Listed 6 sub titles with search on: Religious figures biography for wider area of: "SALAMIS Ancient city CYPRUS" .
SALAMIS (Ancient city) CYPRUS
Epiphanius. Of Constantia and metropolitan of Cyprus,
surnamed the Younger, was represented at the third council of Constantinople (the sixth
general council) by the bishop of Trimithus, one of his suffragans. Several of
the discourses which have been regarded as written by the great Epiphanius are
by acuter judges ascribed either to this Epiphanius, or to a third of the same
name and bishopric. A work extant in MS. in the Library of St. Mark at Venice,
and in the Imperial Library at Vienna, is also by some ascribed to this writer
or the following. (Labbe, Concilia, vol. vi. col. 1058; Fabric. Bibl. Graec. vol.
viii., x. ; Petavius, Preface to the second volume of his edition of Epiphanius
; Oudin, Commentarius de Scriptor. Eccles. vol. ii. 318. 19.)
This text is from: A dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology, 1873 (ed. William Smith). Cited Oct 2005 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
Arcadius, bishop of Constantia in Cyprus, wrote a life of Simeon Stylita, the younger. surnamed Thaumastorita, several passages from which are quoted in the Acts of the second council of Nice. A few other works, which exist in MS., are ascribed to him. (Fabric. Bib. Graec. xi., xii..) Cave (Diss. de Script,. Icnert. Aet.) places him before the eighth century.
310 - 403
Epiphanius. Born at Besanduk, near Eleutheropolis, in Judea, after 310; died in
403. While very young he followed the monastic life in Egypt . On his return to
Judea he founded a monastery at Besanduk and was ordained to the priesthood. In
367 his reputation for asceticism and learning brought about his nomination as
Bishop of Constantia (Salamis) the metropolis of the Island of Cyprus. For nearly
forty years he fulfilled the duties of the episcopate, but his activity extended
far beyond his island. His zeal for the monastic life, ecclesiastical learning,
and orthodoxy gave him extraordinary authority; hence the numerous occasions on
which his advice was sought, and his intervention in important ecclesiastical
affairs. He went to Antioch, probably in 376, to investigate Apollinarianism and
to intervene in the schism that divided that church. He decided in favour of Bishop
Paulinus, who was supported by Rome, against Meletius, who was supported by the
episcopate of the East. In 382 he assisted at the Council of Rome to uphold the
cause of Paulinus of Antioch. About 394, carried away by an apparently excessive
zeal, he went to Jerusalem to oppose the supposed Origenism of the bishop, John.
In 402 he was at Constantinople to combat the same pretended heresy of St. John
Chrysostom. He died on his return journey to Cyprus.
It was at the instance of his correspondents that Epiphanius compiled
his works. The earliest (374) is the "Ancoratus", or "The Well-Anchored", i.e.
the Christian firmly fixed against the agitations of error. The Trinity and the
dogma of the Resurrection are particularly treated by the author, who argues especially
against the Arians and the Origenists. There are two symbols at the end of the
work: the first, which is the shorter, is very important in the history of symbols,
or professions of faith, being the baptismal creed of the Church of Constantia.
The second is the personal work of Epiphanius, and is intended to fortify the
faithful against current heresies. In the "Ancoratus" Epiphanius confines himself
to a list of heresies. Some readers desired to have a detailed work on this question,
and Epiphanius composed (374-7) the "Panarion" or "Medicine chest", i.e. a stock
of remedies to offset the poisons of heresy. This work is divided into three books
comprising in all seven volumes and treating eighty heresies. The first twenty
heresies are prior to Jesus Christ; the other sixty deal with Christian doctrine.
In reality the number eighty may be reduced to seventy-seven, for among the twenty
heresies prior to Christ only seventeen count. Three are generic names, namely
Hellenism, Samaritanism, and Judaism. In the editions of the "Panarion" each heresy
is numbered in order; hence it is customary to quote the "Panarion" as follows:
Epiphanius, Haer. N (the number of the heresy). Necessarily much of the information
in this great compilation varies in value. The "Panarion" reflects the character
of Epiphanius and his method of working. Sometimes his ardour prevents him from
inquiring carefully into the doctrines he opposes. Thus, on his own avowal (Haer.,
lxxi), he speaks of Apollinarianism on hearsay. At Constantinople he had to acknowledge
the Origenist monks whom he opposed that he was not acquainted with either their
school or their books, and that he only spoke from hearsay (Sozomen, "Hist. eccl.",
VIII, xl). There is, however, in the "Panarion" much information not found elsewhere.
