It’s back to business and the main focus of this blog: interpreting the Apostle Paul in his Greco-Roman context. In the past, I had done a series of posts on athleticism in the Mediterranean world…
athletes
There Can Be Only One… So Run to Win!
Hope you don’t mind the “highlander” reference in the title (if you don’t know what I mean, click: this), but here is a short excerpt from Lucian again. It’s such a perfect parallel to 1…
The Manic Christian and Lucian’s Satire on Greco-Roman Athletics
In the excerpts below, I quote the 2nd century AD satirist Lucian’s parody of the pancratium, wrestling and boxing. It features a dialogue between the Greek Sidon and a visiting Scythian Anacharsis, the latter…
Gold’s Gym or God’s Gym?: Abstinence, Discipline, and Endurance for Godliness
Bronze boxer (ca. 2nd cent. BC) recovered from the ANTIKYTHERA shipwreckPhoto taken by Max Lee © 2014 Athens Museum Continuing from the post on ancient athleticism and training regimes, I wanted to make a few remarks…
Ancient Athletic Training: Regimes, Dieting, and Sports Complexes
When athletes train, they usually enter a sports complex called the palaestra (Latin; Greek παλαίστρα), which in classical times often referred to the wrestling ring but by the Roman era came to designate a specialized…
Before MMA, There Was the Pankration
Lately, I’ve been trying to get myself back to the gym and into shape. So athletic training has been on my mind. Today, I thought I would write a blurb about the pankration (Greek παγκράτιον; Latin…
The Brutality of Boxing in the Greco-Roman World
I’m reading through some ancient Greek and Latin epigrams from the Roman period for fun as a way to treat myself after an intense week of grading. Some of them are really humorous, since many…