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15 results for "education"
1. Hebrew Bible, Proverbs, 1, 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 1.4, 1.5, 1.6, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 22.17-24.22 (9th cent. BCE - 3rd cent. BCE)  Tagged with subjects: •nan Found in books: Damm, Religions and Education in Antiquity (2018) 29
2. Hebrew Bible, Psalms, 1, 10-12, 14-19, 2, 20-29, 3, 30-39, 4, 40-49, 5, 50-51, 6-9, 13 (9th cent. BCE - 3rd cent. BCE)  Tagged with subjects: •nan Found in books: Damm, Religions and Education in Antiquity (2018) 16
13. Lest mine enemy say: 'I have prevailed against him'; Lest mine adversaries rejoice when I am moved.,How long shall I take counsel in my soul, having sorrow in my heart by day? How long shall mine enemy be exalted over me?,For the Leader. A Psalm of David.,Behold Thou, and answer me, O LORD my God; Lighten mine eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death;,But as for me, in Thy mercy do I trust; My heart shall rejoice in Thy salvation. I will sing unto the LORD, Because He hath dealt bountifully with me.,How long, O LORD, wilt Thou forget me for ever? How long wilt Thou hide Thy face from me?
3. Ovid, Fasti, 4.905-4.909, 4.921-4.922 (1st cent. BCE - 1st cent. CE)  Tagged with subjects: •religion, and education Found in books: Mackey, Belief and Cult: Rethinking Roman Religion (2022) 137
4.905. hac mihi Nomento Romam cum luce redirem, 4.906. obstitit in media candida turba via. 4.907. flamen in antiquae lucum Robiginis ibat, 4.908. exta canis flammis, exta daturus ovis. 4.909. protinus accessi, ritus ne nescius essem: 4.921. parce, precor, scabrasque manus a messibus aufer 4.922. neve noce cultis: posse nocere sat est. 4.905. A white-robed throng blocked my road. 4.906. A priest was going to the grove of old Mildew (Robigo), 4.907. To offer the entrails of a dog and a sheep to the flames. 4.908. I went with him, so as not to be ignorant of the rite: 4.909. Your priest, Quirinus, pronounced these words: 4.921. And don’t harm the crop: it’s enough that you can harm. 4.922. Grip harsh iron rather than the tender wheat,
4. Theon Aelius, Exercises, 2.60, 2.103 (1st cent. CE - 2nd cent. CE)  Tagged with subjects: •education and religion •religion, education and Found in books: Damm, Religions and Education in Antiquity (2018) 4, 5
5. Columella, De Re Rustica, 10.342 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)  Tagged with subjects: •religion, and education Found in books: Mackey, Belief and Cult: Rethinking Roman Religion (2022) 137
6. New Testament, 1 John, 3.16 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)  Tagged with subjects: •education and religion •religion, education and Found in books: Damm, Religions and Education in Antiquity (2018) 13
3.16. Ἐν τούτῳ ἐγνώκαμεν τὴν ἀγάπην, ὅτι ἐκεῖνος ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν τὴν ψυχὴν αὐτοῦ ἔθηκεν· καὶ ἡμεῖς ὀφείλομεν ὑπὲρ τῶν ἀδελφῶν τὰς ψυχὰς θεῖναι. 3.16. By this we know love, because he laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers.
7. New Testament, 1 Corinthians, 12.28 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)  Tagged with subjects: •education and religion •religion, education and Found in books: Damm, Religions and Education in Antiquity (2018) 11
12.28. Καὶ οὓς μὲν ἔθετο ὁ θεὸς ἐν τῇ ἐκκλησίᾳ πρῶτον ἀποστόλους, δεύτερον προφήτας, τρίτον διδασκάλους, ἔπειτα δυνάμεις, ἔπειτα χαρίσματα ἰαμάτων, ἀντιλήμψεις, κυβερνήσεις, γένη γλωσσῶν. 12.28. God has set some in the assembly: first apostles, secondprophets, third teachers, then miracle workers, then gifts of healings,helps, governments, and various kinds of languages.
8. New Testament, Acts, 13.1 (1st cent. CE - 2nd cent. CE)  Tagged with subjects: •education and religion •religion, education and Found in books: Damm, Religions and Education in Antiquity (2018) 11
13.1. Ἦσαν δὲ ἐν Ἀντιοχείᾳ κατὰ τὴν οὖσαν ἐκκλησίαν προφῆται καὶ διδάσκαλοι ὅ τε Βαρνάβας καὶ Συμεὼν ὁ καλούμενος Νίγερ, καὶ Λούκιος ὁ Κυρηναῖος, Μαναήν τε Ἡρῴδου τοῦ τετραάρχου σύντροφος καὶ Σαῦλος. 13.1. Now in the assembly that was at Antioch there were some prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen the foster-brother of Herod the tetrarch, and Saul.
