Urban Violence in Fifth Century Antioch: Riot Culture and Dynamics in Late Antique Eastern Mediterranean Cities

David A. Heayn

History

In the early fourth century, during the reign of the first Christian emperor, Constantine the Great (AD 324-337), Antioch was one of the largest and most important political, cultural, and religious centers of the Greco-Roman and Christian world

 Christians, Jews, Pagans, Greeks, Syrians, et al, vied for control within the city. This form of internal urban violence and armed revolt were common in the Greek East. Antioch was a city attempting to transition from a Greco-Roman Pagan society to an orthodox Christian society in a recently Christian empire.

 The Persian invasion and a deficiency of source material hinder further historical inquiry of this period until the later writings of John Chrysostom and Libanius in the mid-fourth century. Until the natural disasters of the early sixth century AD and the subsequent Persian and Arab invasions, Antioch flourished as the jewel of the East, and its people fought for domination and control of its wealth, power, and authority.

 During the fifth century, riots erupted in the city due to the transition towards becoming a truly Christian empire. Questions surrounding Christian doctrine and authority across the empire and region fueled the rhetoric, while economics and politics fed the violence.

‘ A starving mob has no respect’. Urban markets and food riots in the Roman world, 100 BC - AD 400

"Urban Uprisings in the Roman World: The Social Setting of the Mobbing of Sosthenes." NTS 51 (2005), 416-28.

Moyer Hubbard

77 Views13 Pages

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Acts of the Apostles,

Social sciences and the New Testament,

Acs 18,

Sosthenes

The unresolved difficulty of Acts 18.12–17 involves finding an adequate explanation for the (seemingly) unprovoked hostile reaction of the crowd toward Sosthenes, the ruler of the synagogue in Corinth. This investigation places this incident within the larger social context of urban uprisings and mob violence in the Roman world in order to highlight the socioeconomic factors (poverty, overcrowding, etc.) that inevitably gave rise to such frequent outbursts of urban aggression during this period. As such, this study illumines not only Acts 18, but other passages in Acts where mob violence plays a leading role. Whenever a blast of turbulence falls upon the assembly. .. we find jibes and brawling and laughter. Dio Chrysostom Luke's brief account of the mobbing of Sosthenes in Acts 18.12–17 presents historians and exegetes with a fascinating set of questions, not least of which is accounting for the sudden rush of the crowd on Sosthenes, the unsuspecting and unprepared ruler of the synagogue in Corinth. Surprisingly, this issue receives scant discussion in commentaries and secondary literature, with most appealing without argument to an anti-Jewish bias on the part of the assembly and the pro-consul Gallio, who turned a blind eye to the disturbance. 1 While xenophobic 1 E.g. H.

Popular Justice and Street Theatre in Late Roman Cities

Julio Cesar Magalhães de Oliveira

882 ViewsPaperRank: 2.311 Pages

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Ancient History,

Roman History,

Collective Action,

Late Antiquity

The rituals of popular justice that characterized the urban life of the Roman Empire in the fourth and fifth centuries are also one of the most obvious links we can establish between popular culture and the urban space. Forms of collective sanction, such as the public humiliation and the menacing parade, the destruction of properties, and the lynching of offenders, were all public performances that took place in the streets and squares of cities. Such performances also depended on customary practices of occupation of the urban space and shared some features with the festive rituals that paced the urban life. For all these reasons, in its conception and in its enactment, popular justice can properly be viewed as a kind of “street theatre”. Historians of other periods had for long explored such links between riot and carnival and the ways customary forms of popular justice could be adapted to different social contexts. But as Nicholas Rogers has rightly stressed, an obsession with symbolism and ritual can easily lead to a “cosmic populism”, that is, to the exaltation of irreverent counter-cultures, to the detriment of analyses of power. In this essay, I would like to identify some of the main characteristics of popular justice and street theatre in Late Antiquity, paying special attention to their rituals, mechanisms and processes. But in order to understand the historical significance of these practices, we must also to replace them in the broader political context of the Late Roman cities, at a time of increasing mobilization of the common people in the struggles for power in the urban space.

The Emperor, the Church, and Chariot Races: The Imperial Struggles with Christianity and Entertainment in Late Antique Constantinople

Jeffrey Larson

2971 Views81 Pages

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Iconography,

Roman Law,

Byzantine Studies,

Late Antiquity,

Church History,

John Chrysostom,

Late Antique Art and Archaeology,

Procopius,

Constant

“Cursing Chariot Horses instead of Drivers in the Hippodromes of the Eastern Roman Empire” in C.S. Sánchez Natalias (ed.), Litterae Magicae: Studies in Honor of Roger Tomlin (Zaragoza 2019) 83-101.

