In early Christian texts, the image of Christ the Miracle Worker was a critical component in the development of the faith. In treatises and sermons of the church fathers, the subject of Christs healings and miracles were consistently promoted. The healings and miracles of Christ were touted in an atmosphere of religious competition. The superiority of Christs healings and miracles were advanced in order to establish Christ as a deity greater than any opponent. In Christian art of Late Antiquity, similar methods were utilized to achieve the same end result. Christ was portrayed in catacomb frescoes and relief sculpture as a healer and worker of miracles. The visual art suggests that the early Christians were touting the superiority of Christ at the expense of their rivals. The image of Christ healing with the power of touch recalled the healing god Asclepius, while the stylistic inclusion of the staff reflected the figure of Moses as well as exhibiting Christ as the Divine Logos.
By depicting Christ in text and imagery as the definitive healer and worker of miracles, early Christians constructed a useful image. As a result of appearing as the greatest healer and miracle worker, early images of Christ could exhibit power and provide a sense of understanding and identity to early Christians. However, by the late fourth century when the church was firmly established, the image not only persisted but increased. Remarkably, the image of Christ the Miracle Worker greatly proliferated in an age of Christian peace as the church was increasing its presence and expanding its growth.
This dissertation will study the rise and proliferation of the image of Christ the Miracle Worker in the early Christian era, examine the contributions of the church fathers, and demonstrate that this early Christian image appropriated elements of existing Late Antique culture to create a paramount religious figure.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:VANDERBILT/oai:VANDERBILTETD:etd-09052008-145010 |
| Date | 10 October 2008 |
| Creators | Jefferson, Lee Morris |
| Contributors | Bronwen Wickkiser, Barbara Tsakirgis, Robin M. Jensen, J. Patout Burns |
| Publisher | VANDERBILT |
| Source Sets | Vanderbilt University Theses |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Source | http://etd.library.vanderbilt.edu/available/etd-09052008-145010/ |
| Rights | unrestricted, I hereby certify that, if appropriate, I have obtained and attached hereto a written permission statement from the owner(s) of each third party copyrighted matter to be included in my thesis, dissertation, or project report, allowing distribution as specified below. I certify that the version I submitted is the same as that approved by my advisory committee. I hereby grant to Vanderbilt University or its agents the non-exclusive license to archive and make accessible, under the conditions specified below, my thesis, dissertation, or project report in whole or in part in all forms of media, now or hereafter known. I retain all other ownership rights to the copyright of the thesis, dissertation or project report. I also retain the right to use in future works (such as articles or books) all or part of this thesis, dissertation, or project report. |
Page generated in 0.0017 seconds