Severus, bishop of Antioch, preaches On *Drosis (virgin and martyr of Antioch, S01189). Cathedral homily 5, delivered in Greek, probably in Antioch on the Orontes in 512. Preserved in a Greek fragment.
Evidence ID
E08552
Type of Evidence
Literary - Sermons/Homilies
Major author/Major anonymous work
Severus of Antioch
Severus of Antioch, Cathedral Homily 5 (CPG 7035.5)
Moscow, Gosudarstvennyj Istoričeskij Musej, Vladimir 28 (formerly Sinod. gr. 385), fol. 94 r-v:
Σευήρου ἀπὸ λόγου εʹ.
Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ ἡ πλευρὰ τοῦ πρῶτου πλασθέντος Ἀδάμ, αὕτη δέ ἐστιν ἡ Εὔα, γέγονεν ἡμῖν ἀρχέκακος, τὴν ἀπάτην παραδεξαμένη τοῦ ὄφεως, τούτου χάριν ὁ Ἐμμανουήλ, ὁ δι’ἡμᾶς δεύτερος χρηματίσας Ἀδάμ, μετὰ τὸν ἑκούσιον σταυρόν, τὴν πλευρὰν ὑπὸ τοῦ στρατιώτου τῇ λόγχῃ νύττεται, τὴν ἐκεῖθεν πλασθεῖσαν γυναῖκα διορθούμενος καὶ πρὸς ἀνδρείαν καὶ τοὺς ὑπὲρ εὐσεβαίας ἀγῶνας ἐκ μαλακείας μετατιθεὶς καὶ μεταδιδοὺς τῆς οἰκείας στερρότητος, καὶ ἐξ αὐτῆς τῆς ἀθανασίας ἡμῖν ἀπαρχόμενος· μετὰ γὰρ τὴν ἔκπνευσιν καὶ τὴν κατὰ σάρκα νέκρωσιν, δι’ἧς τὸν θάνατον νεκρὸν ἀπειργάσατο, τὴν πλευρὰν τρωθῆναι ἡνέσχετο, καὶ ἔβλυσε τὴν παράδοξον καὶ τῆς ἀφθαρσίας ἡμῖν πρόξενον τοῦ αἵματος καὶ ὕδατος ῥῦσιν, δεικνὺς ὡς, ὅθεν ἀρχὴν ἔσχεν ὁ θάνατος, ἐκεῖθεν ἡ ἀθανασία βεβλάστηκεν.
'By Severus, from homily no. 5.
Since indeed the side of the first-formed Adam, that is to say Eve, became the origin of evil for us, having welcomed the deceit of the serpent, hence it is that Emmanuel, who for us is called the second Adam, after his voluntary death on the cross, has his side pierced by the soldier’s spear, [thus] restoring the woman who had been formed from this place, in her passing from softness to manly courage and fighting for godliness and participating in his own firmness and from it giving us the first fruits of immortality. For after his last breath and his death according to the flesh, by which he killed death, he bore the wounding of his side and caused the paradoxical flow of blood and water to spurt out, which gives us incorruptibility (cf. John 19:34), showing that where death originated, there immortality sprouted.'
Text: M. Brière and F. Graffin, PO 38.2, 305.
Translation: K. Papadopoulos.
Syriac masora
Masora entries are pointed but the texts are presented as given in the editions. We have however, corrected transcription errors. The translations are literal and approximate, given there is no context.
1. Bibliothèque nationale de France, syr. 64, fol. 199v, a 25–b 6:
ܡ. ܕܗ ܆ ܕܪܘܣܝܣ ܕܒܕܪ̈ܐ ܡ̈ܫܚܠܦܐ. ܚܕܐ ܆ ܙܒ̣ܢ ܐܬ̣ܬ̇ܪܨܢܢ ܡܣ̇ܡܟ ܘܡܚ̇ܝܠ ܒܕܐܪ̈ܐ. ܕܛܪܐܝܐܢܘܣ. ܐܝܓܢܐܛܝܘܣ ܠܘܬ ܡܟ̣ܝܪܘܬ̣ܐ. ܐܣܬ̣̇ܟܠܬ̇. ܣܛܪܐܛܝܘܛܐ. ܕܟܠܚܕ ܡܢ ܟܝ̈ܢܐ ܢ̇ܛܪ. ܕܕܡܐ ܘܡ̈ܝܐ ܢܫܦܥ. ܠܥܠ ܬ̇ܪܨܠܢ. ܣ̣̈ܗܕܐ ܙܟܝ̈ܝ ܟܗܢܐܝܬ ܕܐܢܬܘܣ:
'M(emrā) no. 5: Of Drosis who [is] in various combats. Once and for all he restored (lit. straightened) us, sustaining and strengthening [us] in combats. Of Trajan. Ignatius as regards betrothal. She understood. Soldier [στρατιώτης]. Who each one of [his] creatures guards. who caused the blood and water to pour out. Upwards he restores us. Saints victorious in a priestly manner (who are) truly [ὅντως?].'
