- Fondazione Ezio Franceschini (Florence), Sezione Musica Matilde Fiorini Aragone, Department Memberadd
- Byzantine Iconography, Theology and Culture, Neoplatonism and late antique philosophy, Christian Neoplatonism, Eriugena, Theology, and 41 moreBulgakov, Lamb of God, Agnets Bozhii, review, sophiology, liturgical, anaphora, heresy, structure, On Godmanhood, created Sophia, uncreated Sophia, divine, creaturely, Apollinarius, Logos, Chalcedon, Absolute, Absolute-Relative, Medieval Philosophy, Byzantine Liturgy, Orthodox Christianity, Ontology, Russian Orthodoxy, History of Christianity, Philosophy of music (Philosophy), Social and Cultural Anthropology, Dionysius the Areopagite, History of Religion, Philosophy of Music, Orthodox Theology, Dionysius Areopagita, Liberal arts, Medieval Music, Medieval Ecclesiastical History, Problem of Evil, Sophiology, Divine Wisdom, Usury, Eastern Orthodoxy, Byzantine history and archaeology, Medieval Balkans, Early medieval Bulgaria, Kievan Rus', Byzantine historiography, Southeastern Europe in the Middle Ages, Eurasian Nomads, Slavic Languages and Literatures, History of Judaism In Antiquity, Bible, Greco-Roman World, Qumran, Rabbinic Literature, History of Religions, Early Christianity, History of Philosophy, Late Antiquity, Byzantine Studies, and Historyedit
- • MA in Theoretical Philosophy at the University of Milan (1999), with a dissertation on the philosophy of medieval m... more• MA in Theoretical Philosophy at the University of Milan (1999), with a dissertation on the philosophy of medieval music.
• PhD at the University of Salerno (2006) with a dissertation on the influence of the thought and the works of John Scottus Eriugena in the Latin Middle Ages.
• Post-Doc at the University of Salerno. (2007-2009)
• Research fellow (Assegnista di ricerca) at the University of Perugia (2009-2010).
• Studies in Orthodox theology at the Institut de théologie Orthodoxe Saint-Serge, Paris (2006-).edit
This book: Examines the legacy of Pseudo-Dionysius and his impact on the development of Christian visual culture Explores the relation of the Dionysian philosophical system to the materiality and visualization of the world Crosses... more
This book:
Examines the legacy of Pseudo-Dionysius and his impact on the development of Christian visual culture
Explores the relation of the Dionysian philosophical system to the materiality and visualization of the world
Crosses perceived disciplinary boundaries in a constructive and fruitful way, bringing together theologians, art historians, and literary scholars
This book uses Pseudo-Dionysius and his mystic theology to explore attitudes and beliefs about images in the early medieval West and Byzantium. Composed in the early sixth century, the Corpus Dionysiacum, the collection of texts transmitted under the name of Dionysius the Areopagite, developed a number of themes which have a predominantly visual and spatial dimension. Pseudo-Dionysius’ contribution to the development of Christian visual culture, visual thinking and figural art-making are examined in this book to systematically investigate his long- lasting legacy and influence. The contributors embrace religious studies, philosophy, theology, art, and architectural history, to consider the depth of the interaction between the Corpus Dionysiacum and various aspects of contemporary Byzantine and western cultures, including ecclesiastical and lay power, politics, religion, and art.
Endorsements from the back cover:
“This highly sophisticated collection of essays reveals the intricacies and relevance of (Pseudo-) Dionysius’ thoughts for the church, understood both as a community of the faithful and a place of worship. Interdisciplinary but focused, these erudite essays confirm the semantic and visual complexities of Dionysius’ concepts.”
—Jelena Bogdanović, Associate Professor, Iowa State University, USA
“This important study of the writings of Pseudo-Dionysius demonstrates for the first time the visual thinking at the core of his theology and how it decisively shaped the art and architecture of Late Antiquity. By putting the visual dimension at the foreground, this compelling book builds a bridge that connects our present culture of the image to the past.”
—Bissera V. Pentcheva, Professor of Art History, Stanford University, USA
“This book is a welcome addition to the study of the Areopagite’s influence on Christian iconography and aesthetics. Across various media and discourses, Dionysius’s unique contribution to the Byzantine theology of the image is presented in a series of richly perceptive and constructive readings.”
—Fr Maximos Constas, Senior Research Scholar, Holy Cross School of Theology, USA
Examines the legacy of Pseudo-Dionysius and his impact on the development of Christian visual culture
Explores the relation of the Dionysian philosophical system to the materiality and visualization of the world
Crosses perceived disciplinary boundaries in a constructive and fruitful way, bringing together theologians, art historians, and literary scholars
This book uses Pseudo-Dionysius and his mystic theology to explore attitudes and beliefs about images in the early medieval West and Byzantium. Composed in the early sixth century, the Corpus Dionysiacum, the collection of texts transmitted under the name of Dionysius the Areopagite, developed a number of themes which have a predominantly visual and spatial dimension. Pseudo-Dionysius’ contribution to the development of Christian visual culture, visual thinking and figural art-making are examined in this book to systematically investigate his long- lasting legacy and influence. The contributors embrace religious studies, philosophy, theology, art, and architectural history, to consider the depth of the interaction between the Corpus Dionysiacum and various aspects of contemporary Byzantine and western cultures, including ecclesiastical and lay power, politics, religion, and art.
Endorsements from the back cover:
“This highly sophisticated collection of essays reveals the intricacies and relevance of (Pseudo-) Dionysius’ thoughts for the church, understood both as a community of the faithful and a place of worship. Interdisciplinary but focused, these erudite essays confirm the semantic and visual complexities of Dionysius’ concepts.”
—Jelena Bogdanović, Associate Professor, Iowa State University, USA
“This important study of the writings of Pseudo-Dionysius demonstrates for the first time the visual thinking at the core of his theology and how it decisively shaped the art and architecture of Late Antiquity. By putting the visual dimension at the foreground, this compelling book builds a bridge that connects our present culture of the image to the past.”
—Bissera V. Pentcheva, Professor of Art History, Stanford University, USA
“This book is a welcome addition to the study of the Areopagite’s influence on Christian iconography and aesthetics. Across various media and discourses, Dionysius’s unique contribution to the Byzantine theology of the image is presented in a series of richly perceptive and constructive readings.”
—Fr Maximos Constas, Senior Research Scholar, Holy Cross School of Theology, USA
Research Interests:
This volume aims at proposing a wide-ranging discussion of the philosophical-theological and philological-literary aspects that have made the Corpus Dionysiacum a milestone in Christian literature, assessing them in relation to the... more
This volume aims at proposing a wide-ranging discussion of the
philosophical-theological and philological-literary aspects that have
made the Corpus Dionysiacum a milestone in Christian literature, assessing
them in relation to the historical-doctrinal background that
took shape between the end of the fifth and the first half of the sixth
century in the area of the Christian East that includes Greece and
Egypt, Palestine and Syria, and has seen its nodal centres in the cities
of Constantinople, Athens, Alexandria, Antioch, and Edessa. The
work of the mysterious author who wrote under the fictitious identity
of the saint Paul’s Athenian disciple, Dionysius the Areopagite, is investigated
here in relation to the ecclesiastic and political questions
that shaped intellectual debates in this particular historical context,
recognizing behind it a theoretical elaboration aiming at responding
to the main problems that stirred the political, ecclesial and intellectual
panorama of the Eastern part of the Roman Empire in this time,
which was marked by profound doctrinal divisions and large-scale
ecclesiastical schisms. Pseudo-Areopagitical writings show in their
watermark precise references to the main theological and philosophical
debates of the time in which they appeared, from Christology to
Origenism; from the clash between Christian and pagan philosophy
to the religious ideologies entering from the neighbouring Persian
empire; from the spiritualistic and anti-hierarchical positions held by
extreme monastic factions to the conflicts existing between schools
and theological-exegetical trends issuing from different geographical
and ecclesiastical contexts. This study attempts at reconstructing the
complexity of these references and their goal, arriving at the conclusion
that the Corpus – by means of the pseudo-epigraphic fiction that
attributed to Pseudo-Dionysius an almost apostolic authority – was
designed as an instrument aimed at dictating solutions that could be
shared by the parties involved in the controversies and could lead
them to doctrinal agreement, revealing a concern that was no less political
than ecclesiastical. The outcomes of this reconstruction suggest
an entirely new and ground-breaking solution to the Areopagitical
question, which strives for the first time to take into account every facet
of the pseudo-Dionysian text – either theological, philosophical, ecclesiological, liturgical, or heortological – attributing them the proper
weight, as pieces that must find their place within a vast mosaic.
