Introduction In the sixth century BCE, following the death of King Cambyses on his Egyptian campaign, the Persian heartland was the scene of an antique murder mystery, during which the Achaemenid throne was held or seized by one or several individual(s)—about whose identity our sources provide conflicting information—who were eventually eliminated through an aristocratic coup d’état fomented by Darius I. The event itself may have been of… Read more
Acknowledgments To Farideh and Daryush It is a great pleasure to acknowledge those who have generously afforded me their time and insights during the composition of this study. My gratitude to Prods Oktor Skjærvø, Richard N. Frye, and Ernst Badian for their comments on earlier parts of this book. I owe a great debt of thanks to Clarisse Herrenschmidt, Olga M. Davidson, Daniel T. Potts,… Read more
Bibliography Primary Sources Ambjörn, L., trans. 2008. Zacharias of Mytilene. The Life of Severus. Piscataway, NJ. Burguière, P., and P. Évieux, eds. 1985. Cyril of Alexandria. Contra Iulianum. Sources chrétiennes 322. Paris. Canivet, P., ed. 2000–2001. Theodoret of Cyrrhus. Thérapeutique des maladies helléniques. 2 vols. Revised ed. Sources chrétiennes 57. Paris. Canivet, P.,… Read more
Conclusion This book has sought to study several aspects of Theodoret’s apologetics. By showing the number of methods that Theodoret employs to engage the larger problems of his period, his dynamism and the urgency of his project have become apparent. Rather than a “stale exercise,” [1] a new assessment of Theodoret’s apologetic program has emerged. This needs to be said in view… Read more
Chapter 5. Theodoret’s Rhetoric, Style, and Argumentation: Some Literary Considerations The Therapeutikê’s literary features are informed by a set of recognizable historical, religious, educational, and cultural concerns, which have yet to be integrated into a coherent account. [1] More specifically, a number of these features form an integral part of Theodoret’s apologetic program. He makes this explicit in the preface to the… Read more
Chapter 4. Christianity as the Universal Practical Virtue The presentation of Christianity as a way of life maintains a significant thematic resonance throughout Theodoret’s Therapeutikê. Following the long line of Christian authors who from an early stage offered Christianity as a response to pagan polemic, his motivation lay in the conviction that Christianity encompassed and surpassed all that ancient philosophy had attempted to accomplish. While Theodoret devotes… Read more
Chapter 3. Greek Heroes and Christian Martyrs: In Defense of the Friends of God and Heroes of the Faith The account that Theodoret provides concerning the practice of honoring martyrs and their relics occupies a central position in his defense of Christianity. In Dialexis VIII. On the Cult of the Martyrs, he explains the importance of martyrs by suggesting the parallel notion of heroism and the cult… Read more
Chapter 2. God, Gods, Angels, Heroes, and Demons: Parallel Notions of the Intermediaries In Dialexeis III, VII, and X, Theodoret sets out to contrast Christianity with Greek religious attitudes concerning the gods, angels, daemons, and the associated phenomena of divination, oracles, and sacrifices. Although these concepts are treated in separate dialexeis, each with a distinct thematic emphasis, their interrelatedness is hard to ignore. This accords well with… Read more
Chapter 1. The Notion of Therapeia in Theodoret: The Apologetic Use and Role of Greek Medicine and Philosophy against the Greeks As demonstrated both in particular comments scattered throughout his corpus of writings and more generally in the Therapeutikê, [1] Theodoret displays a thorough knowledge of Greek medicine. [2] While the use of insights from Greek medicine… Read more
Introduction. Theodoret and the Fifth Century Earth and sea are freed from their ancient ignorance; the error of idols is no longer to be seen; the darkness of ignorance has been dispersed, and the light of knowledge fills with its rays the whole inhabited world. Greeks, Romans, and Barbarians recognize the divinity of the crucified and venerate the sign of the cross. The Trinity is… Read more
