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Author: John Holland Smith
Publisher: New York : Scribner
ISBN:
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 296
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Book Description
Author: John Holland Smith
Publisher: New York : Scribner
ISBN:
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 296
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Book Description
Author: Stephen Benko
Publisher: Indiana University Press
ISBN: 9780253203854
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 198
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Book Description
"In the early Roman empire, Christians were seen by pagans as overthrowers of ancient gods and destroyers of the prevailing social order. Allegations that Christians recognized each other by secret marks, met at night and made love to one another indiscriminately, worshipped the head of an ass and the genitals of their high priests, and ate children were widely believed. In examining these charges and the Christian response to them, Benko has provided a persuasively argued and refreshing, if controversial, perspective on the confrontation of the pagan and early Christian worlds."[book cover].
Author: Alan Cameron
Publisher: OUP USA
ISBN: 019974727X
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 891
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Book Description
Rufinus' vivid account of the battle between the Eastern Emperor Theodosius and the Western usurper Eugenius by the River Frigidus in 394 represents it as the final confrontation between paganism and Christianity. It is indeed widely believed that a largely pagan aristocracy remained a powerful and active force well into the fifth century, sponsoring pagan literary circles, patronage of the classics, and propaganda for the old cults in art and literature. The main focus of much modern scholarship on the end of paganism in the West has been on its supposed stubborn resistance to Christianity. The dismantling of this romantic myth is one of the main goals of Alan Cameron's book. Actually, the book argues, Western paganism petered out much earlier and more rapidly than hitherto assumed.The subject of this book is not the conversion of the last pagans but rather the duration, nature, and consequences of their survival. By re-examining the abundant textual evidence, both Christian (Ambrose, Augustine, Jerome, Paulinus, Prudentius) and "pagan" (Claudian, Macrobius, and Ammianus Marcellinus), as well as the visual evidence (ivory diptychs, illuminated manuscripts, silverware), Cameron shows that most of the activities and artifacts previously identified as hallmarks of a pagan revival were in fact just as important to the life of cultivated Christians. Far from being a subversive activity designed to rally pagans, the acceptance of classical literature, learning, and art by most elite Christians may actually have helped the last reluctant pagans to finally abandon the old cults and adopt Christianity. The culmination of decades of research, The Last Pagans of Rome will overturn many long-held assumptions about pagan and Christian culture in the late antique West.
Author: Catherine Nixey
Publisher: HarperCollins
ISBN: 0544800931
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 373
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Book Description
A New York Times Notable Book, winner of the Jerwood Award from the Royal Society of Literature, a New York Times Book Review Editors’ Choice, and named a Book of the Year by the Telegraph, Spectator, Observer, and BBC History Magazine, this bold new history of the rise of Christianity shows how its radical followers helped to annihilate Greek and Roman civilizations. The Darkening Age is the largely unknown story of how a militant religion deliberately attacked and suppressed the teachings of the Classical world, ushering in centuries of unquestioning adherence to "one true faith." Despite the long-held notion that the early Christians were meek and mild, going to their martyrs' deaths singing hymns of love and praise, the truth, as Catherine Nixey reveals, is very different. Far from being meek and mild, they were violent, ruthless, and fundamentally intolerant. Unlike the polytheistic world, in which the addition of one new religion made no fundamental difference to the old ones, this new ideology stated not only that it was the way, the truth, and the light but that, by extension, every single other way was wrong and had to be destroyed. From the first century to the sixth, those who didn't fall into step with its beliefs were pursued in every possible way: social, legal, financial, and physical. Their altars were upturned and their temples demolished, their statues hacked to pieces, and their priests killed. It was an annihilation. Authoritative, vividly written, and utterly compelling, this is a remarkable debut from a brilliant young historian.
