this issue
previous article in this issuenext article in this issue

Document Details :

Title: Mani as an Exegete of the Old Testament?
Subtitle: The Place of Gen 1,26-27 in Mani's Anthropogony
Author(s): MOISEEVA, Evgenia
Journal: Ephemerides Theologicae Lovanienses
Volume: 98    Issue: 2   Date: 2022   
Pages: 239-260
DOI: 10.2143/ETL.98.2.3290790

Abstract :
While Mani’s role as a 'good interpreter' of the sacred texts of other religions has been well appreciated, there is a debate as to whether this inclusive attitude extended to the Old Testament. This article aims to reconstruct Mani’s approach towards the book of Genesis based on the use of Gen 1,26-27 in the chapter on Gēhrmurd and Murdiyānag (Adam and Eve) from the Šābuhragān and the extant text of Mani’s letter known as the Epistula Fundamenti. It is shown that the two texts contain two different sets of allusions to Genesis and that in either case Mani offers his reinterpretation of the biblical story. The protoplasts creation narrative based on the biblical material appears to belong to the foundational layer of Mani’s teaching.

Download article