The Harp (Volume 22) 9781463233112

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The Harp (Volume 22)

The Harp (Volume 22)

Volume 22

Edited by

Geevarghese Panicker Jakob Thekeparampil Abraham Kalakudi

1 gorgias press 2011

Gorgias Press LLC, 954 River Road, Piscataway, NJ, 08854, USA www.gorgiaspress.com Copyright© 2011 by Gorgias Press LLC Originally published in 2007 All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning or otherwise without the prior written permission of Gorgias Press LLC. 2011

1

ISBN 978-1-61143-657-0 Reprinted from the 2007 Kottayam edition.

Printed in the United States of America

rt^&ufetx.

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SIXTH SYRIAC C O N F E R E N C E & 1 7 T H BIRTH CENTENARY O F MAR A P H R E M (306-2006)

8 - 1 6 September 2006

rc'nrc' oi=3 buiM «JorC" fcAnr. rdarac^jO rdiocu r&vcv^A») >1=D rdiixsa crA h.am f ^50 ,-2.^ pcut.r«' ruo) the Ancient of Days... In other words, whereas Theodotion (together with the original Aramaic and the Peshitta) differentiate between the son of man and the Ancient of Days, the Old Greek identifies them as a single person. The Old Greek text is preserved only in a very small number of witnesses; these witnesses are, however, very different in character and date, implying that their reading was nonetheless quite widely known: the oldest is Papyrus 267, which dates from the 2nd or 3 ri century, while the other two witnesses are the Syrohexapla translation (made c.615) and a Greek minuscule (88, of the 10th century).13 Knowledge of the Old Greek reading cannot have reached Syriac writers by way of the Syrohexapla, since that post-dates by a couple of centuries the first occurrence of the identification of Christ as the Ancient of Days, in Cyrillona. One must accordingly assume that the identification, based on the Old Greek, reached Syriac writers indirectly, by way of some Greek author who based himself on the Old Greek of Daniel.54 Once in Syriac, the identification of the 13 The reading is evidently known to Theodoret, who says that 'some interpreters' have Ancient of Days in the nominative instead of the genitive (Patrologia Graeca 81, col.1424A). 14 Although the Old Greek is likely to be the source of the description in Rev. 1:13-14, 14:14, it is not at all likely that the Revelation of John was the source for Syriac authors, since this book has never formed part of the Syriac New Testament canon, and was only translated into Syriac for the first time in the sixth century.

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'son of man' with the Ancient of Days took on a life of its own, completely independent of the Peshitta's text. In a similar way several Diatessaron readings took on a life of their own in liturgical texts, long after the Diatessaron itself had disappeared from use. How the Old Greek reading came about is not of direct concern here, and the question is not finally resolved: according to some it came about as a result of a corruption of >uo 'up to', into aeo 'like' (with the subsequent adjustment of the syntax), while others see it as due to the original translator who may have wanted to avoid any idea of two heavenly figures. 15 While an ultimate origin in the Old Greek translation of Daniel seems highly likely for many of the Syriac passages identifying the Son with the Ancient of Days, especially those where the Son is said to be 'like/resembling the Ancient of Days". there is a second possible explanation. This is to be found, rather surprisingly, in Eusebius's Ecclesiastical History. At one point in Book i (iii.25) he quotes Daniel 7:13 as found in Theodotion, with 'up to the Ancient of Days'; then he goes on to explain as follows (l.ii.26; 1 translate the Syriac version, of which the oldest manuscript is dated 464): 'These things readily apply with our Saviour, who was from creation with God the Word, (as) God, and he was called a 'son of man' (bar 'nashin) because latterly he put on our humanity'. In other words, both 'son of man' and Ancient of Days refer to Christ, the latter to the eternal Word, and the former to his incarnate state: the scenario envisaged is evidently that of the Ascension, and it so happens that it would conform well with the East Syriac and dyophysitc understanding of how salvation l'or humanity is achieved, through the human nature of Christ, raised up to heaven at the Ascension. 15 Thus L. Stuckenbruck, '"One like a Son of Man as the Ancient of Days" in the Old Greek recension of Dan. 7:13: scribal error or theological

translation?', Zeitschriftfurdieneutestamentliche

Wissenschaft 86 (1995),

pp.268-76 (references to the various views can be found in this article). 16 This pattern, identifying humanity closely with Christ's humanity, also occurs: occasionally in the West Syriac liturgical tradition as well, e.g. Mosul Fenqitho VII, p.194b (1st Sunday after the Feast of the Cross): '... at His resurrection He raised our fallen state, and He caused us to ascend to heaven with Him, and He has seated us at the right hand of his Father in glory'. The Harp

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This explanation would seem to be the one adopted by John of Damascus, On Images 111.26 (ed. Kotter, pp. 192-3), and he will probably be the source for the later Byzantine iconographical tradition where Christ is sometimes depicted as the Ancient of Days.' 7 A superb example of this is to be found in the late thirteenth-/early fourteenth-century paintings in the church of Ubisi (western Georgia). !S A few passages in the liturgical texts where the Ancient of Days is specifically identified as the (pre-existent) Word point to Eusebius' comment as being the ultimate source, rather than the Old Greek. Thus in the Mosul Fenqitho (II, p,132ab) we find: Come, Daniel, and explain to us concerning the vision of the thrones: who is the Ancient of Days whose throne is fire and flame? He is the Word who is from God, who came down and resided in the virgin Mary and put on a body, and shone forth from her in Bethlehem. 17 G.K. McKay, 'The Eastern Christian exegetical tradition of Daniel's vision of the Ancient of Days', Journal of Early Christian Studies 7 (1999), pp.139-61 attributes this interpretation also to Cyril of Alexandria (on pp. 158-9), but this goes against her earlier discussion of the passage in question; it would appear that she has taken over the comments of L. Ouspensky La théologie de l'icône dans l'Église orthodoxe (Paris, 1982), pp.352-3, to the English translation of which she refers. Though Ouspensky quotes Cyril, his comments go beyond what Cyril himself says, but are no doubt true of the later Byzantine tradition; he writes (p.353) 'la vision de Daniel est une préfiguration des deux états du même Fils de Dieu: humilité dans l'incarnation (le Fils de l'homme) et la gloire de sa Divinité en tant que juge du second avènement (l'Ancien des jours)'. Curiously enough, neither Ouspensky nor McKay ever mentions the Old Greek reading as a possible source for the identification of the Ancient of Days as the Son. 18 Illustrated in Sh. Amiranashvile, Damiane (Tbilisi, 1980), plate 35. (Damiane was the painter). For some Middle Byzantine examples, see the references in K. Wessel, 'Christusbild', in K. Wessel (ed.), Reallexikon zur byzantinischen Kunst 1 (1966), cols. 1028-9. The later occasional portrayal of the Father as the Ancient of Days (mentioned in the Painter's Manual by Dionysios of Fourna) goes against the earlier tradition (Ouspensky, La théologie de l'icône, p.350). Vol. XXil 2007

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Although the Ancient of Days is not specifically identified as the Word, this seems also to be the implication of a passage in the East Syriac Hudra (ed Darmo I, pp. 150-1 = pp. 558-9; ed. Bedjan I, pp.87 = p.331): Like the Ancient of Days sitting on the throne of glory did 1 see him, said Daniel, and spiritual beings minister to him: thousands upon thousands and myriads upon myriads sanctify his name, saying 'Holy are You, O Lord; Holy are You, O Lord; Holy are You, O Lord'; and as Son of Man (bar 'nashin) whose authority reigns over all, did I see the Son, clothed in our body. In this passage, however, the words 'like the Ancient of Days' would seem to point in the direction of the Old Greek reading as the source. But perhaps it is misguided to try and identify the one or the other source in this case. What, nevertheless, is quite striking, is the fact that there seems to be no reflection in the liturgical sources of the Peshitta's 'up to the Ancient of Days'. It is also quite surprising that in the commentary tradition, at least as far as published texts are concerned, there is no discussion of the identity of the Ancient of Days.

Prof. Dr. Sebastian P. Brock, Oriental Institute, Pusey Lane, Oxford 0 X 1 2 LE, UK

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Philip Wood

SYRIAN IDENTITY IN THE CAVE OF TREASURES Possibly from as early as the first century, Syriac-speaking missionaries from the city of Edessa, in what would become the Roman province of Oesrhoene, brought their religion to neighbouring lands. This missionary history is celebrated as part of the distinctive identity of Edessa in the foundation story of its Christian community, the Doctrina Addai. In this text, the purity of Edessene ascetic practice, the city's ancient Christian heritage and its role as a centre for missions are championed as defining features of being Edessene. This Christian history, whether invented or accurate, asserted certain boundaries for what it meant to be 'a good Edessene', in this case defined against Jews or pagans. This paper seeks to examine the evolution of this very local identity into something greater. It will concentrate upon an apocryphal text written in Sassanian Mesopotamia in the sixth century, the Cave of Treasures. The textual history of this legend is explored at length in a monograph by Andreas Su-Min-Ri. But instead of returning to Su-Min-Ri's material, I intend to focus upon three themes that the author uses to build upon an image of a Suryoyo people, namely his treatment of the province of Assyria; the Syriac language and Christian ascetic practice. I. The land of Nod The Cave of Treasures is a re-telling of the Old Testament in a strongly Christian framework. It portrays Adam and his patriarchal successors as 'prophets, priests and kings' on the model of Christ. It Vol. XXII2007 131-140 The Harp

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situates a series of lesser previews of the events of the incarnation and crucifixion within the Old Testament and discusses significance to a small community of believers centred around the patriarchs Seth, Melchizidek and Abraham, from the Fall to the time of Christ. This community embalms the bodies of the patriarchs and buries them at Golgotha, to be protected by an ascetic guardian: the Cave of Treasures of the title. The references to Sassanian monarchs in the text, and the description of Nod as the land of the magi are instructive for the text's sense of territory. Su-Min-Ri situates the text in Assyria because of its repeated focus on the land of Nod. This location, which only appears once in Genesis, becomes, for the Cave of Treasures, the place where Cain is exiled and where he is killed by Lamech: where the magi take their incense and the also location for the journeys of Nimrod, which are described in great detail 1 . Using epigraphic and sigillographic studies by Fiey and Gignoux, Su-MinRi also notes that the Arsacids had known the region of Adiabene as Nod-Shirakan and the toponym 'Nod' is attested in inscriptions in Karka de belli Slouq and Arbela, data that provides a geographical context for the internal evidence of the text ? . Moreover, the Cave gives an unusually positive role to Nimrod, traditionally an opponent of Abraham, as the founder of a series of Mesopotamian cities i'rom Seleucia to Edessa and as the creator of the pure, original form of theZoroastrian religion. Dimly remembered figures of the past were used to provide foundation myth. And the foundation myths of this text, such as the associations given to the name Nod and the interest shown in the Zoroastrian, extra-Biblical legends that accrued aruund Nimrod all seem to confirm Su-MinRi's location of the text in northern Iraq. The following section will examine the unusual role the text attributes to Nimrod and the significance this has (b r iiis conception of his own territory. The author describes Nimrod's religious practice as follows: 'he worshipped fire, as the Persians continue to do until this day and 1 2

Su-Min-Ri, 2000, 47 Su-Min-Ri, 2000, 574-5 The Harp

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was taught divining by the sage Yonton [the fourth sons of Noah]' 3 . The author seems to approve of this pure, original fire worship, perhaps because of the significance he gives to the appearance of fire in his own narrative, such as the burning bush of Moses and the flames of Pentecost'. But, intriguingly, he equates this fire-worship by Nimrod with the religion of the Persians: he has essentially equated Nimrod with Zoroaster. The author follows this account of Nimrod with an account of the subsequent decay of his fire-worshipping religion: Satan encourages the priest Ardashir [the leader of the Sassanian revolt against the Parthians] to engage in incest and receive sorcery and divination by the Zodiac, which is unlike the orthodox divination of Nimrod 5 . Additionally, the veneration of a white horse by the Persians is connected to an event in the life of Sasan, the mythical founder of the Sassanian dynasty. I shall deal with the problems arising from the religious material surrounding Nimrod before turning to his significance as a founder of cities. The work of Gherardo Gnoli has suggested that the Sassanian revolution of the third century, which overthrew the Parthians under a religious mandate, brought with it a reformation of local cults into a broader Zoroastrian orthodoxy. Gnoli argues that the epigraphic proclamations of the high mobadh [priest] Kartir against 'the shrines of the devas' and the destruction of 'pagan' cult sites in Armenia should be seen as part of a single movement, in which the Sassanian monarchy and priesthood claimed a religious mandate for rule and organised the priesthood to mirror the feudal nobility 6 . This interpretation seems to fit what appears to be an internal criticism of Zoroastrianistn within the Cave. Interestingly for an essentially Christian text, Zoroastrianism is not evil per se, it only becomes such with the Sassanian revolution, when incest, sorcery and animalworship are introduced. I suggest this reflects the northern Mesopotamian milieu of the Cave, where indigenous religious practice, whether one sees this as Chaldean paganism or a form of 3 Cave of Treasures, 27, 1-2 4 Su-Min-Ri, 2000, 317-9 5 Cave of Treasures, 27, 13-22 6 Gnoli, 1989, 129-174. See also Shaked, 1994.

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Zoroastrianism, might feasibly have been subject to the same external religious reform under the Sassanians as were the cults of the Armenians. Dislike of Sassanian innovations in this religion was then reflected in this Christian text, written in the same milieu. Moreover, as Fiey notes, a series of local places were already associated with Nimrud, such as Mosul, Nimrud-Athor, and TellNimrud, the capital of Ashurnasirpal, king of Assyria 7 . Walker has suggested a number sites, such as Ashur, Nineveh and the shrine of Mar Qardagh at Melqi, where preservation of Assyrian toponyms, settlement patterns and building shapes in new constructions might imply some blurred memory of an Assyrian past 3 . Even though there was no continuous settlement at Tell-Nimrud, the ruins of a mostly forgotten past must have demanded explanation of some kind 9 .Thus the Cave seems to have received a fusion of two traditions, both of which had migrated across communal boundaries. The first explained the great monuments of the past by associating them with the giant Nimrod, drawn from Jewish myth, and then second had fused these foundation myths with the equally shadowy figure of Zoroaster, in a bid to resist Sassanian reforms of Zoroastrianism in the third century. By the time that the Cave of treasures was compiled in the early sixth century, both of these traditions had become intertwined in a world of permeable religious boundaries in a shared foundation myth for this territory of Assyria. The question remains of why these quasi-Zoroastrian concerns should have worried the author of the Cave. Apart from a general sense that cultic practices with ancient claims must find an explanation in the era of the Old Testament, the answer must lie in the figure of Nimrod. For the author equates Nimrod and Zoroaster without needing to oppose any alternative theories: he is writing in a milieu where this equation is already established. The second distinctive feature of the representation of Nimrod in the Cave of Treasures is his role as the founder of the cities of Babel, Resen and Nineveh in a list that circulated in the Targums. 7 8 9

Fiey, 1968,11,568-71. Walker, 2006, V, 4-37 Oates, 2001, 247 The Harp

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Similar accounts were known in Syrian Christian and Palestinian Jewish circles and had been a site for debates about the antiquity of cities.10. The list of civic foundations is closely based on the Targumic list, except that it includes by association the whole land of Nod, the region in which Nimrod travelled and where the text was probably written. Moreover, this foundation account was been transmitted in a cultural milieu that was aware of Zoroastrianism and that already equated Zoroaster with Nimrod before it was received by the Cave's author. Local ideas of the purity of religion of their mythical common founder, as opposed to the deviance of their Sassanian masters had moulded local identity in this territory, 'the land of Nod', before that founder was identified with the Nimrod of the Old Testament and then included in the Cave. To summarise, Sassanian religious centralism prompted the condemnation of non-local religious practices in Assyria, represented in stories about Zoroaster that emphasised the purity of his original religion and, possibly, already associated him with the foundation of local cities, whose ancient architecture must have continued to demand explanations and generated legends. These foundation myths circulated across permeable religious boundaries in the former Parthian province of Nod-Shirakan, allowing the Targumic foundation myths attached to Nimrod to be attributed to the person of Zoroaster. These syncretic myths, originating in a variant Zoroastrianism and Judaism, later became important markers of local identity in this 'land of Nod' to the composer of the Cave of Treasures. II. Ascetic practice in the Cave of Treasures The Cave of Treasures as a whole is focussed on the prefiguration of the life of Christ. Thus Abel's blood and Adam's body stand for the body and blood of the future Christ in Yared the Sethian's sermon to his family". Similarly, a series of crucial events for this community of believers occurs at Jerusalem: it is here that Adam is created, where the embalmed bodies of the patriarchs are 10 See Su-Min-Ri, 2000, 336 for complete references. Ephraem attacks frte inclusion of Nineveh in this list. 11 Cave of Treasures, 10, 8 Vol XXII2007

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deposited after the flood and where Melchizidek is told to practice his priesthood and subsequently reigns as king' 2 . Jerusalem and the cave of the embalmed patriarchs is made into a centre for the religion of proto-Christian true believers, whose rites go back to the Naziritic practices of Noah and to the original priesthood of A d a m " . In the Cave, the events of the distant past are seen to reoccur in later time. The burial of the patriarchs at Jerusalem and the ties of descent between the patriarchs and Christ bring out the longstanding Christian theme of the Old Testament prophets' préfiguration of Christ. The patriarchs also prefigure Christian action: thus Abraham receives communion from Melchizidek at Golgotha and brings him tithes and Noah's reception of the dove on the Ark is explicitly seen as a forerunner of b a p t i s m " . Moreover, the societies led by the patriarchs are seen as models for Christian living: the sexual segregation in Noah's Ark and the peace between different social orders all reflect the ideals of Christian society 55 . The model of the establishment of norms of religious practice in the deep past is used to give weight to ascetic practices that courted controversy in the Roman church of the fourth century and the Sassanian church of the sixth, namely the 'Naziritic' practices such wearing skins or leaving hair uncut, which are used to characterise the priesthood. After leaving the Ark, Noah consecrates Shem at Jerusalem to be 'set apart (nezira) all his life. He will not have a wife, shed blood or sacrifice wild animals, but offer bread and wine to God, for redemption is made through these for Adam and his posterity.. .he shall wear the skins of animals and shall not shave his hair or cut his nails, for he is God's priest' '". The practices described for Shem and later Melchizidek are strikingly similar to those described in Theodoret of Cyrrhus' Historia Religiosa and to the banned practices of Rabbula's canons for the bnay qyama. For the author of the Cave of Treasures, these 12 13 14 15 16

Cave Cave Cave Cave Cave

of of of of of

The Hatp

Treasures, Treasures, Treasures, Treasures, Treasures,

2, 22-3; 22, 12; 30,3 4, 6; 17, 24-8 19, 13 and 20, 1-11; 28, 11 20, 10 17, 24-8

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practices were hallowed by ancient custom and, moreover, were the defining characteristics of priesthood: all the priests in the text are also celibate Nazirites. Thus a story about the proto-Christian practice defined contemporary orthodoxy. The freedom of the Cave's re-writing of Christian history suggests that the limits of Christian canonical texts were not clearly defined and the church had little power to enforce doctrinal decisions. This was a milieu where assertions of the antiquity of ascetic practice and priestly behaviour must have been especially important in demarcating the church. The greater freedom of the Cave's author would have been matched by a difficulty in enforcing proper behaviour and belief. For instance,, the permeable thought-world in which the author lived forced him to engage at length with Jewish criticisms of the genealogy of Christ, a task that no one had to address in the better policed church of Justinian's empire' 7 . By appealing to ancient precedent, he aimed to keep Christian practice distinct from that of surrounding cultures, irrespective of whether the threat of change came from Zoroastrian influence or the mores of new converts to Christianity or the arguments of Mesopotamian Jews. Thus, even as the author had imbibed Jewish and Zoroastrian ideas in his stories about the foundations of Nimrod, he could still use the stories shared by different religious groups to delineate communal boundaries, in this case through an emphasis on Christian ascetic practice. III. Language and Race in the Cave of treasures One aspect of the text's retelling of the Old Testament is the existence of multiple falls after Eden. Only after expulsion from Eden can there be a loss of virginity, but even then, it is possible for the children of Seth to separate themselves from the continued fornication of the Cainites: it is still possible to avoid the fallen state of man and to live on a mountain away from the Cainites 18 . Here Seth rules on account of his purity and maintains 'his sons in virtue and his daughters in virginity': their eventual fall of the Sethians only occurs after being lured down from the mountains by the flute-music of the Cainites 19 . 17 Cave of Treasures, 52 18 Cave of Treasures, 5, 18 19 Cave of Treasures, 7, 1-2

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Just as there is a recurrent theme in which individuals are made priests by Naziriticritein various generations, the evolution of a corrupting people such as the Cainites, reoccurs in the story with the fall of the Canaanites, who renew Cainite practices and are cursed by Noah to be 'the servants of servants, even to Egyptians, Cushites and black-skinned Ethiopians'20. Thus Old Testament history affirms a racial hierarchy and an inferiority transmitted to the descendants of Canaan. The fall of the Cainties and the fall of the Canaanites both involve a sundering of the human race after some sinful event, in which a sinful part of the human race is removed from those who maintain pure religion. Importantly, the Cave imagines a fourth fall at the tower of Babel, with the difference that, in this event, language is connected with race: many peoples, each speaking their own language, are sundered from the original people, who continue to speak the original language. And, critically, the Cave imagines this ur-language to have been Syriac: 'all the tribes of Noah went to Sen'ar and spoke Surayaya, which is Aramaya, the king of all languages. Ancient writers have erred to say that Hebrew is the oldest language- all languages are derived from Surayaya.. .in Syrian writing the left hand stretches to the right hand, while the children of the heathen draw themselves to God's right hand' 21 . Thus Babel is a final fall, the moment when the many peoples are sundered from the original group who remain unchanged and speak Syriac. The connection between language and race allows all other people to be classed as 'the children of the heathen', a classification that is given contemporary relevance by the difference between their scripts. Indeed, in the oriental manuscript, the latter are explicitly defined as Greeks, Romans and Hebrews. In a schema where the hierarchy of the races of the world is determined by a series of 'Falls', differences in language and script, because of their connection to Babel, are seen both as an indicator of race and of Syrian precedence at the top of the racial hierarchy. Finally, this equation of race and language and the hierarchy employed by the author is confirmed at the end of the narrative in the Passion: 20 Cave of Treasures, 21,10-16. See also 21, 23-28 21 Cave of Treasures, 24, 9-11

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'Pilate did not write above the Cross in Syriac because Syrians did not participate in shedding the blood of truth. For Herod was a Greek, Caiaphas a Jew and Pilate a Roman. The Syrians had not part in this, as is testified by Abgar, king of Edessa, who wished to destroy Jerusalem because the Jews crucified Christ' 22 . So, for the author of Cave, the Syrians were marked out as superior to other peoples. Ascetic practices that were associated were practiced in Roman and Sassanian Syro-Mesopotamia were identified as the practices of the patriarchs, the ur-Christians. But, more significantly, their language, which the Cave identifies as the determinant of race, is the language of the patriarchs. In some sense, the author seems to claim the Syrian inheritance of a purity from before Babel, since the description of Babel equates linguistic transmission with genealogical descent, an impression that is confirmed by the Syrians' importance at the Passion, where they are the only sinless people. The Pentecost remains a call to universal conversion: the apostle are given all languages 'so that they might teach in the tongues that had received so that strife might cease' 23 . But even this recalls the fact that the Pentecost is an inversion of Babel, a temporary return to a time when all spoke Syriac, just as the mission to which the apostles were called was a speciality both for Edessa and for the Church of the East. Critically, Abgar plays an important part in the claims of the Syrians to be superior, blameless people. His letter to Christ provides the proof of the special position of the Syrians. If the text was written in 'Nod', the region of Adiabene and Nineveh, then we have an indication that the Abgar legend providing a framework for the evolution of local identities. The Cave shows us how civic foundation myths, which had evolved in a permeable cultural world of Zoroastrian stories and Targumic interpretations, could be included as part of a wider story promoting a shared 'Syrian' identity -4. Moreover, this identity was given form by a shared language that had probably been spread from Edessa onto more localised 22 Cave of Treasures, 53, 25-7 23 Cave of Treasures, 54, 14-5 24 On the permeability of oral culture in Sassanian Mesopotamia see Walker, 2006, III, 27-9

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Biography Le Caverne des trésors: deux recensions syriaques, ed. and tr. Su-Min-Ri, A., 1987 (Louvain: Peeters) Fiey, J., 1968, L'Assyrie Chrétinne: contribution à l'étude de l'historié et de la géographie ecclesiastiques at monastiques du nord de l'Iraq (Beyrouth: Impr. Catholique) Gnoli, G., 1989, The idea of Iran, an essay on its originf Rome: Institutio italiano per il Medio e Estremo Oriente) Oates, J., 2001, Nimrud: An Assyrian imperial city revealed (London: British School of Archaeology in Iraq) Shaked, S., Dualism in transformation: in Sassanian /ra«_(London: SOAS)

varieties of religion

Su-Min-Ri, S., 2000, Commentaire sur le Caverne des trésors: etudes sur l'historié du texte et ses sources (Louvain: Peeters) Walker, J., 2006, The. Legend of Mar Qardagh (unpublished Phd: Princeton) Philip Wood, St. John's College, Oxford, OX1 3JP, United Kingdom. The Harp

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THE LAST JUDGEMENT (MT. 25:31-46) IN EPHREM'S LETTER TO PUBLIUS The Letter to Publius is a meditation on the Last Judgement and many sections of it give allusions to it. Sections 8, 9, 22 and 23 give almost a commentary. Ephrem invites his audience to look at the Gospel mirror and its depiction of the day of judgement. In the mirror each person can see his soul reflected in its true colours and can understand what will be his lot at the Last Judgement. He starts the letter by saying: You should not drop from your hands the polished mirror of the Holy Gospel of your Lord, for it provides the likeness of everyone who looks into it, and it shows the resemblance of all who look into it. While it preserves its own nature and undergoes no change, having no spots and being quite free from any dirt, still when coloured objects are placed in front of it, it changes its aspect, though it itself undergoes no change. When white objects are put in front of it, it turns white, when black ones, it takes on their colour... It depicts in itself every limb of the body; it rebukes the defects of the ugly, so that they may remedy themselves, and remove the blackness from their faces. To the beautiful it declares that they should be careful of their beauty, Vol. XXII2007

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that it does not become spotted with dirt...' For this mirror is a shadow of the holy preaching of the outward Gospel... Just as this natural mirror is a shadow of the Gospel, so also the Gospel is a shadow of the Beauty that is above which does not fade and at which all the sins of the created world are rebuked. For everyone who looks into this mirror, his sins are visible, and everyone who considers it, sees there the lot which is reserved for him, whether good or bad. 2 In the mirror Gehenna is visible, all fiery, ready for those who deserve to live there. ... In the Gehenna the things promised to the wicked are groaning ... There the outer darkness is clearly to be seen. ... There, from their bonds, men cry out in their torture, which is all the greater according to their wickedness, so that they are justly afflicted. 3 Jesus is the Judge at the Last Judgement. On the day the deeds of each person speak out for or against him before Jesus who is the Judge. Look at him on that day, sitting at the right hand of his Begetter, setting the lambs to his right at that time and goats to his left at that moment, calling his blessed ones, Come, inherit the kingdom which was prepared for them before time in his knowledge and was made ready for them from the beginning of creation. He thanks (them) for having fed him in the poor when he was hungry; for having clothed him in the naked when he was naked; for having visited him in the prisoners when he was in prison; for having gathered him in the foreigners when he was a stranger; for haying visited him in the infirm when he was sick.4 In section 9 the commentary of Bphrem on the Last Judgement is along the following lines; just as the actions of the wicked accuse them before the righteous Judge, so also the actions of the good make their defence before him who is good.5 All the deeds of mankind 1 2 3 4 5

Letter to Publius § 1. Letter to Publius § 2. Letter to Publius § 3. Letter to Publius § 8. Ephrem applies the title 'Good' quite often for Christ; cf. Virg. XXV:1, FidL XXVII:7, Eccl. XXV response, Haer. Ll:1 etc. The Harp

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143 are silent by their nature but eloquent when one looks at them; so there are no questions asked there, since the Judge has full knowledge of them, and there are no replies. The Last Judgement In Ephrem's Letter To Publius

According to him the traditional language of the judgement scene is only metaphorical. It is not that there is really a right or left, but they are the terms used for those who are honoured and for those who are of low estate. We call the place of the good 'theright'and that of the wicked 'the left'. We call the good 'lambs' becauseof their humility and the wicked 'goats' because of their obstinacy. We call his justice 'scales' and his reward towards us 'the measure of truth'. He has given a psychological interpretation to Gehenna in sections 22 and 23 deviating from the traditional one. Gehenna of the wicked consists in their very separation, which burns them, and their mind acts as the flame. The hidden judge, who is seated in the discerning mind has spoken, and has become for them the righteous judge, who scourges them without mercy with the torments of remorse. Perhaps this is the one who separates them out, sending each one to the appropriate place; perhaps it is the one who takes hold of the good with its right hand stretched out, sending them to that right hand of mercy, and which takes the wicked in its upright left hand, casting them into the place called 'the left'. It is this mind which silently accuses them, and quietly pronounces the sentence upon them. This inner mind has been made the judge and the law; it is the shadow of the Law and the shadow of the Lord of the Law. The inner mind rebukes all without shame, it teaches all, but uses no force, it gives counsel, but employs no compulsion, it reminds them of the judgement to come by means of warnings, bringing to their mind the kingdom of heaven so that they may desire it, explaining the rewards of the good so that they may yearn for them, showing to them the power of judgement, so that they may restrain themselves. The inner mind does not depart from a person when he is soiled in filth and mud. Those who listen to it, it will remind, those who disobey it, it will overtake. On earth it is mingled with them in every way and there it stands up in front of them on the day of judgement. Vol. XXIJ 2007

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In Ms Letter to Publius, Ephrem associates the parables of the Ten Virgins (ML 25:1-13) and the Rich Man and Lazarus (Lk. 16:19-31) with the Last Judgement in order to introduce his own experience of the Last Judgement obtained through his meditation. The presentation of the Ten Virgins is distinctive because of the attention given to the activities of the foolish virgins and the description of what is meant by the oil. When he saw therighteousvirgins in the kingdom, he was aware of his own unworthiness to enter there. He tells: I saw their bridal chamber opposite, where no one had the power to enter - those who had no lamps with them. I saw their joy and I sat down in mourning, for I was not having works worthy of that bridal chamber ... I was grieved that I was empty of the works of that blessed oil.6 He presents the oil as good works and this aspect is elaborated in section 15, in the course of describing the destiny of the foolish virgins. He says: I saw there pure virgins, whose virginity had been rejected because their virginity had not been adorned with the good oil of desirable works. They made supplication to their fellow virgins to give them (aid), but they were not pitied. (They asked) that a chance be given to them to go and buy for themselves (good) works. But this was not given to them because the end, which was their departure from the world was at hand. 7 The foolish virgins were rejected because they did not have excellent works worthy of the bridal chamber. The request of the foolish virgins for a chance to obtain good works and the reason for the denial of the request are unique; moreover it is against the original message, for, according to the Gospel account they had gone to buy the oil and returned to find the door of the wedding feast closed. Ephrem depicts in section 4 the rich man of the Rich Man and Lazarus as the representative of all people who weep and gnash their teeth in Gehenna, and Lazarus as the representative of all the righteous. There is the rich man who changed his clothes everyday and made merry in his luxuries. He was tormented arid cried out from Sheol. 6 7

Leiter lo Publius § 12. Letter to Publius § 15. The Harp

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The mournful voice of the rich man is to be heard there, crying to Abraham;' 'my sins are burning me and my wicked deeds are broiling me like coals of oak".8 The letter ofjustice, which was written down by the just mouth, was taken directly and was sent to that deaf ear of the man who never opened the gate of his ear. In that letter was inscribed, these melodious words ofjust judgement: just as he used to ask you that you may help him; but you refused and he is unable to come because of the great impassable chasm that is between us, so that no one can come to us from you nor from us can anyone come to you.9 In section 14 Ephrem describes his own experience of 'the narrow road' and 'life of salvation' after looking into the smooth mirror of the divine Gospel. He depicts one of his experiences through the Rich man and Lazarus in the following way. For I did not see a person there who can help his neighbour by wetting his tongue in that burning fire; for that deep chasm which makes a distinction between the good and the evil did not allow them to help one another.10 He concludes the theme of judgement by asking his audience to do penance. He tells: When I saw all this in that clear mirror of the holy Gospel, my soul grew feeble my heart was filled with bitter groans I remembered the good Lord and gentle God, who accepts weeping in the place of burnt sacrifices. And when I reached this point I took refuge in penitence and sheltered under the wings of repentance. Conclusion Even though Ephrem deals with the parable of the Last Judgement twenty- four times in his various works,11 only in his Letter to Publius he gives a psychological rather than traditional interpretation to it. 8 9 10 11

The reference to the coals of oak is from Psalm 120:4. Letter to Publius § 4 Letter to Publius § 14 They are Fid. LVIil:13, Eccl. IV: 13, Vlll:4, leiun. IX:13, Cruc. 111:14, Nis. Vll:5, Haer. XXX:12, Letter to Publius §8, §9, §22, §23, M. Nic. VI:67-70, VIU: 65-68, XIV:61-64, XVI: 171-174, H. Arm.Vil:25, Sermo\:i, Sermo l:ii, M. Frag. Ill and CDiat. Vl:26, Vll:25, Vlll:13 and XVIII.-16.

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Here he insists that the traditional language about judgement is metaphorical and it is the conscience of a person that acts as the judge in Christ's presence. One may find this kind of psychological approach from a person of the modern century and not from the one who died in the fourth century. Only in the letter to Publius does Ephrem mention the six requirements, which make a person worthy to stand at the right hand. The order of the six requirements recorded by Ephrem differs from that of the Gospel12 and from that of his near contemporary Aphrahat. The order in Ephrem is: hungry, thirsty, naked, prison, stranger and sick13 where as in P it is hungry, thirsty, stranger, naked, sick and prison; in Aphrahat the order is hungry, thirsty, naked, stranger, sick and prison (PS I, 901: 6-11). He uses the term 'lambs' ( ' e m r e ) (five times) instead of the sheep (erbe) of SP. His main attention in his exegesis of the Last Judgement is the separation of the lambs (not sheep) from the goats. Abbreviations

c CDiat. Cruc. D Eccl. Fid. H. Arm. Haer. Ieiun. M. Frag. M. Nic. Nis. P PS

s

Virg.

Curetonian Manuscript of the Old Syriac Gospels The Commentary on the Diatessaron Hymns on the Crucifixion Diatessaron Hymns on the Church Hymns on Faith Hymns preserved in Armenian Hymns against Heresies Hymns on the Fast Fragmentary Memre from a Manuscript on Mount Sinai Memre on Nicomedia Hymns on Nisibis Peshitta Patrologia Syriaca Sinaitic Manuscript of the Old Syriac Gospels Hymns on Virginity

12 This section of D C and the part of verse 35 S are missing. The existing four items of S in v. 35-36 agree with P (stranger, naked, sick and prison). 13 Letter to Publius § 8.

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Jacob Vellian

EAST SYRIAC MELODIES IN SYRO-MALABAR TRADITION. • Syro Malabar liturgy is East Syrian • Syrian immigration of the 4th century A D to Kerala. • The Syriac liturgy came into Kerala probably by the 4th century and along with the Syriac Emigration into Kerala 345 A.D ( Dr. Mathias Mundadan) • The St. Thomas Christians believed that the Syriac language, the language of the Lord, was handed down to them by St. Thomas, their father in faith. They therefore considered it " Sacrosanctum" and they won't accept any liturgical text that was not presented to them in Syriac". Even the lay people knew the Syriac Language in the 16th century ( DIAMPER). Syriac liturgical music might have reached Malabar along with the Syriac Liturgy , and along with the Syriac migration into Kerala at the time ( Dr. M.Mundadan) East Syrian Melodies sung by the Chaldeans & Assyrians, are different from those sung by Malabarians. Malabar musical traditions could be more archaic and closer to the original way of singing, since Arabic influence is likely lacking there. Vol. XXII2007

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Jacob Vellian

"1937- Fr. Saldana SJ, Malayala Suriyani Keerthanamalika." "1954- Fr. Mathew Vadakel and Fr. Auralious, Thirukarma Geethangal" "1967 - Heinrick Hussman , Die Melodien des Chaldaischen Breviers Commune" 1986-

Taksa d' Qudase, Musical Notation for 25 items.

RECORDED SYRIAC MUSIC:"1986 - Qurbana Ganangal by Dr. Jacob Vellian. Syriac Chants from South India- by Joseph Palackal CMI Fr. Sebastian Sankoorikal, Suriani Qurbana Ganangal Fr. George Plathottam. MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS Tambor,Triangle and Violin. New Musical Compositions Syriac Translation, of Latin Liturgical text.( Latinised) Musical melodies are composed in a very creative way: Pange lingua

- 7 tunes

Tan turn ergo

- 21 tunes

Litany of Mary

- 24 TUNES

Te DEUM

-2

TUNES

There was more freedom and creativity in composing liturgical music than in using liturgical texts in Malabar. Influence on Syriac music on Christian folk songs in malayalam MARGAM KALI

SONGS ( A FOLK DANCE)

PUTHANPANA BY ARNOS PADIRI ( 1699) The Harp

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MUSICAL DELICASIS 1. Variety in singing Halleluia. 2. Hymn of St. Ephrem. 3. Barmaryam. 4. Hutraa of Mary. 5. Madrasa of buriel. 6. Litany of Blessed Mary. 7. Te Deum. 8. Prayer to saints. 9. Slossa to Blessed Mary. 10. Praise of Mary. 11. Slossa Eucharistic benedictian. 12. Prostration in Raza. 13. Offertry songs-"rize". 14. Liftup hears ( Second Anaphora). 15. Hymn at Incnsince. 16. Litany before Communian. 17. Buriel lady's 18. 19 & 20 Buriel Priest. 21. Office for the dead.

Rev. Dr. Jacob Vellian, Catholic Archbishop's House, Kottayam. 686001 Kerala, India.

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ST EPHREM: A GARLAND OF PRAYER SONGS (continuedfrom page 120) 4.

What they once possessed they have lost, and found what they never had; they desired happiness, but it flew away, and the woe they had dreaded has arrived; what they had put their hope on has proved an illusion, and what they had never sought, they have now found. They groan because they have been brought low and have been 'robbed', for their way of life deceived them, while their torment is very real: their luxurious living has vanished, and their punishment does not come to an end.

5.

The righteous, too, perceive that their own affliction no longer exists, their suffering does not endure, their burden no longer remains, and it seems as if no anguish had ever assailed them, Their fasts appear as though a mere dream, for they have awoken as if from sleep to discover Paradise and the Kingdom's table spread out before them.

Lk. 22:30

(continued in page 176)

The Harp

Vol. XXII2007

James Steephen

Olikal

ADAM - MORTAL OR IMMORTAL? The great English poet James Shirley calls Death the last and inevitable moment which no one can avoid or avert. Death is simultaneously a natural and personal occurrence. Quite unquestioningly and submissively every one admits the inevitability of death. It has always been one of the major events in human history, a matter of dispute, a topic for investigation, a question never fully answered and a state every one wishes to keep away from. It is the ultimate calamity which God inflicts on a sinful world. Most hated and repelling is death that causes a veil of gloom and depression with an imprint of tragic appearance on the countenance of man. Hence man is always in search of a device or an elixir to overcome the grimness death. Mar Jacob of Serug, the greatest and finest Syriac poet after Mar Ephrem, in his second mimr among the four on creation, deals with the question "Whether Adam was created Mortal or Immortal?" This mimre was edited and published in C.S.C.O, in 1989 by Khalil Alwan. 1. Authenticity of Mar Jacob's Proceedings The question 'Whether Adam was Created Mortal or Immortal' has been a topic for big dispute among scholars. Mar Jacob, with all his humility, admits the question with out exposing the opponents or Vol. XXII2007

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hinting his views on any dissimilar arguments. He puts forward his own arguments. Meekly admitting his inadequacy to look into the matter, he relies not on his own feet but asks for God's benevolence to speak on the topic. His willingness to be an obedient and submissive servant and a lawful defender of the scholarship of the Master to mediate on his wisdom proves his humility. He is ready to long for the flow of Almighty's wisdom to describe and to speak of the genealogy of Adam as it is revealed to him. Mar Jacob adopts a via media between the facts that places Adam at an apex with too much exaggeration and leaving him as a figure with fanciful inflection. At the very outset, in the seventh line of the mimre, he asks for pain to be distributed to all the members of the body, certainly for a birth pang of begetting and delivering a poem, the mark of an outstanding poet. He submits himself wholly to the divine commands and wishes God's power be the chief of the troops of his body so that the soldiers, the limbs, shall march only at the orders of the master. Being cognizant of the impropriety and unworthiness of investigating into the a f f a i r s o f God, he requests to fasten the skilled pen of the master on his fingers, to stir up the mind diligently and to restore the words to set an image of Adam in characters. Hence it is evident that Mar Jacob's answer to the disputed question on the mortality of Adam is not human but divine.

2. Certain Issues Behind the Question " O f every tree of the Garden you may freely eat; but of the tree of knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die" (Gen. 2:16-17). Based on this commandment Mar Jacob raises certain issues. We sort them out into twelve. i) If the maker of Adam set him as immortal, why did He fabricate in him the cause of death? ii) If Adam was created immortal in his essence from the beginning, how did he die and the death conquer him? iii) It would have been surpassing the commandment of the master if Adam had died without eating from the tree. The Harp

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153 iv) If the cause of death was not put into his essence, wouldn't he have died even if he did not eat from the tree? ADAM - Mortal or immortal?

v) What about the immortality of Satan who disobeyed the commandments? vi) Animals and insects are determined to death. Is this commandment concerning death not applicable to them as that of Adam? vii) Did the animals die because they ate from the fruits of the forbidden tree? viii) What indeed was the necessity that the mortality be determined from the tree? ix) Would he have not died if he had not eaten from the tree, the reason that incited to sin and confined Adam in blame? x) Why Satan, who not only went astray in the same manner as Adam but also deceived him, did not die? xi) Is not Satan equally guilty on the ground of violating the commandment? Why is there a partiality between Adam and Satan? xii) There is no possibility of death in angel Gabriel even if he commits sin. Hence, the kind of essence that comes under the mortal is one's life that is set in a condition with the possibility of alteration and the immortal is the one whose nature is not under a state that is bound by the seal of death. 3. A Solution - An Image Not With One Nature but Two The poet invites the readers to scrutinize the words of the poet, to pay attention very closely to the superiority of Adam's genealogy, to proclaim the true history and not to blame the creator in the making of man on the basis of the big wickedness, the reason for the expulsion of the first man from Paradise. The marvelous image of Adam was not with one nature; but composed of two natures - mortal as well as immortal. The creator Vol. XXII2007

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in His skillfulness put the two natures together. He set an image that was shared by death and life. For, either of the two is to be chosen discriminately so as to bring it into the subjection of man. He was infusing the spirit into an earthen vessel and united the one with the other as a sensible companion. Wisely He set an order between the living nature and the deadly lump of earth. The image remained with an inclination towards both life and death. 4. Freedom and Reason The entire problem and the solution regarding life and death depend on Adam's power of discernment. Since it is determined, neither the greatness of the discernment shall be crossed over nor the heights be measured, nor Adam shall be blamed by the investigators. One must also consider the freedom of Adam and the commandment given to him. For, it is there in his creation itself from the beginning. The rational instrument, Adam, is granted freedom so that he shall choose death and life according to his will. And because of this Adam is both mortal and immortal simultaneously and his selection depends on his inclination towards where he remains. The freedom, then, remains with him as a charioteer who holds a bridle to guide his senses. Wherever he wishes to lead them, they will go with him, towards life or death. B y virtue of the existence of freedom and since a balance is devised and constituted between the two, it is not easy for Adam to die. His will draws him to which he chooses. Adam is mortal by the reason of his making from the dust and he is immortal owing to the spiritual nature of the soul.

