Zakład Historii Starożytnej
serdecznie zaprasza na referat
Christian belonging beyond baptism: signing foreheads with the cross in the writings of Augustine of Hippo (354-430 AD)
który wygłosi
dr Matthieu Pignot
(Uniwersytet Warszawski – Cult of Saints Project )
serdecznie zaprasza na referat
Christian belonging beyond baptism: signing foreheads with the cross in the writings of Augustine of Hippo (354-430 AD)
który wygłosi
dr Matthieu Pignot
(Uniwersytet Warszawski – Cult of Saints Project )
Referat zostanie wygłoszony w ramach seminarium późnoantycznego, w czwartek, 18 maja, o godz. 16.45, w Bibliotece Zakładu Papirologii, w budynku Wydziału Prawa (Collegium Iuridicum I).
Abstrakt
In this paper, I focus on a detailed study of Augustine of Hippo’s discussion, mainly in sermons, of a major marker of Christian membership, shared by all Christians since the beginning of the catechumenate, the sign of the cross put on the forehead. I show how Augustine, beyond baptism, employed this rite of initiation as a powerful tool to include catechumeni and baptised Christians alike in his pastoral care, and develop normative views on Christian membership. Without limiting the enquiry to explicit references to catechumens but investigating Augustine’s thinking about the rite in general, I show how he exploited this foundational religious marker to set rules of behaviour and create cohesion in his community. For Augustine the sign of the cross highlights the visibility of Christian belonging in a context of religious plurality, and requires in turn a strong commitment. Augustine also relates the significance of the rite to its ritual protective power against the devil, fighting however against the assumption that the rite offered protection whatever one’s behaviour and rejecting the recourse to alternative, not specifically Christian, means of protection. In a context of rivalry between Christian communities, Augustine’s recourse to the rite and its powerful qualities thus erased the distinction based on baptism with the aim of fostering unity in matters of discipline, particularly against the catechumens’ expectations of being treated with more leniency because of their peculiar status. Chronologically, while Augustine’s views often transcend specific periods of his life, it is possible to highlight the concentration of ideas at specific occasions. Although it is often left unnoticed, I will particularly suggest that several – perhaps even the majority – of Augustine’s conceptions about the sign of the cross on the forehead were not developed in Hippo but in the city of Carthage, where Augustine clearly played an essential role as a preacher and writer.