Didymus the Blind.
Didymus lived a very long life and died at the age of 83 or 85.
The approximate dates of his birth and death are 313 and 398/399. He lost his
sight in childhood but this did not prevent him from completing the usual course
of studies with such distinction that he was entrusted with the directorate of
the school at Alexandria, probably by Athanasius, at a very young age. The
remainder of his life was calm and untroubled, and the Arian controversy left
him untouched. He lived not in Alexandria itself but in a small town outside the
city where he was able to devote himself to ascetic discipline in solitude. He
was predisposed to contemplation and meditation by his physical blindness.
Didymus spent a great deal of time with the Egyptian hermits
and he had many disciples among them, including Palladius, the author of the
Lausiac History, Jerome, Rufinus of Aquileia, and Evagrius. Asceticism
and theology are closely united in Didymus, and in his theological works his
reasoning frequently overflows into prayer. An intense feeling of belonging to
the Church and membership in a larger community add an element of personal
involvement to his theology. Even from theologians he demands good works, inner
concentration, and piety. The life of Didymus passed without interruption in
ascetic exercise and scholarly labor. Students came to him from everywhere,
especially from the West.
Didymus is significant for his erudition, not for his
independent thought. He did not develop his great knowledge into a speculative
synthesis, but expressed it in the form of a confession of faith. We know little
about his activity as a teacher, but apparently his method was primarily based
on exegesis. In his theology he is close to Origen, with whom he shares many
points of view. Didymus' doctrine of the Trinity, however, is free of the
extremity and vagueness of Origen's teaching, as was admitted even by
Jerome.
The Trinitarian theology of Didymus was developed under the
influence of the Cappadocians, especially Gregory the Theologian. Besides this,
Didymus was familiar with the writings of Athanasius, and apparently also those
of Cyril of Jerusalem, Tertullian, and Irenaeus. He was well informed about
heretical doctrines and in general his contemporaries were struck by his great
erudition and his memory. His knowledge of the secular sciences was broad if not
detailed, and he made frequent references to classical poets. Apparently Didymus
had no particular interest in philosophy, and he did not concern himself with
problems of metaphysics. For him, as for Origen, philosophy is no more than a
preliminary study. Since Didymus considered that the abuse of philosophy was the
root of all heresy, it is unlikely that he devoted much time to studying the
works of philosophers. The elements of philosophy which are contained in his
system were probably adapted through theology. He had a high opinion only of
Plato, but his attitude toward Neoplatonism was cautious and reserved. In
general Didymus as a scholar is a typical representative of the school of
Alexandria.
Didymus died in the last years of the fourth century as
peacefully as he had lived. It is only later that he became a subject of
controversy and was suspected of unorthodox views and Origenism. The first to
raise this charge was Jerome, although he excluded Didymus' Trinitarian doctrine
from his condemnation and always maintained great respect for Didymus as an
exegete. At that time the authority of Didymus remained unshaken, even in the
West. The theology of Ambrose is drawn almost directly from Didymus, who also
exerted a significant influence on Cyril of Alexandria and on the Trinitarian
doctrine of Augustine. The question of Didymus' orthodoxy became a point of
contention only in the sixth century during the Origenist controversy. At the
Fifth Ecumenical Council (Constantinople, 553) an anathema was pronounced on his
eschatology. It is unclear whether this anathema extended to Didymus himself,
but in any event his name was discredited. As a result of this his literary
remains disappeared almost completely and only fragments and excerpts have
survived in various later collections. The excavations at Tura in 1941 were
thought to have produced some of his works but it is still uncertain whether
these are authentic.
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