Introduction
The concept of authority can be described as the link between administrators who determine the main points of a particular policy and people who take full responsibility to follow and perform that policy in a proper manner. However, the nature of authority has changed throughout many years. It differs from the originally intended concept due to various reasons. Determining of exact meaning is vital. It will help to track how the authorities change throughout our history from ancient times to present days. The history is full of examples that depict a transformation of policy modes and preferences of main organizational forces. Those examples highlight how religion and other factors influenced authority changes and how those changes affected people’s lives. Though the term still represents static ideas, original concepts are expanding while new ones are added.
Ancient Times
It is commonly known that the Roman Empire was one of the most powerful civilizations in humans’ history. It dominated major part of the Mediterranean lands and beyond. Many consider Caesar as the defender of the world and the harbinger of peace and prosperity for every citizen. Caesar Augustus appeared to be the first ruler mentioned in the New Testament. It is mainly due to the fact he took the throne when Jesus was born. Caesar became an emperor in 31 BCE. That was the period of severe political unrest. The Emperor, who was considered to bring salvation, freedom and justice to people established “near dictatorial authority” (“Behind Luke’s Gospel: The Roman Empire During the Time of Jesus” par. 3). This fact can be observed when the Roman authorities faced the new cult in the face of Christians. They considered that new religion was potentially dangerous as it threatened the main principals of current religion. Most representatives of the cult were not eager to follow the concepts established by Caesar as well as perform his worship. The prosecution of the Christians took place launched by with Nero’s bloody repression.
After the assassination of Caesar, Augustus took the throne. In spite of Caesar’s huge popularity, a new ruler was the one to benefit from the emperor’s cult after defeating the enemies of Rome during the civil war. That was the time when the topics of justice, freedom and peace were of high priority at least on the paper. His every great deed was described as “euangelion” (the Greek term that can be translated as “good news”). On the one hand, it could be nothing more than a cultic propaganda. On the other hand, it shows how the authority vector changed within a short period.
Medieval Times
The Middle Ages came with “Intellectual and moral changes from Renaissance Italy” (Collins and Taylor 2). All authority-related themes hailing from different historical periods have something in common. They all come with conflicts based on religion and beliefs. At the same time, one would hardly give a clear definition to the term especially when it comes to the medieval context. The Middle Ages represent some major struggles and conflicts between representatives of different religions while “the monarchs began to consolidate the smaller regional kingdoms in the attempt of creating vast empires” (Newman par. 1). Christians fought with Jews while Muslims fought with both.
The history pf the Middle Ages seems to “compromise a never-ending series of violent conflicts” (Kangas, Korpiola and Ainonen 5). Numerous kings, dukes and barons started wars striving to power and authority. There are numerous examples of such endless struggles. The Hundred Years Was is probably the best one. All those actions could be described as Christians fighting their neighbors of other religions for an ultimate authority over the lands. Unfortunately, The Middle Ages were unable to introduce a strong and willful leader as a few kings could really count on the support of his people. That was the main reason for countless acts of violence during that time.
Such lack of support forced rulers in different countries to team up and create alliances. Monarchs had nothing to do but consolidate smaller regions to create a stronger empire. It resulted in the decentralization of the authority structure. Best examples can be observed in England and France. The Holy Roman Empire was not an exception. Decentralization led to a formation of various courts and smaller kingdoms that were responsible for trade, economy, and other aspects. Some rulers proved to be rather successful. Edward the Confessor is a good example. He was considered as the most powerful English nobleman. However, the authority changed when William the Conqueror took the throne after Edward. Prior goals were changed and formed new authority sources that were about “a flash point for heresy” (Russell 2).
Early Modern Times
The Early Modern Times came with a new political approach and values. Rulers and kings of that period used new terms such as sovereignty. New qualities of collectivity were manifested as well. The interests of the polity were above all. A new wave of rulers described their manifest as a single possessing of equal interests in a single territory limited by its borders. That territory was supposed to be ruled by authorities aiming to advance the interests of their state. Those were the defining qualities of the period that barons and kings of the Middle Ages did not have. The Early Modern Times encouraged many political philosophers. Jean Bodin was among the most popular ones with his own vision of sovereignty. He was sure that it was supposed to reside every single individual and that sovereignty is above the law.
Another feature that described the authority of that period was the idea of supremacy described by Machiavelli and other political philosophers whose ideas influenced authority system in a great way. The new concept supposed the king to have the supreme power in his kingdom as well as father had a supreme authority in his family. Such model could be compared with the supremacy of God the Father and was “a modern notion of political authority” (“Sovereignty” par. 1). In other words, the ruling structure returned to its original model where the king is the father of the nation and his people. In such situation, new political philosophy was vital to stop disordering of the governmental system. Taxation, religion, and lawmaking systems called for improvement. That was a tough challenge as male elites were not ready to confront reformulation of the society as well as their authority.
Conclusion
If considering the abovementioned examples, it is clear that the authority has changed throughout various historical periods though it had some common features. The term has changed its meaning if compared with its origins. It became more confusing as years passed. New symbols appeared representing old ideas. People used to take authorities for granted having a clear understanding of its main goals and purposes. However, the borders of those purposes shade away introducing a new system of values in addition to new approaches. On the other hand, the term has always been in close connection with organizational issues following the same purposes.
Works Cited
Behind Luke’s Gospel: The Roman Empire During the Time of Jesus. n.d. Web.
Collins, James and Karen L. Taylor. Early Modern Europe: Issues and Interpretations. Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishing Ltd. 2005. Print.
Kangas, Sini, Mia Korpiola, and Tuija Ainonen. Authorities in the Middle Ages: Influence, Legitimacy, and Power in Medieval Ages. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter. 2013. Print.
Newman, Simon. n.d. Rulers of the Middle Ages. n.d. Web.
Russell, Jeffrey. Dissent and Order in the Middle Ages: The Search for Legitimate Authority. Eugene, OR: Wipf and Stock Publishers. 1992. Print.
Sovereignty2003. Web.