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Some Early Christian Trees

Arentzen, Thomas LU (2021) In Studia Patristica 104. p.127-137
Abstract
In the wake of the current environmental crisis, scholars of late antique Christianity are beginning to study Christian attitudes towards the natural world. How did the early Christians relate to their environment? This article explores perceptions of trees, surveying the writings of Tertullian, Basil of Caesarea, and Sozomen the historian. What did an arboreal plant do, according to patristic authors? What kind of agency did they imagine trees to have? The investigation shows that members of the educated elite might think of trees as bodies with living, intelligent souls; they saw complex variety and gendered creatures with personal characteristics when they gazed at beings in bark. Certain arboreal species engaged in and were... (More)
In the wake of the current environmental crisis, scholars of late antique Christianity are beginning to study Christian attitudes towards the natural world. How did the early Christians relate to their environment? This article explores perceptions of trees, surveying the writings of Tertullian, Basil of Caesarea, and Sozomen the historian. What did an arboreal plant do, according to patristic authors? What kind of agency did they imagine trees to have? The investigation shows that members of the educated elite might think of trees as bodies with living, intelligent souls; they saw complex variety and gendered creatures with personal characteristics when they gazed at beings in bark. Certain arboreal species engaged in and were communicating through a sexual-life; many individuals made rational choices. Although trees are not free to move around, Christians assumed that boughs and branches could bend in devotion as trees expressed attention to divine presence. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
organization
publishing date
type
Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding
publication status
published
subject
keywords
Tertullian, Basilius of Caesarea, Sozomen, Trees, Tertullian, Basilius, Sozomen, trees, early Christianity
host publication
Papers presented at the Eighteenth International Conference on Patristic Studies held in Oxford 2019 : Volume 1: Introduction; Historica - Volume 1: Introduction; Historica
series title
Studia Patristica
editor
Vinzent, Markus
volume
104
pages
11 pages
publisher
Peeters Publishers
ISBN
9789042947443
9789042947450
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
f728f80b-102e-4083-a262-c3955ba95bcc
date added to LUP
2022-01-07 20:17:45
date last changed
2023-09-27 08:05:39
@inbook{f728f80b-102e-4083-a262-c3955ba95bcc,
  abstract     = {{In the wake of the current environmental crisis, scholars of late antique Christianity are beginning to study Christian attitudes towards the natural world. How did the early Christians relate to their environment? This article explores perceptions of trees, surveying the writings of Tertullian, Basil of Caesarea, and Sozomen the historian. What did an arboreal plant do, according to patristic authors? What kind of agency did they imagine trees to have? The investigation shows that members of the educated elite might think of trees as bodies with living, intelligent souls; they saw complex variety and gendered creatures with personal characteristics when they gazed at beings in bark. Certain arboreal species engaged in and were communicating through a sexual-life; many individuals made rational choices. Although trees are not free to move around, Christians assumed that boughs and branches could bend in devotion as trees expressed attention to divine presence.}},
  author       = {{Arentzen, Thomas}},
  booktitle    = {{Papers presented at the Eighteenth International Conference on Patristic Studies held in Oxford 2019 : Volume 1: Introduction; Historica}},
  editor       = {{Vinzent, Markus}},
  isbn         = {{9789042947443}},
  keywords     = {{Tertullian; Basilius of Caesarea; Sozomen; Trees; Tertullian; Basilius; Sozomen; trees; early Christianity}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  pages        = {{127--137}},
  publisher    = {{Peeters Publishers}},
  series       = {{Studia Patristica}},
  title        = {{Some Early Christian Trees}},
  volume       = {{104}},
  year         = {{2021}},
}