A decorated bronze censer from a cathedral in Old Dongola

2018 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
pp. 773-780
Author(s):  
Maciej Wyżgoł
Keyword(s):  
Byzantine Empire ◽  
Late Antique ◽  
Metal Working ◽  
Production Technique ◽  
Trade Relations ◽  
Medieval Nubia ◽  
The Church ◽  
Insight Into

A bronze censer found in the Church of Brick Pillars in Old Dongola in 1968 provides unique insight into the role of such liturgical vessels in medieval Nubia. In this new study of the iconography and production technique of this vessel, coupled with an epigraphical analysis of the Greek and Old Nubian inscription around the edge, the author suggests that the vessel was crafted by Makurian craftsmen sometime in the first few hundred years after the conversion of the Nubian kingdoms to Christianity (in the 6th or 7th century AD). Seeking sources of inspiration for the Dongolan masters of the metal-working craft, the author looks to the Byzantine Empire, where close parallels for the decoration of the Nubian censer can be found in late antique silver objects. This leads to a discussion of trade relations between the Byzantine Empire and the Kingdom of Makuria, and the possible exchange of official gifts.

scholarly journals Тајна врлине у Јермином Пастиру и њена улога у изграђивању Цркве и спасењу човека

2021 ◽  
Vol LIV (3) ◽  
pp. 393-410
Author(s):  
Његош Стикић
Keyword(s):  
New Testament ◽  
New Genus ◽  
Son Of God ◽  
Early Christian ◽  
The New Testament ◽  
Unique Identity ◽  
The Church ◽  
Multidimensional Process ◽  
Insight Into

The intention of the author is to provide a more systematic, not exhaustive, insight into the mystical meaning, place, and role of virtue in the economy of salvation, based on the revelation recorded in the early Christian writing of the New Testament prophet and apostle Hermas – The Shepherd. The author locates the place of virtue in the realism of simultaneous and interdependent building of salvation (of man) and building of the Church as a unique (multidimensional) process. Like very few paternal writings, the Shepherd gives us an explicit conclusion that the virtues are the ones that “hold” and build the Church, “dressing” the faithful in the “clothes,” “powers” and Name of the Son of God. By “dressing” in virtues, Christians achieve that “in the likeness,” they are likened to Christ, thus becoming similar and compatible to each other, thus gaining, as a new genus, a one unique identity. That is why the Church, which is being built as the Tower of Salvation, is composed of a multitude, by repentance and virtue shaped and ennobled elects (stones), manifesting itself, thus, in a „monolithic“ building, monochromatic white, as from one carved stone. For this reason, the paper aims to re– evaluate the ontological connection of virtue with the Church (ecclesiology).

History, Eschatology, and the Development of the Six Ages of the World

Augustinianum ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 61 (1) ◽  
pp. 181-206
Author(s):  
John Joseph Gallagher ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Late Antiquity ◽  
Late Antique ◽  
Church Fathers ◽  
Augustine Of Hippo ◽  
Salvation History ◽  
Early Christian ◽  
The World ◽  
English Speaking ◽  
The Church

The sex aetates mundi constituted the defining framework for understanding biblical and salvation history in the Early Christian and Late Antique worlds. The origins of the idea that history can be divided into six epochs, each lasting roughly a thousand years, are commonly attributed to Augustine of Hippo. Although Augustine’s engagement with this notion significantly influenced its later popularity due to the prolific circulation of his works, he was by no means the sole progenitor of this concept. This bipartite study undertakes the first conspectus in English-speaking scholarship to date of the origins and evolution of the sex aetates mundi. Part I of this study traces the early origins of historiographical periodisation in writings from classical and biblical antiquity, taking account in particular of the role of numerology and notions of historical eras that are present in biblical texts. Expressions of the world ages in the writings of the Church Fathers are then traced in detail. Due consideration is afforded to attendant issues that influenced the six ages, including calendrical debates concerning the age of the world and the evolution of eschatological, apocalyptic, and millenarian thought. Overall, this article surveys the myriad intellectual and exegetical currents that converged in Early Christianity and Late Antiquity to create this sixfold historiographical and theological framework. The first instalment of this study lays the groundwork for understanding Augustine’s engagement with this motif in his writings, which is treated in Part II.