Chapters devoted only to the doctrinal refutation of heresies are rare. As an
apologist Epiphanius appeared generally weak to Photius.
The "Panarion" furnishes very valuable information concerning the
religious history of the fourth century, either because the author confines himself
to transcribing documents preserved by him alone or because he writes down his
personal observations. With regard to Hieracas (Haer., lxvii), he makes known
a curious Egyptian sect by whom asceticism and intellectual work were equally
esteemed. In connection with the Meletians of Egypt (Haer., lxviii), he has preserved
important fragments of contemporary Egyptian history of this movement. With regard
to Arianism (Haer., lxix), if he gives an apocryphal letter of Constantine, he
transcribes two letters of Arius. He is the only one to give us any information
concerning the Gothic sect of the Audians (Haer., lxx). He has made use of the
lost report of the discussion between Photius (Haer., lxxi), and Basil of Ancyra.
He has transcribed a very important letter from Bishop Marcellus of Ancyra (Haer.,
lxxii) to Pope Julius and fragments of the treatise of Acaius of Caesarea against
Marcellus. With regard to the Semiarians (Haer., lxxiii), he gives in the Acts
of the Council of Ancyra (358) a letter from Basil of Ancyra and one from George
of Laodicea, and the stenographic text of a singular sermon of Melitius at the
time of his installation at Antioch. In the chapter dealing with the Anomeans
(Haer., lxxvi) he has preserved a monograph of Aetius.
For the first three centuries Epiphanius was compelled to use the
only literary sources. Some of these have been preserved, such as the great anti-heretical
work of St. Irenaeus of Antioch, "Contra Haereses". Other ancient sources utilized
by him have been lost, which gives exceptional value to his work. Thus he made
use of the "Syntagma" of Hippolytus. The precise determination of all his sources
is matter of controversy. His information is especially valuable with regard to
the Samaritans (Haer., x-xiii), the Jews (Haer., xiii-xx), the Ebionites (Haer.,
xxx), and their Gospel; with regard to the Gnostics Valentius (Haer., xxxi) and
Ptolemaeus (Haer., xxxiii), whose letter to Flora he quotes; and with regard to
the Scriptural criticism of Marcion. The work ends with a long exposition of the
Catholic faith. A summary of the "Penarion" is perhaps the work of Epiphanius.
A work entitled "Of Measures and Weights" (De mensuribus et ponderibus) has a
more general interest than might be imagined from the title. For the time it is
a real "Introduction" to the Holy Scripture, containing the history of Biblical
texts and Sacred archaeology. The treatise "On the Twelve Precious Stones" is
an explanation of the ornaments of the high-priest's breastplate (Ex., xxviii,
17). Mention must finally be made of two letters of Epiphanius preserved in a
Latin translation.
In theological matters Epiphanius teaches the doctrine of the Catholic
theologians of his time. In the vocabulary of Trinitarian theology he conforms
to the language of the Greek Church. He speaks of three hypostases in the Trinity,
whereas the Latins and the Paulicians of Antioch speak of one hypostasis in three
persons. At bottom it was a mere matter of words, but for some time it occasioned
theological dissensions. Ephiphanius clearly teaches that the Holy Ghost proceeds
from the Father and the Son. The doctrine that the Holy Ghost proceeds from the
Father only prevailed later in the Greek Church. This teaching cannot be traced
to Epiphanius (Ancoratus, 8). With regard to the constitution of the Church, he
is one of the most explicit of the Greek theologians concerning the primacy of
St. Peter ("Ancoratus", 9; "Haer.", lix, 7). Two passages on the Eucharist are
famous because they are among those which most clearly affirm the "Discipline
of the Secret". The "Secret" was purely pedagogical and often neglected, consisting
in grading the doctrinal initiation of catechumens and in not speaking before
them of the Christian mysteries save in deliberately vague expressions. Hence
the necessity of explaining the words of Epiphanius on the Eucharist ("Ancoratus",
57; "Haer.", xlii, 61). In these two passages, instead of quoting the words of
the institution of the Eucharist, the author gives these: "Hoc meum est, hoc."
Epiphanius is one of the chief authorities of the fourth century for the devotion
to the Blessed Virgin. He expresses himself on the subject in connection with
two heresies, of which one diminished, while the other exaggerated, this devotion
(Haer." lxxviii, lxxix). A circumstance of his life is well known in the history
of images, namely the destruction of an image in the church of Bethel ("Letter
to John of Jerusalem" in P.G., XLIII, 390).
