ARTICLES
Otto Linderborg
Mid Sweden University
otto.linderborg@miun.se
Language: English
Issue: ΣΧΟΛΗ 20.2 (2026) 586–599
DOI: 10.25205/1995-4328-2026-20-2-586–599
Keywords: Herodotus, Xerxes, Origins of Political Philosophy
Abstract. This article presents an analysis of Xerxes’ War Councils and their narrative context in Book VII of Herodotus’ Histories. Set against the backdrop of the early 5th-century BC Persian court in Susa, these councils occur on the eve of Xerxes’ campaign against Greece, framed by a foreboding dream in which an imposing figure instructs Xerxes to proceed with the march. Despite his earlier re-assessment of the councils, Xerxes ultimately follows the command of the dream-figure. Scholarly interpretations tend to link this decision to Herodotus’ “tragic philosophy of history,” suggesting that Xerxes was fated by the gods, or by divinely sanctioned custom, to undertake his hubristic campaign–resulting in inevitable divine retribution. This article re-explores the tension between the “metaphysical” explanation of Xerxes’ decision presented in the dream narrative and the “secular” perspective offered in the councils. It argues that this tension can be reconciled by viewing Herodotus’ conflicting accounts of Xerxes’ march as a critique of political life in general. This interpretation reveals Herodotus’ work as an early form of political philosophy.
Miguel López-Astorga
University of Talca, Talca Campus (Chile)
milopez@utalca.cl
Language: English
Issue: ΣΧΟΛΗ 20.2 (2026) 600-610
DOI: 10.25205/1995-4328-2026-20-2-600-610
Keywords: Cicero; extensional difference; inheritance copula; Non-Axiomatic Logic; Non-Axiomatic Reasoning System
Abstract. Cicero posed a controversial claim. He proposed that the Stoics admitted an inference hard to accept. That inference is also incorrect in propositional calculus. It consists of two premises and a conclusion. The first premise is the negation of a conjunction. The second premise is the negation of one of the conjuncts of that conjunction. The conclusion provides that those premises allow deriving the truth of the other conjunct. My purpose here is not to analyze whether the inference can be valid in the general framework of Stoic logic. My intention is not to argue in favor of or against the idea that Cicero made a mistake either. The aim of the paper is only to show that a non-axiomatic logic can make inferences akin to that described by Cicero, and that, hence, an Artificial Intelligence system based on that logic can also do that. Two components of the logic are essential here: its inheritance copula and its concept of extensional difference.
Christos Terezis
University of Patras, Greece
terezis@upatras.gr
Lydia Petridou
Hellenic Open University, Greece
petridou.lydia@ac.eap.gr
Language: English
Issue: ΣΧΟΛΗ 20.2 (2026) 611–627
DOI: 10.25205/1995-4328-2026-20-2-611-627
Keywords: Gregory Palamas, divine qualities, universals, apodictic reasoning, affirmative theology, apophatic theology
Abstract. This article attempts to investigate the way in which Gregory Palamas utilizes Platonic and, mostly, Aristotelian Philosophy which relates to Gnoseology and formal Logic in his attempt to prove the distinction between affirmative and apophatic Theology. In particular, it will focus on terms that capture the way in which human beings attempt to describe both metaphysical and natural-empirical Ontology. The most important conclusion we draw is that Gregory Palamas shows a preference for Aristotelian Logic, which he transforms in a Christian way. This insight arises mainly from the way he makes use of the argument about “qualities”, which, on the one hand, determine the essence of created beings-states and, on the other hand, reflect the manifestations of the divine energy of the Holy Trinity. It is an approach which highlights affirmative theology, without affecting the apophatism of the divine essence.
Svetlana Tarkhanova
Department of the Treasury of the Israel Antiquities Authority
svetlanat@israntique.org.il
Language: English
Issue: ΣΧΟΛΗ 20.2 (2026) 628-649
DOI: 10.25205/1995-4328-2026-20-2-628-649
Keywords: Tel Shiloh, Samaria, Paganism, relief bull's head, bucrania, decorative ashlars, sarcophagi, altars, Roman temples, cult of Zeus/Hadad, Mithraeum.
Abstract. This article examines a unique and impressive architectural find – a monumental ashlar with the short side decorated with a relief bull's head, carved in a laconic yet forceful manner. It was revealed in secondary use in the late terrace at Tel Shiloh in 2011, near the Late Northern church. In the local and broader regional Roman tradition (Trans-Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, Asia Minor, Greece, Gallia, etc.), depictions of bull's heads/skulls as part of bucrania compositions on the walls and covers of sarcophagi were common, while solitary depictions on portable altars and in Doric friezes were relatively rare. Selected parallels are presented and briefly analyzed. Specifically, in the Syro-Palestinian region (modern Israel, Lebanon, and Syria), several temples were decorated with ashlars bearing relief images, such as lions or haloed figures (Baetocaece/Hössn Suleiman, Kal'at Faqra/Qalaat Faqra, Niha/Nihata, and Nebi Safa). However, ashlars with bull's heads, similar to the one from Shiloh, have been found so far only at Castellum Tidditanorum/Tiddis in Numidia (modern Algeria). In most of the samples, the depiction of the bull's head is associated with the cults of Zeus/Jupiter and with its local personifications, like Hadad (the main center of Hadad was in ancient Aleppo, but the cult was widespread in the Land of Israel), or, more rarely, with the cult of Mithras. This led us to suppose that in the "urbanized" Roman settlement of Shiloh, the temple of Zeus/Hadad (or Mithraeum) was built. This sanctuary was of great importance to the region's paganization in the wake of the Bar Kokhba Revolt (132-136 CE). It reflected connections with the nearest influential cult centers at Mount Gerizim and in Aelia Capitolina devoted to Zeus/Jupiter, as well as many other more remote ones, including, of course, the broader Imperial context.
