4th-century Christian text
The Canons of Hippolytus is a Christian text composed of 38 decrees ("canons") of the genre of the Church Orders. The work has been dated to between 336 and 340 A.D., though a slightly later date is sometimes proposed.
Egypt is regarded as the place of origin. The author is unknown, though the work presents its author as "Hippolytus, the high bishop of Rome, according to the instructions of the Apostles".
It contains instructions in regard to the choice and ordination of Christian ministers; regulations as to widows and virgins; conditions required of pagan converts; preparation for and administration of baptism, rules for the celebration of the Eucharist, for fasting, daily prayers, charity suppers, memorial meals, first-fruits, etc.
Manuscript Tradition.
The Canons of Hippolytus exist only in an Arabic version, itself made from a Coptic version of the original Greek.
Attention was called to the book by Vansleb and Ludolf towards the end of the 17th century, but it was only in 1870 that it was edited by Daniel Bonifacius von Haneberg, who added a Latin translation, and so made it generally accessible. In 1891 Hans Achelis reproduced this translation in a revised form, embodying it in a synopsis of allied documents. He suspected much interpolation and derangement of order, and consequently rearranged its contents with a free hand. In 1900 a German translation was made by H. Riedel, based on fresh manuscripts. These showed that the book, as hitherto edited, had been thrown into disorder by the displacement of two pages near the end; they also removed other difficulties upon which the theory of interpolation had been based. The first critical edition was published in 1966 by René-Georges Coquin. An English translation has been published in 1987.
Content.
The book is divided into thirty-eight canons, to which short headings are prefixed. This division is certainly not original, but it is convenient for purposes of reference.
The last canon hereupon passes into a general exhortation to right living, which forms a sixth part of the whole book. Riedel's translation shows this for the first time as a connected whole. It falls into two parts. The first describes the true life of ordinary Christians, warning them against an empty profession and laying down many moral precepts; the second is addressed to the ascete who "wishes to belong to the rank of the angels" by living a life of solitude and poverty. The aspiring ascete is roused by an exposition of the temptations of Christ, and is especially warned against spiritual pride and contempt of other men. The book closes with an appeal for love and mutual service, based on the parables in Matthew 25:2.
Notes.
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