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TOPIC: Post-Nicene Fathers Vol 01 (Other Topics in this Collection)
SUBJECT: 21.02.28 Book V Part 3
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Chapter VI. Catalogue of the Bishops of Rome.
1 "The blessed apostleshyperlink having founded and established the church, entrusted the office of the episcopate to Linus.hyperlink Paul speaks of this Linus in his Epistles to Timothy.hyperlink
2 Anencletushyperlink succeeded him, and after Anencletus, in the third place from the apostles, Clementhyperlink received the episcopate. He had seen and conversed with the blessed apostles,hyperlink and their preaching was still sounding in his ears, and their tradition was still before his eyes. Nor was he alone in this, for many who had been taught by the apostles yet survived.
3 In the times of Clement, a serious dissension having arisen among the brethren in Corinth,hyperlink the church of Rome sent a most suitable letter to the Corinthians,hyperlink reconciling them in peace, renewing their faith, and proclaiminghyperlink the doctrine lately received from the apostles."hyperlink
4 A little farther on he says:hyperlink
"Evarestushyperlink succeeded Clement, and Alexander,hyperlink Evarestus. Then Xystus,hyperlink the sixth from the apostles, was appointed. After him Telesphorus,hyperlink who suffered martyrdom gloriously; then Hyginus;hyperlink then Pius;hyperlink and after him Anicetus;hyperlink Soterhyperlink succeeded Anicetus; and now, in the twelfth place from the apostles, Eleutherushyperlink holds the office of bishop.
5 In the same order and successionhyperlink the tradition in the Church and the preaching of the truth has descended from the apostles unto us."
Chapter VII. Even Down to Those Times Miracles Were Performed by the Faithful.
1 These things Irenaeus, in agreement with the accounts already given by us,hyperlink records in the work which comprises five books, and to which he gave the title Refutation and Overthrow of the Knowledge Falsely So-called.hyperlink In the second book of the same treatise he shows that manifestations of divine and miraculous power continued to his time in some of the churches.
2 He says:hyperlink
"But so far do they come short of raising the dead, as the Lord raised them, and the apostles through prayer. And oftentimes in the brotherhood, when, on account of some necessity, our entire Church has besought with fasting and much supplication, the spirit of the dead has returned,hyperlink and the man has been restored through the prayers of the saints."
3 And again, after other remarks, he says:hyperlink
"If they will say that even the Lord did these things in mere appearance, we will refer them to the prophetic writings, and show from them that all things were beforehand spoken of him in this manner, and were strictly fulfilled; and that he alone is the Son of God. Wherefore his true disciples, receiving grace from him, perform such works in his Name for the benefit of other men, as each has received the gift from him.
4 For some of them drive out demons effectually and truly, so that those who have been cleansed from evil spirits frequently believe and unite with the Church. Others have a foreknowledge of future events, and visions, and prophetic revelations. Still others heal the sick by the laying on of hands, and restore them to health. And, as we have said, even dead persons have been raised, and remained with us many years.
5 But why should we say more? It is not possible to recount the number of gifts which the Church, throughout all the world, has received from God in the name of Jesus Christ, who was crucified under Pontius Pilate, and exercises every day for the benefit of the heathen, never deceiving any nor doing it for money. For as she has received freely from God, freely also does she minister."hyperlink
6 And in another place the same author writes:hyperlink
"As also we hear that many brethren in the Church possess prophetic gifts, and speak, through the Spirit, with all kinds of tongues, and bring to light the secret things of men for their good, and declare the mysteries of God."
So much in regard to the fact that various gifts remained among those who were worthy even until that time.
Chapter VIII. The Statements of Irenaeus in Regard to the Divine Scriptures.
1 Since, in the beginning of this work,hyperlink we promised to give, when needful, the words of the ancient presbyters and writers of the Church, in which they have declared those traditions which came down to them concerning the canonical books, and since Irenaeus was one of them, we will now give his words and, first, what he says of the sacred Gospels:hyperlink
2 "Matthew published his Gospel among the Hebrews in their own language,hyperlink while Peter and Paul were preaching and founding the churchin Rome.hyperlink
3 After their departure Mark, the disciple and interpreter of Peter, also transmitted to us in writing those things which Peter had preached;hyperlink and Luke, the attendant of Paul, recorded in a book the Gospel which Paul had declared.hyperlink
4 Afterwards John, the disciple of the Lord, who also reclined on his bosom, published his Gospel, while staying at Ephesus in Asia."hyperlink
5 He states these things in the third book of his above-mentioned work. In the fifth book he speaks as follows concerning the Apocalypse of John, and the number of the name of Antichrist:hyperlink
"As these things are so, and this number is found in all the approved and ancient copies,hyperlink and those who saw John face to face confirm it, and reason teaches us that the number of the name of the beast, according to the mode of calculation among the Greeks, appears in its letters. ..."hyperlink
6 And farther on he says concerning the same:hyperlink
"We are not bold enough to speak confidently of the name of Antichrist. For if it were necessary that his name should be declared clearly at the present time, it would have been announced by him who saw the revelation. For it was seen, not long ago, but almost in our generation, toward the end of the reign of Domitian."hyperlink
7 He states these things concerning the Apocalypsehyperlink in the work referred to. He also mentions the first Epistle of John,hyperlink taking many proofs from it, and likewise the first Epistle of Peter.hyperlink And he not only knows, but also receives, The Shepherd,hyperlink writing as follows:hyperlink
"Well did the Scripturehyperlink speak, saying,hyperlink `First of all believe that God is one, who has created and completed all things,'" &c.
