Asceticism in the Graeco-Roman World (Key Themes in Ancient History)

Subjects: Religion: General Interest, Ancient History, Religion, Classical Studies; Series: Key Themes in Ancient History. Export citation; Buy the print book.
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• Asceticism in the Graeco-Roman world

Open Preview See a Problem? Thanks for telling us about the problem. Return to Book Page. Asceticism in the Graeco-Roman World 3. Richard Finn presents for the 1st time a combined study of the major ascetic traditions, which have been previously misunderstood by being studied separately. Paperback , pages. To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up. To ask other readers questions about Asceticism in the Graeco-Roman World , please sign up. Be the first to ask a question about Asceticism in the Graeco-Roman World. Lists with This Book. This book is not yet featured on Listopia.

Jul 25, Erik Graff rated it really liked it Recommends it for: The purpose of this book is to broadly trace the pagan, Jewish and Christian sources of ascetic theory and practice up through the mid-fifth century CE. In so doing, the reader is made aware of how various and radically contextualized such self-disciplinary practices were.

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Thus, while a Cynic might engage in public masturbation or fornication in order to overcome subservience to public opinion, and a Jew might enforce conjugal sex as a duty, a Christian might eschew such behavior, even the very The purpose of this book is to broadly trace the pagan, Jewish and Christian sources of ascetic theory and practice up through the mid-fifth century CE. Thus, while a Cynic might engage in public masturbation or fornication in order to overcome subservience to public opinion, and a Jew might enforce conjugal sex as a duty, a Christian might eschew such behavior, even the very thought of it, by means of castration.

Indeed, this, the late antique development of Christian asceticism, its roots and expressions, is the focus of his study. Despite the emphasis on Christianity which occupies two-thirds of the text, Finn does do some justice to the complexity of the ancient Mediterranean world. For him there is no normative Christianity, nor Judaism, nor paganism.

Each, often along multiple streams, shifted course, merging and dividing. Each interacted, both internally with its variants, and externally with the others, these interactions taking various forms in different places and at different times. Thus Philo, Clement or Origen could be at once influenced by pagan philosophy and by their own ostensible religious confessions; thus Augustine could migrate through the worlds of Neoplatonism and Manichaeism to end as a North African bishop of a, regionally considered, minority Christian sect.

Our view of antique asceticism is, of course, restricted by our sources. First, the very ability to read and write, to have access both to literature and to literary audiences, tends already towards a distorting cosmopolitanism. We don't know much directly, and certainly not objectively by any modern standards, of actual popular practices and beliefs.

Second, the filters of language, of cultural prejudice, and of political history have favored some testimonies, some texts, over others. Third, given the constraints of the author's own expertise and avowedly limited purposes, very little attention is paid to the contributions made from outside the Graeco-Roman world. The limitation of sources result also in the limitations of this study.

Finn's is a literary approach, his book filled with textual references and notes. He is weak on pertinent archaeological, geographical and environmental evidences; pays scant attention to psychology, no attention to ethnobotany; and avoids most inferences which may be intelligently made about relevant sociological and economic factors in those areas of the ancient world he discusses. Finn singles out Augustine as one of the driving forces behind this blending of ascetic and ecclesiastical interests.

This form of monasticism was in part a response to church politics: Augustine promoted the ascetic life as an expression of Christian unity, one that stood against Donatist separatism. The clerical use of the ascetic disciplines was intended to foster the good of the church rather than advance the spiritual life of the individual. Harnessing monasticism to the church was one approach that bishops might entertain in order to neutralize the monks who otherwise might be seen as competitors with the established church. Taken as a whole, this book has some very interesting points to make. Finn is quite successful in arguing that the meaning of ascetic practices is often found in the eye of the beholder.

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Ranging from the Neo-Platonic interpretations of Pythagorean practices to the promotion of chastity by later Christian bishops, the meanings assigned to ascetic acts by their practitioners could often vary widely from that of later interpreters and commentators upon them.

He also amasses a great deal of evidence to support his account of the ways in which asceticism was used by various groups. While reading the book I wondered if less evidence and more analysis of selected points might have been more helpful for the target student audience. A specialist will have no problem following Finn's arguments, but those looking for an introduction to the topic may find themselves a bit overwhelmed. At other points explanation seems a bit thin.

One place where this is particularly evident is in Finn's chapter on Origen. Finn's implicit argument is that Origen is a key figure in the history of Christian asceticism, and yet he only devotes four pages to Origen's ascetic theology.

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If Origen is as important as Finn thinks he is and his chapter titles "Christian asceticism before Origen", and "Origen and his ascetic legacy" certainly suggest this importance then it is mystifying why the analysis of his ascetic theology is so underdeveloped. There is also, at certain points, a failure to "connect the dots", clarifying the connections between different practitioners.

In the section entitled "Origenistic Asceticism in the Latin West—John Cassian", Finn offers an excellent summary of John Cassian's ascetic theology, but fails to explicitly state how this system was indebted to Origen's thought in fact, apart from the section title, Origen's name does not appear in this section.

Once again, a specialist in late antique monasticism will not need this help, but a student or someone from a related discipline might. A student or non-specialist approaching the subject for the first time will want a bit more explanation and clarity than is found in this volume. Bryn Mawr Classical Review Key Themes in Ancient History.

Cambridge University Press, Reviewed by Richard Goodrich, Gonzaga University goodrich gonzaga. Comment on this review in the BMCR blog. Books Available for Review. Your rating has been recorded. Write a review Rate this item: Preview this item Preview this item. Asceticism in the Graeco-Roman world Author: Richard Finn Op Publisher: Cambridge University Press, Key themes in ancient history.

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