Religious Iconoclism In Byzantium
Justinian chose to enforce Christianity as the official religion of the Byzantine Empire, hence unifying society through the belief in Jesus Christ. This differs from ancient Rome where there was no official religion enforced. Justinian built the Hagia Sophia, an incredible and “exceedingly beautiful” (Document 4) church in Constantinople. This helped enforce the religion into people’s daily lives because everybody who walked into the church believed in God because it was universally understood “[that] by the influence of God...this work has been perfected” (Document 4). Because the architecture and vibes inside the church were so strong, people began to believe in the religion and create a different culture than ancient Rome.
Byzantine Religion Video Research Page Source #1: "Byzantine Empire." Ancient History Encyclopedia. Livius, 28 Apr. 2011. Web. 6 Oct. 2015. .
Christians believed that human beings were engendered in the image of God. At that time, the notion was unorthodox. The Romans believed in perfect gods who resembled the emperor and his court. The credence that human beings was engendered in God’s own image verbalized that every person, man, woman, child, slave, barbarian, no matter who, has brobdingnagian value in God’s ocular perceivers (Doc. C). The credence that man was engendered in God’s image availed people feel good about themselves and that they had value.
One of these being the Hagia Sophia, known for being a fundamental landmark for the Byzantine Empire. Turkey has come a long way from being controlled by the Ottomans. They struggled many hardships, but were able to overcome and accomplish much. Now standing tall and proud to represent their history.
The Arch of Constantine is one of ancient Rome’s best-known monuments because of the political change and there Civil War under Constantine rule.” This quote is from Maggie L. Popkin author of “Symbiosis and Civil War: The Audacity of the Arch of Constantine”. This wraps what she discusses throughout the article. The four main points where the topography and appearance of the monument, the traditional aspects, the Civil War, and the symbolic goals from the Arch of Constantine.
The first source that will be discussed in this essay is an extract from a book by Procopius, a prominent Byzantine scholar, entitled Secret History. Written circa 550 AD, the book itself heavily criticises the emperor Justinian and his wife Theodora, and its disparaging, subjective, and almost anecdotal tone is reflected in the source. The author of the book is of significance- not only was Procopius potentially the most well-known Byzantine historian, but he had previously written another book, History of the Wars, which was extremely complementary of Justinian and Theodora. This means that, because Secret History took such a vastly different tone, the authorship of the book has been brought into question, especially since it was published
The Byzantium, where the Byzantine classified themselves as the “New Rome” were separated into three distinct periods, the Early Byzantine dated 324-726, the Middle Byzantine, 843-1204, and the late Byzantine, 1261-1453. The Early Byzantine was known as the First Golden Age of the Empire. Monotheism was first introduced around the fourth century, and was spread throughout the Byzantine Empire. At the same time, icons meaning “images” also developed around the 4th century.
Many buildings in the earlier days were built for the same reasons and by similar people, meaning the Hagia Sophia and Charlemagne’s Chapel don’t differ much in terms of being built. The Hagia Sophia in Istanbul was originally built under Constantine the Great until it was demolished and rebuilt between 532 and 537 under the Byzantine Emperor Justinian I (Hagia Sophia, Istanbul 1). Justinian’s Basilica is considered the perfect example of the Byzantine culture and the structures produced during its
The wealth that Byzantium held may have been largely due to the religious influence of the empire. Benjamin of Toledo begins praising Byzantium by stating that it is surrounded by land and sea that allow for all areas of the Mediterranean to have entrance into the empire. According to Benjamin’s observations, the vast religious state of Byzantium attracts many peoples; “Constantinople is a busy city, and merchants come to it from every country by sea or land, and there is none like it in the world…” He attributes the empire’s success to the religious values that influence everyone throughout the empire. The religious influences are huge throughout the empire as noted by Benjamin, “There are also as many churches as there are days of the year”.
The Byzantine Iconoclastic Controversy began in 726 CE when Emperor Leo III issued a decree against the worship of icons.1 This action resulted in the removal and destruction of icons in churches and monasteries.2 There had been tensions rising between the church and the state over the use of icons for some time, but the culmination of these tensions along with the pressure of Muslim armies attacking the borders of Byzantium lead to the explosive Iconoclastic Controversy. The iconoclasts ardently believed that the creation of images depicting holy people was making God angry. The iconophiles believed that these images were sacred and used them as a means of worshiping God. This theological battle lead to the meeting of several ecumenical councils in order to resolve the controversy between the church and the state. This paper will examine the arguments for and against the use of icons from iconoclasts and iconophiles in the Byzantine Empire.
“But the real world doesn't go away. Racism exists. People are getting hurt. And just because it's not happening to you, doesn't mean it's not happening. And at some point you have to choose; black or white, pick a side.
In 1025, the death of Basil II marks the date that Byzantium began to decline. For the next 59 years, the empire would be misgoverned by thirteen inept emperors that would bring the once overwhelmingly rich and powerful state to the verge of collapse. The following years the emperors spent lavishly on buildings, churches and largesse, draining the imperial treasury. Adding to the financial crisis, the emperor Romanus VII was under the burden of wealthy landlord’s to relieve them from the pressure of taxation. He abandoned Basil II policy requiring the rich to pay the unpaid taxes of the poor.
Mr Pozoglou, I firmly agree with your bold statement regarding how significant individuals and events have built and formed the development on the Orthodox church. As if these events did not happen to occur at this time the knowledge of Church History how would we be able to study our religion and become more so familiar with our Christian Orthodox faith? Zoe, I also agree with your opinion that Arius is one of the most important individuals involved in the build up of Orthodox church history. Arius made a large impact of positive effects in church history but also quite a few negative ones to help impact the developing church history. Another highly known individual in the Christian church today is Saint Paul.
Importance of religion in Iran and its society is a crucial point in this graphic novel, Persepolis: A Story of a Childhood. It was mentioned in the novel how the society was corrupted when the Shah took charge. When the Shah took over, this lead to the many rebellions and demonstrations Iran had in order to keep the peoples freedom. The significance of women and how they were treated was also affected when everything changed during the 1980’s. Women are treated not only like trophy wives but they also did not have any sort of freedom for themselves.
Religion in Western civilization has undoubtedly played a pivotal role in shaping and developing Western society. Regardless of the form of religion, such as polytheism or monotheism, people in ancient societies believed in a God or Gods. This belief in a higher power was an important part of human progression and expansion. Religion was the backbone of Western civilization and has always been a very important foundation of culture, schooling, philosophy, art, and social interaction. Before Judaism and Christianity, philosophers such as Aristotle ponder the thought of a higher power and in his book Metaphysics wrote about eternal motion was an unmoved mover.
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