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Staré otázky, nové odpovědi? Poznámky ke knize Rexe D. Butlera. Montanism and Passio Perpetuae

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Kitzler P.

Listy filologické (Folia philologica)

2007

vol. 130

issue 3-4

360-372

Rex D. Butler's book 'The New Prophecy & 'New Visions'. Evidence of Montanism in The Passion of Perpetua and Felicitas' (Washington, The Catholic University of America Press 2006) is a welcome contribution to the existing scholarship on Passio Perpetuae. The purpose of this work - to examine the Pass. Perp. for evidence of Montanism - deserves to be appreciated, since this topic has only been studied unsystematically so far. The first chapter of Butler's book offers a useful summary of the recent research on Montanism, being a point of departure for an analysis which Butler undertakes in chapter three. In this part of his book the author attempts to identify some features he previously labeled Montanistic in Pass. Perp. The second chapter reopens the question whether the author / redactor of Pass. Perp. can be ascertained and the final chapter four focuses on the reception of Pass. Per. in the later literary tradition of the early Church. Despite the praiseworthly selected theme, the analysis is pursued in a rather arguable manner according to the author of this review. It seems that Butler's aim has not been to examine the question whether Pass. Perp. bears some Montanistic features or not, but rather to support his thesis that it is 'a distinctly Montanistic document' (p. 129). Bearing this in mind Butler also deals with the secondary literature on Pass. Perp.: for the most part he quotes from the works that confirm his own hypothesis, but he leaves aside or does not take into account properly the contras (often more persuasive and numerous). He does not use some recent important studies on Pass. Perp. or Tertullian (e.g. Bremmer, Waldner, Rankin etc.). If he knew these works he would probably have to change many of his theses. This is also the case with the whole of chapter two. The idea that Tertullian may have edited Pass. Perp., which Butler takes as a possibility, was rejected more than two decades ago and conflicts with the communis opinio of contemporary research. Butler's arguments supporting his central thesis that Pass. Perp. is a Montanistic text are far from convicning and another weak point in his book is the way he describes the Chuch of Tertullians's time. He tries to reduce much more complex structures to the stereotyped constructs of catholic, protestant, heretic, orthodox etc., among which he supposes strong antagonism, which appear to be oversimplistic, anachronic and misleading in the light of recent research. This approach affects some of the conclusions in chapter four, where Butler states that the aim of the manipulation with Pass. Perp. in later tradition was the purification of originally Montanistic (i.e. 'heretical') text in order to prepare it for 'orthodox consumption' (p. 103).

Passio Perpetuae and Acta Perpetuae: Between Tradition and Innovation

100%

Kitzler P.

Listy filologické (Folia philologica)

2007

vol. 130

issue 1-2

1-19

The article Passio Perpetuae and Acta Perpetuae: Between Tradition and Innovation focuses - after general analysis of the text and its issues was given - on the extant versions of the hagiographic narrative known as Passio Perpetuae et Felicitatis. This text contained a number of innovative and - in the context of Antique and early Christian society - potentially subversive features: the central character, Perpetua, is a woman who is claimed by the editor of the text to have extraordinary spiritual authority (e.g. to absolve the dead from punishment in the nether world, to reconcile differences between major Church figures etc.). Perpetua rejects all conventional social roles that were considered natural for a woman (mother, wife, daughter fully subordinated to paternal authority etc.). These novel features were felt to undermine the existing social order and hierarchy, and it was necessary to .explain them away in order to make the text more compliant with traditional and generally accepted social values. This was the aim of the later version of the narrative known as Acta Perpetuae. In spite of these efforts, Passio Perpetuae remained highly venerated in the mainstream Church and, though innovative, it paradoxically became a tradition in its own right.

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Staré otázky, nové odpovědi? Poznámky ke knize Rexe D. Butlera. Montanism and Passio Perpetuae

Passio Perpetuae and Acta Perpetuae: Between Tradition and Innovation