CONGRESS CANCELED Saints and Animals
Description
Saints and animals
Power over the animals has been a characteristic of saints from their beginnings in the Early Church. This session operates on the cusp of hagiographical and animal studies. Its intention is to explore how the connection between saints and animals is constructed: the saint as a very special human, rising beyond humanity, and the animal as a creature, which may or may not have agency or which is a symbol of evil or virtue. Moreover, it explores the educational value of tales about saints and animals: how were saints, in their connections to animals, portrayed as being models, or, for that matter, how did the animals function in this respect?
Sponsored by: The Hagiography Society
Organized by: Mathilde van Dijk, Centre for Religion and Heritage, University of Groningen
CONGRESS CANCELED Saints and Animals
Bernhard 212
Saints and animals
Power over the animals has been a characteristic of saints from their beginnings in the Early Church. This session operates on the cusp of hagiographical and animal studies. Its intention is to explore how the connection between saints and animals is constructed: the saint as a very special human, rising beyond humanity, and the animal as a creature, which may or may not have agency or which is a symbol of evil or virtue. Moreover, it explores the educational value of tales about saints and animals: how were saints, in their connections to animals, portrayed as being models, or, for that matter, how did the animals function in this respect?
Sponsored by: The Hagiography Society
Organized by: Mathilde van Dijk, Centre for Religion and Heritage, University of Groningen