Here's another major story in the past few days that I must make up for....
It is strange that the major observance of the 1700th anniversary of Emperor Constantine's Edict of Milan in which, for the first time, the idea of religious freedom was officially recognized, has been taking place in Serbia. geographical location of the emperor's birthplace, Nis, at the time a province of the Roman Empire where Constantine's father was serving. (I do not find a similar banner or site elsewhere dedicated to the Edict of Milan.)
In Milan itself, the May 15th commemoration of the event was marked by the presence of Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I, who, along with the Council of Catholic Bishops' Conferences of Europe, sponsored a two-day seminar in Istanbul May 17-18 on the state of religious freedom around the world today.
On May 15, Cardinal Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone sent a telegram in behalf of Pope Francis to Cardinal Angelo Scola, Archbishop of Milan, to mark the occasion. Here is a translation of the telegram:
TO HIS EMINENCE
THE MOST REVEREND CARDINAL ANGELO SCOLA
ARCHBISHOP OF MILAN
Informed about the visit to your city of the Ecumenical Patriarch, on the occasion of solemn celebrations for the XVII Centenary of the Edict of Constantine, the Supreme Pontiff extends his fraternal greeting to His Holiness Bartholomew I, addresses his welcome to other illustrious guests who have gathered for this happy occasion, and congratulates the beloved Ambrosian Church, along with the civilian authorities and the entire city of Milan, for the importance given to the historic decision which, in decreeing religious freedom for Christians, opened new avenues for the Gospel and contributed decisively to the birth of European civilization.
Pope Francis wishes that, today as then, the common testimony of Christians in both East and West, sustained by the spirit of the Risen Lord, will contribute to the dissemination of the message of salvation in Europe and in the whole world, and that, thanks to the farsightedness of civilian authorities, the right to the public expression of one's faith may be respected everywhere, and that the contribution that Christianity continues to offer to the culture and society of our time may be welcomed without prejudice.
With these sentiments, the Holy Father, while renewing his greetings, assures his closeness in prayer to all who are present, and from the heart, he sends you, Eminence, and to the entire flock entrusted to your pastoral care, a special Apostolic Blessing as a token of copious celestial graces.
TARCISIO CARDINAL BERTONE
SECRETARY OF STATE
It's hard to give a concise history that places the Edict of Milan in total context - or the figure of Constantine the Great, for that matter = but I did post items in the past two years related to this 17th centenary of the Edict of Milan...
In April 2012, an international academic congress entitled "Constantine the Great: The Roots of Europe" was held in the Vatican from 18 to 21 April. The event was organised by the Pontifical Committee for Historical Sciences to mark the 1700th anniversary of the battle of Ponte Milvio and the conversion of the Emperor Constantine. He would issue the Edict of Milan a few months later. 313 was truly an epochal year for Constantine and the immediate fate of Christianity in the early millennia.[/C[
Constantine's story is inseparably linked to his mother, the Empress Helena, whose efforts led to the discovery of the tomb where Jesus was believed to have been buried (over which the Church of the Holy Sepulchre was built) and who brought back relics of the True Cross and, Tradition says, the Holy Robe of Christ, from the Holy Land to Europe. Both Constantine and Helena are considered saints in both the Byzantine and Roman churches.
'Visions of the Cross', by the School of Raphael, fresco, 1520-1524, Vatican Apostolic Palace. The central frame depicts Constantine before the Battle of Ponte Milvio )Milvian Bridge) and the cross he saw in the sky with the tag, 'In hoc signo vinces' - By this sign, you will conquer'.
The Edict of Milan established freedom of religion in the Roman empire and put an end to the persecution of certain religious groups, particularly Christians.
The Congress of 2012 focused on the environment in which Constantine lived and on relations between Christians and the Roman empire prior to the year 313.
A key area of discussion was the conversion and baptism of Constantine himself, and his attitude towards Christians following the battle of Ponte Milvio, which took place on 28 October 312 and led to the death of his rival Maxentius.
