him had

all

polemical interest.

dis-

lost

However, they are both so

INTRODUCTION
carried

passion, that while for

this Prince is a miracle of virtue, for the other

one
he

away and blinded by

13

is

The

a monster of ignominy.

disputes con-

cerning him did not cease until long after his death.

Of Julian

it

might

truly

be said that

in life

he was

Segno dimmensa invidia

E d'indomato amor.^

He

had raised a tempest, and

its

angry waves

beat furiously on his corpse, and hurled

it

on the

What must we do

rocks disfigured and mutilated.

in order truthfully to reintegrate this personality

We

must

carefully

consider

all

that he has narrated of his

all

his

Then we

disillusions.

portrait,

we

then

with his marvellous

we

he has said and

his

life,

shall

and

gifts,

hopes and

have a genuine

recognise

shall

the

real

man,

his weaknesses,

and

have liberated our judgment from the

shall

passionate execrations of the Christians and

Pagans.

fallacious deification of the

Although
preserved,

all

still

writings

Julian's

we

the

have not been

possess a sufficient

number

to

us concerninor
enlighten
o the real worth of the man
o
and the writer. According to Libanius,^ he dictated
his

works very

rapidly,

preoccupations

the

interfere

of

and did not allow any of

war

or

government

to

with the composition of the discourses,

"

Object of undying hatred, and unconquerable love." Alessandro Manzoni's famous ode, " The 5th of May," on Napoleon the
^

First's
2

death Translator.

Libaniiis^ edition of Reiske, vol.

i.

580, 15.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

14
pamphlets,

satires,

and

letters in

which he poured,

with great natural talent, the wealth of his versatile

mind, and which only needed time and labour to

perfect them.

It is in

these writings that

we

dis-

cover the genuine thoughts of this restless youth,

who wasted

and generous soul

his brilliant

in

vain chase after shadows.

The

We

writings of Julian are not

all

of equal value.

have, on the one hand, the panegyrical dis-

courses composed on the sophistical lines of the

rhetoric

of the

which

schools,

as

we

shall see, the expression of

art

and

They

are,

sacrifice

eloquence to the barren rules of form.

an explicable, but

not praiseworthy, opportunism in a young and sus-

pected Prince.

There are

also his philosophical dis-

composed and poorly organised

mass of maxims and symbols gathered from his
Neo-Platonic teachings. These discourses are, like
the panegyrics, heavy and artificial, and, as literary
and philosophical exercises, have in themselves but
courses, a hurriedly

little

value.

They

are,

signs of the tendencies

however,

interesting

as

and customs that dominated

the schools of the time, and, above

all,

as a proof of

the mystic symbolism with which polytheism was

obliged to enfold

because of the exigencies

itself,

of monotheism, and

its

desire to

combat victorious

Christianity.

Besides these scholastic exercises,

we have

the

occasional discourses, satires, and letters, in which

is

evinced a true

spirit

of originality, whose in-

INTRODUCTION
florescence

15

had not been destroyed by

his pedantic

education, a spirit which, in every way, evinced a

readiness of perception, a genial impressionability,

and an acuteness of penetration and judgment that

gave to his words the pure ring of truth and
sincerity.

It

in

is

these

when we

study Julian, and

writings

that

we must

recall that this brilliant

writer, at times profound, at times poetic, this acute

marvellously

this

satirist,

and

versatile

gifted

who was thoroughly

thinker, this scholar

versed,

not only in his beloved Hellenic literature, but also,

in the

ate

hated literature of the Christians; this passion-

and indefatigable reader of Homer, Bacchylides,

and

Plato,

was

also the youthful

commander whose

wonderful military achievements and indomitable

described

valour are

by the

we cannot

Marcellinus,

faithful

Ammianus

hesitate to affirm that this

Prince, notwithstanding the fundamental errors of

his

life,

among

is

one of the most conspicuous figures

those

who made famous

the fatal decadence

of ancient society.

The

history of Julian should therefore be

com-

piled from these four sources, which, being contem-

poraneous,
other

possess

accounts

of

an

inestimable

Julian's

The

value.

achievements

have

reached us either in a condition too fragmentary to

be considered reliable documents, or

most

part,

derived from writers

a century after Julian, and

scarcely worthy of belief.

who

are,

for the

lived at least

whose statements are

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

16

The History

may

of Eunapius

also be read with

considerable interest in connection with the study

Eunapius was born

of Julian.

in 347,

and may be

considered a contemporary witness of the actions

of the young Emperor, although he himself says
that he

was too young

form a correct judgment.

to

Eunapius was a fervent admirer of

Julian,

and

his

statements must have given continual proofs of this

But

admiration.

writings

were

because

is

it

by

ruined

of this

blind

that

fanaticism,

his

and

reduced to a few unimportant fragments, a loss

more

greatly to be deplored,

especially as he

had

access to the records of the physician Oribasius,

one of

Julian's

most

faithful friends.

But Eunapius has

the Lives of the

us in another volume, in

left

short

Sophists,

rather, sketches of the principal

Neo-Platonic philosophers,

in the

biographies,

ones

among

midst of

or

the

whom

Julian

was educated.

writer,

and unworthy of the treasures of erudition

Although a very ordinary

dedicated to him by Boissonade and Wyttenbach,

still,

as regards the history of Julian, he possessed

the incomparable advantage of having been a con-

temporary.

In

fact,

generation later than

although he belonged to a

acquainted with almost

described,

he was personally

Julian,
all

the

and was, besides, a

men whom he

relative

and pupil

of Chrysantius, one of Julian's masters, and so

derive

we

from him the most valuable information.

Reading the

lives of /Edesius, Chrysantius, Priscus,

INTRODUCTION
Oribasius,

above

and,

Uebermensch of that
transported into the

Maximus, the

that of

all,

world,

little

17

7niliett

we

feel

ourselves

of Neo-Platonic society,

and our impressions are much more vivid than those

which we gather from historians and

critics

of later

epochs.

Zosimus
is

another Byzantine historian

is

warm admirer

acuteness of his

He

of Julian.

who

proves the

sense by deciding that, for

critical

a just knowledge of Julian, a supreme importance

own

should be given to the Emperor's

in

preference

to

However, he adds

those
little

from

writings,

any other source.

or nothing to what

we have

already learned from the narrations of Ammianus.

But Zosimus

is

always an authoritative testimony of

the profound impression of greatness and nobility

by Julian during

left

brief passage

his

on

life's

stage.

All the ecclesiastical

who occupied

historians

themselves with the character of Julian, excepting

Rufinus, lived a

They were

century after him.

thus writing of events that had happened in an

epoch distant from their own,

to

the growth

in

niilieit

of legends devoid

of

favourable
all

literary

judgment, and incited to encourage the prejudices

of the public mind, to

were odious.

whom

all

records of Paganism

These authors cannot

us reliable sources of information.

have

said, lived

I.

Rufinus, as

we

nearer to Julian's epoch, and wrote

the continuation of the

VOL.

constitute for

Ecclesiastical

History of

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

18

Eusebius, which he extended up to the year 395.

His account of the reaction of Julian is short and
incomplete, but
tolerance,
if

and

it is

written in a spirit of relative

appears that he did not know, or

it

he actually knew, did not endorse, the judgments

of the terrible Gregory.

The

we have

Arian, Philostorgius, whose works

only received in fragments, and Theodoretus, in

whose writings history

is stifled

by legend, are thus

valueless for the historian of Julian.

On

the other

hand, the narrations of the two ecclesiastical historians, Socrates

and Sozomenes, are most important.

Socrates lived towards the middle of the

century, during the reign of Theodosius

11.

fifth

He also

wrote a continuation of the Ecclesiastical History

In his book, which

of Eusebius.

is

more

interest-

ing as a sign of the opinions of those times than

discriminating in respect of facts, we find narrated,

with

many

action.

particulars, the

Socrates

historian.

The

is

episode of Julian's re-

a conscientious and intelligent

discourses

of

Gregory

certainly

exercised a great influence over him, and he refers

to

many

legends.

facts either

legendary or exaggerated by

However, we cannot accuse Socrates of

being too harsh in his judgments.

the

work of

this impartial historian

In

its

entirety,

cannot be

pensed with by those who desire to study the

dislife

of Julian.

Sozomenes

lived a

little later

than Socrates, and

re-edited the latter s History, introducing here

and

INTRODUCTION
some new

there

facts,

legendary element.

its

19

and, above

This

is

all,

not the place to

discuss the relative value of Socrates

but

it

intensifying

and Sozomenes,

an undeniable fact that Socrates, as a

is

literary personality, is

regards the

life

much more

of Julian.

authoritative as

Sozomenes

only to

is

be distinguished from his predecessor by having

abandoned

The

his relative moderation.

life

and works of the Emperor Julian are

modern

greatly studied by

historians

and

critics,

they have given birth to a rich literature.

and

Leaving

aside those studies, necessarily brief, which

we

find

such as Gibbon's monumental

in general histories,

work on the Decline and Fall of the Roman

Empire, or the most recent book of Villari on
the Barbarian Invasions, we have numerous essays
illustrative of certain phases in the life and thoughts
of Julian, and also brilliant articles, as that famous
one of Strauss, who takes advantage of the history
of the

much -discussed Apostate

transparent

tissue

tendencies and

William.

But

which, taking

of

allusions

romanticism
until

all

of

to

to

compose a

the

mediaeval

King Frederick

now no book has been

written

criticism into consideration, has

endeavoured to review the enigmatical character

of Julian,

and

to

represent

it

under

its

varied

aspects.^
1 I

say "until now," for Paul Allard's hook, Juliejt PApostat, 1899,
first volume has just been issued, appears to fill the void.

of which the

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

20

Among

the

most

noted

who have

scholars

applied themselves to the study of Julian, the

must be

place

given

Neumann,

to

who,

first

with

wonderful shrewdness, was able to reconstruct, from

the confutation
Julian's

treatise

made by

Cyril, at least a part of

against

the

Christians

small part, but most precious because of

a very

its

know-

work concerning the philosophy of Julian is precise and

clear.^
That of Miicke^ is rich in facts and
valuable for its indications of the humblest and
most hidden sources.
But the questionable
ledge of Julian's thoughts.-^

Naville's

character of the criticism detracts from the value

of this laborious work.

Kock *

and

it

is

very

military

the

and

Constans
But

recent researches of

are most interesting, because they enlighten

us about the
Gaul,

The

achievements of Julian

relations
Julian.

difficult to treat

that

existed

Vollert's^

in

between

work on the

the history of Julian with absolute

an ardent believer, it will be almost

impossible for him not to be influenced by a preconceived antipathy,
more or less concealed, for this audacious rebel, pursued by the
If the historian is

impartiality.

execrations of the Church

if, on the contrary, he is a free-thinker, he

attempt to deceive himself concerning the defects and errors of
his hero.
And it does not seem to me that Paul Allard, although a
fair and intelHgent critic, will be able to divest himself of a preconceived antipathy because of the orthodox point of view from which
he regards and treats the subject.
^ Neumann, Juliani Imp. librorum conh^a Christ, qttcc supersunt^
;

will

Leipzig, 1880.

VApostat

et sa philosopliie^ Paris, 1877.

Naville,

"

Miicke, Flavins ClaudiusJulianus nach der Quellen^ Gotha,

Kock, Kaiser Julian., seine Jugend tend Kriegsthaten, 1900.

Vollert, KaiserJulians religiose undphilosophische Uberzeugungy

1899.

yz<?/2>;z

869.

INTRODUCTION
opinions of Julian
tion

is

most

21

instructive, his informa-

having been obtained from a variety of sources.

Elegant, concise, and embellished with easy erudition

is

among

on Julian/

But

modern writings concerning our

hero,

Gaston
the

Boissier's chapter

the two most worthy of consideration, according

to our judgment, are

first

the article of Harnack,

which the great scholar, with masterly hand,

in

traces the profile

of the Imperial

the general

indicates

direction of

Apostate and
thoughts,^

his

and next the book of Rode on the reaction of

This last
Julian against the Christian Church.^
is

a pamphlet of

but

for

little

more than a hundred pages,

thoroughness

the

concise logic of

its

of

its

the

research,

demonstrations, and the almost

mathematical precision

of

its

reasoning,

well be considered a masterpiece.

He

may

it

does not

regard Julian in his entirety, but simply studies

The man,

him from one

aspect.

administrator,

do not appear

in

the soldier, the

this

work

only see the

enemy

Hellenism.

Although sometimes, as we

may exceed
for himself, we
he

we

of Christianity, the restorer of

shall see,

the limits which he has laid

down

must, nevertheless, recognise that

would be impossible to master more thoroughly

it

all

the factors of an historical problem and represent

them
^

^
^

in a clearer light.

Gaston Boissier, La fin du paganisme, Paris, 1894.

Harnack, Real-Encyclopedie^ "Julian der Kaiser," Leipzig, 1880.
Rode, GeschicJite der Rcactio7i Kaise7^ Julians^ Jena, 1877.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

22

But

if

allude to

these

books (and

could

mention many others) because they directly treat

came

of Julian, or of the personages that

in contact

with him, and of the burning questions of his day,

wish to add that

it

is

mine has been made.^

tion

not from these books that

have drawn

from original sources, and on

have formed
produced on

my opinions.
me by the

The

my

this

informa-

evidence

strong impression

writings

of Julian, the

peculiar originality of his character,

and the possible

application of the lessons

the evolution of religious

to undertake this study,

we

his story to

sentiment, induced

interest.

enter into the study of the

character of Julian,

me

which certainly possesses

elements of the most lively

Before

drawn from

we should again

singularity of the historical

life

and

consider the

problem that he presents

For a half-century Christianity had

Four emperors Constantine and his
triumphed.
three sons
had embraced it and become its
fervid supporters.
The Church was accustomed
to absolute power, and until now no one had
questioned its authority.
All political and intellectual movements were directed by its bishops.

to our view.

^ My book was already printed when I saw for the first time a
study by Alice Gardner, yz^/za;z, Philosopher and EmpC7'or^ London,
It is a study that affords great pleasure to the reader, elegant
1899.
n composition, and a complete resume of all Julian's actions. It
reveals a just and acute sense of the relative nature and value of the

various authorities which have been consulted.

INTRODUCTION

23

The great dissension between Athanasian Orthodoxy

and Arianism was a proof of an organism

sufficiently

strong and secure to afford the luxury of schism

and disunion, which are always indications of an

exuberant

vitality.

If,

country, with

the

in

the

tenacity of a population distant from the centres in

which thought
the ancient

elaborated, they

is

persisted in

still

the large cities the temples were

cult, in

abandoned, and a great majority of the people were

In

converted to Christianity.

fact,

indicate a condition of things

there

to

rendered im-

that

was supposed

Then

abandoned.

seemed

and the rehabilitation

possible a return to the past,

of a position that

all

be definitively

to

suddenly ascended the

throne of the Caesars a young emperor, the sole

heir of the Imperial

owed

its official

family to which Christianity

recognition,

and

this

youth under-

takes the restoration of Hellenic polytheism.

is

not

influenced

by the

exclusively

ideas of the ancient persecutors, but

He

conception.
Christianity,

educated

been

in

is

also with

initiated

by

by a

rational

thoroughly acquainted

had

he

which

been

He

political

born

with

and

Hellenism, in which he had

his readings

He

studies of his times.

and the Neo-Platonic

observes and estimates

the real effects of Christianity on the morals of the

world
at the

which he

lives,

conclusion

that

in

and, by comparison, arrives

Hellenism

Christianity, that his duty as

the return to ancient

is

Emperor

principles,

superior to
is

to favour

and prevent the

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

24

diffusion of a religion that threatens the destruction

Now, when we

reflect

that Julian possessed a cultured intelligence

and a

of a glorious

civilisation.

heroic soul, and was, above

all,

virtuous,

we cannot

attribute his strange resolution to caprice, frivolity,

or vicious impulses.
that this

had

its

was the

We are

fruit

constrained to believe

of mature consideration, and

explanation and, in part,

its

justification in

the peculiarity of the inilieu which surrounded him.

Wholly

to understand the genesis of this strange

phenomenon, we must enter

life

of Julian, and the

inquiring and restless

into

ideas
spirit.

an analysis of the

that

dominated

his

Coin of Julian.

Coin of Constantius

II.

Coin of Constantius Gallus, Brother of Julian.

Coin of Helena, Wife of Julian.

To

face page 25.

THE LIFE OF JULIAN

Flavius Claudius Julianus was born
nople in 331.

He was the

brother of the

Emperor

Basilina,

son of Julius Constantius,

Constantine, and of his wife

who belonged

He

Bithynia.

Nicomedia,

to

was related

Princes of the

Church,

and,

at Constanti-

later,

noble

to Eusebius,

who was
of

mother died a few months

first

family

of

one of the
Bishop of

Constantinople.

The

after the birth of her

who also lost his father when only six years old.
The Emperor Constantine, dying in 337, left three

son,

sons

Constantine,

and

Constantius,

Constans.

These three sons were worthy of a father who,

although he embraced Christianity, equalled the
most barbarous of
cruelties.

his predecessors

His heirs

in his

domestic

initiated their reign with the

extermination of their relatives, of Julius Constantius

their uncle,

and father of

Julian, of the eldest son

of the same, of another uncle, and of three cousins,

sons of another brother of Constantine.

These crimes were committed

and
^

are

to

be

attributed

Gorres, Die Ve7'wa7idte7i

to

in

Constantinople,

Constantius,

Mordc Constimtms

fiir WisseTis. Theologie^ 1887.

25

who

des Grosse7i-Zeit.


JULIAN THE APOSTATE

26

governed the East and resided

in that city.

on, repenting of his terrible misdeeds,

Later

he tried to

excuse himself by claiming that they were due to

This subterfuge, however,

a military revolt.^
as

inadmissible,

destroying

the

army had

eventual

these

no

interest

pretenders,

is

in

while

Constantius, suspicious by nature of every one and

who

everything, and misled by courtiers

desired to

preserve his confidence and favour, could easily be

persuaded to permit crimes which were,

in fact,

And even

unusual in the traditions of his family.

if

we

not

consider valid that phrase of Eutropius in

which he says that the thing happened,

sinente potius quarn jubente,"

it is

Constantio

clear that

he has

only maintained one of those hypocrisies which

save appearances, but do not alter

In

this

facts.

massacre they only spared

two

the

youngest sons of Julius Constantius, Gallus and

Julian,

considered

moment

the

for

because of their tender age.

wrote Libanius ''died of an

the family

fell

harmless,

Constantine

illness,

"

but the rest of

victims to the sword, the fathers as

well as the sons.

Julian's half-brother,

some years

older than himself, escaped being murdered because

of an infirmity which was supposed to be mortal,

Julian,

on account of

weaned."
^

luliani I?np.

This

his

last

age, having just

statement

is

altogether

Op. qucE supersunt^ recensuit Hertlezn,

10 sq.
2

Libanii Orationes^ recaisuii Reiske^

vol.

i.

been

p. 524, 19 sq.

p.

349,

THE

LIFE OF JULIAN

27

inaccurate, as Julian

was born

therefore six years old

when Constantine

in

and was

331,

died.

These three infamous descendants of Constantine

soon came to blows

was

among

Then

slain in the year 340.

who was master

Constantius, who reigned in

of

Constans,

was

350, Constans

Magnentius,

also

and so

Constantine

themselves.

there remained

West, and

the

the East

finally,

in

murdered by the usurper

came

Constantius

into

the

possession of the whole empire.

During these
lived

with

quietly

events the

tragic
his

stantinople, educated, as

Ammianus

he was distantly connected.^

the teacher to
^

Ammianus

Gardthaiisen^ vol.

whom

much

narrates,

p.

The

under

whom

Bishop, how-

influence over

him as

he was confided, when only

Marcellinus,
i.

Con-

mother's family in

the direction of the Bishop Eusebius, with

ever, did not have so

Julian

little

285, 12.

Libri
If

we

qui

stipersiint^

recensuit

rightly construe the phrase of

Ammianus,

it would appear that Julian was educated by Eusebius

Nicomedia. However, as Eusebius, in 338 or 339, passed from
the see of Nicomedia to that of Constantinople, it would be necessary
to admit that the Bishop educated and instructed Julian during the
years of his infancy, and this is by no means very probable.
It is,
on the contrary, to be supposed that Eusebius, with his Arian

in

tendencies, coming to Constantinople as the confidential adviser of

Constantius, would naturally be entrusted with the education of the

young Prince. Probably Ammianus, knowing that Eusebius had
been, at one time, the instructor of Julian, with the usual inexactitude

of the ancient writers, confused the sojourn that Julian made in

Nicomedia, years after, with a supposed anterior sojourn which is
not substantiated by any other document, and is, in fact, demonstrated

Ammianus himself, when he says that Julian, returning

Nicomedia, as Emperor, found himself once more among the
friends whom he had made when he studied under Eusebius.
How
was it possible for a child not seven years old to form friendships ?

impossible by
to

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

28

seven years

and

old,

to

whom

were undoubtedly due

the best and earliest tendencies of this impression-

able and

brilliant

This teacher was a

intellect.

eunuch of advanced age, who, as Julian

chosen by his grandfather

Misopogon^ was

his

relates in

when she

as the instructor of his mother, Basilina,

was he who directed

her in the reading of Homer and Hesiod.
Mardonius, so he was called, must have been a

was

still

scholar

quite a child, and

full

traditions.

it

of admiration for Hellenic culture and

Libanius

custodian of wisdom."^

him

calls

the

''eminent

In the midst of frivolous

and Christian Constantinople he sought to imbue

his pupil with

the strictest

ideas

of virtue, con-

trasting the pure ideals of Hellenic philosophy

wisdom with the corrupt and enervating

and

habits of

the world in which he lived.

But now we
In

his

will let Julian

Misopogon

speak

for himself.

he gives a vivid description

of the educational system to which he was subjected

by

pedagogue.

his

fully

In order that the reader should

comprehend the

interesting fragment,

true

we must

significance

by the

inhabitants

the

fallen into disfavour

habits.
^

disdainful

of Antioch,

We must,

this

explain, anticipating

a future analysis, that the Misopogon

satire directed

of

is

a pungent

Emperor

with

whom

against

he had

because of the austerity of his

therefore, bear in

Julian., op. cit.^ 454, 15.

^ikTLdTO^ aoo<ppo(rvvr)s <pv\a^.

Liban., Op.

mind

cit.^

i.

that the

$25) 13*

THE

LIFE OF JULIAN

discourse of Julian
to

the

ironical

is

''As for me,"

last.

29

from the
said

first

Julian

word

to

the

Antiochians, ironically deploring the education he

had

" habit

received,

tender glances in

you

all

does not permit

me

directions, so as to

beautiful, not in soul, but in face.

to cast

appear to

However,

Easy morals prove the true

But my pedagogue taught
beauty of the soul
me to keep my eyes cast down on my way to school.
I never
saw a theatre until my chin was more
And,
thickly covered with hair than my head.
never on my account, but three or four times by
order of the Emperor, my relative.
Pardon me,
therefore
I
offer to your odium one who merits
it more than I do
my mistrustful pedagogue, who
you are

right

even then made

me

was only one path

whom

us,

is

the culprit to

because he elaborated, and, as

engraved

in

exactly to

my

he succeeded
customing

me

my

soul,

taste,

in

that which

then

it

exists

were,

was not

but which, by force of insistence,

making me

find

agreeable, ac-

to call churlishness gravity, insensi-

wisdom, and strength of character the power

of resisting the passions

by any of them.
child,

He

to follow.

that there

you may attribute the contrast that

between

bility

me

serious, teaching

my

and not becoming enslaved

Just imagine that even

when a

pedagogue often admonished me, by Jove

and the Muses, saying to me

Do not let thyself
be carried away by those of thine own age who
'

frequent the theatres and are very fond of public

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

30

Dost

pageants.

There

thou

care

for

horse

racing

the most beautiful description of one in

is

Homer.

Take the book and read it. They speak

mimes and dancers ? Let them speak
The Phseacian youths danced much better than

to thee of

any of them.

And

the harpist, and

reading

Homer

trees that are

Demodocus
there

are

And

the singer.

certain

in

descriptions of

more pleasing than seeing them

I saw

reality.

there thou wilt find Phemius

at Delos near the temple

in

of Apollo

a young shoot of a palm uplifting itself heavenwards T

And thou wilt read of the wooded Isle of Calypso,
of the cave of Circe, and of the garden of Alcinous.

Thou

well

knowest that nothing more beautiful

could ever be seen

!
'

Perhaps you might

name and
barbarian,

by

origin,

origin

of

my

like

me

to

pedagogue.

tell

you the

He

was a

by the gods and goddesses, Scythian

and bore the name of him who persuaded

make war on Greece. He possessed

that qualification which was so much honoured and
respected about twenty months ago, but now is
Xerxes

to

considered as a reason for contempt and

mean

my
my

to say that

insult.

he was a eunuch, educated by

grandfather, in order that he might explain to

mother the poems of Hesiod and Homer.

was seven years old when I was consigned to

his care.
From that day he educated me, always
And,
following one sole method of instruction.
I

not wishing himself to become acquainted with

THE LIFE OF JULIAN

31

me to do so, he
making me odious to all of you.
But now, after all, if you are willing, let us offer
He
a libation to his memory, and make friends.
did not know that I should come amongst you,
any other, and not permitting
has succeeded

and, even
the great

if

in

come, that

did

should possess

power which the gods have given me,

I
assure you, as much to him

doing violence,

him who ceded it.

Perhaps, if
But the will of the gods be done
the pedagogue had foreseen all this, he would
have made certain provisions that would have
But
assured my being more acceptable to you.

who

received

as

it,

to

now,

how

could

and

put

aside

undertaking, but

it

habits

me ?

in

To

a second nature.

work of

rude

those

become engrained

the

be possible for

it

Habit,

oppose nature

is

me

to forget

have

which
is

it

is

said,

is

difficult

more difficult to destroy

above all when it has

still

thirty years,

been accomplished with so much determination.

And

that be the case

if

the Antiochians reply)

conceive

idea

the

"

(Julian
but

meddle

to

of State, and play the judge

pedagogue gave thee

subjects,

because

he

thou wouldst reign.

me"

replies

Julian

execrable old man,

revile

as

the

didst thou ever

in

the

instructions

did

not

on these

know then

that

was he that taught

Yes,

it

with

scathing

irony

you, with

good

truly

affairs

Certainly the

no

whom

one

why

imagines that

responsible

''that

reason,
for

my

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

32

But believe me, he also was deceived

conduct.^

by

others.

possible

It is

comedies you

sometimes

that

may have heard

such names as Plato,

and Theophrastus.

Socrates, Aristotle,

the

in

Well, this

old man, influenced by them, persuaded me,

silly

when

was a youth and loved study, that

imitate

them

in

every particular,

interesting fragment

that

could

should become

From

any other man."^

entirely superior to

irony,

if I

teems with most

this

bitter

appears that old Mardonius educated his

it

Imperial pupil in an atmosphere of pure Hellenism.

No

Christian precept or example was ever brought

to the child's

notice

the origin of

all

ancient

virtue

poets and

the cause

he was accustomed to see

in

thinkers

of decadence,

the teachings

polytheism,

of

corruption,

the prevalence of Christianity, as

him

to

in

the ecclesiastical

velopment of the
the

key

it

and

and vice

in

was revealed

and Court

circles

of

This education explains the de-

Constantinople.

is

of the

child's

earliest tendencies,

that phrase

to

of

and

Ammianus, which

"a rudimentis pueritiae primis inclinatior

erga numinum cultum, paulatimque adolescens

says as
erat

desiderio rei flagrabat."

This education, which must

Here

have

left

deep

appears evident to us that Julian is no longer speaksome other person known to the Antiochians.
But who was this old man ? Probably Julian alluded to one
of his masters at Nicomedia, and the important postion which he
appears to have occupied makes us think it might be Maximus.
^

ing"

it

of Mardonius, but of

Julian., op,

Amm. Marc,

cit.,

452, 16 sq.

op.

cit.^ vol.

i.

p. 271,

4 sq.

THE

LIFE OF JULIAN

33

on the impressionable soul of the child,

was very soon interrupted. When Bishop Eusebius died in 342, he who had been entrusted
traces

surveillance

the

with

surveillance which

a superficial

ceived that

in

of
fact

the

Prince

little

was exercised

such

in

manner that he had not even perthe pedagogue secretly developed in

the soul of his pupil an antipathy to Christianity

the Emperor, fearful of finding a rival in the child

who grew

up,

under the eyes of

all,

in the capital

of the empire, sent him, together with his brother

Gallus,

who had

also

been saved from the slaughter

of the descendants of Constantine, to a species of

confinement, in a solitary fortress of Cappadocia,

called

Macellus,

The two

by the

described

Sozomenes, as

historian,

an

ecclesiastical

abode of

delight.^

youths lived six years in this retirement,

surrounded by a number of slaves, but completely

cut off from

ments

all

the

of

Athenians,

world.

Julian

memory

the

the political and intellectual

In

recalls

of those

discourse

his

with

great

What

days.

moveto

the

bitterness

can

say

of these six years passed on an estate belonging

to another,

without any one of the outside world

being allowed to

communicate with

us,

or

any

of our old acquaintances being permitted to visit

us

tion,

We
from

were debarred from

all

all

free conversation,

worthy

by the pomp of the most splendid domestic

^

Sozomeni Historia,
VOL.

I.

instruc-

being surrounded
service,

recensttit et illustravit Valesius^ p. 483.


JULIAN THE APOSTATE

34

but obliged to exercise with

our servants,

as

they were our companions, as no one of our

was

age

allowed

come near

to

observes that while

us."^

if

own

Julian

brother Gallus became

his

rude and violent through habits acquired in this

sojourn, he

was saved by the germs of philosophy

in other words,

been

the

instilled into

not be taken

Hellenic doctrine, which had

But

him.

Julian's

words should

If the luxurious prison

literally.

of

the two youths was really closed to every breath

of

philosophical

and

polytheistic

appears without doubt that

used every

effort to instruct

influence,

it

those around them

them concerning the

doctrines of Christianity.
It is

most interesting

to read

what Gregory of

Nazianzus has to say about the confinement of the

two

princes.

direct

more

It

would be impossible

contradiction

to

Julian's

to find a

more
or a

assertions,

absolute travesty of the truth, for polemical

purposes.

Gregory

represents

the

perfidious

Constantius as a model of kindness, and Julian

as a monster of ingratitude.

Now, when we

recall

that Constantius, besides his domestic crimes

and

the numberless cruelties that he committed under

the influence of his courtiers and eunuchs, had been
the strongest supporter of Arianism, which through

him became triumphant, we may measure by the

praise that Gregory lavished on him, notwithstanding that he justly merited the most severe re1

Julian., op.

cit.,

p. 350, 3 sq.

THE LIFE OF JULIAN

35

primand from one who was a Christian, and, above

an orthodox Christian, the intense rage that

all,

Julian's attempt

had excited among the

the Church, who,

rulers of

a moment, were fearful of

for

losing the victory they

had acquired

at so great a

price.

Gregory
no part

in the

further narrates that Constantius

had

massacre of the family of Constantine,

and that he had saved Gallus and Julian with the

intention of making them his associates and assistants in the government of the empire.
this

Therefore

most humane Emperor had them educated

one of

his villas,

appointments

amidst

the splendour of regal

all

Gregory

(thus

in

describes

the

in-

voluntary abode of Macellus), and surrounded by

And

wise and religious men.

the two youths were

so inflamed with fervour for divine worship, that

they assumed the offices of the clergy, read to the

assembled people
exhibited

special

martyrs.

Gallus,

from
zeal

says

bearing in character,

sacred

the

in

the

veneration

Gregory,

was

of

although

sincere

and

books,

in

his

the

overpiety,

while Julian, on the contrary, concealed under an

apparent devotion the perfidious tendencies of his

soul.^

story.

And Gregory here

The two children,

relates

Gallus

miraculous

and

Julian,

undertook to erect two sanctuaries to the martyrs,

Gregorii Nazianz. Opera, Parisiis, 1630, Orat. iii. 58.

Greg. Naz., op. cit., loco cit., 59. KpvTrTOiv ev enieiKflas nXdafian

TO KaKor]6es.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

36

emulating each other in expense and labour.

The

sanctuary of Gallus was soon finished, but Julian's

was always being interrupted by earthquakes, an

indication that the martyrs refused the

one who would,

brothers

later on, abjure them.

exercised

also

themselves

homage of
The two
rhetorical

in

and philosophical discussions, and Julian always

chose the part of Hellenism, which he defended
with the most lively and unnecessary zeal under
the pretence of finding arguments for the weaker
side,

while he was

combat the
tions

really

In

truth.^

and legends, we

preparing himself
midst of

the

find

in this,

to

exaggera-

as in most of

Gregory's statements, a foundation of truth

there

are flashes in his discourses which give to Julian's

figure a lifelike reality.

That the higher Christian

clergy did not lose

sight of these Imperial scions

himself,

in

letter

proved by Julian

is

written

became
Bishop George

after

Emperor, where he mentions that

he

of Alexandria had sent to him at Macellus certain

volumes of

his extensive library, in order that

might re-copy them.^

It

is

strange,

he

exceedingly

strange, that this exclusively Christian education,

continued for five years, and which must certainly

have afforded Julian a profound knowledge of the

Old and
^

New

Greg. Naz.,

Testaments, only seemed to intensify

loc. cit.^ 6l.

"Koyov, TO 8e ovrcos yvfivao-ia

2

Julian., op.

cit.^ p.

Kara

488, 16.

Trpocfido-et

drjdev

rrjs aXijdeias.

Ss Tov

rjrro)

yvuvd^cov

THE LIFE OF JULIAN

in

the

reHgion
is

of

soul
in

the

an

youth

37

antipathy

This

which he had been brought up.

only to be explained by the frightful state of

corruption
fallen

the

in

which the Arian Christians had

into

East.

so were the prelates

Constantius was Arian, and

who frequented

the Court and

occupied the most conspicuous positions.

is

the

to

And

it

easy to understand that Julian, whose mind was

already imbued with the austere teachings of his

pedagogue Mardonius, who was inclined

to see in

Hellenism the source of pure and perfect morality,

was obliged

rose in indignation at the sights he

to

witness,

and

so,

although taking part in the

Christian worship, he cherished, in the depths of

his

soul,

sentiments

of revolt.

Eusebius, of a George, and

ecclesiastics

who surrounded

If instead

of a

of the other Arian

him, he had

come

in

contact with an Athanasius, with an Ambrose, with

a man, in short,

able to keep Christianity

by the iniquitous

undefiled

he

perhaps

who was

would

have

poison of
entirely

That hatred which

opinion.

the age,

changed

Julian,

his

even when

he arrived at the zenith of his power, continued to

feel for

against

Athanasius, the only Christian personage

whom,

as

we

will see,

he

initiated proceed-

ings of persecution, proves that he appreciated the

which existed between Arian Christianity

and Athanasian Orthodoxy, and saw that the latter
difference

constituted

the

rock

against

which the ship of

Hellenism would be dashed to pieces.

THE APOSTATE

elULIAN

38

Rode

Friedrich

in

and

replete with thought

He

opinion.

says

a booklet small of size but

erudition,^

Even were we

not of this

is

to omit taking

into consideration the circumstance that

it

was not

the true Arianism, but rather the moderate Arianism

of Eusebius, that predominated at the Court, and,
necessarily

therefore,
Julian,

we should

also

education

the

in

of

note the circum-

particularly

stance that Julian, in his polemics, does not only

attack

Arianism,

but

And

especially the Athanasians.

discuss

whether

convert to

the
he,

teachings

Certainly

teenth

the

the

century,

primitive

that

not

writings

of

vain to

Jesus,

since

have found such

from

Athanasius.

perceived

between
of

is

become

theology of

had

existed

it

have

time,

critical

Julian

that

difference

at

so

teachings

where could
Anticipating

would

Julian
true

and more

Christianity,

all

the

the

New

the

nine-

the

great

Christ

of

Testament

and the God of the Nicene Creed."

All this would be true if Julian had abandoned Christianity because he could not reconcile
the

rational

difficulties

offered

by metaphysical

Christianity with the original doctrines of Jesus.

Certainly,

in

this

case,

Athanasian

Orthodoxy

would not have been more potent than Arianism

in

checking Julian's

contrary,

it

to swallow.
^

spirit

of investigation

might have been more

But

Julian's return to

on the

difficult for

him

Hellenism was

Friedrich Rode, Geschichtc der Reaction Kaiser Julian^

p. 32.

THE
not

the effect

LIFE OF JULLVN

of philosophical

30

reflection,

was

it

rather a question of sentiment, and especially due

which he was inspired

to the intense disgust with

at the sight of the corruption

was contaminated

corruption eloquently recog-

by Gregory himself, who did not hesitate

nised
to

by which Christianity

affirm

that

the

Christians

had

lost

through

prosperity the glory they had acquired in persecutions

and adversity/

Now, it is undeniable that this

much more advanced in Arianism,

corruption was
the religion of

the court of Constantius, than in the

Orthodoxy

that gathered around the noble figure of Athanasius.

In Orthodoxy, Christianity had, at least, preserved

a part of
Julian

its

moralising efficacy, and

had been subjected

to this

if

the

young

influence from

the beginning of his education he might have been

attracted to a religion which he
obliged, at

any

The young
the

would have been

rate, to respect.

Princes had passed five years in

confinement of Macellus when

influenced

by the

difficulties

Constantius,

he encountered

in

administering the government of the whole empire,

suddenly changed his attitude towards his

cousins,

and

two

called Callus, the eldest, to the lofty

position of Csesar, which, according to the hierarchy

by Diocletian, was equal to the position

of Vice- Emperor, the first figure in the empire
established

Greg. Naz., op.

cit.^

Orat.

iii.

p. 62.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

40
after

the

Augustus, the supreme head.

same time

according

placed

statements

Here,

and

Socrates

of

at

which Libanius concurs, he was

in

under

was

recalled to Constantinople.

the

to

Sozomenes,

Julian

the

care

direct

of Ecebolius,

who passed

Christian Sophist, a curious personage,

without scruple from

Christianity

the

to

Hellenism

according to the moods of the reigning Emperor.^

Ecebolius followed the

commands

of Constantius,

and, together with the eunuchs of the Court, sought

to discipline the inquiring

mind of

his pupil, greatly

who

himself earnestly

to the displeasure of Libanius,

wished

to

and had

sow the good seed

to see

it

generous

in that

soul,

subjected to the influence of a

wicked Sophist, who had been bribed

imbue the

to

youth with contempt of the gods.^

But the progress that Julian made

and
the

the

sympathy

which

he

suspicions of Constantius.

Libanius, ''that a great

city,

a great influence, should be

of the youth,
result,

Fearing,"

and one

says

that exercised

won over by

and thus a danger

aroused

excited,

the virtues

to himself

might

he decides to send him to Nicomedia, a

city that did not present equal perils,

was permitted
is

in his studies,

to devote himself to

and where he
Fear
study."

Constantius could not have

a bad counsellor.

taken a more imprudent resolution, for Nicomedia

was then the

chief centre of Hellenism,

Socratis Historia, illustravit Valesius,

Libanii, op.

cit.^

i.

526, 9 sq.

and there

p. 151.

THE LIFE OF JULIAN

41

also lived Libanius, the greatest rhetorician of the

Hellenistic

speak, of the

day,

the leader/ so to

party

Libanius, who, as he himself

said, preferred

the peaceful tranquillity of Nicomedia to the peril-

ous agitation of Constantinople.

Constantius

sending

in

It

that

Nicomedia,

to

Julian

true

is

following the advice of Ecebolius, had forbidden

him

But the

to frequent the lectures of Libanius.

young enthusiast bought them

them with avidity.
And the
pardonable

narrates

vanity,

intelligence

Julian's

latter

succeeded

than those

rhetorician,

so

that

master and

in imitating his style

who had been

with

great was

notwithstanding

that,

imposed separation of

and read

written,

disciple,

more

the
the

perfectly

direct contact with

in

him, so that even Julian's later writings bore the

imprint of his peculiar

To
still

mode

of expression.^

the influence of Libanius was added another

more

powerful,

of

that

the

Neo- Platonic

philosophers Edesius, Chrysanthius, Eusebius, and

Maximus

the most important of

lived either in

towns of Asia.
psychological

Nicomedia or
This

moment

in

all,

as these

men

the surrounding

properly speaking, the

is,

in Julian's career.

midst of these philosophers,

who

initiated

In the

him

into

a system in which the preservation of the antique

was united

to the satisfaction of those exigencies

of thought

that

had promoted the apparition of

In English in the original.

Libanii, op.

cit.^

i.

TRANSLATOR'S

527, 10 sq.

Note.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

42

and

Christianity,

that

Christianity

later

itself

rendered more powerful, the twenty-year-old Julian

decided that his vocation was clear and

irresistible,

and he became, with profound enthusiasm, a convert

Notwithstanding that

to the worship of the gods.

every

effort

indications

was made
of

to

keep the

transpired.

it

"

fact secret,

From

the

some

lips

of

every honest thinker," Libanius exclaims, ''arose

the prayer that this youth might
of the universe, stay the ruin

help the su^fering, as he

become the master

of the world, and

knew how

to cure their

ills!"^

Libanius and Socrates agree in attributing to

Maximus, the

the philosopher

the

one,

blame,

the

Julian's conversion.

Maximus was considered

a saint of polytheism.
once,

merit, according to

according to the other, of

when he entered

Eunapius^

as

that

relates

the temple of Diana in

Ephesus, the statue of the goddess smiled with

pleasure,

kindled.

and the lamp she held

gloried

Julian

in

in

her hand became

this

atmosphere of

mysticism, but was obliged to conceal his enthusiasm,

because reports of his actions had reached the ears

of Constantius,

awakened, and

whose suspicions were immediately

Julian, not to fall into disgrace,

which

during the reign of Constantius meant nothing less

being murdered, was obliged outwardly to

than

resume the

life

and worship of a

Christian.

Libanii, op.

Eu7iapii Vitas Sophistarum^ rece7isuit Boissonade^

a'/.,

i.

529, 2 sq.
p. 50.

But

THE LIFE OF JULIAN

his soul

was irremissibly bound up

In

favourable milieu,

this

Mardonius

sown

had

developed, stifling

all

had been implanted

in

seed

the

him

in

43
Hellenism.

which

old

root

and

took

other intellectual germs that

in him, as

it

was matured by

hatred of the persecutors of his family, by a reaction against the system of mistrust
in

which he had been educated,

and repression
by the sorrow

over the ever- vanishing glories of the past, that

him with

towards a higher morality,

aspirations

which he hoped to

filled

realise,

not in the Christianity

of the courtiers, but in the Neo-Platonism of his

masters, at that time a curious mixture of Platonic
rationalism

and

Ten

mysticism.

superstitious

years intervened from the time of his sojourn in

Nicomedia

in

351,

to

the day on which he

left

Gaul, in rebellion against Constantius, and openly

invoking the gods of

Olympus.

But

in

these

ten years, the soul of the Hellenic polytheist, then

concealed in Julian, secretly acquired an increased

fervour,

and never ceased

to confirm

him

in his

resolutions.

Julian remained for three years quietly absorbed

in study,

but, in the year 354,

he suddenly found

himself again surrounded by dangers and complications.

Constantius,

falling

into his old

and listening to the insinuations of

instigated

the

assassination, in

Julian's half-brother,

whom,

his

Pola,

habits

courtiers,

of Gallus,

three years before, he

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

44

had invested with the dignity of

In his

Caesar.

manifesto to the Athenians, Julian speaks with the

greatest

He

and violent man

we have

admits that Gallus was a rough

but he attributes his

Anyhow,

a eunuch,

this

did not excuse

who "at

the perfidy of Constantius,

of

failings, as

already seen, to the unfortunate education

he had received.

tion

committed by

of the crime

indignation

Constantius.

the

instiga-

and more

of a chamberlain,

especially of that of the chief of the cooks, con-

signed to his most ferocious enemies, in order that

they might murder him, the cousin, the Caesar, the

husband of
of
to

whom
whom

ship !"

his sister, the father of his little niece,

he himself had

he was bound by so many

was

Julian's indignation

However,

explicable.

must

married the

first

add

that

to

which

be

ties

and

sister,

of relation-

natural

and most

strictly impartial,

Julian

conceals,

own

partially admits, in order to give his

we

only

or

colour to

was a true descendant of

Constantine, a man of cruel and unbridled passions,

the

Gallus

picture.

who during

the few years in which he ruled the

East shed torrents of blood, encouraged by

wife

Constantina,

daughter

the

of

a very demon,

Constantine and the

Ammianus

Constantius.

two brothers, Gallus and

same
of

difference as

whom

Titus
^

worthy

to

sister

says that, between

his

be
of

the

Julian, there existed the

between the sons of Vespasian,

was

Julian., op.

an

admirable

cit.^ p.

351, 18 sq.

example of


THE LIFE OF JULIAN

45

temperance and wisdom, while Domitian was a

monster of cruelty/
Constantius,

murdered

having

after

Gallus,

fearing the vengeance of Julian, naturally did not

wish to leave him at large.

to Milan,

In

fact,

he called him

for

seven months

and there he remained

Although he had

in strict confinement.

time ceased

intercourse with

all

long

for a

brother, he

his

would not have escaped death, except, as he

some god, wishing

him the good -will of the
us,

that

The

Eusebia."^

Emperor's
of Julian's

numerous

at the

with which the

she defended him

among

us

the

providential

of

was not

virtues wholly

Court of Constantius, but that a

deeper and personal affection influenced

her

from

courtiers

believe that she

to

alone actuated by justice and pity

unknown

the

speaks of his protectress, and

enemies

Constantius, lead

Eusebia,

a romantic tinge to this part

the courage with which

his

of

The enthusiasm

life.

persecuted prince

and gentle

beautiful

intervention

wife, gives

tells

to save him, procured

Ammianus

interference.

her in
also

narrates that Julian would have certainly perished

through the instigations of the villainous courtiers

if

nefando adsentatorum ccetu perisset urgenter"

Eusebia, by divine inspiration, had not intervened.

She

first

obtained permission
1

Amm. Marc,

Julian., op.

Amm. Marc,

op.

cit.^

cit.,

vol.

p. 351,

for

i.

Julian

p. 43, 3.

27 sq.

op. cit., vol.

i,

p. 47, 3.

to

be


JULIAN THE APOSTATE

46

removed

Como;

from Milan, and sent for a while

to

she then persuaded Constantius to grant

him an audience. This was difficult to accomplish,

as Constantius was not inclined for a colloquy with
his cousin, and the Chamberlain of the Palace, a
eunuch with great influence over the Emperor,
and a deadly enemy of Julian, used every means to
postpone the meeting, fearing that the two cousins,
after seeing each other, might become reconciled.^
Apparently, in this interview Julian succeeded in
exculpating himself, thanks to the intervention of
Eusebia,
that he

who had paved

was

set at liberty,

the way.^

The

and permitted

fact is

to retire to

a small property in Bithynia which he had inherited

from his mother, the sole possession that remained

because the honest Constantius

to him,

K(ov(7TdvTLo<;

after

the children of

Eusebia

still

ever awake

was on

killed the father,

Kd\6^

robbed

their paternal inheritance.^

But

continues her beneficent care, and

to the interest of her protdge.

way

his

all

having

to Bithynia,

when,

for

is

Julian

no appreci-

able reason, but probably through the calumnies of

his

enemy, the suspicions of Constantius are again

aroused.

Eusebia now takes the opportunity of

rendering Julian another service, to him the most

acceptable of

all.

She persuades her husband

to

change the destination of the possible pretender,

and instead of sending him

where he

353, 10 sq.

Julian., op.

Ibid.y op. cit,, p. 152, 2 sq.

cit., p.

to the East,

Ibid., op. cit., p. 352, 10 sq.

THE LIFE OF JULIAN

47

might prepare to avenge Gallus, to condemn him

This was exactly
to a forced sojourn ^ at Athens.
with

accord

in

was not interested

enthusiast

he had no ambition to
riches

in

rule,

He

vengeance.

or

The

wishes.

JuHan's

Imperial politics,

or any desire

for

wished

be

only

allowed to bury himself in his studies

one

passion,

of

that

books

his

young

to

he had but

one

intense

aspiration, to see Greece, his true fatherland, that

he loved with such an intense affection

still

Greece,

the brilliant centre of that Hellenic culture to

which he had dedicated

Julian

his

life.

was only allowed

to

remain a few months

in Athens, but his contemporaries affirm that these

few months had a great influence on his

soul.

He

still

kept his religious convictions concealed, but

this

did

not

lessen

the fervour

with

devoted himself to his studies, and his

which he
efforts to

obtain a true knowledge of the Mysteries, which

constituted

the

principal

symbolic polytheism

act

of worship

in

that Julian desired to

this

make

Eunapius, Socrates, and

the religion of the world.

Sozomenes seem to consider that his short stay in

Athens was one of the most important circumBut the most authoritative and
stances of his life.
interesting narrators are, as usual,
1

" Domicilio coatto

" is

for habitual criminals, or

used

in

a sort of enforced residence, as punishment

persons of suspicious character, which is

Italy Translator's Note.

Julian., op.

cit.,

p. 152, 11 sq.

Liban., op.

cit.^

vol.

i.

Libanius^ and

p. 532,

sq.

48

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

Gregory.

Libanius

that

said

Julian

presented

himself to the professors of Athens, and offered

himself for examination, and

it

was then found

that

he knew more than the masters, so that ''he alone

of

all

the youths

who had

frequented Athens went

away, having taught more than

he had

Thus he was seen

surrounded

crowds

The

rhetoricians.

continually

men,

old

youths,

of

it

was he who should

When he spoke,

restore the worship of his fathers.

at

by

and

philosophers

eyes of the gods were also on

him, being fully aware that

he was

learnt.

once admirable and modest, always

Every one was delighted

blushing while speaking.

with his meekness, and the best profited by his

And

teachings.
in

Athens,

this

the youth desired to live and die

seeming

to

him

the

acme

of

felicity."
It

is

impossible to find a more decided anti-

thesis to this

that

sketch designed by Libanius, than

made by Gregory.

was about

Julian's

age,

The

latter,

and was

as

also

we know,
in

Athens

studying at the literary University of that

to perfect himself in the art of oratory,

afterwards employed with so

of Nicean Orthodoxy.
fellow-students

the

daily intercourse with

much

city,

which he

talent in defence

Gregory and Julian were

future

theologian

lived

in

the future apostate, having

every opportunity to scrutinise his soul and study

it

in all

effort

to

its

phases, although

conceal

the

Julian

tendencies

made every

and convictions

THE

LIFE OF JULIAN

which had taken root

it

49

In Gregory's sketch,

in him.

easy to perceive the hostile intention of the

is

author

who

figure,

but,

to

desires

a most repulsive

depict

notwithstanding

this,

seems to us

it

that the sketch cannot be considered a caricature.

There
stands

an expression of truth

is

from

forth

the

in the figure that

pages of

Julians singular and agitated

the

life,

disputant.

and

its

many

suddenness of his resolutions,

contradictions, the

his desperate heroism, the restless versatility of his

perhaps better accord with the disturbed,

talent,

and rather convulsed image presented

enigmatical,

by Gregory, than with the smiling and serene one

Says Gregory, writing

traced by Libanius.

death

Julian's

He came

in

some

Athens.

shortly after

the

catastrophe of

the

permission of

He

the Emperor.
:

met him

for

having obtained

there

brother,

this sojourn

had suspected him

back as when

time, as far

his

after

the

had two motives

first,

for desiring

a praiseworthy one, was to

become acquainted with Greece and its schools

the other, which was not expressed, and only noted
;

by a

his

strong enough to assert

that

the priests and

few, to confer secretly with

the impostors, since

happened

although

am

among

demeanour and the

tractions developed in
VOL.

I.

me

was

just then

his

true

character,

those

who

possess

natural talent in this direction.

of his

It

itself.

divine

to

not

impiety did not yet feel

Still,

the anomaly

singularity of his dis-

this

power of

divination.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

50
I

was not favourably impressed with the jerking

motion of his neck, the shifting shoulders,

roaming

from one side

eyes, that turned

the

to another,

them something of the maniac the unsteady, shaking feet, which seemed unable to
having

in

support his weight, his nostrils dilated with pride

and

disdain, the lineaments of the face ridiculous

the immoderate and sudden laugh

the gestures of assent and dissent without reason

and conceited

words that were suddenly interrupted, as

want of breath

for

if

questions confused and irrelevant,

the answers no better, intermingling one with the

But why descend

other without order or reason.

minute particulars

to such

knew him

for

what

he was before he had betrayed himself by his

And

actions.

if

there were present any of those

who then heard me

would

what
I

testify

say.

my

express

without hesitation to the truth of

And

they would

all

remember

exclaimed at sight of these peculiarities

a monster the

bosom

!
'

Roman Empire

But then

a false prophet."^

is

*
:

that

What

cherishing in

its

was abused and execrated as

There

amount of exaggeration
in too

they

opinion,

is,

doubtless,

a large

in this description.

It is

decided a contrast, not only with the sketch

more important,
with the description of the honest and impartial
Ammianus.
But, I repeat, it possesses some
germs of truth, and in it Julian stands forth a
given by Libanius, but, what

Greg. Naz., op.

cit.^

Orat.

is

iv. p.

121-22.

THE

LIFE OF JULIAN

51

But Gregory only wished

living figure.

to con-

madman the
proud and suspicious bearing of a man who was
obliged jealously to conceal his sentiments a man
who knew himself surrounded by enemies a man
in whom prudence counselled by reason was ever
as

sider

of

manifestations

the

with the natural audacity of his soul.

in conflict

But how interesting and dramatic the encounter,

in

the

schools

destined,

later

and who, even

with

on,
in

to

was

two youths

of these

become

deadly

enemies,

those days, spied on each other

acuteness

the

Gregory

of Athens,

of

hatred.

instinctive

singularly

discriminating,

If

Julian,

whose intuitions had been rendered more keen

by the troubles and experiences of his stormy life,
must not have been less so. He certainly must
have foreseen in Gregory one of the future
defenders of Christianity.

