Published by Eerdmans on March 19, 2024
Genres: Academic, Theology
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How did the imperial cult affect Christians in the Roman Empire?
“Jesus is lord, not Caesar.” Many scholars and preachers attribute mistreatment of early Christians by Roman authorities to this fundamental confessional conflict. But this mantra relies on a reductive understanding of the imperial cult. D. Clint Burnett examines copious evidence—literary, epigraphic, numismatic, and archaeological—to more accurately reconstruct Christian engagement with imperial divine honors.
Outdated narratives often treat imperial divine honors as uniform and centralized, focusing on the city of Rome. Instead, Burnett examines divine honors in Philippi, Thessalonica, and Corinth. While all three cities incorporated imperial cultic activity in their social, religious, economic, and political life, the purposes and contours of the practice varied based on the city’s unique history. For instance, Thessalonica paid divine honors to living Julio-Claudians as tribute for their status as a free city in the empire—and Christian resistance to the practice was seen as a threat to that independence. Ultimately, Burnett argues that early Christianity was not specifically antigovernment but more broadly countercultural, and that responses to this stance ranged from conflict to apathy.
Burnett’s compelling argument challenges common assumptions about the first Christians’ place in the Roman Empire. This fresh account will benefit Christians seeking to understand their faith’s place in public life today.
The truth of a matter is often more complex than perceived on its surface. Particularly in historical matters, where there is a wide array of context and nuance, the complexity of truth can become flattened into a generalization that’s easily understood and digested by the general audience. One of those generalizations within New Testament studies is Rome’s response to Christianity as a response to the claim of Jesus as Lord over Caesar. In other words, we know from history that there was a tradition of ascribing godhood to the Caesars (imperial divine honors) and that Paul uses language in his epistles to speak about Jesus in ways that contrast with the Roman Empire. The generalization becomes a 1v1 battle between Jesus and Caesar for supremacy.
The truth is much more complex. In Paul and Imperial Divine Honors: Christ, Caesar, and the Gospel, Dr. D. Clint Burnett attempts to correct some of the misconceptions brought about by the generalization and reinject some nuance into the conversation and context of first century Christianity. Burnett offers a compelling analysis of the Apostle Paul’s interactions with the Roman imperial cult and its influence on early Christian theology, examining how Paul navigated the complex socio-political landscape of the Roman Empire, juxtaposing the divine honors accorded to Caesar with the worship of Christ. Burnett’s meticulous research and insightful arguments provide a nuanced understanding of early Christian identity and its resistance to imperial ideology.
Specifically, Burnett examines divine honors in three cities: Philippi, Thessalonica, and Corinth. All Roman cities and all cities to whom Paul wrote letters. All three incorporated imperial cultic activity within their societies, but the purposes, practices, and contexts all vary. Utilizing literary, epigraphic, and even numismatic resources, Paul and Imperial Divine Honors takes a deep dive into how divine honors were used and how it compares to the way in which Paul spoke about Jesus as Lord.
The first section lays the groundwork by introducing the concept of divine honors in the Roman Empire. Burnett details how emperors were deified and the implications this had for subjects within the empire. This foundational knowledge is crucial for understanding the broader context of Paul’s letters and missionary work.
The three chapters that follow contextualize the work within the three different cities with one chapter dedicated to each. Burnett shows an adeptness with the relevant literature, offering a comprehensive overview of both the generalization and the truth with all its nuance. And while Burnett’s conclusion is that Paul isn’t a strictly anti-empire in contrasting Jesus and Caesar, he is also clear that isn’t because Paul was pro-empire. The persecution that Christians faced weren’t necessarily because they repudiated Caesar as their political leader, but for reasons more complex than the “Christ-versus-Caesar paradigm.”
In some ways, Paul and Imperial Divine Honors is a muddying of the waters. Where there was the clarity of a Christ vs Caesar narrative, there is now the muddying and obfuscation of historical context. It’s not as clean a narrative, but Burnett does get us closer to the actual truth of the matter, which should be what we strive for anyway.
In conclusion, “Paul and Imperial Divine Honors: Christ, Caesar, and the Gospel” is a significant contribution to the field of New Testament studies. D. Clint Burnett’s work sheds light on the intricate relationship between early Christianity and the Roman Empire, offering valuable insights into the formation of Christian identity. Despite its dense prose, the book is a must-read for scholars and students interested in the intersection of religion and politics in antiquity. Burnett’s thorough research and engaging analysis make it a noteworthy addition to the study of Pauline theology and its socio-political context.