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INTRODUCTION IUIHE FATHERS OF THE CHURCH developed biblical . .' " " typology and used it against the Gnostics to vindicate " ~/', " . the unity of the two Testaments, and, against the Jews, ,' :' the superiority of the New. Among the writings of the anti-Jewish polemic which are important for typology, one must mention the so-called Epistle of Barnabas and St. Justin's Dialogue with Trypho, both of the second century~ Tertullian's Against the Jews, St. Cyprian's To Quirinus: Three Books of Testimonies, Nova· tian's Jewish Foods, certain pseudo-Cyprianic writings of which the chief is Mounts Sinai and Sion, and the Syriac Didascalia, all of the third century; several Tractates of st. Zeno of Verona against the Jews (on circumcision and Exodus) and the Demonstrations of the Syrian Aphraates of the fourth century.1 In his Jewish Foods Novatian made use of the following sources: (a) The text of Leviticus 11 (cf. Deut. 14.3-20), which deals with the question of clean and unclean food and clean and unclean animals: the principal argument of his work; (b) Seneca, Epistle 122.6: for the condemnation of early drinkers (ef. Jewish Foods 6.6-7)~ (c) The Epistle of Barnabas 10; (d) Pseudo-Aristeas (cf. Eusebius of Caesarea , Preparation for the Gospel 8.9 [PC 21.626-36])? The last two sources give an allegorical interpretation of the levitical prescriptions regarding clean and unclean foods and animals. These interpretations tally with those found in Novatian's Jewish Foods. Although Philo of Alexandria (De plantatione 43) had interpreted the animals a's symbols of human passions, "no one prior to Novatian had.. given such extensive treatment to the topic," observes J. Quasten, "and he thus paved the way for the wholesale allegorization that prevailed in the art and literature of the Middle Ages.,,3 1 J. Danielou, From Shadows to Reality (Westminster, Md., 1960) 1. 2 A. Casamassa, Novaziano (Dispense universitarie; Rome 1949) 207. 3 Quasten, Patr%gy 2.221-22. 138 NOVATIAN The first part of Jewish Foods deals with the prescriptions regarding the foods of the Old Testament (chs. 2-3); the second part treats of the norm now in effect under the New Dispensation (chs. 4-7). In the introduction, Novatian mentions two fonner works against the Jews: "In these letters, I have demonstrated how completely ignorant they are of the true nature of circumcision and of the true nature of the Sabbath" (ch. 1.6). These works, also mentioned by Jerome,4 are lost. The laws and prescriptions of the Old Testament, Novatian holds, must be understood spiritually. In the state of original justice, man plucked his food from the trees; after the fall, he had to bend down to the soil to cultivate his food. Since he must now cultivate the entire world, not merely paradise, flesh meat was added to his diet. When the law clistinguishes between clean and unclean animals, that does not "dishonor their Creator" (ch. 2.3, 15-16). Unclean animals are to be given an allegorical interpretation: they are symbols of human vices (ch. 3). Certain foods were declared unclean to restrain the intemperance of the people (ch. 4). The shadows and figures of the Old Law have served their purpose; with the advent of Christ, "the end of the law,"5 "all things are pure to the pure.,,6 The new food of Christians is now something real, pure, holy; that is, an upright faith, and immaculate conscience, an innocent spirit (ch. 5). Now that the Gospel affords Christians greater liberty in their choice of foods, "one must not conclude that sensuality is permitted" (ch. 6.1). Christians must not partake of what has been offered to idols; even Jews abhorred such offerings (ch.7). From the introduction (ch. 1), we can surmise that Novatian had been forced into exile-probably during the persecution of Gallus (251-253), at the time Pope Cornelius was also exiled. Socrates, the historian of the fifth century, claims that Novatian died "in the reign of Valerian," that is, between 253 and 260.7 Since Novatian wrote 4 On Circumcision and On the Sabbath; cf. Jerome, De viris illustribus 70. 5 Rom. 10.4. 6 Titus 1.15. 7 Socrates, Historia ecclesiastica 4.28. JEWISH FOODS 139 his 'Nork on Jewish Foods during his exile, the date of composition falls in the period 253-260.8 The present translation is based on the critical text of G. Landgraf and C. Weyman in Archiv fur lateinische Lexikographie und...

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