Eznik Kołbac'i entre orient et occident.

The Ełc ałandoc' ("Refutation of the Sects") by Eznik Kołbacci is among the earliest Armenian writings. It dates back to the 440s, when the Armenians, having lost their independence, were threatened with cultural and religious assimilation by Sasanian Persia. In his treatise the author describes and then refutes several creeds and philosophical theories, such as ancient beliefs dating back to Armenian paganism, doctrines of Greek philosophers, Valentinian Gnosticism, Zurvanism, and, finally, Marcion's Christian heresy. The paper will try to establish how widespread these doctrines actually were in the Armenian-speaking world during Eznik's times, and assess to what extent they could be considered dangerous for the cultural survival of the Armenians themselves. It will also discuss the possible reasons why Eznik did not address other religious beliefs, such as Armenian paganism stricto sensu or Manichaeism.