Was Constantine Really That Bad? | WesWorld Podcast Ep.9

About this episode

The episode explores the figure of Constantine and the implications of church and state relationships throughout history.

In this episode of WesWorld, Maggie Ulmer, Dr. Scott Kisker, and Dr. David Watson examine the figure of Constantine, the legalization of Christianity, and the long‑term theological and political consequences of church‑empire entanglement. The hosts explore the persecution of early Christians, the Council of Nicaea, the development of Trinitarian doctrine, and modern critiques of “Constantinianism.” Along the way, they address common misconceptions such as the claim that Constantine invented Christian orthodoxy and consider why doctrinal debates mattered deeply for salvation, worship, and the character of God.The conversation draws on early church history, Wesleyan theology, and political theology to probe how Christian faith relates to power, governance, and public witness past and present. MENTIONSThe Road to Nicaea - Podcast (Ben Wyatt)https://roadtonicaea.com/ The Ancients (History Focus series)https://shows.acast.com/the-ancients The Desire of the Nations — Oliver O’Donovanhttps://www.cambridge.org/core/books/desire-of-the-nations/8CC8CEB4F43E5A57C4A07C93C7142559 ASBURY SEMINARY LINKS: Website: https://asburyseminary.edu/Podcasts: https://asbury.to/podcastsFacebook…

People in this episode

Hosts: Maggie Ulmer, Dr. Scott Kisker, Dr. David Watson

Topics covered

• Constantine
• Christianity
• church-empire entanglement
• early church history
• Wesleyan theology
• political theology

Keywords

• Constantine
• Christian orthodoxy
• Council of Nicaea
• Trinitarian doctrine
• Constantinianism
• early Christians
• theological consequences

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Asbury Theological Seminary

Books & works: The Road to Nicaea, The Ancients, The Desire of the Nations

More episodes of WesWorld - An Asbury Seminary Podcast

• Are We Worse Than the Devil | WesWorld Podcast Ep. 11 · May 26, 2026 · 51 min
• Protestant History with Scott Kisker | WesWorld Podcast Ep.10 · May 12, 2026 · 1h 6m
• Higher Levels, New Devils | WesWorld Podcast Ep.8 · April 14, 2026 · 52 min
• Old Heresies Never Die | WesWorld Podcast Ep.7 · March 31, 2026 · 53 min
• WesWorld - Episode 6 - “Let’s Talk About Religion & Politics” · March 17, 2026 · 52 min
• WesWorld - Episode 5 - "Onward Christian Soldiers" · March 3, 2026 · 56 min