(NOTE: The electronic text obtained from The Electronic Bible Society was
not completely corrected. EWTN has corrected all discovered errors. If you
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[email protected].)
Transliteration of Greek words: All phonetical except: w = omega; h serves
three puposes: 1. = Eta; 2. = rough breathing, when appearing initially
before a vowel; 3. = in the aspirated letters theta = th, phi = ph, chi =
ch. Accents are given immediately after their corresponding vowels: acute =
' , grave = `, circumflex = ^. The character ' doubles as an apostrophe,
when necessary.
ST. JEROME
LIVES OF ILLUSTRIOUS MEN
[Translated by Ernest Cushing Richardson, Ph.D., Librarian of Princeton
College.]
PREFACE
You have urged me, Dexter,(1) to follow the exampleof Tranquillus(2) in
giving a systematic account of ecclesiastical writers, and to do for our
writers what he did for the illustrious men of letters among the Gentiles,
namely, to briefly set before you all those who have published(3) any
memorable writing on the Holy Scriptures, from the time of our Lord's
passion until the fourteenth year of the Emperor Theodosius.(4) A similar
work has been done by Hermippus(5) the peripatetic, Antigonus
Carystius,(6), the learned Satyrus,(7) and most learned of all, Aristoxenus
the Musician,(8) among the Greeks, and among the Latins by Varro,(9)
Snatra,(10) Nepos,(11) Hyginus,(12) and by him through whose example you
seek to stimulate(13) us,--Tranquillus.
But their situation and mine is not the same, for they, opening the old
histories and chronicles could as if gathering from some great meadow,
weave some(14) small crown at least for their work. As for me, what shall I
do, who, having no predecessor, have,, as the saying is, the worst possible
master, namely myself, and yet I must acknowledge that Eusebius Pamphilius
in the ten books of his Church History has been of the utmost assistance,
and the works of various of those of whom we are to write, often testify to
the dates of their authors. And so I pray the Lord Jesus,(15) that what
your Cicero, who stood at the summit of Roman eloquence, did not scorn to
do, compiling in his Brutus, a catalogue of Latin orators, this I too may
accomplish in a fashion worthy of the exhortation which you made. But if,
perchance any of those who are yet writing have been overlooked by me in
this volume, they ought to ascribe it to themselves, rather than to me, for
among those whom I have not read, I could not, in the first place, know
those who concealed their own writings, and, in the second place, what is
perhaps well known to others, would be quite unknown to me in this out of
the way corner of the earth.(16) But surely when they are distinguished by
their writings, they will not very greatly grieve over our non-mentioning
of them. Let they who think the church has had no philosophers or orators
or men of learning, learn how many and what sort of men founded, built and
adorned it, and cease to accuse our faith of such rustic simplicity, and
recognize rather their own ignorance.
In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, farewell.(17)
LIST OF WRITERS
1. Simon Peter.
2. James, the brother of our Lord.
3. Matthew, surnamed Levi.
4. Jude, the brother of James.
5. Paul, formerly called Saul.
6. Barnabas, surnamed Joseph.
7. Luke, the evangelist.
8. Mark, the evangelist.
9. John, the apostle and evangelist.
10. Hermas.
11. Philo Judaeus.
12. Lucius Annaeus Seneca.
13. Josephus, son of Matthias.
14. Justus of Tiberias.
15. Clemens the bishop.
16. Ignatius the bishop.
17. Polycarp the bishop.
18. Papias the bishop.
19. Quadratus the bishop.
20. Aristides the philosopher.
21. Agrippa Castor.
22. Hegesippus the historian.
23. Justin the philosopher.
24. Melito the bishop.
25. Theophilus the bishop.
26. Apollinaris the bishop.
27. Dionysius the bishop.
28. Pinytus the bishop.
29. Tatian the heresiarch.
30. Phillip the bishop.
31. Musanus.
32. Modestus.
33. Bardesanes the heresiarch.
34. Victor the bishop.
35. Irenaeus the bishop.
36. Pantaenus the philosopher.
37. Rhodo, the disciple of Tatian.
38. Clemens the presbyter.
39. Miltiades.
40. Apollonius.
41. Serapion the bishop.
42. Apollonius the senator.
43. Theophilus another bishop.
44. Baccylus the bishop.
45. Polycrates the bishop.
46. Heraclitus.
47. Maximus.
48. Candidus.
49. Appion.
50. Sextus.
51. Arabianus.
52. Judas.
53. Tertullian
54. Origen, surnamed Adamantius.
55. Ammonius.
56. Ambrose the deacon.
57. Trypho the pupil of Origen.
58. Minucius Felix.
59. Gaius.
60. Berillus the bishop.
61. Hippolytus the bishop.
62. Alexander the bishop.
63. Julius the African.
64. Gemimus the presbyter.
65. Theodorus, surnamed Gregory the bishop.
66. Cornelius the bishop.
67. Cyprian the bishop.
68. Pontius the deacon.
69. Dionysius the bishop.
70. Novatianus the heresiarch.
71. Malchion the presbyter.
72. Archelaus the bishop.
73. Anatolius the bishop.
74. Victorinus the bishop.
75. Pamphilus the presbyter.
76. Pierius the presbyter.
77. Lucianus the presbyter.
78. Phileas the bishop.
79. Arnobius the rhetorician.
80. Firmianus the rhetorician, surnamed Lactantius.
81. Eusebius the bishop.
82. Reticius the bishop.
83. Methodius the bishop.
84. Juvencus the presbyter.
85. Eustathius the bishop.
86. Marcellus the bishop.
87. Athanasius the bishop.
88. Antonius the monk.
89. Basilius the bishop.
90. Theodorus the bishop.
91. Eusebius another bishop.
92. Triphylius the bishop.
93. Donatus the heresiarch.
94. Asterius the philosopher.
95. Lucifer the bishop.
96. Eusebius another bishop.
97. Fortunatianus the bishop.
98. Acacius the bishop.
99. Serapion the bishop.
100. Hilary the bishop.
101. Victorinus
102. Titus the bishop.
103. Damasus the bishop.
104. Apollinarius the bishop.
105. Gregory the bishop.
106. Pacianus the bishop.
107. Photinus the heresiarch.
108. Phoebadius the bishop.
109. Didymus the Blind.
110. Optatus the bishop.
111. Acilius Severus the senator.
112. Cyril the bishop.
113. Euzoius the bishop.
114. Epiphanius the bishop.
115. Ephrem the deacon.
116. Basil another bishop.
117. Gregory another bishop.
118. Lucius the bishop.
119. Diodorus the bishop.
120. Eunomius the heresiarch.
121. Priscillianus the bishop.
122. Latronianus.
123. Tiberianus.
124. Ambrose the bishop.
125. Evagrius the bishop.
126. Ambrose the disciple of Didymus.
127. Maximus,first philosopher, then bishop.
128. Another Gregory, also a bishop.
129. John the presbyter.
130. Gelasius the bishop.
131. Theotimus the bishop.
132. Dexter, son of Pacianus, now praetorian prefect.
133. Amphilochius the bishop.
134. Sophronius.
135. Jerome the presbyter.
CHAPTER I.
Simon Peter (1) the son of John, from the village of Bethsaida in the
province of Galilee, brother of Andrew the apostle, and himself chief of
the apostles, after having been bishop of the church of Antioch and having
preached to the Dispersion(2)--the believers in circumcision,(3) in Pontus,
Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia--pushed on to Rome in the second
year of Claudius to over-throw Simon Magus,(4) and held the sacerdotal
chair there for twenty-five years until the last, that is the fourteenth,
year of Nero. At his hands he received the crown of martyrdom being nailed
to the cross with his head towards the ground and his feet raised on high,
asserting that he was unworthy to be crucified in the same manner as his
Lord. He wrote two epistles which are called Catholic, the second of which,
on account of its difference from the first in style, is considered by many
not to be by him. Then too the Gospel according to Mark, who was his
disciple and interpreter, is ascribed to him. On the other hand, the books,
of which one is entitled his Acts, another his Gospel, a third his
Preaching, a fourth his Revelation, a fifth his "Judgment" are rejected as
apocryphal.(5)
Buried at Rome in the Vatican near the triumphal way he is venerated by
the whole world.(1)
CHAPTER II.
James,(2) who is called the brother of the Lord,(3) surnamed the
Just, the son of Joseph by another wife, as some think, but, as appears to
me, the son of Mary sister of the mother of our Lord of whom John makes
mention in his book,(4) after our Lord's passion at once ordained by the
apostles bishop of Jerusalem, wrote a single epistle, which is reckoned
among the seven Catholic Epistles and even this is claimed by some to have
been published by some one else under his name, and gradually, as time went
on, to have gained authority. Hegesippus who lived near the apostolic age,
in the fifth book of his Commentaries, writing of James. says "After the
apostles, James the brother of the Lord surnamed the Just was made head of
the Church at Jerusalem. Many indeed are called James. This one was holy
from his mother's womb. He drank neither wine nor strong drink, ate no
flesh, never shaved or anointed himself with ointment or bathed. He alone
halt the privilege of entering the Holy of Holies, since indeed he did not
use woolen vestments but linen and went alone into the temple and prayed in
behalf of the people, insomuch that his knees were reputed to have acquired
the hardness of camels' knees." He says also many other things, too
numerous to mention. Josephus also in the 20th book of his Antiquities, and
Clement in the 7th of his Outlines mention that on the death of Fetus who
reigned over Judea, Albinus was sent by Nero as his successor. Before he
had reached his province, Ananias the high priest, the youthful son of
Ananus of the priestly class taking advantage of the state of anarchy,
assembled a council and publicly tried to force James to deny that Christ
is the son of God. When he refused Ananius ordered him to be stoned. Cast
down from a pinnacle of the temple, his legs broken, but still half alive,
raising his hands to heaven he said, "Lord forgive them for they know not
what they do." Then struck on the head by the club of a fuller such a club
as fullers are accustomed to wring out garments(1) with--he died. This same
Josephus records the tradition that this James was of so great sanctity and
reputation among the people that the downfall of Jerusalem was believed to
be on account of his death. He it is of whom the apostle Paul writes to the
Galatians that "No one else of the apostles did I see except James the
brother of the Lord," and shortly after the event the Acts of the apostles
bear witness to the matter. The Gospel also which is called the Gospel
according to the Hebrews,(2) and which I have recently translated into
Greek and Latin and which also Origen(3) often makes use of, after the
account of the resurrection of the Saviour says, "but the Lord, after he
had given his grave clothes to the servant of the priest, appeared to
James(for James had. sworn that he would not eat bread from that hour in
which he drank the cup of the Lord until he should see him rising again
from among those that sleep)" and again, a little later, it says" ' Bring a
table and bread,' said the Lord." And immediately it is added, "He brought
bread and blessed and brake and gave to James the Just and said to him, '
my brother eat thy bread, for the son of man is risen from among those that
sleep.'" And so he ruled the church of Jerusalem thirty years, that is
until the seventh year of Nero, and was buried near the temple from which
he had been cast down. His tombstone with its inscription was well known
until the siege of Titus and the end of Hadrian's reign. Some of our
writers think he was buried in Mount Olivet, but they are mistaken.
CHAPTER III.
