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Eudocia, the wife of the Emperor Theodosius II, although raised as a pagan, became a devout Christian after her marriage. She made a pilgrimage to Jerusalem in the year 438, returning, after a year's stay in the city, with the remains of St. Stephen. A few years later, having left her husband, she returned to Jerusalem and lived there until her death. From the time of her first visit, Eudocia initiated and financed a large number of building projects: churches, hospitals, hospices for the aged, and others. She built Jerusalem's southern wall, at the same time extending the area of the city southward to encompass Mount Zion and the spring of Siloam. The basilica of the Pool of Siloam and St. Stephen's Church were built at her initiative. Her projects were also of social and economic significance: in addition to building charitable institutions she also provided a livelihood for many of the city's inhabitants. Eudocia displayed a positive attitude toward Jerusalem's Jewish population. Following the reign of Julian the Apostate, anti-Jewish legislation had intensified and there was a rash of attacks on synagogues in the empire. Eudocia, in contrast, permitted the Jewish community in Palestine to renew the pilgrimage to Jerusalem at the Sukkot festival. |
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