"Fratres in unum" En undersökning av enhetsbegreppet i den tidiga kristna kyrkan med utgångspunkt i Regula Benedicti 42 och Ps. 133
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BroderskapEnhetDen tidiga kyrkanRegula BenedictiPs. 133GeneralSystematic and practical Christian theologyKristen teologi (allmänSystematisk och praktisk)History of the Christian churchKristna kyrkans historiaPhilosophy and Religion
AbstractThis essay examines the idea of unity in the early church, based on Psalm 133:1. My interest in this was awakened during a seminar with the scholar Sr. Dr. Michaela Puzicha OSB, who proposed that St. Benedict of Nursia in his Rule, RB 42, alludes to Ps. 133:1 and does this because he wants to stress how much he values the unity of the community. The main question of my essay is whether it is probable that that is what St. Benedict intended. To provide a basis on which this could be discussed, I have in three chapters presented different ways of dealing with the idea of unity in the early church. First, I examine RB 72, since that is the chapter in the Rule of St. Benedict which most clearly displays his thoughts about unity. That he does focus a lot on unity in general is, after that investigation, very clear. Second, I provide a background to the interpretation and use of Psalm 133:1 in this period by presenting the patristic use of the words "brother" and "brotherhood" as well as an abstract of a thesis on the concept of unity in St. Cyprian. Third, I analyse six texts by authors in the early church where Psalm 133:1 is used. The result of the analysis is that this verse of the Psalter is used to promote both unity in the sense of community life and unity in a more spiritual sense. This brings us back to the question posed above. Is it probable that St. Benedict intended an allusion to Psalm 133:1 because of its (imagined) meaning as a verse proclaiming unity among brothers in a community? It turns out that John Cassian, whom St. Benedict was obviously inspired by, is very clear about how Psalm 133:1 should be interpreted, and that is spiritually. Therefore, this essay concludes that is not the very probable that St. Benedict would use Psalm 133:1 in order to emphasise unity among the brothers in the community.