The Duty to Translate: Was: Re: Notitia Dignitatum

TonyProst at aol.com TonyProst at aol.com
Wed Dec 2 14:28:59 EST 1998




<< nevertheless find myself wondering: is Nonnos simply interesting (he is at
 >least that, I readily grant) or is he also important? If he is important,
 >how or for what is he important? Does he illuminate our understanding of
 >the gospel of John, or does he illuminate our understanding of how the
 >gospel of John was understood in the fifth century? >>

	I believe he does all that. He is a literate person paraphrasing a document
in his primary language. He is only 400 years remote from the events, and 300
- 350 years remote from the gospel. If nothing else, his paraphrase will shed
light on simple parsing. Recently the list discussed the clause division in a
verse with deep theological consequences: John 1:3-4. I posted the Nonnos
reading, which is useful data in the analysis. 

	Moreover, this was written during a time when orthodoxy was being
established. A new text from these Chalcedonian times has inherent historico-
theological interest.

	Regards,
Tony Prost
All Nonnos All Day
http://members.aol.com/tonyprost/index.html



More information about the B-Greek mailing list