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Document Details : Title: Editio princeps of the Unfinished Greek Translation of Augustine's De beata vita by Prochorus Cydones Author(s): KONSTANTINOU-RIZOS, Michail Journal: Augustiniana Volume: 76 Issue: 1 Date: 2026 Pages: 209-240 DOI: 10.2143/AUG.76.1.3295616 Abstract : This article offers a critical editio princeps of the unfinished Greek translation of Augustine’s De beata vita by the Byzantine theologian and translator Prochorus Cydones (ca. 1330-1369/71), preserved in cod. Vaticanus graecus 609 in the translator’s own hand. It examines the manuscript, the Latin source-text, and Prochorus’s translating approach, shedding light on his interpretive method and stylistic choices. The study argues that Prochorus’s translation serves as a subtle critique of Palamite theology, promoting an intellectualist view of beatitudo and a rationalist alternative to mystical theology. It also considers the work’s anti-Skeptical tenor, placing it within the broader context of late Byzantine philosophical debates and Prochorus’s anti-Palamite agenda. The translation reveals a consistent emphasis on reason, certainty, and the liberal arts as paths to truth and happiness, in contrast to the fideistic and experiential emphases of his contemporaries. |
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