The Significance of Control According to Sun Tzu and USNA

The overarching philosophy of Sun Tzu’s Art of War emphasizes the incredible significance of control within the business of warfighting. Sun Tzu characterizes control in many ways in his written piece, including two of his Five Fundamentals “Command” and “Discipline”. While he defines these as “Wisdom, Integrity, Compassion, Courage, Severity” and “Organization, Chain of Command, Control of Expenditure” respectively, these can also be identified as control of others and control of self (Sun-tzu 4). Sun Tzu continues in his Art of War, describing the strategy of war as “A Way of Deception”, clarifying that “Ultimate Excellence lies not in winning every battle but in defeating the enemy without Ever fighting” (Sun-tzu 6). One could perceive this as another form of control; control of perception and appearance. By strategizing deceptively, one controls the enemy’s perception of the future and can effectively accomplish this by strictly controlling their own appearance. Sun Tzu later concluded his Art of War by affirming that the art of war is “the Art of Managing Many…the Mastery of Spirit…the Master of Change” (Sun-tzu 43-44). All of these descriptions can be redefined control of others, control of self, and control of change, respectively. Overall, Sun Tzu’s Art of War is the art of maintaining control.

This is similar to lessons taught at the United States Naval Academy. Discipline is impressed upon each midshipman who passes through the curriculum and training of this institution, and remains a vital portion to the development of each military leader. Much like Sun Tzu expresses, discipline is used in order to develop attributes such as wisdom, honor, courage, dedication, and an effective chain of command. Above all, discipline develops control of self and of one’s people. Through discipline, midshipmen learn control.

As to which way is the more effective way of war, the United States Naval Academy’s version of discipline is superior in the facet of disciplining others. Sun Tzu expresses ideas of “managing others” as a way to control their behavior most effectively, thereby eluding to the process of controlling others so as to use them most effectively. However, at the United States Naval Academy, to control others is to instil discipline within them so that they too may be better suited to complete the mission at hand, but also become a more developed, self actualized individual. The United States Navy trains and disciplines its sailors so that they may be the most efficient warriors in the military community, but it also invests in its people so that they may grow. This recognition on the needs, individuality, and humanity of its lower ranked fighting forces makes the discipline philosophy of the United States Naval Academy more efficient than the philosophy of Sun Zhu.

Sources: Sun-tzu, The Art of War. Trans. John Minford. London: Penguin, 2009.

-Meagan Stevenson

Word Count: 465

The Legacy of Philosophy

As a Chinese General and military strategist with a record of success during his own time, Sun Tzu’s philosophies have lived far beyond their inception during the Zhou dynasty. Through his writings on military strategy, such as Art of War, these philosophies have been preserved and are now read across the globe by both military and business strategists alike. Principles like the conservation of resources, an emphasis on preparation, and bureaucratic structure of discipline can be found implemented in by contemporary organizations, the influence of which has extended to the culture here at the Naval Academy.

Sun Tzu’s overarching philosophy presented in Art of War is that preparation is what wins wars rather than brute strength. He sees individual weaknesses, such as homesickness, exhaustion, and lack of focus, as challenges to be attacked and overcome far before any attempt is made to attack the enemy. A similar approach can be found at the Naval Academy where four years are spent winning internal wars so midshipmen can commission with the ability to lead others in the fight.

During the transition from plebe summer to the academic year, I was told by an officer that by the time you graduate you will have needed to earn the moral authority to order one man to take the life of another. Whether or not this moral authority is ever able to be truly possessed is a difficult philosophical question; however, the pursuit of such powerful moral authority empowers individuals to act with urgency towards bettering themselves. The intention behind four intense years here, four year filled with challenges in both personal development and leadership, is to provide midshipmen with a forum of preparation to fight their internal battles. Just as Sun Tzu called for the skillful warrior to have mastery of spirit, mind, strength, and change, midshipmen are provided the opportunity to master themselves during their time at the Academy.