9. New Testament, Apocalypse, 23a (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)  Tagged with subjects: •education and religion •religion, education and Found in books: Damm, Religions and Education in Antiquity (2018) 22
10. New Testament, Ephesians, 6.4 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)  Tagged with subjects: •education and religion •religion, education and Found in books: Damm, Religions and Education in Antiquity (2018) 13
6.4. Καὶ οἱ πατέρες, μὴ παροργίζετε τὰ τέκνα ὑμῶν, ἀλλὰ ἐκτρέφετε αὐτὰ ἐν παιδείᾳ καὶ νουθεσία Κυρίου. 6.4. You fathers, don't provoke your children to wrath, but nurture them in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.
11. New Testament, Hebrews, 12.5, 12.7-12.8, 12.11 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)  Tagged with subjects: •education and religion •religion, education and Found in books: Damm, Religions and Education in Antiquity (2018) 13
12.5. καὶ ἐκλέλησθε τῆς παρακλήσεως, ἥτις ὑμῖν ὡς υἱοῖς διαλέγεται, 12.7. εἰς παιδείαν ὑπομένετε· ὡς υἱοῖς ὑμῖν προσφέρεται ὁ θεός· τίς γὰρ υἱὸς ὃν οὐ παιδεύει πατήρ; 12.8. εἰ δὲ χωρίς ἐστε παιδείας ἧς μέτοχοι γεγόνασι πάντες, ἄρα νόθοι καὶ οὐχ υἱοί ἐστε. 12.11. πᾶσα μὲν παιδεία πρὸς μὲν τὸ παρὸν οὐ δοκεῖ χαρᾶς εἶναι ἀλλὰ λύπης, ὕστερον δὲ καρπὸν εἰρηνικὸν τοῖς διʼ αὐτῆς γεγυμνασμένοις ἀποδίδωσιν δικαιοσύνης. 12.5. and you have forgotten the exhortation which reasons with you as with sons, "My son, don't take lightly the chastening of the Lord, Nor faint when you are reproved by him; 12.7. It is for discipline that you endure. God deals with you as with sons, for what son is there whom his father doesn't discipline? 12.8. But if you are without discipline, whereof all have been made partakers, then are you illegitimate, and not sons. 12.11. All chastening seems for the present to be not joyous but grievous; yet afterward it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been exercised thereby.
12. Apuleius, The Golden Ass, 11.5-11.7, 11.15, 11.19, 11.21-11.24, 11.27-11.28 (2nd cent. CE - 2nd cent. CE)  Tagged with subjects: •nan Found in books: Damm, Religions and Education in Antiquity (2018) 5
11.5. 'Behold, Lucius, here I am, moved by your prayer, I, mother of all Nature and mistress of the elements, first-born of the ages and greatest of powers divine, queen of the dead, and queen of the immortals, all gods and goddesses in a single form; who with a gesture commands heaven's glittering summit, the wholesome ocean breezes, the underworld's mournful silence; whose sole divinity is worshipped in differing forms, with varying rites, under many names, by all the world. There, at Pessinus, the Phrygians, first-born of men, call me Cybele, Mother of the Gods; in Attica, a people sprung from their own soil name me Cecropian Minerva; in sea-girt Cyprus I am Paphian Venus; Dictynna-Diana to the Cretan archers; Stygian Proserpine to the three-tongued Sicilians; at Eleusis, ancient Ceres; Juno to some, to others Bellona, Hecate, Rhamnusia; while the races of both Ethiopias, first to be lit at dawn by the risen Sun's divine rays, and the Egyptians too, deep in arcane lore, worship me with my own rites, and call me by my true name, royal Isis. I am here in pity for your misfortunes, I am here as friend and helper. Weep no more, end your lamentations. Banish sorrow. With my aid, your day of salvation is at hand. So listen carefully to my commands. From time immemorial the day born of this night has been dedicated to my rites: on this coming day the winter storms cease, the ocean's stormy waves grow calm, and my priests launch an untried vessel on the now navigable waters, and dedicate it to me as the first offering of the trading season. You must await this ceremony with a mind neither anxious nor irreverent. 11.5. “Behold, Lucius, I have come! Your weeping and prayers have moved me to succor you. I am she who is the natural mother of all things, mistress and governess of all the elements, the initial progeny of worlds, chief of powers divine, queen of heaven! I am the principal of the celestial gods, the light of the goddesses. At my will the planets of the heavens, the wholesome winds of the seas, and the silences of hell are disposed. My name and my divinity is adored throughout all the world in diverse manners. I am worshipped by various customs and by many names. The Phrygians call me the mother of the gods. The Athenians, Minerva. The Cyprians, Venus. The Cretans, Diana. The Sicilians, Proserpina. The Eleusians, Ceres. Some call me Juno, other Bellona, and yet others Hecate. And principally the Aethiopians who dwell in the Orient, and the Aegyptians who are excellent in all kind of ancient doctrine and by their proper ceremonies are accustomed to worship me, call me Queen Isis. Behold, I have come to take pity of your fortune and tribulation. Behold, I am present to favor and aid you. Leave off your weeping and lamentation, put away all your sorrow. For behold, the day which is ordained by my providence is at hand. Therefore be ready to attend to my command. This day which shall come after this night is dedicated to my service by an eternal religion. My priests and ministers are accustomed, after the tempests of the sea have ceased, to offer in my name a new ship as a first fruit of my navigation. I command you not to profane or despise the sacrifice in any way. 11.6. The high-priest, at my command, will carry in procession a garland of roses fastened to the sistrum in his hand. Don't hesitate