Reasons for variant forms of proper names in the Hebrew Bible / Λόγοι για την ποικιλομορφία των κύριων ονομάτων στην Εβραϊκή Βίβλο

* Jože Krašovec *,
The transformation of Biblical proper names
[Η μεταμόρφωση των Βιβλικών κύριων ονομάτων],
Continuum International Publishing Group, 2010,
p./σ. 118.

Werner Jaeger / Βέρνερ Γαίγκερ:The Bible as a point of departure for the Christian philosophical speculation /Η Βίβλος ως αφετηρία της χριστιανικής φιλοσοφικής εικοτολογίας

Rembrandt,
Philosopher in meditation (1632)

Early Christianity and Greek Paideia (1961), p. 47.

Πρωτοχριστιανικοί χρόνοι και ελληνική παιδεία (1966), σ. 53.

The record of the Church towards the Jews: A long prelude to the Holocaust /Το υπόμνημα της Εκκλησίας έναντι των Εβραίων: Ένα μακρύ πρελούδιο προς το Ολοκαύτωμα

Hitler Youth cross /
Σταυρός της χιτλερικής νεολαίας

p./σ. 203

Canonical Law	Nazi Measure
Prohibition of intermarriage and of sexual intercourse between Christians and Jews, Synod of Elvira, A.D. 306.	Law for the Protection of German Blood and Honor, September 15, 1935 (RGB1 I, 1146).
Jews and Christians not permitted to eat together, Synod of Elvira, 306.	Jews barred from dining cars (Transport Minister to Interior Minister, December 30, 1939, Document NG-3995).
Jews not allowed to hold public office, Synod of Clermont, 535.	Law for the Reestablishment of the Professional Civil Service, April 7, 1933 (RGB1 I, 175).
Jews not allowed to employ Christian servants or possess Christian slaves, third Synod of Orleans, 538.	Law for the Protection of German Blood and Honor, September 15, 1935 (RGB1 I, 1146).
Jews not permitted to show themselves in the streets during Passion Week, third Synod of Orleans, 538.	Decree authorizing local authorities to bar Jews from the streets on certain days (i.e., Nazi holidays), December 3, 1933 (RGB1 I, 1676).
Burning of the Talmud and other books, 12th Synod of Toledo, 681.	Book burnings in Nazi Germany.
Christians not permitted to patronize Jewish doctors, Trulanic Synod, 692.	Decree of July 25, 1938 (RGB1, I, 969).
Christians not permitted to live in Jewish homes, Synod of Narbonne, 1050.	Directive by Göring providing for concen­tration of Jews in houses, December 28, 1938 (Bormann to Rosenberg, January 17, 1939, PS-69).
Jews obliged to pay taxes for support of church to the same extent as Christians, Synod of Gerona, 1078.	The “Sozialausgleichsabgabe” which pro­vided that Jews pay a special income tax in lieu of donations for Party purposes im­posed on Nazis, December 24, 1940 (RGB1 I, 1666).
Prohibition of Sunday work, Synod of Szabolcs, 1092.	N/A.
Jews not permitted to be plaintiffs, or witnesses against Christians in the courts, 3rd Lateran Council, 1179, Canon 26.	Proposal by the Party Chancellery that Jews not be permitted to institute civil suits, September 9, 1942 (Bormann to Justice Ministry, September 9, 1942, (NG-151).
Jews not permitted to withhold inheritance from descendants who accepted Christian­ity, 3rd Lateran Council, 1179, Canon 26.	Decree empowering the Justice Ministry to void wills offending the “sound judgment of the people,” July 31, 1938 (RGB1 I, 547).
The marking of Jewish clothes with a badge, 4th Lateran Council, 1215, Canon 68. (Copied from the legislation by Caliph Omar II [634-44], who had decreed that Christians wear blue belts and Jews, yellow belts.)	Decree of September 1, 1941 (RGB1 I, 547).
Construction of new synagogues prohib­ited, Council of Oxford, 1222.	Destruction of synagogues in entire Reich, November 10, 1938 (Heydrich to Göring, November 11, 1938, PS-3058).
Christians not permitted to attend Jewish ceremonies, Synod of Vienna, 1267.	Friendly relations with Jews prohibited, October 24, 1941 (Gestapo directive, L-15).
Jews not permitted to dispute with simple Christian people about the tenets of the Catholic religion, Synod of Vienna, 1267.	N/A.
Compulsory ghettoes, Synod of Breslau, 1267.	Order by Heydrich, September 21, 1939 (PS-3363).
Christians not permitted to sell or rent real estate to Jews, Synod of Ofen, 1279.	Decree providing for compulsory sale of Jewish real estate, December 3, 1938 (RGB1 I, 1709).
Adoption by a Christian of the Jewish religion or return by a baptized Jew to the Jewish religion defined as a heresy, Synod of Mainz, 1310.	Adoption by a Christian of the Jewish religion places him in jeopardy of being treated as a Jew. Decision by Oberlandes­gericht Königsberg, 4th Zivilsenat, June 26, 1942 (Die Judenfrage [Vertrauliche Beilage], November 1, 1942, pp. 82-83).
Sale or transfer of church articles to Jews prohibited, Synod of Lavour, 1368.	N/A.
Jews not permitted to act as agents in the conclusion of contracts between Christians, especially marriage contracts, Council of Basel, 1434, Sessio XIX.	Decree of July 6, 1938, providing for liquidation of Jewish real estate agencies, brokerage agencies, and marriage agencies catering to non-Jews (RGB1 I, 823).
Jews not permitted to obtain academic degrees, Council of Basel, 1434, Sessio XIX.	Law against Overcrowding of German Schools and Universities, April 25, 1933 (RGB1 I, 225).

* William Nicholls,
Christian Antisemitism, A History of Hate
[Χριστιανικός Αντισημιτισμός: Μια Ιστορία Μίσους],
Northvale, NJ: publ. J. Aronson, 1993,
pp./σσ. 204-206.

Raymond Brown: When Jesus was called "god" / Πότε αποκλήθηκε «θεός» ο Ιησούς

* Raymond Edward Brown,
An Introduction to New Testament Christology,
Paulist Press, 1994,
pp./σσ. 192, 193.

Also: / Επίσης:

Raymond Brown,

“Does the New Testament Call Jesus ‘God’?”
«Αποκαλεί η Καινή Διαθήκη τον Ιησού “Θεό”;»

Theological Studies 26 (1965): 545–573.

[English/Αγγλικά, PDF]

John Milton's verse rendition of Psalm 8 /Η κατά στίχο απόδοση του 8ου Ψαλμού από τον Τζον Μίλτον

PSAL. VIII.

[Aug. 14. 1653.]

O Jehovah, our Lord, how wondrous great
And glorious is thy name through all the earth!
So as above the Heavens thy praise to set
Out of the tender mouths of latest bearth,

Out of the mouths of babes and sucklings thou [ 5 ]
Hast founded strength because of all thy foes,
To stint th' enemy, and slack th' avengers brow
That bends his rage thy providence to oppose.

