Medical Saints: Cosmas and Damian in a Postmodern World

Cosmas and Damian in a Postmodern World

Nonfiction, Religion & Spirituality, Reference, History
Cover of the book Medical Saints: Cosmas and Damian in a Postmodern World by Jacalyn Duffin, Oxford University Press, USA
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Jacalyn Duffin ISBN: 9780199910953
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA Publication: May 1, 2013
Imprint: Oxford University Press Language: English
Author: Jacalyn Duffin
ISBN: 9780199910953
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
Publication: May 1, 2013
Imprint: Oxford University Press
Language: English

Cosmas and Damian were martyred around the year 300 A.D. in what is now Syria. Called the Anargyroi ("without silver") because they charged no fees, they became patrons of medicine, surgery, and pharmacy and the focus of cults ranging across Europe. They were popular in Byzantine and Orthodox traditions and their shrines are numerous in Eastern Europe, southern Italy, and Sicily. The Medici family of Florence viewed the "santi medici" as patrons, and their deeds were illustrated by great Renaissance artists. In medical literature they are now revered as patrons of transplantation. Jacalyn Duffin offers a profound exploration of illness and healing experiences in contemporary society through the veneration of the twin doctors Saints Cosmas and Damian. She also relates a personal journey, from her role as a hematologist who unexpectedly came to serve as an expert witness in the Church's evaluation of a miracle to her research as a historican on the origins, meaning, and functions of saints. Duffin's research, which includes interviews with devotees in both North America and Europe, focuses on how people have taken the saints with them as they moved both within Italy and beyond. She shows that veneration of Cosmas and Damian has spread beyond immigrant traditions to fill important functions in healthcare and healing. Duffin's conclusions provide essential insights into medical history, sociology, anthropology, and popular religion, as well as the current medical debate over spiritual healing. Medical Saints draws on medical history and Roman Catholic traditions, but extends to universal observations about the behaviors of sick people and the formal responses to individual illness from collectivities in religion, medicine, and history.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Cosmas and Damian were martyred around the year 300 A.D. in what is now Syria. Called the Anargyroi ("without silver") because they charged no fees, they became patrons of medicine, surgery, and pharmacy and the focus of cults ranging across Europe. They were popular in Byzantine and Orthodox traditions and their shrines are numerous in Eastern Europe, southern Italy, and Sicily. The Medici family of Florence viewed the "santi medici" as patrons, and their deeds were illustrated by great Renaissance artists. In medical literature they are now revered as patrons of transplantation. Jacalyn Duffin offers a profound exploration of illness and healing experiences in contemporary society through the veneration of the twin doctors Saints Cosmas and Damian. She also relates a personal journey, from her role as a hematologist who unexpectedly came to serve as an expert witness in the Church's evaluation of a miracle to her research as a historican on the origins, meaning, and functions of saints. Duffin's research, which includes interviews with devotees in both North America and Europe, focuses on how people have taken the saints with them as they moved both within Italy and beyond. She shows that veneration of Cosmas and Damian has spread beyond immigrant traditions to fill important functions in healthcare and healing. Duffin's conclusions provide essential insights into medical history, sociology, anthropology, and popular religion, as well as the current medical debate over spiritual healing. Medical Saints draws on medical history and Roman Catholic traditions, but extends to universal observations about the behaviors of sick people and the formal responses to individual illness from collectivities in religion, medicine, and history.

More books from Oxford University Press, USA

Cover of the book China: Fragile Superpower : How China's Internal Politics Could Derail Its Peaceful Rise by Jacalyn Duffin
Cover of the book The Art of Digital Audio Recording : A Practical Guide for Home and Studio by Jacalyn Duffin
Cover of the book Rocking the Classics : English Progressive Rock and the Counterculture by Jacalyn Duffin
Cover of the book The Arab Uprisings:What Everyone Needs to Know by Jacalyn Duffin
Cover of the book The Reagan Revolution: A Very Short Introduction by Jacalyn Duffin
Cover of the book Always On : Language In An Online And Mobile World by Jacalyn Duffin
Cover of the book Of Arms and Men : A History of War Weapons and Aggression by Jacalyn Duffin
Cover of the book Mathematical Thought From Ancient to Modern Times : Volume 1 by Jacalyn Duffin
Cover of the book Debating Same-Sex Marriage by Jacalyn Duffin
Cover of the book Guardians of the Revolution:Iran and the World in the Age of the Ayatollahs by Jacalyn Duffin
Cover of the book Man and Woman:An Inside Story by Jacalyn Duffin
Cover of the book On Repeat: How Music Plays the Mind by Jacalyn Duffin
Cover of the book Rule and Ruin:The Downfall of Moderation and the Destruction of the Republican Party, From Eisenhower to the Tea Party by Jacalyn Duffin
Cover of the book Your Brain on Food:How Chemicals Control Your Thoughts and Feelings by Jacalyn Duffin
Cover of the book Brave New Words: The Oxford Dictionary of Science Fiction by Jacalyn Duffin
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy