Dva začetnika jedne književnosti - o pitanju prvenstva u hrišćanskoj književnosti na latinskom jeziku

Abstract

Uključujući se u viševekovnu naučnu diskusiju o tome ko je najstariji pisac hrišćanske književnosti na latinskom jeziku, autor najpre iznosi stavove koji su se iskristalisali kao osnovani, a zatim daje zapažanja o dijalogu Oktavije Minucija Feliksa kojima stavlja pod znak pitanja sve dominantnije mišljenje o Tertulijanovom prvenstvu. Najvažnijim kriterijumom autor smatra dramski datum Minucijevog dijaloga, koji, kao i u slučaju njegovih literarnih uzora, Ciceronovih dijaloga, odslikava stvarne istorijske okolnosti. Datujući na taj način Oktavija u poslednju deceniju II stoleća - čime ostavlja mogućim i Tertulijanovo prvenstvo - autor nalazi da je pogrešno posmatrati Minucijevo pisanje kao klasicističku reakciju na Tertulijanovo pisanje, nego da rad dvojice pisaca treba posmatrati u kontekstu specifičnih mesnih okolnosti, naročito njihove potpuno različite publike. Oktavija, smatra, treba videti kao izraz sociokulturne i intelektualne elitizacije hrišćanske zajednice u Rimu - koja se odigrala u periodu između delovanja dvojice 'hrišćanskih filosofa' u prestonici, Justina i Apolonija - što je period u koji je smešten dramski datum Oktavija, kao i njene latinizacije - koja se dogodila pod papom Viktorom I - kada je ovo delo napisano.

Joining the academic debate of many centuries concerning who the oldest writer of Latin Christian literature is, the present author begins by presenting the views that have proven to be well founded within the framework of this debate, following which he offers his observations on Minucius Felix's dialogue entitled Octavius, which call into question the increasingly dominant view on Tertullian's taking precedence. When it comes to solving this problem, the present author considers the most important criterion to be the dramatic date of the dialogue, which, as was also the case with his literary role model - Cicero's dialogues - reflects the true historical circumstances. In doing so, thus placing Octavius in the final decade of the 2nd century - which leaves open the possibility that Tertullian takes precedence - the author concludes that it is mistaken to view Minucius's writing as a classicist reaction to Tertullian's writing, and that the opuses of the two writers should be viewed in the context of the specific local circumstances, especially taking into consideration their entirely different readerships. The present author is of the opinion that Octavius should be viewed as an expression of the socio-cultural and intellectual elitization of the Christian community in Rome - which occurred during the period when two 'Christian philosophers', Justin and Apollonius, were active in the Empire's capital - which is also the period at which the dramatic date of Octavius is set, and also an expression of its Latinization - which occurred under Pope Victor I - when the work in question was written.