Text of a Coptic Monastic Discourse On Love and Self-Control
Its Story from the Fourth Century to the Twenty-First
Text of a Coptic Monastic Discourse On Love and Self-Control
Its Story from the Fourth Century to the Twenty-First
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Paperback / softback
£15.99
Publisher: Liturgical Press
ISBN: 9780879070724
Number of Pages: 238
Published: 28/04/2017
Width: 14 cm
Height: 21.6 cm
This book introduces a beautiful fourth-century Coptic discourse on love and self-control in its first English translation. The text’s heading attributes it to Athanasius, bishop of Alexandria, but this attribution is questionable. Exploring issues of authorship and context, this book locates the origins of On Love and Self-Control in the Upper Egyptian Pachomian monastic community of the mid-fourth century. It then traces the various uses of On Love and Self-Control to the late eleventh and early twelfth centuries, when the single surviving manuscript was copied as part of an anthology at the Monastery of St. Shenoute of Atripe. A partial reconstruction of this now dismembered codex is provided.
Contents
Preface
Acknowledgments
List of Abbreviations
Introduction
Summary of the Text
The Language and Fourth-Century Date of the Text
The Pachomian Koinonia: The Community to which On Love and Self-Control Was First Addressed
The Pachomian Remission: An Annual Opportunity for a Discourse On Love and Self-Control
A Potential Context for On Love and Self-Control in the Pachomian Conflicts following Pachomius’s Death
Pachomian Use of On Love and Self-Control in the Editing of Instruction concerning a Spiteful Monk
The Dissolution of the Pachomian Community
On Love and Self-Control and Its Codex (MONB.CP)
The Provenance of the Manuscript of On Love and Self-Control
The Creation of the Codex in the Late Sixth or Early
Seventh Century
Issues of Authorship
Attribution to Athanasius
Affinities between Athanasian Writings and On Love and Self-Control
Reasons to Question an Athanasian Origin for On Love and Self-Control
A Possible Origin for On Love and Self-Control among the Pachomians
Horsiesios and On Love and Self-Control
The Use of the Discourse On Love and Self-Control Beyond the Seventh Century
Events Affecting the Church in Egypt from the Seventh to Tenth Centuries
A Tenth-Century Reception of On Love and Self-Control by way of Instruction concerning a Spiteful Monk
On Love and Self-Control in the Eleventh-Century Apocalypse of Samuel of Qalamun
The Copying of On Love and Self-Control in the Eleventh or Twelfth Century
The Dismemberment of the Codex in the Nineteenth Century and Its Current Reconstruction
Conclusion
On Love and Self-Control: A Translation
Appendix A: A Comparison of Three Texts on Wine
Appendix B: The Contents of the Codex MONB.CP
Select Bibliography
General Index
Scripture Index
Preface
Acknowledgments
List of Abbreviations
Introduction
Summary of the Text
The Language and Fourth-Century Date of the Text
The Pachomian Koinonia: The Community to which On Love and Self-Control Was First Addressed
The Pachomian Remission: An Annual Opportunity for a Discourse On Love and Self-Control
A Potential Context for On Love and Self-Control in the Pachomian Conflicts following Pachomius’s Death
Pachomian Use of On Love and Self-Control in the Editing of Instruction concerning a Spiteful Monk
The Dissolution of the Pachomian Community
On Love and Self-Control and Its Codex (MONB.CP)
The Provenance of the Manuscript of On Love and Self-Control
The Creation of the Codex in the Late Sixth or Early
Seventh Century
Issues of Authorship
Attribution to Athanasius
Affinities between Athanasian Writings and On Love and Self-Control
Reasons to Question an Athanasian Origin for On Love and Self-Control
A Possible Origin for On Love and Self-Control among the Pachomians
Horsiesios and On Love and Self-Control
The Use of the Discourse On Love and Self-Control Beyond the Seventh Century
Events Affecting the Church in Egypt from the Seventh to Tenth Centuries
A Tenth-Century Reception of On Love and Self-Control by way of Instruction concerning a Spiteful Monk
On Love and Self-Control in the Eleventh-Century Apocalypse of Samuel of Qalamun
The Copying of On Love and Self-Control in the Eleventh or Twelfth Century
The Dismemberment of the Codex in the Nineteenth Century and Its Current Reconstruction
Conclusion
On Love and Self-Control: A Translation
Appendix A: A Comparison of Three Texts on Wine
Appendix B: The Contents of the Codex MONB.CP
Select Bibliography
General Index
Scripture Index
"In this excellent book of meticulous scholarship, Carolyn Schneider restores a neglected Coptic text to its original context in early Egyptian monasticism. Schneider persuasively argues that On Love and Self-Control originated within the Pachomian monastic community, probably during the turmoil that followed Pachomius's death in 346, and that the leader Horsiesios could have been its author. She then traces the history of the text and its reception, from late antiquity, to a medieval scriptorium in the White Monastery, to its rediscovery by modern scholars. A clear and accurate English translation makes this rich discourse available to a wide range of readers interested in the history and spirituality of early Christian monasticism."David Brakke, Joe R. Engle Chair in the History of Christianity and Professor of History, The Ohio State University "While impressively clarifying and well-researched, Schneider's concise, accessible prose allows the reader to forget the fear of heady tediousness that the title may provoke. She instead provides the insights and background necessary for the text itself to become accessible to a Western, English-speaking audience."Englewood Review of Books "Schneider has written the first thorough study of On Love and Self-Control (with English translation), carefully comparing it to related Pachomian texts and also to similar material in the Apocalypse of Samuel of Qalamun. The detailed review of the monastic manuscripts in which these texts are preserved also raises many interesting questions. Her work will certainly encourage further work on fourth- and fifth-century ascetic contexts in Egypt."Dr. Janet A. Timbie, The Catholic University of America "An exemplary work of scholarship and a model of how to situate a religious text in its original historical milieu and interpret it diachronically in light of its change historical contexts."Catholic Library World "The book is elegant, erudite, and thorough, but also highly accessible. Schneider manages to demonstrate the importance of this apparently minor text in her reconstruction of the main problems that face Coptic studies, namely the reconstruction of a lost literature, a field that awaits more studies like this one in order to be understood."Speculum