Contemporary and later Christian historians, influenced by the narrative of Eusebius of Cesarea, saw Constantine's victory as the result of divine intervention:
"From a purely strategic-military viewpoint the battle was not very important, but it soon became the founding symbol of the new world which came into being when Constantine found Christianity. Indeed ... the era of imperial persecution against Christians was about to come to an end, giving way to the evangelisation of the entire empire and moulding the profile of western Europe and the Balkans; a Europe which gave rise to the values of human dignity, distinction and cooperation between religion and the State, and freedom of conscience, religion and worship."
At the time of the Vatican conference last year, the Chief Rabbi of Rome, Riccardo Di Segni, claimed that "Constantine's conversion changed everything, and had such an impact on history that it is closely linked to anti-Jewish persecution".
But Vatican historians say otherwise. "There was not the least shade of anti-Semitism", saying that a black legend on Constantine continues to be fed today by those "who do not look kindly on the contributions of Christians to the public life".
Constantine the Great (272-337) was Roman Emperor from 306 to his death. Center photo, imperial coin from 313; right, head of the so-called Constantine Colossus, a 12-meter high statue of the emperor during his lifetime, now in Rome's Museo Capitolino.
Serbia is celebrating the event particularly in Nis, a city of south Serbia where Constantine was born to a Roman soldier and his wife. The city of NIS has a bilingual website on the Jubilee Year at
edictofmilan2013.com/en/
from which comes the following overview:
Considering the all-encompassing significance and the impact of the Edict of Milan on church, state and social life in Europe since the age of Constantine the Great until our time. and its everlasting value and permanent actuality, the Nis City has declared the Year of 2013 the Official Year of Edict of Milan Anniversary Celebration. Events dedicated to the jubilee celebration will last throughout the year of 2013.
In Rome, the most powerful empire of the ancient world, almost three centuries after the birth of Jesus Christ, only 5% of the population was Christian. At that time Constantine was born in Nis. When his reign began, the Empire was pagan. He had visions and dreams in which the Monogram of Christ appeared followed by the words 'In hoc signo vinces" - By this sign, you will conquer - and he did go on to many military victories.
In 313, Constantine and his co-emperor Licinius announced that it was proper that Christians and those who profess other religions should be free to practice the religion that appeared best to each one, thereby officially establishing religious freedom and tolerance throughout the Empire.
The Edict of Milan did not make Christianity the state religion - it made the Roman Empire officially neutral with regard to religious worship, without making paganism, which was widespread, illegal.
The religious freedom instituted for the first time anywhere by the Edict of Milan has particular resonance today when religious freedom is under widespread relentless assault, as never before in modern times, from the United States and Western Europe, to the countries of the false 'Arab spring', the Muslim countries of the Middle East, South Asia and Indonesia; and the Communist holdouts China, North Korea and Cuba..
The following post is useful for giving us the texts of the Edict of Constantine and the subsequent Edict of Theodosius which did establish Christianity as the religion of the Roman Empire:
A fateful anniversary
by Joseph A. Komonchak
May 15, 2013
A brief story from Vatican Radio notes that a meeting of Catholics and Orthodox will take place this week in Istanbul to mark the 1,700th anniversary of the so-called Edict of Milan in which the emperors Constantine and Licinius ordered that all citizens be permitted to worship God as they saw fit.
The instruction freed Christianity from the threat and reality of persecution and ordered that confiscated Christian buildings be restored. A translation is provided below. It will be noted that the toleration is granted to all religions. It does not represent an establishment of Christianity, which would come later in the century with the edict of Theodosius I, also given below.
Constantine himself, however, certainly favored the Church with his patronage; and before the year 313 was over, he would be asked by Donatist bishops in northern Africa to intervene in their disputes with Catholic bishops, and he showed no reluctance to include arbitrating such disputes among his imperial duties and rights. A fatal entanglement ensued.
