Demons and the Devil in ancient and medieval Christianity /
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This collection of essays approaches the role of demons and the devil in ancient and medieval Christianity from a variety of scholarly perspectives: historical, philosophical, and theological as well as philological, liturgical, and theoretical. In the opening article Gerd Theissen presents a wide-ranging overview of the role of the devil, spanning the Hebrew Bible, the New Testament, and patristic literature. The contributions that follow address texts on the devil, demons, and evil, and are drawn from ancient philosophy, the New Testament, early Christian apologetics, hagiography, and history. Covering primarily the patristic period, the volume also contains articles on medieval sources. The introduction discusses the different angles of approach found in the articles in an effort to shed fresh light on this familiar but also uniquely troubling theme.
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Based on a conference held Oct. 6-7, 2006 in Heeze, Netherlands. :
1 online resource (xii, 257 pages) :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789004208056 :
0920-623X ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Theoria-Unendlichkeit-Aufstieg : philosophische Implikationen zu "De vita Moysis" von Gregor von Nyssa /
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The relationship between theology and philosophy in Gregory of Nyssa's thought is a subject of great controversy. This study on one of Gregory's key writings does not however focus on the study of the source material, but discusses instead the philosophical implications of Gregory's ideas. Thus it is possible to place Gregory's principles in a broader context while maintaining the differences with philosophy. In the first part of the work, the Prooemium of the De Vita Moysis is examined. Following the classical rhetorical tradition, Gregory here starts off with the central themes of the entire work. The second part is devoted to the concept of theoria . This is explored through discussions of the eternity of God, \'language theory\', human striving towards God, and biblical interpretation. In the last chapter these structures of the notion of theoria are further examined in the light of the theophany in the De Vita Moysis .
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1 online resource (xii, 348 pages) :
Includes bibliographical references (p. 277-317) and indexes. :
9789004313026 :
0920-623X ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Angelomorphic christology : antecedents and early evidence /
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This study demonstrates that angel and angel-related traditions, especially those growing from the so-called "Angel of the Lord" in the Hebrew Bible, had a significant impact on the origins and early development of Christology to the point that an Angelomorphic Christology is discernable in several first century texts. Significant effort is given to tracing the antecedents of this Christology in the angels and divine hypostases of the Hebrew Bible and Second Temple Jewish literature. The primary content of this volume is the presentation of pre-150 CE textual evidence of Angelomorphic Christology. This religio-historical study does not spawn a new Christology among the many scholarly "Christologies" already extant. Instead, it shows the interrelationship of various Christological trajectories and their adaptation from Jewish angelomorphic traditions.
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1 online resource (xvi, 403 pages) :
Includes bibliographical references (p. 352-370) and indexes. :
9789004332447 :
0169-734X ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Encounters with Hellenism : studies on the First letter of Clement /
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This volume deals with the encounter of Early Christianity with Hellenistic culture, particularly with the question of ancient rhetorical influence on the First Letter of Clement. It contains reprints of two classical studies by A. von Harnack and W. Jaeger, which were seminal for the understanding the letter against a Hellenistic background, furthermore it makes an important essay of the Dutch scholar W.C. van Unnik on the literary and rhetorical genre of First Clement ( genos symbouleutikon ) for the first time available in English. The editors also present two new studies: Breytenbach describes the Hellenistic background of Clement's use of metaphorical language and Welborn questions the traditional dating of First Clement on the basis of an analysis of the rhetorical situation.
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1 online resource (viii, 231 pages) :
Includes bibliographical references and indexes. :
9789047401445 :
0169-734X ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Intertextuality in the second century /
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This volume offers an appreciation of the value of intertextuality-from Greek, Roman, Jewish, and biblical traditions-as related to the post-apostolic level of Christian development within the second century. Not least of these foundational pillars is the certain impact of the Second Sophistic movement during this period with its insipient influence on much of early Christian theology's formation. The variety of these strands of inspiration created a tapestry of many diverse elements that came to shape the second-century Christian situation. Here one sees biblical texts at work, Jewish and Greek foundations at play, and interaction among patristic authors as they seek to reconcile their competing perspectives on what it meant to be "Christian" within the contemporary context.
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1 online resource. :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789004318762 :
1542-1295 ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Die Lehre von der Oikonomia Gottes in der Oratio catechetica Gregors von Nyssa /
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This volume deals with Gregory of Nyssa's († 394 C.E.) soteriology as set forth in his handbook for catechetes. In part I-III the aim, method and structure of the Oratio catechetica are examined and the results are compared with Gregory's examples (Origen, Athanasius). Part IV presents the relationship between his theology ( theologia ) and soteriology ( oikonomia ) as well as the interrelated topics of that soteriology, thus describing the concept of oikonomia in the Oratio catechetica . Part V contrasts this concept with earlier works of Gregory and shows the developments of his thought. Part VI compares the teachings of Gregory with those of Methodius and Athanasius. The book is important for all those interested in early Christian thought and literature.
