A kóser törvények márki recepciója

The history of early Christian architecture has been presented as a gradual, typological transformation from undifferentiated residential buildings in the first two centuries, to modified residential buildings in the third, culminating in the monumental Constantinian structures of the fourth century. To rationalize this transformation, a great deal of scholarship has focused on identifying formal, cultural, and programmatic characteristics that might link the domus to the basilica. However, along held view is that the basilica, along with all monumental church architecture, is a Roman deviation in the evolution of Christianity. To support this argument, proponents read NT passages like the body/temple metaphor of 1 Cor. 3.16-17 and John 2.19-22 as indicative of a Christian rejection of Roman and Jewish material culture. These contrary aspects of early Christianity, the construction of monumental churches and the tacit rebuke of Roman architecture in Christian texts, have been characterized by Paul Corby Finney as iconic and aniconic. In an effort to better understand early Christian architecture, recent studies employ models from cultural theory and sociology to reveal the broader context of church building, demonstrating similar patterns of architectural development among other cultural groups living within the Empire. Richard Krautheimer and L. Michael White are foremost in this field and they have provided a solid foundation for re-evaluating the evidence. While these seminal archaeological and architectural studies have provided us with a chronology of formal and programmatic developments for the beginnings of Christian architecture, they have done little to help us understand how early Christians came to reconcile the conflicting ontological demands of being the temple in Christ (NT) with building the temple for Christ (Constantine). In this dissertation, I argue that a reconciliation between NT body/temple metaphor and Imperial Architecture, between the aniconic and iconic characteristics of Christianity, is achieved, in part, through a shift in the tenor of the metaphor that occurs through the second, third, and fourth centuries. The trajectory of this shift is traced from sources in the Gospels and Epistles through the Epistle of Barnabas, Clement of Alexandria, and Origen to the panegyric written by Eusebius for the commemoration of Paulinus' church at Tyre in 317. I conclude that the metaphorical vehicle of the body/temple, first used rhetorically to unify and segregate the Christian community, has a hermeneutic function that reveals an architectural model in Christ Logos.

Thus far, the topic of early Christian prayer to the Holy Spirit has not received much scholarly attention. Only a few studies are available that present relevant primary sources (Tertullian, De baptismo 8; Origen, Hom. Lev. I 1; Acts of John 94 and 96; Acts of Thomas 27 and 50; Phōs Hilaron). This article discusses four documents from ancient Egypt that are absent from these studies. The apocryphal writing The Ascension of Isaiah (5:14) is a witness to second-century early Christian (and perhaps also first-century Jewish) prayer to the Holy Spirit. Clement of Alexandria’s Pedagogue (3.12.101.1–2) dates from around 190 CE and provides very early evidence for liturgical prayer of thanksgiving addressed to the entire Trinity, with express reference to the Holy Spirit. The Apostolic Tradition dates from approximately the same time and contains several references to laudatory (eucharistic) prayers to the Trinity. In spite of its similar wording, the Papyrus Oxyrhynchus 1786 from the late third century CE is probably not to be considered a witness to praying to the Holy Spirit.

In his study on angelomorphic traditions in early Christian pneumatology, Bogdan Bucur suggests that Origen is both indebted to and develops upon Clement of Alexandria’s pneumatology. This article takes up Bucur’s claim, offering the first examination of Origen’s pneumatology in light of previous research on early Christian angelomorphic traditions. It argues that Origen interprets the traditional understanding of the Holy Spirit as one and seven in terms of a philosophical notion of power, allowing him to explain how the one Holy Spirit can distribute many different gifts.

Jovinian's accusations against ascetic extremists had a precedent in earlier Christian tradition. Ascetic elitism was opposed by a number of early Christian writers, including 1 Clement, Ignatius, and the author of the Pastoral Epistles. By the early third century, this opposition had hardened into the polarities of ‘orthodoxy’ and ‘heresy’. This anti‐heretical effort culminated in the writings of Irenaeus and Clement of Alexandria against the ‘encratite’ heresy, which anticipated the polemics of Jovinian. In the third century we also see the development of a ‘moderate encratism’ in the writings of Tertullian, Cyprian, and Origen, which later inspired the opponents of Jovinian, e.g. Ambrose and Jerome.