philosophical-theological and philological-literary aspects that have
made the Corpus Dionysiacum a milestone in Christian literature, assessing
them in relation to the historical-doctrinal background that
took shape between the end of the fifth and the first half of the sixth
century in the area of the Christian East that includes Greece and
Egypt, Palestine and Syria, and has seen its nodal centres in the cities
of Constantinople, Athens, Alexandria, Antioch, and Edessa. The
work of the mysterious author who wrote under the fictitious identity
of the saint Paul’s Athenian disciple, Dionysius the Areopagite, is investigated
here in relation to the ecclesiastic and political questions
that shaped intellectual debates in this particular historical context,
recognizing behind it a theoretical elaboration aiming at responding
to the main problems that stirred the political, ecclesial and intellectual
panorama of the Eastern part of the Roman Empire in this time,
which was marked by profound doctrinal divisions and large-scale
ecclesiastical schisms. Pseudo-Areopagitical writings show in their
watermark precise references to the main theological and philosophical
debates of the time in which they appeared, from Christology to
Origenism; from the clash between Christian and pagan philosophy
to the religious ideologies entering from the neighbouring Persian
empire; from the spiritualistic and anti-hierarchical positions held by
extreme monastic factions to the conflicts existing between schools
and theological-exegetical trends issuing from different geographical
and ecclesiastical contexts. This study attempts at reconstructing the
complexity of these references and their goal, arriving at the conclusion
that the Corpus – by means of the pseudo-epigraphic fiction that
attributed to Pseudo-Dionysius an almost apostolic authority – was
designed as an instrument aimed at dictating solutions that could be
shared by the parties involved in the controversies and could lead
them to doctrinal agreement, revealing a concern that was no less political
than ecclesiastical. The outcomes of this reconstruction suggest
an entirely new and ground-breaking solution to the Areopagitical
question, which strives for the first time to take into account every facet
of the pseudo-Dionysian text – either theological, philosophical, ecclesiological, liturgical, or heortological – attributing them the proper
weight, as pieces that must find their place within a vast mosaic.
Research Interests:
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The theme of ecstasy in Pseudo-Dionysius is developed under the gnoseological perspective of the transcendence over the realm of the intellect and constitutes a step in the path of ascent to the summit of mystical theology, which is... more
The theme of ecstasy in Pseudo-Dionysius is developed under the gnoseological perspective of the transcendence over the realm of the intellect and constitutes a step in the path of ascent to the summit of mystical theology, which is unknowledge. In the work of Dionysius, this theme finds contiguity with another basic aspect of Dionysian thought, which was developed later namely the hierarchical dynamic of deification, whose elaboration leads Dionysius’ mystical conception to be fully contextualized, beyond the gnoseological sphere, in the domain of sacramental communion and symbolic theology
Research Interests:
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This paper review is devoted to the Italian translations of the main work of John Scottus Eriugena, the Periphyseon, which have concomitantly appeared between the years 2012 and 2017, and have been respectively edited by Peter Dronke... more
This paper review is devoted to the Italian translations
of the main work of John Scottus Eriugena, the Periphyseon, which have
concomitantly appeared between the years 2012 and 2017, and have been
respectively edited by Peter Dronke (with a translation by Michela Pereira)
and Nicola Gorlani. Both editions are accompanied by the Latin text which
has been critically established by Édouard Jeauneau, but both skip its vast
critical apparatus; moreover, the text proposed by Dronke also presents
several interventions on the Latin text in respect of Jeauneau’s edition. An
analysis of the choices made by both the editors is proposed, arriving to the
conclusion that it would have been more prudent to maintain a conservative
attitude with respect to the text: although Jeauneau’s edition is based on
the hypothetical ecdotic assumption that a part of the glosses added to the
earliest manuscripts of the Eriugenian masterpiece is due to an unfaithful
copyist, the French editor has neverthless reported the entirety of the textual
materials transmitted by the manuscripts, while the editions-translations under
examination have left outside several important and interesting additions to
the text. This review also considers the way in which the speculative figure
of Eriugena is presented by both editions and their commentary apparatus.
Finally, several observations are reserved to the choices that have been made
by the translators.
of the main work of John Scottus Eriugena, the Periphyseon, which have
concomitantly appeared between the years 2012 and 2017, and have been
respectively edited by Peter Dronke (with a translation by Michela Pereira)
and Nicola Gorlani. Both editions are accompanied by the Latin text which
has been critically established by Édouard Jeauneau, but both skip its vast
critical apparatus; moreover, the text proposed by Dronke also presents
several interventions on the Latin text in respect of Jeauneau’s edition. An
analysis of the choices made by both the editors is proposed, arriving to the
conclusion that it would have been more prudent to maintain a conservative
attitude with respect to the text: although Jeauneau’s edition is based on
the hypothetical ecdotic assumption that a part of the glosses added to the
earliest manuscripts of the Eriugenian masterpiece is due to an unfaithful
copyist, the French editor has neverthless reported the entirety of the textual
materials transmitted by the manuscripts, while the editions-translations under
examination have left outside several important and interesting additions to
the text. This review also considers the way in which the speculative figure
of Eriugena is presented by both editions and their commentary apparatus.
Finally, several observations are reserved to the choices that have been made
by the translators.
Research Interests:
This paper intends to attribute to Almannus of Hautvillers (IXe s.) a letter of an author A. to a certainly magister E., which is only known in the manuscript Leiden, Voss. lat. oct. 88. The attribution, argued through textual... more
This paper intends to attribute to Almannus of Hautvillers (IXe s.) a letter of an author A. to a certainly magister E., which is only known in the manuscript Leiden, Voss. lat. oct. 88. The attribution, argued through textual concordances with other works of Almannus, would allow to detail numerous historical informations referred to in the epistle as well as its doctrinal aspects, marked by the eriugenian influence, and at the same time to specify several facts concerning life and intellectual formation of the monk and priest of Hautvillers.
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and the Furtherance of Romanness in the Late Carolingian Age – The themes of Romanness and sacred royalty are here investigated by examining the visual and verbal rhetoric that characterizes the decorative and versifying programmes of... more
and the Furtherance of Romanness in the Late
Carolingian Age – The themes of Romanness and sacred royalty
are here investigated by examining the visual and verbal rhetoric
that characterizes the decorative and versifying programmes of
some of the most lavish liturgical codices dedicated to King Charles
the Bald. In particular, the study calls attention to the possible
identification of John Scottus Eriugena as the author of the verses in
the Bible of San Paolo fuori le mura. Besides showing how Eriugena
enriched the traditional theme of sacred royalty with sapiential,
philosophical, and cosmological motifs, the study highlights the Irish
thinker’s centrality in the strategy to promote the image of Charles
in supporting the Frankish king’s candidacy for the imperial crown.
As part of this strategy, the gift of the San Paolo Bible to the pope,
possibly on the occasion of Charles the Bald’s coronation in Rome
in 875, entailed the success of the rhetoric of Romanness and sacred
royalty promoted by late Carolingian culture into the same religious
and historical centre that inspired those rhetorical themes.
Carolingian Age – The themes of Romanness and sacred royalty
are here investigated by examining the visual and verbal rhetoric
that characterizes the decorative and versifying programmes of
some of the most lavish liturgical codices dedicated to King Charles
the Bald. In particular, the study calls attention to the possible
identification of John Scottus Eriugena as the author of the verses in
the Bible of San Paolo fuori le mura. Besides showing how Eriugena
enriched the traditional theme of sacred royalty with sapiential,
philosophical, and cosmological motifs, the study highlights the Irish
thinker’s centrality in the strategy to promote the image of Charles
in supporting the Frankish king’s candidacy for the imperial crown.
As part of this strategy, the gift of the San Paolo Bible to the pope,
possibly on the occasion of Charles the Bald’s coronation in Rome
in 875, entailed the success of the rhetoric of Romanness and sacred
royalty promoted by late Carolingian culture into the same religious
and historical centre that inspired those rhetorical themes.
Research Interests:
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Pour Denys l’harmonie est le symbole de l’action invisible des énergies divines, car elle manifeste la bonne disposition providentielle des êtres dans l’immanence cosmique. L’harmonie musicale est à la fois symbole de cette harmonie... more
Pour Denys l’harmonie est le symbole de l’action invisible des énergies divines, car elle manifeste la bonne disposition providentielle des êtres dans l’immanence cosmique. L’harmonie musicale est à la fois symbole de cette harmonie cosmique et se prête à être le véhicule symbolique des « chants » intelligibles des anges. Ces chants ne sont pas l’expression de l’harmonie cosmique, bien qu’ils transmettent les énergies du Bien et du Beau et de la Paix mais l’expression de l’ordre de déification des hypostases qui composent la hiérarchie céleste et ecclésiastique.