When I behold thy Heavens, thy Fingers art,
The Moon and Starrs which thou so bright hast set [ 10 ]
In the pure firmament, then saith my heart,
O what is man that thou remembrest yet,

And think'st upon him? or of man begot
That him thou visit'st and of him art found?
Scarce to be less then Gods, thou mad'st his lot, [ 15 ]
With honour and with state thou hast him crown'd.

O'er the works of thy hand thou mad'st him Lord,
Thou hast put all under his lordly feet,
All Flocks, and Herds, by thy commanding word,
All beasts that in the field or forrest meet; [ 20 ]

Fowl of the Heavens, and Fish that through the wet
Sea-paths in shoals do slide. And know no dearth.
O Jehovah our Lord how wondrous great
And glorious is thy name through all the earth.

* John Milton / Τζον Μίλτον,
Psalms / Ψαλμοί.
New York: Solomon King Publ., 1831,
p./σ. 106. *
[English/Αγγλικά, PDF]

The religious identities of the Greek population /Οι θρησκευτικές ταυτότητες του ελληνικού πληθυσμού

Official statistics for the religious groups in the country today are not available because the Statistical Service of Greece has not been including the declaration of religious affiliation in the census since 1951. There are, however, estimates but these are also constantly changing because of migration flows into the country over the last twenty years. From 1950 to 1990 the nominally Orthodox in Greece were estimated at over 95% of the total population. Although between 1950 and 1974 more than a million Greeks emigrated abroad, most of them Orthodox, many of them returned after 1980 and from 1985 many Greeks came from the countries of the Soviet Union, mainly from the area of ‘Pontos’ (the Black Sea).

With the collapse of the socialist bloc a sudden and massive wave of immigration started mainly from Albania but also from Bulgaria, Romania and Poland. This influx of immigration affected the religious composition of the country as most of the immigrants were non-Orthodox. In addition to the immigrants from ex-socialist countries there have been Muslim inflows from the Middle East and from North Africa.

Muslims constitute by far the largest non-Orthodox religious group in the country but of these only around 100,000 (those who live in the Western Thrace), are recognized officially as a religious minority. Their rights have been clearly established by the Treaty of Lausanne (1923), and they are all Greek citizens. Ethnically 50% of them are of Turkish origin, 35% are Pomaks (Slavic speaking) and 15% are Roma (http://www.mfa.gr/foreign/musminen.htm). The rest of the Muslims (over 500,000) came recently as immigrants from Albania, the Middle East, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Africa. These are not Greek citizens and many of them are not regularized as they have not acquired yet a residence and work permit. The majority of them live in Attica and other big cities and some live in the rural areas. Most of them are practicing but they do not have mosques.

The second major non-Orthodox group in the country is the Catholic minority. Again about 50,000 are ethnic Greeks and Greek citizens and live mainly in Athens and in the islands of Syros and Tinos. To these must be added about 5,000 Catholics of the Eastern right (Uniates). In additions there are of 100,000 Catholics, immigrants who came from the Philippines, Poland and other countries.

The third religious minority in Greece are the Jehovah’s Witnesses. They are ethnic Greeks and Greek citizens and recognized as minority. The fourth group is the Protestant Churches consisting of various denominations amounting to around 30,000 members. The fifth group is the Jews, around 5000, also Greek citizens. Finally there is an assortment of small groups such as: the Baha’i Faith, the Adventists; the Unification Church, Scientology, Followers of the Greek Pantheon, etc. None of these groups exceeds 1,000 members and they are Greek citizens.

A major Orthodox group (over 500,000), which is not considered a minority, is that of the Old Calendarists. These have separated from the Church of Greece from 1923 when the country and the Church adopted the new Gregorian calendar.

The official organization and recognition of all religions in Greece falls within two major categories: Legal Persons of Public Law and Legal Persons of Private Law. In the first category belong: the Orthodox Church of Greece; the Jewish community, and the Muslim Community of Thrace. In the second category belong all the other groups mentioned above as long as they have an officially recognized place of worship by the Ministry of Education and Religions. Another categorization is ‘known religions’ (Greek Constitution, Article 13, 2) and ‘other religions’. ‘Known religions’ are: the Orthodox Church, the Old Calendarists, the Catholic Church, Islam, Judaism, the Protestant Churches, the Jehovah’s Witnesses, and the Adventists. ‘Other religions’ applies to any other religion. For ‘other religions’ to become known they must be granted a license for a place of worship by the Ministry of Education and Religions after consultation with the local bishop of the Orthodox Church in whose diocese the official place of worship is going to operate.

Nikos Kokosalakis & Effie Fokas,
"Greece: Overview of the National Situation",
in
Anders Bäckström (Coordinator),
Welfare and Values in Europe: Transitions related to Religion, Minorities and Gender (National Overviews and Case Study Reports)
Volume 2, Continental Europe: Germany, France, Italy, Greece,
Faculty of Theology at Uppsala University, 2012.
[English/Αγγλικά, PDF]

Η καυλοτόμηση ως ποινή για παιδόφιλους & ομοφυλόφιλους ιερείς στο θεοκρατικό Βυζάντιο επί Ιουστινιανού / Genital mutilation as punishment for the pedophile & homosexual priests at the theocratic Byzantium during Justinian

Ἐν αὐτῷ δὲ τῷ χρόνῳ διεβλήθησάν τινες τῶν ἐπισκόπων ἀπὸ διαφόρων ἐπαρχιῶν ὡς κακῶς βιοῦντες περὶ τὰ σωματικὰ καὶ ἀρσενοκοιτοῦντες. ἐν οἷς ἦν Ἠσαΐας ὁ τῆς Ῥόδου ὁ ἀπὸ νυκτεπάρχων Κωνσταντινουπόλεως, ὁμοίως δὲ καὶ ὁ ἀπὸ Διὸς πόλεως τῆς Θρᾴκης, ὀνόματι Ἀλέξανδρος. οἵτινες κατὰ θείαν πρόσταξιν ἠνέχθησαν ἐν Κωνσταντινουπόλει, καὶ ἐξετασθέντες καθῃρέθησαν ὑπὸ Βίκτωρος ἐπάρχου πόλεως, ὅστις ἐτιμωρήσατο αὐτούς, καὶ τὸν μὲν Ἠσαΐαν πικρῶς βασανίσας ἐξώρισεν, τὸν δὲ Ἀλέξανδρον καυλοτομήσας ἐπόμπευσεν εἰς κραβαταρίαν· καὶ εὐθέως προσέταξεν ὁ αὐτὸς βασιλεὺς [Ἰουστινιανὸς] τοὺς ἐν παιδεραστίαις εὑρισκομένους καυλοτομεῖσθαι. καὶ συνεσχέθησαν ἐν αὐτῷ τῷ καιρῷ πολλοὶ ἀνδροκοῖται, καὶ καυλοτομηθέντες ἀπέθανον. καὶ ἐγένετο ἔκτοτε φόβος κατὰ τῶν νοσούντων τὴν τῶν ἀρρένων ἐπιθυμίαν.

