Two recommended lectures (free post)

Fr. John Behr on Athanasius' "On the Incarnation of the Word"

Earlier in the week, I posted a revised version of an older article of mine on St. Athanasius’ De Incarnatione Verbi (“On the Incarnation of the Word”), highlighting its implications for contemplation and prayer. If you haven’t done so already, you can read it here. If I were asked to indicate what lies at the very heart of the faith and theology I embrace, “On the Incarnation of the Word” would definitely express the essence of it. As my post suggested, it is not a theoretical or propositional text, but an existential and practical one, as well as profoundly mystical; it is a rich text that summons the reader to meditation and greater discipline.

(A mural painting from the catacomb of Commodilla; late 4th century.)

Since posting that article, I came across a two-part lecture by Fr. John Behr on the treatise. The first part deals with Athanasius’ Contra Gentes, for which De Incarnatione Verbi provides the companion piece of the diptych, and the second lecture digs more deeply into “On the Incarnation” itself. Fr. Behr clearly shows that both halves of this theological diptych provide an apologia for the cross. I touched on this, but Fr. Behr’s lectures put the stress on this important feature. He also believes that the work was written later than 318 (when Athanasius would have been but twenty years old or just a bit older), and I concede that this seems much more plausible, despite the appeal of the enduring legend of Athanasius being the Mozart among the great theologians.

I found these lectures stimulating. He probes the text expertly and communicates its contents with warmth. All in all, they are well worth the two hours it takes to listen to them. Here they are: