Background to Juvencus:
Gaius
Vettius Aquilinus Juvencus was the first writer of a considerable oeuvre in a Christian
classicising poetical tradition. Nearly all the information that we have about
his life and career can be found in Jerome’s De uiris illustribus 84: he
was a Spanish presbyter from noble birth and lived under Constantine.
The
only work of Juvencus that is extant in the Euangeliorum libri quattuor,
a versification of the gospel of Matthew, with additions based on the gospel of
John and the other synoptics. It is the first Biblical epic, starting a long-lasting
tradition. The Ev. Were written or published around the year 329, according
to Jerome’s Chronicon ad 329 p. Chr. (Roald Dijkstra, Portraying
witnesses: The Apostles in Early Christian Art and Poetry [Enschede,
Netherlands: Ipskamp Drukker, 2014], 91)
Text of Matt 16:16-19:
In
contrast with the group of the twelve apostles, Peter as an individual is often
openly depicted in a positive way by Juvencus. . . . A striking addition by Juvencus
regarding the Biblical text can be found in Eu. 3,534: Tum Petrus
fidei munitus moenibus infit. This Is the versification of the Biblical
phrase: Tunc respondens Petrus dixit ei (Matt 19.27). The phrase fidei
minitus moenibus is added by Juvencus and immediately calls Matt 16.18 to
mind: Et ego dico tibi quia tu es Petrus et super hanc petram aedificabo
ecclesiam meam, a Biblical verse that exalted Peter as the most important
disciple and leader of the Church. Juvencus’ text runs as follows (Eu.
3,271-87):
Sed
stabilis Petrus: 'Tu Sancti filius, inquit,
Christus,
magnifico terras qui lumine conples.'
Tum
Dominus forti respondit talia Petro:
'Petre,
beatus eris, nam talia pandere certe
humanus
sanguis vel terrae portio corpus
haut
umquam poterit. Genitoris munera sola
possunt tam validum fidei concedere robur.
Tu
nomen Petri digna uirtute tueris.
Hac
in mole mihi saxique in robore ponam
semper mansuras aeternis moenibus aedes.
Infernis
domus haec non exsuperabile portis
Claustrum
perpetuo munitum robore habebit;
caelestisque
tibi claues permittere regni
est
animus; terrisque tuo quae nexa relinques
arbitrio,
caelo pariter nodata manebunt;
soluerit
et rursus tua quae sententia terris,
haut
aliter uenient caeli sub sede soluta.
‘But
firm Peter said: ‘You, Christ, the son of the holy one, you fill the earth with
your magnificent light.’ Then the Lord answers to strong Peter as follows: ‘Peter,
you will be blessed, for surely human blood nor part of a body of the earth can
ever reveal this to you. The gifts of the Creator alone can grant such a
powerful strength of faith. You are bearing the name peter deservedly through
your virtue. On this rock and on the strength of this boulder I will build my
ever standing house with its eternal walls. This house, invincible for the
infernal gates, will have a lock protected with eternal strength. It is my will
to entrust you the keys of the heavenly kingdom. What you will leave bound on
earth, according to your judgment, will equally be tied in heaven. But what your
judgment will have unbound on earth, will be likewise unbound in the seat of
heaven.’
This
passage is the versification of Matt 16.16-19:
16 Respondens
Simon Petrus dixit: ‘Tu es Christus, Filius Dei uiui.’ 17 Respondens
autem Jesus, dixit ei: ‘Beatus es Simon Bariona: quia caro et sanguis
non revelavit tibi, sed Pater meus, qui in cælis est. 18 Et
ego dico tibi tu es Petrus, et super hanc petram ædificabo Ecclesiam meam,
et portæ inferi non præualebunt eius. 19 Et tibi dabo claves regni
cælorum; et quodcumque ligaueris super terram, erit ligatum et in cælis et
quodcumque solveris super terram, erit solutum et in cælis
Juvencus
clearly wanted to emphasise this passage about Peter’s position. Eu.
1,422 already foreshadows it: praesolidum Simonem, Dignum cognomina
Petri (Matt 4.18: Simonem qui dicitur Petrus). Juvencus had added praesolidum
and Dignum, which shows his partiality for Peter more elaboroately
found in the passage cited above. There, peter’s strength and dignity are also
mentioned throughout the passage (stabilis, v. 271; forti, v.