8 And he uses almost the precise words of the Wisdom of Solomon, saying:hyperlink "The vision of God produces immortality, but immortality renders us near to God." He mentions also the memoirshyperlink of a certain apostolic presbyter,hyperlink whose name he passes by in silence, and gives his expositions of the sacred Scriptures.
9 And he refers to Justin the Martyr,hyperlink and to Ignatius,hyperlink using testimonies also from their writings. Moreover, he promises to refute Marcion from his own writings, in a special work.hyperlink
10 Concerning the translation of the inspiredhyperlink Scriptures by the Seventy, hear the very words which he writes:hyperlink
"God in truth became man, and the Lord himself saved us, giving the sign of the virgin; but not as some say, who now venture to translate the Scripture, `Behold, a young woman shall conceive and bring forth a son,'hyperlink as Theodotion of Ephesus and Aquila of Pontus,hyperlink both of them Jewish proselytes, interpreted; following whom, the Ebionites sayhyperlink that he was begotten by Joseph."
11 Shortly after he adds:
"For before the Romans had established their empire, while the Macedonians were still holding Asia, Ptolemy, the son of Lagus,hyperlink being desirous of adorning the library which he had founded in Alexandria with the meritorious writings of all men, requested the people of Jerusalem to have their Scriptures translated into the Greek language.
12 But, as they were then subject to the Macedonians, they sent to Ptolemy seventy elders, who were the most skilled among them in the Scriptures and in both languages. Thus God accomplished his purpose.hyperlink
13 But wishing to try them individually, as he feared lest, by taking counsel together, they might conceal the truth of the Scriptures by their interpretation, he separated them from one another, and commanded all of them to write the same translation.hyperlink He did this for all the books.
14 But when they came together in the presence of Ptolemy, and compared their several translations, God was glorified, and the Scriptures were recognized as truly divine. For all of them had rendered the same things in the same words and with the same names from beginning to end, so that the heathen perceived that the Scriptures had been translated by the inspirationhyperlink of God.
15 And this was nothing wonderful for God to do, who, in the captivity of the people under Nebuchadnezzar, when the Scriptures had been destroyed, and the Jews had returned to their own country after seventy years, afterwards,in the time of Artaxerxes, king of the Persians, inspired Ezra the priest, of the tribe of Levi, to relate all the words of the former prophets, and to restore to the people the legislation of Moses."hyperlink
Such are the words of Irenaeus.
Chapter IX. The Bishops Under Commodus.
1 After Antoninushyperlink had been emperor for nineteen years, Commodus received the government.hyperlink In his first year Julianhyperlink became bishop of the Alexandrian churches, after Agrippinushyperlink had held the office for twelve years.
Chapter X. Pantaenus the Philosopher.
1 About that time, Pantaenus,hyperlink a man highly distinguished for his learning, had charge of the school of the faithful in Alexandria.hyperlink A school of sacred learning, which continues to our day, was established there in ancient times,hyperlink and as we have been informed,hyperlink was managed by men of great ability and zeal for divine things. Among these it is reportedhyperlink that Pantaenus was at that time especially conspicuous, as he had been educated in the philosophical system of those called Stoics.
2 They say that he displayed such zeal for the divine Word, that he was appointed as a herald of the Gospel of Christ to the nations in the East, and was sent as far as India.hyperlink For indeedhyperlink there were still many evangelists of the Word who sought earnestly to use their inspired zeal, after the examples of the apostles, for the increase and building up of the Divine Word.
3 Pantaenus was one of these, and is said to have gone to India. It is reported that among persons there who knew of Christ, he found the Gospel according to Matthew, which had anticipated his own arrival. For Bartholomew,hyperlink one of the apostles, had preached to them, and left with them the writing of Matthew in the Hebrew language,hyperlink which they had preserved till that time.
4 After many good deeds, Pantaenus finally became the head of the school at Alexandria,hyperlink and expounded the treasures of divine doctrine both orally and in writing.hyperlink
Chapter XI. Clement of Alexandria.
1 At this time Clement,hyperlink being trained with himhyperlink in the divine Scriptures at Alexandria, became well known. He had the same name as the one who anciently was at the head of the Roman church, and who was a disciple of the apostles.hyperlink
2 In his Hypotyposeshyperlink he speaks of Pantaenus by name as his teacher. It seems to me that he alludes to the same person also in the first book of his Stromata, when, referring to the more conspicuous of the successors of the apostles whom he had met,hyperlink he says:hyperlink
3 "This workhyperlink is not a writing artfully constructed for display; but my notes are stored up for old age, as a remedy against forgetfulness; an image without art, and a rough sketch of those powerful and animated words which it was my privilege to hear, as well as of blessed and truly remarkable men.
