Treasure in Heaven

The Holy Poor in Early Christianity

Nonfiction, History, World History
Cover of the book Treasure in Heaven by Peter R. Brown, University of Virginia Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Peter R. Brown ISBN: 9780813938295
Publisher: University of Virginia Press Publication: March 8, 2016
Imprint: University of Virginia Press Language: English
Author: Peter R. Brown
ISBN: 9780813938295
Publisher: University of Virginia Press
Publication: March 8, 2016
Imprint: University of Virginia Press
Language: English

The "holy poor" have long maintained an elite status within Christianity. Differing from the "real" poor, these clergymen, teachers, and ascetics have historically been viewed by their fellow Christians as persons who should receive material support in exchange for offering immeasurable immaterial benefits—teaching, preaching, and prayer. Supporting them—quite as much as supporting the real poor—has been a way to accumulate eventual treasure in heaven. Yet from the rise of Christian monasticism in Egypt and Syria to present day, Christians have argued fiercely about whether monks should work to support themselves.

In Treasure in Heaven, renowned historian Peter Brown shifts attention from Western to Eastern Christianity, introducing us to this smoldering debate that took place across the entire Middle East from the Euphrates to the Nile. Seen against the backdrop of Asia, Christianity might have opted for a Buddhist model by which holy monks lived by begging alone. Instead, the monks of Egypt upheld an alternative model that linked the monk to humanity and the monastery to society through acceptance of the common, human bond of work. This model of Third World Christianity—a Christianity that we all too easily associate with the West—eventually became the basis for the monasticism of western Europe, as well as for modern Western attitudes to charity and labor. In Treasure in Heaven, Brown shows how and why we are still living—at times uncomfortably—with that choice.

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

The "holy poor" have long maintained an elite status within Christianity. Differing from the "real" poor, these clergymen, teachers, and ascetics have historically been viewed by their fellow Christians as persons who should receive material support in exchange for offering immeasurable immaterial benefits—teaching, preaching, and prayer. Supporting them—quite as much as supporting the real poor—has been a way to accumulate eventual treasure in heaven. Yet from the rise of Christian monasticism in Egypt and Syria to present day, Christians have argued fiercely about whether monks should work to support themselves.

In Treasure in Heaven, renowned historian Peter Brown shifts attention from Western to Eastern Christianity, introducing us to this smoldering debate that took place across the entire Middle East from the Euphrates to the Nile. Seen against the backdrop of Asia, Christianity might have opted for a Buddhist model by which holy monks lived by begging alone. Instead, the monks of Egypt upheld an alternative model that linked the monk to humanity and the monastery to society through acceptance of the common, human bond of work. This model of Third World Christianity—a Christianity that we all too easily associate with the West—eventually became the basis for the monasticism of western Europe, as well as for modern Western attitudes to charity and labor. In Treasure in Heaven, Brown shows how and why we are still living—at times uncomfortably—with that choice.

More books from University of Virginia Press

Cover of the book Stranger America by Peter R. Brown
Cover of the book Body and Soul by Peter R. Brown
Cover of the book Outside the Wire by Peter R. Brown
Cover of the book Hometown Religion by Peter R. Brown
Cover of the book The Life and Undeath of Autonomy in American Literature by Peter R. Brown
Cover of the book Face Value by Peter R. Brown
Cover of the book Citizens of Convenience by Peter R. Brown
Cover of the book A Strife of Tongues by Peter R. Brown
Cover of the book Patriotism and Piety by Peter R. Brown
Cover of the book A "Topping People" by Peter R. Brown
Cover of the book Structural Intuitions by Peter R. Brown
Cover of the book Reading Popular Newtonianism by Peter R. Brown
Cover of the book The Word on the Streets by Peter R. Brown
Cover of the book Independence without Freedom by Peter R. Brown
Cover of the book A Cultural History of Underdevelopment by Peter R. Brown
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