humanities chapter 4

5/26/2018 Humanities Chapter 4

1/40

Chapter 4

The Floweringof Religion

Faith and the Power of Belief in the Early First Millenium


2/40

Sects of Judaism

in the 1st Century CE

The Pharisees were a scribal group associated with the masses. They

considered the Jerusalem Temple to be polluted and its priests,

particularly the Sadducees, to be corrupt

The Sadducees were priests and high priests associated with the

aristocracy

The Essenes were the most conservative. They banned women from

their community and moved outside of Jerusalem to Qumran so thatthey might live a life of celibacy and purity. The Essenes probably were

the group that produced the so-called Dead Sea Scrolls, the oldest

extant version of the Hebrew Scriptures


3/40

Model of the SecondTemple of Jerusalemca. 20 BCE

The Second Temple was enlarged by the Roman client king, Herod the Great (r. 47-4 BCE).

Today only the Western Wall survives; for centuries it has been known as the Wailing Wall.


4/40

Rome and the Jews

In 63 BCEthe Romans, led by Pompey, conquered Judea (modern

Israel)

Rome became less and less tolerant of the Jewish faith. In 66 CE,

the Jews revolted. In 68 CE, the Romans destroyed Qumran. In 70

CE, they sacked the temple in Jerusalem

In 135 CE, after yet another Jewish revolt, the Emperor Hadrian

rebuilt Jerusalem as a Roman city, which Jews were forbidden to

enter


5/40

The Rise of Christianity

Jesus of Nazareth was born about 4 BCE

After his followers identified him as the Messiah, or Saviorhe did

not make the claim for himselfboth conservative Jewish leaders and

Roman rulers were threatened

An enemy of the state, Jesus was crucified in about 30 CE outside the

city walls on a hillside known as Golgotha, now the site of the Church

of the Holy Sepulchre


6/40

Cutaway Drawing of the Church of the

Holy Sepulchre, Jerusalem


7/40

Early Christian Art

Very little early Christian art survives, and most of what we do have

dates from the third and fourth centuries from paintings decorating

catacombs and a few sculptures

In almost all these works it is not so much the literal meaning of the

image that matters, but rather its symbolic significance

A very common image is that of Christ as the Good Shepherd, which

derives from Jesus promise, I am the good shepherd. A good

shepherd lays down his life for the sheep (John 10.11)


8/40

The Good ShepherdMarble, 3', ca. 300 CE


9/40

Christian Symbolism

Over the course of the first 200 years of Christianity, before freedom

of worship was legalized, Christians developed many symbols that

served to identify them to each other and to mark the articles of

their faith

The first and last letters of the Greek alphabet, alpha and omega,

symbolize Christs presence from the beginning to the end of time

Alpha and omega often flank the initials I and X, the first letters ofJesus and Christ in Greek


10/40

Alpha and Omega and Chi Rho


11/40

Christian Rome

By the end of the third century, the Roman Empire included about 5

million Christians, nearly a tenth of the population

In 312 Constantine I (r. 306-337) won a decisive battle after claiming to

have seen a vision and then having his troops decorate their shields

with crosses

In 313 he issued the Edict of Milan, which granted religious freedom toall, ending religious persecution in the Roman Empire


12/40

Saint Peter's Basilica

Begun under Constantine in 320 on

the site of Peters crucifixion and

tomb in Rome

Consisted of a narthex, or entrance

hall, and a nave with two aisles oneach side

A traverse aisle, or transept, crossed

between the nave and the apse

The nave was two stories high, the

aisles one story, allowing for a

clerestory, a zone with windows that

lit the length of the churchReconstruction drawing and plan of Old

St. Peters, Rome


13/40

The Church of Santa Costanza

The Church of Santa Costanza initially was conceived as a mausoleum

for the daughter of Constantine, Constantia, a devout Christian who

died in 354

The central plan church is a circular structure topped by a dome

A double ring of paired columns separates the circular central space

from the barrel-vaulted ambulatory, the walkway or passage around

the outside

Later Christian churches would adopt this ambulatory to encircle the

apse


14/40

The Church of Santa CostanzaRome, ca 350 CE


15/40

A Syncretic Religion

As the early Christian churches developed from existing Roman plans,

the religion itself incorporated many Greek and Roman traditionsa

practice known as syncretism

From the cult of Bacchus (Roman Dionysus) came the idea of sacrifice(a bull) with the promise of reborn for eternity for whoever received

