Christ in the Early Christian Hymns

Daniel Liderbach

PAULIST PRESS

New York / Mahwah, N.J.

Acknowledgements

The Publisher gratefully acknowledges use of the following materials:

English translations of “Ales Dei Nuntius,” “Quicumque Christum Quaeritis,” “Salvete Flores Martyrum,” “Audit Tyrannus Anxius” and “O Sola Magnarum Urbium” from The Hymns of the Breviary and Missal, edited by Dom Matthew Britt, O.S.B., copyright © 1948, Benziger Brothers, New York. Used by permission of Benziger Publishing Company.

Scripture quotations are from the Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright © 1946, 1952, 1971 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A. Used by permission.

Cover design by Nick Markell

Copyright © 1998 by the Detroit Province of the Society of Jesus

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system without permission in writing from the Publisher.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Liderbach, Daniel, 1941–

Christ in the early Christian hymns / by Daniel Liderbach.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 0-8091-3809-3 (alk. paper)

1. Jesus Christ—Natures—History of doctrines—Early church, ca. 30–600. 2. Hymns, Early Christian—History and criticism. I. Title.

BT212.L53 1998

232′.09′015—dc21

98-28762

CIP

Published by Paulist Press

997 Macarthur Boulevard

Mahwah, New Jersey 07430

www.paulistpress.com

Contents

Preface

I. Christology in Worship

II. The Significance of Hymns: The Rule of Faith

III. Early Hymns—A Preface to a Dialectical Interpretation of the Meaning of Christ Jesus

IV. The Pre-Nicaean Hymns Concerning Christ and the Belief Expressed in Those Early Hymns

V. The Early Church’s Declarations about Christ in Its Hymns

VI. The Development of the Controversies Leading Up to Chalcedon: The Dialectic between Antioch and Alexandria

VII. The Need for Tensive Dialectic to Express Mystery

VIII. The Tensive Approach to Christ Jesus

Bibliography

Index

This book is dedicated

to

Brian, Susan, Kathleen, Mary,

Sharon, Mark, and John,

my brothers and sisters,

the soil that supports me

and the atmosphere that nurtures me.

Preface

This project was carried out with the assistance of several people whom I want to acknowledge. Lawrence Boadt, my editor at Paulist Press, helped me to sculpt the text. The Society of Jesus made time available to me and provided me with the research tools needed for this work, and for that I express gratitude. Daniel P. Jamros, a specialist in the works of Georg F. W. Hegel, read and critiqued my use of Hegel’s synthetic dialectic. And finally, Jean Campbell kindly proofread the manuscript and assisted me with the index.