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Preaching Bondage introduces and investigates the novel concept of doulology, the discourse of slavery, in the homilies of John Chrysostom, the late fourth-century priest and bishop. Chris L. de Wet examines the dynamics of enslavement in ChrysostomÕs theology, virtue ethics, and biblical interpretation and shows that human bondage as a metaphorical and theological construct had a profound effect on the lives of institutional slaves. The highly corporeal and gendered discourse associated with slavery was necessarily central in ChrysostomÕs discussions of the household, property, education, discipline, and sexuality. De Wet explores the impact of doulology in these contexts and disseminates the results in a new and highly anticipated language, bringing to light the more pervasive fissures between ancient Roman slaveholding and early Christianity. The corpus of ChrysostomÕs public addresses provides much of the literary evidence for slavery in the fourth century, and De WetÕs convincing analysis is a groundbreaking contribution to studies of the social world in late antiquity.
This volume examines the prevalence, function, and socio-political effects of slavery discourse in the major theological formulations of the late third to early fifth centuries AD, arguably the most formative period of early Christian doctrine. The question the book poses is this: in what way did the Christian theologians of the third, fourth, and early fifth centuries appropriate the discourse of slavery in their theological formulations, and what could the effect of this appropriation have been for actual physical slaves? This fascinating study is crucial reading for anyone with an interest in early Christianity or Late Antiquity, and slavery more generally.
In Revisioning John Chrysostom, Chris de Wet and Wendy Mayer harness and promote a new wave of scholarship on the life and works of this famous late-antique (c. 350-407 CE) preacher. New theories from the cognitive and neurosciences, cultural and sleep studies, and history of the emotions, among others, meld with reconsideration of lapsed approaches – his debt to Graeco-Roman paideia, philosophy, and now medicine – resulting in sometimes surprising and challenging conclusions. Together the chapters produce a fresh vision of John Chrysostom that moves beyond the often negative views of the 20th century and open up substantially new vistas for exploration.
Some ten million people worldwide are displaced or resettled every year, due to development projects, such as the construction of dams, irrigation schemes, urban development, transport, conservation or mining projects. The results have usually been very negative for most of those people who have to move, as well as for other people in the area, such as host populations. People are often left socially and institutionally disrupted and economically worse-off, with the environment also suffering as a result of the introduction of infrastructure and increased crowding in the areas to which people had to move. The contributors to this volume argue that there is a complexity, and a tension, inherent in trying to reconcile enforced displacement of people with the subsequent creation of a socio-economically viable and sustainable environment. Only when these are squarely confronted, will it be possible to adequately deal with the problems and to improve resettlement policies.
Reconceiving Religious Conflict deconstructs instances of religious conflict within the formative centuries of Christianity, the first six centuries CE. It explores the theoretical foundations of religious conflict; the dynamics of religious conflict within the context of persecution and martyrdom; the social and moral intersections that undergird the phenomenon of religious conflict; and the relationship between religious conflict and religious identity. It is unique in that it does not solely focus on religious violence as it is physically manifested, but on religious conflict (and tolerance), looking too at dynamics of religious discourse and practice that often precede and accompany overt religious violence.
An investigation into slaveholding and slave experience in late antiquity, focusing on ideological, moral and cultural aspects of slavery.
In this book, investigative journalist De Wet Potgieter follows the trail of a number of criminals in South Africa’s history. These violent crimes, perpetrated from the late 1980s into the new millennium, vary from fanatical far-rightists who killed their innocent countrymen, to assassins who executed high-profile, state-sanctioned murders. He takes the reader behind the scenes of some of the most controversial events in our country and, with his fearless style of writing, pulls you right into the belly of the beast. In Gruesome, he shares information that has never before been made public. What really happened on the night of 17 June 1992 in Boipatong? What motivated the horrific attack on Alison Botha? What caused the ostensibly conformist policeman André Stander to become an unscrupulous bank robber? Who was the first person to see the connection between Gert van Rooyen’s victims and a probable human-trafficking network? Potgieter relates how, as a journalist, he went about reporting on each of these interesting, gruesome cases. This book takes you back to the bloody newspaper headlines of yesterday.
A comparative examination and interpretation of religious violence in the Graeco-Roman world and Late Antiquity.
This Festschrift presents original research and new lines of inquiry on subjects related to Hellenistic philosophical texts and traditions, as well as early Christian literature and its cultural and intellectual environment.
Slaves were ubiquitous in the first- and second-century CE Roman Empire, and early Christian texts reflect this fact. This book argues that enslaved persons engaged in leadership roles in civic and religious activities. Such roles created tension within religious groups, including second-century communities connected with Paul's legacy. -