Fides

It is a common misconception that fides and bona fides are ethical principles with changeable content, shaped by the development of social and moral values. They belong instead, since time immemorial, to the tradition of the ius civile, and are deeply rooted in Roman social structure (and its needs) as interpreted by the priests and by the jurists. The standard of fides and bona fides is always objective: in the archaic period, the real status of the parties (fides as the 'credit' of the individual within the group); afterwards, an abstact stardard identified with the bonus vir. The two concepts developed therefore from early on an (outwardly) dualistic value: on the one side, the respect of the parties' agreement; on the other side, the respect of all the terms implied in the nature of the relationship.

Gabriella Gelardini highlights Hebrews’ concept of salvation over against Rome’s imperial “salvation,” as this comes to light through an examination of Hebrews’ faith-concept. She develops the empire-critical undertones of Hebrews’ πίστις rhetoric while observing the failure of earlier studies to appreciate the complexities of bilingualism, biculturalism, and code-switching relating to Hebrews’ use of the Greek language. She begins by noting Martin Buber’s distinction between Judaism’s (and Jesus’s) historically grounded and immediate trust in God (emunah), and Christianity’s (Paul’s) Greek πίστις, born not in history but in the souls of individuals and centering in the acceptance of the truth of certain tenets of faith. For Buber, in Heb. 11:1 these two aspects—assurance and conviction, as he translates the two words—stand unconnected beside each other. Recent research has also been convinced that Hebrews introduces a certain Greek rationalization to his OT concept of emunah (compare Käsemann, Grässer, Schliesser). Making reference to 11:6, however, Gelardini finds evidence that while the Greek way of thinking certainly has a persuasive function, the work of persuasion is carried out on those in whom the confessional tradition is already alive, or at least still awake, in whom faith lives and breathes; the author has addressees in mind whose thinking is already at home with religious beliefs from the Old Testament/Jewish understanding of trust in God’s faithfulness. Pausing to note recent work on bilingualism, biculturalism, and code-switching in relation to Greek-speaking Judaism and Christianity, Gelardini asserts that against the backdrop of a long-established tradition of bicultural interactions in the Hellenistic-Roman Mediterranean, we need to take due account of this—constant—process of negotiating identity. Noting that these cultural anthropological studies have already been applied to the idea of faith in Paul and in the Roman world, Gelardini wishes to apply them to Hebrews. Classical and philological studies have highlighted the importance of the πίστις or fides culture for the Roman empire, particularly the function of fides for relations in society, within the state and between states. Among the differences between the Greek πίστις concept and the Roman/Latin one, reciprocity is crucial for the Roman concept of fides. It marks a reciprocal, albeit hierarchically structured, relationship between the patron and his client in public, private, and also official contracts, as in alliances. Faithfulness and covenant belong together, as also justice and salvation; this is manifest in the fact that fides is a deity symbolizing Roman respect for international law. From this observation Gelardini turns to note how in Hebrews both God and Christ are πιστός (10:23; 2:17; 3:2). The noun πίστις is used for the attitude of the wandering people of God and is associated with the keyword διαθήκη, Latin foedus. Πίστις is a means of salvation, for instance in 11:7. And 10:37-39, a kind of “skopos of Hebrews,” presents salvation through faithfulness, that is, the “acquisition” or “production” of (eternal) life—the word [περιποίησις] does indeed have the basic meaning of the manufacture of commodities. At this point Gelardini notes that the theme of empire, important to the Roman conception, also belongs in this context, for the empire celebrated covenants and friendships in the temple of Fides on the Capitol. Thus also in Hebrews, empire-critical undertones may well also resonate (12:22; 13:14; cf. 11:14, 16). Unlike Augustan court poets, Hebrews hardly considers Rome to be the empire without borders in space and time, nor Rome the lasting and eternal πόλις. That sort of description is reserved for the “unshakable kingdom” in heaven, to which hope, patience, perseverance, and πίστις are directed (cf. 11:10). Christ is the leader of the salvation (salus and σωτηρία being the theme of empire). It is this empire-critical subtext that also underlines the capacity for bilingual or bicultural identity politics. Borrowing and rejection belong together in code-switching. In closing, Gelardini turns to 11:1 and 12:1. Ὑπόστασις indicates that πίστις is indeed a reality, but precisely the substrate of something else. Ἔλεγχος denotes an objective proof: faithfulness is proof or evidence of invisible things. The examples of faith that follow 11:1 are characterized in 12:1 as a νέφος μαρτύρων: the forensic idea of μάρτυς suits both the force of ἔλεγχος in 11:1 and the fact that πίστις can certainly mean credible witness in legal language. In the light of 11:3, πίστις does have an “intellectual” element. But Hebrews’ use of Koine rhetoric, especially with the emphasized contextual link with the comprehensive Greco-Roman concept of πίστις/fides, is also of importance. There might be irony that fides—an identity marker of Roman culture and domination—was used by Hebrews to culturally strengthen allegiance to the celestial empire.

