Origène, Athanase, Augustin : vrais et faux témoins de l'Apocalypse de Paul

Abstract

Like most apocryphal writings, the Visio Sancti Pauli causes considerable dating problems. Should it be regarded as a fifth-century homogeneous text or as a composite work? And in this case, does its main part date back to the third or even to the second century ? To answer theses questions, scholars can look for internal clues or turn to external testimonies. While it is rather reliable when applied to other apocryphal writings, the latter approach raises new problems since literary testimonies used to date the Visio Sancti Pauli are themselves questionable. The present paper intends to reread extracts from firstrate authors as Origen, Athanasius, Augustine and others. Thus, we enlarge and diversify our methodological approach so as to get a better understanding of the pseudo-Pauline revelation. We can't agree with the monolithic text hypothesis and we consider that part of this text, Paul's ascension, already circulated during the third century, but in a shape quite different from what we know today. From this ancient material, a fifth-century rewriting occurred, but it is difficult to establish the extent of such a restructuring ? Then the question arises of the boundary between redaction and genuine composition, a huge intellectual issue.