Mikhail A. Vedeshkin
Institute of World History, Russian Academy of Sciences
Autonomous Non-profit Organization “Institute for Interdisciplinary Research in Science and Education” (ANO IIRS&E)
balatar@mail.ru
Crypto-Paganism in the later Roman Empire. Part I: Concealed identity and false conversion
Language: English
Issue: ΣΧΟΛΗ 20.2 (2026) 650-681
DOI: 10.25205/1995-4328-2026-20-2-650-681
Keywords: crypto-paganism; Late Antiquity; Later Roman empire; Early Byzantium; religious identity; conversion; apostasy; paganism and Christianity
Abstract. This article explores crypto-paganism in the later Roman Empire as a phenomenon of concealed religious identity shaped by coercion, conformity, and false conversion to Christianity. It argues that successful dissimulation normally leaves no documentary trace, while accusations of paganism are frequently preserved only in polemical or judicial contexts, often arising after political disgrace or conflict with ecclesiastical authorities. As a result, modern attempts to identify “cryptopagans” risk reproducing the ambiguities already present in Late Antique evidence. By combining narrative, legal, and rhetorical sources, this article shows that covert adherence to traditional cults nevertheless persisted from the fourth to at least the early seventh century, particularly among members of the political and cultural elite. At the same time, from the mid-sixth century onward, accusations of paganism increasingly lost precise confessional meaning and functioned as a flexible instrument of social mobilization and denunciation, especially in periods of crisis. Crypto-paganism thus appears not as a marginal survival strategy, but as a structural by-product of Christianization under conditions of legal and social pressure.
Mikhail Antonyuk
Saint-Petersburg University
antonyukmv@yandex.ru
Language: English
Issue: ΣΧΟΛΗ 20.2 (2026) 682-705
DOI: 10.25205/1995-4328-2026-20-2-682-705
Keywords: accidence, Barḥadbšabbā, Christology, the Tree of Porphyry, School of Nisibis, substance, Theodore of Mopsuestia
Abstract. The article analyzes the Doctrine of God in the Syriac treatise "The Cause of the Foundation of the Schools", written by Barḥadbšabbā ‛Arbaya, Bishop of Hulwan. The purpose of the article is to examine the factors that influenced the formation of the original teaching on the divine role in the world and the educational process. The works of Aristotle and Porphyry, as well as the theology of Ephrem the Syrian, Theodore of Mopsuestia, and Narsai, had a direct influence on this teaching. On this basis, Barḥadbšabbā builds his teaching about God as the First Cause not only of all that exists, but also of the educational process as such, arguing that God created the first school and strives to teach His creation. Using the philosophical language of Porphyry, Barḥadbšabbā establishes the superior essence of God's being and also links His activity with events in human history. The results of the study indicate not only the impact of the aforementioned authors on Barḥadbšabbā’s work, but also the formation of an original idea, which intends to provide a theological justification for the importance of the pedagogical process in the School of Nisibis.
Vasileios Spanos
University of Western Macedonia, Greece
aff00194@uowm.gr
Language: English
Issue: ΣΧΟΛΗ 20.2 (2026) 706-741
DOI: 10.25205/1995-4328-2026-20-2-706-741
Keywords: Odysseus, legacy, immorality, cynicism, democracy, West
Abstract. Odysseus, traditionally considered as the archetypal hero of cunning, reveals through close textual analysis, a pattern of moral ambiguity, deceit, hybris and cruelty that challenges the Homeric ideal of heroic virtue. Far from embodying the pure honor and loyalty of earlier epic figures, Odysseus exploits strategic falsehoods, disregards communal ethics and indulges in ruthless violence, particularly in his vengeance against the suitors and disloyal servants, for instance. Drawing on ancient sources and critical modern readings, this research paper examines the Odyssean worldview through the lens of fractured heroism and post-heroic survivalism. By comparing Odysseus’ leadership failures with models of shame culture outlined, the study underlines Odysseus as cynic survivor and ethically compromised agent whose legacy invites profound rethinking of the values embedded in early Greek epic regarding this type of human beings. This paper is about a guide within archaeological tourism within the context of philosophical Ithaca.
Oleg Donskikh
Novosibirsk State University of Economics and Management
Novosibirsk State Technical University (Russia)
olegdonskikh@yandex.ru
Language: Russian
Issue: ΣΧΟΛΗ 20.2 (2026) 742-757
DOI: 10.25205/1995-4328-2026-20-2-742-757
Keywords: rationality, mythological consciousness, polis consciousness, civic position, legal practice, critical attitude to tradition and traditional images, conceptual thinking
Abstract. The article examines those aspects of the intellectual life of Ancient Greece, which somehow manifest elements of what can be described as rational thinking. In this context, rationality is understood as a way of understanding reality based on specially developed concepts and appropriate actions. The condition for the emergence of rational discourse is the formation of a responsible individual who has a pronounced personality and is able to present it in behavior and creativity. One of the most important requirement and the result of the manifestation of the individual principle is the civil policy consciousness, which has been developing for several centuries. Different policies develop their own system of necessary legal norms, which requires an understanding of social relations from the point of view of justice. At the same time, individual responsibility plays a significant role both in the formation and in the enforcement of laws. Extensive colonization plays a role, because it requires a clear justification of the legal status of the settlers. At the same time, which is very important, the pan-Hellenic consciousness is preserved due to religious festivals and pan-Hellenic games. A rethinking of local mythological images begins and a series of theo-cosmogonies is being built, starting with Homer and especially with Hesiod. Poets and thinkers paint pictures of the origin of the world and the gods based on their own ideas, trying to organize them in a certain way, and the very question of the beginning of existence was born within the framework of mythological consciousness. The desire to build these pictures implies the simple fact that an increasingly critical attitude towards existing mythological concepts and traditions in general is gaining strength. Concepts and ideas are emerging that have no direct connection with traditional mythological images. Legal practice helps to bring speech to the level of a language game, and an idea of contradiction arises that is alien to mythological consciousness. Finally, by the fourth century BC, we find a completely rational approach to myth, developed forms of logical reasoning based on concepts freed from mythological imagery and defined by purely semantic structures.
