Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers: Series II/Volume I/Church History of Eusebius/Book VII/Chapter 26

The Epistles of Dionysius.

1. these, many other epistles of Dionysius are extant, as those against Sabellius, addressed to Ammon, bishop of the church of Bernice, and one to Telesphorus, and one to Euphranor, and again another to Ammon and Euporus. He wrote also four other books on the same subject, which he addressed to his namesake Dionysius, in Rome.

2. Besides these many of his epistles are with us, and large books written in epistolary form, as those on Nature, &#959;&#7985; &#960;&#949;&#961;&#8054; &#966;&#8059;&#963;&#949;&#969;&#962;. The date and immediate occasion of this work cannot be determined. The supposition of Dittrich, that it was written before Dionysius became bishop, while he had more leisure than afterward for philosophical study, has much in its favor. The young man, Timothy, to whom it was addressed, is perhaps to be identified with the one mentioned in Bk. VI. chap. 40, &#167;4. That it was a work of considerable extent, embracing more than one book, is indicated by Eusebius in this passage. A long extract from it is given by Eusebius in his ''Pr&#230;p. Evang.'' XIV. 23&#8211;27 (printed with commentary by Routh, Rel. Sac. IV. p. 393 sq.; translated in the Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol. VI. p. 84&#8211;91), and a few fragments are still preserved in a Vatican codex, and have been published by Simon de Magistris, in his edition of Dionysius&#8217; works (Rome, 1796), p. 44 sq. (cf. also Routh, IV. p. 418, 419). In the extract quoted by Eusebius, Dionysius deals solely with the atomic theory of Democritus and Epicurus. This subject may have occupied the greater part of the work, but evidently, as Dittrich remarks (Dionysius der Grosse, p. 12), the doctrines of other physicists were also dealt with (cf. the words with which Eusebius introduces his extracts; Pr&#230;p. Evang. XIV. 22. 10: &#8220;I will subjoin from the books [of Dionysius] On Nature a few of the things urged against Epicurus.&#8221; The translation in the Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol. VI. p. 84, note 7, which implies that the work was written &#8220;against the Epicureans&#8221; is not correct). &#966;&#8059;&#963;&#953;&#962; seems to have been taken by Dionysius in the sense of the &#8220;Universe&#8221; (compare, for instance, the words of Cicero, De nat. deorum, II., to which Dittrich refers: Sunt autem, qui natur&#230; nomine rerum universitatem intelligunt), and to have been devoted to a refutation of the doctrines of various heathen philosophers in regard to the origin of the universe. For a fuller discussion of the work, see Dittrich, ibid. p. 12 sq. addressed to the young man Timothy, and one on Temptations, which he also dedicated to Euphranor.

3. Moreover, in a letter to Basilides, bishop of the parishes in Pentapolis, he says that he had written an exposition of the beginning of Ecclesiastes. And he has left us also various letters addressed to this same person. Thus much Dionysius.

But our account of these matters being now completed, permit us to show to posterity the character of our own age.