The
Corpus Scriptorum Ecclesiasticorum Latinorum (
CSEL) is a series of critical editions of the
LatinLatin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. Through the Roman conquest, Latin spread throughout the Mediterranean and a large part of Europe...
Church FathersThe Church Fathers, Early Church Fathers, or Fathers of the Church are the early and influential theologians and writers in the Christian Church, particularly those of the first five centuries of Christian history. The term is used of writers and teachers of the Church, not necessarily saints...
published by a committee of the
Austrian Academy of SciencesThe Austrian Academy of Sciences is a legal entity under the special protection of the Federal Republic of Austria...
.
The CSEL is intended to include the ecclesiastical authors who wrote in Latin from the late 2nd century AD until the death of
BedeBede , also Saint Bede, the Venerable Bede, or Beda , was a monk at the Northumbrian monastery of Saint Peter at Monkwearmouth, today part of Sunderland, England, and of its companion monastery, Saint Paul's, in modern Jarrow , both in the Kingdom of Northumbria.He is well known as an author and...
in 735. The texts are edited on the basis of all extant manuscripts and according to the principles of modern
textual criticismTextual criticism is a branch of literary criticism that is concerned with the identification and removal of transcription errors in the texts of manuscripts...
and thus aim to provide a critical replacement for the corresponding volumes of the
Patrologia LatinaThe Patrologia Latina is an enormous collection of the writings of the Church Fathers and other ecclesiastical writers published by Jacques-Paul Migne between 1844 and 1855, with indices published between 1862 and 1865....
.
Since the establishment of the series in 1864 and the appearance of its first volume in 1866, ninety-five volumes have been published, ranging from
Sulpicius SeverusSulpicius Severus was a Christian writer and native of Aquitania. He is known for his chronicle of sacred history, as well as his biography of Saint Martin of Tours.-Life:...
to
AugustineAugustine of Hippo , Bishop of Hippo Regius, also known as St. Augustine or St. Austin, was an Algerian Berber philosopher and theologian....
.
Some of the CSEL editions have been superseded by more recent editions in the
Corpus ChristianorumThe Corpus Christianorum is a major publishing undertaking of the Belgian publisher Brepols devoted to patristic and medieval Latin texts. The principal series are the Series Graeca , Series Latina , and the Continuatio Mediaevalis...
series, and others have been included as supplements to the electronic edition of the Corpus Christianorum in the CETEDOC Library of Christian Latin Texts (CLCLT), which has since been expanded into
BrepolsBrepols was once one of the largest printing companies of the world and one of the main employers in Turnhout . Besides its printing business, Brepols is also active as a publisher...
' Library of Latin Texts Online.
The
Corpus Scriptorum Ecclesiasticorum Latinorum, founded in 1864 was seen as a beginning of text-critical editions of the Latin authors.
The
Corpus Scriptorum Ecclesiasticorum Latinorum (
CSEL) is a series of critical editions of the
LatinLatin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. Through the Roman conquest, Latin spread throughout the Mediterranean and a large part of Europe...
Church FathersThe Church Fathers, Early Church Fathers, or Fathers of the Church are the early and influential theologians and writers in the Christian Church, particularly those of the first five centuries of Christian history. The term is used of writers and teachers of the Church, not necessarily saints...
published by a committee of the
Austrian Academy of SciencesThe Austrian Academy of Sciences is a legal entity under the special protection of the Federal Republic of Austria...
.
The CSEL is intended to include the ecclesiastical authors who wrote in Latin from the late 2nd century AD until the death of
BedeBede , also Saint Bede, the Venerable Bede, or Beda , was a monk at the Northumbrian monastery of Saint Peter at Monkwearmouth, today part of Sunderland, England, and of its companion monastery, Saint Paul's, in modern Jarrow , both in the Kingdom of Northumbria.He is well known as an author and...
in 735. The texts are edited on the basis of all extant manuscripts and according to the principles of modern
textual criticismTextual criticism is a branch of literary criticism that is concerned with the identification and removal of transcription errors in the texts of manuscripts...
and thus aim to provide a critical replacement for the corresponding volumes of the
Patrologia LatinaThe Patrologia Latina is an enormous collection of the writings of the Church Fathers and other ecclesiastical writers published by Jacques-Paul Migne between 1844 and 1855, with indices published between 1862 and 1865....
