ed with particular favor by the emperors, whose
authority it supported by the doctrine that the ruler is the chosen of
Ormuzd and an embodiment of the divine spirit. It is not surprising then
that Aurelian, whose coins bore the legend _dominus et deus natus_ (born
god and lord), made the worship of the Unconquered Sun-god the chief cult
of the state.

*Philosophy.* Attention has already been called to the value of Stoicism
in supplying its adherents with a highly moral code of conduct. Other
philosophical systems, notably Epicureanism, likewise inculcated
particular rules of life. But the philosophical doctrines which were best
able to hold their own with the new religions were those of Neoplatonism
and Neopythagoreanism, which came into vogue in the course of the second
century, and exhibited a combination of mysticism and idealism well suited
to the spirit of the age.

*Astrology and magic.* Throughout the principate all classes of society
were deeply imbued with a superstitious fatalism which caused them to
place implicit belief in the efficacy of astrology and magic. Chaldean and
Egyptian astrologers enjoyed a great reputation, and were consulted on all
important questions. They were frequently banished from Rome by the
emperors who feared that their predictions might give encouragement to
their enemies. However, these very emperors kept astrologers in their own
service, and the decrees of banishment never remained long in force. The
almost universal belief in miracles and oracles caused the appearance of a
large number of imposters who throve on the credulity of their clients.
One of the most celebrated of these was the Alexander who founded a new
oracle of Aesculapius at Abonoteichus in Paphlagonia, the fame of which
spread throughout the whole empire and even beyond its borders. In his
expose of the methods employed by this false prophet, the satirist Lucian
gives a vivid picture of the depraved superstition of his time.

At the close of the principate the pagan world presented a great confusion
of religious beliefs and doctrines. However, the various pagan cults were
tolerant one of another, for the followers of one god were ready to
acknowledge the divinity of the gods worshipped by their neighbors. On the
contrary, the adherents of Judaism and Christianity refused to recognize
the pagan gods, and hence stood in irreconcilable opposition to the whole
pagan world.

IV. CHRISTIANITY AND ITS RELA