Uncover Handmaids Of The Lord: Contemporary Descriptions Of Feminine Asceticism In The First Six Christian Centuries Interpreted By Joan M. Petersen Categorized In Printable Format

of primary sources are pretty much always welcome, This one offers readings of both Eastern and Western manifestations of female asceticism, The benefit of this particular collection is that the passages are not truncated for the most part and each grouping has an introduction explaining how they are related and then each work has its own introduction.
For example, there is an introduction to Jerome's various relationships with highborn Roman women and how they were all connected to one another, as well as specific introductions for each individual letter Petersen included.
This is immensely helpful to begin to make connections across antiquity, especially regarding Jerome's complicated relationships in both the East and the West,

I would have liked to see more on Macrina, Although the decision not to include De anima is understandable given its length and it not giving direct evidence of women religious, I would have liked more of an exploration

of the "work" these women did, their legacy, etc, Throughout the christian world, women have chosen to lead disciplined lives of prayer and asceticism, Descriptions of early rolemodels 'Macrina, the two Palas and Melanias, Radagunde 'and others by contemporaries, usually men, provide details of their austerities, their aspirations, and their relationship with the Church and the world, not least with male authority figures.
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