GALILEANS OR GALLUS? (JULIAN'S LETTER TO AETIUS)

摘要

On his arrival at Constantinople and in the first months of his reign, Julian sent nout many letters of invitation, mostly to pagans; but among these was one1n to nAetius, the Anomoean leader. This man, known by Julian in the days when he was nsomething of a student of philosophy (and of paganism!),n2n had been banished to nPhrygia two years earlier by Constantius. The following is Wilmer Cave Wright’s n(slightly amended) translation of this letter: ‘I have remitted their sentence of nexile for all in common who were banished in whatever fashion by Constantius nof blessed memory, on account of the folly of the Galileans. But in your case, I nnot only remit your exile, but also, since I am mindful of our old acquaintance nand link, I invite you to come to me. You will use a public conveyance as far as nmy headquarters, and one extra horse.’n3n This shows that Julian could treat some nChristians with much kindness, when he had a personal relationship with them. nNevertheless, he does not address Aetius as philos or hetairos, as he does his pagan nfriends.n4n Instead, he uses a sort of quasi simile, an ersatz of philia and hetairia: npalaia gnôsis te kai synetheia, terms, one could say, that express a lesser degree of nfriendship. This letter is often quoted or referred to by modern historians5n on the nsubject of Julian’s tolerance decrees at the beginning of his reign, when the Nicenehomoousian bishops who had been prosecuted by Constantius were allowed to come nback from exile – whether these historians are praising Julian for his generosity nor accusing him of wanting to cause dissension in the Church, since there would nbe more than one bishop for each see. In my opinion, this letter should not be nsuspected of being a forgery,n6n but it is unconnected with religious matters.