How did Theodosius I help to advance Christianity within the Empire? How did this affect the relationship between Church and State?
What will be an ideal response?
Answers will vary. Theodosius I is referred to as "the Great" within the Christian community because he was the first Roman emperor to actually make Christianity the official religion of the Empire in 392 C.E., rather than to have endorsed it or decriminalized it, as had Constantine. However, Theodosius was not without significant challenge in this venture: Ambrose of Milan was a bishop who had been born into the well-to-do Roman political world, son of a Praetorian guard and destined for a career as Roman administrator, when he was unexpectedly chosen as Bishop of Milan and adopted the ecclesiastic lifestyle. As a result, he had significant experience in Roman politics and began to clash with Theodosius. Theodosius was a strong adherent to Nicene Christianity and invoked a church council in 381 to once again condemn Arianism. This brought him into direct conflict over power and jurisdiction with Ambrose. Additionally, Theodosius ordered Christians to destroy a Jewish synagogue and then convert it to a Church, with which Ambrose took issue. Subsequently Ambrose blamed Theodosius for the death of over seven thousand Greeks at the hands of Roman soldiers, and excommunicated him. Theodosius had to humble himself before Ambrose in order to regain his standing in the Church, thus demonstrating a significant conflict in status and authority.
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