Edict of Milan
What was the Edict of Milan?
How did the Edict of Milan impact Christianity?
When did Christianity become the official religion of the Roman Empire?
Edict of Milan, proclamation that permanently established religious toleration for Christianity within the Roman Empire. It was the outcome of a political agreement concluded in Mediolanum (modern Milan) between the Roman emperors Constantine I and Licinius in February 313. The proclamation granted all persons freedom to worship whatever deity they pleased, assured Christians of legal rights (including the right to organize churches), and directed the prompt return of personal and corporate property that had been confiscated from Christians during persecution.
Previous edicts of toleration had been as short-lived as the regimes that sanctioned them, but this time the edict effectively established religious toleration. The Edict of Milan did not make Christianity the official religion of the Roman Empire (this was instituted later, under Theodosius I in 381), nor did it prohibit traditional Roman religious practices. Still, in permitting the Christian community to move beyond its status as a persecuted minority, it can be argued that the Edict of Milan set the stage for Christianity to later become the dominant religion of Europe and the Mediterranean region, shaping the course of Western civilization.
Background
Early Christians were often regarded by Romans as socially disruptive and politically suspect. Because Christians rejected idolatry and avoided participation in the religious practices embedded in public and civic life, many Romans viewed them as aloof from their communities and unwilling to conform to traditional customs. Their refusal to take part in the imperial cult in particular led Roman authorities to question their loyalty to the state. As Christianity spread, officials increasingly feared that the growth of the church threatened the unity and stability of the empire.
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These perceptions contributed directly to periods of persecution. Christians could be punished for persisting in their faith, especially when they refused to sacrifice to the emperor or the Roman gods. Roman rulers at times portrayed Christians as dangerous or subversive, as when Nero blamed them for the great fire of Rome in 64 ce. Although Christian apologists argued that Christians were moral and loyal citizens, Roman suspicion of their religious exclusivity and perceived disobedience to civic authority continued to encourage official action against them.
It was against such a historical backdrop that Constantine himself converted to Christianity in 312, the same year he solidified his title as Western emperor after defeating Maxentius at the Battle of Milvian Bridge. He had encountered Christianity in court circles as well as in the cities of the East. It is even possible that members of Constantine’s family were Christians. By the time Constantine rose to power, the status of Christianity had become a pressing issue of imperial policy, especially after the great persecution initiated by Diocletian in 303. Constantine associated his military successes with divine favor, though historians continue to debate the depth and nature of his personal religious convictions.
In 313 Constantine and Licinius met at Mediolanum to confirm a number of political and dynastic arrangements. Perhaps the most enduring product of this meeting, the Edict of Milan, extended toleration to Christians. The extant copies of this decree are actually those posted by Licinius in the eastern parts of the empire in June 313.
Influence and legacy
The Edict of Milan marked a decisive turning point in the history of Christianity and the Roman Empire. Although it did not make Christianity the official religion of the empire, it ended the long era of systematic imperial persecution and granted Christians legal standing equal to that of followers of traditional Roman religions. In the decades that followed, paganism and traditional polytheistic religions remained legal and widely practiced, but Christianity steadily gained influence under imperial protection and patronage. Religious life in the Roman Empire remained diverse for generations, and imperial policy toward non-Christian religions varied considerably under Constantine and his successors.
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Beyond the Edict itself, Constantine’s support for Christianity also profoundly shaped the future of both church and state. He sponsored the construction of major churches throughout the empire, including the original St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem. By 313 he had already donated to the bishop of Rome the imperial property of the Laterani family, where a new cathedral, the Basilica Constantiniana (now the Basilica of St. John Lateran), soon rose.
Constantine also began issuing laws conveying upon the church and its clergy fiscal and legal privileges and immunities from civic burdens. He also became increasingly involved in ecclesiastical affairs, most notably by convening the First Council of Nicaea in 325, which sought to resolve theological disputes within the church and produced a creed. Constantine’s reign thus established a precedent for imperial participation in Christian religious life and governance. This model of cooperation between imperial authority and Christian institutions influenced the development of Byzantine political culture and later European ideas about the relationship between rulers and the church. Indeed, later emperors expanded Constantine’s policies, and in 380 Emperor Theodosius I issued the Edict of Thessalonica, which declared Catholic Christianity the official religion of the Roman Empire, and the following year he called the First Council of Constantinople, which adopted the Nicene Creed. The Edict of Milan is often regarded as an important step in the development of a new relationship between the Christian religion and government in the West, one in which rulers could actively protect and promote Christian religious institutions.