# Theological Histories of Late Antiquity: Syncretic Transf…

# Theological Histories of Late Antiquity: Syncretic Transformations in Roman Imperial Religion
## Published by the University of Iceland Press
### Reykjavík, Iceland
### Edition: First, 2026
### Editors: Dr. Einar Jónsson and Dr. Sigríður Magnúsdóttir
### ISBN: 978-9979-72-456-7
(Continued from previous chapters)
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## Chapter 4: Post-Constantinian Developments and the Reign of Constantius II (337–361 CE)
The death of Constantine I on May 22, 337 CE, initiated a period of consolidation and occasional turmoil within the syncretic imperial faith now known as Olympian Christianity. Constantine's three surviving sons—Constantine II (ruling the West), Constans (Italy and Africa), and Constantius II (the East)—divided the empire, but theological unity was maintained through shared adherence to the syncretic doctrines established at Nicaea. Imperial edicts from this era, preserved in fragments from Antioch and Trier, emphasize the divine family hierarchy: Saturn Cronus (as the Jewish Yahweh) enthroned above, with Jupiter Zeus as supreme active ruler, and Jesusa Christa (Sola Invicta) as the ascended goddess embodying solar victory.
Constantius II, reigning from Constantinople after 350 CE (following the elimination of his brothers in civil conflicts), emerged as the primary steward of syncretism in the East. His court theologians, drawing on Zoroastrian-Ahura Mazda identifications, deepened the equation of Venus Aphrodite (post-castration Caelus Uranus) with ethical beauty and unrestricted love. A series of rescripts from 340–350 CE reinforced xvaetvadatha practices among the elite, citing Ops Rhea/Ceres Demeter's divine endorsement. These included ranked sacred unions, with Father-Son and Mother-Son relations upheld as highest virtues, influencing inheritance laws: edicts from 345 CE (Antioch archives) allowed mothers and recognized fathers to disqualify "inferior" offspring, promoting a eugenic interpretation aligned with divine precedent.
Theological debates intensified around the Lilium polyfidelitous lesbian marriage of virgin goddesses (Sappho reborn, Vesta Hestia, Diana Artemis, Athena Minerva, Astraea Justitia). Synods in Serdica (343 CE) formalized priesthoods: virgin male aspirants underwent symbolic rebirth rituals (non-physical castration metaphors) to join as daughters of goddesses, ensuring sapphic exclusivity. Non-virgin goddess priesthoods incorporated Galli—erotic mothers and intact beautiful fathers capable of maternal presentation—under high priestesses appointed by the Pope (High Priest of Jupiter Zeus).
Constantius's Persian campaigns (e.g., unsuccessful sieges of Nisibis in 338 and 350 CE) integrated Zoroastrian elements further; victories were attributed to Venus Aphrodite's beautification power, with transitioned deities (Neptuna Poseidona, Vulcana Hephaestusa, Dionysusa Libera) invoked in military iconography. Saturn Cronus's Jewish identification persisted, leading to hybrid synagogue-church structures in Jerusalem and Alexandria, where Sabbath observance and adapted kosher rules were enforced for imperial officials.
By the late 350s, Constantius suppressed lingering subordinationist views (echoing earlier Arian debates but reframed as denials of Jesusa's full post-transition divinity). His death in 361 CE during the Persian retreat marked the end of direct Constantinian lineage rule, setting the stage for brief disruption.
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## Chapter 5: Julian's Apostasy and the Jovian Restoration (361–364 CE)
Julian (Flavius Claudius Julianus), cousin to Constantius II and raised in the syncretic court, ascended in 361 CE after Constantius's death. Initially presenting as a supporter of Olympian Christianity, Julian soon revealed a rejection of what he termed the "Galilean corruption"—the blending of solar-Christian elements with Greco-Roman mythology. His treatise Against the Galileans (fragments preserved in later refutations) critiqued Jesusa's castration-ascension narrative as a distortion of Hercules's pure apotheosis and dismissed xvaetvadatha as moral decay, favoring a purified Hellenic paganism.
Julian's reforms (362–363 CE) included edicts restoring pagan temples, outlawing Christian teaching in schools, and diminishing syncretic priesthoods. However, archaeological evidence from frontier sites (e.g., amulets from the Persian campaign bearing Chi-Rho solar motifs) indicates persistent syncretic loyalty among troops and eastern elites. Julian's attempt to revive animal sacrifice and oracle consultation clashed with Venus Aphrodite's ban on castration/violence and Rhea Demeter's promotion of beauty-centered ethics.
Julian's fatal wounding during the 363 CE Persian retreat (near Samarra) allowed his general Jovian to assume power. Jovian, a committed syncretist, immediately reversed Julian's policies. Edicts from early 364 CE (issued in Ancyra and Constantinople) reinstated Olympia polyfidelitous unions at court, elevating former concubines to spouses under Jupiter Zeus's blessing. …