Eusebius of Alexandria and Eusebius of Emesa

ANNO CONTROVERSO. EUSEBIUS ALEXANDRINUS ET EUSEBIUS EMESENUS*. NOTITIA. (ANG. MAI. Spicileg. Rom. t. IX, I-XI.)

I. Concerning Eusebius, who is frequently called in the manuscripts Bishop of Alexandria, the first person, so far as I know, to make mention of him after the revival of letters was Franciscus Turrianus in his *Defens. canonum apost. et epist. decret.*, who also recited brief fragments of his works, pp. 166, 182, 518, 519 (Florentine edition, 1572); then, on p. 120, he says expressly of him: "This Eusebius existed 1300 years ago, whom Antherus, the twentieth pontiff after Peter, wrote in his epistle had been transferred from a small city to Alexandria." But we know indeed that the epistle of Antherus is Isidorian, or spurious; and we must necessarily disagree with Turrianus regarding the fact that Eusebius was a man of the third century. The cause of Turrianus’s error was that he confused Eusebius Alexandrinus—a deacon in the third century under Bishop Dionysius, and later Bishop of Laodicea—with our own Eusebius, ^A who was also a bishop, and who must undoubtedly be believed to have lived in a slightly later age; although he is certainly older than John Damascene, by whom he is very often cited in the *Parallela* (1), with passages from his sermons recited which in reality appear in our edition today. Nay, Eusebius is even older than the monk John, by whom he is likewise cited at least twice in the same *Parallela* (pp. 777 and 782), whom Lequinius, in his *Admon. ad Parall.* t. II, p. 275, shows to be an entire century older than that famous Damascene, as he wrote at the beginning of the reign of the Emperor Heraclius. Fabricius, along with Harles, also spoke curiously of our Eusebius in *B. Gr.* t. VII, pp. 394, 406, 409. Likewise G. Cave studied him diligently in *t. I, p. 453 and II D, p. 8*. Kollarius similarly, in his scholia to Lambecius, lib. v, p. 49 up to 32, mentioned some of the homilies of this Eusebius, which, although written in a humble style, he judged were nevertheless not unworthy of publication on account of the ancient and Catholic discipline they convey to the Church. The great Leo Allatius, in his *Diatriba de Simeonibus*, commemorates many homilies of Eusebius ^B of Alexandria, on pp. 82, 84, 91, 99, 105, 112; not to mention other bibliographers who copy from one another. Above all, however, Lequinius has perhaps discoursed more learnedly on this Eusebius in his annotations to Damascene’s *Parallela*, t. II, p. 666 seq., and again in *Oriente Christ.* t. II, 905, whose passages Gallandius brought forward in his *Præfatio to B. PP.* t. VIII, p. XXIII seq. And first, indeed, Lequinius, in order to deny the Alexandrian episcopacy of Eusebius (of which we speak below), had thought it to be a mistake of the copyists, who might perhaps have written "Eusebius Bishop of Alexandria" instead of "Eusebius Bishop at Alexandria." For because Eusebius often speaks with Alexander in his sermons, Lequinius had thought he had hit upon the truth. But he later retracted that opinion, moved by the titles of very many manuscripts, in *Or. Christ.* loc. cit. In reality, besides the almost constant inscription of the manuscripts, it appears now at last from the life of Eusebius published by us that he was either Bishop of Alexandria (and, indeed, of that great city ^C in Egypt); or if by chance that life of Eusebius is not truthful, it is now certainly clear why he is called "Bishop of Alexandria" in the titles: namely because this assertion flowed from the aforementioned biography and passed into the titles of the manuscripts.

II. Furthermore, here is a summary of the biography of our Eusebius, which, on account of the limited size of this volume, we have edited in Greek only, pp. 703-713. There was a certain man, named Eusebius, endowed with sacred learning and every kind of virtue, who professed the monastic life on a mountain near the great city of Alexandria, in which place he, by various homilies...

* We have not wished to separate Eusebius Alexandrinus from Eusebius Emesenus, because their works can scarcely be distinguished from one another. EDIT. PATR.

(1) In the edition of Lequinius, t. II, pp. 316, 331, and 576, 597 seq. 637, 665, 666-668, 671, 675, 697, 701, and perhaps elsewhere; as well as 391, 393, 422, 425, 470, 472, 561.

^A and healed them [from sickness] by divine power, drawing them to a better life through his conversation and the example of his own life. The biographer relates these things briefly; for he says that he has narrated the monastic virtues of Eusebius more copiously in another book (which is lost). Since, therefore, Eusebius was a monk and afterwards a bishop, his appellation in the codices sometimes varies; for instance, in the first sermon, which is *On Fasting*, one Vatican codex has the title: *Of Eusebius, Bishop of Alexandria*; while in another codex (of which perhaps we shall take account at another time due to the variety of readings) it is read: *Of our Holy Father Eusebius the Monk*. The biographer then proceeds to narrate that Cyril, Bishop of Alexandria, moved by the man’s fame, came to visit him with the clergy, to whose arrival and conversation the humble monk was suffused with great modesty. ^B Afterwards, however, the same Cyril, having recognized that owing to his illness the end of his life was near, summoned the clergy and the nobles of the city to himself, and, as is said, urged them to allow Eusebius to be his successor: and an embassy having been sent to him once and again, it was finally with difficulty obtained that the holy monk should come to Alexandria, where he was consecrated by the hand of Cyril; which having been done, Cyril exchanged death for life. And lest we perchance doubt who this Cyril was, the historian adds that this was the very man who fought against the heretic Nestorius, and who, having held sermons against him, persuaded the Emperor (Theodosius the Younger) to depose the man of corrupt doctrine from the episcopal see. This is the one, the historian continues, who rightly preached the faith of the Trinity and asserted the title of Theotokos for the holy Mary.