Andrei Shchetnikov
a.schetnikov@gmail.com
Language: English
Issue: ΣΧΟΛΗ 20.2 (2026) 758-770
DOI: 10.25205/1995-4328-2026-20-2-758-770
Keywords: Medieval Islamic algebra, Omar Khayyam, cubic equations, geometric constructions, architectural ornamentation, Alpay Özdural
Abstract. In his treatise On the Division of the Quadrant, Omar Khayyam examines two interconnected geometric problems leading to cubic equations. This paper provides a detailed mathematical commentary on Khayyam’s text, translating his verbal geometric operations into the language of symbolic algebra. By analyzing the internal logic of Khayyam’s constructions–including his unsuccessful attempts in the main text and their subsequent corrections in the appendix–the author restores the sequence of reasoning that led to his algebraic findings. Furthermore, the study examines these problems in the light of Alpay Özdural’s hypothesis, which links Khayyam’s geometry to practical architectural ornamentation found in an anonymous Persian manual. The analysis demonstrates how Khayyam’s “pure” mathematics, while presented in a closed and abstract style, is intrinsically embedded in the applied tradition of medieval Islamic design.
Andrei Shchetnikov
a.schetnikov@gmail.com
Language: English
Issue: ΣΧΟΛΗ 20.2 (2026) 771-783
DOI: 10.25205/1995-4328-2026-20-2-771-783
Keywords: Ulugh Beg, Samarkand observatory, Zij-i Sultani, meridian instrument, measurement accuracy
Abstract. The analysis of the astronomical data from the Zij-i Sultani demonstrates that the achievements of the Samarkand observatory represented the pinnacle of pre-telescopic astronomy. While the results are often presented with an excessive number of significant figures, these should be understood as the product of mathematical continuity rather than direct observational precision. By evaluating the physical limitations of the 40-meter meridian instrument and the inherent errors in determining the equinoxes, we can conclude that the systematic error of approximately 1ʹ was a remarkable feat for its time. Furthermore, this study clarifies that some values long attributed to Ulugh Beg in modern literature, such as the high-precision sidereal year, were actually derived from established constants like the precession rate of 1° per 70 years. Ultimately, the work of Ulugh Beg and his collaborators remains a testament to the rigorous application of geometric principles and historical data, where even the discrepancies with modern values fall within the rationally calculated margins of error for 15th-century science.
Elga I. Kanaeva
St. Tikhon's Orthodox University for Humanities
kanaeva.elga@gmail.com
Language: Russian
Issue: ΣΧΟΛΗ 20.2 (2026) 784-803
DOI: 10.25205/1995-4328-2026-20-2-784-803
Keywords: Stylometry, Anthony the Studite, Symeon the New Theologian, the Studite Monastery, Byzantine monasticism, hagiography
Abstract. The article presents a case study in the stylometric analysis to Middle Byzantine texts, focusing on the attribution of the "Catechetical Homilies" to Patriarch Antony III Studites (10th century). Confirmation or refutation of this hypothesis could make an important contribution to research on the intellectual history of Studite monasticism. The primary aim is to evaluate the efficacy of various Delta metric modifications (classic Burrows's, Eder's, and Cosine) for a corpus of homiletic, hagiographic, and epistolary works, and to apply a calibrated method to this contested attribution. A representative corpus of key Studite tradition authors and their contemporaries was compiled. Through a series of experiments, optimal analysis parameters–including metric choice, the number of most frequent words, and the necessity of lemmatization–were determined by calibrating the method against control samples: 14th-century texts with undisputed authorship and the corpus of St. Symeon the New Theologian. The study assesses the stylistic proximity between Antony Studites' undisputed and disputed texts. The results confirm the general applicability of the Delta method to Middle Greek material, while highlighting its parameter dependence. For longer texts (>10,000 words), classic Delta with lemmatization and a set of 500–750 most frequent words yielded the best outcomes. For shorter texts (~5,000 words), Eder's Delta or Cosine Delta applied to raw word forms with 250 most frequent words proved more effective. The method exhibited high sensitivity to textual genre. The findings support the attribution of the "Catechetical Homilies" to Antony Studites. Additionally, the analysis revealed a strong stylistic affinity between the corpora of Symeon the New Theologian and his disciple Niketas Stethatos and suggested a hypothesis of common authorship for two 10th-century hagiographical works. These results position stylometry as a viable auxiliary tool for investigating intellectual and literary networks within the Byzantine monastic tradition.
Irina Protopopova
Russian State University for the Humanities (Moscow)
Language: Russian
Issue: ΣΧΟΛΗ 20.2 (2026) 804-816
DOI: 10.25205/1995-4328-2026-20-2-804-816
Keywords: Plato, Plotinus, Deleuze, the Other, simulacrum, chora
Abstract. The purpose of the article is to trace the transformation of ideas about eidolon and simulacrum in the Platonic tradition and in Gilles Deleuze, to understand their cardinal difference and possible similarities. Deleuze, at the beginning of his essay “Plato and the Simulacrum”, says, repeating Nietzsche, that the task of modern philosophy is to overthrow Platonism, meaning “the abolition of the world of essences and of the world of phenomena”. Deleuze rejects the equality of the Same and the Other, as it was accepted in Plato, in favor of the latter: thus, he rejects the very idea of paradigm as the principle of the “One” and, accordingly, disregards copies as similarities, coming to the concept of "the Other within the Other" as an infinite sliding on the “surface” of simulacra, that is, some “ghostly likenesses” without any relation to the idea of resemblance. There arises a picture of a phantasmal world of continuous immanence that presupposes no transcendence, no hierarchy and depth, a picture of “chaosmos” and “chaodyssey”, very close to what Plato describes in the 7th hypothesis of the dialogue Parmenides. The article examines the problem of Socrates’ resemblance to a sophist, which is posed by both Plato and Deleuze; the role of transcendence in distinguishing those two in Plato is shown. The role of the chora and the Other in Plato is demonstrated in the context of the concept of similarities and phantasms, and Plotinus’ development of this theme in the theme of the intelligible matter. In conclusion, a comparison is made between Plotinus’ “unenlightened” primary otherness and Deleuze’s “chaosmos”.
