Terms for eternity: aiônios and aïdios in classical and Christian texts

TERMS FOR ETERNITY

Terms for Eternity Aionios and Ai'dios in Classical and Christian T exts

ILARIA R~MELLI AND D AVID KoNSTAN

Go nctAS PREss 2007

F'irst Gorgins Press Edition, 2007 C:oppight «!> 2007 by Gorgi:ls Press LLC

All rights reserved unde r International 'lnd Pan-American Copyright C:onvemi on ~

No pan of this puhlicnion may be rep roduced, stored in :t retrieval syste1n or tranl'imitted in any form o r by any means, elcc:cronic., mechanical, photocopying, recording, sc..1nning or otherwise witho ut the prior writtco pe rm issioo of Gorgias Press IJ_C.

Published in the United States nf America hy Gorgias Pres.s LLC, New Jc:N~c:y

ISBN 978-1-59333-694-3

G OR(;(AS PRESS

46 Orris Ave., Piscataw·.ay, NJ 08854 USA '"''nv.gorgiaspress.com Lihrary of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication D:tta Ramclli, Jhria, 197JTcrms fo r e te rnit)': Aili11ios and Aii!iOJ in das.sical and Ch ri ~ri :m texts/ lbria Ramc:lli and D:l\'id Ko nstan. - t st Gorgi:ts Press cd. p. cm. Jndudes bibliog rnphic:~J references (p. ) and index. I. E ternicy. I. Konstan, David. II. Title. BT913.R36 2007 216'.21 --dc:U 2007037692

The paper used in this public:ttiun m ecr.s the minimum rcq uiremen~ of the American Nmion.1l Standards. Printed in the United States of Amcric:t

To Our Parents

TABLE OF CONTENTS ' J'able l''>f C.or'ltents ... .................................................................................................v Preface ...... ............................................................................................................... vii I 1'1Lfl')du cl1o•'l .•.•..••.•.•.•......••......••......••......••......••......••......••......••......••......••.....•....•..•. ! Classical Literature from the Archaic to the Hellenist.ic Period .............. 5 ~) ' Jbe Presocr{ltics ......................................................................................... 6 b) Plato and Pl.lt.Ol'ljsn\ ................................................................................ 12 c) Aristotle and Helletlistic Philosophy..................................................... 28

From the SepLUngint to the New Testament ........................................... 37 a} ·n)e Hebrew Bible and 1he Scptuagi1lt .................................................. 37 b) An1Ln1d the Time of Christ ....................................................................50 c) ' 11le Ne,v 'J"esm,nent ................................................................................ 57 3 ·n)e Earl)' Cllurch Fathers :1nd their Contempotitries ............................ 7 1 a) No n-Christian \X'riter:-> of the Eart~· Empire ........................................ 7 1 b) Early Christian and Chrhai.anizing Texts ............................................. 82 c) Frorn ··ratiao 10 Clement of .-\Jexandri:l ................................................ 95 d) Origen ...................................................................................................... ll6 4 Church Fa1hers af<er Origen .................................................................... 129 a) Frorn Gregory the 'il latunaturge to Athanasit)$................................ 129 b) ·11>< Cappadcian Fmhers..................................................................... l72 c) Evagrius to Maximu:-> the C<mfessor................................................... l99 d) Anti-Origenisl \X' riters from Methnok has its origins in a systenuttic study o f the df-reading o f o ur rnanllscript. \Y/e also t!lke the liberL)' here the past :'t nd the future. \Vhat is more, in addition to !til these v:uieties of ''etema1,,. the :adjective has been appropriMed also to denote !=:()Jnething like 11timelessness,, a chaageless st:ue that has 110 dur-ation and hence i$ not subject tbi/QsQphiral QlftlrUrfJ 25 (1975) 97-113; P. Ariotci, '"The Conce ption ofTime in ~re Antiq uitr." 111/Pnta/iQtldl Pbi/Q.ropht~·a/Qllarlttf)' 12 {1972) 526-552; G . H. Clark. "The T hc:o•J of T ime: in Plot· in us;• Tht PiJiltJStJpbiatf Rtrie.u153 (1944) .337-358; Rich::~ rd Sorabji. lllltt; Creatio11, and liN ('.Qmimmm (London 1983); P. Tzamalikos, TIN Ometpl of'liiJ~e 111 Oli,_efl; (Bern 1991); id ., "Origc:n and the Sw ic vic:w of cime." jiJimutlfor J!Jt I liJiqiJ· of ltktJs 52 (1991) 535--561; id .• ''T he Concept of S(Y.lce-Time in Origen." Dinhi11:1 2-1 ( t 996) 144-t 49; B. Oris. "Gregory of Nyssa and the Capp:td ocian Conce ptio n of Time;' S111dia f>atri.rlim 14 (1976) 327-357; P. Pla!is., "The Concep t of Er.ernity in Par.ristic Theology," Studi:t TbftJ/o_~im 36 ( I982) 1t -25.

