Mother Of God Research Articles

Wizerunki świętych kobiet w wybranych utworach hagiograficznych dla dzieci i młodzieży po 1989 roku

The Mother of God – as the mother of Jesus and the embodiment of boundless love, goodness and fidelity – is the prototype for the presented models of holy women in contemporary hagiographical works for children becomes. These values constitute the core of all portraits of holy women, regardless of the accepted divisions and their different ways of achieving holiness. They can be found in brides and mystics, virgins and martyrs, teachers and educators, mothers and wives. And it is they who, besides sacrifice, mercy and the ability to look at God and listen to Him, determine the consistency of the portrait of a holy woman. Serving man meant serving God, going beyond one's own egoism, temporal hedonism, and materialism. The spirituality of future saints was shaped by the religious atmosphere of the family home, personal sensitivity and reading. These models were still united by the beauty, delicacy, frail health, serene disposition, and smile shown to people. Some can be treated as special signs, appearing in early childhood, which already then suggested their otherness as well as the gifts received, e.g. bilocation or the surrounding light and shine. The images of saints and the blessed in contemporary hagiographical works for the young reader are in line with the poetics, but they also force us to reflect on the awareness of goals, victory over weaknesses and the power of love.

Between cosmopolitanism and ethnic dissolution: Politics, religion and iconic reappropriation in the cult of the Mother of God of Bisila in Equatorial Guinea and Catalonia

ABSTRACT The cult to the Mother of God of Bisila constitutes one of the main events in Bubi’s sacred calendar. The current representation of this traditional feminine spirit, partially identified to the Virgin Mary, stems from the sculpture made by the Modest Gené in 1968, when Equatorial Guinea was still a Spanish colony. The creation of this image formed part of a strategy of evangelization through religious syncretism. Yet, the importance of Bisila is not only religious but mainly political and identity-related: historically, Bisila has symbolised the cultural resistance of Bubi people. Today, the cult of Bisila is undergoing a deep transformation. In Guinea, we witness a strong contrast between the areas in which the cult tends to become an interethnic ceremony and those in which it preserves its marked Bubi character. In Catalonia, Bisila’s followers have strategically adopted a religious narrative based on the ideas of cosmopolitanism and pan-africanism aimed at presenting their cult as an integrative celebration. Based on a multi-situated ethnographic fieldwork, and on an in-depth historical research, this article discusses the tensions between universalism and ethnic singularity that lie within this unexplored cult, through which some of the main conflicts of contemporary Bubi community can be grasped.

The mental basis of the historical memory of the Ukrainian people: the social and legal aspect

The social and legal of mental basis of the historical memory of the Ukrainian people is revealed. It is determined that the legal mentality is most often understood as a certain set of moods, features of thinking and justice, legal traditions and habits of a social subject, fundamental beliefs and vestiges, thinking about their whole legal existence, interaction with the environment. It provides for the storage and transmission from generation to generation of mental information, rules and regulations that guarantee historical reproducibility and self-identity; it has been manufactured for centuries and is durable and durable. It is found that legal mentality is also dynamic – it defines ways to respond to legal receptions and innovations, provides adaptation mechanisms, the ability to adapt to the changing conditions of material and spiritual being. It is proved that the legal mentality of Ukrainian society was formed back in the pre-Christian era – in the mythological representations of ancient Ukrainians God of Heaven Svarog passed to people a number of laws, among which are: to honor God; avoid wrongs and follow the truth; to honor your race; seek wisdom; to honor one another, to live in harmony. It is established that the agricultural and sedentary inherited way of life, which contributed to the affirmation of the female component – the most common regulatory archetypes and symbols in the Ukrainian legal culture are the images of Mother of God, Mother of Earth, Nenka-Ukraine. It is revealed that for the Ukrainian people there is also a normative-legal introvert which enhances the influence of such qualities as moderation, consistent persistence, balance, ability to change oneself and the world. It is traced that the Cossack period supplemented the legal mentality of Ukrainians with the features of democracy (which is a further embodiment of the eternal principle laid down in the tradition of Kievan Rus), freedom, equality and brotherhood. Thus, in the historical memory of Ukraine, the mental traditions of democracy, which were manifested not only in the institutes of the Cossack council, the eldership council, the election of most state bodies and positions, but also in the features of local self-government, were entrenched.