Rustam Galanin
The Dostoevsky Russian Christian Academy for the Humanities
Saint Petersburg University
mousse2006@mail.ru
Language: Russian
Issue: ΣΧΟΛΗ 20.2 (2026) 817-850
DOI: 10.25205/1995-4328-2026-20-2-817-850
Keywords: Jewish identity, Hecateus of Abdera, ancient anti-Semitism, Hellenistic Judaism, Greek philosophy.
Abstract. The article is devoted to the analysis of Hecataeus' views on Jews and Judaism in the context of Hellenistic culture. The works of Hecataeus, first of all "Egyptian History" and the treatise "On the Jews" attributed to him, will be considered, with an emphasis on their authenticity. The author examines the origin of Hecataeus' information about Jews, the possible influence of Egyptian priests and Alexandrian Jews, as well as the connection of his descriptions with the Greek ethnographic tradition. It is shown that Hecateus' image of Jews combines admiration for their laws and religion with traditional accusations of xenophobia and insularity. The author concludes that Hecateus sought to create a political and cultural model reflecting the ideology of early Hellenism and the politics of the Ptolemies, combining Egyptian, Greek and Jewish elements in a single historical and philosophical narrative. Special attention is paid to the historicity of the high priest Hezekiah.
Igor Tantlevskij
Saint Petersburg University
i.tantlevsky@spbu.ru
Language: Russian
Issue: ΣΧΟΛΗ 20.2 (2026) 851-884
DOI: 10.25205/1995-4328-2026-20-2-851-884
Keywords: ʿōlām, cosmos, eternity, time, Hebrew Bible, Qohelet, Plato, Aristotle, Stoicism, civilizational identity, linear and cyclical time
Abstract. This article offers a comparative analysis of conceptions of the universe, time, and eternity in ancient Jews and ancient Greek intellectual traditions, with particular attention to their role in shaping distinct forms of civilizational identity. The discussion begins with the semantic range of the Hebrew term ʿōlām, which may denote duration, a world-age, universal infinity, and, in later contexts, the world as a spatiotemporal whole. In the Hebrew Bible, God is presented as transcending both the spatial-material universe and the created duration of the world. Against this background, the article examines the Tetragrammaton, the Septuagint rendering of Exodus 3:14, and Philo of Alexandria’s philosophical interpretation of the formula ἐγώ εἰμι ὁ ὤν. Special attention is given to Ecclesiastes 3:11: the possible meanings of hā-ʿōlām are considered together with the anthropological semantics of lēḇ, “heart,” understood as mind and consciousness, and with the possibility that the verse attributes to human beings a capacity to apprehend reality sub specie aeternitatis. Biblical accounts of creation through divine Wisdom, Understanding, Knowledge, Word, and Plan are also reconstructed and compared with Greek cosmological models. The analysis then turns to Heraclitus’ ever-living cosmos, Aristotle’s definition of time as the number of motion, the Stoic understanding of time as the extension of motion and of worlds as cyclically recurring, and Plato’s distinction between immutable eternity and time as its moving numerical image. The comparison suggests that Greek thought predominantly organizes being in spatial terms and associates perfection with immobility, symmetry, and cyclical recurrence. The Hebrew tradition, by contrast, conceives the world as irreversible duration and history, extending from creation toward eschatological fulfilment and beyond it into infinity. A chariot wheel that simultaneously rotates and moves forward is proposed as a model for the relative cyclicity and absolute linearity of ancient Hebrew time. These contrasting temporal ontologies inform anthropology, ethics, historiography, and aesthetics: the contemplative and plastic orientation of Hellenic culture is set against the literary, ethical, and action-centred character of biblical culture. The article concludes that conceptions of universe, time, and eternity are not secondary abstractions but constitutive structures of civilizational self-understanding.
Oleg Nogovitsin
A.M. Gorky Institute of World Literature of the Russian Academy of Sciences (Russia)
onogov@yandex.ru
Language: Russian
Issue: ΣΧΟΛΗ 20.2 (2026) 885-921
DOI: 10.25205/1995-4328-2026-20-2-885-921
Keywords: Origen, John Philoponus, Hexapla, Septuagint, biblical translations, divine inspiration of Scripture, late antique grammar and rhetoric, textual correction and exegesis
Abstract. The paper examines the problem of discrepancies between the Septuagint and the primary Hebrew text of the Old Testament, supplements and contractions, which have emerged in the Greek translation, in the history of Christian Biblical exegesis. The quantitative distinctions and semantic mismatches of separate readings in the overall corpus of versions of the Biblical text inevitably raised questions among Christians when they compared the two Scriptures that had acquired the sacred status: the Holy Scripture of Jews and the Septuagint – the Holy Scripture of Christians, the original and its translation having become the original in terms of ultimate authorship. The presence of another original should have been clarified to the community of Christians, in order not to diminish the divine inspiration of the Septuagint. This issue has become particularly apparent as tied to Origen’s project for the rectification of the Septuagint, based on the synoptic edition in parallel columns of the Hebrew original of the Old Testament together with its Greek transliteration and several Greek translations. Addressing varied readings of different translations with reference to the Hebrew original has been a distinctive feature of Origen’s Biblical commentaries and sermons, and thence firmly entered the practice of Old Testament interpretation. Within the paper, the mentioned issue is studied based on the example of the texts of Origenes and John Philoponus, which allow making it ostensible through an analysis of the transformations that the textual criticism and exegesis methods to handling the classical texts proper to the Late Antiquity grammar and rhetoric have undergone in the works of these Christian theologians. As a basic text commented on, the paper has the 4th chapter of Book IV of Philoponus’ treatise “On the Creation of the World”, where he, leaning on the criticism of Origen’s textological commentary on the supplement to the text of Gen. 1:9–10 in the Septuagint, answers the question of the validity of this insertion.
