the Latin language, somewhat detached from actual life, was particularly pronounced.

Of some importance to the general cultural and literary movements of this epoch were two other western centers of the eastern part of the Empire, namely, Thessalonica and Athens, with its pagan academy, eclipsed in later years by its victorious rival, the University of Constantinople.

In comparing the cultural developments in the eastern and western provinces of the Byzantine Empire, an interesting phenomenon may be noticed: In European Greece, with its old population, spiritual activity and creativeness were infinitely small in comparison with the develpments in the provinces of Asia and Africa, in spite of the fact that the greater part of these provinces, according to Krumbacher, were "discovered" and colonized only from the time of Alexander the Great. The same scholar, resorting to "our favorite modern language of numbers," asserts that the European group of Byzantine provinces is responsible for only 10 per cent of the general cultural productivity of this period.187

In truth, the majority of writers of this epoch came from Asia and Africa, while after the founding of Constantinople almost all the historians were Greeks.

Patristic literature had its brilliant period of development in the fourth, and the early part of the fifth, century.

Asia Minor in the fourth century produced, as stated, the three famous "Cappadocians," Basil the Great, his friend Gregory of Nazianzus the Theologian, and Gregory of Nyssa, the younger brother of Basil. Basil and Gregory of Nazianzus received an admirable education in the best rhetorical schools of Athens and Alexandria. Unfortunately we have no definite information about the early education of Gregory of Nyssa, the most profound thinker of the three. They were all well acquainted with classical literature and represented the so-called "new Alexandrian” movement. This movement, using the acquisitions of philosophical thinking, insisting upon a place for reason in the study of religious dogma and refusing to adopt the extremes of the mystical-allegorical movement of the so-called "Alexandrian" school, did not discard the church 137 K. Krumbacher, Die Griechische Literatur des Mittelalters, p. 330.

tradition. In addition to the wealth of literary works on purely theological subjects wherein they ardently defend orthodoxy in its struggle with Arianism, these three writers left also a large collection of orations and letters, constituting one of the richest sources of cultural material, not yet fully exhausted from a historical point of view. Gregory of Nazianzus left also a number of poems, chiefly theological, dogmatical, and didactic, as well as historical. Of these we might call special attention to the long poem "About His Own Life," which contains much material on the author's life, and by reason of its form and contents should take a high place in the field of literature in general.

Antioch, the Syrian center of culture, produced in opposition to the Alexandrian school its own movement, which defended the literal acceptance of the Holy Scriptures without any allegorical interpretations. This movement was headed by such unusual men of action as the pupil of Libanius and favorite of Antioch, John Chrysostom, whose activities have been discussed elsewhere. Combining a thorough classical education with unusual stylistic and oratorical ability, he wrote numerous works which constitute one of the richest literary treasures. He was greatly admired by later generations which were under the spell of his genius and high moral qualities, and the literary movements of subsequent periods borrowed from his works, as from an unlimited source, ideas, images, and expressions. His sermons and orations, various separate works, and more than two hundred letters, written mainly during his exile, represent an extremely valuable source on the internal life of the Empire. In the course of time many works of unknown authors have been attributed to John Chrysostom.

From the Palestinian city of Caesarea came the "father of ecclesiastical history," Eusebius of Caesarea, who lived in the second half of the third and early part of the fourth centuries (he died in about the year 340). We have referred to him elsewhere as the chief authority on Constantine the Great. Eusebius lived on the threshold of two highly significant historical epochs: on one hand, he was the witness of the severe persecutions of Diocletian and his successors and suffered much personally because of his Christian convictions; on the other hand, after the edict of Milan he lived through

a period of gradual triumph of Christianity under Constantine and participated in the Arian disputes, inclining sometimes to the Arians. He later became one of the greatly trusted and intimate friends of the Emperor. Eusebius has written many theological and historical works. His large work, The Evangelic Preparation (EvayYeλIK πрожараoкevh, Praeparatio evangelica), in which he defends the Christians against the religious attacks of the pagans, The Evangelic Demonstration (Evayyeλıkǹ áπódeiĝis, Demonstratio evangelica), in which he discusses the merely temporary significance of the Mosaic law and the fulfilment of the prophecies of the Old Testament by Jesus Christ, his writings in the field of criticism and interpretation of the Holy Scriptures, as well as several other works, entitle him to a high place of honor in the field of theological literature. It may be noted also that they contain valuable extracts from older writings which later were lost.

