Konversion zur Philosophie in der Spätantike: Kaiser Julian und Synesios von Kyrene (review)

This study enters the conversation about the character of conversion with figures like Nock, Stark, Travisano, and Mead. After a discussion of the various possibilities, Tanaseanu-Döbler settles for the following definition of conversion: "Conversion is a modification of the identity structure of a person through which marginal or new identities move to prominent position in the hierarchy of identity and become central for their self-understanding" (23). In order to escape false dichotomies in the explanation of conversion and hoping to provide a broader account of conversion she introduces the notion of a universe of discourse, which is, according to G. Mead whom she cites, "simply a system of common or social meanings" (23).

The first part of the work "Philosophy and Ritual in Neoplatonism," provides a methodological background for understanding the connection between cultic practice and theory. By discussing Plotinus, the Chaldean Oracles, Iamblichus's De mysteriis, and Porphyry's Letter to Anebo, Tanaseanu-Döbler offers an insight into a lively debate about the role of ritual in philosophy and constructs a horizon for the subsequent discussion of Emperor Julian and Synesius of Cyrene. The chapter dedicated to Julian establishes that the driving force behind his conversion is the quest for philosophical knowledge and not his attraction for pagan cult (93). Even Julian's practice of theurgy and his interest in the Chaldean Oracles only prove his quest for divine purgation and illumination along philosophical lines. According to Tanaseanu-Döbler, theurgy for Julian is not in contradiction with the spiritual ascent because both are essential to the philosopher. The myths and rituals of paganism are filtered through neoplatonic metaphysics.

As does Julian, Synesius partakes of the neoplatonic universe of discourse, in which the allegiance to philosophy and all it entails (detachment, purification, and constant ascent) determines his understanding of social and political presence. Even as bishop of the Christian church in Pentapolis and ambassador in Constantinople, he remains truthful to the philosophical life. In his writings (especially in the hymns), "Synesius employs the 'Christian myth' as an image along with others in order to convey fundamental ideas of neoplatonism as the predicament of the soul imprisoned in matter or the demiurgic and soteriologic function of divine nous" (251). The passage from pagan to Christian imagery is almost seamless as both are harnessed to the task of giving expression to the neoplatonic vision of the soul's fall and ascent to divine contemplation.

Tanaseanu-Döbler concludes that independent of their affiliation to different religious traditions (Julian converts from Christianity to paganism, while Synesius remains affiliated with a Christian community) there are several elements their conversions and individual religion share, and the ancient paideia and neoplatonic philosophy provide the fundamental framework for understanding their experience of conversion. From this perspective the Christian-pagan distinction is not as important. Tanaseanu-Döbler insists, however, on the "religious" character of the process. Philosophy, for both Synesius and Julian, was not a merely theoretical enterprise but was fundamentally a religious exercise that ultimately leads one to divine contemplation; both find their way to philosophy through paideia seen as the continuous purgation and refinement of the soul. For both Julian and Synesius, it is the encounter with a towering figure of a great teacher that triggers their conversion and subsequent intellectual development: for Julian it is Maximus of Ephesus and for Synesius it is Hypatia of Alexandria.

Julian and Synesius manage to integrate their different social personae through their allegiance to philosophy as a lived experience. In order analytically to capture this complex situation, Tanaseanu-Döbler distinguishes between religious traditions on the one hand and the individual religiosity constructed though the encounter of these traditions on the other hand. While Julian and Synesius opt for different religious traditions, their individual construction of religion and identity is fundamentally similar and informed by Neoplatonism. Thus, philosophy proves a multivalent universe of discourse, a fulcrum...