5. Skillfulness of the Artificer Mar Jacob admires the skillfulness of the architect of Adam who willed everything in him except immortality. A mason is left with the shrewdness to decide either to construct or to demolish and a diver is set in such a way to make a decision whether to immerse wholly or to rise up. Adam is granted the power to make his mind up. The Harp

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6. A Description of the Creation God in His skillfulness shaped the collection of the dust, rent it, bound together, plucked it, infused the soul and cast spirit into it. He mixed the essence here and there, assigned and overlaid the image from one side to another. God neither engraved him in the mould of the angels lest he should have immortality even if he commits sin nor concealed him in the dye of other living creatures resulting in mortality albeit he is free from sin. God raised Adam to the honor above animals even while he remained as dust and brought him under angels although he possessed an upright spirit. He made him neither a spiritual being because he owned a body nor simply a carnal being since he was with his soul. The image of Adam, a combination of life and death, is great, rich in colour and adorned with decorations. Adam bore the power to make something according to his will. If he had been made immortal from the beginning what would have happened when he surpassed the commandments, and again, if he had been created mortal like any other living being what would have he gained by keeping all the commandments? Therefore it was fair that he was created mortal and immortal alike with the power of freedom upon the two. Amazing is the creation of this image in such a manner holding the power of God. If he hadn't ruined his soul and thus fallen down, he would have been granted the right of creatorship. But he had broken it down voluntarily and cast himself out of paradise. The incomprehensible and ever wise creator fashioned Adam with out fault. But, behold, his dust, out of which he was made of, is scattered like anything and then onwards condemnation remained with him because he enslaved, his soul mishandling his freedom. 7. Union of Body and Soul. The body can't be saved without soul and the soul has no consciousness without the body. Soul can exist by itself but doesn't feel anything and in the same manner the body set up of dust alone is without life. The maker skillfully united them in the image of Adam. Vol. XXII2007

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James Steephen Olt'kal

Here Mar Jacob raises another issue. What about the cases of Abel, Enoch and Elijah? Among them there was life that was made eternal and sorrowful death. Abel committed no sin; yet he was killed by his brother, Cain (Gen. 4:8). But Enoch, son of Cain walked with God and hence he was taken alive to heaven (Gen. 5: 24). The reproof on Adam was not considered as a cause for his mortality. Elijah, descendant of Adam was raised alive to heaven in a fiery chariot (2King.2:11-12). The poet places Enoch and Elijah as witnesses to his words since they are ever alive with body and soul. If the first fruit (Enoch) became immortal, how much more the whole offshoot (Adam), from where the first came out, could be immortal. How much unique was their essence for being immortal and eternal? Is it from another clay they were made of, so that they should never die? The answer is No. It is in the same dust Adam, Abel, Enoch and Elijah were moulded and their nature was mortal as well as immortal. Adam chose death and others opted life. Mar Jacob concludes his mimre challenging everybody to bring in an opposite argument. He was that much confident on the authenticity and straightforwardness of his teaching. It is also remarkable that the poet never brings Eve, the spouse of the first man and the one who has very often been branded as the persuader to his sin, to the scene right through the mimre.

Fr. James Steephen Olikal Lecturer, Dept. of Syriac St. John's College, Anchal, Pin. 691306 Kollam Dt. Kerala, INDIA

The Harp

Vol XXII2007

Françoise Briquel Chatonnet

SOME REFLEXIONS ABOUT THE FIGURE OF ABRAHAM IN THE SYRIAC LITERATURE AT THE BEGINNING OF ISLAM1 Among the constants in modern ecumenical discussions between Jews, Muslims and Christians is the stress laid on Abraham as a shared patriarch, the insistence on « Abrahamic religions », and the description all believers of the three monotheistic religions as « sons of Abraham ». My inquiry in this paper concerns the views of Syriac writers on this figure; an interesting point of view, since, after all, they lived in regions where Jews were present and they were among the first to witness the arrival of Islam. Inhabiting the areas (Syria, Iraq) of Islam's initial expansion, they were obliged very early to reflect on this new religion and its victorious expansion in theological terms. In fact, a considerable number of inter-faith exchanges have been preserved in Syriac literature, which allow us a few precious glimpses into the subject. Obviously, a paper such as this can provide only a very limited treatment of this huge and important subject. 1

An earlier version of this paper was published in French as « Abraham chez les auteurs syriaques : une figure du croyant pour des chrétiens en monde musulman », Dialogue des religions d'Abraham pour la tolérance et la paix, Actes du colloque de Tunis 8-10 décembre 2004, Tunis, université Al-Manar, chaire Ben Ali pour le dialogue des civilisations et des religions, 27-38. Robert Hawley (Yale University) corrected the English version. I am very much indebted to him.

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Before, it is useful to get an idea of what was told about Abraham before islam. Of the stories surrounding Abraham, the Syriac authors of the first centuries dwell on two episodes in particular: first, the encounter with Melkisedeq, priest of the Almighty, who presents him the bread and the wine, prefiguring the eucharist ; and secondly, the sacrifice of Isaac, a sacrifice transfigured by God which prefigures that of Christ, the lamb of God. I shall take as example the Cave of Treasures, whose initial composition undoubtedly goes back to the 3rd century but which acquired its present form in the 6th century AD 2 . Its redaction is thus wholly situated prior to the arrival of Islam. It hardly refers to God asking Abraham to leave the Promised Land and, if the late birth of the children of Abraham is mentioned, it is only incidentally : the themes of promise, submission and faith are neither highlighted nor developed. The encounter with Melkisedeq is the first episode about which details are given : it occurs in Salem, in the mountain of Jebus. Melkisedeq goes out to meet Abraham, blesses him and Abraham in return pays him the tithe : XXVIII. 11- (Eastern text) : "And Melkisedeq offered to Abraham to join the sacred mysteries by the bread of offering and wine of salvation " 3 . The expression "sacred mysteries" (razê qadîshê) is the same one which refers to the eucharist in Syriac literature. The whole sentence employs "anaphoric" terminology, a liturgical terminology, drawn from the ritual of the mass. The interpretation of this episode is definitely Christian. In the text which follows, the birth of Ishmael is briefly mentioned, to Hagar the Egyptian woman, the maidservant given to Sara by the Pharaoh. Then follows the birth of Isaac. The mention of the sacrifice of Isaac is also very interesting. 2

Following Su-Min Ri, La caverne des trésors. Les deux recensions syriaques (Corpus Scriptorum Ghristianorum Orientalium 486-487, Scriptores syri 206-208), Leuven, 1987 (edition and French translation). 3 Ri, edition p. 220, translation p. 84.

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XXIX: 3 "Isaac was twelve years old when his father took him and went up to the mountain of Jebus, towards Melkisedeq, the priest of God. 4. The mountain of Jebus is the mountain of the Amorreans, and it is in this place that the Cross of Christ was erected. 5. And it is there where the tree had grown which carried the lamb which saved Isaac. 6. This place is the center of the world, the tomb of Adam, the altar of Melkisedeq, Golgotha, Qarqaphta and Gephiphta. 7. It is there that David saw an angel carrying a sword of fire. 8. And it is there that Abraham made Isaac go up onto the altar and where he saw the Messiah, the cross of his salvation and the salvation of our father Adam. 9. This tree was the symbol of the Cross of the Messiah, our Lord [and the lamb that was in its branches symbolized the human nature of the Verb monogene]... 12. (Eastern text) In the same way Abraham offered also the lamb on the altar, prefiguring the symbol of crucifixion of the Messiah. 12. (Western text): In the same way also, Abraham made the lamb go up on the altar, prefiguring the likeness of the symbol of our Saviour. Indeed, the Blessed Moses does not say only that he immolated it, but that it made it go up, because the lamb was not (simply) the small one of the ewe, but the lamb of the symbol of the mysteries of the death of our Lord. 13. (Eastern) For this reason the Messiah declared openly in front of crowd: "Abraham wished to see my days, he saw and was delighted" (Jn 8,56). 14 And it was revealed to him that the Messiah had to suffer instead of Adam 4 . The episodes regarding the sacrifice of Isaac, as in the encounter with Melkisedeq, are situated at the very place where Jerusalem would be located and where the achievement of the history of salvation through Christ would take place. The Cave of Treasures emphasizes this point: XXX. 1: "At the very hour when Abraham put his son Isaac onto the altar, Jerusalem was founded. 2. The beginning of its construction was as follows: when Melkisedeq appeared and was 4

Ri, edition p. 224-233, translation p. 86-89. Vol. XXII2007

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160 Françoise BriqueI Chatonnet revealed to men, then the kings of the peoples heard his history and gathered (the list of the kings follows). 3. These twelve kings gathered near Melkisedeq, king of Salem, priest of the Almighty. 4. When they saw his appearance and heard his words, they asked him to go with them. 5. But he said them: "I cannot move from here to another place". 6. They decided then to build for him, all of them, a city, saying one to the other: 'Really, he is the king of the whole world, and the father of all kings'. 7 And they built a city for him and. established Melkisedeq there as king. 8. And Melkisedeq named it Jerusalem". A mythology thus developed which makes Melkisedeq the grandson of Shem, to whom his father Noah had entrusted the coffin of Adam, piously collected in the ark at the time of the Flood. Shem and Melkisedeq had then re-buried Adam's remains in the very place indicated by God through a miracle, in the future Jerusalem, and Melkisedeq had been designated to look after it. The tomb of Adam, the place of the sacrifice of Abraham, Golgotha where Christ was crucified, are located thus in the same place, the symbolic center of the universe. A condensed version of the history of Abraham is preserved in the Book of the Bee5 of Solomon, bishop of Basra in the 13th century. Once more, the only important point in the story of Abraham is the appeal to sacrifice his son and the only detail of this episode relates to the place, which is that of the Passion of Christ: Chapter XXV: He sent him for the sacrifice to the very place where Our Lord was crucified, according to the tradition of those who are truthful."6 It is well known that Syriac authors approach the biblical text through a merely typological interpretation. Texts of the Old Testament, as they ai ready call them, have the sole purpose of 5

6

E. A. W. BUDGE, The Book of the Bee. The Syriac Text Edited from the Manuscripts in London, Oxford, and Munich with an English Translation, Oxford, Clarendon Press, 1886, Cf also ch. XLIV about crucifixion, whose wood came from the tree in which Abraham had found the ram for the; sacrifice. The Harp

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announcing the arrival of Christ and his message. Thus the importance laid on the story of Melkisedeq, which announces the institution of the eucharist. Ephrem, in his Commentary on Genesis, develops, in a more detailed way than the Cave of Treasures, all these aspects of Abrahamic history, but he gives the same interpretation of the sacrifice of Isaac and the ram: Sectio XX, § 3: "Certainly there was no ram, the question of Isaac about the lamb shows it; that there was neither any tree, the wood on the shoulder of Isaac confirms it. The mountain produced the tree and the tree the ram, so that by the ram attached to the tree and the holocaust offered in the place of the son of Abraham, the day is prefigured of the One who will be attached on wood like a ram and who will accept death for the whole world."7 The interpretation given to the sacrifice of Abraham is thus notably different from that which was to be later emphasized in Koranic exegesis. It is not so much the attitude of Abraham which is highlighted, whose submission makes him the first of believers for Moslems, but rather the intervention of God who stops the human sacrifice and himself offers the ram for the sacrifice, figure or prototype of Christ. This announces the arrival of Christ, as is underlined in an anonymous homily : "Because the image always comes before the truth: Isaac is the image of Christ and his wood is the symbol of the Cross."8 For Syriac authors, Abraham had already received a revelation about the Messiah and the eucharist, and had taken part in the foundation of Jerusalem, where the history of salvation was to play out. It is also necessary to stress, already before the coming of Islam, the specific mention of Hagar, mother of Ishmael, who holds a 7

Commentary to Gn 22, 13-18. See R.-M. TONNEAU, Sancti Ephraem Syri in Genesim et in Exodum Commentarii ( C S C O 153, Scriptores Syri 71 et 72), Louvain, 1955, edition p. 84 and Latin translation p. 67. See also the French translation by P. FÉGHALI, « La figure d'Abraham dans le commentaire de la Genèse d'Éphrem », Parole de l'Orient

8

S. P. BROCK, « An Anonymous Syriac Homily on Abraham (Gen. 22) », Orientalia Lovaniensia Periodica 12, 1981, p. 225-260.

2 9 , 2 0 0 4 , p. 8 3 - 1 0 2 , h e n c e 1 0 0 .

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particular place in the Bible for certain authors, since she was the first human being to receive a revelation from an angel. Already Narsai, in the 5lh century, devotes long passages to her in his homilies about creation, particularly in the homily about the constitution of angels 9 . The question, which will acquire particular importance in the polemic with Moslems, is to understand why God waited so long, after the creation, to reveal to men that angels exist, and why the first revelation was made to a maidservant. To the first question, Narsai's answer is that God waited up to the time of Abraham, because he feared that former men would worship them, at a time when he had not yet revealed that he was the only God. "He saw that their glory was more glorious than that of all he had created, and that, if it were visible, men would be misled by its glory. He considered the error which would be in them, before they existed, And in advance concealed it, by the silence which he kept on their creation" 10 . This argument is taken up again by Isho'dad of Merv, in his 9th century commentary on the Old Testament 11 . As for the revelation being made to a maidservant, the explanation is that angels are servants, and that this announces the direct revelation of God to Abraham, the master. Hagar and her son symbol ize the Old Testament and those who would receive it. Indeed, God himself appears to announce to Abraham the salvation which would come through his son. Hagar is the figure of the servitude of the Law (Sinai), while Sara prefigures the new covenant (Jerusalem). 12 9

Ph. GIGNOUX, Homélies de Narsai sur la création. Edition critique du texte syriaque. Introduction et traduction française (Patrología Orientalis, XXXIV, fasc. 3-4), Turnhout, Brépols, 1968, p. 648-651 (homélie V, vers 161-210). 10 V. 191-194. 11 J.-M. VOSTÉ and C. VAN DEN EYNDE, Commentaire d'Isho'dad de Merv sur l'Ancien Testament, I. Genèse, Corpus Scriptorum Christianorum Orientalium 126 et 156, scriptores syri 67 et 75, Leuven 1950-1955, p. 23. 12 Ibid. p. 167.

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Other references to Abraham in early Syriac literature tend to have what one could describe as a nationalist emphasis. I refer here to the metric homilies by Ephrem. Biblical references are numerous, but Abraham is not mentioned very frequently. One hymn evokes the glory which comes on Upper Mesopotamia, because of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and the twelve patriarchs who wandered here. Hymn on Julian Saba 4,8 13 : "Myriads of languages will praise our land (=Upper Mesopotamia), in which Abraham and his son Isaac walked, (as well as) Sarah, Rebecca, Leah and Rachel, and the eleven chiefs of tribes. Of your treasure, Zion grew rich by the sons of Jacob. " Ephrem then develops the idea that Levi, father of priesthood, Judah, father of the kingship, and Joseph were born there. In the Songs of Nisibis, he names this faithful city "daughter of Abraham" (13,11) while he insists on the unfaithfulness of Harran, high-place of paganism, whose symbol is Laban the traitor : (34,1): "Abraham the eminent doctor came to Harran which was sick, he auscultated it, was astonished and returned to the Land of Canaan... If Abraham is not enough for you, who will be enough for you, O Harran, you who take pleasure in your own disease?" 14 . This is the same logic as that of Theodore bar Koni, in his Book ofScolia (II. 113),15 who, while evoking the question of the confusion Die Heiligen Ephraem des Syrers Hymnen auf Abraham Kidunaya und Julianos Saba, Corpus Scriptorum Christianorum Orientalium 322-323, scriptores syri 140-141, Louvain 1972, édition p. 46 and German translation p. 51. 14 E. BECK, Die Heiligen Ephraem des Syrers Carmina Nisibena I, Corpus Scriptorum Christianorum Orientalium 218-219, scriptores syri 9293, Louvain 1961, édition p. 81 and German translation p. 100-101. French translation by P: FHÉGALI et Cl. NAVARRE, Saint Ephrem, Les chants de Nisibe, Antioche chrétienne III, Paris, Cariscript, 1989. 15 Texte édité par A. SCHER, Theodorus bar Koni. Liber Scholiorum. Pars Prior, Corpus Scriptorum Christianorum Orientalium, Scriptores Syri, Series secunda t. 65, Paris, 1910, p. 112-113. Traduction française de R . HESPEL et R . DRAGUET, Théodore Bar Koni, Livres des scolies (recension de Séert). Mimre i-V, Corpus Scriptorum Christianorum Orientalium 431, scriptores syri 187, Leuven 1981, p. 126-127. 1 3 E . BECK,

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of languages in connection with the Tower of Babel episode, shows that the first language, in Mesopotamia, was Syriac. After the destruction of the tower of Babel, those who had dispersed in the world had adopted other languages, but those who had remained in Mesopotamia, as Abraham, had preserved Aramaic. And Theodore bar Koni adds : "it is in Edessa that Syriac is maintained pure nowadays," Another source insists on the fact that it is only while passing the Euphrates that Abraham became a Hebrew, taking up the traditional biblical etymology of this term. As for Hebrew as a language, it is for them a mixture of Aramaic and of the language of Canaan, that Abraham learned to know. It is thus a hybrid language, distinct from the pure language spoken in paradise, Syriac. It must be noted however that Syriac chroniclers have taken over from Eusebius the concept of an era beginning with the birth of Abraham. It is only with him that the world, created at the time of Adam, enters a chronological system, i.e. with the emergence of a. people, distinct from others, and thus of a particular history. But the Chronicon miscellaneum and the Mclkite chronicle also refer to an « era of the promise », which begins in the sixty-fifth year of Abraham, according to the biblical calculations, at the moment when Abraham receives revelation of a sole God and becomes converted. 16 The Arab conquest in the 7lh century presented Syriac authors with a new challenge by compelling them to think about Islam, the Arabs, the conquest and the domination of a Moslem power. 17 They apprehended them, naturally, according to categories which were familiar to them. And at first, the Arabs are understood as the followers of the faith of Abraham s . Ï will quote here Sebeos, a Armenian 16 M. DEBIÉ, " L'héritage de la chronique d'Eusèbe dans l'historiographie syriaque", Journal of the Canadian Society for Syriac Studies 6,2006,18-28. 17 On the historical context, see for example A.-M. EDDÉ, F. MICHEAU, C. PICARD, Communautés chrétiennes en pays d'islam, du début du vue siècle au milieu du xie siècle, Paris, SEDES, 1997. 18 S. H, GRIFFITH, « A n s w e r i n g the Call of the Minaret : Christian Apologetics in the World of Islam », in Redefining Christian Identity. Cultural Interaction in the Middle East since the Rise of Islam, ed. J.J. Van Ginkel, H.L. Murre-Van den Berg, T. M. Van Lint, Orientalia Lovaniensia Analecta 134, Leuven - Paris - Dudley, MA, Peeters, 2005, 92-126, spec.123-125. The Harp

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19

author of second half of 7 century , who thus wrote very shortly after the arrival of Islam : "At that time there was an Ishmaelite called Mahmet, a merchant; he presented himself to them as though at God's command, as a preacher, as the way of truth, and taught them to know the God of Abraham, for he was well informed and very well acquainted with the story of Moses (-- Torah). Since the command came from on high, they all came together, at a single order, in unity of religion, and, abandoning vain cults, returned to the living God who had revealed himself to their father Abraham."20 In fact, the Nestorian Chronicle of Khuzistan, written towards 660, adds: "The victory of the sons of Ishmael, who subdued and enslaved these two strong empires, was from God." In the Syriac texts, the Arabs are generally called "Ishmaelites"21, "Hagareans" or "Tayaye". If this last denomination links them to a hypothetical Tay, therefore to a tribal system, the others explicitly refer to their place in a biblical genealogy, which 19 Cultural proximity and close relations between Syriacs and Armenians allow to bring this testimony together with the others. 20 On this text and more generally on the vision the first Christian Oriental authors had about Islam, see R . HOYLAND, Seeing Islam as Others Saw It: A Survey and Evaluations of Christian, Jewish andZoroastrian Writings on Early Islam, Studies in Late Antiquity and Early Islam 13, Princeton, Darwin Press, 1997. On Sebeos, p. 124-132 and citation on p. 535-536 ; on the date of the chronique of Khuzistan, p. 182-189 and for the citation p. 524. Plus particulièrement sur les Arméniens : R . W . THOMSON, "Christian Perception of History - The Armenian Perspective", in Redefining Christian Identity. Cultural Interaction in the Middle East since the Rise of Islam, ed. J.J. Van Ginkel, H.L. MurreVan den Berg, T. M. Van Lint, Orientalia Lovaniensia Analecta 134, Leuven - Paris - Dudley, MA, Peeters, 2005, 1-44, spec. 37-38. 21 This expression is used in the apocalypse of pseudo-Esdras, written in the very beginning of the islamic conquest : « Suddenly, there was some terrible vision et I asked God to show me what concerns the end of times, about Ishmaelites ». See J . - B . CHABOT, « L'apocalypse of'Esdras touchant le royaume des Arabes », Revue sémitique d'épigraphie et d'histoire ancienne 2, 1894, p. 242-250 et 333-346. Vol. XXII2007

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moreover is asserted by Coran itself : the Arabs are the descendants of Hagar and Ishmael and through them of Abraham.22 One also finds this, a short time after the conquest, in a Greek text of John of Damascus, the grandson of the Byzantine governor who had opened the doors of Damascus to the Moslem troops : "There is also the religion of the Ishmaelites which still dominates nowadays, misleads the people and announces the arrival of the Antichrist. It has its origin in Ishmael, the son of Abraham and Hagar. For this reason, one names them Hagarenes and Ishmaelites; they are called also Sarracens (Sarakènous), which means robbed by Sara. Hagar answered, indeed, to the angel: "Sara discharged me robbed." "23 The denominations Hagaroye, or Mhaggraye, which are used by Syriac authors for Moslems most probably derives from muhâjirûn, those who achieved Hijra. But it is obvious that they interpret it according to a secondary etymology, as meaning bnay Hagar "sons of Hagar" 24 . Yuhannan Bar Penkaye calls them so in his Ktâba d-Rish Mellê written at the end of the 7th century: 22 There is also an example, in the 13th century, of Syriac christians trying to insert Turks into the same genealogical scheme. According to the Bible, Abraham is also the father of different Arabic tribes, through his last wife, Qeturah, whom he married after the death of Sarah (Gn 25, 1-4 : « Abraham took a wife, whose name was Qeturah. She bore him Zimrân, Yoqshân, Medân, Madiân, Yishbaq and Shuah. Yoqshân begot Sheba and Dedân, and the sons of Dedân were the Ashurites, the Letushim et the Leummim. Sons of Madiân : Epha, Epher, Hanok, Abida, Eldaa. All these are sons of Qeturah »). The Book of the Bee by Solomon of Basrah, mentionned supra (see note 3), spécifié that Yoqtan, father of Qeturah, was « king of the Turks » (chapter XXV). 2 3 SAINT JEAN DAMASCÈNE, Écrits sur l'islam, Sources chrétiennes 3 8 3 , Lyon 1992, p. 211. 24 S. P. BROCK, « Syriac Views on Emergent Islam », in Studies on the First Century of Islamic Society, G. H. A. Juynboll (éd.), Papers on Islamic History 5, Carbondale/Edwardsville (III), 1982, p. 9-21 (= Syriac Perspectives on Late Antiquity, Variorum Reprint, London, 1984, Vili), cit. p. 57. Aussi A. N. Palmer, "Amid in the Seventh-Century Syriac Life of Theodute", in The Encounter of Eastern Christianity with Early Islam, ed. E. Grypeou, M. Swanson and D. Thomas, The History of ChristianMuslim Relations 5, Leiden-Boston, Brill, 111-138, spec. 125-126. The Harp

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XIV. 141: "When the kingdom of the Persians came to an end, in the days of their king Khôsrô, the kingdom of the children of Hagar at once gained control over more or less the whole world, for they took the whole kingdom of the Persians, overthrowing all their warriors who prided themselves in the arts of war. We should not think the advent (of the children of Hagar) as something ordinary, but as due to the divine working. "25 Dating systems in particular quote Hijra in a manner which inserts Moslems in an Abrahamic genealogy : "At the time of sons of Hagar", "At the time when the sons of Hagar, Bedouins, i.e. the Arabs, settled in the country" are, for example, expressions which are found in the Melkite canonical collection in Arabic. The colophons of Syriac manuscripts generally convey dates according to the Seleucid era, called "era of the Greeks", or "era of Alexander". But, beginning with the first dated manuscript after the Arab conquest, one occasionally finds a mention of Hijra quoted, though always in addition to the traditional dating26. However, Hijra is indicated by means of expressions like "in the year X of the emir of Hagareans" 25 S. P. BROCK, « North Mesopotamia in the Late Seventh Century. Book XV of John bar Penkayê's Rish Mellê » , in Jerusalem Studies in Arabic and Islam IX, Jerusalem, 1987, p. 51 -75 (= Studies in Syriac Christianity, Variorum Reprints 357, London, 1992, II). G.J. REININK, "East Syrian Historiography in Response to the Rise of Islam: the Cas of John Bar Penkaye's Ktâbâ d-resh mellê", in Redefining Christian Identity. Cultural Interaction in the Middle East since the Rise of Islam, ed. J. J. Van Ginkel, H. L. Murre-Van den Berg, T. M. Van Lint, Orientaiia Lovaniensia Analecta 134, Leuven - Paris - Dudley, MA, Peeters, 2005, 77-89. 26 Ms. British Library Add 14666. On all the ways of mentioning Hijra in the datations of Syriac manuscripts, see F. BRIQUEL CHATONNET, « Le temps du copiste. Notations chronologiques dans les colophons de manuscrits syriaques », Proche-Orient ancien : temps pensé, temps vécu, ed. F. Briquel Chatonnet et H. Lozachmeur, Antiquités sémitiques III, Paris, 1998, p. 197-210. S. P. Brock, "The Use of Hijra Dating in Syriac Manuscripts: A Preliminary Investigation", in Redefining Christian Identity. Cultural Interaction in the Middle East since the Rise of Islam, ed. J.J. Van Ginkel, H.L. Murre-Van den Berg, T. M. Van Lint, Orientaiia Lovaniensia Analecta 134, Leuven — Paris - Dudley, MA, Peeters, 2005, 275-290. Vol. XXil 2 0 0 7

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or "Ishmaelites": the reference to the Arabs locates them in an Abrahamic genealogy. So they are perceived as kin to the Jews. However, on a strictly genealogical level, Syriac Christians do not themselves claim this ancestry, as a passage of the chronicle of Pseudo-Denys of Tellmahre clearly shows. It refers to the edict of the caliph ' Abd Al-Malik, ordering a census of all the men in order to impose a tax, the jaziyah, on the Christians. It concludes: "Since then, the children of Hagar began to impose the Egyptian constraint to the children of Aram." Thus, in the table of the nations of Gen 10, Syriac Christians are identified as descendants of Shem, but through Aram, and not through Arpaxad like Abraham. It is the Aramaic language which is their family, and not the Abrahamic kinship. As for their bond with Abraham, it is, according to them, only spiritual. That is well expressed in the Book of Testimonies21, an apocalyptic text most probably written about 820 of the Christian era: § 27: If the wicked Jews or the Arabs say to you "Abraham is the father of the Jews and the heathen's father is Ishmael, son of Abraham, and you, Syrian Christians, "Who is your father? answer [them]: "We, Christians, are the elected people, the sacerdotal tribe for the heavenly Kingdom according to what the Prophets announced and spoke, that God wanted to choose at the end of times, among peoples, a people for his holy name. We believe and confess his son Our Lord Jesus-Christ and we are the sons of the promise of Abraham, sons of the holy baptism... Those who believe in Our Lord JesusChrist, these are the sons of Abraham, the sons of the promise." " § 29: "(God) chose the people of the Syriac Christians, owners of the true hope, and He inserted them in the new Jerusalem, the Church of Christ, and made them sons of the promise of Abraham, co-heirs of Jesus-Christ. Saint Paul also says: "Believers in Christ Our Lord are blessed in the blessing of Abraham and are the sons of the promise that he, God, promised to Abraham, father of the nations." 27 M. DEBIÉ, « Muslim-Christian Controversy in an Unedited Syriac Text. Revelations and Testimonies about Our Lord's Dispensation », in The Encounter of Eastern Christianity with Early Islam, ed. E. Grypeou, M. Swanson and D. Thomas, The History of Christian-Muslim Relations 5, Leiden-Boston, Brill, 2006,: 225-235.

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This holy book does not say "father of the nation", it does not only speak about the Jews, but it says "father of the nations". Thus see, you who asks, how great is the happiness of Christians.... And believe and be convinced that there does not exist any people in which there is the leaven of celestial life, which is without return, which does not pass, which does not come down, except the people of Christians, which is clothed in the holy baptism. "2S These two extracts of the Book of Testimonies take over again the argumentation already present in the apocalypse of PseudoMethod, at the end of the 7th century29. It widens in a symbolic way the concept of Abrahamic descent, including Christians in it without any direct filiation. In fact, Abrahamic ancestry was already the object of inter-faith discussions. It is evident here that the argumentation is addressed to the Jews as well as to the Moslems, a fact which appears also clearly in the treatise of Dionysios bar Salibi, Against the Jews30. The same applies to the argumentation about the Trinity. The three angels which receive the hospitality of Abraham are put forward as proof of the dogma, since Abraham addresses himself to them in the singular 31 . This is what Dionysios bar Salibi writes (Against the Jews, V.3) : And it is also written that Abraham, having raised the eyes, saw three men who stood upright next to him, he (then) prostrated himself and said : 'My Lord, if I found mercy in your eyes, please do not go far from your servant'. See how he said in the singular 'My Lord' and not 'My Lords', as if they were several, because God is One (though) he makes himself known in three persons.. .32 28 Muriel Debie is currently studying this text and transmitted me this citation. On the text, see already A . DESREUMAUX, « The Prophetical Testimonies about Christ: An unedited typological exegesis in Syriac », The Harp (Kottayam, Kerala, Inde) VIII, 1995, p. 133-138. 29 G.J. REININK, Die syrische Apokalypse des Pseudo-Methodius, CSCO 540-541, Subsidia 220-221, Leuven, Peeters, 1993. 30 VII.12 et IX.1. 31 Gn 18, 1-3. 32 I follow here the text edited by Behnam Keryo, in his unpublished thesis. I thank him to have given me access to his work. Vol XXil 2007

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In fact, many of the texts which mention Abraham are obviously answers to charges coming from people from the two other religions, in this period that has seen the development of an apologetic and polemist literature, aiming at defending the Christian faith against the Moslem mission, as also against the Jewish faith.33 The oldest of these treatises seems to be the "Dialogue of Abraham of Bet Hale with the emir Maslama, about the faith of Abraham" entitled Drasha dluqbal tayaye,34 The text is not published,35 and the manuscript is not currently accessible. But it forms only one element of an abundant literature, preserved in Syriac or Arabic.36 When their authors refer to Abraham, the charges or inquiries of these polemic texts concern three main points. The first is the question of circumcision. In this text, the Moslem asks the Christian: "Why don't you follow Abraham and his commands?" and he specifies that these commands are "circumcision and sacrifice." According to this text, these are the basis of the "faith of Abraham" tawdita d-Abraham, an expression op. cit., p. 5 3 8 - 5 4 1 : Islam at its beginning is often understood as a new form of Judaism. 34 Title found in the catalogue of 'Äbdisho'(J. S. ASSEMANI, Bibliotheca Orientalis Clementino-Vaticana III, Rome, 1719-1728, I, p. 205). 35 An edition had been announced by P. JAGER, « Intended Edition of a Disputation between a Monk of the Monastery of Bet Hale and one of the Tayoye », IV Symposium Syriacum Groningen 1984 (Orientalia Christiana Analecta 2 2 9 ) , Rome, 1 9 8 7 , 4 0 1 - 4 0 2 . See HOYLAND, op. cit., p. 4 6 5 - 4 7 2 who gives some extracts. See also S. GRIFFITH, "Disputing with Islam in Syriac: The Case of the Monk of Bet Hale and a Muslim Emir" Hugoye: Journal of Syriac Studies 3, 1, 2000, 1-19 and G. R. REININK, "Political Power and Right Religion in the East Syrian Disputation between a Monk of Bet Hale and an Arab Notable", in The Encounter of Eastern Christianity with Early Islam, ed. E. Grypeou, M. Swanson and D. Thomas, The History of Christian-Muslim Relations 5, Leiden-Boston, Brill, 2006, 153-169. 3 6 See for exemple the articles of S. GRIFFITH, The Beginnings of Christian Theology in Arabic. Muslim-Christian Encounters in the Early Islamic Period, Variorum Reprints 746, Aldershot 2002 and particularly « Comparative Religion in the Apologetics of the First Christian Arabic Theologians », Proceedings of the PMR Conference 4, Villanova PA, 3 3 HOYLAND,

1 9 7 9 , p. 6 3 - 8 7 .

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which is the exact correspondant of the din Ibrahim. Patriarch Timothy37, in his dialogue with the caliph,38 then answers: "The circumcision of the body was the symbol of the circumcision of the heart. Just as the Torah were replaced by His Gospel, the sacrifices by His sacrifice, and the priesthood of the law by His priesthood, (so also) he abolished the circumcision made by the hand of man for His circumcision, which is not made by the hand of man, but by the power of the Holy Spirit (=baptism)."39 The answer of Dionysios Bar Salibi, again in his Treaty against the Jews, which confronts the same criticism, is instructive: IV.4: "The circumcision is the sign to recognize the progeny of Abraham from which Christ comes, but when that which was signified has appeared, there is no more need of the sign."40 And the lexicon of Bar Bahloul, under the name of Abraham, indicates that he is the father of peoples and of circumcision, which symbolizes the name of the Father, of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, as well as baptism. 41 The typological reading of the history of Abraham implies that the sign of circumcision is out of date since the arrival of Christ. The second point is the direction towards which prayer is directed. Whereas the Jews direct their prayers towards Jerusalem and Moslems towards Mekka, Christians pray directed towards East. Jacob of Edessa, in a still unpublished text, addresses the question: "Why do Moslems and Jews pray to God in direction of the South? 3 7 About him, cf R. J. BIWAWID, Les lettres du patriarche nestorien Timothée I, Studi e Testi, Città del Vaticano, 1956. 3 8 H. SUERMANN, « Timothy and his Dialogue with Muslims », The Harp VIII, 1 9 9 5 , p. 2 6 3 - 2 7 5 .

3 9 In the 11th century, the Kitâb al-Majdal, an apologetic book in Arabic, explains that circumcision had been required to Abraham to distinguish his descendants from other nations. As Christianity is intended for everyone, circumcision has no more aim. On this question, see B. LANDRON, Chrétiens et musulmans en Irak : Attitudes nestoriennes vis-à-vis de l'Islam, Paris, Cariscript, 1994, p. 226. 40 He takes this argument up again in his treaty Against Moslems. 41 R. PAYNE-SMITH, Thesaurus syriacus I, Oxford 1879, p. 20. Vol. XXII2007

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It is not in the direction of a district of the sky but of Jerusalem and of Ka'ba." Christians recognize that Ka'ba, like Arabia, are linked to Abraham. Thus, the chronicle of Khuzistan adds: "As for the dome of Abraham, we could not discover what it is, except that as Abraham had become rich and wanted to protect himself from the jealousy of Canaanites, he has chosen to live far off in the desert. And as he lived in a tent, he built this place for the worship of God and the offering of sacrifice. It holds the name of what it was".42 But Christians justify at the same time the choice they made to turn their churches towards the East: it is the place of the Paradise, of the garden of Eden, where God was venerated in the beginning and to which men look with nostalgia. It is from the East that Abraham came and Christ is by his ancestry an Easterner, as is asserted by Patriarch Timothy in a letter to Maranzekha, bishop of Nineveh: "Just as the source which leaves Eden to irrigate Paradise is divided afterwards into four branches ..., in the same way the source of life and immortality, i.e. Christianity, which spouted out of us, Orientals, - because it is from us that Christ was born of the flesh, he who is God above everything -, irrigated the whole paradise of the world by irrigating the four thrones and seats. And when we add one to four, we complete and perfect the number of five. And the fact that it is from us that Christ was born of the flesh, we show it as follows: if Christ comes from David of the flesh, David was the son of Abraham and Abraham was one of us, Oriental, and came from the East."43 The third point, more indirect, is that of the veneration of images, which provoked great hostility among Moslems, particularly because the cross was in fact the public assertion of the Christian character of the society. The Moslem argumentation, which one finds in Coran, 42 It is probably an etymological explanation of Ka'ba through Qubta « dome ». 4 3 This letter had been studied and translated by F. BRIQUEL CHATONNET, C. ET F. JuLLiEN, C . MOULIN PALLIARD e t M . RASHED, « L e t t r e d u

patriarche

Timothée à Maranzekhâ, évêque de Ninive », Journal asiatique, 2881 (2000), p. 1-13. It holds an apology in favour of preeminence of Baghdad patriarcale over the four others.

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is based on the dialogue between Abraham and his father Terah in connection with the family idols (Maryam XIX.42; Ash-Shu 'ara XXVI. 72-73). It should be noted here that that polemic concerns much less the members of the apostolic Church of the East, who did not represent Christ on the cross and did not lend the same place to icons in their worship as the Syro-Orthodox or especially the Melkites, whose iconic art is particularly famous. Thus the oriental patriarch Timothy himself felt very close to Moslems on this point: "Just as Abraham, the friend of God, abandoned idols and his kin, and followed (the call of) God and prostrated himself in front of Him, in teaching the unity of God to the nations, so also did Muhammad do when he abandoned the worship of idols as well as those of his kin who worshipped them, and other foreigners who did the same."44 On the other hand, Western Syriacs and Melkites tried to justify their forms of worship. One of the most famous examples is the Treaty of the Images in Arabic by Theodor abü Qurrah,45 in which he makes a clear distinction between images and idols. Worship before images. Is addressed in fact to God or to the saints and is only one means of adoring God. The human spirit needs to begin from the tangible in order to rise to the intangible; and images are in fact a scripture for the illiterate. "Any person who prostrates himself in front of God touches either the ground or a carpet with his knees, but his prostration has the sole purpose of worshipping God. In the same way, for the Christians, the fact of touching the image in prostration comes from 44 R. CASPAR, « Les versions arabes du dialogue entre le catholicos Timothée 1er et le calife al-Mahdî (ue-vnie siècle) », Islamochristiana 3, 1 9 7 7 , p. 1 0 7 - 1 7 5 .

45 S. GRIFFITH, "Theodore Abû Qurrah's Arabie Tract on the Christian Practice of Venerating Images", Journal of the American Oriental Society 105, 1985, p. 53-73 ; ID., « Images, Islam and Christian Icons. A Moment in Christian/Muslim Encounter in Early Islamic Times», dans La Syrie de Byzance à l'islam vue- vine siècles, Actes du colloque international publiés par P. Canivet et J.-P. Rey-Coquais, Damas, Institut Français de Damas, 1992, p. 121-138.

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their intention to honor Christ, their God, or his saints, or prophets, apostles, martyrs or others."46 And the Christians readily made a comparison with the veneration of the black stone of Ka'ba by Moslems, as John of Damascus : "They accuse us also of idolatry because we prostrate ourselves in front of the cross which they find abhorrent. Then we say them: Why do you thus rub yourself against this stone in your Ka'ba, and do you revere this stone to such an extend that you embrace it? Some of them say that it is on it that Abraham joined himself with Hagar, others that he attached the she-camel there at the time of sacrificing Isaac. We answer them: there is there, according to the Scripture, a bushy mountain and trees; Abraham cut from them for the holocaust and charged Isaac with it, and he left the asses behind with the servants. Why then these stupid words? In this place, indeed, there is no wood proceeding from a forest, and asses do not pass there. Then, they feel ashamed; they say however that it is the stone of Abraham. Then we say: Be it of Abraham, as you affirm it stupidly! You are not ashamed to embrace it only because Abraham joined himself to a woman on it, or because he attached there the shecamel, but you blame us because we prostrate ourselves in front of the cross of Christ who ruined the power of the demons and the seductions of the devil!"47 Through these texts, and what they show us of discussions between Christians and Jews and especially Christians and Moslems, one sees that reference to Abraham is perceived as a common point of reference, an anchor from which one can have exchanges, a place of dialogue. And in fact, there was dialogue, for the texts provide many examples of it.48 But there is in the Syriac Christian literature no easy tendency toward an ecumenism a minima. Although in a situation of inferiority and dependence, Syriac Christians did not try 46 GRIFFITH, "Theodore Abû Qurrah's Arabie Tract", p. 68. 47 SAINT JEAN DAMASCÈNE, Écrits sur l'islam, Sources chrétiennes 383, Lyon 1992, p. 211. 48 L. SAKO, « Bibliographie du dialogue islamo-chrétieri. Auteurs chrétiens de langue syriaque », Islamo-christiana 10, 1984, p. 273-282. The Harp

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to hide the differences, in order to show to their new masters that their religion was in fact the same than the one which had just emerged. On the contrary, they asserted their own faith, and tried to explain it and to show their detractors how they were in fact, from their own point of view, faithful to the faith of Abraham. In this same way, they carried out with Jews and Moslems a vigorous, reasoned and at times combative dialogue, which ought still to attract the attention of today's thinkers in their own exchanges and their own reflections.49

Françoise Briquel Chatonnet Directrice de recherches CNRS, Paris Orient et Méditerranée-Laboratoire des études sémitiques anciennes

49

K . H. KUHLMANN, « The Apology of Timothy, the Patriarch, before Caliph Mahdi. The Christian-Muslim Dialogue yesterday and today », The HarpVlU, 1995, p. 167-176.

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ST EPHREM: A GARLAND OF PRAYER SONGS (continuedfrom page 150) 6.

By those who arc outside the summit cannot be scaled, but from inside, Paradise inclines its whole self to all who ascend it. The whole of its interior gazes upon the just with joy. Paradise girds the ioins of the world, encircling the great sea: neighbour to the beings on high, friendly to those within it, hostile to those without.

7.

At its boundary I saw figs, growing in a sheltered place, Gen. 3:7 from which crowns were made that adorned the brows of the guilty pair, while their leaves, as it were, blushed for him who was stripped naked: their leaves were required to those two who had lost their garments; although they covered Adam, they still made him blush with shame and repent, because in a place of such splendour a man who is naked is filled with shame. (continued in page 240)

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SAINT EPHREM ON THE FOURTH CENTURY FUNERAL RITES Saint Ephrem (died c.373), the greatest of all Syriac poets, wrote his Testament some time before his death. The Testament of Saint Ephrem is available in Syriac (in metrical form) and in Greek 1 . This document is of great importance to have an idea about the fourth century funeral rites of a clergyman. Ephrem was born in Nisibis (in the Roman Empire) in the beginning of the fourth century as the son of Christian parents. (Some sources claim that they were pagans). He spent his early life in Nisibis, teaching and writing hymns, homilies and commentaries. In 363 A.D., following a military treatise, the Roman Empire had to hand over the city of Nisibis to the Persians. This forced Ephrem and a large number of citizens to move westward to Edessa, a city in the Roman Empire. Ephrem continued his rich literary carrier in Edessa, where he established a school of biblical and theological studies. In Edessa he organized women's choirs to sing his hymns. Thus during his life, he had the privilege to see that his hymns became part of the liturgy of his Church. Ephrem remained a deacon throughout his life and died while ministering to the victims of the plague in 373 A.D. 1

Relevant texts are translated into English in: Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers of the Christian Church, XIII/2 (1956), pp.133-137. W e quote from this translation. Vol. X X I I 2 0 0 7

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The authenticity of the Testament is doubtful. However, the liturgical practices that it mentions certainly existed in the fourth century Syriac Church. Some of the practices could go back to the middle of the third century or early fourth century, for they are attested in the early Syriac documents such as Syriac Acts of Judas Thomas, Martyrdoms of Shmona and Guria, and Habbib the deacon2. In his Testament, Ephrem enjoined his disciples that his body should be buried humbly, in the cemetery for the strangers, covered with no costly dresses except his tunic. The Testament refers to the funeral of the bishops or other clergymen who were recognized as saints. They were buried either under the altar, in the sanctuary or in the church. Ephrem asks his disciples not to bury him in the 'holy place': " I adjure you my disciples: with adjurations that may not be loosed, That my words be not set aside: that ye loose not my commandments. Whoso lays me beneath the altar: he shall not see the Altar of heaven; For it is not meet that foul stench: should be laid in the Holy Place; Whoso has laid me within the temple: he shall not see the temple of the Kingdom." Ephrem does not want to be buried with the martyrs: " Lay me not with the martyrs: for I am a sinner and unworthy, And because of my unworthiness I fear: to be brought beside their bones; For if stubble comes near to fire: it will Scorch it, yea, devour it. It is not that I hate their neighborhood: because of mine unworthiness, I fear it." Apparently this refers to the custom of placing the bodies in the tombs of the martyrs, as we will find in the Martyrdom of Habbib the Deacon. It is a usual custom in the Syrian Orthodox Church to re-use the old tombs of the bishops or patriarchs for the funerals of the prelates. 2

Syr.Text and translation: F.C.BURKITT, Euphemia and the Goth with the Acts of Martyrdom of the Confessors ofEdessa, Text and Translation Society, (London, 1913); pp.90-110 (Shmona and Guria); pp.112-128 (Habbib).

