WI: The Roman Emperor as head of the church?

[Nivek]

leadership back then was really keen on keeping church and state separate, s

Ironic

 

[Nuraghe]

Papal primacy and even supremacy claims go way even back to pope Leo and only kept growing as we see by the time of Gregory the great how ever many churches especially the east never universally recognized this

In reality, Clement I already did not have too many problems actively intervening in the theological or ecclesiastical disputes of the other churches located in the Empire ( he was so active that he attracted the personal attention of Trajan, who had him exiled to the Crimea ) , so we can see that an idea of this kind ( of the bishop of Rome who acts as a superpartes arbitrator or mediator among the various churches was already present long before Leo I ) and naturally the process went hand in hand, evolving over the centuries in response to the political and cultural changes that surrounded Rome, above all the fact that the minor dioceses or even the other patriarchates, sought the papal support against the "abuses" of Constantinople ( whether imperial or of the patriarch ) further cements this ideology in the papal political system

 

[Nuraghe]

In reality, Clement I already did not have too many problems actively intervening in the theological or ecclesiastical disputes of the other churches located in the Empire ( he was so active that he attracted the personal attention of Trajan, who had him exiled to the Crimea ) , so we can see that an idea of this kind ( of the bishop of Rome who acts as a superpartes arbitrator or mediator among the various churches was already present long before Leo I ) and naturally the process went hand in hand, evolving over the centuries in response to the political and cultural changes that surrounded Rome, above all the fact that the minor dioceses or even the other patriarchates, sought the papal support against the "abuses" of Constantinople ( whether imperial or of the patriarch ) further cements this ideology in the papal political system

without forgetting that in the following decades Rome had to face a major schism that tore apart the local Christian community ( as well as in other parts of the Empire, first with the followers of Valentino and Cerdone ( two Gnostics ) then with Marcionism and following with Montanism ) and that led to the resumption of persecutions under Marcus Aurelius, because the government elite did not make ( or they didn't want to ) distinctions between " Orthodox " and heretics ( with the latter creating the greatest friction with the government and with the rest of the population, taking antisocial behavior to the extreme which was then associated in the future as a stereotype for the entire Christian community ) therefore it would have been really difficult for an Emperor to have to manage this chaos ( especially if you don't have at least some basic knowledge on the topic ) , without ending up favoring one party at the risk of antagonizing the other ( as well as the still nominally pagan population ) so let's say that the emperors in Otl obtained a good compromise, being able to manage and mediate ecclesiastical disputes without however being a truly active part in the clash on a daily level ( which then saw them become more and more present in the matter as time went by, sometimes further aggravating the situation )