The Wandering Holy Man: The Life of Barsauma, Christian Asceticism, and Religious Conflict in Late Antique Palestine

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Barsauma and the Imperial Court / Simon Corcoran -- Ascetic history and rhetoric in the life of Barsauma / Cornelia B. Horn -- Barsauma's travels to the Holy Land and Jewish history / Günter Stemberger -- Barsauma, Eudocia, Jerusalem and the Temple Mount / Jan Willem Drijvers -- Cleansing the sacred space: the Holy Land and its inhabitants in the pilgrimage narrative of Barsauma / Reuven Kiperwasser and Serge Ruzer -- "It is not lawful for Samaritans to have dealings with Christians!" Samaritans in the life of Barsauma / Johannes Hahn -- Wandering monks remembered: hagiography in the lives of Alexander the Sleepless and Barsauma the Mourner / Daniel F. Caner -- Barsauma between hagiography and history / Johannes Hahn -- Appendix: The life of Barsauma / Andrew Palmer.

"Barsauma was a fifth-century Syrian ascetic, archimandrite, and leader of monks, notorious for his extreme asceticism and violent anti-Jewish campaigns across the Holy Land. Although Barsauma was a powerful and revered figure in the Eastern church, modern scholarship has widely dismissed him as thug of peripheral interest. Until now, only the most salacious bits of the ancient text the Life of Barsauma-a fascinating collection of miracles that Barsauma undertook in the Holy Land-had been translated. This pioneering study includes the first full translation of the Life and a series of studies by scholars employing a range of methods to illuminate the text from different angles and contexts. This is the authoritative collection on this influential but understudied figure in the history of the church and his life, travels, and relations with other religious groups"-- Provided by publisher.