hellenism and its influence on christianity

This alternative view of the soul's embodiment within the Platonic tradition is an important corrective to the tendency to make the Platonic view on embodiment stand exclusively for pre-existence. Hellenistic Judaism - Biblical Studies - Oxford Bibliographies - obo (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 2003)Google Scholar. 19 Comm. Each of these native traditions likewise underwent hellenization (modifications based on Greek cultural ideas), but in a manner frequently different from their diasporic counterparts. a portrait of jesus' world. Armstrong, A. H.; London: Cambridge University Press, 1967) 18292Google Scholar. 8 Jean Danilou, Gospel Message and Hellenistic Culture (trans. To accomplish this, the Apologists adopted the philosophical and literary vocabulary of the broader culture to develop a more refined expression of the faith that could appeal to the sophisticated sensibilities of their pagan contemporaries. 3.1.35. Rom. Cant. Because among Greek philosophers there was a growing appreciation for the unity of the divine and for the notion that there may be a single simple divine principle underlying all things. . Insofar as they were making that last point -- that polytheism was philosophically insufficient -- they were saying something similar to what Greek philosophers were saying. In 313 the joint emperors Constantine and Licinius issued the Edict of Milan, a manifesto of toleration, which, among other things, granted Christians full legal rights. ad Greg. Glen Bowersock, Peter Brown and Oleg Grabar; Cambridge, Mass. For Origen, a just and good God would not assign blame to a soul that had not committed sin itself. 2.178; Ep. . One of the reasons used to justify this reading is that Origen says several times in Princ. That became the lingua franca of all of these subject peoples. Hellenistic Christianity is notable for its combination of Greek philosophy, ethics and morality with Christian belief. 35 Princ. 1.10.1; Comm. 1.22(138140) (at Cels. But by this point in Greek philosophy, according to Harold W. Attridge of Yale Divinity School, there was a "growing appreciationfor the notion that there may be a single simple divine principle underlying all things." Christian Gonzalez. 87 It is rarely noted that some Platonists who preceded Origen rejected pre-existence. While many Hellenistic Christians accepted Christ, it was difficult for some to accept the idea of Jesus as intermediary between God and the people. But no Greek philosopher of the second or third century would have thought that that divine principle could somehow have been enfleshed. Other positive statements on the value of philosophy: Hom. Patriots 2023 NFL Draft takeaways: A stud early, but some odd picks on { _ &g&>|{K]T 7)Z*"7pScB`UK A For another extended account of the fall, see the discussion that begins at Cels. The situation of the early church improved further the following year, when the emperor Constantine, prior to a battle against a rival emperor, experienced a vision of the cross in the heavens with the legend In this sign, conquer. Constantines victory led to his eventual conversion to Christianity. A similar position was expressed even earlier in the Origenian scholarship. Rather it is best understood as the study of archaic Mediterranean religions in their Hellenistic phase within both their native and diasporic settings. Yet others insist on the latter interpretation, most notably Simonetti, Manlio, Alcune osservazioni sull interpretazione Origeniana di Genesi 2,7 e 3,21, Aev 36 (1962) 37078Google Scholar; Blosser, Become like the Angels, 17680; Ramelli, Ilaria, Origen, Greek Philosophy, and the Birth of the Trinitarian Meaning of Hypostasis, HTR 105 (2012) 30250CrossRefGoogle Scholar. 2.9.5 (GK 408, 168.12410, 168.28/Butterworth, 133). 1.32 (SC 132 164.3132) he refers by name to Pythagoras, Plato and Empedocles whom he is following when he proposes the pre-existence of Jesus's soul. Nav. 1.pref.5 (GK 92, 13.711/Butterworth, 4). Close this message to accept cookies or find out how to manage your cookie settings. Richard Price; 2 vols. St. Clement of Rome cited the dramatists Sophocles and Euripides. The attitude of the earliest Christians toward paganism and the imperial government was complicated by their close association with Greco-Roman literary and artistic culture: it was difficult to attack the former without seeming to criticize the latter. Much of this activity would have centered in Alexandria, the capital of Egypt, but there was similar activity going on in Palestine, and some of these literary products that survive in some cases only in fragments, were probably written in Palestine, by Jews who were adopting these Hellenistic literary modes. 20.182) (so also Brke, Georg, Des Origenes Lehre vom Urstand des Menschen, ZKT 72 [1950] 3033Google Scholar; Crouzel, Henri, Thologie de l'image de dieu chez Origne [Thologie (Aubier) 34; Paris: Aubier, 1956], 14853Google Scholar; Giulia Sfameni Gasparro, Doppia creazione e peccato di Adamo nel Peri Archon: Fondamenti biblici e presupposti Platonici dell esegesi Origeniana, in Origeniana Secunda: Second Colloque international des tudes origniennes, Bari 2023 septembre 1977 [ed. See the bibliographic essay by Ulrich Berner, Origenes (Ertrge der Forschung 147; Darmstadt, Germany: Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, 1981), for the divisive Bible versus philosophy portrait that has informed so much writing about Origen over the last two hundred years. Christianity was influenced by the historical contexts in which it developed Beginnings of Christianity Christianity developed in Judea in the mid-first century CE, based first on the teachings of Jesus and later on the writings and missionary work of Paul of Tarsus. The first German . *zYH!Q]{M{XX 88 Hom. Butterworth renders this phrase from the beginning of the creation, implying that Christ's soul was created from the very beginning, and was there united to its Creator, long before it became embodied. Hellenic Humanism & Early Christianity | EWTN 2.9.7; 3.3.5). 