Sapientes Nostri. I Dialoghi (o Antikeimenon) di Anselmo di Havelberg e la circolazione dei testi di Gregorio di Nazianzo nell'Europa Latina del XII secolo

Inspired by a theological debate that took place in Constantinople in 1135/1136, Anselm of Havelberg’s Antikeimenon constitute not only a precious witness of the theological confrontation between Greeks and Latins in the 12th century. The text is a complex literary construction, in which the author resorts to multiple sources, both Greek and Latin, to articulate a theological discourse in which the differences between the two churches are progressively overcome. Among the Greek sources used by Anselmo, the Gregory of Nazianzus’s Oratio 31, dedicated to the Holy Spirit, stands out for the importance it assumes in the context of the argument of the bishop of Havelberg. The 12th century did not know a Latin translation of the text of Greek Father, which Anselmo probably knew on the occasion of his journey to Constantinople, coming into contact with the intellectuals who played a leading role in the translations of relevant Greek theological works into Latin. The study analyses the form and use of the Oratio 31 by Anselmo and discusses the question of how the author of the Antikeimenon had access to this text, which was among the most important in the Greek theological landscape.