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.
Explores divination in antiquity from a range of perspectives, looking both at practices and theories and how and why these changed over time. Important for students and academics working in classics, history of philosophy, and history of religion.
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Uses different perspectives to argue for a new understanding of divination, revelation, and epiphany in antiquity.
Introduction. Part I. Philosophical Perspectives on Divination, Revelation and Prophecy:
1. Theories of prophecy in Philo of Alexandria Elsa Giovanna Simonetti;
2. The Neoplatonic background of a text on prophecy attributed to John Chrysostom Andrei Timotin;
3. 'Revelation' for Christians and pagans and its philosophical allegoresis: intersections within imperial Platonism Ilaria Ramelli;
4. Divination and dialogue in Porphyry and Iamblichus Crystal Addey; Part II. Status, Role and Functions of Human Intermediaries:
5. 'The holiest man ever born': sages, theoi andres and the shaping of late Greek prophecy Claire Hall;
6. Women's access to divine knowledge in late ancient Jewish sources Hanna Tervanotko;
7. Epiphany and divination reconsidered: the case-study of the iamata from imperial Pergamum Georgia Petridou;
8. The true prophet in the pseudo-Clementine homilies Marco Zambon; Part III. Divine Transcendence and Pragmatic Purposes:
9. Revelation and Roman augury Federico Santangelo;
10. 'For thy kingdom is past not away, / Nor thy power from the place thereof hurled': Martianus Capella and a prophylactic oracle for Apollo Chiara Tommasi;
11. No longer does Phoebus have a cabin': Emperor Julian and the fall of the temple in Delphi Aude Busine.
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).