Timiur Shchukin
A.M. Gorky Institute of World Literature of the Russian Academy of Sciences
tim_ibif@mail.ru
Language: Russian
Issue: ΣΧΟΛΗ 20.2 (2026) 922-938
DOI: 10.25205/1995-4328-2026-20-2-922-938
Keywords: John Philoponus, Origen, Didymus the Blind, origenism, pre-existence of the soul, exegesis
Abstract. The paper aims to analyze chapters VII.1–3 of John Philoponus’ treatise ‘De Opificio Mundi’, in which he provides an interpretation of Gen. 1.28 and refutes the opinions of unnamed interpreters belonging to the Origenist tradition and adhering to the doctrine of pre-existence of soul. The comparison we made of the interpretation of Gen. 1.22, 28 in Opif. VII.1, along with Origen’s interpretations known to us, reveals that the most likely source for John Philoponus was a short passage preserved in the catenae. Our analysis of Opif. VII.2 leaves no doubt that John Philoponus was hardly familiar with the texts of the Origen tradition in any sufficient quantity to avoid reproducing its doctrinal characteristics in a significantly distorted form. Finally, though, we assume that the most likely source for Opif. VII.3 contains a theological digression from Didymus the Blind’s interpretation of the Book of Job. There is a lot of evidence that John Philoponus was familiar with this fragment in a significantly stripped-down form, probably as a part of the anti-Origenist compilations of the sixth century.
Dmitrii Chernoglazov
A.M. Gorky Institute of World Literature of the Russian Academy of Sciences
St Petersburg University
d_chernoglazov@mail.ru
Language: Russian
Issue: ΣΧΟΛΗ 20.2 (2026) 939-957
DOI: 10.25205/1995-4328-2026-20-2-939-957
Keywords: John Philoponus, De opificio mundi, Hexaemeron, creation of animals, Philo of Alexandria, Basil the Great
Abstract. The article analyzes the first chapter of the fifth book of John Philoponus’ treatise De opificio mundi, where the author explains the order of creation of living beings – plants, fishes, birds, terrestrial animals and man. The reasoning of Philoponus is considered in the context of the previous exegetical tradition. The originality of Philoponus in both ideas and methods of commenting on the Old Testament text is demonstrated. Philoponus’ basic idea, according to which the creation of living beings progressed from less perfect to more perfect forms, is completely uncharacteristic of his Christian predecessors. Parallels are considered with the “Homilies on Hexaemeron” by Basil the Great, with the “Apology for the Hexaemeron” by Gregory of Nyssa, and with the treatise “On the Creation of the Cosmos according to Moses” by Philo of Alexandria. The similarity with Philo’s text, where he also discusses the order of creation of animals, seems to be the most significant. It is determined in what John Philoponus agrees with Philo, and in what he diverges from him. The question of the direct dependence of Philoponus’ text on the treatise of Philo of Alexandria is raised.
Aleksey Bogomolov
Minin Nizhny Novgorod State Pedagogical University (Minin University)
ensestens@mail.ru
Language: Russian
Issue: ΣΧΟΛΗ 20.2 (2026) 958-972
DOI: 10.25205/1995-4328-2026-20-2-958-972
Keywords: apophaticism, myth, proto-apophaticism, Ate, non-being
Abstract. The article raises the problem of prerequisites for the formation of the doctrine of non-being in Plato’s philosophy. One possible source is mythology. Ate is a negative image in ancient mythology that is used to describe and structure negative epistemological states (delusion, obscuration). Two key characteristics of Ate are presented in the works of Homer and Hesiod. In early Greek philosophy (Empedocles), Ate is not an independent image, but a «place» («Ate Meadow»), which is endowed with exclusively negative characteristics. The dynamics of Ate's representations find their expression in the formation of the concept of non-being in Plato's philosophy. The expulsion of Ate serves as a precursor to Plato’s «prohibition» of the existence of «negative ideas». Additionally, the myth of Ate is linked to the concept of the chorus and the idea of the other in the dialogue Sophist.
Ivan Surkov
Institute of Philosophy, Russian Academy of Sciences (Moscow)
Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation (Moscow)
surkovie@my.msu.ru
Language: Russian
Issue: ΣΧΟΛΗ 20.2 (2026) 973-999
DOI: 10.25205/1995-4328-2026-20-2-973-999
Keywords: Neoplatonism, Patristics, Byzantine Philosophy, Proclus, Iamblichus, Pseudo-Dionysius, Maximus the Confessor, first principle, henads, Divine Activities, Divine Energies
Abstract: The article addresses one of the central issues in Late Antique and Byzantine metaphysics: the relationship between the simple and transcendent First Principle (or God) and the multiple and complex world. A typological comparison is undertaken of four models proposed to resolve this aporia. Two Neoplatonic models are analyzed: the doctrine of the two Ones and the teaching on “henads” in Iamblichus, as well as the systematic development of the theory of henads in the metaphysics of Proclus. Two Christian models are also examined: the doctrine of the “Divine processions” in the corpus of Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite and the teaching on the “Divine Activities”in Maximus the Confessor. The article concludes that while Dionysius and Maximus adopt the structural function of the henads as a way of addressing The First-Principle Aporia, they radically reinterpret it, eliminating from their metaphysical systems any ontologically independent mediating entities between God and the world.
Pavel Butakov
Institute of Philosophy and Law SB RAS
pavelbutakov@academ.org
Language: Russian
Issue: ΣΧΟΛΗ 20.2 (2026) 1000-1013
DOI: 10.25205/1995-4328-2026-20-2-1000-1013
Keywords: Thomas Aquinas, narrative, literal sense, matter and form, Gospel parables, biblical interpretation Abstract. Thomas Aquinas, in his comments and sermons on the Gospel parables, ignores the meaning of these parables as a whole narrative and considers only the meanings of the comprising words and phrases. This approach agrees with Aquinas’s teaching about the literal sense of the biblical text. According to his teaching, the literal sense (1) is the objective meaning, i.e., the subject matter of the text; (2) is a proposition; (3) can be understood by most readers; (4) corresponds with the author’s intent; and (5) follows from the senses of the comprising fragments of the text. Moreover, (6) a story is a form of text; therefore, it cannot contain its own meaning or subject matter. While I agree with (1)–(4), I disagree with (5) and (6). Against (5) and (6), I argue that many biblical stories have their own propositional content that is not reducible to the senses of their comprising fragments. This claim, I believe, can be confirmed by the text of the Gospels, the ecclesiastical tradition, and common sense.
