Paulus Orosius

A Dictionary of Early Christian Biography

Orosius, Paulus, was a native of Tarragona in Spain, as he himself says ( Hist. vii. 22), though an expression in a letter of Avitus may be thought to connect him with Braga ( Ep. Aviti, Aug. Opp. vol. vii. p. 806; Baronius, vol. v. p. 435, A.D. 415). When the Alani and Vandals were introduced into Spain, A.D. 409, Orosius, though his language is somewhat rhetorical, appears narrowly to have escaped their violence ( Hist. iii. 20; v.2; vii. 40). But a danger, more serious in his opinion, soon threatened to disturb the church in Spain, viz. the heresies of the Priscillianists and of the book by Origen, περὶ ἀρχῶν , lately translated by St. Jerome and brought from Jerusalem by Avitus, presbyter of Braga in Portugal, at the same time as a book by Victorinus was brought by another Avitus from Rome. Both books condemned the doctrines of Priscillian, but contained errors of their own. That by Victorinus attracted little notice, but Origen's was widely read, both in Spain and elsewhere; and Orosius, in his zeal against error proceeded, not commissioned by the church of Spain but on his own account, to Africa, to consult St. Augustine as to how best to refute these heretical doctrines, A.D. 415. Augustine speaks of him as young in years, but a presbyter in rank, zealous, alert in intellect, ready of speech, and fitted to be useful in the work of the Lord. He gave a partial reply to this appeal in his treatise contra Priscillianistas et Origenistas, saying but little on the subject which forms its title. He referred Orosius to his books against Manicheism, and recommended him to go to Palestine, the seat of the errors in question, to consult St. Jerome. [See PELAGIUS.] Orosius was kindly received by St. Jerome at Bethlehem; but being summoned by the clergy, he attended a synod at Jerusalem on July 28, in which he took his seat under the direction of John the bishop, and informed the assembly that Coelestius had been condemned by a council in Africa, a.d. 412 (Aug. Epp. 175, 176), and had abruptly departed from the country; that Augustine had written against Pelagius and had sent a letter to the clergy in Sicily, treating of this and other heretical questions, which letter Orosius read at the request of the members. He also quoted the judgment of St. Jerome on the Pelagian question, expressed in his letter to Ctesiphon and his Dialogue against the Pelagians (Hieron. vol. i. Ep. 133; vol. ii. p. 495). On Sept. 13, the feast of the dedication of the church of the Holy Sepulchre, Orosius, on offering to assist bp. John at the altar, was attacked by him as a blasphemer, a charge which Orosius refuted, saying that as he spoke only in Latin, John, who only spoke Greek, could not have understood him. At the council of 14 bishops at Diospolis (Lydda), Dec. 415, Orosius was not present (Aug. de Gest. Pelag. c. 16), but returned to Africa early in 416, bearing the supposed relics of St. Stephen, discovered the previous December, which at the request of Avitus he was to convey to the church of Braga in Portugal (Tillem. vol. xiii. 262.) About this time, on the request of Augustine, Orosius undertook his history, chiefly in order to confirm by historical facts the doctrine maintained by St. Augustine in his great work de Civitate Dei , on the 11th book of which he was then employed. These facts we gather from c. i., and from a passage in bk. v., where Orosius says that he wrote his history chiefly if not entirely in Africa. It could not have been begun earlier than 416, and must have been finished in 417, for it concludes with an account of the treaty made in 416 between Wallia, the Gothic king, and the emperor Honorius (Oros. Hist. v. 2, vii. 43; Clinton, F. R. ). Orosius then proceeded towards Spain with the relics of St. Stephen. Being detained at Port Mahon in Minorca by accounts of the disturbed state of Spain through the Vandal occupation, he left his precious treasure there and returned to Africa, and nothing more is known of his history ( Ep. Severi, Aug. Opp. vol. vii. App. Baronius, 418. 4). The work of Orosius is a historical treatise rather than a formal history, which indeed it does not pretend to be, though as it includes a portion of the subject belonging to Scripture and to Jewish affairs, its area covers wider space than any other ancient epitome. Besides the O. and N. T., he quotes Josephus, the church historians and writers, as Tertullian, Hegesippus, and Eusebius, besides the classic writers Tacitus, Suetonius, Sallust, Caesar, Cicero, and he was no doubt largely indebted to Livy. For Greek and Oriental history he made use of the works of Justin, or rather Trogus Pompeius, and Quintus Curtius; for Roman affairs, Eutropius, Florus, and Valerius Paterculus, together with others of inferior value, as Valerius Antias, Valerius Maximus, and Aurelius Victor. Written under the express sanction of St. Augustine, in a pleasing style and at convenient length, and recommended by church authorities as an orthodox Christian work, it became during the middle ages the standard text-book on the subject, and is quoted largely by Bede and other medieval writers. Orosius is for the last few years of his history a contemporary and so an original authority, and supplies some points on which existing writers are deficient ( e.g. v. 18, p. 339, the death of Cato; vi. 3, 376, the acquittal of Catiline), but his work is disfigured by many mistakes, both as to facts and numbers, and by a faulty system of chronology. The general popularity it enjoyed as the one Christian history led to its translation into Anglo-Saxon by Alfred the Great, of which a portion was published by Elstob in 1690, and the whole, with an English version, in 1773, under the superintendence of D. Barrington and J. R. Foster. This was reprinted in 1853 in Bohn's Antiquarian Library , under Mr. B. Thorpe. The latest ed. of the Hist. and the Lib. Apol. is by Zangemeister in Corp. Scr. Eccl. Lat. v. (Vienna, 1882), and a smaller ed. by the same editor in the Biblioth. Teubner. (Leipz. 1889).

