History of Eastern Christianity by Aziz S. Atiya

Abstract

578 BOOK REVIEWS duction still remains unpublished; fortunately, it is now in the process of being published. A very special section of his books and articles, not mentioned above, refers to the noisy controversy regarding the philosophy of the late University of Madrid teacher Jose Ortega y Gasset. Fr. Ramirez's concern was to point out the difficulties of the main affirmations of Ortega y Gasset's doctrine from a Catholic viewpoint. Since the Spanish philosopher had by then become very popular through his disciples' teaching (he was already dead) , the controversy was pursued with passion and brought about a great deal of bitterness and resentment. It was a long time before tempers began to cool down. As we look back at the impressive result of so much effort, we are certain that Fr. Ramirez's work will be fully appreciated for its real value when the scholars realize that it belongs to the long and ever-developing tradition of true Thomism. For his whole concern was to reflect upon the ever-recurring problems, and the product of such a reflection is so solid and profound that it will always find a place and be quoted among the authors who have surpassed their time by overcoming their contemporary myths. Dominican House of Studies Washington, D. C. LUIS CAMACHO, O.P. History of EMtern Christianity. By AziZ S. ATIYA. University of Notre Dame Press, 1968. Pp. 448. $13.50. It is very widely assumed that the first great schism of Christianity occurred when Byzantium and Rome parted in the eleventh century. This view does not take into account the fact that major splits, whose consequences are still lasting, happened in the East during the Christological controversies from the fifth to the seventh centuries. In the book under review, the author, when he speaks of "Eastern Christianity," has in view not the Orthodox Church in communion with the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople but the various groups which quarreled with both Byzantium and Rome on the Christological issue and remained for centuries isolated under the Moslem occupation: the so-called " Monophysite " group (Copts, Ethiopians, Syrian Jacobites, Armenians and "St. Thomas" Christians of India), the Nestorians and the Maronites. The latter group, formerly " Monothelite," is in communion with Rome since the time of the Crusades. Rather curiously, the author also adds a chapter on the " vanished Churches," where he includes Carthage. Thus, in his historical scheme, Tertullian and St. Augustine find themselves in the "East." In BOOK REVIEWS 579 fact, this example shows that the author writes of "non-Byzantine" and "non-Roman" Christianity, and not of the "East" as such. A general study on the Eastern "Non-Chalcedonian" Churches was lacking in English. The participation of these Churches in the Ecumenical Movement, the conversations presently being held between their representatives and those of the Orthodox Church for eventual reunion, and the widespread interest in ecumenism, will assure to this book a well-deserved success. Professor A. S. Atiya is Director of the Middle East Center at the University of Utah and is a member of the Coptic Church of Egypt. This explains the fact that Alexandrian Christianity receives quite a preferential treatment in his book (pp. 11-145), while the much larger Church of Ethiopia is covered in only twenty pages. (pp. 146-166) The author's view of the early Church history suffers from his Copticcentered historical perspective: Origen himself is described as " a true son of Egypt, Coptic to the core " (p. 35) , and monasticism is viewed as " a purely Egyptian creation with world potential." (p. 59) Not being a professional theologian, his description of the Christological debates of the fifth century is not always a model of clarity (" [Cyril's) almost indiscriminate use of words physis and hypostasis led to the Chalcedonian confusion which resulted in the establishment of the so-called ' Monophysite ' doctrine ," p. 48). But the book (which is beautifully illustrated) will not be read as a handbook of Church history but for its precious description of the remarkable survival of the Eastern communities throughout the Middle Ages up to the modern times. In this respect it offers to the student a very competent collection of otherwise unavailable...