His uneasy manners,

and the incoherence and jerkiness of

sation,

his conver-

were probably partly assumed to conceal

from the scrutinising eyes of his companion his

designs, his hopes,

and the secret of

his being at

heart a fervent Hellenist.

While

Julian

unexpected

was

studying

destiny was

Athens,

at

maturing

for

him.

an

military plot, imagined rather than discovered, at

Sirmium,
Gaul,

in

stifled
^

Pannonia,^ the revolt of Silvanus in

by the treacherous murder of the

Amm.

Marcell., op.

cit.^

vol.

i.

p. 49.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

52

and the repeated devastations perpetrated

latter/

by the Germans on undefended Gaul, had

Wavering between
by conflicting
distracted

Constantius.
trust,

by

impelled

magnitude of

the

terrified

and

trust

advice,

the

dis-

finally,

peril,

and,

presumably, by the suggestions of Eusebia, the

Emperor
what

called his cousin Julian to Milan.^

abandoned

student

the

grief

With

Athens,

he

himself relates in his manifesto to the Athenians.

"What

torrents of tears

laments, extending
polis,

my

witnessed

can

it

to save the supplicant

whom

rather

than

leave

many

of you

above

all,

to this

attest, and,

herself,

and how many

hands towards your Acro-

and praying Minerva

and not abandon him,

shed,

besought to

let

But

it.

me
the

who have

the goddess

die in Athens,

goddess

has

demonstrated by acts that she would not betray

her worshipper, for she has always guided me,

and surrounded me with guardians chosen among

^
the angels of the Sun and the Moon."
Arriving at
suburbs, but

is

Milan,

he stops at one of the

loth to enter the

Imperial Court,

despite the insistence of the courtiers, who, fore-

seeing
insisting

his

on

coming

flock

fortune,

his being

more

around

him,

particular in his dress

and manners, thus endeavouring to transform the

1

Amm.

Ibid. vol.

MarcelL, op.
i.

^ Julian., op.

napeo-rrjo-ev

Xa^ovcra.

p. 64.
cif.,

cit.,

vol.

i.

Julian., op.
p. 354,

dnavTaxoOev tovs

p. 59.
cit.,

13 sq.
cfivXaKas

p. 352,

rjyrjcraTo

24 sq.
yap dnavTaxov

fiOL

Koi

'HXiov koi ^cXr]vr)s dyyiXovs

THE

LIFE OF JULIAN

53

student of philosophy into a soldier and courtier.^

made repeated

efforts

him with courage and confidence

in her.

Eusebia, in the meanwhile,

to inspire

He, on the contrary,

persuade her to have

tries to

him sent away from Milan, and writes a letter,

which was almost a supplication, concluding with
the words
"I pray that thou mayst have sons,
:

heirs

Empire

the

to

may God

that thou couldst desire, but send

as soon as

it

what he

about to do

is

possible

is

grant thee

me back home,

Then he

" ^

all

reflects

on

he fears to compromise

himself by sending to the Court a letter for the wife

of the Emperor.

In the silence of the night, he

prays the gods to direct his actions, and the gods

announce to him that

Then

a dead man.

if

he sends that

he

letter

is

Julian convinces himself by a

process of reasoning, to him so plausible that he

reproduces
ians.

it

thought to oppose the gods, pretending

to be a better

judge of what

who know

those

wisdom applied
succeeds
divine

wisdom

And

reasoned
1

and

Julian., op.

cit., p.

correctly

353, 26 sq.

but

for the best.

The

things actual and future.

immediately

more

all-seeing, directs us

and decides
all

error,

therefore natural that they should

present.
I

avoiding

in

infinite

is

in the right path,

is

ought to do than
However, human

to the things of the present only

best

at

everything.

gods are the authors of

It

manifesto to the Athen-

in full in his

know

became aware
than

before.
2

the
that

And

/^^-^^ p. 355, 3.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

54

thinking of our duties,

if

added: Thou art indignant

*

any one of the creatures which thou possessest

deprives thee of

away, even

And

thou

when

called,

runs

be only a horse, a sheep, or an ox.

if it

who

service, or,

its

art a

man, and not among the

least

or the most degraded, wouldst deprive the gods of

thyself,

and thou

refusest thyself for the purpose

which they would use thee

for

foolishly

and offending divine

Beware of acting

Instead of

Justice.

cringing and flattering, out of fear of death, put

thyself in the hands of the gods

they

will,

Socrates

and commit thyself

Take

did.

do that which

to their care,

things as

even as

they come

refer

everything to them, neither acquire nor grasp at

anything for

thyself,

but receive, without hesitation,

became convinced
gods have
that this reasoning with which the
impressed me is the most sure and advisable for a

that which

they give thee.'

well-balanced man, since to run to certain danger,

for fear of future treachery, really

imprudent.

they bestowed upon

and the chlamys of Caesar

in

to

me most

yielded therefore, and obeyed, and

in a short time,

What

seems

"

me

the

so,

name

could possibly have happened to put Julian

such an extraordinary and painful state of mind

Ammianus
as we have
the

Marcellinus thus explains

said,

had been

called to

conspiracy of Sirmium

Julian., op. at., p. 355, 14 sq.

Amm.

Marcell., op.

cit.,

vol.

i.

Julian,

Milan because

and the

it.^

p. 64.

rebellion of

THE LIFE OF JULIAN

55

Sllvanus had aroused the suspicions of Constantius.

When

Julian arrived at Milan, every danger

of the conspiracy had vanished, and Silvanus

overthrown and

But the anxiety of the

killed.

Emperor was again

aroused, and this time for far

The ominous

graver reasons.
barbaric

invasion

overran

the

was

signs of the terrible

about

that,

more

became

empire

century

more

and

The Germans,

threatening in their aspect.

later,

passing

the Rhine and devastating the Eastern provinces

of Gaul, appeared as an impending peril, as a force

which

the

empire was no longer able to

Constantius was not the

his

own

at

the

same

resist.

to take matters into

hands, and, personally, lead his

But,

battle.

man

time,

he

felt

army

to

that the

circumstances necessitated decisive action.

Eusebia, the zealous protectress of Julian, takes

advantage

husband to
in

the

of

call

his

and

occasion,

young cousin

her

counsels

participate

to

government of the empire, making him

the

and

Caesar,

investing

him

with

discretionary

powers as to the administration and the war

Gaul.

The

courtiers

try

young

Prince,

fortune of the
of the dangers

that

to

oppose

the

in

rising

warning Constantius

might accrue from having a

colleague in the empire, and recalling to him his

recent experience with the

But Eusebia

insists,

Caesarate

overcomes

all

"

of Gallus.

resistance,

and

named Caesar by the Emperor. Judging

from Julian's own words, it would appear that he

Julian

is

56

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

was most

reluctant

to

accept

the

high

office,

because he could not overcome his great mistrust

of the Emperor.
in the

we have

But, as

seen, his faith

wisdom of Providence, or rather

in himself,

decided him not to resist his destiny, and to allow

himself to be clad in the chlamys of the Caesar.

This

act,

which makes such a radical change

in

the fortunes of Julian, who, from being a persecuted

became a colleague with the Emperor under

such extremely difficult conditions, must inspire
some suspicions concerning the intentions of Conprince,

them
evil.
*'And so that no one need wonder" he
writes
"if I name as enemy of Julian him who
associated him with himself in the empire, I will
stantius.

Libanius unhesitatingly declares

explain the reasons of such a union.

It certainly

was not that he saw with pleasure another beside

him on the Imperial throne and with the purple
robes, because, even in his dreams, that sight would
have been insupportable

to him.

Then why

another to participate in his power

he

call

all

sides he

especially in

did

On

was threatened by the barbarians, but

the West. A general was not sufficient

to restore order,

and he

Emperor was necessary

felt

to

that the prestige of an

stem the current.

Now,

the Emperor, not wishing to go himself, and, on

the other hand,

it

being necessary for him to take

a colleague, he chose, putting aside

one

whom

all

others, the

he had so greatly injured, certainly not

forgetful of the blood

he had shed, but because he

THE
had more

in

who had

the right to

those whose duty

an unreasonable

felt

regret for

done, and, in consequence of

be

to

But

what he had

he placed at his

this,

men who,

the position of counsellors,

side, in

was

it

Nor was he mistaken.

grateful to him.

he soon

57

the one

faith in

accuse him than

LIFE OF JULIAN

instead

him from accomAmmianus, who was

of encouraging him, would prevent

plishing

any noble

action."

probably an eye-witness, describes the solemn cere-

mony

that

took place in Milan when Julian was

invested with the office of Caesar.

Constantius, in the presence of the

The Emperor
army, made an

address that was both flattering and encouraging to

The soldiers welcomed with wild enthusiasm

new Caesar, and, as a proof of their joy, beat

Julian.

the

on

their shields

Resplendent

their knees.

in the

Imperial purple, he returned to the palace, seated

in the

same coach with the Emperor.

way he repeated

to himself the verse of

TOP 8e

eXka^e

But on the

Homer

/car' oacre

iropc^vpeo^ Odvaro^ koI jjbolpa /cparaLi].^

In order to

confirm

proofs

the

of his

Constantius o-ave his sister Helena in

favour,

marriao^e.

After a month of /e^es and rejoicings, on the

first

days of December 355, Julian left for Gaul, and

Constantius accompanied him, beyond the Ticino,
half

way between Lomello and

1

Liban.,

I/md,

Amm.

o/j.

df., vol.

i.

p.

Pavia.^

378-79.

V. 82, 83.

Marcell., op.

a'/.,

vol.

i.

p. 67.

That

is

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

58

Ammianus

the story which

does not disagree with

and Julian himself

tells,

in the

it

eulogy that he

wrote on the Empress Eusebia as a proof of his

gratitude

and

Emperor

Constantius, in

in the

two speeches addressed

which he conceals, under

He

a mantle of devotion, his true sentiments.

relates

pageant and the

And

Eusebia.

pomp and

solemn

the

to the

also

splendour of the

he received, especially from

gifts

much on

his insisting so

the kind

Empress seems sufficient

proof that between Julian and herself there existed
a confidential relationship much more intimate than
would appear from the official discourses.
I
thoughtfulness of

wish"

he

wrote

me

which afforded

the

''to

mention one of her

the most singular pleasure.

soon as she found out that

very few books,

home

in the

had carried with

number on philosophy,

my

As
me

hope and desire of returning

as quickly as possible, she gave

largely to satisfy

gifts,

me

history, rhetoric,

a sufficient

and poetry,

insatiate desire for intercourse

with them, and thus transformed Gaul into a

museum

Greek books. Never separating myself from

these gifts, it was of course impossible that I should
of

ever forget the donor.

campaign,
viaticum

for

take with
the

temple, the statue of

protectress.

for his

arrived in her presence,

Julian glories in ex-

march."

pressing admiration
I

And when I set out on a

me one of these books as

thought

Wisdom.

My soul

Julian., op. df.y p. 159,

sq.

''When

saw, as in a

overflowed


THE

LIFE OF JULIAN

59

with reverence, and, for some time,

remained

my eyes riveted on the ground, until

The present
exhorted me to take courage.

immovable,
she

'

gifts,'

shalt

with
as

she said, 'thou hast from

have from God,

And

us.'

she said no more, although she was

tones."

my

it

seemed,

Wisdom

heard the voice of

to

me

she dismissed

from

remained overpowered with ad-

miration and emotion

mellifluous

a discourse as the most

When

orator.

the audience,

thou

rest

thou be faithful and just

if

capable of making

renowned

The

us.

the

had

soft

and

that

so

itself,

was

ears

too,

music of her

But though the intentions of Eusebia toward the

young Prince were

benevolent and cordial,

we

cannot attribute the same sincerity to the demonstrations

with which the Emperor

of confidence

surrounded him.

In his manifesto to the Athenians,

Julian affirms that, on

becoming

Caesar, his captivity

was even more irksome, because of the

relentless

and continued espionage with which the suspicious

Constantius surrounded him.

he exclaims

was mine

"

"What

slavery"

how many and how

dark,

by Hercules, were the menaces that threatened

my

life

The

doors were

watched,

keepers were watched, the hands of

the door-

my

familiars

some one might bring me a

note from my friends, and I had strangers as
servants.
I was only allowed to bring with me four
examined, fearing

lest

Julian., op,

cit., p.

158, 8 sq.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

60
familiars,

my

for

personal service, of

were quite young, and two

who knew

me

with

my

of

in secret the rites of the cult,

my

physician, who, alone

books

and

to

him

the other was a

among my

friends

and

faith-

companions, had been able to follow me, because

ful

was not known

great was

much
of

two

of these,

devotion to the gods, practised

confided the care of

it

whom

One

adults.

my

pain,

my

he was

that

fear

although

that,

believed

my

it

my
it

friend/

caused

duty to prohibit

friends from visiting me, fearing to

a cause of misfortune to them and myself.

me

So

me

many

become
For the

with only three hundred

rest,

Constantius sent

and

sixty soldiers into the country of the Celts, in

much

mid-winter, not so

which
that

to

command

found there, as to obey their generals.

end he had written

to

them

something new."

modern

among

historians^ question the truth of Julian's

Now,

will

admit that there might be

some parts of the

Thus it does not
are too darkly coloured.
that

just to find a cause of complaint in the small

military escort that

was supposed not

^

should attempt

some exaggeration, and

seem

To

me more

defenders that Constantius has found

assertions.

picture

watch

to

than they did the enemy, for fear

The

the armies

Eunapius

faithful servant

accompanied

to conduct a

{pp. cit.^ p. 54)

gives us the

Julian.

new army
names

For he
into Gaul,

of these two.

was Evemerus, and the physician, Oribasius.

Julian., op.

Kock, Kaiser Julian.

cit.^ p.

367, 2 sq.

KW^lxA, Julicft VApostat.

The

THE
but to take

LIFE OF JULIAN

command

Admitting

there.

of the

this,

61

army which was already

and that JuHan's journey

was made through a friendly and quiet country, three

hundred and sixty men were all that were necessary.
But when Julian complains of being surrounded by
enemies and

he must have told the

spies,

truth,

and

the events which happened after his arrival in Gaul,

and the

latent but active hostility existing

among

his generals, clearly proved that the intentions of

The Emperor

Constantius were insincere.

tainly feared the

Germans, but he feared

He

his Imperial cousin.

was

not

if

too

much honour.

Julian

to

rival,

the enterprise with

had Julian been so

fact,

entirely defeated as to deliver

and dreaded

him from a possible

the defeat would appear to him

And

a misfortune not without compensation.

had good reasons

would

in

finish

imagine that

to
this

Who

way.

could

possibly

this Prince, only twenty-five years old,

had passed

his
;

military affairs

whole

life

amongst

who had never occupied

;

whose lack of

called forth the scorn

Constantius

he

suppose that the undertaking

would be capable of commanding an army

philosophers

more

desired to save Gaul, but

come out of
In

still

cer-

and

he who

priests

and

himself with

military training

ridicule of the

had

Court of

And, besides, the expedition was

taking place under the most depressing auspices.

At Turin

Cologne
had been captured and destroyed by the Germans,
and he, appreciating the gravity of the peril, exJulian received the tidings that


JULIAN THE APOSTATE

62

claimed that there was nothing

left

for

him but

to

encounter a glorious death.

The
most

populations of Gaul received him with the

He

lively enthusiasm.

entered Vienne, near

Lyons, which was then the seat of government

in

Gaul, amidst a crowd joyful and reassured by the

And

presence of a Prince of the Imperial family.

here a curious incident occurred, which
us by Ammianus.

In the midst of the acclamations

of the crowd, a blind old

they were saluting.

that

was the answer.

who

Was

it

woman asked who it was

The Caesar Julian,"

''Behold

him"

she

restore the temple of the

will

related to

is

a rumour already

exclaimed

gods

"

a presenti-

in circulation,

ment, or the expression of a desire nurtured by a

part of the population

was believed

to

The

truth

that Julian

is

be the hero who would disturb

the world of ideas and the world of facts.

The

five years in

which Julian administered the

government of Gaul form a glorious episode

in the

midst of the decadence of the empire, and, for a

moment,

this

decadence

wind, was to sweep

seemed

for a

which,

later, like

away everything in

moment

to

be arrested.

its

a whirlcourse

Julian in this

period appears in an aspect absolutely marvellous.

The wisdom and

valour which

directing the long

and arduous campaign against

he displayed

in

the Germans, forcing them back across the Rhine,

^

Amm.

Marcell., op.

cit.^

vol.

i.

p. 67, 29.

THE
put him

on an

LIFE OF JULIAN
equality witn

He

generals of ancient times.

the

63

most famous

here reveals

the

all

man who was born with a natural

command,
and with a talent for great
aptitude for
Ah if Julian had not been
military combinations.
exalted and misled by the folly of Neo-Platonism,
and if his views concerning the reality of things
had been more precise and better balanced, what
But
an admirable Emperor he would have been
passing
and
was
only
brilliant
meteor,
a
he
evanescent, when he might have been one of the
genius of a

most powerful
great

nations

of

ruler

human

factors of
!

history, a truly

However,

psychological and dramatic point of view,

this strange

from
it is

just

union of characteristics which constitutes

the principal interest in the history of Julian.

was

same time an exalted

superstitions and fixed

at the

mystical

mander

of

genius

expert administrator.

Marcus Aurelius

heroic

idealist,

ideas

soldier

There was

in him,

more

brilliant,

but

full

He
of

a com-

and

something

an
of

but a Marcus Aurelius

immoderate, unbalanced and unreasonable.

is

Julian

Marcus Aurelius possesses

The

greater depth of sentiment.

imagination that

Marcus Aurelius was cold and restrained, in

Julian was so ardent and excitable that it played
him a scurvy trick, making him believe in the
in

existence of ideas and things that were long since

dead.

Again

Julian, just

Aurelius, cared

more

the reverse of

for the

Marcus

appearance than

for

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

64

the substance of things, and, carried

phantoms of

his

brain,

away by the

dissipated

carelessly

wonderful good fortune and the marvellous

that Nature

his
gifts

had bestowed upon him.

And now we

will

give a rapid glance at what

Julian accomplished in Gaul before discussing his at-

tempted restoration of paganism, which

is

the most interesting period of his

We

life.

naturally

cannot

form a just conception and living image of the

unless

we

stop for a

light of the warrior

moment
and

to consider

him

man

in the

who, issuing from

leader,

the Neo- Platonic sanctuaries of Nicomedia, Ephesus,

and the school of Athens, takes

direction

a desperate war,

of

hands the

into his

and conducts

Even

battalions from victory to victory.

his

the calm

and moderate Ammianus Marcellinus, who renders

the impressions of his contemporaries, and was an

eye-witness of Julian's actions, abandons himself

and rhetoric when he speaks of the

to hyperbole

young prince and he sees in him a miracle preordained by divine law.

In an instant"
he says
;

*'he

shone so brightly as

be adjudged for

to

prudence a new Titus, his successes

to those of Trajan,

abstract

mental

Marcus Aurelius,
his actions

and

humane

habits."

reasons to be astonished

war equal

as Antoninus,

investigations

whom

in

to

and

be a peer of

he wished to emulate

And Ammianus
when he

in

has

in

many

recalls that this

youth, "transported suddenly into the midst of the

dust of Mars,

not from a military tent, but from

THE

LIFE OF JULIAN

tranquil shades

the

Academies, subdued

of the

and, having pacified the regions of the

Germany,

Rhine,

frozen

65

killed

bound

and

chains

in

the

barbarian kings thirsting for bloodshed."^

Julian passed the winter of 356 in ascertaining

bearings of

the

his

new

and

surroundings,

in

acquiring the necessary knowledge of administration

and the

He

art of war.

perfect himself in the

did not disdain to

most common

exercises, and,

as an encouragement and a consolation during these,

he repeated, from time to time, the name of

He

gave

novel

and

admirable

temperance and diligence.

He

example

rose

the

in

parts the hours that

He

to accomplish.

slept,

and divided

into

two

must pass before the dawn of

First he secretly offered a prayer to Mercury,

day.

stimulates thought

then he attended to the

of state, the government of the provinces,

affairs

and the

arrangements

These occupations
in

immense

middle of the night from the rude

couch on which he

who

of

was a systematic

organiser of his time, and this explains the

amount of work he was able

Plato.

his

favourite

over,

and defence.
Julian became absorbed

for

attack

study of philosophy,

circumstances could induce him

which no

to neoflect, as

constituted the principal interest in his

life.

it

And,

besides philosophy, he studied poetry, history, and

himself in the Latin

exercised
^

VOL.

Amm.
I.

Marcell., op.

rzV., vol.

i.

language.
p. 77, 14 sq.

Julian

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

66

had been nurtured on poetry.

favourite poet, not

Bacchylides was his

counting the great authors of

Unfortunately, the

antiquity.

Hellenic school at

was too much imbued with formal and

pedantic rhetoric, which was the characteristic
that time

note of the literature of the period.^

summer

the

In

of 356 Julian opens his

first

Hearing that Augustodunum (Autun)

was threatened by the invaders, he rushes to its
rescue, delivers it, and thence, by a wonderfully
campaign.

rapid

march,

traverses

enters

it

and

terrified

by

campaign,

concert

in

Emperor

it

here

the

sudden

his

to conclude

attack, are forced

first

Rhine,

the

from Strasburg to Cologne, which he

triumph,

in

Franks,

reaches the valley of

kings of

and

the

successful

a peace.^

In this

would appear that Julian acted

with another army corps, led by the

in person,

which must have descended

from Rhaetia and the Upper Rhine, towards Alsatia.

We

infer this

from an incidental statement made

by Ammianus.^

It is

strange that neither

Ammianus

nor Julian mention this movement of the Emperor

in the

account of the exploits that were achieved

during the

summer

Emperor did take

rate,

part in this campaign,

produce any important

to

At any

of 356.

results,

and

It

failed

Julian,

the beginning of the following year, found

1

Amm.

Marcell., op.

cit.,

vol.

i.

40, 2.
^

Ibid., op. cit.^ vol.

i.

p. 80, 8 sq.

Ibid., op. cit., vol.

i.

p.

100, 25 sq.

p.

82,

sq.,

the

if

and

vol.

at

that
ii.

p.

THE
was

he

obliged

LIFE OF JULIAN
alone

face

to

67
formidable

the

undertaking of liberating Gaul from the Germanic

invasion.

were

Julians winter quarters

(Sens),

and

Agenticum
Ammianus, over-

there, according to

burdened by the cares and

at

difficulties of

the war,

which seemed ever on the increase, his whole time

was

between

divided

and

attacks

to

provide

Here he was subjected

He

forces,

food

his

for

the

soldiers.

to another great danger, for

as the barbarians were

weakness of his

withstand

to

efforts

well

acquainted with the

they blockaded him narrowly.

might have been assisted by Marcellus, who

commanded

the cavalry stationed not far from him,

who had

but Marcellus was one of those generals

received orders from Constantius not to aid Julian,

but

rather

keep him under surveillance.

to

obedience to the

received, he

Julian alone to encounter the difficulties of the

left

But

situation.

the

besiegers,

ashamed
failure.

of

commands he had

his

of,

Julian's fiery resistance discouraged

month, they

and, after a

and disheartened

at,

their

retired,

complete

unworthy Marcellus
the latter knowing that

Julian deprived the

command, and

Constantius

always

lent

willing

ear

to

accusations of informers, rushed to Milan, to

complaints against Julian.

this,

sent

to

Milan his

But
faithful

Julian,

this occasion at least,

the

make

foreseeing

Evemerus, who

so ably pleaded his cause before the

on

In

Emperor

that,

he turned a deaf ear to

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

68

the calumnies of courtiers and spies.

contrary, the

And, on the
supreme command of the army was

entrusted to JuHan, freed from

all

restrictions,

The campaign

the interference of other generals.^

of 357 was, however,

and

menaced with

failure

because

of the disloyalty of another lieutenant, Barbatius,

who

allowed himself to be defeated by the Germans,

and who also rushed

to

But

were powerless before the

his machinations

Milan to accuse

brilliant victory that Julian

over a coalition of

Germanic

the

Julian.^

gained near Strasburg,

principal

rulers

of

the

headed by King Conodomarius,

tribes,

among them all.

Ammianus and Libanius agree concerning

the most powerful

the

conduct of Barbatius, which they attribute to his

weakness of character and

But, as they
sources,
differ

in

occasion
the

the

draw

we
than

and

narrations

the

historian

of facts,

often

and on

this

must, undoubtedly, acknowledge that

authorities

reliable

from different

their information

rhetorician

their

hatred of Julian.

his

by Libanius seem more

quoted

those

Ammianus

Ammianus.

of

relates that Barbatius, rather than lend to Julian

some

of the boats he had built to

bridges on the Rhine, burnt them

construct the
all.

Libanius,

on the contrary, says that Barbatius, wishing

to

act independently of Julian, constructed a bridge

Julian., op.

Amm.

cit.^ p. 359, i.
Marcell., op. cit.^ vol.

^ Ibid.y op. cit.^ vol.

i.

i.

p. 94, 7 sq.

p. 96, 13 sq.

THE LIFE OF JULIAN

of boats, intending to invade the

69

German

But the barbarians, anticipating by

territory.

fifteen centuries

the device of the Austrians at the battle of Essling,

threw into the current a quantity of timber, which,

by

along

carried

impetuous

the

dashed

river,

against the boats, shattering and destroying them.

who was no Napoleon, overcome by

Barbatius,
fear,

with his 30,000 men, hotly pursued by

fled

the barbarians.^

of

The

retreat of Barbatius re-animated the

the

Germans, and made

them

feel

hopes

assured

They

of a complete victory over Julian's army.

learned from a deserter that the Caesar could only

oppose

the seven
led

the

Germanic

the

to

barbarian

to execute a

on the

men

13,000

combined forces of
Conodomarius, who

kings."^

army,

therefore

bank of the Rhine, taking possession,

left

by the destruction of the

Conodomarius,

though

position in which

army,

But the hopes of

by the

justified

difficult

the defection of Barbatius had

were admirably frustrated by the heroic

valour of the

Ammianus
to

Roman

small

of the whole of Eastern Gaul.

left Julian,

determined

master stroke, and establish himself

Csesar.

the

long

It

is

necessary to read in

description

of

this

battle

appreciate thoroughly the military genius, the

presence of mind, and the heroism of the youthful

commander.

The Roman army was

Liban., op.

Amm.

cii.,

vol.

Marcell., op,

i.

only half as

p. 539, 5 sq.

cit.^

vol.

i.

p. 98, 11.

70

JULIAN THE ArOSTATE

large as the

army of the barbarians.

infamous

the

Ammianus

of

instigator

him

calls

Conodomarius,

as

war"

the

bearing on his head a

glittering helmet, led the left wing, audacious

and

confident in his great strength of limb, magnificent

on

foaming

his

brilliancy of his armour,

immense

of

the

and brandishing a javelin

The

size."^

by

conspicuous

charger,

barbarians

felt

certain of

was a proof of singular audacity on

victory.

It

the

part

of the

But

Julian, this philosopher, this

Romans

attempt the

to

battle.

theologian, this

mystical and visionary dreamer, was, by a miracle

of which

man

we do

not think there

of action

field of battle,

another example,

is

and of singular

On

ability.

the

together with a marvellous quickness

of perception, he possessed the faculty of inspiring

his soldiers with confidence,

and of awakening

in

them an ardour for the fray and a thirst for danger.

These gifts, which were especially conspicuous
during the campaigns of Gaul, appear, with equal
brilliancy,

in

war against the Persians, and

the

among the special features

Thus it happened that the

are

conducted with wonderful

magnificent victory.
partly destroyed,

The
to

The

of Julian's character.
battle

ability,

of

resulted

barbarian

and partly thrown

Strasburg,

army was

into the Rhine.

King Conodomarius, who attempted

himself, was made a prisoner, and
by Julian to Constantius, who caused him to
terrible

escape and hide

sent

in

Amm.

Marcell., op.

cit.^

vol.

i.

p. 102,

23 sq.


THE LIFE OF JULIAN
be imprisoned

71

a dungeon on the Coelian Hill,

in

where he died/

memorable

This

victory

Constantius

caused

more anger than pleasure. At the court of Milan

The
Julian was called in derision Victorinus?
courtiers pretended to attribute

merit

the

all

to

the wise foresight of the Emperor, and he, lending

a willing ear to this stupid adulation,

Imperial

an

records

Strasburg,

in

account

which he

the

of

in the

battle

the

as

figured

left

of

glorious

who had won the day, excluding entirely

the name and achievements of Julian, ''which"
says Ammianus
''he would have entirely contactician

cealed,

if it

had been possible

for

fame

to

be

silent

concerning glorious actions, notwithstanding there

may be those who desire to obscure them ni

fama res maximas vel obumbrantibus plurimis silere
nesciretr

Julian, to reap the fruits of his victory, crosses

the

Rhine

Germany,
terrified

and

penetrates

driving

before

into

him

by the greatness of

heart

the
the

of

barbarians

his audacity.

And,

1 Ammianus, who did not take part in the campaign of Gaul, gives
such a detailed account of the battle of Strasburg as to leave no
doubt that he received his information from an eye-witness. From

the fragments of Eunapius,

a passage of Zosimus
account written by
Julian himself, and, perhaps, not only of this battle, but also of a great
part of his campaign against the barbarians.
Besides this, the
physician Oribasius, who was always at Julian's side, has left records
of what he had seen vTro/xi/jy/xara of which Zosimus made use.
(i.

2,

8),

we may

infer

and

that there

also from

existed an

"Victorinus Little Victor." Translator's Note.

Amm. Marcell., op. cit., vol. i. p. no, 25 sq.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

72

having rebuilt and armed a castle which

finally,

had been erected by Trajan, and later abandoned,

and having arranged a truce of ten months with

same kings against whom he had fought

the

at

Strasburg, he returns to Gaul and takes up his winter

quarters at

Paris.

of this campaign

the whole

so marvellous that

who pretended
preferred to

demned

says

that

Julian's

we might almost

believe those

that he sought death, because he

fighting

fall

consideration,
his

How

during

valour was

rather

than to be con-

as his brother Gallus had been.

explanation,

proved

Ammianus

But

this

Ammianus adds, is unworthy of

as Julian, when he became Emperor,

heroism by acts no

less marvellous.-^

did Julian occupy himself, in his winter

quarters at Paris, in the short period of repose that

the

war permitted him ?

In examining the financial

accounts of Gaul, in discussions with Florentius, the

Prefect of the Pretorium,

or,

as

we might

say, the

Chancellor of the Exchequer, to prove to him that

Gaul could not bear an increase of

that,

besides,

was

sufficient

it

taxation,

and

was unnecessary, as the Budget

for

all

reasonable expenses.

The

Chancellor carried his complaints to the Emperor,

who

advised Julian to have faith in Florentius.

But Julian

is

immovable

he refuses even to read

the papers containing the proposals of Florentius,

moment

and, in a

the ground.
1

of indignation, throws

Thus, by his firmness, Gaul

Amm.

Marcell., op. at., vol.

i.

p. 115, 5 sq.

them on
is

saved

THE LIFE OF JULIAN

from

The

ruin/

people

when they compared

splendent and

Gaul

of

were

administration

his

serene

73

sunlight

right

to a re-

a gloomy

after

night.

The

dissensions between Julian and Florentius,

which were the chief causes of the renewal of Con-

and suspicion, had

stantius' distrust
in

a matter

much more

administration.

their origin

personal than that of public

following the custom

Florentius,

of the time and of the Imperial Government,

thief.

The

was

incorruptible Julian could not tolerate

hence arose the desire of Florentius and

this abuse,

his associates to rid themselves of this inconvenient

Prince.

An

episode related by Libanius illustrates

the situation.
ously relates

of robbery.

It

" that

happened"

Libanius

malici-

a citizen accused a magistrate

Florentius, as Prefect, acted as judge,

and, accustomed as he was himself to robbing, and

furthermore having been bribed, he expressed his

indignation

against

compromised by
the injustice
of in public,
Julian, at

his

the

companion

made

it

refused, saying that

desired a just sentence,

if

would decide

more

Amm.

it

was spoken

author

tingle.

was not within

insisted, not that

in

he

accord with him, even

But when he saw that

for the truth

Marcell., op.

its

it

but because he believed

the sentence were unjust.

Julian cared

But as

in trade.

the ears of

But Florentius

his sphere.

himself

feeling

was most evident, and as

first,

that Julian

accuser,

cit.^

vol.

than for him,

i.

p. ii6, 12 sq.

it

made

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

74

him very "angry, and he calumniated in his letters

the person in whom Julian had the greatest confidence/ and had him expelled from the palace, as if
he had misled the young Prince, to whom, instead,
he had really acted the part of a father." ^
We must never lose sight of the fact that Julian
was considered as one of the most enlightened,
conscientious, and just men of antiquity, and this
circumstance should be borne in mind when we
attempt to decide on the real gist of those actions
for which he was handed down to posterity
branded with infamy, namely,

his attempt to restore

paganism.

The two subsequent campaigns

were a

of 358 and 359

series of successes for Julian,

by which the

daring and fortunate General, not satisfied with

liberating

Gaul,

penetrated

into

the

heart

of

Germany, subduing one by one the most warlike

The

tribes.

disloyalty of the

enemy, who only

kept their agreements through fear of punishment,

and the

providing food, the lack of

difficulty of

which once caused Julian's

faithful soldiers to revolt

against him, created obstacles, at every step, sufficient

to discourage

and depress the most able commander.

But Julian never

his

lost

presence of mind,^ the

quickness of his perception, or his timely daring,

and thus he succeeded

in carrying order, peace,

This was Sallustius.

Liban., op.

Amm.

cit.^

vol.

MarcelL, op.

i.

p. 549, 18 sq.

cit.,

vol.

i.

p. 129, 21 sq.

and

THE

LIFE OF JULIAN

prosperity into regions which

75

had been,

for years,

disturbed and disheartened by the perpetual menace

of a disastrous invasion.

It is

most interesting

to

note the legitimate pride and simple dignity which

Julian displays in speaking of his military successes.

In

two

the

"he

Strasburg)

barbarians were

were

rebuilt,

following

writes

all

to

the

(the

Athenians

expelled from Gaul,

of

battle

many

" the

cities

and a great number of ships came

from Brittany.

hundred

years

gathered together a

ships, four

hundred of which

fleet of six
I

had con-

structed in less than ten months, and with these

sailed

taking, because

of the

enterprise

so

who

barbarians

Even

the banks of the river.

the

up the Rhine, which was not an easy under-

impossible

inhabited

Florentius believed

he

that

promised

these barbarians a tribute of two thousand pounds

of silver,

if

they allowed us to have a free passage.

me

Constantius, on hearing of the offer, wrote

have

it

carried out, unless

And how

minious.
if it

could

it

considered

it

have been otherwise,

who was

appeared so even to Constantius,

the habit of bargaining with the barbarians

I

to

too igno-

in

But

gave them nothing, and marching against them,

with the

defence

and

assistance

of

the gods,

occupied the country of the Salians, expelled the

Camavians, and captured many oxen,

children/
^

So greatly were they

women and

terrified

by the

Zosimus's account of this campaign against the barbarians of

the Rhine

is

most interesting

(3,

7).

From

it

we

learn that Julian

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

76

my

preparations for

hostages, and assured

provisions.

and

that they sent

invasions

me

of the free passage of

would be too long

It

to

plished in these

Three times

four years.

crossed

from the barbarians

Rhine

the Rhine

in

captured thousands of

age

flower of their

accom-

recovered

twenty thousand prisoners,

who were found beyond

and one siege

recapitulate them.

the

my

enumerate

one by one, everything that

describe,

me

sent

two battles

men

in the

Constantius four

to

battalions of the strongest infantry, three not quite

so strong, two cohorts of the most daring cavalry

now, by the favour of the gods,

the

having retaken a few

cities,

less

am

master of

than forty."

all

We have now arrived at the most fateful moment

The

events that will conduct him

power
are rapidly maturing.
to the zenith
While the Caesar in Gaul and Germany passed

in Julian's

life.

of

from victory

to victory,

in the

East, Constantius

was struggling amidst the most grave and inglorious

difficulties arising out of the war with the Persians,
that had been going on for many years, and now
threatened to become a disaster for the Empire.
petty

Constantius'

and depraved soul was over-

took advantage of the proffered assistance of a noted brigand, called

Cariectus. This curious episode is, however, not mentioned either
by Julian or Ammianus. Perhaps they did not wish to diminish the
magnificent heroism of the Caesar's achievements. This Cariectus

was afterwards regularly enrolled

Marcell., op.
1

cit.,

Julian., op.

vol.

ii.

cit., p.

p. 94, 9).

360, 10 sq.

in

the

Roman army

{vide

Amm.

THE

LIFE OF JULIAN

Fearing that

flowing with jealousy of his cousin.

this

might develop,

continuation of successes

Julian,

towards the

aspirations

With

decided to

this intention

Imperial

in

crown,

Ammianus,^ by Florentius,

instigated, according to

Constantius

77

the

clip

Caesar's

wings.

he sends the Tribune Decentius

to Paris, bearing orders to Julian to transfer to the

East the pick of his troops, the legions of the

Heruli, of the Batavii, the Petulantes,

He recommended

Celts.

him

to

and of the

make no

delays,

as he needed these troops to arrive in time to take

part

in

the

spring

campaign against the

forces of the Parthians

and Persians.

allied

The

troops

were to be conducted

to Constantius

by the General

Lupicinus.

foresees

the

Julian

that

Emperor's

orders cannot be executed without difficulties and

These barbaric

disputes.

soldiers

had voluntarily

taken service with the understanding that they were

not to leave their
that they

own

would refuse

country.

to

It

was

certain

be led into the Far East

away from their families. Lupicinus meanhe had been sent to England
while was absent
some time previous by Julian, and Florentius,
foreseeing the storm, retired to Vienne, and made
to die

no haste

to

obey

Julian's call,

who, therefore, found

himself without counsellors and obliged to assume

the whole responsibility.

Besides

frightened at the dangers

the delay,
^

that

this,

might

Decentius,
arise

was pressing him

to act at once.

Amm.

vol.

Marcell., op.

cii.^

i.

p.

201, 15 sq.

from

At

the

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

78

same

anonymous

was circulated
among the legions, a part of which was to this
effect: "We, like condemned criminals, are driven
to

time,

the

an

libel

extreme confines of

families, which, after

the

many bloody

earth,

and our

battles,

we have

become for ever slaves

Reading this libel, Julian deof the Germans."
cides to remove what seems to be the greatest
objection on the part of the soldiers, and arranges
that their families shall follow them, and that they
be furnished with means of transport.
Decentius,
however, insists that the soldiers must be brought
from their different stations, and concentrated in
Paris, whence they are to take their departure.
This is done, and the troops being assembled in

liberated from servitude, will

^

the suburbs of Paris, Julian visits them, exhorts

them, and speaks one by one to those

who

soldiers

are

among

known

personally

encouraging them with promises of the

to

the

him,

liberality

of the Emperor, and the prizes that await them.

He, furthermore, entertains all the leaders at a

solemn banquet, from which they retire sad and
because a merciless fortune

perturbed

them

at the

same time of

their just

deprived

commander and

of their native land.^

Tranquillity at last

seemed

fear of resistance vanished,

to

be restored, and

when

middle of the night, the legions

1

Amm.

2 Ibid.,

Marcell., op.

op. at., vol.

i.

cit., vol.

p. 204,

i.

suddenly, in the

arm themselves,

p. 203, 15 sq.

4 sq.

all

THE

LIFE OF JULIAN

79

and rushing to the palace, surround it so entirely

With loud cries they
that no one can escape.
Augustus," that

proclaim Julian

and

at the

dawn

to say

Emperor,

him

to present

of day they force

himself, and at the sight of

is

is

him the

joyful clamour

In vain Julian attempts to calm them,

redoubled.

promising that they shall not be obliged to pass the

them of the pardon of Constantius.

The soldiers become more and more excited they
lift him up on their shields, and demand that he
But
should place on his head the Imperial diadem.
Alps, and assuring

he does not possess one.

It

is

proposed then to

crown him with a necklace belonging to his wife,

but a female ornament is not suitable as an emblem
of

Then some one

Empire.

else

gilded breastplate of a charger.

last,

a standard bearer of the

off the to7'ques

into

retires

it

is

tearing

the

The

Caesar,

importunities of the

the palace, dazed, reluctant,

Now it

and perturbed.
day,

At

he wears as a sign of his grade,

not being able to resist

ing

still.

Petulantes

with this encircles Julian's forehead.

soldiers,

proposes the

Worse

happens

that,

on the follow-

among

the

soldiers that

reported

during the night Julian has been secretly murdered.

They again arm

themselves, and in great frenzy

rush to the palace, and are not satisfied until the

new Emperor appears before them, resplendent

in all the insignia of

power.

From

this

moment

Julian openly assumes his position, addresses the

soldiers as their

Emperor,

recalls to

them the deeds

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

80

which they have together accomplished, declares

promises them
still

hopes

fidelity,

and

recompense and promotion.

He

confidence

absolute

his

their

in

be able to enter into some agreement

to

with Constantius, and avoid thus a

at all

hazards he

having an absolute

decision,

his

and

Thus

destiny.

his

in

war, but

civil

resolved not to draw back from

is

to

faith in himself

intimates

his

he

relates that, the night preceding his proclamation,

Empire appeared

the Genius of the

said

"

More than

once,

Julian,

to

him and

have occupied

the vestibule of thy palace, with the intention of

increasing thy dignity, but

almost repulsed.

have always

retired,

time again thou refusest

If this

unanimous wishes of so
depart mortified and sad.
But bear it

to receive me, despite the

many,

will

well in mind,

Of

will

come

this interesting

to thee

event

written by Julian himself

to the

we have

Constantius,

against

his proclamation

account

is,

the

the account

In the manifesto sent

all

and

scruples,

new Emperor

happened.

were

Julian tells

narrates

Pentadius,

To

Paul,

how he was
chief among

Gaudentius,

Amm.

and

these he also adds Florentius, on

account of the financial discord, of which

^

move

This most vivid

surrounded by spies and calumniators,

Lucilianus.

to

the main, completely in accord with

in

by Ammianus.

that left

whom

"
!

Senate and to the people of Athens, when

he decided to throw away

how

no more

Marcell., op.

cit.,

vol.

i.

p. 208,

10 sq.

we have

THE

LIFE OF JULIAN

spoken, as related both by

These

spies

JuHan from

first

Ammianus and

faithful friend Sallustius,

possessed his entire confidence, and

their instigation

my

with personal

And
all

that

the

is

it

achievements, writes a
insults,

he commands

and menaces

that,

who

also at

Emperor deprives him

''Constantius, perhaps urged

of his army.

jealousy of

Libanius.

persuade Constantius to separate

most

his

81

on by

letter replete

to

the

Celts.

without distinction, nearly

away from Gaul,

the best troops should be sent

confiding the execution of this order to Lupicinus

me

and Gentonius, and warning

myself to them.

But how can

that the gods did for

me

and the gods themselves are

aside

all

not
tell

decided, in

my

oppose

to

you here

my

all

soul,

witnesses, to cast

the glory and cares of empire, and to live in

retirement, far from

all affairs.

I,

therefore, awaited

the arrival of Florentius and Lupicinus, the

whom was

first

of

in Vienne, and the other in Brittany.

Suddenly there began a great agitation among the

citizens
city,

and the

soldiers,

an anonymous

libel

was

legions of the Petulantes

the

The

Emperor was most

writer complained

and, in a neio^hbourinor

and the

among

Celts, in

the

which

disrespectfully mentioned.

of their

abandon Gaul, and deplored,

insults

circulated

being forced to

at the

same

which had been offered me.

time, the

This

libel

produced a very deep impression, and the partisans

of Constantius

might that
VOL.

I.

came

to me, insisting with all their

should send the troops away before

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

82

other such libels

remaining

legions.

me,

only

Nebridius,

who had come

Constantius.

had

who was

single individual

to

Lupicinus and

immediately, unless
adding,

suspicions,

And

example.

as

if,

me

Decentius,

the orders of

was best

it

this

to await

they did not

was necessary

it

to act

wished to awaken the old

a

new

further

proof, this

they continued

*
:

If thou sendest

merit will be thine.

the soldiers immediately, the

But

and

to

Florentius, but

approve, and affirmed that

disposed towards

Pentadius,

communicate

the

me

around

not

well

replied that

among

be circulated

could

on the contrary, thou awaitest the return of

the other two, Constantius will

merit to

but to

thee,

not attribute the

and thou

them,

me

...

roads.

wished to follow the one, and they

to force

me

to

had before

the choice of two

tried

take the other, for fear that,

anything happened,

it

And

truly

In

unfounded.

this

fact,

if

might give the soldiers an

excuse to revolt, and be a cause of complete

order.

be

wilt

accused.'

the

was

fear

not

entirely

and

came,

legions

dis-

I,

according to the arrangements made, went to meet

them,

and announced

departure.

to

evening,

was

their

day passed, during which

nothing of their decisions.

Minerva, and

them

all

the gods

imminent
I

knew

Jove, the Sun, Mars,

know

it

had not the shadow of a

only late, after sunset, that

and, behold, in an instant, as

that, until the

suspicion.

It

received any news,

it

seems, the palace

THE
is

LIFE OF JULIAN

surrounded, and

begin to shout and

all

great noise, while

with

I,

was

moment alone
my wife, who was then
I

the

palace,

to do.

a room adjoining

From

living.

there,

The

and revealed

me

to

louder, and,

even

me

sign,

that

should yield, and

Not-

surrender, but resisted as long as

and did not accept either the

However, notwithstanding

all

immediately

not

did

my

was

it

possible,

or the crown.

title

efforts,

did not

succeed in quieting any of them, for the gods,

willed

that

soldiers to

all

happen,

should

this

a sign, and he gave

not oppose myself to the will of the army.

withstanding this

the

in

were shouting, so that

all

prayed the god to give

one,

me

prostrated myself before Jove.

became louder and

noise

hall of

in

make a
my own

heavens through an opening

looking up at the
in the wall,

in

best for

is

at that

that of

faith

little

wisdom, try to decide what

I

83

become more and more

who

caused

excited,

the

my

and

resolutions to weaken, so that, towards the third

some

hour,

own

off his
it,

and

soldier

necklace,

retired

do not know who

snatched

my

head with

and encircled

into

the

palace sighing, as the

gods know, from the bottom of

my

knew

that

the divine omen,

but

grieved

it

should confide

me

very

have remained, even

in

heart.

well

much my appearing not

to

unto

to

the

end,

faithful

Constantius.

The

Around the palace there was a great

agitation.

friends of Constantius wishing

take ad-

to

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

84

vantage of the occasion,

money among

distributed

a snare for me, and

laid

the soldiers, hoping that

one of these two things would happen, either that

should begin

the soldiers

fight

to

selves, or that they should all

Becoming aware

me.

of this secret snare, one of

my

the officers in the service of

communicated

did not take any notice of

epileptic,
'

And,

'

excited,

and,

palace.

Seeing

who, against
for lost
in

it,

with the fury of an

behold,

the

armed,

they

fully

me

soldiers
all

become

rush to

they rejoice as

alive,

do not betray the

citizens,

the

those

hope, recover a friend given up

all

me

they surround me, embrace me, bear

triumph on their shoulders, and the intense

enthusiasm that pervades them

When

seeing.

me

that

he rushed through the streets shouting

Soldiers, strangers,

Emperor

wife immediately

and when he saw

to me,

it

among them-

openly unite against

to consign to

that

Is

it

something worth

was in their midst, they asked

them the friends of Constantius,

they might

know what

is

punish

a struggle

it

them.

was

possible that Julian

in his declaration of

The gods

well

to save them."^

was absolutely sincere

innocence and his affirmations

may

be

permitted to doubt, without doing him great

in-

of surprise and astonishment

justice.

Constantius' treatment

as to leave no question

awaited him.

If
^

This we
of

him was such

concerning the fate that

he separated himself from

Julian., op.

cit,^ p.

363, 26 sq.

his

THE
soldiers,

LIFE OF JULIAN

85

He

had no other

he was a doomed man.

defence but to rebel against the orders he had re-

To

ceived.

save himself, he was obliged to de-

monstrate to Constantius that he had at his disposal

a force superior to the
to

suppose

tions to the gods,

some
firms,

It

latter's.

is

quite natural

these hesitations, supplica-

in all

that,

and repeated

Ammianus

protests, there

was

and Julian conwith great energy, that the gods had clearly

acting.

relates,

demonstrated their wishes to him by means of a

But these very opportune miracles are

miracle.

by those who expect them,

only experienced

order to sanction that which

determined

to

The

do.

mystical philosopher,

they have already

soldiers

whose grave

prevent him from being ever the

in difficulties,

had wished

to proclaim

and death.

war and

fied

studies did not

first in

danger and

him Emperor.^

Then he

because the circumstances

were not such as to necessitate

in

this

the battlefield of Strasburg they

unhesitatingly refused,

rebellion

adored

and leading them on from victory to

Even on

victory.

in

But

his choosing

between

his continued successes

in peace, instead of

weakening, intensi-

the suspicion and jealousy of Constantius, so

that, to

save himself, the heroic Caesar was obliged

to encourage,

Augustus,

if

which

not provoke, his proclamation as

two years

previously

he

had

his

high

absolutely opposed.

That

Julian anticipated
^

Amm.

Marcell., op.

and desired

cit.^

vol.

i.

p.

no.

"

!!

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

86

and was,

destiny,

therefore, not wholly ignorant of

the military insurrection

throne,

proved by a

is

end of

him

raised

that

the

to

towards the

letter written,

Cassarate," to his faithful physician,

his

The dream

Oribasius.

that he there relates

too

is

clear not to be the expression of a thought already

He writes

conceived in the mind of the dreamer.

Homer

'*The divine

and

doors,

says that dreams have two

that, therefore,

more than

because

future,

we cannot
But

in all their predictions.

that thou,

It

have had to-day a vision

seemed to me that I saw a
hall,

bowed

tree, fearing that

As

was very anxious about the

sight

approached, behold, the big tree

pointing

And

there

be spared

is

little

'
:

That

is

one remains

At

towards the heavens.

anxiously exclaimed

little

might be carried away with the

it

levelled to the ground, but the

upright,

to the earth,

roots there sprung a small one covered

with blossoms.

big one.

believe this time

ever, hast seen well into the

high tree planted in a vast

its

put equal faith

also

similar to thine.

and from

^
:

tree

is

danger that the offshoot also

this

fallen
will

not

Then some one who was wholly unme said

Look well and take courage

'

known to
The root has remained
'

one

saved,

is

strong

and

in the earth,
will,

and the

undoubtedly,

little

become

'

That

this physician Oribasius

had an important

part in the manoeuvres which preceded the election

1

Julian., op.

cit., p.

495, 20 sq.

THE

LIFE OF JULIAN

87

awaken
by no means
affirmed by

of Julian, and that he used his influence to

Imperial aspirations in the Prince,

and

unlikely,

Eunapius

in

is,

the

in

fact,

explicitly

same Oribasius/

of this

life

is

It

furthermore appears that Oribasius himself, in the

Memoirs

that he

left,

boasted of his share in the

more imporever admitted by

adventure, attributing also to Julian a

tant part in the initiative than

is

Ammianus, from whom we gather

the impression that the rebellion was an act of
Julian himself or

necessary defence.

curious

and one that

fact,

might be considered as highly symptomatic,

Julian, according to

into

that

is

Eunapius, brought from Greece

Gaul the high priest of the Mysteries,^ the

Hierophant, as he was called, and did not decide

to rebel

until

he had, with the greatest secrecy,

accomplished the prescribed sacred

and the

Evemerus were the only ones

faithful

his confidence.
stitious soul,

Oribasius

rites.

Knowing, as we

and how

it

in

do, Julian's super-

had been rendered more so

by the teachings of Maximus,

it

is

easy to under-

stand that he desired to consult the gods before

deciding on such an important step, and that, consequently, the assistance of the Hierophant

precious

to

him.

But the

was most

circumstance

of

his

having brought him from Greece to Paris cannot

but

give rise to the suspicion of premeditation.

However, the

facts are too uncertain to

permit our

building a secure edifice on this foundation.

1

Eunap., op.

cii., p.

104.

/^/^^

^^'Z.,

Our

p. 53.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

88
best plan

is

to

account that

we

ians

and

and vivacious

follow the precise

find in the manifesto to the

in the reports of the

Athen-

honest and impartial

Ammianus.
The modern defenders of Constantius, of whom
we have already spoken, and first among them,
Kock,

essay written with the most acute

his

in

and great

criticism

erudition, pretends to see, in

comedy enacted by

the revolt of Paris, a

who

desired

to

a pretext to

find

But even

against the Emperor.

Julian,

openly

rebel

we were

if

not

impressed by the accent of truth that resounds

Julian's words, the psychological analysis,

so term

of the

it,

to persuade

men and

the situation,

sufficient

that the fault in

on the side of

this historical dissension is entirely

Constantius.
is

is

we may

any unprejudiced observer not inspired

by the demon of hypercriticism,

it

if

in

First of

we must remember

all,

that

impossible to exculpate the latter from the

responsibility of that terrible crime

destruction of his family,

father

Constantine

could publicly
brothers,

call

cousins,

executioner of

common."^

all

that
him
I

which was the

the

death of his

crime for which Julian

the assassin of

my

father,

might say the bloodthirsty

our

Certainly

darkest prejudices

after

family

against

may be

and

relations

such a

justified.

man

in

the

Suspicious of

every one and of everything, Constantius was ever

ready to lend an ear to calumniators.
^

Julian., op. at., p. 362, 8 sq.

First

among

THE LIFE OF JULIAN

them, the Eunuch Eusebius,
at his side as

him

successor

Julian, in

to

whom

experienced that

generally inspired in base

is

by those who

he saw a dangerous

He

Empire.

the

envious hate which

souls

which he had already a

This man continually incited

natural tendency/

him against

who always remained

counsellor, instigating

his principal

to those cruelties for

89

and strong.

generous

are

Eusebius was a worthy representative of the corruption and vice which reigned at the Court

had

all

was incessant

therefore,

prejudice the

Constantius.

away from

of

mind

Had

of

intrigue,

aspirations.

ideal

have regarded the

beginning

the

as

lives, far

atmosphere

pure

the

who

Eusebius must
Julian

Julian

the honest simplicity and integrity of the

studious scholar
in

approach of

downfall,

his

in his efforts to

and,

poison and

of the credulous

and depraved

not been

the tact and

it

for

wisdom displayed by the Empress, Julian would

not

have escaped the

of his

suspicions

cousin.

These suspicions were certainly, for a moment,

silenced by the increasing menace of the Germanic
invasions, and Constantius let himself be persuaded
by his wife to send his cousin to Gaul. And we
will

even

admit

that,

faith, since, after all,

for

the

moment was

attacks

of

the

at

first,

it

was

in

good

the most important question

to

repress

enemy.

But

the

threatened

Julian's

many

and the great fame that they brought

successes,
^

Amm.

Alarcell., op.

cit.,

vol.

i.

p.

269, 6 sq.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

90

him, rekindled the suspicions of Constantius, and,

with the death of the beautiful Eusebia, the evil

influences
all

surrounded the Emperor became

that

powerful, as there was no one to restrain them.

In our opinion, the unexpected and inconsiderate

commanded Julian to
part of the army of Gaul,

order by which Constantius

send to the East the best

was inspired by the

Constantius'

of

desire to ruin Julian utterly.

position

was

Amid,^

the

in

East,

certainly

after the

one,

difficult

fall

and

Mesopotamia ran the risk of being entirely overrun and invaded by the Persians.
Constantius,
however, was not in need of soldiers, but of a wise
direction
of the war a direction which was

rendered impossible by the

tions of the

and of

had

eunuchs who surrounded the Emperor,

whom Ammianus
At

picture.^

the

by

succeeded

Germans back
was

doubt that

gives a

same

time,

his

valour

across

the

dangerous

still

calumnious insinua-

in

and

Gaul had been

if

although

Rhine,

one,

most curious

left

Julian

forcing

the

position

his

there

is

no

insufficiently

defended, the invasions would have beo^un

ag^ain.^

Constantius, by leaving the Caesar defenceless before

the rising

peril,

wished that

had been covered

in the

Amm.

Ibid., op. cit., vol,

2 Ibid.,

he, too, should

have

his

ignominy with which the Emperor

share in the

Marcell., op.

op.

cit.,

vol.

East by the
cit.,

vol.

i.

20
217, 20

fall

of Amid.

p. 198, 5 sq.

i.

p. 153,

sq.

i.

p.

sq.

THE LIFE OF JULIAN

But the
is,

that

and most important consideration

first

had not been convinced of the

Julian

if

91

Emperor's hostile intentions, he would not have

rebelled, because

was not

it

Holding a high

position, the

of Constantine s family,

do

in his interest to

still

so.

sole representative

very young, covered

with glory, adored by his soldiers, Julian had only

to wait.

hands, as

had no

The empire would naturally fall into his

Constantius, who was fifteen years older,

children, while,

exposed him to the

all

probability,

It,

therefore,

forced

he

on the other hand, rebellion

which, in

perils of civil war,

might have proved

him.

to

fatal

seems without doubt that Julian was

only to save himself, and

rebellion

into

preferred

any

confront

to

danger

rather

than abandon himself to the fate which certainly

awaited him.
tions

tant
to

It

the

for

is

possible that, in the prepara-

rebellion,

he took a more impor-

part than he acknowledges, but

place

the whole

of the

it

is

unjust

on his

responsibility

shoulders.

Of

we

this

are so convinced that

we do

not

hesitate to believe in the sincerity of the overtures

of reconciliation and

compromise which he made

Constantius in order to avert

risk

was so

great,

and the

civil

war.

The

issue of the encounter

between the two so uncertain, that

Julian, with his

sober and clear judgment, naturally sought, by

the

means

proposals

in his

to

power, to avoid

it.

And

all

that his

were most favourable and generous

is

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

92

proved by Ammianus and confirmed by

own words.
Ammianus

Julian's

gives the text of the letter that Julian

wrote to Constantius to acquaint him with what had

taken place, and to propose acceptable conditions.

These conditions were as follows

Constantius
must recognise and sanction what had happened
Julian engaged to send to his assistance every year
a certain number of men and horses Constantius
should have the nomination of the Prefect of the
Pretorium, that is to say, the Prime Minister of
:

Gaul, but

should be

the other officers, military and

all

named by

Julian.

At

civil,

the end of his letter

Julian demonstrated the inopportunity

and

peril of

taking the Gallic troops into the East, accustomed

as

they were to their

their presence

Gaul

was

He

itself.

still

own

necessary for the defence of

also expresses the

concord between the two

their glory
Julian's

country, and, besides,

hope that the

Princes migrht

redound to

and the good of the Empire.^

two

faithful Euterius,

messengers,

Pentadius and

the

overtook Constantius at Csesarea-

Mazaca, a town of Cappadocia, where he was occupied in preparations for the Persian war.

When

the contents of Julian's letter were communicated

to

him

at

solemn audience,

into a fearful rage

Constantius flew

and expelled the ambassadors,

refusing to ask any questions or listen to any explanations.

1

He

Amm.

then sends, as his ambassador to

Marcell, op.

cit.,

vol.

i.

p. 215,

10 sq.

THE

LIFE OF JULIAN
Leonas with a

Julian, the Quaestor

93

letter in

which

he commands him to confine himself within the

conceded to a Caesar, and

limits of the authority

in

proof of his resolution not to resign any of his rights

he sends a

lona- list

different offices in the

who was

for the

government of Gaul.^

Julian,

excellently qualified worthily to play his

and

part of pretender

and the

new nominations

of

assembled the soldiers

rebel,

citizens in the military

camp, and ordered

Constantius' decree to be read to them.

When

the

reader arrived at the point where Constantius com-

manded

Julian to confine himself to the prerogatives

of the Caesar, from every direction arose a wild and

terrible clamour,

together
vince,

and

''Julian

soldiers

citizens cried out

Augustus by the

Army, and

the

and

will of the Pro-

Leonas

Republic."

the

departs, seeing the position desperate.

accordance with the conditions he

Julian, in

had

offered,

accepted Nebridius as Prefect of the Pretorium, but

cancelled

the

Constantius,
all

the other

rest of

nominations

the

and chose,

on

his

own

made by
authority,

officials.^

The indefatigable Julian was not satisfied with

the new and supreme dignity with which he had
been invested.
crossed

the

successful

Before the winter began, he re-

Rhine,

and conducted a rapid and

campaign against certain

Amm.

Ibid., op.

MarcelL, op.
cit.y

vol.

i.

cit.,

vol.

p. 219,

i.

p. 219,

29 sq.

tribes of the
10 sq.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

94
Franks,

having arranged

and,

for the

necessary

defence, went to winter in Vienne.

During the winter 360-361, Julian again hesiwar against Con-

tated to take the initiative of

In the meanwhile he celebrated with the

stantius.

greatest

pomp

tion of Gaul,

the

fifth

anniversary of his administra-

and presented

himself, with his fore-

head encircled by a magnificent diadem of precious

Unfortunately,

stones.
festivities,

in

the

midst

of these

he was overtaken by a great misfortune,

the death of his wife Helena, caused by the effects

of a poison, which, according to

Ammianus,^ had

been administered three years before

in

Rome,

by the jealous Eusebia, not so much with the

of

intention

Helena, as to prevent her

killing

from ever bearing children.

accusation,

and

drama of love

it

is

a terrible

that seems to have been secretly

with

intermingled

This

sheds a sinister light on the

the

stormy existence of the

Imperial philosopher.^
^

Amm.

The mystery concerning

Marcell, op.

i. p.
94, 13 sq.
the death of Helena was used by the
enemies of Julian to tarnish his memory at the time when it was

cit.,

vol.

become entitled to honour and fame. W^e

a certain Elpidius, who had sought to create
difficulties for Julian in Gaul, and to raise the army against him
(Liban., op. cit., ii. 321, 10) circulated the calumny that Helena had
been poisoned by a physician of Julian's suite, in accordance with
Libanius rises, with all the strength of his
Julian's own desires.
sufficient to vilify

him

learn from Libanius

to

how

honest affection, against this vicious lie, and on hearing that it was
being propagated in Antioch by one of his friends and disciples,
Polycletes, he breaks off all relations with him, and will no longer
receive him in his house (Liban., op. cit.^ ii. 316). To this Polycletes
he addresses a discourse to demonstrate to him the vileness of the


THE
About

LIFE OF JULIAN

suddenly became aware

this time, Julian

of a fact that convinced

95

him

was

that he

in

imminent

danger, and this immediately put an end to his uncertainty

He

and preoccupations.

discovered that

Constantius was conspiring with the kings of the

barbarians to injure him, so that,

he had not been

if

movement

able to put a stop to the

would have found himself surrounded on

and obliged,

he

at its outset,

all sides,

same time, to fight the combined

and the Germans, who had

at the

forces of Constantius

He had,

formed a coalition against him.

been able

to get possession of the

fortunately,

correspondence

between Constantius and King Vadomarius, and

by a ruse had even succeeded

king,

thus

putting

Constantius

"

end

an

writes

capturing that

in

the

to

conspiracy.^

Julian to the Athenians

incited the barbarians ao^ainst me, called

me

He

enemy, and paid them to devastate Gaul.

wrote to his lieutenants

in

Italy

to

his

be on their

guard concerning those who came from Gaul, and

commanded them
cities

on

the

to collect,

of

confines

in

the neighbouring

Gaul,

three

hundred

myriads of medimni of grain, and caused as

again to be prepared in the Cottian Alps, as

facts.

had

in

if

he

These are not

intended marching against me.

words but proven

many

hand, brought to

and the unworthiness of the calumniator, Elpidius, who is

every respect a most despicable man he having already, once
before, attempted to betray Julian, when he was magnanimously
pardoned.
accusation,
in

Amm.

Marcell., op.

cit.^

vol.

i.

p. 234, 18 sq.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

96

me by

the barbarians themselves, the letters that

he wrote, and

myself seized the provisions that

had been prepared/

''that Constantius

to assure

me

It

is

true," continues Julian,

had sent the Bishop Epictetus

of the safety of

my

But he had

life.

not a word to say concerning the agreement, or the

And

recognition of what had happened."

well

knew

that the promises of Constantius were

as evanescent as

On

Julian

if

they had been traced on sand.

the other hand, Julian concludes

" If

decided to remain in Gaul and avoid the

had

peril,

should have found myself shut off from everywhere,

surrounded by the armies of the barbarians, and

attacked in the van by his forces, and
perished,

wise

men

Julian

when he

and
is

should have

that in a shameful manner,

which

for

the greatest of misfortunes."^

is,

perhaps, guilty of

some exaggeration

accuses Constantius of having conspired

with the barbarians to injure him.

In the story

by Ammianus, it is all reduced to the episode

of Vadomarius, and the correspondence between

told

Constantius and the barbarian kings, which Julian

claims to have had in his hands,

is

represented by

the single letter to Vadomarius, and, judging from

Ammianus makes to it,

not have been of much importance.

the reference

could

this

letter

Libanius,

on the other hand, attributes great importance to

this

episode,

and considers
1

Julian., op.

Ibid.y op.

cit.^ p.

cii., p.

it

as

indicative of a

367, 27 sq.

369, 20 sq.

THE

LIFE OF JULIAN

97

great conspiracy.

But Libanius, always interesting

from his

representation of surroundings,

pictorial

much

does not merit

facts,^

he

for

charms of

is

confidence as a narrator of

too

rhetoric.

carried

often
It

away by the

certainly possible

is

that

Constantius would not have repulsed the idea of

having a barbarian as an
cousin, and,

was

ally against his

more, that the astute Vadomarius

still

willing, not only to

pate, the desires of the

further, but also

We

Emperor.

to antici-

may

however, without doing our hero any great

admit,

injustice,

he exaggerated many

that, in his later narrations,

things in order to justify his actions.

if

abhorred

And

even

Constantius had not yet committed the crime of

high treason to his country, he was quite capable

knew

of this delinquency, and Julian well

it.

During these months of uncertainty passed

in

Vienne, Julian's pretence of keeping up religious

observances

demned

He
in

was

as

is
if

still

most severely blamed, and

it

con-

were an act of gross imposture.

moment
which he now saw

hesitating as to the opportune

which to open the

was absolutely
natural

is

civil

war,

inevitable.

And

was, therefore,

it

he should seek to surround himself

that

with the greatest number of partisans, and avoid

creating

new enemies who might

disturb

the preparations for the undertaking.

that Julian
to

had been,

for a long

him

We

in

know

time, a convert

paganism, and although, for reasons of prudence,

^

VOL.

I.

Liban., op.

cit.^

vol.

i.

p. 558,

sq.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

98

he kept

was whispered about, and

of the old rdgime the most

concealed,

it

it

raised in the friends

But

flattering hopes.

more

position

antagonism

as

difficult,

the

of

if

whose suspicions
not knowing what might

So he

he were victorious.

sary to act in such a

fears.

tended to increase the

it

Christians,

were already excited,

happen

very fact rendered his

this

On

the feast

manner

felt

it

neces-

as to disarm their

of the Epiphany, solemnly

celebrated by the Christians of Vienne, he entered

church and publicly offered prayers to the

their

Christian

mense

God

feriarum

die,

Christiani

Januario,

quem

celebrantes,

Epiphania

dictitant,

progressus in eorum ecclesiam, solemniter numine

orato, discessit."
It

cannot be denied

on

that,

occasion,

this

Julians actions were more influenced by reasons

of State than by the voice of conscience, and, from

a religious point of view, he was certainly most

culpable.
tician,

however, was not only a

Julian,

conscience of the

have

protested

sometimes
it

is

And

but a philosopher and a thinker.

in

life

the

thinker and philosopher must

against
these

the

supreme moment of

contradictions

Julian's

and the philosopher came

But

equivocation.
arise,

impossible to free oneself from them.

other,

poli-

and

In that

career the emperor

into conflict with each

and the force of circumstances decided that

the emperor should silence the philosopher.

1

Amm.

Marcell., op.

cii.,

vol.

i.

p.

233, 12 sq.

THE
But

LIFE OF JULIAN

this philosopher,

if

99

we may be permitted

apply the term to such a mystic enthusiast

to

When

as Julian, soon took his secret revenge.

supreme moment

arrives, Julian, before

the soldiers to announce to

for the East,

them

the

assembling

their departure

and the declaration of war against

makes a sacrifice to Bellona/

he was consecrated and prepared

Constantius, secretly

Then, feeling as

hazardous enterprise, he presents himself

the

for

if

before the army.

He

explains his plan of crossing

Illyria,

and reaching Dacia, while these regions

are

undefended.

still

what

is

remain

best to be

faithful to him, as

many

to so

When there, he will consider

done. He enjoins the soldiers to
His discourse

victories.

with immense applause

swords,

their

he had already led them

^
;

is

welcomed

the soldiers, brandishing

solemnly swear that they are

all

ready to die for him, and following the soldiers,

the chiefs and functionaries.

all

Nebridius alone

refused to join them, declaring himself under too

many

obligations to Constantius for past favours.

Julian saves the honest " Legitimist

of the soldiers, but

when he

and Nebridius comes

of goodwill, that he

may be

from the anger

re-enters the palace,

him and

to

"

asks, as a proof

allowed to clasp his

hand, Julian refuses with an irony not devoid of

bitterness.

Amm.

p. 369,
2

Dost thou believe"

Marcell., op.

cit.^

vol.

i.

p. 236,

he said

19 sq.

sq.

Amm.

Marcell., op.

cit.^

vol.

i.

p. 238, 12 sq.

''that

Julian., op.

cit.^

"

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

100
thou

among

be safe

wouldst

thy friends

were known that thou hast touched

.

Leave

safety

here,

if

it

my hand ?

and go where thou

in

wilt,

'

Once

on

decided

Constantius, Julian

enterprise

his

executed

against

with the rapidity

it

how

of lightning, and an audacity which revealed

transform

could

circumstances

dreamer into a

man

the

meditative

He

of wonderful activity.

does not leave Gaul undefended, but entrusts

it,

with the largest part of the army, to the care of

Then wishing

the able and faithful Sallustius.

appear that he

is

it

to

advancing against Constantinople

with immense forces, he divides his soldiers into

three corps, of which, one, under the

command

of

Generals Jovinus and Jovius, was to cross Northern

Italy;

by Nevitas, was

the second, led

through Rhsetia, and Julian,

later,

to

pass

with a faithful

and by way of the

the banks of the Danube.^

half-cohort, touched at Basle,

Black Forest, arrives

at

Thence he followed the river until he came to the

point at which it became navigable, and there he
embarked his troops, and continued his voyage,
never stopping at any city or encampment, because

he had carried provisions with him

Italy

and
^

Illyria,

Amm.

2 Ibid.^

the report spread that Julian,

Marcell., op.
op.

cit.^

for

In the meanwhile,

the needs of his small troop.

in

sufficient

vol.

i.

cit.^

vol.

p. 243,

i.

p. 239,

23 sq.

sq.


THE LIFE OF JULIAN

101

Gaul

and
Germany, was advancing with an immense army.
This news was sufficient to spread terror and

having

annihilated

his

enemies

in

two

and Florentius and Taurus

confusion,

of

abandoned

Constantius'

highest

their seats of

government, and ignominiously took

functionaries

to flight, naturally fearing Julian's revenge, for they

had not only calumniated him

to Constantius, but

Taurus had furthermore taken an active part

in

bringing about the coalition between Constantius

and the kings of the barbarians/

Libanius

us

tells

Constantius,

that

not ad-

mitting any possibility of conciliation, had strongly

fortified

Julian

high

the

must pass

But the

latter,

to

by which

he thought

come from Gaul

to the East.

roads

high roads in pos-

leaving the

by one

session of the enemy, passed

short,

and

full

as

of obstacles,

and smoothed the

him,

little

used,

Apollo guided

if

parts

difficult

for

him.

Thus he escaped from those who would have

detained

him,

and

appeared,

moment, as though having

like

itself

fish that

risen

from an abyss,

has escaped from a

under the waves of the

sea,

be seen by those on the shore."

rhetorician

the opportune

at

expresses

the great

net,

and hides

so as not to

Elsewhere the
astonishment of

his contemporaries at Julian's audacity in

this

new

road.

What

should

Julian., op.

cit.^ p.

Liban., op.

cit.^

we admire most "

268, 10.

vol.

i.

choosing

p. 388,

8 sq.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

102

he exclaims
followers,

''thy vigilance, or the bravery of thy

or

the

new way, which being almost

always on the water, gave no signs of thy move-

ments

they were

until

accomplished,

enemy were expecting thee by land

while the
or

sailing

thy ships on the waters of a country inhabited

by barbarians, or the
brought to the

might come

nearer

to

Nile,

"

to the world.

because

But

had

haste,

Julian,

beautiful than

in the

dazed and

It

neighbouring

The

trembling,

him

to

an

Emperor,

few
cities,

unexpected invasion.

the

The

Liban., op.

Imperial

and bold

cit.^

vol.

attempt

is

conducted

is

but Julian

to venture with so
1

sends

general of Constantius

reassured and

incautious

and

disembarks,

Sirmio,

Lucilianus,
is

then

having arrived at Bononia, the present

into Julian's presence.

*'

its

liberty

the

toorether

a complete success, and Lucillianus

And

on

borne

he found Lucillianus, who,

Dagalaif to surprise Lucillianus.

presents

love the

Sirmio, the

at

resisting the

near

Banostar,

is

fleet

has

it

o^athered

he could find

hope of

in the

they

thy

capital of the province,

soldiers

me more

Lower Danube,

the

all

that

that

waves the ships that brought

propitious

in

gifts

so

Enipeus, more serviceable than the

the beautiful

On

them

to

Danube, which appears

life-giving

beautiful

banks,

river

i.

courteously

purple
elated,

to

kiss.

exclaims

undertaking,

few followers into a

p. 417, 2 sq.

THE LIFE OF JULIAN

smile, replied

thee

offered

because

majesty, not

but because

with

Julian,

bitter

Reserve these words of prudence

for Constantius

my

And

country!"

foreign

103

the

of

thy counsel,

desired

insignia

"

wished to calm thy fears

During the same night Julian advances towards

Sirmio, and here all the citizens and the soldiers
go out

meet him with torches and

to

him Augustus, and carry him

claim

austere

success,

the

to

Then, on the

races.

contrary

Julian,

habits, offers

city

triumph to

in

Happy because

the Imperial palace.

and great

flowers, pro-

of this
his

to

first

usual

a spectacle of

third day, impatient of idle-

ness and delay, he hastens to occupy the pass of

make

Succea, in the Balkans, in order to

himself

master of the road to Constantinople, and confides

its

defence to

the

faithful

Returning

Nevitas.

again to Nyssa, he arranges for the administration

of

entirely

Pannonia

Secunda, and,

under his control, he

Aurelius Victor
manifesto to the

to

rule

Senate

and

it,

Rome,

in

it

is

now

the historian

calls

over

denounces Constantius, and

as

in

sends

which he

his

assump-

military

position

notifies

tion of the Empire.^

In

the

meanwhile

became

perilous.

legions

whose

He

fidelity

and he desired

to

Julian's

had found

at

Sirmio two

he could not entirely

free

Amm.

Idid., op. cit.^ vol.

Marcell, op.
i.

himself
df., vol.
p. 246,

i.

from them by

p. 244, 8 sq.

10 sq.

trust,

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

104

sending them into Gaul.

displeased

with

more

their

so

new

their

gether with the

they

Aquileia,

and

city,

still

of

native

from Sirmio, but

out

set

and

destination,

Nigrinus,

leader

Mesopotamia.
They
when they reached
gates of the

But these legions were

the

closed

declared themselves,

to-

citizens, partisans of Constantius.-^

Aquileia was a very strongly fortified town, and

its

siege would

orders Jovinus,

have occupied much

who was

and

to

do

his best to avert the danger.

The

the horizon in Thrace.

after

the

arriving from Italy with

same moment, clouds began

But, at the

Julian

army, to encamp around

the greater part of the

that city,

time.

to obscure

troops of Constantius,

having been reorganised, advanced against

pass

Martianus.

under

Succea

of

leadership

the

of

Constantius had arrived from the

If

East before Julian had defeated the neighbouring

armies, the latter

would certainly have been

lost.

Libanius, however, does not doubt that the victory

would have rested with

Julian,

even

in the case of

And

a battle betweeen the two cousins.

had been necessary" Libanius writes

''to

if it

decide

the controversy by war, the issue would not have

been

Perhaps blood would have been

different.

shed, but very

little,

and that

exception of a few battalions

vile,

since,

with the

who remained

faithful

to Constantius, all the soldiers lived for thee,

seemed

to
1

run

Amm.

to

thee

MarcelL, op.

to

at., vol.

be
i.

organised

p. 247, 12 sq.

and

and

THE
commanded."^

LIFE OF JULIAN

But

not

did

Julian

105
the

share

views of Libanius, which were evidently inspired

by the rhetorician's adulation

the

On

victor.

the

of,

contrary,

and

affection for,

Julian

was much

impressed by the extreme gravity of the situa-

He

moment, to abandon
the assault of Aquileia, for which he would
arrange later, and calls to his assistance the army
left in Illyria
an army which has proved itself

tion.

the

decided, for

faithful

and true

Displaying the genius of a truly

the barbarians.

and

great captain

organiser,^ he

tempest to disperse,

instant,

prepares for a

when an unexpected event caused

desperate war,
the

trying campaigns against

in the

and without an

and raised him

effort,

in

an

summit of

to the

power.

While Julian was approaching Constantinople

as usurper, Constantius was at Edessa, embroiled

The announcement

in the Persian war.

Edessa that
Italy

and

having rapidly traversed

Julian, after

Illyria,

arrived at

had already occupied the pass of

Succea and was preparing to invade Thrace.

may and

Dis-

fury alternated in the soul of Constantius,

man

but he was not the

to lose

courage when

and domestic discords were concerned.

He

civil

as-

sembles the army, exposes Julian's treachery, and

invites

them

punish

to

Liban., op.

Amm.

^ Ibid.^

cit.,

vol.

Marcell., op.

op.

cit.,

vol.

i.

the rebel.^

i.

The army

p. 416, i8 sq.

cit.^

vol.

i.

p. 252, 15 sq.

p. 255, 13 sq.


JULIAN THE APOSTATE

106

applauds him, and he, having arranged the Persian

difficulty as well as

moment, sends
Arbetio and Gomoarius

he could

ahead the two generals,

the

a personal

latter,

body of

almost immediately.
but impatient of

by

immediately

of Julian

all

In

delay, intolerant of repose,

sinister

for

he goes to Antioch,

fact,

Tarsus.

affirms that a

his

change and

activity will

to him, so he pursues his journey,

a most

difficult route, arrives at

He

confines of Cilicia.

ing day, but

anger,

and

health.

At

Fatigue,

seized with a slight fever

is

is

and

and

he departs

presentiments,

agitation had greatly impaired

Tarsus he

with a strong

Constantius himself was to follow

troops.

tormented

enemy

for the

but he

be beneficial
travelling

by

Mopsucrense, on the

wishes to leave the follow-

prevented by the violence of the fever,

of which he soon dies, having, as

is

reported, desig-

nated as his successor his cousin Julian, which was,

perhaps, the only generous act of his

As soon

life.

as Constantius had expired, the chiefs of the

met

in council,

and decided

to

delay, the
Julian,

loses

in the

name

him to assume, without

of the army, should invite

and, as

send two ambassadors

Theolaiphus and Aligild, who,

to Julian,

army

government of the whole Empire.-^

having received

Ammianus

this

says,

unexpected embassy,

immensum

in

no time, and accompanied by

all

elatus^''

his troops

and an immense crowd of people, advances towards

Constantinople.
1

Amm.

It

was a

Marcell., op.

cit.^

rejoicing
vol.

i.

and a triumph

p. 258, 13 sq.


THE

LIFE OF JULIAN

never before witnessed.

107

looked like the pro-

It

The unexpected change from

cession of a god.

war

the anxiety of a terrible

waged through-

to be

out the Empire, to a satisfactory arrangement with

the approbation of

almost

was so sudden as

all,

Ammianus

says

stantinople,

all

was known"
was nearing Con-

''When

miracle.

the

it

he

" that

to appear

people rushed

out

to

meet

him, without distinction of sex or age, almost as

if

he were a

on

the

homage

Ides

of

December with

and

was received

the

respectful

and the applause of the

of the Senate

populace, in the
soldiers

He

celestial apparition.

midst of an immense crowd of

this orderly multitude,

advanced among

Julian

civilians.

and

eyes were turned

all

towards him, not only out of curiosity, but with

great admiration.
this

It

seemed,

youth of slender

figure,

in fact,

a dream, that

already noted for his

heroic achievements, should, after bloody combats

against kings and nations, pass,

rapidity,

from

city to

city,

the immediate submission

with unheard-of

everywhere receiving
of

men and

of things,

and

finally, by divine will, assume control of the

Empire without any injury to the Republic." ^
Who could ever have imagined that, in less
than two years, the dream would have vanished,
and that this youth, to whom there seemed opened

a future

full

of glory

and

success,

leaving behind him no other record

^

Amm.

Marcell., op.

cit.^

vol.

i.

p. 266,

would

perish,

than that of
23 sq.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

108

having miserably dissipated

marvellous

gifts

and the

with which he was endowed, in

insane attempt

the

his strength

bring about

to

religious

restoration

Having
stantinople,

moral and

entered

triumphantly

Julians
political

first

Con-

into

wish was to purify

its

But

he

atmosphere.

in

this

was not very successful, or, at least, did not prove

himself exempt from the habits of his time.
He
allowed himself to
of vengeance, and

be

influenced

by

a feeling

sanctioned the condemnations

pronounced by a Commission of Inquiry appointed

by himself

judge the most

to

influential

men

of

among whom he knew, or

supposed, that he had personal enemies.
The
honest Ammianus bitterly deplores some of these
Constantius'

reign,

condemnations, and attributes the principal blame

to Arbetio, a general of Constantius, a

depraved man,
called

to

his

whom

council,

had

Julian

and who

wicked and

unfortunately

tried to gain the

favour of his new master by an excessive severity

and by intensifying Julians feelings of revenge.
This unfortunate episode is undoubtedly a great
blot

on

vilifiers

Julian's

career.

Nevertheless,

if

his

use this as an argument to detract from

his fame, they should, in the first place,

remember

that Julian, notwithstanding his exceptional gifts,

was influenced by the

that,

although

spirit

we might wish

of

his

that he

age,

and

had shown

THE

LIFE OF JULIAN

we must

himself more magnanimous,

coming

that,

109
not forget

Constantine and Constantius,

after

two of the most cruel emperors that ever existed,

he only once followed their example, and that to a
small

Three of the

extent.

condemnations

which he sanctioned were approved by

to death

Ammianus because
their crimes

the

five

number and gravity of

of the

those

of Apodemius, of Paul, and of

Eunuch Eusebius,

and favourites of

courtiers

The condemnation

Constantius.

of Palladius does

not seem to have been sufficiently justified, and,

according to Ammianus, that of Ursulus was most

reprehensible

he was an

imperial largess, and,

by

officer in

charge of the

his parsimony,

had gained

the hatred of the army during Constantius' Persian

Ursulus was undoubtedly a victim of
campaign.-^

Arbetio's

vengeance,

weakness,

made no

he

and

Julian,

with

Later on,

save him.

effort to

culpable

remorse for what he had permitted, and

felt

strove

to

the

attribute

unbridled

injustice to

responsibility

of

this

military resentments,^ and,

as Libanius narrates,^ tried

to

make amends by

leaving to the daughter a great part of her father's

property.

Excepting these, there were no other

condemnations

All

death.

to

many

Julian's

enemies who had never ceased to pursue him with

accusations and calumnies, were only
to exile,

and

this

Amm.

Ibid.^ op. cit.^ vol.

Marcell, op.
i.

condemned

gave Libanius an opportunity to

cit.^

p.

vol.

i.

268, 21.

p. 222, 5 sq.
^

Liban., op.

cif.,

vol.

i.

573 sq.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

110

exalt the clemency of Julian,

who spared them, and

contented himself with sending them to live on the

Islands, where, "

might learn

wandering about

they

in solitude,

to hold their tongues."

But these reprisals, although partially justified

by the habits of the time, and by Julian's natural
resentment

persecuted him

his

all

who had

those

against

so

cruelly

certainly are not to be

life,

admired, and the condemnation of Ursulus

be

censured

severely

deserves the

on

highest

the

praise

is

to

other

hand,

he

the

manner

in

for

which he cleansed the court of Constantinople

from the crowd of
nificent

salaries

hero

who

not hesitate to criticise

he observes that he was too

and did not exhibit the prudent and

of

the

on mag-

lived

and amassed wealth infamously

Ammianus does

gained.^
his

parasites,

philosopher.

But

the

precipitate,

judicial spirit

picture

he

that

presents of the court of Constantius well justified

the

radical

expurgation accomplished by Julian.

This expurgation

is

considered by Libanius one

of the most praiseworthy of Julian's actions.

The

description that the rhetorician of Antioch gives of

Constantius' court

is

still

more

terrible

than that

Here we see" he exclaims "a

Ammianus.
maintained, a thousand
shamelessly
lazy crowd
cooks, the barbers not less in number, and still
more numerous the cup-bearers, swarms of stewards,
of

Liban., op.

Amm.

cit.,

vol.

MarcelL, op.

i.

p. 573,

cit.,

vol.

10 sq.
i.

p. 269,

13 sq.

THE

LIFE OF JULIAN

111

and eunuchs thicker than flies on the cattle in

And
spring, and innumerable wasps of all species.
this is easily

understood, because, for the idle and

the gluttonous,

And

Emperor."^

this

all

pressions and excesses.^

At last Julian was able
desire of his

dearest

he revealed to

all

refuge

the

so

servants

crowd

lived

secure
of

the

by op-

to put in execution the

heart, the desire

been the secret motive of

time having arrived

no

among

being inscribed

as

was

there

all

that
"

his actions.

when he could do

had

The

as he wished,

the innermost secret of his heart,

and, with an explicit

and absolute decree, ordered

that the temples should be reopened, that victims

should be presented at the

altars,

and that the

worship of the gods should be restored.

And

to

render this decision more efficacious, the dissenting

bishops with their congregations

Christian
called

the

to

admonished

Imperial

and

palace

that, as all discord

was

were

courteously

allayed, every

one without fear could worship according to his

Julian did this with the conviction that

religion.
^

Liban., op.

cit.,

vol.

i.

p. 565, 12 sq.

The ecclesiastical historian Socrates, speaking of the expurgation

made by Julian, and the expulsion from the royal palace of the crowd
2

of cooks, barbers, eunuchs, and parasites of all sorts, remarks that

few praised the young Emperor for this act, while a great many
blamed him for in diminishing the magnificence of the royal palace,
he diminished at the same time the prestige of the Empire, and
" An emperor," he
Socrates here makes a very acute observation.
says, " may be a philosopher with temperance and in moderation,
but a philosopher who wishes to be emperor passes the limits, and
;

falls into
I

absurdities" {Socrat. Hist.^ p. 139).

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

112
liberty

would augment the discord, and that

on he would not have

He knew

against him.

were no wild

beasts

by experience

as

among each

Christians

cruel

other."

shall discuss this curious action

emperor who wished

now we
With

that there

man

as

the

Later on,

we

to
^

on the part of an

in his political career.

his wonderful activity, Julian, during the

months of

his residence at Constantinople, attended

to the administration of justice,

military affairs

provided with

banks of the Danube were

the

and did not neglect

fortifications,

and strongly garrisoned

against the possible attacks of the Goths.

make an

advised him to

barbarians, to force
Julian,

But

paganism.

restore

to

him

will follow

later

a people united

to fear

them

Some

expedition against these

into complete submission.

however, influenced, as we shall

see,

by a

prejudice that later on led to his ruin, replied that

he preferred more worthy enemies.

In the meantime, the fame of his power and

wisdom spread all over the world, and ambassadors

bearing gifts and demanding his friendship came
from

most

the

mysterious

distant

East, the

regions

of

India,

the

North, and the regions of

the Sun.^

But Julian was not the man to

content in the midst of his good

rest quiet

and

fortune.

He

dreamt of glory and of mighty enterprises.

As

Amm.

2 Ibid.^

MarcelL, op.

op.

cit.^

vol.

i.

cit.^

vol.

i.

p. 271,

p. 273, 11 sq.

4 sq.

THE LIFE OF JULIAN

we have

113

already seen, he appeared to possess a

double personality

same time a man

he was a thinker and at the

different faculties, the

exercise of his

and intensity of

lessness

and exhibited,

of action,

The

life.

in the

same

rest-

soldier

and

him on
Now, Julian was un-

the leader claimed their part, and spurred

to

some great

enterprise.

man

doubtedly a

of his epoch, permeated with

the traditions of the

had

which

prejudice

that

together with

the

that recalled to

desire

him

induced

Constantine,

of flying from

his crimes,^ to

of the empire from

capital

all

Graeco- Roman world, and shared

Rome

the city

transport the
to

Byzantium,

believing that the centre of gravity of the civilised

world was

in the East,

defence,

greatest,

and that

and

save

it

required

the

was there that

it

preserve

there

civilisation.

the

was
they must
peril

The

barbaric

and insurrections that obliged the Im-

invasions

be continually fighting north of

perial armies to

the

and that

because

greatest

and along the banks of the Danube,

Alps,

were, at the time, considered important episodes,

but certainly

not

to

sufficient

structure of the

empire.

fought for five

years,

Even
hand

to

compromise

the

Julian,

who had

hand,

with the

Germans, had not appreciated the extent of the

and foreseen the approaching revolution of

peril,

Imbued

the world.
culture,

to the

marrow with Hellenic

he lived over again the times

^

VOL.

Zosimi
I

in

Histories^ recensuit Reitmeyer^ p. 151.

which

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

114

Greece had saved Western

civilisation,

by

resisting,

with immortal heroism, the armies of Darius and

The

Xerxes.

idea of reviving those glorious wars

and destroying the power of

Persia,

which again

appeared as a great menace, had an

attraction

victim

for

of an

But

Julian.

this

in

Persia, as a

illusion.

irresistible

he was the
power, was

almost exhausted, and would never have seriously

endangered

the

of

safety

the

Quite

empire.

was the danger from the barbarians.

An emperor of genius would have gone to the
root of the evil, and liberated the empire from
the menace of invasions that threatened to destroy
If Julian had followed the wise counsels
it.
another

affair

addressed to him by the

Gaul, he would have

left

Sallustius,^

faithful

from

the Persians in peace, and,

crossing the Danube, entirely subdued the Goths,

thus forming, in the centre of Pannonia, an organisation of civilisation

and colonisation which would

have prevented the Eastern hordes from attacking

the Germans and eventually driving them from
manner, he might have

their territories, and, in this

truly

saved

master of

all

have returned

to

Germany, thereby
that

again,

he was

as

the forces of the empire, he might

of departure for

tion,

Or

civilisation.

Gaul, and
the

made

this

his point

and subjection of

invasion

influencing, in a contrary direc-

towards Persia and India, the tide of emigration

later
^

proved
Amm.

so

fatal

Marcell., op.

cit.^

to

vol.

i.

the
p.

empire

316, 15 sq.

and

THE

LIFE OF JULIAN

115

But Julian could see and think of

civilisation.

year 337, King

Shapur, or Sapores, as Ammianus calls him, took
In the

nothing else but Persia.

the

war

in

initiative

during

Constantius

tormented by

against

was

reign

his

empire,

the

this preoccupation,

and

constantly

because the war

dragged along heavily without ever coming to a

When

definite conclusion.

directed

lion,

his

Constantius was

Julian,

open rebel-

in

movements against
able,

his

we know,

as

cousin,

prepare

to

march against him, because of a temporary

truce with King Sapores, which, although not

to

officially

agreed upon, was

tacitly

But things had remained

condition
prise.

such an uncertain

in

apparently, to justify Julian's enter-

as,

The

acknowledged.

unfortunate campaign which Constantius

had conducted against the Persians, and

in which,

notwithstanding the magnitude of the preparations,

he only exhibited weakness and cowardice, had

naturally

as

augmented

completely to

Imperial

army.

their prestige to such a

the

paralyse

energies

degree
of

the

Libanius^ gives a vivid picture

of the disheartening effect that the knowledge of

the Persian superiority exercised on

He

says

For long

Persians had been

it

represented in a picture."
Liban., op.

cit.^

terror

so

of

the

deeply im-

hardly an exaggeration

is

say that they feared

the

so great, and

pressed on them, that

to

years

the soldiers.

them even when only

It

vol.

i.

is

certain that seeing

p. 593, 5 sq.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

116

courage of the soldiers at such a low ebb

the

stimulated the heroic

with

enterprise,

to

Julian

the

of

intention

by the vigour of

military spirit

the force of his example, and in

he succeeded.

see,

And

Persians.
his

past

by

led

this

reviving

the

actions

and

we
The

shall

his

as

this,

Libanius adds

men were

couraged

embark on the

dis-

hero against the

they followed him, remembering

believing that

valour,

unscathed, even through

fire,

if

they might pass

they followed his

commands."
Fixed
to the

in his

determination to transport his army

banks of the Euphrates,

362, the

Emperor

up

to take

summer

his residence at Antioch, in order to

centre of the

of

leaves Constantinople and goes

nearer the seat of war, and to

make

be

this city the

great preparations which, with his

knowledge of military
for such

in the

affairs,

he deems necessary
In the journey from

a bold undertaking.

Constantinople to Antioch he passes through a

region that

is

most dear

He

associations.

to him,

and

replete with

stops at Nicomedia, and laments

with the people over the ruins of their erstwhile

magnificent

city,

which had been

lately destroyed

by an earthquake, and he renews here his acquaintance with the friends and companions of his schooldays.

He

Pessinus
sanctuary

touches at

to

of

visit

and

Cybele,

Nicaea,

and runs over

worship
the

at

Mother.

the

to

ancient

And

here,

THE LIFE OF JULIAN

117

man

during the night, this indefatigable

writes his

long discourse about the Mother of the Gods, one

of the

documents of

principal

mythological

mystical

his

Then, passing through

doctrines.

Tarsus and Ancyra, he enters Antioch,

apicem pulchrumy' as

was born there

applause, and

and

it is

called

orientis

by Ammianus, who

he was received with immense

welcomed

as a star of salvation

newly

arisen in the East.

Julian remained in Antioch from
to

March

These few months

363.

of the most interesting episodes in the

Antioch was a

city

August 362

constitute one
life

of Julian.

given up to pleasure and luxury.

Its population, fickle-minded, noisy,

and slanderous,

cared only for diversions and public pageants.

received

the

young

They

Emperor with enthusiasm,

in him a promoter of

because they expected to find

their pleasures

and an example of

Their disillusion was

bitter

dissoluteness.

and profound.

Julian

administered justice with the most perfect equity

and temperance, occupied himself with the economic

conditions of the
stuffs,

city,

arranged for

regulated the prices of foodits

provisioning,

supplied

all

things needed for the municipal services, was, in

short,

an exemplary sovereign

but he continued to

live according to the severe habits to

which he had

been accustomed, exhibiting a decided distaste for

and devoting himself with such

an absorbing intensity to his civil and military
all

public pageants,

duties that the enraged Antiochians soon passed

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

118

from wonder and admiration

to ridicule

and

hate.

who scorned all the seductions of

Oriental luxury, who affected roughness in his bearing and his dress, who wore a beard, and did not
This youth,

possess any of the qualities they hoped to find in

him, became thoroughly antipathetic to them, and

when they found

that their impertinence remained

unpunished, the poetasters and libellers took ad-

vantage of the indulgence of the Emperor, and

and epigrams which

circulated in Antioch satires

formed the delight of that frivolous

But

city.

Julian, although he did not punish the offenders, as

other emperors would have done, satisfied himself

with a more spirited revenge, of which

we

will

speak

later on.

With
been

feverish

finally

haste,

the preparations having

accomplished, the troops distributed in

immense and solemn

in March of the year

the various garrisons, and an

sacrifice offered to Jupiter,

363, Julian leaves Antioch for the Euphrates.

little

while before he set out he received a letter

from the King of Persia, who, alarmed

fame of the young warrior,

his

at the great

prayed him

ambassadors and amicably

to receive

to arrange the dis-

Every one," writes Libanius,

"applauding and congratulating,
that he

putes by a treaty.

"

insisted

But Julian threw the letter from

him with scorn, and said that it would be most

should accept.

contemptible to treat with the

enemy

while so

THE
many

LIFE OF JULIAN

And

cities lay in ruins.

was no necessity

for

119

he replied that there

ambassadors, as he would be

there very soon himself,

to

see the King."^

haughty response, an eloquent proof of the complete

blindness and foolish

obstinacy

of the Apostate,

possessed by a devil, as the Christians said, hurled

down a precipice by the hand of God.

commended the King of Armenia, his

He

re-

ally,

to

hold himself in readiness to execute the orders he

might

In leaving Antioch, he nominated

receive.

Alexander, a severe administrator. Prefect of Syria,

affirming that only severity and vigour could keep

The

this insolent city in peace.

populace, repenting

of their treatment, followed him to the gates and

wished him a happy return

that they

but he harshly replied

would never see him again,

for,

when he

returned from Persia, he would winter in Tarsus.

It

does not seem, however, that the Antiochians

were resigned

to this species of decapitation that

threatened their

city, as, in

a letter from Julian to

Libanius, in which he describes his journey as far

we read

as Hierapolis,

that, at

Lytharbos, his

first

he was overtaken by the Senate of

resting-place,

Antioch, with

whom

he had a secret conference.

Julian does not reveal the result of this meeting,

but promises Libanius to

tell

gods permit him to return.^

him

all

But

it

about
is

it if

the

certain that

a peace was arranged between the Emperor and

^

Liban., op.

cit.^

vol.

2 Julian., op. cit.^

p.

i. p.
577, 7 sq.
516, 4 sq.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

120
the

city

peace

Antiochian rhetorician, who, to further

sion,

by

advocated

greatly

its

the

conclu-

wrote two discourses, one to the Antiochians

to induce

them

to

make amends

for their offences

Emperor

against the Emperor, and the other to the

himself to persuade him to pardon them.

With

his habitual rapidity of

movement, Julian

passed the Euphrates and arrived at Carrhes, from

which place there were two roads

Mesopotamia from west

one traversed

to east, extending as far

the other descended south along the

as the Tigris

Euphrates.

By

the

road he sends Procopius

first

and Sebastian with a force which, according

to

Ammianus,^ was composed of 30,000 men, and,

This army was
according to Zosimus,^ of 18,000.
to defend

his

Arsaces, the

flank,

King

himself descends
of

65,000

men.

and,

unite with

possible,

if

of Armenia, while the

Euphrates with

the

From

Carrhes

Emperor
army

his

he

goes

to

Nicephorium,

where

festival of the

Mother of the Gods, and where he

he

celebrates

received the Saracen ambassadors

themselves

reverently

town he goes

who

him.

before

the

solemn

prostrated

From

this

to Circesium, at the confluence of

Here he is
present at the arrival of the immense fleet he
had prepared, and which was composed of a
the

Aboras with

Euphrates.

the

thousand ships of transport laden with provisions

^

Amm.

Zosim., op.

Marcell., op.
cit., p.

cif.,

228,

vol.

sq.

i.

p, 311, 14.

THE LIFE OF JULIAN

and

implements
with

others

from his

letter

war,

materials

At

bridges/

of

embark on

Julian

who

commit
Julian does not heed
But, even in

own camp, amongst

those

who surrounded

party sought
as

to

influence

unfavourable,

omens concerning the

as

we

mind by
the signs and

Julian's
all

expedition.

In the restora-

by

Julian, supersti-

tion of paganism, inaugurated

tion,

him,

And

there was a party opposed to the expedition.

interpreting,

he had

implores him not

the warnings of his devoted friend.

this

of

this fatal enterprise, or to

such an irreparable error.

his

receives

whom

Sallustius,

created Prefect of Gaul, and

to

construction

the

Nicephorium
faithful

and

battleships,

fifty

for

121

shall see, held a

very important part.

Neo-Platonic mysticism, which was founded on the

continual intervention of the supernatural in the

things of this world, and which was a mixture of

myths and symbols, attributed an immense importance to the science of augury.

The man who

possessed the key thereof might read his future in

the signs which surrounded him, and rely on their
infallible

counsel.

whom

of

therefore,

that

these

augurs

unfavourable interpretations,

Now, it
always gave him

with the design of

putting an end to the enterprise.

^

Amm.

p. 229,

accom-

augurs and soothsayers

he consulted on every occasion.

curious

is

was,

Julian

panied by a crowd

sq.

Marcell., op.

cit.^

vol.

i.

p.

These augurs

312, 20 sq.

Zosim.,

op.

cit.y

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

122

only predicted disaster and death.

It is

therefore

evident that their interpretations responded to the

and convictions prevailing

desires

And

a part of Julian's army.

that he

at least

it is still

who was possessed by

among

more curious

the fixed idea of

going forward, interpreted these same signs

in a

contrary sense and one favourable to his wishes.

To

put an end to

the

army around him, and pronounces a most

hesitation, Julian assembles

all

in-

flammatory discourse, to which the soldiers and,

especially,

legions,

those of the tried and faithful Gallic

respond with acclamations and cries of

enthusiasm.^

The

account of

this

expedition,

Ammianus, who took part

he himself had seen,
narratives

that has

is

it

and related what

one of the most interesting

been transmitted to us from

and well worthy

antiquity,

in

by

written

to

be classed with the

''Commentaries" of Caesar and the ''Anabasis"

of

The

Xenophon.

account of

Ammianus

is,

in

part,

completed by the story told by Zosimus,^

who

obtained his information from other sources

than Ammianus, and by what Libanius narrates

his " Necrological Discourse."

not pretend

in

The last-named does

give a strictly military relation,

to

such as that of Ammianus, nor a succinct and

orderly
sents,

account,

like that of

He

Zosimus.

pre-

however, scenes and episodes that vividly

^

Amm.

Zosim., op.

Marcell,, op.
fit.,

cit.,

vol.

pp. 226-64.

i.

p. 319,

sq.

THE LIFE OF JULIAN

123

reproduce the man, the country, and the atmosphere.

What we most admire

in these narratives is

the

true spirit of heroism that Julian displays in every

act

who

The wisdom

and word.
foresees

and provides

all

for

life

the incom-

all,

magnanimity

parable bravery of the warrior, the

of the conqueror,

commander,

of the

communion

the perfect

of his

with that of his soldiers, the art with which

he knows how to gain their

now

ing them,

affections,

praising them, anon exalting the

importance of the enterprise

embarked

now blam-

these are wonderful

make

united in a single man,

which they have

in

gifts,

which, being

him, undoubtedly,

one of the most noble and conspicuous figures

history,

and

certainly

the

most

noble

in

in

the

decadence of the Empire.

But was there ever a greater error of judgment

than that which

He

had

led

into

Julian

this

mad

army
I will place
the Persians under the yoke, and will thus restore
the tottering Roman Empire."
This was a species
of suggestion that all the emperors, good or bad,
had transmitted to each other. And while they
enterprise

said to his

were dissipating
undertaking

in

their

the

north, a whirlwind

strength

mysterious

was brewing

in

this

regions
that

foolish

of

was fated

the
to

overthrow every one and everything.

The

Anatho and Macepractas having

surrendered almost without making a defence,
cities

of

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

124

Julian encountered the

first

obstinate resistance at

Pyrisaboras, on the Euphrates.

Emperor achieves
under

himself

prodigies

In this place the

of valour, throwing
of

the

hacking down the gates of the

city,

him a

the

hail of projectiles fell

continued

defenders

the

testudo

to

and

shields,

while around

But as

from above.

he caused a

resist,

gigantic war-machine to be constructed, which inspired so

much

fear that the

enemy was reduced

to

surrender, and implored the assured magnanimity of

the Emperor, who, after taking Pyrisaboras, continues

triumphant

his

overcoming

march,

and surmounting the

obstacles,

difficulties

all

of

country intersected by canals for irrigation, and

He

inundated.^

artificially

Nahrmalcha,

besieges

during

and,

the

reconnoitring expedition which he

made

city

of

dangerous

very

to acquaint

himself with the surroundings, he would certainly

have been
and

except for the wonderful readiness

slain,

bravery with which

Not succeeding
this fortress

jugated

it

by

in

all

himself.^

vanquishing the resistance of

his machines,

he entered and sub-

by means of a subterranean

Having subdued
coming

he defended

stronghold,

this

obstacles, arrived at the

tunnel.

Julian,

over-

immense

canal

by Trajan, to open up
navigable communication between the Euphrates
which

had

Amm.

p. 243, 7 sq.
2

Amm.

p. 245,

sq.

been

Marcell., op.

built

cit.,

Liban., op.

cii.,

Marcell., op.

cit.^

vol.
vol.

vol.

ii.

p.

ii,

22 sq.

pp. 597-98.

i.

ii.

p.

12,

33 sq.

Zosim.,

op.

cit.^

Zosim.,

op.

cit.^

THE
and the
the

LIFE OF JULIAN

Libanius says that Julian, through

Tigris.

had become aware of

documents,

study of

125

the existence of this canal, so that the prisoners,

when he interrogated them, found

useless

it

to

pretend ignorance concerning his questions, and

were obliged

to reveal the secret of the construc-

The
dammed up

Persians

tion/

the

had

But

canal.

importance to Julian,

partially

for,

this

by way of

was of great
it,

he would be

able to enter the Tigris with his entire

which the

waters of the Euphrates flow, bearing with

Imperial

fleet,

He,

fleet.

therefore, has this canal reopened, into

entire

and

closed

it

the

by the army that

followed

passes over the canal on a bridge, and encamps on

the right bank of the

The

Tigris.

left

bank

is

strongly defended by the Persians, and difficult of

But the audacious Emperor desires

access.

assault

and conquer

it.

All his generals counsel

to

him

against this imprudent attempt, but Julian refuses

to listen.

During the night he sends some

manned by a few brave

enemy's camp.
guard, threw

But

among

volunteers, to surprise the

the

enemy, ever on

the ships

substances that set them on

of the army, on the

ships,

their

some inflammatory

The main body

fire.

other bank of the

Tigris,

anxiously expecting the signal to embark, began to

fear that the

little

with

that

Julian,

band of heroes was

presence of

lost.

Then

mind which was

always equal to the occasion, passes rapidly

^

Liban., op.

cit.y vol.

i.

p. 604,

10 sq.

in

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

126

front of the troops, crying, ''Victory, victory! these

flames are the signals announcing that the attempt

has succeeded
thus

bank

that the

is

away by enthusiasm, the

carried

ours

"

and

soldiers

follow him, rush to the boats, and, traversing the

Tigris,

find

Persians,

themselves

and are obliged

face

ability as

many

Roman

a complete victory for the

who during

Then

to fight/

battle took place, which, after

the day has given

with

face

to

a great

hours, ends in

army.

many

Julian,

proofs of his

a tactician, and achieved prodigies of

valour, can

now almost imagine

that he

end of a splendid campaign, which

ancient glories, and

seems

recalls

indicate

to

unforeseen

an

event so terribly

sufficient of itself to

of this gifted

at the

is

fatal

the
the

that

Empire has regained its grandeur.