The distinction between fides qua creditur and fides quae cred- itur is habitually attributed to Augustine in the De Trininate (XIII, 2, 5). Today this distinction is the object of renewed interest in French-speaking theology, partly because of the work of Denis Villepelet. The subject of this article is, on the one hand, to show that the distinction is not Augustinian and that, on the other hand, its use is, at the least problematical. Astonish- ingly Lutheran in its origins in the 17th century the expression fides quae creditor runs the risk of inferring a representation of the object of faith in terms of “content”, or “doctrine” whereas it concerns God and his Word.

El autor en esta carta comienza exponiendo un concepto general de la fe y la razón y su relación entre ellas y cito, " son como las dos alas con las cuales el espíritu humano se eleva hacia la contemplación de la verdad". Esta frase es como la síntesis de las cuestiones tratadas en la encíclica. Aunque existan diversidad de culturas, idiomas, razas, todos coincidimos en la continua buscada de la verdad, pues todo hombre desea saber, y busca la verdad, el hombre es definido como aquel que busca la verdad.

Writing after the turbulent reign of Domitian, Juvenal indignantly mocks and denounces the attitudes of contemporary romans and non-romans alike.  His invective is problematic but exceptionally useful to detect shared ideas within the well read citizens of Flavian and Antonine Rome. This investigation includes a detailed analysis of religious and moral undertones in Juvenal's work, and it argues that the goddess Fides remained an important deified virtue during the author's lifetime.

Das römische fideicommissum ist eine letztwillige Verfügung, bei der der Erblasser einem Beschwerten im Wege der Bitte auferlegt, eine Leistung an einen Begünstigten zu erbringen. Entstanden aufgrund praktischer Bedürfnisse, wurde es als Rechtsbegriff in der vorklassischen Jurisprudenz der späten Republik entwickelt. Nach ihrem Verständnis war der Grund der Verpflichtung des Beschwerten mit dessen persönlicher fides verknüpft, welcher ein bestimmtes Anliegen „anvertraut“ wurde. So erweckte der Erblasser bei dem Beschwerten das konkrete Gefühl einer persönlichen Pflicht. Äußere Moralgebote haben deren Erfüllung unterstützt, bildeten aber letztlich nicht den Grund der Verpflichtung. Vielmehr war es das Pflichtgefühl, das die Grundlage jenes Teils der vom Erblasser angestrebten Ordnung bildete, auf den das Fideikommiß abzielte. Während zivilrechtliche Verfügungen wie Erbeinsetzung und Vermächtnis schon lange vor Gericht durchsetzbar waren, wurde Rechtsschutz für Fideikommisse erst durch Augustus eingeführt. Die pflichtentheoretische Auffassung des vorklassischen Rechts wurde im klassischen Recht abgelöst. Auf Grundlage der im 2. Jhdt. n. Chr. etablierten Willenstheorie führte das hochklassische Recht das Fideikommiß schließlich – im Gegensatz zum Vermächtnis, bei dem es noch hauptsächlich auf die Wahrung der Form ankam – auf die Geltung der voluntas des Erblassers zurück.

The article deals with the specific features of the exemplum genre in ancient roman literature. Using  examples of loyalty  (exempla fidei)  author analyses the main characteristics of «examples» and  emphasized their uniqueness to the following literature tradition. Exemplum has considered not as a part of rhetoric, but more as moral rule and a practical plan of life activity in complicated situations, that stated in literature.

In dieser Datei sind die Teile I. bis X. der "Forschungen über die rechtlichen Grundlagen der römischen Außenbeziehungen während der Republik bis zum Beginn des Prinzipats" in einer Datei zusammengefasst. Die einzelnen Beiträge erschienen von 2011 bis 2017 in der Internetzeitschrift "Göttinger Forum für Altertumswissenschaften Die ursprüngliche Paginierung der einzelnen Beiträge wurde beibehalten. Die Absicht dieser "monographischen" Zusammenfassung der einzelnen Publikationen in einem "Sammelband" ist es, dass es dem Leser nun möglich ist, mit der Suchfunktion den Text der "Forschungen I.-X." unter systematischen Gesichtspunkten gezielt zu durchsuchen. Dies ersetzt quasi den Index zu den Publikationen. Mag sein, dass dies die Rezeption der Publikationen für die Leserschaft erleichtert. Andreas Zack, Köln

Eine Rezension zu der Artikelserie "Forschungen 1-10" hat Ed. Vera-Cruz Pinto (Lissabon) in der Zeitschrift Interpretatio Prudentium 5,1 (2020) 205-215 veröffentlicht.