Valery V. Petroff
Institute of Philosophy, Russian Academy of Sciences (Moscow)
campas.iph@gmail.com
Language: Russian
Issue: ΣΧΟΛΗ 20.2 (2026) 1014-1061
DOI: 10.25205/1995-4328-2026-20-2-1014-1061
Keywords: John Scottus Eriugena; Aulae sidereae; Maximus the Confessor; Dionysius the Areopagite; theoremata; armonia rerum; Wisdom; Logos; celestial hierarchy; seven liberal arts; Periphyseon; Carolingian poetry
Abstract. This study examines two key concepts in John Scottus Eriugena’s poem Aulae sidereae — theoremata and armonia rerum — in the context of the author’s Greek and Latin sources. It argues that the vocabulary and conceptual structure of the poem are closely connected with Eriugena’s later works, above all the Periphyseon, the Expositions on the Celestial Hierarchy of Dionysius the Areopagite, and the Homily on the Prologue to the Gospel of John. Particular attention is paid to the influence of Maximus the Confessor: to his understanding of θεωρήματα as contemplative contents through which the mind ascends toward truth, and to his images of the fabric of creation and the garments of the Logos. The concept of armonia rerum is analysed against the background of Maximus’ harmony of the logoi, Dionysian angelology, and Eriugena’s mathematical interpretation of the celestial hierarchy. The final section considers the formulas remota domus and candida vestis Scripturae, which bring together Christology, sophiology, the seven liberal arts, and the hermeneutics of Scripture and creation. It is argued that Aulae sidereae is not a marginal poetic exercise, but a cosmo-poetic condensation of Eriugena’s mature thought, in which the Nativity theme unfolds as an architecture of the manifestation of the Logos in the cosmos, in Scripture, and in the celestial hierarchy.
Vladimir Brovkin
Institute of Philosophy and Law SB RAS, Novosibirsk
vbrovkin1980@gmail.com
Language: Russian
Issue: ΣΧΟΛΗ 20.2 (2026) 1062-1076
DOI: 10.25205/1995-4328-2026-20-2-1062-1076
Keywords: Protagoras, democratic tendency, anti-democratic tendency, equality, people, ostracism
Abstract. This article examines Protagoras' views on democracy. It establishes that two opposing tendencies are discernible in Protagoras's statements. The first tendency can be called democratic. Protagoras delivers a speech defending the proposition that all people are subject to shame and justice, making them equal participants in political life. In this way, Protagoras defends one of the fundamental characteristics of ancient Greek democracy: political equality. His close association with the leader of Athenian democracy, Pericles, and his possible participation in the legislation of the Thurii also support this democratic tendency in Protagoras's views. The second tendency is anti-democratic. This tendency is supported by a number of Protagoras' arrogant statements about the people, characteristic of opponents of democracy. Furthermore, Protagoras's professional activity, aimed at training influential politicians, was ill-suited to the principle of democratic equality. Under democracy, the people, envying and resenting all politicians who rose above them, subjected them to repression through various procedures (ostracism).
Sarkis Kazarov
South Federal University (Russia)
ser-kazarov@yandex.ru
Language: Russian
Issue: ΣΧΟΛΗ 20.2 (2026) 1077–1084
DOI: 10.25205/1995-4328-2026-20-2-1077-1084
Keywords: oak, Dodona, oracle, temenos, mantika, Zeus
Abstract The ancient Greeks, being superstitious people, like other people, worshiped the forces of nature. They always strived to live in harmony with nature. The most popular tree, associated by the Greeks with the supreme god Zeus, was the oak. One of the most ancient and authoritative sanctuaries of ancient Greece was the oracle of Dodona, on whose grounds grew a sacred oak tree, the fame and authority of which dates back to Homeric times. Despite the assertions of some scholars, the sacred oak tree was not the "home" of Zeus–the ruler of all the gods resided high on Olympus. At a certain stage in the functioning of the Dodona oracle–a role also once played by the sacred spring and copper cauldrons–the sacred oak tree acted as a relay for Zeus's will, which was heard through the rustling of leaves, the creaking of branches, and so on. Thus, a connection was established: the questioner–the sacred oak tree–the god Zeus. The sacred oak survived until the reign of Theodosius, when it was destroyed by order of the emperor.
Evgenij Derzhivitskij
St. Petersburg State University
derzhiv@mail.ru
Vadim Perov
St. Petersburg State University
vadimperov@gmail.com
Language: Russian
Issue: ΣΧΟΛΗ 20.2 (2026) 1085-1104
DOI: 10.25205/1995-4328-2026-20-2-1085-1104
Keywords: meritocracy, ancient ethics, concord of estates, civic virtues, viri boni, social compromise, Cicero
Abstract. The ideal of a society composed of virtuous members capable of the best governance has traditionally been widely discussed in social-philosophical and ethical thought. The classical concepts of Plato and Aristotle laid the foundations for this idea. While Plato emphasized the role of the wisdom of philosopher-rulers, Aristotle relied on the numerical superiority of moderate citizens capable of acting rightly in concrete circumstances. These views anticipated the twentieth-century meritocratic theory, in which intellectual abilities and efforts determine the right to power. Contemporary criticism of meritocracy points to the threat of elite privileges and the absence of objective criteria for selecting the most deserving. In this context, Cicero’s theory attracts attention by proposing universalism, a comprehensive approach, and an ethical basis of power. Having experienced the crisis of the late Roman Republic, Cicero developed the idea of concordia ordinum (the harmony of social orders) and consensus omnium bonorum (the consensus of all well-intentioned citizens), linking them to the moral mission of leaders–the optimates–and viri boni. Cicero emphasized the importance of dignitas (dignity) and otium cum dignitate (leisure with dignity) as ideals, as well as the necessity of moral responsibility and service to the common good. His conceptions of virtuous citizens and their role in the state constitute a humanistic alternative to the elitist meritocratic view, taking into account actual social practice and the complexity of society, which renders them relevant to contemporary issues of democracy, elitism, and political morality. Thus, the evolution of Cicero’s ideas demonstrates a departure from narrowly elitist models of power toward a more flexible, morally oriented model based on the unification of well-intentioned citizens to preserve social harmony and the welfare of society. The views proposed by Cicero allow avoidance of the extremes of Plato’s “rule of the wise” and the widespread technocratic management ideas. They can be fully adapted to modern society, whose complexity and divergent interests of its members suggest the possibility of devising an optimal model for formulating common goals and proposing means to achieve them based on ethical criteria and with consideration of the ethical competencies of its active members.