* Ιωάννης Μαλάλας / Johannes Malalas,
Χρονογραφία / Chronographia 18:18
I. Thurn, Ioannis Malalae Chronographia
[Corpus Fontium Historiae Byzantinae. Series Berolinensis 35.
Berlin - New York: De Gruyter, 2000]

 - o - o - o - o - o - o - o - o - o - o - o - o - o - o - o - o - o -

Γέγονε δὲ καὶ διαστροφὴ περὶ τοῦ πάσχα, καὶ ὁ μὲν πλεῖστος λαὸς ἐποίησε τὴν ἀπόκρεων πρὸ τοῦ βασιλέως. ὁ δὲ βασιλεὺς προσέταξεν ἑτέραν ἑβδομάδα πραθῆναι κρέα, καὶ πάντες οἱ κρεοπῶλαι σφάξαντες, οὐδεὶς ἠγόραζεν· οὐδὲ γὰρ ἤσθιον. τὸ δὲ πάσχα γέγονεν, ὡς ὁ βασιλεὺς ἐκέλευσεν, καὶ εὑρέθη νηστεύων ὁ λαὸς ἑβδομάδα περισσοτέραν. Καὶ διεβλήθησαν τότε τινὲς ὡς ἀρρενοφθόροι. ὁ δὲ βασιλεὺς διάταξιν ἐξεφώνησεν ἔχουσαν οὕτως· πάντας τοὺς εὑρισκομένους τοὺς μὲν καυλοτομεῖσθαι, τῶν δὲ καλάμους ὀξεῖς ἐμβάλλεσθαι εἰς τοὺς πόρους τῶν αἰδοίων αὐτῶν, καὶ οὕτω κατὰ τὴν ἀγορὰν γυμνοὺς θριαμβεύεσθαι. διὸ καὶ πολλοὶ τῶν μεγιστάνων εὑρέθησαν, τῶν δὲ ἀρχιερέων οὐκ ὀλίγοι, καὶ οὕτω περιαγόμενοι οἰκτρῶς ἐτελεύτησαν. καὶ γενομένου φόβου μεγάλου οἱ λοιποὶ ἐσωφρονίσθησαν. καὶ μάλα εἰκότως· ὀλολυζέτω, γάρ φησιν, πίτυς ὅτι πέπτωκε κέδρος, τοῦτ’ ἔστι τῶν ἰσχυρῶν καὶ μεγάλων πιπτόντων τὰ ἀσθενέστερα παιδευέσθωσαν. οὕτω γε μὴν καὶ ὁ σοφὸς λέγει· τῶν ἀσεβῶν πιπτόντων δίκαιοι κατάφοβοι γίνονται. καί· λοιμοῦ μαστιγουμένου ἄφρων πανουργότερος γίνεται.

