End of Year Message 2010

Greetings fellow Citizens of Byzantium,

We have successfully completed our first calendar year in our effort to manifest a new Byzantine State!

In the 557th year after the fall of Constantinople this community has been formed to reawaken Byzantium as a living civilization and culture.

Our goals are simple; to continue the story of Byzantine history by renewing Byzantine community, to rebuild as much of the Byzantine world as is possible by legal and peaceful means, and to work toward the dream of someday founding a new symbolic Byzantine Capitol. This would be the ultimate proof that Byzantine civilization, the heir to Classical Greece and Rome, has not completely perished.

Although our goals are simple the work to achieve them is not. Byzantium is little known or remembered in these days. Far too often it is overshadowed by other historical eras and dismissed as an odd sidenote of history. Such ignorance and dismissal is absurd - Byzantium was the jewel of Western civilization for over a thousand years with as important a history and legacy as any empire before or since.

We here are proof that the Byzantine Empire is worthy of not just honor, but also continuation. By declaring our intent to carry on the functions and traditions of this ancient civilization, we directly continue its work and reestablish a valid place for it in the world.

Through this endeavor we are both renewing an ancient legacy and making a contribution to future history. By agreeing to manifest Byzantium anew we have undertaken the responsibility to fill - and to heal - a void which has been left in Western civilization. Our existence as a community and as a serious sovereignty project is significant! It is now up to us to prove that we truly can rebuild some of what has been lost for centuries.

In these first ten months we have made a wonderful start. We began with nothing. We now have:

1. A living international community which makes Byzantine Citizenship available to all and which has continued to expand each month.

2. A public declaration of our serious intent which is visible worldwide.

3. A Byzantine Internet presence that is now extant all over the world and still growing.

4 A working Byzantine government to administer this living Byzantine community.

5. The beginnings of local Byzantine communities (Provinces) in many areas of the world.

6. Working Byzantine Culture interest groups working to restore participation in Things Byzantine.

7. A foundation for a Byzantine Militarium to promote Byzantine Living History, both military and civilian.

8. The comencement of Byzantine Charity toward worthy causes worldwide.

9. A Marketplace which we hope will be the seed for a renewed Byzantine economy for our community.

10. A spiritual foundation for the Byzantine Orthodox Church in our community, as well as something of the Classical religions that came before.

With this new effort and infrastructure the Byzantine Empire has begun to awaken from centuries of sleep.

None of these things could have been done without the Citizens of Byzantium Novum. I would like to thank each of you for being willing to be counted as Byzantine Citizens, and for your work in helping to build our community. We are all stewards of a cultural legacy, as well as Founders of a new nation. Anyone willing to undertake such roles is worthy of respect and acknowledgement. Many heartfelt and sincere thanks to each Citizen!

Byzantium Novum has much to look forward to in 2011! In this New Year we will be working to grow the number of Byzantine Citizens, and set a firm foundation for our Provinces. We will work to expand appreciation of and participation in "Things Byzantine." We will participate in efforts to preserve and explore Byzantine history. In short, we will continue what we've started in the knowledge that our cause is worthwhile. It is an effort that will not only enrich our own lives, but the world around us for generations to come.

May each of us, and Byzantium Novum, have a blessed, prosperous and wonderful 2011!

-Marcus Cassius Julianus
Senator, Byzantium Novum