A NEW LOOK AT THE ARIUS’ PHILOSOPHICAL BACKGROUND

  • Svetoslav Ribolov Sofia University “St. Klimet of Ochrid”, Faculty of Theology, Sofia
Keywords: Patristic literature, Late Antiquity, Christian interpretation of Aristotle, Neo-Platonism and Christianity

Abstract

The author could not disagree with Rowan Williams famous research “Arius, Heresy and Tradition” that the possible sources of the Arian heresy lay mostly in Neo-Platonic philosophy, especially in the attempt to harmonize Aristotle with the Platonic tradition. Howsoever he adds to his arguments another one that he did not mention, namely, the adoption of a specific hierarchical interpretation of the categories of Aristotle and the refusal to apply them to God. He also does not agree with him that to Arius the strictly philosophical issues are of small concern.

References

Ancient authors:

Aristotle, Categoriae, in: Selected Works in 6 vols. Vol. I, The Organon, Part I. Translated with Introduction and Notes by Ivan Christov, Sofia: “Zachary Stoyanov” 2008, (bilingual Greek and Bulgarian edition).
--, Metaphysica, in: W.D. Ross, Aristotle's metaphysics, 2 vols. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 3 1970.
Alexandrus Alexandrinus, Epistolae de Ariana Haeresi, PG 18, 548-585.
Athanasius, Epistola de sententia Dionysii, PG 25, 477-512.
--, Orationes adversus Arianos, PG 26, 12-525.
--, Epistola de synodis Arimini in Italia et Seleuciae, PG 26, 681-793.
Basil, Epistulae, PG 32, 219-1114.
Epiphanius, Adversus haereses PG 42, 9-755.
Iamblichus, De mysteriis. In: E.C. Emma, J.M. Dillon & J.P. Hershbell (ed), Iamblichus: On the Mysteries. Atlanta: Society of Biblical Literature 2003.
Porphyrius, In Aristotelis categorias expositio per interrogationem et responsionem. in: A. Busse (ed.), Porphyrii isagoge et in Aristotelis categorias commentarium (Commentaria in Aristotelem Graeca 4.1) Berlin: Reimer, 1887, 55-142. Socrates, Historia ecclesiastica, PG 67, 30-841.
Theodoretus Cyrensis, Eranistes seu Polymorphus, PG 83, 27-317.

Secondary literature:

Arnou, R., „Arius et la doctrine des relations trinitaires”. Gregorianum 14 (1933), 269-272
Bardy, G., “La Thalie d’Arius”. Revue de philologie, de litterature et d’histoire 53 (1927), 211-233.
Boularand, E., “Les débuts d’Arius”. Bulletin de littérature ecclésiastique, 65 (1964), 175-187.
Christov, I., “The terms οὐσία and ὑπόστασις in 38 Letter of St. Basil the Great”. Archiv für mittelalterliche Philosophie und Kultur, Heft IV, LIK Verlag, Sofia-Munich 1997 (in Bulgarian) Florovsky G., Collected Works, Volume 7: Eastern Fathers of the Fourth Century. Buchervertriebsanstalt: Vaduz, Europa, 1987.
Ghellinck, J. de, “Quelques appreciations de la dialectique et d’Aristote durant les conflits trinitaires du IVe siècle”. Revue d’Histoire Ecclésiastique 26 (1930), 5-42.
Harnack, A., Lehrbuch der Dogmengeschichte, Bd. II, 4. Aufl., Tübingen, 1909.
Koev, T., The Dogmatic Formula of the First Fourth Ecumenical Council. Sofia: Synod Publishers, 1968 (in Bulgarian). Μαρτζέλου, Γ., «Ἡ ἔννοια τῆς θεότητας καὶ ἡ ἔννοια τῆς δηµιουργίας κατὰ τοὺς Πατέρες τῆς Ἐκκλησίας. ∆υὸ σηµεῖα σύγκρουσης τῆς πατερικῆς σκέψης µὲ τὴν ἀρχαία ἑλληνικὴ φιλοσοφία». In: Γ. Μαρτζέλου, Ὀρθόδοξο δόγµα καὶ θεολογικὸς προβληµατισµός. Μελετήµατα δογµατικῆς θεολογίας Β΄, Θεσσαλονίκη: Πουρναρᾶ, 2000.
--, Οὐσία καὶ ἐνέργεια τοῦ Θεοῦ κατὰ τὸν Μέγαν Βασίλειον. Συµβολὴ εἰς τὴν ἱστορικοδογµατικὴν διερεύνησιν τῆς περὶ οὐσίας καὶ ἐνεργειῶν τοῦ Θεοῦ διδασκαλίας τῆς Ὀρθοδόξου Ἐκκλησίας, Θεσσαλονίκη, 21993.
Pollard, T.E., Johannine Christology and the Early Church (Society for New Testament Studies Monograph Series 13), Cambridge: Cambridge University Press 1970.
--, “The Origins of Arianism”. Journal of Theological Studies. N.s. 9 (1958), 103111. --, “Logos and Son in Origen, Arius and Athanasius”. Studia Patristica 2 (1957), 282-287.
Stead, C., “Was Arius a Neo-Platonist?” Studia Patristica 32 (2001), 39-51.
Todorova, V. & Chr. Todorov, “About the Other six categories. A problem of logic in the Neo-Platonic interpretation of Aristotle”. in: Archiv für mittelalterliche Philosophie und Kultur, Heft XV, LIK Verlag, Sofia-Munich 2009, p. 7-32. (in Bulgarian) Tuilier, A., “Le sens du terme ὁµοούσιος dans le vocabulaire théologique d’Arius et de l’École a’Antioche”. Studia Patristica 3 (1961), 421-430.
Williams, R., Arius, Heresy and Tradition, London: Darton, Longman and Todd, 1987.
--, “The Logic of Arianism”. Journal of Theological Studies 34 (1983), 56-81.
Published
2013-05-05