Books, Scribes, and Cultures of Reading in the Shepherd of Hermas
In this article, I analyse how the Shepherd of Hermas constructs an ancient Christian reading culture through concurrent portrayals of Christian reading, copying and book production. I argue that, by portraying its protagonist Hermas as an idealised reader, scribe and auditor, the Shepherd construct...
Main Author: | |
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Format: | Electronic Article |
Language: | English |
Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
Journals Online & Print: | |
Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
Published: |
Cambridge Univ. Press
2022
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In: |
The journal of ecclesiastical history
Year: 2022, Volume: 73, Issue: 3, Pages: 461-479 |
Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains: | B
Hermas, Pastor
/ Classical antiquity
/ Reading culture
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IxTheo Classification: | CD Christianity and Culture CH Christianity and Society KAB Church history 30-500; early Christianity |
Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
Summary: | In this article, I analyse how the Shepherd of Hermas constructs an ancient Christian reading culture through concurrent portrayals of Christian reading, copying and book production. I argue that, by portraying its protagonist Hermas as an idealised reader, scribe and auditor, the Shepherd constructs an early Christian reading culture that authenticates Hermas's role as prophet, activates the textual dissemination of the Shepherd and ritualises the practice of Christian auditory ‘reading’. The article closes with ‘Hermas the freedman’, which considers how Hermas's self-presentation as a formerly enslaved person may have connections to the Shepherd's centralisation of ancient reading cultures. |
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ISSN: | 1469-7637 |
Contains: | Enthalten in: The journal of ecclesiastical history
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Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1017/S0022046920002626 |