Saints and holy men

Bibliographic Data

ID23469840
AuthorsClaudia Rapp (0000-0001-9606-6888, corresponding author)
Year2007
Pages548-566
Publication date2007-08-30
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeCHAPTER
VenueConstantine to c. 600 (SOURCE_BOOK)
PublisherCambridge University Press (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1017/chol9780521812443.024
OpenAlexW2493239077
ISBN9780521812443
LanguageEN
References cited23

This chapter shows that many acts of veneration shown to saints after their death had their origin in the connections of the faithful to living holy men. The Christian notion of personal sanctity can be understood from its cultural context. The idea that certain individuals held an elevated status among humans because of their connection to the divine was common in ancient culture. In pre-Constantinian times, individual Christians proved their faith through martyrdom, and Christian communities derived their group identity from witnessing the death of their martyrs. The cult of a saint was prepared long before that person's death. The chapter illustrates the interplay between discipleship, the production and dissemination of texts, and patronage in creating a cult by presenting three examples from different regions of the later Roman empire: Martin of Tours in Gaul, Felix of Nola in Italy and Symeon the Stylite in Syria. Central to the cult of saints are their relics.

Aesthetics · Ancient history · Archaeology · Art · Art history · Context (archaeology) · Cult · Empire · Faith · Identity (music) · Roman Empire · SAINT · Theology · Veneration · Byzantine Studies and History · Cross-Cultural and Social Analysis · History · Medieval Literature and History · Philosophy

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