Page:Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology (1870) - Volume 3.djvu/128

116 Brutulus is mentioned, who endeavoured to per- Biiade his countrymen to renew the struggle against the Romans, in b. c. 322 [Brutulus], and in the great Social War, B. c. 90, Papius Miitilus was the leader of the Samnites against Rome [MutilusJ. Some of the Papii probably settled at Rome soon after this event, and one of them finally obtained the consulship in A. D. 9. The Roman Papii were divided into two families, the Celsi and Mutili : the former are given under Celsus, the latter are spoken of under Papius. PA'PIAS, one of the principal officers of Sex. Pompey, was one of the commanders of his fleet in the battle with Agrippa, off Mylae, b. c. 36. (Appian, B. C. v. 104, 106, &c.) He appears to be the same person as the conmiander called De- mochares by Dion Cassius (xlix. 2, 3) and Sueto- nius (Aug. 16). PA'PIAS (Uairias), an early Christian writer. He is described by Irenaeus (adv. Ilaeres. v. 33), whom Jerome calls a disciple of Papias, in a pas- sage of which Eusebius (//. E. iii. 39) has preserved the original Greek, as " a hearer of John and a companion of Polycarp" [Polycarpus]. Irenaeus also speaks of him as "an ancient man " (apxatos dvT^p), an expression which, though ambiguous, may be understood as implying that he was still living when Irenaeus wrote. It has been disputed whether the John referred to in the statement of Irenaeus was the Apostle John, or John the Elder, an eminent Christian of the Church at Ephesus, to whom some have ascribed the book of Revelation (Euseb. l. c). Jerome repeatedly describes Papias as a hearer of the Evangelist John ; probably fol- lowing Irenaeus, whom he apparently understood as speaking of the Apostle. Eusebius also ap- pears to have understood Irenaeus to speak of the Apostle John, but he proceeds immediately to cite a passage from Papias himself, which indicates that he was never personally acquainted with John or with any of the Apostles. But it may be observed that the words of Papias equally exclude the supposition of his having been personally ac- quainted with John the Elder ; though Eusebius, either not properly considering them, or refer- ring to some other passage of his works now lost, says that he called himself a hearer of the elder John, as well as of Aristiop, whom Papias mentions in conjunction with him. Eusebius states also that Papias embodied in his writings many particulars related by Aristion and John the Elder (avrav irapaSocreis), but it does not follow that he received them directly from their lips. (Euseb. I. c.) That Papias was a companion of Polycarp, his contemporary and the bishop of a church in the same province, Proconsular Asia, is likely enough ; and we think it pro- bable that the statement of Irenaeus (which with Eusebius and Jerome we understand of John the Apostle) was only a hasty and (as Papias' own words show) an erroneous inference that, as Poly- carp had been a hearer of the Apostle, therefore his companion Papias must have been one too. Papias was bishop of Hierapolis, on the border of Phrygia (Euseb. H. E. iii. 36, 39), where he was ac- quainted with the daughters of the Apostle Philip, who had fixed his residence there,but must have died, as the passage referred to above as cited by Eusebius shows, before Papias' time. Papias speaks of himself as devoted mere to inquiries about the traditions respecting the Apostles and their teachings, than to PAPIAS. books ; but his declaration must be understood as referring to other books than the Scriptures, and even then, must not be too strictly interpreted, for, according to Plusebius, he was not only well versed in the Scriptures, but Avas a man of great general information (ra iravTa oti fxaKi(na oyiaiTaros). Eusebius, indeed, has elsewhere spoken slightingly of his intellects, saying (c. 39) that he appears to have been " of small understanding," (TfiiKpos uu rdu vQvv. We have observed that Papias may have been still living when Irenaeus Avrote his book Adversus Haercses ; but the Paschal or Alexandrian Chronicle states that Papias suffered martyrdom at Pergamus, with several other persons, in the same year (a. D. 163) in which Polycarp suffered at Smyrna (Chron. Paschale, vol. i. p. 258, ed. Paris, p. 206, ed. Venice, p. 481, ed. Bonn). He is called Martyr by Stephanus Gobarus the Tritheist ( Phot. DHjL Cod. 232). That he was bishop of the Church at Pergamus, and that he is rebuked in the epistle to that Church in the Apocalypse (c. ii.), is a mere conjecture, founded apparently on Papias' belief in the Millennium, and on the place of his martyrdom. Halloix {Illustrium Orien- tal. Ecclcs. Scriptor. Vitae, S. Papias^ c. 3) has cited, as referring to Papias of Hierapolis, a passage in certain Acta B. Ofiesimi, which states that he was taken to Rome, imprisoned and tortured for some time, and then released. But there is reason to believe that the Acta, if indeed they have any foundation in truth (comp. Tillemont, 3Iem. vol. ii. p. 298), refer to another Papias of much later date (Henschenius, in Acta Sanctorum, Fehruarii^ vol. iii. p. 287). He is called Saint by Jerome, and is commemorated by the Romish Church on the twenty-second of February. The ancient Martyrologies, however, in many cases, assign him to other days. Papias was a millenarian. " He says (we quote the words of Eusebius, //. ^. iii. 39) that there will be for a thousand years after the resurrection of the dead, a bodily reign of Christ on this earth." According to Stephanus Gobarus (apud Phot. I. c.) he held that there would be the enjoyment of sensible food in the Kingdom of Heaven, i. e. ap- parently during Christ's millennial reign. The mil- lenarians were sometimes called, from Papias, Pa- pianists, TlaTTLavL(TTai. Papias wrote a work in five books, entitled A»- •yloiv KvpiaKuv k^-qy^aio}^ fii§ia e', Escplanalioiium Sermonum Domini Libri V. The work is lost, except a few fragments which have been preserved by Irenaeus, Eusebius, Maximus Confessor, and other writers, down to Theophylact and Oecu- menius. The fragments are valuable for the early traditions which they contain respecting the writings of the New Testament, and which, in great degree, were derived from John the Elder. According to these traditions the Gospel of Matthew was written in Hebrew, and each one interpreted (■>}/j/irji'€ 110-6 ) it as he was able ; an obscure declara- tion which has caused much perplexity. The erangelist Mark is described as the interpreter (epuTji/evT?)?) of Peter, and as writing from his dic- tation. Papias also cited or mentioned the first Epistle of Peter and the first of John ; and refers to the history of the woman taken in adultery con- tained in the Gospel of John, ch. viii. vs. 2, &c. Several fragments of Papias were published by Halloix (Illustr. Orient. Eccles. Scriptor. Vitae) Grabe {SpicUegium SS. PP. vol. i.), and Miinter