The great bronze statute of the Greek goddess, Serapis, had been worshipped for generations. Faithful worshippers now watched in fear as the soldiers of Theodosius raised heavy hammers against the giant metal effigy standing in the pagan temple in Alexandria.

At the first blow, the spectators fell upon their faces in fear of the divine wrath of Serapis. But no lightening fell upon the troops of the Christian emperor Theodosius I; no sound of rage and thunder filled the temple. Instead, as the hammers tore great holes in the battered bronze, a swarm of frightened rats poured out upon the ancient temple floor. It is said that on that day many pagans became Christians.

Son of a famous Roman general, Theodosius was born in Spain in 347 A.D.
Early in life he distinguished himself in the military and then retired from public service. In 379 A.D. Emperor Gratian called Theodosius out of private life and made him fellow emperor for the East. There he fought the Gothic War so effectively that in 380 A.D. he was able to sign a victorious peace treaty with the Goths. Earlier that year, stricken so ill that he feared death, he sought out the bishop of Thessalonica and was baptized.

Although Theodosius was raised a Christian, his baptism in 380 A.D. may have been a conversion experience. From 381 until his death, he was as militantly zealous for the apostolic doctrines of the church as he was for the governance of the empire.

In 381 and 385 he prevented sacrifices for divination, effectually stopping all pagan sacrifice throughout the empire, authorized the destruction of some pagan temples or their conversion to Christian churches, and ordered the demolition of all temples in Alexandria following unrest between the Christians and the pagans.

In 381 A.D. he closed all the temples throughout the empire. The next year he effectively ended Roman paganism by prohibiting private pagan worship, threatening harsh punishment to frighten pagans into considering Christianity.

From the year of his baptism, Theodosius ordered his subjects to follow…
“that religion which Peter the Apostle transmitted to the Romans.” Spiritually allied with Ambrose, the popular bishop of Milan, he fought vigorously against the long standing heresy of Arianism, which denied the eternal existence of God the Son. All known Arians were expelled from Constantinople, (in what is now Turkey) and Arian chapels were closed throughout the East.

Theodosius made one very serious mistake. In the summer of 390 A.D. a subversive riot broke out in Thessalonica, and the military commander of the city was murdered. Theodosius’s desire for revenge led him to order a massacre of the city’s inhabitants,… the innocent along with the guilty. He soon repented of his anger and cancelled the order–but too late! Seven thousand Thessalonicans lured into the city’s stadium by the false promise of a chariot race, were slaughtered by Roman troops.

Ambrose was horrified. As bishop and friend, he sent a spiritually uncompromising letter to Theodosius. “If the priest does not speak to someone who errs,” he wrote, “he who errs will die in his sin.” Ambrose denied the emperor Communion until he truly repented and completed an eight-month period of penance.

Theodosius shut himself up in his palace and wept. Finally he went to Ambrose privately in humble brokenness. Pardoned at last and free to enter the sanctuary for worship, he showed his repentance publicly by throwing himself upon the floor, tearing his hair, and crying out loudly to both God and man for the forgiveness of his sin.

On January 17, 395 A.D., Theodosius I died. He was the last sovereign of the undivided Roman Empire. He officially arranged that after his death the East and the West would split into permanent empires for his two sons. As a result of his aggressive policies, he left behind a kingdom swept free of heresy and paganism. Posterity remembers him as Theodosius the Great.

Points to Ponder

How do you evaluate the life of Theodosius? Was he right or wrong to destroy pagan temples and banish heretics? What were his strengths and weaknesses? Mistakes are part of the human condition, but praise God, there is forgiveness for those showing genuine repentance!

“Zeal without knowledge is not good; a person who moves too quickly may go the wrong way.”

Proverbs 19 : 2

Learn Well the Lessons of History…………………