28953 - Ancient Christian Literature (1) (LM)

Learning outcomes

At the end of the course, the student will be acquainted of the literary production processes in ancient Christianity between I and VIII centuries, starting from the authors and their writings, in relation with classical literatures and with the 'Fortleben' in Middle Ages and modern times.

Course contents

The path of Wisdom from Alexandria to Hippo via Nicaea. The interpretation of Prov 8:22-31 from the Septuagint to Augustine

In the biblical book of Proverbs, the personified Wisdom speaks in the first person of herself and proclaims: ‘The Lord created me the beginning of his ways for his works’ (Prov 8:22). Around this verse, and the following ones, a game of great doctrinal significance was played out in the first four Christian centuries, in which Wisdom was from time to time interpreted as the Logos/Son of God or as the Holy Spirit, thus coming to take on the role of one of the persons of the Trinity.

The course aims to offer an overview of the rocky road of Wisdom from Alexandria, where, according to tradition in the 3rd century BC. seventy(two) translators offered for the first time a Greek version of the Hebrew Bible, passing through numerous eastern and western cities, from Rome, where Justin was active, to Tertullian's Carthage, returning to Alexandria with Origen and Arius, and then moving on to Nicaea, the site of the famous council of 325 where an attempt was made, through a binding dogmatic definition, to put an end to the Trinitarian debates. But Wisdom's journey continued on to other cities such as Antioch, Ancyra and Caesarea, where as many bishops interpreted her words to support one of the various factions in the field at Nicaea and which had only apparently calmed down with the council, before reaching the final stop of this, Hippo, where we will discover discover how the bishop Augustine interpreted the vv. of Proverbs.

The course will be divided into three parts:

10 hours: The Wisdom of Prov 8:22-31 between the Hebrew Bible, the Septuagint version and early Christian readings (Justin, Tertullian)

10 hours: Between Alexandria and Nicaea: Wisdom in Origen, Arius and the Council of Nicaea

10 hours: The Post-Nicene Debates in East and West: Marcellus of Ancyra, Eustatius of Antioch, Eusebius of Caesarea, Augustine of Hippo

Students with SLD or temporary or permanent disabilities. It is suggested that they get in touch as soon as possible with the relevant University office (https://site.unibo.it/studenti-con-disabilita-e-dsa/en) and with the lecturer in order to seek together the most effective strategies for following the lessons and/or preparing for the examination.

Readings/Bibliography

Texts

The texts, in critical edition and in translation, will be provided in class and uploaded on Virtual.

Students of Classics should translate 4 texts of their choice among the following texts, which can be found on virtuale (https://virtuale.unibo.it/):

Prov 8,12-31 LXX; Justin Martyr, Dial. 61 e 129; Tertullian, Adv. Prax. 6; Origen, Prin I 2,1-4 or HIer 9,4 and H73Ps 1,4 and CMt 17,4; Arius, Epistles to Eusebius of Nicomedia and to Alexander of Alexandria; Marcellus of Ancyra, Fragments 26-45; Eusebius of Caesarea, Theol. eccl. III 1-3.

Useful for the texts concerning the Council of Nicaea:

S. Fernández, Fontes Nicaenae Synodi. The Contemporary Sources for the Study of the Council of Nicaea (304-337), Paderborn 2024 [https://almastart.unibo.it/primo-explore/fulldisplay?docid=39UBO_ALMAE_DS51126553490007041&context=L&vid=39UBO_VU&lang=it_IT&search_scope=default_scope&adaptor=Local%20Search%20Engine&tab=default_tab&query=any,contains,Fontes%20Nicaenae%20Synodi&offset=0]

Studies

a) Monograph on the history of early Christian Literature and the history of early Christian exegesis (only the authors analyzed during the lessons)

M. Simonetti - E. Prinzivalli, Storia della letteratura cristiana antica, Bologna 2010 or following editions

M. Simonetti, Lettera e/o allegoria. Un contributo alla storia dell’esegesi patristica, Roma 1985

b) Contributions on the general topic and on individual authors

M. Simonetti, “Sull’interpretazione patristica di Prov 8,22”, in Id., Studi sull’arianesimo, Roma 1965

A. Sáez Gutiérrez, C. Sanvito, D. Tomaselli (eds.), Proverbs 8,22-31: Text, Context, Reception, Madrid 2024 (one chapter of your choice)

M. DelCogliano, “Basil of Caesarea on Proverbs 8:22 and the Sources of Pro-Nicene Theology”, Journal of Theological Studies, NS 59,1 (2008) 183-190 [https://academic-oup-com.ezproxy.unibo.it/jts/article/59/1/183/1638984]

P. Dudzik, “Prov 8:22ff in Early Christian Statements on the Relation of Origin of the Son from the Father: the Case of Justin, Athenagoras and Theophilus”, Theologica 12 (2022) 103-125 [https://karolinum.cz/en/journal/auc-theologica/year-12/issue-1/article-10747]

Teaching methods

Lectures; analysis of literary texts; use of bibliographic and electronic databases.

Assessment methods

Students with SLD or temporary or permanent disabilities. It is necessary to contact the relevant University office (https://site.unibo.it/studenti-con-disabilita-e-dsa/en) with ample time in advance: the office will propose some adjustments, which must in any case be submitted 15 days in advance to the lecturer, who will assess the appropriateness of these in relation to the teaching objectives.

In the current academic year, exam sessions are scheduled in March, April, May, July and September.

Oral exam:

a) The students who attend lessons will be able

• to read and translate the text discussed during the lessons in the Greek / Latin original (required for students of Classics). The students not belonging to the course of Classics will read the text in an italian translation, and will replace the translation from the original text with the reading of one of the essays mentioned above (see Bibliography, Studies)
  
• to outline the Christian interpretation of Prov 8,22-31 from an exegetical, historical and literary point of view with the help of the class notes and one of the essays mentioned above (see Bibliography, Studies).
• to discuss the main lines of ancient Christian exegesis according to the study mentioned above (see Bibliography, Monograph on the history of early Christian exegesis)
  

b) The students who cannot attend lessons will study the same program as the students who attend lessons; they will substitute lesson notes with two essays by choice from the list mentioned above (see Bibliography, Studies)

Skills will be assessed according to the following guidelines:
- failing grade (< 18): inability to translate short sections from the Greek/Latin texts discussed during the lessons (exclusively required of LM15 students); inability to provide a correct interpretation of the texts or, as for non-attending students, to comment on the critical essays of their choice.
- passing grade (between 18 and 24): elementary ability to translate short sections from the Greek/Latin texts discussed during the lessons (exclusively required of LM15 students); inaccuracy and lack of autonomy in providing a correct interpretation of the texts or, as for non-attending students, in commenting on critical essays of their choice.
- positive grade (between 24 and 30): good comprehension of the grammatical and syntactical structures of the Greek/Latin texts discussed during the lessons (exclusively required of LM15 students); interpretation of the texts is correct, but mostly superficial and not entirely autonomous; as for non-attending students, the critical essays of their choice are cursorily commented upon.
- excellent grade (30L): in-depth knowledge of the grammatical and syntactical structures of the Greek/Latin texts discussed during the lessons (exclusively required of LM15 students); precision and full autonomy in interpreting, contextualizing and critically comparing the texts; as for non-attending students, critical discussion of the essays of their choice is detailed and deep-ranging.

Teaching tools

Computer and projector; bibliographic and electronic databases; fotocopies; texts and segments of texts in PDF format uploaded by the teacher as teaching materials (downloadable from https://virtuale.unibo.it ).

Office hours

See the website of Andrea Villani