Frontispiece of the Acta Archelai by Hegemonius, 1906 edition

Hegemonius or Pseudo-Hegemonius was a 4th-century Christian who is known only from his presumed authorship of the ''Acta Archelai'', a work on

Manichaeism Manichaeism (; in New Persian ; ) is a former major religionR. van den Broek, Wouter J. Hanegraaff ''Gnosis and Hermeticism from Antiquity to Modern Times''SUNY Press, 1998 p. 37 founded in the 3rd century AD by the Parthian Empire, Parthian ...

preserved only in Latin.

"Traditionally attributed to Hegemonius, the Acta Archelai is the oldest and most significant anti-Manichaean polemical text. Originally composed in Greek in the fourth century, it has survived mainly in a near contemporary Latin translation - substantial section of the Greek version has however survived in the
Panarion In early Christian heresiology, the ''Panarion'' ( grc-koi, Πανάριον, derived from Latin ''panarium'', meaning "bread basket"), to which 16th-century Latin translations gave the name ''Adversus Haereses'' (Latin: "Against Heresies"), is t ...
of Epiphanius. The Acta gives a fictional account of a debate between Mani and Archelaus, the Christian bishop of the city of Carchar in Roman
Mesopotamia Mesopotamia ''Mesopotamíā''; ar, بِلَاد ٱلرَّافِدَيْن or ; syc, ܐܪܡ ܢܗܪ̈ܝܢ, or , ) is a historical region of Western Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the F ...
as well as an important summary of his teaching on cosmogony and a highly polemical version of Mani's life. The work would later exercise enormous influence on anti-Manichaean writings in both Late Antiquity and Middle Ages."

A Latin edition ''Acta Disputationis Archelai, Episcopi Mesopotamia et Manetis Haresiarch'' was published by

Lorenzo Alessandro Zaccagni Lorenzo Alessandro Zaccagni (1652 -1712) was an Italian librarian and Patristic scholar and author. His main contribution is a collection of texts relating to early controversies in Christianity, ''Collectanea monumentorum veterum Ecclesiæ græc� ...

, librarian of the

Vatican Library The Vatican Apostolic Library ( la, Bibliotheca Apostolica Vaticana, it, Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana), more commonly known as the Vatican Library or informally as the Vat, is the library of the Holy See, located in Vatican City. Formally es ...

, in ''Collectanea monumentorum veterum Ecclesiae graecae et latinae.'' Rome, 1698.

Charles H. Beeson Charles Henry Beeson (1870–1949) was an American classical scholar. His book '' A Primer of Medieval Latin: An Anthology of Prose and Poetry'' (1925) has remained one of the leading texts for learning post-classical Latin. In addition, he was an ...

's edition appeared in 1906. An improved critical edition of the text of Breeson was published by Brepols Publishers (Turnhout, Belgium) in 2001. An English translation of Zaccagni's edition by

S. D. F. Salmond Stewart Dingwall Fordyce Salmond (1838 in Aberdeen – 20 April 1905) was a Scottish educator, writer and editor. Biography Salmond was educated at the University and Free Church College, Aberdeen, and at Erlangen University, and was assistant ...

appeared in 1871.Translation by

Stewart Dingwall Fordyce Salmond Stewart Dingwall Fordyce Salmond (1838 in Aberdeen – 20 April 1905) was a Scottish educator, writer and editor. Biography Salmond was educated at the University and Free Church College, Aberdeen, and at Erlangen University, and was assistant ...

(1838-1905) professor of Systematic Theology and Exegesis in the Free Church College of Aberdeen. A new translation by Mark Vermes of Breeson's edition appeared in 2001.

References

External links

English translation
S. D. F. Salmond, 1871.
Original Latin and Greek Text Online
(Charles Henry Beeson, German Edition, 1906) {{Authority control 4th-century writers Manichaeism 4th-century Christians