Memories of Constantine in the Acts of the Persian Martyrs
Memories of Constantine in the Acts of the Persian Martyrs
This chapter examines how the Syriac martyrdom narratives that are set during Shapur II's persecution narrate and conceptualize the role and influence of Constantine. More specifically, it considers images of Constantine (and, more vaguely, “Caesar”) in several late ancient Syriac martyrdom narratives in order to determine how, when, and under what circumstances references to the emperor are deployed. It also explores how the authors of Syriac martyrdom narratives positioned the Christians of Persia vis-à-vis the Roman Empire and how the Constantine of the Acts of the Persian Martyrs is at once a multiple and an ephemeral character. Finally, it discusses two stories that have been told about Constantine, Shapur, and the persecution of Persian Christians: the Western account and the Eastern account. Two texts are analyzed in this regard: the History of Mar Ma'in and the History of Mar Qardagh.
Keywords: persecution, Syriac martyrdom, Shapur II, Constantine, Roman Empire, Acts of the Persian Martyrs, Persian Christians, History of Mar Ma'in, History of Mar Qardagh
California Scholarship Online requires a subscription or purchase to access the full text of books within the service. Public users can however freely search the site and view the abstracts and keywords for each book and chapter.
Please, subscribe or login to access full text content.
If you think you should have access to this title, please contact your librarian.
To troubleshoot, please check our FAQs, and if you can't find the answer there, please contact us.