to join the crowd and, trusting in my protection, push your way towards the priest, then as if you wished to kiss his hand pluck gently at the roses with your mouth, and so at once throw off that wretched form of the most detestable of creatures. And have faith in my power to oversee the execution of my orders, for at this very moment when I am here with you I am with my priest too telling him, in dream, what he must do. When I wish, the heaving crowd will part before you, and amidst the joyous rites and wild festivity no one will shrink from your unseemly shape, nor treat your sudden change of form as sinister and level charges at you out of spite. Remember one thing clearly though, and keep it locked deep within your heart: the life that is left to you, to the final sigh of your last breath, is pledged to me. It is right that all your days be devoted to she whose grace returns you to the world of men. Under my wing, you will live in happiness and honour, and when your span of life is complete and you descend to the shades, even there, in the sphere beneath the earth, you will see me, who am now before you, gleaming amidst the darkness of Acheron, queen of the Stygian depths; and dwelling yourself in the Elysian fields, you will endlessly adore me and I will favour you. Know too that if by sedulous obedience, dutiful service, and perfect chastity you are worthy of my divine grace, I and I alone can extend your life beyond the limits set by fate.' 11.6. “The great priest shall carry this day, following in procession by my exhortation, a garland of roses next the rattle in his right hand. Follow my procession amongst the people and, when you come to the priest, make as though you would kiss his hand. But snatch at the roses, whereby I will put away the skin and shape of an ass. This kind of beast I have long abhorred and despised. But above all things beware that you do not doubt or fear any of those things as being hard and difficult to bring to pass. For in the same hour as I have come to you, I have commanded the priest, by a vision, of what he shall do. And all the people by my command shall be compelled to give you place and say nothing! Moreover, do not think that, amongst so fair and joyful ceremonies and in so good a company, any person shall abhor your ill-favored and deformed figure, or that any man shall be so hardy as to blame and reprove your sudden restoration to human shape. They will not conceive any sinister opinion about this deed. And know this for certain: for the rest of your life, until the hour of death, you shall be bound and subject to me! And think it not an injury to be always subject to me, since by my means and benefit you shall become a man. You shall live blessed in this world, you shall live gloriously by my guidance and protection. And when you descend to hell, you shall see me shine in that subterranean place, shining (as you see me now) in the darkness of Acheron, and reigning in the deep profundity of Styx. There you shall worship me as one who has been favorable to you. And if I perceive that you are obedient to my command, an adherent to my religion, and worthy my divine grace, know you that I will prolong your days above the time that the fates have appointed, and the celestial planets have ordained.” 11.7. So the holy revelation ended, and the invincible Goddess withdrew into her own being. Instantly I was freed from sleep and leapt up, bathed in sweat, with feelings of fear and joy. Filled with utter amazement at this clear manifestation of the Great Goddess's presence, I splashed myself with sea-water, reviewing intently her series of potent commands. Soon the dark shades of night were dispelled, a golden sun arose, and at once a crowd of triumphant believers thronged the streets. Not only was I, in my secret joy, but the whole world seemed filled with such happiness that the creatures, the skies, the very houses themselves seemed to radiate joy from their shining faces. For now a serene and sunlit morning, on the heels of yesterday's frost, with its spring warmth enticed the birds to sing in sweet harmony, and charm with their happy greetings the Queen of the Stars; the Mother of the Seasons, the Mistress of the Universe. Even the trees, both the orchard trees that bear fruit and those simply content to give shade, gleaming with buds and roused by the southerly breeze, waved their branches gently, murmuring with a soft rustling sound, for the winter gales had ceased, the angry swell of the waves had subsided, and a calm sea now lapped the shore. The heavens too, free of the cloudy night, shone clear and naked with the splendour of their true light. 11.7. When the divine image had spoken these words, she vanished away! By and by, when I awoke, I arose with the members of my body mixed with fear, joy and sweat. I marveled at the clear presence of the powerful goddess and, being sprinkled with the water of the sea, I recounted in order her admonitions and divine commands. Soon after, when the darkness was chased away and the clear and golden sun rose, behold, I saw the streets filled with people going in a religious sort and in great triumph. All things seemed that day to be joyful. Every beast and house, and indeed the very day itself seemed to rejoice. For after a frosty morning a hot and temperate rose and the little birds, thinking that the spring time had come, chirped and sang melodiously to the mother of stars, the parent of times, and mistress of all the world! The fruitful trees rejoiced at their fertility. The barren and sterile were contented to provide shadows. All rendering sweet and pleasant sounds with their branches. The seas were quiet from winds and tempests. In heaven the clouds had been chased away, and the sky appeared fair and clear with its proper light. 