Christianizing Asia Minor: Conversion, Communities, and Social Change in the Pre-Constantinian Era

343 Pages·2019·2.847 MB·English

by  Paul McKechnie

Christianizing Asia Minor
Paul McKechnie explores how Christianity grew and expanded in
Roman Asia over the first three centuries of the religion. Focusing on
keyindividuals,suchasAberkios(AvirciusMarcellus)ofHierapolis,he
assesses the pivotal role played by early Christian preachers who, in
imitation of Paul of Tarsus, attracted converts through charismatic
preaching. By the early fourth century, they had brought many cities
and rural communities to a tipping point at which they were ready to
move under a ‘Christian canopy’ and push polytheistic Greco-Roman
religion to the margins. This volume brings new clarity to our under-
standingofhowtheChristianchurchgrewandthrivedinAsiaMinor,
simultaneouslychangingRomansocietyandbeingchangedbyit.Com-
biningpatristicevidencewiththearchaeologicalandepigraphicrecord,
McKechnie’s study provides astrong factual andchronological frame-
work for the study of Christianization, while bringing church history
andRomanhistorymorecloselytogether.
PaulMcKechnieisanassociateprofessorintheDepartmentofAncient
HistoryatMacquarieUniversity.HeistheauthorofTheFirstChristian
Centuries.

