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Now the right faithful emperor diverted his energies to resisting
paganism, and published edicts in which he ordered the shrines of the
idols to be destroyed. Constantine the Great, most worthy of all
eulogy, was indeed the first to grace his empire with true religion;
and when he saw the world still given over to foolishness he issued a
general prohibition against the offering of sacrifices to the idols.
He had not, however, destroyed the temples, though he ordered them
to be kept shut. His sons followed in their father's footsteps.
Julian restored the false faith and rekindled the flame of the ancient
fraud. On the accession of Jovian he once more placed an interdict on
the worship of idols, and Valentinian the Great governed Europe with
like laws. Valens, however, allowed every one else to worship any
way they would and to honour their various objects of adoration.
Against the champions of the Apostolic decrees alone he persisted in
waging war. Accordingly during the whole period of his reign the altar
fire was lit, libations and sacrifices were offered to idols, public
feasts were celebrated in the forum, and votaries initiated in the
orgies of Dionysus ran about in goat-skins, mangling hounds in
Bacchic frenzy, and generally behaving in such a way as to show the
iniquity of their master. When the right faithful Theodosius found
all these evils he pulled them up by the roots, and consigned them to
oblivion.
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