Mozhajsky Andrej Yu.
HSE University
amozhayskiy@hse.ru
Language: Russian
Issue: ΣΧΟΛΗ 20.2 (2026) 1105-1116
DOI: 10.25205/1995-4328-2026-20-2-1105-1116
Keywords: Epaminondas, Thebes, paideia, education, Pythagorean philosophy, Lysis, Philolaus, battle of Leuctra
Abstract. This article examines the education of Epaminondas, the most famous Theban military and political figure. However, in antiquity, Epaminondas was also renowned for his education and philosophical authority. The study demonstrates that Epaminondas' education encompassed a complex set of local teachings, which Pausanias describes as ἐπιχώρια διδάγματα. However, Epaminondas' education differed from that of most members of the Theban elite because of his Pythagorean background. The dissemination of the Pythagorean teachings of Philolaus and Lysis in Thebes may have influenced not only Epaminondas' philosophical education but also had practical implications for his implementation of new tactics during the battle of Leuctra. Thus, a direct connection between Epaminondas' military and philosophical education is suggested. The article also reveals echoes of what appears to have been a significant ancient literary tradition that reported on the spread of Pythagoreanism in Thebes and directly linked Epaminondas's achievements in paideia and philosophy with his role as military commander.
TRANSLATIONS
Alexei Garadja
Russian State University for the Humanities
agaradja@yandex.ru
Language: Russian
Issue: ΣΧΟΛΗ 20.2 (2026) 1117-1137
DOI: 10.25205/1995-4328-2026-20-2-1117-1137
Keywords: Marsilio Ficino, the De vita, Neoplatonism, magic, human subject
Abstract. The publication presents a commented Russian translation of the first five chapters of the third book of Marsilio Ficino’s (1433–1499) treatise De vita, or De triplici vita, pertaining to the later works of the Florentine, which was composed in the 1480s and first published in 1489. This is one of the most important testimonies of the Renaissance natural philosophy, or rather natural magic (magia naturalis) – a world-view developed out of Neoplatonic and Hermetic traditions whose major texts had been translated into Latin and commented upon by Ficino himself. As his kindred spirit Pico della Mirandola puts it, magic is “the practical part of natural science” (Concl. 2.9.3) or even “the absolute consummation of natural philosophy” (Dign. 148). Perceived as such, magic was leading to science in the contemporary understanding of the term. In contrast to the first two books of the treatise, De vita sana and De vita longa, which may be characterized as a medico-magical research, the third book, arisen from a commentary on Plotinus, delves into the medico-astrological field, and besides “Platonics” Ficino makes extensive usage of the works of “Arabian astrologers”, accessible to him in Latin translations, to begin with the Abbreviated Introduction to Astrology by Abū Maʿšar (787–886), a Persian by birth, the treatise De radiis by al‑Kindī (c. 801–873), as well as the book Picatrix, falsely attributed to the Andalusian scholar al-Maǧrīṭī (c. 950– 1007). The practice of “obtaining life from the heavens” is based on the correspondence between micro- and macrocosmos and on sympathetic magic. The operational medium of the magical attraction of heavenly “favors” is the world spirit (the same as ether, the same as quintessence) interacting with the individual spirit of a human subject and embracing the spirits of stars and demons. Health and well-being are ensured by a carefully elaborated way of life that takes into consideration the influences of stars and is oriented towards the usage of things and entities which are in accord with these stars, from minerals and plants to animals and human beings of a particular mould.
Nadezhda Volkova
RAS Institute of Philosophy (Moscow)
go2nadya@gmail.com
Language: Russian
Issue: ΣΧΟΛΗ 20.2 (2026) 1138-1170
DOI: 10.25205/1995-4328-2026-20-2-1138-1170
Keywords: Plato, Plotinus, Aristotle, eternity of the world, celestial bodies, cosmos, elements
Abstract. This article examines the problem of the eternity of the cosmos and celestial bodies in Plotinus’ treatise II 1 “On the Heavens”. The question of the world’s eternity was widely debated among Platonists and Peripatetics before Plotinus. In the Timaeus (41 a7 – 8), Plato maintained that although the cosmos came into being, by virtue of the divine will it would not be destroyed. This position drew criticism from Aristotle (On the Heavens, 280 a25 – 30), who held the opinion that nothing that has come into being could be eternal. Later, Peripatetics, notably Alexander of Aphrodisias, challenged Plato’s doctrine of the divine will as a guarantee of the world’s eternity (Quaestiones, I 18). Within the Platonic tradition–with the exception of Plutarch and Atticus–the prevailing view was that the world had no beginning in time. This approach resolved the contradiction between coming-to-be and eternity of the world: if the world did not come into being, nothing prevents it from existing forever. A more complex issue for Platonists was the eternity of celestial bodies. The focus of this article is an analysis of Plotinus’ arguments in the treatise II1, where he raises three main questions: 1. If the cosmos is homogeneous, why do some bodies (celestial) possess individual eternity, while others (sublunary) are eternal only by form? 2. If matter as the substrate of all bodies imparts to them its nature of changeability, why do some bodies nevertheless remain changeless? 3. How can the divine will ensure the eternal existence of a part of the corporeal cosmos? The article demonstrates that Plotinus develops an original doctrine concerning the eternity of celestial bodies, based on their special nature and the role of the World Soul in cosmos’ composition.
