In this larger narrative, Drake’s suggestion that reading Firmicus is a challenge seems to be an understatement. Indeed, our reading of exorcism/conversion in De errore above suggested a comfortable continuity with this traditional narrative in its imperative for the abolition of paganism. If this narrative is to be contested, then it seems like resources other than Firmicus must be used. Of course, as Drake notes, there are plenty of other ways to contest this narrative: first, the assumption that coercion “was a natural result of Christian intolerance [fails] to distinguish between the meanings of intolerance and conversion”; second, it fails to account for the prominent Christian tradition that emphasizes true conversion as non-coerced…show more content… What is striking, on his reading, is how the “continuity in religious sentiments suggest a gradual and easy conversion.” But why would De errore take on such severity if his experience of converting to Christianity had been to the contrary? Drake suggests that it has to do with the precarious situation for converts like Firmicus, which points to the additional political similarities in Mathesis and De errore. In both texts, Firmicus appears to be “angling for a job,” which is to say, he is trying to position himself politically. Inspired by the recent anti-pagan imperial decrees in his time, the recent convert Firmicus would have picked up on this track and used his text as a way of opportunistically writing himself into favor. Drake suggests that if Firmicus is writing under the pressure of proving his conversion, then De errore’s anti-pagan intensity can be understood as a technique of demonstrating authenticity and
