Roman Nobilitas in Jerome’s Letters

Roman Values and Christian Asceticism for Socialites

by Jessica van't Westeinde

Book cover: Roman Nobilitas in Jerome’s Letters

Extent: 299 pages

Publisher: Mohr Siebeck

Subjects: Religious Studies

Series: Studien und Texte zu Antike und Christentum / Studies and Texts in Antiquity and Christianity

Series volume number: 127

Language: English

Paperback (Published)

(September 2021)

ISBN: 9783161593437

9.09 x 6.06 inches

Price: $112.00

In stock

Jerome of Stridon argued that ‘the most distinguished privilege loses its prestige when lavished on a crowd’ ( Ep. 66.7). Recent imperial changes left the senatorial aristocracy with a devaluation of their order. When a number of its illustres showed an appetite for asceticism, Jerome took up his quill to offer them a nobilitas- model that preserved their exclusivity through appropriation of Christian asceticism. Jessica van ‘t Westeinde shows how Jerome’s design restored the Roman exclusivist notion of nobilitas as an antidote to the opening up of senatorial rank to ‘country boors’ by creating a status group of Christian elites. The nouveau riche may have attempted to enter this social circle, but they could never attain the same level of perfection as the illustres. As such, Jerome offered a ‘Christian ascetic’ nobilitas- model that embodies continuation which breathes Roman aristocratic status culture of the illustres.

  • By (author) Jessica van’t Westeinde