High Priest Research Articles

Огюст Конт и режим Второй империи

The article analyzes the doctrine of the late Comte in his attitude to the Bona­partist regime. Although Comte experienced a short-term fascination with Napoleon’s personality in his youth, from the Restoration period he spoke of the empire in a negative way. At the same time, the coming to power of Louis Bonaparte seemed to him a favorable omen for the fate of positivism. Through public lectures on the philosophy of human history allowed by the new regime, he set the task of influencing public opinion. The Bonapartist coup met the full approval from the founder of positivism, and he did not renounce this kind of as­sessment even later. The transformation of republican power seemed inevitable to him: from parliamentarism to dictatorship. In this regard the dictatorship was conceived as a transitional stage to a true positivist regime. The idea of centra­lizing power impressed Comte, so he interpreted the coup as a logical conse­quence of the entire previous history of France. This was more than an episode. But then the philosopher became disappointed with Bonapartist politics. The presi­dent proclaimed an empire, which, in the opinion of the philosopher, acted only as a metamorphosis of an obsolete monarchical principle. But Comte did not refuse to adhere to the “republican dictatorship”, he spoke of the need for a posi­tivist triumvirate to come to power, personally outlined by him. He assigned himself the role of a spiritual mentor of secular power, the high priest of the new, scientific religion of Mankind. Both the philosopher and the emperor saw their mission as helping to end the era of revolutions. But the ways of its implementa­tion were thought so differently that there was no way to synchronize the two political positions

Aesthetic elements in Tagbayiyi ritual performance of the Fiasidi tradition in the Klikor traditional area of Ghana

The chiefs and people of the Klikor Traditional Area in the Volta Region of Ghana celebrate the Fiasidi tradition, an annual religious and cultural festival. A yearly ritual performance known as Tagbayiyi (pilgrimage to the sacred grove) is a part of the Fiasidi tradition. Despite the abundance of research relative to the human and cultural rights aspects of the Fiasidi tradition, there is a glaring lack of research on the aesthetic elements reflected in the Tagbayiyi ritual performance. The study investigated the aesthetic aspects of the Tagbayiyi ritual by highlighting its visual and performing arts to gain a deeper understanding of the Anlo-Ewe cultural identity. The study employed a qualitative ethnographic design to interact and access the viewpoints of the participants. A total of fifteen (15) participants, comprising high priests, tradition keepers, ritual functionaries, and supplicants in the Klikor Traditional Area were sampled using a homogenous type of the purposive sampling approach. The study found that the Tagbayiyi exhibits aesthetic elements such as indigenous costume regalia, sacred stools, local beads, priestly emblems, rhythmic and graceful musical dances among others, which symbolically represent the sociocultural identity of the Klikor people. The study, therefore, recommends that the leadership of Klikor (high priests, council of elders & ritual functionaries) should liaise with the Ghana Museums and Monuments Board, Ghana Tourism Authority, National Commission on Culture, and other cultural institutions to preserve and promote the rich aesthetic elements showcased during Tagbayiyi rite for the benefit of the current and future generations of Klikor.

A Religio-Cultural Inquiry into the Spiritual Journey of a Fiasidi through Initiation Rites at the Trokosi Shrines in Klikor, Ghana

Initiation rites play a pivotal role in shaping cultural identity, reinforcing societal norms, and facilitating the transmission of cultural values from one generation to the next. Using a qualitative approach which was supported by interpretive philosophy, the study explored the initiation rites of a Fiasidi which involves a series of rituals, ceremonies, and teachings that are designed to prepare young girls or women for their ritual responsibilities in serving Torgbui Adzima shrines in Klikor, Ghana. A case study was used in the research. Observations, document analysis, semi-structured interviews, and audiovisual materials were used to gather data. The opinions and experiences of fifteen (15) participants, including high priests, priestesses, ritual functionaries, petitioners, and Fiasidiwo (initiates), were sampled using the purposive sampling approach. Thematic analysis was used to do an inductive study of the data. The study revealed that three main rituals feature in the initiation rites of a Fiasidi in Klikor. These are Godedegome (puberty rite), Gatete (Fiasidi’s homecoming), and Flaxoxo (purification rite). The study concluded that the Troxovi shrines are effective in ensuring social order and discipline and promoting African indigenous knowledge and spirituality among the Anlo-Ewe communities. It recommended that other ritual performances such as performing libation, wailing wall prayers, and traditional dance forms be explored by other researchers. The study has contributed to providing insights into cultural diversity, and spiritual identity and illuminating the significance of ritual practices in various fields including social anthropology, African aesthetics, and African traditional religion. Keywords: Initiation Rites, Fiasidi Tradition, Troxovi Shrines, Klikor, Deities

The Politics of Ear Mutilation: Cropping an Enslaved Person in the Gospel Passion Narratives

This article challenges a slaveholder perspective of the treatment of the high priest’s enslaved agent in the canonical gospels. It seeks to demonstrate how ancient traditions and practices of ear cropping and facial mutilation, especially of enslaved folks, give insight into the significance of the enslaved agent’s treatment in the gospels. Far from being a mere plot device, the enslaved person who is maimed is a site of political knowledge that has simultaneous implications for our understanding of the enslaved agent themselves, the mutilating disciple, and Jesus. While the vast majority of interpreters of the passage view the maiming of Malchus’s ear as unimportant, a close analysis of contexts where ears are mutilated, maimed, and cropped provides a useful framework for rereading the episode in each of the gospels. After analyzing the contexts of ear cropping, from ancient Southwest Asia to second-century literature, I re-read each version of the episode from a narrative-critical point of view. In light of ancient accounts of cropping and mutilation, I find that the mutilating disciple’s behavior in the gospels was not heroic, that the enslaved person retains no agency, and that Jesus is complicit in the disciple’s actions against the high-priest’s agent.

Gladiators and amphitheatre spectacles in the greek cities of the Pontus Euxinus

Abstract tradus Our study proposes to discuss several aspects related to the gladiators attested in the Greek cities of the Pontus Euxinus (Chersones, Histria, Tomis, Callatis, Dionysopolis, Odessos, Byzantion, Sinope, Amisos), such as the names, social status and mentality of these amphitheatre fighters. Our analysis also focuses on the equipment and weapons of the gladiators, their fighting techniques and the various aspects of the organisation of gladiatorial combat. Our research is based on the study of epigraphic and archaeological documents (bas-reliefs). Inscriptions and reliefs attest several types of gladiators, such as retiarius, secutor, scissor, provocator and bestiarius. The names of the gladiators reflect their winning qualities and their physical or moral qualities. Most gladiators were slaves or free men. Documents from Tomis from the 2nd-3rd centuries AD confirm that gladiatorial fights and beast hunts in the amphitheatre are closely linked to the imperial cult. At Tomis, Odessos, Sinope and Amisos, the organisers of these spectacles were at the same time pontarchs and high priests of the imperial cult. Gladiator fights took place in amphitheatres (at Tomis) and other specially designed venues such as theatres (at Odessos). Nemesis and Ares are the patron deities of gladiators.

Entropy and the Limits to Growth.

In its business-as-usual scenario, the 1972 Club-of-Rome report-The Limits to Growth-describes the collapse of the world economy around the year 2030, either because of the scarcity of natural resources or because of pollution. Mainstream economists, the high priests of secular societies, condemned it fiercely. Their gospel of perpetual economic growth, during which technological progress would solve all problems, promises a bright future for all mankind. On the other hand, engineers, natural scientists, and mathematicians realized that the breakdown scenario is due to the inclusion of the First and the Second Law of Thermodynamics in the Club-of-Rome's world model. According to these laws, nothing happens in the world without energy conversion and entropy production. In 1865, Rudolph Clausius, the discoverer of entropy, published the laws as the constitution of the universe. Entropy is the physical measure of disorder. Without a proper understanding of energy and entropy in the economy, all efforts to achieve sustainability will fail.

Papyrus PM 49.11.1, Dating the Great Tomb Robberies, and the Chronology of the Late 20th Dynasty

Summary The Great Tomb Robbery papyri are a major source of information on the end of the 20th Dynasty. Questioned in year 1 of the Renaissance thieves mention the taking of Medinet Habu by foreign troops, an attack of Hardai in Middle Egypt by the Viceroy of Kush Panehsi, and a temporary destitution of the High Priest of Amun (HPA), that are unfortunately not dated. The way forward to resolve this uncertainty is to date the thefts themselves since they were contemporaneous. For this we systematically reviewed what we know of the prosopography of the people involved in the thefts and their investigation. The result shows that tombs and temples robberies mostly occurred between the end of the reign of Ramesses IX and the early years of Ramesses XI. In addition, P. PM 49.11.1 mentions an otherwise unattested HPA Nesmut. The consequences of these results on the history of this period are discussed.

