Monastic Jargon and Citizenship Language in Late Antiquity1

Abstract

This article pursues the changing significance associated with the ancient Greek city state (polis) in language used among Greek Christian authors of the fourth to sixth centuries CE. In classical Greek writing, the language of the polis and related terms (politeia, politeuma) play an important role in articulations of the societal contexts for the actions of the individual. Christian authors highlight the communal aspects of belonging to a polis to explain the significance of joining the Church through baptism. In the context of early monastic writing, by contrast, it is the personal ascetic achievement of the individual that comes to the fore. The polis as a point of reference is transposed to access rights to the Heavenly City that are promised as a reward at the end of time.