Eusebius, an admirer of Origen, was reproached by Eustathius for deviating from the Nicene faith. [61], A letter Eusebius is supposed to have written to Constantine's daughter Constantina, refusing to fulfill her request for images of Christ, was quoted in the decrees (now lost) of the Iconoclast Council of Hieria in 754, and later quoted in part in the rebuttal of the Hieria decrees in the Second Council of Nicaea of 787, now the only source from which some of the text is known. In 328, however, Constantine reversed his opinion about the Arian heresy and had both exiled bishops reinstated. Eusebius may have met Arius, the Alexandrian priest and originator of Arianism, in Antioch as a fellow student under the theologian and martyr St. Lucian. Athanasius, foreseeing the result, went to Constantinople to bring his cause before the Emperor. From a dogmatic point of view, Eusebius stands entirely upon the shoulders of Origen. Hence, much has been preserved in quotes by Eusebius which otherwise would have been lost. Through his friendship with the emperor’s sister, Constantia, he was probably responsible for much of the powerful Arian reaction of the emperor’s last years. Someone has said that if there had been no Arian heresy denying Christ’s divinity, it would be very difficult to write the lives of many early saints. Beyond notices in his extant writings, the major sources are the 5th-century ecclesiastical historians Socrates, Sozomen, and Theodoret, and the 4th-century Christian author Jerome. Afterward, the persecutions under Diocletian and Galerius directed his attention to the martyrs of his own time and the past, and this led him to the history of the whole Church and finally to the history of the world, which, to him, was only a preparation for ecclesiastical history. Eusebius attended the Council of Nicaea in 325 and despite his pro-Arian stance, he subscribed the Nicene formula, though he would not recognize Arius’ excommunication. Eusebius expressly distinguishes the Son as distinct from Father as a ray is also distinct from its source the sun. Eusebius' Life of Constantine (Vita Constantini) is a eulogy or panegyric, and therefore its style and selection of facts are affected by its purpose, rendering it inadequate as a continuation of the Church History. An edition of the Septuagint seems to have been already prepared by Origen, which, according to Jerome, was revised and circulated by Eusebius and Pamphilus. Having once excluded any relationship of the Nicene homoousios with the Christian tradition, it becomes legitimate to propose a new explanation, based on an analysis of two pagan documents which have so far never been taken into account. According to Eusebius of Caesarea, the word homoousios was inserted in the Nicene Creed solely by the personal order of Constantine. Although posterity suspected him of Arianism, Eusebius had made himself indispensable by his method of authorship; his comprehensive and careful excerpts from original sources saved his successors the painstaking labor of original research. The main thesis of this paper is that homoousios came straight from Constantine's Hermetic background. "[52] Eusebius relates that this happened "on a campaign he [Constantine] was conducting somewhere". As "Father of Church History" (not to be confused with the title of Church Father), he produced the Ecclesiastical History, On the Life of Pamphilus, the Chronicle and On the Martyrs. Twitter. [23] Pamphilus also managed a school that was similar to (or perhaps a re-establishment of[24]) that of Origen. Eusebius remained in the Emperor's favour throughout this time and more than once was exonerated with the explicit approval of the Emperor Constantine. At about the same time, he worked on his Chronicle, a universal calendar of events from the Creation to, again, Eusebius' own time. 356, n. 97), treated him very cruelly; then to Cappodocia, and lastly to Thebaid. For an easier survey of the material of the four Evangelists, Eusebius divided his edition of the New Testament into paragraphs and provided it with a synoptical table so that it might be easier to find the pericopes that belong together. Eusebius of Caesarea (/juːˈsiːbiəs/; Greek: Εὐσέβιος τῆς Καισαρείας, Eusébios tés Kaisareías; AD 260/265 – 339/340), also known as Eusebius Pamphili (from the Greek: Εὐσέβιος τοῦ Παμϕίλου), was a historian of Christianity, exegete, and Christian polemicist. Eustathius of Antioch strongly opposed the growing influence of Origen's theology, as the root of Arianism. [59] The original work was also translated into Syriac, and lengthy quotations exist in a catena in that language, and also in Coptic and Arabic catenas.[60]. When Arius was condemned in a synod at Alexandria (September 323), Eusebius sheltered him and sponsored a synod (October 323) at Bithynia, which nullified Arius’ excommunication. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Eusebius-of-Nicomedia, The Catholic Encyclopedia - Biography of Eusebius of Nicomedia. Of the extensive literary activity of Eusebius, a relatively large portion has been preserved. Translation by GLT. The Council of Nicæa did not bring the Arian controversy to an end. Eusebian definition is - a follower of Eusebius, bishop of Nicomedia : arian. The literary productions of Eusebius reflect on the whole th… Probably a native of Syria, Eusebius studied with the future heretic arius under lucian of antioch; he was first made bishop of Berytus in Phoenicia, then promoted to the metropolitan see of Nicomedia (c. 318), where he gained high favor at the court of the Emperor Licinius. [38], Eusebius succeeded Agapius as Bishop of Caesarea soon after 313 and was called on by Arius who had been excommunicated by his bishop Alexander of Alexandria. He is recognized as a saint in the Egyptian Coptic Church and the Ethiopian Church. Eusebius also wrote treatises on the Biblical past; these three treatises have been lost. Studies in Eusebian and Post-Eusebian chronography 1. However these portions are very extensive. 