Text: M. Brière and F. Graffin, PO 38.2, 304. Corrected against BnF syr. 64.
Translation: K. Papadopoulos.
2. British Library, Add MS 14684, fol. 109b:
ܗ. ܕܪܣܝܣ. ܡܚܝ. ܐܬ̣ܬ̇ܪܨܢܢ. ܘܒܛܦܪ̈ܐ. ܕܛܪܐܝܐܢܘܣ. ܒܪܬ̣ܐ. ܐܝܓܢܛܝܘܣ. ܢܦ̣ܬܐ. ܛܦ̣ܬ̣. ܙܟ̣ܝܝ. ܐܕܡܣ. ܕܢܛܘܣ.
'5. Of Drosis. He struck (?). He restored us. And with iron nails [a torture instrument cf. 4Macc 84:7]. Of Trajan. Daughter. Ignatius. To (be) enlarge(d). Taphath [?]. She? conquers. Adamant [ἀδάμας]. Who are truly [ὅντως?].'
Text: M. Brière and F. Graffin, PO 38.2, 304.
Translation: K. Papadopoulos.
3. Syrian Orthodox Patriarchate syr. 7/16 fol. 184r, b 19–28
ܕ̥ܪܳܣܺܝܣ ܕܰ̊ܒܕ̥ܳܪ̈ܶܐ ܡ̈ܫܰܚܠܦ̥ܶܐ.
ܚܕ̥ܳܐ ܙܒܰܢ ܐܶܬܬܪܷܨܢܰܢ. ܡܣܰܡܶܟ ܘܰܡܚܝܷܰܠ܆ ܒ̊ܪ̥ܰܐܷܪ̈ܐ.
ܗ̇ܢܘܢ ܕܰܐܛܪܱܐܺܝܐܰܢܘܳܣ.
ܐܺܝܓ̥ܢܱܐܛܺܝܘܳܣ ܠܘܬ̥ ܡܟ̥ܺܝܪܽܘܬ̥ܳܐ.
ܐܶܣ[ܬܰ]ܒ̥ܠܰܬ̥݀. ܣܛܪܰܐܛܺܝܘܳܛܳܐ. ܕܟܠܚܕ ܡܢ ܟܳܝ̈ܢܶܐ ܢܷ̇ܛ̣ܰܪ.
ܕܰܕܡܳܐ ܘܰܡ̈ܝܳܐ ܢܰܫ̇ܦ̱ܰܥ.
ܠܥܠ ܬܴ̇ܪܶܨ ܠܢ.
ܣ̈ܗܕ̊ܐ ܙܰܟ̈̊ܝܝܰ ܟܗܢܐܝܬ ܕܐܴܘܢܬܘܳܣ:
'Drosis who [is] in various combats.
One time he restored us, sustaining and strengthening [us] in combats.
Those of Trajan
Ignatius as regards betrothal.
She was understood. Soldier [pointed as στρατιώτου]. Who each one of (his) creatures he keeps
Of the blood and water he caused to poured out.
Above he restored us.
Saints victorious in a priestly manner who are truly [ὅντως?].'
Text: J. Loopstra, CSCO 689, 337.
Translation: K. Papadopoulos.
Liturgical ActivitiesSermon/homily
Non Liturgical ActivityWomen
Sermon/homily
Service for the saint
Non Liturgical ActivityTransmission, copying and reading saint-related texts
Protagonists in Cult and NarrativesWomen
Monarchs and their family
Soldiers
Ecclesiastics - bishops
Source
Severus of AntiochSeverus was born c. 465 in Sozopolis in Pisidia (west central Asia Minor) to pagan parents. He studied in Alexandria and completed legal studies in Beirut. While in Beirut, he converted to Christianity, and was baptized at the shrine of Leontius in Tripoli around 488. En route back to Pisidia via Jerusalem to embark on a legal career, he was persuaded instead to adopt monastic life in Peter the Iberian’s monastery near Gaza. He progressed to solitary life in the desert of Eleutheropolis before ill health forced him to recover at the nearby monastery of Romanus. He eventually founded his own cenobitic community in Maiuma, near Gaza.
