Manlio Simonetti (2 May 1926 – 1 November 2017) was an Italian scholar of

Patristics Patristics or patrology is the study of the early Christian writers who are designated Church Fathers. The names derive from the combined forms of Latin ''pater'' and Greek ''patḗr'' (father). The period is generally considered to run from ...

and the history of Biblical interpretation.

Biography

Simonetti was born in Rome on 2 May 1926. His early studies were in

Classics Classics or classical studies is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, classics traditionally refers to the study of Classical Greek and Roman literature and their related original languages, Ancient Greek and Latin. Classics ...

(philology and history) at the Sapienza University of Rome. In 1959 he became Professor of Ancient Christian Literature at the University of Cagliari, a post he held until 1969. In that year he became Professor of the History of Christianity at the Sapienza, a chair he held for three decades. He also taught at the Salesian Pontifical University and was an instructor at the

Augustinianum Augustinianum may refer to: * Scholengemeenschap Augustinianum, school in Eindhoven * Patristic Institute Augustinianum, institution in Rome * Augustinianum (journal), ''Augustinianum'' (journal), published by the Patristic Institute Augustinianum ...

from its founding in 1971 until 2016. He was made a national fellow of the

Accademia dei Lincei The Accademia dei Lincei (; literally the "Academy of the Lynx-Eyed", but anglicised as the Lincean Academy) is one of the oldest and most prestigious European scientific institutions, located at the Palazzo Corsini on the Via della Lungara in Rom ...

in 1981. Simonetti died on 1 November 2017 in Rome, at the age of 91.

Awards and publications

In 2011, he was a co-recipient of the first

Ratzinger Prize The Ratzinger Foundation, also known as The Pope Benedict XVI Foundation, is a charitable organization whose aim is "the promotion of theology in the spirit of Joseph Ratzinger." which it achieves by funding scholarships and bursaries for poorer ...

. At the time of his award, Pope Benedict XVI remarked of him, "Professor Simonetti has approached the world of the Fathers in a new way, showing us with accuracy and care, what the Fathers say from the historical viewpoint; they become our contemporaries who speak to us." Simonetti's academic publications are numerous. His scholarship was focused in the domains of Biblical interpretation (in particular, Job, the Gospel of Matthew, etc.), in Christian antiquity (e.g. Origen), Christology, notably during the

Arian Arianism ( grc-x-koine, Ἀρειανισμός, ) is a Christological doctrine first attributed to Arius (), a Christian presbyter from Alexandria, Egypt. Arian theology holds that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, who was begotten by God t ...

crisis of the fourth century), and early Christian literature (including anthologies). Several of his most recent articles have appeared in ''

Vetera Christianorum Xanten (, Low Rhenish: ''Santen'') is a town in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located in the district of Wesel. Xanten is known for the Archaeological Park, one of the largest archaeological open air museums in the w ...

'', and have been highlights of most issues since 2000. This journal is published at Edipuglia for the Classics and Christianity Department of the University of Bari.

Selected works

* * *

References

External links

Author profile
at '' Éditions du Cerf''
Membership profile
with the

{{DEFAULTSORT:Simonetti, Manlio 1926 births 2017 deaths Patristic scholars Italian biblical scholars Sapienza University of Rome alumni Academic staff of the Sapienza University of Rome Academic staff of the University of Cagliari Ratzinger Prize laureates