Traditions of Theology: Studies in Hellenistic Theology, Its Background and AftermathDorothea Frede, André Laks The nine articles in this volume were orginally presented at the VIII. Symposium Hellenisticum in Lille in August 1998. The authors discuss a set of theological questions that were central to the doctrines of the dominant schools in the Hellenistic age, such as the existence of the gods, their nature, and their concern for humankind. While the philosophers of the Classical age had kept their distance from conventional religion, the Stoics and Epicureans saw the need to come to terms with the religious tradition both in a critical and in a supportive sense. Especially the challenge by the Sceptics forced the followers of the dogmatic schools (Stoics, Epicureans) to clarify the basis of their theological tenets. Many of the texts that are accessible to us only in a fragmentary state were still highly influential in the early Christian era, so that the reconstruction of the theological views of the Hellenistic philosophers form an important part not only of the history of philosophy, but also of Christian theology and the history of religion in general. One distinctive feature of the volume is that it mirrors the changes of perspective that took place over the many centuries in this area, thus presenting the Hellenistic contribution within the larger framework of Greek philosophical theology. |
Contents
The Origins of Stoic God David Sedley | 41 |
Theodicy and Providential Care in Stoicism Dorothea Frede | 85 |
God and Human Knowledge in Senecas Natural Questions | 119 |
Epicurus as deus mortalis Homoiosis theoi and Epicurean Self | 159 |
All Gods are True in Epicurus Dirk Obbink | 183 |
Theodicy and Cosmogony in the Thought | 223 |
Sesto Empirico e lastrologia Emidio Spinelli | 239 |
Philo of Alexandria and Hellenistic | 281 |
| 317 | |
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Common terms and phrases
Academic active principle Aëtius Alexander Alexander of Aphrodisias altri Antiochus Aphrodisias argues argument Aristotelian Aristotle Aristotle's attributed Bobzien caso cause Chrysippus Cicero claim concept context cosmos cui cf Dillon Diogenes discussion divine doctrine doxographical Epicurean Epicurus existence Fazzo FHS&G Genequand God's gods Greek heavenly heavens Hellenistic theology Henrichs Heraclitus homoiosis theoi human immortal infatti intellect interpretation ISBN 90 Logos Lucretius Mansfeld matter Metaph Metaphysics moral Moraux natura deorum Natural Questions negative theology Obbink obiezioni ousia P.Herc passage phenomena Philo Philodemus philosophical Piety Plato Platonist Plutarch poets Polemonian Posidonius providence providential Quaest quale rational reference Runia says Sedley sembra Seneca sestana Sesto Sharples solo soul sphere Stoic Stoic physics Stoicism sublunary theme Theophrastus theory things Timaeus Tolemeo tradition Unmoved Mover Varro's world-soul Xenarchus Xenocrates Zeno Zeus δὲ εἶναι ἐν καὶ Περὶ τὰ τὴν τῆς τὸ τὸν τοῦ τῶν