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In Chapter 1, Ernesto S. Mainoldi reconstructs the historical and doctrinal rationale behind Pseudo-Dionysius’ image and symbol the- ory, paving the ground to the following chapters. Mainoldi conceives of Pseudo-Dionysius as a link... more
In Chapter 1, Ernesto S. Mainoldi reconstructs the historical and doctrinal rationale behind Pseudo-Dionysius’ image and symbol the- ory, paving the ground to the following chapters. Mainoldi conceives of Pseudo-Dionysius as a link between early Patristic and Byzantine thought and believes he used the terminology and concepts of late Neoplatonism in order to criticise its theoretical model. Mainoldi also expounds upon concepts and terms relating to the sphere of visual thinking that occupy a central position within the theory of knowledge and the mystical–sacra- mental vision of Pseudo-Dionysius. Firstly, Mainoldi frames them within the ‘Dionysian system’. Then, he focuses on the original objectives of Corpus Dionysiacum in order to shed light on Dionysius’ interaction with the on-going theological and ecclesiological debate. He also takes a look at the sources and the historical context in which the Corpus was composed. Finally, the chapter emphasises how Pseudo-Dionysius con- tributed to the definition of a new paradigm of thought with regards to the status of the image. This definition played a decisive role in the formation and the development of Byzantine visual thinking. Pseudo- Dionysius essentially stimulated his audience to conceive theology through images—an approach that we address here as eikonic thought. By this expression, we intend to encompass something greater than mere visual thinking. In fact, the concept of eikon according to Pseudo- Dionysius and to the tradition to which he referred, is rooted in the ideas of the creation of man and the Incarnation of the Word of God.
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The philosophical debate in the early Byzan-tine Renaissance has been characterized primarily by a significant renewal of interest in ancient philosophy and by a wave of scholarship attracted to Western theology. The study of secular... more
The philosophical debate in the early Byzan-tine Renaissance has been characterized primarily by a significant renewal of interest in ancient philosophy and by a wave of scholarship attracted to Western theology. The study of secular philosophy was not undertaken as a way to improve theological knowledge or method, and consequently the equilibrium between these domains was maintained. The openness to Latin theology has been made possible by the activity of translation of Latin texts at the Dominican monastery of Pera in Constantinople, which involved philosophical and theological works until that time unknown to the Byzantines. Whence, an innovative philosophical trend took life, that of the so-called Byzantine Thomism, alongside the reception of the Scholastic method, consisting in the adoption of secular speculation and syllogism in theological reflection. These speculative paths, hitherto largely autonomous, were destined to come into conflict in the frame of the Hesychast disputation. By this quarrel, which ended with the triumph of Gregory Palamas' doctrine of uncreated energies, philosophy and theology were established on parallel tracks, and significant attempts of overlapping their areas of competence were generally avoided.
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After a brief survey on the place of harmony and music in Pseudo-Dionysius’ world vision, this article reviews and analyses all of the mentions to music given in the Corpus Dionysiacum. Since Pseudo-Dionysius deals only with liturgical... more
After a brief survey on the place of harmony and music in Pseudo-Dionysius’ world vision, this article reviews and analyses all of the mentions to music given in the Corpus Dionysiacum. Since Pseudo-Dionysius deals only with liturgical music, an attempt is made to identify to which genre of the Eastern musical-liturgical repertoire the chants mentioned or described by the author of the Corpus belong.
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Moving from the problem of defining how medieval speculation conceived the aesthetic dimension of art, this essay purposes an insight into the aspects that describe the peculiarity of the Byzantine conception of beauty and art. Surpassing... more
Moving from the problem of defining how medieval speculation conceived the aesthetic dimension of art, this essay purposes an insight into the aspects that describe the peculiarity of the Byzantine conception of beauty and art. Surpassing the noetic perspective established by Platonic thought – shared also by Western medieval philosophy – according to which beauty is an intelligible model subsisting in itself as an autonomous entity, the Byzantine proper vision conceives beauty as a divine energy. The implications of this perspective lead us to investigate its connection with some of the most original achievements of Byzantine speculation, such as hypostatic ontology, theology of deification, eikonic thinking, and especially sophianic gnoseology, which permit us to overcome the dichotomy of the intelligible and the sensible domains of reality.
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The creation of the most influential pseudo-epigraphic work in patristic literature, i.e. the Corpus Dionysiacum, in the intentions of its real author was to provide an authoritative apostolic point of view aiming at suggesting solutions... more
The creation of the most influential pseudo-epigraphic work in patristic literature, i.e. the Corpus Dionysiacum, in the intentions of its real author was to provide an authoritative apostolic point of view aiming at suggesting solutions into the domain of the doctrinal problems that were a matter of discussion and the cause of divisions in the Church from mid-5th century up to the early 6th century. The aim of this article is to show how the main features of Pseudo-Dionysius’ teachings, i.e. the hierarchical structure of the Church, the Christological position, the corrections addressed to Origenistic eschatology, the liturgical and mystagogical commentary provided in the Ecclesiastical Hierarchy etc., are the evidence of a politico-ecclesiastical strategy connected to the uprising influential role played by Constantinople during the early years of emperor Justinian’s reign. Within this framework, Dionysius is purposed as the apostolic authority ‘designed’ to suggest new solutions in the theological debates of the early 6th century, and to support on the theoretical side Justinian’s project, focused on promoting the capital of the Empire to an ecclesiological and theological primacy, basing its prestige on the affirmation of the theology of Chalcedon, on the teaching of the Cappadocia Fathers and on the revolutionary theologico-ecclesiological outline depicted in the Corpus Dionysiacum.
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Московская Духовная Академия. Материалы кафедры богословия. 2014-2015. p. 67-108, Mosca:Московская Духовная Академия. Trad. russa di A. Nikitiuk
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This paper focuses on the problem of the possible relationship between the description of the abbatial basilica of Saint-Denis, written by its abbot Suger, after the restructuring promoted by himself, and the theology of light described... more
This paper focuses on the problem of the possible relationship between the description of the abbatial basilica of Saint-Denis, written by its abbot Suger, after the restructuring promoted by himself, and the theology of light described by Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite. Starting from the results achieved by recent historiography, which pointed out precise convergences between some textual expressions in Suger and the writings of Pseudo-Dionysius, but also underlined the silence under which the main Dionysian topics were treated in Suger’s works, an attempt of explanation is made about the reasons which led Suger to drop entirely the hagiographic identification – set by his Carolingian predecessor Ilduin and amplified by John Scottus – between the Dionysius who has been martyr in Paris and the Dionysius who has been disciple of saint Paul, and supposed author of the Corpus Dionysiacum. A second field of investigation embraces the opposition between Saint-Denis and Hagia Sophia, an opposition that Suger himself suggests in his writings, at the light of the politico-economical confrontation between the 12th Century France and the eastern capital city, whose Great Church in every time has been admired and has been source of wonder. Behind these comparisons it is possible to perceive the reference to the Temple of Solomon, which has played as an ideal and a rhetorical model, recalled by many Christian authors in order to magnify the churches built as being conceived as the symbolic centre of their time.
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This paper deals with the witness offered by pseudo-Dionysius on the hymns that hail the threefold holiness of God, that is the Liturgical Trisagion and the biblical Trisagion or Sanctus. The evidences of reference to these hymns in the... more
This paper deals with the witness offered by pseudo-Dionysius on the
hymns that hail the threefold holiness of God, that is the Liturgical
Trisagion and the biblical Trisagion or Sanctus. The evidences of reference
to these hymns in the Areopagitica are discussed and analysed at the
light of their history and their theologico-liturgical interpretation. While
Dionysius seems to ignore the hymns in the description of the liturgical
rites given in the treatise On the Ecclesiastical Hierarchy, he introduces
in other places of his writings some precise references to them, supporting
a Trinitarian interpretation of their significance. According to the
output of this analysis, it is possible to conclude that the references and the quotations of the three-saint hymns have a particular role in the economy
of the pseudo-dionysian writings, that is supporting a precise Christological
position, the Neo-Chalcedonian one, supported by the emperor
Justinian in the same years when the Corpus appeared and begun its diffusion.
hymns that hail the threefold holiness of God, that is the Liturgical
Trisagion and the biblical Trisagion or Sanctus. The evidences of reference
to these hymns in the Areopagitica are discussed and analysed at the
light of their history and their theologico-liturgical interpretation. While
Dionysius seems to ignore the hymns in the description of the liturgical
rites given in the treatise On the Ecclesiastical Hierarchy, he introduces
in other places of his writings some precise references to them, supporting
a Trinitarian interpretation of their significance. According to the
output of this analysis, it is possible to conclude that the references and the quotations of the three-saint hymns have a particular role in the economy
of the pseudo-dionysian writings, that is supporting a precise Christological
position, the Neo-Chalcedonian one, supported by the emperor
Justinian in the same years when the Corpus appeared and begun its diffusion.
