In the bustling intellectual crossroads of Alexandria, where the philosophies of Greece met the Scriptures of Israel, Clement rose as a voice both learned and devout. A seeker who drank deeply from the fountains of Hellenic wisdom before finding rest in the Gospel, he became the architect of a Christian philosophy that could converse with the Academy while kneeling at the feet of Christ. His works—at once rich, meandering, and luminous—bear the marks of a mind convinced that in the Logos every true longing of the human spirit finds its home.
Editions and Scholarly Witnesses
The literary corpus of Clement of Alexandria (Clementis Alex. Opera Omnia) survives through critical editions, foremost among them the monumental work of John Potter, Bishop of Oxford (1715, 2 vols.), later reprinted in Venice (1757) and incorporated into Migne’s Patrologia Graeca (vols. VIII and IX) with additions and commentary by Nic. Le Nourry. Fabricius, in his Bibliotheca Graeca (ed. Harles, vol. VII, 109ff.), provides an account of the manuscripts and textual history. Other notable editions were produced by Victorinus (Florence, 1550), Sylburg (Heidelberg, 1592), Heinsius (Graeco-Latin, Leyden, 1616), Klotz (Leipzig, 1831–34, Greek only and textually flawed), and W. Dindorf (Oxford, 1868–69).
An English translation by Wm. Wilson appears in Clark’s Ante-Nicene Library (vols. IV and V, Edinburgh, 1867). Ancient testimonies to Clement’s life and thought are preserved in Eusebius (Hist. Eccl. V.11; VI.6, 11, 13), Jerome (De Viris Illustribus 38), and Photius (Bibliotheca 109–111), gathered in Potter’s edition (vol. I, pp. 35–50) and in Migne’s edition. The nineteenth century renewed interest in Clement through the works of Hofstede De Groot, Daehne, Eylert, Bishop Kaye, Kling, Reinkens, Reuter, Laemmer, Cognat, Müller, Freppel, Merk, Winter, Jacobi, Westcott, and Zahn, each probing different facets of his theology, philosophy, and historical context.
From Pagan Philosopher to Christian Teacher
Titus Flavius Clemens—likely born in Athens around A.D. 150—was reared in the intellectual tradition of the Greeks, mastering the breadth of classical literature and philosophy. Yet in these schools he found no drink to quench his thirst for ultimate truth. In adulthood, he embraced Christianity and sought its purest expression, journeying across the East and West to find the most faithful bearers of apostolic teaching, “who preserved the tradition of pure saving doctrine, and implanted that genuine apostolic seed in the hearts of their pupils.”
His spiritual pilgrimage brought him to Egypt, where Pantaenus—whom Clement likened to “the Sicilian bee” gathering nectar from the apostolic and prophetic meadows—captivated his mind and heart. Remaining in Alexandria, Clement was ordained presbyter and, around 189, succeeded Pantaenus as head of the catechetical school. For twelve years he labored to convert pagans and educate believers until the persecution under Septimius Severus (202) drove him into exile. Later he is found in Antioch and, by 211, in Jerusalem with his former student, Bishop Alexander. Whether he returned to Alexandria is unknown. He died before 220, contemporaneous with Tertullian. Though often honored as “saint” in antiquity, the Roman Church omits him from its canon of saints, a decision defended in the eighteenth century on doctrinal grounds.
Architect of the Alexandrian Synthesis
Clement stands as the pioneer of Alexandrian Christian philosophy, harmonizing biblical revelation with the best of Greek thought. His theology was a vast and fertile field—rich with insight yet uneven in cultivation. Stoic, Platonic, and Philonic influences mingle freely with the Gospel, producing a tapestry at once profound and eclectic. Especially in the Stromata, he eschews rigid structure, scattering truths in fragmentary form, sometimes veiling them to guard against misunderstanding by the uninitiated. This guarded, esoteric style reflects parallels with the secrecy of pagan mysteries and Gnostic “arcana.”
His encyclopedic knowledge, especially of Greek literature now lost, makes him an invaluable source for classical studies. He lived in a time when Christian thought sought to claim the entire realm of human learning for Christ. As Westcott observed, though his style may lack elegance and his method coherence, his breadth of reading, openness of sympathy, and lofty spiritual aspirations compel admiration.
The Great Alexandrian Trilogy
During his Alexandrian tenure (c. 190–195), Clement composed three works forming a spiritual progression patterned after the ancient mystagogical stages of purification (apokatharsis), initiation (mysis), and vision (epopteia). They correspond to apologetics, ethics, and theology—or to faith, love, and mystical knowledge—and mirror the path of the Christian soul toward union with God.
1. Exhortation to the Greeks (Logos Protreptikos pros Hellenas): An erudite yet polemical appeal exposing the folly and immorality of paganism while acknowledging its higher prophetic hints, urging repentance and faith in Christ.
2. The Tutor (Paidagogos): A moral handbook contrasting Christian virtue with pagan custom, presenting Christ as the divine Educator who trains believers toward likeness to God.
3. The Stromata (“Miscellanies”): Seven authentic books (with an eighth spurious appendix) offering a loosely woven compendium of history, poetry, philosophy, theology, and occasional error. Clement compares it to a dense garden where fruitful and barren trees intermingle, awaiting the wise gardener. The work culminates in the portrait of the “true gnostic”—a Christian perfected in virtue and lifted above the passions.
Other Writings and the First Christian Hymn
Beyond his principal works, Clement authored Who is the Rich Man that Shall be Saved? (Tis ho sozomenos plousios), a balanced exhortation on the responsible use of wealth, grounded in Mark 10:17ff. Without succumbing to extreme asceticism, he advocates generous stewardship, particularly urgent in a cosmopolitan hub like Alexandria. His exegetical writings (Hypotyposes) and polemical treatises—one against the Montanists on prophecy, another against the Judaizing Paschal observance in Asia Minor—are lost save for fragments.
Clement also bequeathed to the Church the earliest extant Christian hymn: a lofty, anapaestic song praising the Logos as the divine Shepherd and Educator of mankind, appended to the Tutor. While ornate in style, it stands as a lyrical testament to his conviction that Christ is both the fulfillment of human wisdom and the guide of human destiny.
