Saints in Disguise

This book studies early Byzantine hagiographic Lives of saints who disguise their identities (4th-10th cent.), including female saints who live as men in male monasteries, 'holy fools' who pretend madness to hide their sanctity, and 'beggar-saints' who keep their true identities hidden from their family while they live in or near their parental home. Focusing on the element these saints have in co...