Debating the saints' cults in the age of Gregory the Great /
"This book argues that the Dialogues on the Miracles of the Italian Fathers, Pope Gregory the Great's (590-604) most controversial work, should be considered from the perspective of a wide-ranging debate about the saints which took place in early Byzantine society. Like other contemporary...
| Main Author: | |
|---|---|
| Other Authors: | |
| Format: | eBook |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Oxford :
Oxford University Press,
2012.
|
| Edition: | 1st ed. |
| Series: | Oxford studies in Byzantium.
|
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | Connect to the full text of this electronic book |
| Summary: | "This book argues that the Dialogues on the Miracles of the Italian Fathers, Pope Gregory the Great's (590-604) most controversial work, should be considered from the perspective of a wide-ranging debate about the saints which took place in early Byzantine society. Like other contemporary works in Greek and Syriac, Gregory's Latin text debated the nature and plausibility of the saints' miracles and the propriety of the saints' cult. Rather than viewing the early Byzantine world as overwhelmingly pious or credulous, the book argues that many contemporaries questioned and challenged the claims of hagiographers and other promoters of the saints' miracles. From Italy to the heart of the Persian Empire at Ctesiphon, a healthy, sceptical, rationalism remained alive and well. The book's conclusion argues that doubt towards the saints reflected a current of political dissent in the East Roman or early Byzantine Empire, where patronage of Christian saints' shrines was used to sanction imperial autocracy. These far-reaching debates about religion and authority also help re-contextualize the emergence of Islam in the late ancient Near East" -- |
|---|---|
| Physical Description: | 1 online resource (xii, 399 pages) : illustrations. |
| Bibliography: | Includes bibliographical references and index. |
| ISBN: | 9780191626371 0191626376 9780199949939 019994993X |