The author argues that ascetic interpretations of John the Baptist's locusts and wild honey (Mark 1:6c||Matt 3:4c) abounded in the early church. The testimonies of the physician Galen and the Syrian Christian Tatian to Christian asceticism are earlier than the earliest ascetic exposition of John's food by Clement of Alexandria. Matthew's claim that John ate only locusts and wild honey is informed by one or more of the exclusive claims made for the natural provisions of other Jewish wilderness dwellers in Mart. Ascen. Isa . 2.11 and 2 Macc 5:27. The important thing to note is that neither Mark nor Matthew presents John as an ascetic. That innovation is attested by Clement of Alexandria and by nearly every subsequent commentator until the Protestant Reformation. The author wishes to ascertain why such an unremarkable Synoptic passage concerning two rather common wilderness foods would receive this type of notoriety for over twelve centuries. Keywords: Alexandria; ascetic interpretations; Clement; John; Mark; Matthew

Biblical scholars have come to appreciate that social memory theory can inform historians about the development of the early Christian movement. This contribution is recognized in Memory and Memories in Early Christianity, which consists of papers delivered at a 2016 conference on memory in early Christianity held at the Universities of Geneva and Lausanne. The authors employ the concepts of theorists, such as Jan Assman, to hypothesize how cultural memories were created for and utilized by early Christians.The book is divided into four sections. In the first, “Memory Studies and Nascent Christianity,” Sandra Huebenthal’s essay “‘Frozen Moments’: Early Christianity through the Lens of Social Memory Theory,” discusses how the “collective memory” of the first Christian community became ossified over time into a “cultural memory” of the later church. In “Remembering and Writing: Their Substantial Differences,” Adriana Destro and Mauro Pesce describe writing as a creative act. They argue that scholars, such as Bauckham, who appeal to the influence of “eyewitnesses,” misunderstand the “nature of a written text” (p. 48), which itself creates new memory. These insights are further supported by Jens Schröter in “Memory and Memories in Early Christianity: The Remembered Jesus as a Test Case.” Schröter appeals to Assman’s definition of historical memory as being a reconstruction of a remembered past rather than of the actual past (p. 85). Thus, the Gospel tradition is the record less of the acts of the historical Jesus than it is of the church’s memory about the importance of Jesus. The two are not identical.The second section, “Memory, Authority and Modalities,” begins with an essay by Simon Butticaz, “The Transformation of ‘Collective Memory’ in Early Christianity as Reflected in the Letters of Paul.” Butticaz asserts that Paul’s letters are not only artifacts of apostolic memory but, in the deutero-Pauline tradition, the apostle himself becomes the guarantor of apostolic tradition. Judith Lieu, in “Letters and the Construction of Early Christian Memory,” observes how letters as well as the Gospel traditions provided a useful means for preservation of Christian memory. Finally, Christoph Markschies, in “Erinnerungen bei Irenaeus an Figuren des apostolischen und nachapostolischen Zeitalters,” proposes that Irenaeus developed the concept of apostolic heritage in order to combat the counter-memory of his “heretical” opponents.The third section, “Memory, Identity and the Construction of Origins,” opens with Daniel Marguerat’s “De Jésus á Paul: L’invention du christianisme dans les Actes des apôtres,” which hypothesizes that Luke, rather than recording the details of the church’s beginning, built an ideal memory of Christian origins in Acts. Likewise, Claudio Zamagni, in “Reinventing Christian Origins,” analyzes selected postapostolic texts to conclude that second-century writers created a memory of church hierarchy to support the legitimacy of the emerging “orthodox” church against more egalitarian “heretical” movements. A contrary memory was created by Marcion to support his own program, as Enrico Norelli observes in “La Construction polémique des origens chrétienes par Marcion.” The discussion of Christian memory’s development in the postapostolic period is concluded with Cecilia Antonelli’s analysis of how Eusebius likely altered Hegesippius’s explanation of the Galilean and Judaean