Der Mensch als Gottes Bild im christlichen Ägypten

Dmitrij Bumazhnov examines two Coptic sources from the 4th and 5th century, the homily De anima et corpore and the vita of Aphu of Pemdje. Both of these sources are analyzed in their relationship to the first Origenistic controversy in Egypt, in which two groups of monks argued about whether or not according to the visions of God in the Old Testament God can be seen as a human being. The author provides a contextualization of the Coptic version of De anima et corpore which explains the function of Melito's text in the non-Origenistic monasticism in Egypt. It is shown that Aphu cannot be regarded as a mystic of the pre-incarnate body of Christ according to his vita. The description of his life can be understood as an elaborate variation on the early Christian tradition of simplicity.