Sun Tzu also approaches war with an unorthodox top-down approach. He asserts that “The lowest form of war is/ To attack/ Cities,” and instead argues that the primary focus should be attacking the strategy and alliances of the opposing force. At the Naval Academy, we’re told countless to focus on “the little things,” things like squaring corners at a perfect ninety or plebing our covers even when no one is around. This philosophy that attention to the smallest details compose the core of our fighting capabilities, isn’t in direct opposition to Sun Tzu’s approach to war, yet, in practice this attention to detail can often become excessively consuming. Rather than maintaining the broad, strategic view adopted by Sun Tzu, midshipmen expend energy on the minutia with disregard for how these components form a cohesive purpose.

The written philosophy of the Naval Academy has close ties with Sun Tzu’s strategic mindset towards preparing thoroughly for war. The Academy’s written philosophy, however, doesn’t always align perfectly with the philosophy in practice by midshipmen. By reorienting our actions as midshipmen to incorporate the strategic philosophy of Sun Tzu, we can be better prepared for the fight to master ourselves and our enemies.

Word Count: 515

— Julia Lotterer

Sources:

[1] Sun Tzu, The Art of War. Trans. John Minford. London: Penguin, 2009.

George Lucas’ Inspiration

March 22, 2019 | Blog 4

Your head pulses amidst a thunder of a thousand voices, and your feet burn as you stagger in scorched sand. But you don’t mind the noise or pain because an immense armored creature with horns is galloping at you. Surely, you can endure some discomfort while you run for your life, right?

At this point, I bet you are wondering, “What in the world is going on?”

I can guarantee you one thought: you are trapped in a movie far, far away, and now you’re being hunted by a reek in the Petranaki arena on the planet of Geonosis.

Bummer, I see that the creature has been impaled by a trap. At least now you can listen to me run a parallel between Star Wars and the Roman Empire while you catch your breath!

The aforementioned arena undoubtedly resembles the Roman Colosseum, where thousands of gladiators fought to the death for the pleasure of Roman audiences. As dark as this may seem, viewers are spellbound by the epic scene George Lucas incorporated with a battle between Jedi and droids.

Hold your horses; I’m not done yet. This is not the only similarity between Star Wars and the Roman Empire. In fact, I discovered many similarities in history, culture, and government, too.

Let’s start with the most obvious: culture through architecture. Many of the buildings and architecture on many planets in Star Wars are taken from Roman designs, especially the domed buildings of Naboo and obelisks on Coruscant.

Furthermore, before becoming an empire, ancient Rome was a republic, and the same case was for the Galactic Empire, which originally was the Old Republic. Both betray their closest allies who helped them reach a status of exceptional power: Chancellor Palpatine deceives the Jedi Temple while the Romans betray the Etruscans.

Both universes are under the control of imperial, totalitarian regimes marked by ruthless leaders. “The body of a dead enemy always smells sweet,” said Roman emperor Vespasian. Driven by the belief that the republic would last forever, both fought lengthy and brutal wars. The Romans produced the Punic Wars while the Star Wars universe experienced the Sith and Clone Wars.

Both had a very disciplined military. Both had an elaborate chain of command. Both had an auxiliary program.

The Galactic Empire spread as they conquered one system after another. Similarly, the Roman Empire often allowed the nations that they defeated to maintain their own system of government and self-rule, culture and religious beliefs, so long as they paid homage to the emperor, paid taxes and didn’t cause trouble.

Finally, both empires are taken down by smaller, more determined foes. The Galactic Empire is ultimately defeated by the Rebel Alliance while the Roman Empire’s destruction is attributed to the invasion of various Germanic tribes.

From such similarities between these universes, I can confidently say that George Lucas was inspired by the Roman Empire to create the Galactic Empire we see in Star Wars today.

— Cameron Guan

Word Count: 482

Sources:

Quote by Vespasian (c. 69-79 AD)

Christianity: Beware the Cannibals

In today’s world, Christianity remains the largest religion. However, there still exists the question of how it got to that position. The Romans thought that Christianity was strange and unnatural. In a way, they thought right.

Step back and look at Christianity from afar. This new and frightening religion’s followers ate the body and drank the blood of someone they believed to be their savior. They also sacrificed this person because he was supposed to save them. Not to mention, a ghost descended on the followers and oftentimes controlled their bodies. What kind of sick beliefs hold cannibalism and sacrifice at their core? No wonder the Romans thought they were barbarians. These people popped up out of nowhere claiming to be enlightened and introducing a new religion.