A “Divine Sanction” on the Revolt: The Cult of St. Demetrius of Thessalonica and the Uprising of Peter and Asen (1185–1186)

2012 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
pp. 113-126
Author(s):  
Anastasia Dobyčina
Keyword(s):  
Sacred Space ◽  
Byzantine Empire ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
Main Emphasis ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Church

The paper examines the role of the cult of St. Demetrius of Thessalonica as a tool of maintaining legitimacy of the anti-Byzantine revolt in Tărnovo, 1185–1186, led by brothers Theodore-Peter and Asen-Belgun, which is viewed in the modern scholarship as a starting point of the history of the so-called Second Bulgarian Empire. Apart from the peculiarities of the official and popular veneration of St. Demetrius in Byzantium by the end of the 12th C., the main emphasis is made on the celebration, arranged in Tărnovo on St. Demetrius’ day, 1185, by Peter and Asen. The fact of the construction there of a special house of prayer in the name of the all-praised martyr Demetrius (Nicetas Choniates) and the presence of a certain icon of the saint as well as, probably, that of his relic, shedding the holy ointment, can be interpreted in terms of the concept of “hierotopy”, introduced recently by A. Lidov. At any rate, one can speak of attempting to replicate in Tărnovo the sacred space of the Thessalonican shrine of St. Demetrius in order to convince the Bulgarian rebels of the “true” presence of St. Demetrius among them. The parallel is drawn between the celebration in Tărnovo and another well-known “hierotopic project” of the late 12th cent., performed by prince Vsevolod III in Vladimir-on-Kljaz’ma, Russia, which also encompassed the construction of the church in the name of St. Demetrius, where his miracle- working relics from Thessalonica were housed. The similarity between the two “projects“ is obvious, but they must have been inspired by clearly different causes: if Vsevolod III tried only to raise the authority of his power to that of the grand princedom, being an absolutely legitimate ruler, then Peter and Asen had to justify the legitimacy of their own, questioning that of the Byzantine Empire.

Hugo Grotius in Dialogue with His Colleagues

Grotiana ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 38 (1) ◽  
pp. 148-175
Author(s):  
Lydia Janssen
Keyword(s):  
Early Modern ◽  
Critical Discourse Analysis ◽  
Critical Discourse ◽  
Late Antique ◽  
Historical Evidence ◽  
Hugo Grotius ◽  
Image Building ◽  
Set Up ◽  
Insight Into

In his Historia Gotthorum (1655), Hugo Grotius set up a Swedish ‘Gothic myth’, a powerful historiographical construct aimed at increasing Swedish prestige by identifying the ancient Swedish as the forebears of the late antique Goths, Vandals and Lombards. Entering into dialogue with fellow historiographers was vital to this venture. The ‘Prolegomena’ to Historia Gotthorum are accordingly marked by an extensive polemical dimension. A critical discourse analysis of both explicit and hidden polemics in this text reveals a clever combination of scholarly argumentation on the basis of historical evidence and strategic image-building to convince the reader. Furthermore, Grotius regularly drew on the works of contemporary colleagues for his historical evidence. The present article sheds light on the various argumentation strategies deployed in the ‘Prolegomena’ to Historia Gotthorum and the role of early modern historiographical texts as treasure troves of historical knowledge. This not only offers further insight into Grotius’s historiographical practice, but also provides an excellent example of how early modern historical writers interacted with the texts of their immediate colleagues.

scholarly journals The role of the Institute for Missiological and Ecumenical Research in the past and present

2009 ◽  
Vol 30 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Attie Van Niekerk
Keyword(s):  
Dutch Reformed ◽  
African Society ◽  
The Past ◽  
Reformed Church ◽  
Missionary Movement ◽  
The University ◽  
The Church ◽  
Insight Into ◽  
Comprehensive Study

IMER, the Institute for Missiological and Ecumenical Research, was initiated in 1979, when the 20th century missionary movement in the Dutch Reformed Church had already started to unravel. IMER�s history gives us insight into these events. IMER has focused on the missionary calling of the church and on guiding the church in its broad responsibility to Southern African society. IMER conducted a comprehensive study on the unfinished task in the eighties, from which a variety of other projects followed. The understanding of the task of mission has gradually broadened to include the church�s responsibility to the whole of life, with faith in Christ at the centre. However, as funding for the missionary movement diminished and the university had to cut down on expenses, funding for IMER dried up. IMER is now in the same position as mission itself, and even many congregations: it has to be innovative and find new structures and new sources of funding to respond to the challenges of a new century.�

„Mein Gott, mein Gott, zu dir erhebe ich mich in der Früh‟ – Zwei Psalmpassagen in Inschriften aus Tyros und in der patristischen Tradition

2015 ◽  
Vol 69 (3) ◽  
pp. 229-255
Author(s):  
Andreas Victor Walser
Keyword(s):  
Jesus Christ ◽  
Late Antique ◽  
Early Christian ◽  
Christian Literature ◽  
The One ◽  
The Church

A revision of several painted inscriptions discovered in a late antique chamber tomb in Tyre shows that they recorded verses from two Psalms (3, 6 and 62, 2-3), both not otherwise attested epigraphically. The article subsequently examines how these verses were received and interpreted in early Christian literature and by the Greek Fathers of the Church: The popular verse 6 of Psalm 3, with its reference to sleep and awakening, was understood by most—but not all—commentators as a reference to the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The less famous first verses of Psalm 62 were usually just read as an expression of the longing for God. The juxtaposition of these two Psalms, which share the liturgical role of Morning Psalms, suggests that the verses from Psalm 62 as well as the one from Psalm 3 were understood as referring to the resurrection and used to express the deceased’s belief in salvation.

