Friday, 25 September – 4:00 – 5:00 pm
Walker Hall 200
2015-2016 Rothman Doctoral Fellowship Brown-Bag Series:
Orosius to Fructuosus: Bishops and Community in Northwestern Hispania
Rebecca A. Devlin (Department of History)
Prior to the conversion of the emperor Constantine and the legalization of Christianity in the early fourth century, the influence of bishops was limited to guiding congregations on the margins of Roman society. However, by the early Middle Ages ecclesiastical leaders held considerable economic and political power and had become important not only as spiritual advisers, but also as judges, diplomats and civic protectors. This emerging episcopal leadership coincided with the political, economic and social changes that came with the collapse of the Western Roman Empire. This project explores these transformations by examining a specific community of bishops in northwestern Spain and Portugal in the fourth and fifth centuries. The presentation will focus on one case study from the larger project to demonstrate how archaeological sources can be used to elucidate the social context in which these bishops operated and thus provide a greater understanding of the dynamics underlying the expansion of their role in Late Antique society.