Author: H. C. Teitler
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 019062650X
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 313
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Book Description
Flavius Claudius Julianus was the last pagan to sit on the Roman imperial throne (361-363). Born in Constantinople in 331 or 332, Julian was raised as a Christian, but apostatized, and during his short reign tried to revive paganism, which, after the conversion to Christianity of his uncle Constantine the Great early in the fourth century, began losing ground at an accelerating pace. Having become an orphan when he was still very young, Julian was taken care of by his cousin Constantius II, one of Constantine's sons, who permitted him to study rhetoric and philosophy and even made him co-emperor in 355. But the relations between Julian and Constantius were strained from the beginning, and it was only Constantius' sudden death in 361 which prevented an impending civil war. As sole emperor, Julian restored the worship of the traditional gods. He opened pagan temples again, reintroduced animal sacrifices, and propagated paganism through both the spoken and the written word. In his treatise Against the Galilaeans he sharply criticised the religion of the followers of Jesus whom he disparagingly called 'Galilaeans'. He put his words into action, and issued laws which were displeasing to Christians--the most notorious being his School Edict. This provoked the anger of the Christians, who reacted fiercely, and accused Julian of being a persecutor like his predecessors Nero, Decius, and Diocletian. Violent conflicts between pagans and Christians made themselves felt all over the empire. It is disputed whether or not Julian himself was behind such outbursts. Accusations against the Apostate continued to be uttered even after the emperor's early death. In this book, the feasibility of such charges is examined.
Author: Jonathan Kirsch
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 1440626588
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 353
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Book Description
"Lively… points out that the conflict between the worship of many gods and the worship of one true god never disappeared." —Publishers Weekly "Jonathan Kirsch has written another blockbuster about the Bible and its world." —David Noel Freedman, Editor-in-Chief of the Anchor Bible Project "Kirsch tackles the central issue bedeviling the world today - religious intolerance… A timely book, well-written and researched." —Leonard Shlain, author of The Alphabet and the Goddess and Sex, Time and Power "An intriguing read." —The Jerusalem Report "A timely tale about the importance of religious tolerance in today’s world." —San Francisco Chronicle "Kirsch is a fine storyteller with a flair for rendering ancient tales relevant and appealing." —The Washington Post
Author:
Publisher: BRILL
ISBN: 9004210393
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 709
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Book Description
There is no agreement over how to name the 'pagan' cults of late antiquity. Clearly they were more diverse than this Christian label suggests, but also exhibited tendencies towards monotheism and internal changes which makes it difficult to describe them as 'traditional cults'. This volume, which includes two extensive bibliographic essays, considers the decline of urban temples alongside the varying evolution of other focii of cult practice and identity. The papers reveal great regional diversity in the development of late antique paganism, and suggest that the time has come to abandon a single compelling narrative of 'the end of the temples' based on legal sources and literary accounts. Although temple destructions are attested, in some regions the end of paganism was both gradual and untraumatic, with more co-existence with Christianity than one might have expected. Contributors are Javier Arce, Béatrice Caseau, Georgios Deligiannakis, Koen Demarsin, Jitse H.F. Dijkstra, Demetrios Eliopoulos, James Gerrard, Penelope J. Goodman, David Gwynn, Luke Lavan, Michael Mulryan, Helen G. Saradi, Eberhard W. Sauer, Gareth Sears, Peter Talloen, Peter Van Nuffelen and Lies Vercauteren.
Author: Ramsay MacMullen
Publisher: Yale University Press
ISBN: 9780300029840
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 264
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Book Description
"MacMullen...has published several books in recent years which establish him, rightfully, as a leading social historian of the Roman Empire. The current volume exhibits many of the characteristics of its predecessors: the presentation of novel, revisionist points of view...; discrete set pieces of trenchant argument which do not necessarily conform to the boundaries of traditional history; and an impressive, authoritative, and up-to-date documentation, especially rich in primary sources...A stimulating and provocative discourse on Roman paganism as a phenomenon worthy of synthetic investigation in its own right and as the fundamental context for the rise of Christianity.”--Richard Brilliant, History "MacMullen’s latest work represents many features of paganism in its social context more vividly and clearly than ever before.”--Fergus Millar, American Historical Review "The major cults...are examined from a social and cultural perspective and with the aid of many recently published specialized studies...Students of the Roman Empire...should read this book.”--Robert J, Penella, Classical World "A distinguished book with much exact observation...An indispensable mine of erudition on a grand theme.” Henry Chadwick, Times Literary Supplement Ramsay MacMullen is Dunham Professor of History and Classics at Yale University and the author of Roman Government’s Response to Crisis, A.D. 235-337 and Roman Social Relations, 50 B.C. to A.D. 284
Author: Gerald J. Galgan
Publisher: University Press of America
ISBN: 9780819188762