origins of the Palestinian church in “La construction de la mémorie des ‘origens’ par Hégésippe chez Eusèbe.”The fourth section, “Early Christianity, Memory, and Theology,” begins with Jörg Frey’s “The Gospel of John as a Narrative Memory of Jesus,” which contends that the purpose of John’s Gospel was to create a new memory of Jesus rather than reproduce reliable, nonsynoptic tradition. Andreas Dettwiler’s “Erinnerung und Identität” proposes that Colossians and Ephesians represent theological memory that transforms Paul’s theology and leads it in new directions. Finally, Jean Zumstein’s “La memoire créatrice des premiers chrétiens” examines the nature of early Christian memory, noting that it established a link not only with the past but with the future as well. This observation leads to the consideration of how today’s church also transmits Christian memory.The essays in Memory and Memories in Early Christianity provide insight into how biblical scholars employ social memory theory. In particular, the reader discovers that early Christian memories were more communal than individual. Bauckham’s appeal to apostolic memories as guarantors of reliable traditions is not supported. Furthermore, memory formation continued into the second century and beyond, when “social memories” were created that were useful for specific constituencies. In the process, later constructs, particularly of church order, were imposed upon earlier generations. One wonders, however, if the essays also display a bias of Continental scholarship that favors the creative role of the early church over its devotion to preserving tradition, as reflected in 1 Cor 7:10–16.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ABBREVIATIONS INTRODUCTION 1. The Origin and Purpose of Mark's Gospel in New Testament Scholarship a. The So-Called 'Traditional' View on the Origin and Purpose of Mark's Gospel b. The Form-Critical View on Mark's Gospel c. The Origin and Purpose of Mark's Gospel from the Second Half of the Twentieth Century d. The Purpose of Mark's Gospel and the Discussion about the Gospel's Genre 2. The Aims and Premises of the Present Study PART ONE: THE SITUATION OF MARK'S READERS CHAPTER 1. THE PERSECUTION OF THE MARKAN CHRISTIAN COMMUNITY Introduction 1. Mk 4:17 2. Mk 8:34-35 3. Mk 10:29-30 4. Mk 13:9-13 Conclusions CHAPTER 2. THE DATE OF MARK'S GOSPEL AND ITS PLACE OF ORIGIN Introduction 1. The Early Tradition on the Origin of Mark's Gospel 2. The Date of Mark's Gospel 3.The Place Where Mark's Gospel was written Conclusions CHAPTER 3. JEWISH LEADERS INVOLVED IN THE PERSECUTION OF FELLOW-JEWS IN THE FIRST CENTURY AD Introduction 1. The Works of Flavius Josephus 2. The Position of the Jewish Leading Class in Palestine during the Second Half of the First Century AD 3. The Persecution of Jewish Rebellious or Religious Groups by the Jewish Authorities 4. The Persecution of the Markan Christian Community in Post-War Galilee Conclusions EVALUATION OF THE RESULTS. THE SITUATION OF THE MARKAN CHRISTIANS PART TWO: THE MESSAGE OF MARK'S GOSPEL CHAPTER 4. THE ISSUES OF JESUS' AUTHORITY AND IDEN--TITY IN MARK'S GOSPEL Introduction 1. The Issue of Jesus' Authority in Mark's Gospel 2. The Issue of Jesus' Identity in Mark's Gospel a. The Question of Jesus' Identity in Mk 1:1-8:30 b. Mark's Interpretation of Jesus as the Christ in Mk 8:31-10:45 c. Mark's Interpretation of Jesus as the Inaugurator of God's Kingdom in Mk 10:46-13:37 d. Mark's Rejection of the Interpretation of Jesus as 'King of the Jews' in Mk 14-15 Conclusions CHAPTER 5. JESUS' COMMANDS TO SILENCE IN MARK'S GOSPEL Introduction 1. Wrede's Theory of the 'Messianic Secret' 2. Jesus' Effort to hide his Identity as the Christ 3. Jesus' Commands to keep Silent about his Miraculous Healings Conclusions CHAPTER 6. JESUS' DEATH IN MARK'S GOSPEL Introduction 1. The Reason for Jesus' Crucifixion in Mark's Gospel 2. Mark's Depiction of Jesus as a Suffering Righteous One Conclusions EVALUATION OF THE RESULTS. THE MESSAGE OF MARK'S GOSPEL AS A REACTION TO THE SITUATION OF THE MARKAN CHRISTIANS PART THREE: TOWARDS A CHARACTERIZATION OF MARK'S GOSPEL CHAPTER 7. MARK'S GOSPEL AS A LITERARY WORK Introduction 1. Mark's Authorial Aim and his Choice of a Biographical Form 2. Is Mark's Gospel to be characterized as an Ancient Biography? 3. Towards an Alternative Characterization of Mark's Gospel Conclusions GENERAL CONCLUSIONS BIBLIOGRAPHY INDEX LOCORUM INDEX AUCTORUM INDEX RERUM