Ἡ τοίνυν μυσαρωτάτη καὶ λυσσώδης αὕτη καὶ παρὰ φύσιν ἁμαρτία πρώην ὑπὸ Σοδόμων διαπραττομένη καὶ ὥσπερ τις φωνὴ ἀνερχομένη καὶ βοῶσα τὸ μέγεθος τῆς ἀσεβείας εἰς τὰ ὦτα κυρίου Σαβαώθ, ἔφασκεν ὁ πολλὰ πρῶτον μακροθυμήσας καὶ ὕστερον διὰ τὸ ἀμετανόητον αὐτῶν καὶ ἀνεπίστροφον τῆς ἀδιακρίτου καὶ ἀκολάστου γνώμης ἐπάξας μάλα δικαίως τὴν τιμωρίαν· κραυγὴ Σοδόμων καὶ Γομόρρας πεπλήθυνται πρός με, καὶ αἱ ἁμαρτίαι αὐτῶν μεγάλαι σφόδρα. καὶ ἐπάγει λέγουσα ἡ γραφή· καὶ ἔβρεξε κύριος πῦρ, καὶ θεῖον παρὰ κυρίου ἐπὶ Σόδομα καὶ Γόμορρα, καὶ κατέστρεψε τὰς πόλεις ταύτας καὶ πᾶσαν τὴν περίοικον καὶ πάντας τοὺς κατοικοῦντας ἐν ταῖς πόλεσιν. εἰ δέ τις τῶν μὴ τὴν γῆν ἐκείνην ἑωρακότων ἀπιστοίη μὴ οὕτως ἔχειν, ἀκουέτω τῆς θείας γραφῆς διηγουμένης καὶ λεγούσης· αὕτη δίκαιον ἐξαπολλυμένων ἀσεβῶν ἐρρύσατο φυγόντα καταβάσιον πῦρ Πενταπόλεως· ἧς ἔτι μαρτύριον τῆς πονηρίας καπνιζομένη καθέστηκε χέρσος καὶ ἀτελέσιν ὥραις καρποφοροῦντα φυτά. ὡσαύτως γε καὶ Ἰούδα Ἰακώβου φάσκοντος· ὡς Σόδομα καὶ Γόμορρα καὶ αἱ περὶ αὐτὰς πόλεις τὸν ὅμοιον τούτοις τρόπον ἐκπορνεύσασαι καὶ ἀπελθοῦσαι ὀπίσω σαρκὸς ἑτέρας πρόκεινται δεῖγμα πυρὸς αἰωνίου δίκην ὑπέχουσαι. Λέγει δὲ καὶ ὁ θεῖος Χρυσόστομος· ἀπιστεῖ τις τῇ γεέννῃ; τὰ Σόδομα διαλογιζέσθω, τὰ Γόμορρα ἐννοείτω, τὴν γεγενημένην τιμωρίαν καὶ ἔτι μένουσαν καὶ τοῦ διαιωνίζειν τὴν κόλασιν ἐναργὲς τεκμήριον παριστῶσαν. καὶ γὰρ οὐ μόνον ἡ γῆ, ἀλλὰ καὶ αὐτὸς ὁ ἀὴρ καὶ τὰ ὕδατα μετέσχε τῆς συμφορᾶς. καὶ καθάπερ σώματος ἐμπρησθέντος τὸ μὲν σχῆμα μένει καὶ ὁ τύπος ἐν τῇ τοῦ πυρὸς ὄψει καὶ ὁ ὄγκος καὶ ἡ ἀναλογία, ἡ δὲ δύναμις οὐκέτι, οὕτω δὴ κἀκεῖσε γῆν ἔστιν ἰδεῖν, ἀλλ’ οὐδὲν ἔχουσαν γῆς, ἀλλὰ πάντα τέφρα, πάντα σποδός· δένδρα καὶ καρπούς, ἀλλ’ οὐδὲν δένδρων οὐδὲ καρπῶν· ἀέρα καὶ ὕδωρ, ἀλλ’ οὐδὲν ὕδατος οὐδὲ ἀέρος, ἐπειδὴ καὶ ταῦτα τετέφρωνται. τοιγαροῦν οὐδὲν ἕτερον ἢ κάμινός ἐστιν ὁ ἀήρ, κάμινος τὸ ὕδωρ, πάντα ἄκαρπα, πάντα ἄγονα, πάντα πρὸς τιμωρίαν τῆς προλαβούσης ὀργῆς καὶ εἰκόνες τῆς μελλούσης κολάσεως. ἐννόησον τοίνυν ἡλίκον ἐστὶ τὸ ἁμάρτημα ὡς βιάσασθαι πρὸ καιροῦ τὴν γέενναν φανῆναι. καὶ γὰρ παράδοξος ἦν ὁ ὑετὸς ἐκεῖνος, ἐπειδὴ καὶ παρὰ φύσιν καὶ παράνομος ἡ μίξις, καὶ κατέκλυσε τὴν γῆν, ἐπειδὴ καὶ τὰς ἐκείνων ψυχὰς ἡ χαλεπὴ καὶ ἐπάρατος ἐπιθυμία. ἀλλ’ ὢ τῆς παραπληξίας τῶν τοῦτο κατεργαζομένων. καὶ γὰρ ἀλόγων ἀνοητότεροι καὶ κυνῶν ἀναιδέστεροι. οὐδαμοῦ γὰρ τοιαύτη μίξις παρ’ ἐκείνοις, ἀλλ’ ἐπιγινώσκει τοὺς ἰδίους ὅρους ἡ φύσις. τούτους καὶ ἀνδροφόνων χείρους εἶναι λέγω, καὶ ὅπερ ἂν εἴποις ἁμάρτημα, οὐδὲν ἴσον ἐρεῖς τῆς παρανομίας ταύτης. ὁ μὲν γὰρ ἀνδροφόνος τὴν ψυχὴν ἀπὸ τοῦ σώματος ἐχώρισεν, οὗτος δὲ τὴν ψυχὴν μετὰ τοῦ σώματος ἀπώλεσεν. πόθεν οὖν ἐτέχθη τὸ μέγα τοῦτο κακόν; ἀπὸ τρυφῆς καὶ σπατάλης καὶ ἀπὸ τοῦ μὴ φοβεῖσθαι τὸν θεὸν καὶ τὴν μέλλουσαν κρίσιν. ὅταν γὰρ ἐκβάλωσί τινες τὸν τοιοῦτον φόβον ἐκ τῆς καρδίας αὐτῶν, ἐγκαταλιμπάνονται εἰς τέλος καὶ οὕτως ἔρχονται εἰς ἐπιθυμίας ἀνοήτους καὶ βλαβερὰς καὶ εἰς πάθη ἀτιμίας. ὥσπερ γὰρ πολλοὶ πολλάκις τὴν τῶν σιτίων ἐπιθυμίαν ἀφέντες γῆν σιτοῦνται καὶ λίθους μικράς, καὶ ἕτεροι δὲ ὑπὸ δίψους κατεχόμενοι σφοδροῦ καὶ βορβόρου πολλάκις ἐπιθυμοῦσιν, οὕτω κἀκεῖνοι καταλειφθέντες διὰ τὰς προειρημένας αἰτίας πρὸς τὸν ἄθεσμον τοῦτον ἐξεκαύθησαν ἔρωτα. εἰ δὲ οὐκ αἰσθάνονται, ἀλλ’ ἥδονται, μὴ θαυμάσῃς. καὶ γὰρ οἱ μαινόμενοι καὶ φρενίτιδι κατεχόμενοι νόσῳ τὰ πολλὰ ἑαυτοὺς ἀδικοῦντες καὶ ἐλεεινὰ πράσσοντες, ἐφ’ οἷς αὐτοὺς ἕτεροι δακρύουσιν, γελῶσι καὶ τοῖς γινομένοις αὐτοῖς ἐντρυφῶσιν. πόσαι λοιπὸν γέενναι τοῖς τοιούτοις ἀρκέσωσιν, καὶ πόσα κολαστήρια; εἰ δὲ καταγελᾷς γεέννης ἀκούων καὶ ἀπιστεῖς ἐκείνῳ τῷ πυρί, ἀναμνήσθητι πάλιν τὸν ἐν Σοδόμοις θεῖον ἐμπρησμὸν καὶ τὴν φοβερὰν ἐκείνην φλόγωσιν. εἰ οὖν τοιαῦτα πράττων καὶ σὺ δίκην οὐ δίδως, μὴ θαυμάσῃς. ἐκεῖνοι μὲν γὰρ ὡς μὴ τὴν γέενναν εἰδότες ἐκολάσθησαν παρὰ πόδας, σὺ δὲ ὅσα ἂν ἁμάρτῃς, κἂν μηδεμίαν δίκην δῷς ἐνταῦθα, ἐκεῖ πάντα χαλεπωτέρως ἀποτίσῃ καὶ κολασθήσῃ. διὰ τί; ὅτι πλείονος ἀπηλαύσαμεν χάριτος. ὅταν δὲ καὶ πλείονα καὶ μείζονα πταίωμεν ἐκείνων, ποίας συγγνώμης τύχωμεν ἐκ προγόνων τὰ σωτηριώδη παραλαβόντες διδάγματα, ἅπερ ἐκεῖνοι παντελῶς οὔτε ἤκουσαν οὔτε ἔμαθον, ὥστε διὰ τοῦτο μειζόνως κολασθησόμεθα, κἄν τε μικρὰν δίκην ἐνταῦθα δῶμεν, κἄν τε μὴ δῶμεν. οὐκοῦν μηδεὶς ὁρῶν πονηροὺς εὐπραγοῦντας θορυβείσθω. οὐ γάρ ἐστιν ἐνταῦθα ἡ ἀνταπόδοσις οὔτε τῆς ἀρετῆς οὔτε τῆς πονηρίας. εἰ δέ που καὶ γίνεται τῆς ἀρετῆς καὶ τῆς πονηρίας, ἀλλ’ οὐχὶ κατ’ ἀξίαν, ἀλλ’ ἁπλῶς ὡσανεὶ γεῦμα τῆς κρίσεως, ἵνα οἱ τῇ ἀναστάσει διαπιστοῦντες τοῖς γοῦν ἐνταῦθα σωφρονίζονται. ὅταν οὖν εὐπραγῇ ὁ πονηρός, ἐπὶ κακῷ τῆς ἑαυτοῦ κεφαλῆς· ἵνα γὰρ ὧν ἔπραξεν ἴσως ἀγαθῶν τὴν ἀντίδοσιν ἐνταῦθα λαβὼν ἐκεῖ λοιπὸν τέλεον κολάζηται. ὅταν δὲ πάσχῃ ὁ ἀγαθός, μακάριος ὄντως ἐστίν· ἵνα γὰρ ἀποθέμενος πάντα καὶ τὰ μικρὰ ἁμαρτήματα εὐδόκιμος καὶ καθαρὸς ἀπίῃ καὶ ἀνεύθυνος. ἐκεῖ γάρ εἰσιν οἱ τέλειοι στέφανοι τῶν ἀγαθῶν καὶ ἐκεῖ αἱ σφοδροτέραι καὶ ἀπέραντοι κολάσεις τῶν πονηρῶν. καὶ ὥσπερ ὁ σηπεδόνα ἔχων, κἂν μὴ τέμνηται, ἀρρωστεῖ καὶ τότε μᾶλλόν ἐστιν ἐν κακοῖς, ὅταν μὴ τέμνηται, οὕτω καὶ ὁ ἁμαρτάνων, κἂν μὴ κολάζηται, πάντων ἐστὶν ἀθλιώτερος. καὶ καθάπερ οἱ σπλῆνα καὶ ὕδερον ἔχοντες, ὅταν ἀπολαύσωσι τραπέζης δαψιλοῦς καὶ ψυχροποσίας καὶ πολυτελῶν ἐδεσμάτων καὶ καρυκευμάτων, τότε μάλιστα πάντων εἰσὶν ἐλεεινότεροι τῇ τρυφῇ τὸ νόσημα προσαύξοντες, ἂν δὲ ἄγχωνται λιμῷ καὶ δίψει κατὰ τοὺς ἰατρικοὺς νόμους, ἐλπίδα τινὰ σωτηρίας ἔχουσιν, οὕτω καὶ οἱ ζῶντες ἐν πονηρίᾳ, εἰ μὲν κολάζονται, χρηστὰς ἔχουσι τὰς ἐλπίδας, εἰ δὲ μετὰ τῆς πονηρίας ἀπολαύουσι τρυφῆς καὶ ἀδείας, τῶν ἐν ὑδέρῳ γαστριζομένων ἐλεεινότεροι σφόδρα ἂν εἶεν, καὶ τοσούτῳ πλέον, ὅσῳ ψυχὴ σώματός ἐστι βελτιώτερον. εἰ τοίνυν ἐκεῖνοι μήτε νόμον ἔχοντες τὸν κωλύοντα αὐτοὺς τῆς ἀθεμίτου πράξεως μήτε προφήτας εἰδότες οὐδεμιᾶς ἔτυχον συγγνώμης, ἀλλὰ πυρὸς καὶ θείου παρανάλωμα γεγόνασιν, πόσης μᾶλλον ἡμεῖς ἐσμεν ἄξιοι τιμωρίας καὶ χαλεπωτέρας ὑπεύθυνοι καταδίκης, οἱ νόμον καὶ προφήτας καὶ εὐαγγελιστὰς καὶ διδασκάλους ἀναγινώσκοντες καὶ χείρονα ποιοῦντες; τίνος δὲ ἕνεκεν τοιαῦτα δρώντων ἡμῶν οὐκ ἐπάγει καὶ ἡμῖν ὁ θεὸς τοιαύτην πανωλεθρίαν; ἐπειδὴ ἄλλη κόλασις ἀργαλεωτέρα καὶ ἀτελεύτητος καὶ ἕτερον πῦρ ἄσβεστον ἡμᾶς ἐκδέχεται δεινότερον καὶ σφοδρότερον. ὁ σκώληξ, γάρ φησιν, αὐτῶν οὐ τελευτήσει καὶ τὸ πῦρ οὐ σβεσθήσεται. διὰ δὴ τοῦτο καὶ ὁ παλαιὸς καὶ θεῖος νόμος ἀναστέλλων τὴν ἐξάγιστον αἰσχρουργίαν ταύτην καὶ ὀλέθριον ἔφασκεν· οὐ κοιμηθήσῃ μετὰ ἄρσενος κοίτην γυναικείαν, βδέλυγμα γάρ ἐστιν. καί· ὃς ἂν κοιμηθῇ μετὰ ἄρσενος κοίτην γυναικείαν θανάτῳ θανατούσθωσαν ἀμφότεροι. ἐπικατάρατος γὰρ ὁ τοιοῦτος. λίθοις λιθοβολήσατε αὐτούς.

