Episcopal Elections 250-600: Hierarchy and Popular Will in Late Antiquity (Oxford Classical Monographs)

Peter Norton covers a topic of great relevance to students of early Church history and late antiquity alike. He challenges the conventional view that after the adoption of Christianity by the Roman empire the local community lost its voice in the appointment of bishops, and argues that this right remained in theory and practice for longer than is normally assumed. Given that bishops became important to the running of the empire at the local level, a proper understanding of how they came into office is essential for our understanding of the later empire. A refutation of the conventional view that after the adoption of Christianity by the Roman empire the local community lost its voice in the appointment of bishops. Peter Norton argues that this right remained for longer than is normally assumed, with important consequences for our understanding of the administration of the later empire. Norton presents a refutation of the conventional view that after the adoption of Christianity by the Romans the locals lost their voice in the appointment of bishops. He argues that this right remained for some time, with consequences for our understanding of the administration of the later empire Such was the view of John Chrysostom, in his treatise On the Priesthood, which he wrote in the 380s.