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Subversive Virtue : Asceticism and Authority in the Second-Century Pagan World / James A. Francis.

By: Material type: TextTextPublisher: University Park, PA : Penn State University Press, [2021]Copyright date: ©1994Description: 1 online resource (240 p.)Content type:
Media type:
Carrier type:
ISBN:
  • 9780271072623
Subject(s): DDC classification:
  • 111/.85 20
LOC classification:
  • BJ171.A82 F73 1995
Other classification:
  • online - DeGruyter
Online resources:
Contents:
Frontmatter -- Contents -- Acknowledgments -- Abbreviations -- Introduction -- 1 Stoicism: Setting the Norm -- 2 Marcus Aurelius: Rational Asceticism and Social Conservatism -- 3 Lucian: Ascetics as Enemies of Culture -- 4 Apollonius of Tyana: The Rehabilitated Ascetic -- 5 Celsus: Christians, Ascetics, and Rebels -- 6 Ascetics and Holy Men: Conflict, Change, and Continuity -- Select Bibliography -- Index
Summary: Much attention has been devoted in recent years to Christian asceticism in Late Antiquity. But Christianity did not introduce asceticism to the ancient world. An underlying theme of this fascinating study of pagan asceticism is that much of the work on Christian ";holy men"; has ignored earlier manifestations of asceticism in Antiquity and the way Roman society confronted it. Accordingly, James Francis turns to the second century, the ";balmy late afternoon of Rome's classical empire,"; when the conflict between asceticism and authority reached a turning point. Francis begins with the emperor Marcus Aurelius (121-180), who warned in his Meditations against ";display[ing] oneself as a man keen to impress others with a reputation for asceticism or beneficence."; The Stoic Aurelius saw ascetic self-discipline as a virtue, but one to be exercised in moderation. Like other Roman aristocrats of his day, he perceived practitioners of ostentatious physical asceticism as a threat to prevailing norms and the established order. Prophecy, sorcery, miracle working, charismatic leadership, expressions of social discontent, and advocacy of alternative values regarding wealth, property, marriage, and sexuality were the issues provoking the controversy. If Aurelius defined the acceptable limits of ascetical practice, then the poet Lucian depicted the threat ascetics were perceived to pose to the social status quo through his biting satire. In an eye-opening analysis of Philostratus's Life of Apollonius of Tyana, Francis shows how Roman society reined in its deviant ascetics by ";rehabilitating"; them into pillars of traditional values. Celsus's True Doctrine shows how the views pagans held of their own ascetics influenced their negative view of Christianity. Finally, Francis points out striking parallels between the conflict over pagan asceticism and its Christian counterpart. By treating pagan asceticism seriously in its own right, Francis establishes the context necessary for understanding the great flowering of asceticism in Late Antiquity
Holdings
Item type Current library Call number URL Status Notes Barcode
eBook eBook Biblioteca "Angelicum" Pont. Univ. S.Tommaso d'Aquino Nuvola online online - DeGruyter (Browse shelf(Opens below)) Online access Not for loan (Accesso limitato) Accesso per gli utenti autorizzati / Access for authorized users (dgr)9780271072623

Frontmatter -- Contents -- Acknowledgments -- Abbreviations -- Introduction -- 1 Stoicism: Setting the Norm -- 2 Marcus Aurelius: Rational Asceticism and Social Conservatism -- 3 Lucian: Ascetics as Enemies of Culture -- 4 Apollonius of Tyana: The Rehabilitated Ascetic -- 5 Celsus: Christians, Ascetics, and Rebels -- 6 Ascetics and Holy Men: Conflict, Change, and Continuity -- Select Bibliography -- Index

restricted access online access with authorization star

http://purl.org/coar/access_right/c_16ec

Much attention has been devoted in recent years to Christian asceticism in Late Antiquity. But Christianity did not introduce asceticism to the ancient world. An underlying theme of this fascinating study of pagan asceticism is that much of the work on Christian ";holy men"; has ignored earlier manifestations of asceticism in Antiquity and the way Roman society confronted it. Accordingly, James Francis turns to the second century, the ";balmy late afternoon of Rome's classical empire,"; when the conflict between asceticism and authority reached a turning point. Francis begins with the emperor Marcus Aurelius (121-180), who warned in his Meditations against ";display[ing] oneself as a man keen to impress others with a reputation for asceticism or beneficence."; The Stoic Aurelius saw ascetic self-discipline as a virtue, but one to be exercised in moderation. Like other Roman aristocrats of his day, he perceived practitioners of ostentatious physical asceticism as a threat to prevailing norms and the established order. Prophecy, sorcery, miracle working, charismatic leadership, expressions of social discontent, and advocacy of alternative values regarding wealth, property, marriage, and sexuality were the issues provoking the controversy. If Aurelius defined the acceptable limits of ascetical practice, then the poet Lucian depicted the threat ascetics were perceived to pose to the social status quo through his biting satire. In an eye-opening analysis of Philostratus's Life of Apollonius of Tyana, Francis shows how Roman society reined in its deviant ascetics by ";rehabilitating"; them into pillars of traditional values. Celsus's True Doctrine shows how the views pagans held of their own ascetics influenced their negative view of Christianity. Finally, Francis points out striking parallels between the conflict over pagan asceticism and its Christian counterpart. By treating pagan asceticism seriously in its own right, Francis establishes the context necessary for understanding the great flowering of asceticism in Late Antiquity

Mode of access: Internet via World Wide Web.

In English.

Description based on online resource; title from PDF title page (publisher's Web site, viewed 21. Jun 2021)