Decoding the Christian Era of Dionysius Exiguus

Józef Naumowicz

doi:10.21697/ct.2024.94.1.03

Published: 2024-02-01

Vol. 94 No. 1 (2024)

Decoding the Christian Era of Dionysius Exiguus

Józef Naumowicz

Collectanea Theologica

Section: Articles

https://doi.org/10.21697/ct.2024.94.1.03

Abstract

As yet, no satisfactory explanation has been found as to how the Roman monk Dionysius Exiguus determined the year of Jesus’ birth in his system of calculating years, which he introduced in 525. This is because two unwarranted assumptions prevail in research: first, that the creator of this calculation did not provide a justification for it, and second, that the solution to the problem should only be sought in this author’s works on the calculation of Easter dates. In this article, the following research hypothesis has been adopted: the explanation of the new calculation of years is to be found in the writings of Dionysius, which include his computational but also theological works. An analysis of these writings makes it possible to discover the historical and theological rationale that became the actual basis for setting the date of Jesus’ birth to the year corresponding to today’s AD 1.

Keywords:

Dionysius Exiguus, Christian era, date of Jesus’ passion, theopaschites, Scythian monks, paschal computation, Easter tables

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Naumowicz, J. (2024). Decoding the Christian Era of Dionysius Exiguus. Collectanea Theologica, 94(1), 85–106. https://doi.org/10.21697/ct.2024.94.1.03

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