Le questioni trinitarie di Trifone nella interpretazione di Giustino

Trypho is presented by Justin as a sophisticated Jew, playing the role of a markedly opposing disputant; therefore, Justin puts the cardinal Christian teachings into Trypho's mouth in the form of questions, as well as “negative creeds” of the Christian faith. The role of Trypho’s "negative creeds" is to deny the fundamental principles of Justin's faith in exact theological terms. Another important feature is that the Dialogue contains numerous and long quotations from the Old Testament, accompanied, however, by not very detailed exegeses. These two mentioned peculiarities are the strategic pillars of Justin's theological interpretation, which has the goal to make the reader contemplate and recognize the divinity of Christ through faith. Therefore, to understand the true doctrinal message of the Dialogue, it is not enough to interpret the scriptural passages, nor even the very own words of Justin in the work, but it is necessary to identify the theological strategy employed in the Dialogue. The task of this article will be to acquire, through the examination of the Dialogue, a broad perspective on the Christology and Pneumatology of the IInd century documented by Justin, in order to be able to comprehend more clearly the starting points of the theological models of the subsequent centuries.