Now, people that start spouting off about random ideas are looked down upon. The world thinks of them as crazy. Similarly, Romans possessed this mindset about Christians. For all they knew, Christians brainwashed people into sharing their beliefs. Christianity spread quickly and seemed infectious. In his letters to Trajan, Pliny labeled it to be an illness, saying “For the contagion of this superstition has spread not only to the cities but also to the villages and farms. But it seems possible to check and cure it. It is certainly quite clear that the temples, which had been almost deserted, have begun to be frequented, that the established religious rites, long neglected, are being resumed, and that from everywhere sacrificial animals are coming” (Pliny Letters 10.96-97). This proved how surprised the Romans were at the emergence of Christianity. They didn’t know what to do with it.

Up until this moment in time, the Romans served as a very capable people. They created an empire and ruled it for years. Polytheism existed for them as a logical and sensible religion. The empire performed well, seemingly aligning with their devotions to the gods, so obviously the two paired together. No reason for a change of religion existed so they stayed with their polytheism.

All people view change as terrifying. Christianity affected everyone. People the Romans trusted, other Romans, converted without saying anything. When the empire caught those Romans, they had no idea what to do with them. Pliny wrote to Trajan asking for advice “For the matter seemed to me to warrant consulting you, especially because of the number involved. For many persons of every age, every rank, and also of both sexes are and will be endangered” (Pliny). To persecute a person not a Roman was one thing, but how could they possibly persecute another Roman? They valued closeness among their people. “I interrogated these as to whether they were Christians; those who confessed I interrogated a second and a third time, threatening them with punishment; those who persisted I ordered executed. For I had no doubt that, whatever the nature of their creed, stubbornness and inflexible obstinacy surely deserve to be punished. There were others possessed of the same folly; but because they were Roman citizens, I signed an order for them to be transferred to Rome” (Pliny). Pliny remained confused just as all the rulers of the different nation states did. Change brings confusion and terror.

The Roman’s fear of Christianity remains founded on sound reason. Change scares people. Christianity expanded into the empire quickly and changed almost everything. People converted to it seemingly at random. Good Romans with powerful positions switched their beliefs. A change so big that mass confusion ensued. The Christian beliefs, to an outsider, seemed horrifying. Their gruesome beliefs could not possibly hold truth behind them. The Romans portrayed superstition and fear for a reason.

-Moira Camacho

Word Count: 426

Hackett, Conrad, et al. “World’s Largest Religion by Population Is Still Christianity.” Pew Research Center, Pew Research Center, 5 Apr. 2017, www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2017/04/05/christians-remain-worlds-largest-religious-group-but-they-are-declining-in-europe/.

Pliny Letters 10.96-97

Rogue One: Athens Strikes Back

The ancient Athenian empire shares many similarities with the Galactic Empire of the Star Wars saga, most of them having to do with the fact that both empires were involved in conquests to take over and consume the resources of other small, less powerful colonies with the intentions to expand their empires and acquire more power. A very vivid picture of how the Galactic Empire was involved in such conquests takes shape on Jedha, a planet rich with the very valuable Kyber crystals, during the installment of the saga called Star Wars: Rogue One. The Galactic Empire desired to build a very powerful death machine, a planet destroyer, in order to make them the most respected power in the galaxy. They began conquering different planets and eventually came to Jedha where they found Kyber crystals. These Kyber crystals were essential to providing energy to power the planet destroyer. The Empire occupied the planet and forced the native people to assist in mining operations, and they Empire also enacted a very strict code of conduct for the natives and enforced it with terror tactics such as parading the streets with military vehicles. Once the Empire had mined all they wanted, they used the planet destroyer to destroy Jedha. The Empire was known for this type of behavior, taking advantage of weaker planets for their resources, then laying waste to and abandoning the planet.

The ancient Athenians exhibited very similar behavior during the Peloponnesian War. Thucydides enlightens us on some of the Athenian war tactics, telling us, “Putting out from Epidaurus they wasted the lands of Troezen, Halieis, and Hermoine (all places along the coast of the Argolid in the Peloponnesus). From there they sailed to Prasiae, a small maritime town of Laconia. There they wasted the land, took the town, and sacked it.”[1] The Athenians were preparing for war against the Spartans and expanding their empire, and they did not care what territory they needed to destroy in order to acquire the necessary war materials. Similar to how the Empire conscripted natives to work in the Kyber mines, the Athenians used slaves to fight in the military to waste villages and acquire war materials.