4 Of these the one-the Ionianhyperlink -was in Greece, the other in Magna Graecia;hyperlink the one of them was from Coele-Syria,hyperlink the other from Egypt. There were others in the East, one of them an Assyrian,hyperlink the other a Hebrew in Palestine.hyperlink But when I met with the last,hyperlink -in ability truly he was first,-having hunted him out in his concealment in Egypt, I found rest.
5 These men, preserving the true tradition of the blessed doctrine, directly from the holy apostles, Peter and James and John and Paul, the son receiving it from the father (but few were like the fathers), have come by God's will even to us to deposit those ancestral and apostolic seeds."hyperlink
Footnotes
94 Namely, Peter and Paul; but neither of them founded the Roman church. See above, Bk. II. chap. 25, note 17.
95 On Linus, see above, Bk. III. chap. 2, note 1; and for the succession of the early Roman bishops, see the same note.
96 2 Tim. iv. 21.
97 On Anencletus, see above, Bk. III. chap. 13, note 3.
98 On Clement, see above, Bk. III. chap. 4, note 19.
99 Although the identification of this Clement with the one mentioned in Phil. iv. 3 is more than doubtful, yet there is no reason to doubt that, living as he did in the first century at Rome, he was personally acquainted at least with the apostles Peter and Paul.
100 See the Epistle of Clement itself, especially chaps. 1 and 3.
101 Upon the epistle, see above, Bk. III. chap. 16, note 1.
102 aneousa thn pistin autwn kai hn newsti apo twn apostolwn paradotin eilhfei. The last word being in the singular, the tradition must be that received by the Roman, not by the Corinthian church (as it is commonly understood), and hence it is necessary to supply some verb which shall govern paradosin, for it is at least very harsh to say that the Roman church, in its epistle to the Corinthians "renewed" the faith which it had received. The truth is, that both in Rufinus and in Irenaeus an extra participle is found (in the former exprimens, in the latter annuntians), and Stroth has in consequence ventured to insert the word kataggelousa in his text. I have likewise, for the sake of the sense, inserted the word proclaiming, not thereby intending to imply, however, the belief that kataggelousa stood in the original text of Eusebius.
103 It is interesting to notice how strictly Eusebius carries out his principle of taking historical matter wherever he can find it, but of omitting all doctrinal statements and discussions. The few sentences which follow in Irenaeus are of a doctrinal nature, and in the form of a brief polemic against Gnosticism.
104 Ibid.
105 Upon Evarestus, see above, Bk. III. chap. 34, note 3.
106 Upon Alexander, see Bk. IV. chap. 1, note 4.
107 Upon Xystus, see IV. 4, note 3.
108 Upon Telesphorus, see IV. 5, note 13.
109 Upon Hyginus, see IV. 10, note 3.
110 Upon Pius, see IV. 11, note 14.
111 Upon Anicetus, see IV. 11, note 18.
112 Upon Soter, see IV. 19, note 2.
113 Upon Eleutherus, see Introd. to this book, note 2.
114 diadoxh, which is confirmed by the ancient Latin version of Irenaeus (successione), and which is adopted by Zimmermann, Heinichen, and Valesius (in his notes). All the mss. of Eusebius, followed by the majority of the editors, read didaxh, which, however, makes no sense in this place, and can hardly have been the original reading (see Heinichen's note in loco).
115 In the various passages referred to in the notes on the previous chapter.
116 elegxou kai anatrophj thj yeudwnumou gnwsewj (cf. 1 Tim. vi. 20). This work of Irenaeus, which is commonly known under its Latin title, Adversus Haereses (Against Heresies), is still extant in a barbarous Latin version, of which we possess three mss. The original Greek is lost, though a great part of the first book can be recovered by means of extensive quotations made from it by Hippolytus and Epiphanius. The work is directed against the various Gnostic systems, among which that of Valentinus is chiefly attacked. The first book is devoted to a statement of their doctrines, the second to a refutation of them, and the remaining three to a presentation of the true doctrines of Christianity as opposed to the false positions of the Gnostics. The best edition of the original is that of Harvey: S. Irenaei libros quinque adv. Haereses., Cambr. 1857, 2 vols.; English translation in the Ante-Nicene Fathers, I. p. 309 ff. For the literature of the subject, see Schaff, II. p. 746 ff. On Irenaeus himself, see Book IV. chap. 21, note 9.