Facing increasing opposition from pro-Chalcedonian monks in Palestine, Severus joined other non-Chalcedonian monks in Constantinople from 508 to 511 to promote Miaphysite theology and push back against the pro-Chalcedonian patriarchs of Constantinople (Makedonios II), Jerusalem (Elijah I) and Antioch (Flavian II). He eventually won the trust of the emperor Anastasius (491-518).
Severus was elected bishop of Antioch, possibly on 6 November 512 (Malalas, Chronicle 16), at a synod of Laodicea (Syria I), after a protracted campaign led by Philoxenos of Mabbug to depose Flavian II. He was consecrated at the Great Church in Antioch on 16 November 512, at which time he preached the first of his 125 Cathedral Homilies, so named to reflect that they were delivered from the cathedra or episcopal throne while he was bishop. While bishop, he travelled and preached extensively, wrote hymns, and engaged in polemics against both radical anti-Chalcedonians such as Sergius the Grammarian and Chalcedonian opponents.
With the accession of Justin I to the imperial throne in 518, ecclesiastical policy favoured Chalcedonian orthodoxy, and Severus, along with 52 other non-Chalcedonian bishops from Syria and Asia Minor, was deposed. Severus fled to Egypt to escape arrest and initially settled in the monastery at Enaton. For the next twenty years, Severus travelled extensively in Egypt, continuing his polemics against Chalcedonians and combatting doctrinal divisions among the non-Chalcedonians. During this time, he effectively became the leader of the Egyptian church while still maintaining oversight of non-Chalcedonian affairs in Antioch.
In an attempt at unification, Justin’s successor Justinian (527-565) invited Severus to Constantinople. Severus travelled to the capital with his protegé Peter of Apamea and the monk Ze'ora of Amida in winter 534–535. After failing to negotiate a settlement, the three men were condemned by the council of Constantinople in 536, which also deposed patriarch Anthimius I of Constantinople for his Miaphysite leanings. On 6 August 536, an imperial edict ratified the council’s decision, exiled Severus, and ordered Severus’ works be destroyed with threats of amputation of the hand should any scribe copy them (Justinian, Novella 42). Defeated, Severus fled from Constantinople and died in semi-obscurity two years later, on 8 February 538, in Chois, Upper Egypt. A small group of adherents transported his remains by boat to the monastery of Glass at Enaton, where he had resided for many years.
A prolific author, Severus left, in addition to his 125 Cathedral Homilies, several dogmatic and polemical works, about 4000 letters of which only about 200 have survived, and over 200 hymns. A baptismal liturgy ascribed to him is not considered authentic. His homilies and hymns in particular show him to be an enthusiastic promoter of the cult of saints.
The Cathedral Homilies
Text, translation, transmission
Severus’s 125 Cathedral Homilies were delivered during the six years of his episcopacy in the see of Antioch (512–518), but only Homily 77 and a few fragments survive in the original Greek. Today, the homilies are largely known through the Syriac translations, in Coptic, and in much later translations into Arabic and Ethiopic (Ge’ez).
Soon after they were delivered, Severus’ Cathedral Homilies were collected and organized in chronological order of their composition and numbered sequentially. This arrangement probably goes back to the time of Severus himself, since Julian of Halicarnassus’ first letter to Severus, written sometime after 518, refers to one of Severus’ homilies by its number (Brière, PO 29.1, 63). The chronological order and numbering are maintained throughout the manuscript tradition.
The Cathedral Homilies were translated into Syriac no later than the mid-sixth century and organized into four books containing homilies 1-30, 31-72, 73-100, and 101-25. A large portion of the homilies are still extant in this version in four manuscripts held in the British Library (BL) and the Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana (BAV):
Repository Shelfmark Date Contents
BL Add MS 1459 AD 569 hom. 31-59
BAV Vat. sir 142 before AD 576 hom. 73-100
BAV Vat. sir. 143 AD 563 hom. 101-125
BAV Vat. sir. 256 6th cent. hom. 101-125
Homilies 1-30 (Book 1) and 60-72 (part of Book 2) are missing except for a few fragments.
Wright (1894, 94-95) ascribed the sixth-century translation of the homilies to Paul of Callinicum, and ostensibly did so based on the translation’s stylistic similarities with Paul’s Syriac translation of Severus’ correspondence with Julian of Halicarnassus and his three polemical works against Julian’s theology (Brière, PO 29.1, 17). Many commentators since have followed suit. But while Paul is known with certainty to have translated Severus’ anti-Julianist corpus in 528 (see note on BAV, Vat. sir. 140, fol. 145v), none of the four manuscripts which carry unrevised translations of Severus’ homilies carry Paul’s name and the attribution remains contestable.
