New Perspectives on Early Christian Rituals: an Introduction
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New Perspectives on Early Christian Rituals: An Introduction Nienke M. Vos 1 Sitz im Leben: The Society for Early Christian Studies1 One of the most remarkable personalities in the history of Early Christian stud- ies in the Netherlands, one who also gained deep intellectual respect interna- tionally, was Christine Mohrmann (1903–1988).2 She received her secondary education at grammar schools in Groningen and Arnhem before going on to study Classics, first in Utrecht in 1922, and in Nijmegen the following year, where she enrolled at the newly founded Catholic University.3 The professor of Latin there was Joseph Schrijnen, who was greatly interested in the influence of early Christianity on the classical languages, and who inspired Mohrmann to write her dissertation in that area of research under his supervision. Their approach to the field of ‘ancient Christian Greek and Latin’ became known as the ‘École de Nimègue’, the Nijmegen School, and received wide acclaim, both within the Netherlands and abroad. Schrijnen saw Mohrmann as his succes- sor, but when he died relatively suddenly in 1938, it became apparent that the time was not yet ripe for a woman professor at the Catholic University.4 In 1937, 1 I would like to thank Gerard Bartelink, Roald Dijkstra, Ton Hilhorst, Burcht Pranger, Vincent Hunink, and Onno Kneepkens for providing valuable information on the history of the Soci- ety and its context. 2 This biographical sketch is based on a Dutch entry by Toon Bastiaensen, one of Mohrmann’s students: see A.A.R. Bastiaensen, ‘Christine Mohrmann, 1903–1988, classica’, in C.A.M. Giet- man et al. (eds), Biografisch Woordenboek Gelderland, vol. 3 (Hilversum 2002), 97–99. In addi- tion, I have made use of an excellent article on the life and work of Christine Mohrmann by Els Rose, ‘Moved by Language: Christine Mohrmann (1903–1988) and the Study of Liturgi- cal Latin’, in Louis van Tongeren, Marcel Barnard, Paul Post, and Gerard Rouwhorst (eds), Patterns and Persons. A Historiography of Liturgical Studies in the Netherlands in the Twen- tieth Century (Leuven 2010), 371–392. Cf. also Marjet Derks and Saskia Verheesen-Stegeman, Wetenschap als roeping. Prof dr Christine Mohrmann (1903–1988), classica (Nijmegen 1998) and In Memoriam Christinae Mohrmann, cuius anima in pace. Drie voordrachten tijdens de herden- kingsbijeenkomst te Nijmegen op 31 maart 1989 uitgesproken door L.J. Engels, G.J.M. Bartelink, A.A.R. Bastiaensen c.m. (Nijmegen 1989). 3 The name of the Catholic University of Nijmegen was changed into ‘Radboud Universiteit Nijmegen’ (Radboud University) in 2004. 4 The matter was complex; see Rose, ‘Moved by Language’, 377. © Nienke M. Vos and Albert C. Geljon, 2021 | doi:10.1163/9789004441729_002 2 vos Mohrmann had accepted a position as assistant to the professor of Latin at the University of Utrecht, and she was promoted to the position of ‘lector’ there in 1943. In 1946 she also became ‘lector’ at the University of Amsterdam, and she received an ‘extraordinary’ professorship there in 1955. In 1947, she co-founded the journal Vigiliae Christianae5 with Jan Hendrik Waszink (†1990), professor of Latin at Leiden University since 1946, Willem van Unnik (†1978) and Gilles Quispel (†2006), professors at the theological faculty of Utrecht University since 1947 and 1952 respectively.6 In 1952, Mohrmann accepted an ‘extraor- dinary’ professorship in Ancient Christian Greek and Ancient Christian, Vul- gar, and Medieval Latin at the Catholic University of Nijmegen; she eventu- ally did become an ordinarius or full professor in Nijmegen—in 1961. This caused her to terminate her lectureship at Utrecht, but she retained her chair in Amsterdam until her retirement in 1973. During her career she supervised no fewer than 22 dissertations.7 In addition, a number of her students went on to become professors themselves—in Groningen, Amsterdam, Utrecht and Nijmegen: Loek (Louk) Engels (†2017),8 Jan Smit,9 and Árpád Orbán.10 Even- tually, Orbán (as Gerard Bartelink’s successor—see below) was the last incum- bent in Mohrmann’s chair in Nijmegen; it was decided after his retirement that the specialized areas of early Christian Greek and Latin as well as vulgar and medieval Latin would henceforth be covered jointly by the chairs of classical Greek and Latin. When Mohrmann finally obtained her professorships during the fifties, she was at the height of her international career, inspiring many stu- dents to specialize in early Christian Greek and Latin. In 1959, some of these students began to meet to study early Christianity more intensively, and they became known as the ‘Mohrmann Club’. One of the first members was Toon Bastiaensen (†2009), with Ton Hilhorst joining soon after. Students who had already graduated were also invited, such as Gerard 5 Initially published with the Noord Hollandsche Uitgevers, Brill in Leiden has been its pub- lisher for decades. 6 Van Unnik was professor of New Testament and Ancient Christian Literature; Quispel was professor of Early Christian History. He was an expert on Gnosticism, esp. the Gospel of Thomas. 7 Many of these were published in two series founded by Joseph Schrijnen and Chris- tine Mohrmann: Latinitas christianorum primaeva (1932) and Graecitas christianorum primaeva (1962). 8 Loek (Louk; Lodewijk Jozef) Engels was professor of Medieval Latin at the Rijksuniver- siteit Groningen (RUG) from 1972 until his retirement in 1994. 9 Jan W. Smit succeeded Mohrmann at the University of Amsterdam (UvA) in 1973; he retired in 1996. 10 Árpád Orbán was first appointed professor at the University of Utrecht in 1980 and later at the Radboud University of Nijmegen (1992). He retired in 2009..