Eunomius

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Eunomius († around 395) was after the death of Aetios around 367 the leading representative of the strict 'New Arians', the heterousians , perhaps born in Oltiseris on the border between Cappadocia and Galatia .

Life and theology

Life

Eunomius, philosophically educated, had probably become a pupil of Aetios of Antioch in Alexandria around 350 , who had a decisive influence on him theologically. Eudoxius of Antioch consecrated him a deacon in 357 , and in 360 he was elected bishop of Cyzicus . Eunomius had to give up the office of bishop after just a few weeks because of his theological positions, perhaps also because of the controversial circumstances surrounding his election as bishop. Probably during the rule of the Roman emperors Julian and Jovian in the years 360–364, Eunomius broke with the Roman “imperial church” laid down by Emperor Constantius II on the “homoic” creed of 360 and organized the “heterousians”, which were subsequently adopted by the 'homoic' church were resolutely opposed. Under Emperor Theodosius the Great , in the years 380, Dreikaiseredikt , and 381, Creed Nicäno-Constantinopolitanum , Christian denominations apart from the profession of Nicaea or the Nicano-Constantinopolitanum were classified as heretical , and thus also the 'heterousians'. Eunomius, who had to go into exile several times, was banished in 383, but was later allowed to withdraw to his estates, where he died around 395. Hardly anything has survived from his numerous writings.

theology

Eunomius, following Aëtios in it, apparently ties in with the theology of Arius in some points, but the similarity stems from the fact that both had taken over theologically significant elements from Origen and were heavily influenced philosophically and argumentatively by Middle and Neoplatonism . Correspondingly, Aetios like Eunomius nowhere refer to Arius.

Like Aëtios, he was a leading representative of the so-called heterousians : God and Jesus are different in nature, because God was ungenerated, Jesus, his Son, was begotten, a creature of God only out of his will, not out of his being. Since God is not begotten, he is also not a father; being a father is an energy arising from God's will, which in turn causes the Son. The son is the mediator of creation and subordinated to the father , but as a mediator of creation he is finite like the creation that comes from him.

In contrast to the trinity formula of the first council of Nicaea (325) they took the view that the son is therefore “different” from the father, coming from the Greek “ἑτερο-ούσιος [hetero-ousios]” ('another in essence than God -Father'). From this a special church developed temporarily, whose leadership Eunomius took over. The congregations of the Eunomians later merged into the old church .

Occasionally, the heterousians are not quite appropriately called 'New Arians' or 'Anhomöer', the term 'Eunomian' of earlier centuries referred to followers who referred to Eunomius, but were theologically just as 'heterousians'.

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Hanns Christof Brennecke , Annette von Stockhausen, Christian Müller, Uta Heil, Angelika Wintjes (eds.): Athanasius works. Third volume, first part. Documents on the history of the Arian dispute. 4th delivery: Up to the Synod of Alexandria 362 . Walter de Gruyter , Berlin / Bosten 2014, p. 504.
  2. ^ Adolf Martin Ritter :  Eunomius . In: Theologische Realenzyklopädie (TRE). Volume 10, de Gruyter, Berlin / New York 1982, ISBN 3-11-008575-5 , pp. 525-528. ( Retrieved for a fee from Theologische Realenzyklopädie , De Gruyter Online), p. 525f.
  3. ↑ Jan Rohls : God, Trinity and Spirit (History of Ideas of Christianity, Volume III / 1). Mohr Siebeck , Tübingen 2014, p. 148f.
personal data
SURNAME Eunomius
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Arian theologian
DATE OF BIRTH 4th century
DATE OF DEATH at 395