This study compares dynamics in the contestation of history and identity between Paul to post-1994 white Afrikaners in South Africa. In reference to Paul, I am interested in how the followers of the nascent Hellenistic Gentile Christian movement claimed legitimacy as the true Jews, usurping the monopoly of the identity ‘true Jews’ from the Jews, who believed that they alone, stand to claim the Abrahamic promise. Instead, Paul contested the Jewish history and identity, claiming that his Gentile Christians were, in fact, the true Jews – how so? The analysis shall be juxtaposed, providing a discursive analysis to the Afrikaners, who regularly receive claims that they do not belong to South Africa. Specifically, I look into how they contest the South African oral history, claiming that in fact, they are legitimate and the original inhabitants. The study notes that in both cases, identity is constructed through the contestation of history and identity. Thus, the comparison shall be narrowed down to how history is variably, contested for identity formation. Though living within the same locale, the different social groups interpret history differently and variously, appeal to different conspicuous figures and events as their identity markers.

The problems which Christians faced in the second-century world, with its variety of religious beliefs, have a close relation to those which confront them today. The new religion was presented with a range of external threats and criticism which evoked a vigourous, fundamental and imaginative response. The arguments of this most creative period of Christian thought were of a more general and philosophical kind than the discussions of dogmatic issues in the fourth and fifth centuries, and are properly regarded as the beginning of Christian philosophy, though this does not of course imply the emergence of a 'system' or a uniformly philosophical level of writing. Professor Osborn's method in this book, derived from analytic philosophy, is to elucidate specific questions which occupied four major writers from different centres of early Christianity: Justin, Irenaeus, Tertullian and Clement of Alexandria. Is there one God and can one speak of him? Is man free and has he any link with God? Why has a good God made a world in which evil is so evident? Has history a meaning? Who is Jesus Christ?

Much recent work on the masculinities enacted by early Christians has focused upon Christian texts and claims about their heroes and practices among elite Christians. Lucian’s Passing of Peregrinus offers another avenue for thinking about early Christian masculinity. Lucian denies Peregrinus’ claim to masculinity on the basis of his over-concern for honour, especially from the masses, his inability to control his appetites regarding food and sex, his being a parricide, his enacting ‘strange’ ascetic practices and his lack of courage in the face of death. By tying Peregrinus to a Christian community in Judea, Lucian both demonstrates the lack of manliness in the Christian movement, which he suggests is populated mostly by gullible women and children, and further ‘unmans’ Peregrinus by linking him to a community of easily duped people whose praise is not worthy of a philosopher. By presenting this Christian community as a group that not only accepts Peregrinus as a member but also quickly establishes him as their leader, almost at par with Jesus himself, according to Lucian’s account, these early Christians show their lack of self-control by being deceived by a charlatan. Early Christian writers who claimed that their heroes were manly, even more manly than the Greek or Roman heroes, were writing in part to rebut the types of claims made by writers like Lucian.

The purpose of this article is to analyze the references made by the author of the third gospel and the book of Acts (so-called Luke) to members of the Christian communities in the 1st century CE who defended that Christians had to fully observe Torah laws and who especially defended circumcision for Gentile Christians. Luke refers to them as ‘Pharisees’ in Acts 15, 5. Indirect allusions to these Christian Pharisees are ubiquitous in Luke’s work, showing that this issue was very important within his theology. When writing Luke-Acts, Luke was confronted with the sense of orphanhood of the Gentile Christian movement after the Apostle Paul’s death. Careful analysis of his books reveals more clearly the evangelist’s intent to convince his readers that the Gentile Christian movement is heir of the eschatological blessings promised to Judaism.

