http://www.philipharland.com/Blog/2006/02/02/rhetorical-functions-of-satan-from-babylon-the-whore-to-satanic-super-apostles/ Religions of the Ancient Mediterranean houses my podcast, websites, blog, and publications, providing an entryway into social and religious life among Greeks, Romans, Jews, Christians, and others in the Roman empire. Wed, 08 Feb 2012 17:14:39 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 http://www.philipharland.com/Blog/2006/02/02/rhetorical-functions-of-satan-from-babylon-the-whore-to-satanic-super-apostles/comment-page-1/#comment-7515 Religions of the Ancient Mediterranean » ‘Come! Plunge the knife into the baby’: Tertullian’s not-so-subtle retort Thu, 31 Aug 2006 15:58:55 +0000 http://www.philipharland.com/Blog/?p=134#comment-7515 [...] Similar patterns of demonizing “the other” have been at work throughout western cultural history.   [...] [...] Similar patterns of demonizing “the other” have been at work throughout western cultural history.   [...]

]]> http://www.philipharland.com/Blog/2006/02/02/rhetorical-functions-of-satan-from-babylon-the-whore-to-satanic-super-apostles/comment-page-1/#comment-411 Religions of the Ancient Mediterranean » Satanic conspiracies of the 1970s and 1980s (Satan 12) Thu, 23 Mar 2006 15:22:54 +0000 http://www.philipharland.com/Blog/?p=134#comment-411 [...] The fact that this was indeed a conspiracy arising out of certain peoples’ worldviews and not reality is now widely recognized. What is particularly interesting is the manner in which stereotypes of the dangerous “other” which have a very long history — including the trio of human sacrifice, cannibalism, and sexual perversion — play a key role in this incident as well. Back in Roman times, for instance, the early Christians were accused by outsiders of engaging in precisely these three activities, as were other marginalized or foreign groups in antiquity (on which see my earlier posts here and here). Similar dynamics of marginalization and demonization were also at work in the late medieval and early modern witch hunts. [...] [...] The fact that this was indeed a conspiracy arising out of certain peoples’ worldviews and not reality is now widely recognized. What is particularly interesting is the manner in which stereotypes of the dangerous “other” which have a very long history — including the trio of human sacrifice, cannibalism, and sexual perversion — play a key role in this incident as well. Back in Roman times, for instance, the early Christians were accused by outsiders of engaging in precisely these three activities, as were other marginalized or foreign groups in antiquity (on which see my earlier posts here and here). Similar dynamics of marginalization and demonization were also at work in the late medieval and early modern witch hunts. [...]

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