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2010 Course Handbook

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AHIS353: Pagans, Jews and Christians: Athens and Jerusalem

This unit focuses on the theme suggested in the subtitle, taken from Tertullian's question 'What has Athens to do with Jerusalem?' What has the philosophical Academy of Athens, representing the millennia-old classical tradition, to do with the new philosophy founded on the teachings of Christ, developed by Paul, and embodied in the Holy City, sacred to Jews and Christians? This unit looks in particular at the relationship of the three races—Greeks, Jews, and Christians—from the perspective of the inheritors of the classical tradition, who ruled the Mediterranean from the eternal city: Rome. The unit examines the ways the Roman state reacted to Jews and Christians from the 2nd–4th centuries; from the time when Christianity first came to Rome's attention, through attempts by Rome to remove it (violently or otherwise) from the world, to the triumph of Christianity in the 4th century. It looks at: developments in Roman beliefs and cults in the period; problematises the different response of Rome to Jews and Christians; and examines the relationship between the two monotheistic traditions.

Credit Points: 3
Contact Hours: 3
When Offered:

Summer Session - Offered in January-February as part of Summer School program

Staff Contact(s): Dr Malcolm Choat
Prerequisites:

30cp or (6cp in AHIS or AHST units at 200 level)

Corequisites:

NCCW(s): AHIS253, AHST252, AHST352
Unit Designation(s):
Assessed As: Graded
Offered By:

Department of Ancient History

Timetable Information

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