Pioneer Workers, Invaluable Helpmeets, Good Mothers

2014 ◽  
Vol 27 (2-3) ◽  
pp. 163-191
Author(s):  
Helga Harnes
Keyword(s):  
Role Expectations ◽  
Job Descriptions ◽  
Time Period ◽  
Individual Woman ◽  
English Society ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Changing Role ◽  
The Church ◽  
Insight Into

This article explores the role of 20th century missionary wives by the examples of six women in the Church Missionary Society (CMS). It offers complexity to a gendered analysis, as well as insight into a time period, c. 1900–c. 1960, which is only beginning to attract attention from researchers of this field. Through the lens of life course theories, the sources reveal official ideals and personal interpretations related to the transitions of marriage and motherhood, and point to motherhood as a turning point. The discussion demonstrates changing role expectations, from an emphasis on wives’ contribution through the companionate missionary marriage towards individual job descriptions and domesticity for wives. However, the women responded differently to the expectations, and the analysis emphasises how the agency of the women was enabled or limited by the timing of transitions. The article positions the individual woman in her immediate context, and in the CMS and wider English society, and search to reveal the interplay of the agents and these structures.

Insight into the role of amines in Metal Working Fluids

2016 ◽  
Vol 110 ◽  
pp. 192-199 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Lotierzo ◽  
V. Pifferi ◽  
S. Ardizzone ◽  
P. Pasqualin ◽  
G. Cappelletti
Keyword(s):  
Metal Working ◽  
Working Fluids ◽  
Insight Into

Egypt under Muʿāwiya Part I: Flavius Papas and Upper Egypt

2009 ◽  
Vol 72 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-24 ◽  
Author(s):  
Clive Foss
Keyword(s):  
Documentary Evidence ◽  
Upper Egypt ◽  
Economic Role ◽  
Local Official ◽  
Local Officials ◽  
The Church ◽  
Insight Into ◽  
The Way

AbstractPapyri from Egypt constitute the largest body of contemporary documentary evidence for the reign of Muʿāwiya. Most notable among them are the 107 texts in the archive of Flavius Papas, a local official of Upper Egypt in the 670s. Most are in Greek and provide insight into the administration, society and economy of a provincial centre. Since many deal with taxes and requisitions, they illustrate the incessant demands of the Islamic regime in Fusṭāṭ and the way local officials dealt with them. In particular, the archive shows the importance of Egypt for providing the men, materials and supplies essential for the war fleet of the caliphate. A few other documents from Upper Egypt hint at the economic role of the Church. This is the first of two parts, the second dealing with Middle Egypt, Fusṭāṭ and Alexandria.

scholarly journals The role of Christianity in the development of European and Serbian medieval medicine

2010 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 111-114 ◽  
Author(s):  
Radisa Antic
Keyword(s):  
Western Europe ◽  
Medical Science ◽  
Medical Knowledge ◽  
Byzantine Empire ◽  
Medieval Medicine ◽  
Religious Ceremony ◽  
The World ◽  
Theoretical Science ◽  
The Church

Being conceived in the name of Christianity, the Church quickly mastered all of Western Europe, including medicine, which was developed in monasteries at first and at universities later on. The first hospitals were built within monasteries, and were used to treat monks and the general population in later times. With the founding of the first universities, medicine claimed its place in the world next to law, philosophy, and theology. In its early days, it was studied only as a theoretical science, but soon practical classes on cadavers were added. Universities were completely ruled by the Church, which meant that the curriculum had to be pre-approved by the Church, even the diplomas were presented by a bishop in a religious ceremony. Development of Serbian medieval medicine was under the influence of Byzantine and Italian (mainly Salernian) medicine. The greatest role in transfer of medical knowledge from the Byzantine Empire belonged to Serbian and Byzantine monks, while Italian doctors working in Serbia were responsible for the transfer of the Western medical knowledge. Serbian monarchs quickly started founding hospitals, both in and out of their domains, with the most famous ones being within monasteries such as Hilandar, Studenica, Pantokrator, Visoki Decani, Sveti Arhangel, etc. In addition to those, there were two more hospitals not related to monasteries in Kotor and Belgrade, named after Stefan Lazarevic. This contribution of Christianity to European medicine created a basis for a sudden development of medical science in the Renaissance.

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