El uso del pensamiento no cristiano según Álvaro de Córdoba

Abstract

46

In his correspondence with Johannes Hispalensis (John of Hispalis) Alvaro of Cordoba intervened in the debate concerning the use of non Christian thought by Christians themselves. Before the depth which, in this correspondence, Alvaro gave to his digressions, it is clear that he didn’t limit himself to judging the method of his friend John, but wanted to respond correctly to the situation which presented itself to the Church of Cordoba. Attitudes regarding this vary according to personal situations. The majority easily converted to Islam due to convenience regarding the new political situation. There were some who, for various reasons, sharply rejected Islam whilst others decided to revalue the Faith and traditions be refering to the cultural patrimony of their predecessors. This was the position of John of Hispalis who defended the Christian faith using the instruments of persuasion that the said patrimony could afford. John is, therefore, an exponent of a small group, within the Cordovan Church, who attempted to resist the invasion of Islamic culture by using the own method. This group had the same intention as the Movement of Martyrs to reaffirm the Christian faith, but in a different manner. Whilst the martyrs, who mostly came from monasteries and mixed marriages, attacked Islam directly a group of Christians which pertained to adapted families chose to trust in the illustrative efficiency of the ancient classics. Alvaro’s observations with in respect to the use of non Christian intellectual heritage highlight a facet of his work which has not yet been studied sufficiently as well as reflecting the quality of the Cordovan theologian. Examining the discussion on the use of non-Christian thought by Christians one gains an outline of the tendencies present in the Cordovan Christian community before the rise of the Movement of Martyrs.

Keywords

Fundamental Theology, History of Middle age Theology, Culture.