Roman Nobilitas in Jerome's Letters

Roman Values and Christian Asceticism for Socialites
1. Auflage 2021
ISBN: 978-3-16-159343-7
Verlag: Mohr Siebeck

Buch, Englisch, 287 Seiten, Format (B × H): 234 mm x 156 mm, Gewicht: 461 g

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

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.

Autoren/Hrsg.

van 't Westeinde, Jessica

Fachgebiete

• Geisteswissenschaften Christentum, Christliche Theologie Christliche Kirchen, Konfessionen, Denominationen
• Geisteswissenschaften Religionswissenschaft Religionswissenschaft Allgemein Theologie
• Geisteswissenschaften Christentum, Christliche Theologie Christentum/Christliche Theologie Allgemein

Über Autor(innen)

van 't Westeinde, Jessica
2016 PhD from Durham University, UK; currently Junior Research Fellow at the Department of Ancient History, University of Bern (IRC Religious Conflict and Coping Strategies), and the Department of Ancient History, Eberhard Karls University of Tübingen.