The sixth-century translations were subsequently revised by Jacob of Edessa (c. 640-708) at the end of the seventh century. Jacob, for his part, never referred to any sixth-century translator by name and always referred to translators in the plural as 'the ancients' (ܩܕܡ̈ܝܐ) (Lash 1981, 372-373). Jacob’s version seems to have been divided into three books although the exact book division varies. In British Library, Add MS 12159 the books contain homilies 1-50, 51-90, 91-125, whereas BAV, Vat. sir. 141 contains homilies 44-91 suggesting the other parts contained 1-43 and 92-125. A colophon in BAV, Vat. sir. 141 indicates Jacob completed this revision in 700/701 but this date may simply refer to the completion of the homilies in the manuscript rather than the whole collection.
Both the sixth-century translation(s) and Jacob’s revision of Severus’ homilies include titles reflecting each homily’s contents and/or occasion. These titles sometimes differ between the sixth- and seventh-century translations, and it is possible that Severus himself used shorthand titles as he does when referring to two of his homilies in his apology for Philalethes (CSCO 319, 112-113). The first homily in each new year of his episcopacy is also noted in the manuscript tradition.
Severus’ works were copied and transmitted with great care by the non-Chalcedonian churches which eventually split from the pro-Chalcedonian, imperially backed Byzantine church. Unusual names, special words and terms were also collected and added to patristic masora, that is, handbooks titled 'words and readings' giving vocalizations of ambiguous or unfamiliar words to assist readers. Masora manuscripts such as British Library Add MS 14684, Bibliothèque nationale de France syr. 64 and Syrian Orthodox Patriarchate syr. 7/16 provide valuable information on titles or contents of homilies which are otherwise missing in the manuscript tradition.
The Coptic tradition preserves Cathedral Homilies 1 and 27 in their entirety, Homily 60 almost complete, and fragments from Homilies 2, 7, 14, 24, 28, 50, 77, 103 and 115, all in the Sahidic dialect. Additional fragments may be identified in future. The Sahidic version of the Cathedral Homilies reflects another tradition from the Syriac. A few homily fragments are also preserved in the Bohairic catenae on the gospels, most importantly British Library, Or. 8812, completed in 888/9 probably from a Greek original and published by de Lagarde (1886).
Extant quotations from Homily 22 in the 11th-century Arabic Confessions of the Fathers derive from a Coptic rather than a Syriac text (Youssef 2003). Homily fragments preserved in the Arabic gospel catenae, whose earliest extant manuscript BAV, Vat. arab. 452 dates from the 1214, seem to derive from the Bohairic (Caubet Iturbe 1969). Witakowski (2004) lists a very small inventory of Severus in Ethiopic including one inauthentic homily and two other homily fragments which have not have yet been examined.
Editions
All of Severus’ Cathedral Homilies in Syriac translation have been edited and published in Patrologia Orientalis (PO). The base manuscript for the PO edition is British Library, Add MS 12159, written in 867/868, which reflects Jacob of Edessa’s revision. As this manuscript is damaged at the beginning, homilies 1-17 have been recovered in whole or in part from other manuscripts or versions. The edition for Homily 77 includes the Greek text which is extant in its entirety. A small number of Greek, Syriac and Coptic fragments of these homilies have been published since the PO editions, and these are noted in individual entries on this database, where relevant.
Except for Homily 77 on the Resurrection (Kugener and Triffaux, PO 16.5) and Homily 52 on the Maccabees (Bensly and Barnes 1895), the sixth-century version remains unpublished.
Themes
Between 512 and 518, Severus preached a cycle of homilies each year beginning on the anniversary of his consecration, in various churches and martyr shrines in Antioch, its suburb Daphne, and towns in the surrounding regions. These locations are sometimes given in the titles. Most homilies were pre-prepared; a few were repeated (e.g., Homily 1) or extemporaneous (e.g., Homily 111). The number of times that Severus preached in each annual cycle seems to have decreased: from 33 in his first year to 14 in his fifth and 13 in his sixth (which was cut short).
