Folia Theologica 17. (2006)
László Perendy: A Christian Platonist
196 L. PERENDY kind of philosophy. The central statement - shared with Judaism - of this faith was the absolute monarchy of God over his creation, the cosmos. His contemporary Platonists - in their efforts to preserve the heritage of Plato - were interested also in cosmological questions. Justin's main aim in his extant works is obviously the defence of Christianity. He had to prove that the members of the church are not the enemies of the human cosmos, i.e. the Roman Empire. They are not aliens in a world of Greek culture. In fact, they are in possession of the totality of truth at which the Greeks are aiming. This true philosophy was completely revealed by God through his prophets, but it can be rendered in human language only partially. The relationship itself between the transcendent Being and the world of Becoming transcends our thought and language. Nevertheless, our efforts are not futile: they promote our salvation. So what can Christianity as the most perfect kind of philosophy say about the relationship between the Creator and his creation? Creation is God's first act in the history of salvation. Redemption means also the defeat of evil cosmic powers. Both the immortality of the world and that of the soul are donated by God. The world is not divine, but it is united by God. The cosmos came into being from the ÚTTOKei|j.évov mentioned by Moses. The dispute in contemporary Platonism about the interpretation of the Timaeus gave Justin the opportunity to act as a judge, who is in the possession of the whole truth revealed by God through Moses. In a sense he belonged to the so-called orthodox wing of Platonism, represented by Plutarch and Atticus. The aim of this group was to preserve the teaching of Plato, and they were interested in theology rather than philosophy. Justin regarded Platonism as a kind of interpretation of the original and complete divine revelation and expressed his view over a disputed philosophical question. He took sides with Platonists against the Stoa about the transcendence of God. In his mind God is not subject to the categories of the material world. Just like his contemporaries, he expressed his way of interpreting Plato by combining quotations. He is the first theologian to connect the biblical story of creation with Plato's creation narrative, i.e. he combines quotations from Plato and Moses.