But then an event happens as strange

mind

the

as

that

it

it

is
is

how unbalanced was the

youth.
The campaign might

prove

have been considered entirely

successful.

Julian

found himself at the gates of Ctesiphon, the Persian

was only defended by a vanquished army.

Julians military prestige was in
At any rate, the
itself his most powerful arm.
conqueror of Pyrisaboras and of Mayozamalchas,
capital.

This

city

the most fearless of leaders, could not recede before

this last effort.

He
^

But what does Julian do instead

remains five days at Abuzatha, near the

Amm.

pp. 255-58.

Marcell., op.

cit.^

vol.

ii.

p. 22,

15 sq.

battle-

Zosim,, op,

cit.^

THE
field

LIFE OF JULIAN

where he has gained the

127

victory,

and

calls

and the generals are unanimous

council of war,

Emperor from undertaking the

dissuading the

of Ctesiphon, saying that

in

siege

would be very danger-

it

ous to launch the army

in this operation, as

it

is

quite possible that

King Shapur might come down

on them with

whole army, which, up to then,

his

had been kept

This

Julian,

far

who

away from

his desires

sions of

all

action.-^

heretofore had never been guided

by any one's advice

who never even obeyed

when

augurs, except

the scene of

the

their predictions tallied with

who, despite the prayers and dissuaattempted the dangerous

his generals,

passage of the Tigris,

an imaginary

now

peril, this

agrees to renounce, for

last attempt,

which would

probably have been a glorious termination of the

Who

knows but that Julian had not previously decided on the abandonment of Ctesiphon ?
But why ? Perhaps this restless adventurer had
war.

Persian enterprise, which

already wearied of the

now appeared

him too easy of achievement, or it

had, perhaps, lost for him the fascination of the

The

unknown.
his eyes

to

glory of Alexander flashed before

and dazzled him.

beyond the Euphrates and the

His aspirations went

Tigris.

The

rivers of

India attracted him with an irresistible force, simply

because they were vague and distant.

^

Amm.

Marcell., op.

Liban., op.

'li/ficov

TTorafiovs.

cit.y

cit..,

vol.

i.

vol.

ii.

p. 25,

p. 610, 3.

22 sq.
eVeii/e

Zosim,,

Libanius^
op.

cit., p.

258.

tov Xoyicrfiuv npos tovs

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

128

His thoughts tended towards the

says:

rivers of

India."

Now,

the difficulty of proceeding with the siege

of Ctesiphon was an excellent pretext for launching

adventure of a new enterprise in

army
unknown

in the

go

on,

was equally

his

numerous

the

it

For, in

lands.

to

and the

defend

Libanius justly remarks that

rest

would have been

from

themselves

Persians.^

more

waterways which had been,

it

burn the

hands of the

the

fleet

Persians

with

all

and

abandon the

until then, his

keep them from

contained, to

of

then decided on a plan even

Julian

powerless

attacks

the

it

tow the

to

left

reckless than bold, namely, to

operations

and, with

difficult to retire,

would have required half the army

ships,

difficult to

ascend the course of the Tigris

ships,

and Euphrates.

was

fact, if it

base of

the provisions
falling into the

direct

his

march

towards the interior of the country, where he knows

he

will find fertile lands,

of food.

Now, without

herbage, and abundance

in the Persian

believing

conspiracy of which Gregory of Nazianzus

speaks,

and of which he points out Julian as the foolish

victim, still we must admit the probability, recognised by Ammianus,^ that the unfortunate Emperor,
ever ready to believe that which accorded with his

own

was misled or deceived by ignorant or

views,

Liban., op.

cit.,

vol.

i.

Greg. Naz., op.

cit.,

p. 115,

Amra.

Marcell., op.

p.

cit.^

6io, lo.

D.

vol.

ii.

p. 26, 5.

THE LIFE OF JULIAN

129

His plan once established, the

treacherous guides.

Emperor, with that promptitude of action which

an element of success

in

decision, but a

w^ise

precipice of ruin in an evil one, immediately put

He set fire

into execution.

immense amount

to

is

it

the ships with the

all

of provisions they contained, only

preserving twelve, which he kept with him, for the

construction of bridges, and, followed by his whole

army, he abandoned the

Julian's star

more

is

bank of the

left

setting

he has but a few days

and these are days of

to live,

but glorified by a heroism

terrible anxiety,

midst of

the

in

that,

most

appears

misfortune,

Tigris.

The

extraordinary.

guides betray him, and the army wanders about

without direction.

more

serious

through his own

seen

but

rendered

is

he had

fault

his

base of

to

risk

another

prepare

systematically

The

lost

not

care

still

and that

error

Julian's

take good

operations,
battle,

position

by the actions of the enemy.

having

Persians,

The

burn

to

and

destroy the grass and grain

of the

surrounding

region, so as to starve out the

Roman

army, which

suffers,

besides,

inundations.^

to

to

the

bites

The expected

not arriving, and

impossible

from

carry

out

his

more temperate

region,

Amm.
I.

Marcell., op.

it

so

as

to

resolves

reach

which would afford

cit.,

vol.

ii.

and

would be

intentions,

soldiers the necessary sustenance.

VOL.

insects

from Armenia

Julian seeing that

towards the north,

retire

aid

of

a
his

For some days

p. 27,

17 sq.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

130

Roman army

the

proceeds with

difficulty in

its

march through a country which

had been deand where they are constantly annoyed

vastated,

by the Persians, who attacked the rearguard and

The army

the isolated bodies of troops.

Shapur followed the Romans very

and the immense

retreat,

At

of

the
is

of this

dust that

indication

of

who was an

its

eye-

a most vivid and

gives

battle,

of

fought in the plain

Ammianus,

Marangas.-^

witness

a battle

last

closely in their

amount

obscured the horizon was

presence.

King

of

interesting account of the Persian army, in which

were two sons of the King, numerous satraps

clad in the most magnificent armour, archers

all

who

were infallible in their aim, and trained elephants,

who beheld them.

those

terrifying

appalling spectacle,

seemed

Julian

Before this
regain his

to

presence of mind and the audacious assurance of

To

concitato imperioT'^

the

prevent the Persian

making great havoc among

archers from

from a distance, he assembles,

his

invincible

soldiers

of

his troops

dense mass,

in a

Rome and

Gaul,

makes a dashing charge on the enemy's

and
front,

who, being unable to withstand the attack, take

to

leaving the ground covered with their

flight,

dead.
^

This was a great

Amm.

Marcell., op.

vol.

cit.y

ii.

victory,
p.

31,

but a useless

13 sq.

Zosim.,

op.

cit.,

p. 261.
2

From

imperio,

A.
il

Manzoni's

"Ode

celere obbedir

the prompt obedience

it

calls

to Napoleon I.," "il concitato

meaning the imperious ordering, and
forth. Translator's Note.
"

THE

LIFE OF JULIAN
days

For three

one.

131

army

Julian's

remained

quietly in camp, in order to recuperate their forces

and attend

to their

cipated

all

in

wounded.

Julian,

parti-

undergone by

hardships

the

who

his

soldiers, during the night of the third day, rises

frame of

in his usual serene

from his rude couch,

mind, and begins to write and study a book of

same Genius of
him which he saw in

philosophy, when, suddenly, the

Empire appears

the

Paris on the night

on

insisted

seems

and

melancholy,

leaves

his

strong

tent,

and

man was not

The will of

but

with

abandons

time

this

it

crown.

Imperial

once more,

it

when

proclamation,

of his

accepting the

his

beholds

Julian

to

it

dejected

air

But

the

him.

discouraged, but said to him-

self,

"

went

out into the night,

the

gods

done

be

"

and

when, suddenly, he saw

a falling star of singular splendour traverse the

heavens and vanish.

Etruscan soothsayers,

have

At dawn he calls for his

and asks them what they

say concerning

to

vanishing

star.

It is

the

apparition

a sign of

evil,

of this

they respond.

All enterprises and attempts should be suspended

for

the

day.-^

more from
he never

But Julian, who was superstitious

principle than from conviction, although

failed to interrogate the augurs, reserved

to himself the right

of doing that which he

previously decided upon, so, at the

the

army began
1

Amm.

to

move.

Marcell., op.

cit.^

The
vol.

ii.

dawn
large

p. 33, 15 sq.

had

of day,

body of

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

132

troops was already on the march, the flanks well

guarded, and Julian was with the extreme vanguard,

when he

receives notice that the rearguard

The Emperor,

has been assaulted by the Persians.

without waiting to put on his armour, snatches up

a shield and rushes to their aid, but he has hardly
arrived before he hears that the vanguard, which

he has

left

moment

before,

is

returns to animate and encourage them,

hears that his flank

is

the

danger was

and

leading the attack,

in

putting

the

be found wherever

encouraging,

greatest,

to
in

flight.

it

without armour, raises his arm

is

was never known whence

through
tries

horse,

his

to pull

and

is

and

arm,
out

back

the javelin, but

like lightning,

The news

to

fails

falls

from his

return

the

first

to

the

him, and he

The

Persians

and the troops, who worshipped

are

falls

of the disaster spreads

Emperor, were so inflamed with rage and

that their feelings spurred

He

breast.

When

carried to his tent.

but his strength

helpless.

it

when a javelin
came passed

pierced his

agony has ceased, he wishes

battlefield,

now

Julian,

the pursuit, and for-

to incite his soldiers to follow him,

planning

and once again he succeeds

Persians

certain of victory, joins

getting that he

to

when he

by the enemy.

also assailed

This admirable warrior was

He

also attacked.

them on

repulsed with

and Julian can die in peace.

Who was it that hurled

their
grief,

to vengeance.

immense

loss,

the deadly javelin

THE LIFE OF JULIAN

The

against Julian?

suspicion of treachery

no means excluded.
that,

some days

133

In

Ammianus

fact,

is

by

relates

the Persians, finding them-

later,

selves on an eminence from which they could hurl

both arrows and words on the enemy,

them

of princes, because, adds

the best
it

at

was currently reported

And,

Romano."-^

among

historian,

met

Julianum

"

naturally,

suspicion

the

the

that Julian

the hands of a Roman

friends,

them murderers of

turpibus, calling

verbis

insulted

his death

telo cecidisse

the Emperor's

immediately arose that it^

was a Christian who had struck the blow.

what Libanius has

us see

The

concerning

to say

it.

account of Julian's death given by Libanius

accords in every respect with that which

already heard from
the

Let

Emperor

He

Ammianus.

we have

also describes

in the thick of the fight,

spurring his

horse in the direction in which the attack of the

enemy was most

assist

where the

gods,

battle raged the fiercest.

"Ah!"

was assured.

demons,

exclaims

should keep

course

its

at

most

continues the orator,

speak, and

deny the

death of the

recall to

Libanius

is

me ?

and

silent,

Is

better

it

not

close this dis-

part?"^

acceptable
it

Victory

uncertainty of fortune

the

what memories do you

better that

sending companies to

violent,

that

''No,"
I

should

report concerning the

false

Emperor, namely, that Julian was

Amm.

Liban., op.

Marcell., op.
cit.^

vol.

cit.,
i.

vol,

p. 612,

ii.

p. 27, 20.

10 sq.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

134

wounded

by

convinced, as

one of

Persian

Libanius

javelin.

is

we
blow came from
own men, and he gives us to underwas a Christian. The Persians, worn
shall see, that the

Julian's

stand that

it

out and dispirited, were about to

with the

retire,

intention of sending, the day after, to propose a

But there suddenly arose a

treaty of peace.

slight

confusion in the victorious army, because one part

of

it

still

went on too

on the defensive, and,

battlefield

which was

far for the other part,

at the

same

time, the

was obscured by clouds of dust

a sudden gust of wind.

an orderly, was riding

parts of the

army

that

raised

by

Julian, followed only

by

advance

in

to unite the

two

had separated, when he was

struck by a javelin, and, as he was without armour,

it

passed through his arm, and entered his

inflicting

a mortal wound.

"

The hero

fell

side,

to the

ground, and, seeing that the blood gushed forth

violently,

and wishing

remounted

his

horse,

to conceal the fact,

and, as

he quickly

the bloodstains re-

vealed the wound, he cried out to his

men

not to

was not mortal. So he said, but

he was vanquished by cruel Fate " Who wounded
It was certainly not a
him, then? asks Libanius.
be anxious, as

it

Persian, for although great prizes

any one who

blow,

no one presented himself.

bitterly

remarks

murderer

in

were offered

to

could prove that he had aimed the

They

our midst

Libanius here

permitted us to seek the

"

And

insinuation against the Christians.

here comes the

The

murderer,


THE

LIFE OF JULIAN

continues Libanius, must be sought

whose

''against
live,

interest

was

it

135

among

those

that Juh'an should

and they were those who acted contrarily

to

who already before had tried to ensnare

and who now, finding the opportunity, had

the laws,

him,

committed the crime, prompted by their wickedness,

that

was powerless under

what referred

his reign, especially in

to the worship of the gods, to

which

they were greatly opposed."

Sixteen years afterwards,

when Theodosius was

called to rule over the East, Libanius repeated the

and not being aware

accusation,

of

tne Christian

new Emperor, addressed

tendencies of the

a dis-

course to him, in which he tried to persuade him to

vindicate

and

Julian,

whom

against the Christians,

He

true culprits.
certain

Tajenus

also

excite

to

he pointed out as the

said that Julian

Tavrjvo^ ti^

wrath

his

was

killed

by a

who obeyed the orders

of his superiors, and expected a recompense from

those to whose interest
perish,^

and who,

in the

it

was

that Julian should

midst of the universal

The

rejoiced at the great misfortune.

grief,

allusion to

the Christians in the discourse of Libanius

is

and

in

unmistakable,

original

discourse,

it

explicit affirmation,

singular,

and

in

most

and,

probably,

was not an

because

clear

allusion, but

this Tairjvo^ rt?

is

the

an
so

the manuscripts so varying, as to

render most probable the supposition that Christian

^

Liban., o^.

dnodaveiv.

a'/.,

vol.

ii.

p. 32,

sq.

ois rjv

iv a-Trovdfj tov avbpa

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

136

hands altered

the

Libanius says,

was murdered

primitive

xpto-rmz^o?

was a notorious

it

fact that Julian

this

worship existed,

they found

as long

for,

themselves

In the public squares, and

and powerless/

silent

who were

at the instigation of those

opposed to the worship of the gods

as

As

ta?.

it was whispered how

drama had been arranged.^ But the silence
imposed by Julian's successors prevented the

in the corner of the streets,

the

revelation of the truth.

These

made by

accusations

Libanius

lack

and have against them the silence of

Ammianus and Zosimus, who, having no interest in

precise proof,

concealing the crimes

the

of

Christians,

had

unhesitatingly

have

been proved.

And, on the other hand,

unlikely to suppose that,

battle,

them,

revealed

would

it

they
is

not

in the confusion of the

amidst the clouds of dust which (according

Emperor might
by a weapon not directly

to all accounts) filled the air, the

have been casually struck

aimed

at him.

But we must also admit that

probabilities that the

not contrary to

all

was a Christian

fighting

The
who

among

it is

murderer

the Imperial troops.

hatred of the Christians against this Emperor,

threatened to wrest from them the victory they

had gained over the ancient world, was so intense

as to induce

them

to

commit any

excess.

Besides,

the world, Christianised in appearance, was so far

^

Liban., op.

Kai vvv

cit.^

rjcrav ol

vol.

ii.

p. 48,

sq.

hv

rifiMfievov aireirvLyovTO.

iv yovLois Xiyovre^ oncos airav to dpafxa avveTedr].

THE

LIFE OF JULIAN

from being Christianised

137
crimes of

reality, that

in

and were sometimes

blood inspired no repugnance,

not only tolerated, but even justified and praised

Of

by the Christians themselves.

luminous proof

words of the

death of

the

He

Julian.

passage of Libanius, and adds

writing would
Julian

For

it

was a

make

Libanius thus

us believe that the murderer of

And

Christian.

perhaps

it

is

true.

not improbable that some one amongst

is

who found themselves in

membered that the Greeks always

the army,

of perishing for the

courageously succeed
friends.

Who

all,

the

and thus

in benefiting citizens, relatives

who would

for the religion that

And Sozomenes

who run

then would think of bringing a

reproof against one

God, and

liberty of

re-

lauded to the

skies the slayers of tyrants, as those

and

ecclesiastical

reproduces the

those

risk

we have a

Sozomenes, who wrote about a century

historian,
after

in the

this

risk his life for his

is

dear to him

^
? "

continues, saying that, although

he has no proof, he does not doubt but that the

murder happened

And

in

accordance with the divine

will.

he relates miraculous visions and predictions

that clearly prove the intervention of the divinity.

The
who was

death of Julian, described by Ammianus,

with the army, and probably an eye-witness,

was well worthy of so great a

^

Sozom., op.

Amm.

cit.^

hero.^

He

p. 517.

Marcell., op.

cit.^

vol.

ii.

p. 37,

19 sq.

gathered

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

138

around him

overcome and

and

friends

his

who were

familiars,

and addressed

in tears,

to

them a
by

discourse which, although probably retouched

Ammianus,

truly expresses the thoughts

ments of the dying Emperor.

Julian

is

and

senti-

content to

and accepts without a murmur the divine

die,

The moment

has arrived,

which

my

friends,

when

will.

must

I,

as an honest debtor,

cheerfully restore to Nature.

Convinced of what

bid farewell to

life,

philosophers

the

say,

namely,

soul

is

think that

we

the

that

worth much more than the body,

should not grieve but rejoice every time that the

best

separates

remember

itself

that the

from

the

worst.

gods have awarded death to

most pious men as the highest recompense.

I

consider

an especial favour that

it

been obliged

to give

also

way

to

arduous

And

have not

difficulties,

nor

humble myself, knowing how misfortune

overcomes the weak, but is vanquished by the
to abase or

strong.

And

do not repent of anything that

memory of any grave

offence neither in the time when I was relegated to
obscurity and retirement, nor when I took possession
of the empire.
The gods accorded it paternally
have done, nor do

to

me, and

recall the

believe

that

have preserved

immaculate, ruling with temperance in

and only making war for recognised

success does
councils,

entirely

for

not depend on
the

results of

on the divine

will.

the

it

civil affairs,

causes, although

shrewdness of

an enterprise depend

As

was persuaded

THE LIFE OF JULIAN

139

Emperor should be the

that the aims of a just

happiness and welfare of his subjects,

you know,

inclined, as

by

my

efforts,

to act with moderation, and,

have exterminated

license,

Content and

corrupter of habits and persons.

the
fear-

wherever the Republic, an imperious mother,

less

placed me,
of fate.

who

stood firm, ready to defy the storms

love and reverence this the supreme

causes

after a

long

me

to die, not

world, in the

me

his strength fails him,

them

successor.

his

some of

his things

and,

And

here

by wishing
the

in

choice

hear

to

that

his

friend

the battle, lovingly

killed in

weeping ones who surround him,

requesting

Maximus and

this

Then he calmly distributes

among his faithful friends, ex-

Anatolius has been

the

glory

"

finishes

and wise

presses himself grieved

reproves

my

and he

be fortunate

to

by hidden treachery, or

a brilliant exit from

bloom of

full

God

or by the condemnation of others,

illness,

but has vouchsafed

of

was always

them

to

be

silent,

speaks with

sublime nature of

Priscus of the

the soul, and placidly expires.

Libanius,

who

also

describes the death of the heroic Julian, exclaims

"The

scene was similar to that

Socrates

in

the prison of

those present appeared as the disciples

who had surrounded

Socrates.

The wound

took the

place of the poison, the words were equal, and the

impassibility of Julian equalled that of Socrates!"^

In

this

death,
^

which

Liban., op.

cit.,

is
vol.

i.

admirable
p.

614, 10.

in

every

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

140
respect,

noble

and

spirit,

the revelation of a most pure and

is

one thing

is

especially noticeable, the

absolute silence concerning the religious question

which had been the subject of

And

preoccupations.

it

is

Julian's

greatest

truly singular that

he

did not attempt to oppose himself to the probable

eventuality

emperor might be

a Christian

that

chosen to succeed him, and

that, therefore, all his

efforts

towards the restoration of Paganism might

prove

fruitless.

dying, had lost

It

possible that Julian,

is

illusions as to the efficacy of his

all

While he remained

attempts.

when

in

semi-barbarous

Gaul, and kept the secret of his faith concealed

within his breast, Julian could deceive himself con-

cerning the tendencies of the Greek world.

disillusion

His

began the day he was declared Emperor,

and could solemnly inaugurate the restoration so

He

dear to his heart.

was too

intelligent not to

perceive that the world was not with him.

bitter satire, the

vanished dream.

That

Misopogon, was his lament over a

And

perhaps the heroic reckless-

ness with which he threw himself into that foolish

Persian

expedition,

and the desperate eagerness

with which he sought death, were only the hopeless

expression

an

of

absolute failure

inconsolable

of the

chief

grief,

aim of

his

over

the

life

and

reign.

There

is

a legend that arose

Julian's death,

and was

a writer in the

first

first

related

many

years after

by Theodoretus,

half of the fifth

century.

It


THE

LIFE OF JULIAN

141

says that Julian, feeling himself mortally wounded,

cried out

"

Thou

hast conquered,

Galilean

"
!

None of Julian's contemporaries

NeviK7)Ka^, TakikaLe.

ever heard of this cry of agony that was said to have

who fell in the

terrible combat he had attempted to wage against
The simple fact of not finding it in
Christ.
Gregory, the great orator and disputant, who would
issued from the lips of the Apostate,

not have missed the opportunity of adorning

eloquent and sonorous periods,

its

is

it

prove

sufficient to

legendary origin, and the late epoch

in

with

which

was invented. And, besides, the account of

Ammianus, who was present at the moment of

it

Julian's death,

that Julian,

and the description of Libanius, prove

in

his

dying

thought than that of

serene

and

far

moments, had no other

last

a philosopher,

like

removed from

all

earthly

con-

This desperate cry would have been

siderations.

a discord in the midst of the Socratic scene enacted

around

But

his deathbed.

this cry,

even though

was not pronounced, might have found an echo

the thoughts of the

had

necessarily

wounded Emperor.

to

in

All illusions

The cause he had

lost.
Even he, in the

vanished.

defended was hopelessly

fulness of his

it

power and

glory,

had not been able

He

overthrow triumphant Christianity.

being

dead, there was no possibility of delaying the entire

destruction

of the

ancient

civilisation.

hero of Hellenism, he had raised

again, for a short time,

it

its

was unfurled

The

last

banner, and
to the breeze,

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

142

but with him

vanquished,

But how
Julian's
it

is

and

it fell,

is

Galilean
it

attempt?

it fell
!

possible

for ever.

Thou hast

to

explain and justify

Before replying to this question,

necessary to consider the conditions of Chris-

tianity,

when

it

became

officially

recognised, and the

moral and intellectual forces which were opposed to

it.
We may then be able to understand how a man
who brought to the Imperial throne a treasure of

virtue

and intelligence believed that the destruction

of Christianity and the restoration of paganism

was

a great enterprise, and was one to which he could

worthily devote his

man

life.

The

great valour of the

gives a lively interest to the strange episode

of which he

was the hero.

THE DISCORD AMONG THE

CHRISTIANS
The
the

profound transformation
years

preceding

gradual elaboration of
its

intermittent

third

had

due to the

the

second and

the

abyss

in

bridged

from the world.

it

Church during

victory,

elements at the time of

its

persecutions

centuries,

separated

in the

final

its

In morals,

that
it

had

descended from the serene heights of the Gospel

and of primitive

Christianity,

towards Stoicism

in

a great theological
of Platonism

in

philosophy

it

had constructed

its

ceremonies had been

modelled on those of the Mysteries.

it

had

succeeded

In short,

organising

in

leaning

employing the materials

edifice,

worship

and was

practical

Christianity that could be accessible to the world.

The
of

greater part of

extraneous

thoroughly
essentially

origin,

intellectual

patrimony was

but

had

amalgamated
and peculiarly

continuity of

presenting

its

its

itself

this

with
its

own

that

been

which

was

as to assure the

progressive development,
severely

so

distinct

from

while

eclectic

paganism.
Pag^anism having: lost the sio^niflcation of the

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

144

naturalistic origin of

myths, tended also with

its

Neo-Platonism towards the affirmation of divine

But such a tendency could only be

unity.

by

Christianity,

power of

satisfied

whose monotheism possessed a

attraction

much

greater than

that

of

the symbolic monotheism of paganism, and could

be admitted and understood by the most humble.

Neo- Platonic

paganism

returning

the

to

had

ideal

sentiment

the

divine,

the

also

of

immediate presence of God, and of eternal

but

of

the
life

lacked the possibility of incorporating that

it

ideal, of

giving

life

to that sentiment in the person

who would

of a

historic

apparition,

same

time,

guarantee and

its

its

be,

at

the

most pure repre-

sentative.

However, the development of Christian

thouo^ht in

the

ancient world

and third centuries certainly served

agony of paganism,
later,

caused

because
tions

it

it

but

to prolong the

necessarily,

to expire in the

arms of

sooner

to this,

Christianity

or

Christianity,

promoted and encouraged those

which Christianity alone could

Added

the second

durino^

aspira-

fully satisfy.

had created a strong

and disciplined organisation, while paganism was

a disorderly system, in which the different cults

were

not

subjected

to

any

Paganism might be styled a

precise

discipline.

religious

anarchy.

In Christianity, on the contrary, each community

constituted

an

especial

control of a bishop, and,

organisation
all

under

the

together, they formed

a union of forces that easily became the expression

THE DISCORD AMONG THE CHRISTIANS

and instrument of a single

145

There certainly
discords, and schisms

will.

was no lack of dissensions,

but they were only passing
in the young Church
incidents that did not weaken the substantial
;

solidity

the

of

always disappeared when

out the

way

a strong

pointed

will

of returning to unity.

This strong

will

appeared for the

and

in

the

great

time at

first

the beginning of the fourth century in the

Constantine

and

organisation,

ecclesiastical

Emperor
and

Athanasius,

end of

reappeared, with decisive efficacy, at the

same century in the Emperor Theodosius and

the Bishop Ambrose.
We must now give a rapid glance at this
the

disputatious century, in the midst of which Julian

made

his

possible

most extraordinary attempt.

to

It

is

im-

believe that Constantine's considerate

treatment of the Christians was actuated, in the

slightest

degree,

treatment was

by religious

initiated

by the famous Edict of

Emperor and

Tolerance, that emanated from the

his
in

colleague,

and was given

the year 313, and afterwards led

stitution of

the

Licinius,

a State Church.

was circulated

to

at

Milan

the con-

Several years after

death of Constantine, a fable

be naught else

This

sentiment.

among

for

it

could

the pagans,

namely, that the Emperor had embraced Christianity

because he had been assured that the new religion

had the power of washing away all sins, so that

even the most wicked of men, once converted,
VOL.

I.

10

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

146

And

became immediately pure/

doubted

was an un-

it

Constantine needed to purge

that

fact

himself from the most terrible of domestic crimes,

the murder of his son

Sozomenes

But

Fausta.

some

Christianity,

years

and

that,

towards a religion

that,

been persecuted.^

It

that

embraced
would

for Constantine's attitude

rather

is

found

had always

then,

until

fact that neither

ecclesiastical historians

had

he

after

therefore, this fable

be inadequate to account

symptomatic

observes

justly

crimes were committed by Con-

these atrocious
stantine

Crispus and of his wife

curious

and

Sozomenes nor other

in this

circumstance

the moral worth

of the
any reason to doubt
Emperor's conversion. Constantine was an able
He who rose
politician, and knew no scruples.

upon the ruin of

all

his colleagues

and

rivals,

and

witnessed the inefficacy of Diocletian's persecution,

saw, in the Church rightly organised, an instrument
that, in his

hand, might become most precious.

He

recognised the exhaustion of paganism, and the

rising

power of

latter for his

Christianity,

and decided

own advancement.

Libanius explains

the conversion of Constantine by saying

prehended that the

belief in another

very useful to him."^

rhetorician certainly

And

seems

Zosim., op. at., p. 150.

Liban., op. cit.^ vol. ii. p. 161.

to

on
be
^

to use the

He com-

God would be

this occasion the

in the right.

Sozom., oJ>. cit.^ p. 331.

avra XvcnreXelu erepov

rjyrjcrdfjLevos

THE DISCORD AMONG THE CHRISTIANS

Church

the

in

dogmas, so that
man,

it

was

of

respect

constitution

its

might always remain under

it

Above

authority.

undertook to regulate

therefore,

Constantine,

all,

impossible

absolutely

same

the

occupied
it

should

Christianity

in the ancient

occupy

He

in

State, that

is

To

to

intended

empire

the

had

to say, that

should be a weapon and a sanction

the authority of the sovereign.

his

him

for

expiring paganism

that

position

and

and passionate

violent

participate in the Christian idealism.

that

147

to

enhance

arrive at these

was necessary that the Church should not

be divided by internal discords, but should be
organised in a perfect unity of doctrine and of

ends,

it

Constantine when dying said to his

discipline.

son

Constantius

**Thou

not

wilt

enjoy

the

Empire unless thou wilt make God adored by all

In twenty-four years
in the same manner!"^
Constantine had greatly modified his opinions.

The
of

all

Edict of Milan affirmed the absolute liberty

worship based on a theistic

all citizens.

But

formed the

liberal

irreconcilable.

political

faith

common

to

opportunism soon trans-

philosopher into the dogmatic

However,

it

was not very easy

to

arrive at a unity of doctrine, because Christianity,

increasing in strength, had blossomed out

into

vegetation of schism and heresy that threatened to

suffocate

its

growth.

In order to prevent the evil

from becoming irreparable, and

^

Sozom., op.

ctt., p.

at the

432.

same time


JULIAN THE APOSTATE

148

had need,

of which he

to create the instrument

Constantine decided to give to the Ecclesiastical

Parliaments, which were then convened to discuss
controversial points, the authority of State institu-

whose decisions would have the force of law.

The institution of Synods or Imperial Councils
was, on the part of Constantine, a master-stroke
of policy, and had an immense importance in the
tions

life

and development of the Church.

Constantine found that the great discussion in

was the Arian heresy, by

Christianity at that time

which

the

fundamental

principles

theology were endangered.

ised,

On

of

Christian

becoming Hellen-

the religion of sentiment was transformed into a

and metaphysical, and the supreme

religion doctrinal

difficulty Christianity

had

to encounter

was

that of

preserving monotheism whilst recognising in Christ

the existence of a second divine person.

The

idea

of the divine personality of Christ had received

on the day

definite sanction

ceptions of Christ and the

together.

in

its

which the two con-

Logos" were blended

In the genuine Hebraic traditions the

Christ or Messiah was a

restore to Israel

its

human personage who would

power and

may

prosperity, while in

it, as it was
Greek philosophy,
the Logos
especially in Alexandria, the Word
was the rational principle by which God created the

the Hebraic thought,

Platonised by

its

if I

so express

contact with

world and through which he manifested himself.

Now,

if

the Messiah must have revealed himself in

THE DISCORD AMONG THE CHRISTIANS

a

human

149

apparition, this could not be imagined of

the Logos, which in the Graeco- Hebraic philosophy-

was only the symbol of an

No

abstract force.
to

make

of this

an ontological and

Hebraic thinker had ever dared

symbol a divine personage, divided

Now,

from God.

idea,

this

passage from the symbol to

moment

the person was verified at the

in

which the

Logos was given to the historical perof Jesus, who had already been invested

attribute of

sonality

with the

title

ality of Jesus,

of Messiah.

In this

comprehending

way

the person-

in itself the office of

Messiah and the personification of the Logos, took

the place of the intermediary between

man, with vaguely defined

human and

outline,

God and
which the

in

the divine mingled as the white and

black in the burning paper of the celebrated simile

This figure gave one hand to

of Dante.

the other to Greece, and the nearer

the

so

latter,

much more was

distinct

divinity

greater

became the

found

itself

The

intensified
peril

in

to

the
it,

Israel

character

and

so

of

much

which monotheism

exposed.

Gnostic heresies tended to impel Chris-

tianity in this direction, at the foundation of

would have found polytheism.

But

was restrained by the prudent and

of the

and

approached

it

first

apologists

this

which

it

movement

efficacious action

systematic writers of the Church, by the

who occupied themselves

especially with

Christ in his character of Redeemer, clipped the

wings of metaphysical fantasy, and,

in intense con-

150

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

templation

of

the

moral

problem,

But

eyes to the philosophical one.

in all its importance, in the

itself,

closed

their

presented

this

second half of the

third century, when Alexandrine Christianity, under

the influence of Clement, and, above

launched

itself

with

sails

by Origen

of Origen,

unfurled on the boundless

The

sea of Hellenic speculation.

cised

all,

over the

influence exer-

doctrines

that

were

developed after him, has never been equalled by

that of

any other great thinker.

may be compared
say

that,

with Plato.

more than two

for

theology only occupied

His

propounded.

In this respect he

For we may
centuries,

truly

scientific

with the theses he had

itself

somewhat

doctrine,

modified

and tempered, formed the substratum on which was

afterwards raised the cumbersome edifice of dog-

matic

Platonic,

that

But

Christianity.
is

his

eminently

only a spiritualistic and idealistic allegory

weakens and

essentially

changes the

basis of genuine Christianity.

Clement

doctrine,

his predecessor,

philosophers

who came

and

historical

For Origen, as
for the

for

Neo-Platonic

after him, the leitmotiv is

Word, namely,
the generative power of

that of the Logos, of the cosmogonic

the

the

Logos considered
world.

sensations
{Koayjos
ISecov),

Origen

as

distinguishes

(/coo-^o? ato-^T/ro?)

vor]T6s:).

The Logos

the

world

of

from the world of ideas

is

the Idea of Ideas {Ihea

the origin of phenomena, the instrument of

creation.

But

this

at a certain time,

instrument was created by

and

is

subjected to him.

God
The

THE DISCORD AMONG THE CHRISTIANS

identity of the

Logos with God

missible, but in Origen's

not only inad-

is

system

151

absolutely ex-

is

cluded, because in this system the existence of the

Logos

is

only the

process, the

first

first effect,

grade of the cosmological

which, in

And

the cause of subsequent effects.

the redemption of

man depends on

becomes

turn,

its

for

Origen

a more profound

The

and clearer knowledge of this process.

verdict

of Porphyry the Neo-Platonist seems the most just

he said of Origen,

His outer

life

Christian, but as far as his views

God were

of

concerned,

he

was that of a
of things and

thought

like

the

Greeks, whose conceptions he overlaid with foreign

myths."

The

importance and the profound influence

exercised by the doctrine of the Logos, considered

as a divine essence generated by

God

but separated

from him, and subordinate to him, renewed, under

more

scientific

and measured forms, the Gnostic

tendencies of the most ancient heresies, and con-

ducted Christianity again to the verge of polytheism.

Against

this doctrine arose, or

it is,

perhaps,

better to say, gradually developed, another doctrine

radically

diverse,

called

monarchianism,

which,

while according due significance to the redeeming

action of Christ, held fast to

its faith in

the absolute

personal unity of God, and, therefore, was adverse

to

all

speculation

tritheism.
^

that

could lead to ditheism or

Monarchianism was,

in its turn, divided

Eusebii Historia^ recognovit Schwegler,

p. 219.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

152
into

two schools, dynamistic monarchianism and

monarchianism,

modalistic

the

first

of

which

affirmed the essential humanity of Jesus, but also

that he

was infused with the

direct inspiration

and

dynamic force of God, while the second believed

the

incarnation

sidered Christ,

in

Father himself, and con-

of the

when he appeared on

earth, as a

mode and a revelation of

God, who had not divided

the supreme and only

any secondary

divinity, but presented

or originated

himself, nor produced

Dynamistic mo-

himself in his unalterable unity.

narchianism, in the second half of the third century,

was represented by a man of great

intelligence, Paul

Bishop of Antioch, who, while he

of Samosata,

enjoyed the protection of Zenobia, queen of Palmyra,

whose name he governed Antioch, was able to

confront those adversaries who accused him of
heresy and worldly habits/ But when Aurelian
conquered Zenobia, and Antioch fell under the
power of the Romans, the combative bishop was
in

obliged to cede his post to his

rivals,

and, as far as

appearances go, his doctrine was silenced.

germs

still

remained, and,

later,

But

its

they developed, and

produced Arianism.

The

modalistic monarchianism

was an ancient

doctrine which had already been taught in

in the first half of the third century.

Rome

Preoccupied

with the peril inherent in the conception of a divine

personality,

which
^

in the

Euseb.j op.

Logos-Christ was affirmed

cit.j

p. 277,

20 sq.

THE DISCORD AMONG THE CHRISTIANS

to

153

be an emanation from the Godhead, that doctrine

aimed

at re-establishing the absolute unity of the

divinity, identifying the

making of the Son a

Father with the Son, and

personification,

an hypostasis

of the Father.

This doctrine, though metaphysically

most

wounded the

discreet,

Western

dominating

in

but was countenanced by

Christianity,

Zephyrinus and

ideas

Callistus, bishops of

From

Rome.

thence arose a dispute of which the antimonarchian

heroes were Hippolytus in

On

Africa.

the other

Rome and

Tertullian in

a large number con-

side

tended for the absolute unity of the Godhead, and

were known also under the name of Patripassians,

to indicate that,

sufferings of Christ, they

in the

saw the sufferings of the Father.

most important among all these was

whom

Sabellius

severe monotheism.

The

Holy Ghost were one

names applied

different

uplifted

its

the

Father, the
in essence,

to

one

from

name

of

banner of
Son, and
only three

single

Placed between Hippolytus on the one

and

last

Sabellius,

monarchianism took definitively

Sabellianism.

the

The

Being.

side,

and

Sabellius on the other. Bishop Callistus, although

inclined

to

monarchianism, devised a formula of

conciliation that satisfied neither of the parties

was

terribly obscure,

dictory phrases, that

it

and composed of such contrait

introduced the mysterious

and the incomprehensible as essential elements of

theology, and opened the way to the dogmatics of
future Orthodoxy.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

154
In
issue

fact,

Christian philosophy could find no other

from the

contend from

difficulties

its birth,

with which

had

it

to

except in the forced union of

monarchianism, which, by affirming the unity of

the Godhead,

became the pivot

and Origenism, which with

responded

personalities

faith,

manifold divine

its

to

new

of the

metaphysical

the

Greek mind. The great disputes

of the third and fourth centuries were just the
crucible in which was elaborated a doctrine composed by the fusion of two metals essentially
heterogeneous, and forcibly reunited.
The duel
between Arian heresy and Nicene orthodoxy was
the last act of this great theological drama in which
ancient society, in the agony of the empire, had
exhausted its strength, and from which was derived
the doctrine that has swayed the thought of
exigencies of the

humanity

until the present century.

Arianism, which in other words

is

the continua-

had

tion of Paul of Samosate's monarchianism,

origin in the school of Lucian of Antioch,

its

who had

been a disciple and friend of Paul of Samosate, and

held,

in the

first

eminent place in

Eastern Christianity.

He

died

year 312, and the fame and authority of his

in the

name

year of the fourth century, an

increased even after his death.

He

was one

of the last victims of Imperial persecution.

ducted

before

the

Emperor

Maximinus,

Confrom

Antioch to Nicomedia, he delivered an oration

defence of his

faith,

and then heroically

died.

in

This


THE DISCORD AMONG THE CHRISTIANS
man, excellent

every respect and

in

erudition, according

influence

to

full

155

of sacred

Eusebius,^ had under his

the future heroes of Arianism, Arius

all

among the
the memory of

and

himself

first,

that

the martyr,

is

it

not improbable

who had

instructed

them and gave such an admirable example, inflamed

them with enthusiasm for the cause they sustained.
However, Lucian had mixed a great deal of
metaphysical water with the rationalistic wine of

For him the Logos-Christ, if

not a humanised God, was certainly not a divinised
man, he was a Being intermediate between the two
Paul of Samosate.

the

creature created by

first

God from

nothingness,

with the office of elevating the rest of creation, of

mankind the celestial Father, and of

them, by his life and death, an example

revealing to
offering to

of absolute perfection.

These

whose encounter
produced the incendiary spark on one side the
the

are

currents

who,

Lucianists,

while

position of Christ, did

divinity

recognising

these were

against

the

special

not admit his substantial

the Origenists,

who

admitted the divinity, but affirmed, at the same

time,

its

a third

subordination

sect,

against both of these arose

the Sabellians,

who saw

personification of the Father.

in

in Christ the

These three

one way or another, represented the

tendency
party,
'

in Christianity.

and

to this

Euseb., op.

cit., p.

parties,

rationalistic

But there was yet another

was reserved the success of the

342, 10 sq.

roT? Upois jiaOyifiaaL avyKeKpoTrjixevos.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

156

They acknowledged

future.

the distinction between

the two divine Persons, but did not acknowledge the

subordination of the one to the other, and main-

They propounded

tained the unity of the essence.

And

mystery.

human

soul

just

above

because mystery

force of attraction that assured

It

them the

the

had a

final victory.

was the Presbyter Arius, a most singular and

interesting man,
fire

raised

rational contingencies, they

who

kindled the spark that set on

the whole Christian world, and, for

more than

a century, enveloped humanity in a conflagration

He

of theological passions.

and admirer of Lucian,

writer, a poet,

an acute

most powerful

to Alexandria,

disciple

of talent and energy

logician,

Lucianist

and possessed of

came from Antioch

where he had been elected presbyter

by the Bishop Alexander.

For some time the

bishop and the presbyter were in perfect accord

but the
Arius,

fire

and an undaunted

fascination

The young

courage.

full

was a devoted

was smouldering under the

ashes, for

imbued as he was with the doctrines of

Lucian, could not endure the theological tendencies

of Alexander, which to

Sabellianism.

him seemed

inclined towards

Socrates relates that

ander, in the presence of

all

one day Alex-

the presbyters and the

clergy, held a great discourse, dogmatising, to

make

a parade of his learning, concerning the Trinity,

and teaching
^

Socrat.,

op.

that, in the Trinity, exists the Unity.^

cit.,

p.

8.

(^uXoriixoT^pov irepl rrjs dylas rptaSo?, iv

rpidbi fxovaba elvai (pikoaocficoVj edeoXoyei.


THE DISCORD AMONG THE CHRISTIANS
This

appearing

tunity to

Arius

to

bishop,

the

against

revolt

accused him of Sabellianism.

he said

''generated the
was a time

exist

he

bitterly-

Father"

From

this

it

is

manifest

which the Son did not

in

and, necessarily, he must have been created

Around

from nothing."
hold

If the

Son, the generated had a

beginning of existence.
that there

oppor-

favourable

157

all

the tenets

accepted because

these propositions, which

of Arianism,

of

their

theological conflagration.
to withstand the peril.

and were

clearness,

easily

raged the

But Alexander was able

He

had beside him another

young presbyter, Athanasius, who, strong of soul

and broad-minded, was for Arius a rival whom he

And

could not easily overcome.

bottom of

theoloo^ical

this

very essence of Christianity,

the reciprocal

same

Upon

war washed about the

there was naught save

antipathy of two domineering and

intolerant youths
in the

perhaps, at the

who were

not able to live together

place.

this,

Alexander convened a Council that

solemnly unseated Arius and his followers,

sent to

all

the

bishops of

Christianity

''to

and
the

beloved and honoured colleacrues of the Catholic

Church wherever they be found " ^ a long circular

in which he called attention to the errors of Arius,
and justified his condemnation. But Alexander
committed the imprudence, perhaps voluntary, of
^

Socrat., op.

a'f., p.

9.

rots dyairr^Tols

Tois d7ravTa)^ov rrjs Ka6oXLK7]s KK\T]crias.

kcli TLficociTdTois

avWeiTovpyols

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

158

naming

in

his

Nicomedia,
Eusebius,

distantly

related

the

to

of

Now

family

of

of great influence, and one

not tranquilly accept the imputations of

Alexander/

Greatly incensed, he openly took the

part of Arius,

of those

heretic.

man

Constantine, was a

who would

dangerous

as

Bishop

Eusebius,

circular

and bringing together the testimony

who agreed

bishops

with

him, ordered

his colleague to annul the sentence that

condemned

Arius.

In the midst of this discord that inflamed

East,

Constantine

Quos

ego.

At

suddenly

moment

very

the

appeared

all

with

the
his

which he

in

congratulated himself on the possession of a most

instrument, this instrument broke in his

precious

Sole and absolute master of the world, he

hands.

believed that his word would be sufficient to calm

the tumult, so he wrote

that

letter

practical

is

which he

sense, in

to arrange their differences,

a theological dispute that

Christianity,

Alexander and Arius

to

model of reasonableness and

and rendered

to the unbelievers.^

But

at fever heat, Athanasius

it

tries to

and

induce them

an end to

to put

threw discredit upon

an object of contempt

their passions

were now

and Arius fed the

and the Quos ego of the Emperor was not

to extinguish the

The

flame,

sufficient

fire.

essential points in the doctrines of Arius

ii. Sozom.,

Socrat., op.

Socrat., op cit.y p. 13.

cit.^ p.

op.

cit., p.

348.


THE DISCORD AMONG THE CHRISTIANS
were

by himself

unfolded

and

written in verse,

a treatise,

in

159
partly

Thalia, portions of

entitled

same written by
Arius said that he was persecuted
Athanasius.
because opposed to the affirmation that the Son
was equal to the Father, and that he had emanated
from him, that there was a unity of substance
between the generated and the generator, and that
the one and the other had coexisted without
which remain

in confutation of the

God

beginning and before time.

who has

alone,

become Father by the production of the Son, has

not been generated, being alone and inorganic, and
having his being
essence, he

God
and

above

is

Inexpressible in his

in himself.

Man

all.

negatively, saying that he

that

there

is

outside

of the

Son

the

not generated,

is

nothing above him, since he

the beginning of everything.

falls

can only speak of

divine

Therefore the Son

essence.

The

indication

Word, Wisdom of God,

as Logos,

is

is,

by

Arius, considered inappropriate because the Logos,

Wisdom, Reason
his essence.

of God,

is

an inherent faculty of

Arius thus combats the tendency of

Origen's theology to

offer,

by means of the Logos,

a second and yet always divine hypostasis, thus

rendering impossible every evolution of the conception of

God.

The Son

as the Father.
will

of

He

God from

is

same substance
the creature created by the
is

not of the

nothing

to the creation of the world.

aX7]6iv6^

^09.

The

divine

qvk ovtcov

He

is

to

proceed

not truly

dignity

that

God

Arius

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

160

him comes

recognises in

God, comes to him from

on

him as a

to

his participation in the

from

gift

consequent

his divinisation,

wisdom and the Logos

of God.

Against

this doctrine of Arius,

Bishop Alexander,

certainly at the dictation of Athanasius, proclaimed

unity of Father and

the inseparable

Son, the Logos,

is in

the

bosom

The

Son.

of the Father, and,

as the creator of everything, he cannot be created

From

from nothing.

his eternal essence

direct opposition to the created,

and

for this

there can be no difference between

Son, and

it

not be

could

he

is

in

reason

Father and

otherwise, because the

Father was always equal to himself and had ever

in

himself his Logos, his

the

Son not by a

position

to the exterior, but

divinity

itself.

unity.

The

in

is

is

(^eo-i?),

his Son.

from the

by the nature of

He

interior

his paternal

Father and Son have an absolute

is

distinct

one with him

from the Father, and,

in divinity

and

in

in essence,

explained by the generation of the Son by the

Father, which indicates a derivation of the

from the other, but a derivation that

all

is

mysterious relation by which the Son

one respect

another,

Wisdom,

conception of time.

In short,

it

is

is

one

beyond

a relation

incomprehensible to man.

Admitting the premise of wishing

inexpressible,

it

is

certain

that

Alexander and Athanasius,

in

to express the

these formulas of

which we

find

breath of Platonic Origenism, have a metaphysical

THE DISCORD AMONG THE

value

much

CPHIISTIANS

IGl

greater than those of the Arian formulas,

which, notwithstanding their apparent rationalism,

explained nothing.

rational theology

All attempts to found theology on reason

sible.

have led to inevitable

more

to

voluntarily

it

itself in

mystery.

is all

parts

If the

the

of

simplicity

the

would have evinced an aspiration

metaphysical

theology

administering

it

with

in small

to retain

mysteries,

its

human

make
by

it

their

who, intensifying the formulas of the incom-

prehensible and the mysterious, inebriated

only

understanding,

they were predestined to be overcome

in

they

truly original.

doses, so as to

less offensive to the

rivals,

with

Arians

Gospel,

But from the moment that they decided

seem

the

abandoned metaphysical ideas and

had resolutely
returned

Theology

failure.

when

acceptable

reason and wraps

and

impos-

is

lifted

it

to

an atmosphere

which

in

mankind

it

had, as

a vision, the presentiment of the supernatural

those visions

inspired

and presentiments of which the

pages of

St.

Augustine

are

the

most

eloquent manifestations.

Constantine finding that

these

tranquillise

all

contentions

personal efforts to

were

vain,

persuaded by his Minister for Theological

and

Affairs,

Hosius, Bishop of Cordova, decided, in the year 325,

convene at Nicsea a great Council, which was

to

charged with establishing the definite formula of

the Faith, and he gave to the deliberations of this

Council the power and

VOL.

I.

II

jurisdiction

of Imperial

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

162

authority, thus

hoping

impose the harmony that

to

by persuasion he had not been able to obtain.

The Council of Nicaea was an assembly obedient
to Constantine's will

was

composed a formula which

it

be accepted by

to

beginning, there were

The

disputes.

Nicomedia,

many

Arians,

the

future

But, in the

parties.

all

difficulties

by

led

and

fierce

Eusebius

instructor

of

of

Julian,

their Lucianist formula,

but it was
by a majority of three hundred bishops.

presented
rejected

Then

Semi-Arians, the Origenists, came

the

for-

ward with a new formula, proposed by Eusebius

of Caesaraea, which, being most ambiguous and
avoiding all precise determinations, might perhaps
But the party that
have satisfied every one.
Orthodoxy would not be
persuaded, and, instigated by Hosius, the intimate

afterwards represented

counsellor

mover

of

who was

Constantine,

the

chief

combinations behind the scenes

in all the

of the Council, proposed a third formula, or rather

a correction of the Eusebian formula, includinor the

famous word

o^ioovcno^,

consubstantial, which

ex-

pressed the absolute identity and unity of substance

of the Father
that this

and of the Son.^

word excited

great,

reasonable opposition, because

Notwithstanding

and we might
it

say,

was new, unusual

in

the theological vocabulary, and smacking strongly

of Sabellian monarchianism,

and therefore destined

to annul the personality of Christ, the

^

Socrat., op. at., p. 19-

Council

THE DISCORD AMONG THE CHRISTIANS

yielded to the will of Constantine.

163

In publishing

and enforcing the deliberations of the Council,

exhibited

Constantine
epistolary

and

and

zeal

how

ardour, that proved

oratorical

an

energy,

much he considered

the calminor
o of this theolocrical
o
And he decided
wrath a supreme affair of State.
to give the Council the

and

intervention,

banquets,

so

importance

also

as

of ostentatious

magnify

to

the

in

sanction of his personal

eyes

splendour and

its

of

pomp and

Emperor deceived himself with the idea

had established peace

same

But the

felt

Origenist

illusion

to

soon vanished.

new cause

position

of

The Nicene
discord.
The

East was too essentially Arian and

swallow

willingly

presented by the Emperor.

his

government

the need.

formula became a
ecclesiastical

that he

Church, and, at the

in the

time, created that instrument of

of which he

The

people/

the

was

this

bitter

pill

Constantine saw that

and

untenable,

although

he

making and receiving declarations of

Orthodoxy, he began to change his attitude towards
the most noted among those anathematised by the
Council of Nicaea, and readmitted to his favour
Eusebius of Nicomedia and Theognis of Nicaea.And, a little later, encompassed by priestly and
feminine snares, he went so far even as to permit

persisted in

Arius to return to Alexandria.^

^

Sozom., op. cit., p. 357.

Socrat., op. ciL^ p. 50.

But Constantine

Socrat.. op.

cit., p.

36.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

164

forgot to take into consideration that Athanasius

become Bishop of Alexandria, and that

Athanasius was not a man to bend to his will and

had

consent to a reconciliation with his abhorred

In

fact,

the encounter of the two

men

rival.

caused the

renewal of angry contentions and mutual recriminaConstantine hesitated between the two, but

tion.

seemed
and

it

towards Arius and Eusebius,

incline

to

probable that there would have been a

is

complete change of position, had not the sudden

and mysterious death of Arius

The

of its greatest support.

make a deep

to

deprived his party

death of Arius seemed

impression on Constantine,

who

himself died a year afterwards, leaving the Church

even more divided than

was before the Council

and lacerated by such

of Nicsea,
to deprive

it

of

The

servers.^

it

fierce passions as

attraction to disinterested ob-

all

divine and

Gospel had become a

simple

religion of the

of furious and often

field

bloody contentions concerning empty metaphysical

subtleties.

who

Constantius,

the empire of the

influence

more

succeeded

East, seeing

was on the
in

the

that

in

the greater

side of the Arians,

free than his father,

promised

father

his

and being

not having been com-

deliberation

of the

Council of

Nicaea, did not hesitate to exile Athanasius from

Alexandria,
1

Socrat., op.

following
cit.^ p.

62.

the

Amm.

advice

MarcelL, op.

of
at., vol.

Eusebius,
i.

p. 271, 15.