And that he may finish the rest of the life of Eusebius, the same biographer relates in another sermon how the new bishop of Alexandria, Eusebius, by public sermons on the Lord's days, produced great fruits among the people and flourished in the wondrous favor of the citizens. Furthermore, he relates that a certain Alexander, a man of the senatorial order—abounding no less in the wealth of fortune than in vices—had resisted him with zeal; whom, however, the holy bishop, having invoked the help of God, enticed to his own conversation, in which he prevailed so much with artificial and prudent speech that he made Alexander pious from impious; and therefore he intervenes, not once appearing, as we see, also at the beginnings of the sermons of Eusebius. ^C Finally, describing the last act of his life, the historian in his third sermon introduces Eusebius telling a certain wondrous dream which had occurred to him when he was a youth in Jerusalem, while he was traveling there for the sake of religion; at the end of which conversation with Alexander, Eusebius announces that after seven years of episcopacy (another reading soon counts twenty) he was already nearing death; and therefore, having appointed and ordained Alexander himself as his successor, he ordered himself to be carried back to that mountain and desert from which he had once descended at the request of Cyril: in which place, in fact, he died piously and was buried. Finally, in this biography it is narrated that the book of the most religious life of Eusebius was deposited in the church: that the sermons of the same were written down by his own notary John, and their parchments handed over to Bishop Alexander: who, when he also died, had John the notary receive those parchments again, and soon, having employed Mosobius, who was skilled in calligraphy, he had all the sermons reduced into a book with accurate writing, which he wished to exist publicly for the perpetual utility and erudition of the orthodox. So much for the account of Eusebius, whose author was once his notary John, but we are now the editors.

III. Therefore, that Eusebius was bishop or archbishop of Alexandria (and indeed of Egypt), the historian John, whom we have now published, says first of all. 2.) That letter which we have mentioned, of Pope Antherus, which is indeed supposititious, as are the majority of the Isidorian ones, is nevertheless ancient; for which reason it remains to be asked whence Pseudo-Antherus derived this information; for it is not permitted to appeal to the sermon of the notary John, who does not speak of the translation of Bishop Eusebius from one diocese to another. It also seems strange that Isidore should have chosen as the actor of his fable (if it is so) this Eusebius, a man almost unknown in the West. 3.) Nicephorus Callistus, *Hist.* lib. xiv, cap. 39, which is about the translation of bishops, repeats that information, without doubt taken from Isidore. (And yet in Leunclavius in *Jure Gr. Rom.* p. 293, among the very many listed translations of bishops, this one of Eusebius is not read.) 4.) The Vindobonensis codex CCXLIX in Lambecius with Kollarius, book v, p. 302, contains our Eusebius's sermon *On Almsgiving*, which I have not yet seen in the Vatican codices, and therefore I was not able to include it in my book; whose title and beginning is written there thus: *Of our Holy Father Eusebius, Archbishop of Alexandria, a sermon on almsgiving, about the rich man and Lazarus*. It begins: *Bring forward the word today, beloved, let us propose concerning almsgiving*. 5.) In the still unpublished ascetic work of Nicon in Montfaucon, *Bibl. Coislin.* p. 111, and also in Lambeck, loc. cit., and in a Vatican codex of the same work, are mentioned the *Questions* of Macarius of Alexandria to the great Eusebius of Alexandria (namely the bishop): *From the questions to the great Eusebius of Alexandria*. This man, however, seems to be the same one who is called Pope Eusebius in the old *Life* of Saint Sabas (2). Indeed, the two titles, of both "great" and "pope," are attributed to our Eusebius in the Vatican codex 662. f. 245 b, where the inscription *of the great Eusebius, Pope of Alexandria* is placed before the sermon—the sixth in our count—on sudden deaths. Certainly, the testimony of Macarius of Egypt is not light, nay, almost peremptory: for neither could Macarius, a man of the fifth century, correspond with or speak to Eusebius of Alexandria, who was bishop of Laodicea in the third century. 6) In the sixth place, witnesses are added: John the monk, as we said above, and also John of Damascus, in whose work cited p. 666, it is explicitly in the margin

^A of the edition Lequinius notes that the title of bishop was joined to Eusebius in the manuscript. 7.) Finally, in six hundred—that is, as Lequinius says, in very many—manuscripts, this Eusebius is called bishop of Alexandria.

IV. Yet, to these authorities of whatever kind, it is opposed: 1) that in the series of Alexandrian bishops, otherwise well enough known, this Eusebius is not read, nor likewise is Alexander after him, whom our historian affirms to be the successor. 2) It is established that not Eusebius, but Dioscorus succeeded Cyril the Great, and Proterius succeeded Dioscorus; both of whom occupy that place in the catalog in which the notary John places his Eusebius and Alexander. 3) The humble style of our Eusebius seems to be far from the age of the great Cyril; although we have offered what is perhaps a probable reason for this matter in the scholia to the third sermon, p. 28. What, therefore, shall we do with this controversy? In order to untie its knot, if it is possible, learned men, and especially Lequinius, have devised two reasons. For first, regarding the Egyptian Alexandria, they wish another city of the same name to be understood, especially the Alexandria of Syria. But that is gratuitously imagined: for as often as "Alexandria" is set down in the writings of the ancients without any other qualification, no one fails to understand that Egyptian one. Moreover, the historian and notary John, whence I believe the manuscript inscriptions were born, speaks clearly of the Alexandria of Egypt. Secondly, Lequinius (Or. Ch. t. II, p. 905) thought it possible that our Eusebius might actually have existed as a bishop of Alexandria in the Egypt of the Melkites (that is, of the orthodox): but only at that time when that see was publicly vacant under the earlier Saracen caliphs for eighty years. However, the conquest of Alexandria did not occur until the year 641, with Heraclius already dead, under whom, as we said, John the monk was writing the Parallela, who praises the sermons of our Eusebius. His episcopate, therefore, could hardly, or scarcely even at all, have fallen within the Saracen times of Egypt. The difficulty therefore remains almost intact in my judgment, that indeed Eusebius is called bishop or archbishop of the Egyptian Alexandria in various monuments, and yet that fact cannot seem to be reconciled with the history of that Church, nor with the catalogs of the bishops. Unless perhaps it may be allowed to suspect (which now occurs to me incidentally) that between the death of the orthodox Cyril and the assumption of the heretical Dioscorus, grave tumults existed at Alexandria between the Catholics and the supporters of the new sect, the former of whom followed the orthodox Eusebius, elected by Cyril, while others followed the impious Dioscorus. Certainly, immediately after Dioscorus was driven out by royal command, a double episcopate appeared in Alexandria in a certain way: for the pious Proterius is written as alternating with the heretic Timotheus; then Petrus Mongus, equally a heretic, and John Talaia the Catholic, as is known from the tomes of the *Oriens Christianus*.