Matthew,(4) also called Levi, apostle and aforetimes publican, composed
a gospel of Christ at first published in Judea in Hebrew(5) for the sake of
those of the circumcision who believed, but this was afterwards translated
into Greek though by what author is uncertain. The Hebrew itself has been
preserved until the present day in the library. at Caesarea which Pamphilus
so diligently gathered. I have also had the opportunity of having the
volume described to me by the Nazarenes(1) of Beroea,(2) a city of Syria,
who use it. In this it is to be noted that wherever the Evangelist, whether
on his own account or in the person of our Lord the Saviour quotes the
testimony of the Old Testament he does not follow the authority of the
translators of the Septuagint but the Hebrew. Wherefore these two forms
exist "Out of Egypt have I called my son," and "for he shall be called a
Nazarene."
CHAPTER IV.
Jude(3) the brother of James, left a short epistle which is reckoned
among the seven catholic epistles, and because in it(4) he quotes from the
apocryphal book of Enoch it is rejected by many. Nevertheless by age and
use it has gained authority and is reckoned among the Holy Scriptures.
CHAPTER V.
Paul,(4) formerly called Saul, an apostle outside the number of the
twelve apostles, was of the tribe of Benjamin and the town of Giscalis(6)
in Judea. When this was taken by the Romans he removed with his parents to
Tarsus in Cilicia. Sent by them to Jerusalem to study law he was educated
by Gamaliel a most learned man whom Luke mentions. But after he had been
present at the death of the martyr Stephen and had received letters from
the high priest of the temple for the persecution of those who believed in
Christ, he proceeded to Damascus, where constrained to faith by a
revelation, as it is written in the Acts of the apostles, he was
transformed from a persecutor into an elect vessel. As Sergius Paulus
Proconsul of Cyprus was the first to believe on his preaching, he took his
name from him because he had subdued him to faith in Christ, and having
been joined by Barnabas, after traversing many cities, he returned to
Jerusalem and was ordained apostle to the Gentiles by Peter, James and
John. And because a full account of his life is given in the Acts of the
Apostles, I only say this, that the twenty-fifth year after our Lord's
passion, that is the second of Nero, at the time when Fetus Procurator of
Judea succeeded Felix, he was sent bound to Rome, and remaining for two
years in free custody, disputed daily with the Jews concerning the advent
of Christ. It ought to be said that at the first defence, the power of Nero
having not yet been confirmed, nor his wickedness broken forth to such a
degree as the histories relate concerning him, Paul was dismissed by Nero,
that the gospel of Christ might be preached also in the West. As he himself
writes in the second epistle to Timothy, at the time when he was about to
be put to death dictating his epistle as he did while in chains; "At my
first defence no one took my part, but all forsook me: may it not be laid
to their account. But the Lord stood by(1) me and strengthened me; that
through me the message might be fully proclaimed and that all the Gentiles
might hear, and I was delivered out of the mouth of the lion"(2)-- clearly
indicating Nero as lion on account of his cruelty. And directly following
he says "The Lord delivered me from the month of the lion" and again
shortly "The Lord delivered me(3) from every evil work and saved me unto
his heavenly kingdom,"(4) for indeed he felt within himself that his
martyrdom was near at hand, for in the same epistle he announced "for I am
already being offered and the time of my departure is at hand."(5) He then,
in the fourteenth year of Nero on the same day with Peter, was beheaded at
Rome for Christ's sake and was buried in the Ostian way, the twenty-seventh
year after our Lord's passion. He wrote nine epistles to seven churches: To
the Romans one, To the Corinthians two, To the Galatians one, To the
Ephesians one, To the Philippians one, To the Colossians one, To the
Thessalonians two; and besides these to his disciples, To Timothy two, To
Titus one, To Philemon one. The epistle which is called the Epistle to the
Hebrews is not considered his, on account of its difference from the others
in style and language, but it is reckoned, either according to Tertullian
to be the work of Barnabas, or according to others, to be by Luke the
Evangelist or Clement afterwards bishop of the church at Rome, who, they
say, arranged and adorned the ideas of Paul in his own language, though to
be sure, since Paul was writing to Hebrews and was in disrepute among them
he may have omitted his name from the salvation on this account. He being
a Hebrew wrote Hebrew, that is his own tongue and most fluently while the
things which were eloquently written in Hebrew were more eloquently turned
into Greek (1) and this is the reason why it seems to differ from other
epistles of Paul. Some read one also to(2) the Laodiceans but it is
rejected by everyone.
CHAPTER VI.
Barnabas(3) the Cyprian, also called Joseph the Levite, ordained
apostle to the Gentiles with Paul, wrote one Epistle, valuable for the
edification of the church, which is reckoned among the apocryphal writings.
He afterwards separated from Paul on account of John, a disciple also
called Mark,(4) none the less exercised the work laid upon him of preaching
the Gospel.
CHAffER VII.
Luke(5) a physician of Antioch as his writings gas indicate was not
unskilled in the Greek language. An adherent of the apostle Paul, and
companion of all his journeying, he wrote a Gospel, concerning which the
same Paul says, "We send with him a brother whose praise in the gospel is
among all the churches"(6) and to the Colossians "Luke the beloved
physician salutes you,"(7) and to Timothy "Luke only is with me."(8) He
also wrote another excellent volume to which he prefixed the title Acts of
the Apostles, a history which extends to the second year of Paul's sojourn
at Rome, that is to the fourth(9) year of Nero, from which we learn that
the book was composed in that same city. Therefore the Acts of Paul and
Thecla(10) and all the fable about the lion baptized by him we reckon among
the apocryphal writings,(11) for how is it possible that the inseparable
companion of the apostle in his other affairs, alone should have been
ignorant of this thing. Moreover Tertullian who lived near those times,
mentions a certain presbyter in Asia, an adherent of the apostle Paul,(12)
who was convicted by John of having been the author of the book, and who,
confessing that he did this for love of Paul, resigned his office of
presbyter. Some suppose that whenever Paul in his epistle says "according
to my gospel" he means the book of Luke and that Luke not only was taught
the gospel history by the apostle Paul who was not with the Lord in the
flesh, but also by other apostles. This he too at the beginning of his work
declares, saying "Even as they delivered unto us, which from the beginning
were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word." So he wrote the gospel as he
had heard it, but composed the Acts of the apostles as he himself had seen.
He was buried at Constantinople to which city, in the twentieth year of
Constantius, his bones together with the remains of Andrew the apostle were
transferred.
CHAPTER VIII.
Mark(1) the disciple and interpreter of Peter wrote a short gospel at
the request of the brethren at Rome embodying what he had heard Peter tell.
When Peter had heard this, he approved it and published it to the churches
to be read by his authority as Clemens in the sixth book of his Hypotyposes
and Papias, bishop of Hierapolis, record. Peter also mentions this Mark in
his first epistle, figuratively indicating Rome under the name of Babylon
"She who(2) is in Babylon elect together with you saluteth you(3) and so
doth Mark my son." So, taking the gospel which he himself composed, he went
to Egypt and first preaching Christ at Alexandria he formed a church so
admirable in doctrine and continence of living that he constrained all
followers of Christ to his example. Philo most learned of the Jews seeing
the first church at Alexandria still Jewish in a degree, wrote a book(4) on
their manner of life as something creditable to his nation telling how, as
Luke says, the believers had all things in common(5) at Jerusalem, so he
recorded that he saw(6) was done at Alexandria, under the learned Mark. He
died in the eighth year of Nero and was buried at Alexandria, Annianus
succeeding him.(7)
CHAPTER IX.
John,(1) the apostle whom Jesus most loved, the son of Zebedee and
brother of James, the apostle whom Herod, after our Lord's passion,
beheaded, most recently of all the evangelists wrote a Gospel, at the
request of the bishops of Asia, against Cerinthus and other heretics and
especially against the then growing dogma of the Ebionites, who assert that
Christ did not exist before Mary. On this account he was compelled to
maintain His divine nativity. But there is said to be yet another reason
for this work, in that when he had read Matthew, Mark, and Luke, he
approved indeed the substance of the history and declared that the things
they said were true, but that they had given the history of only one year,
the one, that is, which follows the imprisonment of John and in which he
was put to death. So passing by this year the events of which had been set
forth by these, he related the events of the earlier period before John was
shut up in prison, so that it might be manifest to those who should
diligently read the volumes of the four Evangelists. This also takes away
the discrepancy which there seems to be between John and the others. He
wrote also one Epistle which begins as follows "That which was from the
beginning, that which we have heard, that which we have seen with our eyes
and our hands handled concerning the word of life" which is esteemed of by
all men who are interested in the church or in learning. The other two of
which the first is "The eider to the elect lady and her children" and the
other "The elder unto Gaius(2) the beloved whom I love in truth," are said
to be the work of John the presbyter to the memory of whom another
sepulchre is shown at Ephesus to the present day, though some think that
there are two memorials of this same John the evangelist. We shall treat of
this matter in its turn(3) when we come to Papias his disciple. In the
fourteenth year then after Nero(4) Domitian having raised a second
persecution he was banished to the island of Patmos, and wrote the
Apocalypse, on which Justin Martyr and Irenaeus afterwards wrote
commentaries. But Domitian having been put to death and his acts, on
account of his excessive cruelty, having been annulled by the senate, he
returned to Ephesus under Pertinax(1) and continuing there until the tithe
of the emperor Trajan, founded and built churches throughout all Asia, and,
worn out by old age, died in the sixty-eighth year after our Lord's passion
and was buried near the same city.
CHAPTER X.
Hermas(2)(3) whom the apostle Paul mentions in writing to the Romans
"Salute(4) Phlegon, Hermes, Patrobas, Hermas(5) and the brethren that are
with them"(6)is reputed to be the author of the book which is called Pastor
and which is also read publicly in some churches of Greece. It is in fact a
useful book and many of the ancient writers quote from it as authority, but
among the Latins it is almost unknown.
CHAPTER XI.
Philo 7 the Jew, an Alexandrian of the priestly class, is placed by us
among the ecclesiastical writers on the ground that, writing a book
concerning the first church of Mark the evangelist at Alexandria, he writes
to our praise, declaring not only that they were there, but also that they
were in many provinces and calling their habitations monasteries. From
this(8) it appears that the church of those that believed in Christ at
first, was such as now the monks desire to imitate,(9) that is, such that
nothing is the peculiar property of any one of them, none of them rich,
none poor, that patrimonies are divided among the needy, that they have
leisure for prayer and psalms, for doctrine also and ascetic practice, that
they were in fact as Lake declares believers were at first at Jerusalem.
They say that under Caius(10) Caligula he ventured to Rome, whither he had
been sent as legate of his nation, and that when a second time he had come
to Claudius, he spoke in the same city with the apostle Peter and enjoyed
his friendship, and for this reason also adorned the adherents of Mark,
Peter's disciple at Alexandria, with his praises. There are distinguished
and innumerable works by this man: On the five books of Moses, one book
Concerning the confusion of tongues, one book On nature and invention, one
book On the things which our senses desire and we detest, one book On
learning, one book On the heir of divine things, one book On the division
of equals and contraries, one book On the three virtues, one book On why in
Scripture the names of many persons are changed, two books On covenants,
one book On the life of a wise man, one book Concerning giants, five books
That dreams are sent by God, five books of Questions and answers on Exodus,
four books On the tabernacle and the Decalogue, as well as books On victims
and promises or curses, On Providence, On the Jews, On the manner of one's
life,, On Alexander, and That dumb beasts have right reason, and That every
fool should be a slave, and On the lives of the Christians, of which we
spoke above, that is, lives of apostolic men, which also he entitled, On
those who practice the divine life, because in truth they contemplate
divine things and ever pray to God, also trader other categories, two On
agriculture, two On drunkenness. There are other monuments of his genius
which have not come to our hands. Concerning him there is a proverb among
the Greeks "Either Plato philonized, or Philo platonized," that is, either
Plato followed Philo, or Philo, Plato, so great is the similarity of ideas
and language.
