St Theodore the Studite’s Defence of the Icons: Theology and Philosophy in Ninth-Century Byzantium. By Torstein Theodor Tollefsen
It is generally claimed that the arguments in support of the making and veneration of icons during the second period of iconoclasm, 815-842, were more philosophical in character than the arguments in the first period. The two principal defenders of the icons in this period were Nikiphoros, Patriarch...
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| Format: | Electronic Review |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Oxford University Press
2021
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| In: |
The journal of theological studies
Year: 2021, Volume: 72, Issue: 2, Pages: 1019-1021 |
| Further subjects: | B
Book review
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| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Summary: | It is generally claimed that the arguments in support of the making and veneration of icons during the second period of iconoclasm, 815-842, were more philosophical in character than the arguments in the first period. The two principal defenders of the icons in this period were Nikiphoros, Patriarch of Constantinople, and Theodore, the abbot of the Stoudion Monastery, both of whom use explicitly Aristotelian concepts, notably the category of relation, in their arguments. Despite this, very little attention has been given to the nature of these arguments and their Aristotelian provenance; it is little more than noted. In this book, Professor Torstein Tollefsen, a professional philosopher from Oslo University, looks long and hard at the philosophical argumentation of Theodore the Studite. He has already written two books addressing the philosophical dimension of patristic thought. His approach in these two books is marked by a patient attempt to elucidate the concepts used, and the value of the arguments adduced, the first (2008) dealing with what Tollefsen calls Maximos the Confessor’s ‘Christocentric Cosmology’, the second (2012) with notions of activity and participation, mostly in the fourth and fourteenth centuries. The canvas of the present book is much more specific; the writings of Theodore against the iconoclasts, in particular his three antirrhetici. A careful examination of these works by a philosopher is important in itself, but can be seen as yet another sign of the current revival in Byzantine philosophy, once scarcely studied at all. There is, however, more to the book than this, for Tollefsen’s personal investment in this book goes beyond the academic (though without in any way diminishing the rigour of his approach): for, as the front cover design reveals, Tollefsen is himself an icon painter, so when he talks, for example, about the use of colour in iconography, one senses a deepened sense of engagement; furthermore, his middle name is Theodor, which is doubtless significant, too. |
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| ISSN: | 1477-4607 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: The journal of theological studies
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1093/jts/flab118 |