11.15. 'Lucius, after suffering many labours, buffeted by Fortune's mighty tempests, by the fierce winds of fate, you reach at last the harbour of Peace, the altar of Mercy. Neither your birth and rank, nor your fine education, brought you any aid, as on youth's rash and slippery paths you plunged into servile pleasures and reaped the perverse rewards of ill-starred curiosity. Yet blind Fortune while tormenting you with imminent danger, has brought you from the throes of evil chance to blessed happiness. Let her vent her rage and fury now on some other object of her cruelty, for hostile fate finds no opening against those whose lives our royal Goddess renders free to serve her. How could those bandits, wild beasts, servitude, the windings of savage journeys that ended where they began, the fear of death renewed each day, how could all they serve Fortune's evil turn, for now you are under the wing of an all-seeing Providence, who with the splendour of her light illumines all the gods. Wear a happier face, to match the white robe you wear now, and join the procession of the saving Goddess with a joyful and conquering step. Let the unbelieving bear witness, and understand their errant ways. Behold, Lucius, freed from his former troubles, delighting in the favour of mighty Isis, triumphing over fate. And to be more secure, enlist in the protection of this holy cadre, to whose oath of obedience you were but now summoned, Dedicate yourself to the commands of our sect, accept the burden of your own free will; for once you begin to serve the Goddess, you will know the fruits of freedom more completely.' 11.15. “O my friend Lucius, after the enduring so many labors and escaping so many tempests of fortune, you have at length come to the port and haven of rest and mercy. Your noble linage, your dignity, your education, or any thing else did not avail you. But you have endured so many servile pleasures due to the folly of youth. Thusly you have had an unpleasant reward for your excessive curiosity. But however the blindness of Fortune has tormented you in various dangers, so it is now that, unbeknownst to her, you have come to this present felicity. Let Fortune go and fume with fury in another place. Let her find some other matter on which to execute her cruelty. Fortune has no power against those who serve and honor our goddess. What good did it do her that you endured thieves, savage beasts, great servitude, dangerous waits, long journeys, and fear of death every day? Know that now you are safe and under the protection of her who, by her clear light, brightens the other gods. Wherefore rejoice and take a countece appropriate to your white garment. Follow the parade of this devout and honorable procession so that those who do not worship the goddess may see and acknowledge their error. Behold Lucius, you are delivered from so great miseries by the providence of the goddess Isis. Rejoice therefore and triumph in the victory over fortune. And so that you may live more safe and sure, make yourself one of this holy order. Dedicate your mind to our religion and take upon yourself the voluntary yoke of ministry. And when you begin to serve and honor the goddess, then you shall feel the fruit of your liberty.” 11.19. I spoke with each of them in turn, as I should, narrating my former troubles and present joy, then swiftly returned to that meditation on the Goddess which was my chief delight. I took a room in the temple precincts, and set up house there, and though serving the Goddess as layman only, as yet, I was a constant companion of the priests and a loyal devotee of the great deity. No moment of rest, not a night, passed without some admonishing visitation from her. She urged me again and again to become an initiate to her rites for which I had long been destined, but though willing and eager to obey I was held back by religious awe, since I knew from careful study that the rules of her order were harsh, those regarding abstinence and chastity demanding, and how one must always, with care and circumspection, guard against the countless vicissitudes of life. Despite my sense of urgency, and though I thought again and again of these matters, somehow I still delayed. 11.19. After I had related to them of all my former miseries and present joys, I went before the face of the goddess and hired a house within the cloister of the temple so that I might continually be ready to serve of the goddess. I also wanted to be in continual contact with the company of the priests so that I could become wholly devoted to the goddess, and become an inseparable worshipper of her divine name. It happened that the goddess often appeared to me in the night, urging and commanding me to take the order of her religion. But I, though I greatly desired to do so, was held back because of fear. I considered her discipline was hard and difficult, the chastity of the priests intolerable, and the life austere and subject to many inconveniences. Being thus in doubt, I refrained from all those things as seeming impossible. 