V. Therefore, with this dispute left under judgment, I shall speak of the codex which provided me with most of all the sermons of Eusebius. It is the same ancient manuscript codex, placed under number 1633, written about the twelfth century, which Fr. Turrianus says he once saw at Tusculum in the Basilian monastery of Crypta Ferrata, in the work cited above, p. 182; which codex in subsequent years was recalled to the Vatican library along with many others. The book is indeed faulty and written by an most unskilled scribe, whose errors in almost every verse had to be purged: for the writing swarms with itacisms, solecisms, and other corruptions of this kind. This exemplar contains eighteen sermons of Eusebius, and three in addition by John the notary about the deeds of the same Eusebius, along with a list of them, in which twenty titles are indeed set down, but the sermons themselves are missing for two.

The titles of the sermons, recalled to a slightly more convenient order, are these:

I. ^B Περὶ νηστείας, *De jejunio*. II. Περὶ ἀγάπης, *De charitate*. III. Εἰς τὴν ἐνανθρώπησιν τοῦ Κυρίου, καὶ τίνος ἕνεκεν ἐνηνθρώπησεν, *De incarnatione Domini, et quam ob causam incarnatus sit*. IV. Πρὸς τὸ εὐχαριστεῖν τῷ Θεῷ τὸν ἀῤῥωστοῦντα, καὶ εἰς τὸν Ἰώβ, *Adhortatio ad gratias Deo agendas in infirmitate, et de Jobo*. V. Περὶ τοῦ ἔχοντος μεταδιδοῦναι τῷ μὴ ἔχοντι, καὶ περὶ πρεσβυτέρων, *Quod is qui habet, impertiri debeat ei qui non habet, et de presbyteris*. VI. Περὶ τῶν ἀποθνησκόντων εἰς τὰς παγίδας, *De mortibus improvisis*. VII. Περὶ νεομηνίας, καὶ Σαββάτων, καὶ περὶ τοῦ μὴ φυλάττειν φωνὴν ὀρνέων, *De neomenia, et Sabbatis, et de non observandis avium vocibus*. VIII. Περὶ μνείας ἁγίων, *De commemoratione sanctorum*. Exstabat hic sermo Latine tantummodo in Bibliotheca Lugdunensi Patrum, tom. XXVII, pag. 479. Græce vero a nobis nunc primum vulgatur. IX. Hunc nos in alio Vatic. codice, nempe 1782, deprehendimus Eusebii sermonem hoc titulo: Τοῦ μακαρίου Εὐσεβίου λόγος περὶ ἐσθιάσεως (vel ἑστιάσεως), *Beati Eusebii sermo de epulo*. Quamobrem ceteris auctoris nostri sermonibus inseruimus. X. Εἰς τὴν γέννησιν, *In Domini nativitatem*. XI. Περὶ τοῦ βαπτίσματος, *De baptismo Domini*. XII. Περὶ τοῦ, Σὺ εἶ ὁ ἐρχόμενος ἢ ἕτερον προσδοκῶμεν;, *De verbis illis, Tu es qui venis, an alium exspectamus?* XIII. Περὶ παρουσίας Ἰωάννου εἰς ᾅδην, καὶ εἰς τὸν διάβολον, *De adventu Joannis ad inferos, et de diabolo*.

XIV. On the Betrayer Judas. XV. On the Devil and Hades. XVI. There follow three sermons by John the Notary, or narratives concerning the life and passing of Eusebius; namely: Life of Eusebius Alexandrinus before his episcopate. XVII. On the episcopate of the blessed Eusebius, and how he converted Alexander to a better manner of life. XVIII. Narrative of how he journeyed to the holy city. So the title of the codex reads; nevertheless, the sermon itself narrates not only his journey to the holy city of Jerusalem, but also his death and burial, and a list and preservation of the sermons written by him. XIX. On the Lord's Day. It exists in Greek and Latin in Gallandi’s Venetian *Bibliotheca Patrum*, Vol. VIII, p. 252. The same sermon exists translated into the Syriac language in codex Vat. 368, of which I also possess a vernacular translation in manuscript. However, "Eusebius" should be read instead of "Alexander" in our *Script. vet.*, Vol. V, part II, p. 43, no. 34. XX. On the Passion of the Lord. This title is read in the codex formerly of Crypta-Ferrata, now Vatican, but the sermon is absent, which, however, we have observed in four other Vatican codices. Otherwise, this sermon is read edited among the spurious works of Chrysostom, ed. Montfaucon, Vol. XI, p. 793. For which reason it has been omitted by us. XXI. On the Resurrection of the Lord. It begins: "He rose on the third day." It exists likewise among the spurious works of Chrysostom, Vol. X, p. 787. We have therefore equally omitted this one. Moreover, this sermon was deservedly praised as Eusebian by St. John Damascene in his *Parallela*, p. 598, and by Turrianus from our codex in his *Defens. epist. Pontif.*, p. 166. XXII. On the Ascension of the Lord. It begins: "Since by the grace of God." We have omitted this as well, because it occurs among works falsely attributed to Chrysostom, Vol. XIII, p. 247. It is, however, praised as being by Eusebius by Turrianus, op. cit., p. 182. Thus, we have now for the first time revealed the true author of two sermons that had been wrongly ascribed to Chrysostom in some codices and editions. (For it had already been stated before us that this one on the Resurrection should be attributed to Eusebius, in the alphabetical index of the homilies of Chrysostom found in Fabricius, *B. Gr.*, new ed. Vol. VIII, p. 466.) XXIII. On the Second Coming of the Lord. This was edited long ago by us in Greek from another Vatican codex, *AA. class.*, Vol. X, p. 595. XXIV. On the Astronomers. This sermon is missing (a) due to a removed leaf in our codex (although its title is present); unless perhaps its conclusion survives, as we stated below, p. 709; but it is contained in the Royal Parisian codex 2933, according to Lequien in *Or. Ch.*, Vol. II, p. 906. Indeed, its fragments are praised by Saint John Damascene in *Parallela*, *Opp.* Vol. II, p. 316 and 391, and likewise by John the monk in his own *Parallela*, p. 783. XXV. On Almsgiving. Only the title is preserved in the Vatican codex, but the sermon itself survives in the Viennese codex CCXLIX, as we just mentioned.

