Evagrius of Pontus (c.345–99) was one of the most prominent figures among the monks of the desert settlements of Nitria, Sketis, and Kellia in Lower Egypt. Through the course of his ascetic writings ...he formulated a systematic presentation of the teaching of the semi-eremitic monks of these settlements. The works of Evagrius had a profound influence on Eastern Orthodox monastic teaching and passed to the West through the writings of John Cassian (c.365–435). This book provides an English translation of Evagrius' Greek ascetic writings, based on modern critical editions, where available, and, where they are not, on collations of the principal manuscripts. Two appendices provide variant readings for the Greek texts and the complete text of the long recension of Eulogios. The translations are accompanied by a commentary to guide the reader through the intricacies of Evagrian thought by offering explanatory comments and references to other Evagrian texts and relevant scholarly literature. Finally, detailed indexes are provided to allow the reader to identify and study the numerous themes of Evagrian teaching.
The research presents evagrian teaching about heresy. According to monk of Pontus heresy is not basically a rational error of human mind or some kind of erroneous reasoning but is caused by passions ...(gr. logismoi) with a strong emotinal component. A heretic is not a man lacking the intelligence or a proper education but a one who is still dominated by one or more passions and has not yet completely purified his nous.
In recent years, a growing number of studies have presented—in one way or another—various psychotherapeutic projections of a set of spiritual practices of early Christian monasticism. In an attempt ...to establish a dialogue between the doctrines of Late Antiquity and contemporary psychotherapy, it could be risky to extrapolate anachronistic terms, questions and discussions that are foreign to the original context of the Early Church Fathers. In order to overcome this difficulty, we will try to elucidate Evagrius Ponticus’ model of psychospiritual integration through his particular understanding of the effective relations between grace and nature. This will possibly allow us to translate and understand the current interest in his psycho-spiritual model in the same terms as those in which it was formulated by Evagrius. In his effort to think about how the process of complete healing of man takes place, Evagrius takes up intuitions and ideas from the Hippocratic and Platonic traditions. These traditions disapprove of magic as an act of impiety towards the divine order inscribed in the θύσις. Evagrius follows this fundamental intuition of rejection of magic and sorcery to integrate it into a new Christian synthesis that strives to move away from a magical understanding of the action of grace. Now, as Evagrius moves away from a magical conception of grace, certain theoretical-practical knowledge related to mental and spiritual health can be found in his writings. Evagrius is particularly interested in specifying how grace operates in the cognitive-emotional dynamics that intervene in the healing processes of the soul without contradicting or magically suspending the immanent laws of the θύσις.
Evagrio Póntico, a la zaga de una tradición de pensamiento antigua y tardoantigua bien identificable, confiere a la palabra un singular poder terapéutico que se enraíza en una profunda concepción de ...enfermedad del alma. El presente trabajo demuestra que en el conjunto de la obra del Póntico hay un reconocimiento de la virtud curativa de la palabra y una consecuente propuesta de ejercicio terapéutico de la misma, que emergen de una concepción acerca de la ignorancia de sí como la enfermedad del alma. Aquel ejercicio terapéutico se encarna y se concreta en la figura, típicamente evagriana, del gnóstico quien, en virtud de su itinerario espiritual y del conocimiento que ha obtenido al cabo del mismo, posee la ciencia necesaria para llevar adelante (a imitación del médico divino) un auténtico ministerio medicinal para con las almas enfermas y aquejadas diversamente por las pasiones.
Athens and Jerusalem Redux Spencer, Daniel
Forum philosophicum (Kraków, Poland),
06/2023, Letnik:
28, Številka:
1
Journal Article
Recenzirano
In this essay, I evaluate the extent to which some currents in classical Christian mysticism might count as properly ‘Christian’ against the rules of faith and theological methodology of thinkers ...like Tertullian, Irenaeus, and Justin Martyr. I begin by expounding this methodology as it relates to non-Christian philosophical traditions, and from there explore the rules these thinkers offer, suggesting that the beating heart of these rules is not a string of propositions to affirm so much as it is a commitment to a certain rendition of biblical narrative grammar. After exploring this grammar, I turn to a brief discussion of the foundations of Christian mysticism and the thought of Evagrius Ponticus. The aim here is to illustrate the theoretical foundations of much Christian mysticism, as well as to provide a test case to evaluate how far some prominent elements of this discourse might, or might not, cohere with the biblical narrative grammar elucidated above. I argue that there is ample room to question the legitimacy of Evagrius’s claim to properly Christian theorizing, and suggest this has serious implications for future Christian work in the philosophy of mysticism.
En este artículo se propone analizar el tratamiento que otorga Evagrio Póntico a las emociones, especialmente la alegría, en sus Escolios a los salmos. En primer lugar, se contextualizará la obra de ...Evagrio, que acaba de ser publicada, con sus características propias, tanto de género literario cuanto a lo concerniente al tipo de exégesis evagriana. Luego, se abordarán el lugar que ocupan en el texto las emociones, haciendo particular hincapié en una de ellas, la alegría, a partir del análisis de todas las ocurrencias del concepto en los Escolios. Como resultado, se observa que la hermenéutica evagriana de los salmos, al menos para el caso de la alegría, es fundamentalmente alegórica lo cual imposibilitaría o negaría la existencia de la alegría en el hombre según su sentido clásico, ya que sólo puede experimentarse como la reacción ante la posesión de un bien espiritual, que es la gnosis o conocimiento de Dios. De esta manera, los Escolios a los salmos apoyan la interpretación fundamentalmente espiritualista de la doctrina de Evagrio Póntico.
Abstract
How Evagrius Ponticus (d. 399) composed his highly influential treatises of short and succinct chapters (kepahalaia) is bewildering and has been discussed by many scholars. In this essay the ...literary composition of Evagrius' To monks in monasteries and communities, or Ad monachos, a typical text of short chapters, is examined from a literary perspective by relating the text to literary conventions, common in late antique literature and in rhetorical handbooks and exercises (progymnasmata). It is demonstrated how the teaching develops gradually in accordance with a pattern for a so-called amplified argument (epicheireme) codified in Pseudo-Hermogenes Progymnasmata. By this arrangement of the teaching, the reader is offered, not just a random taste of various aspects of the monastic life, but a set of specific conclusions to implement or to be aware of practically in the life as monk; conclusions that are perceptible not at just a cursory glance, but at a careful and repeated reading.
En este estudio hemos de analizar el sentido de las visiones según Evagrio Póntico y de qué manera se pueden discernir para determinar fundamentalmente si provienen de Dios o del enemigo. Para tal ...fin, partiremos de una clave contextual sobre la gnoseología evagriana; en efecto, las "visiones" corresponden a una cierta forma de conocer y comprender la realidad. Luego analizaremos el deseo de la Disto Del. Seguidamente abordaremos las otras visiones y su etiología. Se propondrá una "terapéutica", considerando que el discernir se abre a una acción curativa. Notaremos cómo el autor indaga en la misma raíz del problema: la avidez por ver sensiblemente la divinidad. Asimismo, se describirán otras causas como la vanagloria y la presunción. El título del presente estudio nos permite señalar los términos fundamentales: el "discernimiento" (ôiaKpiGiç) y las visiones, para las cuales encontramos diversos conceptos técnicos: öpaGiç, олтаага, oytę, орара, entre otros.
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