Hermann Detering
Encyclopedia
Hermann Detering is a Berlin pastor, and critic of Paul's authorship of the Pauline epistles. He also identifies Paul with Simon Magus
, the Samaritan sorcerer who opposed Peter.
in the 19th Century, have concluded that the attacks on "Simon Magus" in the 4th Century Pseudo-Clementines may be attacks on Paul. Detering takes the attacks of the Pseudo-Clementines as literal and historical, and suggests that the attacks of the Pseudo-Clementines are correct in making "Simon Magus" a proxy for Paul of Tarsus
, with Paul originally been detested by the church, and the name changed when Paul was rehabilitated by virtue of forged Epistles
correcting the genuine ones.
Detering's argument expands beyound the Pseudo-Clementines to include other apocrypha, arguing that Simon Magus is sometimes described in apocryphal legends in terms that would fit Paul, though most significantly in Clementine Recognitions and Homilies
. Detering contends that the common source of these documents may be as early as the 1st century, and must have consisted in a polemic against Paul, emanating from the Jewish side of Christianity. Paul being thus identified with Simon, Detering argues that Simon's visit to Rome (in the Pseudo-Clementines) had no other basis than Paul's presence there, and, further, that the tradition of Peter's residence in Rome rests on the assumed necessity of his resisting the arch-enemy of Judaism there as elsewhere. Thus, according to Detering, the idea of Peter at Rome really originated with the Ebionites
, but it was afterwards taken up by the Catholic Church, and then Paul was associated with Peter in opposition to Simon, who had originally been himself.
Simon Magus
Simon the Sorcerer or Simon the Magician, in Latin Simon Magus, was a Samaritan magus or religious figure and a convert to Christianity, baptised by Philip the Apostle, whose later confrontation with Peter is recorded in . The sin of simony, or paying for position and influence in the church, is...
, the Samaritan sorcerer who opposed Peter.
Simon Magus as Paul
Many scholars, since Ferdinand Christian BaurFerdinand Christian Baur
Ferdinand Christian Baur was a German theologian and leader of the Tübingen school of theology...
in the 19th Century, have concluded that the attacks on "Simon Magus" in the 4th Century Pseudo-Clementines may be attacks on Paul. Detering takes the attacks of the Pseudo-Clementines as literal and historical, and suggests that the attacks of the Pseudo-Clementines are correct in making "Simon Magus" a proxy for Paul of Tarsus
Paul of Tarsus
Paul the Apostle , also known as Saul of Tarsus, is described in the Christian New Testament as one of the most influential early Christian missionaries, with the writings ascribed to him by the church forming a considerable portion of the New Testament...
, with Paul originally been detested by the church, and the name changed when Paul was rehabilitated by virtue of forged Epistles
Authorship of the Pauline epistles
The Pauline epistles are the fourteen books in the New Testament traditionally attributed to Paul the Apostle, although many dispute the anonymous Epistle to the Hebrews as being a Pauline epistle....
correcting the genuine ones.
Detering's argument expands beyound the Pseudo-Clementines to include other apocrypha, arguing that Simon Magus is sometimes described in apocryphal legends in terms that would fit Paul, though most significantly in Clementine Recognitions and Homilies
Clementine literature
Clementine literature is the name given to the religious romance which purports to contain a record made by one Clement of discourses...
. Detering contends that the common source of these documents may be as early as the 1st century, and must have consisted in a polemic against Paul, emanating from the Jewish side of Christianity. Paul being thus identified with Simon, Detering argues that Simon's visit to Rome (in the Pseudo-Clementines) had no other basis than Paul's presence there, and, further, that the tradition of Peter's residence in Rome rests on the assumed necessity of his resisting the arch-enemy of Judaism there as elsewhere. Thus, according to Detering, the idea of Peter at Rome really originated with the Ebionites
Ebionites
Ebionites, or Ebionaioi, , is a patristic term referring to a Jewish Christian sect or sects that existed during the first centuries of the Christian Era. They regarded Jesus as the Messiah and insisted on the necessity of following Jewish religious law and rites...
, but it was afterwards taken up by the Catholic Church, and then Paul was associated with Peter in opposition to Simon, who had originally been himself.
Works
- Der gefälschte Paulus – Das Urchristentum im Zwielicht
- Paulusbriefe ohne Paulus? Die Paulusbriefe in der hollandischen Radikalkritik (Kontexte) (German Edition) (9783631447871):
- “The Dutch Radical Approach to the Pauline Epistles,” in Journal of Higher Criticism 3/2 (Fall, 1996)