The Structure of the Soul According to Nemesius, the Bishop of Emessa

Authors:

Pages: 132-150
DOI: https://doi.org/10.54664/NFDT2992

Abstract:

In an attempt to reveal the authentic personality, in its entirety – the psychosomatic unity of man, Hellenic Christian literature uses the concepts of Ancient Philosophy. Hellenic Philosophical systems reach a metaphysical limit that Christian doctrine is able to remove. The philosophical language has been transformed for the needs of Christianity, and this allows for a direct dialogue with the ancient philosophy existing at the same time. The impact of the Ancient tradition on Christian anthropology is undeniable. The question “what is a man?” (Psalm 8: 5) has been constantly dealt with and has challenged both the philosophical and the theological thought. The influence of Ancient philosophical systems in positive or negative terms can be seen in various Christian writings. One of them is “On Human Nature” a treatise of Nemesius the Bishop of Emesa. This treatise presents the tradition of Greek philosophy through the prism of the Christian worldview. The work of Nemesius reveals systematically exposed anthropological problems in the 4th c. AD. His treatise leaves deep traces in the Christian anthropology in the following centuries.

Keywords:

Ancient Greek philosophy; Ancient philosophical systems; Hellenic Christian literature; Christian anthropology; Nemesius the Bishop of Emesa; “On Human Nature”; soul.

Download

NA / Bulgaria / Canada / China / Germany / Portugal / Russian Federation / Sweden / Ukraine / United Kingdom / United States