https://czasopisma.kul.pl/index.php/vp/issue/feed Vox Patrum 2025-06-15T23:28:28+02:00 ks. prof. dr hab. Marcin R. Wysocki voxpatrum@kul.pl Open Journal Systems <p style="text-align: justify;"><em>VOX PATRUM</em> is a patristic journal (quarterly), published since 1981, first by the Institute of Research on Christian Antiquity of the Catholic University of Lublin, then (since 1 October 2012) by the Section of Church History and Patrology of the John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin. <em>Vox Patrum</em> is the only kind of so specialist journal in Poland, focused on early Christianity and Byzantium, well-known in all patristic centres all over the world, indexed <em>inter alia</em> by SCOPUS and WoS. The journal publishes scientific articles, bibliographies, translations, reviews, and documentation of the patristic life in Poland and all around the world. Rev. Dr hab. Stanisław Longosz was its founder and the first editor-in-chief.</p> https://czasopisma.kul.pl/index.php/vp/article/view/17931 The Birth of the Cult of St Menas 2024-11-28T16:00:10+01:00 Ewa Wipszycka e.wipszycka@uw.edu.pl <p>It is not necessary to go through all the stages of initiation into the intricacies of hagiographical studies to immediately recognize, when reading the works related to the dossier of St Menas, that we are dealing with a subgenre of hagiography which contemporary scholars term “fictional hagiography”. The figure of the Saint and the events of his life were invented by anonymous authors and editors in various ways, according to their own tastes and the anticipated tastes of their audience. This article seeks to identify the narrative elements, terms, and descriptions of events that serve as markers of this specific genre. My aim is not to reconstruct the biography of the saint, but to gain a better understanding of the religiosity of those who came to Abū Mīnā, particularly their expectations. Researchers of the St Menas dossier are fortunate to have at their disposal extensive findings from archaeological excavations, which enable not only the dating of the sanctuary’s establishment and expansion but also aid in reconstructing the spaces and buildings where the cult of the Saint took place. While literary texts require ongoing critical assessment of their reliability, the extensive sanctuary, its furnishings, churches, houses, and streets relieve us from an excessive level of skepticism. Although the article’s title suggests a focus on texts, archaeology assists the historian in creating a comprehensive picture of what occurred at Abū Mīnā.</p> 2025-06-15T00:00:00+02:00 Copyright (c) 2025 Vox Patrum https://czasopisma.kul.pl/index.php/vp/article/view/17966 Prolegomena to the Study of the "Miracles of St Menas" 2025-03-11T12:53:30+01:00 Przemysław Piwowarczyk piwowarczyk.przemyslaw@gmail.com <p>This article aims to outline the key developments in the early history of the <em>Miracles of St Menas</em>. It presents arguments supporting the primacy of the Greek text over the Coptic version. The article then examines the time and place of the original composition, locating it at Abū Mīnā in the latter half of the 6th century. The complex process of the collection's development spanned several centuries, with key stages including the formation of the 13-miracle collection after 614, its translation into Coptic before 641, the subsequent expansion of the Coptic collection, and the revision of the Greek original. Finally, the article argues that the original collection had a local character, aimed primarily at the local community.</p> 2025-06-15T00:00:00+02:00 Copyright (c) 2025 Vox Patrum https://czasopisma.kul.pl/index.php/vp/article/view/17968 Menacing Menas? Saint Menas as a Military Saint and Divine Trickster in his Greek Miracle Collection (BHG 1256-1269) 2024-11-27T15:18:03+01:00 Julia Doroszewska julia.doroszewska@gmail.com Filip Doroszewski f.doroszewski@uksw.edu.pl <p>This study examines the Greek miracle collection of Saint Menas (BHG 1256–1269), investigating the literary construction of the saint as both a military protector and a divine trickster. The analysis highlights the inconsistencies in Menas’s portrayal, contrasting his literary depiction as a mounted avenger with non-literary evidence that emphasizes his role as a healer. Using comparative hagiographic analysis, the paper explores the influence of late antique principles of decorum, which shaped depictions of saints to avoid direct violence. The study delves into Menas’s punitive and protective miracles, analyzing their reliance on humour, trickery, and indirect retribution rather than overt combat. These narratives are contextualized within the broader framework of military saints, including Theodore, Demetrios, and Phoibammon, whose miracles also embody justice and protection through divine intervention. This paper reveals how such portrayals reflect evolving Christian attitudes toward violence, sanctity, and the supernatural. The findings contribute to the understanding of late antique religious imagination, showcasing how narrative ingenuity addressed both theological and societal needs in Christian antiquity.