CONSTANTIUS.
337-364.
Constantine the Great left three sons, who shared the empire between
them; but two were slain early in life, and only Constantius, the second
and worst of the brothers, remained Emperor. He was an Arian, and under
him Athanasius, who had returned to Alexandria, was banished again, and
took refuge with the Pope Liberius at Rome. Pope--papa in Latin--is the
name for father, just as patriarch is; and the Pope had become more
important since the removal of the court from Rome; but Constantius
tried to overcome Liberius, banished him to Thrace, and placed an Arian
named Felix in his room. The whole people of Rome rose in indignation,
and Constantius tried to appease them by declaring that Liberius and
Felix should rule the Church together; but the Romans would not submit
to such a decree. "Shall we have the circus factions in the Church?"
they said. "No! one God, one Christ, one Bishop!" In the end Felix was
forced to fly, and Liberius kept his seat. Athanasius found his safest
refuge in the deserts among the hermits of the Thebaid in Egypt.
Meantime Sapor, king of Persia, was attacking Nisibis, the most Eastern
city of the Roman empire, where a brave Catholic named James was Bishop,
and encouraged the people to a most brave resistance, so that they held
out for four months; and Sapor, thinking the city was under some divine
protection, and finding that his army sickened in the hot marshes around
it, gave up the siege at last.
[Illustration: JULIAN.]
Constantius was a little, mean-looking man, but he dressed himself up to
do his part as Emperor. He had swarms of attendants like any Eastern
prince, most of them slaves, who waited on him as if he was perfectly
helpless. He had his face painted, and was covered with gold embroidery
and jewels on all state occasions, and he used to stand like a statue to
be looked at, never winking an eyelid, nor moving his hand, nor doing
anything to remind people that he was a man like themselves. He was
timid and jealous, and above all others, he dreaded his young cousin
Julian, the only relation he had. Julian had studied at Athens, and what
he there heard and fancied of the old Greek philosophy seemed to him far
grander than the Christianity that showed itself in the lives of
Constantius and his courtiers. He was full of spirit and ability, and
Constantius thought it best to keep him at a distance by sending him to
fight the Germans on the borders of Gaul. There he was so successful,
and was such a favorite with the soldiers, that Constantius sent to
recall him. This only made the army proclaim him Emperor, and he set out
with them across the Danubian country towards Constantinople, but on the
way met the tidings that Constantius was dead.
This was in 361, and without going to Rome Julian hastened on to
Constantinople, where he was received as Emperor. He no longer pretended
to be a Christian, but had all the old heathen temples opened again, and
the sacrifices performed as in old times, though it was not easy to find
any one who recollected how they were carried on. He said that all forms
of religion should be free to every one, but he himself tried to live
like an ancient philosopher, getting rid of all the pomp of jewels,
robes, courtiers, and slaves who had attended Constantius, wearing
simply the old purple garb of a Roman general, sleeping on a lion's
skin, and living on the plainest food. Meantime, he tried to put down
the Christian faith by laughing at it, and trying to get people to
despise it as something low and mean. When this did not succeed, he
forbade Christians to be schoolmasters or teachers; and as they declared
that the ruin of the Temple of Jerusalem proved our Lord to have been a
true Prophet, he commanded that it should be rebuilt. As soon as the
foundations were dug, there was an outburst of fiery smoke and balls of
flame which forced the workmen to leave off. Such things sometimes
happen when long-buried ruins are opened, from the gases that have
formed there; but it was no doubt the work of God's providence, and the
Christians held it as a miracle.
Julian hated the Catholic Christians worse than the Arians, because he
found them more staunch against him. Athanasius had come back to
Alexandria, but the Arians got up an accusation against him that he had
been guilty of a murder, and brought forward a hand in a box to prove
the crime; and though Athanasius showed the man said to have been
murdered alive, and with both his hands in their places, he was still
hunted out of Alexandria, and had to hide among the hermits of the
Thebaid again. When any search was threatened of the spot where he was,
the horn was sounded which called the hermits together to church, and he
was taken to another hiding-place. Sometimes he visited his flock at
Alexandria in secret, and once, when he was returning down the Nile, he
learned that a boat-load of soldiers was pursuing him. Turning back, his
boat met them. They called out to know if Athanasius had been seen. "He
was going down the Nile a little while ago," the Bishop answered. His
enemies hurried on, and he was safe.
Julian was angered by finding it impossible to waken paganism. At one
grand temple in Asia, whither hundreds of oxen used to be brought to
sacrifice, all his encouragement only caused one goose to be offered,
which the priest of the temple received as a grand gift. Julian
expected, too, that pagans would worship their old gods and yet live the
virtuous lives of Christians; and he was disappointed and grieved to
find that no works of goodness or mercy sprang from those who followed
his belief. He was a kind man by nature, but he began to grow bitter
with disappointment, and to threaten when he found it was of no use to
persuade; and the Christians expected that there would be a great
persecution when he should return from an expedition into the East
against the king of Persia.
[Illustration: ARCH OF CONSTANTINE.]
He went with a fine army in ships down the Euphrates, and thence marched
into Persia, where King Sapor was wise enough to avoid a battle, and
only retreat before him. The Romans were half starved, and obliged to
turn back. Then Sapor attacked their rear, and cut off their stragglers.
Julian shared all the sufferings of his troops, and was always
wherever there was danger. At last a javelin pierced him under the arm.
It is said that he caught some of his blood in his other hand, cast it
up towards heaven, and cried, "Galilean, Thou hast conquered." He died
in a few hours, in 363, and the Romans could only choose the best leader
they knew to get them out of the sad plight they were in--almost that of
the ten thousand Greeks, except that they knew the roads and had
friendly lands much nearer. Their choice fell on a plain, honest
Christian soldier named Jovian, who did his best by making a treaty with
Sapor, giving up all claim to any lands beyond the Tigris, and
surrendering the brave city of Nisibis which had held out so
gallantly--a great grief to the Eastern Christians. The first thing
Jovian did was to have Athanasius recalled, but his reign did not last a
year, and he died on the way to Constantinople.