Christopher Faraone

289 ViewsPaperRank: 2.851 Pages

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Workplace Spirituality in Late Antique Egypt through Coptic Artifacts

Engy Eshak

2019, Minia Tourism and Hospitality Research

131 Views26 Pages

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Workplace Spirituality,

Late Antiquity,

Egypt,

Social History,

coptic studies Coptic art

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Integrating spirituality in the workplace is a socio- psychological phenomenon that has existed since ancient times until today. This paper investigates workplace spirituality in Late Antique Egypt through visual evidence. During this period, the diverse religious and spiritual orientations of individuals (Christian and/or pagan) interacted with their socio-economic circumstances and defined their daily spiritual practices in workplaces. This interaction was reflected on visual media, where Coptic artists visualized the hopes and fears of professionals. The study concerns two classes: scribes, representing the upper class professionals, and weavers, representing the middle class. Scribes wielded social power as a result of their distinguished education, social networks, social mobility, and wealth. Nonetheless, they might face challenges with government officials. The Coptic artist decorated scribal tools with spiritual imagery invoking the miraculous protective power of military saints against anonymous enemies. As for weavers, they had different challenges, most prominently the limited income, and the restrictions of Roman legislation. Therefore, spiritual imagery on weaving tools was intended to entreat the power of Christian and pagan spirits to accomplish their wishes of abundance, wellbeing and fortune. Apparently, the Coptic artist, through the language of imagery, employed and promoted the cults of saints and angels for their wide popularity. At the same time, he borrowed classical visual vocabulary, which were gradually secularized. Regardless of the social and literacy status, professionals from different classes were driven by an inner desire to live integrated lives; where spirituality nourished their professional lives.

The Materiality of Magic, edited by Dietrich Boschung and Jan N. Bremmer

Jan N . Bremmer

Published 2015

6575 ViewsPaperRank: 3.330 Pages

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Ancient History,

Anthropology,

Folklore,

Greek History,

Roman History

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The Materiality of Magic is an exciting new book about an aspect of magic that is usually neglected. In the last two decades we have had many books and proceedings of conferences on the concept of magic itself as well as its history, formulas and incantations in antiquity, both in East and West. Much less attention, however, has been paid to the material that was used by the magicians for their conjuring activities. This is the first book of its kind that focuses on the material aspects of magic, such as amulets, drawings, figurines, gems, grimoires, rings, and voodoo dolls. The practice of magic required a specialist expertise that knew how to handle material such as lead, gold, stones, papyrus and terra cotta—material that sometimes was used for specific genres of magic. That is why we present in this well illustrated collection of studies new insights on the materiality of magic in antiquity by studying both the materials used for magic as well as the books in which the expertise was preserved. The main focus of the book is on antiquity, but we complement and contrast our material with examples ranging from the Ancient Near East, via early modern Europe, to the present time.

The Dark Wind: Witches and the Concept of Evil

Gary Varner

2007, The Dark Wind: Witches and the Concept of Evil

193 Pages

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Mythology And Folklore,

European Witch Trials,

Witchcraft (Anthropology Of Religion),

Witchcraft, Religion and Magic,

Traditional Witchcraft

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A survey of witches around the world, their prehistoric origin and how society has viewed them throughout history.

https://tinyurl.com/yu69bv9f

Magic Witchcraft Pagans & Christians A study in the suppression of belief and the rise of Christianity

Gary Varner

Top 4%6723 ViewsPaperRank: 1.4108 Pages

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https://tinyurl.com/3ykjjjh8

Maidens, Matrons, and Magicians: Women and Personal Ritual Power in Late Antique Egypt

Meghan Mattsson McGinnis

135 Pages

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Gnosticism,

Archaeology,

Classical Archaeology,

Near Eastern Archaeology,

Art History

 ...more ▾

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Utilizing an interdisciplinary approach to a variety of material, textual, and literary evidence, the aim of this thesis is to shed light on the realities –rather than stereotypes- of an important aspect of late ancient women’s experience: the use of ritual power. Patterns of gender differentiation in late antique Egyptian magic are investigated and shown to be connected to the particular aims to which numinous powers were employed, aims which were in turn bound up with the social roles expected of each sex. The majority of this study consists of a series of case studies of different types of women’s rituals of power, which emphasize examples of significant trends in ritual iconography, praxis, and context, both those which were typical of late antique Egyptian magic as a whole, and those which were uniquely female in character. The fact that female practitioners came from a wide array of socio-economic, ethnic, and religious backgrounds is also addressed.

