Divination and Revelation in Later Antiquity

·
· Cambridge University Press
Ebook
237
Pages

About this ebook

The period from the Late Roman Republic to the end of antiquity was marked by a wide interest in divination, and more broadly by an intense belief in the possibility of establishing close and personal connections with the gods. Divinatory practices underwent profound changes, accompanied by new trends in religious belief and philosophical reflection. Different religious, ethnic and cultural groups resorted to prophecy to define their respective identities and traditions, to articulate their peaceful or polemical interactions, and more broadly to construct their own worldview, the effects of which are still visible today. This wide-ranging volume creates a holistic picture of divination in antiquity, with perspectives from scholars of different disciplinary backgrounds. They argue that a greater focus on transcendent knowledge of the divine and cosmos influenced theories of divination among pagans, Jews, and Christians during the later part of the period.

About the author

Elsa Giovanna Simonetti is a Post-Doctoral Fellow at KU Leuven. She is the author of A Perfect Medium? Oracular Divination in the Thought of Plutarch (2017).

Claire Hall is a Leverhulme Early Career Research Fellow in the Department of Classics and Ancient History at Durham University and Fellow of All Souls College, Oxford. She is the author of Origen and Prophecy (2021).

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