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THESSALONICA

(Gk. Thessaloníkē)

A city located on the Thermaic Gulf to the west of the Chalcidice Peninsula. The Axios River lies to the west and the Strymon River to the east. The city was probably built near, but not on, the original site of Therme.

Thessalonica was founded in 316 b.c.e. by Cassander, one of Alexander the Great’s generals, and named after his wife, a stepsister of Alexander. It became the main port of the Macedonian capital of Pella. The city was surrendered to Rome after the defeat of Perseus at the battle of Pydna (168). When Macedonia was divided into four districts, Thessalonica was made the capital of the second. However, it retained the right to be governed according to its ancestral laws and to have its own officials. As a result of its support for Augustus, Thessalonica was made a free city in 42 b.c.e. It retained its Greek character and language throughout the Roman period.

Thessalonica had always been a prominent center of trade, but by the Roman period it was at the junction of two important transportation routes. The primary east-west land route, the Via Egnatia, ran through the center of Thessalonica while its port was the beginning of the primary route from the Aegean Sea to the Danube River. The Sea itself made Thessalonica accessible from all points in the circum-Mediterranean.

Unfortunately, little of Thessalonica has been excavated as the modern city is built upon the ancient site. Significant finds from the Roman period or earlier include the forum and a Serapeum. A 4th-century c.e. inscription attests the presence of a Samaritan community at Thessalonica.

During the 1st century c.e. mystery cults were thriving at Thessalonica, particularly that of Sarapis and Isis, Dionysos, Asclepius, Demeter, and the Cabiri/Dioscuri. The worship of the Egyptian gods may even date to as early as the 3rd century b.c.e. Emperor worship was also particularly strong at Thessalonica, and there is some evidence for the worship of the goddess Roma. Many inscriptions were also set up by the Thessalonians honoring Roman patrons and Roman client rulers who had been benefactors of the city. A number of voluntary associations are attested at Thessalonica, including the mystai of Dionysos and various professional associations.

The primary source of information for the church at Thessalonica comes from the two Pauline epistles addressed there (1 and 2 Thessalonians) and from Acts. Thessalonica was the second European city visited by Paul (Acts 17:1-9; 1 Thess. 2:2). According to Luke’s account Paul first preached in a synagogue with limited results among Jews and God-fearers, including some wealthy women. When the Jewish leaders incited a mob to attack the house of Jason, Paul’s host, Paul and Silas fled to Beroea. The remaining Christian community was predominantly Gentile and served as an example to other churches in Macedonia and Achaia (1 Thess. 1:8-9). The term politárchēs, used for the civic magistrates of Thessalonica in Acts 17:6-8, has now been found in a number of 1st-century c.e. inscriptions from Thessalonica.

Bibliography. K. P. Donfried, “The Cults of Thessalonica and the Thessalonian Correspondence,” NTS 31 (1985): 336-56; H. L. Hendrix, Thessalonians Honor Romans (diss., Harvard, 1984); A. E. Vacalopoulos, A History of Thessaloniki (Thessalonica, 1963), 3-18.

Richard S. Ascough

Prayer Tents Bible References - Prayer Tents

THESSALONICA

Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible (2000)