Both of these empires embarked on their conquests to amass wealth and power for war, and they eventually faced their opponents in battle. The Empire fought the rebels, the Athenians fought the Spartans, but both empires tasted bitter defeat in the end. The campaigns of the Athenians and the Galactic Empire portray how conquests based on the belittlement of other nations and the greedy expansion of power will eventually lead to defeat nations focused on such conquests.

Andrew Mitchell

Word Count: 443

[1] Thucydides, Military Operations

Sun Tsu vs. Naval Academy

Sun Tsu’s Art of War is very practical and in many ways applies to our own military in America. The philosophy of Sun Tsu consists the essentials of winning a war to include how one must lead, follow, and perform tactics. He has five fundamentals that he bases his path to success: The way, heaven, earth, command, and discipline. With these fundamentals, there are both overlapping and opposing teachings between Sun Tsu’s Art of War and the Naval Academy.

Sun Tsu provides some common requirements to winning a war. He promotes tactics such as, “Attack where he is unprepared; appear where you are unexpected”[1] (7). He believes that with a successful military, an organized approach is necessary. There must be a ranking system with a leader who must be obeyed to the fullest. The leader must show obvious traits in a frontrunner like courage and integrity. I believe that the Naval Academy heavily teaches us two of Sun Tsu’s fundamentals: command and discipline. In our leadership and ethics classes and in many of our trainings, they harp us on characteristics we should contain as future officers. They especially reiterate integrity. The honor system here is very harsh for a reason. It is important to do the right thing, even when there is nobody around watching. Integrity is easy to lose and near impossible to earn back once lost. At the Naval Academy, you will get in a lot more trouble for cheating on a test than driving under the influence. The idea seems a little obscure but makes sense. It is important to set an example to our subordinates by being trustworthy. We are also taught to be leaders with courage. We learn about distinguished graduates all the time. One thing they all share is that they have done something that is very distinctive that required an enormous amount of courage.

We practice discipline at the Naval Academy every single day. We have a chain of command that we rely on and use on an everyday basis. We also have a very structured organization in everyday requirements and schedule. We are obligated to go to formations in the morning and lunch time, go to classes, participate in sports period, do homework, sign taps, and attend any other military duties. This follows closely to what Sun Tsu believes leads to a successful military. His other fundamentals to include: the way, heaven, and earth not taught here in the Academy. Of course we are taught that there is a chain of command that is above you and should be followed. But we are also taught that we shall only carry out lawful orders. If a Captain gives you an order that you believe is wrong, you are expected to respectfully challenge that order. Sun Tsu would not agree with this sense of what we call watch-team-backup. He says, “The way causes men to be of one mind with the rulers” (5). I believe that this is a hazardous approach to conduct dangerous tasks, especially in the military. Regardless of how experienced somebody may be, everybody makes mistakes. This is why we are taught to have a questioning attitude and not to blindly follow orders.

Sun Tsu teaches principles that worked for war in Ancient China. Although some of his teachings has evolved over time, the Naval Academy still engraves some of the same foundations as Sun Tsu. The biggest similarity between his teachings and what we learn now is the organization that includes a chain of command. The biggest difference is the fact that we are expected to have a questioning attitude and to challenge our leaders respectfully. This goes to prove that we still base our military on past experiences and teachings.

-Kevin Semma

Word count: 597

[1] Sun-tsu, The Art of War. Trans. John Minford. London: Penguin, 2009

Star Wars in Antiquity

The Empire in Star Wars shares numerous similarities with the Roman Empire, which dominated the known-world for centuries. Common features between both empires include their swift rise to power, rapid expansion of territory, followed by their crumbling defeats, which were largely due to rebellion and poor allocation of resources.

