There are saints in Orthodox Christian culture who overturn the conventional concept of sainthood. Their conduct may be unruly and salacious, they may blaspheme and even kill--yet, mysteriously, those around them treat them with even more reverence. Such saints are called "holy fools." In this pioneering study Sergey A. Ivanov examines the phenomenon of holy foolery from a cultural standpoint. He identifies its prerequisites and its development in religious thought, and traces the emergence of the first hagiographic texts describing these paradoxical saints. He describes the beginnings of holy foolery in Egyptian monasteries of the fifth century, followed by its high point in the cities of Byzantium, with an eventual decline in the twelfth to fourteenth centuries. He also compares the important Russian tradition of holy fools, which in some form has survived to this day.

Holy Fools in Byzantium and Beyond (Oxford Studies in Byzantium)

History

Franklin, Simon

Ivanov, Sergey A.

Ancient Civilizations

Oxford University Press

This is the first comprehensive study of the origins and early uses of Russian writing. Simon Franklin examines a wide range of writings, from the parchment manuscripts of the Orthodox Church, through the Novgorod birch-bark documents, to inscriptions on stone and metal. He analyzes the texts from a variety of perspectives, and presents fascinating insight into this crucial aspect of Russian history. The impressive scholarship and idiosyncratic wit of the volume commend it to specialists in Russian history and Russian literature.

Writing, Society and Culture in Early Rus, c.950–1300

Europe

Cambridge University Press

Franklin, Simon, Shepard, Jonathan

The Emergence of Rus 750-1200: 750-1200

Shepard, Jonathan

Routledge

The Christian culture of Rus (the medieval precursor of modern Russia, Ukraine and Belarus) is sometimes presented either as a reflection of an indigenous spirituality wrapped in borrowed (Byzantine) forms or, by contrast, as merely a provincial version of its Byzantine original. The essays in this volume start from the premise that neither view is adequate. The history of culture - even of a self-consciously imitative culture - involves a continual process of inevitable 'mistranslation', as the imported models are reshaped and reinterpreted according to local resources, circumstances and preconceptions. These essays explore aspects of the 'translation of culture' on several levels: from the semantic processes of the actual translation of written texts from Greek into Slavonic, through to larger issues of ideology and identity. They consider both the initial stages of such 'translation' (from Byzantium to Rus) and some of the subsequent 'retranslations' of the Byzantine heritage in the culture of Rus and - eventually - of Russia.

Byzantium - Rus - Russia: Studies in the Translation of Christian Culture (Variorum Collected Studies)

The authors included in this volume, Ilarion, Klim Smoljatic, and Kirill of Turov, are remarkable for both their personal and literary achievements. Appointed in 1051 by Prince Jaroslav the Wise, Ilarion was the first of only two recorded "native" metropolitans of Kiev. His Sermon on Law and Grace constitutes the finest piece of eleventh-century Rus' rhetorical literature. Klim Smoljatic, the second "native" metropolitan of Rus' (from 1147), is the author of the controversial Epistle to Foma,, which addresses the debate over the proper nature and limits of Christian learning. Finally, the twelfth-century monk Kirill of Turov is best known for his collection of allegorical lessons and some of the most accomplished sermons of Kievan Rus'. 
 The volume contains the first complete translations of the Epistle to Foma and the lessons and sermons of Kirill, as well as an entirely new rendering of the Sermon on Law and Grace. Simon Franklin prefaces the texts with a substantial introduction that places each of the three authors in their historical context and examines the literary qualities as well as textual complexities of these outstanding works of Rus' literature.

Sermons and Rhetoric of Kievan Rus’ (Harvard Library of Early Ukrainian Literature)

Literature & Fiction

History & Criticism

Harvard Ukrainian Research Institute

The authors included in this volume—Ilarion, Klim Smoljatic, and Kirill of Turov—are remarkable for both their personal and literary achievements. Appointed in 1051 by Prince Jaroslav the Wise, Ilarion was the first of only two recorded “native” metropolitans of Kiev. His “Sermon on Law and Grace” constitutes the finest piece of eleventh-century Rus’ rhetorical literature. Klim Smoljatic, the second “native” metropolitan of Rus’ (from 1147), is the author of the controversial “Epistle to Foma,” which addresses the debate over the proper nature and limits of Christian learning. Finally, the twelfth-century monk Kirill of Turov is best known for his collection of allegorical lessons and some of the most accomplished sermons of Kievan Rus’. The volume contains the first complete translations of the “Epistle to Foma” and the lessons and sermons of Kirill, as well as an entirely new rendering of the “Sermon on Law and Grace.” Simon Franklin prefaces the texts with a substantial introduction that places each of the three authors in their historical context and examines the literary qualities as well as textual complexities of these outstanding works of Rus’ literature.

Sermons and Rhetoric of Kievan Rus'

Religion & Spirituality

Christian Books & Bibles

Harvard Univ Pr

The Russian Graphosphere, 1450-1850

The 'graphosphere' is the dynamic space of visible words. Graphospheres mutate, they are reconfigured with changes in technology, in modes of production, in social structures, in fashion and taste. The graphospheric environment can be public or private, monumental or ephemeral. This book explores a new approach to the study of writing, with a focus on Russia during its 'long early modernity' from the late fifteenth century to the early nineteenth century. Taking an inclusive approach, it charts unmapped territory, uncovers sources that have almost entirely escaped attention and therefore provides, in the first instance, a unique reference guide to cultures of writing in Russia over four hundred years. Besides generating fresh insights into distinctive features of Russian culture, this outward-looking and accessible book offers a pioneering case study for the wider comparative exploration of the significance of technologies of the word.

This eagerly awaited volume, the first of its kind by western scholars, describes the development amongst the diverse inhabitants of the immense landmass between the Carpathians and Urals of a political, economic and social nexus (underpinned by a common culture and, eventually, a common faith), out of which would emerge the future Russia, Ukraine and Belarus. The authors explore every aspect of life in Rus, using evidence and the fruits of post-Soviet historiography. They describe the rise of a polity centred on Kiev, the coming of Christianity, and the increasing prosperity of the region even as, with the proliferation of new dynastic centres, the balance of power shifted northwards and westwards. Fractured, violent and transitory though it often is, this is a story of growth and achievement - and a masterly piece of historical synthesis.

The Emergence of Rus 750-1200 (Longman History of Russia)

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Books by Franklin, Simon

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Franklin, Simon. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Holy Fools in Byzantium and Beyond (Oxford Studies in Byzantium)

Writing, Society and Culture in Early Rus, c.950–1300

Writing, Society and Culture in Early Rus, c.950–1300

The Emergence of Rus 750-1200: 750-1200

Byzantium - Rus - Russia: Studies in the Translation of Christian Culture (Variorum Collected Studies)

Sermons and Rhetoric of Kievan Rus’ (Harvard Library of Early Ukrainian Literature)

Sermons and Rhetoric of Kievan Rus'

The Russian Graphosphere, 1450-1850

The Russian Graphosphere, 1450-1850

The Emergence of Rus 750-1200 (Longman History of Russia)