CHAPTER XII.
Lucius Annus Seneca(1) of Cordova disciple of the Stoic Sotion(2) and
uncle of Lucan the Poet, was a man of most continent life, whom I should
not place in the category of saints were it not that those Epistles of Paul
to Seneca and Seneca a to Paul, which are read by many, provoke me. In
these, written when he was tutor of Nero and the most powerful man of that
time, he says that he would like to hold such a place among his countrymen
as Paul held among Christians. He was put to death by Nero two years before
Peter and Paul were crowned with martyrdom.
CHAPTER XIII.
Josephus,(1) the son of Matthias, priest of Jerusalem, taken prisoner
by Vespasian and his son Titus, was banished. Coming to Rome he presented
to the emperors, father and son, seven books On the captivity of the Jews,
which were deposited in the public library and, on account of his genius,
was found worthy of a statue at Rome. He wrote also twenty books of
Antiquities, from the beginning of the world until the fourteenth year of
Domitian Csar, and two of Antiquities against Appion, the grammarian of
Alexandria who, under Caligula, sent as legate on the part of the Gentiles
against Philo, wrote also a book containing a vituperation of the Jewish
nation. Another book of his entitled, On all ruling wisdom, in which the
martyr deaths of the Maccabeans are related is highly esteemed. In the
eighth book of his Antiquities he most openly acknowledges that Christ was
slain by the Pharisees on account of the greatness of his miracles, that
John the Baptist was truly a prophet, and that Jerusalem was destroyed
because of the murder of James the apostle. He wrote also concerning the
Lord after this fashion: "In this same time was Jesus, a wise man, if
indeed it be lawful to call him man. For he was a worker of wonderful
miracles, and a teacher of those who freely receive the truth. He had very
many adherents also, both of the Jews and of the Gentiles, and was believed
to be Christ, and when through the envy of our chief men Pilate had
crucified him, nevertheless those who had loved him at first continued to
the end, for he appeared to them the third day alive. Many things, both
these and other wonderful things are in the songs of the prophets who
prophesied concerning him and the sect of Christians, so named from Him,
exists to the present day."
CHAPTER XIV.
Justus, (2)(3) of Tiberias of the province Galilee, also attempted to
write a History of Jewish affairs and certain brief Commentaries on the
Scriptures but Josephus convicts him of falsehood. It is known that he
wrote at the same time as Josephus himself.
CHAPTER XV.
Clement,(4) of whom the apostle Paul writing to the Philippians says
"With Clement and others of my fellow-workers whose names are written in
the book of life,"(1) the fourth bishop of Rome after Peter, if indeed the
second was Linus and the third Anacletus,(2) although most of the Latins
think that Clement was second after the apostle.(3) He wrote, on the part
of the church of Rome, an especially valuable Letter to the church of the
Corinthians, which in some places is publicly read, and which seems to me
to agree in style with the epistle to the Hebrews which passes under the
name of Paul but it differs from this same epistle, not only in many of its
ideas, but also in respect of the order of words, and its likeness in
either respect is not very great. There is also a second Epistle under his
name which is rejected by earlier writers, and a Disputation between Peter
and Appion written out at length, which Eusebius in the third book of his
Church history rejects. He died in the third year of Trajan and a church
built at Rome preserves the memory of his name unto this day.
CHAPTER XVI.
Ignatius,(4) third bishop of the church of Antioch after Peter the
apostle, condemned to the wild beasts during the persecution of Trajan, was
sent bound to Rome, and when he had come on his voyage as far as Smyrna,
where Polycarp the pupil of John was bishop, he wrote one epistle To the
Ephesians, another To the Magnesians a third To the Trallians a fourth To
the Romans, and going thence, he wrote To the Philadelphians and To the
Smyrneans and especially To Polycarp, commending to him the church at
Antioch. In this last(5) he bore witness to the Gospel which I have
recently translated, in respect of the person of Christ saying, "I indeed
saw him in the flesh after the resurrection and I believe that he is," and
when he came to Peter and those who were with Peter, he said to them
"Behold! touch me and see me bow that I am not an incorporeal spirit" and
straightway they touched him and believed. Moreover it seems worth while
inasmuch as we have made mention of such a man and of the Epistle which he
wrote to the Romans, to give a few "quotations"(6): "From Syria even unto
Rome I fight with wild beasts, by land and by sea, by night and by day,
being bound amidst ten leopards, that is to say soldiers who guard me and
who only become worse when they are well treated. Their wrong doing,
however is my schoolmaster, but I am not thereby justified. May I have joy
of the beasts that are prepared for me; and I pray that I may find them
ready; I will even coax them to devour me quickly that they may not treat
me as they have some whom they have refused to touch through fear. And if
they are unwilling, I will compel them to devour me. Forgive me my
children, I know what is expedient for me. Now do I begin to be a disciple,
and desire none of the things visible that I may attain unto Jesus Christ.
Let fire and cross and attacks of wild beasts, let wrenching of bones,
cutting apart of limbs, crushing of the whole body, tortures [1] of the
devil,--let all these come upon me if only I may attain unto the joy which
is in Christ."
When he had been condemned to the wild beasts and with zeal for
martyrdom heard the lions roaring, he said "I am the grain of Christ. I am
ground by the teeth of the wild beasts that I may be found the bread of the
world." He was put to death the eleventh year of Trajan and the remains of
his body lie in Antioch outside the Daphnitic gate in the cemetery.
CHAPTER XVII.
Polycarp [2] disciple of the apostle John and by him ordained bishop of
Smyrna was chief of all Asia, where he saw and had as teachers some of the
apostles and of those who had seen the Lord. He, on account of certain
questions concerning the day of the Passover, went to Rome in the time of
the emperor Antoninus Pins while Anicetus ruled the church in that city.
There he led back to the faith many of the believers who had been deceived
through the persuasion of Marcion and Valentinus, and when. Marcion met him
by chance and said "Do you know us" he replied, "I know the firstborn of
the devil." Afterwards during the reign of Marcus Antoninus and Lucius
Aurelius Commodus in the fourth persecution after Nero, in the presence of
the proconsul holding court at Smyrna and all the people crying out against
him in the Amphitheater, he was burned. He wrote a very valuable Epistle to
the Philippians which is read to the present day in the meetings in Asia.
CHAPTER XVIII.
Papias, [1] the pupil of John, bishop of Hierapolis in Asia, wrote only
five volumes, which he entitled Exposition of the words of our Lord, in
which, when he had asserted in his preface that he did not follow various
opinions but had the apostles for authority, he said "I considered what
Andrew and Peter said, what Philip, what Thomas, what James, what John, [2]
what Matthew or any one else among the disciples of our Lord, what also
Aristion and the elder John, disciples of the Lord had said, not so much
that I have their books to read, as that their living voice is heard until
the present day in the authors themselves." It appears through this
catalogue of names that the John who is placed among the disciples is not
the same as the eider John whom he places after Aristion in his
enumeration. This we say moreover because of the opinion mentioned above,
where we record that it is declared by many that the last two epistles of
John are the work not of the apostle but of the presbyter.
He is said to have published a Second coming of Our Lord or Millennium.
Irenaeus and Apollinaris and others who say that after the resurrection the
Lord will reign in the flesh with the saints, follow him. Tertullian also
in his work On the hope of the faithful, Victorinus of Petau and Lactantius
follow this view.
CHAPTER XIX.
Quadratus [3] disciple of the apostles, after Publius bishop of Athens
had been crowned with martyrdom on account of his faith in Christ, was
substituted in his place, and by his faith and industry gathered the church
scattered by reason of its great fear. And when Hadrian passed the winter
at Athens to witness the Eleusinian mysteries and was initiated into almost
all the sacred mysteries of Greece, those who hated the Christians took
opportunity without instructions from the Emperor to harass the believers.
At this time he presented to Hadrian a work composed in behalf of our
religion, indispensable, full of sound argument and faith and worthy of the
apostolic teaching. In which, illustrating the antiquity of his period, he
says that he has seen many who, oppressed by various ills, were healed by
the Lord in Judea as well as some who had been raised from the dead.
CHAPTER XX.
Aristides [1] a most eloquent Athenian philosopher, and a disciple of
Christ while yet retaining his philosopher's garb, presented a work to
Hadrian at the same time that Quadratus presented his. The work contained a
systematic statement of our doctrine, that is, an Apology for the
Christians, which is still extant and is regarded by philologians as a
monument to his genius.
CHAPTER XXI.
Agrippa [2] surnamed Castor, a man of great learning, wrote a strong
refutation of the twenty-four volumes which Basilides the heretic had
written against the Gospel, disclosing all his mysteries and enumerating
the prophets Barcabbas and Barchob [3] and all the other barbarous names
which terrify the hearers, and his most high God Abraxas. whose name was
supposed to contain the year according to the reckoning [4] of the Greeks.
Basilides died at Alexandria in the reign of Hadrian, and from him the
Gnostic sects arose. In this tempestuous time also, Cochebas leader of the
Jewish faction put Christians to death with various tortures.
CHAPTER XXII.
Hegesippus [5] who lived at a period not far from the Apostolic age,
writing a History of all ecclesiastical events from the passion of our
Lord, down to his own period, and gathering many things useful to the
reader, composed five volumes in simple style, trying to represent the
style of speaking of those whose lives he treated. He says that he went to
Rome in the time of Anicetus, the tenth bishop after Peter, and continued
there till the time of Eleutherius, bishop of the same city, who had been
formerly deacon under Anicetus. Moreover, arguing against idols, he wrote a
history, showing from what error they had first arisen, and this work
indicates in what age he flourished. [6] He says, "They built monuments and
temples to their dead as we see up to the present day, [1] such as the one
to Antinous, servant to the Emperor Hadrian, in whose honour also games
were celebrated, and a city founded bearing his name, and a temple with
priests established." The Emperor Hadrian is said to have been enamoured of
Antinous.
CHAPTER XXIII.
Justin, [2] a philosopher, and wearing the garb of philosopher, a
citizen of Neapolis, a city of Palestine, and the son of Priscus Bacchius,
laboured strenuously in behalf of the religion of Christ, insomuch that he
delivered to Antoninus Pius and his sons and the senate, a work written
Against the nations, and did not shun the ignominy of the cross. He
addressed another book also to the successors of this Antoninus, Marcus
Antoninus Verus and Lucius Aurelius Commodus. Another volume of his Against
the nations, is also extant, where he discusses the nature of demons, and a
fourth against the nations which he entitled, Refutation and yet another On
the sovereignty of God, and another book which be entitled, Psaltes, and
another On the Soul, the Dialogue against the Jews, which he held against
Trypho, the leader of the Jews, and also notable volumes Against Marcion,
which Irenaeus also mentions in the fourth book [3] Against heresies, also
another book Against all heresies which he mentions in the Apology which is
addressed to Antoninus Pius. He, when be had held diatriba's in the city of
Rome, and had convicted Crescens the cynic, who said many blasphemous
things against the Christians, of gluttony and fear of death, and bad
proved him devoted to luxury and lusts, at last, accused of being a
Christian, through the efforts and wiles of Crescens, he shed his blood for
Christ.