1 The concept of the Hellenization of Christianity is a subset of the larger issue of the impact of the Greek language and culture on non-Greek lands after the conquests of Alexander the Greatthis earlier phenomenon is often designated Hellenism. For orientation to these concepts (with bibliographies), see Andresen, Carl, Antike und Christentum, TRE 3:5073Google Scholar; Betz, Hans Dieter, Hellenism, ABD 3:12735Google Scholar; Koester, Helmut, History, Culture, and Religion of the Hellenistic Age (Introduction to the New Testament; 2nd ed. Readers ask: How Did Hellenism Influence The Spread Of Christianity? And his conquest, which extended from India. 14.16; Hom. Pauls success at Ephesus provoked a riot to defend the cult of the goddess Artemis. This latter union was the result of a descent, but it was not precipitated by a sinful fall (see Origen against Plato, 8997; the arguments are rehearsed at Origen's Platonism, 3435). 1.pref.2, but esp. 46 See esp. See as well, Pamphilus, Apol. Thanks to Gretchen Reydams-Schils, as well as the graduate students, fellows, and faculty affiliated with the Center, who provided valuable critique. 6.73/GCS 4, 121.2930). Abstract. For that reason many have been unable to comprehend what their opinion should be concerning the question of the soul. 3.1.35. (allusions at 4.40; 6.43; 6.44). Was monotheism a big issue in Justin's debate as well with his pagan audience? 126 0 obj <> endobj Hostname: page-component-75b8448494-m747x ), Religion and Competition in Antiquity, Bruxelles 2014,, 237-284. Hellenistic Christianity is notable for its combination of Greek philosophy, ethics and morality with Christian belief. 24 Princ. 2.9.5 (GK 410, 169.1213) and 2.9.6 (GK 412, 170.14) where accident and chance do not explain how this universe is organized. ), History, Culture, and Religion of the Hellenistic Age, The Oxford Handbook of Early Christian Studies. Some it rejects, others it approves of, the object being that the creature may be guided in accordance with these latter images. Thus, Origen continues, since there are in the nature of reason possibilities of contemplating good and evil, by following out which and contemplating them both we are led to choose good and avoid evil (Princ. And increasingly in the philosophical environment of the second and third centuries belief was becoming widespread that God was a very transcendent kind of being, that is, a being who is very distant from human kind. Cor. Ronald E. Heine; FC 80; Washington, D.C.: Catholic University of America Press, 1989] 14344). 7.6; Comm. 618 the American Journal of Theology In the early stages of the development of their faith, Christians did something rare if not unique in the history of religion: they adopted the entire scriptural canon of what they now saw to be another faith, Judaism, and embraced the Hebrew Scriptures, which they called the Old Testament. Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. For further discussion, see Williams, Michael A., Rethinking Gnosticism: An Argument for Dismantling a Dubious Category (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1996)Google Scholar; King, Karen L., What is Gnosticism? 51.7). This leads to our third observation. There used to be a debate in the literature over whether this council also published, in addition to its condemnation of Origen in the eleventh canon, a series of fifteen anathemas against his controversial teachings, pre-existence included (see esp. To learn more, view ourPrivacy Policy. See Walther Vlker, Das Vollkommenheitsideal des Origenes: eine Untersuchung zur Geschichte der Frmmigkeit und zu den Anfngen christlicher Mystik (Beitrge zur historischen Theologie 7; Tbingen: J. C. B. Mohr, 1931), where he argues for a merely formal influence of philosophy on Origen. To browse Academia.edu and the wider internet faster and more securely, please take a few seconds toupgrade your browser. Die Hellenisierung des Christentums in der Geschichte der Theologie von Luther bis auf die Gegenwart, HellenisierungJudaisierung des Christentums als Deuteprinzipien der Geschichte des kirchlichen Dogmas: Mit ihm und in ihm. We do not know just what is meant by "the link between the Palestinian and hellenistic development of Judaism." You can download the paper by clicking the button above. My field is New Testament studies-in essence the continuation of his interest. Jean Hering, tude sur la doctrine de la chute et de la prexistence des mes chez Clment d'Alexandrie (Bibliothque de lcole des hautes tudes, sciences religieuses 38; Paris: E. Leroux, 1923) 2834. 2.9.3 (GK 406, 166.21167.9/Butterworth, 131). 3:1011 (= Pamphilus, Apol. A Definition of the Title Son of God in the Synoptic Gospels, Why Should an Atheist Have Faith [And This] In Jesus-Christ, NEW TESTAMENT CHRISTOLOGY: A CRITIQUE OF BOUSSETS INFLUENCE, THE RECEPTION OF JOHANNINE LOGOS: AN APPROPRIATION OF JAUSS-GADAMER HERMENEUTICS OF RECEPTION THEORY. Here I look at the way that Paul confronts, adapts, and "Christianizes" Greco-Roman theo-philosophical God-language in order to better communicate the unique reality of the gospel and the Christian God in his theologizing and evangelism into the Hellenistic world. I offer only quick responses. It has been argued, however, that . 2.6.3). Gen. 11.2, Ep. Ancient sacred books were translated or paraphrased into Greeke.g., the 4th3rd-century-bc Babylonian priest Berosus version of Babylonian materials, the 4th3rd-century-bc Egyptian priest Manethos Egyptian accounts, the Jewish Septuagint (Greek version of the Old Testament), or the 1st-century-ad Jewish historian Josephus Antiquities of the Jews, and the ethnic histories of the 1st-century-bc Greek writer Alexander Polyhistor.