En el umbral de la porta fidei: fijar la mirada en Jesucristo* Introducción por Michael P. Moore, OFM Facultades de Filosofía y Teología de San Miguel En el mes de Octubre próximo se cumplirán 50 años de la apertura del Concilio Vaticano 11, el gran signo eclesial de los últimos siglos que todavía "da que pensar" ... y esperar. Con ocasión de dicho aniversario, el Papa Benedicto XVI ha decidido convocar un año de la fe que se extenderá desde esa fecha hasta la solemnidad de Jesucristo, Rey del Universo, del próximo año, el 24 de Noviembre del 2013. Anunciándolo, ha escrito la carta apostólica en forma de motu proprio titulada "Porta fidd', firmada el 11 de Octubre del 2011. Allí, en síntesis, se invita a la Iglesia toda a repensar el camino de la fe, el camino que es la fe.

Intrarea în vigoare a Codului civil la 1 octombrie 2011 a adus și câteva instituții noi, nemaiîntâlnite până atunci (cel puțin în forma în care au fost promulgate). Printre acestea și fi ducia. Fizionomie nouă în arealul nostru juridic, un transplant juridic complex (preluat din mai multe sisteme juridice), " altoit " cu câteva soluții autohtone, unele de-a dreptul endemice, fi ducia " promitea " să rămână literă moartă, aidoma altor instituții " exotice " introduse prin noul Cod civil (exempli gratia – proprietatea periodică, logodna, administrarea bunurilor altuia etc.). Printre " inovațiile " fi duciei autohtone se numără și limitarea drastică a sferei celor ce pot fi fi duciari (soluție preluată aproape fi del de la modelul francez). Una dintre micile diferențe față de modelul francez, ultrarestrictiv, o constituie posibilitatea legală acordată notarilor de a avea calitatea de fi duciar. Teoretic, această dispoziție legală trebuia să fi fost recepționată pozitiv de către practică, iar multe dintre operațiunile juridice încheiate de către notari ar fi trebuit să fi fost realizate prin intermediul fi duciei, așa cum se întâmplă și în alte jurisdicții. În practică însă nimic dintre acestea nu s-a întâmplat. Un număr infi m de fi ducii au fost încheiate în cei circa șapte ani de aplicare a noului Cod civil, iar notarul a avut, de cele mai multe ori, un rol marginal. În cele ce urmează, vom încerca să analizăm cauzele acestui fenomen și la fi nal să sugerăm câteva propuneri de lege ferenda. Cuvinte-cheie: fi ducie, operațiune juridică, notar, caracter solemn, act autentic, caracter intuitu personae

This brief study compares Roman faith (Fides) with Christian faith. It was originally posted as a two-part study on my Patheos/In Christ blog. For the popular version with pictures, here are the links:
https://www.patheos.com/blogs/inchrist/2022/01/dont-stop-believing-faith-for-the-new-year/
https://www.patheos.com/blogs/inchrist/2022/01/in-christ-we-trust-roman-fides-and-christian-faith/

The article studies a series of events in the cultural context of ancient Rome which are associated with ‘fides’ concept. Multiple conflicts in interpretation of the events had already been discovered in late antiquity and are analyzed in the light of prototype theory in this paper. It is concluded that transformation of mutual relations between ‘subject’ and ‘object’ in the framework of the ‘fides’ context results in modification of the event perception in general.

This paper explores a distinctive feature of Roman religion: for each relevant area of Roman life, there are peculiar gods with matched powers. In particular, I focus on nine divinities known to scholarship as "abstract divinities" or "personifications": Concordia, Fides, Honos, Mens, Pietas, Pudicitia, Salus, Victoria and Virtus. They enjoy a special place in the Roman pantheon and we should instead name them "ideal divinities" since they really are a part of a whole in the divine taxonomy. They are in accordance with an anthropological pattern of attitudes and serve, as it were, as a handbook for the Roman citizen. I analyze the main attributes of these divinities as the Romans themselves described them: virtues that have a human essence and are functional for the community. There is also a slight distinction to be made. Some of them are intrinsic to humankind, while others are what every citizen is supposed to aim for. I also scrutinize the history of the subject matter: whereas I agree with categorizing such gods as "personifications", I strongly believe that designating them as abstract or concrete is not practicable.

A discussion of the Roman institution of fides using the framework of scholarly understandings of genocide. I propose that fides was an ambiguous institution, that could simultaneous operate to forestall annihilation as well as providing a wide mandate to treat those beholden to it as well as those who flouted its norms with great severity. In effect failures in fides to safeguard dediticii could be the cause of genocidal acts as well as the means by which they were generally prevented.

