scholarly journals Rational Theology in Polemic Strategies of Early Christian Apologues

2020 ◽  
pp. 1398-1404
Author(s):  
Roman V. Svetlov ◽  
Dmitry V. Shmonin
Keyword(s):  
The Other ◽  
Early Christian ◽  
Rational Theology ◽  
Christian Literature ◽  
Justin Martyr ◽  
The One ◽  
Size And Structure

The texts of early Christian apologists are an example of a clear argumentative reaction to a number of external and internal challenges. The internal ones included changes in the size and structure of the community, increased heterodoxia, and a decrease in eschatological moods. Among the external – on the one hand, the growth of hostility and systematic persecution on the part of Rome, on the other, the specific atmosphere of the “age of the Antonines”, age of imperators who practiced, at least formally, a policy of mercy. All this stimulated the development of rhetoric in Christian literature, the formation of the genre of Christian apology, as well as specific apologetic strategies, in which early Christian rational theology was reflected. Its most important element was the formation of ideas about a righteous life as the root condition of philosophical wisdom. It is this approach that helps, for example, Justin Martyr find a way to convert ancient wisdom into a rational-theological toolkit of apologetics

Ethik als Ausweis christlicher Identität bei Justin Martyr

2006 ◽  
Vol 50 (1) ◽  
pp. 21-28
Author(s):  
Jörg Ulrich
Keyword(s):  
Roman Empire ◽  
The Other ◽  
Christian Identity ◽  
External Reason ◽  
Legal Proceedings ◽  
Early Christian ◽  
Ethical Implications ◽  
Justin Martyr ◽  
Christian Apologetics ◽  
The One

Abstract Ethics have Iong been a neglected matter in schalarship on early Christian apologetics. However, a closer Iook at the composition of the texts of Justin Martyr teaches us how important the references to Christi an ethics actually are in the run of his argument. The external reason forthat lies in the fact that Justin wants to prove the legal proceedings against the Christians in the Roman empire to be unjust and absurd. The inner reason is that he interprets Christianity as »true philosophy«: in view of the understanding of »philosophy~< in his pagan environment, this brings about fundamental ethical implications. Both his apologies and the dialogue with Trypho show how Justin employs ethical convictions as a criterio for Christian identity and as a trait of difference between Christianity and Paganism on the one hand, and between Christianity and Judaism on the other.

The First Resurrection Appearance and the Ending of Mark's Gospel

1972 ◽  
Vol 18 (3) ◽  
pp. 308-330 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. W. Trompf
Keyword(s):  
Second Century ◽  
The Other ◽  
Early Church ◽  
Second Line ◽  
Mary Magdalene ◽  
Early Christian ◽  
Other Hand ◽  
Christian Literature ◽  
The Common ◽  
The One

Early Christian literature leaves us with apparently conflicting traditions about the first appearance of the risen Lord, although these traditions can be reduced to at least two main classes. On the one hand, some writers give Peter pride of place; he heads the list in Paul's ‘official’ παράδοσις of I Corinthians xv, and takes priority in both Luke (xxiv. 34) and the late second-centuryGospel of Peter(xiii. 57 – xiv. 60). On the other hand, some connect women with the first appearance; Matthew presents an albeit brief account of Jesus meeting the three women who had visited the tomb (xxviii. 9–10), whilst John (xx. 11–18) and the longer ending of Mark (xvi. 9) single out Mary Magdalene as the special recipient of the first appearance. As appearances of the resurrected kúpios came to acquire importance for the early Church in establishing apostolic authenticity and leadership, it is surprising that this second line of tradition persisted along with the contradictory ‘pro-Petrine’ material. Was it a source of embarrassment for those wishing to give pre-eminence to Peter? The question has usually been evaded because of the common supposition that Matthew was the first to ‘invent’ the tradition of such an appearance to women, so as to overcome ‘the impasse presented by Mark's (empty tomb) story’ before passing on towards the great summation of his Gospel; but it is also possible to affirm that Matthew (who is pro-Petrine enough, cf. xvi. 17–19) made astonishingly little out of this appearance, sparing as his comments are.

Christus Virgo

2012 ◽  
Vol 41 (2) ◽  
pp. 22-27
Author(s):  
Sissel Undheim
Keyword(s):  
Moral Status ◽  
The Other ◽  
Late Antique ◽  
Church Fathers ◽  
Early Christian ◽  
Female Sex ◽  
The One ◽  
The Church

The description of Christ as a virgin, 'Christus virgo', does occur at rare occasions in Early Christian and late antique texts. Considering that 'virgo' was a term that most commonly described the sexual and moral status of a member of the female sex, such representations of Christ as a virgin may exemplify some of the complex negotiations over gender, salvation, sanctity and Christology that we find in the writings of the Church fathers. The article provides some suggestions as to how we can understand the notion of the virgin Christ within the context of early Christian and late antique theological debates on the one hand, and in light of the growing interest in sacred virginity on the other.