[H.W.P.]

Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature

a noted writer of the early Christian Church in Spain, was born in the latter part of the 4th century at Tarragona, in Catalonia. He was educated in Spain, and, after entering the service of the Church, was made presbyter in his native place. About A.D. 414 he proceeded, by direction of the Spanish bishops Eutropius and Paul, to Africa, for the purpose, as it seems, of consulting St. Augustine (whom he appears; from the introduction to his History, to have been in communication with some years before) on several controverted points of belief, which were then discussed by the Priscillianists and the Origenists, especially concerning the doctrine of the nature and origin of the soul. (See Consultatio sive Commonitorium Orosii ad Augustinum de errore Priscillianistarums et Origeiistarum, together with Augustine's answer, Ad Orosium contra Priscillianistas et Origenistas, both in the collection of the works of St. Augustine.) By advice of Augustine, Orosius proceeded thence to Palestine with a recommendation from Augustine to Jerome, who was then living at Bethlehem to consult with this learned Church father too. While in Palestine, Orosius wrote a treatise against Pelagius, who was at that time spreading his opinions concerning original sin and grace — Liber apologeticus contra Pelagium de Arbitrii Libertate which is annexed to the History of Orosius. He was also called upon to oppose Pelagius and his disciple' Celestius in a synod held at Jerusalem July 30, 415. From Palestine Orosius returned to Hippo Regius, to his friend Augustine, and thence to Spain.

