Esegesi di V Esdra 1: un esempio di teologia supersessionista

The text of the Fifth Book of Ezra (only attested in latin) that focuses on the dynamics pragmatic called “The gold of the Egyptians” (F. GASTI, L’oro degli Egizi. Cultura classica e paideia cristiana, in “Athenaeum” n. 80, 1992, pp. 311-329) that is the Christian reuse of materials from other cultures, has hardly received attention from biblical exegesis, despite its presence within the canon of Scripture until the Council of Trent, only after which it was excised as unorthodox. Inside the Vulgate of Jerome (where it is placed in the ending, just before Psalm 151 and the Epistle to the Laodiceans) V Ezra is located inside of the oldest book called IV Ezra of which it constitutes the first two chapters. Regarding the dating, according to studies made by T. Bergren (T. A. BERGREN, Fifth Ezra: The Text, Origin and Early History, Oxford University Press, 1996), the most considerable evidence for focusing a period of composition reliable (though, it must be said , there is no certainty) comes from some external sources. We have, infact, some loans of V Ezra in works (we can refer to the text “De altercatione synagogae et Ecclesiae”, a anti-jewish composition that presents a hypothetical debate between the Church and the Synagogue, which ends with the obvious triumph of catholics and contains some references to our text; this work is composed in the fifth to sixth century AD. We still have the “Actus Sylvestris”, a work contemporary with the previous, that describes the miraculous exploits of St. Sylvester, especially the dispute with twelve rabbis from which the Pope emerges - of course - as the winner) of which we have a safe date of composition and we can, therefore, point out an era of composition “ante quem” . Substantively, as also mentioned, there is a massive reworking of material derived from the Vulgate Old Testament and risemantised in anti-Jewish function to demonstrate that the new Ecclesia Christi has replaced Israel in the plan of salvation of Yahweh and corroborating the theological background of V Ezra: the replacement theology or supersessionism . This doctrine teaches that the Church has completely substitute Israel, and all the promises made to the “not - my – people” in the history of salvation, were fulfilled only in favor of Christian Church, not - in fact - for Israel that didn’t accept the coming of Christ, the Son of God and decreeing his own disinheritance. Therefore, all the prophecies of Scripture concerning the blessing and restoration of Israel into the Promised Land have to be allegorized in promises that Yahweh is building for the new Ecclesia. Considering what has been highlighted up to this point, the hermeneutical content of the introductory lines (1, 1-3) identifies the book and provides the family tree of Ezra (who will formalize the accusations against the “old people”) certifying his own pedigree in Israel. Building on this , the priest and prophet clarifies his most important mission: the acceptance and delivery of the message of God to his people, a reminder to Israel that became forgetful of liberation from slavery in Egypt (4-12 ), a nation that has forgotten how Yahweh has found two archimandrites in Moses and Aaron (13-14), a people that became oblivious to the fact that, during the journey through the desert, - although always murmuring against God’s paternage - it was fed by the intervention of God himself (15-23). Despite all this, the people did not recognize Him to the extent that God has decided to eject Israel from alliance, the pact signed at the beginning of the Exodus (24-32). Israel will therefore be replaced by a new nation that will accept his guidance (33-37), a new people that will be brought to the Promised Land by the twelve patriarchs and prophets (38-40). The substitution becomes complete.