Mortuary Workers, the Church, and the Funeral Trade in Late Antiquity

Within the city of Constantinople, Constantine organized numerous funeral workers into associations overseen by a bishop, as part of a scheme meant to provide burials for all who needed them within the city. The funeral workers were given special exemptions and clerical status in return for their services. Constantine\u27s model was imitated in other cities within the eastern Mediterranean and, as a result, established new urban patronage networks. The newly elevated funeral professionals were liminal men, between the commercial and clerical worlds and dependent on bishops for their employment and status. Some bishops exploited this dependency by using funeral workers as personal militias. Inscriptions and legal evidence also point to the increasing influence of the church in the funeral trade. Although Constantine envisioned a city that exemplified the Christian belief in provision of burial to all, his scheme had numerous unintended consequences. Investigation of these funeral associations reveals the role of the bishop as a patron, funeral director, and businessman during the Late Roman Empire and better defines the involvement of the church in the funeral trade in Late Antiquity

Review of Jay M. Stottman, ed. \u3cem\u3eArchaeologists as Activists: Can Archaeologists Change the World?\u3c/em\u3e

Christensen urges archaeologists to enter the fray of current sociopolitical debates (p. 20) but to choose associations and involvements with care. [...]she implores us to view activist sites, such as Gage\u27s, as a means to reassess the past and dismantle stereotypes. [...]it is evident that the strengths of this volume lie in delivering something that has not, to my knowledge, been provided yet: a self-help book for archaeologists who aspire to reconceptualize, reformulate, and initiate their roles within the larger sociopolitical arena

Altering Infamy Status, Violence, and Civic Exclusion in Late Antiquity

This paper investigates the application of the legal stigma of infamia (disrepute) in Late Antiquity. The legal status is used as a lens through which to view the changing systemic, religious, and social landscapes between the reigns of Diocletian and Justinian, indicating the various uses and, ultimately, abuses of the status, as well as the marked consequences of expanding its definition. The use of the legal status to marginalize religious deviants in particular is inspected. This analysis reveals that the amendment of infamia to include heretics, apostates, and pagans signals the use of classical law to define orthodoxy and to articulate the anxiety over the pagan-Christian religious transition. The unforeseen consequences of infamia's expansion were the abetment of violence in the fourth and fifth centuries. Moreover, the disqualification of religious deviants from serving on curial councils had a noticeable impact on some municipalities in the later empire, and may have created a loophole with which to avoid curial service altogether

Prayer of the Body: Reflections on Archetypal Divine Feminine Figures in Embodied Spirituality

Archetypal figures of divine femininity exist within Judeo-Christian faith traditions, yet their presence has historically been neglected in Western cultures and religions. These feminine archetypes are thought within Jungian theory to bridge the spiritual and physical worlds, thereby unifying bodily and spiritual wisdom. As such, these figures have important implications for furthering current conceptualizations of embodiment. While embodiment research has recently expanded, little has focused on the intersection of spirituality and embodiment. Archetypal divine feminine figures appear to be located at this intersection. Therefore, the present study examines the experiences of individuals participating in Judeo-Christian traditions who have encountered divine feminine archetypes in such a way as to impact their sense of embodiment

PARTICIPANT SATISFACTION WITH PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT IN THE ABU DHABI SCHOOL MODEL (ADSM)

Education in Abu Dhabi is in a period of substantial reform. A key component of the reform effort is the provision of professional development (PD) for teachers. The present study examines the results of a teacher satisfaction survey given to all Tamkeen: Empowering Educators PD program participants. Areas of examination include: differences in overall satisfaction among various demographic groups of teachers (i.e., gender, grade level taught, teacher nationality (Emirati/expatriate), and demographic region); satisfaction with various program components (i.e., use of training time, organization, comprehensibility, utility, practicality, and trainer knowledge); and the relationship between participants’ satisfaction with the training time and their overall satisfaction. Findings show that there are significant differences in overall satisfaction levels among demographic groups, with male teachers, expatriate teachers, and those in the Western region having higher mean satisfaction levels than other groups. Program components with the highest satisfaction are the training venue (at school sites) and trainer knowledgeableness. Areas of lowest satisfaction are the timing for training and “overall satisfaction.” A significant relationship exists between participants’ satisfaction with the training time and their overall satisfaction. The study provides information for decision makers to enhance future program decision-making.&nbsp

The role of parental self-efficacy: The voices of mothers with low-income navigating supports, services, and obstacles

Through semi-structured interviews, the current study examined the role of parental self-efficacy as mothers with low-income navigated challenging contexts and experiences while receiving formal and informal supports. Mothers shared their unique experiences, which provided insight into their lives and how contextual variables influenced parental self-efficacy. As a result of this study, four themes emerged: 1) the function of mental health, 2) sense of community, 3) stability, and 4) the perceptions of child development and growth. Findings indicated that a sense of stability mediated contextual challenges and increased parental self-efficacy, identified that informal and formal supports contribute to both high and low perceptions of parental self-efficacy, and that mothers\u27 meaning and perception of experiences significantly influenced parental self-efficacy. Implications of these findings extend to future research as well as educational and social policy to better meet the needs of mothers with low-income and support them in their role as parents

Heading to Helsinki

Sarah Brain, Michelle Bond and Sarah Kevill share their experience of visiting the University of Helsinki during International Staff Exchange Week 2015