There is no doubt that Julian suffered from the massacre of his family members during his childhood years. No doubting that his reign and ideas was inspired by the knowledge that his Christian uncles Constantine, Constantius and Constans had allowed these murders to take place. His love was foremost for ancient paganism and philosophy. Julian was a distinctly traditional and ascetic Roman Emperor, who modelled himself superficially, intellectually and philosophically on the Antonine Emperors, in particular Marcus Aurelius. Julian considered the New Testament a literary work of little worth, which paled in comparison to the classics. He too was well aware of the negative and ineffectual futility that direct persecution and the harming of Christians had on the empire and that is ultimately had little or no success in reducing the potency of Christianity.
Under Julian it would take the form of building up the traditional practises of Paganism, paralleled beside Christianity, in order to provide a viable alternative that could help relegate the Christian. While it can be said that his motives were a genuine interest in Paganism, it too can be argued that through his efforts to turn the tide on Christianity, it helps to show his desire to be distanced from his extended Constantinian family. The unwillingness for Julian to toe the familial line of Christianity suggests a man who had a deep embedded affections for tradition. This is clearly seen by Julian knowingly going against the status quo of what the empire has transformed into over forty years under Christianity and potentially having disturbed the delicate balance of what was the Constantinian dynasty. Either that, or, it resulted from a deeply rooted psychological reaction arising out of the mass slaughter of his extended family.
Would the Emperor Julian have revitalised Paganism?
Yes, I think the empire was not too attached to Christianity
No, he was unable to push the tide of Christianity away.
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