Liturgical wooden carved cross from the collection of the Russian Icon Museum

The paper considers a carved priestly cross of the XIX century from the representative collection of Ethiopian art of the Russian Icon Museum. This is one of the typical Ethiopian crosses with a characteristic rhomboid shape, with the image on the front side of the liturgical procession and the icon of the Mother of God, and ornamented on the back with a braided pattern with cross-shaped ornaments woven into it. The image of the dancing participants of the liturgical procession with drums and sistra represents a unique fusion of different traditions, the influence of the Old Testament tradition was manifested in the symbolic image of tabot.

Imagining Mary: A Psychoanalytic Perspective on Devotion to the Virgin Mother of God. By Daniel Rancour-Laferriere

Imagining Mary: A Psychoanalytic Perspective on Devotion to the Virgin Mother of God. By Daniel Rancour-Laferriere

The Management of Cow Shelters (Gaushalas) in India, Including the Attitudes of Shelter Managers to Cow Welfare.

Simple SummarySheltering of old, unproductive and abandoned cows in traditional cow shelters (gaushalas) is an ancient practice in India. Cows are venerated as mother goddesses by the Hindu majority population of the country and their slaughter is illegal in most states. Shelters are funded by the public, businesses, including corporate philanthropy, charitable societies, temple trusts and government. The manager of the shelter provides an interface between visitors, workers and cattle and is best able to understand the challenges of running shelters. The objective of this study was to collect and analyze information about the routine operations of the shelters and elicit managers’ attitudes towards cows and cow welfare. We visited 54 shelters, which admitted cattle all year, vaccinated them against endemic diseases and dewormed them. Limited biosecurity measures and erratic waste disposal raise concerns about public health. All the managers felt that the welfare of cows in their respective shelters was important and should be improved, but they were less certain that their knowledge of animal welfare was adequate. There was more recognition of local community support than government support and both were acknowledged to be more moral than financial support. Engagement and training of shelter managers as vital stakeholders in welfare improvement processes will enhance the sustainability of these traditional institutions.Gaushala management is a specialized profession requiring particular skills relating to the management of cow shelters or gaushalas, which are traditional and ancient Indian institutions that shelter old, unproductive and abandoned cows, The 1800 registered cow shelters in India have managers who are important stakeholders in the management of cows in these unique institutions. It is important to survey the routine management of these shelters and attitudes of the managers towards cow welfare to identify the constraints and welfare issues. We visited 54 shelters in six states of India for a face-to-face structured interview of the managers. Quantitative data collection included questions on demographics, routine management operations, protocols followed in the shelters and attitudes of the managers towards cow welfare. All shelters except one were managed by males, half of them were in the age range of 45–65 years, were university graduates or post-graduates, with 5–15 years shelter management experience, and with the majority having lived in rural areas for most of their lives. Each shelter housed a median of 232 cattle were housed, out of which 13 were lactating cows. The majority of managers vaccinated their animals against endemic diseases like foot and mouth disease, haemorrhagic septicaemia and black quarter (gangraena emphysematosa) and administered endo-and ectoparasiticidal treatments, however, hardly any screened the cattle for brucellosis and tuberculosis. Only 17% of the shelters had in house veterinarians and most cows died of old age, with an annual mortality rate of 14%. The majority of the shelters allowed the cows to reproduce. Access to pasture was available in only 41% of the shelters, while most allowed some access to yards. Most (57%) had limited biosecurity measures, but 82% of the shelters disposed of the carcasses by deep burial on their own premises or through the municipality, with 18% disposing of them in open spaces or nearby creeks. About one half of the shelters maintained records of the protocols followed routinely. Charitable societies ran half of the shelters, mostly through public donations, with accounts audited regularly. Most managers thought that shelter cows’ welfare was important and that they should attempt to improve it. They were less in agreement that their knowledge of animal welfare was adequate. Local support, more moral than financial, was recognized more than government support. Managers perceived cow welfare as important from a religious perspective, citing the mother god and caring for abandoned animals as frequent themes in their definition of cow welfare. Caring for animals, mother and goddess were key elements in managers’ perception of animal welfare. The recommendations arising from this survey include that the shelter managers should be involved in the decision-making process for the welfare of cows in shelters, which is vital for the sustainability of these unique institutions. Welfare could be improved by strict compliance with biosecurity measures and disease surveillance protocols, avoidance of unrestricted reproduction in cows and separation of males and females.