From the 33rd letter of that eminent man, Lucas Holstenius, we learn that he had prepared for the press four of these sermons of Eusebius—the eighth, the nineteenth, the twentieth, and the twenty-third—which, however, he never published, being hindered by either death or other occupations. But we, besides the one we placed among the classical authors, have published in Greek, along with our Latin interpretation, the first, second, and third at the beginning of the volume; and in Greek alone, on account of the limited space, twelve others that were equally hidden, near the end of the tome, pp. 652-703, and finally we have appended those three concerning the deeds of Eusebius, as was fitting. Certainly, we are not in the least ashamed to have brought to light an author whom St. John Damascene praised so often above others, and whom, besides the internal merits of his piety and orthodoxy, we see honored with the title of Great by Macarius and by the inscription of the Vatican codex.

(a) This and the following were later edited by Mai in his *Bibliotheca nova*. See below col. 311.

ANOTHER NOTITIA

I. Concerning Eusebius, who is commonly called the Alexandrian bishop, everything is uncertain, so much so that concerning his age and his episcopal see, there is nothing firm ready to be established. Many learned men indeed, in this and the previous century, have striven to discover and restore to us this ecclesiastical writer who is surely not undistinguished; but anyone who has endeavored to review and at the same time compare the various arguments they put forth will easily understand that they labored with almost no success. Yet among those who took upon themselves this task to be completed, the most learned Lequien seems to me, in my opinion, to have stood out. Thus, therefore, he writes (1): "I have sought for a long time and at great length, who at last

^A this Eusebius might be, whose excerpts occur frequently in our *Parallels*. Some men, not unlearned, have taken him for Eusebius of Caesarea. But because the Homilies, or Sermons, from which all these fragments are taken, are accustomed to be attributed in various manuscripts of various libraries to Eusebius, Bishop of Alexandria—just as the Rupefucaldine codex of the *Parallels* has in this place:

Eusebius, Bishop of Alexandria

II. But the excerpts of the sermons of our Eusebius, which exist in both *Parallels*, betray a writer of a much later age, who lived after the fourth century, and therefore after the Caesarean. And certainly his simpler and more unpolished language differs ^B from the style and diction of Eusebius of Caesarea as much as heaven from earth. Indeed, in the spurious epistle of Pope Antherus to the bishops of Baetica and Toledo, mention is made of a certain Eusebius, who from a certain small city was by apostolic authority transferred to Alexandria. Nicephorus did not hesitate to add this passage to his chapter *On the Translations of Bishops* (2). But since the testimony of that false Antherian epistle is most empty, nothing can be concluded from it whence it might be proven that there once existed an Alexandrian prelate named Eusebius, who does not appear in the indices of the pontiffs of this city.

III. It does not escape me that there are found in the East, other than the metropolis of Egypt, cities of the same name. But that I should not define this Eusebius, of whom we now treat, as the prelate of some Alexandrian city, his three treatises forbid; from which I have understood that it happened through the carelessness of copyists that, because he had addressed his sermons to a certain Alexander, when they ought to have written

Eusebius, Bishop, to Alexander

Eusebius, Bishop of Alexandria.

Eusebius, Bishop and Monk, on Astronomers

IV. "Since the royal codex terms him Eusebius, bishop and monk, it may thence be conjectured that he was a bishop of no fixed see, but was consecrated bishop on account of his outstanding virtues, that he might be of service in various places where necessity would demand it. That such bishops once existed in many parts of Syria, we learn first from Sozomen (3), who relates that the monks Lazarus, Barses, and Eulogium were created bishops, not of any cities, but for the sake of honor; and likewise Prapidius, who performed the episcopal office in many villages. In the *Life of Saint Sabas* (4) there is also frequent mention of John, bishop and hesychast, or solitary or monk: 'our wondrous Father John the bishop and hesychast. The great hesychast in virtue and Bishop John.' This man, moreover, was not the head of any city, but spent his whole life in monasteries. Furthermore, in that same *Life of Saint Sabas* a certain Eusebius occurs, whom Cyril of Scythopolis, the writer of this *Life*, calls pope (5): 'Those around Patriarch Epiphanius and Pope Eusebius and the Bishop of Ephesus, Hypatius.' Epiphanius the patriarch (of Constantinople), Pope Eusebius, and the Bishop of Ephesus, Hypatius. And likewise (6): 'At that same time there arrived in Palestine both Patriarch Ephraemius and Pope Eusebius, on account of the ejection of Paul, Bishop of Alexandria.' Around this time there came into Palestine Ephraemius, Patriarch of Antioch, and Pope Eusebius, on account of the ejection of Paul, Bishop of Alexandria. From these and other things which Cyril tells next, it appears that this Eusebius was adorned with episcopal power, who however had no fixed see: and I have found the most learned Cotelier favoring my opinion. But that he was the parent of those sermons whose various fragments are brought forward in the *Parallels*, I would not dare to affirm."

V. Thus far the illustrious man, who elsewhere, retracting the same point, has these things (7): "In six hundred Greek codices, found here and there, there are found Sermons inscribed under the name of Eusebius of Alexandria on various subjects, some excerpts of which exist in the *Parallels*—even the Rupefucaldine ones—of a certain monk John, which are preserved in the library of the Parisian College of Louis the Great, far anterior to John Damascene, as I showed. No Eusebius, however, occurs in the series of Alexandrian patriarchs before at least the middle of the tenth century, and certainly not afterwards. Hence, in my opinion, that writer of the sermons was either the bishop of Alexandria in Syria, or the administrator of the Melchite see of Alexandria, during all that time in which it was vacant, under the first Saracen caliphs, for eighty whole years." These things he says in the review of the bishops of the church of Alexandria, which is situated in the province of Cilicia II.

VI. Furthermore, there exist in abundance literary monuments of our Eusebius, of whom we have heard Lequien discoursing widely and learnedly until now, reviewed by Fabricius (8). The same things Joannes Guilielmus Janus subsequently arranged more exactly at the beginning of the preface to the same Eusebius's *Oration on the Lord's Day*, which, rendered into Latin, he brought to light at Leipzig.

THE LIFE OF EUSEBIUS OF ALEXANDRIA, BY JOHN THE MONK, HIS NOTARY.

