Thesis advisor: Mark Thatcher / Rome changed throughout its history and the city that existed during the fourth century CE was different from the city that Virgil and Cicero lived in and described in their writings. The Roman state and society changed during the intervening four centuries as Rome ceased to be politically significant, elite behavior became increasingly disconnected from any role in governance, and the traditional religious cults were neglected as Christianity gained prominence. Despite these changes, Roman tradition dictated an idealization of ancestral custom, which was preserved in the corpus of extant literature. I argue that among the elites of fourth century society, there were individuals such as Ammianus Marcellinus or Symmachus who interpreted and responded to their society through the filter of these fossilized images of an idealized Rome. Although they lived in largely post-classical time, their writings express a worldview that is congruent with the late Republic and early Principate. / Thesis (BA) — Boston College, 2017.

The Fourth Ecumenical Council, held at Chalcedon in 451, began a period of extraordinary social and political crisis across the Eastern Mediterranean. In Palestine, as elsewhere, the centuries that followed were characterised by internecine conflict between local Christians, persisting until the collapse of Roman authority in the region during the reign of the emperor Heraclius. Since Edward Gibbon, historians have struggled to contextualise this debate, ostensibly an argument between proponents of rival, but also substantially identical, Christologies. This thesis considers what role socio-economic factors may have played in shaping contemporary accounts of the Council's fraught reception. It asks whether this may have distorted our understanding of a defining Late Antique debate. Chalcedon's reforms had wide-reaching consequences, not only for the Empire's official Christological policy, but for the broader structure of the 'Church economy,' the systems through which Christian institutions were financed and maintained, referred to at length in the Council's disciplinary canons. Its rulings held particular significance for Palestine in its status as the Christian 'Holy Land.' Here I explore this facet of Chalcedon's legacy, whilst considering how the language of doctrinal controversy generated by the Council served to frame episodes of material competition between rival communities of clerics and monks. The thesis offers a new reading of the texts produced by key actors in these confrontations, many of which have been historically neglected. It follows in the wake of recent attempts to analyse other religious conflicts of this period in light of contemporary social or political conditions, or through reference to 'networks' of influence and patronage. I apply this methodology to the study of the Palestinian partisans in the antagonism which followed Chalcedon, whilst also drawing upon the archaeologically-grounded study of material culture which has influenced so many other areas of early medieval history.

Changing circumstances during Late Antiquity and the Early Byzantine Period (4th-9th centuries A.D.) required Byzantine communities to make deliberate adjustments in order to survive, endure, and ultimately flourish again during the Middle Byzantine Period (10th-12th centuries). The role these communities had in decision-making can easily be overlooked, leaving instead hapless victims of insurmountable external pressures such as imperial manipulation, economic recession, Christian acculturation, or a general sense of inexorable decline. Although factors such as these played a role as each community deliberated on a complex and unique set of local concerns, the ultimate decisions each community made should not be assumed but rather investigated on the basis of both textual and archaeological evidence. The stoa is particularly well-suited for the study of reuse and therefore valuable for understanding the adaptive strategies implemented by Byzantine individuals and communities during the transition period from antiquity to the medieval period. The stoa was one of the most ubiquitous buildings of the Greco-Roman city and was highly adaptable for reuse, whether by incorporation into large structures such as churches or fortifications, or by subdivision into smaller units for uses such as housing, storage, or commercial activities. The stoa was commonly found not only in urban contexts, particularly in agorai and fora, but also at many extraurban sanctuaries. By compiling data on the reuse of stoas throughout the Byzantine Empire during the 4th - 10th centuries, four patterns of reuse can be identified: residential, economic, ecclesiastical, and defensive. Abandonment, or a lack of reuse, is a fifth pattern. These patterns of reuse provide insight into the lives of Byzantines outside of the imperial and ecclesiastic elites and inform the excavation of post-classical phases of stoas.

