Original scientific paper
Miraculous Healings as a Timeand Space- Conditioned Category – The Example of St. Thecla
A. Muzur
A. Škrobonja
Abstract
The phenomenon of miracle has been present in each time period and each civilization,
and what has changed was not its definition but its content. Gautama Buddha,
Apostle Paul, Mohammed, Church fathers from Origen and Augustine of Hippo to
Gregory the Great and Thomas Aquinas were all studying miracles and trying to find
out the rules and systematization for them. The present paper explores the intriguing
differences (e.g., the proportions of miracle types) and similarities (e.g. saintly »specialization
«) between some Eastern and Western miracle accounts, analyzing the possible
underlying reasons. As a case study, the collection of miracles performed by St. Thecla
(Basil of Seleukia, 5th c. AD) has been used. The major conclusion of the paper is that
miracle accounts quite consequently reflect cultural differences between East andWest.
Keywords
Hrčak ID:
28275
URI
Publication date:
17.6.2002.
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