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Originally presented as the author's thesis, Göttingen, 1993. :
1 online resource (x, 339 pages) :
Includes bibliographical references (p. 323-336) and indexes. :
9789004312975 :
0920-623X ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Justin Martyr and the Jews /
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Justin Martyr, a second-century Gentile Christian apologist, was active in the Christian-Jewish propaganda war to convert each other and the pagans. He radicalized the ideas of St. Paul on the divine Election, Abraham, the Pentateuch, and the Gentiles. Justin's background, sources, and thought, and his place in the inter-religious propaganda war, are discussed, as are the irreconcilable views of Jesus and Paul on the Pentateuch and the Gentiles. Justin Martyr and the Jews considers the place of Paul and Justin's teachings in today's Christian-Jewish dialogue about the roots of early Christian Antisemitism, showing that the presuppositions of Paul and Justin must be abandoned if Christians and Jews today are to reach true understanding. As part of the search for such understanding, recent scholarly literature has been concerned with pre- and post-Holocaust inter-religious relations, as well as with the roots of Christian Antisemitism. Some scholars have endeavoured to show that Pauline teachings were misunderstood, and thereby exonerate Paul from the responsibility for Christian persecutions of Jews through the ages. These scholars have also attempted to make Paul a bridge between Christians and Jews in their modern dialogue. The present writer argues that this interpretation of Pauline teaching, followed and even radicalized by Justin, is unfounded.
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1 online resource :
Includes bibliographical references and indexes. :
9789004421424
9789004123106
Knowledge of God in the Graeco-Roman world /
: Papers presented at an international symposium at the University of Utrecht, 1986 on the occasion of the University's 350th anniversary. : 1 online resource (vi, 290 pages) : Includes bibliographical references and indexes. : 9789004296671 : 0531-1950 ; : Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Rezeption und Wirkung des Dekalogs in jüdischen und christlichen Schriften bis 200 n.Chr. /
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J. Cornelis de Vos examines the impact and reception of the Decalogue up to 200 CE, scrutinizing the versions of the Decalogue, and the history of the Decalogue in ancient Jewish writings, the New Testament, and early Christian writings. Almost all texts show an interconnection of identity and normativity: the Decalogue functions as an expression of fundamental moral concepts of socio-religious groups. At the same time, these groups enhance the Decalogue with normativity-sometimes even expanding on it-to make it a text that generates their own identity. This is the first study that presents an in-depth and continuous analysis of the early history of the Decalogue. Der Wirkung und Rezeption des Dekalogs bis 200 n.Chr. widmet sich J. Cornelis de Vos in dieser Studie. Dafür erforscht er zunächst die alten Textzeugen der beiden Dekalogfassungen, um anschließend zu fragen, wie die Zehn Gebote bei antik-jüdischen Autoren, im Neuen Testament sowie in frühchristlichen Schriften aufgenommen wurden. Es zeigt sich eine Verbindung von Normativität und Identität: Der Dekalog gilt zumeist als Ausdruck der moralischen Grundauffassungen sozioreligiöser Gruppen; er wird gleichzeitig von diesen Gruppen mit Normativität aufgeladen - manchmal sogar erweitert - gerade um als Identität stiftend für die eigene Gruppe zu gelten. Dies ist die erste Studie, die eine detaillierte und durchgehende Geschichte des Dekalogs in der Antike beschreibt.
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1 online resource. :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789004324398 :
1871-6636 ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Origen : philosophy of history and eschatology /
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A common accusation made against Origen is that he dissolves history into intellectual abstraction and that his eschatology (if this is recognized at all) is notoriously obscure. In this new work, the author draws on an impressive range of bibliography to consider Origen's Philosophy of History and Eschatology in the widest context of facts, documents and streams of thought, including Classical and Late Antiquity Greek Philosophy, Gnosticism, Hebraism and Patristic Thought, both before Origen and well after his death. Against claims that he causes history to evaporate into barren idealism, his thought is shown to be firmly grounded on his particular vision of historical occurences. Confronting assertions that Origen has no eschatological ideas, his eschatology is shown rather to have made a distinctive mark throughout his works, both explicitly and tacitly. In Origen's view, history was the foundation of scriptural interpretation, a teleological process determined by factors and functions such as providence - prophecy - promise - expectation - realization - anticipation - faith - anticipation - hope - awaiting for - fulfilment - end . Since 1986, the author has argued for the unpopular thesis that Origen is, in many respects, an anti-Platonist. Nevertheless, the author casts light upon the Aristotelian rationale of Origen's doctrine of apokatastasis , arguing that its validity is bolstered by ontological rather than historical premises. The extent of Origen's influence upon what is currently regarded as 'orthodoxy' turns out to be far wider and more profound than has hitherto been acknowledged.
