The article presents the historical path of the exegesis of Is 53:8 from the pre-Nicene authors to the fourth-century Trinitarian controversy. It dwells particularly on the epistemological use of the verse in the Trinitarian sphere: it notes the argumentative structure coined around it by Irenaeus of Lyons against Valentinian speculations, and considers its subsequent history of effects on various fronts of the Trinitarian controversy.

The aim of the following research is to investigate the epistolary of Cyprian of Carthage, in order to analyze whether and to what extent the military lexicon used by the African prelate had an «aggregating» value in a delicate period for the Church (252-254), marked by the persecution of Trebonius Gallus and the spread of the plague. We hypothesize a subtle but substantial difference in the regular use of miles Christi between the letters of 250-251 and those after 252 as (...) if leader Cyprian, initially heir to the scriptural tradition (especially Pauline), from Epistle 57 onwards reworks the concept of Christian militancy with a more social purpose, trying to counter, through an unconcealed call to (spiritual) arms, social disintegration with a communicative style typical of a legion commander. (shrink)

In this article, I challenge Shanzer’s treatment of the relationship between Varro’s Disciplinarum libri and Augustine’s early disciplinary project, in which she argued that «squeamishness» with the personifications that supposedly characterized Varro’s disc. caused Augustine to abandon the disciplines. I consequently outline a more plausible view of the development of Augustine’s thought. He did not abandon the disciplines or become «hostile» to them in his later career, as Shanzer and others have concluded. Instead, he reoriented them towards the study of (...) Scripture, while maintaining the importance of a truly liberal education in pursuit of the knowledge of God. (shrink)

The quadripartite hermeneutics of John Cassian, based on the doctrine of Clement of Alexandria and Evagrius Ponticus, had sufficient echo in Greek and Arabic patristic literature, up to the ninth century, to be taken up by a Sufi master open to Christian influences such as Sahl Al-Tustari. Theodore Abu Qurrah, on the Christian side, and Dhū ‘l Nūn al-Misri, on the Muslim side, among others, are examined as possible bridges between the two traditions.

The A. compares the psalmus contra partem Donati, written by Augustin about 394, with the anonymous psalmus responsorius from a papyrus preserved in the Benedictine abbey in Montserrat, near Barcelona, under the shelf mark P.Monts.Roca inv. 128-178, dating maybe to the mid-IV century AD, from which only the strophes from A to L are complete. Particularly, he focuses on four lines before the acrostic strophes, whose reading is very controversial, and whose prosody he presents as different from the common one, (...) restoring it fully to its function of hypopsalma: Páter qui ómnia régis péto / Chrísti nós sciás herédes / Chrístus uérbo nátus pér quem pópulús est líberátus. (shrink)

In this study, metrical clauses are used to analyze the critical reconstruction and rhetorical scheme of Tertullian’s treatise on prayer as a preliminary study to an edition of the work. In the first part, the description and frequency of the clauses of the De oratione is presented, followed by an analysis of some variants of the text from the metrical point of view, and then a study of the clauses in the biblical quotations and in the translation of the paternoster (...) offered by Tertullian. As a culmination of the Paper, the structure of the treatise is analyzed from the distribution of the most frequent metrical clauses. A final appendix contains the clauses of the treatise. (shrink)

In the biblical passage of Is. 56, 3-7 the prophet establishes a profound connection between the eunuch and the stranger, figures traditionally excluded from the community of Israel, but whom God surprisingly welcomes into his people (in accordance with the universalistic perspective of the Trito Isaiah). In the patristic commentary this connection is mostly broken, and we specialize on the figure of the eunuch who, in the light of Jesus’ words on eunuchia (Mt. 19, 10-12), becomes a reference for a (...) new consideration of continence for the Kingdom. As prophesied by Isaiah, he who is not fruitful by nature, or rather by choice, is raised, by a divine gift, to a new generation: he is the dry wood that flowers and bears fruits. (shrink)

St. Augustine initially discovered the Bible through Manichaean eyes, but later engaged in intense anti-Manichaean polemics largely centered on the Old Testament. To shed light on what Augustine learned about the Manichaean approach to the OT during his Manichaean youth, this study gathers and analyzes relevant excerpts from De Genesi aduersus Manichaeos, De moribus ecclesiae catholicae et de moribus Manichaeorum, and Augustine’s testimonies about his Manichaean years in Confessions and De agone christiano. It is shown that Augustine the Manichaean gained (...) extensive knowledge of the Manichaean biblical criticism and was well versed in the Manichaean arguments and polemical strategies. Notwithstanding his own polemical remarks, Augustine was well aware that the Manichaeans did not reject the OT outright and used some vetero-testamentary narratives in their own teaching. The paper also discusses written and oral sources of Augustine’s knowledge of the Manichaean position. (shrink)

The goal of our research is in the first place (I) to delve into the theological characterization of Christianity in relation and contrast to Judaism according to Justin’s testimony. Secondly (II), we will deal with the data that the martyr offers from the historico-sociological point of view about the Christianity and Judaism of his time and the relationship between them, interpreting them and putting them in connection with Justin’s theological characterization previously examined. Finally (III), we will assess the position that (...) Justin adopts towards the Jews and towards his teachers. In this paper, we will develop section I. Sections II and III will be presented in another paper in the next number of this same journal. (shrink)

In this article we approach the question of philosophy and its relation to education in the Christian light of Gregory of Nazianzus. In particular, based on the example of Heron chosen by the Cappadocian Father, we follow the presentation and discussion of the principles, both on theoretical and practical level, which should govern the thought and life of the man who is active in the capacity of a Christian and a philosopher within society. These principles gradually constitute a genuine proposal (...) for a philosophical way of being and education, in the context of which Christianity can make eclectic use of Ancient Greek thought. The predominant thing that is formed is a concrete Christian Ethics directly intertwined with Christian Metaphysics, which is considered to be able to define Anthropology in all its aspects. (shrink)