Ταύτην τοίνυν τὴν ἀκόλαστον καὶ ἀκάθαρτον γνώμην καὶ πρᾶξιν τῶν αὐθαιρέτως πασχόντων θριαμβεύων εὖ μάλα καὶ στηλιτεύων ὁ μέγας Κύριλλος οὕτω φάσκει· ἀκολασίας γὰρ ἕνεκεν οἱ τάλανες τοῦτο δρῶσι τὰ τῶν γυναικῶν πάσχειν ἄνδρες ὄντες βουλόμενοι. οὐδενὸς γὰρ χρησίμου χάριν τὴν φύσιν μετατιθέντες ἢ ἀσελγείας ἕνεκεν τὴν θεόπλαστον καὶ ἀνδροπρεπῆ μορφὴν διαφθείρουσιν ἑκουσίως πολλάκις, ἢ ὑπ’ ἄλλων ὑπομένειν ἀναγκαζόμενοι τοῦτο ὡς λοιμοὶ τῆς φύσεως καὶ τοῦ γένους πολέμιοι καὶ σπῖλοι πολιτείας καὶ ζωῆς ἐφύβριστοι γίνονται. δίκην μαινάδων πορνευθέντες ἀμέτρως ἐν τοῖς αἰσχίστοις ὀρχοῦνται πάθεσι μιαρᾷ πολιτείᾳ καὶ πεφθαρμένῃ τὴν ἀθλίαν ζωὴν συγκεράσαντες, ἀμφίβολα καὶ μεμισημένα πρόσωπα περιφέροντες καὶ γράμμα νενοθευμένον. ἱερῶν περιβόλων μακρὰν ἀποιχέσθωσαν καὶ ἁγίων συνόδων ὡς ἐβδελυγμένον ἄγος καὶ θεοστυγὲς ἐλαυνέσθωσαν. ἐπειδὴ γὰρ αἰσχίστῃ καὶ κακίστῃ γνώμῃ τὸ καλὸν καὶ θεῖον ἔργον εἰς τὸ κακὸν καὶ διαβεβλημένον δόγμα παραλλάξαντες καὶ μεταποιήσαντες καὶ τὴν πνευματικὴν εὐνουχίαν ἀπηγορευμένῃ πράξει λειτουργεῖν ἀναγκάσαντες οὐ μόνον ἄξιοι νομικῆς ψήφου λαμβάνειν τιμωρίαν, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐξ εὐαγγελικῆς καὶ ἀποστολικῆς ἀποφάσεως εἰς τὸ λεγόμενον ἐξώτερον σκότος ἄρδην ἀπελαύνεσθαι. περὶ γὰρ τῶν τοιούτων ἔφη Μωϋσῆς· θλαδίας καὶ ἀπόκοπος οὐκ εἰσελεύσεται εἰς ἐκκλησίαν κυρίου. ἔστι γοῦν ἰδεῖν πεπληρωμένας οἰκίας τῶν μεγιστάνων τοιούτων τερατομόρφων προσώπων, χρυσοῦς μηνίσκους ἐπὶ τραχήλου φοροῦντας, φύσιν μὲν ἄρρενος, θηλείας δὲ ὄψιν ἔχοντας καὶ κεκλασμένως βαδίζοντας καὶ τεθρυμμένως φθεγγομένους. ὥσπερ ἑταιρίδες ἀπρεπῶς ὧδε κἀκεῖσε τὴν κεφαλὴν περισείουσι καὶ γελῶσιν ἀκρατῶς τε καὶ ἀναιδῶς οἰστρηλασίαν πρόδηλον ὑπεμφαίνοντες. ὅθεν μετ’ ἀνδρῶν μὲν ὡς γυναῖκες μαλακῶς εὐναζόμενοι καὶ μαλακιζόμενοι φθείρονται, μετὰ γυναικῶν δὲ ὡς φύλακες ἅμα καὶ σωφροσύνης δῆθεν ἰνδάλματα καθεύδοντες ἀναισχύντως καὶ ἀπερυθριασμένως αἰσχροπραγοῦσιν. καὶ οὗτοι μὲν οὕτως ὑπ’ ἀνδρῶν ἀνοσίων καὶ βεβήλων φθειρόμενοι μαλακίζονται καὶ καταμιαίνονται διὰ τῆς παρὰ φύσιν ἀνοσιουργίας καὶ βδελυρίας, αὐτοὶ δὲ γυναικάρια ταλαίπωρα καὶ σεσωρευμένα κατὰ τὸ εἰρημένον ἁμαρτίαις καταμολύνουσι καὶ καταβλάπτουσιν οἷα λυσσώδεις κύνες, καὶ τὸ δὴ χαλεπώτερον καὶ ἐλεεινότερον, ἐντεῦθεν αἴτιοι γίνονται καὶ πρόξενοί τε καὶ μέτοχοι τῆς ἀπεράντου κολάσεως οἵ τε φθείροντες καὶ οἱ φθειρόμενοι. ἀλλ’ ὢ τῆς ἀφροσύνης, ὢ τῆς ἀπάτης καὶ παραπληξίας. τούτους γὰρ ἄνθρωποι καὶ μάλιστα προύχοντες ὡς σώφρονας παραδεχόμενοι πιστεύουσι καὶ εἰσοικίζουσιν, οἵ γε εἰσοικιζόμενοι καὶ παρρησίας τυγχάνοντες τοὺς ὄντως δικαίως ἀρετῆς ἐπιμελουμένους σώφρονας ἄνδρας κατὰ μικρὸν δελεάσαντες εἰς τὸ τῶν Σοδόμων αἰσχρὸν βάραθρον κατηκόντισαν ἐλεεινῶς καὶ τῷ αἰωνίῳ πυρὶ παρέπεμψαν. διὸ δὴ λοιπὸν ἀραρότως πάνυ γε τούτους καὶ νόμος καὶ λόγος εὐαγγελικὸς καὶ ἄριστος βίος καὶ εὐσεβὴς πολιτεία βδελύττεται λίαν ὡς θεομισεῖς καὶ ἀκαθάρτους. οὗτοι γὰρ τοιαύτην ἐξάγιστον ζωὴν προτιμήσαντες καὶ ποθήσαντες ὅσον ἧκεν ἐπ’ αὐτοῖς πόλεις μὲν ἠφάνισαν τὸν σπερματικὸν τῆς φύσεως λόγον παραφθείροντες φθειρόμενοι, εὐανδροῦσαν δὲ ῥώμην ἀνδρὸς καὶ ἡλικίαν καὶ τὴν ἀρρενοπρεπῆ γενναίαν ἰσχὺν δεινῶς ἐξανάλωσαν καὶ ἁπλῶς τὴν σύντονον καὶ σφρίγουσαν ἀκμὴν τῆς νεότητος λυμηνάμενοι φανερῶς ἀθλίους καὶ καταγελάστους ἐποίησαν τοὺς ἁλόντας. οὕς γε φευκτέον προτροπάδην καὶ βδελυκτέον ἐνδίκως ὡς ψυχοκτόνους καὶ σωματοφθόρους καὶ ἐναγεῖς ὄντως καὶ τῆς φύσεως παραχαράκτας. οὐδὲν γὰρ ἀληθῶς μυσαρώτερον ἢ ἀκαθαρτότερον τῶν οὕτω πορνευομένων τε καὶ πορνευόντων. εἰώθασι γάρ, ὡς ἀληθῶς καὶ ἀκριβῶς μεμαθήκαμεν, οὐ μόνον οἱ σπάδοντες καὶ τὰ μόρια τῆς αἰσχρουργίας ποσῶς ἔχοντες ἀσελγαίνειν ἀμέτρως καὶ ἀκολασταίνειν ἀκορέστως, ἀλλά γε καὶ οἱ τέλεον ἀπόκοποι καὶ ἐκτετμημένοι. καθάπερ οὖν καὶ οἱ ἐκ γεννητῆς ἐστερημένοι ταῦτα—φεῦ τῆς ἐσχάτης ἀτοπίας καὶ φρενοβλαβείας —διὰ χειρὸς καὶ δακτύλου φθείρειν τὰς ἀθλίας γυναῖκας καὶ τὴν ἀνοσιουργίαν οὕτως ἐμμανῶς οἱ ἀνόσιοι κατεργάζεσθαι <πεφύκασιν>. καὶ τοῦτο δηλῶν ὁ σοφὸς ἀριδήλως ἔφη· μακάριος εὐνοῦχος ὁ μὴ ἐργασάμενος ἐν χειρὶ ἀνόμημα, καὶ παρθένος, ἥτις οὐκ ἔγνω κοίτην ἐν παραπτώματι. εἰκότως οὖν ἄθηλοι, ἄνανδρες, ἀνδρόγυνοι, σιδηροκατάδικοι καὶ γυναικομανεῖς προσηγορεύθησαν. ἀκουέτωσαν τοίνυν οἱ καθαροὺς καὶ σώφρονας τούτους ὑποτοπάζοντες μάτην καὶ μὴ πιστευέτωσαν τῷ ψεύδει καὶ τῇ κατεσχηματισμένῃ καθαρότητι καὶ σωφροσύνῃ. ἀπὸ γὰρ ἀκαθάρτου τί καθαρισθήσεται, καὶ ἀπὸ ψεύδους τί ἀληθεύσει;

