Antoaneta Sabau: The Use of Gregory of Nyssa’s De imagine in Eriugena’s Periphyseon

In spite the significant influence that Maximus Confessor exercised on Eriugena’s thought and the fact that he had translated and commented the works of Pseudo-Dionysius, Eriugena’s most extensively and frequently quoted text within his Periphyseon is, rather surprisingly, Gregory of Nyssa’s treatise On the creation of man,or, as Eriugena referred to it,De imagine. This study is an attempt to circumscribe the influence of De imagine upon Eriugena’s thinking, by identifying recurrent themes which seem to expressly call for citations from De imagine, such as, for example, discourses on cosmology. Attention is also given to formal patterns through which these quotations are inserted in the texture of the work in order to consolidate argumentation with respect to certain authorities to which Gregory of Nyssa is juxtaposed or opposed. In some cases, Eriugena balances Gregory against Augustin as his Latin counterpart, at times creating forced oppositions between the two patristic authors. In support for these aspects, the study highlights the relevant textual variations as compared to the very text of the translation Eriugena had made of Gregory of Nyssa’s treatise. A rigorous mapping of Eriugena’s use of the De imagine in the Periphyseon thus provides us with a fuller picture of his perception of Greek patristic authorities.

Joshua Bruce: Schisma Inveteratum: How The Donatists’ Theological Schism Became A Legal Heresy

Much of the scholarship addressing Augustine and coercion has attempted to contextualize and explain the reception of Augustine’s justification of coercion by seeking to identify a change of mind in Augustine or discern his evolving attitude. However, this paper builds upon the recent arguments of Erika Hermanowicz and shows (pace Émilien Lamirande and Peter Brown) that searching for a change of mind or an evolving attitude in Augustine on coercion overlooks the extent to which Donatist juridical precedents and Theodosian anti-heresy legislation (CTh.16.5.21) had already shaped and organized the contours of Augustine’s thought on coercion by the early 390s. It is argued that Augustine’s practical juridical strategy in the 390s and early 400s was not the product of an evolving posture towards coercion of schismatics, but rather reflected Augustine’s argument to imperial authorities that the Donatists were heretics as members of an inveterate schism (schisma inveteratum, c. Cresc. 2.7). Moreover, numerous attempts to explain Augustine’s justifications for imperial coercion of the Donatist Church have focused on how Augustine set the precedent for later rationalizations of coercion against religious dissidents. But this paper looks at Augustine’s own precedents and shows that Augustine’s decision to label the Donatist schismatics as heretics pursuant to imperial anti-heresy legislation followed a juridical precedent established by the Donatists’ own arguments. These findings recontextualize ongoing scholarly discourse on late antique ecclesiastical recourse to imperial power, because they demonstrate that this controversial aspect of Augustine’s thought came from the Donatists themselves.

Martin Wallraff: Prologues to the Gospels: The Origins of a Literary Genre

Among New Testament paratexts, prologues play an important role. In the medieval manuscript tradition, the four gospels feature a particularly rich tradition of significant prologues. This is true for several cultural/linguistic realms. Where and when did this literary genre originate?

Richard A Brumback III: Gregory of Elvira and the Evolution of a Spanish Pro-Nicene

Concerning the fourth-century Spanish bishop Gregory of Elvira, Jerome wrote that he “composed various homilies in ordinary speech and an elegant book on the Faith [De fide orthodoxa]” (De vir. ill.105). The few modern studies on Gregory have emphasized the De fideand his five homilies on the Canticum Canticorum, but the collection of twenty homilies known as the Tractatus Origenis,which constitutes the bulk of his literary output, remains largely unexplored. While Gregory’s reputation rests heavily upon his role as a pro-Nicene defender in the turbulent middle decades of the fourth century and his associated De fide, the Tractatus sheds light upon the bishop’s own Christological development and the theological sources by which he was influenced.This presentation first examines the Tractatus to identify the developing lines of argumentation Gregory employed in his battle for acceptance of the Nicene Creed. The Tractatus serves as an incidental Trinitarian dossier revealing the bishop’s evolving thought that ultimately resulted in his De fide.This examination also permits a more precise dating of the Tractatus homilies using the De fide(360/361) as the terminus ante quem. In addition, these texts shed light upon the Christological variety present in Spain and the West in the decade of the 350s. Finally, this allows us to suggest the theological sources to which the bishop was exposed and which informed his Christology, especially certain polemical works of Tertullian.

