The Scriptural Universe of Ancient Christianity / Guy G. Stroumsa.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Stroumsa, Guy G., author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Sacred books--History and criticism.

Sacred books.

Church history--Primitive and early church, ca. 30-600.

Church history.

Christianity and other religions.

Books--Religious aspects--Christianity.

Books.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (193 pages)

Place of Publication:

Cambridge, MA : Harvard University Press, [2017]

Language Note:

In English.

Summary:

The passage of texts from scroll to codex created a revolution in the religious life of late antiquity. It played a decisive role in the Roman Empire’s conversion to Christianity and eventually enabled the worldwide spread of Christian faith. The Scriptural Universe of Ancient Christianity describes how canonical scripture was established and how scriptural interpretation replaced blood sacrifice as the central element of religious ritual. Perhaps more than any other cause, Guy G. Stroumsa argues, the codex converted the Roman Empire from paganism to Christianity. The codex permitted a mode of religious transmission across vast geographical areas, as sacred texts and commentaries circulated in book translations within and beyond Roman borders. Although sacred books had existed in ancient societies, they were now invested with a new aura and a new role at the core of religious ceremony. Once the holy book became central to all aspects of religious experience, the floodgates were opened for Greek and Latin texts to be reimagined and repurposed as proto-Christian. Most early Christian theologians did not intend to erase Greek and Roman cultural traditions; they were content to selectively adopt the texts and traditions they deemed valuable and compatible with the new faith, such as Platonism. The new cultura christiana emerging in late antiquity would eventually become the backbone of European identity.

Contents:

Frontmatter

Contents

Introduction: A Double Paradigm Shift

1. A Scriptural Galaxy

2. A Divine Palimpsest

3. Religious Revolution and Cultural Change

4. Scripture and Culture

5. The New Self and Reading Practices

6. Communities of Knowledge

7. Eastern Wisdoms

8. A World Full of Letters

9. Scriptural and Personal Authority

Conclusion: Alexandria, Jerusalem, Baghdad

Notes

Acknowledgments

Index

Notes:

Includes index.

Description based on online resource; title from PDF title page (publisher's Web site, viewed Feb. 24, 2017)

ISBN:

9780674974869

0674974867

9780674974883

0674974883

OCLC:

984592533