Augustus Caesar, the first emperor of the Roman Empire, gained power over Rome and its Republic in 27 BCE in the same way Emperor Palpatine monopolized the galactic senate following the collapse of the Republic. Following Augustus’s claim of the role of emperor, the pax Romana (Roman peace) period ensued. These years of relative “peace” during the pax Romana under Augustus directly mirrors the collapse of the Republic in Star Wars with Palpatine in control.[1] Following the period of peace, and utilization of its army and resources, the Roman Empire was able to conquer almost all of modern-day Europe, as well as regions in North Africa and Western Asia. However, Rome’s superiority mindset and vast overreach of their power contributed to their defeat by rebel groups in nearly all of its territories.[2] This goes hand-in-hand with the Empire in Star Wars and its lack of ability to keep track of every planet and its happenings (i.e. rise of Luke Skywalker). Ultimately, both Empires grossly overreached their power, which resulted in their collapse from isolated cases of rebellion.

Even though we may not think of the United States as an empire, a lot of its global influence reflects that of the Empire in Star Wars. Even though the United States’ influence is on a much smaller scale than the Empire, it controls much of the current global policy. At first glance, both superpowers may seem starkly different, but both the United States and the Empire are able to utilize the threat of force to enforce their power over nearly any territory.[3] For example, the United States has the most powerful military in human history, along with the largest nuclear arsenal in the world, effectively rendering other nations subordinate in terms of retaliation. This is directly comparable to the might of the Imperial Army and the infamous Death Star that the Empire possesses due to the influence of fear they have on the rest of the galaxy.[4] Although the United States and the Empire share some militaristic qualities, there are very few traits that they have in common. This is largely because the Empire was based off of Nazi Germany prior to World War II, which starkly contrasts the underlying principles of freedom and democracy the United States strives for. Although the Empire and United States possess great amounts of power, they are incomparable when it comes to their organization and freedoms.

— Griffin Hamilton

Word Count: 484

[1] Star Wars Episode III, 2003, Star Wars Episode IV, 1977

[2] Class Google Folder, Spodek Ch. 6, Rome and the Barbarians

[3] Constitutional Rights Foundation, America’s Foreign Policy, http://www.crf-usa.org/war-in-iraq/foreign-policy.html

[4]Star Wars Episode IV, 1977

(Space) Operatic Empires

It is often anecdotally noted how life mimics art, but should it not be rather expected that the reverse is true? After all, where else do artists draw their inspiration from other than real life? George Lucas’ Star Wars is a perfect example of art mimicking life to a noticeable extent. Though the Empire — their aesthetics, their tactics, their aura — is primarily intended to mimic Nazi Germany, many other analogies arise, especially in the plot and narrative regarding the transition from “republic” to empire, with Ancient Rome.

Since the dawn of known time, human nature has yearned towards order amidst chaos, desiring structure and rule to enforce common principles. However, in the process of achieving these ends, the means by which the ends are attempted to be achieved often skew and circumvent said principles, erring on the side opposite the values once sought to be protected. The process of attempted fair governance devolving into relative chaos, only for a sovereign ruler to rise to the head of the “Leviathan” repeats itself over and over in human history, Ancient Rome being a prime example. In the wake of Greek democracy, its failures, and its successes, the Romans attempted to institute a government representative of the people, yet not too volatile, in the form of a republic. The Roman Republic, however, as expected in our 20/20 hindsight, degenerated into a corrupt group of the social elite controlling an enormous populace.

Out of dissatisfaction with the Roman Elite, a figure named Augustus Caesar rose above the rest in the eyes of the people. His achievements as in the Roman civil war — reuniting the “republic” — earned him the support of the people. In the Star Wars universe, perhaps a figure with less virtuous intentions yet just as much popularity achieved through nearly the exact same means arises in Emperor Palpatine, formerly Chancellor. The Star Wars Republic, undergoing a seemingly unending civil war, “won” under the continually extended, “emergency wartime powers” leadership of Chancellor Palpatine. When the (concocted) opportunity arose, Palpatine catapulted himself into the position of permanent emperor. Both republics’ degradation into autocracy is perfectly described by Thomas Hobbes in The Leviathan:

“The attaining to this Soveraigne Power, is by two wayes…The other, is when men agree amongst themselves, to submit to some Man, or Assembly of men, voluntarily, on confidence to be protected by him against all others.”¹

Augustus Caesar and the Emperor both left their republican government intact, not doing away with a powerless entity out of fear of the people’s potential uproar, but rather stripping them of what little powers they had left. Both rulers ruled absolutely, there is no doubt. However, rulers never last forever. In a twist akin to his adoptive father, Emperor Palpatine was betrayed by his most trusted subordinate, ending the Galactic Empire, at least temporarily.