the bulls blood. This ritual occurred near the beginning of the

Christian Easter season

From the cult of Mithras came baptism, periods of fasting, a communalmeal of bread and wine, and sacrifice for the good of humanity. The

birthday of Mithras was celebrated each year on December 25


16/40

Mithraic Reliefearly 3rdcentury


17/40

The Spread of Christianity by 600 CE


18/40

The Byzantine Empire

In 325, Constantine, the first Christian ruler of the Roman Empire,

decided to remake Byzantium, a relatively unimportant harbor city

on the shores of the Bosporus Sea, as his new imperial capital

Strategic locationstraits linking the Black Sea with the Aegean, lesslikely to be invaded by the Germanic tribes that were threatening

Rome

He renamed the city to Constantinople, the polis of Constantine

Following Romes collapse in 476, Constantinople would serve as the

center of Christian culture throughout the early Middle Ages


19/40

"Building Constantinople

From Trials and Triumphs in Rome: Christianity in the 3rd and

4th Centuries (length: 2:33). Item #9360 1999 on FMG

Video will play automatically.


20/40

Hagia Sophia

First Hagia Sophia, erected by Constantines son, Constantius II, had

burned

Justinian (r. 527-65) hired as architects two mathematicians, Isidorus of

Miletus and Anthemius of Tralles

Their completely original design consisted of a giant dome (184 high and

112 in diameter) on a square base, the thrust of the dome carried on four

giant arches. Between the arches are triangular curving vault sections,

called pendentives

At the base of the dome, 40 windows create a circle of light that makes the

dome appear to float above the naos, underscoring its symbolic function

as the dome of heaven


21/40

Hagia Sophia532-537


22/40

Interior of Hagia Sophia


23/40

Ravenna and the Western Empire

The most extensive examples of Byzantine art survive in Ravenna, a

relatively small city in northern Italy that in 402 had been made capital

of the Western Empire

Due to its position on the Adriatic, it became a thriving trade center

As many as 60 churches may have been built in the city from 400 to

750

San Vitale features a unique octagonal central plan building and

interior mosaics, two of the most famous featuring Justinian and his

empress Theodora


24/40

Emperor Justinian with Maximian, Clergy, Courtiers, and SoldiersSan Vitale, Ravenna, 547

Haloed Justinian carries a paten, the plate on which the bread is placed in

celebration of the Eucharist.


25/40

Empress Theodora with Courtiers and Ladies of Her CourtSan Vitale, Ravenna, ca. 547

The Empress holds a chalice of wine for the Eucharist. On the bottom of

her robe are the Three Magi, who like her come bearing gifts to the Virgin

and Child.


26/40

The Rise of Islam

In Mecca, in about 570, the prophet Muhammad was born to a

prominent family that traced its ancestry back to Ishmael, son of

Abraham

Muhammad received a message in 610 CEfrom the Archangel Gabrielcommanding him, Recite!

Over the next 22 years Muhammad received more messages through

Gabriel from Allah (the Arab word for God)


27/40

The Muslim Worldca. 700CE


28/40

Islams Five Pillars

Shahadah: Repetition of the shahadah, or creedThere is no God butAllah; Mohammad is the messenger of Allah