The Cathedral Homilies cover a wide range of themes which Baumstark (1897, 36-39) categorized into four groups: A – important (dominical) feasts; B – saints; C – exegetical homilies for an ordinary Sunday; and D – occasional homilies preached in response to particular circumstances. Most modern commentators follow or adapt this taxonomy. About a third of the Cathedral Homilies relate to saints, but various aspects of the cult of saints are also mentioned in some of the remaining homilies. Alpi (2009, 68) counts 117 homilies addressed to the people of Antioch, thus making these homilies a valuable source for saints’ commemorations in the Antiochene church.
Homilies on saints
Severus preached annually on 1 January at the shrine of *Ignatius (bishop of Antioch and martyr of Rome, S00649) on *Basil (bishop of Caesarea, ob. 379, S00780) and *Gregory (the Theologian, of Nazianzos, S00837), whose works were influential on his formation. He also preached on feast days for *Athanasios (bishop of Alexandria, ob. 373, S00294) and *Antony (‘the Great’, monk of Egypt, ob. 356, S00098) whom he also admired. Absent are homilies on *John Chrysostom (bishop of Constantinople, ob. 407, S00779) and *Kyrillos/Cyril (bishop of Alexandria, ob. 444, S00874) whom he cited frequently but only eulogized in hymns.
In Antioch he also preached on commemoration days for *Mary (Mother of Christ, S00033) and for various biblical saints: *Jonah (Old Testament Prophet, S01237), the *Maccabean Martyrs (pre-Christian Jewish martyrs of Antioch, S00303), the *Innocents (children killed on the orders of Herod, S00268), *John the Baptist (S00020), and *Stephen (the First Martyr, S00030). He mentions the commemorations of local martyrs *Ignatius (bishop of Antioch and martyr of Rome, S00649) and *Loukianos (either the theologian and martyr of Nicomedia, S00151, or the martyr of Heliopolis-Baalbek, S00831) in passing but preaches on days commemorating *Babylas (bishop and martyr of Antioch, S00061), *Barlaam/Barlāhā (martyr of Antioch, S00417), *Romanos (deacon of Caesarea, martyred at Antioch, S00120), *Symeon the Stylite (the Elder, S00343), and *Thekla (follower of the Apostle Paul, S00092). He also preached three times on the commemoration day for *Drosis (virgin and martyr of Antioch, S01189) whose martyrium in Antioch he was refurbishing, as well as twice on the feast day of his patron saint, Leontios (martyr of Tripolis, Phoenicia, S00216), whose cult he probably introduced into Antioch. He preached on foreign saints *Dometios (monk of Syria, later 4th c., S00414), the *Forty Martyrs of Sebaste (S00103), *Ioulianos (martyr of Cilicia, buried at Antioch or in Egypt, S00305), Theodoros (soldier and martyr of Amaseia and Euchaita, S00480), and *Tarachos, Probos, and Andronikos (martyrs of Anazarbos, Cilicia, S00710), who were all commemorated in Antioch at the time, and he presided over the deposition of the relics of *Prokopios (martyr of Caesarea of Palestine, S00118) and *Phokas (martyr of Antioch, S00413) at the shrine dedicated to *Michael (the Archangel, S00181) in Antioch. In the countryside, he preached on *Thomas (the Apostle, S00199) at Seleucia, *Sergios (soldier and martyr of Rusafa, S00023) and *Bakchos (soldier and martyr of Barbalissos, S00079) at Chalcis/Qinnasrin, and *Thalelaios (martyr of Aigai, Cilicia, S01137), at Aigai.
Cathedral Homily 5: On Drosis
Manuscripts, Greek fragment (from the catenae in Genesis)
Moscow, Gosudarstvennyj Istoričeskij Musej, Vladimir 28 (Sinod. gr. 385), fol. 94r-v. 10th cent.
St Petersburg, Rossiyskaya Natsional'naya Biblioteka, Fonds 906 (gr.) 124, fol. ??. 13th cent.
Manuscripts, Syriac masora
Bibliothèque nationale de France, syr. 64, fol. 199, a 25-b 5
British Library, Add MS 14684, fol. 109b
Syrian Orthodox Patriarchate, syr. 7/16, fol. 184r, b 19-28
Edition
Brière 1976 (PO 38.2), 304, 305. Syriac masora, Greek fragment.
Loopstra 2020 (CSCO 689), 337. Syriac masora.
Petit 1991 (TEG 1), 233-234 (no. 345). Greek fragment.
The PO edition of the Greek fragment is based on the Moscow manuscript, while Petit edits the Greek from the Moscow and St Petersburg manuscripts.
PO prints the Syriac masora entries from the BnF and British Library manuscripts, while Loostra provides the Syriac text from the masora manuscript held by the Syrian Orthodox Patriarchate in Damascus.
