“Like a safe tower on a steady rock”. Widows, wives and mothers in the ascetic elites of Late Antiquity

In the fourth and fifth centuries, the Roman empire underwent a series of changes that profoundly affected its political, economic, social and cultural organization. The long fourth century saw the growth of Christianity from a minor persecuted movement into the Roman state religion. In the wake of this process and with the generous support of Constantine the Great and his successors, Christian communities flourished throughout the empire. This paper will explore some of the many ways in which women were involved in ascetic Christian life in the late Roman West. It aims to sketch the range of new opportunities that may have followed the conversion to asceticism while also reflecting on the more conventional models of womanhood that were still present. In order to do so, the paper will present four small case studies of women who were partly or loosely associated with each other and who participated in the ascetic networks of the late Roman elite: the prominent example of Melania the Elder and the three lesser known case studies of Therasia, Amanda and Bassula