Kerygmat pisemny w teorii i praktyce Klemensa Aleksandryjskiego

Abstract

In Clement of Alexandria’s conception of kerygma a special stress was put on its necessity resulting either from the natural need of ”spiritual giving birth”, teaching evry truth, including God’s truth, or from Jesus Christs’s order, who by his Gospel wants to lead all the people to the faith which would salve them. Since the salvation is universal, the kerygma is also to become universal – in two aspects: historical and geographical. This suggestion probably influenced a full appreciation of the role of the written message, which in the times of persecutions in a fuller way realized the rule of the universality of kerygma reaching even those places, which could not be reached by missionaries, and the rule of the uninterrupted continuity, which is proved e.g. by preserved till today writings of the early Christian literature. Semantic analyses of the word ’’kerygma”, in its primary etymology so closely connected with the oral message, show, that in the patristic literature by this word not only the very activity of transmitting the doctrine, but first of all the contents of the evangelical message which is carried in both the written and spoken form was denoted. All these facts undoubtedly influenced the suggestion made by Clement, concerned with the full equality of the two kinds of kerygma: oral and written. In order that the written kerygma could reach its target, the fulfilment of certain conditions is necessary, concerning both the person giving the kerygma (purity of the apostolic intention, proper preparation in the sphere of general intellectual culture and theological education), the contents of the kerygma (authentic teachings of the Church, contents fitting the mentality of the addressees) and the form of the kerygma (simplicity of style, rule of initiation). By the presented model of the apostolic work Clement continues as well as develops St. Paul’s ideal of mission by joining the features of Kerix of Gospel with the features of a learned theologian enriching his preachings with a philosophical reflection. The analysis of Stromata also shows, that even if we consider them as a literary work of art, in Clement’s intention they were to be first of all a written kerygma, both in their form and contents. The theoretical rules of the written kerygma he introduces are at once practically applied in the work he creates.