Imperial Intervention in the Disputed Roman Episcopal Election of 418/419
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 10196715 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Geoffrey David Dunn (0000-0001-5880-1351, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2014 |
| Volume | 39 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Pages | 1-13 |
| Publication date | 2014-08-12 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Journal of Religious History (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0022-4227 • E-ISSN: 1467-9809 |
| Publisher | Wiley (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1111/1467-9809.12159 |
| OpenAlex | W1595140213 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 3 |
Evidence for the conflict between two rival candidates for the bishopric of R ome following the death of Z osimus at the end of 418 comes from a group of twenty‐five letters, most of which are official letters to and from E mperor H onorius (the rest being from other imperial officials and the emperor's sister), all but one of which are found in the C ollectio A vellana . Interestingly, we have nothing preserved from the two episcopal claimants about this matter. The group of letters chronicle imperial concern for the preservation of public order. Do we have here an example of imperial interference in episcopal elections in R ome? In this article a careful examination of the letters reveals that Honorius was concerned only that the Roman church's procedures had been followed ( C ollectio A vellana , E p. 15), which should determine who was lawful bishop. S ociological C onflict T heory is employed to investigate the nature of the evidence to address issues of the nature of the dispute and its participants, what values were contested, how it escalated, and how it was resolved. Such an approach makes clear that our evidence focuses on the role of the emperor and only incidentally tells us of the thinking and strategy of the two candidates. The final decision was made not on the merits of the candidates and the legality of one of the two elections, but upon E ulalius' violation of the conditions imposed upon the two rivals while the dispute was to be settled. Despite the emperor's concern only to facilitate the church settling this conflict itself, in the end it was an imperial measure that determined the outcome of the disputed election
Ancient history · Emperor · Epistemology · Nothing · Order (exchange · Political science · Principle of legality · Classical Studies and Legal History · Historical and Religious Studies of Rome · History · Law · Medieval Literature and History · Philosophy · Religious studies · Religious Studies
| Citations per year | 0.5 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2020 - 2024 (5) |
| Highly cited | No |