Celibate marriages in late antique and Byzantine hagiography
Subtitle: the lives of Saints Julian and Basilissa, Andronikos and Athanasia, and Galaktion and Episteme
By: Anne P. Alwis
Publisher: New York; Continuum
Published: 2011
Place of publication: London
Language: eng
Number of pages: 340
ISBN-13: 9781441115256
Subjects: Marriage; Christian hagiography; Sex in marriage; Christian saints; Sexual abstinence; Christianity
Description: "Celibate Marriages in Late Antique and Byzantine Hagiography explores the puzzling phenomenon of celibate marriage as depicted in the lives of three couples who achieved sainthood. Marriage without intercourse appears to have no purpose, especially in Christian antiquity, yet these three tales were copied for centuries. What messages were they promoting? What did it mean to be a virgin husband and a virgin wife? Including full translations, this volume sets each life in its historical context, and by examining their individual and shared themes, the book shows that the tension raised by pitting marriage against celibacy is constantly debated. It also highlights the ingenuity of Byzantine hagiographers as they attempted to reconcile this curious paradox. This book addresses a gap in late Antique and Byzantine hagiographic studies where primary sources and interpretative material are very rarely presented in the same volume. By providing a variety of contexts to the material a much more comprehensive, revealing and holistic picture of celibate marriage emerges."--Bloomsbury Publishing.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references and index.
Table of contents: title: Recreation and invention; title: Representing celibate marriages; title: Implications of a celibate marriage; title: Resolution : virgin wives; title: Literary ancestors; title: The vita of Julian and Basilissa; title: The vita of Andronikos and Athanasia; title: The vita of Galaktion and Episteme.