An impotent person in early Christianity in the fourth century was Constantine. Constantine was a key figure that totally changed the trajectory of Christianity. Someone who was critical to his success was his mother and it was not because she gave him life. Constantine’s mother , Helena, who along with her son , expanded Christianity and made it the major religion that it is today.
Despite being a key figure in Early Christianity , Helena’s formative years are not well known. Scholars are unsure where and when she was born (Fraschetti, 2001,pg142). A possible explanation for this lack of information could be that Helena was not from a family of means. (Fraschetti, 2001,pg143) This lack of means could also be reason why Constantine was looked down by some (Fraschetti, 2001,pg145). Constantine’s mother was not the only lover of his father. In fact ,she was not considered a full wife, that title was given to Constantius’s other lover , Theodora, who was wed in 289. (Fraschetti, 2001,pg144) Despite these hard beginnings , Helena was able to gain power when Constantine was emperor.
One thing that Helena did when constantine ruled was sit on the council. Helena was very influential in how things were ran. Helena’s biggest claim to fan is a trip that she made to the holy land, Jerusalem. During the trip, Helena gave aide to the poor and needy(Eusebius of Caesarea The Life of the Blessed Emperor Constantine) . She made the trip to promote peace in the community. (Drijvers 1992, pg 68) Ambrose wast the first to report that , Helena found pieces of the cross that Jesus was on when he died. (Drijvers 1992, pg 95) This cross was said to contain healing powers. (Fraschetti, 2001,pg 153) While an interesting tale, history does not back it up. (Drijvers 1992, pg 81)
Bibliography
Drijvers, Jan W. Helena Augusta: The Mother of Constantine the Great and the Legend of Her Finding of the True Cross. Netherlands: Brill Academic Pub, 1992.
"Eusebius of Caesarea The Life of the Blessed Emperor Constantine." Internet History Sourcebooks. Accessed March 08, 2016. https://legacy.fordham.edu/halsall/basis/vita-constantine.asp.
Fraschetti, Augusto. Roman Women. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2001.