CHAPTER XXIV.
Melito [4] of Asia, bishop of Sardis, addressed a book to the emperor
Marcus Antoninus Verus, a disciple of Fronto the orator, in behalf of the
Christian doctrine. He wrote other things also, among which are the
following: On the passover, two books, one book On the lives of the
prophets, one book On the church, [5] one book On the Lord's day, one book
On faith, one book On the psalms (?) one On the senses, one On the soul and
body, one On baptism, one On truth. one On the generation of Christ, On His
prophecy [1] one On hospitality and another which is called the Key--one On
the devil, one On the Apocalypse of John, one On the corporeality of God,
and six books of Eclogues. Of his fine oratorical genius, Tertullian, in
the seven books which he wrote against the church on behalf of Montanus,
satirically says that he was considered a prophet by many of us.
CHAPTER XXV.
Theophilus, [2] sixth bishop of the church of Antioch, in the reign of
the emperor Marcus Antoninus Verus composed a book Against Marcion, which
is still extant, also three volumes To Autolycus and one Against the heresy
of Hermogenes and other short and elegant treatises, well fitted for the
edification of the church. I have read, under his name, commentaries On the
Gospel and On the proverbs of Solomon which do not appear to me to
correspond in style and language with the elegance and expressiveness of
the above works.
CHAPTER XXVI.
Apollinaris, [3] bishop of Hierapolis in Asia, flourished in the reign
of Marcus Antoninus Verus, to whom he addressed a notable volume in behalf
of the faith of the Christians. There are extant also five other books of
his Against the Nations, two On truth and Against the Cataphrygians written
at the time when Montanus was making a beginning with Prisca and Maximilla.
CHAPTER XXVII.
Dionysius, [4] bishop of the church of Corinth, was of so great
eloquence and industry that he taught not only the people of his own city
and province but also those of other provinces and cities by his letters.
Of these one is To the Lacedaemonians, another To the Athenians, a third To
the Nicomedians, a fourth To the Cretans, a fifth To the church at
Amastrina and to the other churches of Pontus, a sixth To the Gnosians and
to Pinytus bishop of the same city, a seventh To the Romans, addressed to
Sorer their bishop, an eighth To Chrysophora a holy woman. He flourished in
the reign of Marcus Antoninus Verus and Lucius Aurelius Commodus.
CHAPTER XXVIII.
Pinytus [1] of Crete, bishop of the city of Gnosus, wrote to Dionysius
bishop of the Corinthians, an exceedingly elegant letter in which he
teaches that the people are not to be forever fed on milk, lest by chance
they be overtaken by the last day while yet infants, but that they ought to
be fed also on solid food, that they may go on to a spiritual old age. He
flourished under Marcus Antoninus Verus and Lucius Aurelius Com-modus. [2]
CHAPTER XXIX.
Tatian [3] who, while teaching oratory, won not a little glory in the
rhetorical art, was a follower of Justin Martyr and was distinguished so
long as he did not leave his master's side. But afterwards, inflated [4] by
a swelling of eloquence, he rounded a new heresy which is called that of
the Encratites, the heresy which Severus afterwards augmented in such wise
that heretics of this party are called Severians to the present day. Tatian
wrote besides innumerable volumes, one of which, a most successful book
Against the nations, is extant, and this is considered the most significant
of all his works. He flourished in the reign of Marcus Antoninus Verus and
Lucius Aurelius Commodus.
CHAPTER XXX.
Philip [5] bishop of Crete, that is of the city of Gortina, whom
Dionysius mentions in the epistle which he wrote to the church of the same
city, published a remarkable book Against Marcion and flourished in the
time of Marcus Antoninus Verus and Lucius Aurelius Commodus.
CHAPTER XXXI.
Musanus, [6] not inconsiderable among those who have written on
ecclesiastical doctrine, in the reign of Marcus Antoninus Verus wrote a
book to certain brethren who had turned aside from the church to the heresy
of the Encratites.
CHAPTER XXXII.
Modestus [1] also in the reign of Marcus Antoninus and Lucius Aurelius
Commodus wrote a book Against Marcion which is still extant. Some other
compositions pass under his name but are regarded by scholars as spurious.
CHAPTER XXXIII.
Bardesanes [2] of Mesopotamia is reckoned among the distinguished men.
He was at first a follower of Valentinus and afterwards his opponent and
himself founded a new heresy. He has the reputation among the Syrians of
having been a brilliant genius and vehement in argument. He wrote a
multitude of works against almost all heresies which had come into
existence in his time. Among these a most remarkable and strong work is the
one which he addressed to Marcus Antoninus On fate, and many other volumes
On persecution which his followers translated from the Syriac language into
Greek. If indeed so much force and brilliancy appears in the translation,
how great it must have been in the original.
CHAPTER XXXIV.
Victor, [3] thirteenth bishop of Rome, wrote, On the Paschal
Controversy and some other small works. He ruled the church for ten years
in the reign of the Emperor Severus.
CHAPTER XXXV.
Irenaeus, [4] a presbyter trader Pothinus the bishop who ruled the
church of Lyons in Gaul, being sent to Rome as legate by the martyrs of
Ibis place, on account of certain ecclesiastical questions, presented to
Bishop Eleutherius certain letters under his own name which are worthy of
honour. Afterwards when Pothinus, nearly ninety years of age, received the
crown of martyrdom for Christ, he was put in his place. It is certain too
that he was a disciple of Poly-carp, the priest and martyr, whom we
mentioned above. He wrote five books Against heresies and a short volume,
Against the nations and another On discipline, a letter to Marcianus his
brother On apostolical preaching, a book of Various treatises; also to
Blastus, On schism, [5] to Florinus On monarchy or That God is not the
author of evil, also an excellent Commentary on the Ogdoad at the end of
which indicating that he was near the apostolic period he wrote "I adjure
thee whosoever shall transcribe this book, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by
his glorious advent at which He shall judge the quick and the dead, that
you diligently compare, after you have transcribed, and amend it according
to the copy from which you have transcribed it and also that you shall
similarly transcribe this adjuration as you find it in your pattern." Other
works of his are in circulation to wit: to Victor the Roman bishop On the
Paschal controversy in which he warns him not lightly to break the unity of
the fraternity, if indeed Victor believed that the many bishops of Asia and
the East, who with the Jews celebrated the passover, on the fourteenth day
of the new moon, were to be condemned. But even those who differed from
them did not support Victor in his opinion. He flourished chiefly in the
reign of the Emperor Commodus, who succeeded Marcus Antoninus Verus in
power.
CHAPTER XXXVI.
Pantaenus, [2] a philosopher of the stoic school, according to some old
Alexandrian custom, where, from the time of [3] Mark the evangelist the
ecclesiastics were always doctors, was of so great prudence and erudition
both in scripture and secular literature that, on the request of the
legates of that nation, he was sent to India by Demetrius bishop of
Alexandria, where he found that Bartholomew, one of the twelve apostles,
had preached the advent of the Lord Jesus according to the gospel of
Matthew, and on his return to Alexandria he brought this with him written
in Hebrew characters. Many of his commentaries on Holy Scripture are indeed
extant, but his living voice was of still greater benefit to the churches.
He taught in the reigns of the emperor Severus and Antoninus surnamed
Caracalla.
CHAPTER XXXVII.
Rhodo, [4] a native of Asia, instructed in the Scriptures at Rome by
Tatian whom we mentioned above, published many things especially a work
Against Marcion in which he tells how the Marcionites differ from one
another as well as from the church and says that the aged Apelles, another
heretic, was once engaged in a discussion with him, and that he, Rhodo,
held Apelles up to ridicule because he declared that he did not know the
God whom he worshipped. He mentioned in the same book, which he wrote to
Callistion, that he had been a pupil of Tatian at Rome. He also composed
elegant treatises On the six days of creation and a notable work against
the Phrygians. [1] He flourished in the reigns of Commodus and Severus.
CHAPTER XXXVIII.
Clemens, [2] presbyter of the Alexandrian church, and a pupil of the
Pantaenus mentioned above, led the theological school at Alexandria after
the death of his master and was teacher of the Catechetes. He is the author
of notable volumes, full of eloquence and learning, both in sacred
Scripture and in secular literature; among these are the Stromata, eight
books, Hypotyposes eight books, Against the nations one book, On
pedagogy [3] three books, On the Passover, Disquisition on fasting and
another book entitled, What rich mast is saved? one book On Calumny, On
ecclesiastical canons and against those who follow the error of the Jews
one book which he addressed to Alexander bishop of Jerusalem. He also
mentions in his volumes of Stromata the work of Tatian Against the nations
which we mentioned above and a Chronography of one Cassianus, a work which
I have not been able to find. He also mentioned certain Jewish writers
against the nations, one Aristobulus and Demetrius and Eupolemus who after
the example of Josephus asserted the primacy of Moses and the Jewish
people. There is a letter of Alexander the bishop of Jerusalem who
afterwards ruled the church with Narcissus, on the ordination of
Asclepiades the confessor, addressed to the Antiochians congratulating
them, at the end of which he says "these writings honoured [4] brethren I
have sent to you by the blessed presbyter Clement, a man illustrious and
approved, whom you also know and with whom now you will become better
acquainted a man who, when he had come hither by the special providence of
God. strengthened and enlarged the church of God." Origen is known to have
been his disciple. He flourished more-over during the reigns of Severus and
his son Antoninus.
CHAPTER XXXIX.
Miltiades [1] of whom Rhodo gives an account in the work which he wrote
against Montanus, Prisca and Maximilla, wrote a considerable volume against
these same persons, and other books Against the nations and the Jews and
addressed an Apology to the then ruling emperors. He flourished in the
reign of Marcus Antoninus and Commodus.
CHAPTER XL.
Apollonius, [2] an exceedingly talented man, wrote against Montanus,
Prisca and Maximilla a notable and lengthy volume, in which he asserts that
Montanus and his mad prophetesses died by hanging, and many other things,
among which are the following concerning Prisca and Maximilla, "if they
denied that they have accepted gifts, let them confess that those who do
accept are not prophets and I will prove by a thousand witnesses that they
have received gifts, for it is by other fruits that prophets are shown to
be prophets indeed. Tell me, does a prophet dye his hair? Does a prophet
stain her eyelids with antimony? Is a prophet adorned with fine garments
and precious stones? Does a prophet play with dice and tables? Does he
accept usury? Let them respond whether this ought to be permitted or not,
it will be my task to prove that they do these things." He says in the same
book, that the time when he wrote the work was the fortieth year after the
beginning of the heresy of the Cataphrygians. Tertullian added to the six
volumes which he wrote On ecstasy against the church a seventh, directed
especially against Apollonius, in which he attempts to defend all which
Apollonius refuted. Apollonius flourished in the reigns of Commodus and
Severus.
CHAPTER XLI.
Serapion, [3] ordained bishop of Antioch in the eleventh year of the
emperor Commodus, wrote a letter to Caricus and Pontius [4] on the heresy
of Montanus, in which he said " that you may know moreover that the madness
of this false doctrine, that is the doctrine of a new prophecy, is
reprobated by all the world, I have sent to you the letters of the most
holy Apollinaris bishop of Hierapolis in Asia." He wrote a volume also to
Domnus, who in time of persecution went over to the Jews, and another work
on the gospel which passes under the name of Peter, a work to the church of
the Rhosenses in Cilicia who by the reading of this book had turned aside
to heresy. There are here and there short letters of his, harmonious in
character with the ascetic life of their author.
