Which dimensions of the religious experience of the ancient Greeks become tangible only if we foreground its local horizons? This book explores the manifold ways in which Greek religious beliefs and practices are encoded in and communicate with various local environments. Its individual chapters explore 'the local' in its different forms and formulations. Besides the polis perspective, they include numerous other places and locations above and below the polis-level as well as those fully or largely independent of the city-state. Overall, the local emerges as a relational concept that changes together with our understanding of the general or universal forces as they shape ancient Greek religion. The unity and diversity of ancient Greek religion becomes tangible in the manifold ways in which localizing and generalizing forces interact with each other at different times and in different places across the ancient Greek world.

Death and immortality played a central role in Greek and Roman thought, from Homer and early Greek philosophy to Marcus Aurelius. In this book A. G. Long explains the significance of death and immortality in ancient ethics, particularly Plato's dialogues, Stoicism and Epicureanism; he also shows how philosophical cosmology and theology caused immortality to be re-imagined. Ancient arguments and theories are related both to the original literary and theological contexts and to contemporary debates on the philosophy of death. The book will be of major interest to scholars and students working on Greek and Roman philosophy, and to those wishing to explore ancient precursors of contemporary debates about death and its outcomes.

"Collective memory" has attracted the attention and discussion of scholars internationally across academic disciplines over the past 40 50 years in particular. It and "collective identity" have become important issues within Hebrew Bible/Old Testament studies; the role collective memory plays in shaping collective identity links the two organically. Research to date on memory within biblical studies broadly falls under four approaches: 1) lexical studies; 2) discussions of biblical historiography in which memory is considered a contributing element; 3) topical explorations for which memory is an organizing concept; and 4) memory and transmission studies. The sixteen contributors to this volume provide detailed investigations of the contours of collective memory and collective identity that have crystallized in Martin Noth's "Deuteronomistic History" (Deut-2 Kgs). Together, they yield diverse profiles of collective memory and collective identity that draw comparatively on biblical, ancient Near eastern, and classical Greek material, employing one of more of the four common approaches. This is the first volume devoted to applying memory studies to the "Deuteronomistic History."

This book addresses the influence of the imperial cult in first-century AD Asia Minor and its subsequent relevance to the reading of the New Testament. In particular, this work argues, through a contrapuntal reading of 1 Timothy 2: 1-7, that the early Christian community strongly resisted the Emperor's claim to be the "mediator" between the gods and humanity. In contrast to this claim, the author shows that 1 Timothy 2: 1-7 can be read as a polemic from a minority community, the Christian church in Ephesus, against the powerful voice of the Roman Empire in regard to divine mediation.

Fritz Graf here presents a survey of a god once thought of as the most powerful of gods, and capable of great wrath should he be crossed: Apollo the sun god.

From his first attestations in Homer, through the complex question of pre-Homeric Apollo, to the opposition between Apollo and Dionysos in nineteenth and twentieth-century thinking, Graf examines Greek religion and myth to provide a full account of Apollo in the ancient world.

For students of Greek religion and culture, of myth and legend, and in the fields of art and literature, Apollo will provide an informative and enlightening introduction to this powerful figure from the past.

Fritz Graf here presents a survey of a god once thought of as the most powerful of gods, and capable of great wrath should he be crossed: Apollo the sun god.

From his first attestations in Homer, through the complex question of pre-Homeric Apollo, to the opposition between Apollo and Dionysos in nineteenth and twentieth-century thinking, Graf examines Greek religion and myth to provide a full account of Apollo in the ancient world.

For students of Greek religion and culture, of myth and legend, and in the fields of art and literature, Apollo will provide an informative and enlightening introduction to this powerful figure from the past.

European Paganism provides a comprehensive and accessible overview of ancient pagan religions throughout the European continent. Before there where Christians, the peoples of Europe were pagans. Were they bloodthirsty savages hanging human offerings from trees? Were they happy ecologists, valuing the unpolluted rivers and mountains? In European Paganism Ken Dowden outlines and analyses the diverse aspects of pagan ritual and culture from human sacrifice to pilgrimage lunar festivals and tree worship. It includes: * a 'timelines' chart to aid with chronology * many quotations from ancient and modern sources translated from the original language where necessary, to make them accessible * a comprehensive bibliography and guide to further reading.

The Trojan War begins and ends with the sacrifice of a virgin princess. The gruesome killing of a woman must have captivated ancient people because the myth of the sacrificial virgin resonates powerfully in the arts of ancient Greece and Rome. Most scholars agree that the Greeks and Romans did not practice human sacrifice, so why then do the myths of virgin sacrifice appear persistently in art and literature for over a millennium? Virgin Sacrifice in Classical Art: Women, Agency, and the Trojan War seeks to answer this question. This book tells the stories of the sacrificial maidens in order to help the reader discover the meanings bound up in these myths for historical people. In exploring the representations of Iphigeneia and Polyxena in Greek, Etruscan, and Roman art, this book offers a broader cultural history that reveals what people in the ancient world were seeking in these stories. The result is an interdisciplinary study that offers new interpretations on the meaning of the sacrificial virgin as a cultural and ideological construction. This is the first book-length study of virgin sacrifice in ancient art and the first to provide an interpretive framework within which to understand its imagery.

