Heresy and identity in late antiquity

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The essays in this collection explore how late antique groups established their socio-political boundaries and secure identities through discourses on "heresy" and "heretics." By adopting a broader definition of these terms as forms of "internal opposition" and "internal enemies," the authors provide new insights into ancient sources and comparative analyses. Some contributors investigate the social context of heresiology and its role in regulating interactions between different communities. Others examine the dual function of heresy discourse, which both describes and disqualifies perceived dissenters. The authors collectively reassess the concept of 'heresy' in late antiquity, focusing on how groups defined themselves as righteous while depicting imagined communities as vicious. They analyze instances where authors or groups framed dangerous encounters by portraying the "other" using established heresiological conventions, clichés, and stock characters. Additionally, they explore how heresy-making discourses can simultaneously alienate and assimilate, as reflected in the Babylonian Talmud's notion of pushing away 'heretics' while incorporating their ideas and practices. This multifaceted examination sheds light on the complex dynamics of identity and community in late antiquity.