</p> 2025-06-15T00:00:00+02:00 Copyright (c) 2025 Vox Patrum https://czasopisma.kul.pl/index.php/vp/article/view/18042 Medieval Slavic Translations of the "Miracles of Saint Menas": Sources and Textual Problems 2024-12-13T14:34:02+01:00 Jan Stradomski jan.stradomski@uj.edu.pl <p>A collection of miracles attributed to St Menas appeared in medieval Old Church Slavonic literature as a result of contacts between Orthodox Slavs in the Balkans and Byzantine Christian literature. By the 10th century, at least two distinct translations of the had likely been produced in Bulgaria. These translations have been preserved in Slavic collection manuscripts (dating from the late 13th to the 17th centuries) in both an abridged version (a compilation of several miracles) and a full translation of the entire collection, comprising 13 miracles. This article presents the current state of research on the subject, the most important sources, the hypothesized routes of migration of Greek sources into Old Church Slavonic (and later Church Slavonic) literature, and a proposed reconstruction of the transmission process of these translations within the Slavic textual tradition.</p> 2025-06-15T00:00:00+02:00 Copyright (c) 2025 Vox Patrum https://czasopisma.kul.pl/index.php/vp/article/view/18362 Saint Menas and His Miracles in the Ethiopian Tradition 2025-03-30T20:24:36+02:00 Rafał Zarzeczny rzarzeczny@orientale.it <p>The fame of St Menas, the Egyptian martyr, spread far beyond Egypt, extending into historical Ethiopia. This widespread reverence stems from the longstanding unity between the Churches of Alexandria and Ethiopia, alongside the significant translation of Copto-Arabic texts into the classical Ethiopic language. By the fourteenth century, <em>The Life and Martyrdom of St Menas</em> was translated into Ge‘ez and became part of the <em>Gadla Samāʽetāt</em> collection of accounts on other prominent saints and martyrs. A concise version of St Menas’s acts appears in the hagiographical compilation for liturgical use, the <em>Synaxarium</em>. Ethiopia commemorates St Menas on Ḫedār 15 and the construction of his shrine at Maryut on <em>Sanē</em> 15. The latter occasion entails reading aloud a comprehensive collection of nineteen miracles, also translated from Arabic. The image of a saint who defends devout pilgrims like a knight, protects his sanctuary, heals the sick, liberates the possessed, punishes sins, repairs damage, and bestows blessings upon worshippers, evoked awe, reverence, and piety, especially in the Horn of Africa. Additional texts, including hymns and antiphons, further underscore the cult’s vitality. St Menas’s canonical depiction on horseback aligns with the broader tradition of equestrian saints, a frequent motif in Ethiopian iconography.</p> 2025-06-15T00:00:00+02:00 Copyright (c) 2025 Vox Patrum https://czasopisma.kul.pl/index.php/vp/article/view/17977 The "Miracles of Saint Menas" in the Armenian Tradition 2024-12-03T22:44:01+01:00 Mirosław Cichoń miroslawcichon@gmail.com <p>In this article, I aim to outline the Miracles of St Menas in the Armenian tradition. I describe the two available editions prepared by the Mekhitarists in Venice and outline the characteristics of the collection of manuscripts containing the works under study. On this basis, I correct the identification of miracles contained in BHO 748–750, namely<br /><em>De Agapio as Eutropius and the Silver Plates</em>. In the further part, I provide a translation from Classical Armenian into English, accompanied by a commentary, of three miracles<br />of St Menas preserved in the Armenian tradition: <em>The Isaurian Pilgrim, Eutropius and the Silver Plates</em>, and <em>The Jew and the Christian</em>.</p> 2025-06-15T00:00:00+02:00 Copyright (c) 2025 Vox Patrum https://czasopisma.kul.pl/index.php/vp/article/view/18142 Saint Menas in Medieval Georgia 2025-03-15T18:55:26+01:00 Nikoloz Aleksidze aleksidze@gmail.com <p>Despite the survival of St Menas’s hagiography in various Georgian iterations and his commemoration in practically all Georgian calendars and martyrologies – both pre-<br />Constantinopolitan and Byzantine – the cult of St Menas was weak in Georgia. To this day, collections of St Menas’s miracles in Georgian await discovery, apart from one miracle discussed near the end of my article. Nonetheless, given the significant role Georgian evidence plays in the study of late antique and mediaeval hagiography and the cult of saints, the article attempts to contextualise the cult of St Menas from the Georgian perspective.