Eugene Afonasin
St. Petersburg University
Immanuel Kant Baltic Federal University
afonasin@gmail.com
Language: Russian
Issue: ΣΧΟΛΗ 20.2 (2026) 1171-1190
DOI: 10.25205/1995-4328-2026-20-2-1171-1190
Keywords: Judaism, Platonism, creationism, Stoicism, time, eternity, the first principles
Abstract. In the treatise ‘On the Eternity of the World’ Philo appears not only as a key figure in the history of the interpretation of the biblical books, but also as a crucial witness to the development of Platonism in the first century BCE. This philosophic work of the Alexandrian exegete can be subdivided into two unequal parts. In an introductory part (sec. 1-19) Philo speaks for the most part on his own behalf, making comparison between Aristotelian, Stoic, Epicurean, and Platonic approaches to the problem of the elemental status of the world and the question of its everlasting existence; the reader will find it published in a previous issue of the journal (Schole 19.2 (2025) 1243-1257). A section of the doxographic part of the treatise (sec. 20–73), translated in Schole 20.1, 461–476, systematically presents the positions of other philosophers, most notably arguments of the Peripatetic Critolaus and the Stoic Chrysippus for whom Philo is a unique witness. He also discusses the original Platonic arguments based on the idea of the closed nature of the world and its immunity to disease, the integrity of its composition, its transformation and the impossibility of its complete disintegration. In the part of the treatise presented in this publication (sec. 74–116), Philo develops his critique of the Stoic theory of the cosmic cycle approaching it from various angles. The treatise not only provides a wealth of important information about the philosophical discussions on the eternity of the world that preceded Philo, but also allows us to better understand his own theological position, which is not always clearly stated in his exegetical works.
Eugene Afonasin
Immanuel Kant Baltic Federal University
afonasin@gmail.com
Language: Russian
Issue: ΣΧΟΛΗ 20.2 (2026) 1191-1222
DOI: 10.25205/1995-4328-2026-20-2-1191-1222
Keywords: ancient science, physics, space, time, motion, laws of nature, Peripatetic school
Abstract. Theophrastus wrote many works devoted to the study of nature. Some of the texts have survived, others are known from brief quotations and retellings, mainly in Neoplatonic commentaries. The loss of his Physics is particularly significant; like the Metaphysics that has come down to us, it was likely aporetic in nature and covered a wide range of topics, from the methodological foundations of natural science to the psychology of sensory perception. In this publication, I first translate several pieces of evidence regarding the role Theophrastus assigned to natural science as a whole within the system of sciences, and then present fragments of his teachings on place, time, and motion. We see how Theophrastus refines the Peripatetic conception of time as a quantitative characteristic of motion, reflects on the paradoxes of defining place as the boundary of a body, and redefines it in terms of the mutual relations of bodies. It becomes clear that for Theophrastus is also important to distinguish between actual spatial movements and imaginary pseudo-movements of a relative nature, and to understand the specifics of qualitative transitions and instantaneous changes. Furthermore, he addresses the question posed by Aristotle regarding the irreversibility of physical processes over time. The excerpts are taken from the FHSG (1992) edition, retaining the original numbering. In the commentary, I place our brief excerpts in their proper context, provide important parallels, and include bibliographic references.
Timothey Myakin
Novosibirsk State University
miackin.timof@yandex.ru
Language: Russian
Issue: ΣΧΟΛΗ 20.2 (2026) 1223-1231
DOI: 10.25205/1995-4328-2026-20-2-1223-1231
Keywords: Epigrams of Theocritus, sources of Theocritus's poetry, Sapphic’s poetry, mysteries of Artemis in ancient Mytilene
Abstract: The article presents the first uncensored Russian translation of the famous epigram of Theocritus from “Anthologia Graeca” (Anth. Graeca IX, 437), and a detailed historical and philological commentary (cf. Theocr. Fr. 4 Hopkinson).
Mikhail Bernatsky
St. Tikhon's Orthodox University of the Humanities
mbernatski@gmail.com
Vladislav Vycherov
St. Tikhon's Orthodox University of the Humanities, HSE University
vladislav.unic@gmail.com
Language: Russian
Issue: ΣΧΟΛΗ 20.2 (2026) 1232-1262
DOI: 10.25205/1995-4328-2026-20-2-1232-1262
Keywords: Byzantine Thomism, Gennadios Scholarios, Thomas Aquinas, Demetrios Kydones, Greek manuscripts
Abstract. This publication presents an edition of Summa contra gentiles II, 83–84 in its Greek translation by Demetrius Cydones, based on the manuscript Taurinensis 23 (C-2-16), and accompanied by a collation of the Greek text with the Florilegium Thomisticum I and Gennadios Scholarios’s Compendium. On the basis of this edition, the study analyzes the nature of Scholarios’s engagement with manuscript Taurinensis 23 (C-2-16), as reflected in Florilegium Thomisticum I and in his Compendium of the Summa contra gentiles. Finally, the article offers a preliminary reconsideration of the conclusions of J. A. Demetracopoulos concerning the relationships among the various textual abridgments and the development of Scholarios’s interest in the problem of the simultaneity of the creation of the soul and the body across different stages of his intellectual activity.
Svetlana Mesyats
Institute of Philosophy RAS
Immanuel Kant Baltic Federal University
messiats@mail.ru
Eugene Afonasin
Immanuel Kant Baltic Federal University
afonasin@gmail.com
Language: Russian
Issue: ΣΧΟΛΗ 20.2 (2026) 1263-1285
DOI: 10.25205/1995-4328-2026-20-2-1263-1285
Keywords: Neoplatonism, Proclus, Plato’s Timaeus, Proclus’ Commentary on “Timaeus”, Neoplatonic doctrine of nature, physics as science, physics as hypothetical knowledge, being and becoming, One-existent, eternity, paradigm
Abstract. With this publication, we continue the first Russian translation of Book II of Proclus' Commentary on Plato’s “Timaeus”. In the translated section (In Tim. I, 227-240) Proclus comments on the distinction drawn by Plato in Tim. 27d 6–28a 1 between “eternally being” (τὸ ὄν ἀεί) and “becoming” (τὸ γιγνόμενον), asking whether this distinction encompasses all of reality, from the One-existent down to matter, or not.