Abstract: This article outlines a model of Christian Religious Education (CRE) that emphasizes the actual principle of intra-religious moderation, based on a case study of the Council of Jerusalem in Acts 15. The phenomenon of plurality necessitates an approach to religious moderation, both inter-religious and intra-religious. The Council of Jerusalem serves as a historical and theological guide for managing internal diversity within Christianity, resolving debates between Jewish and Gentile Christians regarding the implementation of circumcision and the Mosaic Law for salvation. Through historico-critical, exegetical, systematic-theological, and pedagogical analysis,this article identifies the principles of intra-religious moderation from the Council of Jerusalem: dialogue, respect for differences, focus on the essence of faith, agape love, communal consensus, and flexibility. These principles have pedagogical implications for CRE's content, methods, value inculcation, the role of teachers, and evaluation. This model offers opportunities to foster Christian tolerance, enrich the CRE curriculum, position the church as a peacemaker, and serve as a universal moderation model. Although facing challenges such as institutional resistance and educator competency, implementing this model is crucial for producing an inclusive and moderate Christian community. Abstrak: artikel ini menguraikan model Pendidikan Agama Kristen (PAK) yang menekankan prinsip aktual moderasi intra-agama, berlandaskan studi kasus Konsili Yerusalem dalam Kisah Para Rasul 15. Fenomena pluralitas menuntut pendekatan moderasi beragama, baik antar-agama maupun intra-agama. Konsili Yerusalem berfungsi sebagai panduan historis dan teologis untuk mengelola keragaman internal dalam Kristen, menyelesaikan perdebatan antara Kristen Yahudi dan non-Yahudi mengenai implementasi sunat dan hukum Taurat demi keselamatan.Melalui analisis historis-kritis, eksegetis, teologis-sistematis, dan pedagogis, artikel ini mengidentifikasi prinsip-prinsip moderasi intra-agama dari Konsili Yerusalem: dialog, penghormatan perbedaan, fokus esensi iman, kasih agape, konsensus bersama, serta fleksibilitas. Prinsip-prinsip ini berimplikasi pedagogis pada materi, metode, penanaman nilai, peran guru, dan evaluasi PAK. Model ini menawarkan peluang untuk membentuk toleransi Kristiani, memperkaya kurikulum PAK, menempatkan gereja sebagai pembawa damai, dan menjadi model moderasi universal. Walau menghadapi tantangan seperti resistensi institusi dan kompetensi pendidik, implementasi model ini krusial untuk menghasilkan umat Kristen yang inklusif dan moderat.

Reviewed by: The Eucharist: Origins and Contemporary Understandings by Thomas O’Loughlin Michael Wahl Thomas O’Loughlin The Eucharist: Origins and Contemporary Understandings London: Bloomsbury T&T Clark, 2015 xvii + 229 pages. Paperback. $34.95 In this book, Thomas O’Loughlin endeavors to develop a constructive, ecumenical, and incarnational theology of the Eucharist defined by its act of thanksgiving to the Father and the human practice of eating. O’Loughlin contends that these two elements have become marginalized in contemporary liturgical practice in favor of Christocentric understandings of Eucharistic presence and theologies of sacrifice. Drawing upon contemporary anthropology and historical sources, he argues that an adequate understanding of Christian worship must take into account the early Christian practice of worship and the basic identity of the human person as homo cenarius. The book is divided into seven chapters. After a first chapter concerned with methodology, O’Loughlin argues in the second chapter that the Eucharist is primarily an act of thanksgiving to the Father rather than an encounter with Christ. Drawing upon early Christian texts, he contends that the first Christians understood [End Page 349] themselves to be participating in Christ’s blessing the Father through their communal meals rather than effecting the presence of Christ in their midst. In the third chapter, O’Loughlin begins his anthropological argument. He posits that human eating differs from that of other creatures because human eating is marked by reason, technical skill, and sociality. He argues that this unique and essential aspect of human nature ought to be incorporated into their worship. O’Loughlin expands this claim in the fourth chapter, suggesting that all meals exist on a continuum from the most hastily eaten snack to the Eucharistic ritual meal. Consequently, he critiques contemporary Christianity’s marginalization of the meal expressed in the reduction of the bread and wine to mere tokens and emphasis on the discontinuity between natural food and the “bread of angels.” Rather than emphasizing a binary division between “sacred” and “profane,” O’Loughlin highlights the continuity among the growth of foodstuffs, their preparation and cooking, their being shared at table, and their becoming occasions of thanksgiving to God. In the fifth chapter, O’Loughlin turns to an historical investigation. He examines a number of early Christian texts in order to explore their own interpretations of the Eucharistic rituals they performed. He argues that the community meal and the Eucharist were intimately connected and seen as a celebration of unity, a sacrifice of thanksgiving to the Father, and a supper of reconciliation. The practices of early Christian communities combined with their memories of the meals of Jesus—including, but by no means limited to, the Last Supper—guide their liturgical praxis and subsequently form their self-understanding. In the sixth chapter, O’Loughlin investigates whether it is possible to establish the form of the meal that early communities used and believed to be in continuity with the practice of Jesus. He argues that although there is no uniform practice, there are common strands. All early Eucharistic rituals contain a blessing of the Father within the context of a meal, the sharing of a single loaf and a common cup, and a remembrance of Jesus. Moreover, early Christian worship is focused mainly on the unity of the assembly which partakes of one loaf and one cup rather than on the substance of the loaf and contents of the cup. Finally, in the seventh chapter, O’Loughlin argues that a eucharistic theology grounded in an understanding of the human person as homo cenarius entails [End Page 350] a reimagination of current eucharistic practices in order to refocus on offering thanksgiving to the Father, emphasize the role of the assembly, and recover and reinvigorate the place of the meal within the eucharistic celebration. Even as there is much to appreciate in O’Loughlin’s work, there are also points that call for further examination and critique. His distaste for theologies of Eucharistic presence will sit uneasily with many Catholics. Furthermore, despite the variety of scriptural and other early Christian ancient texts to which he appeals, he makes no mention of John 6, which plays a pivotal role in Catholic Eucharistic theology. O’Loughlin...

