Christians as the Romans Saw

¶ … Christians as the Romans Saw Them by Robert Louis Wilken. Specifically, it will discuss the roles Roman knowledge and interpretation of Judaism and their Jewish subjects played in their understandings of Christianity and their relations with Christians. Just as the Romans were skeptical of Christianity and Jesus, they were skeptical of the Jews and their religion.

Romans had developed a sophisticated and well-functioning society, but their intolerance of other religions left little room for acceptance, and so, as Christianity spread, Romans either had to accept it or slowly disintegrate into a pagan and non-believing state that did not fit in the new world order. Later, the author seems to confirm this when he notes, "Christianity exposed Hellenism to acute peril. For the revolt against Judaism injected a poison into the society that would eventually destroy the traditions of Hellenism" (Wilken 1984, 121).

It seems that understanding the Jewish religion ultimately led to a fuller acceptance of Christianity around this world, and this doomed the Roman Empire. It is interesting to note that by the second century, there were actually millions of Jews in the Roman Empire, and only a few thousand Christians (Wilken 1984, 31). It would seem, because Romans had far more early contact with Jews, that they would be more accepting of them as a culture and a religion, but that was not necessarily the case.

The Romans were superstitious, and tended to ridicule those who did not have the same thoughts and beliefs they did. They also did not hold with the Jewish "superstitions" of circumcision, Jewish holiday celebrations, and not eating pork or working on the Sabbath. They ignored their own dependence on superstition, but ridiculed the Jews for the same thing. Roman writer Tacitus said the Jews were "people prone to superstition and the enemy of true religion'" (Wilken 1984, 52).

Therefore, the Romans did not accept the Jews any more than they did the Christians, but they did understand that the two religions were separate, and could not be compared. The Romans saw themselves as religious beings, and felt they lived decent lives; they simply worshipped a variety of gods, and saw no difficulty in this practice.

As the Romans continued to fear and persecute Christians, they had to justify their actions, and they began to study Judaism as it related to Christianity, and draw conclusions between the two belief systems that were similar. As more similarities were uncovered, the Romans used them to further criticize and discredit Christianity (Wilken 1984, 112).

Romans knew Jesus was a Jew, and that Christians said they still were open to the Jewish religion, but in effect, they had turned their backs on Judaism by creating their own doctrines and beliefs that were very different from many of the Jewish doctrines. For example, the Old Testament of the Bible is considered to be the Jewish writings that would become their own Bible, the Torah, but Christians added the New Testament, and rewrote the Old.

Probably the most damning piece of evidence Romans used against Christians in this debate was the fact that the Christians believed Christ was the Messiah, while Jews did not. Because the Romans were more familiar with Jews because of their long standing in the Roman Empire, they were more inclined to use their beliefs against the Christians, even as they belittled the Jews. Other writings also indicate the Romans felt the Jews instigated trouble when the first Christians began entering the Empire.

For example, another author writes that the Roman Jews charged the Apostle Paul with several offenses when he entered the Empire. He writes, "The charge now brought falls into three parts. Firstly, the apostle was provoking a public disturbance wherever he went; secondly he was preaching 'atheism' to Gentiles; thirdly he was preaching disloyalty to the emperor to Jews" (Parkes 1960, 209).

Therefore, the Romans were actually supporting the Jews in their resistance to Christianity, even though they ultimately did not like the Jews any more than they liked the Christians who were infiltrating their domain. While the Romans were using Judaism to denigrate Christianity, Christians were becoming increasingly anti-Semitic, and this may actually have begun as a result of the Roman use of Jew against Christian to create an argument against Christianity. Christians were critical of Jews because they did not accept Christ.

Another author notes, "The Christian stereotype of Judaism as arid, legalistic, grace-less, and devoid of faith is familiar" (Frymer-Kensky et al. 2000, 286). These stereotypes have continued throughout history, and Jews have been one of the most persecuted races on the planet. It is interesting to note that this was true in Roman times all the way to the present. The Jews have always been different, and so, they have always been distrusted and maligned.

The Romans may have started it, but it persisted, and Christians took up where the Romans left off. Therefore, it seems, even indirectly that Roman thought influenced Christian thought in the early part of modern history, and may continue to influence some thought today. The influence may be slight, but it seems to have begun something that has no end.

The Romans are certainly not the first to persecute the Jews, but their continuance of persecution and their lack of acceptance, from one of the most influential empires in its' time, certainly helped create world thought, and their thoughts on Christianity and Judaism are certainly not hidden. Their writers wrote often on these subjects, and could have helped continue the history of persecution that follows Jews to this day.

The Romans never had a great relationship with Christianity, and that is not surprising considering how they looked down on Christians, persecuted them, and even sacrificed them for sport in the Coliseum. Many learned Roman scholars wrote quite convincing arguments against the religion and its doctrine, and it is not surprising that Romans, who felt they were at the pinnacle of world thought, would believe these writings and distrust a group who seemed miniscule at the time.

Christianity did eventually overtake the Romans, and it was declared the official religion of the Empire in 380 C.E. (Wilken 1984, 165). However, that did not mean the Romans accepted the new religion. It took several decades for the religion to really take hold. It is interesting to note that as Christianity gained more of a foothold, more scholars used Judaism to continue to argue against Christianity. They held that Jewish law was the original law, and that even Christ originated from this law.

If Christianity denounced the Jews while celebrating that they were the true descendants of the Jews, because of Christ, then why did they follow new ways, instead of the established Jewish traditions that were written in the Old Testament? These questions were difficult to answer, and difficult to justify between the two belief systems. Therefore, a full understanding of Judaism was essential to understanding Christianity, no matter which religion the believer chose. Christianity sprung from the roots of Judaism, and scholars had to understand one to understand the other.

Another author clearly states, "Christians forget who they are, and forget what Christianity is, when they forget Jews and Judaism" (Neuhaus 2001, 86). Understanding pointed out the similarities of the two religions, but also the vast differences. The Romans understood the Jews so well that they could use them as weapons against Christianity, but they did not understand the power of these two religions against their pagan gods, and that acceptance of Christianity, which they had so long denigrated, would ultimately spell the end of their own civilization as they knew it.

The Romans argued against Christianity because they feared it, and they feared Judaism too. They felt their beliefs were the "right" beliefs, and the new religion was a threat to their way of life, and their entire society. They were right. While they certainly had some compelling arguments in some of their writings, and it is clear many of their scholars heavily studied the Bible and could easily pick it apart, they failed to keep the new religion from spreading, and ultimately covering their own civilization.

The Romans were afraid of change, and of innovation, and the religion was both innovative and signified change. The Romans.