This thesis argues that Jerome’s polemics against Helvidius, Jovinian, and Vigilantius were tailored to boost Jerome’s status within the Christian community, and were carefully constructed pieces of abusive rhetoric, rather than the result of his famed curmudgeonly character. These treatises are studied in light of both the ancient rhetorical tradition within which Jerome was trained, and modern theories of abusive rhetoric. This thesis is demonstrated in six chapters. Chapter 1 demonstrates that past scholarship focused on ‘Jerome the man’, his self-invention, and his academic and spiritual qualities, without giving adequate attention to how Jerome used these qualities in his compositions. Chapter 2 focuses on ancient and modern theories of rhetoric in order to set out a methodology of abusive rhetoric that highlights Burkean identification. In addition, this chapter studies how rhetoric can define and challenge social hierarchies. Chapter 3 discusses Jerome’s awareness of social standing through discussion of his interactions with three of his contemporaries: Augustine, Rufinus, and Ambrose. It examines how Jerome altered his rhetoric to reflect his perception of the relative social status of his correspondents. Part 2 studies three of Jerome’s treatises in light of the conclusion of Part 1. Chapter 4 analyzes Jerome’s Adversus Helvidium, and argues that Jerome’s rhetoric serves to contrast himself with Helvidius, whose heretical, fame-seeking character illuminates Jerome as a humble and conservative Christian. It argues that Jerome’s rhetoric in this treatise aimed for episcopal authority. Chapter 5 studies Jerome’s Adversus Iovinianum and argues that the polemic sought to extend Jerome’s views on asceticism to a wider audience, and potentially secure favor for himself following his expulsion from Rome. He presents Jovinian as a deceptive sinner with a dissolute lifestyle, and himself as an authoritative savior. Although Jerome attempted to connect to the elite in the Christian community, his tract was a failure due to an inability to identify successfully with the audience on the topic of virginity. Finally, Chapter 6 discusses Jerome’s Contra Vigilantium. Jerome presents Vigilantius as a boorish Gallic innkeeper, in contrast to himself as an urbane, albeit snobbish, orthodox Christian. Jerome’s rhetoric carefully identifies himself with upper class Christians, as well as the Emperor, apostles, and martyrs, thereby claiming their agreement with his view of orthodoxy. In sum, I argue that Jerome’s rhetoric served to construct a polemical persona that he attempted to use to further his Christian career, and shape his own image. While this was not entirely successful in his own day, Jerome’s rhetoric did ultimately succeed in crafting an image of himself as an orthodox and authoritative father of the Church.

Thesis advisor: Robin Fleming / The cult of the saints and emperor cult both fulfilled similar roles in their respective societies. On the surface they appear to be drastically different institutions. In reality emperor cult and saint cult were similar religious programs, which with careful examination appear to be related. The following work discusses the remarkable similarities between the cult of saints and emperor cult, including their personnel, temples, means of establishment and promotion, and even the role each cult played in the development of their societies. After careful examination of the above mentioned subjects, it is clear that the cult of the saints was largely based on emperor cult, and that despite the drastically different religious atmospheres that each cult was based in, they were similar in all but the most obvious wasy. / Thesis (MA) — Boston College, 2008. / Submitted to: Boston College. Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: History.

In approaching the scientific literature on the UNESCO world heritage site of Palmyra for the first time, any scholar would be immediately struck by the number of studies devoted to the Roman phase of the settlement – roughly 1st-third quarter of the 3rd century. By contrast, contributions on late antique and early Islamic Palmyra have never been numerous, reflecting both the preference granted by current scholarship to the study of Roman remains and the paucity of archaeological and written evidence at our disposal to cast light on this period. Admittedly, works on post-273 Palmyra have grown significantly in number in the last couple of decades. Yet, almost the totality of them has often been confined to the examination of items of circumstantial evidence. We still lack an organic publication that attempts a systematic overview of these works and tries to contextualise the history of the city in a broader geographic and chronological framework. Numerous questions, such as the fate of the city in the 5th century, remain to be answered; other evidence, such as the bulk of early Arabic written sources, still has to be fully explored. This dissertation presents an examination of those evidence that are useful to better understand the historical development of the settlement from the fall of Zenobia and the second Palmyrene revolt (272-273) to the collapse of the Umayyad caliphate (750). The civilian and military character of the city is investigated through the analysis of specific themes for which enough evidence is available to work with. Besides written sources and published archaeological evidence, archival material is used to cast more light on a selected number of specific items of evidence. The final output of this study is to present a comprehensive history of the post-Roman settlement to be taken as a starting point for future discussion on the topic.

