Proselytism in a Hagiographic Text: Classification and National Peculiarities

Abstract

This work addresses the theoretical and methodological aspects of proselytism, the causes and peculiarities of the spread of proselytism, the specifics of historical and modern proselytism. Taking into account the views received on proselytism, a different classification of proselytism is given based on Georgian historical and hagiographic sources. Four types of proselytism are distinguished: Permitted proselytism, which is observed at the first stage of the spread of Christianity, from preaching and introducing Christianity to Kartli to its declaration as an official religion, and it has a widespread, mass character; Forced proselytism that appears in the early stages of the introduction of Christianity, especially in the highlands of eastern Georgia; Forbidden proselytism among Georgians – a confrontation between paganism and Christianity, forbidden Christianity of Georgians. This period can be dated to the early period of the preaching and spread of Christianity in Georgia, including during and after the declaration of Christianity as an official religion, until Christianity was finally established as an official religion; The fourth stage of proselytism – a forbidden proselytism among foreigners, the prosely - tism of a different faith, of the conqueror, the forbidden Christianity of foreigners. This wave of proselytism is directly connected with political events, in particular, with the conquest of Kartli by Persia and Arabs. This wave of proselytism, proselytism of a representative of a different faith and ethnos, is a kind of exceptional cases and has important functional, ideological and common Christian significance. When classifying proselytism, the corresponding historiographic and hagiographic material is used, the peculiarities of the forbidden proselytism and the regional and national aspects of the martyric death of Christian proselytism of foreigners are marked out. In conclusion, it is noted that the reflection of Christian proselytism in Georgian hagiogra - phy occurred in full compliance with hagiographic models and canons, while taking into account regional and national peculiarities. These types of proselytism, in turn, create hagiographic models of the Lives and Martyrdom genre, according to which we can observe a single model of proselytism and its individual types.