Christian martyrdom in late antiquity (300-450 ad) : history and discourse, tradition and religious identity /

The present volume s focus lies on the formation of a multifaccetted discourse on Christian martyrdom in Late Antiquity. While martyrdom accounts remain a central means of defining Christian identity, new literary genres emerge, e.g., the Lives of Saints (Athanasius on Antony), sermons (the Cappadoc...

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Bibliographic Details
Corporate Authors: De Gruyter.
Group Author: Gemeinhardt, Peter.; Leemans, Johan.
Published: De Gruyter,
Publisher Address: Berlin :
Publication Dates: [2012]
Literature type: eBook
Language: English
Series: Arbeiten zur kirchengeschichte ; 116
Subjects:
Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1515/9783110263527
http://www.degruyter.com/doc/cover/9783110263527.jpg
Summary: The present volume s focus lies on the formation of a multifaccetted discourse on Christian martyrdom in Late Antiquity. While martyrdom accounts remain a central means of defining Christian identity, new literary genres emerge, e.g., the Lives of Saints (Athanasius on Antony), sermons (the Cappadocians), hynms (Prudentius) and more. Authors like Eusebius of Caesarea and Augustine employ martyrological language and motifs in their apologetical and polemic writings, while the Gesta Martyrum Romanorum represent a new type of veneration of the martyrs of a single site. Beyond the borders of the Roman Empire, new martyrs narratives can be found. Additionally, two essays deal with methodological questions of research of such sources, thereby highlighting the hitherto understudied innovations of martyrology in Late Antiquity, that is, after the end of the persecutions of Christianity by Roman Emperors. Since then, martyrology gained new importance for the formation of Christian identity within the context of a Christianized imperium. The volume thus enlarges and specifies our knowledge of this fundamental Christian discourse.
Carrier Form: 1 online resource (265pages).
ISBN: 9783110263527(electronic bk.)
Index Number: BR1604
CLC: B979
Contents: Frontmatter --
Contents --
Christian Martyrdom in Late Antiquity: Some Introductory Perspectives --
A. General Questions --
Early Christian Hagiography and the Roman Historian --
Zur Entstehung der M rtyrerlegende --
B. Greek Hagiography --
Author and Authority: Literary Representations of Moral Authority in Eusebius of Caesarea's The Martyrs of Palestine --
Vita Antonii oder Passio Antonii? Biographisches Genre und martyrologische Topik in der ersten Asketenvita --
Gregor von Nyssa ber die Vierzig und den ersten M rtyrer (Stephanus) --
C. Latin Martyrology --
Christliche M rtyrer als Tr ger r mischer Identit t. Das Peristephanon des Prudentius und sein kultureller Kontext --
Augustine's Homiletic Definition of Martyrdom. The Centrality of the Martyr's Grace in his Anti-Donatist and Anti-Pelagian Sermones ad Populum --
"Eloquia Divina Populis Legere": Bible, Apologetics and Asceticism in the Passio Pollionis --
D. Crossing Borders --
The Martyrdom of Sabas the Goth: History, Hagiography and Identity --
Der Tod des Einsiedlers f r einen Verbrecher beim heiligen Isaak von Ninive und im Liber Graduum: Ein neues Zeugnis f r die M rtyrer der Liebe ? --
List of Contributors --
Index