On Possible Antiochian Influences in the first Syriac Translation (S1) of Evagrius’ Kephalaia gnostica
On Possible Antiochian Influences in the first Syriac Translation (S1) of Evagrius’ Kephalaia gnostica

Summary/Abstract: This article examines the Syriac reception of Evagrius Ponticus with particular attention to the earliest Syriac translation (S1) of the Kephalaia gnostica. It argues that this translation was not a neutral linguistic transfer but a theologically informed reinterpretation shaped by the doctrinal concerns of the fifth century. Building on the studies of Antoine Guillaumont and John W. Watt, the article analyses several modifications affecting central aspects of Evagrian theology, including protology, anthropology, resurrection, and the doctrine of prayer. The analysis shows that the translator reworked elements of Evagrius’ Alexandrian-Origenist framework in order to bring them closer to theological positions associated with Theodore of Mopsuestia and the wider Antiochene tradition. The article therefore proposes that the S1 translation reflects a coherent theological project that reshapes Evagrius’ thought within a Syriac intellectual milieu, possibly connected with the scholarly environment of Edessa during the bishopric of Ibas.

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