11.21. From then on I became ever more solicitous in my constant attendance on the deity, believing that my present blessings were a guarantee of future good. Moreover, day by day, my desire for holy orders intensified, and time and again I entreated the high-priest to hasten my initiation into the mysteries of the sacred night. But he, being a grave man, remarkable for his close observance of the strictest religious discipline, restrained my insistence gently and kindly, as parents will restrain their children's unripe urges, calming my natural eagerness with a comforting expectation of good to come. He told me the proper day for a person's initiation is always marked by a sign from the Goddess, that the officiating priest was likewise indicated by her, and even the costs of the ceremony to be defrayed. He advised me to suffer the delay with reverence and patience, since over-eagerness and disobedience were faults to be guarded against assiduously, and neither to hang back when called nor advance myself when not. None of his order had been so wrong-minded, so determined on their own destruction, as to dare to take office rashly or sacrilegiously, and without the Goddess' direct command, and thereby to commit a deadly sin. The gates of the underworld and the guardianship of life are both in her hands, he said, and the rites of initiation are akin to a willing death and salvation through her grace. Indeed, those whose term of life was drawing to its close, who already stood on the last threshold of light, if the sect's unspoken mysteries could be safely entrusted to them, were often summoned by the power of the Goddess to be in a manner reborn through her grace and set again on a path of renewed life. I too, he suggested, should bow likewise to heavens' decree, even though I had been destined for and called long since to the blessed service of the Goddess by clear and evident signs of that great deity's favour. And I should, as the priests did, abstain from unholy and forbidden foods, so as to enter more deeply into the secret mysteries of the purest of faiths. 11.21. This done, I retired to the service of the goddess in hope of greater benefits. I considered that I had received a sign and token whereby my courage increased more and more each day to take up the orders and sacraments of the temple. Thus I often communed with the priest, desiring him greatly to give me the degree of the religion. But he, a man of gravity and well-renowned in the order of priesthood, deferred my desire from day to day. He comforted me and gave me better hope, just like as parents who commonly bridle the desires of their children when they attempt or endeavor any unprofitable thing. He said that the day when any one would be admitted into their order is appointed by the goddess. He said that the priest who would minister the sacrifice is chosen by her providence, and the necessary charges of the ceremonies is allotted by her command. Regarding all these things he urged me to attend with marvelous patience, and he told me that I should beware either of too much haste or too great slackness. He said that there was like danger if, being called, I should delay or, not being called. I should be hasty. Moreover he said that there were none in his company either of so desperate a mind or who were so rash and hardy that they would attempt anything without the command of the goddess. If anyone were to do so, he should commit a deadly offence, considering how it was in the power of the goddess to condemn and save all persons. And if anyone should be at the point of death and on the path to damnation, so that he might be capable of receiving the secrets of the goddess, it was in her power by divine providence to reduce him to the path of health, as though by a certain kind of regeneration. Finally he said that I must attend the celestial precept, although it was evident and plain that the goddess had already vouchsafed to call and appoint me to her ministry. He urged me to refrain from profane and unlawful foods just like those priests who had already been received. This was so that I might come more apt and clean to the knowledge of the secrets of religion. 11.22. Thus spoke the high-priest, and, patient in my obedience, I performed my tasks each day at celebrations of the holy rites, zealously, diligently, in calm tranquility and laudable silence. Nor did the Great Goddess's saving goodness fail me, nor did she torment me with long delay. One dark night, in commands as clear as day, she proclaimed that the hoped-for time had arrived, when she would grant me my dearest wish. She told me what resources must be found for the ceremony, and decreed that her high-priest, Mithras, who she explained was linked to me celestially by a certain conjunction of the planets, would himself perform the rite. These and other kind decrees of the Great Goddess raised my spirits, and before the light of day shone I shook off sleep and hastening to the high-priest's rooms I met and greeted him at the entrance. I was set on demanding my initiation more vigorously than ever, believing it was now my due, but the instant he saw me he pre-empted my plea, saying: 'Ah, Lucius, how blessed, how fortunate you are, that the august deity so strongly favours you in her benevolence. Why do you linger here in idleness when the day has come which you've longed and prayed for endlessly, when at the divine command of the many-titled Goddess these very hands of mine will introduce you to the most sacred mysteries of her religion.' Then that most generous of men took my arm and led me to the doors of the vast temple, and when he had opened them according to the ritual prescribed, and then performed the morning sacrifice, he brought from the inner sanctuary various books written in characters strange to me. Some shaped like creatures represented compressed expressions of profound concepts, in others the tops and tails of letters were knotted, coiled, interwoven like vine-tendrils to hide their meaning from profane and ignorant eyes. From these books he read aloud for me the details of what was needed for my initiation. 