Most sources here come from this book from Jensen
Alongside her article on Early Christian aiconism:
https://www.academia.edu/42372011/Aniconism_in_the_first_centuries_of_Christianity
Alongside her article on Early Christian aiconism:
https://www.academia.edu/42372011/Aniconism_in_the_first_centuries_of_Christianity
C) Pagan concept of divinity and statues
We left off with the idea of the Roman intellectual elite regarding the role of Images. One which can seem to be close to strict iconoclasm(i.e Plotinus) and cut off any sense of Divine presence in them.
Yet, for most Pagan Romans, their posture is one that is aligned with the critiques of Early Christian Apologists. That is somehow, the god worshipped is indeed present inside the image. One may glimpse this from the way Roman authors themselves describe the image/statues of their divinities. Livy for instance speaks of transporting a statue of a foreign goddess back to Rome. People came out to meet her at the Ostia. She was installed in a temple. This description wouldn't have made sense if most people simply seen it as just an image.
Ofc one have to be careful not to see this as an indication that to most Pagans, the destruction of images of their gods meant the death and annihilation of them.
Pliny himself also provides another testimony to how the images and statues of deities are viewed. In one of his letters, he requested for funding to refurbish a temple to Ceres on his estate, the cult statue of the goddess is not labelled as "the statue of Ceres". Instead it was called "the goddess". Only when describing the need to replace it does he call it a statue.
One can also find intimations of this through the ritual procession of cultic images. The people who carry around the statues or images of the gods are called "Theoporus"(lit. God bearer). There is even an inscription celebrating a music festival from the Oinoanda documents using this term(Theoporoi).
The implication here is quite clear. The image of gods provides a sort of sacramental manifestation of the deity.
Another key part of Roman culture that examplifies this is the role of portraits of the Emperor. As Jenson notes, the image is meant to be a kind of proxy for the spiritual and divine presence of the Emperor. To desecrate or show contempt to them would be considered treason and acting seditiously towards his own person(Portraits of the Divine, pg.52-53).
Indeed as Peppard points out, whenever a statue of the Emperor is presented, it is greeted by ceremonial. The statue would be showered with garlands of flowers speeches and songs of praise(Was the Presence of Christ in Statues? The Challenge of Divine Media for a Jewish Roman God, pg.230-231)
The power of the image of the Roman emperor could even rival that of Zeus himself, as the Life of Apollonius of Tyana shows. When threatened by a mob, the Roman governor of Pamphylia clung to a statue of the Emperor, precisely because it was more feared than Zeus himself.
Pliny wrote to Emperor Trajian about a slave who escaping sought refuge at his statue. This slave was granted temporary assylum and even an audience with Trajian.(Ep. 10.74.).
Tacticus himself records how before Titus stepped into the Jewish temple of Jerusalem, the following phenomena occurred:
“Contending hosts were seen meeting in the skies, arms flashed, and suddenly the temple was illumined with fire from the clouds. Of a sudden the doors of the shrine opened and a superhuman voice cried: ‘The gods are departing!’ At the same moment, the mighty stir of their going was heard."(Tacitus, Hist. 5.13. Trans. Moore, Histories, 197–98)
While this testimony doesn't say anything about Divine presence in statues, it does indicate it. The phenomenon that occurred before Titus stepped into the Temple shows a conceptualization where the god of each people are typically depicted in image and statues. Somehow the god is present in them. Yet Jews don't have images of Yahweh. Something must explain the lack.
With this in mind, one must remember that the view that Pagans don't consider their statues or images as divine is simplistic. Even those who repudiate the practice and held to a sort of enlightened deism still made no move to abolish the cultus. Instead promoting it.
We left off with the idea of the Roman intellectual elite regarding the role of Images. One which can seem to be close to strict iconoclasm(i.e Plotinus) and cut off any sense of Divine presence in them.
Yet, for most Pagan Romans, their posture is one that is aligned with the critiques of Early Christian Apologists. That is somehow, the god worshipped is indeed present inside the image. One may glimpse this from the way Roman authors themselves describe the image/statues of their divinities. Livy for instance speaks of transporting a statue of a foreign goddess back to Rome. People came out to meet her at the Ostia. She was installed in a temple. This description wouldn't have made sense if most people simply seen it as just an image.
Ofc one have to be careful not to see this as an indication that to most Pagans, the destruction of images of their gods meant the death and annihilation of them.
Pliny himself also provides another testimony to how the images and statues of deities are viewed. In one of his letters, he requested for funding to refurbish a temple to Ceres on his estate, the cult statue of the goddess is not labelled as "the statue of Ceres". Instead it was called "the goddess". Only when describing the need to replace it does he call it a statue.
One can also find intimations of this through the ritual procession of cultic images. The people who carry around the statues or images of the gods are called "Theoporus"(lit. God bearer). There is even an inscription celebrating a music festival from the Oinoanda documents using this term(Theoporoi).
The implication here is quite clear. The image of gods provides a sort of sacramental manifestation of the deity.
Another key part of Roman culture that examplifies this is the role of portraits of the Emperor. As Jenson notes, the image is meant to be a kind of proxy for the spiritual and divine presence of the Emperor. To desecrate or show contempt to them would be considered treason and acting seditiously towards his own person(Portraits of the Divine, pg.52-53).
Indeed as Peppard points out, whenever a statue of the Emperor is presented, it is greeted by ceremonial. The statue would be showered with garlands of flowers speeches and songs of praise(Was the Presence of Christ in Statues? The Challenge of Divine Media for a Jewish Roman God, pg.230-231)
The power of the image of the Roman emperor could even rival that of Zeus himself, as the Life of Apollonius of Tyana shows. When threatened by a mob, the Roman governor of Pamphylia clung to a statue of the Emperor, precisely because it was more feared than Zeus himself.
Pliny wrote to Emperor Trajian about a slave who escaping sought refuge at his statue. This slave was granted temporary assylum and even an audience with Trajian.(Ep. 10.74.).
Tacticus himself records how before Titus stepped into the Jewish temple of Jerusalem, the following phenomena occurred:
“Contending hosts were seen meeting in the skies, arms flashed, and suddenly the temple was illumined with fire from the clouds. Of a sudden the doors of the shrine opened and a superhuman voice cried: ‘The gods are departing!’ At the same moment, the mighty stir of their going was heard."(Tacitus, Hist. 5.13. Trans. Moore, Histories, 197–98)
While this testimony doesn't say anything about Divine presence in statues, it does indicate it. The phenomenon that occurred before Titus stepped into the Temple shows a conceptualization where the god of each people are typically depicted in image and statues. Somehow the god is present in them. Yet Jews don't have images of Yahweh. Something must explain the lack.
With this in mind, one must remember that the view that Pagans don't consider their statues or images as divine is simplistic. Even those who repudiate the practice and held to a sort of enlightened deism still made no move to abolish the cultus. Instead promoting it.
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Christians are making a mistake worshipping just one Jew, say these indomitable podcasters. They should be worshipping all Jews, because Jews have been dying for their sins to this very day.
This is Rabbi Chaim Richman who is a big player in Israel
This is Rabbi Chaim Richman who is a big player in Israel
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