Research Interests:
This paper proposes an analysis of some rites described in Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite’s De ecclesiastica hierarchia, focusing in particular on the sacraments of the Ordination and of the Enlightenment, as well as on some parts of the... more
This paper proposes an analysis of some rites described in Pseudo-Dionysius
the Areopagite’s De ecclesiastica hierarchia, focusing in particular on the
sacraments of the Ordination and of the Enlightenment, as well as on some
parts of the Eucharistic Synaxis. Through the comparison between the ordo
and its exegesis (theoria) it is possible to point out that Ps.-Dionysius, in
several cases, comments on a rite that presents relevant differences in
comparison with the ordo reported. These disparities suggest that Dionysius
followed some sort of a Syriac ordo , even if his commentary was influenced
by a familiarity with the rites of Constantinople. The results presented here
allow to challenge the historiographic issue of the Syrian origins of Ps.-
Dionysius and to put forward a new chronology for the Corpus dionysiacum.
Finally, an attempt is made to discover the hidden message behind the
complex organization of the liturgical matter of the treatise, at the light of
the more general framework of the dionysian pseudo-epigraphy
the Areopagite’s De ecclesiastica hierarchia, focusing in particular on the
sacraments of the Ordination and of the Enlightenment, as well as on some
parts of the Eucharistic Synaxis. Through the comparison between the ordo
and its exegesis (theoria) it is possible to point out that Ps.-Dionysius, in
several cases, comments on a rite that presents relevant differences in
comparison with the ordo reported. These disparities suggest that Dionysius
followed some sort of a Syriac ordo , even if his commentary was influenced
by a familiarity with the rites of Constantinople. The results presented here
allow to challenge the historiographic issue of the Syrian origins of Ps.-
Dionysius and to put forward a new chronology for the Corpus dionysiacum.
Finally, an attempt is made to discover the hidden message behind the
complex organization of the liturgical matter of the treatise, at the light of
the more general framework of the dionysian pseudo-epigraphy
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Un texte majeur ne se distingue pas seulement par l’influence qu’il exerce, mais aussi par la possibilité qu’il a d’être utilisé et transformé. Si, dans le milieu doctrinal byzantin, le Corpus a eu une influence telle qu’on peut parler de... more
Un texte majeur ne se distingue pas seulement par l’influence qu’il exerce, mais aussi par la possibilité qu’il a d’être utilisé et transformé. Si, dans le milieu doctrinal byzantin, le Corpus a eu une influence telle qu’on peut parler de la théologie dionysienne comme de l’une des colonnes fondatrices de l’édifice spéculatif qui a façonné la vision du monde chrétien oriental, dépassant les limites temporelles du Moyen Âge byzantin et la fin même de Byzance, tout en demeurant vivante jusqu’à aujourd’hui, en Occident le pseudo-Denys a connu une fortune qui n’est pas pleinement réceptive du point de vue doctrinal, mais qui, grâce à la fiction pseudépigraphique, a joué de concert avec sa richesse doctrinale ; il a défié à toutes les époques les théologiens, les philosophes et les philologues qui ont cherché à l’interpréter, à percer son énigme, et l’ont utilisé en le transformant et en l’adaptant. Le Pseudo-Denys a représenté en Occident pendant tout le Moyen Âge une ressource qui permettait de raccrocher les racines d’un supposé enseignement apostolique spéculatif, dans la mesure où le pseudo-Denys était encore « Denys l’Aréopagite », mais aussi parce que son système présentait la richesse spéculative des sources philosophiques anciennes, tout en offrant une synthèse qui s’insérait à la perfection dans le paradigme chrétien.
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«Plato vero philosophorum summus. Enquiry on Plato’s Reception in John Scottus». This paper examines John Scottus Eriugena’s knowledge of Plato’s works and thought. Eriugena’a direct access to Plato was limited to the first part of the... more
«Plato vero philosophorum summus. Enquiry on Plato’s Reception in John Scottus».
This paper examines John Scottus Eriugena’s knowledge of Plato’s works and thought. Eriugena’a direct access to Plato was limited to the first part of the Timaeus, through the Latin translation made by Calcidius, while he had indirect access to Plato’s works through Augustine’s De civitate dei. Eriugena had a genuine interest in the figure of the Athenian thinker, and discussed his positions in relation to the theory of the ideas, the doctrine of the primordial matter, the theory of the soul, the belief in the transmigration of the souls, and the eternity of the world. Even by filtering Plato’s position in the light of revelation, in some cases Eriugena shows favour to his ideas, envisaging in them the legitimate application of dialectic and rationality, which can approximate the truth by the way of argumentations.
This paper examines John Scottus Eriugena’s knowledge of Plato’s works and thought. Eriugena’a direct access to Plato was limited to the first part of the Timaeus, through the Latin translation made by Calcidius, while he had indirect access to Plato’s works through Augustine’s De civitate dei. Eriugena had a genuine interest in the figure of the Athenian thinker, and discussed his positions in relation to the theory of the ideas, the doctrine of the primordial matter, the theory of the soul, the belief in the transmigration of the souls, and the eternity of the world. Even by filtering Plato’s position in the light of revelation, in some cases Eriugena shows favour to his ideas, envisaging in them the legitimate application of dialectic and rationality, which can approximate the truth by the way of argumentations.
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Abstract en: John Scottus Eriugena usually quotes in his major work, the Periphyseon, long extracts from the translations of the works of the Eastern Fathers the he did himself (the Corpus Dionysiacum, the Ambigua and the Quaestiones ad... more
Abstract en: John Scottus Eriugena usually quotes in his major work, the Periphyseon, long extracts from the translations of the works of the Eastern Fathers the he did himself (the Corpus Dionysiacum, the Ambigua and the Quaestiones ad Thalassium of Maximus the Confessor, the De imagine of Gregory of Nyssa). These quotations are submitted by the Irish thinker to a deep revision with the aim to improve the comprehension of the text, especially in view of the new argumentative context in which they are reported, even if this revision produces sometimes inconsistencies and radical reformulations. In this paper some of these cases are considered, especially those that present a particular interest form a philosophical perspective. The results obtained allow us to see how Eriugena’s methodological approach to the texts is characterized by the need for a continuous reworking, which sometimes brings the same quotations, cited several times, to assume different shapes.
Abstract it: Giovanni Scoto Eriugena è solito riportare nella sua opera maggiore, il Periphyseon, lunghe citazioni dalle traduzioni delle opere dei Padri orientali da lui stesso eseguite (il Corpus dionysiacum, gli Ambigua e le Quaestiones ad Thalassium di Massimo il Confessore, il De imagine di Gregorio Nisseno). Queste citazioni vengono sottoposte da parte del pensatore irlandese a una revisione finalizzata a migliorarne il senso, soprattutto in vista del contesto argomentativo in cui vengono riportate, anche se questo comporta talvolta delle incongruenze e delle riformulazioni, talora radicali. Si analizzano qui alcuni di questi casi, scelti soprattutto per l’interesse che essi presentano dal punto di vista filosofico. I risultati ottenuti ci permettono di constatare come l’approccio metodologico ai testi da parte di Eriugena sia caratterizzato da un continua esigenza di rielaborazione, che talvolta porta la stessa citazione, citata più volte, ad assumere forme differenti.
Abstract it: Giovanni Scoto Eriugena è solito riportare nella sua opera maggiore, il Periphyseon, lunghe citazioni dalle traduzioni delle opere dei Padri orientali da lui stesso eseguite (il Corpus dionysiacum, gli Ambigua e le Quaestiones ad Thalassium di Massimo il Confessore, il De imagine di Gregorio Nisseno). Queste citazioni vengono sottoposte da parte del pensatore irlandese a una revisione finalizzata a migliorarne il senso, soprattutto in vista del contesto argomentativo in cui vengono riportate, anche se questo comporta talvolta delle incongruenze e delle riformulazioni, talora radicali. Si analizzano qui alcuni di questi casi, scelti soprattutto per l’interesse che essi presentano dal punto di vista filosofico. I risultati ottenuti ci permettono di constatare come l’approccio metodologico ai testi da parte di Eriugena sia caratterizzato da un continua esigenza di rielaborazione, che talvolta porta la stessa citazione, citata più volte, ad assumere forme differenti.