For our present study the historical writings of Eusebius are of greater importance. The Chronicle, written by him apparently before Diocletian's persecutions, contains a brief survey of the history of the Chaldeans, Assyrians, Hebrews, Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans, and in its main portion gives chronological tables of the most important historical events. Unfortunately it has survived only through an Armenian translation and partly through a Latin adaptation of St. Jerome. Thus we have no accurate conception of the form and contents of the original, especially since the translations which have survived were made not from the original Greek, but from an adaptation of The Chronicle which appeared soon after Eusebius' death.

His outstanding historical work is the Ecclesiastical History, in ten books, covering the period from the time of Christ to the victory of Constantine over Licinius. According to his own statement, he did not aim to tell of wars and the trophies of generals, but rather to "record in ineffaceable letters the most peaceful wars waged in behalf of the peace of the soul, and to tell of men doing brave deeds for truth rather than country, for piety rather than dearest friends."188 Thus, under the pen of Eusebius, church history be

138 Eusebii, Historia ecclesiastica, introduction to Book V, in English in A Select Library of Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, I, 211.

came the history of martyrdom and persecutions with all the accompanying terror and atrocities. Because of the abundance of documentary data used by Eusebius, his history must be recognized as one of the very important sources on the history of the first three centuries of the Christian Era. Besides, we must not forget that Eusebius was the first one to write a history of Christianity, embracing the subject from all possible aspects. His Ecclesiastical History, which brought him much fame, became the basis for the work of many later church historians, who very often imitated it. Even in the fourth century it became widely spread in the West through the Latin translation of Rufinus.

The Life of Constantine, written by Eusebius at a later period, has called forth many varied interpretations and evaluations in the scholarly world. It must be classed not so much among the purely historical types of writing as among the panegyrics. Constantine is represented here as a God-chosen emperor, endowed with the gift of prevision, a new Moses who was destined to lead God's people to freedom. In Eusebius' interpretation the three sons of Constantine personified the Holy Trinity, while Constantine himself was the true benefactor of the Christians, who now attained the high ideal of which they could only dream in preceding years. Such is the general idea of this work of Eusebius. In order to keep the harmony of his work intact, Eusebius did not touch upon the darker sides of the epoch, did not reveal the sinister phenomena of his day, but gave rather full sway to the praise and glorification of his hero. And yet by a skilful use of this work one may gain much valuable insight into the period of Constantine, especially because of the many official documents found in it, which were probably inserted later into his earlier version.

In summarizing the significance of the works of Eusebius of Caesarea we must, in spite of his mediocre literary ability, consider him one of the greatest Christian scholars of the early Middle Ages and a writer who greatly influenced medieval Christian literature.

A whole group of historians continued what Eusebius had begun. Socrates of Constantinople continued his Ecclesiastical History up to the year 439; Sozomen, a native of the district near the Palestinian city of Gaza, was the author of another Ecclesiastical

History, also up to the year 439; Theodoret, bishop of Cyrus, a native of Antioch, wrote a similar history covering the period from the Council of Nicaea until the year 428; and, finally the Arian Philostorgius, whose works have survived only in fragments, narrated events up to the year 425 from his own Arian point of view.

The most intense and varied intellectual life during this period, as has been noticed previously, went on in Egypt, especially in its progressive center, Alexandria.

An unusual and interesting phenomenon in the literary life of the late fourth and early fifth centuries was Synesius of Cyrene. A descendant of a very old pagan family, educated in Alexandria and later introduced to the mysteries of the neo-Platonic philosophy, he changed in later years from Plato to Christ, married a Christian girl, and became bishop of Ptolemaïs during the last years of his life. In spite of all this, Synesius probably always felt more as a pagan than a Christian. We have already pointed out his mission to Constantinople and his address "On Kingship." He was not essentially a historian, yet he left extremely important historical material in his 156 letters which reflect the brilliant philosophic and rhetorical attainments of the author. These letters later became the standard of style for the Byzantine Middle Ages. His hymns, written in the meter and style of classical poetry, reveal a peculiar mixture of Synesius' philosophical and Christian views. This bishopphilosopher felt that the classical culture, so dear to him was gradually approaching its end.139

During the long and harsh struggle with Arianism appeared the brilliant figure of the ardent Nicaean, Athanasius, bishop of Alexandria, who left a number of writings devoted to theological disputes in the fourth century. He also wrote the Life of St. Anthony, one of the founders of eastern monasticism, painting in it an ideal picture of ascetic life. This work greatly influenced the spread of monasticism. To the fifth century belongs also the greatest historian of Egyptian monasticism, Palladius of Helenopolis, born in Asia Minor, but well acquainted with Egyptian monastic life because of a sojourn of about ten years in the Egyptian monastic world. Under 139 See Augustine Fitzgerald. The Letters of Synesius of Cyrene (London, 1926), pp.

11-69.