117 Adv. Haer. II. 31. 2. The sentence as it stands in Eusebius is incomplete. Irenaeus is refuting the pretended miracles of Simon and Carpocrates. The passage runs as follows: "So far are they [i.e. Simon and Carpocrates] from being able to raise the dead as the Lord raised them and as the apostles did by means of prayer, and as has been frequently done in the brotherhood on account of some necessity-the entire Church in that locality entreating with much fasting and prayer [so that] the spirit of the dead man has returned, and he has been bestowed in answer to the prayer of the saints-that they do not even believe this can possibly be done, [and hold] that the resurrection from the dead is simply an acquaintance with that truth which they proclaim."This resurrection of the dead recorded by Irenaeus is very difficult to explain, as he is a truth-loving man, and we can hardly conceive of his uttering a direct falsehood. Even Augustine, "the iron man of truth," records such miracles, and so the early centuries are full of accounts of them. The Protestant method of drawing a line between the apostolic and post-apostolic ages in this matter of miracles is arbitrary, and based upon dogmatic, not historical grounds. The truth is, that no one can fix the point of time at which miracles ceased; at the same time it is easy to appreciate the difference between the apostolic age and the third, fourth, and following centuries in this regard. That they did cease at an early date in the history of the Church is clear enough. Upon post-apostolic miracles, see Schaff, Ch. Hist. II. p. 116 ff., J. H. Newman's Two Essays on Biblical and Eccles. Miracles, and J. B. Mozley's Bampton lectures On Miracles.
118 See the previous note.
119 Adv. Haer. II. 32. 4.
120 Cf. Matt. x. 8.
121 Adv. Haer. V. 6. 1.
122 Eusebius is apparently thinking of the preface to his work contained in Bk. I. chap. 1, but there he makes no such promise as he refers to here. He speaks only of his general purpose to mention those men who preached the divine word either orally or in writing. In Bk. III. chap. 3, however, he distinctly promises to do what he here speaks of doing, and perhaps remembered only that he had made such a promise without recalling where he had made it.
123 Adv. Haer. III. 1. 1.
124 See above, Bk. III. chap. 24, note 5. Irenaeus, in this chapter traces the four Gospels back to the apostles themselves, but he is unable to say that Matthew translated his Gospel into Greek, which is of course bad for his theory, as the Matthew Gospel which the Church of his time had was in Greek, not in Hebrew. He puts the Hebrew Gospel, however, upon a par with the three Greek ones, and thus, although he does not say it directly, endeavors to convey the impression that the apostolicity of the Hebrew Matthew is a guarantee for the Greek Matthew also. Of Papias' statement, "Each one translated the Hebrew Gospel of Matthew as he was able," he could of course make no use even if he was acquainted with it. Whether his account was dependent upon Papias' or not we cannot tell.
125 See above, Bk. II. chap. 25, note 17.
126 See above, Bk. II. chap. 15, note 4.
127 See above, Bk. III. chap. 4, note 15.
128 See above, Bk. III. chap. 24, note 1.
129 Irenaeus, Adv. Haer. V. 30. 1.
130 Rev. xiii. 18. Already in Irenaeus' time there was a variation in the copies of the Apocalypse. This is interesting as showing the existence of old copies of the Apocalypse even in his time, and also as showing how early works became corrupted in the course of transmission. We learn from his words, too, that textual criticism had already begun.
131 The sentence as Eusebius quotes it here is incomplete; he repeats only so much of it as suits his purpose. Irenaeus completes his sentence, after a few more dependent clauses, by saying, "I do not know how it is that some have erred, following the ordinary mode of speech, and have vitiated the middle number in the name," &c. This shows that even in Irenaeus' time there was as much controversy about the interpretation of the Apocalypse as there has always been, and that at that day exegetes were as a rule in no better position than we are. Irenaeus refers in this sentence to the fact that the Greek numerals were indicated by the letters of the alphabet: Alpha, "one," Beta, "two," &c.
132 i.e. concerning the Beast or Antichrist. Irenaeus, Adv. Haer. V. 30. 3; quoted also in Bk. III. chap. 18, above.
133 See above, Bk. III. chap. 18, note 1.
134 Upon the Apocalypse, see Bk. III. chap. 24, note 20.
135 In Adv. Haer. III. 16. 5, 8. Irenaeus also quotes from the second Epistle of John, without distinguishing it from the first, in III. 16. 8, and I. 16. 3. Upon John's epistles, see Bk. III. chap. 24, notes 18 and 19.
136 In Adv. Haer. IV. 9. 2. In IV. 16. 5 and V. 7. 2 he quotes from the first Epistle of Peter, with the formula "Peter says." He is the first one to connect the epistle with Peter. See above, Bk. III. chap. 3, note 1.
137 i.e. the Shepherd of Hermas; see above, Bk. III. chap. 3, note 23.
138 Adv. Haer. IV. 20. 2.
139 h grafh, the regular word used in quoting Scripture. Many of the Fathers of the second and third centuries used this word in referring to Clement, Hermas, Barnabas, and other works of the kind (compare especially Clement of Alexandria's use of the word).
140 The Shepherd of Hermas, II. 1.
141 Adv. Haer. IV. 38. 3. Irenaeus in this passage quotes freely from the apocryphal Book of Wisdom, VI. 19, without mentioning the source of his quotation, and indeed without in any way indicating the fact that he is quoting.
142 apomnhmoneumatwn. Written memoirs are hardly referred to here, but rather oral comments, expositions, or accounts of the interpretations of the apostles and others of the first generation of Christians.
