Brill Encyclopedia of Early Christianity Online

Hades (ᾅδης) is a traditional Greek term for the underworld as the abode of the dead. In the Septuagint this term corresponds to Hebrew שְׁאוֹל/ š ĕôl, the most commonly used name for the realm of the dead in the Old Testament. This biblical concept of Hades/Sheol as the abode of the dead originated in the beliefs in the afterlife current in ancient Israel. Later, it was developed further in early Jewish religion and in early Christian beliefs and literature. This article mostly deals with these early Israelite,…

Upon immediate inspection, the text of Hadrian’s Rescript (122–123 CE) to Gaius Minucius Fundanus, proconsul of Asia, seems plain enough. The most obvious interpretation is to regard it as a reaffirmation of his predecessor’s (Trajan) policy as found in the brief rescript to the governor Pliny (c. 111 CE). Justin Martyr is the first to cite Hadrian’s Rescript in his apology (Just. 1 Apol. 68.6–10) as one of several appendices in support of his overall argument that just emperors do not persecute Christians (Persecution of Christians) based on rumors. By …

The word halakhah means “law” and is used in rabbinic (Rabbi) literature to denote the law or custom accepted in Jewish practice and formulated in rabbinic tradition, in the sense of both an individual law and of the prevailing law. The concept is relevant to early Christianity insofar as the latter evidences elements of Jewish law.VocabularyAccording to a popular etymology, the phrase halakhah derives from the Hebrew verb halakh, “to go,” and means “the walk in which one goes.” More probably, however, it derives, along with its Aramaic equivalent hilkheta, from Akkadian alaktu, “cours…

The epistle to the Hebrews is perhaps the most enigmatic writing of the New Testament: a “masterpiece of early Christian rhetorical homiletics” (Attridge, 1989, 1). Written in an elegant, literary Greek style it betrays the hand of a highly educated author, although the identity of that author remains unknown. The unique character of Hebrews is clearly shown by the 168 hapax legomena it contains. Although Hebrews shows a certain proximity to the Epistles of Paul, it uses another 124 word…

Hegesippus (c. 110–180 CE) was a Christian historian, chronicler, and heresiologist of the 2nd century CE. According to Eusebius of Caesarea, Hegesippus belonged to “the generation after the Apostles” (Eus. Hist. eccl. 2.23.3). Jerome positioned Hegesippus “near the apostolic age” and “not far from the Apostolic age” (Jer. Vir. ill. 2; 22). Photius (borrowing from Stephanus Gobarus, a 6th-cent. CE author) went further, claiming that Hegesippus was “one of the ancients, a contemporary of the apostles” (Phot. Bibl. 232). In modern reconstructions, however, the chronologic…

Helvidius was a Christian writer in late 4th-century CE Rome (see Jer. Helv. 1); his status as layman or priest is uncertain. He was possibly a disciple of the “Arian” bishop Auxentius of Milan (see Gennad. Vir. ill. 32; Arianism). Around 380 CE he opposed the concept of an ascetic known as Craterius (see Helv. 16; alternative spellings: Carterius/Cartherius/Canterius), who claimed that Mary remained a virgin even after the birth of Christ ( virginitas post partum). Helvidius rejected this concept of Mary’s perpetual virginity and argued in favor of the equal status …

If orthodoxy were indeed, as Vincent of Lérins wrote in the 5th century CE, the doctrine that has been held at all times, in all places and by all (Klüpfel, 1809, 101–103), the heretic would be by definition a malcontent and an innovator. But in fact, there has never been an orthodoxy that satisfied the Vincentian canon, there has never been a universal criterion for the detection of a heresy, and it is not so much the exception as the rule that the heresy of one place or time was the ort…

In the Shepherd of Hermas, the author who calls himself Hermas offers a lengthy and detailed description of his visionary experiences and the dialogues he has with his revelatory agents of which the Shepherd is the most prominent one. The work consists of three parts: 5 Visions, 12 Mandates, and 10 Similitudes. Much about Hermas remains puzzling (see also Grundeken, 2015).Manuscripts and Modern Critical EditionsA first problem relates to the manuscript evidence (for an overview, see Leutzsch, 1998, 117–121). All witnesses to the Greek text are partial or f…

Hermenegild (d. 585 CE) was a Visigothic prince born sometime during the mid-6th century CE. He was the son of King Leovigild (r. 568–586 CE) of the Visigoths (Goths) and his unnamed first wife, and the elder brother of King Reccared I (r. 586–601 CE). Nothing is known of Hermenegild’s childhood or education. The first datable event of his life occurred in 573 CE, when he and his brother were made co-regents with their father (John Bicl. Chron. a.573.5). Neither Hermenegild nor Reccared was given any territorial responsibilities at this stage, but they may have partici…

Hermes Trismegistus (Gk τρισμέγιστος, “Thrice-Greatest”) is a legendary figure whose name is synonymous with archaic knowledge about the mysteries of the universe, particularly the “occult sciences” of magic, astrology, and alchemy. An amalgam of Thoth – the ancient, native Egyptian god of magic and learning – and Greek Hermes, he is a “culture-hero” of Hellenistic Egypt who came in the Roman period to represent the lore of Egyptian antiquity through the literature where he appears as …

The modern term “Hermetism” is sometimes used in a manner near-synonymous to such terms as “esotericism,” “occultism,” and “Gnosticism,” but is more properly used to refer to the teachings contained in the treatises attributed to the Egyptian divine sage Hermes Trismegistus or his associates. These treatises, referred to as Hermetica, consisting most often of dialogues (Dialogue) between Hermes and his disciples, were all authored in Greek, though some are now only available in Latin, Coptic, or Armenian translations. Their dating remains …