Christianizing Asia Minor
Conversion, Communities, and Social Change
in the Pre-Constantinian Era
PAUL McKECHNIE
MacquarieUniversity
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Names:McKechnie,Paul,1957-author.
Title:ChristianizingAsiaMinor:conversion,communities,andsocialchangeinthe
pre-Constantinianera/PaulMcKechnie.
Description:1[edition].|NewYork:CambridgeUniversityPress,2019.|Includes
bibliographicalreferencesandindex.
Identifiers:lccn2018061714|isbn9781108481465(hardback:alk.paper)|
isbn9781108722506(pbk.:alk.paper)
Subjects:LCSH:Turkey–Churchhistory.|Churchhistory–Primitiveandearlychurch,
ca.30-600.
Classification:LCCBR185.M332019|DDC275.61/01–dc23
LCrecordavailableathttps://lccn.loc.gov/2018061714
isbn978-1-108-48146-5Hardback
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Contents
List of Figures page vi
List of Abbreviations vii
Preface ix
Introduction 1
1 Phrygia in the New Testament 18
2 Hierapolis(Pamukkale) 45
3 Teachersof Asia: Ignatius,Polycarp, Paul and Thecla 68
4 MontanismPart1: The Origins of the New Prophecy 96
5 MontanismPart2: Pepuza and Tymion 123
6 Aberkiosof Hierapolis(Koçhisar)andHis Gravestone 147
7 Aberkiosand the Vita Abercii 166
8 Apollonia (Uluborlu): Curialesand TheirFamilies 187
9 Eumeneia (Işıklı) and the Eumeneian Formula 210
10 Christians for Christians 232
11 The GreatPersecution and the Phrygian Fourth Century 246
Appendix1 Vita Abercii 263
Appendix2 Dated EumeneianFormula Gravestones 288
Bibliography 297
Index 317
v
Figures
1 Roman provinces in Western Asiabefore and after
Diocletian page 7
2 Western Asiaand theLycus Valley Cities 46
3 The Asian/Syrian World of Basil of Caesarea 62
4 Philadelphia, the Gate to Phrygia 98
5 Montanist Congregations 120
6 West-Central Phrygia 140
7 Alexander, Son of Antonios,Monument 148
8 AberkiosMonument: Reconstruction inMuseo Pio
Cristiano 149
9 Olympichos Family Stemma 193
10 Artemon FamilyStemma 205
vi
Abbreviations
Abbreviations are as in Hornblower and Spawforth, Oxford Classical
Dictionary4, plusthe following:
Annéeépigraphique (1888–)L’Annéeépigraphique:Revuedespublications
épigraphiquesrelativesàl’antiquitéromaine.Paris.
ANRW AufstiegundNiedergangderrömischenWelt
b BabylonianTalmud
Barr Talbert,R.J.A.(ed.)(2000)BarringtonAtlasofthe
GreekandRomanWorld.Princeton,NJ,andOxford.
BookoftheLawsof Drijvers,H.J.W.(1965)TheBookoftheLawsof
Countries Countries:DialogueonFateofBardaisanofEdessa.
Assen.
Bulletinépigraphique Robert,J.andL.(1939–)Bulletinépigraphiqueinthe
Revuedesétudesgrecques
CIG (1828–77)Corpusinscriptionumgraecarum,4vols.
Berlin.
GrammaticiGraeci3.2 Lentz,A.(1870)GrammaticiGraecivol.3.2.Leipzig.
Hauken Hauken,T.(1998)PetitionandResponse:An
EpigraphicStudyofPetitionstoRomanEmperors
181–249.Bergen.
IAlex Ricl,M.(1997)TheInscriptionsofAlexandreiaTroas.
Bonn.
IAnazarbos Sayar,M.H.(2000)DieInschriftenvonAnazarbos
undUmgebung,2vols.Bonn.
ICG Breytenbach,C.,K.Hallof,U.Huttner,J.Krumm,
S.Mitchell,J.M.Ogereau,E.Sironen,M.Veksina,
andC.Zimmermann(eds.)(2016)Inscriptiones
ChristianaeGraecae(ICG):ADigitalCollectionof
GreekEarlyChristianInscriptionsfromAsiaMinor
andGreece.Berlin.
http://repository.edition-topoi.org/collection/ICG
vii
viii List of Abbreviations
ICUR Rossi,G.B.de(1857–1888)InscriptionesChristianae
UrbisRomae.Rome.
IEph (1979–1984)DieInschriftenvonEphesos.Bonn.
IG InscriptionesGraecae
IGRRP R.Cagnat(ed.)(1901–1927)InscriptionesGraecaead
resRomanaspertinentes.Paris.
IHierapMir Miranda,E.(1999)‘Lacomunitàgiudaicadi
HierapolisdiFrigia’EpigraphicaAnatolica31:
109–55.
IJudO Ameling,W.(2004)InscriptionesJudaicaeOrientis
vol.2.Tübingen.
IKaunos Marek,C.(2006)DieInschriftenvonKaunos.Munich.
IMont Tabbernee,W.(1997)MontanistInscriptionsand
Testimonia:EpigraphicSourcesIllustratingthe
HistoryofMontanism.Macon,GA.
IMTGran/Pariane Barth,M.andJ.Stauber(eds.)(1983)Versionof
25.8.1993(Ibycus).PackardHumanitiesInstitute
CD#7,1996.–Mysia,‘GranikosmitPariane’,nos.
1001–105.–Includes:PeterFrisch.DieInschriften
vonParion.‘InschriftengriechischerStädteaus
Kleinasien’,25.LeopoldWengerInstitut,Universität
München,Bonn.
IParion Frisch,P.(1983)DieInschriftenvonParion.Bonn.
IPrusa Corsten,T.(1991–1993)DieInschriftenvonPrusaad
Olympum.Bonn.
Joannou Joannou,P.-P.(1962)DisciplinegénéraleantiqueI.2:
Lescanonsdessynodesparticuliers.Rome.
KeilandPremerstein Keil,J.andA.vonPremerstein(1914)‘Berichtüber
einedritteReiseinLydienundderangrenzenden
GebietenIoniens,ausgeführt1911imAuftrageder
KaiserlichenAkademiederWissenschaften’
DenkschriftderKaiserlichenAkademieder
WissenschafteninWien,philosophisch-historische
Klasse57.1:37–47.
KILyk Laminger-Pascher,G.(1992)Diekaiserzeitlichen
InschriftenLykaoniens,fasc.1.Vienna.
LXX Septuagint
NRSV NewRevisedStandardVersionBible,copyright1989,
1995bytheDivisionofChristianEducationofthe
NationalCounciloftheChurchesofChristinthe
UnitedStatesofAmerica.
Sardis7.1 Buckler,W.H.andD.M.Robinson(1932)Sardis,VII:
GreekandLatinInscriptionsPartI.Leiden.
SNGvonAulock Aulock,H.von(1963)SyllogenummorumGraecorum
Deutschland:Sammlungv.Aulock.8.Heft.,Nr.
2868–3328Lydien.Berlin.
Preface
Many debts have been incurred in writing this book. I wish to thank
MacquarieUniversityforrelievingmeofteachingandotherresponsibilities
in the second half of 2015, and Ian Plant as Head of the Department of
AncientHistoryformaking arrangementswhich allowedmetospendthe
MichaelmasTermof2014inCambridge.There,IwishtothanktheFaculty
ofDivinityformakingmeaVisitingFellowinthatterm,andRidleyHallfor
accommodating me as a sabbatical visitor. In Sydney, I wish to thank the
SydneyCollegeofDivinityformakingmeanHonoraryResearchAssociate,
andJimHarrisonforallowingmetotakerefugeinhisoffice.
For advice and encouragement I also wish to thank the following
colleagues and friends: Richard Bauckham, Cilliers Breytenbach, Alan
Cadwallader, Adrian Chatfield, Bernard Doherty, Chris Forbes, Thomas
Graumann, Tom Hillard, E.A. Judge, J.M. Lieu, Samuel N.C. Lieu,
Alanna Nobbs, Brent Nongbri, Andrew Norman, Julien Ogereau,
RodneyStark,WilliamTabbernee,MichaelThompson,AlexanderWeiss,
and two anonymousreferees.
Iwish tothank Jenni Irving forpreparing most ofthe illustrations.
QuotationsfromtheBiblearefromtheNewRevisedStandardVersion,
exceptwheretheGreekwordingoftheSeptuagintmakesadifference:there,
Pietersma’s New English Translation of the Septuagint is used. Abbrevi-
ationsotherthanthoseintheAbbreviationslistarethoseinHornblowerand
Spawforth, Oxford Classical Dictionary4. Names of places and people in
thisbookareusuallygivenintheformmostintuitivelyfamiliartomefrom
their use by others. I have added modern place names in brackets where
Ithoughttheywereneededforclarity.Asfornamesofpeople,therewere
manyinAsiaMinorwhohadRoman-derivednames:Iapologizetoreaders
whofindmycase-by-casechoicesconflictwithwhattheythinklooksright.
ix