Authority and the Sacred: Aspects of the Christianisation of the Roman World

Peter Brown

doi:10.1017/CBO9780511802355

The Christianisation of the Roman world lies at the root of modern Europe, yet at the time it was a tentative and piecemeal process. Peter Brown's fascinating study examines the factors which proved decisive and the compromises which made the emergence of the Christian 'thought world' possible: how the the old gods of the Roman Empire could be reinterpreted as symbols to further the message of the Church. Peter Brown also shows how Christian holy men were less representative of a triumphant faith than negotiators of a working compromise between the new faith and traditional ways of dealing with the supernatural worlds.

‘A brilliant book, by a scholar to whom church historians are already deeply indebted, providing ample material for further debates.’

Source: The Expository Times

‘ ... the treatment is fresh and independent’.

Source: The Times Literary Supplement

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Contents

Frontmatter
pp i-vi
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Contents
pp vii-viii
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Preface
pp ix-xiv
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CHRISTIANISATION
pp 1-26
narratives and process
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THE LIMITS OF INTOLERANCE
pp 27-54
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ARBITERS OF THE HOLY
pp 55-78
the Christian holy man in late antiquity
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Notes
pp 79-87
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Index
pp 88-91
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Authority and the Sacred

Aspects of the Christianisation of the Roman World

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Contents

Frontmatter
pp i-vi

Contents
pp vii-viii

Preface
pp ix-xiv

CHRISTIANISATION
pp 1-26

THE LIMITS OF INTOLERANCE
pp 27-54

ARBITERS OF THE HOLY
pp 55-78

Notes
pp 79-87

Index
pp 88-91

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Authority and the Sacred

Aspects of the Christianisation of the Roman World

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