THE DISCORD AMONG THE CHRISTIANS

whom

165

he had called from Nicomedia to the see of

Constantinople.

But the theology of the Emperor

was dominated by

political necessities.

Constantius
Constans,

governed

the

in

son

other

the

upheld

East

the

in

West,

Now, while
Arianism,

Constantine,

of

unfurled

banner of

the

Orthodoxy, and so great was his devotion to

this

he threatened to make war on his

that

cause,

who

brother unless he immediately recalled Athanasius,

who had appealed

stantius, not

already

internal

of Persia, the difficulties of an

with

struggle

theological

tempered

difficulties that

account of his campaign

him, on

King

Con-

for protection.-^

wishing to add to the

beset

against the

him

to

brother,

his

Arianism, and, in the year

his zeal for

346, replaced Athanasius in the see of Alexandria,

and with repeated and courteous

him

to

pay a

visit to his court,

bishop had very

little

letters

compelled

although the acute

faith in the sincerity of the

Emperor.^
After events proved

how

Athanasius were founded.

killed

well the suspicions of

Constans having been

by the rebel Magnentius, and

his brother

Constantius becoming the sole Emperor, without

any

obstacle

or

fear,

he

returned

to

his

primitive ecclesiastical policy, immediately expelled

Athanasius from his see of Alexandria, to which he

had only

just

probability,
^

returned,

and would even,

have had him murdered,

Socrat., op.

cit., p.

88.

/^/^^

if

in

all

the bishop,

^//^

g^^

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

166

advised of his danger, had not saved himself by

still

from the

city.

But Constantius

persisted in his persecution.

In the year 355,

a timely escape

he convened a
desired

that

solemn

would

that

Athanasius

prevent

from ever returninor to Alexandria.

sentence
resisted

and

Milan,

should pronounce a sentence of

it

condemnation

Council at

three

Western

Asfainst this

courageously

bishops

they were Paulinus of Treves, Dionysius

The

of Alba, and Eusebius of Vercelli.

Council

of Milan was dissolved, after having added fresh

fuel

the

to

flames,

which

had already reached

frightful dimensions.

But the
united,

The

rivals of

Athanasius were not

and discord soon broke out

pure Arians, led by Aetius

sufficiently

in their

camp.

restless

and

audacious personage of whom, later on,

we

hear

affirming

the

more were

distinct

not

personality

contented
of

the

with

shall

Father and the

Son, but insisted that they w^ere also dissimilar

substance.

The

Origenist Arians, or Semi-Arians,

as they called themselves, of

was the

in

whom

Basil of

leader, while holding that the

were substantially

Ancyra

two Persons

distinct, afifirmed the equality of

Between these Semi-Arians

and the Athanasians there was a great contention
concerning an "i." While the Athanasians insisted
that the Son was ofioova-m with the Father, that is
to say, that he had the same substance, the

the two substances.

Semi-Arians interposed an

"i,"

saying that the

THE DISCORD AMONG THE CHRISTIANS

Son was

that

ofioLovaio^y

is,

167

of a distinct substance

These moderate
Arians were evidently anxious to come to some
This
sort of compromise with the Athanasians.
but similar to that of the Father.

famous

"

which they introduced into the adjective

invented at Nicaea, was their effort to defend themselves against the fearful peril of seeing disappear,

together with the distinction of substance,

the hypostases, as they

Sabellian
which would have been a

between the Persons

them

that
called

fall

monarchianism.

into

they could have been assured

If

of the distinction between the Persons,

probable

they had

confused

and

Constantius,

more

with

through

pass

to

ardent

would

Arianism,

excluded

would

parties

most

is

have

been

But, before they could arrive at this

reconciled.
point,

these

that

it

and

more

accept

no

tion of the hypostases, admitted

of

Emperor

compromise,

while preserving the duality and

formulas

for

and
that,

the subordina-

not the identity

but the equality of the substance.

of Constantius

period

enthusiastic

those

suspicion

The

disputes.

The Court

was wholly Arian, and

violently

however much the bishops whose influence was paramount therein concealed their
Arian,

real

In

opinions.

the ''i"

a snare than a defence.

they found more of

Rigorous Arianism was,

however, no longer sustainable, as

in all

directions.

pretence

of

Constantius, in

moderation,

it

was attacked

order to

exiled

Aetius,

make
the


JULIAN THE APOSTATE

168

leader of the
for

became

peace

and

and

formulas,

East

In the

succeeded

Council

succeeded

formulas

and necessity

desire

most evident.

West,

the

in

The

Arians.

Council,

whole

the

Christian world resounded with interminable dis-

which the subtlety of the argument

cussions, in

developed the sparks that kindled new discords,

and

come

seemed

it

impossible

word ova La

the Arians was the

was found

that

The bone

to an end.

would

it

ever

of contention

for

substance which

in the

formula of the Origenistic and

moderate Arians.

Before that word, the bishops

who
him

around

were

intrigues Valens,
Ursacius,

Acacius
mistrust much

with

their

Germinius,

their

felt

and they began

increased,
Basil

encompassing

Constantius

Ancyra, and

of

bestir themselves.

to

his

who had

associates,

invented the famous "i," were subjected to even

These
would

more suspicion than the pure Athanasians.

courtier bishops tried to find a formula that

them from the

had officially

distinguish

with

Aetius,

but one that

them of

might

at

victory over

fallen

the

their

into

same

discredit,

time assure

abhorred

rivals,

By

machinations,

"homoical"

was equal
Kara

their

influence

they

founded

party,

to the

Trjv /BoTjXrjaLv

and through
a

new

which admitted

their

party,

the

the

Son

that

Father according to the

but they refused

and

Nicene

prevent the possible resurrection of the

doctrine.

who,

Arians,

violent

will

most absolutely


THE DISCORD AMONG THE CHRISTIANS
to

169

admit the possibility of an equality of substance.

This party established

Sirmio,

the

in

things

year

affirmed

generically

itself

Kara iravra

value,

those

was

with

359,

equal
its

in

all

But that

indetermination had no

by the

tending to Arianism, in the

that issued from the tempestuous

influence

of

formula

final

Synods of Rimini

The resemblance

and Seleucia.

was

to the Father.

excluded

later

formula that

Son

the

that

Kara iravra, which from

for the first time at

of

Son

the

to

the Father was only determined by the distinction

contained in the following words

Scriptures

put there as a

according

talisman to prevent this

form from ever being attacked.^

the year preceding his

to the

Constantius in

death, before starting for

Constantinople, imposed this opportunistic formula

on the Church, deceiving himself with the

ing idea

When

having settled

of

means of a

dispute by

political

serious

flatter-

doctrinal

compromise.

hand the reins of government, he found the Empire subjected to a peace

imposed on a basis of opportunism.
It was
evident that this peace did not possess any
stability, and Julian, in the interest of his own
Julian took in

cause, precipitated

see

later

on, declared

to all parties
^

rupture.

its

Socrat., op.

'ai delai ypa(f)al

He, as we

himself to

shall

be extraneous

and theological disputes among the

czt.,

p.

126.

Koi didd(rKOV(rt.

ofioiov X4yofiev vlov

tw

Trdrpi cosXiyova-tu

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

170

Christians, and, therefore, permitted

the bishops

to return to their sees,

and

was exactly those bishops who formed the

dis-

by Constantius

exiled
it

all

contented element in
visions proved true

men on
and

each

party.

pre-

Julian's

the return of these pugnacious

the theological stage rekindled the discords

But

disputes.

had

that he

it

did not have the consequence

anticipated, namely, the

humiliation

Athanasius returned to

of detested Christianity.

Alexandria, only to be expelled again by Julian,

intolerance of which he

the sole act of manifest

was

guilty

innate

but

disposition

vivified

indomitable energy, and his

his

of

immediately

agitator,

and reorganised

and thus he

party,

his

re-

placed his victorious opponents, the Arians, in a

most

difficult

passed

in

position.

the

exile,

During the three years

defender of Nicene
old

Orthodoxy had participated

of

the

and

struggle,

writings, dogmatic,
alive
his

by

all

of the

of

historical, apologetic,

enemies that he was

one could

the emotions

series

courage of his friends,

the

writings

in

old

but

easily see the

still

spirited

he kept

and reminded
In

living.

these

not exhausted athlete,

tendency to make peace

with the defeated partisans of the

ofioLovaia,

similitude of the substance of the Father

of the

and the

Son, and to lessen the difference that distinguished

them from the partisans of the

between the two substances.

o/ioovo-La,

In

the identity

the anticipated

and possible accord between Orthodoxy and the


THE DISCORD AMONG THE CHRISTIANS
of ancient

Origenistic faction

open
to

hostility with

the

be able to gain

triumphant

the

in

over

victory

dead,

remained master of the

the

in

he hoped

the

heresy

of Constantius and

court

Julian

world.-^

official

Arianism, then

violent faction,

l7l

heroic

the

bishop

and he gave un-

field,

questionable proofs of the nobility and magnanimity

of his character

West,

the

movement towards

was promoted by two authors of great

conciliation

West

In the

conciliation.

intellect

by openly making advances towards

Hilarius,

the

called

Athanasius of the

and Marius Victorinus, the Neo-Platonic

philosopher,

whom

of

touching conversion.^

Augustine
In

the

narrates

East

the

the

move-

ment had received great assistance from those

three renowned personages of the Church, called
the three Cappadocians
Basil the Great, Gregory
of Nyssa, and Gregory of Nazianzus, the most

bitter of Julian's enemies.

of the essence

of the

The

Origenist similitude

Father and Son became

transformed into the Athanasian identity of essence,

same time, the distinct Trinity of the

Thus was
was solemnly proclaimed.

but, at the

Persons

founded the essential dogma of Christian metaphysics

fxia

single

substance in three persons

ovaLa ev rpiaiv vTroardaeaLv.

With

Theodosius

this

formula

became

supreme law, not only of the Church, but

^

Gummerus,

August., Confess.^

Dz'e

homousianische Partei^ 1900.

p. 8, 2 sq.

the

also of

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

172

the State, and he threatened severe punishment

who dared disobey

to those

it,

and thus rehgious

intolerance entered into the world and

In the West, the Nicene Orthodoxy

reign.

its fatal

became

commenced

diffused

and

easily took

the great disputes, the

favour of Athanasius.

root,

as,

during

West had always been in

The only episode of import-

ance was the contest between Ambrose and the

Empress Regent,

who had brought

Justina,

Milan a lingering sympathy

sought

to

gather

at

her

for

court

partisans of the defeated doctrine.

Arianism,
the

to

and

dispersed

But Ambrose,

who had

already developed a great spirit of intoler-

ance

the State, and

in

won over

to

triumphant

Orthodoxy Gratian, the predecessor and half-brother

of Valentinianus ii., of whom Justina was the mother
and guardian, unhesitatingly opposed
to those of the

his

views

Empress, and, being sure of the

devotion of the people, obtained an easy victory.

Arianism

in

the

Roman

world was extinct, and

Orthodoxy was given an empire that was not disturbed even when Arianism reappeared on the

by the Goths and the Longobards. The great theological drama whose elements
were elaborated in the third century, and in which,
scene, brought back

at Nicaea, the State

appeared with Constantine as

the principal actor, was finished at the end of the

fourth

century.

Ambrose ended

Athanasius had begun.

institute

the

work

that

Constantine desired to

an Orthodox religion that would be an

THE DISCORD AMONG THE CHRISTIANS

173

Gratian and Theodosius

made

instrument of State
it

a power to which the State served as an

And human

ment.

thought

remained

instru-

for

ever

imprisoned

The

Orthodoxy alhed with

right" of Arianism, was an event
the Origenist
of supreme importance, and determined the direction

victory of Nicene

of

through

Christianity

From

centuries.

victory

this

series

of

was created meta-

and dogmatic

physical, scientific,

long

Christianity.

If

the doctrine of Paul of Samosata had triumphed,

which was

later that of pure Arianism, the simple

doctrine that affirmed

revealed by a

man

the existence of one

God

rendered divine because of

Augustine nor Thomas could

his virtues, neither

The

ever have been possible.

conception, accessible and

would have rendered the

simplicity of the

comprehensible to
difficult

all,

and complicated

dogmatic constructions unnecessary.

because

trine, just

it

But this docwas simple, could not satisfy

Graeco-Roman mind, which

metaphysical fantasies, and full

the exigencies of the

was
of

thirsting for

enthusiasm

for

Plotinus, Porphyry,

the

Platonic

idealism

that

and the Neo-Platonics had

re-

Origen was the

and true lawgiver of Christian metaphysics,

kindled in the world of thought.

first

which he constructed with the materials of NeoPlatonism.

which the

This metaphysic was a cosmology

ideas,

retained the

in

under the form of divine hypostases,

same functions

as they had in Plato's

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

174

The

philosophy.

Origenist cosmology was already

in itself fantastic, complicated,

allied with

Nicene Orthodoxy,

and mysterious.
it

became

still

of comprehension, or, to express

difficult

it

But

more
more

became more irrational, because from

that Orthodoxy absolutely denied the
subordination of the Logos to God, and affirmed

exactly,

the

it

moment

the absolute unity of substance in the three Persons,

at the

same time

insisting that they

were

distinct,

we have already said, intensified the mystery.

From this came the creation of a religion, meta-

it,

as

physical, cosmological,

structed

in

all

its

and incomprehensible, con-

parts

by the

great

mind

of

Augustine, and imposed on the world as a

dogma

that could not be discussed, because the

Church

alone held

its

key.

And

henceforth the pure and

divine inspiration of the Gospel was buried.

The

became the absolute master of human

thought, in it alone was to be found the knowledge
of truth, and, outside of this, there was nothing
but error and damnation.
Church

While
in the

in the

world of theological thought and

great debates of the Councils they ardently

discussed

the

movement by which

the

Platonic

became ingrafted on the trunk of monotheism

and created a dogmatic theology composed of inideas

comprehensible theses, and, just because incomprehensible,

imposed as

being diffused

articles of faith, Christianity,

in all the strata of society,

took the


THE DISCORD AMONG THE CHRISTIANS
place of paganism, and itself

And

idolatrous.

because

the

were not

intellectual

be otherwise,

not

conditions

of

humanity

changed, and therefore the

in the least

and pagans

Christians

became paganised and

could

this

175

unaltered

retained

their

conception of the deity and of his influence on the

The

and the

martyrs

took

the

place of the ancient divinities, their worship

was

world.

saints

modelled on the polytheistic

following princi-

rites,

pally the lines of the Mysteries.

says Miiller^
place that

"absorbed polytheism and

The

vacant.

left

it

world were restored to

religious

life

ceremonies were

interruption.

The
As in

There was no

aspect of the world remained

paganism, the religious senti-

ment of the people expressed

and correct fulfilment of
richer

The

Church.

the ecclesiastical

and ceremonies.

life

took the

immediate continuation of

the

the ancient

the regular

itself in

ritualistic duties,

so the

and more pompous the forms and

monies, the better the people were

made by

impression

that

abandoned
Christian

Christianity

itself

above

is,

to

satisfied.

Christianity on

world was only skin deep.

conscious

these

all,

cere-

The

the ancient

Only a few seemed

ought

not

tendencies

called to

to

that

have
the

an intimate and

immediate communion with God,

and

consciousness leads him to asceticism."

^

"

ruins of the ancient

in the

of the people and

life

the same.

Christianity

Miiller, Kirchengeschichte^ p. 206.

that

this

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

176

Constantine, wishing to use the Church for his

own
gave

make

purposes, to

it

an instrument of power,

wealth and privileges, thus radically trans-

it

was no longer that religious brotherhood, composed of poor and humble people, often
forming

It

it.

persecuted, without worldly influence, and content

with the simple worship celebrated in obscure and

Triumphant Christianity

dwellings.

private

the need of imposing

means of a luxury
strengthen the

itself

on the multitude by

that attracts,

faith.

In

felt

its

and legends that

evolution

it

profited

by the spirit of the times in contact with paganism

it became worldly, and acquired many of its habits.
Hence the pomp, the luxury, and the numerous
;

hierarchies that were prevalent even in the fourth

The

was developed, festivals

established, and, by means of the Councils, dogmas
were formulated and defended with the greatest
century.

ardour.

The

liturgy

life

of the clergy and of the bishops

no longer resembled that of the members of the

It became corrupt and luxurious.
primitive Church.

Ammianus
enriched

describes the bishops of the

by the

gifts

of

around the streets seated

attired,

in

the

drove

splendidly

and lovers of abundant banquets, surpassing

those of the Imperial table."

The Church accepted the

Roman administration, adopted
archy,

matrons,

coaches

who,

cities,

and

felt
^

divisions
its

the desire to have a great

Amm.

Marcell., op.

cit., vol.

ii.

of

the

ideas of hier-

p. loo.

number

THE DISCORD AMONG THE CHRISTIANS

177

Preoccupied with worldly cares,

of functionaries.

they forgot that love of the weak and the poor

which was originally their great power of attraction.

simple religion, a supreme God, Creator

and

of heaven

earth, a

Redeemer

of humanity, did

men accustomed to a multiplicity of

and of gods. The Church was thererecognise secondary and more human

not suffice for

sanctuaries
fore led to
divinities,

to

and thus

it

whom
felt

it

might address

And

supreme God.

worship of the

Ancient

from

religion,

with

rendered to

this

arose

the

its

saint gathered

numerous

divinities,

cover of this

cult.

around him the same adorers

previously had directed their prayers to the

ancient pagan divinities.

these divinities

Mercury,

they

property

in

The

their various

favoured

functions.

enterprises,

of the saints ended

and only

saints substituted

Like

protected

^sculapius, they restored health.

like

The worship
true

it

saints.

continued to live under the

The
who

prayers,

obliged to institute a secondary

worship by the side of that which

the

its

by becoming the

religion of the people, to

whom

the

dogmas remained unknown. And it was by this

worship that Christianity was able to take the
place of paganism, whose forms it had adopted.
In
all

the exterior

triumphed.

religious manifestations

paganism

There was not the slightest struggle

and Christianity as to the

between paganism
greater or
VOL.

I.

less

12

prevalence

of

superstition

and

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

178
ceremonial

itself into

the

as the faithful

conquest,

had

former

the

quietly

introduced

making continued progress

increased, and, at the end of the
latter,

they found

that

the

Church,

without

was transformed, and that

external worship was nothing else than the

being conscious of
its

it,

restoration of the ancient worship/

The

paganising of Christianity which took place

dogmas and worship was

also

evident in

in

its

its

customs, as soon as Christianity became the

dominant and recognised

religion,

The

conquering the masses.

and succeeded

in

tenacity with which

they held to their treasures, and the desire for the

pleasures of this world, was, by no means, weakened

by conversion to Christianity. As far as morality

was concerned, there was no difference between
We might almost say that
Christian and pagan.
paganism was partly purified by unburdening on
Christianity some of its most corrupt elements. And
it

was quite natural that

this

Under

should happen.

was necessary
To remain pagan it

the Christian emperors Christianity

to achieve success in

life.

required great virtue and strong convictions.

The

by the Court, and by Constantine's

family
which
that of Constantius, for example
was dominated by intrigues, under the absolute
spectacle offered

sway of eunuchs, noted

^

p.

Miiller,

413.

op.

cit.^

p.

199.

Hatch, Griecheniwn

Chretiejine.

for

Harnack,
und

the perpetration of

Dogmengeschichte,
Christentum. Marignan,

vol.

ii.

La Foi

AMONG THE CHRISTIANS

THE. DISCORD

179

Neronian murders, was a proof of the moral ship-

wreck that Christianity had encountered when, from

being a religion of persecuted humanity,
the

was obliged

Christianity

to

use

it

As

religion of State.

recognised

all

the strength

of this minority in resisting persecution,

powerful moral
in

them

sentiments

when

Christianity,

of

heroic

victorious,

rested

in

the

the

became

and

So

and devote

to

were no better than they had

men and

phenomenon had been

parties

happened that

it

And, furthermore,

the condition of

to

render worse

an entirely new

things,

introduced, that of theo-

and disputations.

Metaphysics

the ancient world was a matter of opinion.

Hellenised

in

return

man, notwithstanding that they

Christian,

been before.

logical

to

energies that were no longer engaged

supreme combat.

world

But

quietly

free

to the indulgence of his passions

evil all the

was a

virtue.

and peace, leaving man

security

it

men, and developed

with

force

became
long as

in

But

made of metaphysics an
From this sprang doctrinal
because faith in dogma became the

Christianity

undisputable dogma.
intolerance,

condition

tended to possess
it,

and,

of salvation,

the

all

errors

in

theological

the

Ammianus

discord

Marcellinus,

truth,

but also

their

they

felt

duty,

to

other sects, not alone

with reason, but with violence.

of

each party pre-

absolute

not only their right,

combat

as

was
as

so

The

spectacle

scandalous

we have

seen,

that

did

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

180

not hesitate to affirm that

each

ated

the

with

other

the

Christians

lacer-

of

ferocity

wild

beasts.

But the innate essence of Christianity possessed

such great force, and responded so efficaciously
the absolute

to

exigencies

ment

the conditions

to

oneself

is

world

order

and

the

rise

was, by no means,

tion

society

and the

in

to

the

say,
to

isolate

through

ideal

unknown

to the ancient world.

But the Christian

of a

abase-

its

life

Asceticism, that

of

renunciation

of ordinary

soul

took form and substance

This reaction

monachism.

in

human

the

was inevitable against

that a reaction

world.

of

was the

innovation
of

contemplation,

constitu-

monks who, among them-

selves, realised the Christian ideal in all its purity.

Thus

there

Christianity

came to be two Christianities the

that was of the world, and that was
:

necessarily corrupted

those

who

separating

practised
itself

from

and abased
it,

to the level

and a Christianity

of

that,

organised

the world, in the

solitude of convents, kept alive the ideal aspirations

and virtues of which the Gospel was the

divine law.

Monachism,

the world, went astray from

in

order to harmonise with

also

became

an

worldly interests.

everything

like

its

in

ideal purity, and,

mundane

instrument

human

of

But, originally,

exigencies,

passions
it

and

represented

a salutary reaction that saved Christianity, because

it

kept alive the power of

its

influence,

when

the

THE DISCORD AMONG THE CHRISTIANS

181

came from its heroism in persecuThe demands

tion had become extinguished.
in the Hfe of the citizen, domestic and civil,
attraction that

lowered Christianity to the level of the paganism

to

which

an

it

organisation

appeared,

Monachism created

had succeeded.

and,

in

which

in

this

these

narration

celebrated

We

sustained

the

may judge from

Pontitianus

of

Augustine,^

of

Confessions

dis-

manner,

high ideals of Christianity.

the

necessities

in

impression

the

the

and

marvellous influence that the monachal example

exercised

at

the

end of the fourth century,

promoting conversion

in

to Christianity.

The monastic movement found

support

and

favour in Athanasius and the Orthodox party, while

Arianism regarded

And

this

is

gained the

it

with antipathy and suspicion.

one of the reasons why Athanasius

final

same

rationalism, but, at the

Christianity.

were

Arianism

victory.

represented

time, the sterility of

Mystic ideality and moral sentiment

completely

through

lost

was being adapted, without

Christianity

it.

restraint

and with-

out salutary reaction, to the necessities of social

life

and worldly

doxy was

The

interest.

Ambrose,

different.

attitude of Orthoit

is

true,

urged

Gratian and Theodosius towards intolerance, but

he did not hesitate

powerful

to confront the violent

Theodosius,

acknowledgment of
^

his

August., op.

and

all-

demand of him an
crimes.
The Arian and

and

cit.y

Book

viii.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

182

Semi-Arian

bishops

Constantine,

and

indulging the

and

preserved,

Imperial

to

faults

the

this

sought

gain

by

influence

Athanasian

party

than their

rivals,

a higher degree

in

surrounded

Constantius,

later

In

favour.

who

instead,

the sentiment of the moral essence of Christianity,

and favoured monachism as a protest against

vading worldliness.

we

this

in

find,

It

period

noblest and most

because of

is

of theological
figures

attractive

in-

that

this
strife,

the

the ranks

in

of Nicene Orthodoxy.

Monachism, which had

found the ground
practised

asceticism

its

ready

beginnings in Egypt,

prepared

through

by the followers of

Isis

the

and

and might have become a danger to the

Church, if its protest had developed into open re-

Serapis,

But victorious Orthodoxy, exercising over

bellion.
it

a wise and moderating influence, restrained

it

within the limits of a religious affirmation that kept

alive

and

However,

visible
if

the

flame of Christian

monachism has undoubtedly

saving the Christian

ideal,

it

ideals.

assisted in

has also helped to make

more worldly-minded, because it has

established a clear and precise division between

the Church

those

who

practised,

in

principles of Christianity,

them to
became

their

all

existence,

in

certain

the

point

bosom

the

and those who adapted

their worldly interests.

to

purity,

This adaptation

legitimised

of the

Church,

organisation that assumed the office of

by the
of an

fulfilling, in

THE DISCORD AMONG THE CHRISTIANS

perfection,

its

seemed
it

law of Christ, and, therefore,

those not belonging to

tacitly to authorise

to transgress this law.

The very
it

the

183

rapid corruption of Christianity, after

was victorious and was constituted a recognised

authority,

is

instructive

one of the most suggestive and truly

presented

facts

history

of

Christianity had introduced a principle

humanity.

new and

entirely

the

in

sublime, that of the equality of

men, from which naturally followed the law of love

and respect
that

for

one another

had received

himself

the

for

duty and principle

supreme sanction

their

ignominious death of a

principle,

God who had

the

sacrificed

This

humanity.

of

salvation

in

which was the negation of the basis on

which ancient society was founded, had attracted

the

masses

innumerable

the oppressed

of

and

unhappy, and had given to that society a shock

which
later

new

it

was unable

But

to resist.

demonstrated, was powerless

society

society
society,

on

was morally no
of

which
both

organisms,

it

better

had

political

remodel a

to

The

principle.

this

Christianity, as

than

Christian

undermined

and

civil.

pagan

the

all

the

Slavery had

somewhat moderated,^ but the Church,

when it became powerful, took good care not
abolish
it.
to
This abolition did not come
been

through victorious Christianity, but through the

invasion of the barbarians, whereby a
^

PA\2Lrd, Jtclien

VApostate

vol.

i.

p. 329.

new

servi-

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

184

tude, that of the glebe, took the place of personal

servitude/

The

inability of victorious Christianity to trans-

form the world and society with the aid of those

principles

which were truly the foundations of

doctrine, demonstrates that

of

direction

human
must

civilisation

this

progress in the

advanced by

be

other influences than that of preaching and purely

What

moral instruction.

Now we

this influence

may be we

discover at the end of this volume.

try to

will

simply endeavour to recreate the

will

We

milieu in which Julian's attempt took place.

have

how

seen

Christianity,

thought,

philosophical

intensified

extent as to kindle around

and make

stituting, in the

thought,
tions,

in

this passion

also find

manifested

it

to

faith,

for

such an

moment
the

in

itself in

dogma

for

metaphysical

for transcendental explana-

to Christianity, for

to a special condition of the

a determined

we

fervour

this

was not peculiar

sponded

it

the strongest passions,

foundation of the

But

sentiment.

it

appropriating

paramount question, by sub-

the

it

by

of

its

it

re-

human mind

evolution

so that

where

enemy's camp,

it

a system parallel to Christian

dogmatics, in a system that permitted the trans-

formation of ancient
which, with
itself,

its

metaphysical symbolism, deceived

and pretended

conquer Christianity.
^

polytheism into a religion

to

be able to combat and

Of

this religious

philosophy

Negri, Meditazioni Vagabonde^ p. 439.

THE DISCORD AMONG THE CHRISTIANS

Julian

was the most fervent

disciple.

185

In this he

found reasons, inspirations, and weapons against the

influence of Christ.

events of this war,

Therefore, before relating the

we

will

consider for an instant

the doctrine with which the future Apostate

secretly nourished, while

was

around him resounded the

clamour of the disputes by which the new-born

Church was

beinof rent asunder.

NEO-PLATONISM
The

of Christianity,

diffusion

the religion of the State,

to

all

its

its

recognition as

progressive adaptation

the exigencies and conditions of the times,

and, finally, the great internal struggles by which

it

was

rent,

affirmed as

while elaborating a body of doctrines,

dogmatic orthodoxy,

elements which

Roman

are the

the picture of Graeco-

society throughout the course of the fourth

This

century.
to

compose

these

society,

however, did not allow

itself

be transformed without some resistance, and

attempted

to

oppose

to

the

metaphysical

and

religious constructions of Christianity a system that,

substituting naturalistic

and

at least, infusing in its

forms a new

rational polytheism
spirit

yet

or,

re-

tained the ancient structure of traditions, thought, and

social organisation.

ism.

Here, again,

This system was Neo-Platon-

we

remarked above, that

note,

as

we have

Neo-Platonism,

already

at

whose

source Origen had been nourished, by placing

God

and declaring that mysticism was

means by which man could unite himself to

in the supernatural,

the only

God

incomprehensible just because he

natural, was the

is

super-

mould from which Christian theology

186

NEO-PLATONISM
The Arians were

issued.

187

not Neo-Platonists

they

regarded with mistrust and suspicion the overgrowth

of metaphysical ideas around
tianity,

and made supreme

the trunk of Chris-

save mono-

efforts to

was evidently compromised. But

Orthodoxy, which amalgamated with temperate

theism, which

Origenism, terminated in

Augustine,

St.

having

passed through Athanasius, Basil, Hilary, and the

two Gregories, was nothing

Platonism.

less

than pure Neo-

Between Christian Neo-Platonism and

Hellenic

Neo-Platonism, there was, however, an

essential

difference.

The

first

God, possessed of a perfect

presented a

historical

and an unequalled power of attraction

objectivity

the second

retained the ancient divinities, but deprived

of

all

of

mere symbols.

personality,

the advantage

Now,

Julian's

and reduced them

It

was

was

all

new

them

to the condition

clear that, in this respect,

on the side of Christianity.

attempt awakens great

interest, just

because he endeavoured to oppose to Christianity

the ancient gods of the Hellenic Olympus, on the
basis of a philosophy which was, in fact, essentially
identical with that of Christianity.

to accomplish in polytheism that

had already achieved, namely,

Julian wished

which Christianity

to unite philosophy

with religion, and create a theology, a polytheistic

body of dogma which, organised into an ecclesiastical hierarchy, would be able to rival Christianity in
its

wealth of cosmological and mystical doctrine,

and, at the

same

time, preserve the ancient gods,


JULIAN THE APOSTATE

188

the ancient customs and traditions, thereby saving

Hellenic civilisation

Hellenism,

from the destruction with which

by

as he called
it

it

was threatened

Christianity.

The appearance
influence

it

phenomenon

of Neo-Platonism, and the great

exercised over

human

the

mind,

is

of supreme importance in the evolution

of thought and of civilisation.

presented the complete

Aristotelic rationalism,

Neo-Platonism

failure

and of

all

of Platonic

re-

and

the schools that

succeeded the two great organisers of ancient philosophy.

This was based on the conception of the

absolute distinction between matter and mind, the

sensible
idea,

and the

the

spirit,

reconstruct

intelligible,

and, reasoning on the

the intelligible, strove ideally

to

with a complete faith

in

the world,

abstract reason, in the solidity of ideal creations,

built

up with the

logical

material taken from the

mine of thought, but not subjected to the crucible

The result of this
of experience and observation.
prodigious undertaking could only be the formation
of a rational mirage, which disappeared

when

the

observer changed his point of view, so that humanity,

after a long series of centuries, felt the necessity of

somethinor better fitted to calm

aspirations.

its

anxieties

Thus Neo-Platonism appeared

and

in the

anarchy of systems which developed either into a

scepticism without issue, or a heroic but hopeless
resignation.

It

borrowed from Plato the

spirit,

the

NEO-PLATONISM

189

God, but did not see in it an essentially

rational principle, with which to proceed in the

idea,

research of truth, but affirmed

excellence super-rational

the truth was

it

as a principle,

and supernatural,

in

par

which

irremissibly concealed.

For Neo-Platonism, rational cognisance is only

an intermediate grade between the perception of the
senses and the intuition of the supernatural.

supreme idea
stitutes the

never found

is

The

inscrutable depth.

supreme

only the

that which con-

and cognoscible contents of the

real

thought, but in that which

as the

in

The

reality.

transitory

its

is

invisible basis, its

transcendental

The

is

considered

intelligible

forms are

means by which the energy

of the Being, transcendental and formless, expands

in the world.

This affirmation of the super-rational

and supernatural as the origin and reason of the

world, entailed the necessary consequence that man,

not being able to approach

was constrained
ally,

as

led

in

him

human

into mysticism
life,

the

came an
during

and

superstition, and,

union with

by the unaided

external assistance

found necessary.

by means of reason,

to resort to fantasy, which, gradu-

difficulty attained

the

it

of

positive

Therefore,

God

is

with

efforts of the soul,

Neo

religion

was

Platonism be-

essentially religious philosophy, especially

its

development

in

the fourth

century

philosophy that venerated and tried to keep alive

all

the ancient religions, reanimating them, however,

with symbolical interpretations of their naturalistic

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

190

Neo-Platonism, however, did not realise

myths.

that this renovation

rather the ruin

them

to

an

office unfitted to their

really old vessels,

of the

was not the

restoration, but

the ancient rehgions, and forced

of,

and unable

new wine poured

nature

they were

to resist the pressure

into them.

Neo-

Finally,

Platonism, in the fourth century, was a Christianity

without Christ

a Christianity

that did not possess

a real and historical divinity, and substituted for

it

the

empty phantoms of thoroughly exhausted

which

divinities,

then

only

existed

as

foolish

puppets or incomprehensible symbols.

Here, however, we would

more

servation that will be

like to

make an

ob-

clearly understood in

the course of this study, namely, that Christianity

vanquished Neo-Platonism, not alone by reason of

its

virtues, but also

by that of

Christianity was, from

constituted,
It

its

In

vices.

fact,

beginning, systematically

and formed an hierarchical organisation.

was the existence of

Constantine to

make

Church, which, by
nition,

its

this hierarchy that

induced

himself an ally of the Christian

this alliance, received its recog-

becominor one of the constitutive elements

of the complicated and rotten organisation of the

Romano- Byzantine

Empire.

necessarily paid for

its

fected with

all

power which
seen
in

how

it

victory

But

Christianity

by becoming

in-

the evils that afflicted the worldly

had embraced, and we have already

the ideal of Christian morality took refuge

convents and

in

the

cells

of ascetics.

Neo-

NEO-PLATONISM
Platonism,

which never learnt how to organise

an aspiration, a

remained as an opinion,

itself,

191

personal doctrine, and did not offer to the empire

either strength or

new

naturally disdained

it.

Neo

Platonism

resources,

and the empire

Julian's attempt to associate

empire,

the

in

as

uncle

his

Constantine had associated Christianity, was misunderstood, and considered by

an

less fancy of

idealist

by

mained wrapt

is,

to

be the harm-

others, as the crime of

But the most curious point

an accursed Apostate.
in this history

some

that Neo-Platonism, having re-

in the solitude of its

mysteries and

meditations, had preserved an appearance of ideality

that Christianity, in contact

necessarily
restore

Therefore,

lost.

may appear

it

signification of a

strange,

possessed the

moral restoration.

This was one,

and certainly not the

miserable

least important, reason of its

The

failure.

dissensions between Julian

and the Antiochians, so

Misopogon,

arose

deavoured to
corrupt

correct
city.

no inclination

to

Imperial moralist.
their

taste

the

from

austere

and

And

the

in the

fact

that

Emperor

en-

reform the Christian

the

follow the

Antiochians

exhortations

had

of the

They had found much more

Christian

crowd of eunuchs,

and

and

narrated

bitterly

precisely

Neo-Platonic

and

attempt to

Julian's

polytheism in opposition to Christianity,

although

the

with the world, had

parasites,

Constantius,

with his

and buffoons,

theatres, than the Hellenic Julian,

to

who

his fetes

divided

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

192

between the

his time

affairs of

and wrapped himself up

State and his books,

a sort of philosophical

in

asceticism.

The

of

failure

Neo-Platonism,

religious

so

tragically verified at the death of Julian, did not

lead, as

a consequence, to

its

so that Neo-Platonism had

theology.

Its

its

revenge

Orthodox

in

symbolical gods have fallen before

the Christian God,

imbued with

its

philosophical failure,

and

is

and derives from them

doctrines,

its

metaphysics

but dogmatic Christianity

doctrine,

this

with

its

off-

shoots, has stifled the divine tree of Evangelical

Christianity,

and

prevented

it

from bearing

its

natural fruits.

Let us now thoroughly investigate the essential

nature of this Neo-Platonic philosophy which was
the vital nutriment of the Imperial Apostate.

The decadence
solution of

its

of the ancient world, the dis-

moral and religious bases, the philo-

by the succession of

sophical scepticism produced

systems,

which,

lacking

foundation

all

proved mutually destructive,

all

of truth,

these causes, while

favouring the diffusion of Christianity, at the same

time promoted

parallel

movement

Greek

in

thought towards a proximate and ecstatic perception of divinity, which,

theism

and

by reviving ancient poly-

symbolising

exigencies and

it,

responded

to

the

moral aspirations which agitated

and tormented the human

soul.

From

this

move-

NEO-PLATONISM
ment of thought and

193

there issued, in the

spirit

first

half of the third century, Neo-Platonism, which, in

name and with the elements borrowed from

Plato, created a new philosophical system that

the

assumed the supernatural as the principle of the

universe and of nature, and, having dethroned
reason, forced

it

The

to abdicate its rights.

of Neo-Platonism

divided into three periods

is

the foundation of the system, and

first,

retical

history

development through the

the

theo-

its

efforts of Plotinus,

200 to 270; the second

extends from the year

period,

and the most interesting

that of

its

practical elaboration

the renewal of polytheism,

for our study,

is

and application

to

from 270

to 400,

for

which successively laboured Porphyry, lamblichus,

and

among whom was

disciples,

his

third period, from

400

to 529,

is

Julian

Neo-Platonism abandoned

Proclus,

became a

form

that

Greek

Athens by a decree of
East, where afterwards

served

by

the

its

work of
mystical

didactic system that

great historical importance, because

this

Arabs,

philosophy,
Justinian,
it

the

that of the school

of Athens, in which, through the especial

aspect and

it

had a

was under

exiled

from

passed to the

was fostered and pre-

who

transmitted

it

to

mediaeval Scholasticism.

The

founder of Neo-Platonism was

Ammonius

Saccas of Alexandria, a Christian re-converted to

He

paganism.
merit

is

has

proved by

VOL.

I.

13

left

no writings, but

his great

his illustrious pupils, such as the

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

194

who

Christian Origen,^ and Plotinus,

he found truth and peace

of his great master.

affirms that

in the upright teachings

But,

Ammonius was

if

creator of Neo-Platonism, Plotinus was

revealer,

its

we may see in his numerous writings

come to us, arranged and published by
as

the

that

have

his pupil,

Porphyry.

The system of
uplifting the human
which

it

had

towards

directed

is

soul from the degradation into

through

fallen

principle to which

Plotinus

owes

it

tion of his philosophy

is

union with the divinity,

issue from the finite

and

its

its

alienation from the

origin.

The

in its desire for

in the

a perfect

unceasing

limited.

himself to God, to describe

effort to

Plotinus wishes

way by which man can

to point out the

inspira-

reunite

the process through

which the universe, derived from supreme unity,

could return to

it,

and be reintegrated

in

it.

Plotinus asserts the absolute unity of the First

Cause.
Being,

Of this First Cause, which is essentially

we only know that it is infinite, and beyond

This information

is

given by Porphyry, in a fragment of his

" Treatise against the Christians," reproduced

by Eusebius (Book

vi.

The latter partly refutes the assertions of Porphyry, and

maintains that Ammonius always remained Christian. The modern
chap.

19).

critics (Zeller, 3, 450,

erroneous, but, at the

459) prove that the refutation of Eusebius is

same time, they cast a doubt on the relation

that existed between Origen

and Ammonius, and think

it

possible

mistaken for another Origen, who was

But to us, the testimony of Porphyry is
also a pupil of Ammonius.
very strong, because he was almost contemporaneous with these
personages, and had his information direct from Plotinus, who had

that the Christian Origen

studied in the school of

is

Ammonius.

NEO-PLATONISM
possible conception, so that

all

what

power,
to

it

we may say of it
is.
As an active

generates, albeit remaining always equal

it

The

it.

creative

the

whilst

itself,

from

but not what

not,

is

it

195

multiple

emanates

current

derives

from

the

by a dynamic process of transmission of

Being

Primordial

is

the

matrix from

comes, and the end towards which

if

Being

present

is

in

the

all

all

unit
force.

which

all

But,

tends.

the

universe,

universe constitutes a linear series of manifesta-

upon which

tions,

its

weakens

action gradually

in

proportion to the greatness of the distance from

its

and

origin,

by extinguishing

finishes

itself

in

non-existence.

In

this

the

first

by reason, which

thought,
else

series,

but

Generated

thought,

the

in

is

occupied by
all,

nothing

Christian

Logos.

after

is,

and

Philonian

the

place

moment

of

issuing

from the unity of Being, turns towards

reflects

it

it

it

and

forms a contemplator and a con-

templated, a thinker and a thought, a cognisant

and a cognoscible, the

vov<;

and the

Koa^io^

vo7)t6<;.

Between the idea and the world of phenomena,

Plotinus placed the

spirit,

illuminated by the idea,

corporeal world
at the

same

because

it

universe

itself all

is

it

is

which, while

has generated.

time, a unit

moved and

also in contact with the

The

and a multiple

spirit
:

is,

a unit,

the breath that animates the entire

a multiple,

because

it

the partial souls, which

collects

within

become good or

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

196

proportion

in

evil,

they experience the

as

and reintegrate themselves

sire to reunite

de-

in the

divine unity.
distinguishes

Plotinus

the

phenomenal world

from the supernatural world, because,

tion

the latter,

to

and contradictory
Matter

a caricature of the true

when

conceived

determination

ception

God

and represents a necessary evolution.

must
exist,

unity,
it,

con-

pessimistic

by a secondary

evil

Ahriman in opposition to the supreme

For him, the world is perfect, such as it

God.
is,

of

creation

an

the

evil,

truly pantheistic, does

Gnostic and

the

of the

and

form

all

the origin of

is

it

But Plotinus,

not arrive at

reality.

can only be

the negation of ideas, which

is

are the only reality

irpcoTov KaKou.

from

abstracted
it

and

nothing,

absolutely

is

inharmonious,

multiple,

is

it

opposi-

in

exist,

so

the

that

may

and

good may

so that

the

feel

close,

soul,

in

exist

descending
of

aspiration

this

way,

the

Evil

matter must

from

ideal

returning

cycle

of

to

exist-

ence.

But how

is it

ever possible for the soul to return

to the divine unity

this,

virtue

and leads

is
it

indispensable

back to

reunited to God,

without

sin.

it

is

ideas.

it is

it

descended

But,

to

not sufficient that

pure man.

For

purifies the soul,

This becomes possible

exaltation of the
is

from which

be truly

man

be

in the ecstatic

Thought,

in

itself,

incapable of this exaltation, because the thought

NEO-PLATONISM
The thought

only leads to the idea.

preparation

when

supreme Being,

in

The

and repose.

of,

and

The

attain

from

effort, it frees itself

all

with

harmony

felicity.

be uninterrupted until

it is

an

as

it

itself

the prin-

this point,

can only remain

This contemplation

thus for an instant.

Plotinus,

But

life,

At

ciple of Being, the origin of good.

enjoys supreme

a supreme

bonds, and finds

face to face with God, the fountain of

it

begins

and arrives

itself,

finally,

the

to,

soul, therefore,

then retires within

world of ideas

the

at

soul

condition of absolute

by contemplating the multiplicity and

of things,

only a

is

union with God.

for the

can only become conscious

passivity

197

not

will

liberated from the body.

enthusiastic

mystic,

often

experienced this exaltation, which placed him

His

immediate presence of God.

the

Porphyry, in his
follows

To

life

of the master,

this inspired

in

disciple,

narrates as

man, who often elevated

God who is the higrhest and

beyond comprehension, God appeared, although
himself towards that

no

having

and

form

being

invisible,

residing in the thought and the thinker.

only one aim in

to

God, who

four

is

life,

above

times while

external assistance,
force."

On

to

had

approach and unite himself

all.

This aim he attained

was with him, and without

but as if by some inexpressible

the point of death,

"he

struggling to unite the divine that

^

because

He

Plotini Vita^ 23.

is

said he

was

within

us,

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

198
with

the

divine

that

the

in

is

and

universe,

breathed his last."^

If

were not

it

for the pantheistic ring of these

the most

words, perhaps

last

found

by

pronounced

ever

beautiful

and pro-

dying

man, the

of Plotinus might be that

mystic enthusiasm

of

an Augustine, and the vision of the Neo-Platonic

philosopher has a great
of ecstasy

in

Orthodoxy,
suddenly

which

on

the

one

elevated

similarity

greatest

the

while contemplating the

sea

window

state

theologian

found

occasion,

into

the

to

presence

and

of

himself

God,

of

sky from the

of his house at Ostia.

The philosophy

of Plotinus has, therefore, an

essentially religious character.

In

parts

all

it

is

God and the aspiration

The points of contact with

permeated with the idea of

to

be united with him.

Christianity
respects,

most

are

they have an

tendencies, which
direction taken
time,

evident,

identity of concepts

and

understood, primarily from the

is

by the philosophical thought of the

and from the circumstance that Origen and

Plotinus

the two

Platonic

master,

founders of Christian and Neo-

metaphysics

Ammonius

were

Saccas.

of

pupils
Still,

systems

religions
^ (l)T]aas

we

may

say,

the same

notwithstanding

their great resemblance, there existed

two

certain

in

as,

between the

between

the

two

profound antipathy, arising from the

rreLpdcrOai

6elov, dcprjue to nvevfia.

to iv

rjixlv

Belov dvdyeiv

npos to iv

Tot

rravTl

NEO-PLATONISM
fact that

while Neo-Platonism was the fruit of the

true Hellenic tree, Christianity

tree

199

was the

of that

fruit

Hebraic monotheism.

on which was grafted

The

Neo-Platonism was profoundly pantheistic.

from the unity

eternal process of evolution that,

of the Being, descended to the multiplicity of the

phenomena,

again

return

to

to

the

unity,

this

process that for Plotinus represented the origin and

successive annulment of

evil,

tion of a preordained creation

excludes the concep-

and a conscient

rule

of the world, excludes the responsibility of the exist-

ence of evil attributed to

human liberty,

excludes the

necessity of a process of redemption, and the end

Christianity, with

of the world.
its

its

exigencies and

promises, appeared to the Neo-Platonists as an

anti-philosophical negation of the eternal necessity

of the order and

harmony of

reasonable denial of
as represented

all

that

as an un-

was good and

beautiful,

the universe

by the great men of the past

pessimistic affirmation that bore, within

destruction of universal order.

tised the history of the

world

as a

itself,

the

Christianity dramain the tragical

process

of a creation, transgression, and redemption.

the Neo-Platonics that story appeared a

hymn

To
of

glory to the divine necessity, unalterable, perfect in

the

harmony

rose in

of the whole.

arms against the monotheistic individualism

of Christianity.
in

Neo-Platonic pantheism

Seeing

God

everywhere,

it

found,

polytheism and mythology, symbols capable of

giving form to the various manifestations of divinity.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

200

And, notwithstanding that Plotinus was

removed

far

from the superstitious extravagance of his successors,

he also united magic and divination with

conception and

the

sentiment

presence of the Divinity.

the ancient cults,

the

continual

Plotinus wished to revive

making them symbols of a thought

and a philosophical and

tianity

of

religious aspiration.

Chris-

announced a precise monotheism, and a God

with a well-defined historical personality, and then

it

strove to

same

endow

the one and the other with the

philosophical

conceptions

formed

as

There was,

foundation of Neo-Platonic thought.

therefore,

the

between the two systems, equality

in the

essence of thought, and difference in the manner of

being affected by religion, and of giving form to

thought

in religious manifestations.

And

precisely

in this difference lay the strength of Christianity,

which presented to mankind thirsting

specified

and

vague and

precise

oscillating

images,

for the divine,

before

which

the

symbols of Neo-Platonism

disappeared like the mist.

Among

the disciples and successors of Plotinus

there was manifested the most decided tendency to

promote, in Neo-Platonism, a renewal and restoration of the ancient religions, in opposition to Chris-

The
Porphyry, who

tianity.

first

among

these

disciples

was

He

and published the works

possessed a genial and lucid

intelligence, without,

however, having any claim to

of the master.

collected

NEO-PLATONISM

201

the speculative depth of Plotinus, and was the true

To him

initiator of the revival of polytheism.

religions represented the effort of the

from the

to escape

God.

However,

as

soul

itself

with

and reunite

finite,

reunion

this

spirit,

then

the

in

and

idea,

be

only to

is

attained by passing through three stages,

the

all

human

first

finally

in

supreme Being, polytheism, by the variety of

in

the
its

means of efficaciously
representing this gradual process.
Although criticising the myths and the irrational and ignorant
cults, and affirming that the supreme God should
be worshipped in silence and with pure thoughts,
symbols,

thus

found

Porphyry wished
religions,

to

the

keep

alive

all

resolute in his conception

the

ancient

that religion

being a symbolical manifestation and of a necessarily relative

truth,

every one has not only the

right but the duty of honouring the Divinity, accord-

ing to the customs of his

therefore,

recognised

own

the

Porphyry,

country.

rights

of

all

religions, of the barbaric as well as the

national

Hellenic,

and also the Hebraic, considered simply, as the

But he abhorred

religion of a given nationality.

the Christian

exclusiveness

that,

in the

absolute truth, endeavoured to overthrow

of worship not

its

own, and destroy

of Hellenic philosophy and culture.

composed against Christianity a

lost, in

all

name
all

forms

the traditions

Porphyry even

treatise,

which was

order to prove the lack of foundation of

pretended historical

basis,

and the

of

its

slight credibility

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

202
of

its

He

considered Christ as a pious

teachings

had been completely mis-

documents.

man whose

understood and corrupted by his

made a

disciples,

who

divinity of him.

Porphyry took the

that transformed

steps in the direction

first

Neo-Platonism from a pure specula-

tion into a positive religion, but the clear rational-

ism by which he was guided arrested him at the

point

beyond which

religion

and magic.

In

" Porphyrius

quamdam

per

theurgiam,

quodam modo,

St.

fact,

quasi

negat, ut videas

eum

tatis et philosophise

With

promittit.

Rever-

professionem, sententiis alter-

His successors,

Maximus, and

master.

pudibunda,

inter vitiam sacrilegse curiosi-

w^hom lamblichus, and

the

et

hanc artem portare cuiquam

nantibus, fluctuare."

santius,

purgationem animse

tamen

disputatione,

Deum

superstition

Augustine said of him

cunctanter

sionem vero ad

became

finally

the

Neo-Platonism, and with

first

among

him ^desius, Chry-

after

Julian,

went beyond
formulas

pantheistic
its

of

mystical aspirations,

they dared to compose, and oppose to Christianity, a

symbolical
irrational

religion entirely

and repugnant

founded on the most

superstition.

Julian wished

make this new polytheism a religion of State.

As we shall see, there existed between the moral and
to

intellectual intentions of Julian

he practised a singular, and

interesting

contradiction.

plains the futility of the

and the
at

the

religion that

same

time,

This contradiction ex-

young Emperor's attempt.

NEO-PLATONISM
and how

it

203

necessarily ended in the definite victory

of Christianity.

To

obtain a precise idea of the motives that

JuHan

inspired

attempt,

this

in

it

necessary

is

become acquainted with the Httle Neo-Platonic

group, which met together at Nicomedia, and the
to

neighbouring

JuHan, as

cities.

we

already know,

was numbered among them, during the years of

his sojourn in

Nicomedia, and here he found the

which

definite consecration of the tendencies with

he had been inoculated by his

The

donius.

first

teacher,

Mar-

information, given by Eunapius, in

of the Sophists, although slight and lacking

critical judgment, succeeds in giving us a living

his Lives
all

and curious world.

picture of this small

The most
we should

the founder,
Neo-Platonism transformed

important personage

say, of

in

a theurgical religion, was

lamblichus, a

He

Anatolius and Porphyry.

Constantine, and, in his
Julian,

if

we can

From

preserved.

by Eunapius,^

it

considered

miracles, in

truth

the

the

as

latter,

poverishes

is

lamblichus

magician,

an

worker

inferior

Eunapius, op.

cit.,

in

was
of
this

But the intelligence

order,

even that which he would

^

still

written

most absurd, and that

of

of the

which are

biography

that

consisted his greatest value.

of Eunapius

was known by

authenticity

short

appears

lived in the time of

age,

him by the

letters written to

really

trust

old

pupil of

10-19.

and imillustrate.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

204

Some
and

of lamblichus' writings are

many

also

testimonies,

judge him

more

and

to

justly

more

who endeavours
religion

to

who

Certainly,

the

in

him

theologian,

to give a speculative foundation

and

than

rites,

its

to

the

the

philosopher,

logic

of doctrinal

Porphyry had already shown a tendency

regard philosophy from

ligious

to

importance of his

the

developed

devotes himself

reasoning.
to

us

accordance with the truth,

in

appreciate

seems

there

enable

that

productions/

philosophical

preserved,

still

and

fantastic

re-

devoted himself

lamblichus

but

aspect,

its

with greater insistence to this point of view\

If

Porphyry, in order to succeed in his aims, more

religious than philosophical, considered the aid of

the gods necessary, so

obliged

to

faith in

human

recur to

much more was lamblichus

being

it,

strength.

almost devoid of

The

and simple

clear

categories of the Plotinic system were not sufficient

His philosophy became

for lamblichus.

terribly

complicated and confused by the multiplication of

the hypostases of the divine unity.
conception, every rational

In his fantastic

moment assumes a

crete form in

a distinct hypostasis.

to lamblichus

that

the divinity

much

as

forms,
^

to

as possible,

all

Zeller,

was

the

best

way

multiply

It

con-

seemed

of representing

and

subdivide

it

and present, under separate

the functions that characterise

Die Philosophie der

Grieclien, vol.

