When Identity Shifts to Violence
Historical and Hagiographical Cases from Syriac Churches in Interaction with Confessional and Religious Rivals
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 3229160 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Catalin-Stefan Popa (0000-0001-8538-2412, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2023 |
| Volume | 14 |
| Issue | 9 |
| Pages | 1179 |
| Publication date | 2023-09-15 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Religions (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 2077-1444 • E-ISSN: 2077-1444 |
| Publisher | MDPI AG (PUBLISHER • IT) |
| DOI | 10.3390/rel14091179 |
| OpenAlex | W4386814357 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 25 |
This article briefly epitomizes violence in the broad context of Eastern Christianity, and secondly deals with the transfer of this phenomenon in Syriac Christianity, for the reason that this has not been studied as much as in the Byzantine literature. The purpose is to demonstrate that identity-based violence was a feature included in the narratives of antique and medieval Eastern Christian discourses, this being closely linked to the struggle for ecclesiastical primacy and political power. The paper discusses paradigmatic cases, methodologically studied in their context, of Christian individuals and religious characters that suffered or acted against rivals with violence. The main focus is on historical and historiographical sources illustrating: (1) Syriac communities and factions defending their identity through language or acts of violence; and (2) identity-based confrontations within the Syriac family: factions within the same community, or sister Churches that became rivals (Syriac Orthodox against East Syrians) instrumentalizing the language of violence, mostly actions of destruction, against their opponents. The conclusion indicates that perseverance in defending the truth, as part of their identity, made the communities opt for confrontation, and when one endured violence, one accepted this on the models of the martyrs and the imitatio Christi
Aesthetics · Archaeology · Art · Christianity · Church History · Confessional · Historiography · Literature · Political science · Politics · Religious violence · Sociology · Archaeology and Historical Studies · Byzantine Studies and History · Classical Antiquity Studies · Classics · Gender Studies · History · Law · Philosophy
Dealing with Difference
The Cambridge World History of Violence
Christian Thought in the Medieval Islamicate World
Envisioning Islam
The Practical Christology of Philoxenos of Mabbug
Missionary Stories and the Formation of the Syriac Churches
An Early Christian Reaction to Islam
Heirs of Roman Persecution
Religious Violence and Hagiography in Late Antiquity
Intolerance, Religious Violence, and Political Legitimacy in Late Antiquity
| Highly cited | No |
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