Page:Catholic Encyclopedia, volume 5.djvu/819

 EZIONGEBER

739

EZZO

nal of Sem. Languages, XIX-) ; Douglas, EzekieVs Vision of the Temple in Expository Times. XIV; Lewis, By the River Cheljar (London, 1903); Barclay, The New Jerusalem (London, 1905); Bevam, Ezckirl srnii in Journal of Theol. Studies, iv ; Pilcher,, Ez. i in Proceedings of Soc. of Bibl. Arch., xxx, 45; Knaben- BADER, Comment, in Ez. (Paris, 1890); Meignan, Quatre si,cles de lutte contre I'idolitrie (Paris, 1892); Cornill, Das Buck Ez. (Leipzig, 1886); Trochon, Ezichiel (Paris, 1897); Bertholet, Das Buck Hes. (Frei 5urg, 1897) ; Kraetzschmar, Das Buck Ez. (CJottingen, 1900); Schmalzl, Das BucA Ez. (Vienna, 1'. 01); SIPller, Ezechiel Sludien in Bibl. Studien (Vienna, 1904); Ja'JN. Das Bitch Ez. auf Grund der Sepluai. hergeslellt (Leipzig, 1905); ,IouoN, Ez. Verfasser des B. Job in Zeitschrift f. Kath. Theol. (190.'!), 5S3; Begrich, Messiah des Ez. in Zeitschr. f. u-is. Theol., XLVII, 433.

Jos. SCHETS.

Eziongeber. See Asiongaber.

Eznik, a writer of the fifth century, b. at Golp, in tlie province of Taikh, a tributary valley of the Chorokh, in Northern Armenia. He was a pupil of Isaac, the catholicos, and of Mesrop. At their re- quest he went first to Edessa, then to Constantinople to perfect himself in the various sciences and to col- lect or copy Syriac and Greek manuscripts of the Bible, and the writings of the Fathers of the Church. He returned to Armenia after the Coimcil of Ephesus (4;U), and is probably identical with Eznik, Bishop of Bagrevand, who took part in the Synod of Artashat in 449. In addition to his labours in connexion with the new version of the Bible (see Version.? of the Bible) and various translations, he composed several works, the principal of which is his remarkable treatise "Against the Sects". It was written between 441 and 449, and contains four books or chapters. In the first, against the heathens, Eznik combats the eter- nity of matter and the substantial existence of evil. In the second he refutes the chief doctrines of Parseeism. The third is directed against the Greek philosophers (Pythagoreans, Platonists, Peripatetics, Stoics, and Epicureans), the writer taking his arguments from the Bible rather than from reason. The fourth book is an exposition and refutation of Marcionism. In the work Eznik displays much acumen and an extensive erudition. He was evidently as familiar with Persian as with Greek literature. His Armenian diction is of the choicest classical type, although the nature of his subject-matter forced him to use quite a number of Greek words. The work "Against the Sects" was first published at Smyrna in 1762; again, much more

correctly and from several manuscripts, by the Mechi- tarists at Venice in 1826 and in 1865. An indifferent French translation was made by LeVaillant de Flori- val, "Refutation des differentes sectes", etc. (Paris, 185.3). A good German translation is that by J. M. Schmid, "Eznik von Kolb, Wider die Sekten" (Leip- zig, 1900). Langlois published a general introduction to the whole treatise and a translation of part of book II (section 5, 1-11, containing Magism) in his "Col- lection des historiens anciens et modernes de I'Ar- menie", II, pp. 371 sq. Eznik is also the author of a short collection of moral precepts, printed with his more important treatise.

Neumann, Versuch einer Geschichte der armenischen Literatur, nach den Werken der Mekhitaristen frei gearbeitet (Leipzig, 1836), 42 sqq.; FiNCK, Geschichte der armenischen LiUeratur in Geschichte der christlichen Litteraturen des Orients (Leipzig, 1907), 85 sqq.; Bardenhewer, Palrology. tr. Shaiian (Frei- burg im Br., St. Louis, 1908), 593; Weber, Die Kathohsche Kirche in Armenian (Freiburg im Br., 1903), 50.

H. Hyvernat.

Ezzo, a priest of Bamberg in the eleventh century, author of a famous poem known as the " Song of the Miracles of Christ" (Cantilena de miraculis Christi), or the "Anegenge" or "Beginning". The poem was found by Barack in a Strasburg MS. of the eleventh century, but only a few strophes are given. The whole song, thirty-four strophes, is preserved, though in a later version, in the Vorau MS. The " Vita Alt- manni" relates that in 1065, when rumours of the approaching end of the world were rife, many people started on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem under the leader- ship of Bishop Gunther of Bamberg, and that Ezzo composed the poem on this occasion. The opening strophe of the Vorau MS. does not mention the pil- grimage, but simply states that the bishop ordered Ezzo to write the song. The effect, we are told, was such that everybody hastened to take monastic vows. The poem is written in the East Franoonian dialect; it relates in earnest language the Creation, Fall, and Redemption of mankind. It was edited by P. Piper (op. cit. infra) and Steinmayer (in Miillenhoff and Scherer " Denkmaler deutscher Poesie und Prosa aus dem VIII-XII Jahrhundert", Berlin, 1892).

Piper, Die geistliche Dichtung des M. .4. in KOrschner, Deutsche Nat.-Lit., \, 37 seq.; Kelle, Die Quelle Don Ezzos Ge- sang von den Wundem Christi (Vienna, 1893).

Arthur F. J. Reimy.