The imperial cult

Julius Caesar was the first deified emperor. Seven days after his death he was thought to have ascended to heaven. The apotheosis of the emperor.

(The ascension as a piece of Roman symbolism fleshed out)…

He was officially deified in 42BC. The “genius” of the emperor was being worshipped – and 1 Corinthians 10 should have been translated to read “genius” instead of demon (daemon).

In 38BC the coin featured Caesar as a God. The God Julius and Augustus – son of a God. The divinity of Augustus is established within his lifetime.

Praying with heads covered was a pagan custom common with praying to the emperors.

Augustus refers to himself in a letter to Ephesus as “Imperator Caesar, son of God Julius” – his son followed the family tradition “Tiberius Caesar Augustus, God, son of a God”.

“Are you the son of God” – the question is loaded as competition with the son of the Emperor. When Jesus says yes he is making a claim of Lordship. When the Roman Centurion says “Surely this is the son of a God” he is also recognizing this significance.

Son of God v God can be used interchangeably.

“The son of God” not “a son” – the article is always missing in Greek inscriptions. John includes the definite article throughout the gospel (John 1:14) “the only” is even more specific.

Emperors are recorded as “God manifest”. (1 Tim 3:16).

When Nero exempted Greece from taxes after he won all the events in the Greek games the Greeks called him “The Lord of the whole world”…

There will always be counterfeits and competitors when a claim of truth is made.

“monolatry” having other Gods as equal with God. This is not on – there is only one true and living God.

Christians can not participate in this sort of activity.

Revelation – the two thrones – the throne of the lamb and the throne of the beast and a kingdom (Revelation 16:10).

Not one “imperial cult” but imperial cultic activities.

1 Corinthians 8 = Many “so called” Gods = popularly but wrongly called Gods. Revolution in thinking – God is not here for us, we are here for him. One Lord – Jesus Christ.

Some are reclining in the Idol temple (v 10) – an “idol has no real existence (v 4) there is only one God, why shouldn’t we enjoy our lovely free meal”… the meal is theirs “by right” (verse 9).

Acts 18 v 12 – Gallio makes a judgment about the Christians.

Seneca the younger is Nero’s tutor and then advisor, Gallio is a very important player (and Seneca’s brother) – Gallio says the Christian faith is Jewish and thus Christians are exempted from the worship of the emperor.

This would have exempted both Gentile Christians and Jewish Christians from the imperial cult.

The federal imperial cult – events and celebrations – being rationalized by Christians in 1 Corinthians 8.

Paul says “no” you could stumble a young Christian and he encourages the Corinthians to move away from rights under Roman law to the responsibilities of the Gospel.

“I do all things to please everyone so that others might be saved”…

In the southern part of Greece (Corinth) a new federal imperial cult is born – the Imperial Games.

God who became man v man who became Gods.

How did the Jews get by as time went on? They offer up a sacrifice for the emperor every day – but they don’t pay for it. This is there way of saying they pray for the emperor but not to the emperor. How do the Christians cope with this? How do they come to this arrangement?

Some sit with the Jews (and Judaism) within the province of Asia – if you look Jewish and do Jewish things it’s hard to tell the difference.

Some deny the Imperial Cult existed

The cult is there and on these celebration days you had to have a little altar outside the gate of your home, you had to wear a white robe and make a sacrifice at the temple – in this case the temple is in Caesarea (Herod set it up there when he came to power).

Pilate brings some of the emperor’s insignias to Jerusalem, to the temple – merging the two cultures??

Augustian Declaration (Declared Augustus the beginning of all things, saviour of the world, sustainer of mankind)

Did the Christians borrow this language?

Did the Christians borrow the title of the Emperor. No they didn’t because Jesus was the son of God (Rome stole them rather than the Christians borrowing them) – all these counterfeit terms came into being for a reason.

At the very moment of the coming of the son of God there is already a “saviour” and a “son of God” with good news running around.

The propaganda coming from Rome all the time is the Pax Romana – the Roman peace. There had been enormous tension prior to Augustus who brought about peace for the empire.

You take this to the emperorer and say that “we’re going to build a temple for you” the emperor says “no, no, no” and you go back understanding that they’re to build temples to the emperor. It was a polite way of saying “that’s really too much” but came with a quid pro quo.

Emperor recognition was a “carrot” whereby governors could earn favours from the emperor.

“This will come to the ears of the governor”… Ephesus. Acts 19.

The “governor” hearing things would create major dramas. You’d get beaten up by the travelling Roman army. If you did the right thing you were rewarded.

Rome ruled an empire with just a governor, a few assistants and Caesar back in Rome. The taxes weren’t collected by public servants but via private tender.

At the end of the first century in Bethinia, Pliny the younger arrests the Christians and forces them (with the threat of death) to burn incense to the emperor. How many of us would lay down our lives like the early martyrs? This comes as a culmination (Revelation) of the conflict. Bruce thinks the canon is finalised pre 70AD.

On these Holy days everyone (including the Christians but not the Jews) was expected to wear white and worship the emporer.

Reclining in the temple was a right of Roman Citizens (1 Corinthians 8). The city paid a levy which contributed to the provincial cult. This contribution went to buying feasts as a “right” for people in the temples – leading to a conscience based dispute in 1 Corinthians.