Brother-making in Late Antiquity and Byzantium

Brother-making in Late Antiquity and Byzantium
Author: Claudia Rapp
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 369
Release: 2016
Genre: History
ISBN: 0195389336
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An exhaustive treatment of ritual brotherhood in Byzantium, this book challenges the 'Boswell Thesis' and argues that the ecclesiastical ritual to bless a relationship between two men bears no resemblance to marriage, but has its origins in early monasticism.

Brother-Making in Late Antiquity and Byzantium

Brother-Making in Late Antiquity and Byzantium
Author: Claudia Rapp
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 368
Release: 2016-02-01
Genre: History
ISBN: 0190613815
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Among medieval Christian societies, Byzantium is unique in preserving an ecclesiastical ritual of adelphopoiesis, which pronounces two men, not related by birth, as brothers for life. It has its origin as a spiritual blessing in the monastic world of late antiquity, and it becomes a popular social networking strategy among lay people from the ninth century onwards, even finding application in recent times. Located at the intersection of religion and society, brother-making exemplifies how social practice can become ritualized and subsequently subjected to attempts of ecclesiastical and legal control. Controversially, adelphopoiesis was at the center of a modern debate about the existence of same-sex unions in medieval Europe. This book, the first ever comprehensive history of this unique feature of Byzantine life, argues persuasively that the ecclesiastical ritual to bless a relationship between two men bears no resemblance to marriage. Wide-ranging in its use of sources, from a complete census of the manuscripts containing the ritual of adelphopoiesis to the literature and archaeology of early monasticism, and from the works of hagiographers, historiographers, and legal experts in Byzantium to comparative material in the Latin West and the Slavic world, Brother-Making in Late Antiquity and Byzantium examines the fascinating religious and social features of the ritual, shedding light on little known aspects of Byzantine society.

Brother-Making in Late Antiquity and Byzantium

Brother-Making in Late Antiquity and Byzantium
Author: Claudia Rapp
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 368
Release: 2016-01-13
Genre: History
ISBN: 0199908389
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Among medieval Christian societies, Byzantium is unique in preserving an ecclesiastical ritual of adelphopoiesis, which pronounces two men, not related by birth, as brothers for life. It has its origin as a spiritual blessing in the monastic world of late antiquity, and it becomes a popular social networking strategy among lay people from the ninth century onwards, even finding application in recent times. Located at the intersection of religion and society, brother-making exemplifies how social practice can become ritualized and subsequently subjected to attempts of ecclesiastical and legal control. Controversially, adelphopoiesis was at the center of a modern debate about the existence of same-sex unions in medieval Europe. This book, the first ever comprehensive history of this unique feature of Byzantine life, argues persuasively that the ecclesiastical ritual to bless a relationship between two men bears no resemblance to marriage. Wide-ranging in its use of sources, from a complete census of the manuscripts containing the ritual of adelphopoiesis to the literature and archaeology of early monasticism, and from the works of hagiographers, historiographers, and legal experts in Byzantium to comparative material in the Latin West and the Slavic world, Brother-Making in Late Antiquity and Byzantium examines the fascinating religious and social features of the ritual, shedding light on little known aspects of Byzantine society.

"When Brothers Dwell in Unity"

Author: Stephen Morris
Publisher: McFarland
Total Pages: 238
Release: 2016-03-01
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1476622140
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In the world of early Byzantine Christianity, monastic rules acknowledged but discouraged the homosexual impulses of adult males. What most disturbed monastic leaders was adolescent males being accepted as novices; adult men were considered unable to control their sexual desires for these "beautiful boys." John Chrysostom, the Archbishop of Constantinople (397-407), virulently denounced homosexuality, but was virtually the only Byzantine cleric to do so. Penances traditionally attached to heterosexual sins--including remarriage after divorce or widowhood--have always been much more severe than those for a variety of homosexual acts or relationships. Just as Byzantine churches have found ways to accommodate sequential marriages and other behavior once stridently condemned, this book argues, it is possible for Byzantine Christianity to make pastoral accommodations for gay relationships and same-sex marriage.

Cities and the Meanings of Late Antiquity

Cities and the Meanings of Late Antiquity
Author: Mark Humphries
Publisher: BRILL
Total Pages: 118
Release: 2019-11-04
Genre: History
ISBN: 9004422617
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This study examines how cities have become an area of significant historical debate about late antiquity, challenging accepted notions that it is a period of dynamic change and reasserting views of the era as one of decline and fall.