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1 online resource (xvii, 498 pages) :
Includes bibliographical references (p. 439-460) and indexes. :
9789047428695 :
0920-623X ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Philo and the church fathers : a collection of papers /
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The extensive writings of the Jewish philosopher and exegete Philo of Alexandria (15 BCE to 50 CE) were preserved through the efforts of early Christians, who decided that these works could assist them in developing their own distinctive kind of thought. The present collection of papers, written from 1989 to 1994, is published as a companion volume to the author's monograph Philo in Early Christian Literature: A Survey (1993). The papers deal with various aspects of the process of reception that Philo received at the hands of the Church Fathers. Authors who are given particular attention are Athenagoras, Clement, Origen, Basil, Gregory of Nyssa, Isidore of Pelusium and Augustine. The papers also include a hitherto unpublished English translation of the author's inaugural lecture held at Utrecht in April 1992.
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1 online resource (xii, 275 pages) :
Includes bibliographical references (p. 230-239) and indexes. :
9789004312999 :
0920-623X ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
The Didache in modern research /
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This volume makes available a collection of the most important and influential modern articles on the Didache or Teaching of the Twelve Apostles , many of them appearing in English for the first time. Leading Jewish and Christian scholars in the field represented in the volume include G. Alon, J-P. Audet, E. Bammel, J. Betz, J.A. Draper, D. Flusser, A. de Halleux, E. Mazza, K. Niederwimmer, W. Rordorf, G. Schöllgen, H.R. Seeliger and C.M. Tuckett. Essays included provide a representative sample of most aspects of study of this first-century Christian writing, documenting an increasing scholarly interest in its importance for the understanding of Christian origins. The editor provides an extensive review of scholarship on the Didache in the past fifty years, outlining its major trends and implications.
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1 online resource (xviii, 445 pages) :
Includes bibliographical references (p. 383-412) and indexes. :
9789004332492 :
0169-734X ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
The apostolic age in patristic thought /
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This volume deals with how Christians of the first centuries looked back on the period of the nascent Church. Thanks to the incomparable stature of its founder, Jesus Christ, who had descended from heaven and commissioned his Apostles, this period was authorative for all Christians in matters of doctrine, institutions, rites and morality, a new phenomenon in the Graeco-Roman world. Its implications are explored in sixteen essays dealing with various subjects such as liturgy, the canon of Scriptures, the role of miracles, art, monasticism, and ministry. All contributions, taking into account both the views of individual Church fathers and Gnostic and Manichaean texts, make a large amount of primary material available.
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1 online resource (xi, 257 pages) : illustrations. :
Includes bibliographical references and indexes. :
9789047404293 :
0920-623X ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Apelles und Hermogenes : zwei theologische Lehrer des zweiten Jahrhunderts /
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This volume deals with the intellectual and social context of two Christian teachers living in the second half of the second century. It presents a coherent reconstruction and interpretation of their teaching, often considered to be marginal within the development of early Christian doctrine. The first part of the book seeks to understand the Marcionite Apelles as a cultured person, who shaped his understanding of Christian doctrine in the context of the philosophical background and in permanent discussion with other Christian schools. In this respect Apelles coincides with the Christian Platonist Hermogenes. His opinions are described in the second part of the book. The author points out that teachers like Apelles and Hermogenes had to answer the questions of the educated in order to defend and to define their understanding of Christian faith.
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1 online resource (xii, 350 pages) :
Includes bibliographical references (p. 299-324) and index. :
9789004313149 :
0920-623X ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Martha from the margins : the authority of Martha in early Christian tradition /
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In the popular imagination Martha has become synonymous with the harried housewife, fretting over excessive preparations. The Martha known to early Christians is far removed from this stereotype. Martha was better known for her role in the story of the raising of Lazarus and as apostle and witness of the resurrection. This book gathers and assesses the early traditions about Martha in text, liturgy and iconography. It shows that the significance of Martha has been seriously underestimated and recovers an important and widespread tradition of Martha as apostle and authority figure for early Christians. The analysis of Martha traditions with attention to issues of gender and authority render this book an important contribution to studies on women in early Christianity.