Z rozważań nad symboliką nieba w idiostylu Siergieja Jesienina (aspekt lingwistyczny)

The goal of the article is an analysis of the symbolism of heaven in the idiostyle of Sergei Yesenin. The semantic-cultural method of description of the research material which constitutes the chosen fragments of Yesenin’s poems was used. Heaven is understood as a sub-field in the semantic meaning field nature. Attention was paid to the issue of symbolic archetypes, and their metaphorics conditioning a multiplicity of interpretations. Stylistic language means serving the imaging with the use of individual symbols of heaven in the idiostyle of Yesenin are described. Symbols expressed metaphorically, metonymically, with the usage of comparisons, etc. are distinguished. Heaven in the idiostyle of Yesenin symbolises: perception of the world (e.g. God’s care and love for human beings, immortality, happy life, salvation, joy of existence, prayers fervent and heard), things (e.g. a roof over the head, net, shawl, blue sand, milk of birches), phenomena and elements of nature (rain, fire), places (paradise, kingdom of heaven, tower-room), figures (Mother of God), physical phenomena (multiplicity, uncountability), birds (pigeons). Christian, religious archetypes of symbols prevail. The article introduces the proposition of the interpretation of poetic texts with the use of semantic field and sub-field analysis, including their symbolism.

Hair-Snakes. To the Issue of the Semantics of Byzantine Phylacteries with “Hystera”

Introduction. The article is devoted to analyzing the specific type of Byzantine phylacteries (amulets), which are a vivid manifestation of folk beliefs that combine pagan, magical and Christian components. The author talks about the so-called “coils” – pendants with the image of a head with reptiles instead of hair or simply in combination with snakes. Many of them have a magical inscription mentioning “hysteria” (uterus), which can be understood as this particular organ, as well as various harmful entities. For this reason, there is a problem of correlation of the image and the magic inscription. But the article attempts to interpret the serpentine composition in the context of its functional purpose. Methods. In historiography, there are many opinions about what the images could represent on this type of monuments. At different times, researchers saw in the image of a head with snakes Medusa Gorgon, the dragon-Satan, Russian Aphrodite – goddess Lada, Abrasax, Sophia of Ophites, Moses’ brazen serpent, Eve and the devil, the seven-headed serpent and seven deadly sins, sisters-Likhoradkas, the dragon from the Apocalypse, the serpent of Aesculapius transformed into Satan. In addition, the composition was recognized as a “portrait” of the demon and his machinations elevated to the image of Khnubis and was considered the personification of the hysterical uterus itself. Analysis. In the article, the meaning of the serpentine composition is considered in the comparative analysis with other images on amulets. This is possible due to the presence of stereotypes and general principles in the construction of magical drawings applied to the amulets, as well as the general meaning that is associated with the functional purpose of the phylacteries. In different types of the images on amulets, semantic emphasis is placed on reproducing the desired action. For this, phylacteries were made and used, and magical texts, signs, images of saints, the Mother of God and even Christ himself were applied to the amulet. Results. The symbolism of the serpentine composition is revealed within the same sign system. The drawing combining a head (face) and wriggling snakes clearly represents the desired effect – the outcome, the flight of illnesses or the forces of the evil symbolized by reptiles from a person.

Роль смешанных форм чужой речи в романе Е. Айпина «Божья Матерь в кровавых снегах»

The article discusses mixed forms non-author’s speech, as well as it reveals their role in the novel of a Khanty writer E. Aypin The Mother of God in the Bloody Snows. Having conducted the analysis, the author comes to the conclusion that in the novel’s narration some mixed forms of speech appear through the interaction of indirect, thematic, direct and reported speech. In the process of combination, violations of graphic, structural-semantic and stylistic norms of each form of speech are observed. Mixed forms of non-author’s speech in E. Aypin’s novel are a dominant compositional-speech unit that integrates the author’s speech peculiarities and characters’ speech properties into a single semantic and stylistic whole. These forms of speech are considered as a peculiar stylistic feature of the writer that underlies the construction of a complex image of the narrator and a peculiar model of the world reflecting national principles of the Khanty people worldview. The principle of spiritual unity can be noticed in the blurred boundaries between the subject-speech spheres of the author and a positive character. The principle of irreconcilable conflict with the «alien» world, violating the original harmony of nature, man and the human race, is seen in the mixed forms constructions of non-author’s speech and speech interference of a negative character.