11.22. I obeyed these words and, attentive with meek and laudable silence, I daily served at the temple. In the end the wholesome gentleness of the goddess did not deceive me, for in the night she appeared to me in a vision. She showed me that the day had come which I had wished for so long. She told me what provision and charges I should attend to, and how she had appointed her principal priest Mithras to be minister with me in my sacrifices.When I heard these divine commands I greatly rejoiced. I arose before dawn to speak with the great priest, whom I happened to see coming out of his chamber. Then I saluted him and thought that I should ask for his counsel with a bold courage. But as soon as he perceived me, he began first to say: “O Lucius, now I know well that you are most happy and blessed, whom the divine goddess accepts with such mercy. Why do you delay? Behold, it is the day which you desired, when you shall receive at my hands the order of religion and know the most pure secrets of the gods.” Whereupon the old man took me by the hand and led me to the gate of the great temple. Immediately upon entering he made a solemn celebration and, after morning sacrifice had ended, he brought books out of the secret place of the temple. These were partly written in unknown characters, and partly painted with figures of beasts declaring briefly every sentence. The heads and tails of some were turned in the shape of a wheel and were strange and impossible for profane people to read. There he interpreted to me such things as were necessary for the use and preparation of my order. 11.23. At once I set about acquiring those things myself or procuring them zealously through friends, while sparing no expense. Then the high-priest escorted by a band of devotees led me to the nearest baths, saying the occasion required it. When I had bathed according to the custom, he asked favour of the gods, and purified me by a ritual cleansing, sprinkling me with water. Then in the early afternoon he led me to the shrine again, and placed me at the Goddess' feet. He gave me certain orders too sacred for open utterance then, with all the company as witnesses, commanded me to curb my desire for food for the ten days following, to eat of no creature, and drink no wine. I duly observed all this with reverence and restraint, and now came the evening destined for my appearance before the Goddess. The sun was setting, bringing twilight on, when suddenly a crowd flowed towards me, to honour me with sundry gifts, in accord with the ancient and sacred rite. All the uninitiated were ordered to depart, I was dressed in a new-made robe of linen and the high-priest, taking me by the arm, led me into the sanctuary's innermost recess. And now, diligent reader, you are no doubt keen to know what was said next, and what was done. I'd tell you, if to tell you, were allowed; if you were allowed to hear then you might know, but ears and tongue would sin equally, the latter for its profane indiscretion, the former for their unbridled curiosity. Oh, I shall speak, since your desire to hear may be a matter of deep religious longing, and I would not torment you with further anguish, but I shall speak only of what can be revealed to the minds of the uninitiated without need for subsequent atonement, things which though you have heard them, you may well not understand. So listen, and believe in what is true. I reached the very gates of death and, treading Proserpine's threshold, yet passed through all the elements and returned. I have seen the sun at midnight shining brightly. I have entered the presence of the gods below and the presence of the gods above, and I have paid due reverence before them. 11.23. This done, I gave charge to certain of my companions to buy liberally whatever was necessary and appropriate. Then the priest brought me to the baths nearby, accompanied with all the religious sort. He, demanding pardon of the goddess, washed me and purified my body according to custom. After this, when no one approached, he brought me back again to the temple and presented me before the face of the goddess. He told me of certain secret things that it was unlawful to utter, and he commanded me, and generally all the rest, to fast for the space of ten continual days. I was not allowed to eat any beast or drink any wine. These strictures I observed with marvelous continence. Then behold, the day approached when the sacrifice was to be made. And when night came there arrived on every coast a great multitude of priests who, according to their order, offered me many presents and gifts. Then all the laity and profane people were commanded to depart. When they had put on my back a linen robe, they brought me to the most secret and sacred place of all the temple. You will perhaps ask (o studious reader) what was said and done there. Verily I would tell you if it were lawful for me to tell. You would know if it were appropriate for you to hear. But both your ears and my tongue shall incur similar punishment for rash curiosity. However, I will content your mind for this present time, since it is perhaps somewhat religious and given to devotion. Listen therefore and believe it to be true. You shall understand that I approached near to Hell, and even to the gates of Proserpina. After I was brought through all the elements, I returned to my proper place. About midnight I saw the sun shine, and I saw likewise the celestial and infernal gods. Before them I presented myself and worshipped them. Behold, now have I told you something which, although you have heard it, it is necessary for you to conceal. This much have I declared without offence for the understanding of the profane. 