Thesis
"Drive out the Manichees!":: the accusation of Manichaeism and late-antique christological controversy
University of Iowa
Master of Arts (MA), University of Iowa
Spring 2026
DOI: 10.25820/etd.008342
Abstract
This thesis seeks to trace the development of the accusation of Manichaeism within the context of Christological debates of the late-antique Eastern Roman Empire from the fourth century to the sixth century. From the time of the Council of Nicaea onwards, Greek-speaking Christian theologians made extensive use of arguments that sought to show how their opponents’ views fell into different Manichaean doctrines. Manichaeism came to be associated primarily with Docetism, a belief that the physical body of Christ was somehow an illusion. Successive controversies over the Councils of Ephesus and Chalcedon split the Empire’s Christian populations into Monophysite and Dyophysite parties, and with that split came important developments in how the accusation of Manichaeism was deployed in debates over precisely how the person of Christ was to be understood. Through an analysis of the relevant texts and historical events, this study examines how this accusation underwent notable shifts in the 6th-century, coming to refer primarily to non-Chalcedonians and to serve important social and political goals.
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- "Drive out the Manichees!":: the accusation of Manichaeism and late-antique christological controversy
- Creators
- Evren Sasmazer
- Contributors
- Paul Dilley (Advisor)Diana Cates (Committee Member)Craig Gibson (Committee Member)
- Resource Type
- Thesis
- Degree Awarded
- Master of Arts (MA), University of Iowa
- Degree in
- Religious Studies
- Date degree season
- Spring 2026
- DOI
- 10.25820/etd.008342
- Publisher
- University of Iowa
- Number of pages
- iv, 84 pages
- Language
- English
- Date submitted
- 04/27/2026
- Description bibliographic
- Includes bibliographical references (pages 78-84).
- Public Abstract (ETD)
Accusations of Manichaeism in late-antique Christian theological debate have been noted in scholarly literature for a long time, but rarely examined in depth. This thesis offers something of a beginning to a systematic examination of the subject with an eye towards how the accusation developed prior to and following the Council of Chalcedon in 451. It illustrates notable shifts in the way the accusation was utilized that are peculiar to the debates of the 6th-century. The term Manichaean is shown to have developed into something like a theological and social synonym for non-Chalcedonians. The research presented in this study identifies important, but relatively understudied, trends in how Manichaeism was received in the context of late-antique religious controversy and the role of Christian discourses of heresy, orthodoxy, and continuity with the past in these developments. This thesis thus opens the door to further research on Mani and Manichaeism in the religious consciousness of the early Christian world.
- Academic Unit
- Religious Studies
- Record Identifier
- 9985177073702771
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