Sacred Prostitution Thesis

[qos]

I'll be heading to Kinko's soon to make a copy of my Masters Degree thesis on sacred prostitution in the ancient and modern worlds, written back in 1998, for one of my LJ friends. From time to time, a couple of other friends have expressed interest in reading it -- so as long as I'm going to make one copy, I might as well make several. Unfortunately, I don't have a soft copy.

In the thesis, I start by discussing the variety of practices which have been labeled under "sacred prostitution," and then do close readings of the ancient texts most frequently cited to support a hypothesis of "sacred prostitution" in the ancient near east. I find most of the texts are more evocative than descriptive of actual practices, and not all can be trusted as reliable sources of objective information. I then look at how these ancient texts have inspired women today in their quest to reunite sexuality and spirituality, including those who self-identify and practice as sacred prostitutes. I was fortunate enough to interview a few of these women, which was a fascinating experience. I know that some men also identify as sacred prostitutes, but the bulk of the material I found was oriented towards women's practices, so I didn't try to cover the male experience.

My advisors included a professor of ancient near eastern language and literature (who is one of the rare souls who actually reads the ancient language of Sumer), a Greek classics prof, and a professor of Christian History who has a special focus in Gnosticism. They all gave me high marks, so I feel confident that it represents a quality assessment of the material available at that time.

There are also pictures. ;-)

If you would like me to make and mail you a copy, please leave a comment on this entry. Mailing addresses can be emailed to janetsabrina at yahoo.

Comments

[kateri-thinks.livejournal.com]

Dear Janet,

Am I too late?

[saskia139.livejournal.com]

I'd love a copy!

[quietearthling.livejournal.com]

me me me

quietearthling@yahoo.com

[preacha.livejournal.com]

I was sitting in my World Religions class on Monday listening to the professor talk about sacred prostitution thinking, this is something important that I need to research for my thesis.

Your padawan would be grateful for a copy, and in admiration of your sensitivity to the force. I'll email you my mailing address.

[http://users.livejournal.com/_storyteller_/]

Do you even need to ask darling?

I would love a copy, and Jess would to I am sure.

[qos.livejournal.com]

*smile*

But will that be one copy or two? And do I have your current address?

[justbeast.livejournal.com]

I'm probably too late, but I would LOVE a copy :)

If not, lemme know, I'll email you the address.

[qos.livejournal.com]

Not too late at all. I've been sick for the past couple of days, and probably won't get out to do the photocopying until later this weekend.

[queenofhalves]

you know i want one. :>

[qos.livejournal.com]

I'm glad you were able to comment, Christine, because I couldn't remember if I'd sent you one and you hadn't had time to read it, or if I had never gotten around to it. *blush*

Hope you're having fun on your trip!

[urbanbard.livejournal.com]

It may be way too late, but i'd love a copy, either wemailed or snail mailed.

[qos.livejournal.com]

Not too late yet. I got sick at the end of last week and didn't get to Kinko's. It's only in hard copy so snailmail is the only option. (Unless I get it scanned as a .pdf or something. . . ) Can you email me your address?

Sorry I didn't call you while you were in town. By the time I saw your email, I was exhausted after my zoo trip with my daughter. Maybe next time. . .