Holy Fools in Byzantium and BeyondOUP Oxford, 2006 M04 6 - 492 pages There are saints in Orthodox Christian culture who overturn the conventional concept of sainthood. Their conduct may be unruly and salacious, they may blaspheme and even kill - yet, mysteriously, those around them treat them with even more reverence. Such saints are called 'holy fools'. In this pioneering study Sergey A. Ivanov examines the phenomenon of holy foolery from a cultural standpoint. He identifies its prerequisites and its development in religious thought, and traces the emergence of the first hagiographic texts describing these paradoxical saints. He describes the beginnings of holy foolery in Egyptian monasteries of the fifth century, followed by its high point in the cities of Byzantium, with an eventual decline in the twelfth to fourteenth centuries. He also compares the important Russian tradition of holy fools, which in some form has survived to this day. |
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Page 16
... later Nikephoros Gregoras in his Life of John of. 8 Sometimes Socrates was mentioned by Christians as a model of steadfastness: see A. Harnack, 'Sokrates und die alte Kirche', in idem, Reden und Aufsätze, i (Giessen, 1903), 41. 9 D ...
... later Nikephoros Gregoras in his Life of John of. 8 Sometimes Socrates was mentioned by Christians as a model of steadfastness: see A. Harnack, 'Sokrates und die alte Kirche', in idem, Reden und Aufsätze, i (Giessen, 1903), 41. 9 D ...
Page 17
... later imitations, Julian formulated the philosophy's central principle thus: I do not mean that we are obliged to be publicly shameless and to do that which it is thought improper to do (ðæÜôôåØí ôa ìc ðæÆŒôÝÆ). But all that we do and ...
... later imitations, Julian formulated the philosophy's central principle thus: I do not mean that we are obliged to be publicly shameless and to do that which it is thought improper to do (ðæÜôôåØí ôa ìc ðæÆŒôÝÆ). But all that we do and ...
Page 19
... later applied to holy fools, moroi dia Christon, originated from a misunderstanding. When Paul turns to his Corinthian followers with the words 'We are fools for Christ's sake, but ye are wise in Christ; we are weak, but ye are strong ...
... later applied to holy fools, moroi dia Christon, originated from a misunderstanding. When Paul turns to his Corinthian followers with the words 'We are fools for Christ's sake, but ye are wise in Christ; we are weak, but ye are strong ...
Page 20
... later, Byzantine comments on thefirst Epistle to the Corinthians never refer to holy foolery as an example of observing Paul's commandments: see: Nicholas of Methone, Refutation of Proclus' Elements of Theology, ed. A. D. Angelou ...
... later, Byzantine comments on thefirst Epistle to the Corinthians never refer to holy foolery as an example of observing Paul's commandments: see: Nicholas of Methone, Refutation of Proclus' Elements of Theology, ed. A. D. Angelou ...
Page 23
... later Middle Ages, and especially in Rus, holy. 23 Didymos of Alexandria, De Trinitate ii. 13, col. 447. 24 See John Chrysostom, In Epistulam II ad Corinthos Homilia IX (CPG 4429), PG 61, col. 458; idem, Panégyrique de S. Paul v. 19, ed ...
... later Middle Ages, and especially in Rus, holy. 23 Didymos of Alexandria, De Trinitate ii. 13, col. 447. 24 See John Chrysostom, In Epistulam II ad Corinthos Homilia IX (CPG 4429), PG 61, col. 458; idem, Panégyrique de S. Paul v. 19, ed ...
Contents
1 | |
11 | |
2 Insane Saints | 49 |
3 Lechers and Beggars | 66 |
4 Holy Scandal | 104 |
5 The Second Edition of Holy Foolery | 139 |
6 The New Theologians | 174 |
7 Balancing at the Edge | 195 |
10 The Iurodivyi and the Tsar | 285 |
11 Iurodstvo in an Age of Transition | 311 |
12 Iurodstvo Meets Modernity | 345 |
13 The Eastern Periphery | 359 |
14 The Western Periphery | 374 |
Conclusion | 399 |
Bibliography | 415 |
Index | 457 |
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Common terms and phrases
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