Use of μαμωνάς (cf. Mt 6.24, Lk 16.13) in the readings of the fathers

[Stephanos Nikopolis]

Dear All,

Can you provide me with online references by the Fathers to the use of the Aramaic term μαμωνάς in the New Testament (Mt 6:24, Lk 16:13)?

In particular, I wish to know the exact meaning of the word to Jesus' hearers at the time and how the Fathers interpreted it.

Thank you in advance and peace be with you all

[M.C. Steenberg]

Dear All,

Can you provide me with online references by the Fathers to the use of the Aramaic term μαμωνάς in the New Testament (Mt 6:24, Lk 16:13)?

In particular, I wish to know the exact meaning of the word to Jesus' hearers at the time and how the Fathers interpreted it.

Thank you in advance and peace be with you all

Dear Mr Balestra,

While it is perhaps not precisely what you are looking for, the following passage from Irenaeus of Lyons, On the detection and overthrow of knowledge falsely so-called, book 3, comes to mind, primarily because I have it open on my desk at the moment. I include it below, including a note on the term.


Chapter 8 - What is mammon? (Matt. 6.24)
1. So through the shattering of this calumny of theirs, it has been clearly shown that neither the prophets nor the apostles ever named any other God, or called any other Lord, except the true and only God. Much less did the Lord Himself. He ordered to render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s (Matthew 22.21).Caesar He named Caesar, and God He acknowledged as God. Along the same line is this, No one can serve two masters. This is interpreted by Him, when he says, You cannot serve God and mammon (Matthew 6.24).He acknowledged God as God, and He named that mammon which actually is such. He does not call mammon Lord when He says, No one can serve two masters (kurioi, lords); but He teaches the disciples who serve God not to be subject to mammon or to be under its dominion. For He says, Whoever commits sin, is the slave of sin (John 8.34). Therefore, just as He calls those who serve sin slaves of sin, but does not for that reason call sin itself Lord, so also those who serve mammon He calls the slaves of mammon, but does not call mammon Lord. The fact is that mammon, according to the Jewish language, which the Samaritans also use, is an avaricious person, one who desires more than he ought to have. But according to the Hebrew language with a suffix it is Mamuel, and means a gluttonous person, that is, one who cannot refrain from gluttony. (http://www.monachos.net/forum/newreply.php?do=postreply&t=3931#_edn4) According to both of these meanings, then, one cannot serve God and mammon.

[iv] (http://www.monachos.net/forum/newreply.php?do=postreply&t=3931#_ednref4) It is difficult to determine whence Irenaeus got this “Mamuel” for mammon, “with a suffix.” In Luke “mammon of antiquity” could come from the Hebrew [I]mammon ewel, which might have been contracted into mamuel. This would have a resemblance to “memule,” a transcription of the Hebrew passive participle “filled” or “gluttonous.” Thus Harvey, 2.28 (n. 1). SC 210 (n. 2 to p. 91) thinks the Lat.Iren. adiunctive (in the Salamanca ms adiective) means the adjectival form of mammon is mamuel. But SC admits this is only a conjecture, and no satisfactory answer has been found.INXC, Matthew

[Stephanos Nikopolis]

Dear Mr Balestra,

While it is perhaps not precisely what you are looking for, the following passage from Irenaeus of Lyons, On the detection and overthrow of knowledge falsely so-called, book 3, comes to mind, primarily because I have it open on my desk at the moment. I include it below, including a note on the term.


Chapter 8 - What is mammon? (Matt. 6.24)[INDENT]1. ... it has been clearly shown that neither the prophets nor the apostles ever named any other God, or called any other Lord, except the true and only God. ... He teaches the disciples who serve God not to be subject to mammon or to be under its dominion ... The fact is that mammon, according to the Jewish language, which the Samaritans also use, is an avaricious person, one who desires more than he ought to have ... means a gluttonous person, that is, one who cannot refrain from gluttony.

