Pagan Monotheism in Late Antiquity

Pagan Monotheism in Late Antiquity PDF Author: Polymnia Athanassiadi
Publisher: OUP Oxford
ISBN: 0191541451
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 221

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Book Description
In this book distinguished experts from a range of disciplines (Orientalists, philologists, philosophers, theologians and historians) address a central problem which lies at the heart of the religious and philosophical debate of late antiquity. Paganism was not a unified tradition and consequently the papers cover a wide social and intellectual spectrum. Particular emphasis is given to several aspects of the topic: first, monotheistic belief in late antique philosophical ideals and its roots in classical antiquity and the Near East; second, monistic Gnosticism; third, the revelatory tradition as expressed in oracular literature; and finally, the monotheistic trend in popular religion.

Pagan Monotheism in Late Antiquity

Pagan Monotheism in Late Antiquity PDF Author: Polymnia Athanassiadi
Publisher: OUP Oxford
ISBN: 0191541451
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 221

Get Book

Book Description
In this book distinguished experts from a range of disciplines (Orientalists, philologists, philosophers, theologians and historians) address a central problem which lies at the heart of the religious and philosophical debate of late antiquity. Paganism was not a unified tradition and consequently the papers cover a wide social and intellectual spectrum. Particular emphasis is given to several aspects of the topic: first, monotheistic belief in late antique philosophical ideals and its roots in classical antiquity and the Near East; second, monistic Gnosticism; third, the revelatory tradition as expressed in oracular literature; and finally, the monotheistic trend in popular religion.

Monotheism Between Pagans and Christians in Late Antiquity

Monotheism Between Pagans and Christians in Late Antiquity PDF Author: Stephen Mitchell
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Christianity and other religions
Languages : en
Pages : 236

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Book Description
This volume studies how similarities between paganism and Christianity were obscured in the polemic that was waged by Christianity against paganism and in the pagan responses to it.

Pagan Monotheism in Late Antiquity

Pagan Monotheism in Late Antiquity PDF Author: Polymnia Athanassiadi
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages :

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Book Description


One God

One God PDF Author: Stephen Mitchell
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 9780521194167
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 250

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Book Description
Graeco-Roman religion in its classic form was polytheistic; on the other hand, monotheistic ideas enjoyed wide currency in ancient philosophy. This contradiction provides a challenge for our understanding of ancient pagan religion. Certain forms of cult activity, including acclamations of 'one god' and the worship of theos hypsistos, the highest god, have sometimes been interpreted as evidence for pagan monotheism. This book discusses pagan monotheism in its philosophical and intellectual context, traces the evolution of new religious ideas in the time of the Roman empire, and evaluates the usefulness of the term 'monotheism' as a way of understanding these developments in later antiquity outside the context of Judaism and Christianity. In doing so, it establishes a framework for understanding the relationship between polytheistic and monotheistic religious cultures between the first and fourth centuries AD.

One God

One God PDF Author: Stephen Mitchell
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1139488147
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages :

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Book Description
Graeco-Roman religion in its classic form was polytheistic; on the other hand, monotheistic ideas enjoyed wide currency in ancient philosophy. This contradiction provides a challenge for our understanding of ancient pagan religion. Certain forms of cult activity, including acclamations of 'one god' and the worship of theos hypsistos, the highest god, have sometimes been interpreted as evidence for pagan monotheism. This book discusses pagan monotheism in its philosophical and intellectual context, traces the evolution of new religious ideas in the time of the Roman empire, and evaluates the usefulness of the term 'monotheism' as a way of understanding these developments in later antiquity outside the context of Judaism and Christianity. In doing so, it establishes a framework for understanding the relationship between polytheistic and monotheistic religious cultures between the first and fourth centuries AD.

The End of Sacrifice

The End of Sacrifice PDF Author: Susan Emanuel
Publisher: ReadHowYouWant.com
ISBN: 1459627520
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 234

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Book Description
The religious transformations that marked late antiquity represent an enigma that has challenged some of the West's greatest thinkers. But, according to Guy Stroumsa, the oppositions between paganism and Christianity that characterize prevailing theories have endured for too long. Instead of describing this epochal change as an evolution within ...

Empire to Commonwealth

Empire to Commonwealth PDF Author: Garth Fowden
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 140084424X
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 226

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Book Description
In this bold approach to late antiquity, Garth Fowden shows how, from the second-century peak of Rome's prosperity to the ninth-century onset of the Islamic Empire's decline, powerful beliefs in One God were used to justify and strengthen "world empires." But tensions between orthodoxy and heresy that were inherent in monotheism broke the unitary empires of Byzantium and Baghdad into the looser, more pluralistic commonwealths of Eastern Christendom and Islam. With rare breadth of vision, Fowden traces this transition from empire to commonwealth, and in the process exposes the sources of major cultural contours that still play a determining role in Europe and southwest Asia.

A Companion to Religion in Late Antiquity

A Companion to Religion in Late Antiquity PDF Author: Josef Lössl
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 1118968107
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 711

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Book Description
A comprehensive review of the development, geographic spread, and cultural influence of religion in Late Antiquity A Companion to Religion in Late Antiquity offers an authoritative and comprehensive survey of religion in Late Antiquity. This historical era spanned from the second century to the eighth century of the Common Era. With contributions from leading scholars in the field, the Companion explores the evolution and development of religion and the role various religions played in the cultural, political, and social transformations of the late antique period. The authors examine the theories and methods used in the study of religion during this period, consider the most notable historical developments, and reveal how religions spread geographically. The authors also review the major religious traditions that emerged in Late Antiquity and include reflections on the interaction of these religions within their particular societies and cultures. This important Companion: Brings together in one volume the work of a notable team of international scholars Explores the principal geographical divisions of the late antique world Offers a deep examination of the predominant religions of Late Antiquity Examines established views in the scholarly assessment of the religions of Late Antiquity Includes information on the current trends in late-antique scholarship on religion Written for scholars and students of religion, A Companion to Religion in Late Antiquity offers a comprehensive survey of religion and the influence religion played in the culture, politics, and social change during the late antique period.

The Archaeology of Late Antique 'Paganism'

The Archaeology of Late Antique 'Paganism' PDF Author:
Publisher: BRILL
ISBN: 9004210393
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 709

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Book Description
This collection of papers, arising from the conference series Late Antique Archaeology, examines the archaeology of 'paganism' in late antiquity. Papers explore the end of the temples, the nature of ritual deposits, the fate of religious statues and the iconography in material culutre. These are complemented by two extensive bibliographic essays.

Christians, Gnostics and Philosophers in Late Antiquity

Christians, Gnostics and Philosophers in Late Antiquity PDF Author: Mark Edwards
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 135121912X
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 494

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Book Description
Gnosticism, Christianity and late antique philosophy are often studied separately; when studied together they are too often conflated. These articles set out to show that we misunderstand all three phenomena if we take either approach. We cannot interpret, or even identify, Christian Gnosticism without Platonic evidence; we may even discover that Gnosticism throws unexpected light on the Platonic imagination. At the same time, if we read writers like Origen simply as Christian Platonists, or bring Christians and philosophers together under the porous umbrella of "monotheism", we ignore fundamental features of both traditions. To grasp what made Christianity distinctive, we must look at the questions asked in the studies here, not merely what Christians appropriated but how it was appropriated. What did the pagan gods mean to a Christian poet of the fifth century? What did Paul quote when he thought he was quoting Greek poetry? What did Socrates mean to the Christians, and can we trust their memories when they appeal to lost fragments of the Presocratics? When pagans accuse the Christians of moral turpitude, do they know more or less about them than we do? What divides Augustine, the disenchanted Platonist, from his Neoplatonic contemporaries? And what God or gods await the Neoplatonist when he dies?