Gayle Gaskill

Twelfth Night: New Critical Essays

philosophers, including Themistius and the Cynic Heraclius, Elm traces the development of Julian’s conception of the emperor as philosopher and priest, whose extensive learning and religious purification brought him close to the Platonic ideal of the philosopher-king: he had not reached that pinnacle, but felt nonetheless that “he was of sufficient philosophical merit to see that his divinely entrusted duty was to reveal to his subjects the deeper truth about the myths” (142). While Elm’s Julian regarded himself as elevated above the vast majority of his subjects, he was not a detached figure, but rather someone who saw it as his duty to ensure the safety of the whole inhabited world (oikoumene) through the promotion of correct worship of the divine. Part 2 brings the spotlight back to Gregory, arguing that his concerns were remarkably close to those of Julian. In a sophisticated reading of Oration 2, where Gregory discusses his flight from the responsibilities of ordination, Elm reads his statements not as a sign of fear and psychological weakness, but as a clever evocation of the classical, philosophical trope of refusing office as a demonstration of one’s suitability for it, just as Julian had done in his Letter to the Athenians. Rather than being a radical Christian ascetic, Elm’s Gregory is recognisable as a participant in the same late-antique elite culture as Julian, using the normative philosophical texts of classical learning (paideia) to present a more active, Aristotelian model of the philosophical life that combined periods of withdrawal with active participation in public life, as had been promoted by Themistius and Constantius. Chapter 6, which rounds off this section, also examines Gregory’s attacks on his Christian theological opponents as improper philosophers, using the same argumentative tactics seen in Julian’s anti-Cynic diatribes. The third and final section examines the final months of Julian’s life and Gregory’s Orations 4 and 5 against the deceased emperor. Chapter 7, which examines Julian’s writings at Antioch, is probably the most important part of the book for those interested in his religious policies. By a careful reading of these works, including the Misopogon, Elm explains Julian’s opposition to Christianity as a result of his promotion of a vision of Greekness for the oikoumene that placed classical learning and traditional religious practices at its core. Rather than being a reaction to Christianity, Julian’s religious activities appear as products of a common late-antique cultural milieu, shared by learned elites regardless of their beliefs. The final chapters argue persuasively that Gregory, in critiquing Julian, was responding directly to both the emperor’s own statements and the eulogy of him by the orator Libanius. As Elm explains clearly, Gregory undermined Julian’s philosophical self-presentation, arguing that he misunderstood homonyms and synonyms, as well as constructing false syllogisms, just like Gregory’s Christian theological opponents. This was a contest using the common weapons of classical philosophical techniques, with Gregory claiming that Christianity was the real heir to the classical tradition and the true universalising philosophy that would preserve the oikoumene, while Julian was merely a bad actor, unable to play the role of either philosopher or king, let alone both. Across almost 500 pages, this book presents a clear and compelling vision of elite culture during a period of momentous change. While its new interpretations of Julian and Gregory are important, its conclusions have wider implications: instead of being seen as divided primarily and irreconcilably by their religious beliefs, the remarkable similarities and common approaches of these two men are brought to the fore to argue convincingly that “the boundary between pagan and Christian was so porous that these terms lose their analytical value” (11). With this study, Elm has made a significant contribution to our understanding of late antiquity and Christianity’s relationship with the classical heritage.