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…
boxing
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…
Ministry Can Be More Brutal than Boxing
Continuing from my last post on Lucillius’ epigrams satirizing the viciousness of ancient boxing, I turn to 1 Cor 9:24-27 where Paul makes an explicit comparison of the athlete (runner, boxer) with the challenges of…
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…