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 276
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Book Description
Michael and Carolyn's eyes locked. She was the most beautiful women he had ever seen. The Chronic he just blazed in the car might of influenced him a bit but in that moment he was completely enchanted. Carolyn's longing stare told him loud and clear that the attraction was mutual. If it were not for Carolyn's evil, demon possessed, homicidal boyfriend, that Michael inadvertently kills moments later, their chance encounter would have been fortuitous. Unfortunately evil had other ideas, take another host and continue it's killing spree and frame it's new friend... It's a great time A fast paced, page turning, twisted, erotic, supernatural thriller It's a great time A fast paced, hot, erotic, supernatural thriller EXCERPT: It was very dark, almost pitch black. I couldn't hear a thing, except for my heavy breathing. I was a bit nervous. I had never been in a situation like this before. The little room had the smell of old pine wood and body odor, my body odor. There wasn't any kind of air circulation in there and it was getting hotter by the moment. The only light came from the concealment screen that separated me from the priest. "Forgive me Father for I have sinned. It's been about fifteen years since my last confession." Maybe longer. "Very well, what is your confession?" The Father asked sounding half asleep. "Father I'm afraid I've done a very bad thing and I think I'm going to hell." "I see. Well my son, God weighs all sins equal and he died on the cross to take away all of our sins. All he asked for, is for you to ask for forgiveness." "I understand that. I also need some guidance." "Okay, let's start from the beginning then. Tell me your confession." "Okay Father. I'll tell you but parts of the story are a little embarrassing to admit, especially to a Priest." "Don't worry about that, you need to purge your soul, tell me everything." "Okay." It all started when I was driving through Texas. After losing my job six months ago. I've been making ends meet by helping a friend transport illegal narcotics across country, marijuana to be specific. Legal marijuana from California is in high demand on the East Coast. I transported it to a distributor in North Carolina. I was on my way back to So-Cal. I usually take HWY 40 to and from. It's the fastest route and it's clear of highway checkpoints, going out of California anyway. I made that trip four other times and I was getting a bit bored of the route, so I decided to take Interstate 10. I was driving through the long desolate part of Texas, the vast emptiness in between Houston and El Paso. The valleys were so vast that if someone dropped a nuke while you were in one there's a good chance they'd miss. I had half a tank of gas when I stopped at a BP for a fill up. With gas stations one hundred miles apart, I didn't want to chance it. After pumping my gas, I went inside for a Red Bull and a Snickers bar. That's where I saw Jezebel and it all started. "Jezebel? Was that the name she gave you or the name you gave her?" I must of stimulated a nerve. The Priest sounded interested all of a sudden. "That's the name she gave me, but not until later." Anyhow when I entered the BP's convenience store, Jezebel was leaning over the counter. She was pointing to her brand of cigarettes, Marlboro Special Blend Black. I don't know what the breakdown in communication was but the Middle Eastern attendant kept grabbing the wrong pack. Jezebel was quite the spectacle with her sun bleached blond hair, long, tan, toned, sexy legs. Her rear was firm and full in her Daisy Dukes. She was just so curvaceous and hot. At least her backside was. I was entranced, I couldn't see anything else, I was completely engrossed. I usually would have been satisfied with a glance and a few peaks while I was shopping or at check out but not this time. It was probably due to the joint I just finished off in the parking lot.
Author: Brian Griffith
Publisher: Brian Griffith
ISBN: 1432717596
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 510
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Book Description
Griffiths narrative moves like a searchlight over each phase of church history, illuminating the visions, options, and choices behind events. He traces the rise of a dominator version of Christianity, in which the primary concern was a chain of command to be followed, with rewards or punishments according to the degree of obedience. And beside this he illuminates another face of Christianity, concerned with healing all divisions between loved and unloved people. The story Griffith presents is often deeply disturbing, as in his unstinting accounts concerning the gospel for women , or the age of holy wars and witch hunts. But ultimately his story offers solid grounds for optimism. He shows that all contention between different religious visions can be a process of building partnership. As Griffith points out, Jesus himself wished to debate his opponents openly, not to silence or eliminate them. He was not afraid of real encounter, or the potential of creative conflict.I want to congratulate Brian Griffith on this masterful, controversial, and highly readable account. His book offers hope in a divided world, where reaction against globalized godless corporate secularism meets with a war on religious fundamentalism . I hope to see other writers do comparable work in highlighting the partnership and dominator visions within their religious traditions around the world. Riane Eisler, author of The Chalice & the Blade, Sacred Pleasure, Tomorrows Children, The Power of Partnership, The Real Wealth of Nations"I find it gives me an incredibly clarifying perspective on Christianity way beyond my previous understanding. It should be read by everyone with an interest in Western Civilization. It is a marvelous companion to The Great Turning." David Korten, author of The Great Turning: From Empire to Earth Community
