Holy Wisdom and British foreign policy, 1918-1922: the St. Sophia redemption agitation

Abstract

As the Ottoman Empire tottered towards its final collapse at the end of the First World War the fate of its various territorial components aroused the interest not only of other states, but of interest groups within those states. Britain in particular revealed a strong concern with this subject, having long been interested in the Eastern Mediterranean. The end of the Ottoman Empire saw the legendary Lawrence of Arabia grasping the Arab lands, various secret treaties with the other Great Powers disposed of much of Anatolia, and the future of Turkish rule over Constantinople, that much sought after city, now hung in the balance. The final fate of the city would be decided at the postwar Paris Peace Conference. Of all of the spoils of the Ottomans none evoked such passions as that inspired by Constantinople – Byzantium, the Second Rome. If any building could epitomise the Europeans' vision of this city it was the St Sophia, the Church of the Holy Wisdom, which since the fall of Constantinople in 1453 had been a mosque. With the end of Ottoman dominance an opportunity was seen by some of symbolically completing a crusade begun centuries before, with the expulsion of the Turks, and Islam, from Europe. Nothing could so symbolise a change of control at Constantinople than the reconversion of St Sophia into a church. This found support from those who wished to see the Turk expelled bag and baggage from Europe. The philhellenes saw its transfer to the Greek Orthodox church as indicating the resurgence of the Greek nation, and forming the backdrop to eventual Greek control of Constantinople. In Britain the focus of such views was the St Sophia Redemption Committee, which sought to restore the building to its original function. Now virtually forgotten, the agitation for the redemption of St Sophia was an emotive topic during the first months of peace. The supporters of this movement were not a group of fringe political cranks, and its members numbered two future foreign secretaries and many other prominent public figures. The popular agitation coordinated by this committee, and the opposition it encountered, illustrate some of the complexities at work in the formulation of a coherent Eastern Mediterranean policy for Britain.     

The identification of the medieval church of St Sabas in Jerusalem in the light of new documentary evidence

ABSTRACT

For over a century the church that the Greek monks of Dayr Mar Saba are known to have possessed inside the walls of Jerusalem in the twelfth century has usually been associated with a chapel surviving inside the Disy family house opposite the police barracks south of the Citadel, while the Zāwiyyat al-Shaykh Ya?qūb (Ya?qūbiyya), on the east side of Christ Church, has been identified as having originally been built in the twelfth century, possibly by Monophysites, as a church dedicated to St James the Persian, or the ‘Cut-up’ (Intercisus). New documentary research, however, now makes it appear more likely that Mujīr al-Dīn was correct in attributing the building of the Ya?qūbiyya to the Greeks and that it was also the church referred to by pilgrims in the twelfth century as that of St Sabas. This means that the identity of the church in Dār Disy, if indeed it was a church, remains to be determined.     

The early development of the senate of Constantinople

Abstract

The development of the senate of Constantinople as an imperial senate, on a par with the senate of Rome, has been attributed to Constantius II to the exclusion of Constantine and dated to 357. The present paper argues that the evidence for this dating is fundamentally flawed and that the decisive change came at the outset of the reign of Constantius II, while developments under Constantine foreshadowed it in significant respects. Conclusions are also drawn about what the evidence reveals of relations between Hellenic gentry and imperial rule in the fourth century.     

THE BYZANTINE CHURCH OF THE NUTRITION IN NAZARETH REDISCOVERED

Abstract

Although Nazareth has usually been seen by scholars as a relatively minor Byzantine pilgrimage centre, it contained perhaps the most important ‘lost’ Byzantine church in the Holy Land, the Church of the Nutrition – according to De Locis Sanctis built over the house where it was believed that Jesus Christ had been a child. This article, part of a series of final interim reports of the PEF-funded ‘Nazareth Archaeological Project’, presents evidence that this church has been discovered at the present Sisters of Nazareth convent in central Nazareth. The scale of the church and its surrounding structures suggests that Nazareth was a much larger, and more important, centre for Byzantine-period pilgrimage than previously supposed. The church was used in the Crusader period, after a phase of desertion, prior to destruction by fire, probably in the 13th century.     