Ziel des Beitrags ist es, die Ereignisse um den Tod der Agrippina und ihre spätere literarische Überformung unter dem Aspekt der fides-Pflicht gegenüber dem Prinzeps und seinen Herrscherqualitäten bzw. der Infragestellung und Auflösung dieser fides-Pflicht näher zu beleuchten. Im Mittelpunkt steht die Frage, wie, wann und aus welchem Grund das Konzept des Vertrauens im Sinne der fides als Argument aufgerufen und gegen den Herrscher umgedeutet wird. Dazu ist es nötig, zwischen der unmittelbaren Deutung der Ereignisse im Jahr 59 n. Chr. und ihrer später erfolgten literarischen Überformung durch Tacitus, aber auch Sueton und Cassius Dio zu unterscheiden. Allzu oft wird übersehen, dass es für die Ereignisse im Frühjahr und Sommer des Jahres 59 n. Chr. zwei sich deutlich voneinander unterscheidende Überlieferungen gibt: Neben dem postneronischen, vor allem von Tacitus geprägten Narrativ verfügen wir mit den Akten der fratres Arvales des Jahres 59 n. Chr. über ein zwar wesentlich enigmatischeres, aber dennoch in hohem Grad authentisches Zeugnis. Anhand des Konzeptes der fides verknüpft der Beitrag die Argumentation beider Überlieferungen und zeigt, wie stark die postneronische Tradition mit dem Argument der Treue(pflicht) die Ereignisse umgedeutet hat.

Grotius has a rudimentary theory of sociability. Only with hindsight has a remark about appetitus societatis been promoted to the starting point of a theory that flourished in the writings of later natural jurists. In this article, I address the issue of the appearance in Grotius's natural law of sociability [as the 1715/38 English translation of John Morrice 10 renders appetitus societatis, following Barbeyrac's sociabilité]. Writing in the just war tradition, Grotius is first of all interested in finding out the conditions for peace, and although injustice is a condition of war, it is not per se true that injustice is a perversion of society. Apparently, not all societies are perfect and the violence of war and the legal actions of peace are both instruments for achieving a greater modicum of justice in this 15 world. Yet appetitus et custodia societatis is called the foundation of justice. Grotius achieved this context for sociability in phases, through a series of writings from c. 1600 until De iure belli ac pacis of 1625, and its revision of 1631. In this development the notion of fides plays an intriguing role, through which we can obtain a better understanding of the meaning of appetitus societatis in the later work. The present 20 article is a sequel to a previous publication, on fides in De iure praedae (Ms. 1604/5). Analysing the genesis of appetitus societatis in De iure belli ac pacis, I argue that Grotius was changing his strategy over the years, without however arriving at a definitive solution to the question of what commits men to the pursuit of justice.

In archaic Roman law, the defendant in a civil trial could not be acquitted, even in the absence of any proofs, unless he had the same or a better social standing than the plaintiff. This rule has nothing to do with an irrational basis of the archaic trial, but is perfectly consistent with the Roman vision of the socio-cosmic order as hierarchical. A person of high rank (a 'bonus') was believed to be more trustworthy (to have more 'fides') than one from the lower classes (a 'malus'), and this rule applied not only to the witnesses but also to the parties of the trial.

Las clientelas provinciales de Pompeyo Magno en Hispania han sido objeto de estudio de historiadores desde el s. XIX. En las últimas décadas se observan nuevos puntos de vista a través de teorías revisionistas sobre la importancia y fuerza de esas clientelas. La finalidad de este trabajo es el aplicar estas teorías, centrándonos en la investigación de los pasajes de textos clásicos más relevantes sobre este tema.

Provincial clientships of Pompey the Great in Hispania have been object of study for historians since the 19th Century. In the last decades, new points of view are observed through revisionist theories about the importance and strength of those clientships. The purpose of this study is to implement these theories, focusing on investigating the most relevant passages of classic texts about this issue.