CHAPTER XLII.
Apollonius, [1] a Roman senator under the emperor Commodus, having been
denounced by a slave as a Christian, gained permission to give a reason for
his faith and wrote a remarkable volume which he read in the senate, yet
none the less, by the will of the senate, he was beheaded for Christ by
virtue of an ancient law among them, that Christians who had once been
brought before their judgment seat should not be dismissed unless they
recanted.
CHAPTER XLIII.
Theophilus, [2] bishop of Caesarea in Palestine, the city formerly
called Turris Stratonis, in the reign of the emperor Severus wrote, in
conjunction with other bishops, a synodical letter of great utility against
those who celebrated the passover with the Jews on the fourteenth day of
the month.
CHAPTER XLIV.
Bacchylus, [3] bishop of Corinth, was held in renown under the same
emperor Severus, and wrote, as representative of all the bishops who were
in Achaia, an elegant work On the passover.
CHAPTER XLV.
Polycrates [4] bishop of the Ephesians with other bishops of Asia who
in accordance with some ancient custom celebrated the passover with the
Jews on the fourteenth of the month, wrote a synodical letter against
Victor bishop of Rome in which he says that he follows the authority of the
apostle John and of the ancients. From this we make the following brief
quotations, "We therefore celebrate the day according to usage, inviolably,
neither adding anything to nor taking anything from it, for in Asia lie the
remains of the greatest saints of those who shall rise again on the day of
the Lord, when he shall come in majesty from heaven and shall quicken all
the saints, I mean Philip one of the twelve apostles who sleeps at
Hierapolis and his two daughters who were virgins until their death and
another daughter of his who died at Ephesus full of the Holy Spirit. And
John too, who lay on Our Lord's breast and was his high priest carrying the
golden frontlet on his forehead, both martyr and doctor, fell asleep at
Ephesus and Polycarp bishop and martyr died at Smyrna. Thraseas of Eumenia
also, bishop and martyr, rests in the same Smyrna. What need is there of
mentioning Sagaris, bishop and martyr, who sleeps in Laodicea and the
blessed Papyrus and Melito, eunuch in the Holy Spirit, who, ever serving
the Lord, was laid to rest in Sardis and there awaits his resurrection at
Christ's advent. These all observed the day of the passover on the
fourteenth of the month, in nowise departing from the evangelical tradition
and following the ecclesiastical canon. I also, Polycrates, the least of
all your servants, according to the doctrine of my relatives which I also
have followed (for there were seven of my relatives bishops indeed and I
the eighth) have always celebrated the passover when the Jewish people
celebrated the putting away of the leaven. And so brethren being sixty-five
years old in the Lord and instructed by many brethren from all parts of the
world, and having searched all the Scriptures, I will not fear those who
threaten us, for my predecessors said "It is fitting to obey God rather
than men." I quote this to show through a small example the genius and
authority of the man. He flourished in the reign of the emperor Severus in
the same period as Narcissus of Jerusalem.
CHAFFER XLVI.
Heraclitus [1] in the reign of Commodus and Severus wrote commentaries
on the Acts and Epistles.
CHAPTER XLVII.
Maximus, [2] under the same emperors pro-pounded in a remarkable volume
the famous questions, What is the origin of evil? and Whether matter is
made by God.
CHAPTER XLVIII.
Candidus [3] under the above mentioned emperors published most
admirable treatises On the six days of creation.
CHAPTER XLIX.
Appion (1) under the emperor Severus likewise wrote treatises On the
six days of creation.
CHAPTER L.
Sextus (2) in the reign of the emperor Severus wrote a book On the
resurrection.
CHAPTER LI.
Arabianus (3) under the same emperor published certain small works
relating to christian doctrine.
CHAPTER LII.
Judas, (4) discussed at length the seventy weeks mentioned in Daniel
and wrote a Chronography of former times which he brought up to the tenth
year of Severus. He is convicted of error in respect of this work in that
he prophesied that the advent of Anti-Christ would be about his period, but
this was because the greatness of the persecutions seemed to forebode the
end of the world.
CHAPTER LIII.
Tertullian (5) the presbyter, now regarded as chief of the Latin
writers after Victor and Apollonius, was from the city of Carthage in the
province of Africa, and was the son of a proconsul or Centurion, a man of
keen and vigorous character, he flourished chiefly in the reign of the
emperor Severus and Antoninus Caracalla and wrote many volumes which we
pass by because they are well known to most. I myself have seen a certain
Paul an old man of Concordia, a town of Italy, who, while he himself was a
very young man had been secretary to the blessed Cyprian who was already
advanced in age. He said that he himself had seen how Cyprian was
accustomed never to pass a day without reading Tertullian, and that be
frequently said to him, "Give me the master," meaning by this, Tertullian.
He was presbyter of the church until middle life, afterwards driven by the
envy and abuse of the clergy of the Roman church, he lapsed to the doctrine
of Montanus, and mentions the new prophecy in many of his books.
He composed, moreover, directly against the church, volumes: On
modesty, On persecution, On fasts, On monogamy, six books On ecstasy, and a
seventh which he wrote Against Apollonius. He is said to have lived to a
decrepit old age, and to have composed many small works, which are not
extant.
CHAPTER LIV.
Origen, (1) surnamed Adamantius, a persecution having been raised
against the Christians in the tenth year of Severus Pertinax, and his
father Leonidas having received the crown of martyrdom for Christ, was left
at the age of about seventeen, with his six brothers and widowed mother, in
poverty, for their property had been confiscated because of confessing
Christ. When only eighteen years old, he undertook the work of instructing
the Catechetes in the scattered churches of Alexandria. Afterwards
appointed by Demetrius. bishop of this city. successor to the presbyter
Clement, he flourished many years. When he had already reached middle life,
on account of the churches of Achaia, which were torn with many heresies,
he was journeying to Athens, by way of Palestine, under the authority of an
ecclesiastical letter, and having been ordained presbyter by Theoctistus
and Alexander, bishops of Caesarea and Jerusalem, he offended Demetrius,
who was so wildly enraged at him that he wrote everywhere to injure his
reputation. It is known that before he went to Caesarea, he had been at
Rome, trader bishop Zephyrinus. Immediately on his return to Alexandria he
made Heraclas the presbyter, who continued to wear his philosopher's garb,
his assistant in the school for catechetes. Heraclas became bishop of the
church of Alexandria, after Demetrius. How great the glory of Origen was,
appears from the fact that Firmilianus, bishop of Caesarea, with all the
Cappadocian bishops, sought a visit from him, and entertained him for a
long while. Sometime afterwards, going to Palestine to visit the holy
places, he came to Caesarea (2) and was instructed at length by Origen in
the Holy Scriptures. It appears also from the fact that he went to Antioch,
on the request of Mammaea, mother of the Emperor Alexander, and a woman
religiously disposed, and was there held in great honour, and sent letters
to the Emperor Philip, who was the first among the Roman rulers, to become
a christian, and to his mother, letters which are still extant. Who is
there, who does not also know that he was so assiduous in the study of Holy
Scriptures, that contrary to the spirit of his time, and of his people, he
learned the Hebrew language, and taking the Septuagint translation, he
gathered the other translations also in a single work, namely, that of
Aquila, of Ponticus the Proselyte, and Theodotian the Ebonite, and
Symmachus an adherent of the same sect who wrote commentaries also on the
gospel according to Matthew, from which he tried to establish his doctrine.
And besides these, a fifth, sixth, and seventh translation, which we also
have from his library, he sought out with great diligence, and compared
with other editions. And since I have given a list of his works, in the
volumes of letters which I have written to Paula, in a letter which I wrote
against the works of Varro, I pass this by now, not failing however, to
make mention of his immortal genius, how that he understood dialectics, as
well as geometry, arithmetic, music, grammar, and rhetoric, and taught all
the schools of philosophers, in such wise that he had also diligent
students in secular literature, and lectured to them daily, and the crowds
which flocked to him were marvellous. These, he received in the hope that
through the instrumentality of this secular literature, he might establish
them in the faith of Christ.
It is unnecessary to speak of the cruelty of that persecution which was
raised against the Christians and under Decius, who was mad against the
religion of Philip, whom he had slain,--the persecution in which Fabianus,
bishop of the Roman church, perished at Rome, and Alexander and Babylas,
Pontifs of the churches of Jerusalem and Antioch, were imprisoned for their
confession of Christ. If any one wishes to know what was done in regard to
the position of Origen, he can clearly learn, first indeed from his own
epistles, which after the persecution, were sent to different ones, and
secondly, from the sixth book of the church history of Eusebius of
Caesarea, and from his six volumes in behalf of the same Origen.
He lived until the time of Gallus and Volusianus, that is, until his
sixty-ninth year, and died at Tyre, in which city he also was buried.
CHAPTER LV.
Ammonius, (1) a talented man of great philosophical learning, was
distinguished at Alexandria, at the same time. Among many and distinguished
monuments of his genius, is the elaborate work which he composed On the
harmony of Moses and Jesus, and the Gospel canons, which he worked out, and
which Eusebius of Caesarea, afterwards followed. Porphyry falsely accused
him of having become a heathen again, after being a Christian, but it is
certain that he continued a Christian until the very end of his life.
CHAPTER LVI.
Ambrosius, (1) at first a Marcionite but afterwards set right by
Origen, was deacon in the church, and gloriously distinguished as confessor
of the Lord. To him, together with Protoctetus the presbyter, the book of
Origen, On martyrdom was written. Aided (2) by his industry, funds, and
perseverance, Origen dictated a great number of volumes. He himself, as
befits a man of noble nature, was of no mean literary talent, as his
letters to Origen indicate. He died moreover, before the death of Origen,
and is condemned by many, in that being a man of wealth, he did not at
death, remember in his will, his old and needy friend.
CHAPTER LVII.
Trypho, (3) pupil of Origen, to whom some of his extant letters are
addressed, was very learned in the Scriptures, and this many of his works
show here and there, but especially the book which he composed On the red
heifer (4) in Deuteronomy, and On the halves, which with the pigeon and the
turtledoves were offered by Abraham as recorded in Genesis. (5)
CHAPTER LVIII.
Minucius (6) Felix, a distinguished advocate of Rome, wrote a dialogue
representing a discussion between a Christian and a Gentile, which is
entitled Octavius, and still another work passes current in his name, On
fate, or Against the mathematicians, but this although it is the work of a
talented man, does not seem to me to correspond in style with the above
mentioned work. Lactantius also mentions this Minucius in his works.
CHAPTER LIX.
Gaius, (7) bishop of Rome, in the time of Zephyrinus, that is, in the
reign of Antoninus, the son of Severus, delivered a very notable
disputation Against Proculus, the follower of Montanus, convicting him of
temerity in his defence of the new prophecy, and in the same volume also
enumerating only thirteen epistles of Paul, says that the fourteenth, which
is now called, To the Hebrews, is not by him, and is not considered among
the Romans to the present day as being by the apostle Paul.
CHAPTER LX.
Beryllus, (1) bishop of Bostra in Arabia, after he had ruled the church
gloriously (2) for a little while, finally lapsed into the heresy which
denies that Christ existed before the incarnation. Set right by Origen, he
wrote various short works, especially letters, in which he thanks Origen.