Art as a Message Realized Throught Various Means of Artistic Expression

From the ancient times, art has performed not only aesthetic, but primarily informa­tional and ritual functions, since people have used artistic means to honour the divinities. In Ukraine, the instances of art have been known since the times of Trypillia culture, from the 5th century BC. Hereafter, art has used various means to deliver information. During the years of Kyivan Rus, there were mostly religious mural paintings and mosaic pictures in churches. They were not considered by the contemporaries as artworks, but only as images for worship. However, it should be noted that in St. Sophia’s Cathedral there are also some secular paintings of those times. Religious and secular murals used different art forms and means to convey information. An icon, restricted by the canon, illustrated a particular Christian dogma, whereas a secular pa­inting gave information about everyday human life and performed some political and ideological functions. These two genres are often combined in the so-called folk painting. The Mother of God, the Lord and the saints are depicted against the Ukrainian landscape, and they have Ukrainian traits. The background of folk icons depicts scenes from the everyday life of the Ukrainians, and the icons are decorated with embroidered towels and dried flowers. In the Baro­que era, secular events and real people are included in canonical Christian plots. Today, we see a revival of techniques combining secular and religious painting, when icons depict the sacred participants of contemporary political events. Such icons do not meet certain requirements of the church canon, but constitute the society’s reaction to what is happening in Ukraine now. On the other hand, it is a kind of an attempt to bring Heaven closer to humans, to modernize canonical subjects and, at the same time, to promote educating the people in the spirit of patriotism. Despite the canonicity of the icon and the immutability of information conveyed through the sacred image, the methods of informative communication differed. Thus, although both the Byzantine icon and the icon of the Baroque era reported the same plot, the volume of the mes­sage that they conveyed was different. The Byzantine icon is an ascetic message-symbol, while the baroque icon is more secular and not only gives you purely religious information, but also information about the traditions, life and appearance of the people living in this period, and the political system of the state. In canonical religious art, a pictorial image is the only means of narration, whereas modern secular art often turns into a performance, with the simultaneous involvement of painting, sculp­ture, music and lighting effects, and avant-garde short films.

Пасіони О. Козаренка: жанровий синтезтрадиційного та інноваційного

Research objective is to study the musical and historical development of passions (from ancient times to the present) with genre and style accent on Ukrainian passions. The methodology is based on induction methods, genre and style analysis, historical and hermeneutic methods. The scientific novelty consists in proving the existence of «hints» on the passion genre in ancient Egyptian myths. For the first time parallels were made from the ancient Egyptian figures (Osiris, Isida, Egyptians) to the New Testament characters (Christ, Mother of God, the crowd of Israelites), thirsting for Jesus’ death. The study for the first time indicates the phenomenological features of the modern model of Ukrainian passions (“Strasti Hospoda Boha Nashoho Isusa Chrysta”), which appear in the work of the composer Oleksandr Kozarenko. This work is an example of a reference to the primary genre model of passions, which is revived through the musical harangue of Olexandr Kozarenko. This work is an example of a reference to the primary genre model of passions, which is revived through the musical creativity of the composer to the Ostroh antiphons of the Orthodox Service of the Twelve Gospels (early modern period). In his work, A. Kozarenko skillfully combines traditional and innovative aspects of genre formation, which influenced the formation of modern features of the Passion as a whole. The artist successfully combines ancient Slavic tunes with the author’s vision of the passions of our time. Cconclusions. Emphasize that the expansion of artistic cultural space by addressing the genre of passion is a vital spiritual need of today’s reality. A unique creative unit of passions at the beginning of the third millennium are passions “in Ukrainian”. Passions are a unique structure that combines the signs of polymorphism. The work of the Lviv composer Olexander Kozarenko proves the authenticity of the national sources and confirms the significant contribution of modern Ukrainian artists to the culture and work of our universe. The new composer vision of the sacred musical monodic melos not only contributed to its restoration, but also showed the internal potential of sound, proving its relevance today.