Vera philosophia est vera religio conversimque vera religio est vera philosophia Il rapporto dialettico tra fede e ragione in Giovanni Scoto Eriugena Rabanus Maurus (ad sinistram), comitatus Alcuino (in medio), porrigit opera eius Otgari, archiepiscopi Maguntiaci Rabanus Maurus, In honorem sanctae crucis Scheda 1 CONTESTO STORICO-CULTURALE Presupposti ed obiettivi della politica carolingia: l'unanimitas

Riassunto: L’articolo si propone di stabilire una relazione esistenziale fra il Carmelo e la Compagnia di Gesù (spagnoli) tramite la presentazione di un parallelismo vitale tra S. Teresa di Lisieux e Pierre Rousselot (francesi), la riproduzione del commentario eccellente che della madre S. Teresa d’Avila fece pieno di ammirazione questo figlio «carmelitano di cuore» e la constatazione dell’influsso notabile di S. Giovanni della Croce sulla sua dottrina spirituale. Il tutto ripercorrendo la morte e la vita, le opere e la corrispondenza di Pierre Rousselot, dottore di Parigi, con l’aiuto dei sui biografi, abbinando a questo contributo originale una rilettura della dottrina e dalla prassi dei Santi del Carmelo. In fine, come suggerisce il titolo per contrasto di figure, Un dottore gesuita e tre mistici carmelitani, si vuole rivalutare la figura dei tre santi carmelitani come dottori e del gesuita come mistico.

In the pagan Roman tradition fides counts as a 'virtue'. Cicero gives it a prominent place in his 'De officiis', along with justice, and stresses the relation between speech and action with a (false) etymology (fides < quia fiat, quod dictum est). This paper addresses the question of how Augustine creates a link between this concept, shaped by the Roman system of values, and fides christiana. Through the example of a passage from a sermon delivered by Augustine in Carthage as bishop of Hippo, it aims to show how, by recourse to the traditional Roman fides, Augustine attempts to make plausible a concept of faith founded upon the theology of grace. By linking fides and iustitia he brings into discussion not only orthodox belief but also the addressees' 'right' thinking and action. This semantic extension of the Christian concept of faith permits him to give to the 'credo' spoken in the confession of faith the character of a pact that commits one to 'good faith': fides becomes a foedus entered into by the believer, who is bound by the just God to uphold it.

Este trabajo es el fruto un esfuerzo que jamás habría sido posible sin el maravilloso círculo de personas que me han rodeado y me rodean. En lo personal y en lo académico, tengo mucho que agradecer y una ocasión inmejorable para hacerlo en este prefacio.

The article covers the study of the ancient Roman concept of "fides" (fidelity). Using examples of ancient texts, it proposes that this notion was a fundamental principle for Roman history and culture. It suggests that fidelity was the ancient Romans' ethical ideal, something that regulated the life of the society. The author thinks that the study and exposure of Roman fidelity will contribute to the study of the ancient Rome and subsequent periods.

The article, on the basis of a comparative and interdisciplinary research of a case study of vengeful murder and acquittal from 1401 in Landar (Slavia Veneta or Slavia friulana), analyses the transformation of the social system of control and the exercise of the justice on the turn from the Middle Ages to the Modern period. The case study clearly shows the characteristics of the common practice of dispute resolution system and juridicial trials, that allowed vengeance if the side of the perpetrator was not prepared to negotiate for peace making. Although the present case already shows elements characteristic for judicial proceedings of the Modern period, the judicial process and the judgment itself have been conducted in accordance with customary law. The article also comparatively shows how the legislation changed in the early modern period, with special regard to the events in the Holy Roman Empire and the Venetian Republic. In addition to fiscal and military reorganization, the centralization of justice was of fundamental importance in the efforts of European rulers to establish supreme control over the entire territory under their jurisdiction. In order to achieve this goal, however, the rulers had first to restrict, by means of legislation and other coercive means, the arbitrary conflict resolution system by custom. For this purpose, they established a judicial system, i. e. punitive control over both, individual, influential families and clans, as well as the population in general. The state inquisitorial trial rites, introduced in most Western and Central European countries, in the early modern period lead to an important novelty: the state judicial apparatus has earned the right of prosecution ex officio. While earlier, in the so-called adversarial law, the judicial investigative process may only be led after the lawsuit of the affected communities, in the inquisitorial procedure the judicial trial was initiated by the central judicial authorities, which was the primary reason for their creation. In some more remote areas, such as Montenegro and Albania, which were examined in the article as comparative areas, the custom of conflict resolution system, vendetta or osveta, has preserved deep in the 19th Century. Especially the study of this custom confirms our thesis, that this was not only a European (medieval) custom, but a system of conflict resolution known to all worldwide communities.

