Palladas, the Jordan River and Persia

Abstract

In May of 337 C.E Constantine the Great fell ill and died while preparing for a campaign against Persia. Due to his imminent death, Constantine asked to receive baptism in Nicomedia instead of where he originally desired - the Jordan River. His desire But Constantine’s desire to be baptised in the River Jordan receives little attention from Eusebius in the Vita Constantini and from modern scholars alike. Traditionally, many scholars view Constantine’s late baptism as evidence of his insincere affiliation with Christianity whereas it is now clear that he wished to defer baptism so he could die free from sin. The recent re-dating of the Greek poet Palladas, by Kevin Wilkinson, to the reign of Constantine casts Constantine in a much different light than the religiously moderate leader many want to see him as. Not only did he hold a sincere belief in Christianity, but acted as a benefactor to the church, promoted the spread of Christianity while marginalizing paganism, and founded a Christian capital in the East. Constantine also sent a letter to Shapur II praising the Christian Persians under his rule. His potential baptism in the Jordan River, presumably before his campaign, is an extremely odd and Messianic act – one which was never repeated afterwards by an emperor. It is clear this war was intended to be a crusade led by a zealous Christian emperor. This was not a moderate emperor who laid the foundations for the Christian Empire to flourish but rather an extreme outlier among the tradition of Christian emperors.