History and Religion in Late Antique Syria

Book excerpt: The studies in this volume are drawn together from a widely scattered set of publications, many difficult of access. They exemplify the variety of influences - religious, cultural, political - that interacted in Syria in Late Antiquity, and the range of responses that these evoked in changing historical circumstances. The first section of the book is concerned with the development of Syriac Christianity, with particular articles looking at the relations between Christians and Jews, and at the position of holy men. There follow two sections focusing on Marcionism and on Manichaeism, while the final studies examine aspects of Syriac Christianity after the Arab conquests.