4

T ERi\I.S FOR E.TERN IT \.

to he nwst revealing of larger doctrinal commitments. In thi~ context, discussion centered ahfJ\'e all on the questkul of eternal damnation versus the idea, deemed heretical in the Chrh:;tian church afte r the forrnal condemnation o f Origenism. o f apocatast'!l.sis or univerlial sahr:uion. that is, the helief that the \vicked are not condemn.ed to t!'ternal punis hrnerH, hut \\:iiJ event uaJJy, in accord wich d ivine mere>'• he included am90-404; E. Br:nvcnjsce, "E.xprc:~o;ions indoeuropCennes de I'CtcrnicC," BSL 3S (19.H) 1 0~12; A.·J Fc::-.tt1giCre, ••f..e sr:ns philmophiqur: du m m aiti11," PP 4 (1949} 172-89; P. Philippson, " II concc:no g rcco dj rcmpo neUe (Y.Imlc: r~itm, rhr&IIM, k.airru, mimlltJJ," R YF 4 (1949) 81-97; E. D r:g:.ni, l

s

6

TERi\I.S FO R E.TERN IT \.

A) THE PRESOCRATICS

Jf we pass now l O the presocrntic thinke rs, Ps.-Ph.:twch StroJ/1. 2 ~scribes w !\na.....:imander (12A 10 D-K) the idea th:lt corruptiorl a r1d gel'~esis OCCL)r in cycles b. nptiro11 ai()/tiiJ, ''from an infini te time/' hut tl1.ese ~re surely not J\na_sjmaJl.der's mvn words (cf. Ps.-Piut. Strt1111. 3 = Anaximenes '13.1\6 D-K 8

•. .-1i611 da 0 J!Jtro 11d Ari.Jlottlt ( Padm":l: Ccdam, 1961) ; id., "F.pilf!!Jnlma .m ain11:• RFIC 9 1 (1963) 104-10; M. T reu, «Gricc:hischc: E wigke irs.wOn e r," GlntttJ 43 {1965) 1-24; A. P. Orhln, I...t.c di!lotJtiHnlinns d11 tllo!ltk rhtz It~ pretllien tllllntr.J dJrilims (Nijmq.Jt:n: Dekker an d Van de Vegt, 1970 = Gr:u::cjtts Christi:morum primneva4) 97-145; H. Keizer, Lift. TitJJf. F.lltirt!J. /1 St11rfy of AlnN in G"tk I.it.>mllt~ rmd Phi!OJopi!J and Philo, (Unjvc:~icei r. vr.n Amsu::rd:1m, 1999; reo.·ic:wed by D . i'vf. I b y, St PIN/ AIINJttli 12 120CXJI 206-209); G. C:1~dio. ~. \·. Aiu11, in Emydupcdia '!f Rrfi.ejon, nc:w edition. \·ol. 1,2 (Detroi r.- N~o."W York: i\bci\lilbn Refe rence Boob, 2003) 207-210; I. R:lmclli, ~w. A iun, in ISucidujH"dia FiltJJii}ictt, new edition, dir. V. i\lclchinrrc: (i\lilan 2006) I, 217. Ben\'e nisre shows th!tt the b:tsic sense of citc.lv i~ "virnljry, life force" (107): 1h is expJ.-.jns the :tl\soci:u ion, in Ho me r, between a'tWv :tnd 4'UX~. in the scn~e o f the "m:l.rrow of life" ( 10~1 09). This 1>c:nsc p:ts-ses e:lsily onr m th:1t of "durnrion of :t life," on wh ic h Fcsn•gi.!re concentr:lte$: Aristode. On /br llmrm$ 1.9, 279a2230, e xpla ins 1h:1r. a'tc.lv e mh r:tces the length time of e:tch indi\·idu:tl life, 0 nls h:::doTOV ~c:.l~S xp0vos, :l signjficancc: o f atv5v :~J.re:tdy found in Homer :tnd in Pin d:lr, :1nd evidc:m :tlso in the :lssoci:tcio n between citc:.lV r.nd ~olpa in Euripides llmtdidm 897 (it is the length :lssig ned hr lm to e:1ch perso n's life) ; when applied ro the life: o f che hc::lvcns, the ide:t become~ thm of :~n c::r.e rn:ll dumtion, a'twv CmO ToU Cut E1vat. Festu¢.!re (176 ff.) seeks 10 show th:ll this e xr.c:n ded sense: w:ts !tlre:tdy implicit in r.hc presocr:tcics, !lnd in E mpedodcs in parcicubr, bur w:ts fully d fv~lo?,Cd only by ~lnt