The letters of Origen to him, are also extant, and a dialogue between
Origen and Beryllus as well, in which heresies are discussed. He was
distinguished during the reign of Alexander, son of Mammaea, and Maximinus
and Gordianus, who succeeded him in power.
CHAPTER LXI.
Hippolytus, (3) bishop of some church (the name of the city I have not
been able to learn) wrote A reckoning of the Paschal feast and
chronological tables which be worked out up to the first year of the
Emperor Alexander. He also discussed the cycle of sixteen years, which the
Greeks called ekkaidekaethri'da and gave the cue to Eusebius, who composed
on the same Paschal feast a cycle of nineteen years, that is
enneakaidekaethri'da. He wrote Some commentaries on the Scriptures, among
which are the following: On the six days of creation, On Exodus, On the
Song of Songs, On Genesis, On Zechariah, On the Psalms, On Isaiah, On
Daniel, On the Apocalypse, On the Proverbs, On Ecclesiastes, On Saul, On
the Pythonissa, On the Antichrist, On the resurrection, Against Marcion, On
the Passover, Against all heresies, and an exhortation On the praise of our
Lord and Saviour. in which he indicates that he is speaking in the church
in the presence of Origen. Ambrosius, who we have said was converted by
Origen from the heresy of Marcion, to the true faith. urged Origen to
write, in emulation of Hyppolytus, commentaries on the Scriptures, offering
him seven, and even more secretaries, and their expenses, and an equal
number of copyists, and what is still more, with incredible zeal, daily
exacting work from him, on which account Origen, in one of his epistles,
calls him his "Taskmaster."
CHAPTER LXII.
Alexander, (1) bishop of Cappadocia, desiring to visit the Holy Land,
came to Jerusalem, at the time when Narcissus, bishop of this city, already
an old man, ruled the church. It was revealed to Narcissus and many of his
clergy, that on the morning of the next day, a bishop would enter the city,
who should be assistant on the sacerdotal throne. And so it came to pass,
as it was predicted, and all the bishops of Palestine being gathered
together, Narcissus himself being especially urgent, Alexander took with
him the helm of the church of Jerusalem. At the end of one of his epistles,
written to the Antinoites On the peace of the church. He says "Narcissus,
who held the bishopric here before me, and now with me exercises his office
by his prayers, being about a hundred and sixteen years old, salutes you,
and with me begs you to become of one mind." He wrote another also To the
Antiocheans, by the hand of Clement, the presbyter of Alexandria, of whom
we spoke above, another also To Origen, and In behalf of Origen against
Demetrius, called forth by the fact that, according to the testimony of
Demetrius, he had made Origen presbyter. There are other epistles of his to
different persons. In the seventh persecution under Decius, at the time
when Babylas of Antioch was put to death, brought to Caesarea and shut up
in prison, he received the crown of martyrdom for confessing Christ.
CHAPTER LXIII.
Julius Africanus, (2) whose five volumes On Chronology, are yet extant,
in the reign of Marcus Aurelius Antoninus, who succeeded Macrinus, received
a commission to restore the city of Emmaus, which afterwards was called
Nicopolis. There is an epistle of his to Origen, On the question of
Susanna, where it is contended that this story is not contained in the
Hebrew, and is not consistent with the Hebrew etymology in respect of the
play on "prinos and prisai," "schinos and schisai." In reply to this,
Origen wrote a learned epistle. There is extant another letter of his, To
Aristides, in which he discusses at length the discrepancies, which appear
in the genealogy of our Saviour, as recorded by Matthew and Luke.
CHAPTER LXIV.
Geminus, (1) presbyter of the church at Antioch, composed a few
monuments of his genius, flourishing in the time of the Emperor Alexander
and Zebennus, bishop of his city, especially at the time at which Heraclas
was ordained Pontiff of the church at Alexandria.
CHAPTER LXV.
Theodorus, (2) afterwards called Gregory, bishop of Neocaesarea in
Pontus, while yet a very young man, in company with his brother
Athenodorus, went from Cappadocia to Berytus, and thence to Caesarea in
Palestine, to study Greek and Latin literature. When Origen had seen the
remarkable natural ability of these men, he urged them to study philosophy,
in the teaching of which he gradually introduced the matter of faith in
Christ, and made them also his followers. So, instructed by him for five
years, they were sent back by him to their mother. Theodorus, on his
departure, wrote a panegyric of thanks to Origen, and delivered it before a
large assembly. Origen himself being present. This panegyric is extant at
the present day.
He wrote also a short, but very valuable, paraphrase On Ecclesiastes,
and current report speaks or other epistles of his, but more especially of
the signs and wonders. which as bishop, he performed to the great glory of
the churches.
CHAPTER LXVI.
Cornelius, (3) bishop of Rome, to whom eight letters of Cyprian are
extant, wrote a letter to Fabius, (4) bishop of the church at Antioch, On
the Roman, Italian, and African councils, and another On Novatian and those
who had fallen from the faith, a third On the acts of the council, and a
fourth very prolix one to the same Fabius, containing the causes of the
Novatian heresy and an anathema of it. He ruled the church for two years
under Gallus and Volusianus. He received the crown of martyrdom for Christ,
and was succeeded by Lucius.
CHAPTER LXVII.
Cyprian (5) of Africa, at first was famous as a teacher of rhetoric,
and afterwards on, the persuasion of the presbyter Caecilius, from whom he
received his surname, he became a Christian, and gave all his substance to
the poor. Not long after he was inducted into the presbytery, and was also
made bishop of Carthage. It is unnecessary to make a catalogue of the works
of his genius, since they are more conspicuous than the sun.
He was put to death under the Emperors Valerian and Gallienus, in the
eighth persecution, on the same day that Cornelius was put to death at
Rome, but not in the same year.
CHAPTER LXVIII.
Pontius, (1) deacon of Cyprian, sharing his exile until the day of his
death, left a notable volume On the life and death of Cyprian.
CHAPTER LXIX.
Dionysius, (2) bishop of Alexandria, as presbyter had charge of the
catechetical school under Heraclas, and was the most distinguished pupil of
Origen. Consenting to the doctrine of Cyprian and the African synod, on the
rebaptizing (3) of heretics, he sent many letters to different people,
which are yet extant; He wrote one to Fabius, bishop of the church at
Antioch, On penitence, another To the Romans, by the hand of Hippolytus,
two letters To Xystus, who had succeeded Stephen, two also To Philemon and
Dionysius, presbyters of the church at Rome, and another To the same
Dionysius, afterwards bishop of Rome; and To Novatian, treating of their
claim that Novatian had been ordained bishop of Rome, against his will. The
beginning of this epistle is as follows: "Dionysius to Novatian, his
brother greeting. If you have been ordained unwillingly, as you say, you
will prove it, when yon shall willingly retire."
There is another epistle of his also To Dionysius and Didymus, and many
Festal epistles on the passover, written in a declamatory style, also one
to the church of Alexandria On exile, one To Hierax, (4) bishop in Egypt,
and vet others On mortality, On the Sabbath, and On the gymnasium, also one
To Hermammon and others On the persecution of Decius, and two books Against
Nepos the bishop, who asserted in his writings a thousand years reign in
the body. Among other things he diligently discussed the Apocalypse of
John, and wrote Against Sabellius and To Ammon, bishop of Bernice, and To
Telesphorus, also To Euphranor, also four books To Dionysius, bishop of
Rome, to the Laodiceans On penitence, to Origen On martyrdom, to the
Armenians On penitence, (1) also On the order of transgression, to Timothy
On nature, to Euphranor On temptation, many letters also To Basilides, in
one of which he asserts that he also began to write commentaries on
Ecclesiastes. The notable epistle which he wrote against Paul of Samosta, a
few days before his death is also current. He died in the twelfth year of
Gallienus.
CHAPTER LXX.
Novatianus, (2) presbyter of Rome, attempted to usurp the sacerdotal
chair occupied by Cornelius, and established the dogma of the Novatians, or
as they are called in Greek, the Cathari, by refusing to receive penitent
apostates. Novatus, author of this doctrine, was a presbyter of Cyprian. He
wrote, On the passover, On the Sabbath, On circumcision, On the priesthood,
On prayer, (3) On the food of the Jews On zeal, On Attalus, and many
others, especially, a great volume On the Trinity, a sort of epitome of the
work of Tertullian, which many mistakenly ascribe to Cyprian.
CHAPTER LXXI.
Malchion, (4) the highly gifted presbyter of the church at Antioch, who
had most successfully taught rhetoric in the same city, held a discussion
with Paul of Samosata, who as bishop of the church at Antioch, had
introduced the doctrine of Artemon, and this was taken down by short hand
writers. This dialogue is still extant, and vet another extended epistle
written by him, in behalf of the council, is addressed to Dionysius and
Maximus, bishops of Rome and Alexandria. He flourished under Claudius and
Aurelianus.
CHAPTER LXXII.
Archelaus, (5) bishop of Mesopotamia, composed in the Syriac language,
a book of the discussion which he held with Manichaeus, when he came from
Persia. This book, which is translated into Greek, is possessed by many.
He flourished under the Emperor Probus, who succeeded Aurelianus and
Tacitus.
CHAPTER LXXIlI.
Anatolius (1) of Alexandria, bishop of Laodicea in Syria, who
flourished under the emperors Probus and Carus, was a man of wonderful
learning in arithmetic, geometry, astronomy, grammar, rhetoric, and
dialectic. We can get an idea of the greatness of his genius from the
volume which he wrote On the passover and his ten books On the institutes
of arithmetic.
CHAPTER LXXIV.
Victorinus, (2) bishop of Pettau, was not equally familiar with Latin
and Greek. On this account his works though noble in thought, are inferior
in style. They are the following: Commentaries On Genesis, On Exodus, On
Leviticus, On Isaiah, On Ezekiel. On Habakkuk, On Ecclesiastes, On the Song
of Songs, On the Apocalypse of John, Against all heresies and many others.
At the last he received the crown of martyrdom.
CHAPTER LXXV.
Pamphilus (3) the presbyter, patron of Eusebius bishop of Caesarea, was
so inflamed with love of sacred literature, that he transcribed tim greater
part of the works of Origen with his own hand and these are still preserved
in the library at Caesarea. I have twenty-five volumes (4) of Commentaries
of Origen, written in his hand, On the twelve prophets which I hug and
guard with such joy, that I deem myself to have the wealth of Croesus. And
if it is such joy to have one epistle of a martyr how much more to have so
many thousand lines which seem to me to be traced in his blood. He wrote an
Apology for Origen before Eusebius had written his and was put to death at
Caesarea in Palestine in the persecution of Maximinus.
CHAPTER LXXVI.
Pierius, (5) presbyter of the church at Alexandria in the reign of
Carus and Diocletian, at the time when Theonas ruled as bishop in tim same
church, taught the people with great success and attained such elegance of
language and published so many treatises on all sorts of subjects (which
are still extant) that he was called Origen Junior. He was remarkable for
his self-discipline, devoted to voluntary poverty, and thoroughly
acquainted with the dialectic art. After the persecution, he passed the
rest of his life at Rome. There is extant a long treatise of his. On the
prophet Hoses which from internal evidence appears to have been delivered
on the vigil of Passover.
CHAPTER LXXVII.
Lucianus, (1) a man of great talent, presbyter of the church at
Antioch, was so diligent in the study of the Scriptures, that even now
certain copies of the Scriptures bear the name of Lucian. Works of his, On
faith, and short Epistles to various people are extant. He was put to death
at Nicomedia for his confession of Christ in the persecution of Maximinus,
and was buried at Helenopolis in Bithynia.