Religion, Ethnicity and Xenophobia in the Bible looks at some of the Bible's most hostile and violent anti-foreigner texts and raises critical questions about how students of the Bible and ancient Near East should grapple with "ethnicity" and "foreignness" conceptually, hermeneutically and theologically. The author uses insights from social psychology, cognitive psychology, anthropology, sociology and ethnic studies to develop his own perspective on ethnicity and foreignness. Starting with legends about Mesopotamian kings from the third millennium BCE, then navigating the Deuteronomistic and Holiness traditions of the Hebrew Bible, and finally turning to Deuterocanonicals and the Apostle Paul, the book assesses the diverse and often inconsistent portrayals of foreigners in these ancient texts. This examination of the negative portrayal of foreigners in biblical and Mesopotamian texts also leads to a broader discussion about how to theorize ethnicity in biblical studies, ancient studies and the humanities. This volume will be invaluable to students of ethnicity and society in the Bible, at all levels.

Cave and Worship in Ancient Greece brings together a series of stimulating chapters contributing to the archaeology and our modern understanding of the character and importance of cave sanctuaries in the fi rst millennium BCE Mediterranean. Written by emerging and established archaeologists and researchers, the book employs a fascinating and wide range of approaches and methodologies to investigate, and interpret material assemblages from cave shrines, many of which are introduced here for the fi rst time. An introductory section explores the emergence and growth of caves as centres of cult and religion. The chapters then probe some of the meanings attached to cave spaces and votive materials such as terracotta fi gurines, and ceramics, and those who created and used them. The authors use sensory and gender approaches, discuss the identity of the worshippers, and the contribution of statistical analysis to the role of votive materials. At the heart of the volume is the examination of cave materials excavated on the Cycladic islands and Crete, in Attika and Aitoloakarnania, on the Ionian islands and in southern Italy. This is a welcome volume for students of prehistoric and classical archaeology,enthusiasts of the history of caves, religion, ancient history, and anthropology.

Die Colloquia Raurica werden alle zwei Jahre vom CollegiumRauricum veranstaltet. Sie finden auf Castelen, dem Landgut der Roemer-Stiftung Dr. Rene Clavel in Augst (Augusta Raurica) bei Basel, statt. Jedes Colloquium behandelt eine aktuelle geisteswissenschaftliche Frage von allgemeinem Interesse aus der Perspektiveverschiedener Disziplinen. Einen Schwerpunkt bilden dabei Beitrage aus dem Bereich der Altertumswissenschaft. Um moeglichst vielseitig abgestutzte Erkenntnisse zu gewinnen, eroertern die eingeladenen Fachvertreter das Tagungsthema im gemeinsamen Gesprach. Die Ergebnissedes Colloquiumwerden in der Schriftenreihe Colloquia Raurica publiziert.

Disputation literature is a type of text in which usually two non-human entities (such as trees, animals, drinks, or seasons) try to establish their superiority over each other by means of a series of speeches written in an elaborate, flowery register. As opposed to other dialogue literature, in disputation texts there is no serious matter at stake only the preeminence of one of the litigants over its rival. These light-hearted texts are known in virtually every culture that flourished in the Middle East from Antiquity to the present day, and they constitute one of the most enduring genres in world literature. The present volume collects over twenty contributions on disputation literature by a diverse group of world-renowned scholars. From ancient Sumer to modern-day Bahrain, from Egyptian to Neo-Aramaic, including Latin, French, Middle English, Armenian, Chinese and Japanese, the chapters of this book study the multiple avatars of this venerable text type.

Paganism is one of the world's fastest-growing religions, practised in a huge variety of ways. The Paganism Reader provides a definitive collection of key sources in Paganism, ranging from its ancient origins to its twentieth-century reconstruction and revival. Chronologically organized sections include extracts from ancient Greek, Norse and Celtic literature, inspirational texts from the early twentieth-century, writings by leaders of the Pagan revival, and newer perspectives showing the diversity of Paganism today. Witchcraft, nature religion, shamanism and goddess worship are considered, as is the influence of environmental and feminist movements. Fully introduced, with editors' prefaces to all extracts and suggestions for further reading, this comprehensive book is an invaluable guide to Paganism and critical issues in its study.

Paganism is one of the world's fastest-growing religions, practised in a huge variety of ways. The Paganism Reader provides a definitive collection of key sources in Paganism, ranging from its ancient origins to its twentieth-century reconstruction and revival. Chronologically organized sections include extracts from ancient Greek, Norse and Celtic literature, inspirational texts from the early twentieth-century, writings by leaders of the Pagan revival, and newer perspectives showing the diversity of Paganism today. Witchcraft, nature religion, shamanism and goddess worship are considered, as is the influence of environmental and feminist movements. Fully introduced, with editors' prefaces to all extracts and suggestions for further reading, this comprehensive book is an invaluable guide to Paganism and critical issues in its study.