<p>My dissertation analyzes early Christian representations of Jewish sexuality and explores how early Christian writers attacked opponents by depicting them as subjects of perverse or excessive sexual desires. Beginning with the New Testament, I examine how Paul employed sexual stereotypes to distinguish the community of believers in Christ from the wider Gentile world. In the decades after Paul, Greek writers such as Justin Martyr and the author of the Epistle of Barnabas turned accusations of sexual licentiousness and literalist interpretive practices against the Jews. Origen of Alexandria, moreover, utilized accusations of carnality, fleshliness, and sexual licentiousness to produce Jewish-Christian difference; he drew on dichotomies of "flesh" and "spirit" in Paul's letters to support his argument for the superiority of Christian "spiritual" exegesis over Jewish "carnal" exegesis. Examining the writings of major Christian writers such as Origen and John Chrysostom, I argue that Christian sexual slander against Jews intensified as Christian exegetes endeavored to claim Jewish scripture for Christian use in the third and fourth centuries. My research examines these literary constructions of Jewish sexuality in early Christian writings of Greek Fathers and illuminates how these constructions function in relation to the development of Christian biblical hermeneutics, the formation of Christian practices of self-mastery, and the expansion of Christian imperial power. By exploring how early Christian writers appealed to categories of gender and sexuality to produce Jewish-Christian difference, I aim to contribute to recent scholarship on the variety of strategies by which early Christians negotiated identity and defined Otherness.</p> / Dissertation

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There has been an increased interest in Romeʼs connections with the Far East over the course of the last 20 years. This has resulted in the publication of many articles and monographs about the Roman involvement in the Red Sea which was the key maritime region linking the Far East with the West. This thesis synthesizes the recent scholarship on the Red Sea trade in Late Antiquity by merging all of the most up to date information into a concise narrative. In order to accomplish this, three major sources of information have been analyzed. Firstly, the historical time frame of all of the major regions of the Red Sea including Egypt, Aksum, and Himyar have been laid out in a straight forward narrative. This offers the most pertinent background information for the development of Red Sea trade. Secondly, the most up to date archaeological evidence has been incorporated into a description of the ancient maritime trade infrastructure of the Red Sea and Indian Ocean. The archaeological evidence broadens our knowledge of the roads through the Eastern Desert of Egypt, the ports of the Red Sea, and the development of the Indian subcontinent more generally. Thirdly, this thesis builds on all of the historical as well as archaeological data and attempts to quantify the impact of Red Sea trade on the Late Antique Roman Empire both economically and culturally. This synthesis helps to elucidate the growing conception among Late Antique scholars that the Roman Empire was far more interconnected with its eastern neighbours. This further nuances the role which outside forces had on the evolution of the Late Antique world.

This thesis investigates the dual roles that women played in the cult of the martyrs in Christianity in Late Antiquity: as martyrs worthy of admiration and as venerators engaged in acts of celebration. The investigation is driven by questions regarding the identity, agency, and power of women in the cult of martyrs, focusing on late antique (second- to fifth-century) North Africa. Late antique Christians expressed their veneration of the martyrs in a variety of ways, including (but not limited to) special church services, praying for the martyrs, visiting martyrs’ shrines to ask for miracles (often healing in nature), and partaking in commemorative feasts at the martyrs’ graves on the anniversaries of their deaths. In all of these modes of veneration, women took on various roles that were analogous with other roles outside of the cult of the martyrs, such as wife, mother, patron, or client. Female martyrs are also identified using these roles, and thus this provides a useful area of comparison. By exploring these roles, this thesis arrives at a more nuanced understanding of women’s agency and power in traditional contexts and how such agency and power were transferred, continued, and challenged within the cult of the martyrs. The thesis engages in textual and discourse analysis of the relevant primary sources, particularly the martyr texts, sermons, letters, and treatises by North African writers. In the secondary literature, this study engages with the diverse works of classicists, historians, archaeologists, religious studies scholars, and feminist theorists. The interdisciplinary approach of the thesis is further nuanced by an examination of the concepts of identity, agency, and power. Applying these analyses to the context of women’s participation in the cult of the martyrs provides new insights into how we can uncover women’s experiences in ancient sources, where women’s voices are almost always obscured by male discourses.