Medical Saints: Cosmas and Damian in a Postmodern World

Cosmas and Damian in a Postmodern World

Nonfiction, Religion & Spirituality, Reference, History
Cover of the book Medical Saints: Cosmas and Damian in a Postmodern World by Jacalyn Duffin, Oxford University Press, USA
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Jacalyn Duffin ISBN: 9780199910953
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA Publication: May 1, 2013
Imprint: Oxford University Press Language: English
Author: Jacalyn Duffin
ISBN: 9780199910953
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
Publication: May 1, 2013
Imprint: Oxford University Press
Language: English

Cosmas and Damian were martyred around the year 300 A.D. in what is now Syria. Called the Anargyroi ("without silver") because they charged no fees, they became patrons of medicine, surgery, and pharmacy and the focus of cults ranging across Europe. They were popular in Byzantine and Orthodox traditions and their shrines are numerous in Eastern Europe, southern Italy, and Sicily. The Medici family of Florence viewed the "santi medici" as patrons, and their deeds were illustrated by great Renaissance artists. In medical literature they are now revered as patrons of transplantation. Jacalyn Duffin offers a profound exploration of illness and healing experiences in contemporary society through the veneration of the twin doctors Saints Cosmas and Damian. She also relates a personal journey, from her role as a hematologist who unexpectedly came to serve as an expert witness in the Church's evaluation of a miracle to her research as a historican on the origins, meaning, and functions of saints. Duffin's research, which includes interviews with devotees in both North America and Europe, focuses on how people have taken the saints with them as they moved both within Italy and beyond. She shows that veneration of Cosmas and Damian has spread beyond immigrant traditions to fill important functions in healthcare and healing. Duffin's conclusions provide essential insights into medical history, sociology, anthropology, and popular religion, as well as the current medical debate over spiritual healing. Medical Saints draws on medical history and Roman Catholic traditions, but extends to universal observations about the behaviors of sick people and the formal responses to individual illness from collectivities in religion, medicine, and history.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Cosmas and Damian were martyred around the year 300 A.D. in what is now Syria. Called the Anargyroi ("without silver") because they charged no fees, they became patrons of medicine, surgery, and pharmacy and the focus of cults ranging across Europe. They were popular in Byzantine and Orthodox traditions and their shrines are numerous in Eastern Europe, southern Italy, and Sicily. The Medici family of Florence viewed the "santi medici" as patrons, and their deeds were illustrated by great Renaissance artists. In medical literature they are now revered as patrons of transplantation. Jacalyn Duffin offers a profound exploration of illness and healing experiences in contemporary society through the veneration of the twin doctors Saints Cosmas and Damian. She also relates a personal journey, from her role as a hematologist who unexpectedly came to serve as an expert witness in the Church's evaluation of a miracle to her research as a historican on the origins, meaning, and functions of saints. Duffin's research, which includes interviews with devotees in both North America and Europe, focuses on how people have taken the saints with them as they moved both within Italy and beyond. She shows that veneration of Cosmas and Damian has spread beyond immigrant traditions to fill important functions in healthcare and healing. Duffin's conclusions provide essential insights into medical history, sociology, anthropology, and popular religion, as well as the current medical debate over spiritual healing. Medical Saints draws on medical history and Roman Catholic traditions, but extends to universal observations about the behaviors of sick people and the formal responses to individual illness from collectivities in religion, medicine, and history.

More books from Oxford University Press, USA

Cover of the book Friendly Fire : American Images of the Vietnam War by Jacalyn Duffin
Cover of the book Women in the Classical World : Image and Text by Jacalyn Duffin
Cover of the book The Oxford History Of Mexico by Jacalyn Duffin
Cover of the book Resistance: Jews and Christians Who Defied the Nazi Terror by Jacalyn Duffin
Cover of the book Fanny Brice : The Original Funny Girl by Jacalyn Duffin
Cover of the book Ty Cobb by Jacalyn Duffin
Cover of the book Clinician's Quick Guide to Interpersonal Psychotherapy by Jacalyn Duffin
Cover of the book Autos And Progress : The Brazilian Search For Modernity by Jacalyn Duffin
Cover of the book Growing in Love and Wisdom:Tibetan Buddhist Sources for Christian Meditation by Jacalyn Duffin
Cover of the book Music in the Nineteenth Century : The Oxford History of Western Music by Jacalyn Duffin
Cover of the book Hard Times by Jacalyn Duffin
Cover of the book Late Life Jazz: The Life and Career of Rosemary Clooney by Jacalyn Duffin
Cover of the book A Sand County Almanac : With Other Essays On Conservation From Round River by Jacalyn Duffin
Cover of the book CDC Health Information for International Travel 2014: The Yellow Book by Jacalyn Duffin
Cover of the book War before Civilization by Jacalyn Duffin
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy