2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
Very Well Considered, February 9, 2011
This review is from: `We have no king but Christ': Christian Political Thought in Greater Syria on the Eve of the Arab Conquest (c.400-585) (Oxford Studies in Byzantium) (Hardcover)
It is refreshing to find someone that has taken the time to stand back and bring us a view from a completely new angle. Wood uses a logical structure in his work as he carries you through from Christianisation in the Roman world and it's effect on regional identity, and discusses how the cultural independence of Aramaic speakers in the eastern Mediterranean was achieved.
Wood has some unusual sources of reference and uses evidence of `foundational myths', derived from chronicles and collections of saints' lives such as John of Ephesus.
In the 2nd half of the book the author examines the political effects of this cultural independence during a period of religious controversy. Particularly notable is his examination of the criticism the emperor Justinian experienced, which emphasised the conditional role of his rule.
Over all this is an insightful and refreshing work.
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