 * Γεώργιος Μοναχός / Georgios Monachos,
Chronicon / Χρονική ιστορία (lib. 1-4) κεφ. 17 (ιζʹ. Περὶ Ἰουστινιανοῦ).

C. de Boor, Georgii monachi chronicon, 2 vols. Leipzig: Teubner, 1904
(repr. 1978 (1st edn. corr. P. Wirth)), pp./σσ. 644-654.

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Τινὲς δὲ διαβληθέντες ὡς ἀῤῥενοφθόροι, διάταξιν ἐξεφώνησε τοὺς εὑρισκομένους οὕτω· τοὺς μὲν καυλοτομεῖσθαι, τοὺς δὲ καλάμους ὀξεῖς εἰς τοὺς πόρους ἐμβάλλεσθαι τῶν αἰδοίων αὐτῶν· διὸ πολλοὶ καὶ τῶν ἀρχιερέων καὶ οὕτω τιμωρηθέντες περιαγόμενοι δεινῶς ἐτελεύτησαν· καὶ γενόμενος φόβος μέγας ἐσωφρόνησε τοὺς λοιποὺς καὶ μάλα εἰκότως.

* Γεώργιος Μοναχός / Georgios Monachos,
Chronicon breve / Χρονικόν σύντομον (lib. 1-6) (redactio recentior).
MPG 110:797.

