Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
canon lawyer
Canon law (from grc, κανών, , a 'straight measuring rod, ruler') is a set of ordinances and regulations made by ecclesiastical authority (church leadership) for the government of a Christian organization or church and its members. It is t ...
, of uncertain date and place. He flourished, probably, in the latter half of the 7th century. He was probably a Christian
bishop
A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution.
In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is c ...
of the African Church.
Concordia canonum
Cresconius made a collection of canons, known as ''Concordia canonum'', inclusive of the Apostolic Canons, nearly all the canons of the fourth- and fifth-century councils, and many papal decretals from the end of the fourth to the end of the fifth century. It was much used as a handy manual of ecclesiastical legislation by the churches of Africa and
Gaul
Gaul ( la, Gallia) was a region of Western Europe first described by the Romans. It was inhabited by Celtic and Aquitani tribes, encompassing present-day France, Belgium, Luxembourg, most of Switzerland, parts of Northern Italy (only during ...
as late as the tenth century. Few of its manuscripts postdate that period.
The content is taken from the collection of
Dionysius Exiguus
Dionysius Exiguus (Latin for "Dionysius the Humble", Greek: Διονύσιος; – ) was a 6th-century Eastern Roman monk born in Scythia Minor. He was a member of a community of Scythian monks concentrated in Tomis (present day Constanța ...
, but the division into titles (301) is copied from the ''Breviatio canonum'' of
Fulgentius Ferrandus Fulgentius Ferrandus or Ferrand of Carthage (died 546/547) was a Christian theologian of the Roman province of Africa, modern day Tunisia.
Biography
Little is known of his early life. At the end of his life, he was a deacon of the Church of Cart ...
, a sixth-century deacon of Carthage. In many manuscripts the text of Cresconius is preceded by an index or table of contents (''breviarium'') of the titles, first edited in 1588 by Pithou.
In its entirety the work was first published by Voellus and
Justellus Justellus, Justel is a surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Ana Justel, Spanish statistician and Antarctic scientist
* Christophe Justel (1580–1649), French scholar
* Henri Justel (1619–1693), French scholar, royal administ ...
.In the appendix (33-112) to their "bibliotheca Juris canonici" (Paris, 1661). It is in '' Patrologia Latina'', LXXXVIII, 829 sqq. One of its best manuscripts, the tenth-century ''Vallicellianus'' (Rome), has a note in which Cresconius is declared the author of a metrical poem called "Bella et victorias" by the "Patricius" Johannes in Africa about the Saracens. This was formerly interpreted to mean the African victory of the Byzantine
Patricius Johannes Patricius may refer to:
People
* Patricius (Caesar), a ''caesar'' of the Eastern Roman Empire
* Patricius (consul 500), prominent East Roman general and consul
*Patricius (jurist), 5th-century Roman jurist
* Patricius (usurper) (died 352), leader ...
in 697, hence the usual date of Cresconius. Some, however, hold that the poem in question is the ''Johannis'' of
Flavius Cresconius Corippus Flavius Cresconius Corippus was a late Berber-Roman epic poet of the 6th century, who flourished under East Roman Emperors Justinian I and Justin II. His major works are the epic poem ''Iohannis'' and the panegyric ''In laudem Iustini minoris''. C ...
, a Latin poet of about 550, and on this basis identify him with the canonist, thus placing the latter in the sixth century. Others (with
Maassen Maassen is a Dutch patronymic surname, meaning son of ''Maas'', an archaic short form of Thomas. It is most common in Dutch Limburg and surrounding regions.Fabricius, and first edited by Mazzuchelli, Milan, 1820), maintain that it has been wrongly attributed to this Cresconius, and that it cannot therefore aid in fixing his date.