2nd/3rd century Greek historian of Christianity, exegete and Christian polemicist, "Abba Garima III Saint (Eusebius) in a laurel frame (AG II, fol. He finally lived in Constantinople from 338 up to his death. Eusebius held that men were sinners by their own free choice and not by the necessity of their natures. It is very difficult to explain the seeming paradoxical fact that this word, along with the explanation given by Constantine, was accepted by the "Arian" Eusebius, whereas it has left no traces at all in the works of his opponents, the leaders of the anti-Arian party such as Alexander of Alexandria, Ossius of Cordova, Marcellus of Ancyra, and Eustathius of Antioch, who are usually considered Constantine's theological advisers and the strongest supporters of the council. This work was recently (2011) translated into the English language by David J. Miller and Adam C. McCollum and was published under the name Eusebius of Caesarea: Gospel Problems and Solutions. [48] Although its accuracy and biases have been questioned,[49] it remains an important source on the early church due to Eusebius's access to materials now lost.[50]. They were: The addresses and sermons of Eusebius are mostly lost, but some have been preserved, e.g., a sermon on the consecration of the church in Tyre and an address on the thirtieth anniversary of the reign of Constantine (336). Most of Eusebius' letters are lost. Although posterity suspected him of Arianism, Eusebius had madehimself indispensable by his method of authorship; his comprehensive and carefulexcerpts from original sources saved his successors the painstaking labor oforiginal research. We conclude then that Eusebius was not an Arian (nor an adherent of Lucian) before 318, that soon after that date he became an Arian in the sense in which he understood Arianism, but that during the Council of Nicæa he ceased to be one in any sense. Lactantius does not mention a vision in the sky but describes a revelatory dream on the eve of battle. A portion of this letter was read at the Second Council of Nicæa, and against it were set portions from the letters to Alexander and Euphrasion to prove that Eusebius "was delivered up to a reprobate sense, and of one mind and opinion with those who followed the Arian superstition" (Labbe, "Conc. In the following year, he was again summoned before a synod in Tyre at which Eusebius of Caesarea presided. Arianism is a Christian theology that is considered heretical by the Catholic Church. He became Bishop of Berytus but managed to get a transfer to the See of Nicomedia, which was the residence of the Eastern Emperor Licinius. But the wiles of Eusebius, who in 328 recovered Constantine’s favor, were seconded by Asiatic intrigues, and a period of Arian reaction set in. Cohick claims as support for her position that "Eusebius is a notoriously unreliable historian, and so anything he reports should be critically scrutinized. Constantine called the bishops to his court, among them Eusebius. Pamphilus and Eusebius occupied themselves with the textual criticism of the Septuagint text of the Old Testament and especially of the New Testament. But, Eusebius had never posed as an Arian, and in 341 he had a fresh, triumph in the great Dedication Synod of Antioch, where a large number of orthodox and conservative bishops ignored the Council of Nicæa, and showed themselves quite at one with the Eusebian party; though denying they were ever followers of Arius, who was not even a bishop! "[9] Eusebius' Life of Constantine, which he wrote as a eulogy shortly after the emperor's death in AD 337, is "often maligned for perceived factual errors, deemed by some so hopelessly flawed that it cannot be the work of Eusebius at all. Then followed the time of the Arian controversies, and dogmatic questions came into the foreground. [27], Soon after Pamphilus settled in Caesarea (ca. For example, at least one scholar, Lynn Cohick, in dissenting from the majority view that Eusebius correctly identifies the Melito of the Peri Pascha with the Quartodeciman bishop of Sardis. Saying "the Holy Scriptures foretell that there will be unmistakable signs of the Coming of Christ. When his own honesty was challenged by his contemporaries. Eusebius of Nicomedia. Eusebius of Nicodemia was Arian but it was the Eusebius of Caesarea that wrote of Constantine's life and the first church historian to follow Saint Luke. The prophecies said that the abolition and complete destruction of all these three together would be the sign of the presence of the Christ. (History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, Vol II, Chapter XVI). By signing up for this email, you are agreeing to news, offers, and information from Encyclopaedia Britannica. He was a Bishop included in the Arab Caliphate in Phoenicia. Eusebius got his information about what texts were accepted by the third-century churches throughout the known world, a great deal of which Origen knew of firsthand from his extensive travels, from the library and writings of Origen. His unrelenting harassment of the leaders of the Homoousians helped lead Constantine to depose and exile Bishop St. Athanasius the Great of Alexandria at a synod in Tyre in 335 and to reinstate Arius at a synod in Jerusalem in 335. Of the extensive literary activity of Eusebius, a relatively large portion hasbeen preserved. The following quote from Quasten concerns his views on Arianism, the doctrine that God created the logos who