Prayer: Five times daily (dawn, midday, mid-afternoon, sunset, and nightfall)

facing Mecca

Alms: Giving at least one-fortieth of ones assets to the poor and needy

Fasting: Abstaining from food, drink, medicine, tobacco, and sexual

intercourse from sunrise to sundown during the lunar month of Ramadan

Hajj: At least once, in the twelfth month of the Muslim calendar, the

undertaking of a pilgrimage to Mecca


29/40

The Quran

The Quran is a work of poetry that is believed to be the direct word

of Allah

Translations of the Quran are problematic because the beautiful,

melodic qualities of the Arabic language are lost in translation.Further, since the Quran is believed to be the direct word of God as

dictated to Muhammad, a translation of the Quran is no longer the

Quran

In Islamic culture, calligraphyartistic, stylized writingdevelopedinto the preeminent form of art. Because the language of divine

revelation was believed to have a sacred nature, the writing, too, was

thought to have a divinely inspired power


30/40

Page from the QuranInk and gold on parchment, 7"10"

Syria, ninth or tenth century


31/40

The Mosque

The mosque plan was based on Muhammads house in Medina, which

was surrounded by a large, open courtyard, which served as a

community gathering place, on the model of the Roman forum

Hypostyle (from the Greek hupostulos, resting on pillars)a many-

columned covered area is a required feature of all Muslim mosques

Other required features were the qibla, a wall that indicated the

direction of Mecca, the minbar, the stepped pulpit for the preacher,

and the mihrab, a niche commemorating the spot at Medina where

Muhammad planted his lance to indicate the direction in which peopleshould pray


32/40

The KaabaCenter of the Haram Mosque, Mecca


33/40

The Spread of Islam

Following the death of Muhammad in 632, Islam spread with a

rapidity that is almost unimaginable

It appealed both as a religion and as a form of social organization

The mosque was the umbilical cord that linked the faithful to their

cultural center and spiritual home; it served as the community

meetinghouse, courthouse, council chamber, military complex,

administrative center, and eventually grew to have teaching colleges,

or madrasas


34/40

Islam in Africa and Spain

After gaining control of virtually all of the Middle East, the Arabic

Muslim armies moved into North Africa in 639

Part of the reason for their success in Africa was Muhammads

authorization of slavery, a just spoil of war. Because the faithful wereexempt from slavery, many Africans may have converted to Islam to

avoid becoming slaves

Starting in Alexandria, they took Carthage in 698 and crossed into Spain

at the Strait of Gibraltar in 711, then turned northward into France,where in 732 they were defeated by Charles Martel (Charles the

Hammer) and pushed back south of the Pyrenees


35/40

Djingareyber Mosque, Timbuktuca. 1312

This mosque was built by Mansa Moussa, the fabulously wealthy king of Timbuktu who

embarked on a pilgrimage to Mecca in 1334, distributing so much gold along the way to the

poor that in Egypt the value of gold fell dramatically and did not recover for a number of years.


36/40

Great Mosque of CrdobaBegun 785


37/40

Buddhism: The Path of Truth

Buddhism originated in India

Its founder, Shakyamuni Buddha (563 to 486 BCE), was born Prince

Siddhartha Gautama and raised to be a ruler

Troubled by the suffering of humankind, he abandoned the luxurious

lifestyle to live six years in the wilderness

Buddhism, which aims to end suffering, became the official state

religion of India as a reaction to warfare


38/40

Buddhisms Four Noble Truths

1. Life is suffering

2. This suffering has a cause, which is ignorance

3. Ignorance can be overcome and eliminated

4. The way to overcome this ignorance is by following the Eightfold

Path of right view, right resolve, right speech, right action, right

livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, and right concentration


39/40

Buddhist Architecture:

The Great Stupa

A stupa is a kind of burial mound

The earliest were built around 483 BCEas reliquaries for Buddhas

remains, which were themselves divided into eight parts

It is a deeply symbolic form, consisting first and foremost of a

hemispheric dome (the Dome of Heaven). Atop the dome is a small

square platform supporting three circular discs or umbrellas (the

tree under which Buddha achieved enlightenment and the three levels

of Buddhist consciousness)


40/40

The Great StupaSanchi, Madhya Pradesh, India

3rdcentury BCEto 150-50 BCE

humanities chapter 4

Documents