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Through the identification of a possible, yet unnoticed, quotation in Periphyseon V from Boethius’ Second commentary on Porphyry’s Isagoge, a role by John Scottus Eriugena in the diffusion of porphyrian dialectical teaching in the late... more
Through the identification of a possible, yet unnoticed, quotation in Periphyseon V from Boethius’ Second commentary on Porphyry’s Isagoge, a role by John Scottus Eriugena in the diffusion of porphyrian dialectical teaching in the late Carolingian Renaissance and Ottonian period is hypothesized. Nevertheless, the analysis of Eriugena’s paradigmatic approach to theological matter shows how the Irish master’s purpose focuses on the surpassing of dialectical-ontological domain in order to justify the resurrection of the bodies and the eschatological adunatio in Deo. Even if based on late antique dialectical knowledge, Eriugena’s debt toward Neoplatonic thinking is consequently limited to the exploitation of dialectical and ontological arguments, whereas his principal goal is to understand the dynamics of processio and reditus beyond natures, i.e. beyond the limits of ontology. The solution reached by John Scottus depicts the subsistence of individual differences even in eschatological unity, granted by the permanence of attributes. These results demonstrate that Eriugena cannot be considered a precursor of the disputes between realists and nominalist risen in the 11th century. The influence by John Scottus on the teaching of dialectics in the late Carolingian and Ottonian period is also investigated, showing how his mastership influenced not only the scholarly apprenticing of this discipline, but also spread his meontological vision among theologians.
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Aim of this paper is an approach to the problems surrounding the interpretation of musical symbolism in relation with medieval musical theory and the sources of thought that influenced its evolution. Harking back to a level of musical... more
Aim of this paper is an approach to the problems surrounding the interpretation of musical symbolism in relation with medieval musical theory and the sources of thought that influenced its evolution. Harking back to a level of musical speculation focussed exclusively on the sonic event, as a factor of a not mere emotional influence on the psyche and independent of all numerological and cosmological readings that patristic and medieval music theorists recovered from Antiquity in order to illustrate the concept of harmonia, a reconstruction is attempted, through textual sources, of a conception marked by an understanding of musical symbol as an ontological nexus bringing to bear on the dimension of listening, rather than on hermeneutical superstructures, either numerical or semiotical, that have been superimposed during the Middle Ages on the purely sonorous and musical fact.
Questo saggio intende soffermarsi sui problemi di interpretazione del simbolo musicale in relazione alla teoria musicale medievale e alle fonti di pensiero che ne hanno determinato l’evoluzione. Rintracciando un livello della speculazione sulla musica incentrato esclusivamente sul fatto sonoro, quale evento capace di avere un’influenza non semplicemente affettiva sulla psiche, indipendente dalle letture aritmologiche e cosmologiche che i teorici musicali in età patristica e medievale ripresero dall’antichità per spiegare la valenza dell’harmonia, si tenta la ricostruzione, attraverso gli accenni offerti dalle fonti, dei tratti di una concezione connotata da una interpretazione del simbolo musicale quale nesso ontologico afferente alla dimensione dell’ascolto piuttosto che alle sovrastrutture interpretative, numeriche o semiotiche, che si sono fatte strada nella comprensione medievale della musica, sovrapponendosi al fatto puramente sonoro e musicale..
Questo saggio intende soffermarsi sui problemi di interpretazione del simbolo musicale in relazione alla teoria musicale medievale e alle fonti di pensiero che ne hanno determinato l’evoluzione. Rintracciando un livello della speculazione sulla musica incentrato esclusivamente sul fatto sonoro, quale evento capace di avere un’influenza non semplicemente affettiva sulla psiche, indipendente dalle letture aritmologiche e cosmologiche che i teorici musicali in età patristica e medievale ripresero dall’antichità per spiegare la valenza dell’harmonia, si tenta la ricostruzione, attraverso gli accenni offerti dalle fonti, dei tratti di una concezione connotata da una interpretazione del simbolo musicale quale nesso ontologico afferente alla dimensione dell’ascolto piuttosto che alle sovrastrutture interpretative, numeriche o semiotiche, che si sono fatte strada nella comprensione medievale della musica, sovrapponendosi al fatto puramente sonoro e musicale..
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Resumé: L'article propose d’attribuer à Almanne de Hautvillers (IXe s.) la lettre d'un auteur A. à un certain magister E., transmise par le seul manuscrit Leiden, Voss. lat. oct. 88. L’attribution, soutenue par des concordances textuelles... more
Resumé:
L'article propose d’attribuer à Almanne de Hautvillers (IXe s.) la lettre d'un auteur A. à un certain magister E., transmise par le seul manuscrit Leiden, Voss. lat. oct. 88. L’attribution, soutenue par des concordances textuelles avec les écrits d’Almanne, permettrait de préciser les nombreuses références historiques présentes dans l’épître ainsi que d’illustrer ses aspects doctrinaux, marqués par l’influence érigénienne, et de spécifier en même temps plusieurs détails de la vie et de la formation intellectuelle du moine et prêtre de Hautvillers.
Abstract:
This paper intends to attribute to Almannus of Hautvillers (IXe c.) a letter of an author A. to a certain magister E., which is only known in the manuscript Leiden, Voss. lat. oct. 88. The attribution, argued through textual concordances with works of Almannus, would allow to detail numerous historical informations referred to in the epistle as well as its doctrinal aspects, marked by the eriugenian influence, and at the same time to specify several facts concerning life and intellectual formation of the monk and priest of Hautvillers.
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Si propone l’attribuzione ad Almanno di Hautvillers della lettera inviata da un anonimo autore che si firma come A. a un certo magister E., trasmessa dal manoscritto unico Leiden, Voss. lat. oct. 88. L’attribuzione, argomentata attraverso concordanze testuali con altri scritti di Almanno, permette di contestualizzare i numerosi riferimenti storici nonché i contorni dottrinali dell’epistola, segnati dall’influenza eriugeniana, e allo stesso tempo di specificare vari dettagli della biografia e della formazione intellettuale del monaco e presbitero altivillarense.
L'article propose d’attribuer à Almanne de Hautvillers (IXe s.) la lettre d'un auteur A. à un certain magister E., transmise par le seul manuscrit Leiden, Voss. lat. oct. 88. L’attribution, soutenue par des concordances textuelles avec les écrits d’Almanne, permettrait de préciser les nombreuses références historiques présentes dans l’épître ainsi que d’illustrer ses aspects doctrinaux, marqués par l’influence érigénienne, et de spécifier en même temps plusieurs détails de la vie et de la formation intellectuelle du moine et prêtre de Hautvillers.
Abstract:
This paper intends to attribute to Almannus of Hautvillers (IXe c.) a letter of an author A. to a certain magister E., which is only known in the manuscript Leiden, Voss. lat. oct. 88. The attribution, argued through textual concordances with works of Almannus, would allow to detail numerous historical informations referred to in the epistle as well as its doctrinal aspects, marked by the eriugenian influence, and at the same time to specify several facts concerning life and intellectual formation of the monk and priest of Hautvillers.
Sintesi:
Si propone l’attribuzione ad Almanno di Hautvillers della lettera inviata da un anonimo autore che si firma come A. a un certo magister E., trasmessa dal manoscritto unico Leiden, Voss. lat. oct. 88. L’attribuzione, argomentata attraverso concordanze testuali con altri scritti di Almanno, permette di contestualizzare i numerosi riferimenti storici nonché i contorni dottrinali dell’epistola, segnati dall’influenza eriugeniana, e allo stesso tempo di specificare vari dettagli della biografia e della formazione intellettuale del monaco e presbitero altivillarense.
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Résumé: Cette étude tente de définir la conception du mal dans la pensée patristique orientale et dans la théologie ascétique byzantine en rapport avec la nouvelle vision ontologique élaborée par les auteurs byzantins. Les auteurs... more
Résumé: Cette étude tente de définir la conception du mal dans la pensée patristique orientale et dans la théologie ascétique byzantine en rapport avec la nouvelle vision ontologique élaborée par les auteurs byzantins. Les auteurs considérés aboutissent à une synthèse entre les positions de la philosophie ancienne à l'égard du mal, qui s'efforça de lui trouver une place dans l'ordre cosmique, et la position biblique, qui situait la cause du mal seulement dans le libre choix des créatures rationnelles (hommes et anges). L'élaboration de cette synthèse amènera les Pères orientaux à une systématisation capable de surpasser les limites de l'ontologie cosmologique ancienne et de bâtir une nouvelle vision de la réalité dans laquelle la volonté joue un rôle central. Dans cette nouvelle perspective, issue
de l'anthropologie biblique et des disputes christologiques, les dynamiques du mal trouvent explication dans le contexte de l'économie de la création et en vue du but de la déification trans-naturelle de l'homme, but dans le quel on peut reconnaître
le fondement doctrinal soit de la théologie soit de la vie ascétique byzantine.
de l'anthropologie biblique et des disputes christologiques, les dynamiques du mal trouvent explication dans le contexte de l'économie de la création et en vue du but de la déification trans-naturelle de l'homme, but dans le quel on peut reconnaître
le fondement doctrinal soit de la théologie soit de la vie ascétique byzantine.
