28353 - History of Christianity (1) (LM)

Learning outcomes

The main purpose of this class is to let students get familiar with sources interpretation processes and with the history of christianity in a diachronical perspective. Students will understand the role played by christianity in the cultural history and its position among other religions.

Course contents

This course focuses on some ancient christian issues/texts which played a relevant role in the turning-point of the centuries IV-V, which gave birth to the so-called conciliar season of the christian history. Moreover, the classwork will pay a particular attention to the later use of the Church Fathers. More precisely, we will deal with the problematic relationship between orthodoxy and gnosticism in Clement of Alexandria, a key figure in the process in which the Greek Philosophy entered the Christian thought, and on the use of Clement during the so-called counter-reformation era (the XVI-XVII century archbishop of Milan Federico Borromeo).

Readings/Bibliography

Bibliography for students participating in class:

These students must study the following volumes:

Primary sources:

Stromateis: Note di vera filosofia, a c. di Pini G. - Rizzi M., Paoline, Milano 2006, libri V-VII [orig. Les Stromates. Stromate V.1, a c. di Le Boulluec A., «Sources Chrétiennes» 278, Clement d'Alexandrie, Cerf, Paris 1981; Les Stromates. Stromate VI, a c. di Descourtieux P., «Sources Chrétiennes» 446, Cerf, Paris 1999; Les Stromates. Stromate VII, a c. di Le Boulluec A., «Sources Chrétiennes» 428, Cerf, Paris 1997].

Quis dives salvetur: Quale ricco si salverà, a c. di Bianco M. G., «Collana Testi Patristici» 148, Città Nuova, Roma 1999 [Quis dives salvetur: Quel riche sera sauvé?, Descortieux P. - Nardi C., «Sources Chrétiennes» 537, Cerf, Paris 2011].

Secondary literature:

Prinzivalli E. (a cura di), Storia del Cristianesimo. I. L'età antica (secoli I-VII), Carocci, Roma 2015, capitoli 1-4 (saggi di: Enrico Norelli, Claudio Gianotto, Emanuela Prinzivalli-Andrés Sáez);

Rizzi M., Introduzione, in Clemente di Alessandria. Stromati. Note di vera filosofia, a c. di Pini G. - Rizzi M., Paoline, Milano 2006, pp. VII-LXXXI;

Lettieri G., Più a fondo. L'ontologia apocalittica valentiniana e le origini della teologia mistica cristiana, in L'anti-Babele. Sulla mistica degli antichi e dei moderni, a c. di I. Adinolfi, G. Gaeta, A. Lavagetto, Il melangolo, Genova 2017, pp. 71-116

Rizzi M., Il luogo della mistica in Clemente Alessandrino, in L'anti-Babele. Sulla mistica degli antichi e dei moderni, a c. di I. Adinolfi, G. Gaeta, A. Lavagetto, Il melangolo, Genova 2017, pp. 117-128.

 

Bibliography for students not participating in class

Students who can not participate in classwork are required to add one more volume to the above mentioned bibliography:

Dainese D., Passibilità divina. La dottrina dell'anima in Clemente Alessandrino, Città Nuova, Roma 2012.

Dainese D., La femminilità del Padre. Note a margine di Q.d.s. 36-37, in Jahrbuch für Antike und Christentum, in Jahrbuch für Antike und Christentum 56 (2013), pp. 40-50; 

Dainese D., Le vestigia di una dottrina dell'anima in Clemente Alessandrino. Nota a margine di due incisi sul linguaggio di animali e angeli, in Adamantius 20 (2014), pp. 306-321.

Dainese D., L'uso di alcuni padri della chiesa nell'età della controriforma: contemplazione, meditazione e costruzione dell'ideale del vescovo in Federico Borromeo, in L'anti-Babele. Sulla mistica degli antichi e dei moderni, a c. di I. Adinolfi, G. Gaeta, A. Lavagetto, Il melangolo, Genova 2017, pp. 281-318.

 

Students who are not familiar with the subject of this class are strongly recommended to study also the following handbook:

Potestà G.L. - Vian G., Storia del Cristianesimo, Il Mulino, Bologna 2014.

Teaching methods

Frontal Lessons; reading and comment of primary sources. 

Assessment methods

Students have two examination possibilities. They may either give an exam as an oral interview or write and discuss a paper. As far as the oral interview is concerned, it is supposed to be on both sources and critical literature, that can not be splitter into different moments. Both the capacity of reading ancient texts (even in a english translation) and the general and specific knowledge concerning Christian history will be evaluated. Students must provide evidence of mastering technical lexicon and diachronical data (dates, historical events).

Here a sample of possible questions (this is ONLY a general hints to a much broader spectrum of questions): "Read and comment Strom. V 6", "who was Federico Borromeo?" "what are the main characteristics of mysticism in Late antiquity?"

As for the paper, students my write a 20 pages paper in English on one of the issues/historical problems raised during the classwork. In this case a more specific bibliography may be given.

Evaluation

Marks of excellence correspond to the achievement of an organic vision of the issues addressed during the classes and their critical use, which demonstrate ownership of a mastery of expression and technical lexicon.

Only a mnemonic knowledge of the subjects and a partial inappropriate use of technical language will lead to discrete assessments.

Minimal knowledge of the subjects (dates and names of emperors, bishops, popes), even without serious errors, will lead to marks not exceeding the sufficiency.

If students will not able to provide evidence of the minimum requirements to achieve the sufficiency (missing/wrong knowledge of the main dates and historical figures) the exam will fail.

Teaching tools

Multimedia materials (images) and notes provided by the teacher.

Office hours

See the website of Davide Dainese