Preller, Historia philosophic graccB^ p. 546.

iii.

p.

its

678.

essence

Ritter and

NEO-PLATONISM
and

with

relations

its

the

205

This minute

finite.

division of the ideal unity, this successive abasement

of the unit to the multiple,

between the Neo-Platonism of lamblichus

feature

and that of

The

Plotinus.

doctrine

of the

of

historical

lamblichus

lies

importance
in

the

fact

Neo-Platonism of Plotinus, which was

the

that

the distinguishing

is

an ideal affirmation of the transcendent and super-

became a mystical theology

natural,

assumed the position of a positive

In

the

group

of

and

pupils

that

boldly

religion.

successors

of

^desius seems to have been the most

He was intended, by his father,
conspicuous.
lamblichus,

for

commerce, and sent to Greece

to

make

practical

But he returned a philosopher, to the

great surprise and indignation of his father.
The
young man, however, managed to obtain his pardon,
studies.

and permission

and

to

go and study under lamblichus,

perfect himself in his philosophical doctrines.

When

the

school

of

lamblichus was dispersed,

i^desius, following the directions of a miraculous

presage, retired

to

the

of pastoral

solitude

life.^

But the youths who aspired to be instructed by

him went and disturbed him in his retirement,
not willing that so

much wisdom should be wasted

on the crags and forests, and they forced

return to

much

human

against

established

him to
^desius consented,

intercourse,
his

will,

himself at
^

and,

going

into

Asia,

Pergamos, and opened

Eunapius, op,

cit.^

27.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

206
school

whose

according to the credulous

fame,

and enthusiastic Eunapius, reached to the heavens.

The most noted personages of that school
were Maximus, Chrysantius, Eusebius, and Priscus.

The first-named, Maximus, according to Eunapius,

who had met him, when a youth, Maximus being
then advanced
impression on

produced a most powerful

in years,
all

who saw

him, by the beauty of

his face, the

brilliancy of his

of his

and

and

He

exercised

of this

had a

powerful

Mardonius,

with

and,

the

most

eyes, the

harmony

Ambitious

flow of words.

his

restless, his agitated life

Julian,
for

voice,

tragic ending.

influence

was

over

responsible

religious

and philosophical

Prince.

Maximus was wholly

predilections

inflamed

with the fervour of magic ritualism, and was one

of the most efficient

co-operators in transforming

Neo-Platonism into a theurgical

He

religion.

was

a sort of saint, possessing the power of working

miracles.

It

structive as

is

interesting,

and,

above

an indication of the milieu,

in-

all,

to study

the contrast that existed between Maximus and

Eusebius.

The

latter

attempted

to

rationalise

Neo-Platonism, and experienced a lively antipathy

to

the

magical and

theurgical

superstition

into

which the philosophy had degenerated, losing

speculative character.

We

its

But he feared Maximus.

read in Eunapius that,

when Maximus was

present, Eusebius avoided displaying the acuteness

of his logic, which

was

full

of artifice and involved

NEO-PLATONISM

But when Maximus was absent, he shone

dialectic.

like a star
trast

207

when

The

the sun has disappeared.^

con-

between Eusebius and Maximus appears most

and symptomatic episode of

between Eusebius and Julian. The

vividly in the singular

the relations

young

Prince,

thirsting

knowledge, came to

for

Pergamos, attracted by the fame of y^desius, and

wished to be instructed by him.

and

felt

himself, old.

thy master

"

he

would that

said

But yEdesius was,

I

responds to the commands of the mind.

thee to address thyself to
able to give
doctrine.^

thee

thy

could be

but the body no longer

my

fill

counsel

They

pupils.

will

be

of every science and

would that Maximus were here, but he

has gone to Ephesus, and Priscus has

left for

Greece.

Eusebius, however, and Chrysantius remain, and

listening to them, thou wilt not regret that

am

Julian naturally follows his counsels.

But he

becomes aware of something obscure and

disquiet-

old."

ing in his relationship with these two masters.

In

Chrysantius, who was an admirer and follower

Maximus,
of
although not completely in accord with
fact,

the doctrines of Eusebius, would not compromise

himself by contradicting him.

after

having instructed Julian

Eusebius, one day,

in the interpretation of

the ancient philosophers, declared to

truth

was

all

there,

and that magic and

Eunapius, op. a'L, 49.

Eunap., op. cit.^ loco citato.

Koi nadrj^dT(Ov.

him

that the

incantations,

cKuBev pvbr^v e^^opoC

ao(jilas cnrdaTjs


JULIAN THE APOSTATE

208

which deluded the senses, were the manipulations

who deceived by means

of wizards
aid.

Julian,

becoming

thoroughly understood

the

of material

and not having

suspicious,

and the

significance

reason of this warning with which Eusebius had

closed

his

O dear Chrysantius
est the

took Chrysantius aside.

explanations,

truth,

"

he said

who knowwhat does Eusebius mean by this

thou

"

But Chrysantius,
a prudent man, and did not

peroration to his explanations

who was above all

wish to make enemies,
found reserve.

It

shut himself up in a pro-

would be better

of Eusebius himself."

"to ask

it

directly

interrogated

by

Julian,

"

he replied

And

Eusebius,

make him

to

understand what he meant by magic, related the

Maxinlus, becoming, by force

following episode.
of his character

and

intelligence, a despiser of our

demonstrations, and falling into a species of mania,

one day,

at

an early hour of the morning, gathered

Temple of Diana, and surrounded

many witnesses.
When we were

us together in the

himself with

assembled, after having inclined ourselves before

the

o^oddess.

Be

seated'

companions, observe what

is

he

said

'dearest

about to happen, and

how far I am above

down, and Maximus burnt

let it

convince you

all

We

sat

a grain

incense, and chanted,

ment, but no one had

of

in an undertone, a certain

hymn, when, behold, the statue began

then to laugh aloud.

of you.'

We

to smile,

and

uttered cries of amaze-

moved

or spoken, because.


NEO-PLATONISM

209

suddenly, the lamps which the goddess held in her

two hands became

we

before

and the flame shot up

ignited,

We

could utter a word.

moment,

the

by

went away-

wondrous

overcome,

for

spectacle.

But thou shouldst not admire

as

did not admire

much

reason."

These

last

it,

but rather consider

it,

greater than this

this

how

by means of

purification

is

even

words of Eusebius reveal

a singularly acute intelligence, one of those fearless

rationalists,

rarer
antiquity, when
not
who confronting

always rare

positive science did

in

still

exist

in

miracles refused to believe in the evidence of the

senses.

Julian,

was altogether another

however,

man, and his actions towards Eusebius are

sort of

the most valuable proofs that we possess concerning

the tendencies of his mind.

scarcely ceased speaking

In

when

Eusebius had

fact,

Julian exclaimed

Adieu, devote thyself wholly to thy books;

for

me, thou hast pointed out to

sought

"

and

me

as

that which

embracing Chrysantius, he

left

for

Ephesus, in search of Maximus, and having found

him,

attached

himself to

this

new

master,

and

devoted himself with great tenacity to his doctrine.

Maximus, evidently a man who was able

use of

occasions to further his

all

was only too pleased

to

make

purposes,

have as a pupil a Con-

stantinian prince, persecuted,

theless,

own

to

it

is

true, but, never-

on the steps of the throne, and he applied

himself with ardour to instruct him, and ingratiate

^

VOL.

I.

14

Eunapius,

op,

cit.^

50.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

210

himself in his affections, and not being able alone

to satisfy the insatiable curiosity of the youth, he

called his

Chrysantius to assist him, and,

friend

between the two, they made Julian that mystic

enthusiast

whom

in

religion

and philosophy were

confused with the most credulous superstition.

becoming Emperor, Julian

Chrysantius

to

called

Constantinople.

On

Maximus and
Maximus came

immediately, and received extraordinary demonstrations

of respect

loving a quiet

from Julian.

life,

But Chrysantius,

and possessing more foresight

than Maximus, because less ambitious, would not

allow himself to be persuaded, notwithstanding the

urgent demands sent by Julian,

who even

tried to

enlist in his behalf the influence of the philosopher s

wife.

In the meanwhile,

stantinople, surrounded

of the rising

star,

who

Maximus

lived at

Con-

and followed by the adorers

did not leave

him a moment's

peace, so that he was obliged to seek the aid of

some one who could

onerous duties.
refusal, the

relieve him, in part, of his too

Chrysantius

still

persisting in his

philosopher Priscus was chosen.

From

Maximus and Priscus never abandoned

the Emperor
they followed him through his
campaign in Persia, and we find them under his
tent, and by the side of the wounded hero, who,
this time,

with serene and lofty discourses, prepared himself

for death.

Julian having fallen,

out his

in the

life

Maximus dragged

midst of the most tragic events.

Persecuted, despoiled, and tortured by Valens and

NEO-PLATONISM
his

soldiers, afterwards

him

reinstated

he

finally

pated

fell

in

Maximus

the

in

saved by Clearchus, who

Emperor,

favour of the

under suspicion of having

and was beheaded

plot,

partici-

Ephesus.^

at

exercised a great and decided influence

over the restless and mystical

recognises this in
Heraclius, and

spirit

He

of Julian.

his discourse against the cynic

attributes

to the

sopher" who instructed him,

interesting^

devotion to Julian,

"highest philothe merit of his

all

initiation into the true philosophy.^

althouo^h

211

because of

This Maximus,
enthusiastic

his

taken altogether,

antipathetic personage.

is

a most

charlatan, superstitious,

puffed up with pride, anxious for

power and

pre-

eminence, and giving himself the airs of being

inspired

and superhuman, he aroused the anger and

hatred of those around him, so that, as soon as his

protector disappeared, they dragged

Eunapius

him

to ruin.

relates a tragi-comical episode concerning

him, which certainly does not serve to

weaken our

sense of repulsion for this species of Neo-Platonic

magician,

notwithstanding

the

terrible

fate

that

overtook him at the end of his stormy career.

When Maximus

was being tortured by the

ruffians

of Valens, his passionate and courageous wife was

present, suffering agonies.

her

"

me and

My wife, go and
liberate

me."

Eunapius, f/.

Julian., op. cit.^ 304, 21.

63.

me

a poison

give

it

to

to

she immediately goes,

Ammianus Marcellinus, op.

cit.^

buy

And

Maximus whispers

cit., ii.

170.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

212

and returns with the poison, but not wishing

live

She

to out-

her husband, asks his permission to drink

drinks,

and

did not drink

dies immediately.

6 Si

first.

But Maximus

Md^tfxo^ einev ovKeTi}

Another important and not very sympathetic

personage who remained to the last with Julian, is
Priscus

So

he also was of the school of ^^desius.

learned that he seemed to have on the tip of his

tongue

all

in person,

He

manner.

in

did

if it

ancients,

care

to

condescend to

knowledge within

were a treasure, and called

all

spoke willingly of philosophy, prodigals.

that y^desius

adopted

in

he was

but sullen and disagreeable

not

discussions, but kept his

as

of the

doctrines

the

most beautiful

himself,

those
It

who

appears

was a most amiable master, who

his

teachings

the

Socratic

method,

conversing with every one, and infusing in his

disciples

courtesy and a sentiment of humanity.^

Passing through the streets of Pergamos, accompanied by a number of his pupils, he talked with

every one and about everything, with the market-

woman, the weaver, the

smith, the carpenter, and,

from every one and everything, he drew arguments

for wise instructions.

versations.

The

pupils enjoyed such con-

Priscus alone rebelled, and dared to

call

the master a betrayer of the philosophical dignity, a

gabbler,

who

filled

the

mind with

Eunapius, 59.
Eunapius, op. cit.^ 66. ap\ioviav riva
avOpoandov fx(})vTV(ov rois fiadrjrais.

foolish gossip,

kcli

(TrifxeXeLav

irpos

to

NEO-PLATONISM
and accomplished nothing.

choice of the philosophical companions

him during

short

his

we cannot

was very fortunate

Julian

was

Priscus, therefore,

pedant, and so

certainly an egregious

say that poor

213

who

Pedantry did

reign.

the

in

followed
not,

however, deprive Priscus of prudence and sagacity

worldly

in his

affairs,

so that, unlike the ambitious

and reckless Maximus, he succeeded

from the

peril

He

death.

that

retired

escaping

menaced him after Julian's

where he lived

into Greece,

he was ninety years

until

in

old,

perpetually wrapt

mysterious and saturnine silence, but, in his

in his

heart, ridiculing the foibles of

would have been

It

Julian

if

of

poor humanity.-^
great advantage

to

he had been able to attach to himself

the amiable Chrysantius, the best balanced, most

gentle and judicious of ^desius' pupils, instead of

the

charlatanic

and

haughty Maximus and the

We

heavy and repellent Priscus.

do not mean to

say by this that the philosophical

Chrysantius were
devotion to
sufficient to

of

his

wise and

Maximus and

commendable.

his theurgic rites

prove the contrary.

philosophical

tendencies of

education,

At

His
were

the beginning

Chrysantius had

embraced with fervour the doctrines of Plato and

Aristotle, and had
become so strong in these
doctrines that he feared

able to

come out

no competitor, and was

victorious

in

every discussion.

Later, however, through the influence of

^

Eunabius, op.

cit.^

67.

-ycXcop' Tr]v

Maximus,

dvdpcoTrivrjv da6eviav.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

214

he was attracted to the doctrine of Pythagoras and

those

to

theurgic

and

divinatory

rites

which

constitute the Neo-Platonic reHgion, and, in short,

he became such an adept as to be able

to say that

he understood the future better than the present,

as

he were

if

unceasing communication with the

in

Concerning

gods.^

dissension between
former, in

this subject, there

Maximus and

overweening

his

even arose a

himself, as the

pride, pretended that

the divination of the future must be subordinated to

own

one's

and desires

will

Chrysantius, on the

other hand, humbly followed the divine inspiration.

But, with

man

of great

sense.

In his

Chrysantius was a

all this,

acumen and undoubted common

obstinate refusal to accept the invitations of his old

when

pupil,

this pupil

had attained the height of

power, he was guided, not only by the omens, which

were said
especially

and

be unfavourable to his voyage, but

by a keen perception of the imprudence

levity with

revive

Of

to

which the Emperor undertook

Hellenism

this,

in

opposition

Chrysantius

and

co-religionist,

coming as

it is

tion of Julian s conduct.

the least offended

Christianity.

has given a striking and

interesting proof, because,

friend

to

to

an

The

it

does from a

explicit

condemna-

latter not

by the repeated

being

in

refusal of his

master, decided to give him a proof of his confidence

and

affection

before he

named him High

^

started

Priest of

Eunapius, op.

for

Lydia.
cit.,

109.

Persia,

and

Chrysantius

NEO-PLATONISM

215

but exercised his office in a peculiar

accepted,

and certainly

manner,

intentions of Julian.

keeping with the

in

little

While,

in

all

parts of the

empire, people rushed with the greatest eagerness

even

not

quiescent,

attempting

Christians, so that, in Lydia,

that they were

to

disturb

the

one could almost say

unconscious of the restoration of

when

Consequently,

polytheism.

remained

Chrysantius

temples,

the

rebuild

to

Julian

fell,

and

things returned to their original condition, in the

region over which Chrysantius held spiritual jurisdiction,

there was not

reigned the most profound peace,

instead, there

which was

all

the slightest disorder, but,

the

more singular and marvellous, in

of passion and

comparison with the whirlwind

revenge which swept across the

Empire.^

rest of the

how Chrysantius, with his

prudence and common sense, while remaining

easy to understand

It is

great

an ardent Hellenist, was able

pass tranquilly

to

through an epoch so terribly agitated by religious

disputes,

and

to attain the ripest old age.

Oribasius of Pergamos had also a paramount

moment

influence over Julian, in the psychological

of his rebellion against Constantius, and probably

assisted in

preparation

the

of the

military pro-

which proclaimed him Emperor.

was a philosopher and doctor, also belonging

nunciamiento

He

We

to the Neo-Platonic coterie.

basius was the

know

that Ori-

only one of Julian's friends

^

Eunapius, op.

cit.,

in.

who


JULIAN THE APOSTATE

216

was permitted
asked for him
granted, as
his

it

We

friend.

letter in

accompany him to Gaul. Julian

as his physician, and his request was
was not known that Oribasius was
to

have already seen the curious

which Julian

relates to his friend a

wherein his coming fortune

is

clearly foretold

one of those happy dreams that only come

who

especially long for something.

the faithful servant

who knew

to those

Oribasius and

Evemerus were the only ones

of the mysterious and sacred rites that

Julian

practised

whom

he had

together with

brought

Eunapius says that he

from

the

high

Greece

to

makes use

phrase which lends

Paris.

of a

itself to

not pre-

is

that Oribasius did, and, in his

all

Oribasius,

priest

will narrate minutely, in

history of Julian (which, unfortunately,

served),

dream

life

of

complex and pregnant

various interpretations,

but appears to accentuate the important part that

the physician had in Julian's rebellion, because

says that the courage

that

When

of Oribasius was so great

enabled him to

it

it

make

Julian

Emperor.^

the catastrophe arrived, Oribasius was sent

into exile

value to

among

all,

succeeded

because of his medical knowledge, he

keeping afloat

in

Hellenism,

the barbarians, but being of great

and

recalled him,

those

in

the shipwreck of

who had

and reinstated him

despoiled

in his

him

honours and

possessions.
^

Eunapius, op.

cit.,

104.

6 Se too-ovtov enXeoveKTeL

dpeTois, S)(TT Kai ^aaCkia tov ^lovKiavov drredei^e.

tols

dWais

NEO-PLATONISM

217

In this group of philosophers and friends,

of

whom

had been,

companions of

him

around

Sallustius

worthy,

when

wrote

As

reading

long

of

life

better
that

letter

were

they

about

to

be able to compose a

to

resimd

of

Neo- Platonic

the

who may

for the use of those

doctrine,

trust-

and philosopher, he was so

writer

and popular

clear

the

become

shall

the

when

him

and profound as

skilful

narrating

whom we

when

acquainted

separate.

career,

whom we have

counsellor

faithful

mentioned

Julian

gathered

was the best balanced and most

and with

Julian,

he

adventurous

his

all

masters or

time,

whom

and

Julian,

during

the

already

some

at

be

still

guided by philosophy, and whose souls are not yet

He

man

of

the highest moral value, and of great ability in

all

irrevocably corrupted."^

matters

truly

himself

even

if

Sallustius

this

were not

In

has

Good men

"

the

life

in

return
so,

following

the

to

virtue in
is

noble

portrayed
gods,

itself,

but,

and the

derived from

it,

without malice and without masters, are

sufficient for the

happiness of the virtuous."

That a man
Neo-Platonic
proves

a man,

unwittingly

happiness and the glory that

and a

worthy of the confidence that

Julian reposed in him.

sentence

also a

and administrative

military

who was

fact,

was

that,

like

coterie,

Sallustius

and

accept

could
its

join

the

doctrines,

beneath the overgrowth of fantastic

1

Zeller, op. at., 3, 734.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

218

which were but the expression of the

superstitions,

religious necessities of the epoch, there existed a

nucleus of healthy and honest thought and senti-

Expiring Hellenism not only sent forth a

ment.

dim and clouded

flash of

such as emanated

light,

from the exalted fantasies of an lamblichus and a

Maximus, but also possessed a moral

caused

among
not

to retain the favour

it

the best

true

and most cultured men.

the

that

force, which
and devotion of many

part

best

of

society

was found among the

fourth century

It

in

is

the

Christians.

Victorious and Imperial Christianity had attached

to itself all that

men

the

And among

was most debased.

of the greatest moral worth there were

who

yet those

fought to preserve the ancient and

enfeebled civilisation.

Together with these masters and

men who were

illustrious

with Julian at Nicomedia, Pergamos,

and Athens, there must have been other companions

not

of

of

dignity,

and

intelligence
letters

friends

of

who

the

by

attracted

court,

and

whose names are

formed around him

pretensions,

and

preserved,

species

and

less

force
wit.

and

from

sensible

princely

stimulus

Some

of

of

his

notes

Julian's

appear to have been written to these

his

school-days.

Such

were Eumenes and Pharianus,

sent

his

Gaul

letter,

following

the
in

undoubtedly

whom

Julian

affectionate

and

we recognise more
^desius and of Eusebius

which

plainly the influence of

to

NEO-PLATONISM
than that of

Maximus and

219

when

Later,

Priscus.

he attempted to oppose religion to reHgion and

Maximus and

miracle to miracle,

the exclusive dominators of his

"To EuMENES AND

has told you that there

and necessary
tranquilly

for

spirit.

Pharianus,

man, than to philosophise,

and without preoccupations, such a man,

is

alive

still

you,

in

If

you.

congratulate

It

is

during

this

that

am

flame,

brilliant

now

four

three months from the day in which

How pleased

the old in-

and has not been

suddenly extinguished as a once

I

any one

If

anything more agreeable

is

being deceived, has deceived you.

clination

became

Priscus

years and

we

parted.

should be to ascertain your progress

time

As

for

me,

it

wonderful

is

yet able to speak Greek,

as

have

become so barbarised by these surroundings

you not

advise

to despise the exercise of logic,

nor to neglect rhetoric and the reading of the

poets.

However,

be

science,

for

greatest

interest

and you should direct

to the study of Aristotle

efforts

this

your

you should devote

all

and

should

all

rest

is

accessary.

your labour

But

even

To

Plato.
;

this

the basis, the foundation, the walls, the roof.

the

your

on

this,

is

All

you

should expend greater care than others generally

do on

their principal work.

Justice
I

In the

counsel you, concerning

love you as brothers.

You

name

all

of divine

this,

because

were, at one time.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

220

my

companions

ajid

be advised by me,
it

very dear ones.

will love

would be a great grief

And

you disobey me.

for

you

will

you

still

more, while

me,

if

were to see

do not ask you

where a continued suffering

that

If

to say

because

leads,

feel

can wish something better for you."^

In closing this study, which has revealed to us

the intellectual atmosphere in which Julian

mind

was developed, we may affirm, in conclusion, that

Neo-Platonism and Christianity appeared at the

moment when

the

sentiment

which

liberty,

political

of

patriotism

constituted

and

the force of

was about to be extinguished.

The national religion was no longer a power
the ideas which had been the props of social life
were destroyed
there existed an overpowering

ancient

society,

presentiment of an approaching catastrophe, and,

at

the

moral
value,

To

same

time, decided

regeneration
the

interest,

satisfy these

aspirations

which

would

toward a

restore

and the significance of

aspirations,

the
life.

Neo-Platonism and

and each of them sought

idea of a revelation and a

Christianity were born,

to

reawaken

the

consequent union of the

human

soul with

But Neo-Platonism, which was unwilling

God.

to break

through the traditions of Hellenism, sought

this

revelation in the natural order of the world, and

from

this

it

arrived at the conception of the super^

Julian, op.

cit.,

565.

NEO-PLATONISM
natural, to

which

abandoned

it

of mystical

rapture.

velation

the

in

221

itself in

an ecstasy

Christianity found

person

historic

of

this

re-

who

Jesus,

represented the Logos, the Incarnate Word, and

had united man and God

the bonds of love.

in

Neo-Platonism desired to heal the

evils

of the

times with a speculation which contained in

itself

philosophy, and would be

the treasures of Greek

compendium and crown. Christianity set up a

new God, diffused the tidings of a celestial reits

proclaimed

demption,
the

love

fatherly

the

God.

of

and

new

had

forms

shattered

world

to

those

and

Platonism
Christianity,

and

its

was

inaugurated

Because

point of origin

able

to

Christianity

ideal.

new humanity.

new

of

this

and aims, Neo-

introduce

itself

into

and become the principal factor of

metaphysics.

which each

new

this

forms,

similarity of

its

in-

Neo-Platonism attempted to adapt the

sufficient.

antique

ideal

antique forms seemed

which the

to

in

Neo-Platonism

Christianity bore evidence that a

arisen,

men

of

equality

In

the

tried to attain the

contrast which

made

of

diversity

same

means by

end, lay the

the Neo-Platonists the last

and most ardent defenders of Hellenism against

the dissolvent action exercised

by

Christianity.

JULIAN'S ATTITUDE

When

hand the reins of government, he found paganism persecuted and oppressed,

Julian took in

and Christianity divided

who

attacked

We

ferocity.

each

into

two

other with

distinct parties,

ever

increasing

have seen that Constantine s attempt

and concordant Church an

of government had signally failed,

to render the unified

instrument

because the irreconcilableness of the theological

was an obstacle

parties

was powerless
greater on

account of the difference of opinion

Emperor

became
form,

of

sole

for while

Constans,

of the West, protected Nicene Ortho-

doxy, Constantius,
supporter

his strong will

This discord became

overcome.

to

between Constantine's sons

the

even

that

Emperor of the

Arianism.

East,

And when

Emperor, Arianism, though

triumphed everywhere and

in

was a warm
the
in

latter

a milder

everything.

Constantius exiled from their sees the bishops

remained

faithful

to

the

Nicene

formula,

who
and

persecuted with equal vehemence Orthodoxy and

paganism.

But among those who upheld Nicene

and intrepid

spirits that

to suppose that their

condemna-

Orthodoxy were such

it

was impossible

lofty

222

JULIAN'S
tion could be lasting

ATTITUDE

223

and without appeal.

Constan-

tius

thought he had imposed peace on the Church,

but

it

was only a forced

ering of the
alight,

break forth into a new flame.

to

the midst of this spectacle of discord and

In

internal strife that

the

a momentary smould-

the embers of which were yet

fire,

and ready

truce,

was

offered

dominant

corruption

in

by Christianity and
Christian

society,

who

especially that of the Imperial court, Julian,

with his brother, by reason of their tender age, had

escaped the general massacre of the rest of his

was born and

family perpetrated by Constantius,

bred.

As we

educated

in

have

already

Constantinople

secretly infused

in

the soul

admiration for the ancient

was

he

narrated,

by Mardonius, who
a deep

of the child

Hellenic culture, and

also the habit of considering the ancients as the

true custodians of virtue, and of seeing in

unrivalled

examples of the good and

Consigned

to the solitude of Macellus,

by

priests in

whom

courtiers of the

under the

veil

he only saw

detested

beautiful.

surrounded

his jailers,

became

What

ever more inflamed with zeal for his ideals.

to

him

and

Constantius, the youth,

of a necessary hypocrisy,

was Christianity

them

The

of his

religion

enemies, a religion that seemed to have sanctioned

a most terrible murder, a religion

itself to

and was,

that

adapted

the vices and turpitudes of a wicked court,

besides, corroded

by

fraternal strife

which

disturbed the serenity of the soul and destroyed

all

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

224

confidence in

its

doctrine.

But perhaps

his aver-

sion to Christianity might have remained latent,

if

he had not been exiled to Nicomedia through the

miserable suspicions of Constantius.

Here,

in the

hotbed of Neo-Platonism, which had already accomplished, in the school of lamblichus,

its

religious

superstitious evolution, Julian found that

of doctrines which

rendered

complex

him

possible for

it

and

to organise ''anti-Christianity" in a practical

and

philosophical system, while the influence of Libanius

and the rhetoricians by

whom

he was surrounded

encouraged him more and more

in his

passion for

Hellenism.

Now we
the

must

try to discover

what were

doctrines of Julian, what were the

really

principal

reasons that influenced him to devote himself to the

restoration of paganism,

aim that he had

own

voice,

intentions,

most

and

For

in view.

recourse to Julian's
his

and what was the especial

own

must

this

works.

we must have

He

himself, with

enlighten us concerning his

relate the story of his

interesting, attempt.

First

unhappy, but

we must seek

to

form a conception of the philosophical ideas that

composed the
that

basis of Julian's thoughts.

We

know

he was a pupil of lamblichus and Maximus, of

who had

trans-

formed the pantheistic system of Plotinus

into a

those two

Neo-Platonic masters

superstitious mysticism that attached itself to the

ancient polytheism by attempting to revive

its

myths,

but altering, however, the very essence of

its

nature.

JULIAN'S ATTITUDE

We

shall

see what was

the

we

such

of

influence

In the second place,

teachings on Julian's mind.

must observe Julian

225

position face to face with

Christianity, the

manner

and combated

from a doctrinal point of view,

it

and, finally, his

of polytheism

which he understood

in

and conduct as a restorer

acts

as the

that

we have

already

made

the

conditions

of the

Church

of
its

The

State religion.
of

Neo-Platonic philosophy,

Julian's

and

tendencies,

and

more easy the

essential principles, renders

of

time,

his

in

its

study

life,

construction of the intellectual figure of the

re-

young

Emperor.

It

would be a useless attempt to make a precise

and systematic exposition of

Julian's philosophy,

because he did not have a clear and defined system

of ideas, but rather a confused mass, circumscribed

by a network of Neo-Platonic mysticism.

young Emperor, who died

did

not have

thoughts,

time to give precise form to his

especially

very early youth,

pended by

at

in

as,

his

life

a thread, as he

being murdered by his

his

to

adolescence and

was, as

it

was always

evil

in

were, sus-

danger of

and suspicious

In the last eight years of his

made

The

the age of thirty-two,

life,

cousin.

being suddenly

general and administrator, he

still

continued

be surrounded by the gravest preoccupations,

governing Gaul, repulsing the successive Germanic

invasions, later, attempting the usurpation of the
VOL. I. 15

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

226

Imperial throne, and,

finally,

entering upon that

Persian campaign in which he met his death.

is

really

marvellous

how,

It

such a short and

in

agitated existence, he found time to write and think

But

so much.

thoughts and his writings were

his

sensibly affected by the tumultuous

therefore lack

all

life

system and sound

he

led,

reflection.

and

He

himself narrates that, profiting by the short respite

from his many preoccupations, he often composed his

philosophical dissertations during the night, rapidly

and without books, more as a vent

to a soul over-

flowing with ideas and impressions than with literary

or instructive intentions.

But the most

special reason for the congested

and confused aspect of Julian's ideas was due to

doctrines

the

by which he was

themselves

in-

In his time, the dominant philosophy of the

spired.

Hellenic world was Neo-Platonism, which following in the track

and confused
of the

of

Plato,

but with unrestrained

fantasy, sought,

rather

ideal, or

of

in

the

the rarefied air

supernatural,

Platonism, just because

it

affirmed the existence

of the supernatural, and has placed

Cause of nature,

The
in

its

mechanical conception
the

succeed

in

action

of

making any

itself at

the

it

as the First

essentially a theistic doctrine.

atheism of Epicurus and

cluded

found

is

the

Now, Neo-

explanation of nature and existence.

the

Lucretius, which,

of

the

world,

ex-

did

not

supernatural,

progress.

opposite pole.

Neo-Platonism

The problem

JULIAN'S ATTITUDE
speculation was

of philosophical

of

existence

the

plaining
the

intervention

and

creative,

of a

227

not

that of ex-

universe without

the

Cause,

First

supernatural

but rather that of determining- the

relationship between

the cause affirmed a priori

Now, Neo-Platonism

and the existing universe.

did not pretend to preserve the purely naturalistic

because

polytheism,

and

rational

moment
with

new

its

it

the

to

exigencies

of

the

accept Christianity, which,

wounded

affirmations,

Hellenic

of

tions

not respond

metaphysical

nor would

did

it

by

and,

culture,

the tradi-

all

mono-

its

condemned the pantheistical tendencies of

so it composed a symbolical and
philosophy
theism,

pretending

mystical polytheism,

to

therein

find

the representation of the creative process, while,

at

same

the

time,

most unbridled
an example

left

it

every believer the

to

We

liberty of interpretation.

in Julian

himself of

how

have

far this liberty

could conduce to an excess of fantasy and super-

But here we

stition.

the proof of which

hero's

the

thoughts.

follies

physics,

ductions
there

in

the

we
It

venture on a statement
our

shall find in analysing

would

excesses

seem

that

between

of Neo-Platonic

meta-

on the one hand, and the correct proof

must

opposition.

of the

and

will

dogmatic Orthodoxy on
necessarily

exist

an

However, when we go

matter,

we

external

find

that

the

efflorescence.

the

irreconcilable
to

the

opposition

The

other,

trunk

root
is

all

that

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

228

sustains each of

them we

find

them

the

the same.

is

ideas pre-existent to the world

the

intelligibles,"

In each of them the supreme

God, supernatural and

is

each of

Platonic spirituaHsm, with the

as Julian calls them.

world, that

In

unknowable, creates the

to say, gives material

existence

to

simple ideas through a divine mediator revealed

to

mankind

the Logos-Christ in Christian meta-

physics, the sun-god in the theology of lamblichus

and

Behold

Julian.

the

common

The

directions.
in the

Christian

current

from

source

which burst the two streams that flowed

in different

was directed

bed of Orthodox monotheism.

Athanasius,

Ambrose, and Augustine protected its course with

barriers so lofty and secure as to preclude the
possibility of its

not

current,

subdivided

protected,

number

small

of

appeared

overflowing.

finding

in

the

The Neo-Platonic

bed

itself

streams,

sands

prearranged

an

into

and,

of

and

infinite

finally,

dis-

metaphysical

the

desert.

Neo-Platonism, therefore, by ingrafting

polytheism, tried to organise

it

system that represented the creation, that

descent of the supernatural into nature.
multiplicity of
to the

born from the tendency of primeval

was able

to

on

is,

the

But the

myths was an insuperable objection

Polytheism,

rationalisation of polytheism.

the natural

itself

a symbolic

into

phenomena
keep

in

man

to personify

determined

divinities,

even

an epoch

itself alive

in

JULIAN'S ATTITUDE

when

it

had completely

primitive

its

and

consciousness of

lost the

by transforming

signification,

into national

229

local

itself

But when the

religions.

sentiment and the devotion for the mother country

disappeared

immensity

the

in

of

the

Roman

Empire, polytheism had no longer a reason of

being,

and was doomed

The

to perish.

attempts

of the Neo-Platonics, of lamblichus, Maximus, and

by infusing therein a philowere necessarily barren, and became

Julian to revive

sophical

spirit,

exhausted

For

it,

and pedantic

in puerile

all

this,

attempt

Julian's

most interesting episodes

because

always

is

it

one of the

is

in ancient history

to

interesting

man

of

intentions

efforts.

of

great

soul

study

first

the

and acute

intelligence,

and such the young Emperor certainly

was

again,

and,

because

clearest demonstration
final

victory

movement was
it

to

of

if

the

In

fact,

Julian's

he had led back polytheism

of

signification

naturalistic

patriotic cult of

was not a reactionary

fication of

is

not a reactionary movement, such as

had revived the

Julian

attempt

of the inevitability of the

Christianity.

would have been

its

this

religion,

or

Athens or Rome.

nor does the quali-

"romantic" apply to him, although he

has been called so by some

who found

a decided

analogy between him and certain writers of our

century

who adored

times.

It

Julian's

is

name

the Middle

unpardonable
in

famous

in

Ages

in

Strauss

libel,

modern
to

use

except as a

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

230
literary

artifice

to

King Frederick

that

satirise

William of Prussia who dreamt of being able

oppose

thought of

the

time.

his

but he had no wish

progressive,

was

Julian
to

to

sacrifice to

progress the ancient culture, of which he was a

fervent admirer, and those traditions of civilisation

which

constituted

mankind

for

an

inestimable

He, therefore, upheld polytheism, into

treasure.

which he introduced that culture and that

by upholding

tion, but,

civilisa-

he Christianised

it,

not

it,

we
The

only under the aspect of metaphysics, but also, as

under that of morals and

shall see,

discipline.

attempt to Christianise polytheism so as to keep

it

alive

could only be appreciated by those

shared Julian's love for that assemblage of

tion,

glory,

and

under the comprehensive

this

love

only

which

poetry

existed

title

barbarians,
in

was

incipient.

tradi-

designated

of Hellenism.

amongst

the fourth century, barbarism,

he

who

the

few.

But
In

even without the

Among

the

which the sentiment of patriotism was

masses,
extinct,

Hellenism had no hold, and, on the other hand,

men

truly religious

men

who, for the peace of

their souls, truly felt the necessity of a

as

Ambrose and Augustine

though

God, such

appropriating

the fundamental idea of Neo- Platonic philosophy,

were necessarily obliged to repudiate

its

confused

and stupid myths, and were horrified at the revival

of rites and sacrifices which had become absurd
and odious.

JULIAN'S ATTITUDE

231

Having established these fundamental

we will now give especial attention to Julian
His theological system

tions.

two

the

dissertations,

first

is

points,
s inten-

contained in his

concerning "the Sun

King," and the second "the Mother of the Gods."

In this confused exposition of doctrine
to

it is

not easy

determine the respective competency of these

two personages, whose actions seem

each other.

to

embarrass

But, on this point, even Julian could

not have aimed at any absolute decision, because

he himself relates that he wrote these

little

treatises

thousand preoccupations of the

at night, amidst the

emperor and the general, and that they were the

outcome of a sudden

inspiration, the effect of

The

fugitive impressions.

Sun

" is

discourse on the "

dedicated to Sallustius, and was written in

three nights, and without the

" If

aid of books.

Sallustius" he says "would

friend

some
King

some-

desire

thing more profound, he should turn to the books

of the divine lamblichus, in which he will find the

extreme

limit of

human wisdom.

The

little

that

knows he has learnt from him.

Never
mind what efforts one might make to say someJulian

new,

thing

he

anything that
It

could

never

lamblichus

succeed

intent

hymn

in

but Julian

if

you write

simply

saying

had not already

would, therefore, be useless

anything after him,

in

to
it

try

said.

and write

with a scientific

wished to compose a

honour of the god, and has sought

speak of his nature according to his own

ideas,

to

and


JULIAN THE APOSTATE

232

was

as well as he

We

able."^

shall follow

him

in

his painful effort to explain his ideas.

The supreme
the universe

he

calls

organised,

is

him.

god around whom

the sun, King Sun, as

divinity, the

In

is

adoration

this

of the sun

we

recognise a genuine and poetic inspiration rather

than a doctrinal precept,

if

we judge from

eloquent exordium of the dissertation

I

who

breathes and creeps on earth

and who participates

intelligence.

others,

for

in life, in the rational soul

more

me

But

it is

am

a worshipper of the

And of this I
And may I be

suitable to

and

than to

god Sun.

can give the most evident proof.

permitted to recall that from child-

the most vivid admiration for the rays

felt

of the god, and

the

affirm that this discourse will be suitable to

every creature

hood

the

eternal

my

vault,

whole soul turned towards

only did

not

for

desire to

always look at the sun, but even sometimes, during

the night,

have gone out under a serene and

and forgetting everything, abandoned

cloudless sky,

myself to the

celestial beauties,

did

tion

that

me,

and

not

might

have

not comprehend what was told

what

caring

been

by the

gods

that
1

had

affairs

myself.

It

know-

that pertain to

was a youth, some

However, I swear
astrology.

the heavens, and that,

me

did

that

said

ledge and familiarity with

one had taught

so lost in admira-

Julian.,

when

no
d?/.

books

treating

a/., p. 204, 4 sq.

of

that

JULIANAS ATTITUDE
subject ever

know

not even

why do
things

came

my

hands, and that

say

to

this

all

much more important

so

wished to reveal what was then

cerning the gods

moment

But

May

when
to

have

relate,

my

if

belief con-

oblivion cover that dark

"
!

With
most

did

that such a science existed.

stop

into

233

hymn, which manifests a

appreciation of nature, and reveals the

this enthusiastic

lively

impressionable disposition of the youth, and his cry

of horror

when he

recalls the Christian training to

which he was subjected, Julian begins the exposi-

Now, when we seek

tion of his theology.

to render

the thoughts of the writer intelligible, by liberating

them from the

terrible

phraseology of Neo-Platonic

scholasticism, with which they are encumbered,

find

a Trinitarian system

that

we

has the greatest

analogy with that of Hebraico- Alexandrine metaphysics.

According to
the world of the
reigns the

Julian, there exist three worlds

intelligibles," of

pure ideas, where

supreme principle of the Chief Good

the world of intellectual beings or divinities placed

between

simple

angels in the

men

in

the

world, the

ideas

Christian

and

matter,

heaven or the

Pauline system.

Supreme

the

celestial

Cause reigns

itself that is

and which possesses the

^

are

In this intellectual

Principle or First

by means of an emanation from

spiritual,

as

Julian., op. ciL, p. 168-69.

wholly

closest analogy

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

234

with the Logos of Philo and Origen.

and concrete world

visible

assumes a
is

the

which

in

Finally, the

this

emanation

visible form, which, according to Julian,

and

sun,

Orthodox

for

Christianity,

the

humanised Logos.

Now,

we compare

if

Julian's idea with the pro-

logue of the Fourth Gospel, which

would never have been,

have been

with

the bitterest

moved

whom

same

in the

or, at least,

circle of ideas as those

he contended.

It is

always the same

fundamental conception of a supreme

whom
world

would

we are astonished to
enemy of Christianity

entirely different,

discover that
actually

the basis of

metaphysics, and without which Chris-

Christian
tianity

is

God

from

emanates a rational principle by which the

created,

is

and who therein becomes

by assuming

When

having spoken of the two

Julian,

and

determined

forms of God, says "This

as a third form of God,

is

active

sensible

form.

invisible

solar disc that appears

the efficacious cause of the

salvation of sensible beings

"

we

only have to

substitute for the word ''disc" the word ''Logos"

And
in order to have a phrase purely Christian.

note that the reason for which Julian sees in the

sun the revelation of

above

asks

all

God

is

the vital and divine principle.

Julian

"is

it

not

divine form of that which

^

that he considers light

Julian., op.

evapycbs aLTios

cit.^

p.

172, 19 sq.

is

the

"

Light

incorporeal

"

and

powerful without being

rplros 6 (paivoficvos ovroaL dio-Kos

(Tti toIs ala-drjTo'is Ttjs acoTrjpias.

JULIAN'S ATTITUDE
? "

material
light

light

and

which

and

life

and the Logos,

books,

Christian

motiven on

analogy

the

truly,

and the principle of

tween the
in

And,

salvation, be-

one of the

is

it

between

continually found

is

Fourth

the

235

leit-

Evangelist emIn

broiders with great insistence his variations.

him

was

(the Logos)

and

life,

life

was the

light of

That was the true Light which lighteth

He was
every man that cometh into the world.
in the world, and the world was made by him, and

man.

the world

The

knew him

fact

took root

not."^

that

is

all

Platonic

in

these ideas that directly

philosophy constituted that

mixture from which issued Christian metaphysics

on the one

The

and Neo-Platonism on the

side,

elements

substantial

Alexandria was the furnace

efforts of Philo

and

always the same.

are

in which,

through the

his school, Platonic speculation

The

became soldered with Hebraic monotheism.

metaphysician

other.

who wrote

the

Fourth

Gospel

solemnly affirms that monotheism saved Christianity

from the Gnostic heresy that germinated from the

But

Platonic

leaven.

Platonic

spiritualism,

this

no

same
longer

Alexandrine
united

with

monotheism, gave birth to the mystic symbolism of

Ammonius

Saccas, Plotinus, and Porphyry, which

did not differ from Christian thought, except that

Julian., op.

cit., p.

173,

I.

to (^wy ovk eiSof eariv daoonarov tl

6eiov TOV Kor evepyeiav dia(Pavov<:.

2

John

i.

4-10.

it

kcii

THE APOSTATE

JULlAxN

236

lacked dogmatic determination in

lines

and

fundamental

its

in the preservation of the plurality of the

gods.

was an almost identity of fundamental thought between Christianity and NeoBut

if

there

Platonism, there was, in another respect, a difference

which was the true cause of the former prevailing

over the

Neo-Platonism

It is that

latter.

a philosophy, and Christianity

of morals.

It is sufficient to

may be

Julian's, that

Platonic Gospel, and

of

John.

made

In

the

is,

above

a code

take this discourse of

considered a sort of Neoplace

it

the

first,

beside the Gospel

writer,

having

after

his metaphysical exposition, loses himself in

such a confused dissertation concerning the

butes of the sun and

Hellenic

whether

it is

its

that

divinities,

standing his

more pedantic
efforts,

whom

readers,
religion,

is

it

to

difficult

or childish

ideas

he desired

so,

in

The

Evangelist,

trumpet - blasts

God

solemn
in

the

identity of Jesus Christ with the

Logos, the metaphysics disappear.

of Christ to

his

to convert to his solar

But having closed the prologue

mysterious silence.

and affirmed the

notwith-

composing

instead, in his prologue, introduces certain

like

decide

must leave

that

amazed and unconvinced.

which sound

attri-

relations with the other

he only succeeded

a tangle of words and

theses

only

is

all,

is

only the

human

The

relation

relation that

between Father and Son, and all Christ's

actions are pure examples of love, and his words
exists

JULIANAS ATTITUDE
are naught but

237

hymn, an exhortation

Fourth Gospel, does not

the

Certainly Jesus, in

speak as Jesus does

to love.

In his voice

in the Synoptics.

there resounds a note not attuned to earth.

Logos
a

is

no longer named, yet we

man who

But with

speaks.

efficacy of these

tender appeal to

discourses,

human

Here mankind, wearied

was able
a

of

most powerful.

is

of an exhausted mythology,

dreamer,

it

is

symbolism of

the

might have pleased some

humanity

left

The dominant

incredulous.

philosophy

But

faith.

even though

fantastic

continued and

their

sentiment,

not

the moral

this,

all

it is

to revive the impulse to believe, to find

new source

Julian,

feel that

The

and

indifferent

character of Julian's

the obscurity by which

not because of the profundity of

its

it is

pervaded,

thoughts, but

on account of the confusion of undigested ideas

and the

effort to

give precise forms to vague and

variable conceptions.
If

a fundamental idea can be said to exist in

this philosophy,

it

is

still

the Platonic principle of

the pre-existence of the idea, of which the visible

world,

the

world of sense,

is

the

reproduction,

brought about by means of a creative god, who,

according to Julian, has emanated and separated

from the supreme

God, and who reveals

under the aspect of the sun.

The

exist before the real forms.

Therefore

substance that reveals

is

prepared to generate

itself as

in

ideal

itself

forms must

when

the

generatrix in nature

beauty and produce a son

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

238

(vireKTideadat tov tokov),

it

is

necessary that

be

it

preceded by the substance eternally generatrix

ideal beauty,

which does not produce intermittently,

because that which

been beautiful

beautiful has

is

world from

in the ideal

in

all

We

eternity.

therefore

say that the generative cause in phenomena must

be preceded and guided by an idea inborn

eternal beauty that
himself,

and

God

in the

holds and disposes around

which he gives perfect intelligence

to

as with the light he

gives sight to the eyes, so

with the ideal model that he presents, and which

is

much more luminous than

gives to

the ethereal rays, he

intelligent beings the faculty of

all

knowing

and being known."

This Platonic theory of the pre-existence of the
idea which

the

is

consequence of the distinction

between the two categories of

spirit

and matter

is

found at the basis of Christian metaphysics and of

orthodox spiritualism, and,

realism

of

Scholasticism.

last affirmation in the

acme
However,

find

This

it

becomes the

theory had

its

To

philosophy of Rosmini.

between Julian and Rosmini seems

find a tie

the

later on,

to

be

of extravagance, and almost a sacrilege.

if

we

look deeply into the matter,

that the intellectual

connection

exists,

as

we
it

existed between Julian and the theologians of the

he abhorred and by

whom

he was

afterwards so fiercely anathematised.

The

reason

Councils

of this

is

whom
that

men do
^

not unite or divide because

Julian., op. at., p. i88, 5 sq.

ATTITUDE

JULIAN'S

239

They

of the similitude or difference of ideas.

or divide

when

their

unite

moral habits and aspirations

harmonise or disagree.

Christianity

and Hellenism

are equal so far as the idea and theory that they

They

represent.

could not be otherwise, because

they both had their source in common, and because

they responded both to the same necessities of the

human mind.

But these ideas were only the vest-

ments which covered moral tendencies, completely

and to which they adapted themselves

in such a manner as to appear, on the one hand,
human errors, and, on the other, divine revelations.
different,

Nevertheless,

it

was always the same covering,

differently arranged, or, to use another simile, the

same viands

Christianity which

differently dressed.

introduced into the world a scope of moral finality

never to be attained upon earth, because the world

most wicked, transported human

to heaven,

from

life

interest

is

from earth

from the present to the transcendental,

Hellenism, not appreciat-

to the hereafter.

ing this scope of moral

and

finality,

for which, there-

was most excellent, wished to preserve

human interest in the present, and also that immense
fore,

the world

treasure of traditions, poetry,

accumulated

in

antiquity,

and glory which had

and which Christianity

abhorred and condemned.

The

the product of the

the epoch served as well

in

ism

Platonic spiritual-

intellectual

atmosphere of

one direction as

in

the other.

But Christianity

in

the

fourth

century

had

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

240

become so
into

diffused,

and

habits,

that

social

obliged

subscribe

to

assume

its

devotee.

If

artificial

and

King

assumes

Julian

we

sometimes

to

Sun

in

with

finishes

the attitude

it

of a

recognise in his words something

scholastic

who

Plotinus

enemies were

its

and

it,

From this, Julian borrowed

flame unknown to the ancients.

on

Discourse

hymn.

even

to

language.

a fervour, a mystic

The

had entered so deeply

it

if it

not the ecstasy of

is

and

sinks himself

loses

himself in

God, nor the elan of Augustine vibrating with

the emotion of a soul wrapped in divine contemplation, there

ment,

than

deeper
of

w^orshippers

grant

however, a profound religious senti-

is,

me

animated

May

many

celebrate

to

which

that

polytheism.

gods

the

times

the

the

sacred

and may the sun-god, King of the universe,

he who proceeds from all eternity from the
generative substance of the Good, who, in the
feast,

midst of

the

gods,

intellectual

infinite

harmony and

stance,

perfect

intelligence,

in

the

seat

the midst of the heavens

visible

the

being the

heavens with

prehended

in

his

he who from

all

him

in

destined

for

he who gives to every

beauty of idea
as

sub-

fruitful

and continually and

without end, with every good

eternity shines

them with

fills

with

beauty,

many gods

intelligence

he who
are

as

he who

in

fills

comvirtue

of his generative continuity and of the beneficent

power emanating from

his circular body,

harmonises

JULIAN'S

ATTITUDE

241

the compages of this sublunary sphere, caring for

the

all

human

race,

our

empire

for

this

has

created

our

and,

who

he

making

soul,

manner,

a special

in

from

eternity

his

follower.

it

Concede then unto me all that I have prayed

for, and maintain with benevolence the continuity
of the
well

we

Vouchsafe unto us

empire.

matters

in

are permitted to

last as

able

long as

to

pleasing unto him, and profitthe

to

prosperity

of

beseech the Sun,

because of

things,

all

succeed

and may our existence

Once again

affairs.

king of

is

live,

and necessary

us,

Roman

it

to

and human, as long as

divine

be benevolent to me, and give

my
me

devotion,

a happy

a steady mind, a divine intelligence, and,

to
life,

finally,

moment, a most tranquil liberaand grant me to ascend and remain

at the destined
tion

from

life,

near him, possibly through eternity, and,

be beyond

my

Together with
Julian

has

many

merits, at least for

of harmonious years."

periods

the

Discourse

another

left

this

if

hymn, as one might

to

theological

King Sun,
treatise,

or

Mother of
the Gods," written by the enthusiastic. Emperor
call

it,

to

the

in

a single night at Pessinus, while on his

to

Persia.

The

fused as are

all

composition,

way

laboured and con-

the philosophical and theological

manifestations of Julian,

commences with a famous

and

which Julian

delightful
^

VOL.

I.

legend,

Julian,, op.

16

cii., p.

203, 4 sq.,

and

relates

205, 5 sq.

with

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

242

genuine

the

simplicity

reproduce

shall

and

pedantic

of

here

it

war

Carthage,

against

my

no objection to

Having heard

demand

of the

Rome

God-fearing
to

of

full

and
grace

by

decided

favourable

of

to

''And here there

the

to

the

counsel

the

her

oracle,

he

Gods,

time of

the

narrating a

King

of the

the

of

sought,

to render

Pythoness,

them, and then he continues:

is

the

in

Libanius

of

the

the

that

of the

that,

spirit

Mother
Romans, at

honour

records

We

poet.

After stating that the Greeks held

feeling.

high

in

true

show

to

pupil

rhetorical

Maximus, there existed

and

the

short

story.

inhabitants

of

send an embassy

Pergamum, who then

possessed Phrygia, and the Phrygians themselves,

the

image

of

the

sacred

charge,

transport,

the

Seas,

and

they placed

on

it

received

large

able to sail securely on the boundless

Having

sea.

Having

goddess.

crossed

after

^gean

the

and Ionian

along the Sicilian coast,

sailing

they arrived at the mouth of the Tiber.

people issued from the

And

the

with the Senate, and

city,

they were preceded by the priests and priestesses,

everything
the

rites

regarded

in

of
the

them under a
dashed

their

suitable

the

nation.

ship
fair

order,

that

And
rapidly

to

anxiously they

came

towards

wind, while the ploughed waves

foam around

on the point of

and according

entering,

its

keel.

When

it

was

every one prostrated

themselves to the earth on the place where they

To face page

243.