Discussion
Which commemoration?Homily 5 is missing in all Syriac manuscripts containing the Cathedral Homilies but the masora indicate Homily 5 was on Drosis (virgin and martyr of Antioch, S01189). We have no reason to doubt this title given the masora’s accuracy on other homilies for which the whole text survives.
Furthermore, in Cathedral Homily 114 on Drosis delivered on 14 December 517 (E0xxxx), Severus mentions that he had already preached twice on Drosis, leaving Homily 100 preached on 14 December 516 (E0xxxx) as the second, and Homily 5 in year 512 as most likely the first homily on Drosis, as it is the only year in which there are missing homilies between the (anniversary of) Severus’ consecration as bishop and the feast of the Nativity.
The Greek fragment from the catenae in Genesis does not mention Drosis but the masora readings confirm that the extract belongs to Homily 5 as they include references to 'restoration' (lit. 'making upright or straight') and the blood and water from Jesus’ side.
When?
The numbering of this homily (known from the masora) indicates it was preached early in Severus’ first year, after his consecration on 16 November 512 and before Homily 7 ‘On the Nativity and on Stephen’ which was delivered on 25 December 512 (see E08553). The most likely date is 14 December 512. This would accord with John Chrysostom’s commemoration which fell on a winter’s day (see E02343), and agree with the 14 December entry in the Martyrologium Hieronymianum for a commemoration of the virgin Drusina and three companions in Antioch (see E05051), and the 14 December entry for Drosis (ܕܪܘܣܝܣ) in the late 7th-century West Syriac Menologium in British Library, Add MS 17134 (see E05366), a manuscript which also contains the Hymns of Severus of Antioch and others. The fragmentary 7th/8th-century Papyrus Vindob. G 14043, from Hermopolis in Egypt also records a commemoration for a Drosida on 15 December (see E02212).
Where?
If the homily was delivered on the feast day of Drosis, it may have been in the church or martyrium in Antioch where Drosis’ relics were kept and where Severus preached Homilies 100 and 114 on Drosis (Mayer and Allen 2012, 115-116). In these later homilies Severus also appeals for funds to renovate the space above the altar.
What?
Given the homily was titled “On Drosis”, we can safely assume she was its main theme. The Add MS 14684 masora suggest that Severus presented her as the daughter of the emperor Trajan (98-117), as he would do again later in Homily 100 (see E0xxxx) and Homily 114 (see E0xxxx). This signals a significant development in her cult from the time of John Chrysostom where there was no mention of her relationship with Trajan (see E02343).
All three masora include the name Ignatius, which does not appear in any homily or martyrdom account for Drosis that has come down to us. It likely refers to Ignatius, bishop of Antioch, who, according to Eusebius, was martyred under Trajan (H.E. 3.21, 36) and we can only guess that Severus (who we know read Eusebius) may have presented him as Drosis’ contemporary. Malalas would later list Ignatius, Drosis and five virgins—perhaps the five in the Acts of Drosis (E0xxxx)—as martyrs under Trajan (see E05669).
A masora entry in Add MS 14684 can be read as “Taphath”, the name of a daughter of Solomon, the third king of Israel. If this reading is correct, it is possible that Severus compared Drosis, a royal daughter whose name means “dew”, to Taphath, a royal daughter whose name means “a drop” (from Hebrew נטפ “to drip”).
The surviving Greek fragment is found in manuscripts carrying catenae for Genesis and relates the restoration of Eve by Jesus Christ, the second Adam, by means of the blood and water gushing out from Jesus’ side (cf. John 19:34). Whether this Greek fragment is directly related to Drosis or some digression in the homily is not known with certainty, but Severus may have drawn a link between the manly courage of Drosis and the account of Eve’s weakness being transformed to hardness like that of adamant (ἀδάμας), a particularly hard metal listed in the masora in Add MS 14684. Hymn 161-1-8 on Drosis, which is found among the Hymns of Severus and Others and uses similar language to Homily 5, also makes a connection (if we ignore the additions by the first translator shown in Syriac Estrangelo script and English italics):
ܐܠܘ ܓܝܪ ܕܡܐ ܢܢ̇ܝ̣ܐ ܕܢܛ̣ܦ ܡܢ ܕܦܢܟ ܩܕܝܫܬܐ : ܠܐ ܬ̣ܪ̈ܨ ܘܐܣܝ ܠܐܢܬܬܐ ܗ̇ܝ ܕܡܢ ܐܠܥܗ ܕܐܒܘܢ ܐܕܡ ܐܬܓܒ̣ܠܬ݀܆ ܠܐ ܗܘܐ ܚܝܠܬܢܝܬܐ ܣܗܕܬܐ ܕܪܘܣܝܣ܇ ܒܗ ܒܗܒܒܐ ܕܩܘܡܬܐ ܕܛܠܝܘܬܗ̇ ܇ ܠܫ̣ܘܒܚܐ ܕܡܠܟܘܬܐ ܡܫ̣ܝܛܐ ܗܘܬ ܘܒܦܓܪܐ ܕܝܠܗ̇ ܡܒܣܝܐ ܗܘܬ ܘܡܗ̇ܡܝܐ ܇
For, if the living blood that welled from thy holy side had not reformed and healed the woman who was formed from the rib of our father Adam, the valiant martyr Drosis would not in the very flower of her youthful age have spurned the glory of the kingdom, and despised and disregarded her body, and been victorious over the torments that were applied to her. (ed. and trans. Brooks, PO 7, 621-622).
