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Arator was a sixth-century Christian
poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral or writte ...
from
Liguria it, Ligure , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...
in northwestern Italy. His best known work, ''De Actibus Apostolorum'', is a verse history of the
Apostles An apostle (), in its literal sense, is an emissary, from Ancient Greek ἀπόστολος (''apóstolos''), literally "one who is sent off", from the verb ἀποστέλλειν (''apostéllein''), "to send off". The purpose of such sending ...
.


Biography

Arator was probably of Ligurian origin. An orphan, he studied at
Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city has ...
under the patronage of the Bishop Laurentius and of
Magnus Felix Ennodius Magnus Felix Ennodius (473 or 47417 July 521 AD) was Bishop of Pavia in 514, and a Latin rhetorician and poet. He was one of four Gallo-Roman aristocrats of the fifth to sixth-century whose letters survive in quantity: the others are Sidonius A ...
, then went to
Ravenna Ravenna ( , , also ; rgn, Ravèna) is the capital city of the Province of Ravenna, in the Emilia-Romagna region of Northern Italy. It was the capital city of the Western Roman Empire from 408 until its collapse in 476. It then served as the cap ...
by the advice of Parthenius, nephew of Ennodius. He took up the career of a lawyer. This cites: * Leimbach, "Der Dichter Arator," in ''Theologische Studien und Kritik'' (1873) * Manitius, ''Geschichte der christlich-lateinischen Poesie'' (1891). Treated with distinction by
Theodoric Theodoric is a Germanic given name. First attested as a Gothic name in the 5th century, it became widespread in the Germanic-speaking world, not least due to its most famous bearer, Theodoric the Great, king of the Ostrogoths. Overview The name ...
on account of his oration in behalf of the Dalmatians, and protected by
Cassiodorus Magnus Aurelius Cassiodorus Senator (c. 485 – c. 585), commonly known as Cassiodorus (), was a Roman statesman, renowned scholar of antiquity, and writer serving in the administration of Theodoric the Great, king of the Ostrogoths. ''Senator'' w ...
, he entered the service of the Gothic court, but resigned at the time of the struggle with Byzantium (about 536).
Pope Vigilius Pope Vigilius (died 7 June 555) was the bishop of Rome from 29 March 537 to his death. He is considered the first pope of the Byzantine papacy. Born into Roman aristocracy, Vigilius served as a deacon and papal ''apocrisiarius'' in Constantino ...
made him
Subdeacon Subdeacon (or sub-deacon) is a minor order or ministry for men in various branches of Christianity. The subdeacon has a specific liturgical role and is placed between the acolyte (or reader) and the deacon in the order of precedence. Subdeacons ...
of the Roman Church. It was there that he wrote in hexameters two books ''De Actibus Apostolorum'', about 544. He follows the story of the
Acts of the Apostles The Acts of the Apostles ( grc-koi, Πράξεις Ἀποστόλων, ''Práxeis Apostólōn''; la, Actūs Apostolōrum) is the fifth book of the New Testament; it tells of the founding of the Christian Church and the spread of its message ...
; the first book, dedicated to
St. Peter ) (Simeon, Simon) , birth_date = , birth_place = Bethsaida, Gaulanitis, Syria, Roman Empire , death_date = Between AD 64–68 , death_place = probably Vatican Hill, Rome, Italia, Roman Empire , parents = John (or Jonah; Jona) , occupat ...
, concludes with Chapter XII; the second, dedicated to
St. Paul Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...
, with the martyrdom of the two Apostles. Many important events are omitted, others only alluded to. Arator himself declared that his aim was to give the mystical and moral meaning of the book. Accordingly, he often gives strange interpretations of numbers and names. He endeavours to praise St. Peter at the expense of St. Paul and the other Apostles. His style and versification are fairly correct, and he cleverly evades the entanglements of symbolism. The poem was very successful. Vigilius had the author read it in public at the church of
San Pietro in Vincoli San Pietro in Vincoli (; Saint Peter in Chains) is a Roman Catholic titular church and minor basilica in Rome, Italy, best known for being the home of Michelangelo's statue of Moses, part of the tomb of Pope Julius II. The '' Titulus S. Petr ...
in Rome. The reading lasted four days, as the poet had to repeat many passages by request of his audience. His works remained popular during the
Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...
, when they became classics. We have also two addresses in distichs written by Arator to the Abbot Florianus and to Vigilius, as well as a letter to Parthenius. The latter two pieces contain biographical details. The date of the poet's death is unknown.


Citations


General and cited source

* * Tino Licht: Aratoris fortuna, in: ''Quaerite faciem eius semper'', Hamburg 2008
pp. 163–179
* See also Roger P. H. Green, ''Latin Epics of the New Testament: Juvencus, Sedulius, Arator'', Oxford UP, 2008, (reviewed by Teresa Morgan in the article "Poets for Jesus", ''Times Literary Supplement'', 4 April 2008, p. 31).


External links


Arator, his "Historia Apostolica" and its "tituli" and "capitula"
with bibliography of editions and translations. 6th-century Christians 6th-century Italian writers 6th-century Latin writers 6th-century poets Christian poets Ancient Roman poets {{Italy-poet-stub