The discovery of Hebrew manuscripts of Ben Sira in the Cairo Genizah has shaped and transformed the interpretation of the book. It is argued here that a proper appreciation of the manuscripts themselves is also essential for understanding this ancient work. Since their discovery 120 years ago and subsequent identification of leaves, attention has been directed to the interpretation of the ancient book, the Wisdom of Ben Sira. Serious consideration should also be given to the Hebrew manuscripts themselves and their particular contributions to understanding the language and transmission of the book. The surprising appearance of a work that was preserved by Christians and denounced by some Rabbis raises questions over the preservation of the book. At the same time, diversity among the manuscripts means that exegesis has to be built on an appreciation of the individual manuscripts. The contributors examine the manuscripts in this light, examining their discovery, the codicology and reception of the manuscripts within rabbinic and medieval Judaism, and the light they throw on the Hebrew language and poetic techniques. The book is essential reading for those working on Ben Sira, the reception of the deuterocanon, and Medieval Hebrew manuscripts.

Ever since its first publication in 1932, Sorcerers of Dobu has been recognized as one of the great triumphs of anthropological research and interpretation in the field of ethnography. A rich source of information on primitive psychology, the book presents sociological analysis of the complex tribal organisation of the Dobuans.
Originally published in 1932

Contents:
Preface 1. Introduction 2. Approaches to witchcraft 3. Feminists and witches 4. Feminists and the Goddess 5. Researching witches: Becoming enchanted 6. Feminist witchcraft in New Zealand: Origins and development 7. The attraction of witchcraft 8. The attraction of the Goddess: Witches' worldview 9. What witches do 10. Ritual as artefact 11. How magic works 12. Re-membering the witch and the Goddess References

Contents:
Preface 1. Introduction 2. Approaches to witchcraft 3. Feminists and witches 4. Feminists and the Goddess 5. Researching witches: Becoming enchanted 6. Feminist witchcraft in New Zealand: Origins and development 7. The attraction of witchcraft 8. The attraction of the Goddess: Witches' worldview 9. What witches do 10. Ritual as artefact 11. How magic works 12. Re-membering the witch and the Goddess References

Often ignored in studies of Classical Greek religion, private cults were widespread in the Hellenistic world. Although worshippers in Classical Greece were normally involved in group and civic worship, there is evidence that they could also act outside of these constraints, expressing their piety through the financing and administration of cults they established on their own. Singular Dedications is the first comprehensive study of this phenomenon, examining three case studies that represent the diversity and complexity that characterise ancient Greek religion in the Classical period.

Do humans have a special capacity designed to foster experiences of God? What role do specific bodily actions or emotions play in the cultivation of a divine experience? Prayer as Divine Experience in 4 Ezra and John's Apocalypse: Emotion, Empathy, and Engagement with God explores these questions in a systematic study of the emotions in two apocalyptic texts. The book of 4 Ezra, an ancient Jewish apocalypse, and the book of Revelation, an ancient Christian Apocalypse written by John, are examined with a focus on the emotional language of the prayers and prayer preludes contained in this literature. Both texts were composed in the first-century of the Common Era, a time when most people exposed to literature heard the content as it was recited. The emotive language in these writings could potentially arouse similar emotions in the readers or hearers of these texts, allowing the person to have access to the divine experiences, which are described by the seer in 4 Ezra and are expressed by the angelic choir in John's Apocalypse. Prior to examining the prayers, Prayer as Divine Experience will describe the neurological processes that cause a person to mirror the emotions expressed by another individual, thereby prompting an imitation of the experience that is perceived.

It has often been thought that participation in fertility rituals was women's most important religious activity in classical Greece. Matthew Dillon's wide-ranging study makes it clear that women engaged in numerous other rites and cults, and that their role in Greek religion was actually more important than that of men. Women invoked the gods' help in becoming pregnant, venerated the god of wine, worshipped new and exotic deities, used magic for both erotic and pain-relieving purposes, and far more besides.
Clear and comprehensive, this volume challenges many stereotypes of Greek women and offers unexpected insights into their experience of religion. With more than fifty illustrations, and translated extracts from contemporary texts, this is an essential resource for the study of women and religion in classical Greece.

eBook available with sample pages: 0203621328

Babylonia in the second half of the 2nd millennium BCE is one of the most understudied periods of Mesopotamian history. In the last few years, discoveries of new texts and archaeological materials from the Sealand Dynasty have emerged, which expand the possibilities to fill this gap in our knowledge of Mesopotamian history. At the same time, scholars have started to revive Kassite studies using new materials, methods, and questions. While those works are groundbreaking contributions to the field, many questions about the history and chronology, archaeology, economy, language of Babylonia during this period are still unsolved. This volume brings together eleven contributions by leading scholars in the Sealand and Kassite period, approaching those questions from an archaeological, ethnological, historical, linguistic, and economical point of view. The book opens with an introduction into the history and research on Babylonia under the Sealand Dynasty and the Kassites.

This dictionary provides a readily available collection of source material for a subject which has recently become of considerable public and academic interest. It provides a point of reference for key words and concepts which have previously been available only in short glossaries, footnotes, or within a body of text. It deals with concepts shared by all Pagans, and also with those concepts unique to a particular Pagan tradition.