Two Notes on the Collection of Greek Ritual Norms Looking Back, Looking Forward (original) (raw)

2019. Two Notes on the Collection of Greek Ritual Norms: Looking Back, Looking Forward

Axon, 2019

Launched in 2017, the Collection of Greek Ritual Norms provides an openaccess commentary on selected ancient Greek inscriptions which define parameters of ritual practice. These short notes address two issues superficially concerning the name of the Collection of Greek Ritual Norms, but more deeply engaging with what one means by the notion of 'ritual norm' and what one implies in considering such norms 'Greek'. A term like 'cult regulation' might conveniently be used to replace the misnomer 'sacred law', but this encompasses a similarly broad and miscellaneous group of inscriptions. By contrast, the category of 'ritual norm' aims to reframe the discussion by focussing on normativity-paradigms and exceptions-with regard to two key rituals, sacrifice and purification. It thus only partly reprises the corpus of 'sacred laws', while also including other inscriptions or excerpts from them. Calling such norms 'Greek' is not intended as an 'ethnic' designation of the rituals they describe but rather as a reference to the language of the inscriptions. The label 'Greek ritual norms' is thus programmatic, allowing for a wider investigation of the normative characteristics of rituals within the religious 'middle grounds' of the ancient Greek world.

Two Notes on the Collection of Greek Ritual Norms

Vol. 3 | Num. 2 | Dicembre 2019

Launched in 2017, the Collection of Greek Ritual Norms provides an open-access commentary on selected ancient Greek inscriptions which define parameters of ritual practice. These short notes address two issues superficially concerning the name of the Collection of Greek Ritual Norms, but more deeply engaging with what one means by the notion of 'ritual norm' and what one implies in considering such norms 'Greek'. A term like 'cult regulation' might conveniently be used to replace the misnomer 'sacred law', but this encompasses a similarly broad and miscellaneous group of inscriptions. By contrast, the category of 'ritual norm' aims to reframe the discussion by focussing on normativity – paradigms and exceptions – with regard to two key rituals, sacrifice and purification. It thus only partly reprises the corpus of 'sacred laws', while also including other inscriptions or excerpts from them. Calling such norms 'Greek' is not int...

Greek Ritual Norms: The Textuality of Ritual Norms ('Sacred Laws') in the Ancient Greek World

Greek Inscriptions II, 2019

In this second of two essays on the topic of ancient Greek inscriptions, I will briefly explore and discuss the textuality of ritual norms or, 'sacred laws', by looking 1) at the reasons for these ritual norms to have been written down in the first place and 2) how these norms/laws/decrees were able to get their observers to adhere to them. Throughout the essay I have made use of J.L. Austin's Speech Act Theory to better contextualize the meaning of the inscriptions dealt with.

Ritual and Its Transgressions in Ancient Greece

. Ginzburg (ed.), A Historical Approach to Casuistry. Norms and Exceptions in a Comparative Perspective, London: Bloomsbury, 47-64 , 2019

What happens when rituals are transgressed? When a ritual works normally, we hear very little about the religious, social, or cultural expectations surrounding its performance. When it fails or is infringed upon, however, the anomaly highlights accepted norms and reveals what is usually hidden or taken for granted. In this chapter, I will frst look at the etymology and semantic development of the term “ritual,” since the former has only recently become clearer and the latter is still a matter of ongoing research (see the section Ritual: Etymology and Semantic Development). Next, I will look at two case studies of ritual transgressions taken from famous festivals in ancient Greece—the Tesmophoria and the Eleusinian Mysteries. Finally, I draw some conclusions based on these examples.