Jeffrey Burton Russell is een gevierd historicus wiens werk zich verdiept in de ingewikkelde geschiedenis van theologische concepten. Hij staat vooral bekend om zijn uitgebreide studies over het concept van de Duivel en zijn onderzoek naar het historische begrip van de hemel in het christelijk denken. Russells wetenschap daagt heersende mythen uit en toont met name aan hoe het idee van een platte aarde in de Middeleeuwen een negentiende-eeuwse uitvinding was. Zijn geschriften bieden diepgaande inzichten in de evolutie van religieuze ideeën en hun culturele betekenis.
Drawing on an impressive array of sources from popular religion, art, literature, and drama, as well as from scholastic philosophy, mystical theology, homiletics, and hagiography, Russell provides a detailed treatment of Christian diabology in the Middle Ages.
This lively and learned book traces the history of the concept of evil and its personification as the Devil from ancient times to the period of the New Testament and across cultures and...
From rocking in chairs, to singing lullabies, to driving nowhere underneath the moonlight, this is a story to remind parents of the precious magic made in the late hours of the night with their little night owls.
Satan is both a revealing study of the compelling figure of the Devil and an imaginative and persuasive inquiry into the forces that shape a concept and ensure its survival.
While recounting how past generations have personified evil, Jeffrey Burton Russell deepens our understanding of the ways in which people have dealt with the enduring problem of radical evil.
An illustrated history of witchcraft. It includes an analysis of the importance of the Internet and films in the dissemination of witchcraft, and the potential tensions as a movement that was originally a closed, secretive cult becomes an open, recognized public religion.
Drawing comparisons between modern sorcery and that of the ancient world, the book shows how the European witch craze in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries developed out of a combination of ancient sorcery and medieval Christian heresy, paganism, folklore, scholastic theology, and inquisitorial trials. Whether the diabolical witchcraft for which men and women went to the stake ever existed is open to question. What matters more is that it was believed to exist by intellectuals and peasants alike.
Building on a foundation of newly discovered primary sources and recent secondary interpretations, Jeffrey Burton Russell first establishes the facts and then explains the phenomenon of witchcraft in terms of its social and religious environment, particularly in relation to medieval heresies.
An authoritative and concise history of witchcraft from the ancient world up to the present day.
The Devil, known by many names such as Satan and Mephistopheles, has been a powerful symbol of evil throughout history. Jeffrey Burton Russell chronicles the story of the Devil from antiquity to the present, exploring how different cultures have personified evil and how humanity has grappled with the problem of radical evil. After an insightful essay on the nature of evil, Russell examines the Devil's origins in early cultures and traces its evolution in Western thought, beginning with the ancient Hebrews and continuing through the early Christian era. He delves into the medieval perspective, highlighting depictions in folklore, scholasticism, art, literature, mysticism, and witchcraft. The narrative then shifts to modern times, where Russell analyzes changes in the concept of the Devil through examples from theology, philosophy, art, literature, and popular culture. He raises critical questions about the relevance of the Devil today, considering whether he is merely an outdated superstition or if the horrors of the twentieth century necessitate a symbol of radical evil. This work serves as a single-volume distillation of Russell's extensive exploration of the nature and personification of evil, inviting readers to reflect on the enduring significance of this figure in Christianity.
