In the section of “Piety and Power in Byzantium”, Moore discusses the role of Byzantine women’s financial patronage and veneration of religious icons had on the molding of Eastern Orthodox Christianity in Byzantium. Moore mentions that Empress Helena (ca. 248-ca. 330) was the “first Christian imperial patron” (Moore 2015, 69) because she was responsible for the “construction of more than thirty churches in the Holy Land as well as churches in Rome” (69). Empress Helena and her financial patronage set the precedence for other empresses and wealthy women to fund the construction of other religious institutions. The veneration of icons came to be an important facet of Eastern Orthodoxy through empresses and wealthy women’s advocacy for them. Although
Queen Catherine stands up to the Catholic church to prove herself capable of running her country as Regent till her son, Charles, is of age. One of Mary’s ladies, Greer, was forced to provide for
This is important as the change in education implemented the idea that educated women would divert from Christian values but a man strongly opposing the idea dismisses it, and lends a supportive perspective of educated women. However, something that is not showcased in this document is that women were taught theology, basic arithmetic, and language which limited them to their lives at home. Not being so educated in a vast variety of subjects like the men of their times eventually led to the downfall of women. They lost power and and didn’t have a very crucial role in shaping
Week 5 (2/21-2/23) Dion C. Smythe's article "Middle Byzantine Family Values and Anna Komnene's Alexiad" explores Byzantine family values as recounted by Anna Komnene in her book about her father’s rule. Smythe does this to explore common themes and values in Byzantine families. Anna Komnene’s book was written over a period of time where Anna and her female relatives were living in a monastery. Anna herself was a Byzantine princess who grew up under that assumption that she would one day rule the Byzantine empire (seeing as her parents had not yet born a son). However, her parents do eventually have a son, his name being John.
Christians ought to derive strength from Saint Ursula's example of upholding their faith through persecution and their devotion to improving women's education. She was an agent of change in her society, questioning the established system and inspiring today's Christians to follow her example likewise. The example of Ursula additionally serves as a reminder of the significance of involving daily prayer and devotion to God. These instances demonstrate how Saint Ursula's teachings are still relevant to modern Christian
The Byzantine Iconoclastic Controversy began in 726 CE when Emperor Leo III issued a decree against the worship of icons.1 This action resulted in the removal and destruction of icons in churches and monasteries.2 There had been tensions rising between the church and the state over the use of icons for some time, but the culmination of these tensions along with the pressure of Muslim armies attacking the borders of Byzantium lead to the explosive Iconoclastic Controversy. The iconoclasts ardently believed that the creation of images depicting holy people was making God angry. The iconophiles believed that these images were sacred and used them as a means of worshiping God. This theological battle lead to the meeting of several ecumenical councils in order to resolve the controversy between the church and the state. This paper will examine the arguments for and against the use of icons from iconoclasts and iconophiles in the Byzantine Empire.
In what ways did the Julio-Claudians use traditional and foreign religion as a political tool? In this essay I will investigate the ways in which the Julio-Claudian dynasty used traditional Roman religion alongside foreign cults as political tools to legitimise their imperial role by emphasising divine heritage and provide religious cohesion by conflating traditional religion with aspects of foreign cults. I will use both ancient authors and modern scholarship to analyse the ways in which the Julio-Claudians used traditional and foreign religion in a political way. Moreover, I shall analyse my evidence via the themes, imperial cult, literature as propaganda, and material evidence: coins, inscriptions and statues.
Ancient Greece brought many valuable social, economic, and political foundations to the world. In this task, we will talk about the political sides of archaic Greek poleis. There are five frequent forms of government monarchy, quality, despotism, coven, and republic. To compare these commanding systems, we will probe each form's background and structure. Let's start with monarchy, a form that still impacts and exists in numerous countries, especially the Western.
First of all the Byzantine Empire was the eastern continuation of the Roman Empire after the Western Roman Empire 's fall in the fifth century. But it still had continued going from the fall of the Roman Empire until the Ottoman triumph in 1453. The Byzantine Empire at first kept up various Roman structures of organization and law and parts of Roman culture. The Byzantines called themselves "Roman". The articulation "Byzantine Empire" was not used until well after the fall of the Empire.
She uses Roman literature, to find more information about the ruling classes. The chapter goes through the jobs women held and how they varied by social status. The final chapter of the book reviews the effects of Religion on Roman women. It relates the topic to modern day Italian customs today.
Fermina also rejects Catholicism, her husband’s faith, stating that “men and women of the Church lacked any virtue inspired by God”(160). This open rejection provides insight into Fermina’s value of independence, a value so ingrained that she refuses the concept that higher power guide her actions, or of
A significant feature in Confucian tradition regards the concept of “xiao”, or filial piety, a virtue of respect for one’s parents and ancestors. Recently, this concept has obtained increased interest, as many are analyzing possible interpretations and meanings to various Confucius passages. This paper discusses more specifically the motivation or reasoning behind some acts of filial piety, arguing that a son’s filial actions stem from basic human nature versus lying within moral uprightness. The discussion begins with a survey of existing views on the topic before introducing the crux of the essay and possible objections. One particular controversial passage portrays a conversation between the governor of She and Confucius.
Byzantium For 500 plus years, the Roman empire brought a unique way of life to a vast area of land. In 476, the western half of the empire collapsed by invading German tribes. But in the east, the empire was ruled by the Byzantine empire. The old Greeks city-port of Byzantium, (Istanbul and Turkey), was the center of the Roman empire.
The Church dominated politics throughout the Middle Ages. It is clear from reading numerous primary sources that the Church was the sole guidance of people throughout the Middle Ages. This essay will discuss the factors and events that led to the rise of the Church in the Middle Ages and the change in politics from this time. It is evident from reading various sources from the course that the Church and the State were closely linked and that this bond was formed from the early outset of the Middle Ages, at the time of the Roman Empire. The object of this essay is to research primary sources from this time to demonstrate the progression of the Church and politics in the Middle Ages.
The icon of Christ Pantocrator found in Saint Catherine’s Monastery in Sinai, Egypt is an excellent artistic manifestation of the theological controversy that existed in Byzantine culture over the dual nature of Jesus Christ. Early Christian art frequently used the motif of Christ as the Good Shepherd; a kind, merciful portrayal of a mortal man that draws parallels to ancient Greek and Roman deity in that he was engaged in the mundane, human action of tending sheep. However, in 325 AD the Council of Nicaea was convened by Constantine to unify Christian doctrine, and ruled that Jesus Christ was divine, equal to, and unified with God and the Holy Spirit. According to this council, the accounts that Jesus was a mortal man who once lived on the
It is ironic that a bishop affiliated to the church of such a saint should crave for a lavish instead of a modest tomb and concentrate on acquiring rather than giving. In addition, even though the church of St. Praxed has been described as “the church for peace,” (14, 122) the Bishop seems to be anything but at peace. In the Bishop’s insistence on using the hidden lump of lapis lazuli to adorn his sepulcher, one makes an ironic observation. To the Bishop, a lump of lapis, however costly, is comparable to God’s globe.