Vom Aussatz zur „Heiligen Krankheit“. Lepra in der christlichen Spätantike
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Karl-Heinz Leven
Abstract
This paper sketches the multifaceted image and interpretation of leprosy in Late Christian Antiquity and in the Middle Ages, which is not to be confused with the modern disease known as leprosy („Hansen’s disease,“ caused by Mycobacterium leprae). While in Hippocratic medicine the term λέπρα referred to a rather harmless skin disease, in the Roman imperial period medical texts mention a disease called ἐλεφαν- τίασις that bears features similar to that of Hansen’s disease. In the Septuagint, the Hebrew term צָרָעַת (zara‛at), which in the Old Testament denoted an (all too) visible sign of moral guilt, is translated with the term λέπρα. With the New Testament account of Jesus’ miraculous healings of the „leprous,“ λέπρα is eventually seen to be a fateful, incurable, and disfiguring disease, considered to be contagious and containing moral stigmatization. In the Byzantine era, however, the serious stigma is reevaluated and leprosy is euphemistically called a „holy disease“; caring for those afflicted by it, following Jesus, becomes a Christian duty.
Abstract
This paper sketches the multifaceted image and interpretation of leprosy in Late Christian Antiquity and in the Middle Ages, which is not to be confused with the modern disease known as leprosy („Hansen’s disease,“ caused by Mycobacterium leprae). While in Hippocratic medicine the term λέπρα referred to a rather harmless skin disease, in the Roman imperial period medical texts mention a disease called ἐλεφαν- τίασις that bears features similar to that of Hansen’s disease. In the Septuagint, the Hebrew term צָרָעַת (zara‛at), which in the Old Testament denoted an (all too) visible sign of moral guilt, is translated with the term λέπρα. With the New Testament account of Jesus’ miraculous healings of the „leprous,“ λέπρα is eventually seen to be a fateful, incurable, and disfiguring disease, considered to be contagious and containing moral stigmatization. In the Byzantine era, however, the serious stigma is reevaluated and leprosy is euphemistically called a „holy disease“; caring for those afflicted by it, following Jesus, becomes a Christian duty.
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Frontmatter I
- Preface V
- Contents VII
- Abbreviations IX
- Introduction 1
- The Greek and Slavonic Transmission of Methodius’ De lepra 11
- The Florilegium Coislinianum and the Greek Text of Methodius’ De lepra 31
- Methodius’ De lepra as a Heteronomous Text 55
- Levitikus 13 in der Fassung der Septuaginta 75
- Lepra moralis. Das biblische und rabbinische Aussatz-Gesetz 85
- Vom Aussatz zur „Heiligen Krankheit“. Lepra in der christlichen Spätantike 95
- Vom Rohstoff zum Gewebe in spätantiker und frühchristlicher Zeit – Gedanken zur textilen Begrifflichkeit in Methodius’ De lepra 113
- The Apocalypse of Pseudo-Methodius 125
- Editionspraxis 2021. Eine Disputation 145
- List of Contributors 157
- Index of References 159
- Index of Persons 163
- Index of Subjects 165
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Frontmatter I
- Preface V
- Contents VII
- Abbreviations IX
- Introduction 1
- The Greek and Slavonic Transmission of Methodius’ De lepra 11
- The Florilegium Coislinianum and the Greek Text of Methodius’ De lepra 31
- Methodius’ De lepra as a Heteronomous Text 55
- Levitikus 13 in der Fassung der Septuaginta 75
- Lepra moralis. Das biblische und rabbinische Aussatz-Gesetz 85
- Vom Aussatz zur „Heiligen Krankheit“. Lepra in der christlichen Spätantike 95
- Vom Rohstoff zum Gewebe in spätantiker und frühchristlicher Zeit – Gedanken zur textilen Begrifflichkeit in Methodius’ De lepra 113
- The Apocalypse of Pseudo-Methodius 125
- Editionspraxis 2021. Eine Disputation 145
- List of Contributors 157
- Index of References 159
- Index of Persons 163
- Index of Subjects 165
