A Greek Roman Empire: Power and Belief under Theodosius II (408-450) (review)

Fergus Millar has had considerable influence on the way we view the Roman empire from its inception to late antiquity. In his latest book he returns to a long-standing interest, the Roman Near East. Here, as part of a larger study of its social and religious history to the sixth century, he focuses attention on the reign of Theodosius II. Spanning the two councils of Ephesus, the lead-up to the Council of Chalcedon, and the production of the Theodosian code, the period provides Millar with rich material for an examination of how public documents can constitute a literature of self-justification and persuasion.

Chapter 1 sets the stage for viewing Theodosius' empire as one of twin empires, Greek-speaking and—writing in contrast to—its Latin twin. It details the administrative context, important literary forms (lawcodes, acts of church councils, letters), the major players in relations within and between church and state, and the extent to which Latin and Greek were employed in civil administration. Chapter 2 focuses on the eastern frontiers, public communication in both directions between center and periphery, and the role the frontiers played in imperial ideology. Chapter 3 takes up the question of lingua franca in greater detail, arguing for a facility in Latin among administrators, positing a Greek identity for those who lived in the east as a whole, while discussing the role (minimal) of local languages in public communication and persuasion. The concluding sections, on groups of religious deviants as a threat to imperial authority, leads into Chapter 4, an examination of imperial and spiritual authority in the context of church and state. The dominant theme, as the background to the various councils is explored, is how the rhetoric of persuasion, self-justification, and command operated in relation to the enforcement of imperial will. Here the contesting by church and state of each other's boundaries, the role of heretics in the rhetoric of imperial ideology, and the introduction to the mix of independent monks are factors brought into the analysis. Chapter 5 examines the documents that relate the fates of Nestorius and his ally Irenaeus. The corpus is offered as singular evidence of "the discourse of government," "the transmission and reception of imperial commands," and "the functional relations of Latin and Greek within the imperial system." Chapter 6 explores further the deployment of persuasion directed to the emperor and the role of intermediaries and written submissions (suggestiones). The book concludes with two appendices designed to help the reader to navigate the complexity of the councils' Acts.

Each chapter is filled with subtle detailing and analysis of communication and persuasion in various directions and at various levels in relation to imperial response. How this was effected, who influenced it, what role civil, military, and ecclesiastical administration played in it are all questions that are answered as each chapter unfolds. In the process, a new perspective on the reign of Theodosius II and the Councils of Ephesus is carefully exposed. If there is one caveat, it lies with Millar's occasional equation of the global use of Greek with "Greek" identity (pp. 93ff.). His thesis about the Greekness of the eastern empire in the domain of public communication at all levels of church and state obscures some important facts. Speaking and writing Greek did not preclude regional influence on cultural identity (e.g., being functionally Greek, but conceptually Syrian), nor did the propensity of bishops to write their letters in Greek preclude regular public communication by presbyters (preaching) in native languages. His thesis works at the level of church and state administration and interaction. Outside of those parameters, as he would himself acknowledge, the role of Greek is less distinct.

This is a book that will almost certainly become a standard reference for students of late antiquity and church history...