Learning from Allegorical Images in the Book of Visions of The Shepherd of Hermas

Abstract

The Shepherd of Hermas is an early Christian text, probably written in the second century c.e., 1 that recounts a series of divine revelations given to the freed slave and Christian believer Hermas inviting him and other Church believers to experience μετάνοια, an "inner change" (Grundeken 2015a.10). 2 The book receives its title from the principal mediator of the revelations, an angel of repentance who comes to Hermas in the guise of a shepherd.As many scholars point out, this text was very popular in the early Christian era, as can be seen from its closeness to the Canon, 3 its wide attestation in both non-scriptural manuscripts of the time before Constantine 4 and the 1 For a recent survey of the most controversial issues around this text, including the date, see Grundeken and Verheyden 2012.23-25 and Grundeken 2015a.2-23. 2 I translate the word μετάνοια as "inner change."It is a term very often found in the Shepherd.In doing so, I follow Grundeken 2015b.139:"We may conclude that metanoia in Hermas means a believer's personal transformation: it is a change of attitude, behaviour, feeling, heart, soul and mind, aiming at moral renewal by regretting one's old self and starting a new life."Unlike Osiek 1999, I decided not to translate μετάνοια with "conversion," as this term suggests movement from a pagan to a Christian faith-a movement which is not part of the agenda of the Shepherd, since, as I will suggest below, this text was meant to be read by Christians. 3 Although the Muratorian Fragment rejects the Shepherd as a canonical text, Ireneus around 180 c.e. considers it a part of Scripture (Leutzsch 1998.122-24 and Cecconi and Tornau 2014.4; for more, see below).4 See Choat and Yuen-Collingridge 2010.191: the Shepherd "is by far the best-attested Christian work except those eventually established as canonical."

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