Bibliography
Greek text and French Translation:Brière, M., and F. Graffin (eds. and trans.), “Les Homiliae cathedrales de Sévère d'Antioche: Homélies I à XVII”, Patrologia Orientalis 38.2 (1976), 304-305.
Petit, F. (ed. and trans.), La Chaîne sur la Genèse Édition Integral I: Chapitres 1 à 3 (Tradition Exegetica Graeca 1; Louvain: Peeters, 1991), 233-234 (no. 345).
Syriac masora
Brière, M., and F. Graffin (eds. and trans.), “Les Homiliae cathedrales de Sévère d'Antioche: Homélies I à XVII”, Patrologia Orientalis 38.2 (1976), 304-305.
Loopstra, J., The Patristic “Masora”: A Study of Patristic Collections in Syriac Handbooks from the Near East (CSCO 689 / Syr. 265; Louvain: Peeters, 2020).
Further reading:
Severus
Allen, P., and C. T. R. Hayward, Severus of Antioch (The Early Church Fathers; London: Routledge, 2004), 3-55.
Alpi, F., La route royale: Sévère d’Antioche et les églises d’Orient (512-518). 2 vols. (Bibliothèque archéologique et historique 188; Beirut: Institut français du Proche-Orient, 2009), 1:188-193.
Hay, K., “Severus of Antioch: An inheritor of Palestinian monasticism”, ARAM 15 (2003), 159-171.
Cathedral Homilies Text, Transmission and Studies
Baumstark, A. “Das Kirchenjahr in Antiocheia zwischen 512 und 518”, Römische Quartalschrift für christliche Altertumskunde und Kirchengeschichte 11 (1898), 31-66.
Bensly, R.L., and W.E. Barnes, The Fourth Book of Maccabees and Kindred Documents in Syriac (Cambridge, 1895), 76-88 (hom. 55 sixth century) and 90-102 (Jacob’s revision).
Brière, M. et al., “Les Homiliae Cathedrales de Sévère d’Antioche. Traduction syriaque de Jacques d’Edesse”, Patrologia Orientalis 4.1, 8.2, 12.1, 16.5, 20.2, 22.2, 23.1, 25.1, 25.4, 26.3, 29.1, 35.3, 36.1, 36.3, 36.4, 37.1, 38.2 (1908-1976).
Brière, M., “Introduction générale aux homélies de Sévère d’Antioche”, Patrologia Orientalis 29.1 (1960), 7-76.
Brock, S. P., “Jacob the Annotator: Jacob’s Annotations to His Revised Translation of Severus’ Cathedral Homilies”, in: Gregorios Ibrahim and George Kiraz (eds.), Studies on Jacob of Edessa (Gorgias Eastern Christian Studies 28; Piscataway, NJ: Gorgias Press, 2010), 1-14.
de Lagarde, P., Catenae in Evangelia Aegyptiacae quae supersunt (Göttingen, 1886).
Caubet Iturbe, F. J., La cadena arabe del Evangelio de San Mateo, 2 vols. (Studi e Testi 254-255; Vatican City: Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana, 1969-1970).
King, D., “Paul of Callinicum and his Place in the History of Syriac Literature”, Le Muséon 120 (2007), 327-349.
Lash, C. J. A., “Techniques of a Translator: Work-Notes on the Methods of Jacob of Edessa in Translating the Homilies of Severus of Antioch”, in: F. Paschke (ed.), Uberlieferungsgeschichtliche Untersuchungen (TU 125; Berlin: Akademie, 1981), 365-383.
