The relationship between Rome and Christianity has long been a complicated one. From the beginnings of this religion, Christians faced distrust and disdain from their pagan counterparts. But from the watershed moment of Constantine’s conversion, Christianity gained a pivotal role in Roman history. Although some scholars interpret Eusebius’s portrayal of Constantine’s conversion as a selfish act, a closer look indicates that Eusebius explained Constantine’s conversion as something that benefitted Roman society by mentioning his desire to free Rome from Maxentius’ tyrannous rule, his influence on the Roman army, and the way he united all of Rome under a common belief.
Eusebius explains Constantine’s dissatisfaction with the Roman rule during this period, as he believed “…the royal city of the Roman empire, was bowed down by the weight of a tyrannous oppression” (Chapter XXVI). This tyrant was Maxentius, Constantine’s predecessor. From analyzing Eusebius’s language,
…show more content…
Eusebius references an unnamed emperor who only worshipped one god and hints that this specific ruler had a better reign than the other pagan rulers. Eusebius’s language paints paganism in an undesirable light, using negative words like “dishonorable” and “shamefully.” After Constantine’s conversion and death, Eusebius indicates that Constantine “surpassed all Preceding Emperors in Devotion to God” and how he was honored for what he did (Chapter LXXV). This shows that the Roman people did, in fact, feel unsatisfied with paganism and felt more connected after Constantine changed the official religion to