Religion in Roman Egypt
eBook - ePub

Religion in Roman Egypt

Assimilation and Resistance

  1. English
  2. ePUB (mobile friendly)
  3. Available on iOS & Android
eBook - ePub

Religion in Roman Egypt

Assimilation and Resistance

About this book

This exploration of cultural resilience examines the complex fate of classical Egyptian religion during the centuries from the period when Christianity first made its appearance in Egypt to when it became the region's dominant religion (roughly 100 to 600 C.E. Taking into account the full range of witnesses to continuing native piety--from papyri and saints' lives to archaeology and terracotta figurines--and drawing on anthropological studies of folk religion, David Frankfurter argues that the religion of Pharonic Egypt did not die out as early as has been supposed but was instead relegated from political centers to village and home, where it continued a vigorous existence for centuries.


In analyzing the fate of the Egyptian oracle and of the priesthoods, the function of magical texts, and the dynamics of domestic cults, Frankfurter describes how an ancient culture maintained itself while also being transformed through influences such as Hellenism, Roman government, and Christian dominance. Recognizing the special characteristics of Egypt, which differentiated it from the other Mediterranean cultures that were undergoing simultaneous social and political changes, he departs from the traditional "decline of paganism/triumph of Christianity" model most often used to describe the Roman period. By revealing late Egyptian religion in its Egyptian historical context, he moves us away from scenarios of Christian triumph and shows us how long and how energetically pagan worship survived.

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Yes, you can access Religion in Roman Egypt by David Frankfurter in PDF and/or ePUB format, as well as other popular books in Theology & Religion & History of Religion. We have over one million books available in our catalogue for you to explore.

INDEX

Abydos, 46–47, 128–30, 144, 166, 190, 278n. 39; Bes oracle at, 18, 26, 128–31, 169–74, 176, 187, 190, 206, 231
Aelian, 67–68
African-American cultures: charismatic leadership of African priests in, 204; domestic religion in, 139, 141–42; processional oracles in, 155–56; ritual ex- pertise in, 214, 236n. 135
African cultures, modern, 8, 29, 34–35, 48, 141–42; Christian and Muslim conversion of, 263n. 78, 275–76, 283–84; priests in, 203–4; prophet movements in, 189–92, 204, 267–68; scribes as ritual experts in, 48, 213
Agathos Daemon, 63, 99, 106, 184
‘Ain Birbiya (Dakhla oasis), 98–99, 113
Aion, 35, 166. See also Mandulis
Akoris, 18, 200
Alexander-Romance, 226, 242
Alexandria and Alexandrians, 9–10, 19, 26, 31, 35, 40, 63, 71, 106, 108, 162–63, 177, 185, 191, 224, 236, 239, 283–84
al-Nadim, Ibn, 217
Amenhotep I, oracle cults of: Deir el- Medina, 98, 152, 185, 190; Deir el- Bahri, 158–59, 175, 238, 245–46
Amenophis, pharaoh, legends of, 242–44, 247
Ammianus Marcellinus, 17–18, 26, 128–29, 170–71
Ammonius of Nitria, 283
amulets, 22, 29, 34, 126, 134, 142, 161, 170, 177, 192, 203, 212–13, 215, 249, ...

Table of contents

  1. Cover Page
  2. Title Page
  3. Copyright Page
  4. Dedication
  5. Contents
  6. Acknowledgments
  7. Abbreviations
  8. Overture: The Armor of Horus
  9. One: Scope and Method
  10. Two: Religion and Temples
  11. Three: The Local Scope of Religious Belief
  12. Four: Mutations of the Egyptian Oracle
  13. Five: Priest to Magician: Evolving Modes of Religious Authority
  14. Six: The Scriptorium as Crucible of Religious Change
  15. Seven: Idiom, Ideology, and Iconoclasm: A Prolegomenon to the Conversion of Egypt
  16. Select Bibliography
  17. Index
  18. About the Author