Makna Ketaatan bagi Para Calon Imam Diosesan dalam Terang Injil Yohanes 8: 32-33

The calling to be the ministers of Word and Sacrament is considered God’grace granted upon His people of God who are faithful and willing follow His path. This sacred calling of priesthood undergoes in a long-tiring process started from basic to higher formation (read education) when the candidates take their philosophical and theological studies, and finally they are ordained priests for the services of God’s people. The Interdiocesan Seminary of Saint Peter, Ritapiret in Flore, Indonesia is an educational body for the candidates of the local priests under the local Church of Maumee diocese, where in the candidates grow and mature in many aspects, including intelectual, spiritual, missionary and human characteristics which are centered in the loving service characteristics that have been lived out by the High Priest, Jesus the Lord. ‘The meaning of obedience for the the Diocese priestly candidates in the light of John 8: 32-33’ aims at searching and tracing the divine values treasured in the Gospel of John 8: 32-33, on which the writer will base the whole juxtaposition on the matter of the spirit of obedience which are comprehended and lived out by the Interdiocesan seminarians – the candidates of the local Church priests.

Perpetual Fires in the Jerusalem Temple through a Mediterranean Perspective

Abstract The fires of the Jerusalem temple altar were said to be perpetual. Various writers from the fourth century BCE to the third century CE added explanations and perspectives to this practice: the argument that the fire came from heaven, that it continued even during the destruction of the temple, or that it remained lit only when the high priest was righteous. Though these texts are well known, they were never examined in a comparative context: how special were these practices and discourses in their Mediterranean and Persian contexts? Maintaining a perpetual fire on the altar or lamps was a known practice in Mediterranean sanctuaries. The discourses surrounding these fires, developed especially by Greek and Roman writers of the first century BCE and the first century CE, are in many ways similar to those in the Jewish texts. I will consider in detail the differences and similarities and their significance.

Alexander the Macedonian's Image in the Jewish Temple: A Medievaval Tale of Jewish–Non-Jewish Encounter

Abstract: Narratives about Alexander the Macedonian's life were extremely popular throughout the Middle Ages all over Europe and beyond. Crossing cultural boundaries, they were also adopted and adapted for a Jewish readership. In the latter context, the episode about the king's visit to Jerusalem served as a topos of interreligious encounter between the Jews and their non-Jewish rulers. It was first told by Flavius Josephus in the first century as a tale that sets idolatry in contrast with monotheism. Among other episodes, the text reports a dramatic encounter with the Jewish high priest. In medieval versions, Alexander suggests that the high priest erect a golden statue of himself in the sanctuary to honor God. The paper offers an in-depth analysis of this latter motif in different versions of the narrative against the background of medieval Jewish-Christian relations. Abstract: Narratives about Alexander the Macedonian's life were extremely popular throughout the Middle Ages all over Europe and beyond. Crossing cultural boundaries, they were also adopted and adapted for a Jewish readership. In the latter context, the episode about the king's visit to Jerusalem served as a topos of interreligious encounter between the Jews and their non-Jewish rulers. It was first told by Flavius Josephus in the first century as a tale that sets idolatry in contrast with monotheism. Among other episodes, the text reports a dramatic encounter with the Jewish high priest. In medieval versions Alexander suggests that the high priest erect a golden statue of himself in the sanctuary to honor God. The paper offers an in-depth analysis of this latter motif in different versions of the narrative against the background of medieval Jewish-Christian relations.

The Tomb and treasury of Hülegü Khan

The Il-Khan ruler Hülegü (1215–1265 CE) was a grandson of Genghis Khan (the founder of the Mongol Empire), a son of Tolui, and a brother of both Möngke Khan and Kublai Khan. He died on February 8, 1265, CE, at an estimated age of 48 years. Unlike our knowledge about the death and burial of Genghis Khan (d. 1227 CE), which is recorded in one of the oldest of the autochthonous chronicles, The Secret History of the Mongols, with no reference to time or place, the approximate location of Hülegü’s final resting place is referenced in several documents. Contemporary Persian resources unanimously suggest that the treasury and royal tomb of Hülegü Khan lie somewhere in Lake Urmia on Shahi Island (Jazīreh-ye-Shāhī), Northwest Iran. Rashīd al-Dīn posited that the Hülegü’s treasury is filled with pillow-size gold ingots and treasures gathered from across the Ilkhanid Empire. The exact location and discovery of this hidden treasure and the burial place of Hülegü remain one of the most persistent unsolved mysteries and none of the later archaeological studies challenged this attribution. This paper will discuss the idea that Shahi Island contains the fabled tomb of the legendary ruler of Ilkhanid Iran (1256–1335 CE) Hülegü, his sons Abaqa Khan (1234–1282 CE), as well as Mongol queens, high priests, and other elites. The findings of this research are important because they could launch a new era for Mongol studies and the archaeology of hidden treasures.