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The bodies of the clergy were probably carried on hands, as a sign of honour. But Ephrem asks that his body may be carried on the shoulders as in the case of lay people. The funeral liturgy was long in the case of the priestly orders. Ephrem prefers a rather short ceremony: " On your shoulders cany me: and in haste conduct me [to the grave], And as a mean man buiy me: for I have worn out my days in sadness. Why glorify ye me: who before our Lord am ashamed? And why give ye me [the name of] 'Blessed': who am disclosed in my works? Should one show you my transgressions: ye would all of you spit in my face. For if the stench of the sinner: could strike one that stood by him, Ye would all of youfleeaway:fromthe loathsome stench of Ephrem". Ephrem insists that he may be buried with ordinary dress, whereas the priests or deacons were given their liturgical dress. In the funeral procession, candles were carried and Ephrem forbids it in his burial: " Whoso lays with me a pall: may be go forth into outer darkness! And whoso has laid with me a shroud: may he be cast into Gehanna of fire! In my coat and cowl shall ye bury me: for ornament beseems not the hateful, Nor does praise profit the dead: who is laid and cast into tomb". " Whoso carries before me a taper: may his fire be kindled beside him!" The present Syrian orthodox custom of covering the bodies of the bishops with spices could go back to the fourth century. This may have been adopted from the funeral of the martyrs. In Ephrem's days, the bodies of priests, deacons and saintly monks were buried in a similar way. But, in his humility, Ephrem asks to offer prayers and hymns, instead of incense and spices. The poet does not want that his body be covered with costly silk, as it was the custom: " Lay me not with sweet spices: for this honour avails me not; Nor yet incense and perfumes: for the honour benefits me not. Vol. XXII2007 The Harp

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B. Varghese Burn sweet spices in the Holy Place: and me, even me, conduct to the grave with prayer. Give ye incense to God: and over me send up hymns. Instead of perfumes of spices: in prayer make remembrance of me. What can goodly odour profit: to the dead who cannot perceive it? Bring them in and burn them in the Holy place: that they which enter in may smell the savour. Wrap thou not the fetid dung: in silk that profits it not. Cast it down upon the dunghill: for it cannot perceive honour [done to it]". Instead of the tombs specially prepared in the churches or churchyards, Ephrem desires that his body should be buried in a public cemetery with the strangers: " Lay me not in your sepulchers: for your magnificence profits me not; For I have a covenant with God: that I shall be buried with strangers. I am a stranger, as they were: with them, O my brethren, lay me! For every bird loves its kind: and man loves him that is like himself. In the cemetery lay me: where are the broken of heart, That when the Son of God comes: He may embrace me and raise me among them". But the Church in Edessa accorded him a funeral worthy of a saint. A disciple of Ephrem added an appendix to the Greek version of the Testament, according to which, at his deathbed two of his followers got his permission, after a long pleading, to make a tomb. His body was taken to the tomb in a huge procession in which the entire people of the city of Edessa and its neighborhood participated, along with the bishops, priests, deacons and monks of the region. As he had desired his body was placed in a tomb made in the stranger's burial ground. But soon his mortal remains were transferred to a tomb among those of the bishops of Edessa. The Armenian monastery of St.Sergius on the Mount of Edessa claims to have Ephrem's tomb. According to the Syriac version of the Testament, Ephrem died on 15lh June (Haziran) and his feast is celebrated on 4th March. As we have stated earlier, the funeral practices that are mentioned in the Testament certainly existed in Edessa and some of The Harp

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them could go back to the middle of the third century. According to the Acts of Judas Thomas, following the death of the Apostles, the people "brought goodly garments and many linen clothes, and buried Judas in the sepulcher in which the ancient kings were buried" 3 . Sifur and Vizan sat beside the tomb "the whole day and they passed the night there also" 4 . Then Eucharist was offered at the tomb, followed by a meal: " And all the brethren who were there were assembling together, and praying and offering the (Eucharistic) offering and breaking (bread) " 5 . Sometime later " one of the brethren had taken (the bones) away secretly and conveyed them to the West" 6 . When one of the sons of the King Mazdai (who ordered the execution of the Apostle), was possessed by a devil, some dust from the tomb was collected and was hung on his neck for his healing. The martyrdom of Shmona and Guria and that of Habbib the Deacon give more details regarding the early fourth century funeral practices. Shmona and Guria received martyrdom on November 15, 309 7 , under the persecution of Diocletian (284-305). The author "Theophilos" claims that he wrote the account five days after the crowning of these martyrs 8 . The crowd gathered the dust on which their blood was bespattered. Many of them brought fine garments, many clothes, perfumes, spices and much balm. The author writes: "and as is the custom these crowds had gathered together the bodies of the holy ones and wrapped them in clean clothes and in those garments and with the balm and with the spices and with grave-bands, and they laid them in one coffin in one grave which was there, saying over them psalms and anthems and hymns and litanies, and they were glorifying our Lord for the constancy and the endurance of the holy martyrs" 9 . 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

Acts of Thomas, ch.168. Eng.tr.W.Wright, The Apocryphal Acts of the Apostles Vol.il, (Reprint, Amsterdam, 1968), p. 269. Ch.169. Wright, p.296. Ibid. Wright, p. 297. Ch.170; Wight, p.297-98. BURKITT, p.30. Ibid, p. 109. p.107-108. Vol. XXII2007

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Similar rites are found in the Martyrdom of Habbib , who was burnt on September2,310, during the persecution under the emperor Licinus. His burnt body was taken out of the fire "and they threw over him fine linen and choice unguents and spices, and they seized upon some of the faggots for burning him and carried him both brethren and the men of the world, and wrapped him up and buried him by Guria and Shmona the martyrs in the same grave in which they were placed saying over him psalms and hymns and carrying his burnt body in procession affectionately and honorably" 10 . The funeral of Macrina, described by her own brother Gregory of Nyssa, attests that similar rites existed in Cappadocia in the second half of the forth century". Conclusion The liturgical practices attested in the Testament of Saint Ephrem certainly existed in the early fourth century Syriac tradition, as well as in the Greek speaking regions such as Cappadocea. Moreover, we have the Syriac and Greek versions of the document. Could these factors support any claim for the authenticity of this very important document?

10 P. 126. 11 cfr. Gregoire de Nysse, Vie de saint Macrine, SC 178 (Paris, 1971), # 26-35. Vol. X X I I 2 0 0 7 The Harp

Charis Vleugels

THE RESPONSE TO CHASM AND BRIDGE: THE WINGS OF TRUTH AND ATTITUDE IN EPHREM THE SYRIAN'S HYMNS

ON

FAITH

A few years ago, before I had read anything of Ephrem the Syrian, I had a dream that I only remembered after the lecture of this article at SEERI. In this dream, someone urged me to choose as a Christian between truth and love. In my answer, I refused to choose one of them in isolation of the other because love and truth are so close to each other. When I read the same word pair in Ephrem later, it immediately drew my attention since this choice often seems to determine one's view of Christianity's place in the world. Should Christians be heralds of the divine truth, or should they embody the divine love? Often, one of these two gains priority. While I do not mean to discuss this contemporary issue, this was the background and practical relevance that made this subject stir my attention. As the present article is partially based on my Master's thesis,1 I will briefly summarize its line of thought. For this study, I limited my research to Ephrem's Hymns on Faith. In the first chapter, I described Ephrem's view on the deep chasm between God and humanity. But 1

"Chasm, Bridge, and Response: Ephrem the Syrian's View on the Human Approach and Attitude Towards God as Seen in his Hymns on Faith" (M.Th. Thesis, Evangelische Theologische Faculteit, Leuven, Belgium, July 2006).

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despite the immense depth of this gap and the seeming impossibility to cross it from the human perspective, God established a bridge to reach out to us. This climax of divine revelation is the subject of my second chapter. In the third and last chapter, I point out the two alternative responses which appear in the Hymns on Faith. Within this human response, the attitude of either pride and envy, or love and dependence on God turns out to be fundamental for Ephrem. In this article, then, I would like to examine how the poet links this key concept of human attitude with the divine truth. I will point out some initial lines of thought illustrated by various passages of the Hymns on Faith where truth and love are linked to each other. First we will have an overall look at the two alternative possible stances. Then we will discuss their consequences, both in human life as eternally, and, finally, we will examine the pair of truth and love in the twentieth Hymn on Faith.

Acceptance or Rejection of the Truth The two alternative stances towards the truth are both introduced in HdF 54:9-10:2 When those who listen to the True One surround Him with love, they do not condemn (judge) His words. The doubters are deceitfully lying in wait for His sayings [-.]. Our Lord was speaking; the pure were radiant; the gloomy were troubled; the simple listened and trusted; the cunning listened and disputed. Those who love the True One, accept and trust Him. The "gloomy," parallelled with those who doubt His words in HdF54:9, cunningly dispute, reject Him, and with Him the Truth. In HdF 67:15-18, this is explained with various telling images. The context here is about inquiry and disputation against the banner of Truth which is planted in Scripture. 2

All translations are my own. The Harp

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It is much better, at the time of thirst to imbibe water, and not, instead of drinking, to measure the spring. It is greatly better for a child to know his father by sight and not by inquiry. It is therefore better by the way of life of faith (nc'^cuso-.rm ni^onrj) to learn the Truth, without investigation. Delight in these, blessed congregation; take off controversy and put on love, and proclaim the truth. (67:12,15-18) In the first stanza of this passage, measuring the spring instead of drinking from it openly shows distrust of the quality of the water. With the image of father and child, however, Ephrem pictures the love and trust which are necessary to genuinely approach God. One should become accustomed to trust, in everyday life, like a child with its father, without the distrust which inquiry would reveal. Only in this way can the truth be known, as these stanzas portray. Ephrem urges his readers to take off the burden and barrier of controversy and to delight in the loving and trusting relation with our Father. This attitude of love engenders, not disputation, but proclamation. In HdF 56, Ephrem gives some concrete examples for us to follow. After discussing the excellent attitude of faith of Noah and Abraham, he continues in stanza 7: Let us learn from this Old Testament that the sons of truth listened with distinctive love and believed its Giver and trusted its Writer that all these things are helpful. But the sons of error listened with the ear of controversy and with mocking mouths; they were rejected because they scoffed at Him. In Ephrem's view, everybody seems to be biased in a way, that ¿5, by one's own free will: either by love, or by mocking controversy. The former accepts; the latter rejects. Vol XXH 2007

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Throughout the HdF, Ephrem both instructs, meditates about, and exemplifies a positive response to the Divinity. This stance is characterised by faith and a humble attitude of dependence towards Him and the means He provides in His grace. Faith, Truth, and one's manner of life are most closely interwoven in this matter: The Truth (rs'iu.): as an agreeable plant He made it. And the manners of life (r^tjai) as the fruit through faith; He took and hung them on the branch of Veracity (k'Jm.no). (HdF 80:7) Apparently, both Syriac words for "truth" are associated with this positive attitude, as also the next stanza indicates: "Blessed is the one who acquired, my Lord, the truth (K'JM.CUJ) that supports the weak, and his truth (rt'iW) became like a staff for the one of feeble mind" (HdF 2:16). The poet's quest for the Truth is at the same time a quest for a fitting attitude towards God and human beings. Both truth and attitude define one's stance and they inherently belong together, as HdF 3:16 shows: "Blessed is the one who is, my Lord, godly in his manners of life, so that, when he has sanctified himself, he will call You God, the Son of God." The first stanza of this hymn expresses this same harmony of love and proclamation of the truth: "Blessed is the one who agrees, my Lord, in great love to call you 'beloved Son,' like the Father, Your Begetter called You." A person is truly blessed if the truth is embedded in love to God and man. Consequences of Acceptance and Rejection of the Truth While those who love the True One and trust in dependence on Him will experience an approach to Him, for those who indulge in controversy and enviously grab, the Truth will slip through their fingers. Ephrem describes the human approach to the divine in HdF 80:3: For by this faithfulness (rc'ii*.) one can bind oneself to the heavenly, living in the soul, and, by means of the body, seeing and hearing. Through faith, The Harp

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love, and wisdom one is mingled ( ^ » i « ) with the Divinity and formed according to its image. The consequence of faithful love is a most close approach to God and being transformed so as to resemble the loving True One even more. The consequence of a mocking attitude is exactly the opposite, as becomes clear in HdF 54:9, partially quoted earlier: The doubters are deceitfully laying in wait for His [Jesus'] sayings, for their hateful controversy is just like the adversary of Righteousness (rC^ainc^), who takes trouble in narration to conquer what is right (r^inAa). They do not only reject the sayings of Jesus and His person, they do everything possible to trap Him. They become so obsessed in this act that they even resemble the adversary more and more, Ephrem states. As such, they end up conquering the truth instead of accepting it. Accordingly, this attitude has radical consequences for any acquaintance with the truth, as HdF 67:18 shows: Because of investigation, because of controversy, because of contest, the Truth fled away [...]. By doubtfully contesting the truth, one risks to loose the given chance. In this vein, both stances regarding love and truth engender final consequences as well. Only if one accepts the True One lovingly in trusting dependence on Him can the promise in HdF 80:2 become reality: The body, therefore, is mortal. Behold, it depends on the soul and the soul depends on faith. And faith also depends on the Divinity. For from the Father, through the Son, proceeds the truth (ri'^x.on) that gives Life to all through the Spirit. Accepting the childlike attitude of dependence on God engenders true Life. Vol. XXil 2007

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Charis Vleugels This consequence of Life and approach to God forms a fierce contrast with the one depicted in HdF 54:10, partially quoted earlier: Our Lord was speaking; the pure were radiant; the gloomy were troubled; the simple listened and trusted; the cunning listened and disputed: "How can this one give us his body? Their disputation deprived them of the Medicine of Life. Let not our disputation also deprive us because we do not trust. Disputation and rejection of the True One are at the same time a rejection of the medicine of Life, of Christ the Healer. This selfinitiated barrier to Life is a death choice, as HdF 58:12 describes. The context of this passage is God's love and mercy by delivering us through His Son's death. But around him, Ephrem detects "envy instead of love," what one would expect in turn, and "jealousy instead of truth." He explains this situation: The evil one saw the Good One who freely provides [good things] for us [So] He put on jealousy to make us unexpectedly perish. The adversary knows that love and truth are vital, whereas envy ultimately will lead to death. In this last passage, love and truth are clearly seen as parallels; envy obviously is the opposite, leading away from the True One to death. All the quoted passages assume the indivisibility of truth and love: they belong together. In the twentieth Hymn on Faith, this idea is worked out more extensively and made explicit.

The Wings of Truth and Love in HdF 20 Ephrem begins HdF 20 by noting that prayer can be expressed in silence, but he insists on the necessity to continue this inner act with outward proclamation of one's faith. Not to proclaim one's faith will end up in loosing it, as Ephrem depicts with various telling images. Just as truth and love are a unity, the inner and the outer activities should be in harmony. In stanza 6, truth and love define the inner prayer and protect it against going astray. One would leave veracity The Harp

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and humble love if one would pray in intercession for the benefit of the ears of others. It is meant for the hidden ear of God (20:10). The trap of pride is close if this prayer leaves the safe harbor of silence. As such, the balance of silence and speech, since both can be misused, should be guided by one's dependence on God.

HdF 20 1. To You, my Lord, behold, by means of the voice I offer my faith. For both prayer and entreaty, they can be conceived in the mind and also brought to birth in silence without the voice. Response: Blessed is Your birth, for Your Father, He alone understands it! 2. If the womb suppresses the child, both die. Our Lord, let not also my speech suppress my faith so that this one would perish and also that one would be extinguished, and, the one by the other, they would perish both. 3. A tree that suppresses its bud withers; it brings forth destruction of life for the moist bud. And if fruit buds from the womb of the moist wood, let my faith flourish and exult! 4. With its moisture, the seed breaks through the covering of the earth and the ear of wheat appears and is full of symbols. And faith whose womb is filled with good fruits is an ear of praise! 5. A fish is both conceived and brought forth in the sea. If it dives deep, it escapes from its hunters. In the pure stillness of the mind, let prayer recollect itself so that it will not go astray. 6. Refined petition is a virgin in an inner room. Vol. XXII2007

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And if she passed the door of the mouth, she is like one straying. Truth is its bridal chamber and love its crown. Stillness and silence are the faithful/eunuchs at her door. 7. She is the betrothed of the King's son—she may not go out unrestrained. Faith is the manifest bride in the streets; she is carried on the back of the voice from the mouth to the bridal chamber of the ear. 8. For it is written that many believed in our Lord but because of fear their voices denied the faith. And while the heart was confessing, He reckoned the silent with the renouncers. 9. Jonah was praying a prayer without the voice. The herald was silenced in the womb of the fish. From within the dumb animal his prayer moved and the High One heard, for this silence was an outcry for Him. In the former passages, love and faith were closely linked. Also in this hymn it can be assumed that love and truth define the proclamation of one's faith, whereas fear restricts this outer confession and even ends up in loosing this unexpressed faith. Accordingly, the harmonious pair of truth and love is both fundamental for the inner and the outer person. Inner prayer is rooted in truth and love to God; proclaimed faith is rooted in this same truth and love, expressed to others. God listens to those who rely on Him in silence and speech, supported by His truth and love. Ephrem urges people to be enriched by both in harmony. 10. In one body are both prayer and faith a hidden and a manifest thing for the Hidden and the manifest. The hidden prayer for the hidden ear and faith for the manifest ear. 11. Our prayer is like a taste; it is hidden within our body. But let us be enriched and exhale the odour of our faith! The Harp

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The odour proclaims also about the taste to the one who attained the crucible of odours. In our proclamation, our loving and trusting relation with God will be visible. This expressed faith can only be genuine if it is rooted in love. In between stanza 12, the heart of this study, and 17, the closing thought, Ephrem pictures the necessity of this harmony within one person, and the grief when one diverts to another yoke as well. 12. Truth and love are indivisible wings. For truth cannot fly without love and also love cannot soar without truth. Their yoke is that of harmony. 13. One is also the look, and the movement of the eyes as well. And while the nose separates them, they are not divided. Even no little gesture is able to avert the eye from its sister. 14. Never are feet divided on two ways. Divided is the heart that proceeds on two paths at the same time; on the two ways; that of darkness and that of light, it proceeds contradictorily by its free choice. 15. His feet and his eyes should reprove the divided doubter. Oh heart, labouring ox, equally divided— to two yokes it has divided itself: to the just yoke and to the lawless yoke. 16. He has subjected his will to the accursed ploughman and he draws a grievous yoke; he ploughs the desert, and instead of wheat, he sows thorns while the sting of sin goads him. 17. May prayer cleanse the fouled thoughts within. May also faith cleanse the outward senses. And the one human being who is divided, may he be recollected, my Lord, and become one before You! Vot. XXII2007

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Conclusion Ephrem assumes and defends the harmony of truth and love. The one does not exist without the other. Only those who truly love the True One, will be able to see the truth with a clear sight. And then, if the genuine truth, which originates from the True One, is accepted, one will express the attitude of dependent love through approach and transformation according to the divine image. In the same vein, Ephrem defends the harmony of one's inner and outer activities. Both should be bound by truth and love, which originate from the loving True One and which are directed to both Him and His creation. Ephrem urges his audience to be transformed by truth and love, in inner prayer and in its expression through proclamation. True love and loving truth are indivisible and harmonious. In both we depend on God.

Let us be cultivators of the word of truth, and like on a field, come to labour on it. Let us sow love and reap peace. Let the sheaf be offered: from reconciliation to the Lord of Peace. (HdF 38:11) Charis Vandereyken-Vleugels, Borreberg 12,3740 Bilzen, Belgium [email protected]

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ST. EPHREM'S HYMNS ON PARADISE IX, 26 Some remarks from a Lutheran point of view "Accordingly as each here on earth purifies his eye for Him, so does h e become more able to behold (there) His incomparable glory; accordingly as each here on earth opens his ear to Him, so does he become more able to grasp (there) His wisdom; accordingly as each here on earth prepares a receptacle of Him, so is he enabled to carry (there) a small portion of His riches." Leaving aside all interpretations of St. Ephrem's HYMNS ON PARADISE in general as they have been done by scholars out of which I only name Sebastian Brock, we in this paper want to take a look on verse 26 of Book IX as given above in an English translation. It is in these three lines that St. Ephrem (306-373) gives us an unsurpassable expression of how he thinks Christians can grow during their lifetime in the union with God. Here already is touched upon what for the future Orthodox Fathers of the East up until Gregory Palamas( 1296-1359) should become so important: the concept of theosis. Late-nineteenth and early-twentieth-century Protestant scholarship has considered it difficult, if not impossible, to find a mutual point of contact between the Orthodox and the Lutheran Vol. XXH 2007

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understandings of Christian faith. Particularly the patristic-Orthodox "doctrine of divinization" (theosis) and the Lutheran "doctrine of justification" have been considered mutually contradictory. It is important not to blur the differences between the Orthodox and Lutheran theologies, as both have their complexities. However, one needs to notice that the presumption that has dominated Protestant scholarship and has considered the doctrines of divinization and justification as in sharp contrast to each other is based on certain premises that have emerged in the course of the history of modern theology (Kant/Barth). These and some other positions have led to a situation in which it has been difficult to do justice to those texts of Luther in which his terminology actually borders on expressions characteristic of mysticism when discussing the union between God (Christ) and the believer. At the same time, it has also been a widely held view that the Orthodox doctrine of divinization is based on a "physical" way of thinking that displaces the "personalistic" form of thought. From its own standpoint, apart f r o m these Protestant assumptions, the core of the Orthodox doctrine of divinization can be described as follows: The divine life has been revealed in Christ. In the communion of the church, which is the body of Christ, human beings become participants in this divine life. In this way, they become partakers of the "divine nature"(2 Peter 1:4. This nature, that is, this divine life, permeates their essence like leaven, restoring it to its original state. In this context I want to stress what Sebastian Brock has put as follows: "It has sometimes been said the concept of divinization, or theosis, of humanity is something that crept into Christianity, and especially Eastern Christianity, under Hellenistic influence. It is clear, however, that St. Ephrem, whom T h e o d o r e t d e s c r i b e d as 'unacquainted with the language of the Greeks,' and whose patterns are essentially Semitic and Biblical in character, is nonetheless an important witness to this teaching" (Hymns on Paradise, 73). A more precise or detailed presentation of the Orthodox doctrine is not part of our paper. Instead, the aim is to look for a theological The Harp

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motif in the Lutheran concept of Christian faith which would be analogous to the notion of divinization and could thus serve as a point of contact with Orthodox theology. In the theology of Luther the relation between justification and the divine indwelling in the believer is defined in a way that the "righteousness of faith" is permeated by Christological thinking. He does not separate the person (persona) of Christ and his work (officium) from each other. Instead, Christ himself, both his person and his work, is the Christian righteousness, that is, "the righteousness of faith." Christ - and therefore also his entire person and work - is really and truly present in faith itself (in ipsa fide Christus adest). The favour (favo of God (i.e., the forgiveness of sins and the removal of God's wrath) and his "gift" (donum; God himself, present in the fullness of his essence) unite in the person of Christ. So Christ is both the favo and the donum, wi thout separation or confusion (in other words, neither is separate nor to be confused with the other), to use the Chalcedoriian expressions. According to Luther, Christ (both his person and his work), who is present in faith, is identical with the righteousness of faith. Thus, the notion that Christ is present in the Christian occupies a much more central place in the theology of Luther than in the Lutheran theologies that came after him. The idea of the divine life in Christ that is present in faith lies at the very center of the theology of the Reformer. As being said already Luther's idea of Christ as the "form" of faith leads directly to the central theme of his theology of faith: the idea that faith means the presence of Christ and thus participation in the "divine life." Furthermore, the Reformer's exposition of the statement in Gal. 2:20, "It is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me, " reveals the extent to which Luther thinks of the completeness of the union between Christ and the believer. The "old self' of the Christian dies and is replaced by the person of Christ. Christ "is in us" and "remains in us." The life that the Christian now lives is, in an ontological real manner, Christ himself. At the same time it becomes apparent that Luther finds it necessary to express the relationship between Christ and the believer through the "philosophical" concept of forma. If this relationship were given Vol, XXii 2007

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"spiritual" expression only, it would not be possible to appreciate properly this relationship's close and intimate nature. The passage referred to essentially clarifies Luther's theology of faith: " I do not live in my own person now, but Christ lives in me." The person does indeed live, but not in itself or for its own person. But who is this "I" of whom he says: "Yet not I"? It is the one that has the Law and is obliged to do works, the one that is a person separate from Christ. This "I" Paul rejects; for "I," as a person distinct from Christ, belongs to death and hell. This is why he says: "Not I, but Christ lives in me." Christ is my "form," which adorns my faith as calor or light adorns a wall. (This fact has to be expounded in this crude way, for there is no spiritual way for us to grasp the idea that Christ clings and dwells in us as closely and intimately as light or whiteness clings to a wall.) "Christ," he says, "is fixed and cemented to me and abides in me. The life that I now live, He lives in me. Indeed, Christ himself is the life that I now live. In this way, therefore, Christ and I are one"(Lectures on Galatians (1535, LW 26, 167). The unio personalis is perhaps the most intensive of the expressions Luther uses to describe the union between Christ and the believer. This image, which is close to mysticism, is an integral part of Luther's doctrine of justification. The idea of personal union is not to be regarded as a provisional or incidental exaggeration in Luther, who often emphasizes the idea of the unio precisely when polemicizing the scholastic notion of justification. This idea of then union of persons thus points to something essential in the Reformer's theology. Luther says: "But faith must be taught correctly, namely, that by it you are so cemented to Christ that He and you are one person, which cannot be separated but remains attached to Him forever and declares: "I am as Christ." And Christ, in turn, says: "I am that sinner who is attached to Me, and I to him. For by faith we are joined together into one flesh and one bone." Thus Eph. 5:30 says: "We are members of the body of Christ, of His flesh and of His bones," in such a way that this faith couples Christ and me more intimately than a husband is coupled to his wife. Therefore this faith is no idle quality, but it is a thing of such a magnitude that it obscures and completely removes The Harp

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those foolish dreams of the sophists' doctrine--the fiction of a "formed faith" and of love, of merits, our worthiness, our quality, etc.(Lectures on Galatians, 1535, LW 26:168-69). If we now turn to St. Ephrem's Hymns on Paradise IX, 26 we touch upon what is called in Lutheran theology sanctification. The strict distinction between justification and sanctification that came to characterize later Lutheran theology is not at all a central or constitutive distinction in the theology of Luther. Rather, the way in which these concepts have been set against each other goes back to the questions and problems typical after Melanchthon. An important background for this argumentation is the stir created by Andreas Osiander's teaching concerning justification and divine indwelling. In mainstream Lutheran tradition, the remission of sins, on the one hand, and the inhabitation of God in the believer, on the other, are separated from each other terminologically: only the former is called justification, whereas the latter term is used for renewal (renovation) and sanctification (sanctification). Luther's view of the relationship between justification and sanctification lends a perspective for looking at the distinction from the center that unites the two: this center is the notion of Christ who is present in faith. The logic of the Reformer's thinking is as follows: In faith, human beings are really united with Christ. Christ, in turn, is both the forgiveness of sins and the effective producer of everything that is good in them. Therefore "sanctification" - that is, the sanctity or holiness of the Christian — is, in fact, only another name for the same phenomenon of which Luther speaks when discussing the communication of attributes, the happy exchange, and the union between the person of Christ and that of the believer. Christ is the true subject and agent of good works in the believer, as illustrated, for example, by the following passage: "There is a double life: my own, which is natural or animate; and an alien life, that of Christ in me. So far as my animate life is concerned, I am dead and now living an alien life. I am not living as Paul now, for Paul is dead." "Who, then, is living?" "The Christian." Paul, living in himself is utterly dead through the Law but living in Christ, or rather with Christ living in him, he lives an alien life. Christ Vol. XXII2007

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198 Karl-Heinz Kuhlmann is speaking , acting, and performing all actions in him (Lectures on Galatians, 1535, LW 26:170). Christ is, thus, the true agent of good works in the Christian. This is how Luther interprets the words of Paul about the life that Christians now live "in the flesh," that is, in this age - it is "by faith in the Son of God." Faith means, as stated repeatedly above, the real presence of the person and work of Christ. Because of the Christian's union with Christ, his works are works of Christ himself. Thus, the Reformer thinks that the "word" uttered by the believer is not "the word of the flesh" but "the Word of the Holy Spirit and of Christ." In the same way, the vision that enters the eyes of the Christian (IX,26!) does not "come from the flesh" but is directed by "the Holy Spirit." In like manner, "hearing"(IX,26!) does not "come from the flesh," either, but is "in and from the Holy Spirit." In this argumentation Luther's view of Christians as "Christs to their neighbours" finds its ontological realization. Luther argues that Christ who is present in faith becomes, as it were, incarnate in Christians' works. "Therefore," says Paul, "whatever this life is that I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God." That is, the Word I speak physically is not the word of the flesh; it is the Word of the Holy Spirit and of Christ. The vision that enters or leaves my eyes does not come from the flesh; that is, my flesh does not direct it, but the Holy Spirit does. Thus hearing does not come from the flesh, even though it is in the flesh; but it is in and from the Holy Spirit. A Christian speaks nothing but chaste, sober, holy and divine things - things that pertain to Christ, the glory of God, and the salvation of his neighbour. These things do not come from the flesh, nor are they done according to the flesh; nevertheless, they are in the flesh. I cannot teach, preach, write, pray, or give thanks except by these physical instruments, which are required for the performance of these activities. Nevertheless, these activities do not come from the flesh and do not originate there; they are given and revealed divinely from heaven. Thus also I look at a woman with my eyes, yet with a chaste vision and not in desire for her. Such vision does not come from the flesh, even though it is in the flesh; the eyes are the physical instruments of the vision, but the chastity of the vision comes from heaven" (Lectures The Harp

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in Galatians, 1535, LW 26:171). Thus, Luther holds that the new conduct of the believers when they take their neighbour into account and are willing to act in their neighbors' best interest - is based on the fact that the one who exercises dominion over Christians' hearts is Christ, who "sees, hears, speaks, works, suffers, and does simply everything" in their hearts, even though "the flesh is still reluctant." The notion of inhabitation Christi is thus connected with Luther's concept of sanctification. "From all this it is evident whence this alien and spiritual life comes. The unspiritual man does not perceive this, because he does not know what sort of life this is. He "hears the sound of the wind, but he does not know whence it comes or whither it goes" (John 3:8). He hears the voice of the spiritual man; he recognizes his face, his habits, and his gestures. But whence these words come, which are not sacrilegious or blasphemous now but holy and divine, and whence these motives and actions come - this he does not see. For this life is in the heart through faith. There the flesh is extinguished; and there Christ rules with his Holy Spirit, who now sees, hears, speaks, works, suffers, and does simply everything in him, even though the flesh is still reluctant. In short, this life is not the life of the flesh, although it is a life in the flesh; but it is the life of Christ, the Son of God, whom the Christian possesses by faith" (Lectures on Galatians, 1535, LW 26:172). The role of Christ present in faith as the true source of the Christian's holiness finds a concrete illustration in the parable of a tree and its fruit, which Luther uses frequently and which presents the same subject matter from a new point of view. The parallelism of the doctrines of justification and divinization culminates in the analogous constitution of Christ and the believer. This analogy also makes understandable many of Luther's characteristic reformatory ideas. To Luther, faith is the "divinity" that becomes incarnate in works; therefore, sanctification, in regard to both the will and the intellect of the Christian, comes solely from Christ who is present and works in faith. Our knowledge of God is something "created in us" rather than something "we have created." It is more appropriate to say that "we are known" by God than that Vol XXfl 2007

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"we know" God. In like manner, our "doing" or action is to "permit God to do His work in us," Furthermore, "good works do not grow in our garden." Thus, justification and "sanctification" are extremely closely united in the theology of Luther. The true agent of good works and the person performing them is Christ, who is present in faith. The beautiful allegory used by the Reformer that depicts Christ as the Good Samaritan also expresses the idea that then true agent of sanctification is none other than Christ: "We are the wounded man who fell among robbers; whose wounds the Samaritan bound up, pouring on oil and wine; whom he set on his own beast and brought to an inn and took care of; and whom he entrusted to the innkeeper upon departing, with the words: 'Take care of him' (Luke 10:30-35). Thus we are cherished meanwhile as in an inn, until the Lord reaches out His hand a second time, as Isaiah says, to deliver us"(Lectures on Galatians, 1535, LW 26:260). With these words of Martin Luther we come full circle to that vision of St. Ephrem with which we started out: "Accordingly as each here on earth purifies his eye for Him, so does he become more able to behold (there) His incomparable glory: accordingly as each here on earth opens his ear to Him. So does he become more able to grasp (there) His wisdom; Accordingly as each here on earth prepares a receptacle for Him, So he is enabled to carry (there) a small portion of His riches." Prof.Dr.Karl-Heinz Kuhlmann Evangelische Theologische Faculteit, Leuven/Belgium Bibliography Beck, Edmund, Scriptores Syri (Tomus 78), Louvain 1957 Ephrem, Hymns on Paradise (S. Brock), Crestwood, N.Y. 1990 Luther's Works (LW), St.Louis, 1955-1986 Mannermaa, Tuomo, Christ present in Faith, Minneapolis, 2005. The Harp

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A LETTER OF MAR THOMA'S FROM 1728 AS SOURCE FOR THE HISTORY OF THE SYRIAN ST. T H O M A S CHRISTIANS 1. Introduction In the archive of the Franckesche Stiftungen in Halle, under the signature AFST/M 1 B 1:11 a b, there are three letters of a certain Mar Thoma. 1 They are written in Syriac. Only one of them has a recognisable connection to the Lutherans, the other two letters deriving from another context. Three hundred years after the coexistence of the Lutherans with the Syrian St. Thomas Christians began on the Indian ground it might be suitable to recall with the help of this letter an episode of their earliest encounters. 2. Mar Thoma's correspondence as context How did the letters come to Halle? The missionary Christoph Theodosius Walther reports about it in a letter addressed on October 23rd, 1728 to the Orientalist Christian 1

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Benedict Michaelis. Michaelis had expressly urged the missionaries in India to seek contact with the St. Thomas Christians. Thereby he hoped that the missionaries would then offer the St. Thomas Christians the "Malabar Bible" compiled in Halle. The missionaries were told to point out that this edition had to be elaborated not only on the basis of the Syriac Bible, but on the basis of the Bible in Hebrew as well. However, this newly prepared text, he said, could certainly be useful to the St. Thomas Christians, along with the traditional Syriac version. They were instructed to get into touch while travelling through Holland with an Orientalist of German origin living in Leiden. Therefore, Walther visited in Leiden the lecturer for Oriental languages Karl Schaaf (born in 1646 in Duigsburg, since 1677 professor for Oriental languages in the same town, since 1679 in Leiden and since 1720 professor extraordinary for Hebrew and Oriental languages at the University of Leiden, d. 1729) to prepare himself for the planned interaction with the St. Thomas Christians. Schaaf was of great help, indeed. He showed Walther the letter written in Syriac by a bishop of thè Indian St. Thomas Christians, namely Bishop Mar Thoma. He also showed him a copy of the Syriac New Testament. Walther, who then arrived in India, got the opportunity in 1727 to firstly establish contact with Mar Thoma through letters. Appealing then to his acquaintance with Schaaf, Walther made efforts to reinforce the contact. He sent the letters to Michaelis with the request to forward the scripts "without any concern", after having read them, to Schaaf in Leiden. A copy of the attached Latin translation could also go to Schaaf in the same manner, as long as these translations had been revised and corrected beforehand. In one of his former letters the bishop requested the Patriarch of the Syrian Orthodox Church to send educated priests, so that he could stand firm in the fight within the Si. Thomas Christendom. On the advice of the Dutch governor, Adam van der Duin, Mar Thoma had written the letter to the Syrian-Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch, asking him to send such clergymen. The governor ensured the delivery 2

In the archive of the Franckesche Stiftungen the signatures of Walther's correspondence are similar to the signature of the letters which joined this correspondence to Halle. The Harp

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of the original letter to the Patriarch and, in addition to that, he asked for a copy. Although the original was taken on a battleship to Antioch, the Dutch could inform themselves about the contents of the script through a translation done by Schaaf. Schaaf published his translation in 1714 in Leiden along with the letter written in „etwas barbarischem Syrisch" ("in a somehow barbaric Syriac") by Mar Thoma and his own reply.3 Schaaf received a number of further letters from Mar Thoma and soon carried on an extensive correspondence in Syriac. Most of these letters were written by other scribes on behalf of Mar Thoma. 4 Schaaf claimed later that an influential compatriot had given his translation of Mar Thoma's Syriac letter to the Pope, and that he himself had had nothing to do with this.5 The letter finally 3

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Relatio Histórica ad Epistolam Syriacam a Maha Thome id est Magno Thoma, Indo, aniquorum Christianorum Syrorum in India Episcopo ex Chaddenad in Malabaria scriptam ad Ignatium, Patriarcham Antiochenum. Et ipsa illa Episcopi Indi Epístola Syriaca cum v e r s i o n e Latina. Accessit epístola Syriaca ad e u n d e m Episcopum etiam cum versione Latina. Accessit epístola Syriaca cum versione Latina. Accurante Carolo Schaaf, ex authortate Perillustrium D. D. Procerum Universitatis Lugdüno-Batavae Linguarum Orientalium Doctore. Lugduni Batavorum, Sumptibus Editoris et Authoris MDCCXIV. Germann reports about Schaaf's "boasting foreword" to this, p. 535. Germann, p. 538. „Von der Zeit her, dass ich den Brief von dem Bischof Mar Thomas habe drucken lassen, habe ich noch mehr andere große und sehr rare Briefe von d e m s e l b e n Bischof empfangen, welcher Briefe etliche vier Ellen lang und drei Viertel Elle breit sind, in den Unterschriften findet sich nicht mehr der Name Ganpho, sondern unten steht geschrieben Matthäus Priester, unter einem a n d e r n Brief stehet J o h a n n e s , unter einem anderen Zacharias etc., alle diese unterschriebenen Namen bezeugen zugleich mit ihrer Unterschrift, dass sie mit einer tiefen Unterwerfung die Briefe aus Direction des Bischofs geschrieben Haben:" In a box containing Syriac scripts, which Mar Thoma sent to him in 1724, there was also a New Testament in Syriac which Schaaf had alreädy requested for a long time, Germann, p. 539. Germann, p. 538. „Meine lateinische Uebersetzung des syrischen Briefes ist von vielen großen gelehrten und angesehenen Leuten von mir begehrt, und auf diese Weise ist es geschehen, dass ein gewisser angesehener Herr von unserm Lande meine Uebersetzung ohne mein Zuthun den Nuntius des Papstes hat lesen lassen."