143 Adv. Haer. IV. 27. 1, where Irenaeus mentions a "certain presbyter who had heard it from those who had seen the apostles," &c. Who this presbyter was cannot be determined. Polycarp, Papias, and others have been suggested, but we have no grounds upon which to base a decision, though we may perhaps safely conclude that so prominent a man as Polycarp would hardly have been referred to in such an indefinite way; and Papias seems ruled out by the fact that the presbyter is here not made a hearer of the apostles themselves, while in V. 33. 4 Papias is expressly stated to have been a hearer of John,-undoubtedly in Irenaeus' mind the evangelist John (see above, Bk. III. chap. 39, note 4). Other anonymous authorities under the titles, "One superior to us," "One before us," &c., are quoted by Irenaeus in Praef. ç2, I. 13. 3, III. 17. 4, etc. See Routh, Rel. Sacrae, I. 45-68.
144 In Adv. Haer. IV. 6. 2, where he mentions Justin Martyr and quotes from his work Against Marcion (see Eusebius, Bk. IV. chap. 18), and also in Adv. Haer. V. 26. 2, where he mentions him again by name and quotes from some unknown work (but see above, ibid. note 15).
145 Irenaeus nowhere mentions Ignatius by name, but in V. 28. 4 he quotes from his epistle to the Romans, chap. 4, under the formula, "A certain one of our people said, when he was condemned to the wild beasts." It is interesting to note how diligently Eusebius had read the works of Irenaeus, and extracted from them all that could contribute to his History.Upon Ignatius, see above, III. 36.
146 Adv. Haer. I. 27. 4, III. 12. 12. This promise was apparently never fulfilled, as we hear nothing of the work from any of Irenaeus' successors. But in Bk. IV. chap. 25 Eusebius speaks of Irenaeus as one of those who had written against Marcion, whether in this referring to his special work promised here, or only to his general work Adv. Haer., we cannot tell.
147 qeopneustwn.
148 Adv. Haer. III. 21. 1.
149 Isa. vii. 14. The original Hebrew has hml//
which means simply a "young woman," not distinctively a "virgin." The LXX, followed by Matt. i. 23, wrongly translated by parqenoj, "virgin" (cf. Toy's Quotations in the New Testament, p. 1 sqq., and the various commentaries on Matthew). Theodotion and Aquila translated the Hebrew word by neanij,, which is the correct rendering, in spite of what Irenaeus says. The complete dependence of the Fathers upon the LXX, and their consequent errors as to the meaning of the original, are well illustrated in this case (cf. also Justin's Dial. chap. 71).
150 This is the earliest direct reference to the translations of Aquila and Theodotion, though Hermas used the version of the latter, as pointed out by Hort (see above, Bk. III. chap. 3, note 23). Upon the two versions, see Bk. VI. chap. 16, notes 3 and 5.
151 Upon the Ebionites and their doctrines, see Bk. III. chap. 27.
152 Ptolemy, the son of Lagus, or Ptolemy Soter (the Preserver), was king of Egypt from 323-285 (283) b.c.
The following story in regard to the origin of the LXX is first told in a spurious letter (probably dating from the first century b.c.), which professes to have been written by Aristeas, a high officer at the court of Ptolemy Philadelphus (285[283]-247 b.c.). This epistle puts the origin of the LXX in the reign of the latter monarch instead of in that of his father, Ptolemy Soter, and is followed in this by Philo, Josephus, Tertullian, and most of the other ancient writers (Justin Martyr calls the king simply Ptolemy, while Clement of Alex. says that some connect the event with the one monarch, others with the other). The account given in the letter (which is printed by Gallandius, Bibl. Patr. II. 771, as well as in many other editions) is repeated over and over again, with greater or less variations, by early Jewish and Christian writers (e.g. by Philo, Vit. Mos. 2; by Josephus, Ant. XII. 2; by Justin Martyr, Apol. I. 31; by Clement of Alexandria, Strom. I. 22; by Tertullian, Apol. 18, and others; see the article Aristeas in Smith's Dict. of Greek and Roman Biog.). It gives the number of the elders as seventy-two,-six from each tribe. That this marvelous tale is a fiction is clear enough, but whether it is based upon a groundwork of fact is disputed (see Schüurer, Gesch. der Juden im Zeitalter Jesu Christi, II. p. 697 sqq.). It is at any rate certain that the Pentateuch (the original account applies only to the Pentateuch, but later it was extended to the entire Old Testament) was translated into Greek in Alexandria as early as the third century b.c.; whether under Ptolemy Philadelphus, and at his desire, we cannot tell. The translation of the remainder of the Old Testament followed during the second century b.c., the books being translated at various times by unknown authors, but all or most of them probably in Egypt (see Schüurer, ibid.). It was, of course, to the interest of the Christians to maintain the miraculous origin of the LXX, for otherwise they would have to yield to the attacks of the Jews, who often taunted them with having only a translation of the Scriptures. Accepting the miraculous origin of the LXX, the Christians, on the other hand, could accuse the Jews of falsifying their Hebrew copies wherever they differed from the LXX, making the latter the only authoritative standard (cf. Justin Martyr's Dial. chap. 71, and many other passages in the work). Upon the attitude of the Christians, and the earlier and later attitude of the Jews toward the LXX, see below, Bk. VI. chap. 16, note 8.