“Leah’s Forbidden Bedchamber”. Sacred Scripture in the Bull of Canonization “Mira circa nos”

An important document for the history and spirituality of the Franciscan Order is the Canonization Bull of St. Francis of Assisi, issued by Pope Gregory IX in 1228. It depicts the figure of Saint Poverello against the background of numerous biblical figures and images. This paper is a commentary on the text of the Bull, in particular on its biblical feature. Linguistic remarks on the translation are followed by an evaluation of available sources of the text and a statistic of biblical references present in the papal document. The central part of the paper is the presentation of biblical characters, both of the New and Old Testaments, which, according to the intention of the author of the bull, are types referring to the figure of St. Francis: Apostle Paul, Abraham, Jacob, Jephthah, Samson and Shamgar, Noah, Gideon, Moses, David, Job and Simon the High Priest. In this way, St. Francis of Assisi appears as one of the special figures in the history of salvation.

Demonstratio et veritas. Priestly oracles in Pseudo-Philo’s Liber Antiquitatum Biblicarum

Although shrouded in mystery, the oracles of the high priest (Urim and Thummim) have often been the subject of curious interest in the literature of the Second Temple, as well as in the Liber Antiquitatum Biblicarum (L.A.B.). The present research studies the mentions of this device in Pseudo-Philo’s narrative to shed new light on its configuration, role, and function. Despite the attempts made by recent scholarship to distinguish and separate them from the priestly attire, the most plausible hypothesis is to consider Pseudo-Philo’s understanding of Urim and Thummim as light-giving stones, closely related to the ephod, used by the high priest especially when he has to exercise judgment. Thus, such objects gain importance in reconstructing the peculiar significance of priesthood in L.A.B. In this framework, the strange narrative of L.A.B. 25–26 about the idolatrous stones replaced by new luminous ones becomes more intelligible.

Directive Speech Act Politeness in a Pediksaan Ritual: A Sociopragmatic Study

This study focused on the concern about the decrease in the use of language politeness among young people both in everyday communication and sacred Hindu rituals such as in a pediksaan ritual, in which not only the place is made sacred but also things related to the inauguration of a sulinggih (high priest) that is, performed in a Geria, home of a brahmana, who is still holding high the high cultural norms. This study analyzed the type of directive speech act politeness, the forms of language politeness, and the application of directive speech act politeness in the pediksaan ritual. The stages of a descriptive qualitative method were employed to achieve those objectives. The population of the study was the people involved in the activity of a pediksaan ritual. Since this event is rare, the population was directly used as the study's sample. The data were collected by observing the pediksaan ritual using a recording technique. The data collected were analyzed with a qualitative descriptive method. The study shows that the types of directive speech act politeness in this study are differentiated into linguistic politeness and pragmatic politeness; the forms of directive speech act politeness consist of (a) agreement maxim of suggesting; (b) sympathizing maxim of order and the politeness principles that consist of (a) the politeness principle that applies tact maxim; (b) the politeness principle that applies approbation maxim; and (c) the politeness maxim that applies sympathy maxim.

The Death of James the Just Revisited

Abstract: Based on the testimony of Josephus ( Jewish Antiquities 20.197–203), most scholars place the death of James, the brother of Jesus in 62 c.e. This article breaks with this consensus, arguing that the reference to Jesus "called Christ" in Jewish Antiquities 20.200 is a later Christian interpolation. If it can be shown that the Josephan account was not originally about James, the early Christian leader, then James's death cannot be linked to the high priesthood of Ananus in 62 c.e. It also means that if any of the historical circumstances surrounding James's death can be recovered, they must be sought in the Christian narratival accounts of early antiquity. After reviewing the complex source-critical relations between the James tradition in Hegesippus, Clement of Alexandria, the Second Apocalypse of James , and the Pseudo-Clementine Recognitions , and establishing the earliest independent form of the tradition, I argue that the narrative logic of the martyrdom account depends on at least two minimal historical likelihoods: 1) that James was in fact killed; and 2) that his death occurred shortly before the fall of Jerusalem in 70 c.e.