His character is most clearly shown by the Origenist controversies,
which demonstrated his disinterested zeal but also his quickness to suspect heresy,
a good faith which was easily taken advantage of by the intriguing, and an ardour
of conviction which caused him to forget the rules of canon law and to commit
real abuses of power. He saw in Origen the chief cause of the heresies of his
time, and especially of Arianism. He was particularly opposed to his allegorical
method, his doctrines concerning the Son, in which he saw the subordination of
the Son to the Father, his doctrines concerning the pre-existence of souls and
the resurrection ("Ancoratus", 54, 62; "Haer.", lxiv). He did not confine himself
to this condemnation of Origen. He reproached the monks and bishops of his time
with accepting the Origenist errors. Thence resulted at the end of his life the
conflict with John of Jerusalem and with St. John Chrysostom. Apart from the injustice
of the controversy, he encroached on the jurisdiction of these bishops. He was
made use of by Theophilus of Alexandria, the irreconcilable enemy of Chrysostom.
The chief sources relative to this controversy are: St. Jerome, "Contra Joannem
Hierosolymitanum" in P.L., XXIII, 355; Idem, "Ad Theophilum" in Pl L., XXII, 736;
Epiphanius, "Ad Joannem Hierosolymitanum" in P.G., XLIII, 379; Socrates, "Hist.
eccl.", VI, x-xiv; Sozomen, "Hist. eccl.", VIII, xiv-xv. The chief editions of
Epiphanius's works are those of Petavius (Paris, 1622); Greek text, Latin tr.,
and notes reproduced with additions in P.G., XLI-XLIII; and of Dindorf (Leipzig,
1859-62), 5 vols., giving only the Greek text, improved in some parts.
Louis Saltet, ed.
Transcribed by: Stan Walker
This text is cited June 2004 from The Catholic Encyclopedia, New Advent online edition URL below.
Epiphanius (Epiphanios), a bishop of Salamis in Cyprus, in the fourth century.
He was born of Jewish parents, near Eleutheropolis, in Palestine, about A.D. 320,
and appears to have been educated in Egypt, where he imbibed the principles of
the Gnostics. At length he left them, and, becoming an ascetic, returned to Palestine
and adopted the discipline of St. Hilarion, the founder of monachism in that country.
Epiphanius erected a monastery near the place of his birth, over which he presided
till he was made bishop of Salamis in 367. Here he remained about thirty-six years,
and composed most of his writings. In 391 he commenced a controversy with John,
bishop of Jerusalem, relative to the Platonic doctrines of the learned and laborious
Origen, against which he wrote and preached with implacable bitterness. John favoured
Origen's views, but Epiphanius found in Theophilus, the violent bishop of Alexandria,
a worthy coadjutor, who, in 399, convened a council and condemned all the works
of Origen. Epiphanius himself then called a council in Cyprus, A.D. 401, and reiterated
this condemnation. Afterwards, he embroiled himself with the empress Eudoxia;
for on the occasion of her asking him to pray for the young Theodosius, who was
dangerously ill, he replied that her son should live provided she would disavow
the defenders of Origen. To this presumptuous message the empress indignantly
answered that her son's life was not in the power of Epiphanius, whose prayers
were unable to save that of his own archdeacon who had recently died. After thus
vainly endeavouring to gratify his sectarian animosity, he resolved to return
to Cyprus; but he died at sea on the passage, A.D. 403.
The principal works of Epiphanius are: (1) Panarion, or a Treatise
on Heresies--that is, peculiar sects (haireseis). This is the most important of
his writings and treats of eighty sects, from the time of Adam to the latter part
of the fourth century. (2) Anakephalaiosis, or an Epitome of the Panarion. (3)
Ankuroton, or a Discourse on the Faith, explaining the doctrine of the Trinity,
Resurrection, etc. (4) A treatise on the ancient weights, measures, and coins
of the Jews. St. Jerome admires Epiphanius for his skill in the Hebrew, Syriac,
Egyptian, Greek, and Latin languages, and styles him "Pentaglottus"
(Pentaglottos), or the Five-tongued. His writings are of great value, as containing
numerous citations from curious works which are no longer extant.
This text is from: Harry Thurston Peck, Harpers Dictionary of Classical Antiquities. Cited Nov 2002 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
Epiphanius, (Epiphanios), bishop of Constantia and metropolitan of Cyprus, was
born at Bezanduca, a small town in Palestine, in the district of Eleutheropolis,
in the first part of the fourth century. (Sozomen. vi. 32.) His parents were Jews.
