Monday, November 14, 2011

Constantine vs. Prince Vladimir

        Constantine converted to Christianity during his rise to power after witnessing a vision that displayed the power of the Christian God. Constantine said that God led him through his conquests and he declared the Edit of Milan which allowed all Christians of the Roman empire to practice their religion under their own terms and freedom. Prince Vladimir had full power of his state when he converted to Christianity, which was significant because he then imposed it upon the whole community rather than letting his people practice it freely. He ended up choosing Eastern Orthodox Christianity, partially because of his dislike for Judaism and Islam and also because the religion appealed most to his men.
Constantine and Vladimirs's conversions differed in a couple of ways. As mentioned before Constantine was rising to power when he established Christianity in his society, so he used the religion as a tool to unite his community under his rule. Vladimir on the other hand was already ruling so he just used Christianity to keep his men happy and to unify society under one religion. Because Vladimir used his conversion to please his men, it was more strategical than spiritual. This differs from Constantine's because he actually had a spiritual moment with Christianity that influenced his conversion.

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