Curia Hostilia The first great curia and the meeting place of the senate for centuries. According to tradition, the CURIA had been built by King Tullus Hostilius in the seventh century b. c.e. for his own use but was taken over by the new Republic. Finally succumbing to violence in 52 B. C.E., the curia was burned in riots following the death of clodius. Faustus Sulla, the dictator’s son, began an effort to rebuild it as the curia Cornelia, but Julius CAESAR halted the work to ensure the completion of his own CURIA JULIA. The Curia Hostilia was the stage on which some of the finest orations of Rome were made, including those of Caesar and Cicero. The structure stood prominently in the forum romanum.
Curia Julia The new home for the senate, begun by Julius CAESAR in place of the curia hostilia and finished by AUGUSTUS. It was dedicated in 29 b. c.e. Its location, as conceived by Caesar, reflected the decline of the Senate. Instead of a prominent site in the forum romanum, the CURIA now stood next to the basilica aemilia along a different axis from the original Curia Hostilia, actually near the Forum Julium. In 94 C. E., domitian reconstructed the Curia Julia slightly in order to position it along the cardinal points of the compass, retaining Caesar’s original plan. In 283 C. E., during the reign of CARINUS, a fire destroyed much of the structure. Diocletian repaired the structure using concrete and stucco. The renewed curia survived and provided the clearest glimpse of the environment in which the Senate of Rome functioned. Two aisles led to the seats of the consuls, while on either side the senators in the benches were arranged according to importance and seniority. The more powerful senators sat comfortably in the front, while the junior members stood crowded at the top. The curia was 27 feet by 18 feet, and tremendous congestion must have been commonplace.
Curia Pompeia A curia situated in the entrance of the Theater of Pompey It was reportedly small but served during the construction of the curia julia as the meeting place of the senate. The Senate met in the Curia Pompey on the fateful Ides of March in 44 b. c.e., and Julius Caesar died at the base of Pompey’s statue, which stood in the midst of the building. The curia was located near the Tiber, in the area of the Circus Flaminius.
Curialis The title given to a member of the city councils (the curiae) throughout the Roman Empire; an inherited position. The curiales (plural) worked as the local representatives of the imperial government. Their duties included assisting in the administration of estates and offices and, most importantly, in the collection of duties, levies, and taxes. Local agents thus assumed considerable power in their own regions. As the principle representatives of imperial taxation, the curiales earned the dislike of a city’s inhabitants. They acted as workers for the state without real compensation or rewards. Thus only the wealthiest of the social classes in a region could afford service but were initially unwilling to do so, for obvious reasons. Exemptions were made for a number of categories, and senators and Equestrians avoided it because of their duties in Rome, while others were exempted, including the clergy, doctors, and caretakers of imperial grounds. All landowners not eligible for inclusion on the exemption list, all those possessing 25 Roman acres or more had to join the curia; their children were compelled to follow.
By the fourth century, as the central bureaucracy under Diocletian and Constantine grew in autocratic strength, serving as a curialis became unbearable. The curiales were seen as tyrannical and cruel oppressors of the poorest classes, while the higher social strata avoided all association with them. Great effort was exerted by individuals to escape the curiae, and decrees of the fourth and fifth centuries indicate that they were no more popular with the emperors than they were with the taxed populace. During the time of Diocletian members could not received honorific offices, but under Theodosius ii, the Codex Theodosianus (428-439 C. E.) restricted any departures from the land, exacerbating the already unpleasant restrictions. The members were forced to pay tax deficiencies out of their own pocket and were beaten for disobeying imperial decrees. The inevitable collapse of the middle class took place as the curiales went bankrupt or fled their land holdings. This social demise worsened the already decaying economic situation in the provinces and contributed to the demise of the Roman Empire.
See also economy.
Cursus honorum Circuit of appointments by which a Roman magistrate could rise to increasingly powerful positions in government. Normally, an individual would assume the offices of: tribune (military service);
Quaestor; aedile; praetor; consul; and censor. Other forms of the cursus honorum existed in the imperial government, including one for the Equestrian Class (equites).
Cursus publicus Courier service of the Roman Empire, created by Emperor AUGUSTUS for the purpose of transporting messages and officials from one province to another. A series of forts and stations were spread out along the major road systems connecting the regions of the Roman world. These relay points (or stationes) provided horses to dispatch riders, usually soldiers, and vehicles for magistrates or officers of the court. The vehicles were called clabulae, but little is known of them. A diplomata or certificate issued by the emperor himself was necessary to use the roads. Abuses of the system existed, for governors and minor appointees used the diplomata either to aid themselves in transport free of charge or to avail their families; forgeries and stolen diplomata were also used.