CHAPTER LXXVIII.
Phileas (2) a resident of that Egyptian city which is called Thmuis, of
noble family, and no small wealth, having become bishop, composed a finely
written work in praise of martyrs and arguing against the judge who tried
to compel him to offer sacrifices, was beheaded for Christ during the same
persecution in which Lucianus was put to death at Nicomedia.
CHAPTER LXXIX.
Arnobius (3) a was a most successful teacher of rhetoric at Sicca in
Africa during the reign of Diocletian, and wrote volumes Against the
nations which may be found everywhere.
CHAPTER LXXX.
Firmianus, (4) known also as Lactantius, a disciple of Arnobius, during
the reign of Diocletian summoned to Nicomedia with Flavius the Grammarian
whose poem On medicine is still extant, taught rhetoric there and on
account of his lack of pupils (since it was a Greek city) he betook himself
to writing. We have a Banquet of his which he wrote as a young man in
Africa and an Itinerary of a journey from Africa to Nicomedia written in
hexameters, and another book which is called The Grammarian and a most
beautiful one On the wrath of God, and Divine institutes against the
nations, seven books, and an Epitome of the same work in one volume,
without a title, (6) also two books To Asclepiades, one book On
persecution, four books of Epistles to Probus, two books of Epistles to
Severus, two books of Epistles to his pupil Demetrius (1) and one book to
the same On the work of God or the creation of man. In his extreme old age
he was tutor to Crispus Caesar a son of Constantine in Gaul, the same one
who was afterwards put to death by his father.
CHAPTER LXXXI.
Eusebius (2) bishop of Caesarea in Palestine was diligent in the study
of Divine Scriptures and with Pamphilus the martyr a most diligent
investigator of the Holy Bible. He published a great number of volumes
among which are the following: Demonstrations of the Gospel twenty books
Preparations for the Gospel fifteen books, Theophany (3) five books, Church
history ten books, Chronicle of Universal history and an Epitome of this
last. Also On discrepancies between the Gospels, On Isaiah, ten books, also
Against Porphyry, who was writing at that same time in Sicily as some
think, twenty-five books, also one book of Topics, six books of Apology for
Origen, three books On the life of Pamphilus, other brief works On the
martyrs, exceedingly learned Commentaries on one hundred and fifty Psalms,
and many others. He flourished chiefly in the reigns of Constantine the
Great and Constantius. His surname Pamphilus arose from his friendship for
Pamphilus the martyr.
CHAPTER LXXXII.
Reticius (4) bishop of Autun, among the Aedui, had a great reputation
in Gaul in the reign of Constantine. I have read his commentaries On the
Song of Songs and another great volume Against Novatian but besides these,
I have found no works of his.
CHAPTER LXXXIII.
Methodius, (5) bishop of Olympus in Lycia and afterwards of Tyre,
composed books Against Porphyry written in polished and logical style also
a Banquet of the ten virgins, an excellent work On the resurrection,
against Origen and On the Pythonissa and On free will, also against Origen.
He also wrote commentaries On Genesis and On the Song of Songs and many
others which are widely read. At the end of the recent
persecution or, as others affirm, in the reign of Decius and Valerianus, he
was crowned with martyrdom at Chalcis in Greece.
CHAPTER LXXXIV.
Juvencus,[1] a Spaniard of noble family and presbyter, translating the
four gospels almost verbally in hexameter verses, composed four books. He
wrote some other things in the same metre relating to the order of the
sacraments. He flourished in the reign of Constantinus.
CHAPTER LXXXV.
Eustathius,[2] a Pamphilian from Side, bishop[3] first of Beroea in
Syria and then of Antioch, ruled the church and, composing many things
against the doctrine of the Arians, was driven into exile under the emperor
Constantius[4] into Trajanopolis in Thrace where he is until this day.
Works of his are extant On the soul, On ventriloquism Against Origen and
Letters too numerous to mention.
CHAPTER LXXXVI.
Marcellus, [5] bishop of Ancyra, flourished in the reign of
Constantinus and Constantius anti wrote many volumes of various
Propositions and especially against the Arians. Works of Asterius and
Apollinarius against him are current, which accuse him of Sabellianism.
Hilary too, in the seventh book of his work Against the Arians, mentions
him as a heretic, but he defends himself against the charge through the
fact that Julius and Athanasius bishops of Rome and Alexandria communed
with him.
CHAPTER LXXXVII.
Athanasius[6] bishop of Alexandria, hard pressed by the wiles of the
Arians, fled to Constans emperor of Gaul. Returning thence with letters
and, after the death of the emperor, again taking refuge in flight, he kept
in hiding until the accession of Jovian, when he returned to the church and
died in the reign of Valens. Various works by him are in circulation; two
book Against the nations one Against Valens and Ursacius, On virginity,
very many On the persecutions of the Arians, also On the titles of the
Psalms and Life of Anthony the monk, also Festal epistles and other works
too numerous to mention.
CHAPTER LXXVIII.
Anthony [1] the monk, whose life Athanasius bishop of Alexandria wrote
a long work upon, sent seven letters in Coptic to various monasteries,
letters truly apostolic in idea and language, and which have been
translated into Greek. The chief of these is To the Arsenoites. He
flourished during the reign of Constantinus and his sons.
CHAPTER LXXXIX.
Basil [2] bishop of Ancyra, [a doctor of][3] medicine, wrote a book
Against Marcellus and on virginity and some other things--and in the reign
of Constantius was, with Eustathius of Sebaste, primate of Macedonia.
CHAPTER XC.
Theodorus, [4] bishop of Heraclea in Thrace, published in the reign of
the emperor Constantius commentaries On Matthew and John, On the Epistles
and On the Psalter. These are written in a polished and clear style and
show an excellent historical sense.
CHAPTER XCI.
Eusebius[5] of Emesa, who had fine rhetorical talent, composed
innumerable works suited to win popular applause and writing historically
he is most diligently read by those who practise public speaking. Among
these the chief are, Against Jews, Gentiles and Novatians and Homilies on
the Gospels, brief but numerous. He flourished in the reign of the emperor
Constantius in whose reign he died, and was buried at Antioch.
CHAPTER XCII.
Triphylus, bishop of Ledra or Leucotheon,[7] in Cyprus, was the most
eloquent man of his age, and was distinguished during the reign of
Constantius. I have read his Commentary on the Song of Songs. He is said to
have written many other works, none of which have come to our hand.
CHAPTER XCIII.
Donatus,[1] from whom the Donatians arose in Africa in the reigns of
the emperors Constantinus and Constantius, asserted that the scriptures
were given up to the heathen by the orthodox during the persecution, and
deceived almost all Africa, and especially Numidia by his persuasiveness.
Many of his works, which relate to his heresy, are extant, including On the
Holy Spirit, a work which is Arian in doctrine.
CHAPTER XCIV.
Asterius,[2] a philosopher of the Arian party, wrote, during the reign
of Constantius, commentaries On the Epistle to the Romans, On the Gospels
and On the Psalms, also many other works which are diligently read by those
of his party.
CHAPTER XCV.
Lucifer,[3] bishop of Cagliari, was sent by Liberius the bishop, with
Pancratius and Hilary, clergy of the Roman church, to the emperor
Constantius, as legates for the faith. When he would not condemn the Nicene
faith as represented by Athanasius, sent again to Palestine, with wonderful
constancy and willingness to meet martyrdom, he wrote a book against the
emperor Constantius and sent it to be read by him, and not long after he
returned to Cagliari in the reign of the emperor Julian and died in the
reign of Valentinian.
CHAPTER XCVI.
Eusebius,[4] a native of Sardinia, at first a lector at Rome and
afterwards bishop of Vercelli, sent by the emperor Constantius to
Scythopolis, and afterwards to Cappadocia, on account of his confession of
the faith, returned to the church under the emperor Julian and published
the Commentaries of Eusebius of Caesarea on the Psalms, which he had
translated from Greek into Latin, and died during the reign of Valentian
and Valens.
CHAPTER XCVII
Fortunatianus, [5] an African by birth, bishop of Aquilia during the
reign of Constantius, composed brief Commentaries on the gospels arranged
by chapters, written in a rustic style, and is held in detestation because,
when Liberius bishop of Rome was driven into exile for the faith, he was
induced by the urgency of Fortunatianus to subscribe to heresy.
CHAPTER XCVIII
Acacius,[1] who, because he was blind in one eye, they nicknamed "the
one-eyed," bishop of the church of Caesarea in Palestine, wrote seventeen
volumes On Ecclesiastes and six of Miscellaneous questions, and many
treatises besides on various subjects. He was so influential in the reign
of the emperor Constantius that lie made Felix bishop of Rome in the place
of Liberius.
CHAPTER XCIX.
Serapion,[2] bishop of Thmuis, who on account of his cultivated genius
was found worthy of the surname of Scholasticus, was the intimate friend of
Anthony the monk, and published an excellent book Against the Manichaeans,
also another On the titles of the Psalms, and valuable Epistles to
different people. In the reign of the emperor Constantius he was renowned
as a confessor.
CHAPTER C.
Hilary, [3] a bishop of Poitiers in Aquitania, was a member of the
party of Saturninus bishop of Arles. Banished into Phrygia by the Synod of
Beziers lie composed twelve books Against the Arians and another book On
Councils written to the Gallican bishops, and Commentaries on the Psalms
that is on the first and second, from the fifty-first to the sixty-second,
and from the one hundred and eighteenth to the end of the book. In this
work be imitated Origen, but added also some original matter. There is a
little book of his To Constantius which he presented to the emperor while
he was living in Constantinople, and another On Constantius which he wrote
alter his death and a book Against Valens and Ursacius, containing a
history of the Ariminian and Selucian Councils and To Sallust the prefect
or Against Dioscurus, also a book of Hymns and mysteries, a commentary On
Matthew and treatises On Fob, which lie translated freely from the Greek of
Origen, and another elegant little work Against Auxentius and Epistles to
different persons. They say he has written On the Son@ of Songs but this
work is not known to us. He died at Poictiers during the reign of
Valentinianus and Valens.
CHAPTER CI.
Victorinus, [1] an African by birth, taught rhetoric at Rome under the
emperor Constantius and in extreme old age, yielding himself to faith in
Christ wrote books against Arius, written in dialectic style and very
obscure language, books which can only be understood by the learned. He
also wrote Commentaries on the Epistles.
CHAPTER CII.
Titus[2] bishop of Bostra, in the reign of the emperors Julian and
Jovinian wrote vigorous works against the Manichaeans and some other
things. He died under Valens.
CHAPTER CIII.
Damasus,[3] bishop of Rome, had a fine talent for making verses and
published many brief works in heroic metre. He died in the reign of the
Emperor Theodosius at the age of almost eighty.
CHAPTER CIV.
Apollinarus,[4] bishop of Laodicea, in Syria, the son of a presbyter,
applied himself in his youth to the diligent study of grammar, and
afterwards, writing innumerable volumes on the Holy Scriptures, died in the
reign of the Emperor Theodosius. There are extant thirty books by him
Against Porphyry, which are generally considered as among the best of his
works.[3]
CHAPTER CV.
Gregory,[6] bishop of Elvira,[7] in Baetica, writing even to extreme
old age, composed various treatises in mediocre language, and an elegant
work On Faith. He is said to be still living.
