The Hope of the Early Church: A Handbook of Patristic Eschatology (review)

Any handbook of this nature should be written by a master. This one is. Daley moves deftly through the patristic period focusing his attention on a set of significant teachings that has received too little attention. Christian hope is the section J. N. D. Kelly added to his Early Christian Doctrines in a revised edition, the standard English introduction to patristic theology. Yet Daley's work is the only volume in any language which treats eschatology for the entire period and geographical area. Because it covers so well not only the expected Greek and Latin sources but also texts from Syriac-, Coptic- and Armenian-speaking authors, it is not likely to be replaced in the near future.

One of the reviewer's problems is controlling enough of the materials Daley treats to assess the work. In order to give some sense of depth in a small review I look at some of the more significant aspects of apokatastasis. That doctrine has not only been an interesting battleground in the study of historical theology but also a fascinating possibility for those who are concerned with modern religious pluralism. Daley shows his command of the ancient sources and the recent secondary literature when he indicates that Origen should not be flayed as a consistent universalist. The Alexandrian certainly was attacked as teaching that all, even the devil, would be saved. Daley listens closely to such voices but he also notices that in some places Origen suggested his readers should choose whether or not universalism was the proper teaching. In those instances the Alexandrian did not demand the universalist option. The primary evidence for Origen's own rejection of salvation for every creature is one of his few extant letters. In that epistle he insists that it is foolish to think of the devil being saved. Because the letter is found in the writings of Jerome, no defender of Origen, it must be given serious consideration. I would weight it more heavily than does Daley, and thus would not refer to universalism as Origenistic when treating other early theologians. But having argued this issue and taken a position nearer Crouzel, I am even more impressed with the balance and care with which Daley makes his case.

His words about Gregory of Nyssa and Maximus on this theme are also well-nuanced. Nyssa does support the doctrine, a stance which may have influenced the church's views of his works. Of the Cappadocians he is the one without an honorific title like "Great" applied to Basil or "The Theologian" applied to Gregory of Nazianzus. Maximus the Confessor hopes that universal salvation may be true, yet he states the horrors of existing outside God's presence in sad and fearful terms. Damnation within hell's fire would be an improvement. Daley, in his epilogue, notes that the question is one which the church did not decide with clarity.

The scope of this volume is difficult to depict but rather easy to navigate. The index takes up thirteen pages, bibliography twenty-two and endnotes forty-one. Thus leads for further investigations either of specific themes or of authors are available. The book's slim format is deceiving because it entails an economy of design and style. The chapters represent sensible divisions and wide coverage of materials. Augustine receives his lion's share, but the book is not overbalanced in his favor. The treatment of Origen and Origenism is nearly as large. Syriac authors like Aphrahat, Bardaisan, Ephrem, Jacob of Sarug, Philoxenus of Mabbug and Stephen Bar Sudaili are selected not merely to give the volume a flavor other than Latin and Greek but to focus attention on different aspects of the topic. Aphrahat compares a kind of consciousness which the dead have of their future to the dreams of the living, but Ephrem sees the dead without their bodies as in a sleep that includes no consciousness. His views about the necessity of...