A treatise titled Concerning the Gods and the Universe by the late-antique philosopher Sallustius is usually thought of as a manifesto or catechism that would have played an important role in the revival of the pagan religion initiated by the Roman emperor Julian the Apostate in the year 361. In this thesis paper, we address the question as to whether this text could really have fulfilled this role. In contrast to previous studies of this subject, we focus on the doctrinal unity of these authors rather than the pragmatic circumstances in which they wrote. A comparison of the most essential dogmas of Sallustius’s work with those of Julian’s own philosophy, as well as with the broader movement of Neoplatonism to which they both belonged, leads us to the conclusion that these writers, as regards some fundamental teachings, such as the role of myths in philosophy, the order of the gods, and the nature of evil, are not in agreement. We are therefore left with two options: either these authors did not share the same worldview, in lieu of which it would be impossible for Sallustius’s text to have a programmatic value in Julian’s pagan restoration, or they shared only the most basic philosophic beliefs, which suggests that Sallustius’s text could not be programmatic, because such a basic philosophy would not need a programme.
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