CHAPTER CVI.
Pacianus, [8] bishop of Barcelona, in the Pyrenees Mountains, a man of
chaste eloquence, and as distinguished by his life as by his speech, wrote
various short works, among which are The Deer,[9] and Against the
Novatians, and died in the reign of Emperor Theodosian, in extreme old age.
CHAPTER CVII.
Photinus,[1] of Gallograecia, a disciple of Marcellus, and ordained
bishop of Sirmium, attempted to introduce the Ebionite heresy, and
afterwards having been expelled from the church by the Emperor
Valentinianus, wrote many volumes, among which the most distinguished are
Against the nations, and To Valentinianus.
CHAPTER CVIII.
Phoebadius,[2] bishop of Agen, in Gaul, published a book Against the
Arians. There are said to be other works by him, which I have not yet read.
He is still living, infirm with age.
CHAPTER CIX.
Didymus,[3] of Alexandria, becoming blind while very young, and
therefore ignorant of the rudiments of learning, displayed such a miracle
of intelligence as to learn perfectly dialectics and even geometry,
sciences which especially require sight. He wrote many admirable works:
Commentaries on all the Psalms, Commentaries on the Gospels of Matthew and
John, On the doctrines, also two books Against the Arians, and one book On
the Holy Spirit, which I translated in Latin, eighteen volumes On Isaiah,
three books of commentaries On Hosea, addressed to me, and five books On
Zechariah, written at my request, also commentaries On Job, and many other
things, to give an account of which would be a work of itself.[4] He is
still living, and has already passed his eighty-third year.
CHAPTER CX.
Optatus [5] the African, bishop of Milevis,[6] during the reign of the
Emperors Valentinianus and Valens, wrote in behalf of the Catholic party
six books against the calumny of the Donatian party, in which he asserts
that the crime of the Donatists is falsely charged upon the catholic party.
CHAPTER CXI.
Acilius Severus[1] of Spain, of the family of that Severus to whom
Lactantius' two books of Epistles are addressed, composed a volume of
mingled poetry and prose which is a sort of guide book to his whole life.
This he called Calamity or Trial.[2] He died in the reign of Valentinianus.
CHAPTER CXII.
Cyril,[3] bishop of Jerusalem often expelled by the church, and at last
received, held the episcopate for eight consecutive years, in the reign of
Theodosius. Certain Catachetical lectures of his, composed while he was a
young man, are extant.
CHAPTER CXIII.
Euzoius,[4] as a young man, together with Gregory, bishop of Nazianzan,
was educated by Thespesius the rhetorician at Caesarea, and afterwards when
bishop of the same city, with great pains attempted to restore the library,
collected by Origen and Pamphilus, which had already suffered injury. At
last, in the reign of the Emperor Theodosian, he was expelled from the
church. Many and various treatises of his, are in circulation, and one may
easily become acquainted with them.
CHAPTER CXIV.
Epiphanius,[5] bishop of Salamina in Cyprus, wrote books Against all
heresies and many others which are eagerly read by the learned, on account
of their subject matter, and also by the plain people, on account of their
language. He is still living, and in his extreme old age composes various
brief works.
CHAPTER CXV.
Ephraim,[6] deacon of the church at Edessa, composed many works in the
Syriac language, and became so distinguished that his writings are repeated
publicly in some churches, after the reading of the Scriptures.
I once read in Greek a volume by him On the Holy Spirit, which some one
had translated from the Syriac, and recognized even in translation, the
incisive power of lofty genius. He died in the reign of Valens.
CHAPTER CXVI.
Basil,[1] bishop of Caesarea in Cappadocia, the city formerly called
Mazaca, composed admirable carefully written books Against Eunomius, a
volume On the Holy Spirit, and nine homilies On the six days of creation,
also a work On asceticism and short treatises on various subjects. He died
in the reign of Gratianus.
CHAPTER CXVII.
Gregory,[2] bishop of Nazianzen, a most eloquent man, and my instructor
in the Scriptures, composed works, amounting in all to thirty thousand
lines, among which are On the death of his brother Caesarius, On charity,
In praise of the Maccabees, In praise of Cyprian. In praise of Athanasius,
In praise of Maximus the philosopher after he had returned from exile. This
latter however, some superscribe with the pseudonym of Herona, since there
is another work by Gregory, upbraiding this same Maximus, as if one might
not praise and upbraid the same person at one thee or another as the
occasion may demand. Other works of his are a book in hexameter,
containing, A discussion between virginity and marriage, two books Against
Eunomius, one book On the Holy Spirit, and one Against the Emperor Julian.
He was a follower of Polemon in his style of speaking. Having ordained his
successor in the bishopric, during his own life time, he retired to the
country where he lived the life of a monk and died, three years or more
ago, in the reign of Theodosius.
CHAPTER CXVIII.
Lucius,[3] bishop of the Arian party after Athanasius, held the
bishopric of the church at Alexandria, until the thee of the Emperor
Theodosius, by whom he was deposed. Certain festal epistles of his, On the
passover are extant, and a few short works of Miscellaneous propositions.
CHAPTER CXIX.
Diodorus,[4] bishop of Tarsus enjoyed a great reputation while he was
still presbyter of Antioch. Commentaries of his On the epistles are extant,
as well as many other works in the manner of Eusebius the great of Emesa,
whose meaning he has followed, but whose eloquence he could not imitate on
account of his ignorance of secular literature.
CHAPTER CXX.
Eunomius,[1] bishop of Cyzicus and member of the Arian party, fell into
such open blasphemy in his heresy, as to proclaim publicly what the others
concealed. He is said to be still living in Cappadocia, and to write much
against the church. Replies to him have been made by Apollinarius, Didymus,
Basil of Caesarea, Gregory Nazianzen, and Gregory of Nyssa.
CHAPTER. CXXI.
Priscillianus,[2] bishop of Abila, belonged to the party of Hydatius
and Ithacius, and was put to death at Treves by the tyrant Maximus. He
published many short writings, some of which have reached us. He is still
accused by some, of being tainted with Gnosticism, that is, with the heresy
of Basilides or Mark, of whom Irenaeus writes. while his defenders maintain
that he was not at all of this way of thinking.
CHAPTER CXXII.
Latronianus [3] of Spain, a man of great learning, and in the matter of
versification worthy to be compared with the poets of ancient thee, was
also put to death at Treves with Priscillianus, Felicissimus, Julianus, and
Euchrotia, cooriginators with him of schism. Various fruits of his genius
written in different metres are extant.
CHAPTER CXXIII.
Tiberianus,[4] the Baetican, in answer to an insinuation that he shared
the heresy of Priscillian, wrote an apology in pompous and mongrel
language. But after the death of his friends, overcome by the tediousness
of exile, he changed his mind, as it is written in Holy Scripture "the dog
returned to his vomit," and married a nun, a virgin dedicated to Christ.
CHAPTER CXXIV.
Ambrose[5] a bishop of Milan, at the present thee is still writing. I
withhold my judgment of him, because he is still alive, fearing either to
praise or blame lest in the one event, I should be blamed for adulation,
and in the other for speaking the truth.
CHAPTER CXXV.
Evagrius,[1] bishop of Antioch, a man of remarkably keen mind, while he
was yet presbyter read me various treatises on various topics, which he had
not yet published. He translated also the Life of the blessed Anthony from
the Greek of Athanasius into our language.
CHAPTER CXXVI.
Ambrose [2] of Alexandria, pupil of Didymus, wrote a long work On
doctrines against Apollinaris, and as some one has lately informed me,
Commentaries on Job. He is still living.
CHAPTER CXXVII.
Maximus[3] the philosopher, born at Alexandria, ordained bishop at
Constantinople and deposed, wrote a remarkable work On faith against the
Arians and gave it to the Emperor Gratianus, at Milan.
CHAPTER CXXVIII.
Gregory [4] bishop of Nyssa, the brother of Basil of Caesarea, a few
years since read to Gregory Nazianzan and myself a work against Eunomius.
He is said to have also written many other works, and to be still writing.
CHAPTER CXXIX.
John,[5] presbyter of the church at Antioch, a follower of Eusebius of
Emesa and Diodorus, is said to have composed many books, but of these I
have only read his On the priesthood.
CHAPTER CXXX.
Gelasius,[6] bishop of Caesarea in Palestine after Euzoius, is said to
write more or less in carefully polished style, but not to publish his
works.
CHAPTER CXXXI.
Theotimus,[7] bishop of Tomi, in Scythia, has published brief and
epigrammatical treatises, in the form of dialogues, and in olden style. I
hear that he is now writing other works.
CHAPTER CXXXII.
Dexter,[1] son of Pacianus whom I mentioned above, distinguished in his
generation and devoted to the Christian faith, has, I am told, written a
Universal History, which I have not yet read.
CHAPTER CXXXIII.
Amphilochius,[2] bishop of Iconium, recently read to me a book On the
Holy Spirit, arguing that He is God, that He is to be worshipped, and that
He is omnipotent.
CHAPTER CXXXIV.
Sophronius,[3] a man of superlative learning, wrote while yet a lad, In
praise of Bethlehem and recently a notable volume, On the overthrow of
Serapis, and also to Eustachius, On virginity, and a Life of Hilarion the
monk. He rendered short works of mine into Greek in a very finished style,
the Psalter also, and the Prophets, which I translated from Hebrew into
Latin.
CHAPTER CXXXV.
I, Jerome,[4] son of Eusebius, of the city of Strido, which is on the
border of Dalmatia and Pannonia and was overthrown by the Goths, up to the
present year, that is, the fourteenth of the Emperor Theodosius, have
written the following: Life of Paul the monk, one book of Letters to
different persons, an Exhortation to Heliodorus, Controversy of
Luciferianus and Orthodoxus, Chronicle of universal history, 28 homilies of
Origen on Jeremiah and Ezekiel, which I translated from Greek into Latin, i
On the Seraphim, On Osanna, On the prudent and the prodigal sons, On three
questions of the ancient law, Homilies on the Song of Songs two, Against
Helvidius, On the perpetual virginity of Mary, To Eustochius, On
maintaining virginity, one book of Epistles to Marcella, a consolatory
letter to Paula On the death of a daughter, three books of Commentaries on
the epistle of Paul to the Galatians, likewise three books of Commentaries
on the epistle to the Ephesians, On the epistle to Titus one book, On the
epistle to Philemon one, Commentaries on Ecclesiastes, one book of Hebrew
questions on Genesis, one book On places in Judea, one book of Hebrew
names, Didymus on the Holy Spirit, which ]2 translated into Latin one book,
39 homilies on Luke, [1] On Psalms 10 to 16, seven books, On the captive
Monk, The Life of the blessed Hilarion. I translated the New Testament from
the Greek, and the Old Testament from the Hebrew,[2] and how many Letters I
have written To Paula and Eustochius I do not know, for I write daily. I
wrote moreover, two books of Explanations on Micah, one book On Nahum, two
books On Habakkuk, one On Zephaniah, one On Haggai, and many others On the
prophets, which are not yet finished, and which I am still at work upon.[3]
Taken from "The Early Church Fathers and Other Works" originally published
by Wm. B. Eerdmans Pub. Co. in English in Edinburgh, Scotland, beginning in
1867. (LNPF II/III, Schaff and Wace). The digital version is by The
Electronic
Bible Society, P.O. Box 701356, Dallas, TX 75370, 214-407-WORD.
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