^{A B} I. The Life of Holy Eusebius before his episcopate.

Among the pious men whom we have known near the great city of Alexandria, there lived for some years a man settled in that same place. He was pious and true, just and holy, adorned with every virtue and shining in every good manner of life, especially most fervent in monastic disciplines, sublime in prayer, tranquil in life, amiable in character, pleasant in company, gentle toward those who reproved him, easy to those who exhorted and admonished him, equitable to all, sincere, candid toward God, and altogether simple. ^C Especially, having received this grace from the Holy Spirit, he was skilled in the interpretation of all the Scriptures. This man was worthily and fittingly named Eusebius [Pious]. He fulfilled the commandments of God with the utmost zeal, and what need is there to attempt to describe the virtue of the man with my weak mouth? For the devil, having often devised all manner of things against him, was unable to seduce him from his purpose, nor to turn him away from his pious manner of life, nor to change his mind, nor to divert him from his established rules; for his mind was seasoned with salt. Therefore, this blessed man delivered so many people from the demon ^D that they cannot be numbered, and he healed many other infirmities in the mountain country. Instructed with a benign and merciful heart, he comforted the afflicted, recalled the faint-hearted to hope, and brought sinners to saner things, saying: "Small is the pleasure and brief the use, but the punishment and shame last for eternity. Do not, for the sake of brief pleasure, forfeit eternal joys." He became all things to all men that he might win all, imitating the Apostle. Thus he emerged a skilled doctor, so that whoever heard of him would studiously betake themselves to the mountains, and in many ways be relieved by him.

The fame of this man reached the ears of Saint Cyril, Bishop of Alexandria. On a certain day, Cyril, having taken the clergy, visited him in the mountains. When the blessed Eusebius saw him arriving, he ran...

^A to meet him and knelt down and worshipped him, as he was accustomed to do to all who came to him on the mountain. But the blessed and holy Cyril stood him up, having prayed for a long time. The blessed Eusebius, rising, said to him: "Who am I, a discarded and sinful man, that my Lord should come to me? With what mind have you come to a foolish man?" For such was the blessed man: humble, the offscouring of all things, to use the words of the Apostle. For, though he was inwardly endowed with every pure virtue, he was never seen to be puffed up, but he remained as he had been before he had undertaken the discipline of the monks, calling himself earth and dust, according to the saying of the faithful Abraham.

^B They conversed much with one another concerning the monastic life, and the holy Cyril asked the blessed Eusebius to pray for him, and he went down from the mountain, giving thanks to God for the meeting with the man. But the blessed Eusebius continued, rejoicing and delighting in the study of the divine Scriptures. I have recorded these few things about his conduct in this book as in passing, so that I might make the man known to all; for the rest of his virtues which he cultivated among the monks, I have written in another book.

Now it is necessary to relate how he ascended to the episcopal throne. The blessed Cyril, Bishop of Alexandria, having fallen ill with the sickness from which he departed to the Lord, called together all the clergy and the senators of the city, and the princes as well. Sitting up on his bed, he began to speak to them: "Behold, the time of my rest is at hand, and I go to my fathers, having finished the course of my days. For this time is fleeting, as honor is perishable, and life is short, ^C and riches are dissolved like a spider's web. Blessed is he who has been able to keep his soul before God alone irreproachable, and to return it to Him as pure as he received it from Him. But who has lived so as Eusebius, that perfect monk who dwells in the mountains? I know for certain that he is a chosen vessel; him, as a most worthy shepherd, I desire to establish in my place. Him I desire to place in my episcopal seat before my eyes are closed, and to entrust the excellent sheep to such an excellent shepherd. For great grace truly resides in the man; I have seen him adorned with various gifts, perfect in all piety and dignity. What seems good to you, my brethren and most beloved children?"

They answered with one accord: "Yea, our lord and venerable Father, it is fitting to commit the holy flock to a holy man; by this also, master, you have shown your love for your flock, that even when you are about to go to the Lord, you care for us." ^D To these things the bishop then said: "Ascend the mountain, and having persuaded him, bring him down to me." Then the leading men of the clergy and the princes of the city ascended to him, and after offering him a greeting, they began to say: "It is necessary that you should become our bishop and Father." For it pleased the pious

Father Cyril our bishop to leave the throne of the episcopacy to you; for he is departing towards the Lord. ^A The blessed Eusebius bowed to them and said: "I beseech you, my lords, choose someone who is able to sustain this office. For I am unworthy and weak in both body and soul." As they persisted in their request, he declared that it was impossible for him to leave the desert. Seeing the constancy of the man, they did not dare to disturb him further, and leaving him, they descended from the mountain and reported to the bishop that it was impossible to persuade Eusebius to yield to their request. That night, the blessed Eusebius arose and reasoned within himself, saying: "If I do not depart from this place and go to an unknown region, I shall not be able to escape this burden." Therefore, arising that same night, he rushed into the desert of the Thebaid. When he had traveled two miles, behold, a voice came to him from heaven: "Where are you going, Eusebius? Return in peace to your cell; my grace will be with you." Terrified, he returned to his solitude, obeying God who warned him. The blessed Cyril, on the next day, again sent the whole city with lamps and candles, praying him that he might at least deign to visit him before he departed from the body, and asking that he might speak with him—but that no one should force him if he refused. Persuaded by these words, Eusebius arose and descended to the city, and entering to the bishop, he made obeisance to him. The blessed Cyril began to speak to him concerning the episcopacy, and bringing forth testimonies from the Scriptures, he caused him to agree to the imposition of hands. Then the blessed Cyril, having summoned the neighboring bishops on the Lord’s day, ordained the blessed Eusebius, and there was great joy in that city. When the Lord’s day had passed, on that same night, which was toward the second day, the most holy Cyril departed in the Lord, having completed the course of his life blamelessly. This was the Cyril who fought so valiantly against the wretched heretic Nestorius; he who, having spoken against his heresy, persuaded the king to depose the wicked-minded one, rightly preaching the faith of the holy Trinity. This was Cyril, the fine herald of the holy Theotokos Mary; wherefore he also dwells with her in the kingdom of heaven. After his departure, on the following day, they enthroned the blessed Eusebius, and everyone went back to his own city, commending one another to the Father, ^C and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, unto the ages of ages. Amen.