Loopstra, J., The Patristic “Masora”: A Study of Patristic Collections in Syriac Handbooks from the Near East (CSCO 689 / Syr. 265; Louvain: Peeters, 2020).
Petit, F., La Chaîne sur la Genèse. Édition integrale, 4 vols. (Traditio Exegetica Graeca 1-4; Louvain: Peeters, 1991-1996).
Petit, F., La chaîne sur l’Exode. Edition integrale I: Fragments de Sévère d’Antioche (Traditio Exegetica Graeca 1; Louvain: Peeters, 1999).
Petit, F. (ed. and French trans.), and L. Van Rompay (Syriac glossary), Sévère d’Antioche: Fragments grecs tirés des chaînes sur les derniers livres de l’Octateuque et sur les Règnes(Traditio Exegetica Graeca 14; Louvain: Peeters, 2006).
Roux, R., L’exegese biblique dans les Homelies Cathedrales de Severe d’Antioche (Studia Ephemeridis Augustinianum 87; Rome: Institutum Patristicum Augustinianum, 2002).
Schulz, M. H. O., “14. An Overview of Research on Bohairic Catena Manuscripts on the Gospels with a Grouping of Arabic and Ethiopic (Gəʿəz) Sources and a Checklist of Manuscripts”, in: H. A. G. Houghton (ed.), Commentaries, Catenae and Biblical Tradition (Text and Studies 13; Piscataway, NJ: Gorgias Press, 2016), 295-330.
Toilliez, G., “Rendre témoignage à la maison de Jacob: Sévère d’Antioche, pasteur et prédicateur, d’après ses ‘Homélies Cathédrales’ (512-518)” (PhD diss.; Université de Strasbourg, 2020).
Van Rompay, L., “Jacob of Edessa and The Sixth-Century Syriac Translator of Severus of Antioch’s Cathedral Homilies”, in: B. ter Haar Romeny (ed.), Jacob of Edessa and the Syriac Culture of His Day (Monographs of the Peshitta Institute 18; Leiden: Brill, 2006), 189-204.
Van Rompay, L., “Severus, patriarch of Antioch (512-538), in the Greek, Syriac, and Coptic traditions”, Journal of the Canadian Society for Syriac Studies 8 (2008), 3-22.
Witakowski, W., “Severus of Antioch in Ethiopian Tradition”, in: V. Böll, D. Nosnitsin, T. Rave, W. Smidt, E. Sokolinskaia (eds.), Studia Aethiopica. In Honour of Siegbert Uhlig on the Occasion of his 65th Birthday (Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz, 2004), 115-25.
Wright, W., A Short History of Syriac Literature (Cambridge, 1894), 94-95.
Youssef, Y. N., “The Quotations of Severus of Antioch in the Book of the Confessions of the Fathers”, Ancient Near East Studies 40 (2003), 173-224.
Antioch
Alpi, F., “Société et vie profane à Antioche sous le patriarcat de Sévère (512-518)”, in: B. Cabouret, P.-L. Gatier, C. Saliou (eds.), Antioche de Syrie. Histoires, images et traces de la ville antique (Topoi. Orient-Occident. Supplément 5; Lyon: Maison de l'Orient Méditerranéen - Jean Pouilloux, 2004), 519-542.
De Giorgi, A. U., and A. Asa Eger, Antioch: A History (Abingdon: Routledge, 2021).
Downey, G., Ancient Antioch (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1961).
Mayer, W., and P. Allen, The Churches of Syrian Antioch (300–638 CE) (Late Antique History and Religion 5; Leuven: Peeters, 2012).
Drosis
Allen, P., “Welcoming foreign saints to the church of Syrian Antioch,” Journal of the Australian Early Medieval Association 5 (2009), 9-20.
Brooks, E.W. (ed. and. trans.), “James of Edessa: The Hymns of Severus of Antioch and Others II”, Patrologia Orientalis 7.5 (1914), 621-23.
Decrept, É., “La persécution oubliée des chrétiens d’Antioche sous Trajan et la martyre d’Ignace d’Antioche”, Revue d’études augustiniennes et patristiques 52 (2006), 1-29.
Decrept, É., “Circonstances et interprétations du voyage d’Ignace d’Antioche”, Revue des sciences religieuses 82 (2008), 389-399.
Record Created By
Katherin Papadopoulos
Date of Entry
08/07/2024
| ID | Name | Name in Source | Identity | S01189 | Drosis, virgin and martyr of Antioch | ܕܪܘܣܝܣ ܕܪܣܝܣ | Certain |
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