LIFE ACCORDING TO NATURE: ASCETIC IDEALS IN A STICHERON BY KASSIA
Abstract
The topic of this paper are the ascetic ideals contained in Kassia’s sticheron for the Feast of the Nativity of John the Forerunner (June 24). The ideas expressed by Kassia in this sticheron may be traced back to some of the most influential ascetic writings of the Byzantine monastic tradition such as the Vita Antonii, the Apophthegmata Patrum and the Ladder of John Climacus. These three works were an essential component of the monastic curriculum during the Byzantine period and hence it is not surprising that Kassia, a nun, used them to praise the virtuous life of the role model of monastic life – John the Forerunner. The case of this sticheron, in which very subtle ascetic ideas are expressed, demonstrates that this dimension of Byzantine liturgical hymnography deserves closer attention.
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