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Πᾶσαι γὰρ πόλεις καὶ χῶραι καταποθῆναι ἐκινδύνευον. καὶ ἡ θάλασσα μίλια βʹ παρεξέβη. δεύτερος αὖθις σεισμὸς ἡμέρας δέκα, δι’ ὅλου σείων, ὡς καὶ τὸν βασιλέα χωρὶς στέμματος διελθεῖν τὴν τοῦ Χριστοῦ γέννων ἡμέραν. ἕτερον θανατικὸν ἐκ βουβῶνος διαφθεῖρον ἅπαντας, οὐχ ἧττον τοῦ προτέρου, μῆνας δʹ. καὶ πάλιν ἐν Ἀντιοχείᾳ σεισμὸς ἐπὶ ὥραν μίαν, καὶ χιλιάδες εʹ συνεπόθησαν. καὶ εἰμὴ κατὰ τὸν ὄνειρον ὃν εἶδέ τις, ἔγραψαν ἐν τοῖς προθύροις „Χριστὸς μεθ’ ἡμῶν, στῆτε,“ πᾶσα ἡ πόλις συνεχώθη.

Ἐφάνη καὶ κομήτης ἡμέρας κʹ, καὶ μετὰ χρόνον τινὰ γέγονεν ἀστέρων δρόμος ἀφ’ ἑσπέρας ἕως πρωΐ, ὡς πάντας λέγειν ὅτι πίπτουσιν οἱ ἀστέρες. εἶτα ὁ ἥλιος ἔλαμψε χωρὶς ἀκτίνων, ὥσπερ καὶ ἡ σελήνη. τότε δὴ καὶ ἄνθρωπος ἦλθεν ἀπὸ δύσεως κωμοδρόμος, ἔχων κύνα ξανθὸν καὶ τυφλόν, ὃς παρὰ τοῦ κωμοδρόμου κελευόμενος ἐποίει θαυμάσιά τινα. καὶ ἀθεσμοκοῖταί τινες εὑρεθέντες ἐθριαμβεύθησαν καυλοτομηθέντες, μεγιστᾶνες ὁμοῦ καὶ ἀρχιερεῖς, καὶ οὕτω περιαγόμενοι οἰκτρῶς ἐτελεύτησαν. κατ’ ἐκεῖνο δὲ καιροῦ καὶ τὸ μέγα κῆτος ἑάλω τὸ εἰς ἐνιαυτοὺς τὴν Βυζαντίδα κατατρῦχον πεντήκοντα· τὰς νῆάς τε γὰρ κατεβύθιζε καὶ τοὺς ἀνθρώπους διέφθειρεν, ᾧ ὄνομα Πορφύριος. ποτὲ γοῦν δελφῖνας διώκων ἐν παραλίῳ κατεσχέθη τέλματι, τῶν δελφίνων περὶ τὴν γῆν ἐκπηδησάντων. καὶ οὕτως ἁλώσιμος γίνεται ὁ πάσης ἀνώτερος μηχανῆς ὁρώμενος τὸ πρὸ τοῦ. μῆκος μὲν πήχεις τριάκοντα, εὖρος δὲ πήχεις δέκα κατὰ τὸν Καισαρέα Προκόπιον.


* Μιχαήλ Γλυκάς / Michael Glycas,
Annales / Βίβλος χρονική.
I. Bekker, Michaelis Glycae annales [Corpus scriptorum historiae Byzantinae.
Bonn: Weber, 1836] σσ. 500, 501.

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Κόσμου ἔτη ͵ϛκαʹ.
Τῆς θείας σαρκώσεως ἔτη φκαʹ.
Ῥωμαίων βασιλεὺς Ἰουστινιανὸς ἔτη ληʹ. βʹ.
Περσῶν βασιλεὺς Χοσρόης ἔτη μηʹ. δʹ.
Ῥώμης ἐπίσκοπος Φίλιξ ἔτη δʹ. γʹ. (5)
Κωνσταντ. ἐπίσκοπος Ἐπιφάνιος ἔτη ιϛʹ. θʹ.
Ἱεροσολύμων ἐπίσκοπος Ἡλίας ἔτη κγʹ. ιηʹ.
Ἀλεξανδρείας ἐπίσκοπος Τιμόθεος ἔτη ιζʹ. θʹ.
Ἀντιοχείας ἐπίσκοπος Ἐφραΐμιος ἔτη ιηʹ. βʹ.

Τούτῳ τῷ ἔτει Ἡσαΐας, ἐπίσκοπος Ῥόδου, καὶ Ἀλέξανδρος, ἐπίσκοπος Διοσπόλεως τῆς Θρᾴκης, καθῃρέθησαν ὡς παιδερασταὶ εὑρεθέντες, καὶ ἐτιμωρήθησαν δεινῶς ὑπὸ τοῦ βασιλέως, καυλοτομηθέντες καὶ πομπεύσαντες, τοῦ κήρυκος βοῶντος· “ἐπίσκοποι ὄντες τὸ τίμιον σχῆμα μὴ ἐνυβρίζετε.” καὶ ἐξέθετο ὁ βασιλεὺς νόμους σφοδροὺς κατὰ τῶν ἀσελγαινόντων, καὶ πολλοὶ ἐτιμωρήθησαν. καὶ ἐγένετο φόβος πολὺς καὶ ἀσφάλεια. ἀνενέωσε δὲ ὁ εὐσεβὴς βασιλεὺς πάντας τοὺς παλαιοὺς νόμους ποιήσας μονόβιβλον καὶ καλέσας αὐτὸ τὰς νεαρὰς διατάξεις, ἐν αἷς οὐ καταδέχεται τὸν ἄρχοντα ἐν οἷς ἄρχει τόποις ἀγοράζειν κτῆμα, ἢ κτίζειν οἶκον, ἢ κληρονομεῖν ξένον πρόσωπον, εἰ μή τις συγγενὴς αὐτῷ ὑπάρχει.


* Θεοφάνης Ομολογητής / Theophanes the Confessor,
Chronographia / Χρονογραφία.
C. de Boor, Theophanis chronographia, vol./τόμ. 1. Leipzig: Teubner, 1883
(repr. Hildesheim: Olms, 1963), σ. 177.

*

Καιρός για τους Ορθόδοξους μαθητές είτε για απαλλαγή από το μάθημα των Θρησκευτικών είτε/και για παρακολούθηση του ενοριακού κατηχητικού;

Διαθέσιμο εδώ (PDF)

β) Εἰσάγει γιά πρώτη φορά σημαντική ποσότητα, συχνά ἀπίθανες λεπτομέρειες, ἑτεροδόξων καί ἑτεροθρήσκων στοιχείων καί κατ΄ αὐτόν τόν τρόπο νοθεύει τό ὀρθόδοξο χριστιανικό μάθημα πράγμα τό ὁποῖο δημιουργεῖ κίνδυνο γιά τά παιδιά μας. Δέν πρόκειται ἐδῶ γιά ἁπλή ἐνημέρωση γιά τήν ὕπαρξη θρηκευμάτων ἀνά τήν ὑφήλιο, ὅπως θά νόμιζε κάποιος ἀνενημέρωτος. Κάτι τέτοιο θά μποροῦσε νά γίνει μέσα σέ 5-6 διδακτικές ὧρες σέ μία τάξη τοῦ γυμνασίου. Πρόκειται γιά εἰσαγωγή πρωτοφανοῦς σέ ὄγκο ποσότητας ἑτεροθρήσκων στοιχείων, τά ὁποῖα ἀπειλοῦν τήν ψυχοπνευματική ὁλοκλήρωση κάθε ὀρθοδόξου χριστιανοῦ.