II. Concerning the episcopacy of the blessed Eusebius, and how he turned back Alexander.

The blessed Eusebius, having received the grace of the episcopacy, was preaching every Lord’s day concerning repentance and the salvation of the souls of men; and many of the wicked and sinful, having been pierced to the heart by the word of his teaching, were returning from their works

and were finding favor with God through repentance, so that all confessed that it was the grace of God speaking through his lips. There was great joy in that city during the episcopacy of the blessed man. ^B Now there was in that city a man named Alexander, utterly perverse and execrable, so that he never brought to mind the multitude of his own sins, nor could he by any means be recalled from his evil and wicked deeds; nay, he would not even listen to the words of those who admonished him, but rather detested those who reproved him. He was, however, born of high station, being the son of a senator, and in abundance of wealth he surpassed all the inhabitants of that city.

One day, certain associates of Alexander approached Bishop Eusebius and told him of Alexander’s deeds and his wicked ways. Upon hearing this, the blessed man groaned from the bottom of his heart to the Lord, and, shedding many tears, he said: "Lord Jesus Christ, who for our sins didst descend to earth and didst suffer the cross, and upon that very cross didst lead the thief into paradise, and from a publican didst make an evangelist, and from a harlot didst exalt one to be more venerable than a virgin, O Lord, who didst say, *Ask and it shall be given to you*, pierce the heart of Thy creature, and open to him the door of repentance, and do not permit him to perish finally, O most holy Master, for Thou art blessed unto the ages." And he said to those who had reported Alexander to him: "Go and tell him that Eusebius says, 'Come to me quickly, for I have a secret to reveal to you.' And if he asks what that secret is, reply that a precious pearl has been brought to me, which I wish to sell to him." Those who had been sent went and reported to him exactly as he had instructed them.

Having heard this, Alexander came gladly; he approached the bishop and, upon entering, bowed before him. The blessed man, taking him by the hand, entered into the inner chamber, and with both seated, the blessed Eusebius began to speak to him in a parable, saying thus: "I ask of you a matter, and if you answer me correctly, I will grant you the pearl which I promised to give you; for I received it gratis, and gratis I shall give it to you." The blessed man, by speaking of the pearl, ^C intended the repentance granted to sinners by the Lord. Alexander, answering, said to him: "Speak, my lord, and whatever my foot may dig up I shall render to this angelic man." The bishop then said to him: "If the king were to call you today and say: 'Behold, a judgment awaits me tomorrow and a terrible punishment for three days, ^D and there is no one to hold my kingdom while I am absent; put on my purple garment, place my crown upon your head, fit my ring to your finger, hold the golden scepter in your right hand, ascend my royal throne, mount the golden chariot, and reign during these three days, and thereafter, being free from punishment, I shall banish you from my house forever, so that you no longer appear in my kingdom. But if you do not wish this, undergo for me the punishments which I am to suffer for three days, and upon the completion of the three-day penalty, you shall become a participant in my kingdom for the remaining time of my life.' What"

therefore, is pleasing to you? Tell me: the enjoyment of pride and glory for three days and exile for the remaining time, or the penalty and toil of three days and the glory and rest of the remaining time? And Alexander, answering, said: I beg you, lord Father, it were more choice for me to endure the penalty of three days for my king, and to rest for the remaining time. And the blessed Eusebius, becoming overjoyed, said: You have answered rightly; so think, and you shall live forever. And with a cheerful face he says to him: I exhort you, therefore, my child, leave behind this vain life and the pleasures of short duration; acquire rather rest for that age, and become an heir of the Lord and a fellow-heir of the saints. For just as the penalty of three days seemed pleasant to you, so too [will] the rest of the remaining time. ^A ... to obtain mercy through the grace and philanthropy of our Lord Jesus Christ, with whom to the Father be glory, power, honor, and adoration, now and always, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

III. Regarding what happened when he entered the holy city, and how he died.

^B There remains, brethren, for me to recount his death to you. Seven days before his death, he knew the hour of his departure, and calling Alexander to him, he says: My child, come, I shall tell you a narrative for the benefit of your soul. Now my message to you is being fulfilled, for I am departing to our Lord ^C Jesus Christ, and I pray that you keep the memory of me, a sinner, that I may find boldness before Christ. When I was younger and a new monk, a desire seized me to visit the holy city and to venerate the precious cross and the holy resurrection. I set out, therefore, to the holy places and remained dwelling in the holy city. On the all-night vigil of the holy Pascha, I was also keeping watch with everyone. Around midnight, many sat on the benches and fell asleep, and I myself was overcome by sleep in my seat. ^D And suddenly, while I was sleeping, it seemed to me that a man entered into the assembly. His appearance was as follows: his face was like the sun, his eyes were like the morning star arising, and upon his head a crown of light; his hair was like the rays of the sun laid upon his shoulders, and from his mouth and from his nostrils

^A a fragrance was emitted. And when he entered into the temple in which I and all who were keeping the vigil were, the radiance of so many lamps was covered by the light shining forth from his face, and the whole house of God was filled with great fragrance. Two individuals followed him, they too in glory, yet they were of lesser glory than he. Those who were following him were carrying loaves; and he walked by, observing those who were keeping the vigil, and those following him gave a loaf to those who were keeping the vigil. But when he came to those who had fallen asleep, those who possessed the loaves passed by and did not give to those who had slept. But that glorious one, turning, said to those who followed him: "Why have you not given the loaf of blessing to these?" And they, answering, said to him: "Because neglecting their duty, they fell asleep." And that glorious one says to them: "Give also to them; for even if they fell asleep, yet for my sake they arrived; do not deprive them of the reward." Then, turning, they gave also to those who had fallen asleep, whence they gave also to me, the unworthy one; and they said to me: "Eusebius, did you also sleep with the negligent ones?" And I, immediately waking up and being filled with fear, glorified the philanthropic God who did not despise my humility, and I said to myself: "Who could that glorious one be?" supposing him to be the Savior. But I give thanks that he deigned to appear to me, the unworthy one; then, giving thanks to the Lord, I remained until morning, having said nothing to anyone.

