The Christian Mystery
Early Christianity and the Ancient Mystery Cults in the Work of Franz Cumont and in the History of Scholarship
Edited by Annelies Lannoy Edited by Danny Praet
Paperback (Published)
(June 2023)
ISBN: 9783515131971
6.69 x 9.49 inches
Price: $90.00
In stock
This volume examines the way the Belgian historian of religions Franz Cumont (1868-1947) and his contemporaries conceived of early Christianity’s relation to the ancient mystery cults. As the comparative study of religion rose to academic prominence in late 19th century Europe, this question provoked fiery debates, fuelling methodological, ideological, and religious divides between scholars of different scientific and personal backgrounds. Cumont was a worldwide authority in the scientific study of the religions orientales, but he expressed his opinion on their relation to Christianity only ambiguously. Yet, his publications deeply impacted the debates of his time because of the numerous similarities they revealed between Christian and pagan traditions. Written by specialists from various academic disciplines (e.g., history of religions, theology, New Testament studies), this collection of papers offers a much-needed study of how Cumont and other leading 19th century scholars discussed this theme. It also offers critical reflections on what is left of their ideas in present-day research on this most fascinating subject matter in the study of ancient religion.
This volume examines the way the Belgian historian of religions Franz Cumont (1868-1947) and his contemporaries conceived of early Christianity’s relation to the ancient mystery cults. As the comparative study of religion rose to academic prominence in late 19th century Europe, this question provoked fiery debates, fuelling methodological, ideological, and religious divides between scholars of different scientific and personal backgrounds. Cumont was a worldwide authority in the scientific study of the religions orientales, but he expressed his opinion on their relation to Christianity only ambiguously. Yet, his publications deeply impacted the debates of his time because of the numerous similarities they revealed between Christian and pagan traditions. Written by specialists from various academic disciplines (e.g., history of religions, theology, New Testament studies), this collection of papers offers a much-needed study of how Cumont and other leading 19th century scholars discussed this theme. It also offers critical reflections on what is left of their ideas in present-day research on this most fascinating subject matter in the study of ancient religion.
- Edited by Annelies Lannoy
- Edited by Danny Praet
Other Titles in this Series
Burial Rituals, Ideas of Afterlife, and the Individual in the Hellenistic World and the Roman Empire
Citizenship Practised, Citizenship Imagined
Multiple Ways of Experiencing Citizenship in the Greek World
Gespräche mit Göttern
Die poetologische Funktion kommunikativer Kultbilder bei Horaz, Tibull und Properz
Zur literarischen Fiktion von Kindheit
Überlegungen zu den apokryphen Kindheitsevangelien Jesu im Rahmen der antiken Biographie
Aspects of Roman Dance Culture
Religious Cults, Theatrical Entertainments, Metaphorical Appropriations
Natur – Mythos – Religion im antiken Griechenland / Nature – Myth – Religion in Ancient Greece
Squalor
Symbolisches Trauern in der Politischen Kommunikation der Römischen Republik und Frühen Kaiserzeit
Kultraume im romischen Alltag
Das Isisbuch des Apuleius und der Ort von Religion im kaiserzeitlichen Rom
Volume 2
Der Gemeinsinn der Märtyrer
Die Darstellung gemeinwohlorientierten Handelns in den frühchristlichen Martyriumsberichten
Zwischen Krise und Alltag / Conflit et normalite
Antike Religionen im Mittelmeerraum / Religions anciennes dans l'espace mediterraneen
Volume 1
From “Roma quadrata” to “la grande Roma dei Tarquini”
A Study of the Literary Tradition on Rome's Territorial Growth under the Kings
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