Download or read book Contextualizing Cassian written by Richard J. Goodrich and published by OUP Oxford. This book was released on 2007-08-02 with total page 320 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Richard J. Goodrich examines the attempt by the fifth-century ascetic writer John Cassian to influence and shape the development of Western monasticism. Goodrich's close analysis of Cassian's earliest work (The Institutes) focuses on his interaction with the values and preconceptions of a traditional Roman elite, as well as his engagement with contemporary writers. By placing The Institutes in context, Goodrich demonstrates just how revolutionary this foundational work was for its time and milieu.