Panel: SEPTUAGINT STUDIES - TOWARDS VOLUME II OF THE HISTORICAL AND THEOLOGICAL LEXICON OF THE SEPTUAGINT (HTLS): OUTCOMES AND PERSPECTIVES



308.3 - HOW FAR IS ἘΠΙΣΤΉΜΗ A BIBLICAL LEXEME? TRACING THE ROOTS OF KNOWLEDGE BETWEEN THE SEPTUAGINT AND EARLY CHRISTIAN AUTHORS

AUTHORS:
Bigoni L. (University of Fribourg ~ Fribourg ~ Switzerland)
Text:
The Greek root episteme in the Greek Bible is prima facie a straightforward way of speaking about knowledge, yet the nuances of what knowledge can mean are manyfold, and the root naturally crosses genres and eras within Greek literature and available documentary sources before reaching the translators of the Septuagint. However, its legacy is correspondingly relevant to a lexicographical study of the Greek Bible, since it can shed light on how a root may live on and migrate from one text to another while carrying the memory of where it comes from. This paper aims to explore the role of the root in the works of early Christian authors, tracing possible cases of intertextual reflections from the Greek Bible, in conversation with other roots expressing a similar meaning, to underline the specific nuances and strategies of 'Biblical memory' when these authors approached the idea in different contexts. The material presented in this paper will be exposed in paragraph 6 of the corresponding HTLS article, related to Early Christian Literature.