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Primo incontro del Gruppo di ricerca SOPHIA BIZANTINA
Martedì 25 ottobre, Università degli Studi di Salerno – Campus di Fisciano (Aula Centro FiTMU)
Martedì 25 ottobre, Università degli Studi di Salerno – Campus di Fisciano (Aula Centro FiTMU)
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SESSION OF FREE COMMUNICATIONS New Feasts, New Sermons: The Cult of Mary on the Eve of Iconoclasm, in Byzantium and Beyond This proposed session aims to explore theological connections between Rome and Byzantium on the eve of... more
SESSION OF FREE COMMUNICATIONS
New Feasts, New Sermons:
The Cult of Mary on the Eve of Iconoclasm, in Byzantium and Beyond
This proposed session aims to explore theological connections between Rome and Byzantium on the eve of Iconoclasm by highlighting both the textual tradition (especially homilies) and the accompanying iconographical developments.
By the end of the 6th century, the two major feasts of the Hypapantē (i.e. the ‘meeting’, the Presentation of Christ to Symeon) and of the Koimēsis (or Dormitio) of the Virgin were already a part of the liturgical calendar of Constantinople. The Hypapantē was introduced under Justinian in 542, while the Koimēsis began to be celebrated a few decades later, during the reign of Maurice (582–602). Additionally, this is the time when, according to archaeology, the church at the Virgin’s burial site in Jerusalem (i.e. in Gethsemane) was rebuilt. In Rome, it was under the Greek-Palestinian pope Theodore I (642–49) that the celebration of the Hypapantē was established, with the Latin name of the Natalis Sancti Symeonis, and the Assumption. The Natalis Sancti Symeonis soon metamorphosed into the Purificatio Sanctae Mariae, apparently to add emphasis to the role of the Mother of God in the feast (i.e., her offering a sacrifice of purification for having been a woman in child-bed, as prescribed by the Mosaic Law). By the end of the 7th century in Rome, four Marian feasts are attested: the Purificatio Sanctae Mariae (February 2), the Annunciation (March 25), the Assumption (August 15), and the Nativity of the Virgin (September 8).
To complement the new calendars in both Constantinople and Rome, there appeared an increasing number of homilies commemorating these recently formalized feasts. However, it is only from the 8th century onwards that systematic collections of Marian sermons began to be produced in the West. The earliest extant Latin homilies on the Hypapantē are those by Bede (†735) and by Ambrosius Autpertus (†784), while on the Koimēsis there is one by Autpertus. The latter author appears to draw inspiration directly from the Byzantine tradition, so much so, in fact, that numerous parallels of exegesis and imagery surrounding these same feasts can be found among the works of Andrew of Crete, Germanos of Constantinople, and John of Damascus. The Byzantine homilies, in turn, rely upon long-standing eastern hymnographic and homiletic traditions about the Virgin (e.g., in Sophronius of Jerusalem and Maximus the Confessor in the seventh century, but extending back to Romanos the Melode in the sixth, and Ephrem the Syrian in the fourth).
New Feasts, New Sermons:
The Cult of Mary on the Eve of Iconoclasm, in Byzantium and Beyond
This proposed session aims to explore theological connections between Rome and Byzantium on the eve of Iconoclasm by highlighting both the textual tradition (especially homilies) and the accompanying iconographical developments.
By the end of the 6th century, the two major feasts of the Hypapantē (i.e. the ‘meeting’, the Presentation of Christ to Symeon) and of the Koimēsis (or Dormitio) of the Virgin were already a part of the liturgical calendar of Constantinople. The Hypapantē was introduced under Justinian in 542, while the Koimēsis began to be celebrated a few decades later, during the reign of Maurice (582–602). Additionally, this is the time when, according to archaeology, the church at the Virgin’s burial site in Jerusalem (i.e. in Gethsemane) was rebuilt. In Rome, it was under the Greek-Palestinian pope Theodore I (642–49) that the celebration of the Hypapantē was established, with the Latin name of the Natalis Sancti Symeonis, and the Assumption. The Natalis Sancti Symeonis soon metamorphosed into the Purificatio Sanctae Mariae, apparently to add emphasis to the role of the Mother of God in the feast (i.e., her offering a sacrifice of purification for having been a woman in child-bed, as prescribed by the Mosaic Law). By the end of the 7th century in Rome, four Marian feasts are attested: the Purificatio Sanctae Mariae (February 2), the Annunciation (March 25), the Assumption (August 15), and the Nativity of the Virgin (September 8).
To complement the new calendars in both Constantinople and Rome, there appeared an increasing number of homilies commemorating these recently formalized feasts. However, it is only from the 8th century onwards that systematic collections of Marian sermons began to be produced in the West. The earliest extant Latin homilies on the Hypapantē are those by Bede (†735) and by Ambrosius Autpertus (†784), while on the Koimēsis there is one by Autpertus. The latter author appears to draw inspiration directly from the Byzantine tradition, so much so, in fact, that numerous parallels of exegesis and imagery surrounding these same feasts can be found among the works of Andrew of Crete, Germanos of Constantinople, and John of Damascus. The Byzantine homilies, in turn, rely upon long-standing eastern hymnographic and homiletic traditions about the Virgin (e.g., in Sophronius of Jerusalem and Maximus the Confessor in the seventh century, but extending back to Romanos the Melode in the sixth, and Ephrem the Syrian in the fourth).
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PSEUDO-DIONYSIUS AND THE ARTS (TWO SESSIONS) ORGANISER: Dr. Francesca Dell’Acqua (University of Salerno) International scholars from art history, Byzantine and Latin philology, and the history of philosophy will be invited to... more
PSEUDO-DIONYSIUS AND THE ARTS (TWO SESSIONS)
ORGANISER:
Dr. Francesca Dell’Acqua (University of Salerno)
International scholars from art history, Byzantine and Latin philology, and the history of philosophy will be invited to participate in two connected interdisciplinary sessions provisionally entitled The Visual Rhetoric of Hierarchy: Pseudo-Dionysius and the Arts. The sessions will focus on various questions that have never been specifically tackled before. The first is whether Dionysius’ hierarchical vision of the celestial and terrestrial realms could be considered a consequence of a wider late antique mentality and not simply a development of the Neoplatonic legacy. In Late Antiquity both political and ecclesiastical life were dominated by a well-organized hierarchical system, and the arts tendentially organized a hierarchical display of elements suggesting an ordered status of the terrestrial and celestial realm, while at the same time subverting the classical, naturalistic reproduction of the visible. In fact, hierarchy and order, light and harmony, equalled beauty. The second question is the demonstration of the fact that Ps.-Dionysian thought is immensely important not only for the history of theology and philosophy, but also for the development of ‘visual thinking’ – a way of memorizing, organizing, and delivering information that affected theological and philosophical writing, preaching, and the production of visual arts. The third question is how Dionysian philosophical system related to the materiality and visualization of the world. The forth question is the developments of Dionysian aesthetic terminology between Neoplatonism and Christianity. The fifth question is how Dionysian concepts were adopted by iconophiles and iconoclasts in the ‘image struggle’, and how they affected the conception of works of art. The two coordinated sessions in Leeds would develop further topics addressed at a workshop entitled The Knowledge of Ps.-Dionysius in the West until the Carolingian Translations, hosted by Prof. Paravicini Bagliani at SISMEL (Società Internazionale per lo Studio del Medioevo Latino, Florence) in Florence on April 9, 2014. Acknowledging the successful collaboration of experts in various humanistic disciplines, Paravicini Bagliani warmly suggested that a second workshop should take further the established interdisciplinary collaboration on Ps.-Dionysius, and that the results of the two meetings in Firenze and Leeds should be published in the journal he directs entitled Micrologus. Nature, Sciences and Medieval Societies.
