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65 Early Syriac Theology with Special Reference to the Maronite Tradition

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65 Early Syriac Theology with Special Reference to the Maronite Tradition BOOK REVIEWS 65 Early Syriac Theology with Special From there, the next few chapters cover Reference to the Maronite Tradition. liturgical practice and sacramental theology. Written by Seely Joseph Beggiani. It ends with chapters on eschatology and Washington D.C. The Catholic University faith. Though the themes are still related, the of America Press, 2014. xix+192pp. ISBN: different themes that compose the chapters of 0813227011. $41.00 CND paperback. the book help us understand where Syriac Christianity is located in the various Chorbishop Seely Joseph Beggiani gives an traditions and spheres of Christianity, and the overview of the theology and practices of the internal diversity of the tradition itself. Syriac tradition of Christianity in his book Within his book, Beggiani focuses on Early Syriac Theology. In recent years, the the time period of the second century CE to history and practices of Christians from the the seventh century CE, which allows him to Near East have come into the public sphere. explore the formation and thought of this Beggiani provides a useful primer to serve as distinct tradition before the emergence of an introduction to the Syriac tradition for Islam in the Near East. This period serves as academics and non-academics to learn more the foundation and genesis of a tradition that about the tradition. Beggiani attempts to uses Semitic languages like Aramaic and demonstrate two things within his book. Syriac for its writing and worship rather than First, he attempts to demonstrate the Greek or Latin, and a tradition that would uniqueness of the Christian theology, liturgy, grow to have one of the largest missionary and figures that emerged in Syria and the fields in antiquity, reaching from Iraq to Levant from the second to seventh century, China. Within that field, there would also be particularly as the Syriac tradition relates to a great deal of diversity as different the Greek or Latin traditions (xv). Second, he communities formed in different regions. attempts to demonstrate the diversity within In explaining the nature of the Syriac the Syriac tradition itself by highlighting the tradition, Beggiani often uses the Greek- distinctiveness of the east-Syrian tradition of speaking Christian communities of the eastern Syria, northern Iraq, and Persia that Roman Empire as an interlocutor to show the would become the Church of the East, the particularities of the Syriac tradition. He west-Syrian tradition of western Syria that focuses primarily on three areas of would become the Syriac Orthodox Church, dissonance: language, imagery, and and the Maronite tradition of Lebanon (xviii- discourse. The Christian scriptures that xx). Beggiani is successful in his attempts to would eventually come to compose the New explain the distinctiveness and diversity both Testament were written in Greek, and though without and within the Syriac tradition, and the Syriac tradition uses the same New presents that distinctiveness and diversity in Testament canon as the rest of the Christian a manner that is accessible to readers, and world, the Syriac tradition locates itself in the therefore serves as a helpful introduction to Semitic world rather than the Hellenistic people just entering this field of study. world. It is a tradition that connects itself to Beggiani organizes his book into Jesus and his followers culturally and different chapters according to different linguistically by using and speaking the same themes around theology and liturgy. The first language of Jesus, Aramaic (xvi, xviii, 53). few chapters of the book cover a theology on Specifically, Christians of the Syriac the nature of God and works through tradition came to use Syriac, a dialect of soteriology, incarnational theology, Aramaic originating from the city of Edessa. pneumatology, ecclesiology, and Mariology. The language and culture are significant 66 SYMPOSIA because language shapes ideas and concepts different churches. As Beggiani is a that would eventually mark how those ideas Chrobishop within the Marionite Church, he are conveyed. Beggiani demonstrates pays particular attention to Marionite throughout his book how Syriac Christians liturgical practice, but also includes the use Old Testament typology and revelation practices of the churches of the East and the from nature in their writings to explain their Syriac Orthodox Church. However, his theology, showing how something or analysis is limited in part because of the someone in the Old Testament served as a limited historical analysis that is done within precursor to something in the New Testament his work, and it would be helpful to (33, 37, 96-99). Beggiani contrasts this with understand these rites and practices if he how Greek-speaking Christians engaged with provided some of the history of these rites Greco-Roman philosophy, and Beggiani and how they may have changed as time went further shows the difference between Syriac on. and Greek Christians by explaining the Beggiani is successful in providing an distrust Syriac Christians at the time had introduction for those seeking to study the towards Greco-Roman philosophy, which Syriac tradition by explaining its they saw as paganism and the work of the distinctiveness and internal diversity to the Devil (ix, xvi, 53). Finally, Beggiani makes reader. In a positive way he provides not just reference to the tradition of poetry and the basic information, but also a desire to hymnody that came to dominate the Syriac learn and study more, as the book leaves the tradition, which is unique because of its reader with questions for which they will centrality to the catechesis of its members. hopefully track down answers. Though his Beggiani also tries to explain the work could be strengthen by briefly talking distinctiveness of the different branches of about the contact between Zoroastrians and the Syriac tradition. Early in his work, Christians in the Near-East, this is a relatively Beggiani shows how the effects of the early minor fault in what is otherwise a very Christian councils created divisions within significant book in the field of Syriac studies. the Syriac tradition. Though they were functionally independent by 426, the Council James Robert Shire of Ephesus in 431 saw the division of east- University of Toronto Syrian Church of the East from the rest of the Christian movement as it became to be identified with Nestorianism. After the Council of Chalcedon in 451, the west-Syrian Syrian Orthodox Church along with a number of other churches divided from the rest of the Christian movement and became what we now know as the Oriental Orthodox Church, which became identified with Miaphysitism. Finally, the Maronite Church is a small body within the Levant that came to accept the teachings of the Council of Chalcedon, and is an Eastern Catholic Church in communion with the Pope of Rome. Where Beggiani spends most of his analysis is on the liturgical distinctions of the .
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