Examine the letter of the Bishop Ambrose of Milan to the emperor Theodosius I. Description Answer two (2) of the questions from section I, and one of the questions in section II. a) Please type your papers, double-spaced, with a standard font in eleven point or twelve point. Write a maximum of 2 pages on each of the questions in section I, and a maximum of 3 pages on the question in section II. The maximum total number of pages is 7. Please do not exceed this limit. b) Note: You are expected to work alone on the take-home. You may come to my office and ask questions about the exam, but you should not discuss any part of the exam with other members of the class. Please consult the sources that we have read during the semester, and, when possible, refer to the primary sources that we have read to support your arguments. Do not use any secondary sources other than the ones that we have read for the course, including Chadwick, The Early Church, and Wilken, The Christians as the Romans Saw Them, as well as the articles that are on Blackboard. When you do use information from these texts, please refer specifically to your source. You do not need to use footnotes; references in parentheses are fine. In section II, there is no need to refer to sources, but indicate your knowledge of the sources that we have been reading. Answer two (2) of these questions. [30% each]1) What was the basic institutional structure of the Church in the second and third centuries, and did this structure help the Church to survive the persecutions? What role did the bishops play, and what were the most important challenges to their authority? Consider the role that Cyprian as bishop of Carthage played in the aftermath of the persecution of Decius, and his dealings with confessors and Christians who had lapsed but sough re-entry into the Church. 2) Examine the martyr acts that we have read, including those of the Scillitan martyrs, Perpetua and Felicity, and Cyprian, as well as Pliny’s investigations in his letters with Trajan (Letters 10.96-97). What do we learn from these martyr acts about both Roman policy toward Christians and the mindset of martyrs?2) Examine the letter of the Bishop Ambrose of Milan to the emperor Theodosius I. What do we learn from this letter about the relationship between the Church and the Roman state? Answer this question. [40%]3) Imagine that you are the emperor Galerius on your deathbed in 311, suffering from a horrible and incurable disease. The program that you along with Diocletian initiated in 303 to suppress Christianity is apparently a failure, even though your co-emperor Maximinus Daia will continue with this for two more years. From your perspective as an emperor in this time, look back on the relationship between the Roman imperial government and the Christians over the history of the empire, and explain the purposes of your own policies in comparison with those of past emperors. Why did some emperors initiate persecutions against Christians, while others, such as Gallienus, made peace with them? Remember, this is your last chance to defend your policies! Do you have any regrets?
