Motion and change in the works of St. John of Damascus: philosophical and theological foundations and applications
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Damaskuse Johannes on 7.–8. saj Umaijaadide kalifaadis elanud kreeka kirikuisa. Ajalooliselt on uurijad teda pidanud ebaoriginaalseks ja kompileerivaks autoriks, kelle teoloogilised ja filosoofilised mõtted pole midagi muud kui varasema kirikliku pärimuse entsüklopeediline kokkuvõte. Uuemad uuringud ning eriti just täpsustunud andmed käiskirjade analüüsis on aga 21. saj uurijaid pannud neid arusaamu ümber hindama. See aga omakorda on aluse pannud uuele huvi tärkamisele Damaskuse Johannese uuringutes – aspekt, millesse panustab ka siinne uurimistöö.
Selle tarbeks olen ma käesolevas väitekirjas võtnud uurida akadeemilises maailmas suuresti avastamata jäänud teemat – liikumise ja muutuse kontseptsioone – püha Damaskuse Johannese arusaamades ja argumentatsioonis. Taolise uurimiseesmärgi püstitamiseni viis induktiivselt Johannese Dialectica’s olev 62. peatükk aristotellikust liikumisest/muutusest (kinêsis) – vaatekoht, mis kreeka patristilises traditsioonis on sellisel kujul pretsedenditu. Antud kontseptsiooni märkamata jäämine on seda üllatavam, kui arvestada selle olulisust kreeka loodusfilosoofide jaoks (Aristotelesest kristlike uusplatonistideni) looduse/loomuse (physis) mõistmisel; ning tõsiasja, et Halkedoni kirikukogule (451) järgnenud kristoloogilised vaidlused, milles Johannes aktiivselt osales, toimusid just Kristuse loomus(t)e üle.
Uuringueesmärgi väljaselgitamiseks määran kindlaks Damaskuse Johannese töödes leiduvad liikumise ja muutuse printsiibid ning kasutuse teoloogilises argumentatsioonis. Lisaks toon välja Damaskuslase töödes kasutatud liikumise ja muutuse kontseptsioonide tagataustad ja potentsiaalsed allikad – arusaamad, mis aitavad paremini mõista meie patristilise autori originaalsust ja ebaoriginaalsust; ning näitlikustan liikumise ja muutuse kontseptsioonide varal tänasel päevalgi suuresti selgusetuks jäänud seost Johannese filosoofiliste ja teoloogiliste tööde vahel.
Väitekirja tulemuseks on ainulaadsed avastused, mis viitavad Damaskuse Johannese võimekusele olla loominguliselt ning innovaatiliselt sünteesiv, kuid samas halkedoonlikule traditsioonile truuks jääv kirikuisa, kes mõistis filosoofilise loogika väärtust teoloogilisele argumentatsioonile, olgu see kas patristilises (kiriklikus) või paganlikus (kreeka) vormis.
John of Damascus is a Greek Church Father who lived in the 7th and 8th centuries during the Umayyad Caliphate. Historically, scholars have viewed him as an unoriginal compiler, whose theological and philosophical thoughts are merely an encyclopedic summary of earlier patristic and Chalcedonian traditions. However, new research—particularly with more precise data from manuscript analysis—has prompted 21st-century scholars to reassess these views, sparking renewed interest in the study of John of Damascus. With this dissertation, I aim to further this renewed interest by investigating a largely unexplored subject: the concepts of motion and change in the thought and argumentation of St. John Damascene. This research goal was inductively derived from John’s Dialectica, where an entire chapter (62) is dedicated to the Aristotelian notion of motion and change (kinêsis)—an aspect that lacks an equivalent in the earlier Greek patristic and Chalcedonian tradition. The scholarly oversight of this concept is particularly surprising, given its significance for Greek natural philosophers—from Aristotle to Christian Neoplatonists—in understanding nature (physis). Additionally, the Christological disputes that followed the Council of Chalcedon (451), in which John actively participated, revolved around the nature(s) of Christ. In addressing this research goal, I identify the different concepts and notions of motion and change found in the works of John of Damascus and their application in his theological argumentation. Furthermore, I outline the background and potential sources of these concepts and their use, providing insights that enhance our understanding of both the originality and unoriginality of our patristic author. I also clarify the connection between John's philosophical and theological works, a relationship that has remained largely ambiguous even today. The end result of this dissertation yields many unique discoveries that demonstrate John of Damascus’s ability to be a creatively synthesizing man of tradition who understood the value of philosophy for Chalcedonian theological argumentation, both in its pagan (Greek) and patristic forms.
John of Damascus is a Greek Church Father who lived in the 7th and 8th centuries during the Umayyad Caliphate. Historically, scholars have viewed him as an unoriginal compiler, whose theological and philosophical thoughts are merely an encyclopedic summary of earlier patristic and Chalcedonian traditions. However, new research—particularly with more precise data from manuscript analysis—has prompted 21st-century scholars to reassess these views, sparking renewed interest in the study of John of Damascus. With this dissertation, I aim to further this renewed interest by investigating a largely unexplored subject: the concepts of motion and change in the thought and argumentation of St. John Damascene. This research goal was inductively derived from John’s Dialectica, where an entire chapter (62) is dedicated to the Aristotelian notion of motion and change (kinêsis)—an aspect that lacks an equivalent in the earlier Greek patristic and Chalcedonian tradition. The scholarly oversight of this concept is particularly surprising, given its significance for Greek natural philosophers—from Aristotle to Christian Neoplatonists—in understanding nature (physis). Additionally, the Christological disputes that followed the Council of Chalcedon (451), in which John actively participated, revolved around the nature(s) of Christ. In addressing this research goal, I identify the different concepts and notions of motion and change found in the works of John of Damascus and their application in his theological argumentation. Furthermore, I outline the background and potential sources of these concepts and their use, providing insights that enhance our understanding of both the originality and unoriginality of our patristic author. I also clarify the connection between John's philosophical and theological works, a relationship that has remained largely ambiguous even today. The end result of this dissertation yields many unique discoveries that demonstrate John of Damascus’s ability to be a creatively synthesizing man of tradition who understood the value of philosophy for Chalcedonian theological argumentation, both in its pagan (Greek) and patristic forms.
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