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reached in the possession of the Propaganda Fide in Rome. 6 Assemanni discovered later the original in the archive and published the Syriac text of the letter along with a Latin translation. 7 Schaaf said that Mar Thoma was happy about this, since the East Indian Company subsequently took him under their protection and arranged that seventy churches should be taken from the St. Thomas Christians united to Rome for the benefit of the Christians around Mar Thoma. 8 After long and flowery courtesy-phrases praising Patriarch Ignatius, the letter comes to the point. The bishop writes because of the adversities endured by the Orthodox Syrians in India. He asks the patriarch to send two higher clergymen and two presbyters, "who are philosophers and understand the interpreting of the holy and divine Scriptures". 9 Mar Thoma names the vouchers of the commitment to the seat of the Syrian Patriarch of Antioch from the recent past. "After their departure we suffered like u ship without helm." Mar Thoma emphatically mentions Karl Schaaf. He describes this bright figure "an educated and experienced phi losopher" and characterises him as ally: "this is our dear and beloved confederate". Now he asked Schaaf that his requests should be forwarded to the patriarch, so that the latter would write to the commander in Cochin. A second letter was supposed to be addressed as assurance to Mar Thoma 6

The German translation of the complete text on the basis of the edition in Assemani (Bibliotheca Orientalis III) in Germann, pp.545-546. 7 Germann, p.545. 8 Schaaf in the letter published by Germann, p.538. „Solches aber kann dem Mar Thomas und den Thomaschristen gar keinen Schaden bringen, sondern im Gegentheil ist der Bischof Mar Thoma sehr glücklich gewesen, dass sein Brief in meine Hände gefallen ist, nachdem er zuvor überall hingesandt worden und ihn Niemand hat übersetzen können. Dadurch dass der syrische Brief in so vieler Vornehmer Hände gerathen ist, dadurch ist solches ausgewirkt, dass es vor die Ostindische Compagnie gekommen ist, die sich die Sache hat angelegen sein lassen und meine Correspondenz mit dem Bischof Mar Thomas festgemacht, und hat die Ostindische Compagnie sich des Bischofs angenommen und gemacht, dass er mehr denn 70 Kirchen wieder bekommen, welche den St. Thomaschristen von den Papisten abgenommen waren." 9 Mar Thoma, [Letter from September 25th, 1720), the German translation of the letter based on Assemani's edition and Latin translation in Germann, pp. 545-547, here: p 546. The following as well. The Harp

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himself, "so that it should always support us against our enemies and against the godless kings". Mar Thoma demanded the patriarch to beseech "with great diligence King Comphocius, who honours the Dutch and who is highly esteemed among kings."10 The Syrian Christians subjected to him were all honouring "Antioch and were despising Rome and they were also honest. Amen." As background of the letters to the patriarch, the controversy with an emissary of the Church of the East becomes unmistakeably clear. In the year 1709 arrived "a metropolitan named Gabriel the Ninevite, whom the Catholicos Mar Elia had sent to me"."But he had a peculiar belief about Christ, namely that He has two natures and persons, so we did not believe him, save for a presbyter named Matthew, surnamed Beticutel, and a few Roman Franks. Yet we do not have the wisdom to answer him, therefore we turn to you, o our Lord."11 Consequently, the concrete context was not only the fight against the Catholics, but the controversy with the Syrian rival as well. Mar Thoma's letters strongly urged Schaaf to become politically active for him also by the Company and to inform them about the persecutions carried out by the "Franks" (January 20th, 1715).12 10 Mar Thoma, [Letter from September 25th, 1720), the German translation of the letter based on Assemani's edition and Latin translation in Germann, pp. 545-547, here: p.547. The following as well. 11 Mar Thoma, [Letter from September 25th, 1720), the German translation of the letter based on Assemani's edition and Latin translation in Germann, pp. 545-547, here: p.546. The following as well. 12 Germann, pp. 541-542, 546-547. A second similar content, dated October 10th, 1717, was enclosed to the letter and it also included a short poem. The content of the letter was a new description of the Christians around: Mär Thoma. „Ausführlicher Bericht über seinen Glauben und Disciplin, Glaubensbekenntnis, Berufung auf die drei ersten ökumenischen Synoden, die verschiedenen Fasten, sieben Sacramente, gesäuertes Brot, keine andern neutestamentlichen Schriften als die von Schaaf geschickten, Kirchengemeinschaft mit den Holländern nicht möglich ohne Zustimmung des Patriarchen, Bitte um Schutz gegen die Portugiesen durch ein dem Commandanten von Cochin zu zeigendes Privilegium der ostindischeri Compagnie, fernere Bitte um Geleit und Schutz für die geistlichen Väter, um welche er den Patriarchen von Antiochien gebeten, und womöglich Ueberfahrt auf Compagnieschiffen nach Indien". Vol. XXfl 2007

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He requests there an escort for the priests he asked for and expresses his indignation at the elimination of the Syrian hierarchs by the Portuguese. Because it lacked an address in the Netherlands, the letter remained for years on the Dutch comptoir in Batavia. 13 On September 30th, 1720 Mar Thoma complained that he was still awaiting a reply. 14 Schaaf must have forwarded the letter to the patriarch and mediated for the sending of the educated priests. It was Johann Heinrich Schaaf, Karl Schaaf's son, who answered the letter on December 12th, 1720, informing the bishop that five letters had already been sent. Obviously, the letters were intercepted. The Patriarch of Antioch, however, had already been condemned before Mar Thoma had written the letters and had died in exile before even one of the letters could be handed over to him. 15 Apparently, the clerics of the independent St. Thomas Christians do not have "the wisdom" "to answer" the erudite east-Syrian. Besides, he requests that the patriarch write a letter to the Dutch commander in Cochin and ask for the protection of the independent St. Thomas Christians. 16 Johann Heinrich Schaaf carried on the correspondence with Mar Thoma until October 1735.17 S c h a a f u n d e r l i n e d that he c o n s i d e r e d M a r T h o m a ' s "Monophysite" confession clearly closer to the Reformed belief than Mar Gabriel's diophysite confession. 18 Mar Gabriel appealed to him as well and asked Schaaf to write a letter on his behalf to Patriarch Blia.19 On March 15th, 1720 he had already met Schaaf's request for a Syriac New Testament as an enclosure to a well-formulated letter, which he had elaborated in the c o m m a n d e r ' s house in Cochin. With this he also sent a 13 Germann, p.542. Only in 1720 did he arrive in the Netherlands with the other letter dated October 10th, 1720. 14 Germann, p. 545. 15 Germann, p. 550. 16 Germann, pp. 546-547. 17 Germann, p. 540. 18 Germann, p. 543. 19 Karl Schaaf's letter to La Croze, dated July 35th, 1725, quoted from Germann, pp.538-539, here p.538 and p.543. The Harp

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"Nestorian" profession of faith and a comprehensive Syriac history of the St. Thomas Christians. 20 In his letter he asked for liberation from the Portuguese, as well, and requested that his letters be sent to Mai" Elia, the Patriarch of the Church of the East. He described his ecclesiastical position as an intermediate one between the independent St. Thomas Christians and those united to Rome, in order, particularly, to win the latter over. And he had a considerable success. Many communities are said to have joined him. How many of them were communities of believers around Mar Thomas is still uncertain. He only indicated forty-two united communities that followed him, whereof twenty fell again due to the influence of the Catholic orders. Gabriel holds the Carmelites and the Franciscans responsible for that. When seeing the mentioning of the orders in the letter, Germann wanted to read Jesuits instead of Franciscans, in order to take into account the local realities.21 Yet, Schaaf did not continue the correspondence with Mar Gabriel, since he was offended both by the latter's understanding of liturgy, and by his Nestorian profession of faith. Interestingly, Mar Thoma claims before the Syrian-Orthodox patriarch that Metropolitan Gabriel had been sent to him by Patriarch Mar Elia.22 20 The history is testified for Gabriel by Canter Visscher, Germann, p.542. 21 Germann, pp. 542-543, for Germann's suggestion to change the name of the order see p.543, line 3 and 4. 22 Germann, p. 546. In his letter from June 8th, 1729 addressed to the governor Jacob de Jong Mar Thoma became more specific regarding Gabriel. The translated letter was sent to the missionaries. „Im Jahre nach der Auferstehung Messiä 451 stand ein gewisser Mann auf, genannt Nestorius, welcher lehrte, dass der Messias zwei Naturen und zwei Personen hätte, eine göttliche und eine menschliche. 220 Bischöfe, auf dem Concil zu Appessosa (Ephesus) versammelt, befahlen ihm zu glauben, dass Christus nur Eine Person wäre etc. Als er nicht wollte, ward er darüber in den Bann gethan. Nachher haben die Seinigen den Katholikos Mar Elia zu ihrem Bischof erkoren und aus Haß gegen unsere Glaubensgenossen nach der Zeit zwei unserer Bischöfe ums Leben gebracht. Solchem Glauben ist Mar Gabriel zugethan. Eben derselbe ist, nachdem er sich dem römischen Stuhl unterworfen, mit einem Breve von dem Papst hier auf Malabar gekommen. Mein Vorfahr hat mit ihm in den Glauberispunkten nicht übereinstimmen können, daher sind sie beide bei dem damaligen Vol. XXII2007

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In what the Church of the East is concerned, it was still considered, therefore, that India is one of its provinces. 3. The contents of the letter Astoundingly, the content of the letter which is here dealt with is widely similar to the contents of the other two letters in Halle. Both other letters are obviously those meant to ask the Dutch to intervene and to support the St. Thomas Christians around Mar Thorna.23 They were written on the Epiphany's day, that is on January 6th, 1728.24 Our letter mentions only the year 1728. The place where they were conceived was the Church of Virgin Mary, Mother of God, in Kandanad. In the beginning the bishop introduces himself with phrases depicting him as being "the weak" that is "unworthy" of such correspondence. He speaks of himself as "bishop of the true Christians" in India where St. Thomas had once preached the gospel, and ardently praises Karl Schaaf as the brightest scholar who, according to the bishop, should be praised particularly for his education. Then he points to his belonging to the Patriarch Ignatius of Antioch. Schaaf must know, of course, that the Francks are the enemies of the Syrians. Since India is an eastern diocese of the Patriarch of Antioch, the St. Paul's adherents - it is the Jesuits that are meant here - and the Carmelites should stay away from his people, that i s outside the kingdom of Cochin. And should the king of Cochin get angry with him, the Dutch could rescue him. That is why Schaaf should write to the commander in Cochin. He should write in LandiSh - that is in Dutch - and Sjriac on the same sheet of paper, placing the two texts one near the other. Such a script would be a Herrn Commandeur in der Stadt erschienen und haben ihm ihre Acten überliefert." After Mar Thoma's arrival the governor; wished that Mar Gabriel would integrate into Mar Thoma's community, but the attempt failed because Gabriel intended to a s s a s s i n a t e Mar Thoma, Mar T h o m a ' s letter from June 8th, 1728 in G e r m a n n ' s translation in German, p. 557. 2 3 Germann, p. 555. 2 4 AFSt/M 1 B 1:11a b 1-7 ; AFSt/M 1 B 1:11a b 08-13; AFSt/M 1 B 1 : 1 1 a b 114-20. The Harp

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treasure for him "up to the end of the world". His believers had supported once the king of Cochin when the Portuguese had come, besieged Cochin and collected food and taxes from the inhabitants of that country. According to him, his people are divided in two groups. One half belongs to him, and the other to the Franks, that is to the Portuguese. If it came to taxes and compulsory levy against the unitary will of the people, then some of them would follow him, and some would follow the other. He admits he can read the two Syriac letters he had received, yet he does not understand another language except Syriac, not even Tamil. Obviously, he could not understand either the script which had been sent to him, or the enclosed letter. "You are writing [like this], but we do not know what for, and what is the good of it. And you do not understand the language of our countries." He complained about the delayed answer to his last letter. "You have not answered to it." However, Schaaf should not forget his request. Thereby the Syrian from India did not forget to suggest the German living in the Netherlands to recite Our Father. Unlike the other letters which are much more related to the political realties and background, this letter includes such circumstances only in a brief form. Why would Schaaf have written to Mar Thoma in a language other than Syriac, which insured him the position of a political manipulator? The fact is that Tamil was the language for which the Lutherans missionaries had achieved decisive things in Tranquebar. They were assigned by Michaelis to send the Malabar Bible to Mar Thoma, that is the translation of the Bible elaborated by the Lutherans in Tamil. In short: it was their letter that Mar Thoma answered. Since he solely addresses to Karl Schaaf in his answering letter and not to the Lutheran missionaries, he simply may have not acknowledged them as addresser. Only after a two-year delay did the Dutch deliver to Mai- Thoma the missionaries' letter on which his answer was actually based. 25 Walther had written to Mar Thoma on behalf of the royal Danish missionaries already in 1725. He referred to the letter which Mar 25 Germarin, p. 556. Vol. XXII2007

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Thoma had sent to Schaaf on October 26"1, 1721, which he read and from which he concluded that the bishop's belief was also their belief. He claimed that their spiritual fathers had urged them to pursue his friendship. And they attached the New Testament in Tamil. They demanded the answer through the governors of Cochin and Nagapatnam. The fact that it was this very letter of the missionaries to which our letter answered is proven by a tiny detail. In one of his letters Mar Thoma mentions that the script that he received was signed by ten people, that is as many as the fingers at his hands. The senders were certainly: 1. Nicolaus, 2. Dal, 3. Martinus, 4. Bosse, 5. Christianus, 6. Fridericus, 7. Pressier, 8. Christophorus, 9. Theodosius, 10. Walther. But the alleged ten were only the five well-known missionaries Nicolas Dal, Martin Bosse, Christian Frederic Pressier and Christopher Theodosius Walther.26 The missionaries knew that that Mar Thoma who was now writing to them could not be the one with whom they and Schaaf had previously been in contact. On October 26th, 1725 they had assailed the Dutch preacher in Cochin anew with questions regarding the St. Thomas Christians. The preacher Valerius Nicolai, who had arrived in Cochin on October 30th, 1725, answered only on July l sl , 1728. He informed them that Mar Thoma had recently died and that he was followed by his nephew.27 In 1728, when these letters were written, this nephew of the late Mar Thoma was in a difficult situation. His uncle, the successor of whom he was, had died before having consecrated him. Mar Gabriel refused to acknowledge him as well.28 Our letter dates from 26 Germann, p. 556. No mention to Benjamin Schulze is given. 27 Germann, p. 548. 28 Hambye, p. 49. Only much later after the elaboration of the letters did Mar Thoma V intensify his efforts for a legal consecration: in 1746 he wrote in this respect to the Syrian Orthodox Patriarch. Through the mediation of an influential Jew in Cochin, the metropolitan Mar Yuhanon was sent to Kerala. Hambye, p. 50 He corrected immediately the Latin influence, strove to legalize the marriage; fo!r the priests, ordained himself a few priests, but he didn't consecrate Mar Thoma. As a result, at the instigations of Mar Thoma he was arrested by the ruler of Cochin, and only with the Dutch support was he finally rescued. The Harp

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the first year of the new bishop, to w h o m the c a n o n i c a l acknowledgement lacked entirely. The conquest of Cochin, the last big Portuguese fortress on the Malabar Coast, sealed the fall of the Portuguese rule. The St. Thomas' Christians played a crucial role in the political and martial controversies for hegemony between the European colonial powers.29 Mar Thoma tried to benefit politically from his ancestors' activities, using them as a bridge towards the Dutch. Even though the Dutch agreed to reduce the activity of the Catholic mission, they proved inconsistent and allowed the Carmelites more freedom.30 And through Mar Thoma turned to the Pope in Rome for the reunion (undated letter, possibly from 1750) and at the same time he approached the Carmelites. A new demanding appeal to the patriarch called forth the sending to India of the second highest Syrian Orthodox hierarch. If the demand had proved successful, the Dutch would have been rewarded by Mar Thoma a great sum of money. Indeed, on 23 April 1751 the Maphrian Basilios landed together with seven attendants in Cochin. Germann, p. 548. Bishop Gregorius followed him after eleven months. Yet the Dutch prevented a meeting between the Maphrian and Mar Thoma V who barely escaped being arrested by the Dutch. In 1754 it came to an agreement between the two Church leaders. Yet the Maphrian died in 1764, Mar Thoma in 1765, and the consecration still didn't become reality. Hambye, p. 52. Only Mar Thoma VI succeeded in 1770 to obtain the consecration from the Delegation of the Syrian bishops who remained in India. Hambye, p. 53. 29 Hatten die Portugiesen gehofft, an den Thomas-Christen einen festen Stützpunkt für die Eroberung und Beherrschung Indiens zu finden, so hatten sie es ihrer und der Jesuiten verkehrter Politik zu danken, dass die Thomas-Christen auch nicht einen Finger rührten, um sie vor dem Untergange zu retten", Richter, p. 92. 30 The Dutch governor Hendrik Adrian von Rheede (1669-1677) allowed them to settle near Cochin. Among the St. Tomas' Christians united to Rome it came now to a strong competition between the further acting Jesuit archbishops from Cochin and the Carmelites, devoted to the activity among the united St. Thomas' Christians. The Jesuits appealed then to the (Papal) bull issued in 1600, which conferred to the Portuguese Crown the auspices over the Episcopate of Cochin and over the Archbishopric of Kranganur. Despite the fall of the Portuguese colonial power, they strove to regain their influence upon the St. Thomas' Christians. The struggle between the two orders ended only with the cancellation of the Jesuit Order. Now the Carmelites enjoyed the protection of the Dutch. Vol. XXII2007

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the Carmelites the Dutch favoured also the St. Thomas' Christians united to Rome. In the contracts with the local Indian leaders, especially in Cochin, they assumed the protection of the Syrians united to Rome. It is no wonder that right after the Portuguese had been cast out, Mar Thoma expressed before the Dutch governor Jacob de Long (1724-1731) and his preacher Nicolai his hope that "the St. Paul's adherents (the Jesuites) and the Carmelites stood far away from them".31 Mar Thoma V. as leader of the St. Thomas' Christians independent of Rome, had to face up to a fivefold matter: 1. The Jesuits were working further under the late glamour of the Portuguese colonial empire. 2. The Carmelites' influence was very effective among the St. Thomas Christians united to Rome. 3. The efficiency of the Carmelites was carried on under the visible protection exercised by the Dutch. 4. The independent St. Thomas' Christians saw themselves losing any protection against the local leaders and feared being submitted to the latter's discretion. The fifth danger was the activity of the east-Syrian metropolitan Gabriel. However, it is really interesting that Mar Thoma does not make anywhere out of this fifth point a clear object of his activity. Obviously, Mar Thoma IV hoped that his writings and Schaaf would help him out of the crushing seizure. During this stage of the correspondence, the missionaries rather bothered than making themselves useful for the political purposes of the Syrian St. Thomas Christians' leader. 4. The collaborator Schaaf becomes an opponent Yei Schaaf had wanted by no means to be only an intermediary for an agreement, whereby he would have even been superfluous. The missionaries' autonomous letter written in Syriac caused the fierce and always exacerbated reaction of both Schaafs. Father and son wrote a long series of letters to the older Mar Thoma before his 3 1 Germann, p. 5 4 8 note 1. The Haip

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death and to the Dutch governors. Johann Heinrich Schaaf reported that, while travelling through Leiden, Walther had visited Karl Schaaf. 32 During this visit he was provided with information about the correspondence with the Syrians. How much Syriac knowledge he disposed of resulted from his ordering in England a Syriac alphabet. 33 The letter which Walther wrote afterwards must have been pieced together from the previous Syriac letter. Moreover, the letter contains a lot of mistakes. 34 Walther is said to have craftily taken the three letters. Before the governor of Cochin, who couldn't decipher the address written in Syriac, Walther claimed that the letters had been sent to Tranquebar, where they were unsealed and damaged. Therefore, the translating attempt failed. The letters were sent afterwards in a poor condition to Michaelis in Halle, who was supposed to publish them along with the covering letters of both Dutch preachers. The procedure is a crime and it has already been denounced as such. Therefore Mai- Thoma should not answer the Danes, for they are Schaaf's rivals. 6. Conclusion When the missionaries sent their scripts to Mar Thoma, they did not know anything about Schaaf's hostility. The delayed delivery of the missionaries' letters to Mar Thoma made rather unnecessary their decision to send a negotiation group of their own to Mar Thoma, a decision which they had already communicated to Professor Bayer on 16 October 1726.35 Indeed, the Dutch were struggling at that time to win the St. Thomas Christians on the side of the reformed confession, and they must have had some interest not to hide from the German missionaries their efforts concerning the St. Thomas Christians. 32 Germann, p. 556. The following as well. 33 It might be the tiny alphabet which nowadays is still stored in Halle. 34 Jan Pieters Nicolaas Land: „Zoo heel siecht is die van Walther toch niet. Thomas maakt veei grooter fouten"; „De syrische brief van Walther is overigens nag zoo kwaad niet", Germann, p. 556 note 2 and 3. 35 Ibidem. Vol XXII2007

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The missionaries spoke as little Malayalam as Schaaf did, and the expected effect of their gift failed to such a great extent, that Mar Thoma addressed his answer not to them, but to Schaaf, whom he mistook for the initiator of the New Testament in Tamil. The one to whom the missionaries appealed was the only accepted interlocutor Mar Thoma. Moral: do not appeal to a third part, if you want to be the second. Prof. Maitin Tamcke, Georg - August - Universität Göttingen, Institute Ök. Theol. / Oriental, Irchengeschichte. Platz der Göttinger Sieben 2, 37073 Göttingen, Germany.

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Geo Thadikkatt

THE SOURCES OF SPIRITUALITY OF THE SYRO-MALABAR CHURCH Introduction The Church of St. Thomas Christians, known today as the SyroMalabar Church, is an ancient Apostolic Church in India. This Church kept her tradition intact, incultured to the situations of her natural habitat, and lived a spirituality, which had its roots in the East Syriac tradition. As Latin jurisdiction and along with it the liturgical and spiritual tradition imposed upon her by the Synod of Diamper (1599), she was forced to incorporate a spirituality, which is modeled after the Latin Church. Consequently, what remains in the Syro-Malabar Church is an amalgamated and amorphous form of spirituality, which no longer keeps any authenticity of her own. Spirituality is a term used in various contexts and having different understandings. Christian authors themselves appear to vary in explaining its significance. The Saints and writers of Oriental Churches explain it as the growth in Jesus Christ: One who is born in the 'image' of Jesus Christ is being continuously transformed to His 'likeness' by the assiduous help of the Holy Spirit. This process of 'divinization' is called Spirituality. 1 Spirituality can be explained in connection with the religious institutes (Benedictine, Carmelite... t

V. Paihikuiangara, Liturgy Experience, ( Kottayam: Denha Services, 1995), 34. Vol. XXII2007

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Spirituality) and renewal movements (Charismatic Spirituality), within the boundaries of nations and cultures (Indian Spirituality) or in a kind of universal or holisitic colour (eco-Spirituality, holistic Spirituality). Taking all these into consideration Spirituality may be described as a particular style of God experience. 2 The present paper aims at finding out the sources of spirituality of the Syro-Malabar Church, and to build up an authentic spirituality f r o m the scraps of the history and the liturgical texts, in order to rejuvenate the real Christian life. At the outset, we have to be frank that there were not much serious studies done on this subject so far. The research thesis of Dr. James Aerthayil can be taken as the first step. 3 In the Syro-Malabar Church, there developed within the span of last two centuries, many devotions and pious activities such as personal prayer before the Blessed Sacrament, Hours of Adoration, periods of exposition - short (One Hour), prolonged (Thirteen Hours) and annual (Forty Hours) - eucharistic benediction and eucharistic processions. Apart, from the devotion to the Blessed Sacrament, personal and communitarian devotions and prayers such as Rosary, Way of the Cross, Marian month of Mary, and a variety of Novenas in honour of saints also developed and became the popular expression of the faith of the people to foster their personal devotions. The traditional family prayer is still practiced. 4 Recently the charismatic movement also extended its popular base among the faithful. Any of the devotions are not bad in themselves. They are very good for the spiritual growth of a believer. What remain, as the pertinent questions in the context of our paper, are: What are the significances of the particular devotions and pious activities in different 2

3

4

V. Pathikulangara, Liturgy Experience, 34-35, ID, "Indian Spirituality" Christian Orient 5,3 (1984), 99-104, ID, "Indian Christian Spirituality" Christian Orient 12,3 (1991), 101-106. J. Aerthayil, Spiritual Heritage of the St. Thomas Christians, (Bangalore, 1982). See also G. Nedungatt, "Spirituality of the Syro-Malabar Church" in A. Thottakkara, (Ed) East Syrian Spirituality (Rome, Bangalore, 1990), 143-202. G. Nedungatt. "Spirituality of the Syro-Malabar Church", 182.

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sui iuris C h u r c h e s ? Is not there any d i f f e r e n c e between the spiritualities of different ecclesial traditions? We understand that there are differences in theology, li turgy, spirituality and discipline for the different Churches of different traditions. Today there is an urgent need to search for the sources of spirituality of the Syro-Malabar Church. The area where the sources of the spirituality of the Thomas Christians can be found are the Bible and the liturgical celebrations, Divine Praises, feasts, fasts and their very ecclesial life, which form part of the Toma Marga or the "Law of Thomas", 5 the way they celebrated liturgy, feasts and memorials; lived the Christian life by observing fasts and abstinence. 1 Apostolic Spirituality An apostolic spirituality springs from an apostolic experience. As all experience is by definition personal, the apostolic witness in the various Churches founded by the Apostles, while handing down the entire mystery of Christ, had necessarily a personal colouring. 6 The faith of the Church of Christ rests on the witness of the Apostles on whom the Church is built or founded. The spirituality of the Syro-Malabar Church is primarily a spirituality, which is based on the Christ-experience of St. Thomas the Apostle. The Gospel of John gives ample testimony to the Christexperience of Thomas. The spiritual friendship and personal attachment of Thomas to his master is explicitly expressed when Jesus proposed to go to Judea. While other disciples showed reluctance out of fear. Thomas said bravely, "Let us also go that we may die with him" (Jn. 11: 16). Thomas said to Jesus, as the representative of other disciples, "Lord, we do not know where you are going, how can we know the way" (Jn. 14: 5). The answer to the question of Thomas was one of the self revelations of Jesus, "I am the way, the truth and the life" (Jn. 14: 6). In another instance Thomas makes the most explicit Christological profession of faith by acknowledging Jesus as "My Lord and my God" (Jn. 20: 28). Thus, 5 6

P. Vazheeparampil, "The Toma Marga: Icon of the Indo-Oriental Identity of the Thomas Christians of India", Christian Orient 15 (1994): 2-23. G. Nedungatt, "Spirituality of the Syro-Malabar Church", 154.

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the spirituality of Thomas the Twin is one of intimate friendship, of resurrection, of believing without seeing, of profession of faith and action. It is this spirituality that motivated Thomas to come to India, and to end his life as a martyr on a little hill near Mylapore in A D 72. 2. A spirituality based on Bible Bible remains one of the means of growth in spirituality. As long as history could prove, the Bible the St. Thomas Christians had used until recently was the Syriac Peshitta Bible, though Bible was not in common use. As early as in the second century the Christian community in India was able to possess a copy of the Gospel according to Matthew in the original Aramaic. They had great reverence for the book of the Gospel which they used mostly in the liturgy. They kept the Gospel on the altar in the sanctuary, adorned with gold, silver and precious stones. It was not to be taken out for private use, but was carted in procession by the clergy, when the faithful would kiss it. The deacons were required to learn the whole Psalter by heart. Bible was something to be venerated in the church and priests read it out during liturgical celebrations. It became relevant to the faithful when it was interpreted in a meaningful way by homilies, c a t e c h e s i s and s y m b o l s etc. 7 A biblical spirituality that is consciously biblical among the St. Thomas Christians is something recent. Still Bible is lived in the East Syriac liturgy, and the active participation in the liturgy is a means of growth also in the biblical spirituality. 3 Veneration of the Cross The cross, used by the St. Thomas Christians for many centuries is known as Saint Thomas Cross. It is not clear from which century onwards this cross was in constant use among them. Saint Thomas Cross is the perfect symbolic representation of St. Paul's resurrection theology in the cultural background of India. This cross; in the form 7

G. Nedungatt, "Spirituality of the Syro-Malabar Chur6h", 178. The Harp

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of a stone slab with a Cross sculptured upon it and an inscription running round the edge of the Cross, was discovered at the Great Mount of Mailapur on 23 March, 1547, while the Portuguese Jesuits were digging the foundations of the church.8 In the 16th century it is said to have sweated blood and to commemorate this the feast of the Mailapur cross is celebrated on 18 December. Four main elements in the Saint Thomas Cross are: Three steps at the bottom, which indicate calvary and the rivulets, channels of grace flowing from the cross. The [lotus] shaped leaf covering the steps, symbolizing Budhism and the cross over it showing that Christianity was established in the land of the Budha. The cross without the figure of Jesus with fruit like appearance / projection at the four ends. These are symbolizing the resurrection theology of St. Paul and proclaiming the new life, which w e have gained through participation in Jesus' Resurrection. The flowery cross reminds us always as mark of early Christianity and its victory over death through Jesus Christ. The descending position of the dove at the summit of the cross touching it gently. The Holy Spirit on the top shows that Christ was raised through the work of the Spirit.9 This cross also embodies profoundly the Christian notions of "tree of life", "rebirth", and "spiritual passage" which are also fundamental in Indian symbolism. 10 There are different usages for the cross according to the liturgical celebrations and the life of a Christian in relation to the worship, and also in the normal Christian life.' 1 The anthem of the sanctuary extols 8

K.K. Kuruvila, Mar Thoma Church and its doctrines, (Mylapur, 1951), 2., G. Schurhammer, "The tomb of Mailapur" in G. Menacherry (Ed.) Encyclopaedia of the St. Thomas Christians of India, (Trichur, 1982), 5; J. Vazhuthanapally, Archaeology of Mar Sliba, (Kottayam, 1990), 8. 9 J. Vazhuthanapally, Archaeology of Mar Sliba, 25; T. Puthiakunnel, SyroMalabar Clergy, (Emakulam, 1964). cover page. 10 S. Elavathingal, Inculturation and Christian Art. (Rome, Urbaniana University Press, 1990), 194-200. 11 J. Vazhuthanapally, Archaeology of Mar Sliba, 43-45. Vol. XXII2007

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the glory of the Cross, as the prayer from the Raza shows: "The Cross that has been the cause of our good and by which our mortal humanity was set free, be for us, O my Lord, a strong fortress, and by this Cross, we shall overcome the wicked one and all his devices".12 Some of the occasions where cross is venerated in the Syro-Malabar Church can be mentioned here. 1.The cross is kept on the altar and is adored equally with the holy Eucharist. 2.The cross at the top of the churches is one of the distinguishing marks of a church from a Hindu temple, and especially from a Budha pagoda, as may of the churches represented the pagoda style. 3.The open-air granite cross was erected in front of the church within the boundary wall. The church processions, which are common in connection with the feasts, would go around the open-air granite cross once and around the church thrice. On such occasions the cross is carried in front and the Bible is earned by the priests at the end of the processions. 4. St. Thomas Christian men used to wear the cross on the tuft of their hair and women hang it on their necks. 5.The blessings were made by the priest in the form of the cross and sometimes raising the cross and the faithful make a sign of cross on themselves from left to right, meaning one is blessing oneself with the sign of the cross. In the Solemn Raza, the most solemn form of Eucharistie celebration in the Syro-Malabar Church there is a special rite after the psalms, namely the Anthem of the Sanctuary and the Kissing of the Cross.13 According to the Solemn Order of Raza, all the celebrants (the main celebrant, archdeacon, deacons and ministers) go to the 12 The Order of the Solemn Raza of the Syro-Malabar Church, (Trivandrum, 1986), 13. (Hereafter quoted as Solemn Raza) See also: V. Pathikulangara, (ed. & comp.), The Crown of the Year, Vol. I, (Kottayam, 1997), 1; G. Thadikkatt, "The Cross.in different Ecclesial Traditions", 271. 13 According to the most ancient original style of Raza celebration, the bishop or the main celebrant goes directly to the sanctuary from the The Harp

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Bema to begin the Qurbana. After priestly prayer which follows the psalm when the choir begins the anthem of the sanctuary, the first deacon takes the cross and gives it to the celebrant, who receives it, kisses it, and extends it to be kissed by the archdeacon, deacons, ministers and the people. 14 It remains today a rite where the community shows its respect and adoration to the Cross and an occasion to proclaim the particular phase of the mystery of salvation emphasized on that particular day. 4 Participation in the Liturgical Celebration Syriac Christianity offers us a discrete tradition of its own, with its closeness to the apostolic Church and serves as the basis of the spiritual theology for the whole Church. The eastern tradition in general, has never made a sharp distinction between personal experience of the divine mysteries and the dogma affirmed by the Church. There are some basic differences in the approach to Spiritual theology, seen in both Greek and Western, in contrast to Syriac Spirituality. The traditional theologizing as seen in the former ones is based on definitions, which are in a way putting boundaries. 15 East Syriac Spirituality is concerned mainly on the experiential level, than on the intellectual level. This is done mainly through their participation in the liturgy, usually long services, with lots of hymns and incenses, recitation (or chanting) of the Divine praises, reception of sacraments, celebration of feasts and the observance of fasts and abstinences. sacristy only at the beginning of Anthem of the sanctuary. Other priests and ministers, however, go to the Bema to begin the celebration. After the psalms and the priestly prayers, the sanctuary veil is removed for the bishop to proceed to the Bema. The choir then begins the Anthem of the sanctuary and everybody in the community kisses the bishop's hand-cross. V. Pathikulangara, Qurbana The Eucharistic Celebration of the Chaldeo-lndian Church, (Kottayam, 1998), 163-64. 14 Solemn Raza, 13. 15 The theological "definitions are not only potentially dangerous, but they can also be actually blasphemous", especially "when these definitions touch upon some aspect of God's being: for by trying to 'define' God one is in effect attempting to contain the uncontainable, to limit the Limitless". S. P. Brock, The Luminous Eye, (Rome, 1985), 10. Vol. XXII2007

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The authentic Christian Spirituality is experiencing God in Christ in the Liturgy of the Church. It is an authentic liturgical celebration in one's own proper ecclesial tradition. The Fathers of the Church tried to develop their theological concepts through Biblical commentaries, liturgical homilies, hymns and other writings of spiritual nature. External things like church building, the art, architecture, the use of veil, the eastward facing position also played a prominent role in their life. 4.1 Particular Aspects of Celebration In the Syro-Malabar Church, the most solemn form of Qurbana is known as Raza, the perfect form of celebration in this liturgical tradition.16 The East Syriac liturgy is always a sung liturgy. Even if the liturgy is not solemn, the celebrant, with the exception of some silent prayers, recites or sings all the prayers aloud. In solemn liturgies, he is surrounded by several officiating deacons, subdeacons, readers, and singers, all Wearing special liturgical vestments, who place themselves on both sides of the altar serving divine mysteries.17 The structure and plan of a church vary considerably according to its size, the architectural design and various other factors. It is to be noted that the ancient churches were made almost in identical fashion in the outside and the interior, and these churches were made in such a way that the liturgy might be celebrated facing the east. The sanctuary is the most raised and protected area within the church, it is in the eastern end. Even the roof of this part is built a bit raised above other parts. Sanctuary is the symbol of the heavenly Jerusalem. It is the presence of heaven on earth. The floor of the sanctuary is built three steps above the Qestroma (Choir). There was a lamp, Thukkuvilakku, hung from the roof and lit always at the entrance of the sanctuary.18 Along with book of Evangelion (on the right side) and sacred vessels (at the time of the liturgy of the Eucharist) the Saint Thomas Cross (on the left side) is on the altar, as a perfect symbol of Our 16 V. Pathikulangara, Qurbana, vii. 17 G. Panicker,. "Liturgy of St. James and Theology of the Trinity." Studia Liturgica 30,1 (2000), 120. 18 V. Pathikulangara, Qurbana, 60, 137-38. The Harp

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Lord's Resurrection. 19 The beth gcize (means treasure houses) are arranged on both sides of the altar. They are made as niches or recesses in the northern and southern walls of the sanctuary. The chalice is prepared in the beth gazza on the southern side and the paten in that on the northern side.20 There is a veil that encloses and to a certain extent hides the sanctuary from the people in most of the eastern traditions. This veil before the "Holy of Holies", the throne of the God, emphasizes the aspect of mystery, and is against the idea of "gazing at the Lord", as is the case in the Roman tradition. Generally, the sanctuary is kept veiled. This brings to our mind the real nature of heaven, which is beyond human perception. At the appointed times during liturgy, the veil is drawn aside.21

4.1.1 Use of Incense Incensing is an indispensable element of public worship for the Easterners, in the use of incense in the Qurbana several symbolic meanings are involved. It is a symbol of supreme adoration or submission of the whole creation to the Creator; the symbol of forgiveness of sins; and human prayer rising to God. Hence liturgy without incensing is a contradiction and naturally imperfect. 22 Incensing before altar, which is the throne of God in heaven, signifies the total surrender of the worshipping community to God and confessing his divinity and dominion over all. Incensing the faithful shows the remission of their sins and debts. A prayer for blessing the incense in the Anaphora of Addai and Mari expresses the symbolism of incensing: "In the name of your most holy Trinity, may this incense which we offer in your honour be blessed so that it may be most pleasing to you, and obtain remission of the debts of the sheep of your flock, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, for ever".23 The occasions on which the incense is used are the following: 19 V. Pathikulangara, Church and Celebration, 17-21. V. Pathikulangara, Qurbana, 60, 141-42. 20 V. Pathikulangara, Qurbana, 142. 21 V. Pathikulangara, Qurbana, 138-39. 22 V. Pathikulangara, Qurbana, 58-59. 23 Solemn Raza, 14. Vol. XXII2007:

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(1) during the entrance procession, (2) at the beginning of Lakhu Mara, the deacon incenses the whole sanctuary with altar at its centre, the whole church and the faithful assembled there, (3) at the procession and proclamation of the gospel, (4) at the time of preparation to incense chalice and paten, (5) at the beginning of the Anaphora, to incense the offerings and altar, (6) before elevation to incense the priest, deacon, people, altar, body and blood. 4.1.2 Facing the East Facing the East is a universally accepted fact in the liturgical tradition of the East. It is an accepted fact that ever since the ancient times, it has been customary in the Eastern Churches to turn towards the East, to prostrate oneself to the ground, turning toward the East; the buildings themselves were constructed such that altar would face the East, and not to face the people.24 In the Syro-Malabar Church also, the Qurbana was celebrated facing the east, until recently."Fathers like St. Ephrem, Tertullian and John of Damascus also give witness to this tradition. Prayers said facing the eastward became, for Christians, an eschatological confession of the divinity of Jesus. It also shows that all are awaiting Christ as the Son of God "who will come again in glory".26 This rich and fascinatihg interpretation also explains the 24 Instruction for Applying the Liturgical Prescriptions: of the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches. Vatican City: 1996. n. 107 J. Ratzinger,. The Feast of Faith - An Approach to a Theology of Liturgy, trans. G. Harrison. (San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 1986.), 149-155, G. Nedungatt, "Syro-Malabar Liturgical Reform in Focus", Vidyajyothi Llll, 5 (1989): 253. K. Gamber, "Mass "Versus populum" ¡re-examined." Theology Digest XXII ,2 (1974), 154. 25 A. Nariculam, New Directives on the Syro-Malabar Liturgy: A Study. (Alwaye: STAR Publications, n. 12, 1988), 18-19. This became a common practice in the Syro-Malabar Church, after (or along with) introducing 1968 Qurbana, as a spontaneous development and it was suddenly put into common use in almost ail churches, without any authorization. The Synod of bishops in their meeting in 15-20, November 1999 decided to introduce the east-ward facing position of the Qurbana from the time of offertory to the Communion, which was to come into force on July 3, 2000. In some dioceses, this decision is not implemented. The Harp

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reason for which the celebrant who presides in the liturgical celebration prays facing the East, just as the people who participate. The eastward position of the celebrant is also the position of guiding the people in pilgrimage toward the Kingdom, invoked in prayer until the return of the Lord.27 Thus, it signifies the pilgrim nature of the Church, as "a marching column of pilgrims",28the celebrant symbolizes the head, Christ, and the Eucharistic assembly follows. It also gives a cosmic dimension to the Eucharist, present through liturgical gesture. Because of the rising sun, the east (Oriens) was naturally both a symbol of the Resurrection and a presentation of the hope of the Parousia.29 The Eucharist is interpreted in terms of the Resurrection and Trinitarian theology, in terms of the Parousia, a theology of hope, in which every Qurbana is an approach to the return of Christ. 4.1.3 Role of the deacon The deacon establishes communication between the priest and the faithful. 30 The deacon standing at the head of the congregation before the central doors of the iconastasis, forms a bridge between the people and the holy of holies, a body standing before men, but a mind knocking at the gates of heaven through prayer, in the lively image of St. John Climacus.31 The deacon also represents the angel. The deacon plays an active role in the celebration of the Eucharist in an eastern Church. There will be two deacons assisting the Qurbana. In the Syro-Malabar Qurbana the proclamations are done by the deacon. Before the prayer by the celebrant the deacon reminds the faithful of the importance of the following prayer by saying, "Let us pray: peace be with us." It is the deacon, who reads the epistle, 26 J.H. Emminghaus, The Eucharist. Essence, Form, Celebration, trans. Mathew J. O'Connell. (Collegeville, Minnesota: The Liturgical Press, 1978), 49. 27 Instruction, n. 107. 28 G. Nedungatt, "Syro-Malabar Liturgical Reform in Focus", 256. 29 J. Ratzinger, Feast of Faith, 140. 30 Y. Congar,. Diversity and Communion, trans. Bowden. (London: SCM Press, 1984), 72. 31 P.Hammond, The Master of Marah, The Present State of Greek Church. (London: Rockliff, 1984), 36. Vol. XXII20071

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where as the first and second readings are done by lectors. After the Gospel proclamation by the celebrant, one deacon proclaims the Karozutha. At this time, the archdeacon prepares the chalice and paten in the Raza, whereas in the solemn Qurbana this is done by the deacon. In the Raza after the dismissal of the catechumens, the deacon goes to the southern beth gazza, takes the chalice, raises it to the forehead and carries it to the middle of the altar and hands it over to the archdeacon. The deacons help also to distribute the Communion.

4.1.4 Preparation of the offerings According to the tradition in the East Syriac rite, there is a long service for (he baking of the bread for the Eucharist, which is done by the priest, in the midst of prayers and psalms. This rite is not seen in any other rite, though in the Eastern churches leavened bread is used for the Eucharislic celebration. F. E. Brightman gives the full text of these ceremonies and prayers. 3 2 T h e b a k i n g of l e a v e n e d bread, j u s t b e f o r e the E u c h a r i s t i c celebration, by making use of a portion of the dough f r o m the p r e v i o u s e u c h a r i s t , kept as leaven, s y m b o l i c a l l y s h o w s the continuation of the eucharist. According to the ancient ceremony, the priest brings fine flour and olive oil and warm water, mixes them together, and pours leaven into them. When he prepares, he first takes the portion for the mecaprana from the top of the dough, then the leaven, and then he takes from the middle of the dough the portion of the malka (i.e., the priest's loaf) and make in it a square cavity, in which he puts a little olive oil kept [for the purpose]. 33

4.1.5 Karozutha, Great Intercessions or Commemorations In the East Syriac rite, 'proclamation' of the intercession is done mainly at the time of Karozutha. It is the proclamation of 32 "Liturgy of the Nestorians including Anaphora of SS. Addai and Mari", F.E. Brightman, ed. Liturgies Eastern and Western, being the texts original or translated of the Principal liturgies of the Church. Vol. I. Eastern Liturgies, (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1896), 247-52. 33 F.E. Brightman, "Anaphora of SS. Addai and Mari", 247 The Harp

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the actual situation of the liturgical assembly, and not a time to express individualistic or personalistic ideas or intentions. 34 When the actual situation of the assembly is considered, what comes forefront is its relation to God. There are three sets of Karozutha prayers in the East Syriac liturgical tradition. The Karozutha is a pure biblical prayer where the f a i t h f u l completely and unconditionally surrenders oneself to God. Man thinks not at all about his own needs; does not think of bringing his necessities before God. He appears to be fully convinced that God knows about his needs more than himself and He does only what is good and beneficial. The Eastern Churches always prefer this sort of prayers which are devoid of all kinds of individualistic attitude. 35 Another occasion of praying for intentions is the time of diptychs. At this time the book that contains the names of those dead and the living are announced by the deacon.36 This is the time for announcing the special and individual intentions.37 Still the last occasion 38 for intercession is the second part of the third g'hanta prayer, which comes immediately after the Institution Narrative. 4.1.6 Symbolism of Heavenly Liturgy The East Syriac tradition considers sanctuary as the type of the heavenly sanctuary and the true liturgy is being celebrated in the heavenly Jerusalem. Liturgy includes place, objects, persons, words, actions and time. These are collectively called the liturgical spacetime.39 The earthly liturgy is a symbol of the heavenly liturgy. The whole eucharistic liturgy begins with the angelic hymn. "Glory to 34 V. Pathikulangara, Qurbana, 179. 35 V. Pathikulangara, Qurbana, 179-81. 36 In the ancient liturgical texts of the Anaphora of Addai and Mari, there seen a long list of names of the persons, whose names are remembered at the liturgical celebration. F.E. Brightman, "Anaphora of SS. Addai and Mari", 275-81. 37 V. Pathikulangara, Qurbana, 211-12. 38 This is not in the chronological order, as the Karozutha after elevation comes after this. 39 P. Maniyattu, Heaven on Earth The Theology of Liturgical Spacetime in the East Syrian Qurbana, (Rome, 1995) Vol. XXII2007

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God in the highest". The 'Our Father' said in the beginning includes the mention of the angels praising God, "Holy, Holy, Holy are You". As part of the Eucharistic prayer, the Sanctus was always sung as a sign of the participation of the earthly community in the heavenly worship of God.41 The introductory words of the Second G'hantha prayer of Addai and Mari Anaphora are the best example of the liturgy that joins heaven and earth, "With those heavenly hosts we confess Thee, O my Lord... "42 The participation in the earthly liturgy makes one eligible to participate in the liturgy in heaven, praising God in the heavenly Jerusalem, which is an eschatological reality. The people of God are participating in a liturgy that has two phases. First, it is an offering on earth, which gives an experience of heavenly Jerusalem. Again, the worthy celebration of the Eucharist and the receiving of body and blood of Jesus will make one worthy to praise God in the eschatological Kingdom of God, represented by Jerusalem which is above.

5 Divine Praises The 'Divine Praises' is generally considered the "canonical prayers" of priests and religious. It is also known as the 'Liturgy of the Hours'. Vatican II made it clear that it is the official prayer of the Church. It was so in the beginning in all traditions and for the Eastern traditions to the present day. The 'Di vine Praises' is a celebration of our day-to-day Christian life; it is an extensive celebration of the history of salvation, centered around the Christ-event; in fact, it is the Eucharist spread out to the whole of the liturgical year. We may say that it is the Eucharist extended to the other hours of the day. Thus, the'Divine Praises' makes our Christian life continuous experience of salvation, fulfilling the Lord's command to pray always.43 4 0 The Liturgy of the Holy Apostles Adai and Marl. Together with two Additional Liturgies to be said on Certain Feasts and Other Days: and The O r d e r of b a p t i s m . ( L o n d o n : S o c i e t y for P r o m o t i n g C h r i s t i a n Knowledge, 1893), 1 (Hereafter quoted as Adai a n d Mari), S o l e m n Raza, 5. 41 G. Wainwright, Eucharist and Eschatology (London, 1971), 117. 4 2 Adai and Mari, 23. Solemn Raza, 46. 4 3 Instruction, nos. 95-96; See also V. Pathikulangara, Divine Praises and Liturgical Year, (Denha Services, Kottayam, 2000), 13. ¡§§§¡§111

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According to Vatican II, Divine Praises is the participation in the prayer of Christ Jesus, the high priest, who took human nature, introduced into this earthly exile that hymn which is sung throughout all ages in the halls of heaven. The Church continues the priestly work of Christ by ceaselessly engaging in praising the Lord and interceding for the salvation of the whole world. She does this, not only by celebrating the eucharist, but also by praying the divine office. (SC. 83). The divine praises has the sublime importance in the daily prayers of the church, that the Vatican II wants to restore the traditional sequence of the hours (SC. 88). In continuation with the Jewish tradition, all Christian Churches developed their own pattern of community worship in the course of time. There was a cycle of the Divine Praises with seven times of prayer a day.44 According to the East Syriac tradition, the following are the seven times of prayer45: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7.