ORGANISER:
Dr. Francesca Dell’Acqua (University of Salerno)
International scholars from art history, Byzantine and Latin philology, and the history of philosophy will be invited to participate in two connected interdisciplinary sessions provisionally entitled The Visual Rhetoric of Hierarchy: Pseudo-Dionysius and the Arts. The sessions will focus on various questions that have never been specifically tackled before. The first is whether Dionysius’ hierarchical vision of the celestial and terrestrial realms could be considered a consequence of a wider late antique mentality and not simply a development of the Neoplatonic legacy. In Late Antiquity both political and ecclesiastical life were dominated by a well-organized hierarchical system, and the arts tendentially organized a hierarchical display of elements suggesting an ordered status of the terrestrial and celestial realm, while at the same time subverting the classical, naturalistic reproduction of the visible. In fact, hierarchy and order, light and harmony, equalled beauty. The second question is the demonstration of the fact that Ps.-Dionysian thought is immensely important not only for the history of theology and philosophy, but also for the development of ‘visual thinking’ – a way of memorizing, organizing, and delivering information that affected theological and philosophical writing, preaching, and the production of visual arts. The third question is how Dionysian philosophical system related to the materiality and visualization of the world. The forth question is the developments of Dionysian aesthetic terminology between Neoplatonism and Christianity. The fifth question is how Dionysian concepts were adopted by iconophiles and iconoclasts in the ‘image struggle’, and how they affected the conception of works of art. The two coordinated sessions in Leeds would develop further topics addressed at a workshop entitled The Knowledge of Ps.-Dionysius in the West until the Carolingian Translations, hosted by Prof. Paravicini Bagliani at SISMEL (Società Internazionale per lo Studio del Medioevo Latino, Florence) in Florence on April 9, 2014. Acknowledging the successful collaboration of experts in various humanistic disciplines, Paravicini Bagliani warmly suggested that a second workshop should take further the established interdisciplinary collaboration on Ps.-Dionysius, and that the results of the two meetings in Firenze and Leeds should be published in the journal he directs entitled Micrologus. Nature, Sciences and Medieval Societies.
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Aim of this paper is to follow the paths of eriugenian thought in one of his most topical argument: the creation of everything in the Verb. Moving from the fourfold division of nature, set at the beginning of Periphyseon, two main... more
Aim of this paper is to follow the paths of eriugenian thought in one of his most topical argument: the creation of everything in the Verb. Moving from the fourfold division of nature, set at the beginning of Periphyseon, two main problems are identified: the non-creativeness of God, and the creativeness of the primordial causes. An attempt to reconstruct the play of ontology and meontology under these themes is made, in search of what the Irish master means speaking of God’s self-creation in everything and God’s identity with the Creation. The Wisdom argument is identified by Eriugena to overpass the aporias that rational though, which follows the rules of dialectics, meets as its limits. Moving from scientia to sapientia, the intellect passes from a divisive knowledge to a unitive one, and by this step an harmonisation of the four divisions of nature with the division between things-that-are and thing-that-are-not is understood in a unitary frame.
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A cura di Ileana Pagani e Francesco Santi. Intorno alla realtà e al mito di Carlo Magno un'epoca si costruisce, ricca di contraddizioni e di ambiguità, per la raffinatezza delle esperienze intellettuali e per la violenza della lotta... more
A cura di Ileana Pagani e Francesco Santi.
Intorno alla realtà e al mito di Carlo Magno un'epoca si costruisce, ricca di contraddizioni e di ambiguità, per la raffinatezza delle esperienze intellettuali e per la violenza della lotta politica; per l'assetto nuovo della società e per il tentativo di rappresentarlo in forme che richiamano la tradizione classica. Nell'insieme di queste tensioni il medioevo carolingio riesce ad esprimere una sua cifra, che resterà di riferimento dentro e oltre il millennio medievale, nella nostalgia di un ordine mitico e nella consapevolezza di una nuova forza che sta crescendo e che può dare forma ad un mondo radicalmente diverso da quello dell'antichità. La ricerca, che nell'ultimo secolo si è dedicata al fenomeno carolingio, consente oggi di chiarirne molti aspetti e di indicarne il profilo, ma ha anche messo a punto gli strumenti per un cantiere di lavoro che promette ancora molte novità. Con questo volume si intende offrire uno status quaestionis, insieme alle direzioni del lavoro futuro. Around the reality and myth of Charlemagne, an era has been built. This era is full of contradictions and ambiguities, for the refinement of intellectual experiences and the violence of the political struggle; for the new social structure and the attempt to represent it in forms recalling the classical tradition. With these tensions the Carolingian Middle Ages is able to express its figure, which will remain a reference within and beyond the Medieval Millennium, in the nostalgia of a mythical order and in the awareness of a new force that is growing and that can give form to a radically different world from that of the Antiquity. This volume offers a status quaestionis, but it also indicates new directions for future work.
Intorno alla realtà e al mito di Carlo Magno un'epoca si costruisce, ricca di contraddizioni e di ambiguità, per la raffinatezza delle esperienze intellettuali e per la violenza della lotta politica; per l'assetto nuovo della società e per il tentativo di rappresentarlo in forme che richiamano la tradizione classica. Nell'insieme di queste tensioni il medioevo carolingio riesce ad esprimere una sua cifra, che resterà di riferimento dentro e oltre il millennio medievale, nella nostalgia di un ordine mitico e nella consapevolezza di una nuova forza che sta crescendo e che può dare forma ad un mondo radicalmente diverso da quello dell'antichità. La ricerca, che nell'ultimo secolo si è dedicata al fenomeno carolingio, consente oggi di chiarirne molti aspetti e di indicarne il profilo, ma ha anche messo a punto gli strumenti per un cantiere di lavoro che promette ancora molte novità. Con questo volume si intende offrire uno status quaestionis, insieme alle direzioni del lavoro futuro. Around the reality and myth of Charlemagne, an era has been built. This era is full of contradictions and ambiguities, for the refinement of intellectual experiences and the violence of the political struggle; for the new social structure and the attempt to represent it in forms recalling the classical tradition. With these tensions the Carolingian Middle Ages is able to express its figure, which will remain a reference within and beyond the Medieval Millennium, in the nostalgia of a mythical order and in the awareness of a new force that is growing and that can give form to a radically different world from that of the Antiquity. This volume offers a status quaestionis, but it also indicates new directions for future work.
Research Interests: European History, Medieval Philosophy, Medieval Literature, Medieval History, Medieval Studies, and 39 moreMedieval Theology, Medieval theology (Medieval Studies), Medieval Europe, Carolingian Studies, Medieval Culture, Medieval Art, Medieval Political Thought, Carolingian Art, Medieval Romance, Histoire des idées et de la pensée, Merovingian and Carolingian, Medieval Art History, Romance Languages, Charlemagne, Storia medievale, Storia Dell'Arte Medievale, Medieval Lyric Poetry, Storia Delle Istituzioni Medievali, Romance, Medioevo, Carolingian art and architecture, Storia E Teologia Medievale, Histoire Medievale, Charlemagne and Christianization, Carolingian History, Medieval Political Theology, Charlemagne romances, Cultural history of the medieval and early modern world, Romance Studies, Paolo Diacono, Romance Languages and Literatures, Storia europea, Storia culturale e sociale del Medioevo, Carlo Magno, Letteratura Medievale, Romanzo Medievale, Rabano Mauro, Gesta Karoli Imperatoris, and Karolingian Age Art
Research Interests:
“IL TUO CUORE CUSTODISCA I MIEI PRECETTI” (Pr 3,1). UN CREATO DA
CUSTODIRE, DA CREDENTI RESPONSABILI, IN RISPOSTA ALLA PAROLA DI DIO". Milano, 19-21 novembre 2018
CUSTODIRE, DA CREDENTI RESPONSABILI, IN RISPOSTA ALLA PAROLA DI DIO". Milano, 19-21 novembre 2018
Research Interests:
The Virgin as Auctoritas: The Authority of the Virgin Mary and Female Moral–Doctrinal Authority in the Middle Ages (Sessions at the AAH Annual Conference, online, sponsored by ICMA) Organiser: Francesca Dell’Acqua, Università degli... more
The Virgin as Auctoritas: The Authority of the Virgin Mary and Female Moral–Doctrinal Authority in the Middle Ages
(Sessions at the AAH Annual Conference, online, sponsored by ICMA)
Organiser: Francesca Dell’Acqua, Università degli studi di Salerno, fdellacqua@unisa.it
This session aims at exploring a fundamental issue: female authority through the lens of visual/material culture. It involves prominently the Virgin Mary – as well as figures of female authority in the medieval world – because in the late decades of the 20th century, feminist thinkers pointed at the ‘negative model’ offered by the Virgin Mary since for centuries she had been branded by the Catholic Church as a role model for modesty, submission and virginity. However, between late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, the Virgin Mary emerged as Queen of Heaven through preaching and liturgical texts, visual arts and public assemblies – that is, the ‘mass media’ of that time. Mary was pictured as a very strong, authoritative figure, rather than weak and compliant.
