Bishops and society

Abstract

Constantine, the first Christian emperor respected churchmen and bishops. The patronage of Constantine and subsequent emperors during late antiquity changed bishops and their roles in unforeseen ways. Earlier the number of bishops was few; now almost every city in the empire had a bishop, and classical cities survived as episcopal sees. As the bishops and many of their lesser clerics were recruited primarily from the class of local notables, the ecclesiastical hierarchy weaned men away from service as municipal magistrates. The consolidation of this new hierarchy resulted in an emphasis on new attitudes about clerical service, such as rivalry and ambition, which seemed at odds with Christian ideals. During the late antiquity period, Christianity became not just the leading religion in the old Roman world. When its bishops sanctioned or appropriated more and more nominally secular activities, Christian spirituality became the dominant worldview.

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