The cursus operated in Italy and in the more advanced provinces. There was only one in EGYPT and one in ASIA minor, as Pliny’s letters to Trajan attest. It was common for a village to exist every 12 miles or so, and there a courier might rest at large, privately owned man-siones. Operated by a manceps, or business man, the man-siones provided food and lodging, and care and a blacksmith for the horses. The cursus also used communities located along the imperial highways. These towns very often provided food and horses to messengers of the LEGIONS, theoretically receiving reimbursement, and were responsible for the care of their section of the Roman ROADS. Disputes arose naturally, and for a time the central administration participated more directly.
Costs for the cursus publicus were always high, and its maintenance could not always be guaranteed. Around the time of Nerva, in the late first century, the general cost was transferred to the FISCUS (treasury). Further centralization came during the reign of Hadrian, who created an actual administration under a prefect, who bore the title praefectus vehiculorum. Provinces were always in touch with Rome and one another. The Imperial Post gave to the legions the capacity to summon reinforcements and provide status reports before any situation deteriorated too badly. The average citizen sent letters and messages to friends across the sea through slaves and traveling associates. Most news reached its destination eventually.
Cybele The Great Earth Mother of Asia, she found a large and passionate following both in Rome and throughout the empire. The goddess of nature, the mountains, and fertility, she had been known to the Romans through Hellenic influence. In 204 B. C.E., the Senate chose a moment of crisis during the Punic War to bring Cybele to Rome from her cultic center at Pessinus in Phrygia. An embassy brought her black betyl stone of odd shape to the Temple of Victory, and there P. Scipio Nasica installed it. The black stone, made supposedly of meteoric rock, represented Cybele’s throne. The great games of MEGALESIA were then held in her honor. In 191 B. C.E., the goddess received her own temple on the Palatine Hill. When Phrygian priests arrived to conduct orgiastic and bloody ceremonies, a law was passed by the Senate to prohibit direct involvement by citizens in the rituals of Cybele, although support of her brotherhoods was allowed. Phrygian clerics became a fixture in the city, with their magnificent attire, and during the reign of Claudius (41-54 c. e.) a more lax attitude toward the cult was adopted.
Cybele’s legendary lover Attis, of whom CATULLUS wrote his 63rd poem, began to be honored in Rome under Claudius. With the arrival of this deity the Romans
The Round Temple of Cybele, in Rome, from the Forum Boar-ium (Courtesy Fr. Felix Just, S. J.)
Could join the cultic priesthood freely, although the entire cult fell under the jurisdiction of the quindecimviri. A new series of holy days in his honor began the spring cycle. Already popular in ASIA minor, the cult of Cybele spread out from Rome to the provinces. The goddess was associated with forms of artemis and VENUS, and cults grew in Macedonia, thrace, Africa, hispania, and throughout GALLIA and all of Italy. As a pagan form of worship, Cybele was attacked vehemently by the Christians, and of all the cults in Rome and elsewhere, hers took the longest to die in the Christian era.
In 392 C. E., Emperor Eugenius allowed Cybele to return from exile, having been sent away in 363 under Christian influence. Rome was treated once more to the Megalesian games, and her statue received the obligatory centuries-old washing. The Christians successfully reasserted their dominance in time.
See also gnosticism; gods and goddesses; religion.
Cynegius, Maternus (fl. late fourth century c. e.) Praetorian prefect in the East from 384 to 388 c. e.
Cynegius was a proponent of strict Christian orthodoxy, especially in dealing with the remnants of paganism. Emperor Theodosius I charged him with the task of closing all of the pagan temples in which sacrifices were conducted. Cynegius took to his mission with fanaticism, touring Asia and Egypt and setting off other, more punitive actions by monks who destroyed completely the Serapeum at Alexandria and the temple of Edessa. Cynegius was opposed by libanius. He also served as consul in 388.
Cynics Members of a philosophical school of the ancient world, probably founded by Diogenes of Sinope (c. 400-325 B. C.E.). In principle, Cynicism called for the ruthless purging of materialism and the development of a sense of ethical selflessness, valuing poverty and the freedom to speak one’s mind. The development of the Cynic philosophy was hampered by its own lack of organization; although considerably popular in the fourth and third century B. C.E., it faded in the next 200 years. A rebirth of the movement took place in the first century C. E. Cynics in the Roman Empire were easily identified, because they wandered the cities in rags, preaching their doctrines. They were vocal opponents of authority and government, especially under Vespasian.