«I doni sono come gli ami» avverte Marziale. «Catturano anche gli dèi» afferma Ovidio. «Sono l’inganno in cui di solito incappano i re» osserva Seneca.
La forza calamitante del dono, la sua natura seducente e pericolosa, emerge con chiarezza dall’analisi del sapere mitico romano e delle sue riscritture letterarie. I Romani, del resto, conoscevano bene il potere attrattivo dei doni, la loro capacità di condizionare i comportamenti e le dinamiche di relazione. Erifile è soggiogata dalla collana di Armonia, Mida è accecato dalla sua fame d’oro, Creusa è ingannata dai doni nuziali; Didone brucia con sé quelli dell’amato, Semele e Fetonte ne saranno bruciati. Il dono promesso è un rischio, il dono al nemico un tradimento, il dono di donna un pericolo.
Da Numa al maestro dei Falisci, da Scilla a Tarpea, da Medea a Deianira, questo libro indaga il modo in cui gli autori latini rappresentano le potenzialità funeste dei meccanismi di scambio nei loro racconti mitici, le modalità con cui quegli stessi racconti sono rielaborati in rapporto ai modelli greci, e le categorie culturali che entrano in gioco nella riconfigurazione del dono, delle sue storie e dei suoi protagonisti.

Abstract – Fides in the sense of trust, confidence or faith was a cardinal virtue and a key notion of the social and political system of Ancient Rome. Dea fides had her own sanctuary on the Capitoline Hill, in the shade of the civic temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus. From the Republic until the Principate, bona fides was supposed to ensure the preservation of trust and concordia among the citizens in order to avoid civil war. It was symbolized by two clasped hands that represented the gesture of a solemn oath taken by two men. Fides has been extensively studied by many scholars since the early 20th century, with special attention paid to Latin and Greek literary sources from the Republican and Augustan periods. These works have provided a better understanding of the way fides may participate to various ideological discourses. However, it should be recognized that the images connected to fides, whatever they may be (paintings, sculptures, gems, coins), have been largely neglected, even though they are manifold. The purpose of this paper is to examine the occurrences of the ‘fides’ types and legends and their deep meaning on Roman coinage, from the crisis of 68-69 AD to the Principate of Trajan  [Email me for a full version of this paper].

This thesis examines the ideology and reality of fides in Roman international relations, using the conquest of Iberia as a case study. It seeks to show that despite the ideology, the self-belief in Rome's cultural superiority and the competitive nature of the Roman state resulted in the disregard for the precepts of fides in martial diplomacy. I would like to thank my friends and family, especially my mother and Chelsea Johnston, their insights and suggestions on improvements were greatly appreciated. I am indebted to Laura Imanse. I am grateful for her continuous support and encouragement.

An atheist is such only for the God of someone else and everyone could be an atheist for others. No one is safe and the traditional notion of 'fides implicita' shows how within the religions themselves there is room for a kind of accepted and legitimate ‘atheism’. To build a dialogical space we have to suspend temporarily the theism-atheism dichotomy. A methodological and preliminary atheism, not closed to hope, is perhaps the only way by which we can establish a connection between faith and discursive reason.

Si è atei, sempre, per il Dio di qualcun altro e ciascuno può essere l’ateo di altri. Nessuno è al riparo e la nozione tradizionale di 'fides implicita' mostra come all’interno delle religioni stesse vi sia spazio per una sorta di ‘ateismo’ accettato e legittimo. Per costruire uno spazio dialogico occorre sospendere momentaneamente la dicotomia teismo-ateismo. Un ateismo metodologico e propedeutico, non chiuso alla speranza, è forse la sola via per la quale sia possibile stabilire un contatto tra fede e ragione discorsiva.

It is a common misconception that fides and bona fides are ethical principles with changeable content, shaped by the development of social and moral values. They belong instead, since time immemorial, to the tradition of the ius civile, and are deeply rooted in Roman social structure (and its needs) as interpreted by the priests and by the jurists. The standard of fides and bona fides is always objective: in the archaic period, the real status of the parties (fides as the 'credit' of the individual within the group); afterwards, an abstact stardard identified with the bonus vir. The two concepts developed therefore from early on an (outwardly) dualistic value: on the one side, the respect of the parties' agreement; on the other side, the respect of all the terms implied in the nature of the relationship.

The message of the apostle Paul that “all are now justified through faith” has resulted in diverse interpretations over the centuries. Questions have been raised concerning the negative evaluation of the law, the importance of works, and the nature of faith in Paul’s letters. The traditional Lutheran interpretation, which focuses on the individual sinner being declared righteous for free, has been heavily challenged by the so-called New Perspective that emphasizes the universal application of this justice. Philosopher Alain Badiou has recently chipped in by labeling Paul “an antiphilosophical theoretician of universality.” This article contributes to the debate by viewing “justification by faith,” or rather δικ- and πιστ-language, against Greco-Roman discourses, concepts and semantics of the time. It will be shown that precisely Paul’s philosophical contemporaries offer proof for such a universalistic agenda. Greco-Roman “metahistorical,” grand narratives show a widespread belief in an initial golden age of divine rule, followed by a period of retreat of virtues and moral decline, and sometimes including utopian, universalistic visions of a return of the days of faith and justice. A similar metahistorical discourse can be discerned in Romans, where Paul announces the renewed disclosure of divine justice against the background of the gentiles’ collective godforsakenness and unrighteousness. At the same time, semantic research confirms the proximity of justice and faith as virtues of high regard in Greco-Roman sources. This ethical approach to justice is further developed by the platonic concept of an internal law, identified as a divinely given “mind” or “measure.” In Romans, these findings resonate with the moral reform of the mind according to the “measure of faith.” Hence, Pauline justice is argued to be deeply universal, ethical and participational in nature.