https://tinyurl.com/5cmsbcwt

Jesus the Magician? A Crucifixion Amulet and its Date

Felicity Harley-McGowan

2019, Magical Gems in their Contexts: Proceedings of the International Workshop held in the Museum of Fine Arts, Budapest, 16-18 February 2012, eds. K. Edreffy, A. Nagy, J. Spier

1326 ViewsPaperRank: 5.130 Pages

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Byzantine Iconography,

Crucifixion in Antiquity,

Early Christian Iconography,

Crucifixion of Christ,

Magical Gems

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Page Numbers: (Rome: "L'Erma" di Bretschneider, 2019), 103-116, plates 6-7.

Publication Date: 2019

Publication Name: Magical Gems in their Contexts: Proceedings of the International Workshop held in the Museum of Fine Arts, Budapest, 16-18 February 2012, eds. K. Edreffy, A. Nagy, J. Spier

https://www.academia.edu/38614985/Jesus_the_Magician_A_Crucifixion_Amulet_and_its_Date

Horus, Isis, and the Dark-Eyed Beauty: A Series of Magical Ostraca in the Brigham Young University Collection

Korshi Dosoo

Lincoln Blumell

2018, Archiv für Papyrusforschung und verwandte Gebiete

61 Pages

2 Files ▾

Ancient Egyptian Religion,

Coptic Studies,

Magic and the Occult (Anthropology Of Religion),

Magic and Divination in the Ancient World

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O.BYU Mag., a Coptic love spell written continuously over three successive ostraca, consists largely of a narrative in which Horus asks for the help of his mother Isis to win the love of a woman whom he meets in the underworld. It is one of twenty-two known Coptic magical texts that mention Egyptian or Greek deities, and its narrative is paralleled almost exactly in three of these. Dating to the seventh or eighth century CE, it provides important evidence regarding the knowledge and survival of Egyptian deities at a time when Egypt was thoroughly Christian. [Full text available on request]

https://tinyurl.com/2z7hwaks

ABOLISH THE ELECTORAL COLLEGE

Sign the petition: The Select Committee on January 6th should introduce legislation reforming the Electoral Count Act as soon as possible!

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Tell Congress: We urge you to introduce and pass legislation to reform the antiquated Electoral Count Act of 1887 as soon as possible -- and without side deals that undermine other crucial voting rights bills! Legislation cutting off all pathways to overturning a legitimate election is absolutely essential to protect our democracy. SIGN THE PETITION!

It was one year ago that Trump supporters stormed the Capitol, committing acts of violence, espousing white supremacy, and perpetuating the Big Lie that the election result was anything but a conclusive victory for President Biden.

Now Trump appears to be laying the groundwork for potential efforts to upend future election results. A recent New York Times headline reads: "In Bid for Control of Elections, Trump Loyalists Face Few Obstacles."

Unless Congress takes action, the far right may be able to try and manipulate an outdated law at the heart of the January 6 insurrection after the next presidential election. We can't let that happen.

Sign the petition: The Electoral Count Act, the 140-year-old law that governs certification of presidential elections, must be reformed!

Thanks in part to a memo written by Trump lawyer John Eastman, and a powerpoint presentation leaked by former Trump chief of staff Mark Meadows, we now know some of the most outrageous details of Donald Trump's January 2021 coup attempt.

That fraudulent plan sought to exploit the outdated Electoral Count Act, the law that governs how Congress certifies presidential elections. Trump's plan to overturn the 2020 election rested on the absurd idea that state legislatures should choose new electors after citizens have cast their votes in several key states, overriding the will of the people.

Trump's plan was to get GOP legislatures in a handful of states to repudiate the election results and substitute presidential electors for Trump — and then secure support from a combination of Vice President Mike Pence, Congress, and perhaps the Supreme Court.

Trump's scheme was totally outrageous — and was relatively far-fetched given the politics of that time. But new reporting does indicate that at least one state's (Pennsylvania) Republican lawmakers were considering taking his side and trying to overturn the results of the 2020 election. If Pennsylvania sided with him, Trump's team hoped others would follow suit.

With an increasingly anti-democratic bent in the Republican Party and more loyalists in place in key positions, a future effort seems more likely to succeed — and any vulnerabilities in the law that make that more plausible need to be fixed immediately.

The Congressional committee responsible for investigating the events of January 6th is reportedly working on recommendations for legislation reforming the Electoral Count Act right now. It's essential that the committee introduce strong and clear legislation, and that Congress pass it as soon as possible. We can't risk another attack on our democracy.

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