Holy Bishops in Late Antiquity

Holy Bishops in Late Antiquity
Author: Claudia Rapp
Publisher: Univ of California Press
Total Pages: 363
Release: 2013-05-01
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 0520931416
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Between 300 and 600, Christianity experienced a momentous change from persecuted cult to state religion. One of the consequences of this shift was the evolution of the role of the bishop—as the highest Church official in his city—from model Christian to model citizen. Claudia Rapp's exceptionally learned, innovative, and groundbreaking work traces this transition with a twofold aim: to deemphasize the reign of the emperor Constantine, which has traditionally been regarded as a watershed in the development of the Church as an institution, and to bring to the fore the continued importance of the religious underpinnings of the bishop's role as civic leader. Rapp rejects Max Weber’s categories of "charismatic" versus "institutional" authority that have traditionally been used to distinguish the nature of episcopal authority from that of the ascetic and holy man. Instead she proposes a model of spiritual authority, ascetic authority and pragmatic authority, in which a bishop’s visible asceticism is taken as evidence of his spiritual powers and at the same time provides the justification for his public role. In clear and graceful prose, Rapp provides a wholly fresh analysis of the changing dynamics of social mobility as played out in episcopal appointments.

Restoring Israel's Kingdom

Restoring Israel's Kingdom
Author: Angus Wootten
Publisher: Key of David Publications
Total Pages: 284
Release: 2010-03
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 9781886987043
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As followers of Israel's Messiah, have we asked the question that mattered so much to His chosen twelve? With olive groves serving as a backdrop, these fathers of our faith asked the King of Israel. Lord, is it at this time You are restoring the kingdom to Israel? (Act 1:6). Why did Y'shua's disciples, who had been trained by Him for more than three years, ask this particular question? Could it be because He had taught them to pray to our Father in Heaven, Thy Kingdom come, on earth, as it is in Heaven? (Matthew 6:10). Since we are a people dedicated to bringing Y'shua's Kingdom to this earth, we must not lose sight of the vision that burned in the hearts of His first disciples. As part of His chosen people (1 Peter 1:1; 2:9), we must not lose sight of what should be our ultimate goal. But, have we forgotten this important goal, even as we have lost sight or our heritage as part of the people of Israel? Could we be part of Ephraim/Israel--those so long ago blinded to the truth of their Israelite roots? (Genesis 48:19; Hosea 1-2; 8:8; Amos 9:9). Just as Judah is beginning to see the Messiah, is the veil likewise being lifted from our partially blinded Israelite eyes? Do we belong to Israel's olive tree in a greater way than we had previously imagined? (Isaiah 8:14; Romans 11:25; Jeremiah 31:18-19; 11:10, 16; 2: 18, 21). Is that why we are feeling a longing in our hearts for something more? If so, you will find that this exciting book will help your keep your eye on the goal, which is, the restoration of the Kingdom to the restored house of Israel.

Aristaenetus, Erotic Letters

Aristaenetus, Erotic Letters
Author:
Publisher: Society of Biblical Lit
Total Pages: 185
Release: 2014-04-15
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1589837428
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The first complete English translation of Aristaenetus in nearly three centuries Through allusion and adaption of earlier authors, Aristaenetus recounts tales that are the stuff of comedy, erotic poetry, and ancient novel. Here we read of lovers who use every trope of erotic literature to praise their beloveds in over-the-top speeches. Aristaenetus amazes us with tales of paramours hatching complicated schemes to achieve their desires, while wily go-betweens help smooth their way. He presents us with accounts of unfaithful spouses who barely avoid capture in the midst of hair-raising and amusing infidelities. This sixth century collection is perfect for anyone interested in classical and postclassical literature. Features: English translation and Greek text on facing pages Introduction with history of the text Discussion of intertextual connections with Greco-Roman authors

The Perfect Servant

The Perfect Servant
Author: Kathryn M. Ringrose
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
Total Pages: 310
Release: 2007-11-01
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 0226720160
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The Perfect Servant reevaluates the place of eunuchs in Byzantium. Kathryn Ringrose uses the modern concept of gender as a social construct to identify eunuchs as a distinct gender and to illustrate how gender was defined in the Byzantine world. At the same time she explores the changing role of the eunuch in Byzantium from 600 to 1100. Accepted for generations as a legitimate and functional part of Byzantine civilization, eunuchs were prominent in both the imperial court and the church. They were distinctive in physical appearance, dress, and manner and were considered uniquely suited for important roles in Byzantine life. Transcending conventional notions of male and female, eunuchs lived outside of normal patterns of procreation and inheritance and were assigned a unique capacity for mediating across social and spiritual boundaries. This allowed them to perform tasks from which prominent men and women were constrained, making them, in essence, perfect servants. Written with precision and meticulously researched, The Perfect Servant will immediately take its place as a major study on Byzantium and the history of gender.

The Excerpta Constantiniana and the Byzantine Appropriation of the Past

The Excerpta Constantiniana and the Byzantine Appropriation of the Past
Author: András Németh
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 353
Release: 2018-10-11
Genre: History
ISBN: 1108423639
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Presents the first comprehensive study of the 'Byzantine Google' and how it reshaped Byzantine court culture in the tenth century.