Le Noyau le Plus Ancien des Hymnes de la Collection ‘Sur L’Epiphanie’ et la Question de Leur Authenticité

Abstract The authenticity of the madrashe/hymns contained in the collection On Epiphany, which is traditionally ascribed to Ephrem the Syrian, is considered as doubtful by most scholars. One of the major arguments advanced against Ephrem’s authorship is the fact that the collection presupposes the existence of the feast of Epiphany commemorating Jesus’ baptism on 6 January, with which Ephrem certainly was not familiar. This, however, does not exclude the possibility that some of the hymns were written by Ephrem. It is argued in this article that the texts forming the nucleus of this collection actually were composed by him and, moreover, that they are important sources for the study of Ephrem’s baptismal theology.