The Last Pagan: Julian the Apostate and the Death of the Ancient World

A history of Julian, the grandson of Constantine, and his failed attempt to reverse the Christian tide that swept the Roman Empire - Portrays the Apostate as a poet-philosopher, arguing that had he survived, Christianity would have been checked in its rise - Details reforms enacted by Julian during his two-year reign that marginalized Christians, effectively limiting their role in the social and political life of the Empire - Shows how after Julian's death the Church used paganism to represent evil and opposition to God, a tactic whose traces still linger The violent death of the emperor Julian (Flavius Claudius Julianus, AD 332-363) on a Persian battlefield has become synonymous with the death of paganism. Vilified throughout history as the Apostate, the young philosopher-warrior was the last and arguably the most potent threat to Christianity.The Last Pagan examines Julian's journey from an aristocratic Christian childhood to his initiation into pagan cults and his mission to establish paganism as the dominant faith of the Roman world. Julian's death, only two years into his reign, initiated a culture-wide suppression by the Church of all things it chose to identify as pagan. Only in recent decades, with the weakening of the Church's influence and the resurgence of paganism, have the effects of that suppression begun to wane. Drawing upon more than 700 pages of Julian's original writings, Adrian Murdoch shows that had Julian lived longer our history and our present-day culture would likely be very different.

The emperor Julian was the nephew of Constantine, who made Christianity the state religion of Rome. Julian, however, had converted to paganism and when he gained power in 361 he ordered the temples reopened and the old gods worshipped again. Murdoch, a Roman historian, sees the short reign of Julian as the real end of ancient Rome. His biography of the young emperor is based on the Julian's own words, the angry response of Christian writers and the comments of other pagans. He clearly admires Julian but still gives a balanced portrait of this crucial moment in Western history. Julian, he notes, died in battle eighteen months after becoming emperor. If he had lived longer, perhaps there would still be temples to Isis and Jupiter in every town. Annotation ©2008 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

This book reveals Julian, the "Apostate," and his failed attempt to stem the Christian tide sweeping the Roman Empire. His death on a Persian battlefield came to represent the death of paganism and the church subsequently claimed paganism represented evil and opposition to God.

The Roman Emperor Julian (332-363 A.D.) attempted to reestablish paganism as the principal faith of the Roman world. Following his death on a Persian battlefield only two years into his reign, the Church suppressed paganism and Julian was branded "The Apostate."