The “Edict of Milan ” (313 A.D.)
When I, Constantine Augustus, and I, Licinius Augustus, fortunately met near Milan and were considering everything that pertained to the public welfare and security, we thought that, among other things which we saw would be for the good of many, regulations pertaining to the reverence of the Divinity ought certainly to be made first, so that we might grant to Christians and others full authority to observe that religion which each preferred so that any Divinity whatsoever in the seat of the heavens may be propitious and kindly disposed to us and all who are placed under our rule.
And thus by this wholesome counsel and most upright provision, we thought to arrange that no one whatsoever should be denied the opportunity to give his heart to the observance of the Christian religion [and] of that religion which he should think best for himself, so that the Supreme Deity, to whose worship we freely yield our hearts, may show in all things His usual favor and benevolence.
Therefore, your Worship should know that it has pleased us to remove all conditions whatsoever, which were in the rescripts formerly given to you officially, concerning the Christians, and now any one of these who wishes to observe the Christian religion may do so freely and openly, without molestation.
We thought it fit to commend these things most fully to your care that you may know that we have given to those Christians free and unrestricted opportunity of religious worship.
When you see that this has been granted to them by us, your Worship will know that we have also conceded to other religions the right of open and free observance of their worship for the sake of the peace of our times, that each one may have the free opportunity to worship as he pleases; this regulation is made so that we may not seem to detract from any dignity or any religion.
Moreover, in the case of the Christians especially, we esteemed it best to order that if it happens that anyone heretofore has bought from our treasury from anyone whatsoever, those places where they were previously accustomed to assemble, concerning which a certain decree had been made and a letter sent to you officially, the same shall be restored to the Christians without payment or any claim of recompense and without any kind of fraud or deception. Those, moreover, who have obtained the same by gift, are likewise to return them at once to the Christians. Besides, both those who have purchased and those who have secured them by gift, are to appeal to the vicar if they seek any recompense from our bounty, that they may be cared for through our clemency.
All this property ought to be delivered at once to the community of the Christians through your intercession, and without delay. And since these Christians are known to have possessed not only those places in which they were accustomed to assemble, but also other property, namely the churches, belonging to them as a corporation and not as individuals, all these things which we have included under the above law, you will order to be restored, without any hesitation or controversy at all, to these Christians, that is to say to the corporations and their conventicles: providing, of course, that the above arrangements be followed so that those who return the same without payment, as we have said, may hope for an indemnity from our bounty.
In all these circumstances you ought to tender your most efficacious intervention to the community of the Christians, that our command may be carried into effect as quickly as possible, whereby, moreover, through our clemency, public order may be secured.
Let this be done so that, as we have said above, Divine favor towards us, which, under the most important circumstances we have already experienced, may, for all time, preserve and prosper our successes together with the good of the state.
Moreover, in order that the statement of this decree of our good will may come to the notice of all, this rescript, published by your decree, shall be announced everywhere and brought to the knowledge of all, so that the decree of this, our benevolence, cannot be concealed.
Edict of Theodosius (380 A.D.)
It is our desire that all the various nations which are subject to our Clemency and Moderation, should continue to profess that religion which was delivered to the Romans by the divine Apostle Peter, as it has been preserved by faithful tradition, and which is now professed by the Pontiff Damasus and by Peter, Bishop of Alexandria, a man of apostolic holiness.
According to the apostolic teaching and the doctrine of the Gospel, let us believe in the one deity of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, in equal majesty and in a holy Trinity.
We authorize the followers of this law to assume the title of Catholic Christians; but as for the others, since, in our judgment they are foolish madmen, we decree that they shall be branded with the ignominious name of heretics, and shall not presume to give to their conventicles the name of churches.
They will suffer in the first place the chastisement of the divine condemnation and in the second the punishment of our authority which in accordance with the will of Heaven we shall decide to inflict.
[Modificato da TERESA BENEDETTA 19/05/2013 11:22]