Mark Ellison: Through a Glass Matrimonially: A Gold-Glass Medallion’s Participation in Early Christian Discourse on Marriage

A gold-glass medallion int he Ashmolean Museum, together with other material and literary evidence from early Christianity, demonstrates how images and objects owned by ordinary Christians participated in early Christian discourses—in this case, on the religious merit of marriage. From its origins, Christian thought was divided on whether marriage expressed the Creator’s purposes, or was now (anticipating the eschaton) a concession to weakness less meritorious than virginity, or a sin altogether. Opponents of extreme encratism appealed to the biblical creation story to argue for the good of marriage, and described married Christians as fulfillment of the divine blessing spoken to Adam and Eve, “increase and multiply” (Iren. Haer. 1.28.1;Thphl. Ant. Autol. 2.28). By the mid-fourth century, clergy were citing these words in nuptial rites, encouraging newlyweds to see themselves as successors of Adam and Eve, recipients of the same blessing (Ambrosiast. Quaest.127.2-3; P.-Nol. Carm. 25.27). The Ashmolean medallion depicts a married couple at its center amid biblical scenes, one of them Christ with Adam and Eve. Eve’s resemblance to the wife at center strengthens connection between the two pairs. Uniquely, Christ extends his wonder-working staff toward Eve and Adam. This “Fall” scene signals the redemption of not only humanity in general, but also the vessel’s owners—Christ blesses this couple, too. The images claim for the pair a place in salvation history among other recipients of divine favor, and resonate with early Christian texts, rites, and other artifacts that positively associate married Christians with Adam and Eve.

Naïs Virenque: Memorizing time and history. Eusebius' chronography and arboreal frameworks at the end of the Middle Ages

This paper aims to reflect on the place of Eusebius' conception of time and history in the making of chronographic arboreal frameworks between the 12th and the 15th centuries. By studying arboreal universal chronicles, genealogical trees of Christ and trees of Jesse, we will wonder to what extent Eusebius constitutes a model to memorize the succession of events.

Mante Lenkaityte Ostermann: Les échos de l’Eloge du désertd’Eucher de Lyon chez quelques auteurs médiévaux

On a toujours reconnu l’importance des écrits ascétiques de Jean Cassien pour la
spiritualité occidentale. La réception des œuvres ascétiques d’Eucher de Lyon, le
contemporain de Cassien et un des dédicataires de ses « Conférences »,
a été beaucoup moins étudiée. Dans son petit traité composé en 427/428 et intitulé
« Eloge du désert » (De laude eremi), ce moine de Lérins et futur
évêque de Lyon élabore une théologie du désert monastique, en employant une
typologique biblique et en intériorisant la notion du désert à travers les
images allégoriques. On a certes remarqué que l’imagerie d’Eucher fut à l’origine
d’une tradition littéraire liée au cercle de moines lériniens. On n’a toutefois
pas relevé que le texte continuait d’être lu à l’époque postérieure et dans d’autres
contextes. La présente communication s’interrogera ainsi sur les échos de l’« Eloge
du désert » chez quelques contemplatifs et mystiques médiévaux (« Les
coutumes de Chartreuse » de Guiges Ier, la lettre 28 de Pierre Damien, les
sermons allemands de Maître Eckhart) et dans « La vie solitaire » (De
vita solitaria) de Pétrarque.