Lived Religiousness in Antiquity

Call For Papers: We will have 3 sessions. (1) Session 1 will address the question: Does it make sense to distinguish between “Christian” and “pagan”? The session seeks to problematize the distinction regularly drawn in scholarship between “Christian” and “pagan” (or: “gentile,” “Roman”) persons, texts, practices, images, etc. Questions for reflection include: (a) How do scholars decide if a text is “Christian” or not? Is a shopping list or business letter written by a baptized person a “Christian” document? If a person who rejects traditional claims about Jesus writes a story about him, is that a “Christian” text? (b) How does one decide if a practice is “Christian”? If a baptized person is a vegetarian, does that make his or her avoidance of meat a “Christian” practice? If someone participates in a ritual in honor of Jesus only once a year, is that person a “Christian”? Is the practice “Christian”? (c) Does it make sense to discuss criteria that would define which ancient persons, texts, practices, images, etc., should be considered “Christian” for scholarly purposes? If not, what are some alternative approaches for determining which practices, texts, etc., are “worthy of scholarly attention” for those whose work ostensibly concerns “early Christianity”? Proposed papers in this session should discuss the strengths and weaknesses of possible criteria or approaches, illustrating methodological points with concrete examples from the ancient world. (2) A second session will be held jointly with the Religious Experience in Antiquity unit. The topic is “The Everydayness of Religious Experience.” Papers are invited that examine the intersection(s) of “religious experiences” (broadly understood) in the lived experiences and everyday lives of ancient peoples. This call is open to scholars working in all periods and geographical regions of antiquity. (3) Proposals are invited for an open session on “Lived Religiousness.” Papers should be well-developed and theoretically sophisticated.

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