Religion in Roman Egypt: Assimilation and Resistance

by David Frankfurter

Book Overview

This exploration of cultural resilience examines the complex fate of classical Egyptian religion during the centuries from the period when Christianity first made its appearance in Egypt to when it became the region's dominant religion (roughly 100 to 600 C.E. Taking into account the full range of witnesses to continuing native piety--from papyri and saints' lives to archaeology and terracotta figurines--and drawing on anthropological studies of...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0691070547
• ISBN13: 9780691070544
• Release Date: December 2000
• Publisher: Princeton University Press
• Length: 336 Pages
• Weight: 1.10 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 6.1" x 9.2"

Customer Reviews

Thorough

This book is a thorough account of pagan Egyptian religion from the Roman occupation of Egypt during the first five centuries AD. It details the struggle of pagnism vs. Christianity in the course of Egyptian religious observance. There is much I have learned about this period of history by reading this book. Suprisingly (in my opinion) there did not seem to be an enormous Roman influence on this culture (aside from imperial objections to oracles Rome may have found contentius). The author's writing style is not easy to follow along with. While erudite,he seems to put much information in one paragraph,leads to another point and then returns to his original point some time later. A reader my have to re-read several paragraphs just to gather his original point. (Have a very good dictionary handy as well). Overall, this is an interesting book.

Excellent research and writing

What happened to the ancient Egyptian religion during the Roman rule and Christian incursion? This question is answered here. I am sure other people have read this book, but the book description delineates it so well it is difficult to add more.David Frankfurter gives a balanced and well researched account of the survival, adaption and transformation of the indigenous Egyptian religion between roughly 100 to 600 C.E.- a time when Egypt was without a pharoah and under the governance of Rome, when Rome itself was becoming Christianized. All these things put pressure on the Egyptians to change. The first chapter lays the groundwork and background and is a bit dry. Chapters 2 through 6 are the heart of the book and well worth it. Modern Pagans might be surprised and happy to see themselves in the domestic aspects of local religions discussed in Chapter 3. Chapter 5 was my favorite; it dealt with the transformation of the Priest into the Magician. Just how did the Egyptians get the reputation of high magic and deep wisdom among the ancient world of the Greeks and Romans? How did they use this? How did this survive into the Christian and Muslim eras?The seventh chapter is the last chapter and a conclusion of sorts, delineating how the Christian leaders excoriated the Pagan (Hellenes, as they were called at that time) customs, yet how these customs were adapted into the new religion. And more importantly, why.There is a great bibliography and a vast amount of footnotes for those who want to look further.Those interested in ancient Egyptian religion, comparative religion or the interaction of the Pagan and Christian worlds will find this book both useful and informative.