JULIAN'S ATTITUDE
were

But

standing.

desired to prove to

they had

people

inanimate statue

and divine

object possessed of great

but

force, as

as the ship touched the Tiber, behold,

and remained immovable as

if

taken root in the bed of the

river.

pulled

against

it

move.

the

Supposing

sorts of engines to

all

Then

immovable.

and

secrated

of not

manifested

shame

holy

such

her

the

remains

most

terrible

virgin

priesthood.

who

goddess,

con-

And

name and

accusations

the

thus openly

blushed with

Claudia

these suspicions,

so far was she from unlawful and

hearing that

still

being the name of the

disdain.

hearing her

at

to

having remained undefiled and pure

the service of the

in

people

refused

it

arose

concerning

Claudia was accused

saint

stopped

it

The

but the ship

most

the

to

soon

be aground, they apply

there

suspicion

vile

it

an

had suddenly

it

but

current,
to

it

she

if

was not

it

Phrygia

from

brought

as

that

stone an

simply a sculptured
that

goddess,

the

the

243

illicit

against

acts, but,

her were

increasing in force, she loosens her girdle, attaches

it

to the

inspired,

extreme bowsprit of the

commands them

she prays

the

goddess

victim to this iniquitous

a loud voice, almost as

if

all

ship, and, as

to stand back,

if

and

abandon her a
outrage, and then, with

not

to

giving a naval

command

if I am pure,
she exclaimed
Holy Mother
And, behold, the virgin not only
follow me
!

'

'

'

moves the

ship, but

drags

it

along a good way

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

244
against the
Julian

know "
concludes
some among those who give them-

current

that

selves the air of being wise, will say this

woman's

But

tale.

traditions rather than these wiseacres

may be

intelligences
air of

being morbid

The
Gods

is

"

is

an old

prefer to believe the popular

whose

little

me have

acute, but to

the

discourse concerning the Mother of the

most

interesting, because

it

shows the pro-

cess of mystical interpretation that Julian, a disciple

of the Neo-Platonists, applied to the ancient legends

order to

in

them and render them

the idealistic and spiritualistic meta-

rationalise

acceptable to

physics that dominated the thought of that time.

Julian

fundamental

interpretation,

his

in

starts,

of

principle

Platonic

from the

philosophy,

already affirmed by him in his discourse on the

King Sun, namely, the existence of an

of which

The images

world

material

the

is

ideal world,

the

reflection.

of beings, as Aristotle teaches, exist

reflected again in the soul, but they exist ideally

and

"

potentially.

But

it

also necessary that

is

the image before existing in power should exist in

action.

What

place shall

Possibly in material things?

come

last.

Nothing

seek ideal causes

assign unto them

It

remains,

is

clear that these

therefore,

preordain

that

the

but

to

material,^

5 sq.

Julian., op.

r//., p.

207,

Julian., op.

CzV., p.

212, 18.

ivepyua TrpoTerayixivas

v.

Xei'rrerai 6/} XotTroi^

touv evvXcuv.

dvXovs aiTias C^reiv

JULIANAS ATTITUDE
and

souls, subordinate

from which our

245
co-existent,

receive as a mirror the images of the objects, the

and transmit them, by means of

ideas of the forms,

and

nature, to matter

Now
Gods,

myth

the

Mother of the

of Cybele, or the

for Julian the

is

to the material bodies."

symbolic representation of

the procedure by which the idea becomes concrete

and returns afterwards

in matter,

According

essence.

to

to the legend,

its

primitive

is

said that

it

Cybele became chastely enamoured of Atys, and

know any woman. But

with love for the nymph

enjoined upon him not to

Atys became inflamed

Sangaris, and penetrating into the cave where she

lived,

they became united.

This aroused the wrath

it,

Atys was

before

he could

of Cybele, and, in order to appease

emasculate

obliged to

himself,

be restored to the position

primitively held.
originally

succession

many

like

nature

in

the

of

others,

Oriental and
to see

It

is

clear that this

interpretation,

without
these

even

interest

revivers

the

represented

seasons

myth

to

of

was,

that

humanised and dramatised by

Julian pretends

myth the expression of a

this,

Nevertheless,

was

that

Hellenic fantasies.

this

demonstrating

story

myth

he torments
fantastic
in

this

note

the

paganism

^Julian., op.

cit.^ p.

philo-

order to succeed in

sophical conception, and, in

of

honour that he

of

it

with a subtlety

and

extraordinary.
is

not

great efforts

that

instance,

made

212, 19 sq.

to

it

introduce

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

246

myths

ancient

into

thoughts which

have contained

could

new wine

We

broken.

old

into

other words,

in

they never
to

pour

already cracked and

bottles,

must give some examples of these

efforts.

Who
source of

Mother of the Gods ? She is the

the gods, ideal and creative, who

the

is
all

govern the

gods

visible

also she

the

after

who coGod great

the goddess

habits and generates with the great

greatest

the

of

mistress

all

who immediately perfects that which she has made

who generates without suffering, and who together
life,

cause

the

of

every

with the Father, creates

a mother

beings

all

virgin without

sharing the throne of God, she

Mother of
in

generation,

the

and since she comprehends

herself the cause of all the gods, ideal and
all

the Gods,

supernatural,

she becomes the source of

cognoscible

gods.

providence

in

fell

Now

principle.

This

Atys."^

in

symbol of

unity,

towards the

remain

Atys

and

to

material.

faithful

re-

to generate

only regarding that which

idea,

this

when she became

enamoured of Atys, enjoined on him

solely

the

the creative and generative

goddess,

the

all

and

goddess

with

love

myth

presents in this

to

is

to

is

the

avoid every inclination

But
the

Atys was not able

goddess,

and thence

descended to the procreation of material forms.

Now,

it

is

in
1

order
Julian., op.

to
cit.,

recall

the

p. 215, 5 sq.

generative

JULIAN'S ATTITUDE
principle

the

to

being corrupted and entirely

who
and who
Sun,

its

the material,

lost in

with her the providential principle,

is

do

can

nothing without

to emasculate

limitation

decadence

material

the

in

her,

induces

which represents the

himself,

generative principle, and

world.

prevent

Mother of the Gods, together with the

that the

Atys

and

world,

ideal

247

the

of

return to the ideal

its

had not been willed by

If this limitation

Providence, the generative principle, raging in

material excesses, would exhaust itself and

impotent for

its

And

ideal function.^

Julian closes

myth with the

of the

this singular interpretation

its

become

"This myth teaches us that,

though celestial in our natures, we have come on
earth to hasten to return to God, the stiver of
words:

following

life,

after

virtue

having gathered,

and

Therefore the signal of

piety.

that the trumpet gives to

tion,

gives also to us,

it

fallen

to

limits

the

command

earth.

our earthly sojourn,

in

If

infinity

Atys

after his emascula-

who from heaven have

Atys with
of

his

his

fall,

emasculation

gods

the

us to emasculate ourselves,

limit in ourselves the material infinity,

to attain

What

than

soul

is

there

which

more

and

joyful,

escapes

whirlwind awakened
desires

that

also
is,

to

strive

the formal, and as far as possible, the

essential unity.
glorious,

recall

more

from the

in it by the materiality of
and the impulses of generation, and which
^Julian., op.

cif., p.

217, 8 sq.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

248
lifts itself

on high, even

who was one

gods

to the

And

Atys,

was not abandoned by the

Mother of the Gods, who yet wished him near her,
and arrested him in the infinity of his fall." ^
of these,

Julian, after

having given an extraordinary and

lengthy exposition of the divine legend,

its

essentially mythical

suppose that
really

speak of these things as having

happened, just as

what they should

correct

their

either guided
selves,

on

insists

Let no one

character.

if

the gods did not

do, or that they

own

know

were obliged to

But the ancients,

mistakes.

by the gods, or thinking

and discovering the causes of

for

them-

things, veiled

them with strange myths, in order that this device,

by its strangeness and obscurity, might incite us
to the search after
irrational

symbol

To

truth.

but for

is sufficient,

men
those who

ordinary

the
are

distinguished for their intelligence, divine truths are

satisfactory only

when they

are discovered, after

having been sought by the aid of the gods.

enigmas cause us

to reflect,

investigate them, so,

The

and we are obliged

to

by means of observation, we

arrive at the discovery of the truth, not because of

respect

for,

and

faith in, the opinions of others, but

rather by the force of our

own

intelligence.""

rioforous rationalism that reveals itself in these

The
few

sentences must have caused

Julian to verify the

complete evaporation of his

divinities.

^Julian., op.
2

cit., p.

219, 19 sq.

Ibid., op. cit., p. 220, 8 sq.

But he

JULIAN'S
wished

ATTITUDE
because the

uphold a religion

to

249

Neo-

Platonic doctrine, in which he had been educated,

affirmed

of the supernatural,

existence

the

and,

therefore, the necessity of a positive religion, and,

furthermore, because he wished to be the restorer

of a cult worthy of being opposed to Christianity.

Hence a

singular contradiction in

and an

intrinsic

dered

its

defect

in

the

its

manifestations,

system, that ren-

victory over Christianity impossible

on the contrary, possessed a

Christianity,

for

God

so

well specified, so clear, so historical, as to be able

to collect in himself the mythical

principles of the

Logos without

and metaphysical
in

any way losing

his personal efficacy.

But

made every

preserve to the gods, con-

cerning

effort to

whom

Julian, notwithstanding,

he reasoned with a subtlety, at the

same time

fantastic

and pedantic, a

to enable

them

receive adoration and prayers.

We

to

sufficient reality

have already seen the beautiful words with

which he begins and ends

The

Sun.

Gods

the

discourse addressed to
finishes

who

dost

gods

sit

thou

likewise with the prayer of a

fervent believer.

King
the Mother of

his discourse to the

Mother of Gods and of Men,

on the throne of God, origin of the

who

dost participate in the pure essence

of the ideas, comprehending in thyself the cause of

all,

and dost infuse

life,

thou

it

who

goddess of

in the ideal beings,

revealer, providence

and

creatrix of our souls

hast saved x^tys, and hast recalled

from the cavern

in

which he was hurled

thou

him

who

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

250
bestowest

overflowest

concede to
is

on the

all gifts

the
all

sensible

men

and with them

ideal gods,

world,

beseech thee,

happiness, the summit of which

the knowledge of the gods

cause the

people to cast out the sin of impiety, and

Roman
may a

benignant fate preserve to them the Empire

many thousands
of

fruit

my

me

Permit

of years.

to reap, as

devotion to thee, the truth of divine

and success

science, perfection in worship, virtue

and

political

all

for

military

enterprises

undertake, and a termination of

glorious, together with the

regretless

life

in

which we

and

hope of drawing near

unto thee."

Omitting and modifying certain phrases which

are,

above

all,

ornamental,

is

not this a prayer that

might have escaped from the

Do we

not feel in

its

a Christian

depth the identical inspiration

lips of

This invocation of the Mother of the Gods comes,

it

is

true,

after

a long discourse

personality of the
filter

is

entirely evaporated,

so that the prayer addressed to her

recall that this

and did not

which the

goddess, passing through the

of mythical explanations,

But when we
man who undertook

in

is lost in

prayer

is

space.

written by a

the most hazardous enterprises,

hesitate to confront the

most extreme

we cannot consider this supplication as a vain

declamation we feel that the words express a true
The sentiment modifies itself in
sentiment.
peril,

expression according to the form

it

^Julian., op. af., p. 232, 13 sq.

assumes, but

JULIAN'S ATTITUDE
the religious sentiment

no

is

251

less living in Julian,

who had become an apostate from Christianity,

than in many of those who became converts to this
same

Christianity.

The

theory of the value and signification of the

myths has
if

we may

in Julian the greatest

so express

that prevented

pantheism

Platonic

it,

from

it

importance.

It is,

the keystone of the arch

In Neo-

falling to pieces.

the

and

divinities

of

fables

polytheism could find no place, and, moreover, the

great conception of Plotinus, by which the universe
is

the

extrinsic

part

a unique

of

and supreme

principle that manifests itself with the idea reflected

by the concrete forms, might have

led to an ecstatic

meditation on divinity, but could not closely

with a positive religion.

Porphyry

And

participating

in

in

divine

the

any determined

successors, influenced in part

in

in truth, Plotinus, as

relates in the life of the master,

became sublimated

fit

sometimes

vision,
cult.

without

But his

by the psychological

conditions of the time, and in part by the necessity

of preoccupying a

position

that otherwise

have been taken by Christianity, desired

would

to create

a positive religion, and not having at their disposal

any determined
took the
insisted
sacrifice

historical

ancient

and divine

divinities

of

figure,

they

polytheism,

and

upon bestowing on them a worship of

and prayer, at the same time affirming

that they

were not

divinities,

but mere symbols of

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

252

In this direction no one

philosophical conceptions.

went farther than

Julian,

who

was,

may be

it

said,

with metaphysical doctrines badly digested,

filled

and who, being an emperor

tianity,

inimical

to

Chris-

wished to introduce an absolute religion

of State which would prevent

the

destruction of

Hellenism.
Julian did not in the least believe in the objective
reality

of the

"

Echo

is

consort of Pan.
if

air,

he writes

and the

say nothing to the contrary.

me

Nature teaches

sound of the voice

the

to a friend,

for thee a chattering goddess,

Since, even

In a

polytheistic personifications.

most clever and jocose note

that

that, sent back,

Echo

is

the

passing through

returns to the ear, therefore agreeing with

the belief of the ancients and the moderns no less

than with Nature,

dess."-^

words,

But

if

will

admit that she

Julian, as

was able with

disengage the myths

is

a god-

we gather from

these

acute

his

in- his

intelligence

to

affirmation of natural

them as symbols of
philosophical conceptions, and his greatest desire
phenomena, he preserved
was, rationally to justify

The

thesis

such a transformation.

already alluded to

in

addressed to the Mother of the Gods

in

the
is

discourse

fully treated

one of Julian's most curious writings, the

dis-

course against the cynic Heraclius.

This discourse, which contains many pages

full

of wit and elegance, but which lacks the " restraint of

^Julian., op.

cit., p.

564.

ATTITUDE

JULIAN'S
art," as
is

most of

the case in

is

especially interesting for

we

expressed

find

253

Julian's writings,

two reasons,

because

first

conception that Julian,

the

following in the footsteps of the

Neo

Platonists,

formed of the myth and of the signification of the

mythological legends

a very beautiful and

own

his

actions,

allegory,

clear

and affords the

story,

because,

and, secondly,

and formulates, so

in

he relates

justification of his

to speak, his

Imperial

programme.
This discourse must be the consequence of some
preceding facts with which
but which

we

are not acquainted,

we may imagine with

of approximating to the truth.

a great probability

Julian,

on becoming

Emperor, must have encountered the opposition of

three sorts of enemies.

Christians

religion,

first

place,

who were not

the

pleased

transformations that the Neo-

Emperor wished
in

the

then those pagans

with the mythical

Platonic

In

place of the

to

impose on the ancient

simple,

intelligible,

and

human fables of former times and, finally, all those

who were interested in the corrupt administration of
;

the empire and

felt

the dangers of the reforms of this

The

restless legislator.

who

cynic Heraclius

Hellenic

mythology,

not

Julian's efTort to

infuse into

it

of the

would enable
from

was one

did not admit the philosophical interpretation

its

it

to resist

comprehending

a new

Christianity.

spirit that

Cynicism,

most flourishing period with Antisthenes

and Diogenes, had

been essentially a practical

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

254

men

philosophy that endeavoured to teach

tent themselves with as
live

an ascetic

in

pleasures.

from

all

little

to con-

as possible, and to

indifference

to

material

all

kept away, in a suspicious attitude,

It

metaphysical speculations, and reduced

its

philosophical doctrines to a few moral aphorisms.

But, in the course of time, that which

Cynicism,

its

severity of

Stoicism, and Cynicism

life

and

habits,

became

was best

passed into

characterless,

degenerated into a doctrine of charlatans,

it

to deceive people,

illicit

gain.

and found

The Neo-Cynics were

in

in

and

who used

a source of

it

naturally enemies

of Julian, whose speculative tendencies and pure

And Julian heartily reciprocated

morals they hated.

In his discourse "Against Ignorant

their feelings.

Cynics," and in that against Heraclius, he unmasks

their

vices,

strating

and turpitudes, by demon-

baseness,

meanness of

the

their

which

doctrines,

would have embarrassed the mythological evolution

that

Hellenism the indispensable

constituted for

element of the expected victory.

malignant subtlety sees
Christianity,

and

which, according

insists

in

Julian with

Cynicism the

on the

traits of

him, exist

to

And

ally of

resemblance,

between the two

sects.^

Heraclius having
large assembly,

in

made a

discourse before a

which Julian took

free course to his inventive faculty,

fables

according to Julian,

which,
^

Julian., op.

cit.^ p.

290, 7 sq.

part,

gave

and composed
offended

the

JULIAN'S ATTITUDE

255

The Emperor

conception of divinity.

adjourns the

meeting, and indignantly takes his pen and writes an

invective against the impious blasphemer, in order

and how

to demonstrate the true office of myths,

the legends concerning the gods have to be inter-

The

preted.
full

said, is

very long,

of allusions not always comprehensible, and of

and

conflicting

But

we have

discourse, as

it is

confused

mythical

explanations.

always interesting, and most symptomatic

of the intention

by which the author

even

controversy,

is

with

indirectly,

moved

to a

Christianity,

creating symbols that might be able to take the

This appears most

Christian God.

place of the

clearly in the interpretation he gives of the fables

and Dionysus.

of Hercules

How

can

we

fail

to

recognise an attempt to Christianise the figure of

Hercules, by modelling

on that of

it

he says that Hercules passed with dry

the

sea,

and then adds

impossible to Hercules

What

Was

and

the

gence?

perfection

of

his

Jupiter the Father

feet across

ever be

could

there anything that

could disobey his divine and pure body

even the elements obedient

when

Christ,

Were not

to his creative

power

incorruptible

intelli-

made him

the saviour

him on high by means

thunderbolts, and commanded him to come

of the world, and, later, raised

of his

near to his throne as a son, under the divine

of eternal rays.

and

to

you

"

May

Hercules be propitious to

sigrn

Julian., op.

cit.^ p.

284, 19 sq.

me

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

256

All the explanations

gives

that Julian

of the

myths are founded on a fundamental conception

he seeks to explain, though he adds that his life
soldier,

and the urgent occupations

engaged, did not leave him time

"

his ideas.-^
herself,

Nature

"

he says

in

that

as a

which he was

finally to

mature

" loves to conceal

and the hidden part of the substance of the

gods does not bear being cast with naked words

into

impure

But the ineffable essence of the

ears.

Mysteries helps even when not understood

souls

And

it

saves

and bodies, and evokes thepresence of the gods.

so it is with myths which, through their veils

and by means of enigmas, pour divine knowledge

into the ears of the greater part of mankind, incapable
of receiving

them

in their purity."

In these words

"

contained the fundamental principle that Julian

is

has gathered from the teachings of his Neo-Platonic

Men

masters.

are, for the

comprehending divine
veils that

most

part, incapable of

The myths

truth.

cover this truth, so that

human

accessible to the

mind.

it

are the

might become

The

philosopher

them in order to collect the

should
nucleus of science and supernatural truth that is
scrutinise

concealed

in

them.

Julian

has certainly put his

finger on the root of the question

when he

affirms

that the positive forms of religion are only symbols

with which

and

man

seeks to understand the existence

nature of the universe.

But

his error

was

to

believe that he could create a determined religion

1

Julian,, op.

cit.^ p.

280,

sq.

Ibid.^ op. ciL^ p. 280, 15 sq.

JULIAN'S ATTITUDE

He did

with such a theory.

257

not appreciate wherein

lay the superiority of Christianity over Neo-Platonism.

The

personality of Christ likewise lent itself

to all symbolic interpretations, but

dissipated, because
historic

which

it

and objective

could not be

it

possessed a true and personal

a firm position around

reality,

might become

a positive religion

In Julian's mythology, instead,

all reality

crystallised.

disappeared,

and nothing remained but confused mythological

phantoms, and even these refused the grossly
material cult which

As we have
Heraclius

"

is

was

offered to them.
" Discourse

the

said,

Julian relates his

own

He

story.

new myth, and

and

the cause

occupied the throne.

which

and elegance.

is

slight veil, presents

his conduct

The

it

compose

of the usurpation

justification

had attempted, and of

told with ease

to

relates a long parable,

most transparent, and, under a

in

says he wishes to

show by an example how one ought

a

against

because

especially interesting,

after

allegory
It

is

is

he

he had

clear,

and

a revelation of

the profound honesty of Julian's soul, and of the

high conception that he possessed of his duty.

The Emperor

Constantine,

whom

his

nephew could

never pardon for the change he had wrought

conditions of Christianity,

a violent and ignorant

immense

wealth

but,

is

in the

represented by him as

man who had accumulated

lacking

all

method

of

government, and believing that force could take the

place of science and virtue, he never even thought
VOL.

I.

17

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

258

knew they

of educating his sons for the position he

must some day

as

he was dead,

fight

among

So

fill.

his

it

happened

numerous

soon

that, as

began

heirs

to

themselves, and violence, murder, and

crime spread

the

in

paternal

inheritance.

This

who

called

spectacle touched the heart of Jupiter,

him the Sun, to induce him to reconsider the

disdainful abandonment in which he had left the
to

Having

impious house of this powerful man.

called to council the Fates, Holiness,

makes known unto them

Jupiter

saving a child of this house,

soon be

stifled, if

The

aid.

child

who

his

and

also

Justice,

intention of

otherwise would

they did not quickly come to his

would make amends

evils that Jupiter deplores.

The Sun

for the

many

delighted

is

with this resolution of the father, because he sees

alive in this child a spark of divine

fire,

so that,

together with Minerva, they decide to educate him

in

virtue

and wisdom.

adolescence,

own eyes

the

with the fate

cousins,

Then

But

when

the future restorer,

he

reaches

seeing with his

power of evil, and becoming acquainted

that was meted to his parents and his

was about

to hurl himself into

Tartarus.

Sun and Minerva put him to sleep, and,

by means of a dream, dissuade him from his intenthe

When

tion.

he awakes, he

finds

himself

in

deserted place, and there appears to him Mercury,

who

that leads to

him an easy and flowery path

a high mountain, on the summit of

which

Father of the Gods.

points out to

is

the

Ask," said

JULIAN'S

ATTITUDE

259

Mercury,

" that

child,

given to choose the best."

it is

which thou

To

desirest.

thee,

''O Father

show me the path that

And, behold, the Sun comes near
him that he must return amons: the

Jupiter," exclaims the youth,

"

leads to thee
to

him and

tells

wicked from

whom

he has

The youth

fled.

weeps,

and foresees his death. But the Sun encourages

him, and reveals to him that he is destined to purge
the earth from

He

it.

the impiety that has contaminated

all

must confide

The

the other gods.

Emperor

in

him, in Minerva, and in

sole heir of all that

is left

all

(the

Constantius), surrounded by wicked shep-

herds (these are the bishops), neglected everything

and indulged

with

Sun,

the

fore

pleasure and

in

of Jupiter, will place

and governor of

Minerva,

him

Sun give

command

by the

in the position of heir,

everything.

And

finishes with the wise counsels that

the

There-

idleness.

to their protdge.

the

parable

Minerva and

In very truth,

if,

names of Greek divinities, there

had been those of angels and saints, we should
of the

instead

recognise a purely Christian note in the last words of

the

Sun
we
:

since

Go on thy way,
shall

and Mercury, with

in the air

therefore, with

always be with thee,

all

and on the

good hope,

I,

Minerva,

the other gods in Olympus,

earth,

as

long as thou art

respectful to us, faithful to thy friends, kind to thy

subjects,

which

is

ruling
best.

slave of thine

and guiding them towards that

Never permit thyself to become a

own passions or theirs. Go thou.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

260
therefore,

by land and by

hesitation our laws,

man

sea,

and do not

let

obeying without

any one, whether

woman, familiar or stranger, induce thee to

If thou observe them, thou
forget our commands.
by
us,
respected by our faithful
wilt be loved
worshippers, feared by wicked and evil-minded
Know thou, that this carnal body was given
men.
or

thee in order that thou shouldst be able to accomplish this duty.

We

wish to purge thy house, out

Remember

of respect for thy ancestors.

hast an immortal soul procreated by

if

that thou

and that

us,

thou followest our orders, thou wilt be

among

the

gods, and, together with us, thou wilt contemplate

our Father

Was

"

there ever a

more

interesting

Emperor

personality than that of the

was

it

possible

and singular

Julian

How

such a noble and generous

that

descendant should have issued from the family of

Constantine

There

is

this

in

long parable, of

which we have given a bare skeleton, the expression of a lofty and pure sentiment that could

only be possible to a soul profoundly sincere and

alive to
is

all

that

a strange

is

fact.

good and
It

was

beautiful.

And

especially the

here

wicked

who favoured Christianity, and the

the family who was generous and

Constantinians

only one of
sincere
It is
its

attempted

the restoration

because Christianity

existence, corroded
1

Julian., op.

in

by

of

Paganism

over three centuries of

heresies,

cit., p.

303, 3 sq.

and becoming

JULIAN'S ATTITUDE
rich

261

and powerful, was transformed

into a worldly-

institution, into

a religion wholly formal, and had

therefore

great part,

is

so

lost, in

its

moral

This

efficacy.

a reaction against the increasing

true that, as

worldliness of Christianity, there developed in

bosom monkish

asceticism,

in riches,

accelerated

from

it

was already

when

corruption,

delivering

the

We

that Constantine

was a

in

an advanced

in

Imperial

dangers and

all

perversion.

its

official

and attained the supremacy

the Athanasians,

honours and

in part,

the Arians contended with

Christianity in which

of

The

of early Christian times.

the ideals

state

which revived,

its

favour,

difficulties,

must not forget

villain, guilty

of the most

amongst which the most grave was'

murder of his son Crispus. But he was a skiladventurer, possessed of great foresight, and he

terrible crimes,

the
ful

understood

after the

that,

complete

failure of the

systematic persecution practised by Diocletian, there

was nothing
itself

with the

Hence

do

but to ally

was unable

to vanquish.

the empire

for

enemy

it

to

the Edict of Milan, then the institution of

a State Church and the Council of Nicsea.

stantius,

who was

Con-

equally as wicked as his father,

but without a shadow of his intelligence, contributed

greatly to the
tianity.

At

progressive deterioration of Chris-

this spectacle Julian rebelled.

tianity, participating in the

not improved

it

morally

been corrupted by

it.

"

Chris-

Imperial authority, had

on the contrary,

The

it

had

heritage goes to ruin,"

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

262

exclaims Julian, in his allegory,

honest shepherds

for the

''few

are

the

most part they are preda-

tory and cruel, devouring and selling the sheep of

the

was an

Julian

and destroying

master,

flocks

his

who had passed

idealist

Now,

"

his

early

youth fearing an instant death, hating the Christian

who surrounded

courtiers

despicable

his

cousin,

and a passionate worshipper of Greek literature and philosophy, and of

immersed
all

his

in

studies,

body of

that

doctrines,

traditions,

and glory

which he considered comprised under the name of

There must, therefore, have arisen in

and then abhorrence of the
which took its place, and was the relentless

Hellenism.

his heart, first suspicion,

religion

enemy

of

all

that he adored.

In his inexperience

of the true force which ruled the world, inebriated

by the
by

around

those

remedy

able to
return

he heard proclaimed

doctrines

fantastic

him,

Julian

believed

himself

the evil which he witnessed, by a

the ancient beliefs, accompanying

to

this

return with a reform that would adjust the old concepts to the exigencies of the

Now, when we
of Julian,

revealed

in

all

truly

the

great

the writer

judge his attempt too

lightly,

a romantic and juvenile

folly.

the

and

intelligence,

Christian

value that

actions of the general,

the administrator, and

acter

Spirit.

consider the intellectual value

which was

itself

New

we

must not

and consider

it

as

Julian was, in char-

incomparably superior to

emperors who preceded and

all

sue-

ATTITUDE

JULIANAS

And

ceeded him.

while

the

263

abandoned

others

themselves to the stream, he alone attempted to

swim against it. We must, therefore, admit that

this movement of Julian's responded to some
necessity, some aspiration, some great idea by
which he was most deeply influenced. The truth'
is that Julian's initiative was
the last and only

As we have

rational effort to save civilisation.

said

before, Constantine, seeing the failure of Diocletian's

persecution, believed

empire

to

ally

it

best, for the safety of the

enemy

with the

it

man, could not appreciate the

in

its

fact that Christianity

essence the most decided antithesis of

the ancient civilisation, and

the

empire,

stifled

although

rendered

action,

The

not

But Constantine, a rough and ignorant

destroy.

was

could

it

empire
in

the

was,

retarding

necessarily,

embrace

of

alliance with

its

destructive

its

by no means

it

tianity, directing the

different

that

less

positive.

destined

Christianity.

Chris-

moral energies into a channel

from that which they had followed

Grseco- Roman world, creating

destroying old

be

to

ones,

new

dissolved

in the

aspirations

the

old

and

society

and prepared the elements of a new formation.

Julian understood, or at least
that to save the empire

embrace

Christianity,

or to persecute

it,

as

like

it

had a

clear intuition,

was not necessary

to

Constantine had done,

Diocletian, but

rather to

create something that responded in part to those

needs which found their satisfaction

in Christianity,

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

264

same time preserved the basis of ancient

thought and civilisation.
For this purpose he
initiated that movement which we have called
the Christianisation of paganism.
There were
certainly two reasons why this movement was

and

at the

destined not to succeed.

world

needed

believe

and

fused

perplexing

which

be able

to

the

satisfy

of Apollo,

the

new sun-god

the

saw a luminous
In

in

believe

to

too

judge

polytheism that

mystical

and

Platonism,

religious

of

have been much

would
to

aspirations

return

the adora-

to

than

charioteer of the Sun,

whose mystical doctrine Julian

place,

We

late.

in

con-

the

in

whatever

the

intellectual

and moral value of the movement might

came

and

revelation of the creative Trinity.

second

the

It

them

easier to persuade
tion

longer

deluded himself that he would

he

contemporaries.

his

no

anthropomorphic
it

the

place,

first

could

It

had borrowed from Neo

Julian

with

did

neither

In the

religion.

polytheism,

in

national

have no

be,

it

by which

statistics

what proportions the Christians and

the pagans were divided during the fourth century

in the

the

Roman

Edict

of

world.

Constantine

vince us that the

great

But the promulgation of

numbers.

sisted, especially

Christians

Polytheism

sufficient

is

to

con-

must have been

certainly

in the country,

which

still

is

in

re-

demon-

by the very name of pagan, which was

invented by the Christians.
But the latter had
strated

ATTITUDE

JULIAN'S
and

upper hand,

the

and high
an

affair

begun

down

rolling

that,

as

in past centuries,

enormously

enlarged.

been arrested when

standing the

it

seminate

in

from
the

native

its

world

Notwith-

had been able

to

make

perhaps

who

Palestine, to dis-

notwithstanding the

Fourth Evangelist, who

inspired fantasies of the

thought,

have

might

appeared.

first

becomes

incomparable energy of Paul,

had plucked
it

side,

Christianity

it

was as
that had

it

stay an avalanche

to

mountain

but

faith,

Now,
a movement

interest.

stay

offices

no longer

conscience and

of

and matter of

impossible to

utterly

the

all

Conversion was

positions.

a simple question

occupied

265

himself master of ancient

Christianity,

might have died

out in obscurity, but for Nero's abominable and

considered persecutions.

It is

ill-

also possible that

if

Julian's

attempt to reform polytheism had been

initiated

two centuries before, with more prudent and

speculative moderation, by a Trajan, an Antoninus

or

Pius,

by a Marcus Aurelius,

might have

it

interrupted the progress of Christian propaganda.

But, in Julian's time, the undertaking

desperate.

stood
the

The

this

fact

shows

of

what

his

an

not

was

utterly

having under-

enthusiastic

soul

young Emperor possessed, and how he de-

ceived himself concerning both the value of that

which he wished to destroy, and of that which

he

desired

the

idea by

to

substitute

which

for

he was

it.

Nevertheless,

inspired

proceeded

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

266

from a generous

good and
sign of
It

enamoured of all things

His undertaking was the last

spirit,

beautiful.

life in

a world about to expire.

may seem

singular that, in the fine allegory

which has been the occasion of

Julian openly announces

of the

fortunes

shepherds

and no

Christianity,

concerning

who badly

by

he only makes ambiguous

war against

explicit declarations

restorer

the

empire, compromised

of the

his predecessors, while

allusions to his

digression,

this

himself as

Certainly those

it.

counselled the masters and

destroyed the flocks are Christians, and probably

bishops

the

recommends
Church and

Julian

Clearer and

more harsh

destruction
in

the

of

purge

to

of

traces

the

first

Christian

the

allusion

temples,

the

is

cult.

to

the

replaced,

by the

The sons destroyed

sepulchres of the martyrs.

temples which were

earth

worshippers,

the

of

the

the

is

ancient

veneration

the

from which the Sun

impiety

the

the

neglected by their father,

and deprived them of the ornaments that their

ancestors had placed there.
In place of the
temples laid low, they built sepulchres, old and
new, influenced, as

and by

fate

itself

it

were, by an internal voice,

since,

in

a short time, they

would have need of many sepulchres,

ment

for

having slighted the gods."^

out doubt, Julian alludes

sons.

However, the
^

to

special

Julian., op.

cit., p.

in punish-

Here, with-

Constantine and his

care
296, 2 sq.

that

he takes

JULIAN'S ATTITUDE

267

not to speak openly of Christianity, in an allegory

given as his programme of government, proves

that
in

Emperor meant

the

operations,

his

promising

it

proceed

to

gradually

running the risk of com-

not

by declarations that might awaken

This demonstrates, further-

powerful opposition.

more, that he appreciated the

undertaking, and that, at

least,

of the

difficulty

when

writing this

he understood the necessity of going

discourse,

slowly and with great prudence.

Julian having been

off

from

his

mind

all

from early childhood shut

influences that

might

incline

and open

was in
enabled him

to the fascination of Christianity,

a condition of thought and soul that

to scrutinise critically,

and analyse from a point of

view wholly objective, the elements which com-

posed the traditions on which

fact,

Christianity

necessarily

condition characteristic of
intangible,

who

perfect,

all

it

participated

religions,

i.e.,

in

In
the

of being

proved, and evident to those

believe a priori,

and

to melt

as mist before the sun, for those

it

was based.

away, scattered

who do

through the lens of a preconceived

not regard
faith.

All

religions, past

and present, possess the certainty of

an established

fact for those

who

profess them, and

appear absolutely absurd to those outside of them.

There
feel

hold

is

no man, however conceited, who does not

constrained to admit that sometimes those

opposite

opinions

may be

right.

who

But the

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

268

mere idea of believing

Buddha cannot
Christian, who will

or

Mahomet

in the religion of

head of a

possibly enter the

no

find

producing

difficulty in

the most evident proofs of their absolute unreason-

And there

ableness.

also not a single

is

Mahometan

or Buddhist who, in the face of Christianity, does

not find himself in

Christian

is

the

regard to

in

same condition as the

him, and who does not

possess good reasons for disbelieving in that which

the Christian
Christ

is

affirmed in a

it

believes

that

from the dead because he sees

book

certain

Mahomet was

lieves that

he finds

The one

believes.

risen

affirmed

in

the

Mahometan

it

be-

divinely inspired because

But the

another book.

confidence in either of these books

can only be

the effect of an a p7nori sentiment.

Those who

have not such a sentiment immediately

the proof of the one

or

find that

the other affirmation

is

insufficient.

That any
those

who do

not

sequence of the
office

should appear irrational to

religion

a priori

believe
that

fact

religion

beyond the sphere of reason,

is

the con-

assumes an
i.e.,

that of

representing the affinity existing between a supernatural

Being,

who

is

supposed

the world, and the world

to

exist

has created.

it

outside
In order

to accomplish this undertaking superior to reason,

man

own

can only use his

that to

employ reason

above and

beyond

to

reason

but

it

is

clear

represent that which

reason

can

only

is

lead to a


JULIAN'S

ATTITUDE

269

representation which reveals itself as irrational to

those

who do

not look at

preconceived

To

faith.

us

Japanese appears irrational

the Christian

An

religion

the

but

religion

Hakusaki,

Italian missionary,

irrational.

who

wTOte to the

of the

Japanese

to the

appears equally

old Japanese writer,

knew an

through the lens of a

it

in

1708

effect that

this stranger was a wise and good man, but that

he became insane as soon as he began to talk

''How is it possible to conceive"

Hakusaki says "a God who was not able

of religion.

redeem a humanity

lost

to

because of a sin (of which

we fail to see the gravity), a humanity that is

own work, and is punished for having trans-

truly
his

gressed a law that was also his work,

except by

becoming man three thousand years later, and,

under the name of Jesus, suffering an ignominious

What
judge who could
death

self

story

childish

sovereign

not mitigate the law he had him-

promulgated, or even pardon the condemned,

except by taking his place in the midst of torments

The arguments
most cogent

to

of

those

Hakusaki,

who do

not believe, have

element of their peculiar moral

He who

organisation.

which appear

on those who possess

not a shadow of influence

faith as a constituent

"
!

attempts to oppose religion

with logical reasoning proves that he has not com-

prehended
reasons

weapons,

its

that

are

essential

seem

to

for

the

phenomenon.

the

rationalist

believer

These
invincible

telum imbelle.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

270
Belief

is

not the effect of an operation, but rather

And

of a disposition of the mind.

remains intangible, despite

all

this disposition

rational demonstra-

Pagan polemical writers have presented

these arguments in a manner analogous to that of
Hakusaki but before them uprose in revolt the
tions.

human

conscience, thirsting for redemption, anxious

would enable

for a palingenesis that

The

the depths of sin and misery.

to issue

it

from

inexplicability

became a reason for

believing in it, just because reason seems inIt was
sufficient, and powerless to redeem man.
of the process of redemption

the stumbling block

of the Cross that converted

Recall his sublime words

Paul.

Hath not God

wisdom of the world

Since the
world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by
the foolishness of preaching to save them that
For the Jews require a sign, and the
believe.
after wisdom.
But we preach Christ
seek
Greeks
crucified, unto the Jews a stumbling block, and to
But unto them that are
the Greeks foolishness.
called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of
God, and the wisdom of God" (i Cor.
20-24).

made

foolish the

i.

And

the Hakusakis of his day, Tertullian

his famous paradoxes: " Crucifixus
with
responds
est

to

Dei

filius

non pudet, quia pudendum

mortuus

est dei filius

ineptum

est.

prorsus

Et sepultus

credibile

resurrexit

quia impossible est."^

1

Tertullian.,

De Came

Chr.,

5,

898.

est.
est,

certum

Et
quia
est,

ATTITUDE

JULIAN'S

who grew up

Julian,

exercised

Christianity

in

no

271

found

influence,

difficulty in pointing out the doctrinal

which

in

77iilieu

and

Httle

historical

And

contradictions of the Christian traditions.

as

he was not rendered immune by the antidote of

him an evident
proof of the weakness of Christianity, and he
deceived himself by supposing that it was only
these contradictions were for

faith,

necessary to point these things out for Christianity

to be
all

overthrown

but he did not understand that

the criticisms hurled against the rock of faith

would not even succeed

only takes

criticism

in

grazing

when

root

Religious

it.

scientific

thought

has removed, or at least attenuated, the necessity

of possessing a positive religion, as

the
the

man

time and intellectual

This

scientific thought.

he attempted
criticism,

is

to

therefore,

put

against

the

He

in

its

place a

being entirely free from

pared

critic.

by means of

same arms.
to

play

than

an instant have resisted

could not for

favourable

structive

of Julian

so true that, although

predispositions
to

the case with

to destroy Christianity

the assault of those

Julian,

habits

he endeavoured

religrion that

is

But nothing was further from

of to-day.

it

Christianity,

part

composed a

of

all

pre-

de-

treatise against

the Christians, in which he discussed the reasons

of Christianity from an historical
point of view,

weakness.

and sought

This

treatise

to

and philosophical

prove

its

was completely

essential
lost,

as

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

272

were those of Celsus and Porphyry, written with

These books must have exasperthe same aim.
ated the Christians to such an extent that they

would not permit them

was

destruction

the

be preserved

to

treatise, as also of that of Celsus,

by

futed

is

towards

idea of their

had

powerful

and

by

middle

the

are able to

discussed

second

Cyril

the

of

re-

of
fifth

the text of the confutations,

possible to reconstruct

treatise

work

Julian

was
the

Now, from

century.

as

well
first

Origen,

Alexandria

it

as

The

refuters.

we

traces to give us an

Celsus

work.

of

However, of Julian

very explicable intolerance.

find sufficient

their

consequence

natural

at

least

part the

in

Theodor Keim has done this

and Neumann has

confuted.

for the treatise of Celsus,

done the same

marvellous

for that of Julian, with

efforts

of

one of those

rendered possible by modern erudition.

fortunately, of Cyril's

only

are

that

criticism

But, un-

own work, which

consisted

of about twenty books, only ten remain, and these

are entirely dedicated to

book of

first

were

three.

ment

that

Neumann

sufficient

But
to

intentions of

confutation of the

which

Julian's treatise, of

there

structing.

the

this

It

is,

has

its

From what

therefore, only

succeeded

fragment

give us an

it

idea

in

appears
a

frag-

recon-

is

precious,

of

the

and

polemical

author.

Libanius

relates,

in

his

Funeral

Oration, the treatise against the Christians must

JULIANAS ATTITUDE
been written

have

Emperor
remained
the

his

taking

wrote

nights,

the

in the

the

occupations,

midst of these grave pre-

advantage

faith

book

Tyrian

"

than

that

long winter

the

was

dictated

by

on

same

the

that

ridiculous a

Libanius,

to

Libanius

demonstrate

to

Porphyry)

(i.e.

of

was vain and

book which, according

even

youth, so

enthusiastic

this

Christian

potent

campaign against the

unfortunate

'

And,

us,

JuHan

that

of 363, wholly intent on his prepara-

Persians.

tells

know

the

of

Antioch from the August of 362 to

in

for

sojourn

the

We

Antioch.

in

March

tions

during

273

more
old

''the

subject.^

Certainly the circumstance of having written,

in

moment, such a ponderous work, and

critical

of being able, at the

same

a brilliant satire as

the

time, to

compose such

Misopogon,

is

the most

evident proof of Julian's singular versatility, and

of his profound knowledge of the Old and

New

Even should we admit with Libanius

Testaments.

was more erudite than that

of Porphyry, it appears more than probable that
the latter's treatise had a most profound influence
on his successor, for whom all the teachings and
every word of his Neo- Platonic masters were
that Julians treatise

sacred.

To

us

it

seems incredible

that,

without Por-

phyry's book to serve him as a guide, Julian could

have succeeded

in writing his

work during the few

and agitated months that he remained

1

VOL.

I.

Liban., op.

18

cit.^

vol.

i.

in Antioch.

p. 581, 17 sq.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

274

As we have

Neumann

said,

reconstructing from

plan of Julian's

the

first

book.

It

prehend that the work of a

most

the

for

is,

impossible

part,

has succeeded

in

confutation of Cyril the

easy to com-

is

however

critic,

hypothetical,

exact,

since

it

is

have any precise proof either of

to

the entirety or of the order of the quotations con-

However,

tained in the text of the confutation.

the perusal of Julian's book, as

reconstruction

results

it

made by the critic,

from the

while leaving some

doubts as to the details of the quotations, gives

us a clear insight into the fundamental conception

on which

Julian's ideas

were developed, and of the

We

value of the arguments themselves.

here

that

intellect

suo^o^estive

and

rational

mixture

also find

acuteness

of

of

intermingled with

criticism,

the prejudice and superstition which are characteristic

in

of Julian,

and which we have already seen

other writings.

his

the fragments

we

To

judge,

however, from

possess, this treatise against the

Christians

must

elaborated

of Julian's

have

most

been

one

of

the

works,

that

in

which

acuteness as a destructive

critic

is

his

exercised with

surety because untrammelled by philosophical and

scholastical preconceptions.

have been demolished by a

foundations and

its

have accomplished

We
of

its

If

Christianity could

critical analysis

of

its

documents, Julian's book would

this enterprise.

should examine this work, not only because

intrinsic value, but because, as

an historical

JULIAN'S
document,

275

of great interest, and contains the

is

it

ATTITUDE

rational causes of Julian's apostasy, as explained by-

In

Julian himself.

the Apostate

it

makes a

attack on Christianity.

The emperors

had fought

igne.

it

ferro

et

He

direct

before

him

considers that

the strength of his reasoning would be sufficient.

some

Certainly, in

But a truly impartial and

nor erudition.
judge, on

he neither lacks acumen

points,

intelligent

reading Julian's criticisms, might very

well say: " Medice, cura te ipsum."

The book
to explain to

all

begins thus

men

invention

having

devised

in

the reason

doctrine

that the foolish

itself

"It seems to

why

of the

human

by

anything

am

me

convinced

Galileans
perversity.

divine,

just

and

an

is

Not
taking

advantage of the inclination of the soul towards

that which

is

mystical, childish,

has succeeded in making

its

and

irrational,

it

preposterous fables

pass as true.

examine briefly
whence and how we receive our first idea of God.
Then we must compare what is said concerning
God by the Greeks and the Jews, and afterwards
It

is

worth

interrogate those

our

who

while

to

are neither Greeks nor Jews,

but belong to the heresy of the Galileans, as to

the reason

why

they prefer to ours the doctrine

of the Jews, and why, instead of remaining firm in

that doctrine, they forsook

own.

Not accepting any

it

to follow

one of their

of that which

we Greeks


JULIAN THE APOSTATE

276

have of the beautiful and good, and none of that

which the Jews received from Moses, they took,
as if attacked by some wicked demon, the vices
of both

our

impiety of Jewish

the

and

vicious

shameful

perfect religion.'

In

"

introduction

fundamental points on which

hinges

the

first,

call

and

levity
all

this

find

the

'

the

short

this

of

habits

intemperance, and then dare to

and

intolerance,

we
all

superiority

two

Julian's polemic

Hellenic

of

poly-

theism over Jewish monotheism, which he considers as a false application of an essentially true

principle

which the Christians

into

he

second place, the contradiction

the

in

calls

who,

fall

the

Galileans, as

them always with contemptuous

affirming

while

and

doctrines

their

they

that

ideas

the Jewish religion, offend

of
it

intent

derive

their

from

the divinity

most

in its

essential

conceptions.

was an able and acute debater, and

knew how to take immediate advantage of the
weak points of his adversary. To combat Jewish
Julian

monotheism, he

insists

Jews
the

is

not

is

God

as the
^

God

funda-

peculiar

is,

its

having a

of a

asks Julian,

its

God who, by
extremely national.
The God of the
he is
the God of the human race

mental defect, that

his nature,

upon

is

of

small and specified nation.

it

possible to imagine such a

all

Neumann, y///z^^.

humanity?

Is

it

Now,

God

possible that

Libr. contra Christ, quce supersunt, p. 162.

ATTITUDE

JULIAN'S

mankind would limit

unimportant
trifling and

the Creator of

such

to

very

with the

texts

It

Moses intended
of the

God, even

keystone

the

is

was

confutations.

demonstrate,

his favours

all

This argument

God

277

make

to

from the

easy

God

then

whom

hands,

only

he made

to

that

exclusive

continues

beginning,

himself in the Jews,

him

the

Julian's

all

for

his

in

his

He

Jews.

of

minority

"

This

interested

his peculiar

people; not alone Moses and Jesus, but Paul also

affirms

changed

This Paul

it.

his

convictions

concerning God, just as the polypus changes the

colour of

its

which

it

to

skin according to the hue of the rocks

of election

at

and,

again,

to

make

the Greeks, he tried to persuade

God

is

God

not only the

men, yea, of
ask Paul

all

why

men.

did

Law and

no prophet, no

To

of

his tardy benevolence

if

you prefer

it,

all

exception for a

for

And,
us,

lastly,

he also

on the contrary,

Thus, for myriads,

thousands of years, he

those from the East to the

idols

little

we must

Jews only

West, from the North to the South, who,

ignorance, adored

all

no teacher, no ambassador

or,

does not care for

to the

Moses and the chrism

miracles?

priest,

of

them by saying

of the Jews, but of

accord

sends Jesus to them.

right

proselytes

But, in this case,

God

the gift of prophecy, and

and the

times sustained

Jews was given the divine

only to

that

and

attached,

is

in their

and he only makes an

race,

which, for

less

than

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

278

two thousand years, had inhabited

Palestine.

If

God and the Creator of all, why did he

neglect us ?
And must we admit that of this
God of the universe, you alone, or only some
he

is

of

your

have

race,

rational conception

succeeded

forming

in

? "

These arguments of Julian are by no means

But it is very symptomatic
lacking in acuteness.
of the

intellectual

atmosphere

which Julian

in

wrote that he did not perceive that the system

upheld

which he afterwards
of

was more

truth

as

much more

and

irrational

expression

the

Neo-

puerile than that against which he fought.

polytheism,

Platonic

of

tions

second

the

and

degree.

God,

in

whom

minor

they arrayed

means the

creative

Julian

process

difficulty

in

recognising

but he considered him

divinities,

by means

the

one

affirmed
but,

all,

gods,

came

He

other

was a poly-

to

saw the protective

the different nationalities.

lucubra-

the

It

supreme and only God, creator of

this

the

of Plotinus,

successors

in

from

Maximus,

lamblichus,

enthusiastic

theism

issuing

under

by whose
and

pass,

divinities

of

had, therefore, no

God

Jews,

these secondary

of

of which

of the

imagined he

he

could explain the diversity that existed between

the different

no reason

races,

this difference.

for

not pause to prove

^

the

Neumann,

he could

otherwise

as

op.

We

absolute
cit.,

find

shall certainly

childishness of

177, 7 sq.

ATTITUDE

JULIAN'S
But

these fantasies.

is

it

and note that when the true and

subject,

knowledge of

reality

compass

imagination,

and

finds

which

in the mist

says
monotheism
affirm

King

the

or

local

them

over

While

in

the

are

partial

consigned

divinities,

Father

all

Father

the

is

but

to

that

the

perfect

gods the various

the-

care

peculiar

its
is

Our

of which

each

to

Jewish

ours.

universe,

the

according

the

Creator

the

of

nations

different

ethnic

with

doctrine

that

confuting

after

Julian,

''this

teachers

once enveloped

believed had been dissipated.

it

"Compare"

the sea of

in

at

itself

scientific

human mind

lacking, the

is

wanders about without

in

interesting to read at

a page of what Julian has written on this

least

and

279

of

rules

nature.

and unique,

faculties

differ.

Thus Mars governs the warlike people Minerva,

those who are warlike and wise at the same time
Mercury, those more prudent than daring in a
;

word, people led by national divinities follow the

essential

tendencies of each

Now,

of them.

experience did not confirm our doctrine,

be an invention or a stupid

deceit,

But

must be praiseworthy.

instead,

it

if

must

and yours,
if,

however,

the experience of an infinite length of time proves

that

which we have affirmed, while nothing agrees

with your ideas,

dispute

causes

that

Tell

why have you such a mania

me,

make

the

for

beg of you, what are the

Celts

and

courageous, the Greeks and the

the

Romans

Germans
civilised

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

280

and humane, and

and warlike

their

in

same time determined

the

at

Egyptians

the

dispositions,

more prudent and industrious, the Syrians cowardly

and effeminate, timid and light, but very apt in
learning?

you do not wish

that

among

such diversities

for

If,

any cause, and

to admit

happens automatically, how

this

possible

you

for

believe

to

nations,

is

the world

that

But

admit that a cause

exists,

explain

you can attribute

to a single Creator

human

clear that

laws adapted to

nature has
it,

civilised

soever kindness dominates

according

Because
little

legislators

me how

to

their

then

down

such a

the

of

customs.

their

"

among

The

that

Julian

the argument of

is

the

observation

men, but that

is

to

say

is

it

is

it

in

that,
^

Neumann,

op.

cit.,

the

in

for its

laws do not make

men who make

morality,

of

by Julian

appreciated

that

finality.

conceived a priori

Truly acute, and original

reality.

its

Will,

in

encountered

organisation

the

when we imagine

by a conscient
time,

of

when we propound

inexplicability

nations

a willed creation with a pre-established

universe

the

and humane, whererough and barbarous,

difference

difficulty

really exists,

is

by means of education had

customs and laws

But

all

It

influence on their primitive dispositions.

Why

is

you

instead,

if,

itself laid

character

the

to

ever

it

governed by Providence?

it

affirm

the laws, that

there
179.

is

nothing

JULIAN'S ATTITUDE
absolute

it

phenomenon

is

conformity with

in

men and

pre-existing conditions of

the

281

the

Given a creating and conscient Will, it is

all this is inexplicable, and admitting
is

to fall into a net of contradictions

so

age.

clear that
this

Will

men have

concluded that the only way of getting out of the

determine that

difficulty is to

shut their eyes, and

it

swallow

is

a mystery, then

But Julian was

it.

not willing to

content himself with explanations

that explained

nothing, and

one that was, or

But as the

him.

therefore

he sought

at least appeared, satisfactory to

difficulty

is

absolutely insuperable,

because the anthropomorphic conception of divinity,

which obliges one

is

also that

that

is

to seek the reason of creation,

which prevents us from finding one

reasonable, so he

was necessarily forced

to

content himself with an explanation so puerile that

it

was the most evident proof of the complete

exhaustion in which polytheism had ended.

The
is

to

oriorin

be found

Neo-Platonic divaorations
o

of these
in the

his treatise, does not

Timcsus of Plato.
fail

to

compare the Platonic

cosmology with that of Moses,

the

greater

reasonableness

Julian, in

of

in

order to prove

the

creation

by

means of grades and divine hierarchies, as proposed

by Plato, than that of the creation by the direct
act of a single Creator

and

it

is

evident that his

theory of ethnic and local divinities

on the Platonic theme.

is

a variation

Julian having established,

according to his views, the position of Hebraic

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

282

monotheism

comparison with

in

Hellenic poly-

and demonstrated the error of the Jews

and supreme God him who
was no other than a secondary and partial God, the

theism,

in considering as a sole

controversialist proceeds to develop the second of

fundamental conceptions, and attempts to prove

his

who

the folly of the Christians

could not remain

united either with the Jews or the Greeks, and the

of being

pretence

of their

untenability

from a religion of which their doctrine

open negation.