^B And after the completion of the martyrdom, I approached the bishop of that place, and I narrated the vision to him in private. Having heard it, he lifted his hands to heaven and said: "Blessed are you, philanthropic Lord, who even receives those who arrive at the eleventh hour; and now, O philanthropic One, show the same to us sinners, and do not withhold your blessing, for we are your workmanship." And turning, he says to me: "Blessed are you, my child, that you were deemed worthy to see such things. That glorious one, whom you saw, is the Lord; and the two who were with him are angels, and they gave the reward to those who kept the vigil. And because the Lord is philanthropic, he did not overlook even those who were negligent." Having heard these things, I glorified the philanthropic God who did not despise my humility; and falling before the bishop, I bowed to him, saying: "Pray for me." Departing, therefore, I came to this mountain where I dwelt, from which the most holy bishop Cyril brought me down. I have related this for the strengthening of your soul, so that you may never neglect the vigils, knowing what reward those who keep the vigil and occupy themselves in the churches possess.

After saying these things, he says to me: "Behold, I have been ^C in this city for seven years, shepherding this people; I have burdened no one among them, I have defrauded no one among them; I have not diminished anything in the church. But since the time of my departure is at hand, I desire at length to return my soul to the Creator in the mountain where I previously dwelt. Go out, therefore, gather the city today, and I shall hand over to you the flock of Christ; and I shall establish you upon my throne, and I shall withdraw to the mountain." When, therefore, the Lord’s day arrived, with everyone gathered in the church, he called together two bishops, and ^D

he ordained Alexander, and said to the crowd of the city, "Follow me to the mountain, from whence you brought me, for there it behooves me to die in the Lord." Then the whole city followed him with tapers; and when he stood at the door of the cave, he said to the crowd of the city: "Farewell, my sweetest children! I commend you to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, and to Alexander, my disciple and brother, and I exhort you to offer prayers for me, that I may have confidence before our Lord Jesus Christ." And to Alexander he said, "Into your hands I commend the flock of Christ. The Lord be with you all the days of your life." And having said this, he entered the cave and lay down upon the mat upon which he used to sleep, and having signed himself on both sides, with a smiling countenance he delivered his spirit to Christ. And having taken up his precious remains, they buried them in that same cave. For thus he had commanded Alexander, and having sealed the door ^B of the cave, we descended from the mountain giving thanks to God.

The blessed Alexander held the episcopate in the city of Alexandria for twenty years. He was wise in speech, and through his excellent manner of life he obtained great confidence before the Lord Christ. To Him be glory, forever and ever. Amen.

These are the words of the blessed Eusebius, and such were his struggles and contests. All these things he related when asked by Alexander, and what he professed in the Church, we have already published in one book. Also, the things which he discoursed upon concerning monastic discipline are contained in their own book. I, John, his notary, received these things accurately from the mouth of the blessed Eusebius himself, adding nothing and taking nothing away. I wrote the book for Alexander alone; and after the death of the blessed Eusebius, Alexander—then already holding the episcopate—requested the codex from me, and just as though it were his own teacher, he would peruse it every week and read it through, out of his longing for the blessed Eusebius. But after the death of the blessed Alexander, I received the drafts again, and having hired a certain calligrapher named Mosobius, I dictated to him with precision, and having made a book, I published it for the ^D faithful and the orthodox for the benefit of the souls of those who wish to repent. For just as the sun shines for those who see, so this book illuminates the souls of sinners and leads them toward salvation. All, therefore, who shall happen upon this book, glorify the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, for ever and ever. Amen.

A NOTICE CONCERNING THE SERMONS OF EUSEBIUS OF ALEXANDRIAh (Ang. Mai, Biblioth. nova, II, p. 499.)

Of Eusebius, who in manuscripts is frequently called Archbishop of Alexandria, I published sixteen sermons some time ago; one indeed in the 10th volume of the *Auctarium Classis*, but the other fifteen in the *Spicilegium*

^A of the ninth volume, in the preface to which volume I have, I hope, diligently discussed these and several other sermons of this same Eusebius. I also added three unpublished sermons or short treatises by John the Notary concerning the life and death of Eusebius. Furthermore, in the preface to the sermons of Eusebius in the aforementioned volume, p. 10, I said that, although the titles of two—*On Almsgiving* and *On the Astronomers*—were written in the Vatican codex, the sermons themselves were missing due to a defect in the parchment; yet I knew that the former was preserved in the Vienna codex (theol. 265), and the latter in the Parisian (1098). Now, behold, through the generosity and mediation of distinguished men friendly to me, I have obtained copies of both. Thinking it good that the benefit of this should be realized, I decided to append these *Paralipomena* of Eusebius—who, as I said, is also called Archbishop of Alexandria—after the writings of Cyril of Alexandria, and thus to complete the edition of an author who is surely pious and thoroughly orthodox, if perhaps less elegant. For whatever others may judge, I am certainly greatly delighted by the naturalness of this man, his Christian and pastoral simplicity, and his native style of speaking, although not even all ornamentation is lacking, for example, where he describes the apparatus of the rich glutton. Furthermore, the codices of Eusebius, both Roman and foreign—and especially the Vienna codex—bristle with solecisms and errors of transcription, which had to be partly corrected and partly retained, lest we subvert the text beyond measure.

But since it relates to the age of our Eusebius and the seat of his bishopric, it is necessary to touch upon the controversy again, because I have received from Germany the book of the very learned William August, our contemporary, in which he published three sermons of Eusebius on the underworld concerning the death and descent of Christ the Lord, which are also among our own in the *Spicilegium*. Moreover, that this very long sermon of Eusebius *On Almsgiving*, preserved intact in the Vienna codex, should have escaped the notice of August (his dissert., p. 63), I do not wonder. For it often happens (and sometimes happens to me as well) that things closest to us, through no fault of our own but by chance, escape us, while we more happily investigate remote ones. The first sermon ^B in August’s edition, pp. 1-10, thus corresponds to ours under the number XI. However, there is a notable difference in our editions in that the German one, p. 9, has as the conclusion of this sermon that passage, "O what an evil is disobedience," etc., up to p. 10, which in reality is the conclusion of the sermon *On the Incarnation* (pp. 26-27), published by us in the aforementioned volume, and can in no way pertain to the aforementioned place in the German edition, from which it completely dissents. The second sermon in the German edition corresponds to our XIV, with some variation. The third, finally, called *On Good Friday* in the German edition, corresponds to our XV, which is titled *On the Devil and Hades*; I speak of the second German edition of the sermon (for the first, as the editor calls it, which is perhaps the opposite, differs more from ours). But what is of greater moment is that to that first edition, in place of a conclusion, is attached a part of another sermon, namely one delivered the next day, or Saturday, just as had been promised at the end of the sermon *On Good Friday*, which clearly ends on the expression "let us seal the word here," and is not connected to what follows; this fact did not escape the perspicacity of the German editor either (p. 153). It is well, therefore, that at least this part of the sermon *On Saturday*, which is entirely missing in the Vatican codex, has come forth from the Vienna one. With these things said about both the German and Roman editions, it remains that we should briefly discuss the person and age of Eusebius.

