Descripción del proyecto
Estudiar el discurso neoplatónico en conjunto para comprender los debates cristológicos de la Antigüedad tardía
Los neoplatónicos reinterpretaron a Pitágoras y Sócrates como almas puras enviadas para salvar a la humanidad. Estos salvadores se asemejan a Cristo como mediador divino, un paralelismo resultado de un intercambio interreligioso. La naturaleza intermedia del alma, ubicada entre la humanidad y la divinidad, es un punto de convergencia de las cosmovisiones neoplatónica y cristiana y sustenta los debates sobre las complejas relaciones entre la humanidad y la divinidad. En el proyecto TRANEX, que cuenta con el apoyo de las acciones Marie Skłodowska-Curie, se empleará un método innovador para examinar las cristologías subordinacionistas y la doctrina neoplatónica de las almas puras. Su objetivo es demostrar que la comprensión de los debates cristológicos de la Antigüedad tardía exige examinar el discurso neoplatónico en conjunto. El equipo del proyecto se centrará en la mediación hacia la humanidad, la similitud con Dios (o dioses) más que la identidad y la subordinación al poder o poderes divinos.
Objetivo
TRANEX contends that in Late Antiquity (c. 300-500 AD) both the figure of Christ and those of Pythagoras and Socrates underwent a parallel process of metamorphosis facilitated not least through an intellectual exchange between Christian theologians and Neoplatonists, that is, pagan philosophers who drew on Plato’s thought to build a new philosophical and religious system. Rather than perceiving pagan Neoplatonism and Christianity as separate and detached entities, TRANEX emphasizes the need to understand them as dynamically intertwined and mutually influential realms.
From Iamblichus onwards (c. 245-325 AD), Neoplatonists reinterpreted figures like Pythagoras and Socrates as ‘pure souls’ sent to earth to save humankind. These saviour figures bear striking resemblances to Christologies that portray Christ as a subordinate divine mediator. I understand these parallels as the outcome of an interreligious exchange, which I intend to explore by focusing on the concept of the ‘soul’. The intermediate nature of the soul, positioned between humanity and divinity, holds a paramount significance as a converging point for Neoplatonic and Christian worldviews, fueling profound discussion on the intricate relationships between humanity and divinity. Within this conceptual framework, I will study the most influential thinkers of the late third to the first half of the fifth century. By juxtaposing subordinationist Christologies with the Neoplatonic doctrine of pure souls, I aim to demonstrate that a comprehensive understanding of late antique Christological debates requires an appreciation of the broader Neoplatonic discourse surrounding figures like Pythagoras and Socrates, and vice versa. I will specifically examine three key aspects that are equally central to both subordinationist Christologies and Neoplatonic conceptions of ‘pure souls’: (1) ‘mediation’ towards humanity, (2) ‘similarity’, rather than ‘identity’, to God(s), and, consequently, (3) ‘subordination’ to God(s).
Ámbito científico
Palabras clave
Programa(s)
- HORIZON.1.2 - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) Main Programme
Régimen de financiación
HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-PF-EF - HORIZON TMA MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships - European FellowshipsCoordinador
2311 EZ Leiden
Países Bajos