Adventus in Jerusalem: the Palm Sunday celebration in Latin Jerusalem

Themes of continuity and innovation in the rituals of the church of Jerusalem in the early twelfth century, following the crusader conquest of the city, are examined with a focus on the Latin Palm Sunday procession. Based on the Ordinal of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, which was produced for the use of the patriarch and the religious community of the Holy Sepulchre, and which contains the yearly ritual cycles and major processional celebrations, the study reveals the original characteristics of the Jerusalem liturgy, as well as its components incorporated from pre-crusade practice. It speculates on the earliest organisers of the liturgy, their identity and the sources of their inspiration, as well as the orientations of the early monastic community in Frankish Jerusalem.     

The political geographies of religious sites in Moscow’s neighborhoods

Abstract

This paper addresses the spatial politics of Russia’s increased religiosity in Moscow. It analyzes the rights of minority Muslim communities within the context of increased political support for expressions of Russian Orthodoxy in Moscow’s public space. Moscow’s Russian Orthodox and Muslim religious leaders claim that their communities have a lack of religious infrastructure, with one church per 35,000 residents and one mosque per three million residents, respectively. The Russian Orthodox Church has been more successful than Muslim organizations at expanding their presence in Moscow’s neighborhoods. Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork, religious spaces are examined as sites of dissent as well as participatory, active citizenship at three different sites in Moscow. Protests over Russian Orthodox Church construction in one neighborhood are contrasted with the protests over mosque construction in two neighborhoods. This paper provides insights into how civil society and religious groups have increased their public presence in Moscow and shows the unequal access that different groups have to public space in that city.     

The origins of the cult of St James of Compostela

James the Great, son of Zebedee and brother of St John, was one of the three Apostles privileged to accompany Jesus on special occasions like the Transfiguration and the Agony in the Garden of Gethsemane. He was beheaded in 42 AD by order of Herod. His connection with Spain is here the subject of critical enquiry, and it is demonstrated that there is virtually no evidence at all to substantiate the belief that his mortal remains lie in Spain, at Santiago de Compostela, which became one of the most important pilgrimage centres of the medieval West; nor indeed that he ever preached in Spain or visited that country. It is only in the ninth century that sources begin to mention the discovery of James' burial-place in Spain, while from the seventh century his preaching in Spain is mentioned. From about 800 the legend of St James in Spain took root in Latin Christian tradition.     

The building of the church of St Sophia in Kiev

The subject of this study is the much-debated question of when and under what circumstances the cathedral of St Sophia in Kiev was built. After an analysis of the primary sources and a critical review of the arguments in favour of a date of construction between 1017 and 1031, the author substantiates the view that the entire church, including towers and external ambulatories, was built and decorated between 1037 and 1046, and not, as some think, over a period of nearly a century.Because of the complexity of the sources, the construction of St Sophia is seen against the background of the cultural, political and ecclesiastical history of Kievan Rus' in the late tenth and eleventh centuries, including the building of the cathedrals of Cernigov and Novgorod, and the church of the Tithe and the katholikon of the Caves monastery in Kiev.The study sheds new light on the early history of Kievan stone architecture which, as some reasonably assert, was closely linked with the architectural school of Constantinople. The construction of the capella regia, known as the church of the Tithe in the 990s, by Greek masters, who followed the Porphyrogenite princess Anna to Kiev, was an isolated episode which was followed by a hiatus of forty years. The extensive building programme begun by Jaroslav the Wise after 1036, which continued after his death in 1054, was completed by Byzantine masters with local help, permitting the formation of native cadres of masons, artists and other specialists. It was the project of Faroslav which laid the groundwork for an indigenous stone architecture in Rus'.     

The building of the church of St Sophia in Kiev

The subject of this study is the much-debated question of when and under what circumstances the cathedral of St Sophia in Kiev was built. After an analysis of the primary sources and a critical review of the arguments in favour of a date of construction between 1017 and 1031, the author substantiates the view that the entire church, including towers and external ambulatories, was built and decorated between 1037 and 1046, and not, as some think, over a period of nearly a century.Because of the complexity of the sources, the construction of St Sophia is seen against the background of the cultural, political and ecclesiastical history of Kievan Rus' in the late tenth and eleventh centuries, including the building of the cathedrals of Cernigov and Novgorod, and the church of the Tithe and the katholikon of the Caves monastery in Kiev.The study sheds new light on the early history of Kievan stone architecture which, as some reasonably assert, was closely linked with the architectural school of Constantinople. The construction of the capella regia, known as the church of the Tithe in the 990s, by Greek masters, who followed the Porphyrogenite princess Anna to Kiev, was an isolated episode which was followed by a hiatus of forty years. The extensive building programme begun by Jaroslav the Wise after 1036, which continued after his death in 1054, was completed by Byzantine masters with local help, permitting the formation of native cadres of masons, artists and other specialists. It was the project of Faroslav which laid the groundwork for an indigenous stone architecture in Rus'.     

