Erasmus editor of Saint Jerome: the Opera omnia (1516)
Inmaculada DELGADO JARA
Original title: Erasmo editor de san Jerónimo: las Opera omnia (1516)
Published in Mirabilia Journal 31 (2020/2)
Keywords: Erasmus, Fathers of the Church, Humanism, Saint Jerome.
The biblical and patristic project of Erasmus began in 1516, after a long maturation period of at least 15 years (from 1500 to 1516), with the publication in that annus mi-rabilis of the Novum Instrumentum and the Opera omnia of Saint Jerome –two milestones in his biblical and patristic project that will continue for twenty years with the edition of more than a dozen Fathers of the Church, both Greek and Latin–. At this time he had already discovered that the Sacred Scripture and the Fathers of the Church (espe-cially Saint Augustine, Chrysostom, Basil, Origen and Saint Jerome) could renew what he understood by theology: he does not want a scotist, nominalist, thomisttheology, that is, that of the recentiores, but a true theology, the vetus theologia or later the bibli-cal philosophia Christi, centered on the gospels and apostolic letters. But to reach this, we not only have the texts of the Scripture, but also the Fathers of the Church –and among them the greatest Latin Father, Jerome–, from which to take in the purest mes-sage of the Scripture, a redditio ad fontes, which he will defend throughout his life as the foundation of the theological renewal that he perceived as profoundly necessary in his time. The study deals with his herculean nine-volume edition of Saint Jerome’s Opera omnia –the first and most important of his many editions of the Fathers of the Church–. Because we anticipate that, with Erasmus, “the first patrology” was born. Its great editorial and translating task will facilitate the dissemination of patristic thought that will influence studies on New Testament philology as well as the development of dogmatic theology and Christian piety itself.
Erasmus, Biographer of Jerome: Hieronymi Stridonensis Vita (1516)
Victoriano PASTOR JULIÁN
Original title: Erasmo, biógrafo de san Jerónimo: Hieronymi Stridonensis Vita (1516)
Published in Mirabilia Journal 31 (2020/2)
Keywords: Biography, Erasmus, Humanism, Saint Jerome, Theology.
The life of Jerome of Stridon was written by Erasmus as an introduction to the edition of his Opera Omnia (1516). He developed it mainly from Jerome’s own correspondence, the first four volumes consisting of its edition. Erasmus read and imitated Jerome’s work, due to his piety and knowledge since his youth. This is the reason why the Vita Hieronymi will develop around two axes: Jerome according to Jerome and Jerome according to Erasmus. Thus, he conceives life as a forensic speech in which he defends Jerome’s cause and, at the same time, that of Humanism and of the vera theologia, of which he will be a defender and advocate. Thereby, Jerome’s biography turns, so to speak, into an apologia pro vita sua for Erasmus. In this work, we have translated –for the first time in Spanish language– more than a third of its 1565 lines, keeping the Latin text at the bottom of the page. At the same time, we have studied both Jerome’s and Erasmus’ context, focusing especially on the almost total complicity of both theologians and humanists.
Saint Jerome in Spain in the 16th Century
Pauline RENOUX-CARON
Original title: San Jerónimo en España en el siglo XVI
Published in Mirabilia Journal 31 (2020/2)
Keywords: Biblical Philology, Christian Humanism, José de Sigüenza, Order of Saint Jerome, Saint Jerome.
A Doctor of the Church and a polyglot philologist, Saint Jerome influenced generations of Spanish men of letters and men of the Church and was a central figure of 16th centu-ry humanism. Many studies have focused on the numerous representations of the Saint in Spanish art, but little has been written about the texts that testify to the importance of Saint Jerome in 16th century Spain. Saint Jerome can be defined in various ways: as an observant monk, he was chosen by the monastic Order of the Hieronymites as their patron; he was also considered as the spokesman of Erasmus’s humanism; as a Chris-tian Hebrew scholar, he interested Spanish Bible scholars; as a man of the Church, he was frequently quoted in arguments and debates over the ideas of the Counter-Reformation. Once his Latin Vulgate was declared to be ‘authentic’ at the Council of Trente, he appeared as the defender of the Roman church. A Hebrew scholar and a Bible translator, the Doctor Maximus was both from East and West, and his influence never was greater than in the late 16th century, a time of controversies between the ad-vocates of biblical philology and the partisans of the Vulgate in a climate of anti-Judaism. Saint Jerome thus appears as a great and multifaceted figure, who demon-strates the intensity of the spiritual and intelectual life in 16th century Spain.
Saint Jerome: From the Image to the Imaginary
Lucía LAHOZ
Original title: San Jerónimo: de la imagen al imaginario
Published in Mirabilia Journal 31 (2020/2)
Keywords: Image, Imaginary, Saint Jerome.
In the chapter, an approach to the image and the imaginary of Saint Jerome is presen-ted. Far from a logocentric conception, we prefer a cultural approach, which encom-passes the web of meanings concreted in a visual culture, and delimitates the areas and contexts in which certain iconographies flow. Jerome articulates a great variety of ico-nographic types: the father of the church, the author of exegesis on the scriptures, the translator, but also the anchorite. His figuration does not belong to a single type, but rather articulates several iconic models: he continues to metamorphose himself re-vealing new aspects to please an ever-expanding audience, and thereby reflects the de-velopment of a social dynamic of devotion.
The Chronicle of Eusebius of Cesarea and the Translation (and continuation) of Saint Jerome
Manuel Andrés SEOANE RODRÍGUEZ
Original title: La Crónica de Eusebio de Cesarea y la traducción (y continuación) de san Jerónimo
Published in Mirabilia Journal 31 (2020/2)
Keywords: Chronology, Eusebius of Caesarea, Saint Jerome, Translation.
At first, the apologetic intention of inserting chronological studies in the works of authors of Greek and Jewish antiquity was clear, since the assessment of their claims depended largely on their antiquity. With the triumph of Christianity over paganism, chronologies end up emancipating themselves from other treatises, no longer apologetic (less necessary), but even historiographical in nature, until they become autonomous works that confirm the fullness of historical time with the coming of Christ to the world. In this paper we analyze the literary antecedents of the chronologies prior to Eusebius of Cesarea, the characteristics that his Chronicle might have, and the peculiarities of the translation and extension of Saint Jerome, who launched this historiographic subgenre up to the Middle Ages and beyond.
The Reception of the Gospel of Mark from St. Jerome to Erasmus
Ana RODRÍGUEZ LAIZ
Original title: La recepción del Evangelio de Marcos desde Jerónimo hasta Erasmo
Published in Mirabilia Journal 31 (2020/2)
Keywords: Erasmo, Gospel of Mark, Patristic Literature, Saint Jerome.
The reception of the Gospel of Mark throughout history has been paradoxical. Its early connection to the figure of Peter and to Rome was not enough for it to occupy a prom-inent place in patristic and medieval times. Studies and comments on this work from St. Jerome to Erasmus are scarce but significant. On the other hand, in the reception of the Gospel of Mark during this period, the figure of St. Jerome will have great im-portance. He is not only one of the few Fathers of the Church who paid attention to this Gospel, but, in addition, studies after him will be diffused associated with his name.