γ) Ἐπιδιώκει νά διδάσκονται τά ἑτερόδοξα καί ἑτερόθρησκα στοιχεῖα σχεδόν πάντοτε σέ συνάφεια μέ τήν ὀρθόδοξη χριστιανική θεολογία, πράγμα ἐξ ἴσου ἐπικίνδυνο γιά τά μικρά παιδιά, τά ὁποῖα εἶναι δυνατόν νά ἐπηρεάσει δυσμενῶς καί νά τούς καλλιεργήσει συγκρητιστικές τάσεις.

* Ευάγγελος Στ. Πονηρός,
Συνοπτική κριτική αξιολόγηση του νέου (πιλοτικού) προγράμματος σπουδών στα θρησκευτικά δημοτικού καί γυμνασίου (έτους 2011),
aktines.blogspot 18 Απριλίου 2012.

D. S. Wallace-Hadrill: On the use of Greek philosophy by the Eastern Church /Περί της χρήσης της ελληνικής φιλοσοφίας από την Ανατολική εκκλησία

Although Antiochene Christianity was biblical and historical rather than philosophical, it did not exist in a philosophical vacuum. Syria and Palestine, though inferior to Athens and Alexandria as centres of philosophy, had made a contribution that was far from negligible and whose continuity over several centuries suggests vitality in its philosophical tradition. We may pass in brief review the names of Antiochus of Ascalon, who died in the first century B.C.; Nicolaus of Damascus, historian as well as philosopher, whose adaptations of Aristotle excited the Syrians four hundred years later to make a Syriac translation of his work; Nichomachus of Gerasa in the second century A.D., concerned in his Theological Arithmetic with Pythagorean number mysticism; Numenius of Apamea, an important and influential second-century figure in the development of Platonism; the formidable figure of Porphyry, born about 232 at Tyre, through whose eyes later centuries read his master Plotinus, and whose Isagoge to Aristotle's Categories was to become the almost obligatory approach for Syrian study of Aristotelian logic; Iamblichus, from Chalcis in Syria, who died about 336, an important systematizer of the work of his predecessors; and four of the seven philosophers who went from Athens to Persia when Justinian closed the school of Athens in 529, namely one Syrian, two Phoenicians and one from Gaza. This succession of notable philosophers over several centuries does not suggest that the study of philosophy was uncongenial to thinking minds east of the Mediterranean, nor that the study of theology in Antioch during that period could have been pursued in isolation from the currents of philosophical thought. From the first century Christian thinking had been under the greatest debt to Philo Judaeus for his integration of Platonic concepts into the structure of Judaeo-Christian thought. It may be doubted how far he was an original thinker, but the influence of his Platonized Judaism was of seminal importance. The Platonism of the Middle and Neo-Platonists was derived not only from Plato himself, but from an eclectic blend of the more mystical elements of Plato's thought with Aristotelian logic and theology and to some extent with Stoicism, but the Aristotelian and Stoic elements were introductions into what was in essence a metaphysical structure derived from Plato.

In a cultural milieu that was predominantly Platonist, a Christian could of course be open to Platonist influence without being aware of it, and it could find a place in his unexpressed assumptions particularly in respect of elements in Platonist thought which were not altogether inconsistent with a Christian standpoint. The doctrine of transcendent Ideas, fundamental to any kind of Platonism, may be taken as an example. The concept of Ideas is developed through the Platonic dialogues to demonstrate the class of transcendent entities or universals distinct from sensible things, 'patterns, as it were, fixed in the nature of things. The other things are made in their image.' The Ideas are alone completely objective, separate from particular existing things, changeless, eternal. The craftsman mending a broken shuttle is making a copy of 'the Idea according to which he made the other shuttle', and the Idea of a shuttle is 'precisely what a shuttle is'. So too every beautiful thing shares in the absolute beauty of the Idea of the beautiful; a bed and table share in the Ideas of bed and of table. These universals are 'given' elements in our knowledge, their influence spreading downwards into the fragmented, dissolving world of physical things. In the attempt to apprehend the Ideas, the human mind has to ascend: thus in the Republic Socrates plots geometrical points along a straight line to illustrate the ascent of reason from the lowest realm of unrelated images to the higher realm of physical perception of related objects, thence to mathematical entities of which the physical objects are images, thence to the realm of Ideas, of which the mathematical entities are themselves a kind of mythical presentation. This is the process of dialectic. In the Phaedrus the dialectical method is defined as the uniting under one Idea of separated particulars by means of synthesis. Dialecticians thus rise from the particular to the universal by practice of the logic which is 'the keystone of the whole structure of knowledge'. Man is born into this world with a soul reincarnated from a previous life in which there has already been some degree of apprehension of the Ideas. The soul is reborn with recollection of the Ideas. The dialectical process is a ladder of ascent only for those who have undergone the rigorous intellectual training that fits the few to be philosophers, but every man is born with innate knowledge upon which he acts constantly and blindly in everyday acts of recognition of objects. Dialectic is a method of achieving fuller apprehension of what is already known to be there. The Ideas are the end term of a journey of rediscovery. The difficulties inherent in Plato's doctrine of Ideas are recognized with remarkable objectivity in the Parmenides, anticipating many of the objections to be raised by Aristotle. Prominent among these difficulties is the precise definition of the relation of particular to universal, which is not sufficiently covered by terms such as 'shadow' or 'imitation'. It was to fill this gap that Plato's philosophical descendents filled the cosmos with hierarchies of semi-divine beings, developing the original conception away from strict dialectic in the direction of the mystical and spiritual realm. The mystical element had been increasingly present in Plato's own thought, but by the Christian era had gone far beyond anything envisaged by Plato. This was the cultural atmosphere breathed by educated Christians, and it did not demand too great a side-step for them to express scriptural data in terms of late Platonism. Christian adoption of Platonism could take the form of conscious use of Platonist categories to enable Christian doctrine to be presented to the pagan world, or it could be an unconscious assumption of common factors. In the work of eastern Christian theologians we may look for such unstated assumptions at points of stress, where we are made aware of the presence of an extraneous or distorting element present in an argument.

* David Sutherland Wallace-Hadrill,
Christian Antioch: A study of early Christian thought in the East,
Cambridge University Press, 1982,
pp./σσ. 96-98.

Σίμων ο Ατουμάνος (Ατμάνος, Οτουμάνος): Ένας Έλληνας λόγιος καταδιωγμένος από τη Δύση, παρασιωπημένος από την Ανατολή /Simon Atumano: A Greek scholar persecuted by the West kept unknown by the East

Χειρόγραφο του Σίμωνα του Ατουμάνου
(Codex Laurenz. 32.2)

* Kenneth M. Setton,
"The Byzantine Background to the Italian Renaissance",
Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society,
American Philosophical Society,
Vol./τόμ. 100, No./αρ. 1 (Feb/Φεβ.. 24, 1956),
pp./σσ. 47-51 (1-76).

Also: / Επίσης:

* Giovanni Mercati,
Se la versione dall'ebraico del Codice veneto greco VII sia di Simone Atumano, arcivescovo di Teb. Ricerca storia, con notizie e documenti sulla vita dell'Atumano,
Roma, Tip. poliglotta vaticana, 1916.
[Italian/Ιταλικά, PDF]