WI: Emperor Constantine Converts to Cult of Mythras!

Pictures are awesome:

Mithras-600x489.jpg


Mythras, or Mythra,was an off shoot of Persian Zoroastrianism that centered around the worship of the heroric demi-god Mythras. During the later Roman era of arounnd 100AD - 300AD, the belief system took hold among a minority of the Roman population, ultimately growing to challenge the early Christian church.

Though both were different in the practices of their belief systems, Mythras worship being more secretive and more selective in its converts, both were equally persecuted as they denied the central worship of the Roman emperors.

My question is this:

Fast forward to the reign of Constantine, what if he championed and converted to Cult of Mythras worship instead of Christianity before the battle of the Milvian Bridge? Would Christianity survive future persecution? Would there be 1 Billion+ Mythras worshipers today?

Plausibility Check:

While Christian conversion granted Constantine future legitimacy from the Roman Christian population, many of the Roman elite were secret Mythras worshipers, so the benefit of gained legitimacy could still be achieved.
 
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Constantine converting to Mithraism wouldn't help it.

It is, as competitors as truly universal Imperial religions to Christianity go, extremely overrated.

The problem lies explicity in its selectiveness of converts. More to the point, it did not accept female converts. It was an exclusively male religion.

Compare this to Christianity (and even Judaism when it still accepted converts) which did a lot of work converting women and important matrons. By converting rich women, Christianity often gained access to their networks of connections.

In fact, ignoring the real politick decisions going into his conversion, it should be noted that Constantine's mother was a Christian. He was probably predisposed to it from the start.

Christianity's advantage was that it reached all strata of society.

Mithraism did not. Now, some other religions did and would probably be better competitors to Christianity. Isis worship. Sol Invictus. Manichaeism. An alternate Jewish offshoot. Take your pick, but don't pick Mithraism.
 
Constantine converting to Mithraism wouldn't help it.

It is, as competitors as truly universal Imperial religions to Christianity go, extremely overrated.

The problem lies explicity in its selectiveness of converts. More to the point, it did not accept female converts. It was an exclusively male religion.

Compare this to Christianity (and even Judaism when it still accepted converts) which did a lot of work converting women and important matrons. By converting rich women, Christianity often gained access to their networks of connections.

In fact, ignoring the real politick decisions going into his conversion, it should be noted that Constantine's mother was a Christian. He was probably predisposed to it from the start.

Christianity's advantage was that it reached all strata of society.

Mithraism did not. Now, some other religions did and would probably be better competitors to Christianity. Isis worship. Sol Invictus. Manichaeism. An alternate Jewish offshoot. Take your pick, but don't pick Mithraism.

I always learned a lot of the aristocratic hierarchy were secretive members of the cult, especially popular among the soldier/army class. I mean at the end of the day, post 3rd century crisis Rome, all you really needed was the backing of the elite and you could hold power. I'd argue that in this case, as Constantine was always the opportunist, could possibly have made the determination to side with the mythratic male elite and in turn might have changed the course of Christianity and Mythras in turn. Though in what fashion..? I am very curious about
 
Wasn't Mithraism officially permitted, if not encouraged, as a "soldiers' religion" for the Roman army? Its precise rites may have been kept secret, but the religion itself wasn't persecuted, and its adherents didn't need to hide their religion.
 
Wasn't Mithraism officially permitted, if not encouraged, as a "soldiers' religion" for the Roman army? Its precise rites may have been kept secret, but the religion itself wasn't persecuted, and its adherents didn't need to hide their religion.

I'm confused then. Wasnt any challenge to the worship of the emperor seen a threat and persecuted? And if was indeed a soldiers religion, all the more interesting to wonder what if Constantine had chosen it over Christianity.
 
I'm confused then. Wasnt any challenge to the worship of the emperor seen a threat and persecuted? And if was indeed a soldiers religion, all the more interesting to wonder what if Constantine had chosen it over Christianity.

Mithraism wasn't a monotheistic religion. There was no reason why someone couldn't worship Mithras and the Emperor at the same time.
 
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