Jerome, Letters 92.1
https://caesarea-maritima.org/testimonia/297
Context
Among the voluminous correspondence of St. Jerome is this letter, his
translation into Latin of a Greek original written by Theophilus, Patriarch of Alexandria,
in 400 C.E. The letter addresses the bishops of Palestine and Cyprus following the council
in Alexandria, where Theophilus and the amenable participants condemned the Origenist
“heresy” as it was specifically identified with the Nitrian monasteries and Theophilus’
former associate Isidore. This condemnation marked a volte-face for Theophilus, who only in
the previous year had openly spurned the concept of divine corporeality. The list of
Palestinian addressees at the start of this letter begins with Eulogius, the archbishop at
Caesarea. Jerome’s translation of this synodical letter is important testimony for his own
engagement in the Origenist controversy that had embroiled the see of Jerusalem at the end
of the 4th century. Once an admirer of Origen as an intellectual and scholastic model who
was well represented in the Library at Caesarea (see Letter 34.1), Jerome had
turned to oppose his thought by the late 390s. He joined in vehement debate over the
spiritual and corporeal nature of the divine with his neighbors John, the bishop of
Jerusalem, and Tyrannius Rufinus, the learned monk at the Mount of Olives (see Related
Texts).
Text
Haec epistula uniformis ad Palaestinos et ad Cyprios episcopos missa
est. utriusque principia tulimus. Ad Palaestinos: Dominis dilectissimis, fratribus et
coepiscopis Eulogio, Iohanni, Zebinno, Auxentio, Dionysio, Gennadio, Zenoni, Theudosio,
Dictenio, Porphyrio, Saturnino, Alani, Paulo, Ammonio, Heliano, alteri Paulo, Eusebio et
omnibus, qui in Aeliae encaeniis congregati sunt, catholicis episcopis Theophilus in
domino salutem dicit.
1
Textual Note
Ed. Hilberg and Slovak 1996Translation
This letter has been sent in identical copies to the Palestinian and
Cypriot bishops. We give the first lines of both copies. To the Palestinian bishops: To
the Lord’s beloved, brothers and fellow bishops Eulogius, John, Zebinnus, Auxentius,
Dionysius, Gennadius, Zeno, Theodosius, Dictenios, Porphyry, Saturninus, Alan, Paul,
Ammonius, Aelian, the second Paul, Eusebius, and all the catholic bishops who gathered
in Aelia to celebrate the consecration (of the Holy Sepulcher): Theophilus greets you in
the Lord.
Translation Note
Trans. J. L. RifeWorks Cited
- 1 Jerome, S. Eusebii Hieronymi Opera I.2: Epistulae LXXI-CXX, ed. Isidor Hilberg and Conrad Slovak, Corpus scriptorum ecclesiasticorum latinorum 55 (Vienna: Österreichische Akademie der Wissenschaften, 1996), letter: 92, ch: 1.
Additional Bibliography
- Elizabeth A. Clark, The Origenist Controversy: The Cultural Construction of an Early Christian Debate, repr. Princeton 2016 (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1992)
How to Cite This Entry
Joseph L. Rife, “Jerome, Letters 92.1,” in Caesarea Maritima: A Collection of Testimonia, entry published June 30, 2023, https://caesarea-maritima.org/testimonia/297.
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Bibliography:
Joseph L. Rife, “Jerome, Letters 92.1.” In Caesarea Maritima: A Collection of Testimonia, edited by Joseph L. Rife., edited by Joseph L. Rife. Caesarea City and Port Exploration Project, 2023. Entry published June 30, 2023. https://caesarea-maritima.org/testimonia/297.About this Entry
Entry Title: Jerome, Letters 92.1
Authorial and Editorial Responsibility:
- Joseph L. Rife, general editor, Vanderbilt University
- Joseph L. Rife, editor, Caesarea Maritima: A Collection of Testimonia
- David A. Michelson, Daniel L. Schwartz, and William L. Potter, technical editor, “Jerome, Letters 92.1”
- Joseph L. Rife, entry contributor, “Jerome, Letters 92.1”
Additional Credit:
- TEI encoding by William L. Potter
- Electronic text added by Joseph L. Rife
- Testimonia identified by Joseph L. Rife