Given at the Greek Orthodox Church of St Ioannis, Parramatta in Australia on September 16, 2023
Abstract: The model or ideal of human behaviour and achievement in Byzantium was to become a saint. But a Byzantine saint, depending on the historical period and the social circumstances, could be a number of things: an anchorite, a monk or a nun, someone living on top of a column or on the branches of a tree, a person pretending to be a fool for the sake of Christ, or a hesychast devoted to incessant prayer. Each of these types represents a full range of human life-forms, constituting an amazing tapestry of characters, values, and meanings.
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Dr Vassilis Adrahtas teaches in Islamic Studies, Western Sydney University, and is the Convenor of Greek Studies, University of New South Wales.
Top Image: Mosaic of Basil of Caesarea at the Monastery of Hosios Loukas – Photo by Hans A. Rosbach / Wikimedia Commons
Becoming a Saint in Byzantium
Lecture by Vassilis Adrahtas
Given at the Greek Orthodox Church of St Ioannis, Parramatta in Australia on September 16, 2023
Abstract: The model or ideal of human behaviour and achievement in Byzantium was to become a saint. But a Byzantine saint, depending on the historical period and the social circumstances, could be a number of things: an anchorite, a monk or a nun, someone living on top of a column or on the branches of a tree, a person pretending to be a fool for the sake of Christ, or a hesychast devoted to incessant prayer. Each of these types represents a full range of human life-forms, constituting an amazing tapestry of characters, values, and meanings.
Dr Vassilis Adrahtas teaches in Islamic Studies, Western Sydney University, and is the Convenor of Greek Studies, University of New South Wales.
Top Image: Mosaic of Basil of Caesarea at the Monastery of Hosios Loukas – Photo by Hans A. Rosbach / Wikimedia Commons
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