Skip to Content.
Sympa Menu

corpus-paul - RE: [Fwd: Query: sacred prostitution in Corinth?]

corpus-paul AT lists.ibiblio.org

Subject: Corpus-Paul

List archive

Chronological Thread  
  • From: Edgar Krentz <ekrentz AT lstc.edu>
  • To: "Corpus-paul" <corpus-paul AT franklin.oit.unc.edu>
  • Subject: RE: [Fwd: Query: sacred prostitution in Corinth?]
  • Date: Mon, 29 Jan 2001 20:27:58 -0600


At 9:08 AM -0500 1/29/01, JERRY SUMNEY wrote:
This question of whether there was sacred prostitution in ancient Corinth
does receive brief attention in various commentaries, including those of Fee
(1 Corinthians) and Furnish (2 Corinthians). I am sorry that I cannot
recount Conzelmann's argument. Indeed the foundations of this temple are
far too small to house 1,000 temple prostitutes. And given the location of
this temple (part way up the slope of the AcroCorinth, the tale of the
sailors running all the way from the port to the temple is unbelievable--if
they ran all that way, they would be in no shape to utilize the services
they had sought). Of course, even the small temple on the AcroCorinth was
part of the city before it was razed by the Romans in 146 BCE. So this
temple (and whatever did or did not go on there) was not present in the
rebuilt city that Paul visited.

The reason for the comments about the prostitutes in ancient writers has
sometimes been attributed to the competition between Corinth and Athens,
with Athenians being anxious to show Corinth to be immoral and less than
what a good Greek city ought to be.

Jerry

Jerry L. Sumney

Of course, that presupposes that the raising of the city was complete; but it was not. the temple to Apollo, the South Stoa, and other buildings in the agora (forum) were not destroyed. And some or all the temples on AcroCorinth may also have been spared. Certainly the gates to AcroCorinth were not destroed, since one can still see them!
--
****************************************************************
Edgar Krentz
Christ Seminary--Seminex Professor of New Testament, Emeritus
Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago
1100 East 55th Street, Chicago, IL 60615
Tel: 773-256-0773; home phone 773-947-8105
e-mail: ekrentz AT lstc.edu
------------------------------------------------------------
GERASKO D' AEI POLLA DIDASKOMENOS
"I grow old, constantly learning many things." [Solon of Athens]
***************************************************************




Archive powered by MHonArc 2.6.24.

Top of Page