Theios aner

Theios aner (Ancient Greek, θεῖος ἀνήρ) is a term within Greek philosophy translatable as "divine man". Its meaning has been debated through history, but it generally means the figure of a person connected to the gods, which grants him the ability to perform miracles and supernatural events.^[1]

History

This concept originated in the Hellenistic period, where it was used in a syncretic context, though differentiated from foreign figures like the Phoenician prophets mentioned by Celsus.^[2] Famous exponents of theios aner were the famed Pythagoras, Empedocles, Apollonius of Tyana, Peregrinus Proteus and Alexander of Abonoteichus, among others.^[3] Precisely due to those illustrious connotations, the term would have been chosen by writers of Judaism as a way to make figures like that of Moses more palatable to Greek thinking.^[2]

It was seemingly during the rise of Christianity when the term popularized, in no small part for its association to the figure of Jesus of Nazareth as a maker of miracles.^[2][3] Paul's Pagan opponents considered Jesus a mere member of this tradition instead of the Son of God as he preached, which might have influenced the writing of gospels to avoid this identification.^[2] The Gospel of Mark, which already intended to fend off the newly formed Docetic Gnosticism by emphasizing Jesus' human traits,^[4] was also object of this reaction, as it identifies other miracle-makers as false prophets.^[3][5][6]

See also

• Thaumaturgy
• Christology

References

1. Andrés Torno (1991). Escatología. Universidad Pontificia. ISBN 978-84-852818-4-8.
2. W. William David Davies, Robert G. Hamerton-Kelly, Robin Jerome Scroggs (1976). Jews, Greeks and Christians: Religious Cultures in Late Antiquity: Essays in Honor of William David Davies. Brill Archive. ISBN 978-90-040473-4-1.
3. Andrew J. Kelley (2019). Thaumaturgic Prowess: Autonomous and Dependent Miracle-Working in Mark's Gospel and the Second Temple Period. Mohr Siebeck. ISBN 978-31-615594-7-1.
4. George Eldon Ladd, Donald Alfred Hagner (1993). A Theology of the New Testament. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing. ISBN 978-08-028068-0-2.
5. Joseph Auneau (1983). Evangelios sinopticos y hechos de los apostoles. Ediciones Cristiandad. ISBN 978-84-705732-9-3.
6. William Telford (1995). Interpretation of Mark. A&C Black. ISBN 978-05-672925-6-8.