153 poihsantoj tou qeou oper hbouleto. This is quite different from the text of Irenaeus, which readsfacturos hoc quod ipse voluisset (implying that the original Greek was poihsontaj touto oper hbouleto), "to carry out what he [viz. Ptolemy] had desired." Heinichen modifies the text of Eusebius somewhat, substituting poihsontaj ta for poihsantoj tou, but there can be little doubt that Eusebius originally wrote the sentence in the form given at the beginning of this note. That Irenaeus wrote it in that form, however, is uncertain, though, in view of the fact that Clement of Alex. (Strom. I. 22) confirms the reading of Eusebius (reading qeou gar hn boulhma), I am inclined to think that the text of Eusebius represents the original more closely than the text of the Latin translation of Irenaeus does. Most of the editors, however, both of Eusebius and of Irenaeus, take the other view (cf. Harvey's note in his edition of Irenaeus, Vol. II. p. 113).
154 thn authn ermhneian grafein, as the majority of the mss., followed by Burton and most other editors, read. Stroth Zimmermann, and Heinichen, on the authority of Rufinus and of the Latin version of Irenaeus, read, thn authhn ermhneuein grafhn.
155 kat epipnoian.
156 This tradition, which was commonly accepted until the time of the Reformation, dates from the first Christian century, for it is found in the fourth book of Ezra (xiv. 44): It is there said that Ezra was inspired to dictate to five men, during forty days, ninety-four books, of which twenty-four (the canonical books) were to be published. The tradition is repeated quite frequently by the Fathers, but that Ezra formed the Old Testament canon is impossible, for some of the books were not written until after his day. The truth is, it was a gradual growth and was not completed until the second century b.c. See above, Bk. III. chap. 10, note 1.
157 i.e. Marcus Aurelius. See below, p. 390, note.
158 March 17, 180a.d.
159 Of this Julian we know nothing except what is told us by Eusebius here and in chap. 22, below, where he is said to have held office ten years. In theChron. he is also said to have been bishop for ten years, but his accession is put in the nineteenth year of Marcus Aurelius (by Jerome), or in the second year of Commodus (by the Armenian version).
160 Upon Agrippinus, see above, Bk. IV. chap. 19, note 5.
161 Pantaenus is the first teacher of the Alexandrian school that is known to us, and even his life is involved in obscurity. His chief significance for us lies in the fact that he was the teacher of Clement, with whom the Alexandrian school first steps out into the full light of history, and makes itself felt as a power in Christendom. Another prominent pupil of Pantaenus was Alexander, bishop of Jerusalem (see below, Bk. VI. chap. 14). Pantaenus was originally a Stoic philosopher, and must have discussed philosophy in his school in connection with theology, for Origen appeals to him as his example in this respect (see below, Bk. VI. chap. 19). His abilities are testified to by Clement (in his Hypotyposes; see the next chapter, §4), who speaks of him always in terms of the deepest respect and affection. Of his birth and death we know nothing. Clement, Strom. I. 1, calls him a "Sicilian bee," which may, perhaps, have reference to his birthplace. The statement of Philip of Side, that he was an Athenian, is worthless. We do not know when he began his work in Alexandria, nor when he finished it. But from Bk. VI. chap. 6 we learn that Clement had succeeded Pantaenus, and was in charge of the school in the time of Septimius Severus. This probably means not merely that Pantaenus had left Egypt, but that he was already dead; and if that be the case, the statement of Jerome (de vir. ill. 36), that Pantaenus was in charge of the school during the reigns of Septimius Severus and Caracalla, is erroneous (Jerome himself expressly says, in ibid. chap. 38, that Clement succeeded Pantaenus upon the death of the latter). Jerome's statement, however, that Pantaenus was sent to India by Demetrius, bishop of Alexandria, is not necessarily in conflict with the indefinite account of Eusebius, who gives no dates. What authority Jerome has for his account we do not know. If his statement be correct, the journey must have taken place after 190; and thus after, or in the midst or, his Alexandrian activity. Eusebius apparently accepted the latter opinion, though his statement at the end of this chapter is dark, and evidently implies that he was very uncertain in regard to the matter. His whole account rests simply on hearsay, and therefore too much weight must not be laid upon its accuracy. After Clement comes upon the scene (which was at least some years before the outbreak of the persecution of Severus, 200a.d.-when he left the city) we hear nothing more of Pantaenus. Some have put his journey to India in this later period; but this is contrary to the report of Eusebius, and there is no authority for the opinion. Photius (Cod. 118) records a tradition that Pantaenus had himself heard some of the apostles; but this is impossible, and is asserted by no one else. According to Jerome, numerous commentaries of Pantaenus were extant in his time. Eusebius, at the close of this chapter, speaks of his expounding the Scriptures "both orally and in writing," but he does not enumerate his works, and apparently had never seen them. No traces of them are now extant, unless some brief reminiscences of his teaching, which we have, are supposed to be drawn from his works, and not merely from his lectures or conversations (see Routh, Rel. Sac. I. p. 375-383).
