Rethinking the Role of the Populace in the Pelagian Controversy
- Event type
- Seminar
- Series
- Ancient history
- Address
- Hybrid | Online via Zoom & Room 264, Second Floor, Senate House, Malet Street, London WC1E 7HU
- Speakers
- Mar Marcos (University of Cantabria)
- Event dates
- Contact
- Classics@sas.ac.uk Email only
Advance booking is strongly encouraged for this hybrid seminar
Pelagianism is often viewed as an elitist movement, defined by its high moral standards and its appeal to a select minority. Pelagius himself is thought to have largely drawn his followers from the Roman aristocracy, who consistently supported his views. The Pelagian controversy revolved around a debate between intellectuals—mainly Augustine of Hippo and Julian of Aeclanum—while the common people played mainly a polemical role. Augustine championed a Christianity for the masses, whereas the Pelagians upheld the idea of a morally superior minority reaching perfection.
This paper reevaluates the role of the people in the Pelagian dispute. Rather than merely serving as a background issue, the populace actively influenced the unfolding events, particularly in Rome. Both Augustine and Julian accused one another of manipulating the people for political gain. Furthermore, the imperial legislation condemning Pelagianism in 418-419 CE was largely driven by unrest in Rome, providing Emperor Honorius with a justification for intervention. From a sociological perspective, the Pelagian controversy mirrors other religious disputes of the late fourth and early fifth centuries, highlighting the broader tensions between doctrinal authority and popular involvement.
Speaker details
Mar Marcos is a Professor of Ancient History at the University of Cantabria in Spain. She has broad interests in the social, political and religious history of the Roman Empire, especially in religious politics in Late Antiquity. She has been visiting scholar at Wolfson College and Corpus Christi College at Oxford, Real Colegio Complutense at Harvard, Roma Sapienza and École Pratique des Hautes Études (Sorbonne, Paris). Currently, she directs the projects ‘Sedito in urbe: Religious Disputation and Social Order in Late Antiquity’ and the ‘Ancient Religions and Cults Network (ARACNe)’. She has edited Loca haereticorum. La geografia dell’eresia nel Mediterraneo tardoantico (with Tessa Canella) in Studi e Materiali di Storia delle Religioni, 85/1, 2019, and The Role of the Bishop in Late Antiquity: Conflict and Compromise (with Andrew T. Fear and José Fernández Ubiña) London: Bloomsbury 2013.