Gregory the Great, the Rule of Benedict and Roman liturgy: the evolution of a legend

This paper relates the evolution of Gregory the Great’s reputation as creator of the Roman liturgy to the slow process by which the Rule of Benedict acquired authority within monasticism in the seventh and eighth centuries. It argues that Gregory composed the Dialogues to promote ascetic values within the Church, but that this work did not begin to circulate in Spain and then Gaul until the 630s, precisely when Gregory’s known interest in liturgical reform is first attested in Rome. The letters of Pope Vitalian (657-72) provide hitherto unnoticed testimony to the theft of Benedict’s relics by monks of Fleury c.660, marking a new stage in the evolution of monastic culture in Gaul. The paper also argues that the Ordo Romanus XIX is not a Frankish composition from the second half of the eighth century (as Andrieu claimed), but provides important evidence for the Rule being observed at St Peter’s, Rome, in the late seventh century. While Gregory was interested in liturgical reform, he never enforced any particular observance on the broader church, just as he never imposed any particular rule. By the time of Charlemagne, however, Gregory had been transformed into an ideal figure imposing uniformity of liturgical observance, as well as mandating the Rule of Benedict within monasticism. Yet the church of the Lateran, mother church of the city of Rome, continued to maintain its own liturgy and ancient form of chant, which it claimed had been composed by Pope Vitalian, even in the thirteenth century.     

European national poetry,Islam and the defeat of the medieval Church

The Muslim conquest of the Holy Land from Christendom, the invasion of southwestern Europe in the eighth century, and the Christian struggle, ultimately unsuccessful, to regain the Holy Land from Islam in the Crusades dominated European culture, particularly its poetry, for centuries. From the Old French epic, The Song of Roland (c. 1100) to the Albanian epic, The Highland Lute (early twentieth century), a vast popular culture grew in European vernacular languages in response to Muslim invasions and conquests. This article attempts to elucidate in panoramic form a neglected area of nationalism. It argues that from the medieval period until the fall of the Ottoman empire, poetry was instrumental in the rise of European national identities, partly in reaction to centuries of ascendancy of Islam, which undermined the authority of the Pope, the universal Church, the Gospel and Latin. The defeat of the medieval Church opened the way to narrower, more national and cultural concerns, reflected in a cluster of vernacular European poetic traditions.     

The Lance of St Maurice as a component of the early Ottonian campaign against paganism

The so‐called Holy Lance that formed part of the Holy Roman imperial insignia from the middle of the tenth century was for a time believed to be identical with that carried by the early Christian soldier‐martyr, St Maurice. While the earliest documentary evidence for a Maurician identification dates to 1008, I argue that Otto I (936–73) already associated the blade with this saint in the context of his anti‐pagan campaign along the empire's eastern borders, in which the figure of the saint played a significant role. Construed as the lance of St Maurice, this weapon was a potent visual tool of early Ottonian proselytism.     

Constantine and the Bishop: The Roman Church in the Early Fourth Century

When Constantine first entered Rome after his defeat of Maxentius in October 312, he encountered a rich and complex Christian community and a bishop whose position was precarious. Centuries of growth and a long religious peace had resulted in the development of a large number of locally based communities in Rome with their own centres of worship - the tituli. Constantine needed to convince these communities of his bona fides as a Christian emperor. The bishop of Rome, Miltiades, was the ruler of a relatively newly unified see, recently fractured by persecution and controversy. Miltiades' relative weakness was to Constantine's political advantage, especially since it made him eager to receive the vast ocean of generosity which Constantine began to pour into the Roman Church. The particular and immediate beneficiary of this generosity was the bishop, who gained a vast and lavishly appointed cathedral, and a palace to go with it.     

