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Open AccessArticle

The Location and Work of Eden—Hermeneutical Convergences

by Alexandru Lazăr

Religions 2025, 16(9), 1200; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel16091200 - 18 Sep 2025

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The study begins with the questions “Where was Paradise?” and “How was the Garden cultivated?”, and the relationship between different modes of interpretation. It compares the biblical data (Gen. 2) with patristic testimonies (John Chrysostom, Ambrose, Ephrem, Gregory of Nyssa, John of Damascus) and symbolic readings (Philo, Cyprian, Hippolytus), in order to assess whether the plurality of meanings generates confusion or coherence. Situated within the divergent approaches of these patristic authors—especially concerning literal and figurative aspects—I aim to outline an integral theological reading of the Eden tradition and of the aforementioned questions. The methods used in this research are comparative biblical and patristic exegesis, structured through a four-step framework: (1) retaining the literal sense when the text provides anchors (rivers, orientation); (2) shifting from description to vocation in the moral-liturgical sense (“to work”/“to keep”); (3) accepting the ineffable (2 Cor. 12) as a boundary; (4) articulating an ontology of paradisiacal matter. The findings of this study are as follows: Eden is an earthly reality, but one with transfigured materiality; “work” is an inner activity (obedience, contemplation) without toil; and the diversity of interpretations proves to be complementary: the literal anchors the “where/what”, while the spiritual illuminates the “why/how”, together avoiding both inert geography and ungrounded symbolism. Full article

(This article belongs to the Section Religions and Theologies)

13 pages, 320 KB

Open AccessArticle

Asterius of Amaseia Between Libanius and John Chrysostom on the Kalends of January

by Maria Veronese

Religions 2025, 16(7), 873; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel16070873 - 5 Jul 2025

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Abstract

This article examines Asterius of Amaseia’s Homily 4 on the Kalends of January and compares it with the works of Libanius and John Chrysostom on the same subject. Preached in January 400, Asterius’ sermon takes a distinctive approach, focusing less on condemning pagan aspects and more on criticising immoral behaviour during the festival. The bishop emphasises the economic and non-inclusive nature of the celebration, directly refuting Libanius’ eulogy. Asterius portrays the Kalends as a source of social division and violence, in contrast to Libanius’ portrayal of shared joy. This article suggests that Asterius’ polemic reflects a social conflict rather than a pagan–Christian opposition, presenting the Kalends as a moral problem threatening society, particularly through the corruption of its leaders. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Interaction of Early Christianity with Classical Literature)

18 pages, 1087 KB

Open AccessArticle

Pure or Noble Materials for Jewish Ritual Vessels: Passover Meal and the First Eucharistic Chalice (Holy Grail)

by Manuel Zarzo

Religions 2024, 15(3), 321; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15030321 - 6 Mar 2024

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 4237

Abstract

Very little is known about the chalice used by Jesus of Nazareth at the Last Supper. The first Christians used a cup of blessing for the Eucharistic celebration (1Cor 10:16), which insinuates that Jesus used a ritual cup. An exegetical study of the synoptic gospels reveals that this ritual dinner was celebrated in the home of a wealthy disciple of Jesus, who would have lent him the most valuable cup of blessing owned by the family. Hence, it is unlikely that this cup was made of common and cheap materials, such as ceramic or wood. The only mention of this cup in the early centuries is due to St. John Chrysostom, who states (ca. 395 AD) that it was not made of silver. However, its veracity is not reliable due to the lack of earlier comments. In recent decades, archaeological excavations in the Holy Land have revealed that, at the time of Jesus, the use of vessels carved in limestone was common in Jerusalem for ritual practices in the domestic sphere because they were considered unsusceptible to impurity. This fact suggests that the chalice of the Last Supper might have been a valued cup of carved stone, which is consistent with the use of such bowls in the Hellenistic–Roman period among the aristocratic classes. Full article

