This highly original study provides an extensive and careful analysis of the Homilies of the Byzantine emperor Leo VI (A.D. 886-912) in order to place them in their historical and cultural contexts. This neglected corpus of forty-two texts comprises both panegyrics on ecclesiastical feasts and discourses on special occasions.
The first part deals with the Homilies in the framework of Leo VI's career by examining topics such as the circumstances of the delivery of the Homilies and their political significance. The second part places the Homilies within the Byzantine homiletic tradition of...