Already during late Antiquity, Mary was commonly perceived as the mighty protector and spiritual stronghold of capital cities in the Mediterranean. Between the 8th and the 11th centuries, the role of royal women came to the fore, especially in Byzantium and in Ottonian Germany. Very striking is also the case of a number of major Italian city-states between the 12th and the 15th centuries where the Virgin Mary came to be identified with political and economic supremacy. But how did the preaching and missions of mendicant orders affect her image? How has a prominent role for female authorities been transmitted through visual arts and material culture? And what about the roles that women held in Africa and Asia and in other religious traditions?
In sum, this session can help understand what bearing the figure of the humble Virgin Mary eventually had on female leadership, and also how female leadership evolved or not. Topics may include but are not limited to:
• The Virgin Mary as a figure of authority and wisdom in texts and images
• The Virgin Mary in medieval preaching/arts: ‘only’ a model for humility and mercy?
• Female political authority and the Virgin Mary as a role model in texts and images
• Female moral, doctrinal, political and religious authority within and without the Christian
oecumene in texts and images
• Women and power: a difficult relationship.
Line-up
The Virgin as Auctoritas
The Authority of the Virgin Mary and Female Moral–Doctrinal Authority in the Middle Ages
AAH 2021 – ICMA Sponsored Sessions, 15 April 2021
https://eu-admin.eventscloud.com/website/2065/the-virgin-as-auctoritas/
Organiser: Francesca Dell’Acqua, UniSa, fdellacqua@unisa.it
09.30 - 09.45 GMT Welcome
10.00 - 11.15 GMT Introduction and Papers 1 and 2
Chair: Francesca Dell’Acqua
1. Title of Paper: Photios and the Image of the Mother of God in Hagia Sophia, Constantinople; Name of speaker(s): Mary B. Cunningham
2. Title of Paper: The Theotokos and the Widow of Zarepta: women’s authority as widows and prophets; Name of speaker(s): Barbara Crostini
11.45 - 12.50 GMT Papers 3 and 4
3. Title of Paper: Elevation of Mary’s Authority in Late Antiquity: Her Depiction on the Jewelled Throne and the Footstool; Name of speaker(s): Ernesto Mainoldi and Natalia Teteriatnikov
4. Title of Paper: The Coronation of the Virgin as the Queen of City-States; Name of speaker(s): Kayoko Ichikawa
14.30 - 15.35 GMT Papers 5 and 6
Chair: Mary B. Cunningham
5. Title of Paper: Icons of Authority: new light on the competition between images and relics in Trecento Rome; Name of speaker(s): Claudia Bolgia
6. Title of Paper: “All glory is in the King’s Daughter”: depictions of the Virgin as Empress in the late Byzantine world; Name of speaker(s): Andrei Dumitrescu
16.10 - 17.25 GMT Papers 7 and 8 and closing comments
7. Title of Paper: Sainte Foy and the Medieval Imaginary of Female Sacred Power; Name of speaker(s): Bissera V. Pentcheva
8. Title of Paper: Female Authority, Ecclesiology, and Micro-Architecture in Scandinavian Medieval Art; Name of speaker(s): Kristin B. Aavitsland
(Sessions at the AAH Annual Conference, online, sponsored by ICMA)
Organiser: Francesca Dell’Acqua, Università degli studi di Salerno, fdellacqua@unisa.it
This session aims at exploring a fundamental issue: female authority through the lens of visual/material culture. It involves prominently the Virgin Mary – as well as figures of female authority in the medieval world – because in the late decades of the 20th century, feminist thinkers pointed at the ‘negative model’ offered by the Virgin Mary since for centuries she had been branded by the Catholic Church as a role model for modesty, submission and virginity. However, between late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, the Virgin Mary emerged as Queen of Heaven through preaching and liturgical texts, visual arts and public assemblies – that is, the ‘mass media’ of that time. Mary was pictured as a very strong, authoritative figure, rather than weak and compliant.
Already during late Antiquity, Mary was commonly perceived as the mighty protector and spiritual stronghold of capital cities in the Mediterranean. Between the 8th and the 11th centuries, the role of royal women came to the fore, especially in Byzantium and in Ottonian Germany. Very striking is also the case of a number of major Italian city-states between the 12th and the 15th centuries where the Virgin Mary came to be identified with political and economic supremacy. But how did the preaching and missions of mendicant orders affect her image? How has a prominent role for female authorities been transmitted through visual arts and material culture? And what about the roles that women held in Africa and Asia and in other religious traditions?
In sum, this session can help understand what bearing the figure of the humble Virgin Mary eventually had on female leadership, and also how female leadership evolved or not. Topics may include but are not limited to:
• The Virgin Mary as a figure of authority and wisdom in texts and images
• The Virgin Mary in medieval preaching/arts: ‘only’ a model for humility and mercy?
• Female political authority and the Virgin Mary as a role model in texts and images
• Female moral, doctrinal, political and religious authority within and without the Christian
oecumene in texts and images
• Women and power: a difficult relationship.
Line-up
The Virgin as Auctoritas
The Authority of the Virgin Mary and Female Moral–Doctrinal Authority in the Middle Ages
AAH 2021 – ICMA Sponsored Sessions, 15 April 2021
https://eu-admin.eventscloud.com/website/2065/the-virgin-as-auctoritas/
Organiser: Francesca Dell’Acqua, UniSa, fdellacqua@unisa.it
09.30 - 09.45 GMT Welcome
10.00 - 11.15 GMT Introduction and Papers 1 and 2
Chair: Francesca Dell’Acqua
1. Title of Paper: Photios and the Image of the Mother of God in Hagia Sophia, Constantinople; Name of speaker(s): Mary B. Cunningham
2. Title of Paper: The Theotokos and the Widow of Zarepta: women’s authority as widows and prophets; Name of speaker(s): Barbara Crostini
11.45 - 12.50 GMT Papers 3 and 4
3. Title of Paper: Elevation of Mary’s Authority in Late Antiquity: Her Depiction on the Jewelled Throne and the Footstool; Name of speaker(s): Ernesto Mainoldi and Natalia Teteriatnikov
4. Title of Paper: The Coronation of the Virgin as the Queen of City-States; Name of speaker(s): Kayoko Ichikawa
14.30 - 15.35 GMT Papers 5 and 6
Chair: Mary B. Cunningham
5. Title of Paper: Icons of Authority: new light on the competition between images and relics in Trecento Rome; Name of speaker(s): Claudia Bolgia
6. Title of Paper: “All glory is in the King’s Daughter”: depictions of the Virgin as Empress in the late Byzantine world; Name of speaker(s): Andrei Dumitrescu
16.10 - 17.25 GMT Papers 7 and 8 and closing comments
7. Title of Paper: Sainte Foy and the Medieval Imaginary of Female Sacred Power; Name of speaker(s): Bissera V. Pentcheva
8. Title of Paper: Female Authority, Ecclesiology, and Micro-Architecture in Scandinavian Medieval Art; Name of speaker(s): Kristin B. Aavitsland
Research Interests:
In its literal meaning, the term ἔκστασις (ekstasis) indicates a displacement, ‘being out of immobility’, and ultimately being outside oneself. To some extent, this term takes on a mystical connotation in late Antiquity, notably in book... more
In its literal meaning, the term ἔκστασις (ekstasis) indicates a displacement, ‘being out of immobility’, and ultimately being outside oneself. To some extent, this term takes on a mystical connotation in late Antiquity, notably in book VI.9.11.24 of Plotinus’ Enneads, where ekstasis is described as a non-ordinary way of seeing. The notion of ecstasy, often inseparable from the concept of vision, would keep its mystical role, though altered in some ways, over the centuries, conceptualizing a specific kind of knowledge, which goes beyond the subject-object opposition, addressing the epistemological issues of perceiving and knowing the divine, and often challenging the nature of the self. This issue offers some attempts to track the constant reshaping and migration of the notions of ecstasy and intellectual or spiritual vision over the history of Western thought, unearthing their structural and constant persistence, from the Middle Ages to the contemporary ages, recurrently in many different non-ultimately-dialectical metaphysical systems. The papers in this volume provide some illustrative examples of the tangled history of the divergent meanings that the notions of ecstasy and vision have taken on, and their considerable reassessments and adaptations to constantly evolving conceptual frameworks, often redefining further notions such as those of rapture, prophecy, sleep, dream, and death.