162 The origin of this school of the faithful, or "catechetical school," in Alexandria is involved in obscurity. Philip of Side names Athenagoras as the founder of the school, but his account is full of inconsistencies and contradictions, and deserves no credence. The school first comes out into the light of history at this time with Pantaenus at its head, and plays a prominent part in Church history. under Clement, Origen, Heraclas, Dionysius, Didymus, &c., until the end of the fourth century, when it sinks out of sight in the midst of the dissensions of the Alexandrian church, and its end like its beginning is involved in obscurity. It probably owed its origin to no particular individual, but arose naturally as an outgrowth from the practice which flourished in the early Church of instructing catechumens in the elements of Christianity before admitting them to baptism. In such a philosophical metropolis as Alexandria, a school, though intended only for catechumens, would very naturally soon assume a learned character, and it had already in the time of Pantaenus at least become a regular theological school for the preparation especially of teachers and preachers. It exercised a great influence upon theological science, and numbered among its pupils many celebrated theologians and bishops. See the article by Redepenning in Herzog, 2d ed. I. 290-292, and Schaff's Ch. Hist. II. 777-781, where the literature of the subject is given.
163 Jerome (de vir. ill. c. 36) states that there had always been ecclesiastical teachers in Alexandria from the time of Mark. He is evidently, however, giving no independent tradition, but merely draws his conclusion from the words of Eusebius who simply says "from ancient times." The date of the origin of the school is in fact entirely unknown, though there is nothing improbable in the statement of Jerome that ecclesiastical teachers were always there. It must, however, have been some years before a school could be developed or the need of it be felt.
164 pareilhfamen.
165 logoj exei.
166 Jerome (de vir. ill. 36) says that he was sent to India by the bishop Demetrius at the request of the Indians themselves,-a statement more exact than that of Eusebius, whether resting upon tradition merely, or upon more accurate information, or whether it is simply a combination of Jerome's, we do not know. It is at any rate not at all improbable (see above, note 1). A little farther on Eusebius indicates that Pantaenus preached in the same country in which the apostle Bartholomew had done missionary work. But according to Lipsius (Dict. of Christ. Biog. I. p. 22) Bartholomew's traditional field of labor was the region of the Bosphorus. He follows Gutschmid therefore in claiming that the Indians here are confounded with the Sindians, over whom the Bosphorian kings of the house of Polemo ruled. Jerome (Ep. ad Magnum; Migne, Ep. 70) evidently regards the India where Pantaenus preached as India proper (Pantaenus Stoicae sectae philosophus, ob pracipue eruditionis gloriam, a Demetrio Alexandriae episcopo missus est in Indiam, ut Christum apud Brachmanas, et illius gentis philosophos praedicaret). Whether the original tradition was that Pantaenus went to India, and his connection with Bartholomew (who was wrongly supposed to have preached to the Indians) was a later combination, or whether, on the other hand, the tradition that he preached in Bartholomew's field of labor was the original and the mission to India a later combination, we cannot tell. It is probable that Eusebius meant India proper, as Jerome certainly did, but both of them may have been mistaken.
167 hsan gar, hsan eiseti. Eusebius seems to think it a remarkable fact that there should still have been preaching evangelists. Evidently they were no longer common in his day. It is interesting to notice that he calls them "evangelists." In earlier times they were called "apostles" (e.g. in the Didache), but the latter had long before Eusebius' time become a narrower, technical term.
168 See note 6.
169 If the truth of this account be accepted, Pantaenus is a witness to the existence of a Hebrew Matthew. See above, Bk. III. chap. 24, note 5. It has been assumed by some that this Gospel was the Gospel according to the Hebrews (see Bk. III. chap. 25, note 24). This is possible; but even if Pantaenus really did find a Hebrew Gospel of Matthew as Eusebius says (and which, according to Jerome, de vir. ill. 36, he brought back to Alexandria with him), we have no grounds upon which to base a conclusion as to its nature, or its relation to our Greek Matthew.
170 Eusebius apparently puts the journey of Pantaenus in the middle of his Alexandrian activity, and makes him return again and teach there until his death. Jerome also agrees in putting the journey in the middle and not at the beginning or close of his Alexandrian activity. It must be confessed, however, that Eusebius'language is very vague, and of such a nature as perhaps to imply that he really had no idea when the mission took place.