Unconventional, demanding, and mocking, the Cynics attacked the emperor and all forms of tyranny, led by Demetrius the cynic. Vespasian at first ignored them, calling Demetrius “good dog,” a reference to the Greek kuon, or dog, the original term for the Cynics. So harsh did the group become, however, that the normally even-handed emperor first banished them in 71 C. E. and then turned to harsher measures. Although Demetrius was executed, other compatriots later denounced Titus’s relationship with the Jewish Princess Berenice, forcing him to abandon his long-term plans with her. PseudoCynics emerged in the first century c. E. as well, who carried on in their ragged habits while secretly living in comfort and ease. They were condemned by the real Cynics.
Famous Cynics of the first and second century included Dio cocceianus, Peregrinus Proteus, and Demonax. The school remained very popular both in the public imagination and in the minds of the well educated. Remarkable similarities emerged between the Cynics and the early Christian ascetics. By the sixth century C. E., the philosophers had been absorbed completely into the Christian community.
Cyprian of Carthage (Thrascius Caecilius Cypri-anus) (d. 258 c. e.) Bishop of Carthage and an important early Christian theologian
Born at Tunisia, Cyprian studied law and was a pagan rhetorician prior to his conversion to Christianity about 246. Elected bishop of Carthage around 248, he was soon forced to flee in 249 when the persecutions of Emperor Trajanus Decius began. Cyprian remained in communication with his former diocese by correspondence and, upon his return in 251 to Carthage, he was reestablished as bishop.
He then faced a controversy that would trouble the church for years to come. During the years of persecution many Christians had lapsed from the faith or had purchased libelli pacis certificates stating that they had made sacrifices to the Roman gods when in fact they had not. Now they were being welcomed back into the fold with no consequences. Cyprian opposed such lax discipline, but allowed the so-called lapsi to return to the church after suitable penance, thereby rejecting the Novatianists, who refused the idea of rebaptism altogether. He supported Pope Cornelius (r. 251-253) in his struggle against Novatian. Cyprian was supported by the African bishops, but the controversy was cut short by the persecution by Emperor Valerian, during which Cyprian was martyred at Carthage on September 14, 258.
A theologian of deep learning, Cyprian authored numerous letters and treatises. His correspondence, providing a clear picture of the times and the horrors of the persecutions, consists of 81 items, 65 from Cyprian and 16 in response to him from others. The treatises include: De Catholicae Ecclesiae Unitate (or simply De Unitate), discussing the nature of unity in the church and the ideal of equality among the bishops; De Lapsis, detailing the conditions by which the lapsed could be readmitted into the church; and Ad Quirinam (or Testimonia), a compilation of biblical proof texts. He was much influenced by Tertullian and coined a number of remarkable statements such as “You cannot have God for your Father, if you cannot have the Church for your mother.”
Cyprus Roman province on the large Mediterranean island off the coast of SYRIA and south of ASIA minor. Cyprus came under direct Roman control in 58 B. C.E., when it was attached to the province of cilicia. In that year, however, political feuds in Rome made its status unclear. CLODIUS sought to remove the troublesome CATO UTICENSIS from the city and so named him administrator of Cyprus. Cato fulfilled his duties, ironically aiding the island in the process. Later and for a brief time, Cleopatra owned Cyprus, as a gift from Marc ANTONY. Augustus reclaimed it and declared the entire stretch of land an imperial province once more, though control probably passed into the hands of the senate, appointing a proconsul. Cyprus was dominated by two major cities, Paphos and Salamis. When the massive Jewish revolt broke out in 115 C. E., it spread to Cyprus. By the following year virtually all of Salamis had been destroyed, and its nonJewish residents had been massacred. When peace was restored, a decree was enacted, banning all Jews from the province and condemning any found on the island to death. Paphos served as the seat of administration during this and other periods, but a terrible earthquake forced the movement of the pro-consul’s seat to Salamis in the fourth century C. E.
Known originally as a fertile and abundant island, the province served as a source of copper for some time and helped to promote trade throughout most of the empire. It was said as well that the worship of Aphrodite (vENUs) arrived in Cyprus through Phoenician traders. Christianity took over the island quickly, and the Church of Cyprus won its temporal and theological independence from antioch as a result of the Council of Chal-cedon in 451.
Cyrenaica See crete and cyrenaica.
