Photius, Library 59.18b18-33
https://caesarea-maritima.org/testimonia/348
Context
Photius I was ecumenical patriarch of Constantinople in 858-867 and
877-886, as well as an unparalleled intellectual luminary for his age. Apart from his
distinguished ecclesiastical career, he engaged in polymathic teaching and research,
supported by his vast personal library. Photius wrote an expansive compendium of
classical writings in 280 volumes or codices, his Library (Βιβλιοθήκη) or
Thousandsfold Book (Μυριόβιβλον), which included epitomes, excerpts,
and commentaries mainly on historical, rhetorical, and theological works, many of which
are otherwise lost. Several passages discuss the renowned leaders of the Church at
Caesarea in Palestine. In the lengthy codex 59, Photius narrates the events of the Synod
of the Oak held in July, 403 near Constantinople, which ultimately removed John
Chrysostom as Patriarch of Constantinople. In this passage concerning the wide-ranging
assault by Chrysostom’s enemies, a certain monk John on the side of the prosecution
pressed the case again Heracleides, bishop of Ephesus, a former attendant to Chrysostom.
Heracleides, it was claimed, was not only an Origenist but also a thief at
Caesarea.
Text
Ἐξήτασαν δέ, ὡς ἐνόμισαν, ἐκ τῶν κεφαλαίων τούτων τὸ πρῶτον καὶ τὸ
δεύτερον, εἶτα ἤρξαντο περὶ ῾Ηρακλείδου καὶ Παλλαδίου τοῦ ῾Ελενεπόλεως τῶν ἐπισκόπων
ἐξετάζειν· καὶ ἐπέδωκε λίβελλον πάλιν ὁ μοναχὸς Ἰωάννης, οὗ ὁ διάκoνος ᾽Ιωάννης ἐν ταῖς
κατὰ τοῦ Χρυσοστόμου κατηγορίαις ἐμνήσθη, ἐγκαλῶν κατὰ ῾Ηρακλείδεου ὅτι ᾽Ωριγενειάστης
ἐστι, καὶ ὅτι κλέπτης ἐφωράθη ὲν Καισαρείᾳ τῆς Παλαιστίνης,
ἱμάτια τοῦ διακόνοῦ Ἀκυλίνου κλέπτων, καὶ ὅτι αὐτόν, φησίν, ὁ ἐπίσκοπος Ιωάννης τοιούτoν
ὄντα εἰς Ἔφεσον ἐχειροτόνησεν. ἐνεκάλει δὲ καὶ κατὰ αὐτοῦ Χρυσοστόμου ὡς πολλὰ κακὰ
παθὼν χάριν τῶν Ὠριγενειαστῶν διὰ Σαραπίωνος καὶ παρ᾽ αὐτοῦ ἐκείνου. εἶτα τούτων
ἐξετασθέντων, ἐξητάσθη πάλιν τὸ ἔννατον κεφάλαιον τῶν ἐγκλημάτων, εἶτα τὸ εἰκοστὸν
ἕβδομον.1
Textual Note
Ed. Bekker 1924 with ref. Henry 1959Translation
The first and second counts were then investigated, after which the
synod proceeded to investigate the case of the bishops Heracleides and Palladius of
Helenopolis. The monk John, mentioned by the deacon John in the second charge against
Chrysostom, again delivered a writ of accusation against Heracleides, asserting that he
was a follower of Origen and that he was arrested at Caesarea
Palestinae for the theft of the clothes of Aquilinus the deacon.
Notwithstanding this, he claimed, the bishop John [Chrysostom] had appointed him bishop
of Ephesus. He further accused Chrysostom himself, claiming that he had suffered great
evils thanks to the Origenists, at the hands of Serapion and Chrysostom himself. After
this inquiry, the ninth and then the twenty-seventh charges were investigated.2
Translation Note
Adapted from Freese 1920 with ref. to Henry 1959Works Cited
- 1 John of Nikiu, Chronique de Jean, évêque de Nikiou: texte éthiopien, ed. Hermann Zotenberg (Paris: Imprimerie nationale, 1883), bk: 59, p: 18.
- 2 Photius, The Library of Photius, trans. John Henry Freese, Translations of Christian Literature 1 (London; New York: Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge ; Macmillan Company, 1920), p: 57.
Additional Bibliography
- Photius, Photius: Bibliothèque, ed. René Henry and Jacques Schamp, 2nd printing, 9 vols., Collection Byzantine (Paris: Société d’édition «Les belles lettres», 1959), bk: 59, line: 18b18-33.
How to Cite This Entry
Joseph L. Rife, “Photius, Library 59.18b18-33,” in Caesarea Maritima: A Collection of Testimonia, entry published June 30, 2023, https://caesarea-maritima.org/testimonia/348.
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Bibliography:
Joseph L. Rife, “Photius, Library 59.18b18-33.” 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/348.About this Entry
Entry Title: Photius, Library 59.18b18-33
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, “Photius, Library 59.18b18-33”
- Joseph L. Rife, entry contributor, “Photius, Library 59.18b18-33”
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- TEI encoding by Joseph L. Rife
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- Electronic text added by Joseph L. Rife
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