Durham E-Theses Clement of Alexandria and the Creative Exegesis of Christian Scripture WARD-III, HAROLD,CLIFTON How to cite: WARD-III, HAROLD,CLIFTON (2017) Clement of Alexandria and the Creative Exegesis of Christian Scripture, Durham theses, Durham University. Available at Durham E-Theses Online: http://etheses.dur.ac.uk/12088/ Use policy The full-text may be used and/or reproduced, and given to third parties in any format or medium, without prior permission or charge, for personal research or study, educational, or not-for-prot purposes provided that: • a full bibliographic reference is made to the original source • a link is made to the metadata record in Durham E-Theses • the full-text is not changed in any way The full-text must not be sold in any format or medium without the formal permission of the copyright holders. Please consult the full Durham E-Theses policy for further details. Academic Support Oce, Durham University, University Oce, Old Elvet, Durham DH1 3HP e-mail: [email protected] Tel: +44 0191 334 6107 http://etheses.dur.ac.uk 2 Clement of Alexandria and the Creative Exegesis of Christian Scripture Harold Clifton Ward, III Department of Theology and Religion Durham University Submitted in partial fulfllment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy 2017 Clement of Alexandria and the Creative Exegesis of Christian Scripture by Harold Clifton Ward, III Abstract How might one describe early Christian exegesis? This question has given rise to a signifcant reassessment of patristic exegetical practice in recent decades, and the present thesis contributes to this reappraisal of patristic exegesis in two signifcant ways. First, this thesis attempts to move beyond the idea of exegesis to investigate the textual practices that serve as its modus operandi. In order to accomplish this task, I develop the notion of "creative exegesis." I argue that creative exegesis permits one to pay attention in detail to two modes of archival thinking at the heart of the ancient exegetical enterprise: the grammatical archive, a repository of the textual practices learned from the grammarian, and the memorial archive, the constellations of textual memories from which textual meaning is constructed. Second, this thesis examines the textual practices of Clement of Alexandria, a fgure whose exegesis has on the whole been neglected in modern scholarship. I argue that an assessment of Clement's creative exegesis reveals his deep commitment to scriptural interpretation as the foundation of theological inquiry, even in his works that cannot be explicitly labeled "exegetical." Clement employs various textual practices from the grammatical archive to read Scripture fgurally, though he restricts the fgural referents of Scripture to two mysteries, bound up in the incarnation of Christ and the knowledge of God. These mysteries are discovered in an act of rhetorical invention by reading Scripture for the constellations that frame its narrative. For Clement, the plot of Scripture—and the progression from Old Testament to New—is expressed under the dual constellations of "fear," by which God leads his people to faith, and "wisdom," through which God leads his people to the ultimate vision of the divine essence. i Declaration This thesis is the product of my own work and does not include work that has been presented in any form for a degree at this or any other university. All quotation from, and references to, the work of persons other than myself have been properly acknowledged throughout. ii Statement of Copyright The copyright of this thesis rests with the author. No quotation from it should be published in any format, including all electronic formats, without the author's prior written consent. All information derived from it should be acknowledged. iii Acknowledgments "Deserve's got nothin' to do with it." This line proved that Clint Eastwood's character Will Munny was the great theologian of the Western Unforgiven, but I also think that it rings just as true for me today. The submission of this thesis marks the culmination of a long and arduous process, but I would be foolish to think its completion was somehow earned or merited by my own efforts. No, I am acutely aware of the fact that I could not have completed this project without the generous help and support of so many others. I should frst thank my doctoral supervisor, Professor Lewis Ayres, whose infuence on my life and scholarship goes well beyond this thesis. He frst introduced me to the theological potency of the Western (a point that I think my dad tried unsuccessfully to convince me of many years ago). And Lewis not only endured draft upon draft of many of these chapters patiently—commenting all the while on the extreme volume of adverbs that needed to be chopped—but he also provided a "full- service" graduate training, complete with advice on publications, grants, job applications, and beyond. The scholarship that I hope is evident in this thesis is modeled on Lewis' own approach to Christian theology. I would like to thank Durham University, which has been a wonderful scholarly home for the duration of my doctoral program. The university generously provided me with a Durham Doctoral Fellowship, for which I am extremely grateful. I must take the opportunity to offer my appreciation to other members of the Department of Theology and Religion at Durham. Professor Francis Watson has been a friend and mentor from our frst day in Durham. Francis is a model of close and careful reading—even when one might disagree with him—and he was incredibly generous in giving time to read Coptic texts on a weekly basis. Dr. Krastu Banev displayed a combination of joy and skill in teaching theology that remains a standard I hope one day to reach. I prepared earlier versions of a few of the chapters in this project for the fortnightly Patristics seminar in the department, and I am grateful to those who contributed to the discussion on those occasions. And I would be remiss if I didn't mention my thoughtful colleagues in 39 N. Bailey, who read portions of my work at various stages and offered helpful—and often detailed—feedback in the conversations where many of my best ideas were iv v born. Extended portions of the thesis were read at various stages by other friends and colleagues, who offered further questions or comments that, I hope, have made the argument tighter: Jonathan Pennington, T. J. Lang, Madison Pierce, and Justin Lee. A particular thanks must go to Matthew Crawford, who has read the entirety of the thesis (and some chapters multiple times!). His keen eye and insightful questions have been helpful from frst to last. I am also grateful to Andrew Louth, Lewis Ayres, and Devin White for sharing pre-publication versions of their current work. My family has provided an unending stream of support over the last many years. Roger and Susie Olson have always generated fresh questions for me to think about, given their interest in always asking how my project is going. Nancy Olson has supported our family—and by extension, this project—in ways too numerous to list. The gratitude I have towards my mother and father extends well beyond this thesis. At every level of my education, their support has been unfagging and their generosity unfettered. I have no words to express the patience, love, and joy that my children have shown me in the course of my studies—even the times when I was away in thought. My daughters, Charin, Annalyn, and Caroline (the last of whom was born halfway through this dissertation), have provided me with the steady stream of distraction I needed, complete with Legos, tea parties, and princess dresses. I think I will look back and admire those times more than the unceasing hours in the study. Above all, however, my wife, Beth, has been the model of love, support, and encouragement par excellence. Without her, this project would never have been completed. I dedicate this dissertation to her with all my love. Table of Contents Abstract..........................................................................................................................................i Declaration ...............................................................................................................................ii Statement of Copyright ...............................................................................................................iii Acknowledgements......................................................................................................................iv Table of Contents .......................................................................................................................vi Abbreviations............................................................................................................................ix CHAPTER ONE Introduction ........................................................................................................................1 CHAPTER TWO Reading as "Creative Exegesis": The Grammarian's Task.....................................................10 An Atomistic Understanding of Γραμματική ...............................................................11 Grammatical Exegesis and The Spectrum of Obscurity .................................................19 Clarifying Textual Obscurity....................................................................................20 Literary-Critical Tools..............................................................................................24