劳伦佐·瓦拉的生平与思想

苏伦佐·瓦拉是 15世纪意大利人文主义者 ,以撰写《君士坦丁伪赠礼考证》而闻名世界。他多次撰文攻击罗马教廷的主流哲学 ,因此曾被判处死刑 ,然而他不仅没有惨死于狱中 ,晚年还获得了罗马教皇的提拔、委任和宠幸。瓦拉“非圣”而不死 ,且为罗马教廷器重 ,主要原因在于意大利文艺复兴时代的社会价值观念以及罗马教廷倚重发展人文主义的政策     

El rito bautismal y las imágenes pintadas en la iglesia de Curahuara de Carangas

In the baptistery of the church of Santiago de Curahuara de Carangas, built at the end of the 16th century, a complex mural painting program was executed in the last quarter of the 18th century. The present text intends to establish the links between the scenes painted and the rite of baptism. We do not see a direct or evident relationship in a didactical or performative sense. The images are there to be potentially activated during the liturgical ceremony in order to reveal the efficacy of the sacrament. We have the advantage of working with a set of images that remain in their original location. Therefore, this essay proposes a potential relationship among gesture, words and paintings, as they could have been related in the 18th century. In the analysis, we put into dialogue the resonances intended by the Church and the reception by the indigenous community.     

The Barony and the Churches of Late Nineteenth Century Glasgow

The Barony Parish Church was one of the most important churches in nineteenth century Scotland partly due to its history, size, and location at the heart of the "second city" of the Empire and its Minister, Norman MacLeod. Its congregation represented every tier of Glasgow society in terms of social class and gender and as such, throws light on the more general debates on religion and society in nineteenth century Britain. When compared with other churches and denominations in Glasgow, it builds a more general picture of church and people in the city. The picture drawn reveals a complex pattern of adherence varying between individuals and families. An over emphasis on secular reasons for church membership ignores the important role of faith in determining patterns of adherence. Family letters, diaries, and journals often reveal a deep-seated faith and critical reflections on the preaching of the Word.     

Marriage,Sex, and the Church of Scotland: Exploring Non‐Conformity Amongst the Lower Orders

The history of marriage amongst the Scottish lower orders in the eighteenth century has largely been a story of sexual discipline by the Kirk (Church of Scotland). As much of this history has been produced through kirk session records — the arm of the church that monitored sexual morality and marital conformity — this is often construed as a story of contest between the church and a resistant lower orders, trying to negotiate alternative forms of family life. Using kirk session and secular court records and popular literature, this article explores how religious belief shaped sexual and marital behaviour, particularly non‐conformity, during this period. It examines the Kirk's interpretation of chastity and marriage, how these ideas filtered into popular culture and were used by the lower orders to negotiate their own sexual and marital behaviour and relationship to the Church. It argues that the Kirk's varying attitude to marital and sexual non‐conformity meant that marital non‐conformity was less significant than sexual sin in the popular and religious imagination.     

Anarchy in Our Churches? The American Architectural Press, 1944–65

In the mid-twentieth century American architectural journals, including Architectural Forum, Architectural Record, and Progressive Architecture, routinely ran features on the state of contemporary church architecture in the United States. Rapid suburban expansion and the revival of religious life in the post-Depression, postwar era generated tremendous amounts of construction, with a great deal of work available for architects. This article examines the concerns and hopes of modernist editors in the 1940s–1960s, as they sought to stabilize a “direction” for church architecture. Specifically, it examines the role of the architectural press as the self-established gatekeepers for acceptable church design, and their relationship with theologians, liturgists, and building commissions within the Catholic Church. Questions of authority (who was competent to determine whether a church design was successful?) and expertise (whose theological knowledge should be weighted more heavily?) lay behind the stark assertions commonplace in these discussions. Editors, generally not themselves Catholic, used their professional positions to weigh in on hot debates within the Catholic Church over the purpose of a church building, the relationship of the Church to modernity (and modernism), and the appropriateness of new materials and engineering techniques.     

Devotion to St James and family identity: the Thurns of Salzburg

Miles or knight referred in twelfth-century Salzburg to a servile retainer of a ministerial or noble. In the thirteenth century the knights coalesced with the lesser ministerials, who were the vassals of the great ministerial lineages, to form the estate of knights, the lowest strata of the Salzburg nobility. The Thurns are an example of lesser ministerials who belonged to the estate of knights and who rose to prominence in the thirteenth century by serving the archbishops of Salzburg. The founder of the lineage's fortunes was Werner I of Lengfelden (1230–1268), the master of the archbishop's kitchen, who built St Jakob am Thurn, south of Salzburg. The distinguishing characteristic of the lineage was its devotion to the Apostle James, a saint associated with knighthood. The Thurns adopted Jakob as their leading name, built the church of St James next to their tower, St Jakob am Thurn, and the church of St James in Faistenau, and were buried in the chapel of St James in Salzburg, which they endowed.