From: Edgar M. Krentz (emkrentz@mcs.com)
Date: Mon Jan 22 1996 - 11:27:24 EST
Thanks to Ed Hobbs for his recent comments on the Apostolic Fathers and
their Greek language.
I want to add to what I wrote earlier about the Greek of the fathers in the
second century and beyond.
The early apologists were scholars who were more highly educated than the
Christians of the first generation(s?). Tertullian (who wrote in Latin) was
educated in Roman law. One result was that he writes some of the most
difficult prose in the Latin language for readers who come from poetry and
the like.
Justin Martyr was educated as a philosopher-which meant that he had
rhetorical training at some point in his education. Origen, in his famous
school in Alexandria, insisted that students have an in-depth education in
rhetoric and philosophy before they turned to the study of Scripture. It
should not suprise one then if these Christian scholars wrote an educated
person's Greek.
A direct contemporary of these writers is Publius Aelius Aristides, the
second century rhetorician. In his lengthy Panathenaic Oration (LCL, vol.
1) he discusses among other topics the contribution that Athens made in its
Greek speech. He calls it a "bloodless trophy" (ANAIMAKTON TEROPAION, par.
322). "For all the cities and all the races of mankind turned to you and
your form of life, and dialect." Aristides points to its universal adoption
(par. 325) He points out that it possesses two essentials of good language,
dignity and charm (SEMNOTHS KAI XARIS). In short everyone want to speak
(and write) like the Athenians.
No wonder that II century (and later) Christian authors adopted the
literary standards of their day, and even found it necesary to defend the
linguistic dress of the NT. And recall that St. Augustine, prior to his
famous conversion, did not want to read the Old Latin translation
(pre-Jerome) because it would ruin his style as a Latin rhetorician.
Pardon the length of this; but some of you might want to read Aristides,
Panathenaic Oration 322-330. And then go on to some of the rhetoricians to
see what they actually taught as good style.
-30-
Edgar Krentz, New Testament
Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago
1100 East 55th Street
Chicago, IL 60615
Tel.: 312-256-0752; (H) 312-947-8105
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