Ohionim of the Mother of God in poetic discourse of Taras Shevchenko

The object of the proposed article is the Christian ohionim of the Mother of God in the poetic discourse of Taras Shevchenko. This proper name, together with the propriatives God, the Lord, forms the core of the sacredness of the studied texts. An indepth analysis of the “Kobzar” gives grounds to claim that its author was a deeply religious man who knew the Scriptures well and used it creatively in artistic practice. Evidence of this are the historical and philosophical poems “Mary” and “Neophytes”, in which biblical and secular motifs are organically intertwined, which is directly reflected in the level of verbalization (active use of Old Slavonic, God’s names, biblical expressions). On the basis of the theantropocentric approach, the peculiarities of the existence of the ohionim of the Mother of God in the texts of different genres are clarified. Up to the aim, a paradigmatic approach is used: all the names of the Mother of Jesus Christ recorded in the discourse are embedded in a nominative paradigm, each component of which (Mary, Mother, Mother of God, Mother Mary, Virgin, Immaculate, Queen of Heaven, Ever-immaculate, Good, All-Good, All-Holy, worthy, pure in wives, blessed in wives, great in wives mourning joy, holy power of all saints, our world unseen, my most glorious paradise, our beauty, world green, fragrant green lily) is characterized in terms of its semantic content and semantic specification, established correlations between them. A comparative analysis based on the semasiological procedure of the lexical resource that is part of the appellation and at the same time exists as a propriative unit was done. Special attention is paid to the connecting capabilities of the described ohionim, its ability to appear in the subjective, object, attributive function and thus to identify the features of semantic-syntactic valence. Episodes from the earthly and heavenly life of Mother Mary are clearly based on the valence pattern. The lexical-semantic compatibility of the theonym of the Mother of God with attributive modifiers in the form of agreed and uncoordinated definitions is comprehensively interpreted, their constitutive possibilities are clarified. It is proved that sacredness is one of the immanent features of Taras Shevchenko’s poetic idiostyle. Keywords: ohionim of the Mother of God, nominative paradigm, poetic discourse of Taras Shevchenko, syntagmatic resource, semantics.

Mozaično uređenje hrama Svetog Save

The Holy Synod of the Serbian Orthodox Church and the state representatives of the Republic of Serbia, with the brotherly aid of the Government of The Russian Federation and its Department for External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchy are nearing the completion of the Temple of Saint Sava. The unique style and artistic concepts of Nikolay Mukhin is in complete harmony with the architecture of Hagia Sophia in Constantinople, the foremost example of Byzantine and Serbian medieval art. There are four representations in the great arch of each cupola of the Temple of Saint Sava, grouped according to meaning and history as presented in the Holy Testament, with the aim of faithfully depicting the earthly life of Christ and the Mother of God. The rich and original iconography of the mosaics and iconostases is awe-inspiring in their artistry for the over three hundred artists engaged in their execution. The conceptual knot of the interior: the dome, the space below, the pendentive and main arches, with their beautifully decorated altar space, have enriched Serbia and the world with one of the most imposing and magnificent monuments of Christianity today.

