Hrabanus Maurus’ Post-Patristic Renovation of 1 Maccabees 1:1–8

In this article, I examine Hrabanus Maurus’ exegesis of the opening verses of 1 Maccabees, which preserves a concise account of Alexander the Great’s career. My main goal is to demonstrate how Hrabanus reinterpreted the representation of the Macedonian king from 1 Maccabees. To this end, I employ tr...

Description complète

Enregistré dans:  
Détails bibliographiques
Auteur principal: Djurslev, Christian Thrue (Auteur)
Type de support: Électronique Article
Langue:Anglais
Vérifier la disponibilité: HBZ Gateway
Journals Online & Print:
En cours de chargement...
Fernleihe:Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste
Publié: De Gruyter 2021
Dans: Open theology
Année: 2021, Volume: 7, Numéro: 1, Pages: 271-288
Sujets non-standardisés:B transformation theory
B "Carolingian Renaissance"
B Historiography
B Biblical Scholarship
B historical text reuse
B Alexander the Great
B Medieval Exegesis
Accès en ligne: Volltext (kostenfrei)
Volltext (kostenfrei)
Description
Résumé:In this article, I examine Hrabanus Maurus’ exegesis of the opening verses of 1 Maccabees, which preserves a concise account of Alexander the Great’s career. My main goal is to demonstrate how Hrabanus reinterpreted the representation of the Macedonian king from 1 Maccabees. To this end, I employ transformation theory, which enables me to analyze the ways in which Hrabanus updated the meaning of the biblical text. I argue that Hrabanus turned the negative Maccabean narrative of Alexander into a positive representation that was attractive to contemporary readers. I support this argument by focusing on Hrabanus’ recourse to Latin sources, primarily the late antique authors Jerome, Orosius, and Justin, an epitomist of Roman history. I find that Hrabanus challenged Jerome’s interpretations, neutralized much of Orosius’ negative appraisal of Alexander, and amplified the laudatory passages of Justin, which generated a new image of the ancient king. The present article thus contributes to three fields: medieval exegesis of biblical texts, Carolingian reinterpretation of the patristic heritage, and the reception of Alexander the Great.
ISSN:2300-6579
Contient:Enthalten in: Open theology
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1515/opth-2020-0160