In modern-day America, we see history repeating itself just the same as it always does. In relatively recent history, the executive branch has amassed an amount of power our forefathers would never have envisioned. Starting with the expansion of bureaucracy in the New Deal, WWII, and beyond, the executive branch, especially the presidency, has a disproportionate amount of power relative to the other ideally equal branches of our government. More recently, the War Powers Act of 1973 gives the President control over the military unprecedented, not dissimilar to the “temporary” powers “Chancellor” Palpatine was given to conduct his “war”.

With the perfect hindsight of history available to Americans today, it should surprise us when we see its negative aspects repeating itself. However, it appears that human nature, in art, in Ancient Rome, or today, inevitably drifts towards the condition of a sovereign, unitary, autonomous ruler.

— Gregory Mathias

Word Count — 582
¹Hobbes, Thomas, 1588-1679. Leviathan. Baltimore :Penguin Books, 1968.

The Galactic Empire: A Reflection of Augustus’ Rome

Great empires have risen and fallen throughout history, but in the modern age of fiction and fantasy, the term “Empire” often elicits an entirely different image: the Galactic Empire from George Lucas’ Star Wars. However, the Empire of a long time ago in a galaxy far far away is not so different from the more recent Roman Empire. After analysis of the rise and development of the Roman Empire under Augustus, it is clear many of the Empire’s elements in Star Wars derive from the history of Rome.

For example, many of the elements of the Empire’s rise to power come from the history of Augustus’ rise to power. In his Res Gestae, Augustus writes, “I raised an army with which I liberated the state, which had been oppressed by a tyrannical faction,” (1.1). Similarly, Palpatine overthrew the existing government of the Galactic Republic, which he perceived as dominated by the tyrannical faction of the Jedi Order, using his clone army procured through the Senate. The major difference here is that Palpatine was already a member of the Senate in the Republic before overthrowing the government, while Augustus was appointed a consul in the Roman Senate only after overthrowing the previous administration.

However, while slightly out of order, aspects of how Augustus went from the Senate to the new Emperor of Rome bear close similarities to the manner in which Palpatine rose from Senator to Emperor. Augustus states, “the senate passed honorific degrees admitting me to its order… as well as granting me the right to state my opinion as a consular, and granted me imperium,” (1.2). He later says he earned other positions of power, saying, “I was a member of the triumvirate… I have been princeps senatus… I have been pontifex maximus, augur… consul for the fifth time…” (7.1-7.3). Just as Augustus was granted roles of power and influence, Palpatine, too, was elected to a prestigious position of power as Chancellor of the Senate. Augustus goes on to write, “[The Senate] ordered me as propraetor to take measures… to ensure that the state come to no harm,” (1.3). In the same manner, Palpatine was voted emergency powers as the Chancellor, which allowed him to bypass the senate and do what he deemed necessary to win the galactic civil war. While these events were slightly out of order in the Star Wars universe, the events that gave Palpatine the opportunity to seize power clearly derive from those that set Augustus on the path to Emperor.

Both Emperors also carried out the expansion of their empires in similar manners. Augustus left many regional rulers in power, delegating responsibility for governing to local rulers and controlling puppet governments in various conquered regions (27.2). Palpatine, too, left his Moffs (governors) in charge of conquered regions, dividing rule amongst puppet governments all serving one Empire. Additionally, some regions were willingly submitted to the rule of both empires out of fear alone. Augustus states, “the whole of Italy of its own accord took an oath of allegiance to me,” (25.2). In cases such as this, regions were so terrified of Roman power that they joined Augustus’ Empire willingly, out of fear of being overrun by his forces. Likewise, many systems willingly accepted Palpatine’s rule when faced with the threat of the Death Star. Both empires used these tools of fear and the strength of their military and navy to expand, conquering and absorbing new territories to heighten their power. Augustus describes such expansion, saying, “I extended the frontiers… pacified the Gallic and Spanish provinces… brought peace to the Alps… I added Egypt to the empire…” (26.1-27.1). Palpatine likewise pushed the frontiers of his Empire into the outer rim, like the planet Tatooine, eventually reaching the border of known space and the “Unknown Regions.” Both emperors pushed their influence to the edges of the known, Rome reaching as far as Spain and Egypt and the Empire to the Unknown Regions.

