La traduzione come originale. Qualche considerazione sulla Bibbia dei Settanta e i Padri della Chiesa

The Greek translation of the Old Testament (the Septuagint) often reflects a Hebrew text different from the Masoretic one. The church fathers attributed to the Septuagint a value equal and even higher than that of the Hebrew text: in fact, the translation replaced the original text, to the point of allowing the Christian exegetes to even propose etymological interpretations starting from the Greek word, regardless of whether the alleged etymology was valid even in the Hebrew language. Origen’s contribution was decisive for the success of the Septuagint in the christian tradition: he attended to demonstrate the superiority of the Greek text and to legitimize its authority for philological reasons. This paper deals in particular with the correspondence between Origen and Julius Africanus on Susan¬na’s authenticity (Dan 13), perhaps the most important document of antiquity on the relationship between the Hebrew Old Testament and the Greek translation