The teaching of justification through faith as it has generally been understood in reformed theology since Luther emphasizes either the role of the individual’s faith or the role of God’s faithfulness in justification. Since the New Perspective the focus has shifted towards more social understandings of Paul’s concept of faith. In order to understand the pistis-vocabulary of Paul better, it is helpful to situate it in contemporary usage. Drawing from the field of cognitive linguistics, we may ask ourselves in what contexts, or ‘forms of life’, pistis, fides and cognates were ‘at home’. In this paper I will discuss a selection of passages from several Latin and Greek sources (roughly) contemporary to Paul that highlight both civic and religious aspects of pistis/fides. These sources show how pistis/fides was considered a prominent civic virtue, was propagated in political theory as the social cement of society, and was regarded as a condition for justice. As such, this social aspect is closely related to religious piety. According to authors like Cicero, Plutarch and Epictetus it was the gods who gave pistis/fides to humanity, who possess the quality of pistis/fides in a more perfect manner, and who are even supposed to be imitated in pistis/fides. These uses of pistis/fides question the scholarly consensus that the Pauline concept of faith derives its meaning solely from the Septuagint translation or from Hellenistic Judaism, owing nothing to Paul’s Greco-Roman environment. On the contrary, to Paul’s pagan public, faith/trust appears to have been a common civic and religious notion. Furthermore, the frequent use of sociopolitical words in Paul substantiates the claim that Paul’s message of faith is as much about mutual solidarity and communal trust in God as it is about personal salvation. I conclude with a few suggestions how these insights could inform a reading of specific Pauline texts in order to explore this potential.

RAZIM, Jakub: Fidelity in the Chronicle of the Czechs by Cosmas of Prague.
This study focuses on the Chronica Boemorum by Cosmas of Prague, which is one of the most important narrative sources for Czech history in the era of the Přemyslid dynasty. An analysis of this literary work attempts to address the question of how the chronicler worked with the category of fidelity that is nowadays considered to be one of the fundamental ideas and widespread legal forms through which the medieval society expressed its hierarchical order. It is no coincidence that domestic rulers and noble persons closely related to the throne found themselves at the centre of attention, as most of the information that Prague dean Cosmas left behind is related to members of the political elite. Following the pioneering monograph of Dušan Třeštík, the concept of fidelity in the Chronica Boemorum is discussed and reinterpreted. The main reason is that Třeštík’s approach is based on traditional fief terminology and doctrine, which has been recently attacked by postmodern deconstructivists headed by prominent British historian Susan Reynolds. At first, legal rituals, such as promises and oaths, are presented as means to establish, strengthen, or terminate fidelity ties, binding together Přemyslids and provincial magnates. The major part of the study is then devoted to the content of fidelity commitments. Although it was based predominantly on the duty of loyalty and service, medieval fides or fidelitas was not at all uniform. On the contrary, it flexibly adapted to the socio-cultural and geographical context. Therefore, it seems appropriate to examine this topic with the help of an analytical probe that captures the (un)loyal rulers and their servants depicted in the Chronica Boemorum as heroes providing encouragement to be followed, or villains worthy of condemnation. While doing so, a methodological inspiration may be drawn from the classical work of František Graus and, under his influence, it is possible to distinguish one-sided uncompromising obedience (obedientia) from two-sided fidelity based on reciprocity (fides, fidelitas).

This investigation explores some of Cicero's strategies in the Pro Roscio Amerino. More precisely, it aims to expand our knowledge about the function that arguments based on ethos played in Roman oratory. After examining the ways in which the concept of fides is displayed as a source of persuasion in this speech, the article argues that the notion was used because of its appeal to Roman mentality and social structure.

Many times we have heard that the great empires of Antiquity are formed on the basis of wars and conquest over other peoples and territories. Taking a concept that defines a modern nation, it is created in a geographic space whose inhabitants have history, culture and their own language that define them in front of others. At no time can we see Rome as the capital of a modern state as we know this concept today, but in its formation as an empire, is it not formed under the concept of nation?. A nation of antiquity, within which we have a geographic space that places them in the center of the Mediterranean, with a historical tradition that although loaded with symbology, mythology and heroism, it pushes them to feel heirs of the world, with a cultural substrate and religious that, despite being certainly hellenized, maintains the old Roman ideal of Patria, with its virtues, its gods and its right. Unifying everything is Latin as a language. Retaking the concept of nation, was not Rome a nation in ancient times?

