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The End of Ancient Christianity : Canto Book - R. A. Markus

The End of Ancient Christianity

Canto Book

Paperback Published: 1st April 1991
ISBN: 9780521339490
Number Of Pages: 280

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This study is concerned with one, central historical problem: the nature of the changes that transformed the intellectual and spiritual horizons of the Christian world from its establishment in the fourth century to the end of the sixth. Why, for example, were the assumptions, attitudes and traditions of Gregory the Great so markedly different from those of Augustine? The End of Ancient Christianity examines how Christians, who had formerly constituted a threatened and beleaguered minority, came to define their identity in a changed context of religious respectability in which their faith had become a source of privilege, prestige and power. Professor Markus reassesses the cult of the martyrs and the creation of schemes of sacred time and sacred space, and analyzes the appeal of asceticism and its impact on the Church at large. These changes form part of a fundamental transition, perhaps best described as the shift from "Ancient" toward "Medieval" forms of Christianity; from an older and more diverse secular culture towards a religious culture with a firm Biblical basis.

'With careful attention to detail, and with a truly delightful ability to restore the integrity of the past, Professor Markus takes the reader through the uneven processes of change ...'. Church Times 'The appearance of this book, by one of the most distinguished scholars in the field, is an event to be welcomed ...'. Journal of Religious History

Preface
Abbreviations
The Crisis of Identity
Introduction
A great multitude no man could number
Conversion and uncertainty
Augustine: a defence of Christian mediocrity
'Be ye perfect'
Kairoi: Christian Times and the Past
The last times
The martyrs and sacred time
Secular festivals in Christian times?
The christianisation of time
Topoi: Space and Community
Holy places and holy people
City or Desert? Two models of community
Desert and City: a blurring of frontiers
The ascetic invasion
Within sight of the end: retrospect and prospect Sources referred to Secondary literature referred to Index
Table of Contents provided by Publisher. All Rights Reserved.

ISBN: 9780521339490
ISBN-10: 0521339499
Series: Canto Book
Audience: General
Format: Paperback
Language: English
Number Of Pages: 280
Published: 1st April 1991
Publisher: CAMBRIDGE UNIV PR
Country of Publication: GB
Dimensions (cm): 22.78 x 15.27  x 1.6
Weight (kg): 0.4

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