.
Since the establishment of the series in 1864 and the appearance of its first volume in 1866, ninety-five volumes have been published, ranging from
Sulpicius SeverusSulpicius Severus was a Christian writer and native of Aquitania. He is known for his chronicle of sacred history, as well as his biography of Saint Martin of Tours.-Life:...
to
AugustineAugustine of Hippo , Bishop of Hippo Regius, also known as St. Augustine or St. Austin, was an Algerian Berber philosopher and theologian....
.
Some of the CSEL editions have been superseded by more recent editions in the
Corpus ChristianorumThe Corpus Christianorum is a major publishing undertaking of the Belgian publisher Brepols devoted to patristic and medieval Latin texts. The principal series are the Series Graeca , Series Latina , and the Continuatio Mediaevalis...
series, and others have been included as supplements to the electronic edition of the Corpus Christianorum in the CETEDOC Library of Christian Latin Texts (CLCLT), which has since been expanded into
BrepolsBrepols was once one of the largest printing companies of the world and one of the main employers in Turnhout . Besides its printing business, Brepols is also active as a publisher...
' Library of Latin Texts Online.
Evaluation and controversy
The
Corpus Scriptorum Ecclesiasticorum Latinorum, founded in 1864 was seen as a beginning of text-critical editions of the Latin authors. Clearly, given the problematic nature of many
LatinLatin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. Through the Roman conquest, Latin spread throughout the Mediterranean and a large part of Europe...
codices, text editions based on virtually all existing codices are superior to "one source editions" such as
MigneMigné is a commune in the Indre department in central France.-References:*...
. The Migne edition, which the
Corpus edition aims to replace, is however almost complete with its 221 volumes, and is therefore frequently cited even today. In addition, most
EnglishEnglish is a West Germanic language that developed in England during the Anglo-Saxon era. As a result of the military, economic, scientific, political, and cultural influence of the British Empire during the 18th, 19th, and early 20th centuries, and of the United States since the mid 20th century,...
translationsTranslations is a three-act play by Irish playwright Brian Friel written in 1980. It is set in Baile Beag , a small village at the heart of 19th century agricultural Ireland...
of the Latin Fathers are based on Migne.
The
AustriaAustria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.3 million people in Central Europe. It borders both Germany and the Czech Republic to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the west...
n
Corpus Scriptorum Ecclesiasticorum Latinorum openly admits, that only about one third of the necessary writings have been published since 1866. At this slow pace, completion may be achieved in about two hundred and forty years, by the year 2248 or so. The aim to replace the
MigneMigné is a commune in the Indre department in central France.-References:*...
thus cannot be completed in reasonable time, and may be no more than a well intended, but marginal effort. The problem is accentuated by Academy policy, to use its spare resources to reedit constantly already published volumes, as in the case of Saint Augustine. While textual improvements are always possible and welcome, this is significant. By questioning and reediting its own text critical publications, the Academy raises questions as to the accuracy and longevity of its expensive publications as a whole.
Unfortunately, by not promoting a policy and strategy of completing two thirds of the missing volumes in reasonable time, the Academy remains on scholarly sidelines, leaving
MigneMigné is a commune in the Indre department in central France.-References:*...
, with all its shortcomings, in place as the only consistent and complete source of
Patrologia LatinaThe Patrologia Latina is an enormous collection of the writings of the Church Fathers and other ecclesiastical writers published by Jacques-Paul Migne between 1844 and 1855, with indices published between 1862 and 1865....
, for many decades to come. A serious replacement of the often deficient
MigneMigné is a commune in the Indre department in central France.-References:*...
edition requires a serious world-wide effort of Latin scholars on the missing two thirds of
LatinLatin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. Through the Roman conquest, Latin spread throughout the Mediterranean and a large part of Europe...
patristicsPatristics or Patrology is the study of early Christian writers, known as the Church Fathers. The names derive from the Latin pater . The period is generally considered to run from the end of New Testament times until around the 8th century.- Patrologia vs. patristica :Some scholars, chiefly in...
.
External links