G. August appended to the three sermons of this author which he published a brilliant and truly learned discussion, whose exquisite erudition and diligence I approve of most highly; however, I am prevented by what I consider to be contrary evidence from agreeing with him regarding the age of our Eusebius and the Emesene bishopric. The German editor unhesitatingly declares the author of these sermons to be that Eusebius who held the Church of Emesa and was famous for many writings, as witnessed by Jerome, *De vir. ill.*, cap. 91, under the Emperor Constantius, son of Constantine the Great, who died around the year of Christ 360. And to reconcile the title of Alexandrian bishop with the Emesene, the cited editor uses a seemingly excellent argument: that that very Eusebius, as witnessed by Sozomen (*Hist.* lib. III, 6), was, in the Council of Antioch celebrated in 341, urged to take up the Alexandrian see in place of the deposed great Athanasius; which dignity Eusebius, having refused so as not to succeed Athanasius against the will of the Alexandrians, accepted the governance of the Emesene Church. Correct. But I ask first, since this Eusebius was in reality for twenty years, until his death, the Emesene and not the Alexandrian bishop, why is he inscribed everywhere in the Greek sermon manuscripts as bishop or archbishop of Alexandria, but never as Emesene? But behold, beyond this and other reasons, now finally an argument is wielded from the end of the Vienna sermon *On Almsgiving* which is peremptory against the Emesene Eusebius. For the author of our sermon, Eusebius, among the rich—for whom wealth, far from harming them, was even very useful due to the abundance of alms to be given—places the matron Melania, and indeed in those words which imply that she was already dead. But whether he speaks of someone dead or someone living, the author clearly demonstrates that he is not that Emesene. For the Emesene, as we have seen, became bishop in the year 341.

Jerome, however, in the work cited above, ch. 91, expressly affirms that this Emesenus died under Constantius, that is, before the year 361, in which Constantius himself died.

Now, to come to Melania, there were two women by this name, the elder, that is, and the younger, the niece of the elder. Palladius treats of both in the *Lausiac History* (Meursius edition, vol. VIII, pp. 117 and 120). Both were wealthy and renowned for their lavish almsgiving. The elder is said by Palladius to have begun the ascetic life under the Emperor Valens and to have survived for another 37 years. The younger was a contemporary of Saints Jerome and Augustine. Since, therefore, our Eusebius makes mention of Melania (even if perhaps the elder one), it cannot be that he is that same Eusebius of Emesa, who departed from the living more than forty years before the death of Melania herself, since she, as is gathered from what was said earlier, exchanged life for death only at the beginning of the fifth century. Nay, Melania did not even begin to be illustrious for her almsgiving until Eusebius of Emesa was already dead, as also appears from what has been said. Other arguments, though by no means necessary, are added. For Jerome writes of that Emesenus in his *Chronicle* for the year 351 of Christ: "Eusebius, bishop of Emesa, a standard-bearer of the Arian faction, writes many and various things." Item, among other ancient writers—Socrates, Sozomen, and Photius (codex 242)—Emesenus is accused of Sabellianism and the superstition of impious astrology. But our Eusebius, the Greek author of the Sermons which we have now printed, numbering eighteen, is orthodox to the highest degree in every respect, and utterly alien to every heresy, let alone those most foul ones. Eusebius is, however, so far from the crime of astrology that we are now publishing his sermon written against that vanity, *Against the Astronomers* (κατὰ ἀστρονόμων); besides the fact that in a sermon also edited by us, he vehemently attacks various kinds of superstitions. Finally, Socrates and Sozomen testify that the *Life* of Emesenus was written by George of Laodicea, just as we ourselves have brought forth the *Life* of our Alexandrian, written by John the notary, from the Vatican codex. But it is of no use to say more, for the author of these Greek sermons is not Eusebius, bishop of the city of Emesa; for, as I have said, the chronology stands in the way, although we judge our own author to be a man of the fifth century, and intermediate between both Melanias, since he names not two but one, that is, I believe, the elder. But why he is so consistently called "Archbishop of Alexandria" in the codices, even though he does not appear in the catalogs of that see, we have argued long and sufficiently in the aforementioned volume of the *Spicilegium*. One thing, however, we shall add not inappropriately: namely, that Jerome in his *Chronicle* for the year 331 of Christ places Eusebius Pamphili among those who occupied the Antiochene Church for some time. Why that, I ask? Certainly for no other reason than because he was chosen, or sought, for that see by the wishes of the Antiochenes, as is clearly evident from Eusebius himself in *Life of Constantine*, bk. III, 60-62, and from Socrates, bk. I, 24. And indeed, Father Bosch deals with this at length in his *Catalog of the Patriarchs of Antioch*, p. 42 ff. Eusebius Pamphili, however, refused that dignity, just as Emesenus did the Alexandrian. Therefore, may both be called, with equal right, the one Bishop of Antioch, the other of Alexandria? Would that this argument were strong enough to cause the antiquity of my Eusebius to be increased! Yet, I am held back from assenting to this view, in a way, by Melania, along with the other proofs of critical art and history which I have examined.

SERMONS OF EUSEBIUS OF ALEXANDRIA

^A I. *A Sermon on fasting.*

When the holy season of the fasts arrived, Alexander approached the blessed Bishop Eusebius and said to him: "I beg you, venerable Father, teach me how a man ought to fast during these days of fasting? And how, after these days, ought one to fast on Wednesday and Friday?" Then the holy man began to speak: "Before all else, all men ought, in these forty days, to keep their fast equally, except for the Sabbath and the Lord's Day; often, however, if someone is suffering from infirmity, indulgence must be granted. Otherwise, any Christian...