Mediation and Grace: The Possibility of Christian Community in Digital Culture

Mediation and Grace: The Possibility of Christian Community in Digital Culture Katherine G. Schmidt41 I carefully readjust my posture, hoping to see and be seen clearly. The person speaking needs to adjust his microphone, and it’s distracting me. I see the woman in her frame, and she appears frozen. But I swear I saw her move; I’ve seen her move before. The speaker drones on, and I feel the smoothness of the wood in front of me under my fingers. The woman, I notice, looks smooth too, and though she is far from me, somehow the smoothness I touch connects me to her. Virtual meetings have so dominated our lives over the past few months that what I have described may resonate with many, from schoolchildren to CEOs, all tethered to their computers during the pandemic. But the woman in her frame, frozen, was Mary, the Mother of God, and I was still in elementary school. She stood, frozen, carved out of wood, in a box far behind the lectern at my parish. I often stared past the lector, who too often needed to readjust the microphone, and onto the gentle face of that wooden Mary. My small hands gripped the pew in front of me, and I remember wondering if the wood she was made of was the same as my pew. Perhaps it was then that I fell in love with the rich system of religious mediation, knowing on a level so deep that only decades later would I find the theological vocabulary to convey that it is only through and by means of stuff that we encounter grace.42 Mediation is about distance, and we have had time this year to ponder distance. That which is mediated is that which is distant from us, and whose distance we hope to close. Mediation, therefore, is also about closeness, insofar as it is the product of our desire for closeness in the face of distance. Sometimes we fight against mediation, insisting on immediate experiences as the “real” stuff of life—as if immediacy is somehow truly possible. Ironically, our desire for immediacy results in [End Page 24] an explosion of media, or hypermediation.43 Maybe we don’t need all this stuff, we surmise, inexplicably confident in our own ability to close the distance between creature and Creator. Mediation reminds us of this failure; it reminds us of our finite creatureliness and our distance from God, one another, and from creation. Yet our frustration with distance supersedes our hesitancy for mediation, and we build, create, and innovate. We feel the yawning chasm between us and God, between one another, between us and our earthly home, and we long to close the distance—to make that which is absent from us, present to us. We do this because it is in our nature, but we also do this because it is God’s way revealed in Jesus Christ. I offer this theological framework of mediation as a foundation for our discussions of all things digital, especially in the wake of the 2020 global pandemic. By operating with this framework, we can avoid reductionist and instrumentalist thinking about technology that often leads to unhelpful and unhopeful “hot takes” about the relationship of the church to its digital milieu. The pandemic has made digital culture and technology a new interest for many people in the church. It is thus an opportune moment to be very clear about the temptations we face in addressing this topic theologically, and to be candid about what a new reliance on digital technology has illuminated about the present state of the church, for better and worse. The rather dramatic and swift move to digital platforms for many typically “offline” activities has forced many people to reflect more critically on our technological moment. As we begin to move back “offline”—God-willing—for some activities, we may be tempted to overstate our preference for the offline version by using the categories of the “real” and “virtual” to do so. This temptation is especially strong within the church: Christians like to offer the local church community— the congregation, the parish—as really real community in contradistinction...

Predstave velikog kneza Vukana u zadužbinama Nemanjića iz XIII veka

The portrait of grand knez Vukan, the only modern and fragmentarily preserved one, was located on the North wall of the tower of the main entrance to the Studenica monastery. It is assumed that there was a composition on the North wall of the main entrance in which Simeon with his three sons approaches the Mother of God and Christ. There is a possibility that Vukan, as one of the ktetors of Studenica, was shown in the ktetor's composition. Since then, Vukan has been shown only with Stefan in compositions that illustrate scenes from the Life of Saint Simeon, in Radoslav's narthex and monasteries Gradac and Sopoćani. Due to the usurpation of Stefan's supremacy, Vukan became a sinner who broke his father's vow to live in harmony with his brother. However, after the end of the civil war, the brothers reconciled: Vukan repented for everything that he had done, and Stefan forgave him everything. The peace between them was established by Sava's arrival with the relics of Saint Simeon. Saint Sava arranged the reconciliation of the brothers, and he laid the ideal of brotherly love and harmony in the basis of the ruling ideology of Nemanjić's dynasty. He wanted to emphasize this through paintings, fitting the portraits of his brothers into the iconographic program of the frescoes of the Studenica monastery, and he introduced their names in the founder's inscription. After the frescoes created in 1208/9. Vukan was painted where it made sense, as someone who, in agreement with his brother Stefan, transfers theirs father's relics. Since he does not belong to the main lineage of the dynasty, his portrait wasn't painted in the family compositions of Nemanjićs in the 13th century.

Modlitwa Pańska w świetle wzorów Janowych

Wzory Janowe, które ujawniają godność Maryi jako „Matki Pana”, rzucają nowe światło na Modlitwę Pańską. Łukaszowy Ojcze nasz zawiera trzy prośby dotyczące ludzkich potrzeb i dwie prośby skierowane do Boga, co odzwierciedla pierwszy wzór Janowy 3+2. Mateuszowy Pater noster składa się z pięciu Łukaszowych próśb i dwóch dodatkowych próśb, które występują tylko w Ewangelii Mateusza. Odpowiada to drugiemu wzorowi Janowemu 5+2. W świetle modeli Janowych Łukaszowy Ojcze nasz był wykorzystany przez Mateusza, który uzupełnił wersję Łukaszową.