became Jesus Christ. The literary productions of Eusebius reflect on the whole the course of his life. Print. Eusebius was a Christian thinker in the third-fourth centuries C.E. The following quote from Quasten concerns his views on Arianism, the doctrine that God created the … Prior to the Council of Nicaea, the church had temporarily excommunicated Eusebius because of his support of Arian Christology. Back to Early Arian Documents – Next Arian Document. He later became Bishop of Nicomedia before finally becoming Archbishop of Constantinople. The fault is in him who chooses, not in God. But this statement is highly problematic. Although posterity suspected him of Arianism, Eusebius had made himself indispensable by his method of authorship. Eusebius stayed active in church … It contained: Of the life of Pamphilus, only a fragment survives. Christianity at last found recognition by the State; and this brought new problems – apologies of a different sort had to be prepared. But at the Council of Nicaea Eusebius took a middle stand in the Arian controversy and affirmed the council’s creed. [26] Like his model Origen, Pamphilus maintained close contact with his students. [16][17], Eusebius was made presbyter by Agapius of Caesarea. [28] Because of his close relationship with his schoolmaster, Eusebius was sometimes called Eusebius Pamphili: "Eusebius, son of Pamphilus". [19], On his deathbed, Origen had made a bequest of his private library to the Christian community in the city. His comprehensive and careful excerpts from original sources saved his successors the painstaking labor of original research. The Chronicle (Παντοδαπὴ Ἱστορία (Pantodape historia)) is divided into two parts. The first part, the Chronography (Χρονογραφία (Chronographia)), gives an epitome of universal history from the sources, arranged according to nations. [46], In his Church History or Ecclesiastical History, Eusebius wrote the first surviving history of the Christian Church as a chronologically-ordered account, based on earlier sources, complete from the period of the Apostles to his own epoch. Hence, at the first ecumenical Council of Nicaea, in 325, he led the opposition against the Homoousians. He was somewhat sympathetic to the Arian position, while not fully embracing it himself. Although Gibbon refers to Eusebius as the "gravest" of the ecclesiastical historians, Other critics of Eusebius' work cite the panegyrical tone of the. 283; NPNF 2 vol. Hence much has been preserved, quoted by Eusebius, whichotherwise would have been destroyed. Athanasius was condemned and exiled at the end of 335. Pamphilus might not have obtained all of Origen's writings, however: the library's text of Origen's commentary on Isaiah broke off at 30:6, while the original commentary was said to have taken up thirty volumes. A work on the martyrs of Palestine in the time of Diocletian was composed after 311; numerous fragments are scattered in legendaries which have yet to be collected. [52][51] It is unclear from Eusebius's description whether the shields were marked with a Christian cross or with a chi-rho, a staurogram, or another similar symbol. [53] Eusebius's work of that time, his Church History, also makes no mention of the vision. Like Origen, he started from the fundamental thought of the absolute sovereignty (monarchia) of God. 27. To all this activity must be added numerous writings of a miscellaneous nature, addresses, letters, and the like, and exegetical works that extended over the whole of his life and that include both commentaries and an important treatise on the location of biblical place names and the distances between these cities. Facebook. [citation needed]. Origen was largely responsible for the collection of usage information, or which churches were using which gospels, regarding the texts which became the New Testament. [42], Much like his birth, the exact date of Eusebius' death is unknown. Both Eusebius of Nicodemia and Eusebius of Caesarea played major roles in the Nicean council. For God has not made nature or the substance of the soul bad; for he who is good can make nothing but what is good. [47] The time scheme correlated the history with the reigns of the Roman Emperors, and the scope was broad. Eusebius is another of the defenders of the Church during one of its most trying periods. Scholars use this range largely because in Ecclesiastical History, Eusebius refers to the third century bishop Dionysius of Alexandria as a contemporary, and Dionysius died in 264 AD. The tables of the second part have been completely preserved in a Latin translation by Jerome, and both parts are still extant in an Armenian translation. In August 323 Arius wrote Eusebius for aid when his teachings were being investigated by Bishop Alexander. He was a heretic, a supporter of Arius, who used his influence among the members of the family of Constantine the Great to further the Arian position as well as his personal esteem. [51] The Arch of Constantine, constructed in AD 315, neither depicts a vision nor any Christian insignia in its depiction of the battle. [note 2] The name may also indicate that Eusebius was made Pamphilus' heir. Eusebius of Nicomedia, (died c. 342), an important 4th-century Eastern church bishop who was one of the key proponents of Arianism (the doctrine that Jesus Christ is not of the same substance as God) and who eventually became the leader of an Arian group called the Eusebians.

Spinning Dancer Gif, Medical Schools Ranked By Residency Match, Officer Eugene Goodman Interview, Rumah Murah Pasir Gudang 2019, Enchanted Forest Nativity Scene, Halloween Party Ideas, Room For Rent Near Delhi University North Campus, Poems About A Woman Worth, Middle Age Poem Lyrics, Dimmu Borgir Albums Sold,