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1 online resource (xix, 369 pages) : illustrations. :
Includes bibliographical references (p. 307-340) and indexes. :
9789004186873 :
0920-623X ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Fate, Providence and Free Will: Philosophy and Religion in Dialogue in the Early Imperial Age. /
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This volume, edited by René Brouwer and Emmanuele Vimercati, deals with the debate about fate, providence and free will in the early Imperial age. This debate is rekindled in the 1st century CE during emperor Augustus' rule and ends in the 3rd century CE with Plotinus and Origen, when the different positions in the debate were more or less fully developed. The book aims to show how in this period the notions of fate, providence and freedom were developed and debated, not only within and between the main philosophical schools, that is Stoicism, Aristotelianism, and Platonism, but also in the interaction with other, "religious" movements, here understood in the general sense of groups of people sharing beliefs in and worship of (a) superhuman controlling power(s), such as Gnosticism, Hermetism as well as Judaism and Christianity.
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Includes index. :
1 online resource. :
9789004436381
9789004435667
Early Christian ethics in interaction with Jewish and Greco-Roman contexts /
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Early Christian Ethics in Interaction with Jewish and Greco-Roman Contexts focuses upon the nexus of early Christian Ethics and its contexts as a dynamic process. The ongoing interaction with Jewish, Greco-Roman or early Christian traditions as well as with the social-historical context at large continuously transformed early Christian ethics. The volume proposes a dynamic model for studying culture and its various expressions in a society composed of several ethnic and religious groups. The contributions focus on specific transformations of ethics in key documents of early Christianity, or take a more comparative perspective pointing to similar developments and overlaps as well as particularities within early Christian writings, Hellenistic-Jewish writings, Dead Sea Scrolls and Jewish inscriptions.
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1 online resource (ix, 305 pages) :
Includes bibliographical references and indexes. :
9789004242159 :
1566-208X ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
The Didache in context : essays on its text, history, and transmission /
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The Didache in Context contains an intriguing look into the background of the Didache, exploring the influence of the text upon the development of early Christianity. It offers an insightful collection of essays that have been gathered from the research efforts of numerous biblical and patristic scholars from around the world. The book seeks to explore questions that relate to the composition of the text itself, the history of the role and function of the Didache within early Christian circles, and the influence of the manuscript upon early Christian traditions and trends of thought. In addition to the numerous, individual investigations that are featured here, the collection includes a fresh translation of the text in English and a comprehensive, up-to-date bibliography of literature on the Didache.
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English, French, German, and Greek; includes English translation of the Didache. :
1 online resource (xviii, 420 pages, 2 pages of plates) :
Includes bibliographical references (p. [368]-399) and indexes. :
9789004267237 :
0167-9732 ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Calendar, chronology, and worship : studies in ancient Judaism and early Christianity /
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This book takes as its theme the related issues of calendar, chronology and worship, as they were conceived and practised in ancient Jewish and early Christian times. After a general discussion of the way the three issues are related, there follow six chapters on the calendar, first the standard Jewish calendar, then the Qumran calendar (giving particular attention to the Book of Enoch and the Temple Scroll) and finally the Christian calendar - both the standard Christian calendar and that observed by the Montanists. Three chapters on chronology come next, one of them offering a chronological solution to a puzzling calendrical problem in the Dead Sea Scrolls, another relating Jewish eschatological expectations to New Testament teaching, and a third examining the chronological calculations of the Hellenistic Jew Demetrius, the Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs, and the Book of Jubilees. The three concluding chapters, on worship, include an investigation of the historical development of the Psalter and a careful survey of the relationship between ancient Jewish worship and early Christian. The book discusses a variety of issues that arise in modern biblical, intertestamental and patristic study, some neglected, some very controversial, and throws new light upon them.
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1 online resource (viii, 255 pages) :
Includes bibliographical references and indexes. :
9789047415473 :
0169-734X ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Women and knowledge in early Christianity /
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Women and knowledge are interconnected in several ways in late ancient and early Christian discourses, not least because wisdom (Sophia) and spiritual knowledge (Gnosis) were frequently personified as female entities. Ancient texts deal with idealized women and use feminine imagery to describe the divine but they also debate women's access to and capacity of gaining knowledge. Combining rhetorical analysis with social historical approaches, the contributions in this book cover a wide array of source materials, drawing special attention to the so-called Gnostic texts. The fourteen essays, written by prominent experts of ancient Christianity, are dedicated to Professor Antti Marjanen (University of Helsinki).
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1 online resource (x, 379 pages) :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789004344938 :
0920-623X ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.