</p> 2025-06-15T00:00:00+02:00 Copyright (c) 2025 Vox Patrum https://czasopisma.kul.pl/index.php/vp/article/view/18041 "I made you bear a son, and you shall call his name Mena!" The Saint, the Egg, and Medieval Nubia 2024-12-13T14:38:43+01:00 Agata Deptuła agata.deptula@uw.edu.pl <p>This article examines the Old Nubian Miracle of St Menas, preserved in the British Library Ms. Or. 6805, as a unique testimony to Christian traditions in medieval Nubia. While sharing certain motifs with earlier miracles known from Coptic, Greek, and Arabic sources, this text presents a distinctive narrative absent in other traditions. The article is structured around two main sections: the historical and cultural context of medieval Nubia and a detailed analysis of the miracle, focusing on its connections to other Menas traditions. The analysis employs a comparative method, juxtaposing the Old Nubian text with earlier textual sources. Material evidence, including paintings and inscriptions, is also incorporated to contextualize the miracle within broader Nubian Christian practices. The text, either translated into Old Nubian or partially composed in this language, references symbols and concepts familiar to a local Nubian audience.</p> 2025-06-15T00:00:00+02:00 Copyright (c) 2025 Vox Patrum https://czasopisma.kul.pl/index.php/vp/article/view/18150 The Revival of St Menas Veneration in the Twentieth-Century Egypt 2025-03-11T13:04:52+01:00 Hiroko Miyokawa miyokawa.hiroko.3d@kyoto-u.ac.jp <p>In antiquity, St Menas was highly revered throughout the Christian world and attracted large numbers of pilgrims to the pilgrimage centre of Abū Mīnā. In twentieth-century Egypt, however, this saint became a figure of limited recognition in the Coptic Orthodox community. The revival of St Menas’s veneration, promoted by the Patriarch of the Coptic Orthodox Church, Cyril VI, made the saint very popular in contemporary Coptic society. In this article, I argue that the resurgence of St Menas’s veneration stemmed not only from Cyril VI’s dissemination efforts rased on religious motivations, but also from Coptic cultural nationalist motivations, led by the Coptic laity. The miraculous story that emerged during the Second World War among the Greek soldiers, and the nationalist response of a dozen Coptic lay youth in Alexandria, played an important role in the campaign to reevaluate the Coptic past symbolised by St Menas and his pilgrim centre of Abū Mīnā.</p> 2025-06-15T00:00:00+02:00 Copyright (c) 2025 Vox Patrum https://czasopisma.kul.pl/index.php/vp/article/view/18043 The Slavic Miracles of the Great Martyr Saint Menas by Timothy of Alexandria 2024-12-12T18:27:40+01:00 Jan Stradomski jan.stradomski@uj.edu.pl <p>The complete Slavic cycle of miracles of St Menas, consisting of a prologue and 13 miracles, is based on the edition of the Great Reader Mineia of the Moscow Metropolitan Makary. The text largely corresponds to the Greek version from Ivan Pomyalovsky's 1900 edition, making it a valuable resource for understanding the Greek tradition as well. The Slavic text has been compared with other manuscripts containing the full cycle of miracles and following the same translation (B).</p> 2025-06-15T00:00:00+02:00 Copyright (c) 2025 Vox Patrum https://czasopisma.kul.pl/index.php/vp/article/view/18363 Miracles of Saint Menas the Martyr: The Ethiopic Recension (Ta’ammera Minās, CAe 2386) 2025-03-30T20:19:16+02:00 Rafał Zarzeczny rzarzeczny@orientale.it <p>The Ethiopic recension of the <em>Miracles of S</em><em>ain</em><em>t Menas the Martyr</em> comprises nineteen episodes. The prologue attributes the compilation to Archbishop Theophilus of Alexandria. The Ge‘ez text derives from an Arabic source, although the specific original model remains unidentified. Currently, the Ethiopic text fully survives in three manuscripts, dating from the fifteenth to the seventeenth century. A modern paper copy also exists, made from the oldest extant codex. This publication offers the first complete translation of the Ethiopic collection; the edition of the Ge‘ez text will appear separately.</p> 2025-06-15T00:00:00+02:00 Copyright (c) 2025 Vox Patrum https://czasopisma.kul.pl/index.php/vp/article/view/18389 Miracles of St. Menas in a 12th-Century Byzantine Synaxarion (translation into Polish) 2025-03-26T09:50:03+01:00 Katarzyna Piotrowska katarzyna.warcaba@us.edu.pl <p>The presented text offers a Polish translation of the five miracles of St. Menas, as recorded in a Byzantine &nbsp;synaxarion composed in the 12th century. In the Introduction the circumstances of the collection’s composition are discussed and the key features of the recomposition of the miracles in comparison to their original Greek versions from the 5th–7th centuries are highlighted. The analysis focuses on the functions of the modifications and omissions, revealing the compiler’s deliberate choices influenced by local, historical, and cultural factors. The study examines both the collection as a whole and each miracle individually to identify common elements among all the translated texts, as well as those specific to particular narratives. The translation is accompanied by historical and linguistic commentary.</p> 2025-06-15T00:00:00+02:00 Copyright (c) 2025 Vox Patrum https://czasopisma.kul.pl/index.php/vp/article/view/18565 Bibliography of St Menas and His Cult 2025-05-04T13:23:36+02:00 Przemysław Piwowarczyk piwowarczyk.przemyslaw@gmail.com <p>Bibliography of St Menas and His Cult</p> 2025-06-15T00:00:00+02:00 Copyright (c) 2025 Vox Patrum