Description
Book SynopsisReconsiders contemporary debates about ethics and subjectivity in an extended engagement with the works of fifth-century ascetic, John Cassian (ca. 360 - ca. 435), whose stories of extreme asceticism and transformative religious experience by desert elders helped to establish Christian monastic forms of life.
Trade Review“This is a brilliant, original, and important work. Drawing upon the rich, complex ascetic and spiritual thought of late ancient Christian monastic writer John Cassian, Niki Kasumi Clements examines, critically and creatively, the very ground of ethics.” —Douglas E. Christie, author of The Blue Sapphire of the Mind
"Clements not only offers a clearer understanding of the nuances in late ancient asceticism, but also contributes to contemporary debates on subjectivity, ethics and agency by inviting her audience to a reflexive engagement with the question of what it means to live well amidst contingencies and crises." —NTT Journal for Theology and the Study of Religion
"Clements’ text is not only a valuable contribution to the studies of religion – which it certainly is – but promises a broad and interdisciplinary impact." —Foucault Studies