Ramsa '- "Evening Liturgy", celebrated at 6.00 pm. Subba 'a' -"Prayer after Supper" at 9.00 pm. Lelya'- " Night Liturgy" at 12.00 midnight Qala d-Sahra' - "Vigil", at 3.00 am Sapra' - "Morning Liturgy, at 6.00 am Qutta 'a" - "prayer of Third Hour", at 9.00 am Endana' - "Noon Liturgy", at 12.00 mid-day.

Though traditionally these prayers existed, only the bishops and monks used to celebrate all these seven prayers as far as possible in community; the clergy in parishes and ordinary faithful were celebrating only Ramsa in the evening and the Lelya-Sapra together in the morning. The St. Thomas Christian priests and the lay people used to recite the Divine Praises in the parish churches daily in the morning and evening, as the letters and other historical notes of the missionaries and Portuguese writers who visited or worked in Malabar testify.46 44 Instruction, no. 95 45 V. Pathikulangara, Divine Praises and Liturgical Year, 20 46 A. Thekkudan, "Sources of Spirituality of the St. Thomas Christian Church in the Pre-Diamper Period". B. Puthur. ed., The Life and Nature of the St. Thomas Christian Church in the Pre-Diamper Period, (Kochi, Liturgical Research Centre of the Syro-Malabar Church, 2000), 126. (Hereafter A. Thekkudan, "Sources of Spirituality"), 132. Vol XXII2007

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6 Liturgical Year The Eucharistic liturgy is the celebration of the mystery of salvation accomplished in Jesus Christ. Through the memorial celebration of the mystery, we enter into the time of salvation, which has no past, present or future. The whole of this mystery is reenacted in the worship of the Church, through liturgical year. They are not just commemoration of the past, but provide the occasions for us to enter into the present salvific reality through liturgical commemoration.47 The whole year is divided into different liturgical seasons based on the main feasts of the mystery of salvation; thus celebrating the whole salvific work of Christ in the span of one year.48 In the Syro-Malabar Church, the East Syrian liturgical calendar was in use, as finalized by Patriarch Isho-Yahb III (+657).49 He codified the choral service book called Hudra which dived the year into nine periods, each ideally consisting of seven weeks.50 The nine liturgical seasons are the following 51 : 6.1 Subara, the Annunciation This season begins on the Sunday that comes between November 27 and December 3, and lasts for 5-6 weeks. There may be three or four Sundays before Nativity and one or two Sundays between Nativity and Epiphany. The promise of God after the sin of Adam, Messianic prophecies, the misery of the fallen man and his joy in expecting Messiah, and the beginning of the era of salvation are recalled in this period. 47 R. Taft, Beyond East and West- Problems in Liturgical Understanding, (Washington, 1984), 10; R. Taft, "The Liturgical Year: Studies, Perspectives, Reflections", Worship 55 (1981), 21-22. 48 J. Moolan, The Period of Annunciation-Nativity in the East Syrian Calendar (Kottayam, 1985), 53. 49 J. S. Assemani, Bibliotheca Orientalis Clementino- Vaticana, T. IV, (Roma, 1728): 380-86. 50 V. Pathikulangara, "The Liturgical Year of the Syro-Malabar Rite", 173196 51 See for a detailed study: J. Moolan,. East Syrian Church calendar, (Kottayam, 1994); J, Aerthayil, Spiritual heritage of St. Thomas Christians, 174-93, P. Maniyattu, Heaven on Earth, 189-92; V. Pathikulangara, Divine Praises and Liturgical Year, 128-207. The Harp

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6.2 Denha, the Epiphany Epiphany reminds us of the Baptism of Jesus. This period lasts for 4-10 weeks. In Kerala this feast is also known as 'Rakkuli, 'the bath in the night'. It reminds us of the ancient practice of taking a ritual bath in the nearest river or pont on the eve of this feast after the evening Liturgy in commemoration of the Baptism of Jesus.52 This feast is also known as Pindipperunal or Rakkulipperunnal. On the eve of this feast they used to erect and decorate with torches the trunk of a plantain in front of their houses, make dances and sing songs of a particular type around it in the evening in connection with the evening prayer.53What is mostly stressed in this period is the humanity of Christ. The Church also celebrates the following feasts on the Fridays of this season: St. John the Baptist, SS. Peter and Paul, The Evangelists, St. Stephen, The Greek Doctors, The Syrian Doctors, The Patron Saint of each church and all the departed. 6.3 Saumma Ramba, the Great Fast This season begins at the midnight of the Sunday, 50 days before the Easter, and lasts 7 weeks. This is in imitation of the 40 days fast of our Lord. In the Syro-Malabar Church, it is known as Ambathu Nombu (50 days fast). However, there is only 40 days of fast when all the 7 Sundays and the two days of extra fast (Passion Friday and Great Saturday) are excluded. 54 The Great Fast is the season to specially celebrate the Passion and Death of Our Lord. 6.4 Qyamta, the Resurrection Resurrection is the principal feast and beginning of this period, which lasts for 7 weeks. The special ritual of the Resurrection celebration is the Rite of Peace conducted at 3.00 a.m. in all churches. It is celebrated by raising the Sliba buried beneath the altar on Passion Friday evening. The Sliba is first enthroned on the altar, incensed and then carried in procession around the church or the Cross in front of it or through the streets of the town or village according to custom. When the procession returns to the church, the Sliba is erected on 5 2 V. Pathikulangara, Divine Praises and Liturgical Year, 149, footnote n. 31. 5 3 V. Pathikulangara, Divine Praises and Liturgical Year, 151. 5 4 V. Pathikulangara, Divine Praises and Liturgical Year, 157. Vol. XXii 2007

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the Bema. Then the deacon makes an announcement to exchange peace with one another. Then all adore the Sliba and then exchange pace with one another.55 On the second Sunday the feast of St. Thomas is celebrated with great solemnity. It was on this day that St. Thomas made his confession in the Resurrection of Jesus.

6.5 Slihe, the Apostles This period, which lasts for 7 weeks, starts with the feast of Pentacost. The advent of the Holy Spirit on the Apostles, the proclamation of the Gospels by them, the hardships they had to encounter, and the establishment and growth of the Church in spite of all barriers, are all recalled in this period.

6.6 Qaita, the Summer This period, which lasts between 6 and 7 weeks, is the time to commemorate the flourishing of the Church. The works of the Apostles produced abundant fruits in the Church. The most important feast of this period is the Transfiguration of Our Lord, which falls on 6th August. It is symbolic of the transformation that happens in each individual and the whole creation by assimilating the salvation accomplished by Jesus Christ.

6.7 Eliya wa-Siba, the Elias and the Cross The period of Elias symbolizes the end of time and the last judgement. This period last for 5 to 7 weeks. The prayers of this period induce man to do penance in preparation to the end of time and last judgement. The feast of the Cross is the centre of this period. It is the feast of the finding of the Cross. The glorious victory and power of the Cross, which is seen in relation to the Second Coming of Christ (Mt. 24:30), are frequently recalled in this period.

6.8 Muse, the Moses This period is the continuation of the previous one and can last between 2 to 7 weeks. The prayers of this period exhibit, both of Elias and that of the Cross. There are prayers and hymns, which narrate the vision of (he Cross to Constantine, the victory won by the Cross, and the finding of the Cross. 55 V. Pathikulangara, Divine Praises and Liturgical Year, 179-80. The Harp

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6.9 Quddas Edta, the Dedication of the Church This period, which lasts for 4 weeks, deals with the Church. The prayers of this period often speak of Christ, meeting His spouse, the Church, redeemed by His precious Blood. The Church is highly praised as a heavenly establishment and as the image of heavenly peace on earth. The Church is considered also as God's tent of the New Covenant, in the place of the tent of Moses. There are also clear statements of her foundation on St. Peter. There are several variable prayers for the Qurbana and the Divine Praises, according to the liturgical seasons. The variable parts of the Qurbana are the following56: Marmitha, the Psalmody with its rejoinder, Aqqapta' and its response, Unaya Onitha d-Qanke, the Anthem of the Rails or Sanctuary Qeryane, the Lessons from the Law and the Prophets Surraja, the Responsorial Hymn Turgamma, the Homiletic hymn before the Epistle Engarta, the Epistle Zummara, the Halleluia Hymn Turgama, the Homiletic Hymn before the Gospel Evangelion, the Gospel Karozutha, the Proclamation Prayer Onitha d-Raze, the Anthem of the Mysteries Dhil-At, the Hymn Aweful are You' before the communion Onitha d-Bema, the Communion Anthem Tesbohta, the Thanksgiving Hymn of Praise Huttamma, the Sealing Prayer.

5 6 V. Pathikulangara, Divine Praises a n d Liturgical Year, 140-41. Vol. XXII2007

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7 Feasts The word "feast" is usually confined by the East Syrians to the feasts of our Lord. Saints' days are called by them "Memorials". 57 The Syro-Malabar Church has also taken this tradition. The main feasts are celebrated in relation to the economy of salvation brought by Christ. According to Joseph the Indian, these were: Nativity, Epiphany, Holy Week, especially Good Friday, Easter and two days following, Ascension, the Holy Trinity and the Assumption and all Sundays of the year were celebrated with great festivity. Goes adds the feast of Pentecost and Penteado speaks about the Exaltation of the Cross. 58 In the third hallowing 59 the prayers (canons) are given for the feasts of Nativity, Epiphany, Resurrection, Ascension, Pentecost, Revelation (Transfiguration on August 6) and feast of the Cross (September 14).60 Generally, a feast was begun with a solemn vespers. 61 8 Memorials As we have seen the days dedicated for the memory of saints are known as memorials. The commemorations are made on the Blessed Virgin Mary, apostles, martyrs, Fathers, confessors and the departed. There were many days set apart for the commemoration for Virgin Mary. We could not find any references to the celebration of these memorials from the historical documents. But the varying prayers for these memorials, seen in the Divine praises, serve as the basis for such information. Besides all Wednesdays, the Thomas Christians celebrated in a special way the following memorials of Virgin Mary around the liturgical year: Immaculate Conception (December 8), Mary, Mother of Jesus (Last Friday of the Weeks of Annunciation), Annunciation to Mary (March 25), Mary, Protectress 57 Adai and Man, 1 58 A.M. Mundadan, History of Christianity in India, Vol. I, (Bangalore: TPI, 1984), 210. 59 H.W. Codrington, Studies of the Syriac Liturgies (Reprinted from the Eastern Churches Quarterly, II (1936-37) (London, 1952), 62. 60 Adai and Mari, 59-66. 61 According to the East Syrian tradition, the day begins in the evening. Vespers is the solemn Ramsa. The Harp

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of Growth (May 15), Visitation to Elizabeth (June 21), Mary Mother of Carmel (July 16), Dormition and Assumption (August 15) and Nativity of our Lady (September 8).62 It is not very clear from which time on these memorials began to be celebrated. The fast of fifteen days before the Assumption of Our Lady and the fast called ettunoimpu, (eight days fast before the memorial of birth of B. Virgin Mary), are clear indications that these memorials were celebrated with solemnity. The memorial of St. Joseph was celebrated on March 19. According to the list of feasts given by Joseph the Indian, the octave of Easter was the greatest day of commemoration of the year because on that day St. Thomas put his hand in the side of Christ.63 The Dukhrana (memorial) of St. Thomas was celebrated with great veneration on July 3. Among the memorials of other saints, there was a special celebration to commemorate Mar Sapor and Mar Prot, known as Quadisakal (saints), on May 19. There were many churches dedicated to them in Kerala. There was also a memorial celebrated on July 5, that of St. Cyriac, a child martyr and son of St. Julita, known as the feast of "Quirce".65 9 Fasts

Fasting, which was rigorously practiced in Judaism and by the disciples of John the Baptist, was taught by Christ in word and example. It was observed by the apostles (Acts. 13:2, 14:23; II Cor. 11:27); and in the early Church, weekly fast days soon developed, Wednesday and Friday being mentioned in the first century. The foundation of fast and abstinence is seen deep in Christian revelation, and throughout the Church's history it was assumed that doing penance was a necessary condition for salvation.66 In early times, fasting meant entire abstinence from food for the whole or part of the fast day. 62 V. Pathikulangara, ed. Mary Matha. The "Divine Praises" in honour of Our Lady, (Kottayam, 1998), vii 63 A.M. Mundadan, History of Christianity in India, 210. 64 A. M. Mundadan, History of Christianity in India, Vol. I, 211. 65 A. M. Mundadan, Sixteenth Century Traditions of St. Thomas Christians, (Bangalore, 1970), 178. 66 The Catholic Catechism, Part Three: Ritual and Worship - XIV. Sacramentals, Fast and Abstinence. Vol. XXII2007

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St. Thomas Christians loved fasts and accepted fasts as part of their Christian life. More than half days of the year were days of fasting and abstinence. They accepted the ancient discipline of East Syrian Church. There are testimonies to show that St. Ephrem's sermons and poems on fasting were read and interpreted in the churches on certain feast days among the St. Thomas Christians.67 East Syriac Church Fathers instructed the people on the necessity and usefulness of fast and showed the necessary relationship between fasting and Paschal Mystery of Christ in and through Liturgy. The Divine Praises describes the power of fasting, the innumerable benefits acquired through it and asks us to follow those examples from the Scriptures.68 The days of fasting practiced among the St. Thomas Christians as seen in the decrees of the Synod of Diamper are: The Great Feast or Lent, Annunciation, thefiftydays fast of the Apostles, fifteen days before the Assumption, three days fast of the Ninivites or Rogation, fast before the Nativity of Our Lord, fast before the feasts of the apostles Peter and Paul69, fast of 12 Fridays after Christmas, fast of Elias, fast of the Virgins, fasts of Transfiguration and fast on all Wednesdays and Fridays, vigilfasts of the Nativity of our Lord, Pentecost, Ascension, Assumption, fast days of Hormisdas and the Patrons of the respective churches.70 A letter written by Fr. Dionysio S,J. from Cochin, in 1579 gives more information about fasts: "They are friends of fast by obligation.... In Lent the fast begins from Monday after carnival. On the days of fasting they eat neither fish nor extracts from milk, nor do they drink wine or eat betre (betal leaves) which are leaves of a herb, which they eat usually all the day through. They abstain even from conjugal rights".71 67 J. Aerthayil, Spiritual heritage of St. Thomas Christians, 138. 68 J. Aerthayil, Spiritual heritage of St. Thomas Christians, 148. 69 This may be the fast of twelve Fridays in honour of the twelve apostles, described by J. Aerthayil. See J. Aerthayil, Spiritual Heritage of the St. Thomas Christians, 159. 70 A. Thekkudan, "Sources of Spirituality", 135. There were also fasts of the migration of Our Lady. Along with the fast of Elias fast of cross was included. See. J. Aerthayil, Spiritual Heritage of the St. Thomas Christians, 150. 71 Silva Rego, Documentaco, XII. P. 383. J. Wicki, Documenta Indica, vol. Ill, p. 804-05. See also A. M. Mundadan, History of Christianity in India, 212; J. Aerthayil, Spiritual heritage of St. Thomas Christians, 158; A. Thekkudan, "Sources of Spirituality", 135. The Harp

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However, they did not consider the fast broken by eating canji in the morning nor by eating fruits. Fr. Jerome writes to his superior that it is very difficult for the missionaries to observe the local fasts in the same way as Thomas Christians did, because of their rigour and strictness.72 The discipline of fasting was observed earnestly and rigorously by the Christian community before the Synod of Diamper in close relation to the East Syriac liturgical spirit and the Indian spiritual tradition. More prayer, more renunciation and more alms-giving were associated with fasting.

10 Monastic and Ascetic Spirituality Monasticism was deeply rooted in the strongly ascetical minded eastern Christianity, which gave birth to an ascetical institution like the "Sons and Daughters of the Covenant". 73 The tradition of monasticism might have influenced the Church of St. Thomas in India, but from which century onwards, we do not know. There seem to have monks and nuns among the St. Thomas Christians in the first millennium. Joseph the Indian said: "They had monasteries where monks with black habit live a very chaste life. They have also many nuns."74 Damniao de Goes confirms the opinions of other authors saying, "They have monasteries of monks. Both monks and nuns live in a great observance, honesty, chastity and poverty". 75 At the very heart of monasticism lies asceticism, which consists in leading a hard and austere life, in rigorous, almost continuous fasting and in voluntary, self-inflicted punishments. The life of penance of the Indians and the theology of fast of the East Syriac Church had strong influence on the Christian community in India and they made use of them, earnestly to progress in spiritual life. Both the Syrian and Indian practices of asceticism have influenced the St, Thomas 72 J. Aerthayil, Spiritual heritage of St. Thomas Christians, 164. 73 S.P. Brock, Spirituality in the Syriac Tradition (Kottayam, 1989), 8. 74 Joseph the Indian, Paesi,158. Cited A. Vallavanthara, The Narratives of Joseph the Indian, 176. A. Thekkudan, "Sources of Spirituality", 133. 75 Goes, Cronica d Felicissimo, vol. I, 137, 215, cited A.M. Mundadan, History of Christianity in India, Vol. I, 188. Vol XXII2007

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Christian community.76 The ideal of monastic life is unthinkable without mortification and fasting. It is directed against the dangerous desires of the human body and continued in the fight for the "subjugation of the Body", and its desires. Wakefulness and vigils were consistent with spiritual life. Sleep furthered laziness, laxity and the rise of all low instincts. The monks were trying to escape from their body to attain God-realization. There were monk-bishops and monk pastors among the Syrians. So many monks served as helpers as well as guards and wardens in the man chapels of martyrs. The system of chorepiscopus starts from the Syriac Monasticism. 77 We have evidence of a monastery bearing the name of Apostle St. Thomas situated at Mailapur. St. Gregory of Tours wrote around AD 590: "Thomas the Apostle according to the narrative of his martyrdom, is stated to have suffered in India... In that part of India where they first rested, stand a monastery and a church of striking dimensions, elaborately adorned and designed.. ,"78 But we do not have information about the functioning of this monastery from the later documents. Many centuries later, under the leadership of Archdeacon George of the Cross and permission of Archbishop Stephen de Britto a monastic Congregation came into existence on 5th February 1626. It was known as "Recolhimento of Repelim" (Retreat house of Edappalli).79 A study on the rules of the Congregation of St. Thomas the Apostle reveals that their formation and life-style were planned according to the East Syriac monastic tradition, taking into consideration some of the local or Indian customs and practices of sanyasa. The liturgy and Divine Praises and their timings corresponded to the East Syriac and Syro-Malabar traditions.80 The total time table 76 A. Thekkudan, "Sources of Spirituality", 134. 77 A. Thekkudan, "Sources of Spirituality"! 138-139. 78 cited A.E. Medlycott, India and the Apostle Thomas- An Inquiry with a Critical analysis of the Acta Thomas, (London, 1905), 71. 79 E. R. Hambye, "The Congregation of St. Thomas the Apostle", J. Vellian, ed., The Malabar Church, Symposium, Orientalia Christiana Analecta (OCA), 186 (Rome, 1970), 124; G. Nedungatt, "Spirituality of the SyroMalabar Church", 184.; 80 T. Puthiakunnel, Syro-Malabar Clergy, 126-45; E. R. Hambye, "The Congregation of St. Thomas the Apostle", 135. The Haip

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clearly shows that they had a strict, austere and regular religious or monastic life with considerable personal freedom which is characteristic of Indian and Syriac monasticism.81 Unfortunately, this monastery became extinct between 1652 and 1657. Conclusion The foundation of a real and ideal Spirituality is to be seen on the tradition handed down by the Fathers; the ancient liturgical traditions and the monastic and ascetical practices. It is always a popular tendency to limit spirituality to certain spiritual or ascetical practices, mainly done in private, for the mental satisfaction of the believer. In this context we may remember the meaningful saying "sentire cum ecclesia" (feel with the Church). Every activity is an ecclesial activity. The spirituality can be fostered only in communion with the Church and in the communitarian activities. The celebration of the mysteries of Christ, in the spirit of the liturgical seasons, the celebration of Sundays and the feasts of the Lord, the memorials of Virgin Mary and saints, the observance of fasts in connection with the liturgical seasons are some of real means of developing the spirituality. This is not a private initiative of an individual, rather a common activity of the Church. India is a land which gives importance to mystical experience of God. Syro-Malabar Church following the pattern of the East Syriac Spirituality, with its stress on mystical experience and the concept of mystery, emphasizes on the experience of God rather than a study or reflection about God. The Christ event, which is an act of divine love and forgiveness, can create a new and totally different existential situation for humanity. This will lead one to the real spiritual life.

81 A. Thekkudan, "Sources of Spirituality", 143-44. Vol. XXII2007

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ST EPHREM: A GARLAND OF PRAYER SONGS (continuedfrom page 176) 8.

9.

Who is capable of gazing upon the Garden's splendour, seeing how glorious it is in all its design, how harmonious in all its proportions, how spacious for those who dwell there, how radiant with its abodes? Its fountains delight with their fragrance, but when they issue forth towards us they become impoverished in our country, since they put on the savours of our land as we drink them, Indeed, that Will for whom everything is easy constrains these abundant fountains of Paradise, confining them with land, like water channels; He summoned them to issue forth in our direction, just as He bound up the waters in the bosom of His clouds, ready to be sent forth into the atmosphere at the bidding of His Will.

Gen. 2:10-14

Prov. 30:4

(continued in page 298)

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T H E ODES OF SOLOMON, GNOSTICISM AND THE RULE OF FAITH Since the discovery of almost the entire text of the Odes of Solomon in 1909 (by Rendel Harris) and 1911 (by F.C. Burkitt), this writing has intrigued scholars of early Christianity. Most researchers today take it to be the oldest Christian document written in Syriac1 1

The argumentation of those who opt for Syriac as the original language of the Odes seems compelling to the present author. Cf. Adam Alfred, "Die ursprüngliche Sprache der Salomooden" ZNW, 1961, 52, p. 141158 [an Aramaic close to Syriac]; J.A. Emerton, "Some Problems of Text and Language in the Odes of Solomon", JTS, 1967, 18,2, p. 372-406; J.A. Emerton & R.P, Gordon, "A Problem in the Odes of Solomon XXIII.20", JTS, 1981, 32,2, p. 443+447. Greek was suggested to be the original language by Wilheim Frankenberg, Das Verständnis der Oden Salomos (BZAW, 21 ; Giessen, 1911 ); R.H. Connolly, Greek the Original Language of the Odes of Solomon, JTS, 1913, 14, 530-538. It is interesting that precisely the discovery in 1955 of a Greek manuscript of the eleventh ode (Papyrus Bodmer XI,3) stroke a blow to the hypothesis of a Greek original for the Odes. Although the Bodmer papyrus is now our oldest manuscript of a fragment of the Odes, the Greek shows clear traces of translation from a Semitic Vorlage. Cf. James H. Charlesworth, The Odes of Solomon: the Syriac texts, edited with translation and notes, Missoula, Mont.: Scholars Press, 1977, p. 111-12. A few authors followed the suggestion of Harnack that the Odes had been composed in Hebrew: Hubert Grimme, Die Oden Salomos: Syrisch-HebräischDeutsch: ein kritischer Versuch (Heidelberg, 1911); Jean Carmignac, "Les affinités qumranniennes de la onzième Ode de Salomon", Revue de Qumran, 1961, 3, p. 71 -102 ; id. "Recherches sur la langue originelle des Odes de Salomon", Revue de Qumran, 1963, 4, p. 429-432.

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and the oldest Christian hymn book in any language. As such it is reflecting the cultic life and the devotion of a Christian community at the very beginning of the post-apostolic era. For that reason it must be studied carefully to take into account its testimony to the early stages of Christendom. For almost a century researchers have tried to determine the relationship of this document with orthodox Christianity as well as with the other most important alternative, Gnosticism.2 This appeared to be a difficult undertaking. After the publication of Walter Bauer's Rechtgläubigkeit und Ketzerei im ältesten Christentum in 1934, scholarship became more and more reluctant to draw clear lines between the classical categories of orthodoxy and heresy, especially when discussing positions held in the first two centuries of Christian history. Almost all scholars today consider it illegitimate to measure the orthodoxy of a first or second century document using the Nicene canons as a criterion. Nicene orthodoxy simply did not exist prior to the fourth centuiy.3 Trends in these earlier times that were similar to later orthodoxy, are now called "proto-orthodox" by a growing number of scholars.4 2

3

4

Cf. Rendel Harris already in 1909: "There are some Odes which are a little hard of explanation on orthodox lines". James Rendel Harris, The Odes and Psalms of Solomon: Published from the Syriac Version, Adamant Media Corporation, 2001 [1909], p. 75. However, Rendel Harris didn't read them as a Gnostic text either. Authors proposing a Gnostic character of the Odes were, among others, Julius Welhäusen, Hermann Gunkel, Erwin Preuschen, Rudolph Bultmann, Helmut Koester and Michael Lattke. Authors rejecting the identification of the Odes as a Gnostic document were, among others, J.H. Bernard, Gerald Blaszczak and James Charlesworth. Cf. Rdwan Williams, "Does it make sense to speak of pre-Nicene orthodoxy?", in Id., ed., The Making of Orthodoxy: Essays in Honour of Henry Chadwick, Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 2002, p. 1-23. Cf. Andrfew S. Jacobs at http://faculty.ucr.edu/~andrew/women/ glossary.htm (accessed 24 March 07), who defines "proto-orthodox" as "a way of designating that early Christian group (one of many) that pushed for a singular, monolithic idea of orthodoxy, and eventual succeeding in suppressing the various groups that they considered heretical, emerging as the triumphant "orthodoxy" in the third and fourth centuries." It is mainly in the writings of Bart Ehrman (Lost Scriptures, Lost Christianities, The Orthodox Corruption of Scripture etc,) and others following his lead that proto-orthodoxy is used as a technical term. The Harp

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It is hard to deny, however, that second century Christian leaders like Ignatius, Polycarp, Justin Martyr and Irenaeus considered their kind of Christianity as the only acceptable option, representing both the mainstream in their own days and the apostolic tradition handed down from the past, which they defended vigorously against all possible alternatives. The apostolic doctrine, with which they identify so emphatically, is still far removed from the detailed and nuanced dogmatic exposition of the Nicene fathers. It is both basic and unrefined, but, at least in their opinion, it is to a certain extent clearly defined. They seemed to be quite conscious about the core doctrine that was requisite for genuine Christianity. Irenaeus may have been the one who coined for this core doctrine the terms "rule of truth" (KOVCOV T f j ç àAr\Qdaç,/régula veritatis) and "rule of faith" (Kavwv tfjç nioucoç/regulafidei).5 Tertullian too refers regularly to the "rule of faith" (régulafidei)as the criterion for Christian doctrine. One may stop short from calling their position orthodox, but they were evidently referring to a core doctrine they felt to be the nonnegotiable centre of the Christian message. Today their position is called proto-orthodox. The doctrines they singled out as constituting this core, are almost always paralleled by articles in the later Apostolic Creed.6 When Irenaeus of Lyon insisted on the Rule of truth, he did so primarily in confrontation with the Gnostic teaching, which he considered a flagrant perversion of the original Christian doctrine. 7 He didn't leave his readers in doubt as to the elements of this core teaching. These are the main sections in his writings where he refers 5

6

7

First Clement already invites his readers to follow "the rule of our tradition" (KCIVÙJV THÇ uapaôôaeojç HMOJV) in the epistle to the Corinthian church 7:2. Unfortunately the context doesn't allow us to get a clear picture about its identity or content. Very similar in content is "the tradition of the apostles" (ànoaiôAwv napâôoaiç') in The Epistle to Diognetus 11:(1,)6. Cf. the appendix "Un vocabulaire Chrétien" in Dominique Bertrand, Les Pères Apostoliques; Texte intégral, Paris: Cerf, 2001, s.v. "Tradition", p. 538-540 Cf. Joseph F. Mitros, "Norm of Faith in the Patristic Age", in Theological Studies, 29, 1968, p. 454-455: "The canon of truth or the rule of faith most probably developed from the apostolic kerygma and it prepared material for the future Apostles' Creed." The full title of Adversus haereses was eAeyxoç K A ' i  V A T Q O T I Q TFJÇ ii>t:uôu)VL>(-iou yvûjaewç ("The Detection and Overthrow of Knowledge falsely so called"). Vol XXII2007

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to specific elements of the apostolic teaching, which he cherishes and preaches as the 'Rule of truth'. Creedal elements are in italics: Adversus Haereses

III, 4,2

"...carefully preserving the ancient tradition, believing in one God, the Creator of heaven and earth, and all things therein, by means of Christ Jesus, the Son of God; who, because of His surpassing love towards His creation, condescended to be bom of the virgin, He Himself uniting man through Himself to God, and having suffered under Pontius Pilate, and rising again, and having been received up in splendour, shall come in glory, the Saviour of those who are saved, and the Judge of those who are judged, and sending into eternal fire those who transform the truth, and despise His Father and His advent.." 8 Adversus Haereses V, 20,1: "But the path of those belonging to the Church circumscribes the whole world, as possessing the sure tradition from the apostles, and gives unto us to see that the faith of all is one and the same, since all receive one and the same God the Father, and believe in the same dispensation regarding the incarnation of the Son of God, and are cognizant of the same gift of the Spirit, and are conversant with the same commandments, and preserve the same form of ecclesiastical constitution, and expect the same advent of the Lord, and await the same salvation of the complete man, that is, of the soul and body."9 Demonstratio,

3

"... we must keep strictly, without deviation, the rule of faith,... Now, this is what faith does for us, as the elders, the disciples of the apostles, have handed down to us. First of all, it admonishes us to remember that we have received baptism for remission of sins in the name of God the Father, and in the name of Jesus Christ, the 8 9

Quoted from Schaff, Martyr and Irenaeus, Quoted from Schaff, Martyr and Irenaeus, The Harp:

ed., ANF01, The Apostolic Fathers with Justin http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/anf01. ed., ANF01, The Apostolic Fathers with Justin http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/anf01.

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Son of God, who became incarnate and died and was raised, and in the Holy Spirit of God; and that this baptism is the seal of eternal life and is rebirth unto God, that we be no more children of mortal men, but of the eternal and everlasting God" 10 Demonstratio,

6:

"And this is the drawing-up of our faith, the foundation of the building, and the consolidation of a way of life. God, the Father, uncreated, bey ond grasp, invisible, one God the maker of all; this is the first and foremost article of faith. But the second article is the Word of God, the Son of God, Christ Jesus our Lord, who was shown forth by the prophets according to the design of their prophesy and according to the manner in which the Father disposed; and through Him are made all things whatsoever. He also, in the end of times, for the recapitulation of all things, is become a man among men, visible and tangible, in order to abolish death and bring to light life, and bring about the communion of God and man. And the third article is the Holy Spirit, through whom the prophets prophesied and the patriarchs were taught about God and the just were led in the path of justice, and who in the end of times, has been poured forth in a new manner upon humanity over all the earth renewing man to God."11 10 Joseph P. Smith, Irenaeus, Proof of the Apostolic Preaching (Ancient Christian Writers) Westminster, Md.: Newman Press, 1952, p. 49. 11 Smith, Irenaeus, Proof of the Apostolic Preaching, 1952, p. 51. Tertullian, De praescriptione haereticorum 36,4-6 is equally revealing as to the content of the regula fide!. Again the italics are ours: "See what she [i.e. the Church of Rome - G.V.J has learned, what taught, what fellowship has had with even (our) churches in Africa! One Lord God does she acknowledge, the Creator of the universe, and Christ Jesus (born) of the Virgin Mary, the Son of God the Creator; and the Resurrection of the flesh; the law and the prophets she unites in one volume with the writings of evangelists and apostles, from which she drinks in her faith. This she seals with the water (of baptism), arrays with the Holy Ghost, feeds with the Eucharist, cheers with martyrdom, and against such a discipline thus (maintained) she admits no gainsayer." The translation is by Peter Holmes in Ante-Nicene Christian Library, vol. 15, p. 43. Other early patristic texts with relevant information on the rule of faith are Irenaeus, Adversus Haereses I, 9,4 and Demonstratio 100; Tertullian, De praescriptione haereticorum 14,4 and Hippolytus, Traditio Apostolica 21.12-19. Vol. XXII2007

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It should be noted that Irenaeus thinks of the faith as consisting of three basic articles, corresponding to God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. However, summing up the elements of this basically Trinitarian faith all twelve articles of the later Apostolic Creed are represented: 12 1:1

One God, the Father, the Creator of heaven and earth;

11:2

Christ Jesus, the Son of God, the Word of God, our Lord;

11:3

The Son became a man through incarnation, born of the virgin;

11:4

He suffered under Pontius Pilate;

11:5

He rose again;

11:6

He was received up in splendour;

11:7

He will return gloriously, as Saviour and Judge;

111:8 The Holy Spirit; 111:9 The Church; III: 10 Baptism for remission of sins; 111:11 Salvation of the complete man, that is, of soul and body; 111:12 Eternal life. This regula fidei serves for Irenaeus as a measuring stick. Throughout his Adversus Haereses he makes it clear that the Gnostics fail the test. In this and a following article I will discuss the relationship of the Odes of Solomon to this regula fidei as well as to Gnosticism, which, according to Irenaeus, violated the regula. In this way, I will try to answer the question whether the Odes are compatible with the core apostolic doctrine as it was perceived by pre-Nicene teachers of the Church. A number of scholars take the Odes as representing rather the Gnostic alternative to proto-orthodoxy. Therefore we will evaluate 12 The numbers 1:1 to 111:12 with the individual elementsiare to bring out the threefold structure as well as the twelve articles. The Harp

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this identification with Gnostic thinking before looking at some of the terms, expressions, and concepts within the Odes that parallel some elements from the Rule of faith. Elements of Gnosticism in the Odes Many scholars have taken the Odes to be Gnostic. Unfortunately they often fail to define Gnosticism properly, or to test the implicit definition they are working with on the Odes. Michael Lattke has showed how much vocabulary this document has in common with the Gnostic writings.13 In his translation14 he strengthens the impact of this argument by using, whenever possible, Gnostic technical terms to render words or phrases in the Odes. Especially Ode 7, which is viewed by many as a song about the Incarnation, is filled with Gnostic jargon: "gnosis" (7:7,13,21 and 23c), "Sophia" (7:8), "pleroma" (7:11 and 13), "aion" (7:11).15 In many other places Lattke introduces Gnostic terminology: "emanation" (6:8), "mysterium" in (8:10), etc. However, these terms, imagery or symbols in and of themselves do not make a particular text or its writer a Gnostic, as Paul Tice points out: "Most scholars would agree that the most essential element of Gnosticism is its clear ontological dualism between the divine and the created, especially focusing on the world of matter being the result of error and ignorance. This dualism by itself makes a belief 13 Cf. Lattke's impressive three volume commentary: Oden Salomos, Text, Übersetzung, Kommentar, Band 41/1-3, Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1999, 2001, 2005. See especially volume 1, Exkurs 3 ("'Ruhe' und 'ruhen' in den Oden Salomos" - p. 15-16) and Exkurs 7 ("'Erkennen' und 'Erkenntnis' in den Oden Salomos" - p. 101-104); volume 3, Exkurs 35 ("'Pleroma', 'Fülle', '{erfüllen' und 'voll' in den Oden Salomos" - p. 118-121). 14 Michael Lattke, Oden Salomos: übersetzt und eingeleitet (Fontes Christian/', 19; Freiburg im Breisgau [u.a.]: Herder, 1995. 15 Cf. also Ode 7:7-9: "Der Vater der Gnosis ist das Wort der Gnosis. Er, der Sophia geschaffen hat, ist weiser als seine Werke. Und er, der mich schuf, bevor ich war, erkannte, was ich täte, wenn ich wäre." But nor for "gnosis" neither for "wisdom" Greek loanwords are used in the Syriac text. The translation of Lattke blurs the logic of the sentence: "He who created wisdom is wiser than His works". Much closer to the idea than the Gnostic Sofia, is the wisdom of Proverbs 8:22, which unlike Gnostic Sofia is said to be created. Vol XXII2007

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system Gnostic - not the particular symbols, Christian or otherwise, that are involved." [italics added]16 Lattke himself recognizes that his use of Gnostic terms in the Odes is not without problems.17 The only acceptable way to decide about the Gnostic character of the Odes, is to check whether its view of the world, of man, of God and of salvation fits the Gnostic thought system. And it does not. Perhaps no one has ever characterised Gnosticism more accurately than Hans Jonas: "A Gnosticism without a fallen god, without benighted creator and sinister creation, without alien soul, cosmic captivity and acosmic salvation, without the self-redeeming of the Deity - in short: a Gnosis without divine tragedy will not meet specifications."18 Most scholars today accept his definition.'9 We will demonstrate below that the Odes are incompatible with this world view. Of course Jonas' definition is reducing Gnosticism to its essentials. Often the term is used in a less precise way. But if the term is to remain meaningful at all, it must refer to something distinctive and imaginable. 16 Paul Tice, in the foreword to G.R.S. Mead, ed., Pistis Sophia: A Gnostic Gospel, San Diego: The Book Tree, 2006, p. xvi. 17 Michael Lattke, Oden Salomos, Band 41/3, Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 2005, p. 120: "Wir ... geben gerne zu, daß die weitgehende Wiedergabe dieses Begriffs [rdA^cvxJ durch 'Pleroma' durchaus 'nicht unproblematisch' ist". 18 Hans Jonas, 'Response', J. P. Hyatt (ed.), The Bible in Modem Scholarship (Nashville, 1965), p. 293. 19 Jonas is quoted with approval in Edwin M. Yamauchi, "Pre-Christian Gnosticism, the New Testament and Nag Hammadi in recent debate", in: Themelios 10.1 (September 1984): 22-27, footnote 121. [accessed online at http://www.earlychurch.org.uk/ Article_gnosticism_yamauchi.html, 25 March 2007] and in Concetta Giuffre Scibona, "Nature of the Divine and Types of Gnostic Systems", in: Seren Giversen, Tage Petersen, Jorgen Podemann Sorensen, ed., The Nag Hammadi Texts in the History of Religions: Proceedings of the International Conference at the Royal Academy of Sciences and Letters in Copenhagen, September 19-24, 1995 on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Nag Hammadi discovery. Kgl. Danske Videnskabernes Selskab, 2002, p. 54. Paul tice, too, seems to be Working with the definition of Hans Jonas: "Being a Gnostic involves realizing the divine tragedy behind the world and its resultant duality" (foreword to G.R.S. Mead, ed.. Pistis Sophia: A Gnostic Gospel, San Diego: The Book. Tree, 2006. p. xvi). The Harp

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I list a number of views that are often associated with Gnosticism. Some of them are essential to Gnosticism; others are less essential but are perfectly compatible with Gnosticism. The list may even contain elements to which some self-confessed Gnostics would strongly object. However, it gives a clear representation of the main ideas that were commonly held within Gnostic circles. 1. The immaterial world is superior to the material world. 2. The creator of the material world is different from God, the First Principle. 3. Eternity should not be seen as extended time, but as the opposite of time. Time is motion and unrest, while eternity is peace and rest. 4. Some human beings have in there innermost self a spark of divine origin, which is called 'soul' or 'spirit'. This spark must be reunited with the divine. 5. The 'soul' or 'spirit' of a person pre-existed the individual which is carrying it. 6. Ignorance (or oblivion, forgetfulness) keeps most of the spiritual beings that are captured in this world from recognizing their divine origin, their divine nature. 7. Knowledge (gnosis) of themselves, which in reality is knowledge of God, frees the spiritual potential of their divine nature. 8. God is not essentially different from man's innermost being. Men should realize that "they are God." 9. At the end, there is perfect harmony which constitutes the cessation of individuality. 10.In a spiritual person, all duality is gone. In such a person the original aiidrogynic unity (man and woman) is restored. Two other views may be listed, but they are less general than the previous ten: 11. During its spiritual journey the soul has to pass through a number of stages. It is specific esoteric knowledge that will enable the soul to climb higher and higher in the spiritual world. 12. After the death of an individual human being, his or her inner being is passed on to another living being (reincarnation). Vol XXII2C07

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This list is a result of collecting frequently recurring elements from the manifestly Gnostic documents, like the ones compiled in Bentley Layton's Gnostic Scriptures 20. It seems most unnatural to interpret the Odes as a Gnostic text when only an insignificant trace of these elements is discernible. The procedure of Lattke is also highly questionable. 21 Already in 1969, Charlesworth has demonstrated that 'knowledge' in the Odes - later to be rendered "Gnosis" by Lattke - is not Gnostic: "in the Odes knowledge is not the Gnostic idea of salvation through a comprehension of the soul's heavenly origin, subsequent imprisonment in the world of matter, and possible ascension into its native abode. In the Odes knowledge is always of Christ, the Most High, and the Lord, in that order of frequency; in Gnosticism, as Grant rightly remarks, it is essentially self-knowledge." 22 Other features the Odes have in common with Gnostic documents have caused a number of scholars to categorize them as Gnostic. Some have pointed to its fascination with the tree in paradise. Especially Ode 20:7 superficially resembles the invitation to the Tree of knowledge by the Christ figure in the Apocryphon of JohnP 20 Bentley Layton, The Gnostic Scriptures: A New Translation with Annotations and Introductions (The Anchor Bible Reference Library; Anchor Bible: 1995) 21 Cf. a similar warning in Gerald R. Blaszczak, A Formcritical Study of Selected Odes of Solomon (Scholars Press, 1985) p. 76: "All the while the interpreter must be attentive to the fact that similar forms and parallel structures, terms and images can function quite differently, can represent different purposes, even when used by the same author or by members of the same school. The text itself of the individual Ode must always remain the ultimate criterion for understanding the language and structure of the poem. (...) As in the case of apparent parallels within the Odes, so also with parallels from other texts and from the literature of different traditions, one must exercise extreme caution. The same motif, image, mythical or religious schema may be used for radically different purposes in different contexts." 22 James Charlesworth, "The Odes of Solomon - Not Gnostic" in: CBQ 23 "But put on the grace of the Lord generously, And come into His Paradise, And make for thyself a garland from His tree." The Harp

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However, in the Odes the tree of knowledge plays no role whatsoever. In paradise the only tree the Odes are referring to is the tree of life representing salvation through the cross. 24 In Ode 11, which is entirely devoted to the tree imagery, Lattke introduces the idea of Gnosis twice. Verse 4 he translates: "vom Anfang und bis Ende empfing ich seine Gnosis." Verse 8a becomes: "und meine Trunkenheit war nicht ohne Gnosis." 25 However, knowledge here is not causing salvation, but resulting from it. Moreover, there is not the slightest hint that the knowledge the saved ones receive is a new understanding of their true self, as in Gnosticism. 26 It is rather the knowledge preached in Proverbs (esp. 2:1-13), which makes the receiver turn his back on the stupidity of sin.27 Others have referred to the Garment imagery as symptomatic of a Gnostic anthropology. 28 However, the use of the garment metaphor is not Gnostic per se. Its use in the Odes (8:9; 11:10-12

24

25

26

27 28

The translation is from James H. Charlesworth, The odes of Solomon: the Syriac texts, edited with translation and notes, Missoula, Mont.: Scholars Press, 1977, p. 86. The well known reading of the tree of life as a symbol of the cross, elaborated in Ephrem's hymns, is implied in the Odes 27 and 42. Cf. Cyril Aphrem Karim, Symbols of the Cross in the Writings of the Early Syriac Fathers (Gorgias Press, 2004), p. 95. Michael Lattke, Oden Salomos: übersetzt und eingeleitet (Fontes Christian!, 19; Freiburg im Breisgau [u.a.]: Herder, 1995, p. 125. It is interesting that the Greek manuscript doesn't use the word yvclxru; anywhere in this Ode. In verse 4 it has OWECJU; and in verse 8a dAoyiCTxia. Cf. the discussion of the trees in paradise in the Gnostic documents Apocryphon of John and Test imony of Truth in Gerard P. Luttikhuizen, Gnostic Revisions of Genesis Stories and Early Jesus Traditions (Nag Hammadi and Manichaean Studies; Leiden: Brill, 2005, ch. 6, "Paradise" (p. 72 ff.) Cf. verse 8 in Charlesworth's translation: "And my intoxication was not with ignorance, James M. Robinson, ed., The Coptic Gnostic Library: A Complete Edition of the Nag Hammadi Codices (Leiden: Brill, 2000) vol. 1, p. 163 lists as examples of Gnostic garment imagery the Gospel of Philip 77.22, the Gospel of Mary BG 8502,1:11.5-8 and the Tripartite Tractate 87.2-6, but also to the Pauline passages Rom. 13:12-14, Eph. 4:22-24, Col. 3:9-12, and a secondary parallel in 1 Cor. 15:49.

