Chibugo Lebechi: ATHANASIUS’ CONCEPT OF THE SCOPE OF SCRIPTURE VS THE CHRISTIAN MESSAGE AS RATIONAL: CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF DECRETIS NICAENAE SYNODI 12.3

Critical reading of some of Athanasius’ theological argumentation sometimes brings under question the concept of Christian message as rational. This is true for instance with his proposition in De Decretis 12.3. Inter alia. Here, he states, “it is unseemly and most irreligious … to form ideas concerning our Lord from others which are neither in the Scripture, nor have any religious bearing” (ἔστινἄτοπονκαὶλίανἀσεβὲς…ἐξἄλλωνἡμᾶςπερὶτοῦκυρίουδιανοεῖσθαιτῶνμήτεγεγραμμένωνμήτετινὰδιάνοιανεἰςεὐσέβειανἐχόντων). This seems to negate the application of extra-biblical and religious concepts into the argument on the nature of the Son and his relationship with the Father.Ernest (2004) gives insight into how Athanasius applied his ‘tripartite rule’ in the explanation of Prov. 8:22 in De Decretis 13-14. Ayres (2004) makes a substantial contribution to the understanding of Athanasius’ position in De Decretis, though with a main focus on Athanasius’ defense of the term, ‘homoousios.’ This paper contends that Athanasius’ presentation in De Decretis 12.3, suggests that his theological standpoint is solely scriptural and excludes the use of reason from the framework of theological discourse. It examines Athanasius’ argument in De Decretis 12.3 and seeks to assess the logical coherence regarding his insistence on the scope of scripture vis à vis the employment of rational thinking in theological argumentation.Conclusion will contain some propositions for determining Athanasius’ perspective in the text, how his aversion to the use of terms outside the scripture can be situated within the complex of his argument in De Decretis.