Heavenly Realms and Earthly Realities in Late Antique Religions

Description

The idea of heaven held a special place in the late antique imagination, which was marked by a poignant sense of the relevance of otherworldly realities for earthly life. Such concerns can be found, not only in Judaism and Christianity, but also in the Greco-Roman religious, philosophical, scientific, and 'magical' traditions. Transcending social, regional and creedal boundaries, the preoccupation with heaven in Late Antiquity serves as a focus for an interdisciplinary approach to understanding this formative era in Western culture and history. Drawing upon the expertise of scholars of Classics, Ancient History, Jewish Studies, and Patristics, this volume explores the different functions of heavenly imagery in different texts and traditions in order to map the patterns of unity and diversity within the religious landscape of Late Antiquity.

Ra'anan S. Boustan is Assistant Professor in the Department of Classical and Near Eastern Studies at the University of Minnesota. A scholar of early Jewish mysticism, relations between Jews and Christians in Late Antiquity and the history of the Jews in the Second Temple Period, he has published studies on early Jewish mystical poetry and the role of gender and sexuality within Hellenistic Jewish thought, among other topics. Annette Yoshiko Reed is Assistant Professor in the Department of Religious Studies at McMaster University. She has contributed to the Journal of Biblical Literature, Vigiliae Christianae, and Jewish Studies Quarterly, and is co-editor of The Ways that Never Parted: Jews and Christians in Late Antiquity and the Early Middle Ages.

'The volume makes a valuable contribution to a topic of growing interest in recent study of ancient religion.' Journal for the Study of the Old Testament '... a sound and serious book.' Bryn Mawr Classical Review