Clearly, many of the aspects of Roman history were adapted to the fictional story of the Galactic Empire in Star Wars, from the rise of the new Empire to the methods through which its emperor governed and expanded his influence. While Star Wars may be a work of fiction, the methodology and strategy behind the Empire is actually quite similar to historical facts from the Ancient Roman Empire under Augustus.

-Nate Forrest

Words: 599

THE RES GESTAE DIVI AUGUSTI, Age of Augustus RG excerpts (687-703)

The Threat of Religion

Religion is a powerful motivator in the lives of many. It guides people’s thoughts and beliefs, and has the overwhelming ability to bring together large swaths of people from different backgrounds. Religion has the ability to span across cultures and Christianity did this the best by preaching and being open to all peoples. These factors of unity and motivation are what the Roman empire feared the most. The Romans feared the “cult” of Christianity would unify all the dissatisfied subjects of their vast empire and lead to widespread revolt. If this occurred, the Roman Empire would have been faced with multiple wars, and if they lost against one of the revolts, it would only embolden the others. The Romans believed they were in danger of losing their power, wealth, and prestige throughout the world.

The Roman fear of Christianity was valid from the standpoint that the Romans did not understand the religion and they viewed it as a cult that was aligning the people of their empire against Roman values and the empire itself. Pliny in his letter to Trajan relays what he had discovered about the teachings of Christianity and states Christians, “… bind themselves by oath, not to some crime, but not to commit fraud, theft, or adultery, not falsify their trust, nor to refuse to return a trust when called upon to do so” (Pliny).Upon hearing what Christians believed and their way of life, it is clear the Romans did not fully understand the religion. This was the source of their fear because as humans, we fear what we do not understand. This misunderstanding can be seen in the Christian practice of consuming the body and blood of Christ. Christians consumed bread and wine that through transubstantiation had become the body and blood of Christ. However, this practice made the Romans believe Christians were a cannibalistic cult because they did not understand it nor the meaning behind it. The main teachings of Christianity outlined by Pliny benefited society, but the Romans convinced themselves the values and lifestyle of Christianity were bad for the people of the Roman empire. However, it was the belief in one God and the renunciation of the divinity of the emperor that really divided the Romans and Christians.

Monotheism was a major factor that caused the Romans to fear Christians. The belief in one God went against the polytheistic Roman teachings on religion and the divinity of the emperor. It could be seen as an attack on the seat of the emperor itself. The monotheistic aspect of Christianity caused much fear among the leaders of the Roman empire.

Even though the Romans feared Christianity, it did not give them the right to try and stamp out the religion. Christianity was not threatening the empire through any form violence and even some of the Romans saw Christianity as more of a fad. Pliny states in his letter to Trajan, “…it seems possible to check and cure it. It is certainly quite clear that the temples, which had been almost deserted, have begun to be frequented, that the established religious rites, long neglected, are being resumed, and that from everywhere sacrificial animals are coming, for which until now very few purchasers could be found. Hence it is easy to imagine what a multitude of people can be reformed if an opportunity for repentance is afforded” (Pliny). This viewpoint along with the fear of the Romans shows any action against Christians would be purely preemptive. The fear among Romans had nothing to do with what Christians were doing, but with what they might do. Rome had built a vast empire and had defeated armies and ideologies in order to do so. Rome was still in charge and they had the power to step in if Christianity took a turn to threaten the empire, however, until then Christianity was just a growing religion the Romans did not understand nor did they want to understand.

-Ethan Fessler

Word Count: 547

Works Cited:

Pliny, Letters 10.96-97 from Apuleius, Apologia: Seminar, faculty.georgetown.edu/jod/texts/pliny.html.

(Pliny’s Letter to Trajan)