He now employed himself in writing, in accordance with Augustine's advice, the historical work which gained him his reputation, viz. the Historiarum lib. vii, adv. paganos; also known under the different titles of De cladibus et miseriis munzdi, De totius mundi calamitatibus, Hormeta, and Ormsesta (the origin and signification of these latter appellations are uncertain). This work was commenced in 416, and completed in 417; its object is to refute the accusations of the heathen, who stated that the calamities which had befallen the Roman empire, and, above all, the capture and pillage of Rome by Alaric, A.D. 410, and the subsequent misfortunes of the people, arose from the neglect of the ancient gods and the introduction of Christianity. Augustine had already treated the same subject in his great apologetic work, De civitate Dei, in another manner. Orosins set himself to prove historically that this world had always been a place of suffering and sorrow, governed by errors and superstitions, but that it would be still worse were it not for Christianity. This historical work, which comes down to the year 417, consists of seven books, divided into chapters. It begins with a geographical description of the world, then treats of the origin of the human race according to the book of Genesis, and afterwards relates the various accounts of the mythologists and poets concerning the heroic ages. Then follows the history of the early monarchies, the Assyrian, Babylonian, and Persian; the conquests of Alexander, and the wars of his successors; as well as the early history of Rome, the contents being chiefly taken from Trogus Pompeius and Justinus. The fourth book contains the history of Rome from the wars of Pyrrhus to the fall of Carthage. The fifth book comprises the period from the taking of Corinth to the war of Spartacus. Orosius quotes his authorities, several of which are from works which are now lost. The narrative in the sixth book begins with the war of Sulla against Mithridates, and ends with the birth of our Savior.

The seventh book contains the history of the empire till A.D. 416, including a narrative of the taking and sacking of Rome by Alaric, which was the great event of the age. Orosius intermixes with his narrative moral reflections, and sometimes whole chapters of advice and consolation, addressed to his Christian brethren, and intended to confirm their faith amid the calamities of the times, which, however heavy, were not, as he asserts, unprecedented. The Romans, he says, in their conquests had inflicted equal if not greater wrongs on other countries. His tone is that of a Christian moralist impressed with the notions of justice, retribution, and humanity, in which most of the heathen historians show themselves deficient. He deprecates ambition, conquest, and glory gained at the expense of human blood and human happiness. As a historian, Orosius shows considerable critical judgment in general, though in particular passages he appears too credulous, as in ch. 10 of the first book, where he relates from report that the marks of the chariot- wheels of Pharaoh's host are still visible at the bottom of the Red Sea. (As an instance of the incidental value of the passages taken by Orosius from older writers, see Savigny, Das Recht des Besitzes p. 176.) In the main, however, the work is not strictly original, but is largely taken from Justin and Eutropius. That it was highly prized in the Middle Ages is proved by the fact that there are a great many manuscript copies extant. The Historiae has often been published (Augsburg, 1471; Vicenza, 1475; Cologne, 1526, etc.; Leydel, by Haverkamp, 1738 and 1767). King Alfred made a free translation of it into the Anglo-Saxon language, which was published by Daines Barrington, with an English version of it (Lond. 1773, 8vo), but of which a much more accurate edition, with a literal translation into English, and valuable notes, was published by Dr. Bosworth in 1855. The very remarkable additions of Alfred are especially valuable, as containing "the only geography of Europe written by a contemporary, and giving the position and the political state of the Germanic nations so early as the 9th century." A translation of Alfred's version forms a volume of "Bohn's Antiquarian Library" (1847). One of the best editions of Orosius is that with Haverkamp's notes, published at Leyden. Orosius died in Africa. Several other works, such as Quaestiones de Trinitate et aliis S.S. locis (Paris, 1533), have been erroneously attributed to him. See Mohler, De Orosii Vita ejusque Historiarum Libris Septem adversus Paganos (Bal. 1844); Gennadius, De Viris Illustribus, p. 39, 46; Schonenmann, Bibl. Patr. Lat. vol. ii, § 10; Moller, Dissertatio de Paulo Orosio (Altorf, 1689, 4to); Smith, Diet. of Gr. and Romans Biog. and iMythol. 3:58, 59; Alzog, Kirchengesch. vol. i; Moshelm, Eccles. Hist. vol. i; Lardner, Works (see Index); English Cyclop. s.v.

The Nuttall Encyclopedia

Spanish Christian apologist of the 5th century, born at Terragona, a disciple of Augustine; wrote at his suggestion against the pagans a history of the world used as a text-book in the Middle Ages.