PLEASURE IN ANCIENT CHRISTIAN WRITERS an initial survey
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Abstract
Pleasure as an issue does not occupy the attention of the Hebrew Bible, but, from the Jewish encounter with Greek thought, it becomes a relevant topic and, at times, it is treated with great attention. Ancient Christian writers did not fail to welcome this discussion. Although it does not become a central theme, when the subject is the life that the Christian person lives in the present era, it is not strange that the same issue that accompanied Plato, Epicurus and the Stoics is present. In this article, I approach texts from the New Testament, texts from the Apostolic Father’s times, and, finally, works by two more sophisticated writers: Clement of Alexandria and Gregory of Nyssa. Through a careful reading of the primary sources, I try to discern how pleasure becomes an issue for these Christian writings, considering possible connections between their approaches and previous. I propose that the reason for taking care of the theme of pleasure lay in a rivalry between attention to pleasures and attention to God.
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