11.24. The initiate of IsisWhen dawn came and the ceremony was complete, I emerged wearing twelve robes as a sign of consecration, sacred dress indeed though nothing stops me from speaking of it, since a host of people were there and saw me. As instructed, I stood on a wooden dais placed at the centre of the holy shrine, before the statue of the Goddess, conspicuous in my fine elaborately embroidered linen. The precious outer cloak hung from shoulder to ankle, so that I was wrapped around with creatures worked in various colours: here Indian serpents, there Hyperborean gryphons, winged lions of that distant region of the world. The priests call this garment the Olympian Stole. I held a burning torch in my right hand, and my head was gracefully garlanded with a wreath of gleaming palm leaves projecting outwards like rays of light. Adorned thus in the likeness of the Sun, and standing there like a statue, the curtains suddenly being opened, I was exposed to the gaze of the crowd who strayed around me. That day my initiation into the mysteries was marked, as a festive occasion, by a splendid feast among a convivial gathering. On the next day, the third, a similar ritual ceremony was performed, with a sacred breakfast bringing an official end to the proceedings. I stayed at the temple a few days longer, enjoying the ineffable pleasure of gazing on the Goddess's sacred image, bound to her by an act of beneficence I could never repay. But finally, as instructed by her, for it was only with immense difficulty that I could sever the ties born of my fervent longing for her, I paid my debts of gratitude at last, in accordance with my small means if not in full, and began to prepare for my journey home. I ended my stay by prostrating myself before her, washing the Goddess' feet with my welling tears, as I prayed to her, gulping my words, my voice broken by repeated sobbing: 11.24. When morning came, and that the solemnities were finished, I came forth sanctified with twelve robes and in a religious habit. I am not forbidden to speak of this since many persons saw me at that time. There I was commanded to stand upon a seat of wood which stood in the middle of the temple before the image of the goddess. My vestment was of fine linen, covered and embroidered with flowers. I had a precious cloak upon my shoulders hung down to the ground. On it were depicted beasts wrought of diverse colors: Indian dragons and Hyperborean griffins which the other world engenders in the form of birds. The priests commonly call such a habit a celestial robe. In my right hand I carried a lit torch. There was a garland of flowers upon my head with palm leaves sprouting out on every side. I was adorned like un the sun and made in fashion of an image such that all the people came up to behold me. Then they began to solemnize the feast of the nativity and the new procession, with sumptuous banquets and delicacies. The third day was likewise celebrated with like ceremonies with a religious dinner, and with all the consummation of the order. After I had stayed there a good space, I conceived a marvelous pleasure and consolation in beholding the image of the goddess. She at length urged me to depart homeward. I rendered my thanks which, although not sufficient, yet they were according to my power. However, I could not be persuaded to depart before I had fallen prostrate before the face of the goddess and wiped her steps with my face. Then I began greatly to weep and sigh (so uch so that my words were interrupted) and, as though devouring my prayer, I began to speak in this way: 11.27. yet while I was debating in my own mind, and searching my conscience with the help of the priests, I suddenly realised that I had not yet been introduced to the mysteries of invincible Osiris, the great god who is the mighty father of the gods. Though his rites of initiation were still quite distinct, his godhead and worship were linked, even joined, to that of Isis. I should thus have realised that I was being sought after as a servant of his great divinity as well. The issue was not long in doubt, for the following night I had a vision in which an initiate dressed in white linen brought ivy-wreaths and thyrsi, with things that must be nameless, and placed these various objects on my household altar then, seated in my chair, ordered me to arrange a sacred feast. In order evidently to help me know him again by a sure sign of identity, his left ankle was slightly twisted, and he walked with a hesitant limp. My cloud of doubt was lifted by this clear manifestation of the god's own wishes, and after the morning prayers for the Goddess were complete, I at once began to ask about me, with utmost zeal, as to whether any there exactly resembled him of my dream. Confirmation came