Catholic Encyclopedia (1913)/Theodorus Lector

A lector attached to the Church of St. Sophia of Constantinople in the early part of the sixth century. At the request of a friend he compiled in four books his "Historia Tripartita", an epitome of the historians Socrates, Sozomen, and Theodoret, made up of excerpts from them. An imperfect copy of this work exists in MS. but it has never been published; Valesius used it, attaching perhaps too much importance to the readings he found in it, in his edition of the above-mentioned historians. Theodorus also composed a history in two books which carried the narrative of the "Hist. Trip." from the death of Theodosius II up to the times of Justin I. This work is unfortunately lost, but two long series of excerpts are preserved usually bearing the title Apo phones Nikephorou Kallistou which, however, is spurious (De Boor, "Zeitschrift f. Kirchengesch.", VI, 489; Preuschen in "Realenencyk. f. Prot. Theol.", s. v.); quotations also are found in the writings of St. John of Damascus and the Acts of the Seventh General Council. The history owes its value to the scantiness of our information concerning the period it treats rather than its merits. It is full of marvelous stories. The only indications of the time when Theodore lived are the date at which his history ended and his speaking of the "holy memory" of Theodoret — he would hardly have done this after the "Three Chapters" controversy.

DE BOOR, op. cit.: (Leipzig, 1907); NOLTE in Tubingen Theol. Quart. (1861), 569 sq.; SARRAZIN, ''De Theod. Lectore. Theophanis proecipuo fonte in Comment. philol. Jenensis, I, 163 sqq.; BARDENHEWER-SHAHAN, Patrology'' (St. Louis, 1908), 552. The fragments of the History were published by VALESIUS and reprinted in P.G., LXXXVI. For additional excerpts to be found in the writings of NICETAS, and CHARTOPHYLAX OF NICAEA, see DIEKAMP in ''Hist. Jahrb.,'' XXIV, 553 sq.

F.J. BACCHUS