|
Books > Christianity > Christian theology
|
Buy Now
Saving Shame - Martyrs, Saints, and Other Abject Subjects (Paperback)
Loot Price: R741
Discovery Miles 7 410
|
|
|
Saving Shame - Martyrs, Saints, and Other Abject Subjects (Paperback)
Series: Divinations: Rereading Late Ancient Religion
Expected to ship within 12 - 17 working days
|
Virginia Burrus explores one of the strongest and most disturbing
aspects of the Christian tradition, its excessive preoccupation
with shame. While Christianity has frequently been implicated in
the conversion of ancient Mediterranean cultures from shame- to
guilt-based and, thus, in the emergence of the modern West's
emphasis on guilt, Burrus seeks to recuperate the importance of
shame for Christian culture. Focusing on late antiquity, she
explores a range of fascinating phenomena, from the flamboyant
performances of martyrs to the imagined abjection of Christ, from
the self-humiliating disciplines of ascetics to the intimate
disclosures of Augustine. Burrus argues that Christianity innovated
less by replacing shame with guilt than by embracing shame. Indeed,
the ancient Christians sacrificed honor but laid claim to their own
shame with great energy, at once intensifying and transforming it.
Public spectacles of martyrdom became the most visible means
through which vulnerability to shame was converted into a defiant
witness of identity; this was also where the sacrificial death of
the self exemplified by Christ's crucifixion was most explicitly
appropriated by his followers. Shame showed a more private face as
well, as Burrus demonstrates. The ambivalent lure of fleshly
corruptibility was explored in the theological imaginary of
incarnational Christology. It was further embodied in the
transgressive disciplines of saints who plumbed the depths of
humiliation. Eventually, with the advent of literary and monastic
confessional practices, the shame of sin's inexhaustibility made
itself heard in the revelations of testimonial discourse. In
conversation with an eclectic constellation of theorists, Burrus
interweaves her historical argument with theological,
psychological, and ethical reflections. She proposes, finally, that
early Christian texts may have much to teach us about the secrets
of shame that lie at the heart of our capacity for humility,
courage, and transformative love.
General
Is the information for this product incomplete, wrong or inappropriate?
Let us know about it.
Does this product have an incorrect or missing image?
Send us a new image.
Is this product missing categories?
Add more categories.
Review This Product
No reviews yet - be the first to create one!
|
|
Email address subscribed successfully.
A activation email has been sent to you.
Please click the link in that email to activate your subscription.
Welcome to Loot.co.za!
Sign in / Register |Wishlists & Gift Vouchers |Help | Advanced search