A Cultivar Attribute Database Derived from Ira J. Condit (1955): “Fig Varieties: A Monograph”

During California’s broad experiment with fig cultivation, Ira J. Condit became known as the “High Priest of the Fig.” Herein is a large set of fig attributes deemed agriculturally important by Ira J. Condit in his 1955 monograph. The attributes are divided into five categories and distributed across 717 cultivars. All data and software source code have been made available publicly on Figshare.

Das Amt des Jerusalemer Hohepriesters im Licht biblischer und außerbiblischer Quellen der hellenistischen Zeit

Abstract This article focuses on the Hellenistic period as a transformative phase in the development of the Jerusalem high priestly office from a merely cultic into a political leadership office and thus as a formative phase for the establishment of hierocratic ideals and structures in emerging Judaism. An overview of the literary history of Zech 3:1–9 and Zech 6:9–14 is the starting point. The ideas of the high priest’s office contained in these passages are then historically contextualised. This is done, firstly, by comparing texts from the Book of Sirach, which show close parallels to Zech 3 and Zech 6, especially Sir 50. Additionally, apocryphal and extra-biblical sources are consulted which shed light on the political situation of the Jerusalem high priestly office around the time the texts were composed, at the beginning of the Seleucid period: namely the Tobiad romance (Ant. 12:158–236) and 2 Macc 3.

A Girardian Genre: The Scapegoat Mechanism in Detective Fiction

In this essay I offer an alternative to the rationalist-scientific distillation of detective fiction by using René Girard’s ideas on the scapegoat mechanism. I explain how the genre is teleologically oriented towards the identification and expulsion of the scapegoat, whom the community believes to be truly guilty and whose removal is regarded as necessary to the restoration of communal peace. The detective here functions as a modern high priest who uses reason and science not as an end in itself but as a means to select a fitting scapegoat, one whose guilt is empirically demonstrable. Next, I use Girard’s remarks on society’s growing sensitivity to various forms of victimization to explain detective fiction’s movement towards more liberal views on crime. The genre has often been criticized for its conservative assumption that crime is rooted in personal moral agency; now, there is a preponderance of detective stories that portray crime as a necessary reaction to unjust social systems, or as mitigated by a psychological condition. In illustrating this section, I present a close reading of F. H. Batacan’s Smaller and Smaller Circles, a Philippine detective novel that features a serial killer who was also a victim of social injustice. In conclusion, I look at how the readers of the genre vicariously enact the scapegoat mechanism. I argue that while it is commendable for society to move towards a more nuanced and compassionate view of criminality, given the ever-present urge to engage in scapegoating in the real world, it is crucial to retain a means by which we could sublimate this urge: through ritual that is the reading of detective fiction.

Alterations in the Inscriptions of TT 84 on behalf of the Secondary Tomb Owner, Mery

Theban tomb no. 84 (TT 84) was originally built for Iamunedjeh, first royal herald under the reign of Thutmose III, but already one generation later, it was appropriated by Mery, high priest of Amun under Amenhotep II and owner of TT 95. The change in the identity of the tomb owner is reflected in the inscriptions of TT 84: the name and titles of Iamunedjeh and his wife were often replaced by those of Mery and his mother. The walls and ceilings of the tomb reveal a complex picture with several stages and patterns of intervention. This paper gives an overview of the different scenarios and investigates the rationale behind their distribution in the given spatial context. With the help of a detailed analysis of the available epigraphic data, an inventory of which is presented in the paper, the study also aims at bringing us closer to some of the intentions and priorities of the actors who—as either decision makers or executors—were involved in the process of adapting the textual program of the tomb to the identity of its new owner.

Analisis Fiqh Muamalah terhadap Penghasilan pada Aplikasi BuzzBreak

<p><em>The research aims to find out the mechanism for using the BuzzBreak application, and to analyze the process of earning income using the BuzzBreak application. The method used is descriptive qualitative and data sources were taken through library research. Where the research focuses on income (income) obtained by users of the BuzzBreak application. Based on the results of the study, the most probable Islamic contract is Ju’alah contract since there is an agreement from the application party to provide certain rewards to application users for achieving specified work results (natijah). This is also supported by the identification of the sale contract from the DSN fatwa No. 62 MUI/XII/2007 regarding the sale, as well as the opinion of the two high priests, namely the Syafi'i and Maliki schools of thought, who emphasize the point of selling at the point of uncertainty about the time it was made and about its success.</em></p>