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History of Religion

Selected Works

2016

History

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Prophecy And Porneia In Shenoute's Letters: The Rhetoric Of Sexuality In A Late Antique Egyptian Monastery, Caroline T. Schroeder Dec 2016

Prophecy And Porneia In Shenoute's Letters: The Rhetoric Of Sexuality In A Late Antique Egyptian Monastery, Caroline T. Schroeder

Caroline Schroeder

The writer examines the apparently ubiquitous sexual references in the first surviving letters of Shenoute. Shenoute's references to sexuality constitute one aspect of his self-representation as his community's prophet. His textual performance as a prophet in these texts indicates that his sexual rhetoric served not only to condemn sexual activity among ascetics but also to help construct a relationship between God and the monastic community that is based on the relationship between God and the people in the Christian Old Testament. The sins of the monastery, as understood by Shenoute, like those of Israel or the nations in the prophetic …

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"The Church Or The Wheel?" Religious Institutions Respond To The American Bicycle Boom.Pptx, Christopher A. Sweet Jun 2016

"The Church Or The Wheel?" Religious Institutions Respond To The American Bicycle Boom.Pptx, Christopher A. Sweet

Christopher A. Sweet

“These bladder-wheel bicycles are diabolical devices of the demon of darkness.” Thus railed a Baltimore preacher against the massive wave of popularity for the safety bicycle in the mid-1890s. From a 21st century perspective it seems quaint that American religious institutions felt threatened by something so mundane as bicycles. At the time though, easy-to-ride and relatively cheap safety bicycles presented a direct challenge to many established cultural and social norms. Women cyclists gained independent mobility and were able to press for dress reform. Physical health became a priority for city-dwellers. Christian churches and pastors primarily criticized the bicycle for encouraging …

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