273; tam validum fidei concedere robur, v. 277; digna uirtute, v.
278) just as his connection with heavenly powr (certe, 274, umquam,
v. 276). Likewise, Peter’s own opinion is held in great esteem by Jesus in
Juvencus text (tuo . . . arbitrio, vv. 284-5; tua sententia, v.
286). Line 279 has rightly been called an ”überbordende Periphrase” for the
simple petra in Matthew. Verse 280 is almost entirely invented by
Juvencus (only the classical word aedes has an equivalent in the
Biblical ecclesiam meam. This verse stresses the strength and
everlastingness of the church. Exsuperabile (v. 281) is also used in
Vergil’s Georgica 3,39 where it agrees with the saxum that
Sisyphus has to roll up the hill. This could again be a reference to the saxi
in v. 279 and petram in the corresponding Biblical text. After Jesus’
speech (Eu. 3,274-95/Matt 16.17-21), Peter’s grief about the impending
death of Jesus (predicated to the apostle in Eu. 3,290-5, cf. Matt
16.21) is accentuated in vv. 296-9:
Tum
Petrus magno percussus corda dolore.
'Absint,
Christie, tuis,' inquit, 'tam tristia sanctis
monstra
procul membris; nec fas est credere tantum,
nec
tibi tam durus poterit contingere casus.' (Then Peter said, overcome by great grief in his heart:
'May such sad terrors be away from your holy limbs; one should not believe
something like that, nor that such a hard fate could reach you")
This
text is the versification of Matt 16.22: Et adsumens eum Petrus coepit
increpare et dicere: ‘Absit a te, propitus tibi, Domine, non erit istud.’
The direct discourse of Peter is spread out over three lines by Jevencus. The
word increpare, which could be interpreted as presumptuous, has been
omitted. The grief and reverence of Peter towards his master are emphasized by
the addition tam tristia sanctis (297). (Ibid., 107-10)
Attempt to Rehabilitate Peter’s
Denial of Jesus:
One
of the most famous stories about Peter in the Gospels is his denial of Christ
(Matt 26.69-75; cf. Eu. 4,570-85). The passage highlights the apostle’s
lack of courage. But Juvencus tries to attenuate the negative depiction of
Peter. This is already visible in the preamble to the passage, where Peter
follows Jesus to the Sanhedrin. Matt 26.58 reads: Petrus autem sequebatur eum
a longe usque in atrium principis sacerdotum, et ingressus intro sedebat cum
ministries, ut uideret finem rei. Juvencus versifies as follows (Eu.
4,539-41):
At
Petrus longe seruans uestigia solus
occulte
maestus sedit cum plebe ministra
extremum
opperiens tanto sub turbine finem.
‘And
Peter alone followed the footprints from far and secretly upset he sat down
with a group of servants, waiting for the ultimate outcome of the great tumult.’”
Juvencus
emphasises the fact that Peter is the only one (solus, v. 539) who
followed Christ after his arrest, in spite of the seriousness of the situation
(tanto sub turbine, v. 541). Moreover, he shows Peter’s compassion with
his master in the words occulte maestus (v. 540). His sorrow is also
stressed in v. 570 (Petrum . . . tristem) and vv. 583-4 (mentem
Simonisque . . . tristem). In his versification of Matt. 26.70 (At ille
negauit coram omnibus dicens: ‘Nescio, quid dicis, neque intellego.’), coram
omnibus has been omitted by Juvencus (Eu. 4,573). In the passage
where peter’s denial is announced by Christ (Matt 26.33-5), Juvencus elaborates
Jesus’ prediction: Peter will be pauidus and he will tell mendacia
(v. 472). Peter himself boasts even more than in the Bible, by saying that he
will accept even a hard death (durman mortem, Eu. 4,475). But
these additions, which do not contribute to a positive image of Peter, are compensated
by an adjective used by Christ himself: he calls the apostle fortissime Petre
(v. 473). Moreover, the denial of Peter was much discussed among Christians who
sometimes doubted and could not believe, but were still to be given mercy by
God (see II.1.3.1.1.). (ibid., 112-13)
