On (Ps.-)Didymus the Blind and Michael the Archangel: A Reply to Dimitrios Zaganas

Dimitrios Zaganas has recently argued that a reference to a flourishing cult of the archangels in (Ps.-)Didymus the Blind, trin. II.7.8.10 indicates a late date of composition. This paper challenges Zaganas’ argument on several grounds. (1) (Ps.-)Didymus distinguishes between oratories (οἶκοι εὐκτήριοι) devoted to archangels and ordinary churches (ἐκκλησίαι), a distinction that would have been anachronistic in the period Zaganas proposes, when churches were commonly dedicated to archangels. (2) Zaganas asserts that Theodoret’s Commentary on Colossians restricts the veneration of St Michael to Phrygia, but the context of Theodoret’s remark does not support this claim. (3) Substantial evidence indicates that pilgrimages to Mamre in devotion to angels occurred from the early fourth century onward, possibly including veneration of Michael.