Introduction

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Marmodoro ◽  
Irini-Fotini Viltanioti
Keyword(s):  
Late Antiquity ◽  
Mutual Influence ◽  
The Other ◽  
Western Thought ◽  
Early Christian ◽  
History Of ◽  
Christian Thought ◽  
The One

This volume explores how some of the most prominent philosophers and theologians of late antiquity conceptualize the idea that the divine is powerful. The period under consideration spans roughly four centuries (from the first to the fifth CE), which are of particular interest because they ‘witness’ the successive development and mutual influence of two major strands in the history of Western thought: Neoplatonism on the one hand, and early Christian thought on the other. Representatives of Neoplatonism considered in this volume are Plotinus (...

scholarly journals „Związać mocarza”: starcie Jezusa i Belzebuba. Starożytna egzegeza Mt 12, 29 oraz tekstów paralelnych

Vox Patrum ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 59 ◽  
pp. 113-127
Author(s):  
Agnieszka Bastit-Kalinowska
Keyword(s):  
Present Article ◽  
Holy Spirit ◽  
Human Being ◽  
Early Christian ◽  
The Holy Spirit ◽  
Christian Literature ◽  
The One

Although Peter seems to echo the opinion commonly held when he says that Jesus „went about doing good” (Act 10, 38), Jesus was accused of „casting out demons by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons” (Mt 12, 24). In answer, he pro­poses a very short parable, the one of the „Strong one” tied up to seize his goods (Mt 12, 29). The present article studies the influence of this verse in the early Christian literature. The victory of the Saviour over evil is interpreted as the result of a cosmic fight (Origen) or as the merciful redemption of the human being and his restoration and vivification by the Holy Spirit (Irenaeus).

scholarly journals Structure-sensitive testimonial norms

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Benedikt T. A. Höltgen
Keyword(s):  
Network Structure ◽  
The Other ◽  
Local Network ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Scientific Communities ◽  
Agent Based ◽  
Structure Sensitive ◽  
Conventional Structure ◽  
The One ◽  
Size And Structure

AbstractAlthough there has been a lot of investigation into the influence of the network structure of scientific communities on the one hand and into testimonial norms (TNs) on the other, a discussion of TNs that take the network structure into account has been lacking. In this paper, I introduce two TNs which are sensitive to the local network structure. According to these norms, scientists should give less weight to the results of well-connected colleagues, as compared to less connected ones. I employ an Agent Based Model to test the reliability of the two novel TNs against different versions of conventional, structure-insensitive TNs in networks of varying size and structure. The results of the simulations show that the novel TNs are more reliable. This suggests that it would be beneficial for scientific communities if their members followed such norms. For individual scientists, I show that there are both reasons for and reasons against adopting them.

Epilogue

2020 ◽  
pp. 254-262
Author(s):  
Paul M. Blowers
Keyword(s):  
Human Existence ◽  
The Other ◽  
Early Christian ◽  
The One ◽  
Theological Virtue

The Epilogue picks up on a problem running throughout the earlier chapters, that of the fundamental compatibility of Christianity and tragedy, and the claims of some critics (especially George Steiner) that they are utterly incompatible because of the Christian gospel’s ebullient hope of transcending tragic suffering. Various early Christian theologians, however, being fully aware of pagan philosophy’s largely negative assessment of the moral utility of hope, touted hope as an altogether virtuous emotion if refined by sobriety and realism about the compromised state of human existence. Hope thus qualified not only as a “theological virtue” alongside faith and love but as a tragical emotion in its own right, serving to guard against spiritual or eschatological triumphalism on the one hand, and deep despair over existential tragedy on the other.

Humanity with Spirit

1981 ◽  
Vol 34 (5) ◽  
pp. 415-426 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul W. Newman
Keyword(s):  
The Other ◽  
Paul Tillich ◽  
Human Spirit ◽  
Christian Students ◽  
Other Hand ◽  
Christian Literature ◽  
Ontological Reality ◽  
The One

In the Christian literature about spirit one of the decisive questions that influences the interpretation of spirit at many points is whether all spirit is conceived to be divine or whether there are basically two kinds of spirit, human and divine. In Buber's understanding the spirit of love exists in the sphere ‘between’ and is participated in by humans rather than being produced by human will alone. Buber would thus come into the class of persons advocating that there is basically One Spirit.1 Human spirit is seen to be in some way a response to or a sharing in the reality of the One Spirit. Paul Tillich, one of the greatest Christian students of Spirit, is somewhat unclear as to whether there are basically one or two kinds of spirit. On the one hand, he consistently uses two terms, ‘human spirit’ and ‘Spiritual Presence’, by which he means divine Spirit.2 The use of these two terms would seem to indicate two kinds of spirit. Tillich describes at length these two kinds of spirit and speaks of their relationship as that of ‘mutual immanence’.3 On the other hand, in his view of reality in the broadest perspective all spirit is an ontological reality that has its source in the trinitarian life of God.4 This suggests that there is only one Spirit after all.

The Heresy of Tatian—Once Again

1968 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-10 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. W. Barnard
Keyword(s):  
Second Century ◽  
Early Christian ◽  
Roman Culture ◽  
Justin Martyr ◽  
The One ◽  
Spiritual Pilgrimage ◽  
Christian History

Tatian, the second century Christian apologist, is something of an enigma to students of early Christian history and doctrine. How far was he influenced by his teacher Justin Martyr? What caused him to become an extreme exponent of the encratite heresy? Did his heretical views only develop after Justin's death, and were these the cause of his leaving Rome? or were these views only a development of tendencies which existed from the beginning? The answers which we give to these questions will largely depend on the view we take of, and the date we assign to, the one apologetic work of his which is extant—his Oration to the Greeks, a violent polemic against Graeco-Roman culture in the course of which Tatian reveals, in somewhat cryptic manner, his own theological views and gives a brief account of his own spiritual pilgrimage.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document