He went to Egypt when young, and there appears to have been tainted with Gnostic
errors, but afterwards feli into the hands of some monks, and by them was made
a strong advocate for the monastic life, and strongly imbued with their own narrow
spirit. He returned to Palestine, and lived there for some time as a monk, having
founded a monastery near his native place. In A. D. 367 he was chosen bishop of
Constantia, the metropolis of the Isle of Cyprus, formerly called Salamis. His
writings shew him to have been a man of great reading; for he was acquainted with
Hebrew, Syriac, Egyptian, Greek, and Latin, and was therefore called pentaglossos.
But he was entirely without critical or logical power, of real piety, but also
of a very bigoted and dogmatical turn of mind, unable to distinguish the essential
from the nonessential in doctrinal differences, and always ready to suppose that
some dangerous heresy lurked in any statement of belief which varied a little
from the ordinary form of expression. It was natural that to such a man Origen,
whom he could not understand, should appear a dangerous teacher of error; and
accordingly in his work on heresies he thinks it necessary to give an essential
warning against him. A report that Origen's opinions were spreading in Palestine,
and sanctioned even by John, bishop of Jerusalem, excited Epiphanius to such a
pitch, that he left Cyprus to investigate the matter on the spot. At Jerusalem
he preached so violent a sermon against any abettors of Origen's errors, and made
such evident allusions to the bishop, that John sent his Archdeacon to beg him
to stop. Afterwards, when John preached against anthropomorphism (of a tendency
to which Epiphanius had been suspected) he was followed up to the pulpit by his
undaunted antagonist, who announced that he agreed in John's censure of Anthropomorphites,
but that it was equally necessary to condemn Origenists. Having excited sufficient
commotion at Jerusalem, Epiphanius repaired to Bethlehem, where he was all-powerful
with the monks; and there he was so successful in his denuneiation of heresy,
that he persuaded some to renounce their connexion with the bishop of Jerusalem.
After this he allowed his zeal to get the better of all considerations of church
order and decency, to such an extent, that he actually ordained Paullinianus to
the office of presbyter, that he might perform the ministerial functions for the
monks (who, as usual at that time, were laymen), and so prevent them from applying
to Jerusalem to supply this want. John naturally protested loudly against this
interference with his diocese, and appealed for help to the two patriarchal sees
of Alexandria and Rome. Peace was not restored to the Church for some time. The
next quarrel in which Epiphanius was involved was with Chrysostom. Some monks
of Nitria had been expelled by Theophilus, bishop of Alexandria, as Origenists,
but were received and protected at Constantinople. Upon this Theophilus persuaded
Epiphanius, now almost in his dotage, to summon a council of Cyprian bishops,
which he did A. D. 401. This assembly passed a sentence of condemnation on Origen's
books, which was made known to Chrysostom by letter; and Epiphanius proceeded
in person to Constantinople, to take part in the pending dispute. Chrysostom was
irritated by Epiphanius interfering in the government of his diocese; and the
latter, just before his return home, is reputed to have given vent to his bad
feeling by the scandalous malediction, "I hope that you will not die a bishop!"
upon which Chrysostom replied,--" I hope you will never get home !"
(Sozomen. viii. 15.) For the credit of that really great and Christian man, it
is to be hoped that the story is incorrect; and as both wishes were granted, it
bears strong marks of a tale invented after the deaths of the two disputants.
Epiphanius died on board the ship, which was conveying him back to Cyprus, A.
D. 402, leaving us a melancholy example of the unchristian excesses into which
bigotry may hurry a man of real piety, and a sincere desire to do God service.
The extant works of Epiphanius are (1) Ancoraius, a discourse on the
faith, being an exposition of the doctrine of the Trinity; (2) Panarium, a discourse
against Heresies, of which he attacks no less than eighty; (3) An epitome of 2,
called Anacephalaeosis ; (4) De Ponderibus et Mensuris liber ; (5) Two Epistles
; the first to John bishop of Jerusalem, translated by Jerome into Latin; the
second to Jerome himself, in whose works they are both found. A great number of
Epiphanius's writings are lost. The earliest editions were at Basle, in Latin,
translated by Cornarius, 1543, and again in the following year sumtu et typis
Jo. Hervagii. The edition of Dionysius Petavius, in Greek and Latin, appeared
at Paris, 1622, 2 vols. fol., and at Leipzig, 1682, with a commentary by Valesius.
(Sozomen. l. c.; Hieronym. Apol. 1. adv. Rufin.; Cave, Hist. Litt. vol. i.; Neander,
Kirchengeschichte, vol. ii.)
This text is from: A dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology, 1873 (ed. William Smith). Cited Oct 2005 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
d. 1st century, feastday: February 22
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