Dear Mr. Steenberg,

This is the exact type of thing I am looking for. In some English translations, mamonas is rendered as "money", but I was looking for a deeper meaning, its meaning in terms of moral qualities - or what is sinful as circumscribed by the term - and it seems that Irenaeus of Lyons supplies that.

Many of the teachings in Mt 5-7 are hard to learn, and even harder to put into practice, but I am trying.

I would be grateful for any more quotes, but I thank you enormously for this one.

Steve

[Herman Blaydoe]

Blessed Theophylact: The 'mammon of unrighteousness.' is the money and wealth the Lord has given us to spend for the necessities of the brethren and fellow slaves, but which we have kept back for ourselves. Let us make friends for ourselves of this wealth. Thus whenever we should become fainthearted while judged, these friends might welcome us into their heavenly tabernacles.

What should we do then? We should distribute in shares these riches to the brethren, so that whenever we fail here, that is, when we depart form this life, the poor will receive us into everlasting habitations, which haved been reserved for the poor in Christ. They are able to welcome into them those who befriended them in this life by means of giving them riches, which ought to have been given to them in the beginning since it is the Master's wealth.

St. Kyril: The least is the unrighteous mammon, that is, worldy wealth, gathered often by extortion and covetousness....by storing up excessive abindance, this very thing is the witness against them before the divine judgement seat of their being unmerciful. For having gathered into their treasuries a great and unnecessary abundance, they made no account of those who were in need, although it was in their power, had they so wished, to do good easily to many, but they were not 'faithful in that which is least.'

Also St. Kyril; If a man be a slave of two masters, or diverse and contrary wills, and whose minds are irreconcilable with one another, how can he please both? For the unrighteous mammon, bu which wealth is signified, is a thing given up to voluptuousness,...engendering boasting, the love of pleasure, making men stiff-necked... What base vice does it not produce in them that possess it? But the goodwill of God renders men gentle, quiet, and humble in their thoughts, longsuffering, merciful, of exemplary patience...and especially fleeing from the love of money. They joyfully undertake toils for piety's sake, fleeing from the love of pleasure... endeavering to live uprightly and practice all soberness. This is that which is their own, and the true. This God will bestow on those who love poverty, and know how to distribute to those who are in need that which is another's, and comes from without, even their wealth, which also has the name of mammon.

[Stephanos Nikopolis]

These are also great quotes, Herman. Do you have the bibliographical references for them? From what works are they taken?

The scholar in me would like to research the original Greek and see what word the translators rendered into English as 'money'.

Thanks again!

[Herman Blaydoe]

My actual source is the Orthodox New Testament, the Holy Gospels, Vol 1. For St. Kyril, it references his Homily 109, Commentary, 443.

For Blessed Theophylact, the references are rather cryptic to me: P.G. 123:413A (col. 965).

[M.C. Steenberg]

For Blessed Theophylact, the references are rather cryptic to me: P.G. 123:413A (col. 965).

That's J.P. Migne's Patrologia Graeca, vol. 123, p. 413, section A.

(Which you're unlikely to have unless you're at a university or good library, as the PG takes up the better part of an entire wall.)

INXC, Matthew

[Peter Farrington]

It stands for Patrologia Graeca, Vol 123, p413A.

This is a very large multi-volume series of Greek texts from the earliest times to the medieval period.

This particular volume doesn't seem to be online, but you could access it at a theological library.

Many of the volumes ARE online here..

http://patrologia.ct.aegean.gr/kleidaminge.htm

The volumes relevant to St Cyril are on this site, and I am using them myself at the moment and finding them useful.

Peter Theodore

[M.C. Steenberg]

The scholar in me would like to research the original Greek and see what word the translators rendered into English as 'money'.

While I haven't got the originals to hand of the quotations from Theophylact and Cyril that Herman provided, it sounds like what you might like is a good afternoon with Lampe's Patristic Greek Lexicon, which would serve as a good starting-point to the term's employment in the patristic corpus. (Lampe is full of holes and omissions, but it remains by far the best place to begin for word-searches in their contexts.)

INXC, Matthew