Mary of the Zoodochos Pege: The Authorial Treatment of the Theotokos and Its Historical Value

이 논문은 콘스탄티노플 근교에 자리 잡은 주도코스 피기(성스러운 샘)에 얽힌 기적을 기록한 10세기경의 종교문학 ‘생명을 주는 샘’의 기적록에 관한 것으로 그 저자가 테오토코스(성모 마리아)가 행하였다고 알려진 기적을 묘사한 방식에서의 문학사적 이질성을 다루고 있다. ‘생명을 주는 샘의 기적록’을 저술한 신원미상의 저자는 테오토코스가 단순히 신의 은총을 전달하는 매개체가 아닌, 마치 자유의지를 가지고 기적을 행하는 능력을 가진 존재인 것처럼 표현하였다. 이러한 표현방식은 기존의 비잔티움 성인전기 작가들이 (극단적인 사례를 참조하더라도) 테오토코스를 정교회의 수호자이자 기독교인들의 가장 가까운 중재자에 머무르는 것으로 표현한 것과 매우 대조된다. 비록 테오토코스가 다른 성인들과 비교했을 때 신의 어머니로서 비잔티움의 종교적이고 문학적인 전통에서 언제나 특별한 위치를 차지하고 있었을지라도, 이처럼 독립적인 존재로 표현된 예는 비잔티움 성인전기 문학에 있어 전례를 찾기 어렵다. 이 기적록은 비잔티움 제국의 국력이 문화적으로나 정치적으로나 절정에 도달하였던 10세기에 저술된 것으로, 정교회 전통에서 매우 중요한 위치에 있었던 테오토코스를 이처럼 대담하고 위험할 정도로 파격적인 방식으로 묘사해냈음에도 불구하고 어떠한 비난도 받지 않고 성모 공경 컬트의 교세를 성공적으로 키워내고 지속시키는 데 기여했다는 점에서 역사적 가치를 찾을 수 있다.This article examines the tenth century compilation ofMiracula of the Zoodochos Pege (i.e. Life-Giving Spring) located near Constantinople. This text narrates the legendary miracles that were believed to be the work of the Theotokos of the holy shrine of the Pege. Unlike other holy individuals, the Theotokos, as the Mother of God, always occupied a special place in Byzantine religious and hagiographical tradition. However, the author of the Miracula of the Pege fashioned her as being capable of working miracles of her own volition, not simply as a channel of God’s grace. Such treatment of her is evidently distant from other Byzantine hagiographers who, to their greatest extent, merely portrayed her as being the greatest guardian of Orthodoxy and the highest interceder of Christians as being the Mother of God. However, the Theotokos of the Pege is, throughout the narrative, fashioned not as a divine instrument but rather as an independent worker of miracles. The greatest historical value of this Miracula, which was written at the zenith of Byzantium’s cultural and political supremacy, lies in its uniquely bold and potentially dangerous authorial treatment of the Mother of God and successfully aiding the cult to be continued without incurring any condemnation.

Marian Theme in Music: Aspects of History and Genre Stylistics (a Case Study of the Works byKonstanty Antoni Gorski)

Marian Theme in Music: Aspects of History and Genre Stylistics (a Case Study of the Works byKonstanty Antoni Gorski)

Репрезентация концепта юмо «бог» в марийских народных песнях

The article is devoted to the analysis of the religious views of Mari, which are reflected in such genres of folklore as guest and wedding songs. The purpose of the article is to identify ways and means of representing the concept of humo «god» in Mari folk songs. Research methods: continuous sampling, comparative method, component analysis. Results, discussion. The following characters of the Mari pantheon are represented in the songs: the Bright God, the predecessor, the mother of God, the mother of the earth, the mother of wealth, the angel, the daughter of God, the prophet, the daughter of the prophet, the son of the prophet, and the bridegroom prophet. Conclusion. The content of folk songs also presents some stories from mythology, fragments of religious rites and the foundations of the creed of the Mari traditional religion.

Restaurarea icoanei „Maica Domnului Îndurerată” din patrimoniul Muzeului Etnografic al Transilvaniei

The paper describes the state of conservation of an oil painted icon on wooden support, with the theme “Mother of God of Sorrows”, from the collection of the Transylvanian Museum of Ethnography, presenting the degradations forms, and also describes the restoration stages,Troșan characterized by specific techniques and materials. The icon was painted in 1840 according to an inscription written on the back of the object.