Christian therapeia and politeia: The apologetics of Theodoret of Cyrrhus against the Greeks

Characterized by scholarship as the last and one of the most beautiful Christian apologies the Curatio Graecarum Affectionum of Theodoret of Cyrrhus has received only piecemeal attention and has hitherto remained seriously understudied. This dissertation is the first systematic study in English of salient apologetic motifs in the Curatio Graecarum Affectionum of Theodoret of Cyrrhus. The notion of therapeia—the organizing principle—is placed in its medical-philosophical context. I argue that Theodoret's therapeutic approach is applied with subtlety and sophistication on an unprecedented scale for Christian literature. Next, I analyze Theodoret's critique of Greek Gods and Greek demonology, in its relationship with oracles, theurgy. There follows an analysis of the defense of the cult of the martyrs seen against the background of the hero-cult. The theme of Christianity as the universal practical virtue is developed. Theodoret uses Greek philosophy in order to articulate a contrast between Greek philosophers and Christian ascetics, the “true” philosophers. The last chapter focuses on the style, method and argumentation of the apology, considers the intended audience and argues for the role of the apology as a manual for apologetic and catechetical purposes.