Mead's translation is not my favorite, but reading these ancient treatises was more pleasurable than I expected. They are a great deal more interestinMead's translation is not my favorite, but reading these ancient treatises was more pleasurable than I expected. They are a great deal more interesting and intelligible than much of the Hermetic tradition since, shining a light on the religious mood of the Hellenistic age while also presenting inherently worthwhile philosophical material for consideration....more
I have read the New Testament many times since childhood, and I consider it a feat that David Bentley Hart’s translation affords such a fresh and stimI have read the New Testament many times since childhood, and I consider it a feat that David Bentley Hart’s translation affords such a fresh and stimulating encounter with the text. The devotional value of the product is limited, and I don’t like all of Hart’s choices; for example, I find his constantly-footnoted renderings of aionios distracting and less convincing for it. But that he has solid reasons for every one of these decisions is made clear by his invaluable postscript....more
John Moschus traveled about the eastern Mediterranean region collecting stories from monks and solitaries. Some of the anecdotes recall the severe sayJohn Moschus traveled about the eastern Mediterranean region collecting stories from monks and solitaries. Some of the anecdotes recall the severe sayings of the earliest desert fathers; many tell of miraculous episodes and visions; and many are colored by the religious rivalries of the period. There is a fair amount of Byzantine Orthodox propaganda, revealing the fissures that had opened up in the churches of Egypt and Syria and would pain Christianity in that part of the world for centuries to come. A few of the stories are shockingly harsh and represent ascetic extremes condemned by other monastic writers. All in all, the Leimonarion is an intriguing portrayal of sixth-century monastic spirituality in the Greek world; for inspiration or guidance in the spiritual life, there are better collections. Nevertheless, even here there are some stories which stand out as touching or edifying, and given its brevity and historical interest, I would say it is worth the read....more
"Love, my children, is a God, a young youth and very fair, and winged to fly. And therefore he delights in youth, follows beauty, and gives our fantas"Love, my children, is a God, a young youth and very fair, and winged to fly. And therefore he delights in youth, follows beauty, and gives our fantasy her wings. His power's so vast that that of Jove is not so great. He governs in the elements, rules in the stars, and domineers even o'er the Gods that are his peers. Nor have you only dominion o'er your sheep and goats. All flowers are the works of Love. Those plants are his creations and poems. By him it is that the rivers flow, and by him the winds blow."
Daphnis and Chloe is an enchanting Greek pastoral romance, and anyone familiar with the original Loeb Classical Library series will know what to expect as far as format--Greek on the left page, English on the right. The 1657 translation by "Geo. Thornley, Gent." is written in exquisite Baroque prose, and although my Greek is poor, the LCL editor assures us that the translation "is generally close enough to the Greek to satisfy the most fastidious modern scholar." Thornley's text is edited with some of the archaic spellings updated, but this is inconsistently applied. As is the case with other LCL editions, "indelicate" passages are rendered in Latin. It is not difficult to find Thornley's unexpurgated text online.
In contrast, I did not find Parthenius of Nicaea's Erotica Pathemata (or "Love Romances," as it is titled here) of particular interest, though a student of Greek might find these narrative epitomes good linguistic exercises. This latter part of the volume is translated by Cambridge scholar and diplomat Stephen Gaselee, M.A., C.B.E....more
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