Анонимная Согита об Аврааме и Исааке (V в.)

Abstract

The publication presents a translation from the Syriac language of the anonymousSogita about Abraham and Isaac (V century). The introductory article discusses the issue of thepeculiarities of the Syriac versification, characterizes the sogita as a liturgical exegetical genre,as well. In addition, the influence of the Jewish tradition on the structure-forming principles ofthe Sogita genre is traced, which was manifested in its dependence on the principles of narrativeexegesis. A characteristic feature of the latter is the obligatory reconstruction of the plot detailsand characteristics of the characters missing in the biblical narrative as a way to set the text theright perspective of understanding. In turn, the mutual influence of Christian Syriac andByzantine literatures is reflected not only in the set of ideas, but also in the choice of means ofrhetorical expressiveness for church preaching. The poetic form and dialogues between biblicalheroes among the Syrians were mandatory for almost all homiletic genres (sogita, madrash,memra) from the very beginning of their existence. Among the Byzantines, dramatic homiliesbegan to appear only in the fifth century, and the rhythmized prose of sermons, facilitating thetransition from the ancient metrical versification to the syllabic, gradually acquired a new poeticform for the Greeks. In the comments to the sogita, there are collections of interpretations of aparticular problem that have developed in all three traditions: Syrian, Byzantine, and Jewish,which makes it possible to clearly understand how the same exegetical methods worked tojustify solutions that differ from each other.