For Fall 2012 The James W. Richard Lectures Present:

 

Peter Brown

Philip and Beulah Rollins Professor of History, Emeritus, Princeton University

 

"Treasure in Heaven": Wealth, Labor and the "Poor Among the Saints."Christian Giving from Paul to Pachomius

Lecture 1: "Remember the Poor": Leadership and Giving from Paul to Cyprian

The first lecture centers on the role of religious giving in the build up of Christian communities from the time of Saint Paul to the conversion of Constantine.  From the time of Paul onwards, this giving raised the issue of the role of the religious entrepreneur and the rights of religious leaders to cultivate support from their communities.  Thus, Christian giving bifurcated early into two aims: the need to collect money for the relief of the poor and the need to collect money also to support an increasingly prominent and active group of religious leaders.

Lecture 2: "In the Likeness of the Angels": Alms and Labor in Third and Fourth Century Syria

The second lecture continues our discussion of giving with an analysis of the issue in the late third and fourth centuries as it emerged with particular sharpness in Syria.  A strong tradition of thought, shared by Manichees and by radical Christian ascetics, favored outright mendicancy by religious leaders.  Manichaean Elect and Christian monks were expected to live from the alms of the faithful.  They were supposed to have abandoned work.  Herein Professor Brown will examine the deeply rooted views on nature, the human person, and society that were implied by this choice to live "like angels," without the necessity to work for a living.

Lecture 3: "The Work of the Hands...the Glory of Egypt": Monks and Work in Fourth Century Egypt

The third lecture concludes the theme by pointing to the exceptional nature of the Egyptian decision to link monasticism with labor.  Monks in Egypt were supposed to be self-sufficient, and to be engaged in real work.  Professor Brown will examine the assumptions that lay behind that decision.   The fact that Western monasticism (up to the days of Saint Francis) opted heavily for this view of the monk makes it hard for us to realize that the "angelic," Syriac option was just as important in late antiquity.  Indeed, with the spread of Buddhism in India, Central Asia and China, an ascetic elite supported by the alms of the faithful was the norm.  If it were not for the Egyptian resistance to this idea, mendicant monasticism might have become general in Christianity also -- and Europe would have been a "Land of the Begging Bowl."

 

Tuesday, November 13th - Remember the Poor
Wednesday, November 14th - In the Likeness of the Angels   
Thursday, November 15th - The Work of the Hands...the Glory of Egypt

All lectures in the Harrison Auditorium at 4 p.m. each afternoon with a catered reception following each lecture.

ALL LECTURES FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC 

 Upcoming Lectures