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and 25:8-12) is more in line with Ephrem's concept of the Robe of Glory29 than with the Gnostic idea of clothes representing the material world in which the soul is trapped. 30 In the Odes, the symbol of stripping off the old garment and being covered with the new one refers to the reception of new life in the baptismal ceremony.31 The ascension language in the Odes was interpreted by many scholars along the line of Gnostic ascension of the soul. This is the opinion of Helmut Koester, for instance: "Putting off the earthly garment and putting on the heavenly garment of light (Ode 11.10-11; cf. 15.8) is a Gnostic description of the heavenly journey of the soul (Ode 35), the description of the lower world as an empty illusion 29 The Odes may even have originated within the Christian community that first developed the concept. For a discussion of Ephrem's concept of "the Robe of Glory, cf. Sebastian Brock, The Luminous Eye: The Spiritual World Vision of Saint Ephrem the Syrian (Cistercian Studies Series, 124; Kalamazoo, Ml: Cistercian Publications, rev. ed. 1992) p. 85-97 and Id., "Clothing Metaphors as a Means of Theological Expression in Syriac Tradition," in M. Schmidt, ed., Typus, Symbol, Allegorie bei den österlichen Vätern und ihren Parallelen im Mittelalter (Regensburg: Friedrich Pustet, 1982) p. 11-40. Compare "And I was covered with the covering of Your Spirit" in Ode 25:8 with Ephrem's "robe of the Spirit" in his Discourse on the Lord, 55 (Brock, The Luminous Eye, p. 92-93) and "Our body was your clothing, your Spirit was our robe" in his Hymns on the Nativity, 22,39 (Brock, The Luminous Eye, p. 93). 30 E.g. Gopel of Thomas, Logion 21: "Mary said to Jesus, 'What are your disciples like?' He said, They are like little children living in a field that is not theirs, when the owners of the field come, they will say, 'Give us back our field.' They take off their clothes in front of them in order to give it back to them, and they return their field to them. And Logion 37: "His disciples said, 'When will; you appear to us, and when will we see you?' Jesus said, 'When you strip without being ashamed, and you take your clothes and put them under your feet like little children and trample then, then [you] will see the son of the living one and you will not be afraid.'" (Stephen Patterson & Marvin Meyer, The "Scholars' Translation" of the Gospel of Thomas - www.misericordia.edu/users/ davies/thomas/Trans.htm. 31 This was already one of the theses J.H. Bernard defended quite capably in The Odes of Solomon: Edited with Introduction and Notes (Texts and Studies, VIII,3; Eugene, Oregon: Wipf & Stock, 2004 [Cambridge, 1912]). The Harp

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(Ode 34), the praise of the truth as the pathfinder in the ascension (Ode 38), and of Christ as the guide over the abyss of the hostile waters (Ode 39)."32 However, 'ascension' in the Odes is not Gnostic at all, as Gerald Blaszczak demonstrates: "In none of the Odes of Ascent does the ascent aim at the revelation of knowledge of God's secret plans for the universe, the mysteries of the universe, or with the vision of God, His throne, His court. The ascent is the Odist's way of expressing, rather, the experience he has of being saved, as is evident in Odes 21.2b, 35.7, and 38.17a where salvation and ascent are intimately linked."33 None of the scholars branding the Odes as a Gnostic document have identified a strand within Gnosticism that would ever have called this document its own. All they can do is hypothesize such a movement. Lattke thinks the "Johannine-Solomonic riddle may be solved by assuming a heterodox Jewish, syncretistic early Gnosticism - 'Frlignosis' as W.G. Kümmel and others say".34 He assumes that "perhaps an Early Gnosticism existed, evidence of this seems to be provided by some parts of the New Testament."35 The problem is that none of the elements rejected in these New Testament writings (Colossians, the Pastoral Epistles, 1 John) is represented in the Odes. 32 Helmut Koester, Introduction to the New Testament: History and Literature of Early Christianity (Aldine; 2nd ed., 2000), p. 223-224. Further on Koester seems to water down his verdict considerably: "Yet, this probably means nothing more than that Gnostic images and terms were very welcome in order to express the individual's religious aspirations and hopes for resurrection and anticipation of a future life in communities that were by no means committed to a Gnostic theology. This early Christian hymnal may simply be a witness for the way in which Gnosticism very deeply affected the piety and spirituality of Christianity in general." (p. 224) Cf. also Lattke, Öden Salomos: übersetzt und eingeleitet (1995) p. 194, footnote 12: "Vielleicht geht es [in Ode 35:7] wirklich um die 'Himmelfahrt der Seele' (so die Überschrift von Bauer, Oden [1971] 615)." 33 Gerald R. Blaszczak, A Formcritical Study of Selected Odes of Solomon (Scholars Press, 1985) p. 82 34 Michael Lattke, "The Apocryphal Odes of Solomon and NT Writings" (ZNW, 1982, 73,3) p. 2.98. 35 Lattke, "The Apocryphal Odes of Solomon & NT Writings" p. 296. Vol. XXII2Ö07

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There is no trace of encratism or of interest in angelic genealogies opposed in the Pastoral Epistles. 36 Neither do the Odes display insistence on Jewish calendar and dietary laws or fascination with the angelic world countered in Colossians. 37 Again, the Odes do not show any of the docetic traits that are defied in 1 John. This would leave us with 'Gnosticism' being compatible with the orthodox creed which is actually a misnomer.38 In his 1969 article,39 Charles worth lists nine characteristics of the Odes that are not compatible with Gnosticism, namely: 1.Creatorfriendliness; 2. nonchalance towards cosmology; 3. freedom from dualism; 4. not categorizing humanity according to the presence or not of the divine spark; 5. absence of key Gnostic terminology; 6. continuity with the Old Testament; 7. open proclamation; 8. absence of a redeemer's myth; 9. not speculative. Charlesworth was never duly answered. In an appendix to the 1998 reprint of his article40 Charles worth seems quite satisfied: "This essay ... has served as a watershed which introduced the period in which the Odes of Solomon are no longer labelled 'gnostic' by informed critics without further qualification. The specialists in the field of Gnosticism have considered the Odes of Solomon a form of 'early Gnosticism' which is very different from Gnosticism, in my opinion." Charlesworth is too easily appeased. The question is: do these specialists take this "early Gnosticism" to be "very different from Gnosticism". It seems some do not. 36 Cf. C. Spicq, Les epftres pastorals, Tome 1. Etudes Bibliques; Paris: Gabalda, 1969, 4ieme ed. p. 99-104, 322. 37 Only in Ode 4:8 angels are mentioned in passing, but they do not figure prominently at all. 38 There is a sore discrepancy between the content of the Odes, even in the translation of Lattke, and the titles he put above the individual Odes, e.g. Ode 3 = "Liebesmetaphorik und Gnosis". Ode 6 = "Geist und Gnosis des Herrn, Mythos vom Fluss, Bildrede über das Wasser des Lebens". Ode 7 = "Herr und Vater der Gnosis, Eplphanie und Erlösung des Sohns, Gnosis des Herrn". Ode 18: "Das Pleroma und die Gnostiker". Without these titles, all the Gnosticism Seit in the Odes is introduced there through tendentious translation. 39 James Charlesworth, "The Odes of Solomon - Not Gnostic" in: CBQ 31, 3 (1969) p. 366-368. 40 Charlesworth, Critical Reflexions on the Odes of Solomon, Vol. 1, 1998. p. 190-191. The Harp

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S o m e c o m m e n t a t o r s take issue with C h a r l e s w o r t h ' s characteristics. Lattke,41 for one, finds in Ode 22 a dualistic myth, but has to allow for a traditional, i.e. non-dualistic, eschatology in the same Ode. His title: "Dualistischer Mythos mit traditioneller Eschatologie" tries to reconcile the incompatible. The traditional eschatology is unable to coexist with cosmic dualism; the Odes' eschatology is in conflict with dualism as well. In Gnosticism, the soul is chained to the material world. In the New Testament (Rom. 7:23 etc.) as well as in the Odes (e.g. 17:3-5), it is chained to sin.42 In Ode 33, again, Lattke finds 'dualistic myths' (p. 189). The only dualism perceivable there is the sharp contrast and competition of the Evil one over against God's message of repentance. This is dualism, indeed, but a moral dualism as we find it in the New Testament, not the cosmic dualism of Gnosticism. In Lattke's translation we do come across the 'redeemer's myth'. Ode 10 received the title "Mythologische Rede des lebenden Erlösers".43 His translation of 10:3: "um zurückzubringen die Seelen derer, die zu ihm kommen wollen" (p.120) fits well the Gnostic myth of a heavenly redeemer, coming to recuperate; lost sparks of the upper world. However, one looks in vain in the Odes for the idea of a pre-creation fall that caused sparks from the spiritual world to be buried in an evil world of matter and time. The Gnostic myth is imposed on a document that speaks more clear without it. In the context Lattke is correct to understand n.^-nV (Aph. of the verb r€xs.) to mean 'return' (zurückbringen) rather than 'convert' (Charlesworth). But 'Soul' (rtiai) in the Odes stand for the person, his self or his life, and rarely, if ever, just for his inner being. In none of the 23 passages where it occurs, 44 it contrasts dualistically with body or matter. 41 Michael Lattke, Oden Salomos: übersetzt und eingeleitet (Fontes Christiani, 19; Freiburg im Breisgau [u.a.]: Herder, 1995, p. 160-163 and Id., Oden Slomos: Text, Übersetzung, Kommentar - Teil 2: Oden 15-28, Freiburg, Schweiz: Universitätsverlag, 2001, p. 147. 42 Cf. (bonds) in 21:2; 22:4; 25:1; 42:16. 43 Lattke, Oden Salomos: übersetzt und eingeleitet (1995) p. 120. 44 I.e. en Odes 3:5; 6:15; 7:3; 7:12; 7:24; 9:2,2; 10:3; 20:5,5; 20:6; 21:4; 26:9,9; 30:3; 31:7; 32:2; 35:7; 38:15; 39:3; 40:6; 41:11 and 41:15. Vol. XXII 2007

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So far my argumentation has been mainly negative: the Odes are not Gnostic. They would not be at home in a Gnostic collection, in the illustrious company of the Apocryphon of John or the Gospel of Philip. However, denying the Odes to the main opponents of nascent orthodoxy is one thing. Claiming them as a witness to that orthodoxy is another. Their non-dualistic cosmology, their reverence for the Creator, their traditional eschatology, and their respectful use of Old Testament texts seem to be more in line with Irenaeus and Tertullian than with Cerdo and Valentinus. A next step would be to look at the Odes' text for some or all of the elements that constitute the (proto-)orthodox 'Rule of Faith', like creation, incarnation, death and bodily resurrection, parousia, forgiveness of sins, and final redemption of even the material world. That is what I hope to do in a number of subsequent articles. Dr. Gie Vleugels Kerkhofstraat 18 A 3110 Rotselaar Belgium (Evangelical Theological Faculty, Leuven)

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ADAM AS A CHILD BY IRENAEUS OF LYONS AND IN THE ST EPHREM'S HYMNS OF PARADISE

In the NT, the infant (nepios), who cannot yet speak, is a weak and defenseless child, not yet rational, simple and inexperienced. The term is associated with that of a sucking child, who still drinks milk. It is the opposite to the idea of an adult, to mature judgment, to that of instructed people, teachers, and the perfect. The small boy (pais, paidion) is the one in whom Jesus sees the type of the true disciple. The theme of Adam as a child is not found except in the Asiatic tradition of Theophilus of Antioch and Irenaeus of Lyon and Ephrem the Syrian, without our being able to prove influence of the one on the other, even though one finds it just in the Syrian region, two centuries apart. Iwould like to develop this theme in Irenaeus' and Ephrem and show the depiction ofAdam and of the paradise in both, but also the difference in their contexts: an anti-gnostic problematic in Irenaeus and a poetic approach in Ephrem, and the difference in their theology of the two Adams. 1

Cf. Y. de Andia, Homo vivens. Incorruptibilité et divinisation de l'homme selon Irénée de Lyon, Études Augustiniennes, Paris, 1986.

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I. Theophilus of Antioch and Irenaeus of Lyons. 1. Theophilus of Antioch The theme of Adam's childlike state is found already in Theophilus of Antioch and it is likely, as Frederic Loofs thinks, that Irenaeus borrowed it from him. The theme is explained in Theophilus by the "principle of progress' which is the nature of the law according to which Adam was created. God moved him from the ground from which he had been made in Paradise, and he gave him a principle of progress according to which he might be able to develop and arrive at the perfection, ever to be proclaimed God and thus to rise to heaven (in fact, man was established in an intermediate situation, neither completely mortal nor completely immortal, but capable of both, at the same time. This region of Paradise was by its beauty between the world and heaven), to rise to heaven, I would say in possessing immortality (Ad Autolycum II, 24). The principle of progress is at once the progression of Adam towards perfection, which is to be proclaimed god, and the elevation of Adam from Paradise to he heavens. We also find this idea of moving Adam to Paradise in the 11th Ode of Salomon: He took me into his Paradise where are the riches and sweetness of the Lord. I bow down before the Lord because of his glory and say to him: 'Happy, Lord, are those who are planted in the earth and find a place in your Paradise, who grow in the plantation of your trees, who move on from darkness to light (Ode XI, 16-19). Paradise is an intermediate state between the earth, where Adam was shaped, and the heavens, where he was called to ascend. This notion of an intermediate status for Paradise is also found in the second Book of Henoch (VIII,1-7), which describes the Paradise as a beautyful place planted with fragrant trees full of blossom and fruits and with the Tree of Life in the center. In Theophilus's Paradise, it's the Tree of knowledge, which is in the center: The Harp

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The Tree of Knowledge was good in itself, and so was its fruit. It was not, as some people suppose, the tree that contained death, but disobedience. There was nothing in the fruit except for knowledge alone; and knowledge is good when one uses it, as one should. But, according to his actual age, Adam was still only an infant (nepios) and that's why he was unable to receive knowledge, as he should. In our days, when an infant is born, he cannot yet eat bread, but he thrives on milk first. Next, according to the development of his age, he comes to solid food. It was this way for Adam; it was not through jealousy, as some people think, that God commanded him not to eat from the Tree of knowledge. What he wanted was to test his obedience to divine instructions. He also wanted Man to prolong in his state of simplicity and integrity by remaining an infant (Ad Autolycum 11,25). Theophilus of Antioch, as Irenaeus of Lyons later, picks up the Pauline idea of the smallness of the child who cannot yet tolerate what is beyond his age: As for me, brothers, I cannot speak to you as to spiritual men, but as to fleshly beings, like small children (nepioi) in Christ. It's milk that I gave you to drink, not solid food; you cannot yet tolerate it (1 Co 3,1-20). The contrast 'child-adult' corresponds to that of the fleshly man and the spiritual man and that of the two types of food: 'milk' and 'solid food'. Since Adam was an infant who couldn't yet tolerate the 'knowledge' of God, that 'solid food', God forbade him to eat from the tree of knowledge (Gn 3,2). 2. Irenaeus of Lyons The Antiochene theme of the infant Adam is taken up by Irenaeus in the Apostolic Demonstration and the Adversus haereses. 1. the Apostolic

Demonstration

So having made the man master of the earth and of every thing in it, in secret, God also made him master of his servants who were there. However, these were in their adult state, while the master, the man, was very young, since he was a child and he was supposed to Vol

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reach adulthood by maturing. So that he would feed himself and grow up in delight, a place was prepared for him that was better than in this world, leading him by its air, its beauty, its light, its food, its plants, its fruits, its waters and all the other things necessary for life and it had the name "garden". And at such a point this garden was lovely and good: the World of God used to walk in it constantly and converse with the man prefiguring future events, to show him who would be his companion to dwell with and would talk with him, and be with men, teaching them justice (Dem. 12). In the beauty and delights of the garden there was an intimacy, a familiarity between the man and the Word which prefigured the dwelling of the Word among men by the incarnation. In the garden, it is the Word who is the companion and pedagogue of Adam the child and not the angels who are his servants. The life of Adam in Paradise is therefore more than an angelic existence (bios aggelikos), it's a life of communion with the Word. This constant conversation (homilia) of the man with the Word, who is the one to whom perpetual prayer is aimed, is the state of Adam and of the martyr. Paradise is therefore where the divine cult is a communion with God, according to the formulation common to philosophy, religion and gnosis. 2.

Adversus

haereses

The theme of Adam's childlike state introduces a distance between the fashioning (plasis) of man and his perfecting (teleidsis) which will be achieved in the vision of the Father. It is this there which is developed in ch. 38 of Adversus haereses, a treatise on human freewill, in connection with the Gnostic objection: 'Why did God not make Man perfect from the beginning?' For the Gnostics, the perfection of man is that of nature or of his spiritual substance. Human freewill was not needed to tend to teach man to a perfection that had already been granted by nature. More over, the original imperfection of the creature is ar indication of the Creator's impotence. The two questions of the created and increated (faclus-infecuts) of the perfect and imperfect (perfectusimperfectns) of the divine power and impotence (potentiaThe Harp

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indigentia) are linked. But what does not emerge in the Gnostics is that the distance between the plasis and the teleidsis is the foundation of human freewill and progression towards God. This progression was inscribed in the creation of the child Adam: there is a "time of growth" (tempus augmenti) (AH TV, 38,4), says Irenaeus and all the vocabulary of the "maturity" of man of his developing the custom of taking hold of and bearing God, witnesses to this necessity of growing f r o m the the i m p e r f e c t state (imperfectas) of the child to the perfect state (perfectas) of the adult. There are therefore three foods for man- the fruits of Paradise, the "milk" of the "Word makes flesh" and the Bread of immortality (arton athanasias) who is the "Spirit of the Father", which corresponds to the three stages of salvation history and the two comings of Christ, in the flesh and, in the last times, in the glory and to the two ages of man, child and adult. From the beginning, God have the power to give perfection to man, but the latter, newly come into existence (nuper facías est), was unable to receive it, to contain it, or, if he had contained it, to keep it. And that is why the Word of God, through he was perfect, was made a little child along with (co-infans) the Man, not for his own sake, but because of the infant state in which Man was, so that he could be comprehended, as far as Man was able to comprehend him. It was therefore not on his part that impotence and indigence care about, but from the Man who had newly come into existence: for he was not uncreated (AH IV, 38,2). It is because Adam was a child that the Word was made a "cochild" with Adam, in order to bring back all humanity into himself, from the beginning to the end. The theme of Adam as a child is therefore linked to the Irenean concept of perfection that is not a state proper to the nature of Man, as the Gnostics thought, but a divine gift which one needed to receive by free will. Created imperfect, Man was called to participate in his Vol XXII2007:

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own perfection, thanks to the Holy Spirit. II. Ephrem's Hymns on Paradise The image of Adam as a child is found in St Ephrem's Hymns XI, 1; VII, 10; 15,2. The Syriac words used are "youthfulness" (Tl'r Talyut''d'), infancy (sbr: shabruthd') (XI,1 and XV,12); simplicity of infancy ( b e r i r u / f d ' ) (VII,6) and child (Tcilya') (VII, 10). l.Adam as a child The theme of Adam as a child has been articulated in the first stanza of Hymn XI: (I quote the translation of Sebastian Brock) The air of Paradise is a fountain of delight from which Adam sucked when he was young (Talyuthd'); its very breath, like a mother's breast, gave him nourishment in his childhood \shabrutba'). He was young, fair, and full of joy but when he spurned, the injunction he grew old (sava'), sad and decrepit; he bore old age (,saybuf'a'), as a burden of woes (IX,l) 2 . By the transgression of the order and the divine commandment, Adam destroyed the order or the beauty of this world created by God and thus introduced, death that changes the body in the course of time. Henceforward, birth is f o l l o w e d by corruption and youthfulness by old age. Here the old age of Adam is not a sign of his wisdom, but that of his sin which degraded his body. The relation between old age and sin is described in the hymn VII, 10: Bind up your thoughts, Old Age (saybut''d'), in Paradise whose fragrance makes you young3 (Talyd'); its wafting scent rejuvenates you, and your stains are swallowed up in the beauty with which it clothes you. In Moses He depicted for you a parable: his cheeks, ashen with age, became shining and fair, 2 3

English translation is from Sebastian Brock, Et Ephrem the Syrian. Hymns on Paradise, (New York, 1990). Litt: makes you infant (Talya') The Harp

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a symbol of old age that in Eden again becomes ('layma') (VII, 10).

young

Here also Ephrem says that the perfume or 'the breeze of Paradise' is rejuvenating. The example of Moses, the old man, with "his cheeks, ashen with old age" became "shining and fair" (Ex. 33:29; 2 Cor. 3:4), is an image of the glorious youthfulness of the saints in Paradise 4 . Ephrem continues: A vast censer exhaling fragrance impregnate the air with its odoriferous smoke, imparting to all who are near it a whiff from which to benefit." (XI,13) What is the source of this 'source of perfumes' and this 'vast censer', that spreads its 'fragrance'? The following stanza speaks of Pentecost and the "perfume of Paradise that spreads out". The effusion of the perfume at Pentecost is unique to the Syriac tradition, which is found in the Liber Graduum also: " the pleasant odor of the Spirit Paraclete dwells in them "5. The place shook and the scent of Paradise, having recognized its home, poured forth its perfumes.. (XI,14) Here Paradise, which is a "vast censer", a "treasure of perfumes" and a "storehouse of scent" (XI, 15) But from the midst of Paradise, the perfume of Pentecost spreads over the Church, making her a new Paradise. According to the Jewish sources, the "sweet odor" was poured over Israel during the revelation on Sinai, the new Paradise, and now it is poured over the Church, the New Israel 6 . What is, therefore, the image of Adam and that of Christ, the new Adam in Paradise? 2. Image of Adam Before his fall, Adam appeared in all his beauty and kingship in Paradise, filled with sweet odor, flowers and fruits. 4 5 6

cfr. Odes of Solomon 19. Liber Graduum, Sermo 20, 10; PS.III, 554, line 19. Cfr. n.17. Vol. XXII2007

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And I reflected: if Paradise be so glorious, how much more glorious should Adam be, who is in the image of its Planter, and how much fairer the Cross, upon which the Son of its Lord rode. It was not Paradise that gave rise to the creation of mankind; rather, it was for Adam alone that Paradise had been planted, for to its buds Adam's heart is superior, to its fruits his words,... (VI,5-6). The beauty of Paradise is very well inferior to that of Adam's who was created "in the image and likeness"' of God Himself (Gen. 1:26), who had planted Paradise. b) The kingship of Adam, "the king fashioned from the dust" God made Adam "the king" of the creation: A garden full of glory, a chaste bridal chamber, did he give to that king fashioned from the dust (XIII,3). The image of Adam "formed from the dust from the ground" (Gen 2:7), indicates the greatness of the gift that was given to him, as well as his elevation from the "dust" to the glory. But, by listening to the serpent, the cursed animal, Adam became similar to the animals, as said David in Ps.49(48) : "Man cannot abide in his pomp, he is like the beasts that perish" (Ps.49:13). But Christ by His resurrection transforms the "likeness' of sinner and his "bestiality" into image and likeness of God and restores Adam to his "kingship". c) The leprous king Because of sin, Adam "the pure one" became "impure", the king of the universe became a leprous king like Uzziah: Adam had been most pure in that fair Garden, but he became leprous and repulsive because the serpent had breathed on him. The Harp

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The garden cast him from its midst; all shining, it thrust him forth. (IV,4) It is the garden itself that expelled Adam, because "the pure one" cannot contain the impure in it. The ritual laws of purity and impurity explain the expulsion of Adam. As the leper is the symbol of impurity, Adam's sin is described to "frightful leprosy". That is why Uzziah, the king who became a leper, is an image of Adam. Remember Uzziah, how he entered the sanctuary; by seeking to seize the priesthood he lost his kingdom. Adam, by wishing to enrich himself, incurred a double loss. Recognize in the sanctuary the Tree, In the censer the fruit, and in the leprosy the nakedness (begarba lephursaya'). From these two treasures there proceeded harm in both cases. (XII,4). You know the story of Uzziah in the second Book of the Chronicles (ch. 26): As long as Uzziah sought the Lord, God made him prosper (2 Chr. 26:5). He "constructed the towers in Jerusalem" "hewed out many cisterns in the wilderness (26:9-10) and he had "an army of soldiers, fit for war (v. 11). But when he grew proud (v. 16) and entered the temple of the Lord to burn incense on the altar of incense (v. 16). But after the exile, the offering of the incense became the exclusive privilege of the sons of Aaron (cfr. Num. 17:5; I Chr.23:17). Though priests tried to prevent, "Uzziah held a censer in his hand to burn incense" and "when he became angry with the priests, leprosy broke out on his forehead" (2 Chr. 26:16), and the priests expelled him from the Temple, as Adam was expelled from Paradise. In Uzziah's case a censer was the object of his temptation and this has been alluded to in the words: " Recognize... in the censer the fruit" (XII, 4). In his hymns III and XV, Ephrem quotes from the story of Uzziah, as it is narrated in the Book of the Chronicles, and he makes a comparison between Adam and Uzziah as well as between the Vol XXII2007

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Paradise and the Temple. The fruit resembles the veil which separated the Tabernacle (111,13). The censer, like the Tree of Paradise, is a symbol of glory: It is obvious that the censer of the inner sanctuary is good, but the Tree in Paradise has come to be considered as poisonous. If the censer is glorious, than the fruit is even more so;... (XV, 12). He who desired to seize glory, became leprous: Through the censer, pure and glorious, the evil one made royalty leprous, and likewise in Paradise the cunning one slew the young couple with excellent (XV, 12).

fruit.

The contrast is made between the "slyness" ( l arima) and the "infancy" (s' l abrutha') without intelligence. The corresponding Greek word is nepios, the small one, who is still without discernment, or the simple one. Now let us consider the second text in which Adam is called "infant". Like Eve, he is a "naive infant". Ephrem has attributed the following words to the fig "full of joy": Put away your ignorant childhood (berir ')the day when you became naked and hid in my bosom. Praise to Him who has clothed your nakedness with the robe! (VII,6). Here the word "ignorant (b e rir') derives form brar meaning "foolish". In lrenueus' Presentation of the Apostolic Preaching, [we find] the idea of simplicity or "inexperience" of Adam and Eve when they were tempted by the serpent. The ruse of the evil one consisted of tempting Eve to ask how Paradise was, where he did not have the right to enter. Ephrem gives us the reason for the ruse of the evil one: he knew that the Tree of Knowledge veiled the glory of the sanctuary and that by violating the interdiction of entering the sanctuary, Adam and Eve would be expelled by its glory. The identification of Paradise to the temple, indicates the Priestly function of Adam. The Harp

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c) Adam as Priest Adam was not merely a king, he was a priest as well. The 3rd and the 15th Hymns on Paradise refers to the "priesthood" of Adam. God did not permit Adam to enter that innermost Tabernacle; this was withheld, so that first he might prove pleasing in his service of that outer Tabernacle; like a priest with fragrant incense, Adam's keeping of the commandment was to be his censer; Then he might enter before the Hidden One into that hidden Tabernacle (111,16). Here censer means obedience to God's commandment: The symbol of Paradise was depicted by Moses who made the two sanctuaries, the sanctuary and the Holy of Holies; into the outer one entrance was permitted, but into the inner, only once a year. So too with Paradise, God closed off the inner part, but He opened up the outer, wherein Adam might graze.' (111,17) The contrast has been made between "outside" of the sanctuary and "inside" of the "Holy of Holies" as well as between "outside" and "inside" of the Paradise. God wished that Adam shall serve in the "sanctuary", "type of Paradise", so that by his obedience, he may become capable of entering "the innermost" Tabernacle, that is, the glory. Hymn XV repeats the distinction between "the sanctuary" and "the type of Paradise" (XV,8) and the "Holy of Holies". Conclusion The first comparison between Irenaeus and Ephrem is at the level of types: the type of the child Adam, in Theophilus and Irenaeus, is that of the child called to grow in order to be able to bear the glory of God, growth coming from within; it implies freewill and the "time of growth" (tempus augmenti), the figure of Adam in Ephrem is ageless; it's the perpetual youth of Paradise, where nothing grows Vol. XXII2007!

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old and nothing dies. "Old age" is exterior of this eternal youth: it comes from sin. The second comparison is that of the two Adams: Ireneaus of Lyons introduces the notion of "recapitulatio" of the first Adam to the second Adam which is the central notion of his doctrine of salvation. And just as Christ must recapitulate Man, every man and the humanity from the beginning to the end which is himself, Christ recapitulates the childhood of Adam in becoming himself a "co-infant" with Adam This theme of the recapitulation of Adam by Christ is not found in Ephrem; it's above all the "titles" of Adam and Christ which form the comparison: Adam was created king and priest of the creation, honours that he lost by his sin, but the "Lord of all", the "High Priest" and the "Bridegroom" is Christ. He is also the "athlete" who defeated Satan. On the other hand, Paradises itself symbolizes Christ who is at one and the time the "Tree of life", the "Vine cluster", the "Gardener" of this Garden. The last comparison is at the level of imagery: the images in Irenaeus are those of food, the "milk" and the "bread", symbols of the Paradise Land where "milk and honey flow" or even "milk, bread and meat" which represent the stages of human and spiritual life. The images of Ephren; are those of odours: the "air" or "breath" o Paradise, "this workshop of perfumes" or "this treasury of scents", but it's above all the perfumed inccnse and the image of the censer which scents the whole of Paradise. The imagery of the first is drawn of the Old and the New Testaments (ICo 3,10), that of the second from the story of king Uzziah; the great image is that of the censer which, and one after the other, is identified with Paradise itself, this "huge censer" (XI, 13); wilh the "fruit of the tree" (XII,4), the cause of the fall, and with "obedience" to the divine command. But this shows us that Ephrem's Paradise veils the characters of the Temple of Jerusalem o of the Church where are many songs: the song of Adam's soul, is heard (VIII,8), the song of the trees (IX,6), but also that of the elects: "the music of their harps consoles theirs ears" (VII, 11), the song of Ephrem himself: "In Paradise, then, I will sing of the mercy of the One who planted it" (XII,9). It is a fragrant, musical Paradise, whose bard is Ephrem himself, the choir leader of the church of Edessa or Nisibis. The Harp

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rdxxAx. oocAcva rciirja^.i

rdiA^

REVELATION OF PAUL THE BLESSED APOSTLE: Based on a Syriac Manuscript at Archbishop's House Trichur This Manuscript is from the Mss collection of the Church of the East at Trichur Arch Bishop's house of H. G. Dr. Mar Aprem. This Ms is not mentioned in the Mss catalogue of J P M Vander Ploeg. This MS 83 is an additional one and later renumbered as 39. b. This is an apocryphal work about the revelation of St. Paul. In the beginning of the book, there are some portions taken from another text and it was pasted on front of the beginning pages of the book. There are two blank pages in the beginning and twelve blank pages after the original text, the papers used are different and it seems that these are inserted in this bind later. The author used Oriental paper to write this part of the Ms, but the other pages in the beginning and at the end are from the Austrian foolscap papers, and there is a very clear emblem imprinted in them. There is a seal on the 1st page. The same seal appears on the 2nd page and also on the 4lh page. They contain the Syriac words 1. Qasha {ri M) means priest and 2. mheela (< L ^ ) means feeble or weak and the third word is not clear. This book is not mentioned in the list of Mss given by J P M Vandor Ploeg. Probably it May have been in the court of justice at that time. This is the only available Ms in India about the revelation of Paul. Unfortunately most of the Syriac Mss in India might have been burned at the time of Synod of Diamper. Probably this Ms came to India at a much later period from Iraq. Vol, XXII2007

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Since it has not been mentioned in the previous list, a codicological description is provided here. At first, an outline is given as:Date: 17th Century. Dimensions: 19.2 x 14cms. No of folios: 102. Area of Writing: 14 x 10 ems. Columns per page: 1. Lines per page: c.17 (cl6 in the first quires) Numbering of folios: Modern system, (at present) Structure of quires: 1 (8 folios), 2 &3 (10 folios each) 4 & 5 (7 folios each) Numbering of Quires: r< - o [1-6] at the base of first recto and last verso of each quire. But for the first one the beginning number is not there and the last one the last page number is also not there. Headers: None. Script: East Syriac with vowels, some words in Estrangela. Inks: Brownish black, with red for beginning and end portions of the apology and the text. Decoration: Confined to quire numbers. The first quire No: is at the end of page 14 .;.friThis number has got a decoration at the top and the bottom and at the left and the right. The second quire ¡lumber is —¿'»¡Jti,.^ at the bottom of page number 15. It may be noted that there is a difference in the decoration of this number. This decoration is given to all the quire numbers up to 6 number on page number 75and on page number 88 has got additional decorations as shown.

—

Binding: Cardboard binding. This manuscript, consisting of 53 folios i.e. 102 written pages (excluding the beginning pages) is almost complete: the text begins on the f. Iv and ends on f.52v; but there are some writings that were The Harp

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271 later pasted in the beginning pages; these are from another text, two are at the beginning and one is on f.lr. These additions are not mentioned in any of the versions of the vision of Paul. Revelation of Paul the blessed Apostle

The pages contain two types of numbers. The first one is written by lead, on one side of the sheets. The second one is on both the sides of the sheets, written in black ink. These numbering, probably was done later. - beth and qoph remain angular, with no rounding. - dalath and risk are rounded when separate, but usually more rectangular when joined to the preceding. - he and waw always have a rounded full circle. - The base of mini is always closed up. - Semkath is joined to the left, as well as to the right. - The original scribe has provided East Syrian vowel points and qussaya/rukkaha, e.g. - Margins are moderate and sufficient. - To get the uniformity of the margins, sometimes the last word in the every line is found to be a bit lengthened. E.g. fV. i-i, i Hoi, j - The following punctuation marks are used.: « The first is used commonly . the last « is used at the end of the black ink and red ink writings. Quire numbers, following the standard practice of using letters as numerals, are regularly provided beneath the column of writing at the beginnings and at the ends of quires. In quire No: 1, a new sheet is found to be pasted over the originalpage 1, and some writings are on a small sheet and this is pasted on this sheet. The number is given in the center, at the bottom of the page. Colophons

Scribe: Kogo (Kowaja is a Persian name) son of Kuriakose, who is son of Hormized namely a priest by work (profession) from the village Alsan in the region of Jelu. Vol. XXII2007

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Place or origin: The blessed village 'Golozor', in the region of Dasan, under the protection of St. Geevarghese. The book has (1) an Introduction and (2) the text - which describes the vision of Paul. The dating of the completion of the Ms is Thursday 10lh August 1987 of Greek era (or A.D. 1676): This is during the tenure of H.H. Mar Simon, the Universal Patriarch of the East, our glorious and blessed father. Translation of the front page writings is like this. It is a bad time at which perversions happen. All perversions were regarded as uprightness in it. The horse put on the ass's saddle and the ass wears the horse's saddle with out reverence and the lions are kneeling and worshipping the fox. Another one I have nothing to do with you from this time onwards, oh (man) with abominable conduct; for your association with me is nothing but lamentation. Keep yourself away from me from this time onwards, to the ends and extremities (of the earth), so that your foul smell does not hit me and harm my soul. In the day in which the joy, also sorrow reach completion, hand and pen together end up in nonexistence (nothingness). Out of my acquaintancies (only) these lines, which remain after (my) death, hold my youthfulness worthy of remembrance. If we go deep into the meaning of these writings we can connect this with the text. May be the writer also wanted the readers to do this. The abnormalities happened to the creation like the ass in the horse's saddle and the horse in ass's and the lions worshipping the fox. Normally, this will not happen, but here the author wants to say that, that much wrong or worse had happened. The ass is representing the powerless or the ugly but the horse represents the powerful and the noble. An ugly anim a 1 may wear the clothes of a noble one and the noble in the reverse. But the basic natures of these animals will not change by this. God is the creator of all, but humanity disobeyed The Harp

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his commands and went astray; that means the perversions happened in the creation. Man is made in the image of God. 1 That image had been destroyed by evil deeds or by wickedness. But in any of the versions or translations there is no comment about this kind of writings. Then starts the apology. Through this apology the author is emphasizing the vision of Paul. The book was written as if St. Paul, as a result of his experience, with the angels was taken in to the third heaven. 2 Here we can see the typology and symbolic presentations of the O.T. and N. T. passages and incidents to highlight the importance and the relevance of this book. In the 11th page, there are some anthems; these are taken from the service for the departed ones. The anthems are in another script, written by another author. The next page is a blank one. "Several apocalypses appear under the name of the Apostle Paul. Epiphanius (Haer. 38,2) mentions a Gnostic book, Ascent of Paul. Of this work nothing is extant. We have however, a text of an Apocalypse of Paul in several versions. It was written in Greek, between 240 and 250, most probably in Egypt. Perhaps this explains why Origen knew of it. Of the original text nothing is preserved. We possess however a revision of the Greek text which originated between 380 and 388." 3 In addition to the Greek text there are Syriac, Latin, Coptic, Ethiopic Slavic, Armenian and Arabic versions also. The Greek, and the other versions all start with the discovery of the writings in Tarsus. 'In the Consulate of Theodosius and Cynegius (A.D. 388) an angel appeared to a man in Tarsus and commanded him to destroy the foundations of his house and publish the document he found there. The man at first dismissed the apparition as fancy, but the angel returned and compelled him to do his bidding. A sealed marble box was found and brought to the Governor of the 1 Genesis 1 : 2 7 . 2 li Cor 12: 2-4 3 Johannes Quasten, The Beginnings of Patristic Literature, Petrology Vol. I. Spectrum publishers, 1975. p. 146.

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city who, in turn, forwarded it to the Emperor Theodosius. He later opened the box, had a copy made of it, which he kept, and sent the original to Jerusalem." 4 But in this Ms 83 this is stated with details only in the end part of the book from pages 94-98. The text is beginning from the 12th page onwards. Trns from Ms Rubrics: "By the power of our Lord Jesus Christ I write the revelation of Paul the blessed Apostle, which is filled with wonders. Our Lord, help me with his prayers, Amen." The text begins "And the Word of the Lord came to me, saying, "Man, go and say to the earthly (temporal) world. How long will you sin and increase sins one after another 5 and provoke yourselves and say, 'We are the sons of the living God?' But you are doing the deeds of Satan and walking according to his commands". The creation complains in front of God about men's behaviour; The revelation opens with a message from God introduced by the conventional style, ' And the Word of the Lord came to me, saying ' The apostle is trying to lead the people in to the direction of repentance and tells how the sun, moon and stars, seas and rivers and the earth had complained to God against the mankind. The abundance of sins of humanity disturbed all the other creations. They were asking God lo punish them according to their deeds. But, this has been put off by the mercy of God and how the angels keep the accounts of men's deeds and presenting them before the throne of God twice a day.

4 5

The Apocalypse of Paul. The Journal of Theological Studies, January 1933. Isaiah 30: 1b The Harp

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Trns from Ms. "And therefore the prayer is appointed at that time for the angel of the Lord to go. The man shall be occupied in prayer and the deeds of the man will be offered to Him, all that he does in the day and the night." The angels report to God about men; Trns from Ms "The guardian angel goes forth-in mourning and sorrow on account of men before God, he who protects man from all types of injuries because he is in the image of God. 6 For this the stewardship of man is to be given to an angel. When the angel sees a man who commits wickedness, the angel is afraid of him, for all the angles are leading men from morning to morning to come before God and everything that the man does is known." "The angels complained against man before God and wanted to stop serving him. 'Q Lord, why shall we pray and is it required for us to minister to these sinful men? But the Lord God command them "And behold, the voice of God came towards them, saying, "Cease not from their service and from serving them. Lest they repent, and if they do not repent and come to me, I shall judge them with a just judgment". Here in this text we can see the angelology in other words different ranks of angels. This text first introduces the Guardian angel, the angel of righteousness, angel who has no mercy, angel whose face shone like the sun (p. 14), misleading spirit (p. 15) Spirit of slander and fornication, Michael the great angel (p. 16) and Seraphim (p. 17) and so on... Paul is taken to the firmament by an angel; there he witnesses the judgment of one pious man and two sinners. Trns from Ms "And again, after these things, I saw one of the Spiritual ones coming to me and caught me by the Holy Spirit and carried me to the 6

Genesis 1: 27. Vol. XXII2007

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third part of the heaven, i.e. the third heaven 7 . And the angel answered and said to me, "Follow me (come after me), Paul, that I may show you the place of the saints so that you may know where they go, when they depart from the world. And I shall carry you to the deep abyss under, and I may show you the souls of sinners where they remain (rest), after their resurrection, so that you may know, Paul, what will be their reward. Paul visits the Promised Land and the city of the saints. Trns from Ms "And I remained with the angel. And he took me and made me fly and carried me to the third heaven 8 and then placed me in front of a door. And I looked at that door and saw the likeness of precious gold and in front of it there are two columns like adamant, and above the columns two tablets of gold full of writings. And the angel who was with me turned to me and said to me, "Paul, do not fear to enter these doors because every body is not permitted, but those in whom there is great purity and not at all evil dwells ¡in them." And 1 asked the angel who was with me and said to him; "What are the writings inscribed on these tablets?" And the.angel answered and said to me. "These are the names of the righteous as our Lord'said to his disciples." Outside the city, the place of punishments Trns from Ms "Then I saw a city outside that door many trees that were growing well. There were no fruits on them but leaves alone. And I saw some men (lying) scattered among those trees and were weeping much. And know Paul that most of the men were praising themselves and were rejecting their companions."