171 See above, note 1.
172 Of the place and time of Titus Flavius Clement's birth we have no certain knowledge, though it is probable that he was an Athenian by training at least, if not by birth, and he must have been born about the middle of the second century. He received a very extensive education, and became a Christian in adult years, after he had, tried various systems of philosophy, much as Justin Martyr had. He had a great thirst for knowledge, and names six different teachers under whom he studied Christianity (see below, §4). Finally he became a pupil of Pantaenus in Alexandria, whom he afterward succeeded as the head of the catechetical school there. It is at this time (about 190 a.d.) that he comes out clearly into the light of history, and to this period (190-202) belongs his greatest literary activity. He was at the head of the school probably until 202, when the persecution of Severus having broken out, he left Alexandria, and we nave no notice that he ever returned. That he did not leave Alexandria dishonorably, through fear, may be gathered from his presence with Alexander during his imprisonment, and from the letters of the latter (see below, Bk. VI. chaps. 11 and 14, and cf. Bk. VI. chap. 6, notes). This is the last notice that we have of him (a.d. 212); and of the place and time of his death we know nothing, though he cannot have lived many years after this. He was never a bishop, but was a presbyter of the Alexandrian church, and was in ancient times commemorated as a saint, but his name was dropped from the roll by Clement VIII. on account of suspected heterodoxy. He lived in an age of transition, and his great importance lies in the fact that he completed the bond between Hellenism and Christianity, and as a follower of the apologists established Christianity as a philosophy, and yet not as they had done in an apologetic sense. He was the teacher of Origen, and the real father of Greek theology. He published no system, as did Origen; his works were rather desultory and fragmentary, but full of wide and varied learning, and exhibit a truly broad and catholic spirit. Upon his works, see Bk. VI. chap. 13. Upon Clement, see especially Westcott's article in Smith and Wace, I. 559-567, and Schaff, II. 781-785, where the literature is given with considerable fullness. For an able and popular presentation of his theology, see Allen's Continuity of Christian Thought, p. 38-70.
173 sunaskoumenoj.
174 Upon Clement of Rome and his relation to the apostles, see Bk. III. chap. 4, note 19.
175 On Clement's Hypotyposes, see Bk. VI. chap. 13, note 3. The passage in which he mentions Pantaenus by name has not been preserved. Eusebius repeats the same statement in Bk. VI. chap. 13, §1.
176 touj emfanesterouj hj kateilhfen apostolikhj diadoxhj epishmainomenoj. Rufinus reads apostolicae praedicationis instead of successionis. And so Christophorsonus and Valesius adopt didaxhj instead of diadoxhj, and translate doctrinae. Butdiadoxhj is too well supported by ms. authority to be rejected; and though the use of the abstract "succession," instead of the concrete "successors," seems harsh, it is employed elsewhere in the same sense by Eusebius (see Bk. I. chap. 1, §1).
177 Strom. I. 1.
178 i.e. his Stromata.
179 This is hardly a proper name, although many have so considered it, for Clement gives no other proper name in this connection, and it is much more natural to translate "the Ionian." Various conjectures have been made as to who these teachers were, but none are more than mere guesses. Philip of Side tells us that Athenagoras was a teacher of Clement, but, as we have seen, no confidence can be placed in his statement. It has been conjectured also that Melito may be the person referred to as "the Ionian," for Clement mentions his works, and wrote a book on the paschal question in reply to Melito's work on the same subject (see above, Bk. IV. chap. 26, note 23). This too, however, is mere conjecture.
180 The lower part of the peninsula of Italy was called Magna Graecia, because it contained so many Greek colonies.
181 Coele-Syria was the valley lying between the eastern and western ranges of Lebanon.
182 This has been conjectured to be Tatian. But in the first place, Clement, in Strom. III. 12, calls Tatian a Syrian instead of an Assyrian (the terms are indeed often used interchangeably, but we should nevertheless hardly expect Clement to call his own teacher in one place a Syrian, in another an Assyrian). And again, in II. 12, he speaks very harshly of Tatian, and could hardly have referred to him in this place in such terms of respect and affection.
183 Various conjectures have been made as to the identity of this teacher,-for instance, Theophilus of Caesarea (who, however, was never called a Hebrew, according to Valesius), and Theodotus (so Valesius).
184 Pantaenus. There can be no doubt as to his identity, for Clement says that he remained with him and sought no further. Eusebius omits a sentence here in which Clement calls Pantaenus the "Sicilian bee," from which it is generally concluded that he was a native of Sicily (see the previous chapter, note 1).
185 This entire passage is very important, as showing not only the extensiveness of Clement's own acquaintance with Christians, but also the close intercourse of Christians in general, both East and West. Clement's statement in regard to the directness with which he received apostolic tradition is not definite, and he by no means asserts that his teachers were hearers of the apostles (which in itself would not be impossible, but Clement would certainly have spoken more clearly had it been a fact), nor indeed that they were hearers of disciples of the apostles. But among so many teachers, so widely scattered, he could hardly have failed to meet with some who had at least known those who had known the apostles. In any case he considers his teachers very near the apostles as regards the accuracy of their traditions.
The passage is also interesting, as showing the uniformity of doctrine in different parts of Christendom, according to Clement's view, though this does not prove much, as Clement himself was so liberal and so much of an eclectic. It is also interesting, as showing how much weight Clement laid upon tradition, how completely he rested upon it for the truth, although at the same time he was so free and broad in his speculation.