Cardiff University, School of History Archaeology and Religion Postgraduate Symposium 2014 - 26/09/2014

When confronted by the threat of Roman assault, polities could perform a rite known as the deditio, in which they surrendered themselves to the faith of Rome (fides populi Romani). This was an unconditional surrender guaranteed by a customary rite of Italic form. They would hope for leniency in their treatment by virtue of showing requisite humility to the power of Rome, and of course to the person of the commander in the field. Not all Roman commanders, however, were interested in leniency.
When in 173 BCE M. Popilius Laenas defeated in battle army of the Statellate Ligurians, the inhabitants of the Statellate town of Carystus, having lost many of their men at arms, sued for peace (Livy 42 .7-8). After their deditio was received “he deprived them all of their arms, sacked their town and sold them and their property” (Livy 42 .8 trans. Roberts). The act of enslaving freemen and women who had voluntarily submitted to the power of Rome scandalised the opinion of the Roman Senate. However, despite numerous traducings, the Senate found it difficult to effect a solution in line their morals. Eventually a restitution was made but M. Popilius and his close associates escaped any penalty and were able to further pursue successful political careers. The incident shows that there existed a set of practices that should not be committed, and suggests domestic taboo operated as a constraint on unrestricted violence in cases of deditio. Whether this was religious, moral or realpolitik in nature is debated. Crucially, the ability of the flouting party to not just ignore censure but to have a flourishing career shows that taboo in this case was an insufficient control in the absence of clear constitutional or legal mechanisms by which to regulate foreign policy actions.

Es nuestro objetivo explorar en dos pasajes del Satyricon -enfrentados respectivamente al Ad Herennium y al Pro Caelio de Cicerón - los alcances del decus en el estilo y del decus en las relaciones interpersonales. Queda explícita una inversión del decus estilístico y de los comportamientos sociales, como estrategia compositiva de la transgresión, que determina la comicidad y el humor del texto de Petronio. Se recurre a los conceptos retórico- estilísticos de sermocinatio / fides oratoria/ urbanitas, y a los opuestos en los comportamientos sociales impietas / iniuria / rusticitas; se indagan las actitudes frente al código religioso del secreto, que implica en los hechos narrados una inversión del decus de la sermocinatio (episodio de Cuartila cc. 16-18.4) y las relaciones basadas en la pretendida urbanitas de los comportamientos que permiten distinguir los grupos sociales representados y las inversiones de los modelos de decus esperados (episodio de Crotona, c. 117.1 a 10). En última instancia , estas variables conducen a la comicidad del texto en la que participa un auditorio extremadamente preparado apreciar el recurso del satírico y a mostrar una realidad paralela a la enunciada, de carácter inasible, donde nada es lo que parece y en la cual todos los comportamientos sociales dan cauce a la mentira creativa.

Giorgio Agamben’s book on Paul, »The Time that Remains« (2000), paved the way to some of his later works, especially »The Sacrament of Language« (2008), »The Power and the Glory« (2007), and the reflections on his method of “philosophical archeology” in »Signature of All Things« (2008). All these texts focus on specific performative gestures and their efficacy in juridical, political, and religious contexts. Starting from Agamben’s reading of Paul’s understanding of faith (pistis) and its specific “messianic temporality,” the article shows how the performative gestures of faith correlate to early cultural practices of establishing social and political bonds. The close reading of pistis in Paul also follows Agamben’s hints to the later works of Foucault and his research on the early Christian practices of penance (homologia, exomologesis, exagoreusis) and also include Agamben’s later elaborations on the structure of the oath and its relationship to the cultural and social development of man (“anthropogenesis”). By these historical (archeological) reconstructions the article aims to contribute to the project of overcoming the traditional opposition of Reason and Faith. It reveals – with Agamben and Foucault – the eminent role that performative gestures like pistis, fides, confession and the oath have played for the development of Occidental culture and political history. Thereby, the acts of faith are absolved from their restriction to the realm of religion and their opposition or even contradiction to reason. Especially the structure of the specific temporality attached to performativity – a temporality that Paul identifies as “messianic” – attests to the efficacy of performative speech acts for the establishment of social and political bonds.

« Fides et royauté chez les moralistes du XIIIe siècle, L’exemple de Vincent de Beauvais », in Confiance, bonne foi, fidélité, La notion de fides dans la vie des sociétés médiévales (VIe-XVe siècles), Yves Sassier, dir., Paris, Garnier, 2018, p. 225-237.