Classics in Hagiography: Origins, Continuities, and Conflicts in Profiling Christian Heroes

Bursting into the Greco-Roman “classical” world, Christian hagiography was a series of continuities, ruptures, and metamorphoses that integrated a new worldview into all facets of human life. As new heroes, the martyrs and saintsâ€"the protagonists of hagiographyâ€"went on to constitute religious, moral, and even political paradigms with a high identity value for Christian communities, shaping Christianity from its origins to the present day. But to what extent was the heritage of the classics decisive in building the hagiographic profile of these new heroes? In this volume, each author explores this question through various case studies, showing how hagiographic textsâ€"whether examined from philological, historical, sociological, political, theological, or iconographic perspectivesâ€"always benefit from engaging with the rich and enduring classical tradition.