7 8

II Cor 12: 2-4 II Cor 12: 2-4 The Harp

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Trns from Ms "And I saw there Prophet Isaiah and with him Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Moses and all the ranks of prophets. They rose and greeted me." "In the South of the city I saw those children who were killed by Herod, the heathen (Pagan)."9 "In the East of the city I saw the noble old men and the righteous fathers, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and all the choirs of the righteous." In the middle of thé city there were twelve forts and they were very big. "In the middle of the city I saw thrones that are laid and robes and crowns placed on them, "these are for those who pleased God by their simplicity and were saying, that low, rejected and considered themselves nothing." "And I saw one great altar in the middle of the city, which was very high. And on the side of the altar I saw a very old, noble man standing with his face shining as the sun in the firmament. "This is David the king and prophet, who sings in Jerusalem of Christ as he sang on the earth. And thus David sings here in Spirit and all the saints are responding to him in glory and with a loud voice. And David the prophet proceeded in front and singing and all the saints followed him responding with Hallelujah." "Out from the city the middle of those trees of Eucharistia. The Land of Promises" The place of sinners; and souls of the wicked are tortured. Trns from Ms "And I saw there the perishing fire (while setting) and the flames were coming out from it. And I saw very many men were sinking in 9 Mtt 2:16. Vol. XXII2007

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it. Some of them up to their belly, and some up to their lips, and some of them up to their head and they are in the fire." "At another place, there was devouring fire with worms. Multitudes of men and women were cast into it." "....a narrow place where the fire was more severe than the first. There were men and women gnawing their teeth." "It is more needful for you to weep for the Patriarchs and for the Arch Bishops and for the Bishops. Then weep for priests and again for the deacons; for all of them had done iniquity. They were lovers of money. They loved the torments into which they had to move because they did not ask for mercy nor any favour." Brought me to the west Trns from Ms "There where all torments were prepared and then placed me on a well. And he opened the well. There came forth from it the smell of much filth. And the angel who was with me said to me, "Know (that) everyone is cast in to this well. There will be no remembrance to him neither with God nor with the righteous." And I saw the throne, before it there were prophets, behind them (after them) Apostles, Martyrs, Confessors and every one of them in his order. There I saw the Son of God and all the prophets and Patriarchs, Noah, Moses, Elisa, Elijah, Ending of the revelation. Trns from Ms "And I gave you the mystery of repentance of life and you did not repent. Now see and understand this revelation and repent for your wicked ways, and refrain from all that is hateful in the world. Behold, You see the torments, which are written in this revelation. And all who do not turn to the way of repentance shall be thus tormented. Till now you were saying, "We haven't known", but, The Harp

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now you see all that is scribed. For thus, Christ gave this vision to the blessed and the great apostle Paul, who as long as he was in the world preached and taught and now by this revelation He signified and showed him that men should turn through Him after his death, that by this revelation they should be taught." "This is another Testament, which our Lord gave to the world through Paul the father of the gentiles, the great blessed preacher and apostle." "But all those who turn away from their wicked ways should lay all these torments before their eyes. Do not leave them to act impiously. Even if they slip but then repent, their repentance will be accepted." "My brethren stir up your minds and see how much and the blessings and the joys to those who do the will of God. And see how soon they put an end to the wicked ways. And do not despise even one small word, of our Lord's Good news. While he commanded and said;" for all the idle words that the men will say, they shall have to give an answer in the Day of Judgment. Thus seek out your ways so as not (to utter) even one small word, which is nonsense or shameful, coming out from your mouth will be a stumbling block and a calamity (falling) for you." "End to write revelation of blessed apostle Paul and teacher of gentiles. Praise to the power of the Father and thanksgiving to the son, His companion and worship and exaltation to the discerning Holy Spirit now and all times forever and ever, Amen." "End with the help of our Lord God. This book filled with living vision of the blessed Paul, called apostle and preacher of truth." The author then comments that "Whosoever that did not believe in this revelation will be excommunicated from the Gospel and from Holy Trinity and from the knowledge of angels, and from the knowledge of true men and all the people will say yes and Amen, because there is nothing in it outside from the command of the Gospel." The author, at the end of the Ms gave the date and the place, his name. Then ends the Ms with his prayer and regrets for any mistake Vol XXII2007

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that may be present in these book In this Ms the ending is very clear than Latin and other Translations but very close to Rev. Justin Perkins Translation. Most probably these two Mss copied from the same one by diffèrent persons may be in different time. But in Perkin's translation, the beginning page wittings are not mentioned.

Comments from Church Fathers Origen According to which the apocalypse of Paul, with other apocalypses and also other early Christian writings enumerated there, was accepted by the Church.1''

Comments against the writings. Epiphanius "Epiphanius tells us that the Caianites or Cainites had forged a book full of unspeakable matter in the name of Paul, which was also used by those who are called Gnostics, which they call the Anabàticon of Paul, basing it on the words of the apostle that he was taken up into the third heaven. This has no trace. (Heresy, 38. 2)". 11 St. Augustine "St Augustine laughs at the folly of some who had forged an Apocalypse of Paul, full of fables, and pretending to contain the unutterable things, which the apostle had heard. This is, I doubt not, our book. (Aug. on John, Tract 98)"12 10 Hugo Duensing/ Aurelio de Santos Otero, Apocalypse of Paul in New Testament Apocrypha, Vol II. Writings related to the Apocalypse; Apocalypse and related subjects, (ed) byWilhelm Schneemelcher; Eng tran by R.McL. Wilson, p. 712 11 M.R. James, Apocalypse of Paulirom "The Apocryphal New Testament" Trans and notes Oxford: 1924. 12 M.R. James, Apocalypse ofPaulUom "The Apocryphal New Testament" Trans and notes Oxford: 1924. The Harp

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Sozomen, in his Ecclesiastical History (vii. 19) says, "The book now circulated as the Apocalypse of Paul the apostle, which none of the ancients ever saw, is commented by most monks; but some contend that this book was found in the reign we write of (of Theodosius). For they say that by a divine manifestation there was found underground at Tarsus of Cilicia, in Paul's house a marble chest, and that in it was this book. However, when I inquired about this, a Cilician, a priest of the church at Tarsus, told me it was a lie. He was a man whose grey hairs showed him to be of considerable age and he said that no such thing had happened in their city, and that he wondered whether the tale (or, the book) had not been made up by heretics." 13 "Sozoman's story is that which appears in our book; and we do not doubt that this Apocalypse made its appearance in the last years of the fourth century. It is commented in the Galesian Decree, and is mentioned with disapproval by various late church writers." 14 "In an early canto of the Inferno (ii. 28) Dante mentions the visit of the 'Chosen Vessel' to Hell - a n undoubted allusion to the Apocalypse. And both in the Divine Comedy and in the hundreds of earlier medieval visions of the next world the influence of this book is perceptible, sometimes faintly, often very plainly indeed. The reader will soon see for himself that Paul is a direct descendant of Peter, especially in his description of Hell-torments." 15 Conclusion In the early centuries these writings were circulated among the monks, priests and the public and they were very popular. That is why the various versions of this writings are available. But later, the book was condemned by the church fathers and the circulation was 13 M.R. James, Apocalypse of Paul from "The Apocryphal New Testament" Trans and notes Oxford: 1924. 14 M.R. James, Apocalypse of Paul from "The ApocryphalNew Testament" Trans and notes Oxford: 1924. 15 M.R. James, Apocalypse of Paul Uom "The Apocryphal New Testament" Trans and notes Oxford: 1924.

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very low level. This we can see from the above mentioned comments of the church fathers and the scholars. The introduction (apology) of this book was written by another person. It was a later addition and added to emphasize the importance of this book. The author of the apology emphasized the importance and the credibility of these writings. The author is trying to say that Paul is the author of this book and what ever mentioned in this book are true and witnessed by St. Paul, when he was taken into the third heaven. 16 Author also emphasizes that all those, who do not believe in these writings, are away from the scriptures or they are against the Holy Scriptures. The author quoted the bible and used the types and the symbols from Old Testament and New Testament passages to highlight the genuineness and thus to get the importance for this book. Rev. Fr. Joju Anto, Research Scholar, SEERI, Kottayam. 686001 Kerala, India.

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SYR I A C F A T H E R S ON MARY A N D THE EUCHARIST Introduction The encyclical "Ecclesia de Eucharistia" (April 17, 2003) of the late Holy Father John Paul II of blessed memory created a new awareness of the relation between Mary and the Eucharist in the Church in recent times. An entire chapter in the encyclical entitled "Mary the Woman of Eucharist" deals at length with the various aspects of this relation, based on biblical analogies, liturgical texts and various Eucharistic pieties of the Western Church. Thus, Mary is presented as the first tabernacle, a model of faith and submission for those who participate in the Eucharist. He also brings into light the aspects of the Eucharist like remembrance, and praise and thanksgiving in the light of the life of Mary. This encyclical sheds light on the importance of Mary in relation to the Mystery of the Eucharist in the Western tradition. At this juncture, it is interesting to note that the relation between Mary and the Eucharist is all the more clearly articulated in the early Syriac literature and writings of the Syriac Fathers: This paper attempts to explore this relation in the Syriac Fathers. Studies on the relationship between Mary and the Eucharist had appeared already in 1956 in an article of the famous Scholar of Voi-XXII2007

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Ephrem, Edmund Beck, who explored the Mariology of St Ephrem. 1 The studies of P. Krtiger, Ortiz de Urbina and Robert Murray contribute much in this direction. 2 However, two articles which appeared in 1978 and 1979, by Pierre Yousif and Sebastian Brock, deal exclusively with Mary and the Eucharist in Ephrem and other Syrian Fathers. 3 These studies and the new texts published after them show that the relation of Mary with the Eucharist is a familiar theme in the Syriac tradition, which exposes the theology of the Eucharist in a Marian perspective. Here we explore the relevant texts in the Odes of Solomon, the works of Aphrahat, Ephrem, the topmost herald of Mariological Eucharistic theology, Narsai, Joseph the visionary and prominent liturgical commentators in the East Syrian and the West Syrian traditions. 1. The Odes of Solomon: Virgin and the Cup of Milk The Odes of Solomon, the second century collection of Syriac hymns, is the first work to relate Mary to the Eucharist. Pointing to Mary's cooperation with the dispensation of the Trinity, and especially with the Holy Spirit, the Eucharist is presented as the pure milk of the love of God. A cup of milk was offered to me, And I drank it in the sweetness of the Lord's kindness. 1 2

3

E.D. Beck, "Die Mariologie der echten Schriften Ephrams," Orìens Christianus 40 (1956) 22-40. Cf. P. Krüger, "Mary und kirche in der ältesten Syrischen Vaterliteratur," in Marie et Ecclesia. Acta Congressus Mariologici-Mariani Ciritate Lourdes anno celebrati Vol III: de parallelismo Mariani inter Ecclesiam (Rome 1959) 110-136; Ortiz de Urbina, " La Vergine Maria nella teologia di san Efrem," SympSyr 1972 ( O C A 197 Rome 1974,65-103; R. Murray, Symbols of the Church and Kingdom, A Study in Early Syriac Tradition, 2nd ed, New Jersey 2004. P. Yousif, "la Virge marie et L'Eucharistie chez saint Ephrem de Nisibe, et dans la Patristique Syriaque enterieure," Etudes Mariâtes 36/7 (197880) 51 -52; S.P. Brock, "Mary and the Eucharist, an Oriental Perspective," Studies in Syriac Spirituality, J . Vellian, ed. ( S C S 13) Poona 1988. Originally published in Sobornost/ECR 1:2 (1979) 50-59; P. Yousif, "la Virge marie et L'Eucharistie chez saint Ephrem de Nisibe, et dans la Patristique Syriaque enterieure," Etudes Mariales 36/7 (1978-80) 51-52.

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The Son is the cup, And the Father is He who was milked; And the Holy Spirit is She who milked Him; Because His breasts were full And it was undesirable that His milk should be ineffectually released. The Holy Spirit opened Her bosom, And mixed the milk of the two breasts of the Father. Then She gave the mixture to the generation without their knowing, And those who have received (it) are in the perfection of the right hand. The womb of the Virgin took (it) And she received conception and gave birth. So, the virgin became a mother with great mercies (Ode 19:3-7).4 The phrase "Son, the cup" (of the Father) refers to the Eucharist. This cup of life, which the Holy Spirit pours from the Father, is offered to the faithful through the incarnation, in which Mary's role is selfevident. Here one finds an integral reflection of the Eucharist, which is Trinitarian, where the role of Mary is also well articulated.5

2. Aphrahat (345): The Food of Life from Mary Aphrahat, the first Syriac Father, who is also known as the "Persian Sage" presents the relation of Mary and the Eucharist within the framework of a series of interrelated realities, such as the promise of salvation, the incarnation and the sacraments of the Church. In Demonstration chapter six, "On the spiritual community of Ihidayg (The Sons and Daughters of the Covenant), he explains the Eucharist in relation to incarnation, where the part of Mary is specified: In Demonstration VI, 6 Aphrahat writes: Henceforth, at the advent of the Child of the blessed Mary, The thorns are uprooted, 4 5

The Odes of Solomon, ed., trans., J.H. Charlesworth, Oxford 1973, 82. P. Yousif, "la Virge marie et L'Eucharistie," 51-52. Vol. XXII2007

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The sweat is removed, The fig-tree is cursed (Mt 21:19; Gen 1:19) Te dust is made into salt (Mt 5:13) The curse has been affixed to the cross (Col 2:14) The sharp sword (blade) has been removed from before the tree of life (And the tree) has been given as food to the faithful While paradise has been promised to the blessed, to both the virgins and qaddise, The fruits of the Tree of Life have been given as food to faithful, And to the virgins (Mt 25: 1-13) who do the will of God, The door is opened (Mt 7:13-14) And the path lies trodden out, And the fountain flows (Jn 7: 37-38) giving water to the thirsty, The table is set out (Ps 23: 5; Mt 22:4) And the banquet is ready, The fatted ox has been slain, And the cup of sal vation is mixed (Ps 116:13) Enjoyment has been prepared... 6 Here the history of salvation of the NT, which begins with Christ, the Child of Mary, culminates in the "cup of salvation", i.e., the Eucharist and heavenly banquet. The Eucharist is depicted as the fulfilment of the new salvation economy which begins with the advent of Christ from the blessed Mary. Thus, Aphrahat is the first Syriac Father to relate Mary * i;h the Eucharist. 3. Ephrem (+373) Ephrem, the theologian-poet is undoubtedly the most important Church Father to expose the manifold aspects of the relation between Mary and the Eucharist. The Mariology of Ephrem is deeply rooted 6

Aphrahat, Demonstrations I, trans and ¡ntro. K. Valavanolickal, (SEERI) Kottayam 2005, 139. The Harp

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in the incarnation event, in which God the Word puts on humanity. As the Mother of the incarnated God the Word, Mary is essentially related to the mysteries of Christ. 3.1. The Fruit of Life through Mary Just like Aphrahat, Ephrem also characterises the Eucharist as the fruit of the Tree of Life in the Paradise. Instead of the fruits of sins and punishments, the Eucharist is the fruit of blessings and joy. If the former - the fruit of sins and punishment — came through Eve, the latter, came through Mary (HNat 17:6). In the hymn on Azymes, Ephrem sings: Instead of the unleavened bread, which Egypt gave, The church gave the life-giving bread, If Eve gave the bread of toil, Mary gave the bread of rest (HAzym 6:6-7) Pointing to the contrast between Eve and Mary, Ephrem in his Commentary on Tatian's Diatessaron speaks of the Eucharist, which is a nourishment of salvation: Eve gave birth to the murderer, but Mary gave birth to the lifegiver. The former gave birth to him, who shed the blood of his brother, but the latter to him whose blood was shed by his brothers.7 The phrases, the "life-giver," and "the blood shed by his brothers" have allusions to the Eucharist also. 3.2. Mary and the Eucharist in the Pneumatological Perspective In The Hymn on Faith, Ephrem underscores the relation between Mary aiid the Eucharist in a pneumatological perspective. What takes place in the Eucharistic liturgy on the altar by the power of the Holy Spirit is in the image of what happened on Mary in incarnation (HFid 10,16; 18,10). The Fire and Spirit descended on Mary in incarnation. Ephrem points out that the same reality is found at Jesus' baptism in the river of Jordan and in the Eucharistic liturgy of the Church: 7

McCarthy, Saint Ephrem's Manchester 1993, 60. Vol. XXII2007

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In the womb that bore you are Fire and Spirit Fire and Spirit are in the river where you were baptised, And in the Bread and Cup are Fire and Spirit (HFid 10, 17)8 Tatian's Diatessaron and the gospel of Rabbula mention the descent of fire at the baptism of Christ. Ephrem also follows this tradition.9 3.3. The Bread and the Cup from Mary In his Address to Cenacle also Ephrem depicts Mary as "the sheaf' and "cluster" referring to her relation to and Eucharist: Blessed is the dwelling, in which was broken That Bread from the blessed sheaf! In thee was pressed The Cluster [that came] from Mary, The Chalice of salvation (HCruz 3, 9).10 3.4. Mary, the New Temple and New Tabernacle Ephrem illustrates Mary as the Temple where the Son dwells (HVirg 25,10). Instead of the tabernacle of the Old Testament, which bore the presence of God, Mary is the "symbol of the new tabernacle, the temporal tabernacle, in which was dwelling Emmanuel" (HVirg 25,11). 3.5. Mary and the Holy Communion In The Nisibean Hymns and in The Hymns ori Epiphany Ephrem says that, the bread which Christ breaks in the Holy Communion is the mystery of the body that is taken form Mary (CNis 46,11; HEpi 8,22). If Christ dwelt in Mary in a bodily manner, he dwelt in her in a spiritual manner as well (HNat 4, 130). In the same way, in the Holy Communion the faithful bear Christ in their pure hearts. Thus, Ephrem presents Mary as a true model for those who approach Holy Communion. 8 Brock, "Mary and the Eucharist," 31. 9 S.P.Brock, The Bible in the Syriac Tradition, SEERI Kottayam 1989, 25. 10 Cf. R. Murray, Symbols of the Church and Kingdom, 120.

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3.6. Mary, the Church and the Eucharist According to Ephrem, inasmuch as Mary is intimately united to Christ, She is united deeply with the mysteries of the Church as well. Church is the body of Christ (Dial IV, 15,16). If the Church is the spouse of Christ, it is related to Mary as well {HNat 6,6; 16,10). Mary and the Church are intimately related. Ephrem illustrates the relation between the historical body of Christ in the incarnation, the mystical body of Christ in the Church, and the sacramental body of Christ in the Eucharist. What we receive in the sacrament is in a way the fruit of Mary in the incarnation, which was typified through numerous OT events: From the thirsty earth gushes forth a Spring Sufficiently to satisfy the thirst of the peoples. From a virgin womb as if from a rock, Sprouted the Seed from which harvests have come. Joseph filled innumerable storehouses, But they were emptied out and consumed in the years of the famine The one True Ear [of wheat] gave bread, Heavenly bread without limit The bread that the firstborn broke in the desert Was consumed and passed away, although He multiplied it greatly. Once again he has broken new bread That ages and generations will not consume {HNat A, 84-89)."

3.7. Church, the Eternal Bethlehem Evoking the memory of Mary, Ephrem sings on Bethlehem, the house of bread, which in turn, is the house of the true bread of life. Referring to the prophesy of Isaiah on the virgin birth, Ephrem says that the Church realises the Emmanuel prophesy by Christ's dwelling in it. The Church is the new and eternal Bethlehem, where Christ is always present as the Shepherd, the Son and the nourishment: 11 Cf. Kathleen E. McVey, Ephrem the Syrian: Hymns, New York 1989,96. Vol. XXtl 2007

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Blessed are you, O Church, in whom rejoices Even Isaiah in his prophesy: 'Behold, a virgin will conceive and bring forth A child,' whose name is a great mystery, Two names were joined together and becomes one: Emmanuel. El is with you always, Who joins you with His members. Blessed are you O Church, by Micah who cried out 'A shepherd will come out form Ephrata.' For he came to Bethlehem to take From it the rod of Jesse and to rule the peoples.., You O church are the eternal Bethlehem, Since in you is the bread of life. (HNcit 25, 5-6).12 After exalting Mary on account of her Child, Ephrem goes straight on to the priests who celebrate the Eucharist in the sanctuary, who in turn "offers to the Father the Father's Child, the fruit plucked from the tree." Ephrem praises the consecrated hands that offer Him and the lips that kiss Him." u Ephrem reflects on the personality of Mary dynamically, referring to her role in the salvation economy, the result of which is extended to the Church and its celebration of the mysteries. 3.8. The Bread of the Eucharist in the Soliloquy of Mary Ephrem's portrayal of Mary's soliloquy, a song addresses to the infant Jesus in The Hymns on Nativity is remarkable. They speak of the beauty of Christ present in the sacrament of the Church, and the significance of faith and love, to appreciate the value of this mystery: (3) When I see Your outward image Before my eyes, Your hidden image Is portrayed in my mind. In Your revealed image 12 E. McVey, Ephrem the Syrian, 201-202. 13 Ibid., 203-204. The Harp

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I saw Adam, but in the hidden one I saw Your Father who is united with you. (4) Have you shown your beauty in two images to me alone? Let bread and the mind Portray You. Dwell in bread And in those how eat it. In hidden and revealed [form] Let Your church see you as does the one who bore You. (5) 'whoever hates Your bread is like that one Who hates Your body. A distant one Who loves Your bread [is like] a near one Who cherishes Your image. In bread and body The former and the latter have seen You. (6) Indeed, Child, Your bread is far more honourable Than Your body. For even the unbelievers Saw your body, but they do not see Your living bread. The distant ones rejoiced; Their portion surpassed that of the near ones Behold Your image is portrayed with the blood of the grapes Upon the bread and portrayed upon the heart By the finger of love with the pigments of faith. Blessed is He who made Graven images pass away by His true image (HNat 16, 4-7).14 Here Ephrem presents Mary as a witness to the Eucharist, who even foresees the beatitude of those faithful in the Church of her Son, who are able to see the face of Christ in this sacrament,.

3.9. Incarnation and Epiclesis: Christ the Pearl from Mary Another aspect of the relation between Mary and the Eucharist, which Ephrem likes to highlight is, the analogous nature of the dynamics that worked at in the incarnation, and the action of the 14 E. McVey, Ephrem the Syrian, 149-150. Vol. XXII2007

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Spirit in the epiclesis in the liturgy of Eucharist. Ephrem employs the myth of pearl formation in antiquity, according to which, pearls are formed when lightening struck the pearl oyster in the water. The fire of the lightening and water are the components in the formation of a pearl. Likewise, Ephrem contemplates on the mystery of incarnation. Christ, the pearl is formed by the power of the Fire on the Holy Spirit in the watery womb of the Virgin (HFid 81-85).15 Dr. Brock points out that the late fifth century West Syrian poet Jacob of Serugh applies this imagery in the epiclesis of the Eucharistic celebration: The Holy Spirit goes forth from the Father And descends, overshadows and resides on the bread, Making it the body Making it treasured pearls To adorn the souls that betrothed to him. 16 The Syriac Fathers, especially Ephrem, employ the typological interpretation, which opens the possibility of making a wide range of spiritual interpretations, linking the persons and events of the OT and NT together with the mysteries of the Church. That is why an accomplished poet like Ephrem is able to produce a web of interconnections form Adam to Christ the new Adam, Eve to Mary — the new Eve, and Mary to the Eucharist, from: the fruit of the Tree of Life of the paradise, to the fruit of the eternal life, the Eucharist of the Church, etc. 4. Narsai ( + 502) Narsai, the director of the famous Schools of Edessa and Nisibis is the First East Syriac Father who synthesised the Semitic styles of interpretation of Ephrem and Antiochene and Greek interpretations of Theodore of Mospsuestia (+ 428). Following Ephrem, Narsai also presents Mary and the fruit of her womb in a comprehensive worldview, i.e., linking to the fruits of incarnation to the Church and to its mysteries. 15 Brock, "Mary and the Eucharist," 35-36. 16 P. Bedjan, Homilies Selectae Mar Jacobi Sarugensis, Paris-Leipzig iv, 597; Brock, "Mary and the Eucharist," 38. The Harp

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4.1. Mary, the Abode of the New Temple Narsai illustrates Mary in the perspective of temple and sacrifice. He combines the aspect of sacrifice and the dwelling of Christ in Mary, who in turn is also a temple of God. In the metrical homily On Nativity, Narsai writes: By the power of the Spirit, he has willed to construct a temple in your womb. So that it might become (His) dwelling place and he might dwell therein through (His) good pleasure. Without the pigments (of human seed), He depicts an image on the tablet of your body, so that He might thereby signify the authority of His hidden Offspring (Nat 1:115).17 Referring to the bread and cup of the Eucharist, Narsai says that Christ, born of Mary, is the bread of life and the cluster of vine: In the first month Gabriel sowed conception in her ears And there sprang forth a stalk of the bread of life in the ninth. In April He grafted the power of vitality into the vine of her body; And she carried the cluster that gladdens the universe in the month of December (Natl, 200) 18 . Narsai's depiction of Mary as the vessel of the divine treasure, and palace of the presence of the king, are reminiscent of the mystery of the Eucharist, in which Christ is present in the heart and lives of the faithful. Mary carried the great wealth within her limbs And went forth to learn (the truth of) the vigilant one's words through experience The wealth-laden vessel entered the house of poor ones; And the barren womb suddenly became enriched at the sound of her words 17 F.G. McLeod, Narsai's Metrical Homilies, PO 181, Brepols 1979, 45. 18 McLeod, Metrical Homilies, 50-51. Vol XXII2007

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The castle of the king greeted the mother of the servant... The virgin carried the fulfilment of the mysteries and the expectation of the gentiles (Nat 1, 210-211). 19 In his Commentary on the Mysteiy of the Eucharist Narsai speaks of the incarnated body of Christ, as a "reasonable temple that the Holy Spirit built in the bosom of Mary." 20 4.2. The Annunciation and the Epiclesis The mystery of the annunciation is the point of departure of Narsai's theological reflections on the mystery of the Eucharist in his liturgical homilies. The coming and overshadowing of the Holy Spirit on Mary in incarnation is a paradigm to explain the theology of both baptism and Eucharist in Narsai. In his commentary "On Baptism and Mysteries of the Church" Narsai explains that just as Mary listened and submitted to the Word of God in the annunciation, and as a result incarnation took place, in baptism, through the words of prayer at the epiclesis, the water in the baptismal font attains a new life. 21 In the commentary on the liturgy of the Eucharist, Narsai says that the bread and wine are turned into the body and blood of Christ through the overshadowing of the Holy Spirit in the epiclesis similar to that happened (on Mary) in the incarnation. 22 5. Joseph Hazzaya (8th Century): Mary and the Holy Communion In the Syriac spiritual literature also Mary is presented as a perfect model for those who receive communion. Joseph Hazzaya (Joseph the Seer) compares the spiritual experience of Holy Communion to that of Mary, who conceived God the Word in the incarnation. He teaches that those who receive Eucharist must receive Him like Mary in the incarnation.

19 McLeod, Metrical Homilies, 51. 20 Horn 17, "Exposition of the Mysteries," R.H. Connolly, Homilies of Narsai, Cambridge 1905, 14. 21 Horn 21, R.H. Connolly, Liturgical Homilies, 50 22 Horn 17, R.H. Connolly, Liturgical Homilies, 20-21. The Harp

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May I receive you, not in the stomach which belongs to the limbs, but into the womb of my mind, so that you may be conceived there, as in the womb of the Virgin.23 6. The Fathers of the Syrian, Greek and Latin Traditions This interpretation of the mystery of the Eucharist in terms of the dynamics in incarnation is not an isolated phenomenon in the East Syrian tradition alone; rather it is a common feature in the early Roman, the late Greek and the West Syrian traditions as well. For example, St. Justin the Martyr (165) in his Apology 61 interprets the body and blood of Christ in Eucharist in terms of the incarnation: For we do not receive these things as common bread or common drink; but just as our Saviour Jesus Christ, being incarnate through the word of God, took flesh and blood for our salvation, so too we have been taught that the food over which thanks have been given by a word of prayer which is form him, the (food) from which our flesh and blood are fed by transformation, is both the flesh and blood of that incarnate Jesus. 24 St. John Damascene (+749) teaches that just as the Holy Spirit overshadowed on Virgin Mary in the incarnation, in the Eucharist, the Holy Spirit is sent on the bread and wine, and they are turned into the body and blood of Christ. 25 The West Syrian commentators Moses Bar Kepha (+903) and Dionysius Bar Salibi (+1171) makes similar interpretations. 2 6 Timothy II, the Last East Syrian commentator who made a comprehensive synthesis of the Eucharistic theology of the Church of the East says that "the same Holy Spirit 23 S.P. Brock, The Syriac Fathers on Prayer and Spiritual Life, Kalamazoo 1987,360; id., Bride of Light, Hymns on Mary form the Syriac churches, SEERI, Kottayam 1994, 12. 24 Apol 61, 1: R.C.D JASPER & G.J. CUMING, Prayers of the Eucharist: Early and Reformed: Texts Translated and Edited with Commentary, 3rded. New York 1987, 29. 25 Dormition of Mary, PG 94:517-1278. 26 Moshe Barkepha, R.H. Connolly and H.W. Codrington, Two Commentaries of the Jacobite Liturgy, London 1913, 60; Dionysisu Bar Salibi, Expositio Liturgicae, ed. & trans., H. Labourt (CSCO 13 scr. syr. 13) Louvain 1903, 67-68. Vol. XXII2007

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that bestowed on the natural body of Christ these things descends by his power upon the mysteries of our salvation and bestows on them as it were an anointing that comes from the sanctification of grace and through this hovering, he transforms them into the body and blood of Christ and p e r f e c t s them as i m m o r t a l and immutable.. ,"27 According to S.P. Brock, the interpretation of the Eucharist in Marian perspective is a common feature in Syrian theology.28 The liturgical commentators of both the East Syrian and the West Syrian traditions put forward the dynamics of incarnation as a paradigm to explain the mystery of the Eucharist. Conclusion In this brief exposition we have seen that Mary is a central figure in the Eucharistic theology of the Syriac Fathers. Mary is the point of reference, in illustrating the theology of the Eucharist. The divine intervention that took place in Mary is the paradigm to interpret the change that takes place in the bread and wine into the body and blood. Mary is also a model for those who receive communion. (1) The typological interpretation of the history of salvation by the Syriac Fathers facilitated them to link Mary to the events and persons preceding and following her life-time. Thus, they were able to connect the Mysteries in the OT and the NT as well as in the mysteries of the Church like Eucharist to Mary. (2) At the same time the historical interpretation, which lays emphasis on the incarnation also places Mary in the central stage. Incarnation is the crucial turning point of the salvation history, and Mary's active role of submission, and reception of the Word of God is of paramount importance. (3) The emphasis on epiclesis in the Syriac liturgies themselves is perhaps the most important factor that prompted the Syriac Fathers to interpret Eucharist in a Marian perspective, where the sacramental realism could easily be interpreted in the light of the dynamics of 27 Timothy II, The Mystery of the Eucharist, trans, J. Kochuparampil, Rome 2000, 46. 28 S.P. Brock, "Mary and Eucharist, 50-59. The Harp

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incarnation. The overshadowing of the Holy Spirit on the Virgin made incarnation a reality. Therefore they find a parallel between the incarnation and the Eucharist. It led to the explanation that the coming into being of Christ occurs only through the power of the Holy Spirit, whether in the incarnation in a physical way, or in the mysteries of the Church in a mystical or sacramental way. Here the true protagonist is not Mary, but the Holy Spirit. That is why the Syriac Fathers are able to weave the web of interconnection further linking the epiclesis to the resurrection of Christ, which in turn is also the result of the action of the Holy Spirit. This goes on further then that; those who receive the Holy Eucharist will benefit its effects of remission of sins and eternal life. The incarnation, where Mary plays a proactive role, is the point of departure of this web of interconnections. (4) Instead of looking into the philosophical and scientific categories, the Syriac Fathers tend to interpret the mystery of the Eucharist in terms of the dynamics of incarnation, where the divine role of the Holy Spirit, and the submission to it by human role in the person of Mary are emphasised. Mary's intimate union with her Son and His Church enables her to be an eternal model for those who receive communion and witness to the mystery of Eucharist in their lives. Syriac Fathers' integral approach to the Eucharist, which is trinitarian, ecclesial, pneumatological, and significantly Mariological, offers an alternative theology of the Eucharist that complement or transcends its philosophical interpretations.

Jose Kochuparampil, Mar Thoma Vidyanikethan 686101 Kerala, India [email protected]

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10. When He made this intricate design He varied its beauties, so that some levels were far more glorious than others. To the degree that one level is higher than another, so too is its glory the more sublime In this way He allots the foothills to ilie most lowly, the slopes to those in between and the heights to the exalted. 11. When the just ascend its various levels to receive their inheritance, with justice He raises up each one to the degree that accords with his labours; each is stopped at the level whereof he is worthy, there being sufficient levels in Paradise for everyone: the lowest parts for the repentant, the middle for the righteous, the heights for the victorious, while the summit is reserved for God's Presence. Ccontinued in page 310)

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'HIDDEN WORK' O F THE HEART IN LIBER GRADUUM

Introduction The Syriac Book of Steps1, generally considered to be written in the 4th century, is a deposit of the Syriac pre-monastic vision of spiritual life and spiritual growth in Christian life. Rather than enforcing stratification in spiritual life, the Book of Steps explains the dynamics of spiritual life as a way, a journey in progress, to the perfection and further growth (LG VI) that needs the constant activity of the heart. BS on the one hand gives specifications on the Syriac spirituality of the heart and on the other provides a detailed description on the 1

The Book of Steps is a fourth century work of Syriac Christianity. The author is still unidentified. It deals with the different levels of spiritual realization, namely the levels of 'uprightness' and 'perfection'. The Syriac title is ktaba dmasqata. The key term masqata can be rendered as 'steps', 'grades', 'degrees', 'ascents'. The generally accepted English title of the book is Book of Steps. When Michael Kmosko edited the Syriac text for Patrologia Syriaca 3 (Paris, 1926) the Latin translation of the title was given as Liber Graduum. A full English translation with a good introduction and bibliography by Robert A. Kitdhen and Martien F.G. Parmentier, is available from Cistercian Publications, Kalamazoo, Michigan, 2004. In the present article the abbreviation LG is used for all references. References are furnished citing the number of the memra (homily) in Roman numerals and the paragraph numbers as presented in the mentioned English translation.

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needed work of the heart at all levels of the spiritual life. The invisible working of the heart is the starting point, means and medium of growth in Christian life. 1. Syriac Spirituality of the Heart In the Semitic Judeo-Christian understanding heart is the seat of intellect and emotions. Heart stands as the sense of senses. It is the heart that governs even the orientations of our intellectual p u r s u i t s , m o r a l b e h a v i o u r and e m o t i o n a l i n t e g r a t i o n s or disintegrations even. For the Syriac writers 'heart' means the centre of one's being. In this respect Syriac writers integrate the role of our physiological heart and the central controlling power of our intellect, will and emotions. There is the tendency to locate intellect, thought and will to the h e a d and as a c o n s e q u e n c e t h e r e e m e r g e s the dichotomy of the heart versus head, feeling versus reason, etc. In the Platonic and Neo-platonic view heart has a lower place in the spiritual geography. They accord more importance to intellect, reason and hence, head rather than heart. Thus heart is merely the seat of emotions. But in the Semitic eastern culture heart is the seat of intellect, reason and will. Heart is the centre of one's being and the controlling factor of actions. This is closer to the biblical anthropology. For the Hebrews in the Semitic culture this dichotomy is baseless as the heart is the seat of feelings, emotions, intellect, reason and wili. This basic perception makes substantial difference in the spiritual outlook especially in the Syriac Christian spirituality. Spirituality of the heart with its view of heart as the centre of all acts of the inner person describes a more biblical outlook. St. Paul calls it the centre of one's inner self (Rom 7:22). Heart is at the same time the focal poi nt of our physical existence. In general heart acts as the focal point of our two modes of existence, namely our physical and spiritual modes. Thus hear! governs our inner and outer person. Our body, as St. Paul teaches, serves as the 'temple of the Holy Spirit'. This is a holistic approach which LC) presupposes. The Harp

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2. Spirituality of the Heart and the Book of Steps (Liber Graduum) In the words of Liber Graduum, 'We do not fully understand why our Lord said, " In my Father's house there are many places' (Jn 14:2). We do not also know fully why one ' sick' person heals himself more effectively than another, nor why by 'milk' one "child' becomes more healthy and beautiful than another, nor one person is blessed more than another by observing the commandments that are equally given to all' All these depend on one's own decision and the state of one's heart (LG I, 3). The state of the obedient heart and the hardness of the heart give external expressions in our actions. To all those who want to become perfect the Lord gave the Gospel. The actions of "good works' are the means to grow up on the steps of spiritual life (LG II, 1). "Good works' issue out of the internal decisions of the heart which are the first steps for any good work. Adam obeyed the evil one and thus defiled his heart and hence lost the purity of his heart (LG II, 6). It is according to the purity of the heart one goes up or down in the spiritual life, in the levels of 'uprightness' and 'perfection'. So mçmrâ XIV, 3 describes: Everyone is exalted according to his manner of life and according to his rank, his wearied mind, and the lowliness of his soul. As for the rest, everyone is rewarded in that world, whether good or bad, according to what he has done - whether good or bad - in this world. As the apostle said, 'We must all stand before the tribunal of Christ in order that each one of us may be rewarded [for] whatever he has done in his body' (2Cor 5:10). In all Christians there are the deposits (pledge, 'urbânâ) of the Holy Spirit and that of the sin in their heart (LG III, 11). This is the same state of Adam when he disobeyed and brought in a mixture of sin into himself. These deposits or pledges of the Holy Spirit and that of the sin are in different degrees and levels in different human beings; Eg. Martha's position was lesser than that of Mary (LG III, 13). Growth in spiritual life depends on the eradication of the faults from the heart or it depends on the purification of the heart (LG III, 4). Vol. XXII 2007

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One has to internally increase the pledge of the Holy Spirit and decrease the pledge to sin in the heart. Adam obeyed the evil one and was thus defiled in the heart loosing the purity of the heart (LG II, 6). One has to purify the heart. This inner purification of the heart is possible through taking up the concealed/hidden cross (sliba kasici, LG III, 10). Even before carrying the visible cross the carrying of the hidden cross in our heart has to take place. This is a mode of the hidden work of the heart that has to take place before every external/ visible cross bearing. Just as one is bound to the visible cross physically, one has to be initially bound in spirit to the concealed cross in an invisible/spiritual manner. The repentance of the publican, Zachaeus, Rahab, Samaritan woman and others are due to the hidden work of the heart. Education in the visible Church is necessary for making our body a temple and our heart an altar. So states the 12th memra: For our Lord and his first and last preachers did not erect in vain the Church and the altar and baptism, all of which are visible to physical eye. It is through these visible things, however, that we shall be in these heavenly things, which are invisible to eyes of flesh, our bodies becoming temples and our hearts altars (Heb 11:3; LG XII, 2). As our body becomes temple and our heart an altar in all purity, a new vision and perception emerge in us (LG VII, 2). By such a vision we see our enemies and murderers in another light and attain a new understanding of who our neighbour is. This new vision enables one to be all things to all at all times. 3. Spiritual Journey and Progress in Liber

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As it is evident, spiritual life is an engagement between the divine and human. At each level this journey has the passage through the physical to the spiritual, visible to the invisible space and time. There is a transition from the physical topography to the spiritual topography. The journey, although it is seen starting in the physical realm, has a spiritual/invisible beginning in the decisions of the heart. As the heart decides in an invisible manner, the person journies The Harp

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from the external observance to pure conscience and unshakable faith towards the truth and purity of the heart. This level is purely on the sacred space and time through which only the heart can travel and work (LG XVI, 9, 10). The journey that starts with faith leads to observance which in turn leads one to uprightness. From uprightness by the exercise of love one reaches the level of perfection (LG XVII, 1). Through faith and observance one uproots the faults and investigates the road to travel diligently to attain perfection (LG XIX, 1). From the unbelieving stage to the believing stage the journey is through the road of signs. Our Lord performed signs and wonders to bring people to belief. Once somebody starts believing he has to suffer with the Lord so as to be glorified with the Lord (LG XVII, 1). There is internal suffering in controlling the tendency to strike back at one's enemy. More than that, our Lord actually washed the feet of his enemies, in the case of Judas, before washing the feet of his friends like Simon Peter and others. As there are several levels for the spiritual journey (LG IX, 13-14), there are different commandments and scriptural teachings. The instructions of Jesus may seem contradictory if one does not understand the levels of applications and observances needed at different stages of spiritual life (LG XI). Scriptures are not addressed only to one type of people (LG XI, 1). There are commandments that are of 'milk and vegetables' which are minor and meant for children and the sick. There are commandments which are major, that of 'solid food', meant for the grown ups. There is the commandment. 'Do not associate with the immoral people' (ICor 5:9). Again the same scripture instructs, 'Be all things with all people' (1 Cor 9:22). If the 'infants' and 'sick' in faith associate with the immoral people, they will be negatively affected and perish. Whereas the grown up ones in faith, if they become all things with all people, including immoral people, instead of themselves perishing, they would gain the immoral and sick ones. Thus in the teachings of our Lord and the scriptures themselves we have to distinguish different levels of spiritual life and growth (LG XI, 1-3). Therefore, while reading the scriptures and Vol. XXII2GQ7

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understanding the teachings of the Lord each one has to distinguish his level and discern the commandments. As the journey progresses, the mind of the person transcends the place of evil and reaches the place of peace where our Lord resides (LG XV, 18). The journey upward is steep and narrow. It is a journey through fire and water. Hence, if one falls from the steep level he may be crushed. If he falls to one side there is fire that burns, and on the other side is the water that drowns all (LG XIX, 2). Every step is a covenant with Christ, and a refreshing from the Kingdom's table (Lk 22:30). If you turn back from the covenant, you will fall (from the steep height) down to Sheol. If you transgress the commandment, you will go to Gehenna. where there is fire. If you renounce Christ, you will be drowned in the hidden waters which are the teachings of the evil one (LG XIX, 2). On the onward journey the infants and the immature have to be strengthened; the sick have to be cured. Only the valiant (brave) ones travel on the road to perfection (LG XiX, 4-5). There are three difficult steps to the city of our Lord: (1) Be reconciled with all enemies of one's life, (2) One should not work for one's own self or out of selfishness, and (3) Raise up one' s pure hands and hearts to the Lord (LG XX, 1). At such a stage one is externally (by the works of hands) and internally (by the work of the heart) remaining pure so as to reach up to the abode of the Lord. In order to reach up to the Lord one needs to uproot all evil thoughts and sins from the heart. This is a very difficult step because in front of any valiant athlete sin stands up. Either the sin should be killed or it kills you. One has to battle with the internal death which Adam experienced when he transgressed the commandments, instead of gettirg killed as Adam, like a brave athlete one has to battle with evil thoughts in the heart and, if needed, as the scriptures advise, encounter blood shed and murder against sin internally (Heb 12:4). By this one can uproot the 'hidden death' which Adam suffered (LG XX. 4). Even if one becomes perfect he has to go still further. This is made clear from the imageries of palace building and chest making for the king. Good palace builders and good chest makers, after having buiit the needed structure in perfect form, request the king to The Harp

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inhabit in the palace and to fill the chest with pearls and valuables (LG VI, 2). Once the heart is purified, it becomes a palace or a chest which has to be filled with riches of virtues and treasures of good life leading to perfection. As one grows in perfection the entry into the bridal chamber of the Kingdom is the apt imagery (LG XX, 6) for depicting the crowning step of spiritual life.

