Monsters, Miracles and Missionary Journeys: Exploring a Historiographical Conundrum
Miracles and wonders that testify to the power of the Christian God and his agents feature prominently in ancient and medieval missionary narratives and hagiography. A particularly dramatic example from the sixth century describes Columba vanquishing a river monster in Christ’s name to the wondermen...
| Main Author: | |
|---|---|
| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Interlibrary Loan: | Interlibrary Loan for the Fachinformationsdienste (Specialized Information Services in Germany) |
| Published: |
2026
|
| In: |
International bulletin of mission research
Year: 2026, Volume: 50, Issue: 1, Pages: 60-69 |
| Further subjects: | B
Secularity
B Historiography B Columba B Miracles B Malawi B Monsters |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (kostenfrei) |
| Summary: | Miracles and wonders that testify to the power of the Christian God and his agents feature prominently in ancient and medieval missionary narratives and hagiography. A particularly dramatic example from the sixth century describes Columba vanquishing a river monster in Christ’s name to the wonderment of the heathen Picts. The conventions of modern historiography require that we demythologize a story like this. Yet a contemporary missionary narrative from Africa describes a similar encounter between an evangelist and a monster. By reading the two accounts analogously, this article challenges scholars of mission to move beyond limiting western intellectual postulates. |
|---|---|
| ISSN: | 2396-9407 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: International bulletin of mission research
|
| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1177/23969393251361428 |