As a general rule, an express written agreement on applicable law is the most successful in the event of a dispute. However, the wording of the agreement, particularly when terms such as «law» and «legislation» are used, can cause significant difficulties in the law enforcement process. The practice of Russian courts and the International Commercial Arbitration Court at the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian Federation has established the position that the parties' choice of «Russian Federation law» means, first and foremost, their choice of international treaties of the Russian Federation which are an integral part of its legal system and, as far as they are concerned, of Russian regulations. Difficulties in the practice of the International Commercial Arbitration Court are caused by the interpretation of the phrase «Russian Federation law» used in applicable law agreements. In some decisions it is understood as covering only Russian regulatory acts, in others it is understood as implying also international agreements of the Russian Federation. This problem is most acute in the application of the Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods, as the Convention allows the parties to exclude its application. This problem is compounded by the fact that the legislator himself uses various terms in formulating conflict of laws rules. For example, as part of the conflict of laws regulation of contractual legal relations with a foreign element, the Agreement of the countries of the Union of Independent States on the procedure for settling disputes related to business activities uses the term «legislation» and the Civil Code of the Russian Federation uses the term «law». In this regard, we support Oleg Malkin's position on the expediency of using the term «law» both in national conflict of laws rules and in international treaties concluded by the Russian Federation. We believe that if the parties choose the «legislation of the Russian Federation», the ap-plication of international treaties of the Russian Federation will only be justified if the parties themselves confirm that they did not intend to exclude their validity. In the absence of a common position of the parties on this issue, the court and the arbitral tribunal will be forced to interpret the said phrase in the light of its literal meaning and in the light of Art. 3 and 7 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation as covering only domestic legal acts and excluding (if such exclusion is permissible) international agreements. While acknowledging that in a number of cases the parties to applicable law agreements do not see any difference between the terms «law» and «legislation», we will point out the following. In the absence of an agreed position on the contrary, an express agreement must be interpreted only in accordance with its literal meaning, and a party that does not understand such meaning will suffer the adverse consequences of its misunderstanding. In this regard, the parties to international private law relations should once again be reminded of the recommendation to formulate the texts of applicable law agreements as precisely and unambiguously as possible.

This paper aims to examine the meaning, role, inspirations, and place of corporealism in Tertullian’s system of thought. The extent to which corporealism is a basic philosophical belief in Tertullian’s work and to what extent it is a particular element of his theological doctrine is questioned. It presents the named ontological position as a rare specificity within the range of early Christian thought, especially in Tertullian’s works De anima and De carne Cristi. This paper makes a clear distinction between corporealism and materialism, as it tries to determine the degree of influence of Stoic philosophy, especially ontology, on Tertullian, as well as the influence of Aristotle in selected areas. In this context, his traducianism is also examined. In the ontological context, the status of the soul and God in Tertullian thought is also presented. In connection with the metaphysical problem of creation, the article also touches on the question of creatio ex nihilo as a problem on which Tertullian had to take a stand. It investigates the role of corporealism in Tertullian’s polemic against Marcion, Apelles, and the Valentinian Gnosis by mapping which elements in the teachings of these representatives and Gnosis, especially (but not exclusively) Valentinian, could provoke Tertullian to controversy. This paper holds the opinion that Tertullian’s corporealism was due to his theological views and controversy with opponents, which were used as philosophical inspiration, especially stoic inspiration, but was used mainly in the service of his theological thinking and strategic needs for argumentation.