anks
of the Danube, and robbed the rich villages and countries to the south.
The empire was, in truth, growing weaker, and enemies began to press upon
it; and this made the emperor, Diocletian, decide that it was beyond the
power of any one man to rule and defend it all, and he therefore divided
it with his friend Maximian, whom he made Emperor of the East, while he
remained Emperor of the West. The Western empire was the Latin-speaking
half, and the Eastern the Greek-speaking half, of these lands, though
both still called themselves Roman.

[Picture: Plains of Philippi]

The two halves were joined together again, about the year 300, under
Constantine the Great, who was the first Christian emperor. He thought
he should be more in the middle of his government if he moved his capital
from Rome to the old Greek city of Byzantium, which he adorned with most
splendid buildings, and called after his own name, Constantinople; and
this became the capital of the East, as Rome was of the West. Athens
remained all this time the place of study for Christians as well as
heathens, and people still talked philosophy and studied eloquence among
the laurel and myrtle groves, and looked at the temples, which still
stood there, though hardly anyone frequented them. One emperor, Julian,
the cousin of Constantine, studied there as a youth, and became so fond
of the old philosophy and learning, and so admired the noble ways of the
times when men were seeking after truth, that he thought Greece and Rome
would be great again if they turned back to these heathen ways, not
seeing that this was going back to the dark out of which those men had
been struggling.

Julian tried to bring back heathen customs, and to have the old gods
worshipped again; but he was killed in an expedition against the
Persians, and soon after his time the old idol-worship was quite
forgotten. Every city had a Bishop and clergy, and the Bishops of each
division of the empire were under a great ruling Bishop, who was called a
Patriarch. Greece was under the Patriarch of Constantinople. The Greek
churches were made as like the pattern of the temple at Jerusalem as they
could be. The end which represented the Holy of Holies, and had the
altar in it, was veiled, and enclosed within what were called the Royal
Gates, and these were only opened at times of celebrating the Holy
Communion. This end was raised steps, and the Holy Scriptures and sermo