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14 pages, 375 KB

Open AccessArticle

Sacred Theatres: Listening to Homilies and Experiencing the Holy Beauty in 9th- and 10th-Century Byzantine Churches

by Cao Gu

Religions 2023, 14(12), 1460; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel14121460 - 25 Nov 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2279

Abstract

Although John Chrysostom is critical of the theatre, delivering a homily was never a tiresome monologue of the preacher in Byzantium; it was a theatrical performance combining text-reading and multiple ceremonies, during which spaces, lights, and materials were manipulated to create marvellous spectacles and enslave the audience spiritually and emotionally. At times, orators described the physical features of the venues where they spoke, as did Leo VI the Wise for two newly founded churches and Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus for the second most important church of the Empire, the Holy Apostles. But in most cases, the performance aspect of their speeches could only be known indirectly from two ceremonial handbooks, Kletorologion and De Ceremoniis. It is also necessary to indicate that the spectacles in homilies were not always real and present; they sometimes came to exist in listeners’ minds through picturesque descriptions (ekphraseis) and fictional figures (ethopoiiai) composed by preachers. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Devotion Practice and Performative Expression in the Religious Art of Medieval Europe)

41 pages, 5679 KB

Open AccessFeature PaperArticle

Byzantine Influence before Byzantinisation: The Tropologion Sinai Greek NE ΜΓ 56+5 Compared with the Georgian and Syriac Melkite Versions

by Stig Simeon R. Frøyshov, Aleksandra Nikiforova and Natalia Smelova

Religions 2023, 14(11), 1363; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel14111363 - 27 Oct 2023

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 3429

Abstract

The article examines a selection of hymns of potentially Byzantine origin in the eighth-to-tenth-century manuscripts of the New Tropologion, which was the hymnal of the Anastasis cathedral of Jerusalem and in churches that followed its rite. Such adoption in the rite of Jerusalem represented a Byzantine influence before the wave of liturgical Byzantinisation that started in the late ninth and tenth centuries. For the first time, three versions of the New Tropologion are studied together: the Greek original and the Syriac and Georgian translations. The Greek Tropologion Sinai MS NE MΓ 56+5 is the primary material, compared with Sinai MS Syriac 48 and several Georgian New Iadgari manuscripts from Sinai. The study identifies one certain Byzantine element in the New Tropologion: parts of the feast of St. John Chrysostom, archbishop of Constantinople, and several probable Byzantine elements: the interpolation of the second ode in three canons by Kosmas of Jerusalem and one by John, and parts of the stichera series Aἱ ἀγγελικαὶ προπορεύεσθε δυνάμεις attributed to Romanos the Melodist. By contrast, the interpolated ode 1 in Kosmas’ canon for Great Saturday seems to be of Palestinian origin, and therefore not a Byzantine loan, contrary to traditional views. The article shows that there is considerable variation between the different versions of the New Tropologion. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Constantinople and its Peripheries: The Mechanisms of Liturgical Byzantinisation)

12 pages, 401 KB

Open AccessArticle

1 Timothy 1:3–4 in the Memory of Irenaeus, Tertullian, Athanasius, and Chrysostom

by Michael Scott Robertson

Religions 2023, 14(9), 1123; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel14091123 - 31 Aug 2023

Viewed by 2351

Abstract

In this article, I discuss reception history, its place within the history of historical critical methods, and social memory theory. I apply a reception historical lens buttressed by social memory theory to 1 Timothy 1:3–4. I show that the historical circumstances of this passage’s reception problematize using early understandings of it to reconstruct the referent behind “myths and endless genealogies”. I first show how the phrase “myths and endless genealogies” is ambiguous in the historical setting of the author. Then, I demonstrate that Irenaeus, Tertullian, Athanasius, and Chrysostom use this phrase against very different groups; however, all of these authors use 1 Timothy 1:4 for a (perceived) problem against their present group. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Hermeneutics: Contextual Approaches to Biblical Interpretation)

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