immediately, when I caught sight of one of the pastophori who not only limped like the man in my vision, but also was alike in his dress and appearance. I later learned he was called Asinius Marcellus, a name not inappropriate to my own transformation. Without pausing for an instant I approached him, and indeed he was not surprised by our ensuing conversation since he himself had been ordered in a similar manner to preside over my initiation. In his dream, the previous night, he had been arranging garlands for Osiris when he heard from the great god's own oracular mouth, which speaks each man's fate, that a man of Madauros was being sent to him, that the man was poor but the priest must perform his rites of initiation, since by the god's aid, the man would win fame by his studies and the priest himself a fine recompense. 11.27. But it happened that, while I reasoned with myself and while I examined the issue with the priests, there came a new and marvelous thought in my mind. I realized that I was only consecrated to the goddess Isis, but not sacred to the religion of great Osiris, the sovereign father of all the goddesses. Between them, although there was a religious unity and concord, yet there was a great difference of order and ceremony. And because it was necessary that I should likewise be a devotee of Osiris, there was no long delay. For the night after there appeared to me one of that order, covered with linen robes. He held in his hands spears wrapped in ivy and other things not appropriate to declare. Then he left these things in my chamber and, sitting in my seat, recited to me such things as were necessary for the sumptuous banquet for my initiation. And so that I might know him again, he showed me how the ankle of his left foot was somewhat maimed, which gave him a slight limp.Afterwards I manifestly knew the will of the god Osiris. When matins ended, I went from one priest to another to find the one who had the halting mark on his foot, according to my vision. At length I found it true. I perceived one of the company of the priests who had not only the token of his foot, but the stature and habit of his body, resembling in every point the man who appeared in the nigh. He was called Asinius Marcellus, a name appropriate to my transformation. By and by I went to him and he knew well enough all the matter. He had been admonished by a similar precept in the night. For the night before, as he dressed the flowers and garlands about the head of the god Osiris, he understood from the mouth of the image (which told the predestinations of all men) how the god had sent him a poor man of Madauros. To this man the priest was supposed to minister his sacraments so that he could receive a reward by divine providence, and the other glory for his virtuous studies. 11.28. And of OsirisThough pledged to initiation, the meagreness of my funds delayed the ceremony, much to my disappointment. The cost of my voyage had consumed my modest legacy, and Rome proved much more expensive than the provinces. Hindered by dire poverty, I felt tormented, like a sacrificial victim caught, as the proverb says, 'between the altar-stone and the knife.' Yet the god's insistence weighed on me, and after suffering his troublesome and frequent promptings which ended in a peremptory command, I sold the shirt from my back and scraped together the sum required. 'Surely,' the god said, when issuing his final order, 'you'd not hesitate to pawn your rags to fund your idle pleasures, so why now, on the brink of a vital act, do you brood on a state of poverty which will bring not a single regret?' I made my preparations, again went without meat for a ten day period, and shaved my head, after which I was initiated into the nocturnal mysteries of the supreme god, and confidently enacted the holy rites of his worship too. Thus I was consoled for my enforced stay in Rome, and since I practised law, pleading in Latin not Greek, my small funds were favourably increased by the warming breath of Success. 11.28. Thus I was initiated into the religion, but my desire was delayed by reason of my poverty. I had spent a great part of my goods in travel and peregrination, but most of all the cost of living in the city of Rome had dwindled my resources. In the end, being often stirred forward with great trouble of mind, I was forced to sell my robe for a little money which was nevertheless sufficient for all my affairs. Then the priest spoke to me saying, “How is it that for a little pleasure you are not afraid to sell your vestments, yet when you enter into such great ceremonies you fear to fall into poverty? Prepare yourself and abstain from all animal meats, beasts and fish.” In the meantime I frequented the sacrifices of Serapis, which were done in the night. This gave me great comfort to my peregrination, and ministered to me more plentiful living since I gained some money by pleading in the courts in the Latin language.
13. Nag Hammadi, The Gospel of Thomas, 27, 26 (3rd cent. CE - 3rd cent. CE)  Tagged with subjects: •nan Found in books: Damm, Religions and Education in Antiquity (2018) 22, 23
26. Jesus said, "You see the sliver in your friend's eye, but you don't see the timber in your own eye. When you take the timber out of your own eye, then you will see well enough to remove the sliver from your friend's eye."
15. Varro, Curio, 6.16  Tagged with subjects: •religion, and education Found in books: Mackey, Belief and Cult: Rethinking Roman Religion (2022) 137