''You are

Julian to the Christians

all
.

You

in their

you destroy the temples and the

who remain

not only those

their country, but

leeches"

and have

Jews

imitate the

the most

is

says

''you have sucked from

sides the infected blood,

.

like

derived

left

the pure.

anger and hate,

altars,

and murder,
laws of

faithful to the

even those heretics who profess

errors similar to yours in their lachrymose adoration

dead,^ but

of the

And

rites.

all

this

is

that they never

it.

hoped

And

They were

they could deceive

some maid-servant

in their turn,

epoch occurs,
things a
^

liar."

when

well pleased

or

slave,

men and women of the

If among
or Sergius.

deceived

importance of Cornelius
these only one

the reason

to arrive at such

a degree of power.

who,

your

all

your work, since neither

commanded

Jesus nor Paul ever

of this

is

do not profess

name
will

of illustrious persons of the

simply say that

am

in all

Meaning Jesus dead and

buried.

Neumann,

op.

cif.,

199.

JULIAN'S
But
ful

ATTITUDE

283

the Christians only had remained faith-

if

No, affirms

Jewish doctrine!

to the

Julian,

they went farther from this doctrine than from ours.

composed of Jewish arrogance

and Hellenic levity. Taking from each part, not
the good but the evil, they have woven unto themTo tell the truth,
selves a garment of vices.
you have been pleased to exaggerate our unworthiness, and have believed it best to adapt your habits
Christian impiety

to those of

is

men most

despicable, such as merchants,

tax-gatherers, ballet-dancers,

Who

and panders."

a priori, that the

could ever suppose,

Christian religion, which

had

its

raison detre in

a reaction against the immorality of the Gr^co-

Roman

world, would, in

three

centuries,

become

more immoral than those whom they desired to

correct, so that the Pagan disputant could attack
it in the name of offended morality ?
There is no
stronger argument to illustrate the fact that morality
is

not an extrinsic element introduced to

but

without,

rather

intrinsic being.

force

in

its

the

it

early

When

days

epoch, and
that

made

it

because

his

whole

the

Christians,

represented the selected

victorious Christianity

was obliged

of

Christianity appeared as a moral

during the persecutions,

few.

product

man from

became general,

to adapt itself to the milieu of the

became

corrupt.

It is

not Christianity

society moral, but society that corrupted

Christianity.

Neumann,

op.

cit.,

208.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

284

" But," continues Julian,

on the

insisting

differ-

ence existing between the Christians and the Jews,

the Christians admit being different from the

contemporary Jews, but affirm that they are severely

Jewish according to the precepts promulgated by
the prophets, and

And

according to those of Moses."

Julian here enters into a discussion that proves

the exact and minute knowledge which he possessed

of Jewish literature.
of the texts, that

He

affirms,

on the testimony

Moses could not have

the coming of Jesus, from

the

predicted

moment

that he

only absolutely admitted a unique and indivisible

He

God.

spoke of prophets, of angels, of kings,

but never of a

God who
the

surprises

Julian

should descend on earth.

Christians

where, to agree with Moses, they

in

contradiction,

make Jesus descend

same time say that he was

conceived by the power of the Holy Ghost.
For
Davidic
this purpose they have invented the
from David, and

at the

genealogy of Jesus, but they were unfortunately unable to

And

if

make

the two Gospels that present

the

Christians

should

ever

it

agree.

pretend to

believe in one only God, they would openly contradict the

Gospel of John, which, by no possible

of interpretation, could be

Mosaic

made

art

to tally with the

texts.^

But, even in regard to worship and sacrifices,

the Christians separate themselves from the Jews

not less than from the Greeks.

^

Neumann,

op.

cit.,

In
213.

fact,

according


JUTJAN'S ATTITUDE
to

Moses

Julian,

285

established in Leviticus a pro-

cedure of sacrifice that was in no

way

And even

that of the Greeks.

which Julian affirms not

if

different
it

is

be the case

to

from

a fact

that the

Jews no longer offer sacrifice, this would be entirelydue to the circumstance that there no longer exists
the Temple of Jerusalem, which was the only place
where they could practise the solemn
Christians,

to

between the
no excuse

whom

rites

was

there

no

and a determined

for not practising

rite.

But the

connection

locality,

have

the prescribed cere-

the Jews, with the

The truth is
exception of their belief in the " oneness " of God,
that

monies.

are in

all

points in

conformity with

the

Greeks,

while the Christians refuse to unite with the one or

Not admitting the form of worship in

which both the Greeks and the Jews agree, not

the other.

recognising

the

plurality

infinite

of

Hellenic

polytheism, and not even the Jewish monotheism,

they affirm a divine Trinity.^

In

all this

argument

it is

clear that Julian,

when

he wishes to demonstrate that the Christians are

wrong
Jews,

but

in
is

not sacrificing like the Greeks and the

a narrow-minded and pedantic wrangler;

when he

affirms that the Christians with their

same time the broad

polytheism of the Greeks and the severe monotheism
of the Jews, and place themselves in a position

divine Trinity offend at the

rationally

unsustainable,
^

Neumann,

op.

he
cit.^

is

apparently,

216 sq.

at

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

286
least

in

right that

the

right.

we

And

he

much

so

is

in the

see that the doctrine of the Trinity-

was only accepted with great repugnance by those

who

held fast to the premises of monotheism, and

that

it

strife

was the firebrand which caused the

which from the third

to

the

terrible

century

fifth

divided nascent Christianity into numerous factions,

and, in the end, was accepted only in the form of

an inscrutable mystery.

Then

Julian goes on to say that the Christians,

by affirming that the Jewish law could be

open

put themselves in

perfected,

with

contradiction

the

writings of Moses, so that the pretence of seeing

in

the

of Christianity
all.

of

religion

For the

themselves

Israel

the

and base

origin

But

wholly untenable.

is

this is not

Christians, not content with putting

in opposition to the

Jews from

whom

they say they have issued, even contradict themselves, since in the Gospels, says Julian, there are

affirmations irreconcilable with each other,

doctrine

of

the

Logos

incarnated

representing a divine Person,

of John, and

it is

impossible to find

such a manner as

was

well

literature, and,

if

blinded by hate,

to

Christ,

it

is

in

Matthew,

conducted

in

prove that the Imperial

acquainted

with

Christian

he had not been so intensely

we might almost

method foreshadowing modern

^

in

only the invention

This argument

Mark, or Luke.
disputant

is

and the

Neumann,

op.

cit.,

trace in

criticism.^
221 sq.

him a

JULIAN'S
But there

ATTITUDE

287

certainly no vestige of this in his

is

invectives against the Christians for their worship

among

the

They

sepulchres.

not

are

content,

Julian says, to adore the dead Jesus, they also wish

who

to worship those

died after him, and they have

encumbered every place with tombs and monuments,

although none of their books say that they must

wander around among the sepulchres and adore

In these words Julian alludes to the cult
them.
that the Christians professed for their martyrs, to

whom

they raised sanctuaries over the ruins of the

abandoned or destroyed temples. This special

was most irritating to him, and the reason of
irritation

was perhaps due,

sentiment and,
it

exercised

still

in part,

to

an

cult
this

aesthetic

more, to the great influence that

on the imagination of the believers.

With pedantic

cavilling he, therefore, attempts to

was not approved by Jesus, who

employed the term "sepulchre" as if to him it was

prove that

this cult

associated with

all

that

was unclean, and

affirms

that the Christians honoured the sepulchres only to

draw from them a magic power.

But the Christians do those things that God

and Moses and the prophets reprove, and then

when

refuse to sacrifice on the altars,

of

Cain

and

Abel,

persuade them that

sacrifice of

live

rightly

God

is

interpreted,
gratified

And why do

offerings.

Christians circumcise themselves

^

Neumann,

the episode

op.

cit.^

22$.

should

with the
not the

Paul speaks of

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

288

But the command of

the circumcision of the heart.

God

in

Genesis

too explicit to be eluded without

is

breaking the law, and Jesus declared that he came

not to alter the law but to
that

irony ''And

amongst you

Ah

Julian

you are

you say

exclaims

because

right,

easy to see that there exist none

it is

are wicked

"

it.

you circumcise the heart!"

with bitter

who

fulfil

or vile

Admirable,

your circumcision of the heart

in truth,

The

is

fact is

that the Christians openly disobey the precepts of

their master."

Julian finishes the

only one of which

book of

first

something

his treatise, the

by

preserved,

is

returning to the subject of the harmony, according

to him, existing

between Hellenic polytheism and

Hebraic monotheism, the exact identity of

rites

and

of forms of sacrifice, and the similarity of prophecies

in the

two

religions.

He

illustrates this affirmation

by the story of Abraham, with the processes of

interpretation

by which the patriarch succeeded

comprehending
celestial

the

which

signs

promises
assured

complishment, and finds that

God, and

of

him
all

this

of

in

the

their

ac-

has a great

analogy with the processes of soothsaying, and that

it

is

a great wrong in

abandoned

the

Christians

to

have

Julian here, again, gives proof of

it.

the singular knowledge he has of Biblical literature

and of an acute mind well trained

logic.

But here
1

is

in purely formal

also evident the absolute lack of

Neumann,

op.

cit.^

228 sq.

JULIANAS

ATTITUDE

positive science

and the

those reformers

of polytheism.

such

treatise

as

who

intellectual versatility,

this,

superstition of

frightful

hero like Julian,

to see

289

It

indeed sad

is

man

of marvellous

succeeds

writing a

in

with

replete

theological

erudition, in the midst of the preoccupations of a

gigantic war which he

is

personally conducting,

victim to such miserable prejudices, and capable of

putting faith in the exercise of foolish

sacrifices,

and meteoric signs

and

this

rites,

man

bloody
finishes

by saying: ''The truth cannot be recognised bywords

alone

it

by an

necessary that the words be followed

is

efficacious

guarantees

sign,

the

prediction."

future

Here indeed

The

by

its

apparition,

accomplishment

the

of

comparison

is

an enormous deterioration

Marcus

with

and, in

Plato,

which,

fact,

cause of this

is

all

Aurelius,

the

entirely

the

in

Stoics,

Greek philosophers.
due

to the influence

of Neo-Platonism, which had introduced the superrational

and the supernatural

in the place of the

nature-gods of ancient polytheism, and imposed

them as an incubus on the world and nature, without being able to incarnate them in a supremely
moral being as Christianity had done.
Thus it
happened that the supernatural, reviving, for an
instant, with

Neumann,

prjfiaros,

akXa

an

op.

czf.,

xpr) ti kolX

TTiOTaaeTai yevopfvov

VOL.

artificial

I.

19

232.

breath the nature-gods of

rfjv 5e aX-fjOeiav

6v< evecmv ISe^u k

\//"iXoO

irapaKoXwOriaaL toIs \6yoLS evapyes (Trjpfhv, o

Trjv eis

to

peWov

Trerroirjpivrjv

npoayopevcTLv.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

290
the

ancient

world,

rendered

their

more

action

moment of Hfe, and thus superbecame the keystone of the religious arch.
Even Christianity was not able to keep itself free
from superstition, and fell a victim to its baleful
supremacy until the dawn of positive science was
intense in every

stition

able to liberate

it

partly from

Although dimmed, the moral

figure such as that
to revive the spirits
fears.

its

fearful influence.

ideality of a divine

of Jesus served as a remedy

weakened by

error

and

foolish

Christianity might

In the time of Julian,

have been considered as a reaction against the

folly of polytheistic

superstition.

When we

pass

from the supernatural of Julian to that of Ambrose

and Augustine, we are conscious of a great

and we can understand how the attempt

polytheism had not the
success,

however much

it

slightest

probability

might have been

and ennobled by the love of Hellenic

relief,

to restore

of

justified

culture.^

^ A
small fragment of Julian's treatise not comprised in those
confuted by Cyril has just been published by two Belgian savants^
Mm. Bidez and Cumont, in their Essay Sur la Tradition

Manuscrite des Lettres de Jiilie7t

which should serve as an introduc-

Emperor, which is,

This piece was discovered in a fragment of a confutation that Aretas, Bishop of Cjesarea in the tenth
century, had written of Julian's treatise this fragment was found

tion to a truly critical edition of the letters of the

undoubtedly, very

much needed.

in a library at

Moscow.

With

this

text,

Neumann

{Theol. Liter.

Zeitimg^ 1899) succeeded in reconstructing the passage of Julian which

probably belonged to the second book of the latter's treatise. The
few lines are interesting as a proof of the subtlety of the debater,

who, recording the affirmation of the Gospel of John that the Logos
came to take away sin from the world, compares this with the disorder and discord caused by the introduction of Christianity a dis-

JULIANAS ATTITUDE

We

cannot possibly compare Julian's treatise

we have

with that of Porphyry, which, as

said,

291

was

lost

we may compare

but

it

already

with

treatise of Celsus, or at least that part of

it

the

which

was preserved to us in Origen's confutation, for

which Theodore Keim has done the same work
of reconstruction

as

Neumann

writings of Julian, by

did

later

for the

means of the confutation

of Cyril.^

These two philosophical attacks against Christianity, written at the distance of two centuries
from each other (since the work of Celsus belongs
Marcus Aurelius),

to the last years of the reign of

prove that the basis of the polemic remained ever

always the Platonic philosophy

the same.

It

is

sees

in

polytheism

that

broader and truer of

divinity

the

an

explanation

much

fundamental ideas of

and the world than those contained

in

the narrow monotheism of the Jews and Christians.

It

is

always

Christians

the

accusation

of having

the Jews, from

whom

made

separated

against

the

themselves from

they pretend to descend

always the same demonstration of the impossibility

of accepting those legends
is

founded.

However,

elapsed between the

the

Greek

spirit,

life

on which Christianity

in the

two centuries which

of Celsus

deprived as

it

and that of Julian,

was of the mainstay

order and discord already foreseen by the synoptic Gospels, thus

tending to injure the divinity of the Logos, and to place the Fourth
Gospel in contradiction to the other three.
^ T. Keim, Celsus Wahres Wort^
1893.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

292

of objective knowledge and of scientific research,

launched

with

itself,

sails set,

all

on the boundless

ocean of mysticism, and constituted, as we have

Neo-Platonism a religious philosophy, based

on an overpowering conception of the supernatural.

seen, in

The

philosophical

and Celsus

Julian
farther

difference,

former went much

the

that

is

than the latter in

between

therefore,

symbolical

the

inter-

pretations of polytheism, and possessed a mystical

dogmatic

theology that

predecessor lacked.

his

And

again,

New

Testament were thoroughly established and

in

Julian's

the

time,

canons of the

in constant use, while, in the time of Celsus, they

were not known,

to be introduced,

or,

at least,

and

were just beginning

naturally

this

gave Julian

a greater knowledge of the sources of Christianity,

and enabled him

to use the

Fourth Gospel

to

prove

the contradiction of those sources, an opportunity

that Celsus did
use.

not possess,

or,

at least, did not

Besides, we must add that

in Christianity,

Julian, educated

possessed an intimate knowledge,

not only of the New, but also of the Old Testa-

ment, and could employ

it

in

his

polemics with

an abundance and boldness of quotation which

certainly could not be expected of Celsus,

attention
after

was devoted
combated

all,

only as
preciating

to other studies,

Christianity,

contemptible
its

menace.

that of a scholar

who

stupidity,

The work

whose

and who,

considering

it

and not apof

Celsus

is

diverts himself in his con-

ATTITUDE

JULIANAS
futation

instead,

Julian's,

and much more

broader

than that of Julian, and

superior

the

of

superior

that

if

based

the

latter

on

the

former

the

texts,

is

her-

greatly

is

judgment of great

intuitive

his

in

say nothing of his never having

speculations, to

displayed

arguments

his

in

meneutics
the

much

mind,

original

of a disputant

that

is

But Celsus possessed a philo-

fighting for Hfe.

sophical

293

frightful

superstition

which

is-

the

greatest blot on Julian and his Neo-Platonic poly-

considered

Celsus

theism.

doctrine

endowed

that

Christianity

as

unworthy

figure,

a
of

the honour, with the ancient

and worn-out myth

of the deification of a man.

He

idea of a

affirms that the

redemption taking place at a certain

period of history does not harmonise with divine

love

and

which could not be restricted

justice,

to such a limited

Celsus

result.

opposes to the

theology of salvation the immutable and eternal

laws of nature,

which

in

evil

in

matter have

is,

by no means, the raison

In this

of man,

the

sin

necessary place,

their

inherent

and man

of the world.

d'etre

negation of the anthropocentric position

and of the anthropomorphic essence of

divinity,

may

Celsus

a precursor of modern
himself as follows:
for

and

man any more

eagles, or for dolphins

this world, as the

thought.

"The
than
;

almost be said to be

He

universe

it

is

but

all

made

is

expresses
not

made

for lions, for

contribute to render

work of God,

perfect

and com-

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

294

Therefore

plete in every part.

one

that

should

part

another, but that

in short,

it

have

it

not decreed

is

the

mastery over

should be a complex creation

God

the universe.

in

is

and Providence has never abandoned

universe

through

and

is

never

has

become

the universe,

worse,

and the
and God,

it,

time, has never retired within himself,

all

never irritated because of men, as he

is

And

he

never irritated by monkeys or by

flies.

never threatens beings, the fate of each one having

been especially predestined."^

Here
natural
written.

is

anthropomorphism,
Neither

profound

never

have
that

have

written

Celsus,

who,

after

having

the strange and incredible deifications

had been

nations, of

of

would

he

could

phrase

alluded to
that

a page that Julian, with his super-

effected

men

among

the most

living in the midst of them,

diverse

deifi-

cations similar to those with which the Christians

honoured Jesus, exclaims: *'Such is the power

of faith, whatever the faith may be, provided we
are previously imbued with

In this phrase

it."^

have the key to the history of

all religions,

we

which

Celsus undoubtedly divined, but the importance of

which he did not

fully appreciate.

We

have now seen how Julian sought to overthrow Christianity by revealing the weakness of
^

Keim,

Ibid.y op. cit., 39.

op.

cit.,

63.

ToaovTov

Troielr] irlaTis ottolci drj TrpoKaTacrxovcra.

ATTITUDE

JULIAN'S
its
it

historical basis

had

and the contradictions

which

into

concerning the premises from which

fallen

claimed

295

But

have descended.

to

negative work, his attempt

confined himself to this

would not have

had

Julian

if

it

differed

much from

very

those

which had already been made by Celsus, Porphyry,

and others who

ever,

still

remain unknown.

He

wished to do something more.

which

reinstate ancient polytheism,

how-

Julian,

for

wished to

him

repre-

sented Hellenism, civilisation, and Hellenic culture,

in opposition to the

to

destroy

it

Christianise

it

society with a

Christianity that threatened

but to

both

He

constitution.

it

new
in its

felt

new

reinstate

it,

morals and

he wished to

its

ecclesiastical

the necessity of reanimating

spirit,

and he desired

to infuse

saw

in the old form, in the downfall of which he

In this lay the origin

the destruction of civilisation.

movement attempted by Julian. This bitter

enemy of Christianity made a propaganda of all the
of the

virtues taught

by Christianity

for sacred things, love of

temperance, respect

our neighbour, contempt

above

all,

succeeded

in

for riches, interest in spiritual things, and,

charity.

Christianity

had so

infusing these virtues in the

on becoming
to

little

Lower Empire

its official religion, it

had been obliged

renounce them, but at the same time

created

monachism as a

that,

sort of hothouse in

it

had

which

these virtues were preserved under the zealous care

of a rigorous asceticism.

Julian pretended to re-

model the work of Christianity by means of poly-

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

296

theism, on which he wished to impose the duty of

rendering society moral.

common

He

into the error

fell

and moral reformers,

religious

to all

i.e.,

of

believing that a society, like an individual, can be

rendered moral by means of teaching and preaching.

Moralisation

can only be the consequence of a

determined intellectual atmosphere, by which the

individual or the society happens to be surrounded.

was not the Reformation

It

German people
itself

moral, but

rendered the

that

Reformation was

the

the effect of a pre-existing disposition in the

German people,
sentiment of human dignity

character and in the habits of the

who were animated by

was

that
is

why

entirely extinct in the Latin race.

This

Christianity did not succeed in reforming the

world, because the world not being prepared for

great principle of human solidarity,

shook the basis of

civilisation.

its

action simply

Julian wished to

save polytheism in order to save Hellenic

and notwithstanding
which he saw the

civilisation,

his hatred of Christianity, in

bitter

enemy

of this civilisation, he

desired to Christianise polytheism so as to

of

it

its

an instrument of moral regeneration.

make

The

un-

reasonableness of the undertaking should not cause

us to lose sight of the nobility of the illusions in which
Julian lived,

and the magnitude of the goal

he aimed with

all

which

the power of his versatile talent.

intentions

Julian's practical

Christianised

at

polytheism

important documents

are

in

regard to his

revealed

in

three

the long fragment of a letter

ATTITUDE

JULIAN'S
an unknown person

to

^
;

297

letter to Arsacius,

the

High Priest of Galatia and the fragment of a letter

to Theodore to invest him with a high sacerdotal
This last fragment, we believe, may possibly
office.^
^

be united with the

first,

so as to form a complete

We

whole, with only one brief interruption.

examine them with

the most

here

we

curious

attention, because they contain

part

And

reforms.

of Julian's

witness a strange

shall

must

phenomenon

who

heroic leader, a fearless adventurer,

interests

himself in the most minute details of ecclestiastical

and writes "pastorals"

organisation,

how

that proves

is

a manner

was impressed with

seriously he

his mission as a religious

in

reformer.

The

reason

that Julian put into everything he did a singular

gravity and objectivity of purpose.

in the

Moscow

who

prepares the regulations of the " Theatre

Frangais,"

certainly

is

versatility.

an example of marvellous

But Napoleon was a

Nothing interested him except

or to his
himself,

own
and

sovereignty.

his intelligence

it

He

altogether

colossal egoist.

referred to himself,

had but one

ideal,

was an instrument that

he only employed for his own

was

Napoleon,

midst of the preoccupations of his sojourn in

benefit.

of man.

another sort

But Julian

He

had

created for himself a mission in the world, and to

fulfil

All

it

his
1

him the most imperious of duties.

peculiar versatility of mind was applied

was

for

Julian., 0^. a/., 371, 392.

Ibid., op. cit.,s^y 588.

/^^-^^

552, 555.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

298
to

this

In

aim.

ideal

Julian

the

man

practical

was admirable, but this practical man was always

under the sway of the fervent idealist.
It is
combination that presents the figure of the

this

young Emperor

in a

strange and,

we might

almost

say, enigmatic light.

The fragment

of the letter to the

High

proves that Julian desired to have a pagan

hood which would

Priest
priest-

realise that ideal of virtue that

the Christian clergy placed before the eyes of

even

if

At
violent

they did not attempt to follow

it.

the beginning of this fragment,

and

all,

we

find a

cruelly ironic allusion to the Christians.

Over those who do not venerate the gods there

rules a species of evil demons by which many of
these impious ones

are

they seek to

die, as if

to heaven,

when

violence.

rendered insane, so that

they were certain to

their

lives

fly directly

have been taken by

Others inhabit the deserts instead of the

man

cities,

notwithstanding that

social

and domestic animal, and

likewise dominated

by

evil

into this misanthropy.

is

by nature a

these

demons who

And

men
force

are

them

these impious beings

abandon themselves voluntarily to these demons,

and rebel against the eternal and beneficent gods."
Behold, this
the hermits
ideal in all
case,

how Julian judged the martyrs and

who really represented the Christian
is

its

force

and

purity.

And

such was the

because that idea was in marked contrast to

the fundamicntal conceptions of ancient thought and

ATTITUDE

JULIAN'S

had

Christianity

civilisation.

299

for its starting-point

its

abhorrence of the present and transitory world,

in

order to attain the conquest of the world super-

And

natural and eternal.

it is

because of this that

the true Christian professed the

renunciation of the things of this

him from the

for death to free

and hasten the attainment of

And

taint of earthly

promised

his

the genuine

reason,

for this

abandonment and
world, and longed
life,

felicity.

Christian,

the

Christian of the earlier days, rushed to encounter

martyrdom

and

because of this

is

it

became powerful and entered

Christianity

when

that,

into the

social organism, and, yielding to the necessities of

life,

became

reaction against this fatal

arose,

representing,

renunciation of
ventions,

movement, and monachism

in

its

and preserving

whom

origin,

the

compromise with

all

complete

social

con-

intact the original prin-

Now

ciples of Christianity.

times, for

immediately arose a

there

corrupt,

the

man

of ancient

the present was the only

reality,

and who could not appreciate the ideas of another

life

otherwise

failed

to

really the

than

as

understand

dreams

this

and

principle,

phantoms,

which was

very essence of Christianity, but which

appeared to him as an absolute perversion of judgment, a madness

fatal

to the social order,

opposition to the nature and

Julian,

who was naught

and

else than a

man

in

And

end of man.

of ancient

times, a pure Greek, could not but feel a cordial

antipathy

to

the

pessimistic

tendencies

of

the

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

300

genuine Christian

and considered as

spirit,

equally-

dangerous and furious maniacs both the martyrs,

who

time no longer existed, as well as the

in his

monks who,

hermits and

began

name

in the

of Christ, then

to populate the deserts of the East.

Having given vent

to his indignation against

the Christians, Julian proceeds in his recommend-

They should give examples

ations to the priests.

of obedience to the divine law

men

According to

And

is

that

to

we

words of a good Christian.

an influence wholly

ignored in genuine

The

and

gods, says Julian, give

each

assist

accuse

And

other?

gods

the

seen in the world.

gave

State.

duty of a priest

we may imagine

proof of their love for men.

to

of the

in his discourse that

antiquity.

love

example

this

a kind of unction

is

reveals

here

the

listening to

There

from

the laws

Julian, the first

be charitable.
are

obey

learn to

will

But

of
if

the

those

continual

should not

It

men

customary

is

misery

who

that

is

possessed,

proportion to their substance,

to others in

always happy to

more misery. He (Julian) was

do all the good that lay in his

power, and found

it

there would be no

And

to those

for him,

an advantage even to himself.

who might observe

that

it

was easy

an emperor, to give these counsels, he

recalls that

he also was once poor, and that he had

given to those
possessions.
that are not

in

need to the extent of

his small

And here he utters the following words

only Christian, but we may truly say

JULIAN'S ATTITUDE
and which may

evangelical,

due

to Jesus, although

We

most

should render our possessions

men, more
the

be attributed

easily

to his

and

And

necessities.

seem a paradox,

to

that

to all

their
it

may

a blessed thing to give

is

it

to all

to

although

will also add,

common

according

all

enemy.

bitter

and then

liberally to the good,

miserable,

301

food and clothing even unto our enemies, because

we

give to the man, and not to the character."-^

And

he continues

''And

we should show such

believe that

also to those

who

our neighbour

many

the

words almost more beautiful

in

no obstacle

is

is

Now,

charity

this love to

Among

to justice.

some must be

shut up in prison,

and some innocent.

fear

For

are in prison.

guilty

which we should

that

not the possibility of

doing kindness to the

guilty in our efforts to help the innocent, but rather

of being without pity for the innocent, fearing that

we might

benefit the guilty."

Gems

such as these,

which seem to have been taken from the undefiled

mine, are to

evangelical

Thus he says

works.

"

respect, better to save

be found

For me

it

in all

Julian's

seems, in every

one wicked person with a

thousand good ones than to neglect one thousand

good,

because

another

place

holiness,

of

Tols

of
''
:

What

which

the
^*

Julian., op.
TToXeploLS

Cit.^ Z7A'
4*'^''-^^
iaOrjTos Ka\ rpv(f)T]S

dv6po>7rlv(o Kai 6v rc5 rpoTrco

^

one who

Neumann,

o/f. a'^.,

St'So/xei/.

191.

is

evil."^

hecatombs
divine

oaiov

dv

can

Euripides
napado^ov

"^^^

And

e'lrj

in

equal
sang,

clnelv, otl koi

pTa8t86vaL Tco yap

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

302

invoking her

mother

Holiness, Holiness, thou venerable

Dost thou not know that

all

things, great

or small, offered to the gods in a spirit of holiness,

have the same

efficacy,

and

that,

without this

spirit,

not only the sacrifice of a hundred oxen, but even of

a thousand, are but a foolish waste

words, especially admirable

an emperor,
without
to

these,

or

Why
at

"

Admirable

when proceeding from

notwithstanding, they remained

but,

effect.

'

is

least

it

by an analogous

inspired

when

sentiment, were able,

words analogous

that

issuing from the

of Jesus, to create a revolution in the world

mouth

Why

did the humble and untutored teacher of Galilee

stir

up mankind, and the powerful emperor speak

to the

wind

For no other reason except

change the direction of the human mind,

that to

to

make

piety a duty, and to give, at least for an instant, a

weak over the

victory to the

apparition of a God,

person could
lies in

to

who by

it

needed the

example and

his

illustrate his teachings.

his

Julian's error

the fact that he did not possess the strength

accomplish

moral reformation which was

this

the chief object of his

could

strong,

make

it

existence.

succeed.

But

the

God

gods

alone
of

the

pagans were completely exhausted, and void of

all

reality.

that

the

new God was needed.

acceptation

of

this

It

is

true

God would have

the ruin of that precious treasure,

carried with

it

Hellenism.

But

it
1

was an

Julian., op.

cit.,

inevitable
277.

sacrifice.

JULIANAS ATTITUDE

To renew

303

Hellenism was to deprive

it

of

its

raison d'etre.
Julian presents yet another

propaganda of charity

his

human

the

race,

brothers/

He

veneration

and

divinity,

argument

and

this is the unity of

which

through

to sustain

all

men

worship

images of the

the

of

basing his ideas on the necessity that

man, as a corporeal creature,

feels of representing,

Here

a material form, even spiritual beings.^

in

enters

Julian

directed

into

especially

long

against

and subtle argument

the

objections of the

Jewish prophets to the worship of

to demonstrate

the

are

then proceeds to recommend the

its

destructibility

idols,

pretending

unreasonableness on account of
of the

idol

itself.

Julian very appropriately exclaims,

But,

then,

what have the

Jewish prophets to say about their temple which was

three times destroyed, and which, even to-day,

And

rebuilt?

Julian,

in

his

war

is

against

not
the

who had become numerous and powerfavoured the Jews, now few and harmless,

Christians,
ful,

believing to find in

them

his natural allies,

and he

observes that he does not say this to offend the

Jews.

On

the contrary, he has seriously considered

the reconstruction of the

Temple

of Jerusalem in

He

honour of the God

whom

makes use

of this

example only

cit.^

(w6po)7ros yap civdpwTrco kol K(ov koi ukohv

Julian., op.

nas earl
2

375.

crvyy(VT]s.

/did., op.

cit., yj-].

they there adored.

to

prove to the

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

304

Jews that everything created by man must perish,

and that, therefore, the objection of their prophets
is

And

vain.

JuHan, always with the intention of

ingratiating himself with the Jews,

are worthy of foolish old

errors of the prophets

women, but

says that the

any way detract

that this does not in

from the greatness of their God, because a great

God may have

were the prophets and

not

know how

And

incapable interpreters.

such

who

priests of the Jews,

did

to purify their souls with the doctrine

by which they were surrounded, or

to

drowsy eyes, or

mist that en-

the

dissipate

to

open

their

folded them, amidst which the pure light of truth

appeared
"

Oh

"
!

as

something

and

indistinct

how

exclaims Julian,

inferior to our poets

are these teachers of the science of

''But," continues Julian,

terrible.

"it

God

is

"

not sufficient to

honour the temples and the images of the gods

is

it

necessary to care for the dignity and well-being

of the priests
are

who pray and

our interpreters with

position

of priest

respect of man,

who

hold

it.

it

should,

gods, as

to

if

command

and
the
the

imposes special duties on those

What

in the first

the gods

priest

that,

in all

are these duties?

life,

must be a model

if

But

the gods.

sufficient

is

should lead an exemplary

respects,

sacrifice for us,

place,

to

life

other men.

He

honour and serve the

were present, and not only

could see him, but penetrate with their glance, more

^

Julian.,

op

cit.,

379

sq.

JULIANAS ATTITUDE

305

piercing than any ray of light, into the innermost

The

recesses of his soul.

nor

priest should neither say

to anything that

listen

obscene

is

it

is

not

he should refrain from impious actions,

sufficient that

but he must also refrain from listening to or repeating

He

conversations concerning them.

should never

read licentious authors, and should specially avoid

the ancient comic authors.

He

philosophers, selecting those

who

should keep to the

are

imbued with

respect for the gods, namely, Plato, Aristotle, Chrysippus,

And even

and Zeno.^

from these take only

the teachings that refer to the nature of the gods,

leaving aside
in

fiorht

so

all

those fables, invented by the poets,

which the gods appear

amonor themselves

much

which

each other, and

to hate

fables

which have caused

prejudice to the poets themselves, and by

the Jews, and afterwards the miserable

first

have so

Galileans,

ably

energy, on

the

choosing well what the priest

may

insists,

with great

what we read there develops

and from

inclination,

And

profited."

importance of
read.

in the

this, little

by

Julian

From

soul a certain

little,

desires are

born, and then suddenly a great flame breaks forth,

against which

Amonghe

warns

to

them,

the

works

of

he thanks the gods,

permitted a great part of their volumes

Nothing

^Julian., op.
I.

places

Julian

Pyrrho, and

be destroyed.
VOL.

previously prepared."

the danorerous readiness acrainst which

Epicurus and

who have

we must be

20

cit.,

is

more symptomatic

385 sq.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

306

than

Julian

in

The

Index.

the

decree placing

this

principle

Epicurus on

guided Julian,

that

namely, his hatred of rationalism as

into

and

knowledge

the

universe,

introduced
of

interpretation

the

fundamentally the same as that on

is

which are founded the laws of the Congregation

of the Index, which has

This

we

as

signifies,

seat in the Vatican.

its

more

shall

see

clearly

at

the end of this study, that the revolution intended

by

was

Julian

shared

the

intellectual

and opposed
than

entirely

the

tendencies

of

his

he

time,

conception

no

less

metaphysicians

and

the

scientific

Neo-Platonic

the

because

superficial,

Christian theologians.

The

who

Emperor,

considered

Pontifex Maximus,

of

and rigorous

priest," continues the pious

seriously

the

office

should not only abstain

from discourses and books that are improper, but

still

more from thoughts of

evil,

because

He

the thought that guides the tongue.

be familiar with

hymns

the

all

in

it

is

should

honour

of

the gods, pray, publicly and privately, three times

day,

During
is

of

at

or,

his
thirty

at

least,

period
days'

sunrise

of service,

and

at

which

in

sunset.

Rome

he should remain

duration,

in the temple, purifying himself according to the

prescribed
into

with

the
the

rites,

public

never go to his own house, or

square,

live,

have communication

except

the

temple,

philosophising and

serving

magistrates,

where he must

or

in

ATTITUDE

JULIAN'S

Having

the gods.

finished his period of service,

and having returned

himself to

307

to ordinary Hfe, he can allow

a few friends, and even accept a

visit

however,

choosing,

few invitations to banquets,

Sometimes

those of the most esteemed citizens.

he may also resort to the public square

with

the

works

magistrates

and

charity.

When

of

the

service,

most

be

be

he should use to

wear sacred vestments

an offence

consideration

If

priest

to the pure

attempted
is
it.

cult of

it.

the

the ordinary

would be absurd
his

vanity

foolish

To

midst of the people

sacred

objects

become

never go to the theatre.

should

had been possible

it

the

contaminated thereby."

The

in

outside

without taking into

gods,

these

divine

honour the gods.

in the

the

to

that

in

it

satisfy

that which he receives to

is

arrayed

but,

clothed

manner and unostentatiously

that

conducting

vestments,

he should

temple,

occupy himself with

should

priest

ororofeous

to confer

to bring

back the theatre

Dionysus, Julian would have

But as

this

could not be done,

it

necessary to abstain entirely from frequenting

The

priest

should not only keep away from

the theatre, but he must not

make

actor or dancer, or even allow

He

door.

might

visit

but only those where

it

friends with

them

to

come

to his

the sacred representations,

is

forbidden to women, not

only to take part, but even to be present.^

^

Julian., op. cit.,

388

sq.

any

/^/^,^ of), cit.^ 390.

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

308

In the choice of the priests, the position and

riches of the candidates should not be considered, but

only two things are necessary,

priest should be a lover of the

of his neighbour.

God

of

gods and a lover

be a proof of

It will

he

if

that the future

viz.,

influences

his

all

his love

household

to

the worship of the gods, and a proof of his love

of his neighbour,

And

dispose.

and

curious

little

good

of his

he,

if

the poor with the

of which

helps

will,

he

is

able to

here Julian comes out with these

words

symptomatic

be very particular

We

should

in the exercise of philanthropy,

may possibly find the remedy

As soon as they became aware

because here we
for our

that

evils.

the

poor were neglected by the disdainful

the

priests,

impious

Galileans

craftily

applied

themselves to this philanthropy, and they gave

merit to

the vilest

persuading

them twice

offering

afterwards,

actions

their

under the

Like those who try to ensnare

cover of charity.
children,

of

them

to

three

or

follow

times

when they have succeeded

them
cake,
in

by
and

taking

them away from their homes, put them in a boat

and send them far away, thus, for a bit of pleasure
in

the

present,

future, in the

embittering

agape,' force

Here

whole of

their

same way these Galileans beginning

with what they

*

the

call

many

Julian's

letter,
^

loving

the

service

of the

to impiety."^

as

Julian., op.

it

cit,^

has

391.

reached

us,

is


JULIAN'S

309

Probably the copyist did not care

interrupted.

reproduce

to

ATTITUDE

the

injurious

phrases

JuHan

that

had hurled against the Christians.

To

fragment we might perhaps, as we

this

said before, unite the other fragment that constitutes the

63rd

Epistles.

In

letter in the collection of Julian's

professions of friendship

and

made

the Emperor, after having

it,

commented

on

to

a certain Theodore,

circumstance

the

of

their

having had the same master, probably Maximus,

says that he wishes to confide to him an office

work may be
of great worth, and which would procure him
much satisfaction in the present, and hopes of
of

much

importance, in which

something better
Julian

means

subject, that

after

the future.
death.

And by

He

says,

future,

on

this

he was not one of those who believed

was dissipated

that the soul

the body

in

his

however, there

is

at the

same time

no certainty of

as

this,

and we should leave the care and knowledge of

it to the gods alone.
And he then continues
But what is the office that I say I wish to
:

entrust to thee

That of being the head of

all

the

sacred service of Asia, of overseeing the priests of

every
them.

city,

and of

The

distributing to each

superior, first

of

all,

what

is

due

to

should employ

kindly methods, and with these unite courtesy and

friendship to

all

offends men, and

is

who
is

overbearing with

are worthy of

it.

He who

not respectful to the gods, and

all,

should be fearlessly reproved

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

310

Of that which it is necessary

and severely punished.

to

do

for the general

worship thou wilt be shortly

informed, together with the others.

I

wish to

wilt

tell

do well

thee something about

to

obey me.

But even now

it.

And

thou

do not speak rashly

of these things, as the gods know, but am, as far as

possible, prudent, avoiding novelties,

might almost

say in everything, but especially in things divine,

convinced as

am

that

best to remain faithful

is

it

to the ancient laws, which, as

given by the gods.

man

For

they would not

present,

it

is

manifest, were

they had come from

if

have

been

so

however, as they have been

At

wise.
spoilt

and

neglected by the prevalence of avarice and of vice,

we must begin anew, and restore them to their past

honour.
When, therefore, I observed our great
negligence of the gods, and

saw

exiled, as

it

were,

by reason of the impure and vitiated customs, the

respect due unto them, I felt overcome with grief,
especially

when

noticed

how

those

who

follow the

(Jewish) faith are so ardent in their devotion, that

for

it

they willingly encounter death, and suffer

every privation, even hunger, rather than taste the

flesh of

hogs or of strangled animals.

And

we,

instead, are so negligent in all that refers to the

gods as

to

the

forget

country, or even

ignore

But the Jews, who,

to be

traditional

that

habits

of the

they ever existed.

may be said
adore a God truly

to a certain degree,

devoted to God, as they

powerful and beneficent,

who governs

the world.

JULIANAS ATTITUDE
and

whom we

seem

also venerate, but under other names,

they refuse to transgress

to act wisely, as

In one thing alone they

their laws.

311

sin,

namely, in

not recognising the other gods, and in venerating

one alone, and

chosen

among

in believing

urged on, as they

nations,

all

themselves to be the
are,

by

Those others who profess

the Galilean impiety are afflicted by a malady ..."
Here the fragment is interrupted, but it is
reasonable to suppose that some phrases, now lost,
their barbaric vanity.

united

to

it

the

We

analysed.

we have

that

text

previously

shall return to this fragment,

we have examined

when

the third of these documents

regarding the organisation of the Polytheistic Church,

but

we must

its force,

Treatise

Julian's

reasons

theoretic

We

it is

against

have already seen,

the

which

with

But here we

sentiments.

and

find here, in all

the expression of the sympathy that Julian

entertained for the Jews.

in

we

note at once that

Christians,

he

explains

his

find yet another reason,

the strangely conservative and traditional

tendency of the Jews, displayed, above

Now

religion.

essence

the

of

Julian,

his

action

all,

although he was
a

reformer,

in their

in

the

because his

polytheism was a creed quite different from the

naturalistic polytheism of primitive times,

and also

from the national polytheism of Athens and Rome,

was, with

He

regard

to

form, a

wished to retain intact

all

rigid

conservative.

the external structure

of Hellenic civilisation, and nothing in Christianity

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

312

was more odious

him than the design of over-

to

human

turning everything in the organism of the

The

spirit.

protection

of,

Jews was an important card

Christianity, and he used

and sympathy

for,

the

in

JuHan's

game

against

it

with singular

ability.

Really there was not a race that hated polytheism

more than did the Jews.

But they hated the

Christians with a deeper hate

most precious
have

interfered,

ganda, but

it

the Christians,

the

in

became

restoration of

Jerusalem would not

in

with his propa-

slightest,

would have been a serious blow

who pretended

to

to

be the ''heirs" of

was a

Besides, Jehovah

Judaism.

The

allies to Julian.

the worship of Jehovah

so they

still,

localised

God.

Roman and

Notwithstanding that the Jews of the

Hellenic epochs had tried to extend his dominion

and adoration

all

over the world, this

God had

his

sanctuary in Jerusalem, and remained that which

he had ever been, the

God

Now, a

did

God

localised

of a peculiar people.

not cause

Julian any

was implied the

of other gods among other nations and

anxiety, because in the localisation

possibility

in other sanctuaries.

The most

extraordinary document of Julian's

policy towards the

Jews

to that people, at the

to set out
shall give

it

on

is

the manifesto directed

moment

in

which he was about

his expedition against Persia.

here

it is

one of

most typical of the keen

ability

in its integrity,

those writings that

is

We

because

of this mystical enthusiast, of this heroic adventurer.

JULIAN'S

ATTITUDE

313

Julian to the Jewish People

Obedience

unpublished decrees, and the

to

sums of gold into the Imperial

become for you still more burdensome
I have
than the yoke of your ancient servitude.
witnessed this with mine own eyes, but it has been
more fully demonstrated to me by the tax-roll that is
kept by us.
For this I diminished all new taxes
put to your charge, and I forcibly put an end to the
payment

of untold

treasury, has

inconvenience of similar abuse, by giving to the

flames the
in

concerning you which was preserved

roll

our treasury, so that

hereafter
injustice.

torment

to

Of

this

all

memory, was

worthy

become impossible

will

it

you with

my

such iniquitous

cousin Constantius, of

not

so

as

guilty

barbarians in intention and evil in mind,

at his

and

table,

whom
them

annihilated, hurling

the

memory

to

call

similar

people

the

tribute.

end

and not

to that tax

by the

Thus my

raise

exaction

reign will

God

the

highest,

hand.

For

it

me

and
with

the
his

of

be for you

you

will

for

my reign,

Creator

who has

on high the most fervent prayers

deigned to crown

which

to permit any one

entirely free of care, and, enjoying peace,

to

even

wish to exhort your venerable

'apostolic,'

torment

taking in hand, have

to Erebus, so that

Patriarch, Julius, to put an

you

sat

of their wickedness shall be blotted

Furthermore,

out.

I,

those,

who

immaculate right

sometimes happens that those who


JULIAN THE APOSTATE

314

absorbed

are

in

some

are free from care are

to the great

may direct our reign

we desire. This you

happy

efforts,

end,

in

which,

in

homage unto

should do, so

that, as

Of

information

my

by

able to rebuild,

singular
it

of Galatia.

many

years,

have desired

together with

you,

to

to

pay

us return to the "pastorals" of

let

importance,

because of the

contains concerning his intentions,

the letter addressed by

It

him

to Arsacius,

runs as follows

High

Priest

Hellenism does not influence the world as

However, the

is

should, by the fault of those individuals

it.

soon as

ao^ainst the Persians to a

the Omnipotent."^

And now

"

good of the

the holy city of Jerusalem, which you have

and

Julian.

for the

the path of perfection, as

may be

founded, and, for so

see,

to raise, with all their

and omnipotent God that he

have brouorht the war

successful

Those, instead, who

and supplications

hearts, prayers

minds

their

and do not think of raising towards

distracted,

heaven suppHcating hands.

Emperor

have

care

who

situation, so far as the

it

follow

gods are

more splendid and extraordinary than

could be expected, since who would have dared
to hope for so many and so important conversions ?
But we must not believe this to be sufficient, and
concerned,

is

close our eyes to the fact that the progress of the

impious has been gready assisted by their kindliness

^

Julian., ot.

cii.,

512.

JULIANAS ATTITUDE
to

of the

care

guests, their

ostentatious sanctity of

we should

therefore, that

And
all

and an

sepulchres,
It

life.

315

most necessary,

is

take

this to heart.

all

not enough that thou shouldst do

it is

else expel

them

them from the divine

to

but

Thou

the priests of Galatia must do likewise.

shouldst reprove or persuade

it,

be zealous, or

service,

if

they do

not lead back to the gods their wives, children and

servants,

and

they tolerate that servants, children

if

and wives do not venerate the gods but prefer

atheism to piety.

Furthermore, exhort the priests

not to frequent theatres, not to drink in taverns,

and

not

occupation that

Honour
travellers

is

any

or

expel the intractable.

a number of hospices where

profit

by our philanthropy, and not

only those that are of us but any others

have need of assistance.

furnished with the

who may

will see that

means

thou be

of accomplishing this.

have arranged that each year Galatia

thirty

art

cities

all

may

to

reprovable or wicked.

either

obedient, and

the

Establish in

themselves

devote

to

shall receive

thousand bushels of grain and sixty thousand

gallons of wine.
to the poor

who

fifth

of

all

this

assist at the service of the temples,

the rest to the Quests and to those

maintained by

must be given

us.

For

it

is

who ask to be
among

shameful that

the Jews none should ask for help, and the impious

Galileans should feed together with their poor also

ours, so that these

assistance from us.

appear to be deprived of

all

Therefore exhort the Hellenists

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

316

and the Greek

to contribute to this service,

to

to

offer

the gods

accustom the

the

Hellenists

these

to

Strive to

fruits.

first

villages

contributions,

teaching them that such was done in ancient times.

Homer makes Eumenes say that 'from

come the guests and the poor.' As this is
the case, we must not permit others to surpass
In

fact,

Jupiter

us

virtues

in

ashamed of our

ours

are

that

our respect towards the gods.

''Go

shall

seldom

very

in their houses.

It

we

should

and ever increase

slothfulness,

doest these things,

If

be
in

hear that thou

be happy.

to

visit

the

magistrates

generally best to communi-

is

them by means of letters. When they

enter the town, no priest should go out to meet
them, and if they present themselves at the temples,
cate with

the meeting must take

soldiers

place in the atrium.

must precede them

can follow, as from the

in the temples.

moment

as any other individual.

Thou

magistrate

the

touches the threshold of the temple, he

No
All

is

the same

alone, as thou art

aware, commandest in the interior of the temples

this in

obedience to divine law."

This
that of a

letter

offers

man who

us a

curious

phenomenon

fiercely hates his adversaries,

with whom, instead, he ought to agree, because his

thoughts and

much

morals are the same as

theirs, so

so that not being able to deny that they

follow a direction
^

much more
Julian., op.

cit.^

in

552 sq.

unison with his

ATTITUDE

eTULIAN^S

own than

that of his friends

them

unhesitatingly declares

persuades himself

that,

persons with

whom
to

he yet

be impostors, and

to

this cordial hatred of

he ought to have agreed, and

whom, notwithstanding
he endeavoured

partisans,

with these accusations, he has

But why

concealed the truth.

and

317

his ferocious declamations,

Here we can only

imitate?

repeat the observation which

is

the result of the

we have undertaken. Julian felt that the

God who had come from Palestine, or rather from
Galilee, as he said, putting to flight, in the name of
the new ideals, the gods born on the sacred soil of

study

Hellas,

would

radically destroy Hellenism.

Hellenism, with
culture,

to consider as his

who were sapping

its

foundations.

him

to

enemies
Wishing,

oppose the progress of the Galilean

therefore, to

God

to Julian's heart for

and not

it,

complexity of tradition and

its

was too dear

renounce
those

all

And

who, he

felt,

responded more thoroughly to

more living than all

the gods of the ancient Olympus, Julian attempted
to Christianise the gods of Greece and to introduce
into polytheism the habits and moral discipline of
which Christianity was, or, at least, ought to have
the wants of humanity, and was

been, the propagator.

In

this

impossible under-

young enthusiast demonstrates such

an extraordinary force of conviction and will as
to make him worthy of all respect
but, on the
taking,

the

other hand,
in

this

we cannot

most peculiar

refrain
epistle,

from smiling when,

he

speaks of the

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

318

Bacchus and Aphrodite with an accent

and exhortation that would not have been out of place
priests of

on the

lips of

an Ambrose or of an Augustine when

preaching to the clergy and

faithful in their cities.

Julian wished, therefore, to institute a Pagan

Church which should be modelled on the pattern,
and still more on the precepts, of the Christian

But he wished that

Church.

Church should be

this

independent and above the laws of the State, exactly

as the Christian Church, at

any

Athanasian Orthodoxy, wished

new

a conception entirely

rate

on the side of
This was

to be.

Hellenism.

to

In the

Graeco- Roman world temple and priest had always

been

at the service of the political

was most natural that

was an
politic.

par

institution,

Rome

insisted

not for metaphysical

simply because,
divinities,

this

in

it

should be, since religion

national

excellence,

and

on the worship of the gods,

or
the

sentimental

worship

Roman

reasons, but

of the

they saw the affirmation

nating power of the

And

power.

national

of the domi-

State.

But genuine

Christianity separated religion from the State, and

made

it

an institution that was superior and inde-

pendent.

Now, from

the letter to Arsacius,

we

see

that Julian tended to give an equivalent position

to

reformed polytheism, and to consider religion as

power independent of the authority

State

itself

should be subjected.

And

to

which the

this

was

also

a consequence of the metaphysical transformation

to

which the gods of antiquity had been submitted

ATTITUDE

JULIAN'S

And we may
twenty

and

conclude that

mysticism.

Julian had reigned

if

instead

years,

thirty

or

Neo-Platonic

of

elaboration

the

in

319

only

of

two,

he had, by an impossible hypothesis, suc-

if

ceeded

in his

attempt at Christianising polytheism,

the world would not have gained anything by

The doctrine and religion of Julian, based
it.

on the supernatural, would, inevitably, have led

a

to

so

theocracy,

Catholic theocracy,

having a

of

instead

that,

we should have had

instead a

Mithraic theocracy.
But,

in this

we

letter,

discouraorement of a

who

understood, and

recognise, after

reformer

who has

all,

the

not been

in

the final success of

his enterprise, less faith than

he cares to acknow-

Julian's attempt

ledge.

very

its

illogical,

diction.

to

has,

beginning,

and was,
If

it

was destined

because

to fail

was

it

from

absolutely

an irreconcilable contra-

in itself,

had been possible

for

polytheism

be Christianised, Christianitv would not have

arisen.

was

The fundamental
opposed

radically

Polytheism
fication

of

had,

the

as

inspiration of polytheism

that

to

world

of

groundwork,

and

of

Christianity, the detestation of both.

thought only of earth,

heaven.

and

of

sorrow.

Christianity.

the

glori-

earthly

life

Polytheism

and Christianity only of

Polytheism was the religion of enjoyment

weakness

and

force,

Christianity

From

these difterent points of departure

of

of

there naturally arose habits, ideas, and tendencies

JULIAN THE APOSTATE

320

of teaching absolutely different.

or

rather

it

was

inevitable,

that

It

was

possible,

Christianity, in

contact with the society of the times, should

corrupt, so that the virtues of which

it

become

was supposed

to be the origin should be forced to find a refuge

in

But

monastic asceticism.

it

was impossible

that

polytheism should abandon that which constituted

its

very essence,

in

order to assume forms and ten-

dencies that were fundamentally repugnant to

it.

Christianised polytheism could only be Christianity.

And

it

for this that the polytheistic restoration,

is

initiated

by

Julian,

against which

Gregory

of

Nazianzus and Cyril of Alexandria have expended

so

much unnecessary

passing meteor,
leaving in

its

fury,

was,

after

all,

but a

which was extinguished without

wake the

slightest evidence of

existence.

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