Manipulating Theophany

Download or read book Manipulating Theophany written by Vladimir Ivanovici and published by Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG. This book was released on 2016-07-25 with total page 272 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Using light as fil rouge reuniting theology and ritual with the architecture, decoration, and iconography of cultic spaces, the present study argues that the mise-en-scène of fifth-century baptism and sixth-century episcopal liturgy was meant to reproduce the luminous atmosphere of heaven. Analysing the material culture of the two sacraments against common ritual expectations and Christian theology, we evince the manner in which the luminous effect was reached through a combination of constructive techniques and perceptual manipulation. One nocturnal and one diurnal, the two ceremonials represented different scenarios, testifying to the capacity of church builders and willingness of Late Antique bishops to stage the ritual experience in order to offer God to the senses.