Gyrene A large and prosperous city in North Africa, between ALEXANDRIA and carthage. Originally a Greek colony, Cyrene belonged to the province of CRETE and CYRENAICA. The city was located about 10 miles from the coast on the top of the cyrenaican Mountains, some 2,000 feet above sea level. For some years Cyrene was in the hands of the Ptolemies, and the Republic allowed it to remain so until the early first century b. c.e. Control was then granted to Greek cities, but in 74 b. c.e. all of Cyrenaica reverted to Rome, and Cyrene joined the newly formed province. Under the early empire it grew in size and in wealth, though never boasting great economic power. From 115 to 117 C. E., the Jewish revolt raged across much of Africa, Egypt, and Cyprus, and its flames reached the city The Greek populations was massacred, temples burned, and roads destroyed. Hadrian assumed the task of rebuilding and repairing, especially the temples of Zeus and Apollo. A number of other monuments and buildings dominated the city, including a temple to Augustus near the Forum of Proclus, a structure erected in the early first century C. E. Baths were also built during the reign of Trajan, though not as impressive as those in Rome or in major provincial capitals.
The economy of Cyrene was based upon agriculture, although horses were bred and raised there as well. Cereals and corn were the main exports after the decline of silphium, a medicinal plant that became nearly extinct.
Cyrene’s agora housed several inscriptions dating from the time of Augustus and detailing the enactments of the emperor. The first four inscriptions, dated from 7 to 6 B. C.E. dealt with Crete and Cyrenaica specifically and covered such issues as criminal procedures, treatment of Roman citizens, and the rights of the Greeks. The last decree, issued in 4 b. c.e., covered the judicial powers of the Senate. Cyrene later received colonial status from Hadrian.
Cyril of Alexandria (d. 444 c. e.) Bishop of Alexandria from 412
An influential theologian, Christian saint, and one of the most outspoken figures in the church during the fifth century, Cyril was born in Egypt. He was the nephew of Bishop Theophilus of Alexandria, whom he succeeded in 412. A devoted Orthodox Christian, Cyril spoke out against paganism and heresy. His role in the brutal death of the Neoplatonic philosopher Hypatia in 415 (she was flayed alive with a whip made from abalone shells) is still questioned by scholars, and he helped expel the Jews from Alexandria after Christians were attacked by members of the Jewish community. Cyril’s principal focus, however, was against Nestorius, bishop of Constantinople and founder of the heresy of Nestorianism. Cyril represented the Alexandrian theological position, arguing for the unity of two natures in Christ against Nestorius’s theory that Christ had two separate and distinct natures, divine and human. Cyril entered into the severe conflict with Nestorius specifically over the former’s adherence that the Virgin Mary be honored with the title Theotokos (Greek for “bearer of God”), a name opposed by Nesto-rius, who saw Mary as the mother only of the human nature in Christ. Beyond the theological dispute, itself enough to alarm Alexandrian theologians, the dispute had religio-political ramifications, since it represented the potential rise of Constantinople as one of the most important sees in all of Christendom, a development that threatened and was much opposed by the Alexandrians. Both sides attempted to gather supporters, political maneuvering that culminated with the Council of Ephesus in 431.
Wielding the firm approval of Pope (later Saint) Celestine I (r. 422-432), Cyril served as president of the council, securing the condemnation of Nestorius, moving so precipitately that he did not wait for the arrival of a number of bishops from the East. As most of these prelates were allies or supporters of Nestorius, they convened on their own and condemned Cyril. While Nestorius was exiled, a breach had opened between Cyril and the see of Antioch, a disagreement resolved only in 433 with a compromise declaration on the nature of Christ. Cyril remained bishop until his death. He made important contributions to Christian theology, especially the Trinity and the nature of Christ. His brilliant writings included letters and anathemas, and a refutation of the work Against the Galileans by Emperor Julian the Apostate (r. 361-363). This defense of Christianity is the last of the great apologies for the faith in the Roman era.
Cyril of Jerusalem (c. 315-386 c. e.) Christian saint and bishop of Jerusalem during the troubled era of the Arian Controversy
A native of Jerusalem, Cyril became bishop in Jerusalem around 349 or 350, succeeding Maximus. He was exiled in 357 from his post by the Arians because of his opposition to their cause, the first of three separate periods of exile; of the thirty-five years he spent as bishop, Cyril was in exile for sixteen. The last period was from 367-378 when he was banished by the Emperor Valens. He returned to Jerusalem in 378 after Valens’s defeat and death at the terrible battle of Adrianople (378). Jerusalem was in a state of severe moral decay and was plagued by spiritual and social disorder. Cyril thus spent his last year
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