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New study of the late antique poem Metaphrasis Psalmorum

The new book ‘Apollinaris of Laodicea: Metaphrasis Psalmorum’ by AIAS Former Fellow Andrew Faulkner is the first large-scale study of the 4th-century poem ‘Metaphrasis Psalmorum’.

Image: book cover, OUP.

The book entitled Apollinaris of Laodicea: Metaphrasis Psalmorum, edited by Andrew Faulkner and completed during his fellowship at AIAS, has now been published as part of the Oxford Early Christian Texts Series by Oxford University Press.

It is the first large-scale study of the Metaphrasis Psalmorum, a Greek poetic paraphrase of the Psalms, since the middle of the twentieth century and provides a revised critical text and complete modern translation of the poem, as well as an extensive introduction, which explores in detail critical questions such as authorship and the poet's engagement with early Christian exegesis. Based on new evidence, the book argues that the Metaphrasis Psalmorum is a genuine work of Apollinaris of Laodicea, the influential if controversial bishop of the 4th century.

The book presents a revised text and translation that makes more accessible a poorly known and understudied poem, which is nevertheless a major and important poetic work of late antiquity. The book aims to promote greater awareness of the Metaphrasis Psalmorum and act as a catalyst for future work on the paraphrase.

More about the book

Apollinaris of Laodicea: Metaphrasis Psalmorum by Andrew Faulkner. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2020:

Contact

Andrew Faulkner, AIAS Former Fellow, Professor
afaulkner@uwaterloo.ca

Department of Classical Studies
University of Waterloo
Canada