4. Spiritual Progress and the Hidden Work of the Heart In every human deed there are hidden/invisible as well as manifest/visible elements. As human beings are with body and soul, all spiritual journeys have to take seriously into account all external works. In the words of LG nobody should dispute, saying, 'In our soul we shall be justified and shall heal our own illness' (LG X,7). Such disputes are from the evil one. Hence the author of Liber Graduum writes: Evil teaches us all these things, so that we might falter and not be diligent in our body and in our soul. But just as evil makes us believe that we work in our hearts, it makes us work neither in our heart nor in our body. For there is no one who accomplishes righteousness with his heart and does not also accomplish righteousness in his body, because, from the fullness of the heart, lips speak and, after the thought of the heart, the body moves. As the heart is humble, so the body will also be humble (LG X, 8). The Lord and all his prophets fasted fully with their bodies and souls (LG X,10). They had perfect conformity between their inner and outer works. Since their heart also worked in integration, they had hidden fasting, hidden prayer and hidden renunciation in their body that was a hidden temple and heart, a hidden altar (LG XII, 1). Corresponding to the visible baptism in the water there is the invisible baptism in fire and spirit (LG XII, 4). For the realization of this baptism in fire and spirit much hidden work of the heart is needed. One who is childish in spirit needs more visible work to get integrated in body and soul. But the adult in spirit knows the hidden work of the heart and he advances in the spiritual life (LG XII, 6). Adam desired food which means that he desired luxury and pleasures. Against such Vol. XXII20071

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desires the true fasting according to Isaiah has to be observed, "... break the bonds of iniquity and cut the burden of deceit" (Is 58:5-6). This is a spiritual sacrifice and true fasting (LG XXIX, 1, 2, 12) which are done by the invisible work of the heart. Corresponding to our visible garment we need the invisible garment through the hidden work of the heart (LG III, 9). There are people who are externally satisfied and clothed. Yet they may be internally naked and thirsty because they do not have the 'light', 'life' and 'Kingdom' (LG III, 9). The wedding garments of the kingdom are made out of good works. The proper wedding garment ready for the Lord's feast is the purified heart (LG XX, 14-17). For such a state of the heart we need to be afflicted internally in prayer with the Lord and shed tears for purification of the heart. Our hidden sins and evil thoughts will be removed and our hearts will be purified only by the hidden work done in the heart (LG XVIII, 4). Our Lord became human and assumed our sinful nature and showed us how to climb the difficult steps like an athlete (LG XX, 8). We have to pass through the steps of uprightness and perfection. In our journey, imitating our Lord, we have to be watchful, fasting, observing lowliness and crying out with many tears with supplication and with sweat of afflictions, as our Lord suffered. At such a point we will be filled with the Spirit, the Paraclete, and the Lord will come and stay with us. All these will happen only through the working of the heart. As the angel appeared and strengthened our Lord at the end of his sufferings, the Lord himself will come and save us (LG XX, 8). At such a level the "inbreathing" that was taken away from Adam that caused his death would be reversed and life will be in abundance (LG XXVIII. 4). The perfect integration of exterior and interior will take place and the biblical truth of the word, 'if two of vou agree on earth and keep my words, whatever you ask in prayer and believe, while keeping my words, you will receive' (Mt 18:19:21:22; Mk 11:24) will be accomplished. According to the author of Liber Gracliiuin these ?t\vo of you' are the 'interior' and 'exterior' of the person who perfectly agree in keeping the commandments. When these two realms of the person ask in agreement the gifts of the Holy Spirit will be added to them as a pledge and that person will T h e Harp

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307 be established as a trinity and live (LG XXVIII, 5). This will be the fruit of the "living sacrifice" (Rom 12:2) in which our whole person would be involved (LG XXIX, 4) where the working of the heart is crucial. 'Hidden work' of the heart in Liber Graduum

5. Journey of Self-realization through Self-denial and Humility The true self of every creature is in relationship with the creator Lord. If any creature turns away from the creator that would be a self-negation and self-destruction. Only if the creature negates or denies its own self-centeredness and remain related to its Creator there would be proper self-realization. Adam wanted to taste from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. This means he tasted from good and evil. He is a mixture of both, not at all perfect in goodness (LG XXI, 1). Adam had vanity and he thought that he would become like God. He was proud and his own self was placed in the first place than the commandment of God. So he had the fall. He was expelled from the spiritual/invisible paradise to the earthly paradise (LG XXI, 11). So the author of Liber Graduum writes: For nothing brought down Adam on the day of he fell, except the pride by which he desired to become the equal of God in his majesty. Too much pride forced him to depart from the paradise of the Kingdom and humbled him down to earth. My brothers, let us flee from pride lest we become salt whose flavour is lost, for it is not useful even for fertilizer (Mt 5:13), because it does not have any taste in order to salt from it offerings (Lev 2:13) and no field is fertilized by it nor is any wheat produced by it as our Lord said, 'Whoever exalts himself - like Jesus - will be exalted, just as he was exalted' (Mt 23:12; Lk 14:11; LG XXI, 11). Adam took for himself the image of majesty, so Christ took the image of the servant which is the perfect model of self-denial. In the spiritual journey and progress envisaged in Liber Graduum there are three levels of self-realization. The visible Church teaches infants for growth and the Church of the heart fortifies the sick and the higher Church perfects all (LG XII, 3). This is the path Vol XXII2C07

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Thomas Kollamparampil of self-realization from the stage of 'child in spirit' to the 'adult in spirit'. Adult in spirit has more powerful hidden/invisible works of the heart (LG XII, 6). Upright should abandon everything and thus attach the self to Lord. Like the Lord he has to suffer. All forms of sufferings with the Lord are for self-denial. All our external and internal sins have to be washed away. Such a purification is through the prayer of tears and groans (LG XVIII, 3). All these will bring us close to the Lord. When we are close to the Lord the Lord suffers with us in an invisible manner. There will be corporate suffering with the Lord. This in other words means walking in the 'image of the Lord' (LG XVII, 8). At such a stage one becomes a law unto himself (LG XXII, 10; XVIII, 5; XXV, 2). All these are happening through the change in the heart. Then the true reconciliation of the heavenly and earthly takes place through the work in the heart that is hidden/invisible (LG XXV, 2).

Conclusion In conclusion, as far as I understand, LG gives a very realistic and holistic picture of the spiritual life of Christians at different levels. The needed working of the heart at all levels are treated and practically described. The pendulum of Christian spiritual life and ascetical practices seen in LG swings in a balanced manner to the right and left, to the divine and human, to the visible and invisible, to the external and the internal activities of a person. Thus LG gives a holistic and practical spiritual guidance. The due importance given to the visible order of the Church, its altar and the sacraments in LG refutes the accusation of having Messalianism and contempt for the external order and observances in the Church. LG while focusing on the higher steps of spiritual life, deals with the inner levels of the heart, may seem to be disregarding the externals. In fact the author of LG is concerned with the higher levels of spiritual life that concentrate on the invisible internal levels of the heart. LG, as and when it deals with the higher levels of the hidden work of the heart and the purity of the heart, in the perfect ones, The Harp

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speaks with a tone of high spiritualizing tendency. At the same time when it comes to the case of belief and practices of the upright LG is very down to earth. It enlightens the needed purity of the work of hands. Thus we find the instruction to blend the works of hands (external) and the work of the heart (internal) in LG. This is in view of being with the Lord with pure hands and pure heart so that the offerings might be pure spiritual sacrifices. In general as LG deals with all grades of spiritual life and provides concrete instruction to all levels of Christians. Such a Syriac treatise on Christian spiritual life is quite relevant to our times when there is plurality and diversity in Christian understanding of spiritual life and progress. The teachings of LG need to be hermeneutically approached and explained to the modern Christian society. Social life in general, at present, is full of much evil, imperfection and ill will. Love of one's neighbour, in its wider and horizontal dimensions, is ignored in the world of globalization, commercial mentality filled with consumerism and egoism. All such evils are actually issuing from the heart. Hence, a true purification of the heart and a pilgrimage to perfection through different steps demanded by LG are all the more relevant in the Church and the society today. Here the teaching of our Lord is doubly meaningful: "Not what goes into the mouth defiles a man, but what comes out of the mouth, this defiles a man. ... But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a man. From out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, fornication, theft, false witness, slander" (Mt 15:11,18, 19). Rev. Dr. Thomas Kollamparampil CMI Dharmaram Vidya Kshetram, Bangalore, India

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ST EPHREM: A GARLAND OF PRAYER SONGS (continued from page 298)

12. Noah made the animals live in the lowest part of the Ark; in the middle part he lodged the birds, while Noah himself, like the Deity, resided on the upper deck. On Mount Sinai it was the people who dwelt below, the priests round about it, and Aaron halfway up, while Moses was on its heights and the Glorious One on the summit. 13. A symbol of the divisions in that Garden of Life did Moses trace out in the Ark and on Mount Sinai too; he depicted for us the types of Paradise with all its arrangements: harmonious, fair and delectable in everything * in its height, its beauty, its fragrance, and its different species. Here is the haven of all riches whereby the Church is depicted. (Translated by Prof.

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ASPECTS OF THE IDEA OF «CLEAN A N D UNCLEAN» A M O N G THE BRAHMINS, THE JEWS, A N D THE ST. T H O M A S CHRISTIANS OF KERALA 1.00

Comparison is often made between the customs and traditions of the Thomas Christians and the Jews 1 on the one hand, and between those of the Thomas Christians and the Brahmins (i.e. the Nampoothiri or Malayalee Brahmins) 2 on the other. 1

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Vide Veilian, Jacob, "A Jewish Christian Community", The St. Thomas Christian Encyclopaedia of India, Vol. II, Trichur, 1973, Ed. George Menachery, p.73 ff.; Mathew, E. P., "The Knanaya Community of Kerala", id., ibid.; id.,"The Malankara Syrian Knanaya Christian Community", Jacob Stephen; Koder, S., "History of the Jews of Kerala", id., pp.183 -185. All the above articles have been reproduced in the Thomapedia, Ed. Prof. George Menachery, Ollur, 2000. Also cf. the many related papers in St. Thomas Christians and Nambudiris, Jews, and Sangam Literature: A Historical Appraisal, Ed. Bosco Puthur, L R C Publications, Mt. St. Thomas, Kochi, 2003. Cf.: Placid Podipara, "Hindu in Culture, Christian in Religion, Oriental in Worship", in The St. Thomas Christian Encyclopaedia of India, Vol. II,

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1.01 This paper attempts, adhering to the spirit of the theme of this conference, where the Syro-Judaic traditions are studied vis-a-vis the Syrian Christian traditions of Kerala and India, to outline aspects of the idea of "Clean and Unclean" among the Brahmins, the Jews, and the St. Thomas Christians or Nazranies as they are often designated, and to examine the common traits in these three sets of customs and beliefs regarding the idea of "Clean and Unclean". The overriding concern for "Cleanliness" -more importantly the desire to avoid pollution -dominates, or used to dominate, the ritual and daily life of all these three communities to the detriment of comfort, convenience, and even the unhampered pursuit of the common activities of the vast majority of people around them. It even stands frequently in the way of showing consideration, nay even common courtesy to others.

1.02 To study the prevalence of ideas of "Clean and Unclean" (Shuddham and Ashuddham) among the Brahmins the writer has mainly depended on the works and precepts of the sages 1 and elders

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Trichur, 1973, Ed. George Menachery, pp. 107-112; "Malabar Christian Customs and Manners", reproduced in The St. Thomas Christian Encyclopaedia of India, Vol. II, Trichur, 1973, Ed. George Menachery, pp.126 -127 from D. Ferroli, The Jesuits in Malabar, Vol.I, Bangalore, 1939; STCEI, II, "Culture and Traditions of the Thomas Christians", Joseph Kolengaden, pp.127 -131; STCEI, II, "Character and Life Style of Thomas Christians" by Alexander Cherukarakkunnel, pp. 131 -133. [The writings mentioned in notes 1 & 2 contain much bibliographical information for the topics dealt with, q.v..] Listed below are, e.g. the 64 practices and customs ("Anaachaarams") believed to have been established by Sankaraachaaryar (788 - 820 AD) specially for the Malayaala Braahmanans or the Namboothiries of Kerala. Since these are not followed anywhere else, they are called "Anaachaarams" or non-conventions. The: following list has been chiefly copied from the Nampoothiri website for convenience, the # sign and the ~~~ signs have been added by the present writer, as also a few English words in parenthesis inside square brackets in order to make the meaning a little clearer perhaps. Also cf. the list appearing in the three volume Travancore State Manual edited by V. Nagam Aiya, Trivandrum, 1906, at pp. 267 - 271, Vol. Ill, Ch. IX, where The Harp

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of the community and of kindred communities as well as on the few under "Caste" Keralaaeharams as distinct from East Coast customs of Brahmins are listed with annotations and discussed. Recently Dr. M. G. S. Narayanan has observed that these Anaacharams and caste o b s e r v a n c e s c o u l d have been p r e s c r i b e d by s o m e later Sankaraacharyar ("Introduction", Menachery, George, Glimpses of Nazraney Heritage, Qllur, 2005): # Do not use twigs (a common practice elsewhere) for brushing teeth. # During the daily bath, do not bathe with the clothes worn till then. # Do not use the clothes worn till bath for wiping the body after bath (as a towel). # Do not bathe before sunrise. # Do not cook before bathing. # Do not use water stored (drawn from well) on the previous day for the next day's use. While performing daily rites, do not seek any results, be detached. # Excess water after "Soucham" [washing after using the latrine], "Aachamanam" ("Kaalukazhukal") [washing the feet], etc. shall not be used for other purposes. # Braahmanans, desirous of purity ("Suddhi")["Cleanliness"] shall bathe if they touch "Soodran", etc. # Bathe if lower caste persons come close. # Bathe (in a different pond), if the water in a pond is touched, if the same has been touched earlier by a lower caste person. # Bathe upon stepping on the ground which has been swept with broom, but has not been sprinkled with water. "Bhasmam" (ash), etc. are to be smeared first vertically once and then horizontally in three lines. # Braahmanans while performing rituals, shall chant "Manthrams" themselves. # Do not use previous day's food. # "Echil"(leftover food) of even children shall not be eaten by pious Braahmanans. Food items ("Nivedyam") offered to Lord Sivan are not to be consumed. # Food served with hand shall not be eaten. # Buffalo milk and ghee prepared from it shall not be used for religious rituals. # Rice shall be eaten only in the form of balls ("urula"), but such balls shall not be kept in the leaf as leftover. # If one is polluted in any form ("Asudhham") [defiled, polluted], even betel-chewing is prohibited. A "Brahmachaari" (boy during the period between Upanayanam and Samaavarthanam) shall observe: "Nishthha" and "Vratham". "Gurudakshina" (appropriate offerings to the teacher) must be given after completing the study of Vedam. Vol. XXII2007

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works of an anthropological nature that exist independently or as # Vedam shall not be recited on the streets. # "Shodasakarmams" shall be performed during the prescribed periods. Girls shall not be sold. "Vrathams" shall not be observed with the expectation of any results in mind. # Women who touch another woman in period, shall have to bathe before eating. Braahmanans shall not spin thread. Braahmanans shall not do the work of washermen. Only Braahmanans are permitted to perform Siva Pooja on "Rudraaksham" (seed of the plant Eloeocarpus ganitrus), etc. Braahmanans shall not receive "Sraadhha Dakshina" (ritual offer on the death anniversary) from a "Soodran". Braahmanans shall perform "Sraadhham" of their father's and mother's parents. Sraadhham shall be performed on every "Amaavaasi" (new moon) day. Upon the father's or mother's death, one shall observe "Deeksha" for one year. At the end of Deeksha on the 12th month, "Sapindi" shall be performed. If "Pula" or Asoucham comes during the Sapindi period, wait till Pula is over. Sraadhham day is reckoned based on the star of the month ("Nakshathram"). Children after being given for adoption to another family, shall perform Sraadhham of their own parents. Cremation shall be in own land. "Samnyaasi" (Saint) shall not look at women. "Samnyaasi" shall not perform Pindam nor Sraadhham. No ritual is performed when a Samnyaasi dies. A Braahmana woman shall not look at any man other than her husband, father, grandfather or their brothers on either side. Antharjanams (Namboothiri women) shall not move out of the house without a maid. — T h e y shall wear only white dress. — T h e y shall not pierce the nose. "Bhrashtu" (excommunication) is imposed on a Braahmanan who consumes alcohol. "Bhrashtu" is imposed also if he sleeps with any other Braahmana woman. "Pretham" (spirit) [ghost] shall not be consecrated in temples. # The idols in temples ("Deva Prathishthha") shall not be touched by "Soodrans", etc. # Offerings made to one god shall not again be proffered to another god. Marriages and other "Karmams" shall not be performed without "Hornam". Braahmanans shall not bless each other, for, they are equals. The Harp

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4

part of general historical works ; for the Jews the OT, the NT and the various commentaries were chiefly made use of; and for the Thomas Christians in addition to the few scattered remarks that deal with the matter in well-known works 5 , the personal experience of the writer and the knowledge gathered from parents, grandparents, and other elders, and from the observation of the conscious and unconscious behaviour of the members of the community have been made use of. There is a vast fund of material that deals with these issues scattered in a plethora of works which aught to be systematically tapped, not just in a paper like this, but at least by way of a doctoral thesis or two 6 , and the earlier such detailed studies are undertaken, and more scientifically, the more will be the material available to investigate, both in the form of documents and living customs, and in the form of personnel in the know who are still in our midst.

4

5 6

They shall also not prostrate before each other. Do not sacrifice cows. Saiva, Vaishnava and other such distinctions shall not exist. Only one "Poonool" (Yajnopaveetham, sacred thread) should be worn by Braahmanans even after marriage. Only the eldest son in the family shall marry an Antharjanam. # Sraadhham shall be performed only using rice. Non-Braahmanans are not eligible to enter into Samnyaasam. "Kshathriyans" and others shall perform Sraadhham for maternal uncles, since they follow matrilineal system. A woman whose husband is dead, shall enter into Samnyaasam. Braahmana women shall follow "Paathivrathyam" (chastity) strictly, but are prohibited from performing "Sathi" (immolation on husband's funeral pyre). These are the primary customs prescribed by Bhaargavan. But Bhaargava Smruthi contains a large number of less important practices ("Aachaarams"). " Vide, e.g., the lengthy and detailed study by K. P. Padbanabha Menon, History of Kerala, Vol. I, Ernakulam, 1924, Ed. T. K. K, Menon, Notes on Letter 1, (5) "Descent of Namburi Brahmins", pp.20 -22; (8) "Advent of Brahmins", pp.76 -83. Also cf. entries in the two editions of the Travancore State Manual, one edited by Nagam Aiya in three Volumes (Trivandrum, 1906), and the other by T. K. Velu Pillai in four Volumes (Trivandrum, 1940). Such as the wprks mentioned in note 3 supra. The writer is not forgetting the few theses that already exist on related topics.

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2.00 Before launching into a study of the ideas about "Clean and Unclean" among these three communities it will be profitable to take a quick look at the similarities that exist in their other more well known customs, practices, and beliefs. As this assembly is made up of Christians mainly, and as we are meeting in a predominantly Hindu locality let us commence by comparing the Christian customs and Brahmin customs first, bearing in mind the special relationship Kerala Brahmins have always had with west coastal Brahmins of the Konkan Coast, rather than with Paradesi or Tamil Brahmins 7 . The similarities in the customs of Kerala Brahmins and Bengali Brahmins also have been noticed by certain scholars. 8 The following are only a few of the points of comparison between the general customs of the socalled Syrian Christians 9 or Thomas Christians and the customs of the Kerala Brahmins. As the consensus among modern scholars of Kerala history, like Dr. M.G.S. Narayanan and Dr.Veluthatt Kesavan is that the Nambuthiri Brahmins arrive in Kerala only many centuries after the existence of Christian communities there it is quite possible that many of the customs and manners of the latter were imitated or 7

8

9

Reference may be made to the doctoral thesis of Dr. Veluthatt Kesavan and his recent paper for a seminar at Mt. St. Thomas, Kakkariad, "The Nambudiri Community: A History" , reproduced in St. T h o m a s C h r i s t i a n s and N a m b u d i r i s , Jews, and S a n g a m Literature: A Historical Appraisal, Ed. Bosco Puthur, L R C Publications, Kochi, 2003. Another paper, by Dr. M. G. S. Narayanan , on the Nambudiri migrations also is printed in the same volume. Both papers refer to the special relationship that existed and exists between the Konkan Brahmins and the Kerala Brahmins, i.e. the Nambuthiries. Vide, e^g., the lengthy and detailed study by Dr. L. A. Ravi Varma, "Castes of Malabar" in the Kerala Society Papers, [General Editor: T. K. J o s e p h ] S e r i e s 9. 1932, a l i a s Vol. II, 1997 reprint, ThirMVahanthapuram, Gazateers Dept., Govt, of Kerala, pp.171 - 204. Syrian Christians of Malabar or Kerala are Christians who use East Syriac as the language of their liturgy (the Syro Malabarians), or later on commencing with the arrival of Mar Grdgorios of Jerusalem (1665?) West Syriac also (the Orhodox, the Jacobites, and now the SyroMalankarites), The term does not carry any biological connotation except perhaps for the Knanaya Christians.

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10

borrowed by the former. The similarities outlined below are only indicative, and not exhaustive. 2.01 In both communities, i.e. Kerala Christians and Kerala Brahmins, women wear only predominantly white dress. Among Brahmins of the East Coast only widows use white dress. 2 & 3 Otherwise dark reds, blues, greens etc. are used by Brahmin women outside Kerala. 2.02 For both communities, Kerala Christians and Kerala Brahmins, piercing the nose for nasal ornaments is taboo. For all Brahmin women elsewhere nasal ornaments are customary. 2 & 3 2.03 Architecture of residential houses of Upper Caste Hindus and Christians was almost identical, both residing in Nalukettu and Ettukettu houses, respectively having one inner courtyard surrounded by four (nalu) halls (cf. Span, courtyard - patio -; Ital. cortile; Rom. Atrium), and having two inner courtyards surrounded by eight (ettu) halls.11 2.04 Architecture of churches and temples was alike. Cf. Temple Architecture of Kerala , Dept. of Archaeology, Govt, of Kerala, 10 For a detailed discussion cf. Essay One : "Christianity Older than Hinduism in Kerala", in George Menachery, Glimpses of Nazraney Heritage, Ollur, 2005. This essay may be read with slight variations in the Satna Diocesan Jubilee Seminar Papers, 1999; in the World Syriac Conference 2001 papers, reproduced by SEERI in the HARP, Kottayam; in the Journal of St. Thomas Christians, Rajkot, Vol. 15, No. 1, 2004, pp.33 - 42; in the Light of Life, New York, N. Y.; and now in the Souvenir of the Seminar Conference on the History of Early Christianity in India, Concordia University, New York, 13th - 16th Aug., 2005. 11 "Thomas Christian Architecture", Menachery James (Dr. E.J.) inSTCEl, II, Ed. G. Menachery, 1973, see section Domestic Architecture pp. 148 - 149; Menachery, George, Pallikkalakalum Mattum, Trichur, 1984; Menachery, George, Pallikalile Kala, Mathrubhoomi Weekly, March 28, [with forty illustrations], Kozhikode, 1978; for plans of Thomas Christian Naalukettu (Ollur) and Ettukettu (Kattur) see Thanima, September, 2005, Alwaye. Vol. XXII2007

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Trivandrum, and Andrews Athappilly, "Ch urch Architecture of Kerala", STCEI, II, 1973, as also id. James Menachery, "Thomas Christian Architecture". Remember how Vasco da Gama and company mistook a temple for a church and worshipped Kali or Bhagavathy thinking it was Our Lady (BVM). To avoid the similarity between the temple and the church the Portuguese introduced the "facade"in Kerala churches as an extension of the wall separating the nave or Hykala from the portico or Mukhamandapam of the church. Also see the hundreds of photographs by this writer - in the STCEI II (1973)and the Indian Church History Classics, Vol. I, The Nazranies (1998). 2.05 Both in front of many churches (e.g. Kallooppara, Niranam, Kundra, Chengannur), and the majority of temples there are rock (granite) lampstands [photos by the present writer in The Nazranies & STCEI II & Pallikkalakalum Mattum; the Trichur (Arch)diocesan Centenary Volume (articles and pictures by the present writer) and the CBCI2004 Trichur Volume (articles and pictures by the present writer). 2.06 In front of both the churches and temples there are flagstaff's. (See 2.05) 2.07 Both communities are patriarchal, unlike the family system of the Sudras (Nairs) who follow the matriarchal system. 2.08 Both communities hold menstruation and delivery to be occasions of pollution, demanding elaborate ablutions and purificatory ceremonies. 2.09 Both communities have many customs connected with child birth (e.g. feeding the babe with powdered gold and honey). In the eleventh month the child is ceremoniously fed with rice for the first time. Mangoose teeth and panther toes worked in gold were part of the children's ornaments. The Harp.

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2.10 Ceremonies connected with marriage like ceremonial baths, Manthrakodi or Pudava (bridal cloth or veil), Thali or Minnu - the gold ornament signifying marriage tied by the groom adorning the bride's neck until "death do them part" - are all to be found among the Brahmins and the Christians in an identical style. Similarly death and funeral ceremonies like Pula, keeping legal defilement for a certain number of days, Shradham or the several feasts in memory of the dead were common to these communities. There are several more customs, common to these two communities of Christians and Brahmins alone, which we are not enumerating for fear of exceeding the time and space limits prescribed by the organizers. 3.00 Similarly there are a number of general customs and manners common to the Judaic and Thomas Christian traditions. Here one must note the existence of a particular community of Syrian Christians or Thomas Christians who trace their descend to Thomas Kinai or Cana or K'nai and his party. Naturally Jewish customs are more prevalent in that community of Knanaya Christians than among the vast majority of Thomas Christians. However as many Jewish and Old Testament customs are to be met with in Christianity all over the world here one might be content merely to enumerate a few customs found commonly among the Jews and the Thomas Christians in general. 3.01 The Thomas Christians abstained from work on feasts and on Sundays. This abstention may be compared to the Jewish abstention from work on the Sabbath. Maffeus says:" When the sun sets they [Thomas Christians] could work on Sundays, because Monday is then begun."12 Again Fr. Jerome: "In the same way, also on Sunday 12 Joseph Pascal Neelankavil, "Feasts of the Thomas Christians," article in STCEl II, Ed. George Menachery, Trichur, 1973, p.113, rt. col.; alias The Thomapedia, Ollur, 2000, 113 >g.

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evening they can work", Gouvea's words are similar: "They may work after sunset (on Sundays), because it is already Monday". 14 Fr. Paolino of St. Bartholomeo writes: "The feast began at the first vespers of the feast, in such a way that in that hour they used to close all the shops and end all day's work. They do not start them again until after the second vespers." 15 3.02 The similarity in the celebration of the Pascal feast between the Jewish customs 16 and the Kerala Christian customs is noteworthy. In this there was very little difference between the Knanaya community and the other Thomas Christian communities. "Though a Pascal lamb is not used, certain elements of this meal allude to the Jewish Passover, as, for instance, the unleavened bread, the wine ["milk"], the time of the meal, the ordinary supper preceding, the standing position, the respect and reverence pervading the scene, the annual commemoration of the wonderful works of God, the bitter herbs, almsgiving, and the singing of hymns." 17 13 14 15 16

Id., ibid. Id., ibid. Id., ibid. "The feast of the Passover is celebrated by Jews in memory of their deliverance from Egypt in the time of Pharaoh Rameses II. It is a feast lasting a week in the spring, and during that time the only bread Jews can eat is Matzah, or unleavened bread. Matzah was the bread baked by the Hebrews in the Sinai desert during the Exodus. Wheat flour is mixed with water but without the addition of yeast. When the mixture is baked the loaf is flat, or unleavened. The Passover celebration begins with a meal which is called the Seder. This is an important meal, and Jews bring out the best silver, china and glass. Care is also taken with the choice of wine. During the meal the family reads from a special book, the Haggadah, or Passover book. This is a kind of play in which members of the family take parts, and the story is the story of the original Passover." The Wonderful Story of the Jews, Plantagenet Somerset Fry, Purnell, London, 1970, p.15. 17 Jacob Vellian, "A 'Jewish Christian' Community", article in STCEI II, Ed. George Menachery, Trichur, 1973, p.74, rt. col.; alias The Thomapedia, Ollur, 2000, 74J> ILaJoO) l^jj

Lia^oiO

2. The Order o f Readers, fol. 1 O v - 1 8 v , "the Second Order". o v ^ ^ s :Lou>

l^jj

3. The Chirotony o f Subdeacons, fol,18v-28r, "the Third Order: the Subdeacons".

4. The Chirotony

o f Deacon, fol.28r-58r, "the Fourth Order:

The

Estephanian Deacon". »joojlftfr mill jnivT^

o^i?

;

5. The Chirotony o f Archdeacon, fol.58r-65v, " T h e Fifth Order: The Archdeacon".

6. The Chirotony o f Priest, fol.65v-101 v, " T h e Sixth Order: Qashisho. .ccuau&s :o>e0fLap^ «^if - L*~*o

ILeJbot»} Lia^oua

7. The Order o f the Periodeute, fol.101 v-124r, " T h e Seventh Order: The Periodeute". 8. The Chirotony o f Corbishop and Metropolitan, fol. 124r-128v. .om^Xso^joo la&acojat -joa oa iluj^a*); LJO^OUA

Vatican Syriac 4814 a. Date and Copyist O n fol.lv we read in Latin that "the codex was written on 1818 o f Greeks, which correspondes to 1507 o f Christian era". This is a Deaconal book o f ordination, written by Abraham A l - B a n i . Assemani describes this manuscript saying: "these texts exposed present tu us the anonymous

calligraphers"

(fol. 122); but actually it dosen't exist.

13

ASSEMANUS J.-S., 1.2, Codicum Manuscripiorum,

p. 308.

14

ASSEMANUS J.-S., 1.2, Codicum Manuscripiorum,

p. 308-311.

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b. Contents W e read on fol.2r that the manuscript contains the

- the Rite o f all

the chirotonies o f all the Priesthood Orders; and Assemani testifies that the book contains

two

volumes:

the

Maronite

Pontifical

and

the

Ritual

o f the

Consecrations. We choose only the first volume. a. The First Order: Election (npozeipiaic) of the Psalmist, fol.2v-8r. buouo

sot I ^ m a

llnl.l;ml&oo

b. The Second Order: The Order of the Chirotony o f the Reader, fol.8r19v. Loui

LJQ^OU3J l^ij

c. The Third Rite of the Subdeacon, fol.20r-29r.

d. The Chirotony, namely, the laying on o f the hand on the Deacon, fol.29v-47r. i f Y>«Y>

LJC^oua

e. The Laying on of the hand on the Archdeacon, fol.47v-51 v. ^an.,./)^ oo

LJQ^OUO ^ooi |***ucd

f. The Order o f the Priest, foi.51 v-66v. g. The Order o f the Periodeute, fol.67r-76v. l^o^ta eo

l^jf

h. The Chirotony of the Corbishop, who is with the Bishop, foI.77r. l&aaca^v

foe«) -ias ao ILo^jiooy Lia^ous

i. The Laying on o f the hand o f the Bishop, foI.83v-87r. Isojaea-Bk

IIM&JCOJ ii vi r*

j. The Laying on of the hand o f the Metropolitan, who is will be elected Patriarch, fol.87v-l02r. Uu^-S "^Ok.

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15 Vatican Syriac 49 a. Date and Copyist

On fol.55v-56r, we have the name of Joseph, son of the bishop Pierre AlAquri, and Metropolitan of Sidon, who wrote this manuscript on 1559. b. Contents

We have the same expression like the Vat. Syr. 48, on fol. 1 v, L w ^ - the Rite of all the chirotonies, of all the types of the Priesthood Orders. This manuscript contains two volumes: the Pontifical and the Ritual of consecrations. We choose only the first one. a. First, the Election of the Psalmist, fol.2v-7r. b. The Chirotony of the Reader, fol.7r-19v. c. The Third Rite of Subdeacon, fol. 19v-29r. axoLjafit d. The Chirotony, namely, the Laying on of the hand of the Deacon, fol.29r-48r. e. The Chirotony, namely, the Laying on of the hand of the Archdeacon, fol.48r-52r. yaoL.-dii do jtvNpv^ LJO^O^S b^soi l..vi.rr> f. The Order of the Priest, fol.52v-71 r. g. The Order of the Periodeute, fol.7lr-81v. 1^0—i» 0>3 ItoiooMO) h. The Chirotony of the Corbishop, who is with the Bishop, fo!.81v-88v. fon*«•>-c^ j^x |oe>f -iaa L-ia^oi-J i. The Laying on of the hand of the Bishops, fol.89r-92v. ^ avif j»* j. The Ordination of the Metropolitans and the Patriarchs, fol.92v-l08v. k - L a ^ L s m ^ B -^>.0 jaa^ \

15

., ^ Y^.

l^t pLjo

La i

A S S E M A N U S J.-S., 1.2, Codicum Manuscriptorum, p. 311-314.

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M s Vatican Syriaque 311 a. Date and Copyist This manuscript is written at Qannubine, the patriarcal maronite see, the 3 October, on 1683 16 . In the introduction or this manuscript, we read that the Maronite Patriarch Estephan Al-Duwai'hy

indicates: " w e did this Maronite

Pontifical, based up to the manuscript written by the own hand o f the Maronite Patriarch Jeremie A l - A m c h i t i " (Vat. Syr. 309 mentionned above; fol.2v). A t X I l T c , A l - A m c h i t i received the invitation to participate to the council o f Latran I V (1215) at Ancient Rome 1 7 , to treat the subject o f heresies, notably Cathares, the Sacraments, the liberation o f the Holy Land that is confirmed by the Pope Innocent 111 (1198-I216) 1 8 .

b. Contents O n his introduction AI-DuwaThy used the classic expression, like the Copyist o f the Vat. Syr. 47: " B y the help o f God, the Universal Lord, the Eternal and Unchanging, the most High o f all the substances, the Incomprehensible by the reason, never consciousness contemplate, and never reflexion reached him from the beginning until the end, we wright

- the chirotonies o f all the

Priesthood Orders" (fol.4r). The manuscript is composed in two parts: the Pontifical, or the book o f ordinations, and the Ritual o f consecrations. Al-Duwai'hy promulgate it to the Maronite Church: " T h i s ecclesiastical Pontifical, antiochian syriac, maronite, bipartite, what is o w i n g to Estephan Pierre Al-Duwai'hy, Patriarch Antiochian, recognized, well presented, he proposed it like encyclical, to all the archbishops, the bishops, the archpriests, the maronite priests, to be the only Pontifical and ritual recognized, because it is the only approuved for the service o f celebrations ..." (fol.2r - 3v). W e choose only the book o f ordinations: a. The Chirotony o f the Psalmists, fol.4r-14v.

b. The Rite o f the Chirotony o f the Reader, fol,15r-24r.

16

fol.3v., v. aussi M A I A., Catalogus, p. 24-25.

17

Vat.Syr. 311, fol.2v.

18

Les conciles, Latran I V (1215) in Théo. l'Encyclopédie

Catholique pour tous, p

i mb. Vol. X X I I 2007

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c. The Third Rite of the Chirotony of the Subdeacon, fol.24v-35r. (II) ¡llo.^BO! "Vi., L ^ o J i Lt-\L Ima^ d. The Chirotony, namely, the laying on of the hand, of the Deacon, fol.35v-63v. e. The Chirotony of the Archdeacon, foI.64r-76r. yOA-jjjt Ihoh-jM) LlO^OUO f. The Chirotony of the Presbyter (Priest), fol.76r-109r. oo ILo^*»} LJO^ouo g. The Chirotony of the Periodeute or Visitor, fol. 109v-131 r. IfO^CD OJO> M ILo&^Of Lo^oi-J h. The Chirotony of the Corbishop , who accompanyies the Bishop fol.l31v-147v. i. The Chirotony of the Bishop and the Metropolitan and the major Orders of priesthood, fol. 148r-l 89v. ILcuoOf I»} Is>etic6u6t Uao^aae L/a^o^a j. The High Rite of Chirotony of the Patriarchs, fol. 190r-195v. a o o , LcALo Lo»j I-JOO Lsa*., ILo-n^ LoAmima It—MX) Lo^oiO [Alls Imi^ h. Initial prayer to the Patriarch, fol. 196r-239r. bui^-a

H-o^j Ms Sloane 3597

a. D a t e a n d C o p y i s t

The manuscript "Sloane 3597", described by Wright, takes the number 304, at the "British Library" on London 19 . This manuscript is written on 1701-2 (fol.85r; fol.!04r; fol.IOSr), by a nun, in the monastery of S. Jean the Baptiste, at

19

WRIGHT, W ., Catalogue

of syriac

manuscripts,

pp236-237, CCCIV (304).

[Sloane 3597],

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Tradition..

Hrash 20 , in Lebanon; his name is Mariam Chemaly, a daughter of the priest Youhanon, from Daroun, a village near to our Lady of Lebanon, on Harissa b. Contents

This manuscript contains the chirotonies of Priesthood Orders: the Psalmists, the Reader, the Subdeacon, The Deacon, the Archdeacon, the Priest, the Periodeute..." (fol.3r); and the Ritual of Consecrations (fol.l06r); we talk about the first volume only. a. The Chirotony of the Psalmists, fol.3r-10v. bo-A.; I^XeoB Litt^oi-a b. The Rite of the Chirotony of the Reader, fol.l0v-16v. c. The Third Rite of the Chirotony of the Subdeacon, fol. 17r-25v. d. The Chirotony, namely, the laying on of the hand, to the Deacon, fol.26r-48v. iiji»>ln \ l ; ! r | is-^ot Lio^oUd e. The Chirotony of the Archdeacon, fol.48v-56v. iko^aoj LJO^OUA f. The Chirotony of the Priest, fol.57r-85r. g. The Rite the Periodeute is ordained, fol.85r-I05r. link am »a} Irrn^

20 Monastère de moniales Maronites, qui remonte au X V l l e m c siècle, et qui s e trouve jusqu'aujourd'hui au district de Kesrouwan, au Mont Liban. 21

Du syriaque

( L ^ = J ^ ) qui signifie du nord, une famille qui s e trouve

jusqu'aujourd'hui à Daroun- J^,-.

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358 II. T H E O R D E R S O F P R I E S T H O O D

Chahwan

T h e Council o f Trente (1545-1563, session 23), presented the Orders o f Priesthood a s seven; and when it spoke about the Priests, the council m e a n s the Bishop. T h e Hierarchy o f Orders is: Priest, Deacon, Subdeacon, Acolyte, Exorcist, Reader, a n d Psalmist. All these must be particular o f the Latin Rite 2 2 . For the Greek Church, w e have five Orders: Bishop, Priest, Deacon, Subdeacon and Reader, which w e find in the works o f John o f Damascus 2 3 . The Maronite, Syriac a n d C h a l d e a n Churches recognize t h e m i n o r and t h e m a j o r Orders, and their n u m b e r w a s between nine and eleven 2 4 . W e find its root in the letters o f St Paul, when h e spoke about the Apostles ( R m 16, 7), the Prophets, the Teachers, and the Preachers ( E p 4, 11). 1.

T h e Psalmist -

- *|/aA.ir|$

T h e Psalmist is chosen by the c o m m u n i t y to sing the ecclesiastical hymns. H e must have a good voice, because h e will be leading t h e choir. W e call him which means the one w h o signs the Psalms. It is a word from the Greek origin v|/oXttiw

During his

ordination t h e b o o k o f Psalms - Ta/.xiipiov - U » i Uko - Liber psalmorum, is given to him, because the Psalms is the basic prayer book of all the Churches. 2.

The Reader - U » 2 6

T h e most important role o f the Reader is to read in public in the Church, during celebrations, from the Holy Bible. H e is chosen by his c o m m u n i t y , he must read with pure heart. The Syriac term Lo^ is from the verb root U means

¡i I..

o ^ J i v-o :„jUi >aüi

•iljpi'táü.i

> J j f i f j f>¿

J

J'^1

'J*^'1

'jr^

i^jS* .J«v>» l,v

'

'"rA ^ • U V l l ! ^ IT. • í J.i

25

Dial. Contra manichaeos. iii. DALMA1S I.M., Ordinations et ministères dans les Églises orientales, les Eglises syriennes occidentales, LMD 102. pp. 73-81, éd. du Cerf. Paris 1970.

24

25 26

PAYNE-SMITH R „ 11., ' I f r W col. 3189-3190. Vat. Syr. 309, ff. 10-15r ( 1296).

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"to cry". He may read in high voice 27 . The ordination Rite for him is called The bishop gives him during his ordination the alb, the stole, and the book o f Isaiah, to announce the word o f G o d in the Church, like Samuel. W e have in Greek avayvmaxqc from the verb dva + yiyvwaKto which means to know the meaning very well. It is necessary to know the epistles o f S. Paul about this subject ( I T h 5, 27; Col 4, 16; l T m 4, 13), because a good reader equals to a better teacher, like Usa^*> - A i S d o K a k n 2 8 .

3.

T h e Subdeacon - I m ^ o » - Y noStdicovoq

This term in Syriac is coming from the Greek origin U7TOMKOVOC. He is the one who takes care o f the church, the gathering o f the congregation. He cleans the liturgical articles, vestments and guarding the door in order to prevent the non-believers to enter the church. Hippolytus the Roman confirms the Apostolic Tradition that the Subdeacon should obey the Deacon 29 , follows his instructions, as the dictum subdiaconi

sequentes30. S. Cyprian talks about him,

saying that he carry the letters, he helps the poor and the confessors 3 '. W e can find many things about his ordination in the Apostolic Constitutions 32 , and in the letter o f Cornilius also 33 .

4.

T h e Deacon - U**-»

The Syriac term U « - » is rooted in the verb

which means to serve, or

to adore the sun U«.. S. Paul was the first one to talk about the deacon in his epistle to the Philippians (1,1); then Luke in the Acts o f Apostles (6,1-7). Concerning the number seven, like in the book o f Acts, we can look into the work o f Righetti 34 . M a n y o f the epistles o f S. Paul start with two terms: AiaKovoq - Deacon and AovA-oq - Slave (1 C o 1,1; 2 C o 1,1; G a 1,10, 15; E p 1,1; Col 1,1; I T m 1,1; 2 T m 1,1; Tt 1,1), to see the link between service and mission ( A c l , 2 5 ) 35.

27 28

C O S T A Z L., p. 328. Pseudo-Ciément, Homélie ¡9,1.

29

Cap. 14 (éd. Botte B„ p. 43). T A 13 et 14. 31 1 ministri nella Chiesa antica, p. 179. 32 Livre Vili, 21. 1-4. SC 336, p. 223. 33 La lettre de Corneille à Fabio d'Antioche: "...sept diacres, sept sous-diacres..." in Eusèbe de Cesaree, Histoire Ecclésiastique 6.43,11 [ 163c]. 34 R I G H E T T I M „ Storia Liturgica, p. 397. 35 Cf. De Lorenzi 1979, pp. 404-453. 30

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The rank o f Deacon is the first among major Orders. That means it is necessary to confer him this Order during the celebration of the Mass. Many o f the councils mentioned the deacon: for example, Neocesarea (314-325) 36 , Ancyre (314)37, and Nicea (325) 38 , but the most important one is Vatican Second (1962-1965)39; for more information, see Rahner40. The first interesting mention of the deacon is Didache (first century)41. During his ordination the Church gi ve him three things: the alb, the stole, and Pauline epistles, to read it in the Church. Concerning the symbols o f all his ecclesiastical dress in the Maronite Church, Estephan Al-Duwaihy (+1704), the Patriarch, explains the subject as it deserves42. 5.

The Archdeacon - A p y ^ i d K o v o q

The term Archdeacon comes from the Greek ApxtiSidKovo«;. It is composed o f two words: Apxn and Sukovoq. It means the head of the Deacons. Later, it was translated into Syriac without changing the musical syllables yflft.i -ft it. Nicea (325) was the first council that mentions about the Archdeacon (Can. 61). Al-Duwaihy explaining his role saying: The Archdeacon is the supervisor o f Deacons, and he can tell the Bishop about the Deacons, as well he can open the official prayer in the church41.

36

HEFELE C. J., Histoire des Conciles, T. 1.1. Canon 15, p. 334.

37

Id. T.I.l. Le concile d'Ancyre (314), p. 298-326, canon 2, 10. MANSI J. D„ Sacrorum Conciliorum, T. II (305-346), Concilium Ancyranum (314). Tempore Silvestri Pap® Celebratimi, probatum a Leone IV, d.20.c. de libellis. Regula; a Sanctorum Patrum, Qui Ancyrae convenerunt: qua; quidem canonibus Nicaenis priores sunt, sed propter (Sancti et magni concilii) œcumenicae synodi auctoritatem postponuntur. col. 513. 518. 38

Id. Concile de Nicée, canon 18, p. 610-611. Conciles (Les) Œcuménques, T.II-2: Les Décrets: Trente à Vatican II, Décret sur l'Eglise 29; par ALBERIGO G. et aiii. éd. du Cerf, Paris 1994. 40 RAHNER K„ Écrits théologiques. T. VI: Théologie de la rénovation du diaconat, traduit par BOURBOULON H., éd. Desclée De Brouwer, Lille-Paris 1966. p. 67-119. 41 AUDET J.-P.. La Didachè, Instructions des Apôtres, 15.1 (études bibliques), Paris 1958. (cf. IThim 3,1-13) 39

,t» ^ . m » jW-ÄS yia - the same faith; 2- The presence of two or three bishops during his ordination (Mt 18,20); 3- He presents himself to administer the parish of Christ; 4- The lecture of the Gospel and to proclaim Christ (Mt 16,16); 5 - The lecture of the Gospel of the Good Shepherd (Jn 10,11+); 6- Opening the Gospel over his head, to symbolize that the Chirst lays his hands on him, like the Ascension Day (Lk 24,50); 7- He holds the cross to represent his power; 8- T h e Bishops accompany him in procession, and say "A^io