Gaius Marius Victorinus (also known as Victorinus Afer; fl. 4th century) was a
Roman
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...
grammarian,
rhetorician
Rhetoric () is the art of persuasion, which along with grammar and logic (or dialectic), is one of the three ancient arts of discourse. Rhetoric aims to study the techniques writers or speakers utilize to inform, persuade, or motivate parti ...
and
Neoplatonic
Neoplatonism is a strand of Platonic philosophy that emerged in the 3rd century AD against the background of Hellenistic philosophy and religion. The term does not encapsulate a set of ideas as much as a chain of thinkers. But there are some id ...
philosopher. Victorinus was African by birth and experienced the height of his career during the reign of
Constantius II
Constantius II (Latin: ''Flavius Julius Constantius''; grc-gre, Κωνστάντιος; 7 August 317 – 3 November 361) was Roman emperor from 337 to 361. His reign saw constant warfare on the borders against the Sasanian Empire and Germanic ...
. He is also known for translating two of
Aristotle
Aristotle (; grc-gre, Ἀριστοτέλης ''Aristotélēs'', ; 384–322 BC) was a Greek philosopher and polymath during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. Taught by Plato, he was the founder of the Peripatetic school of phil ...
's books from
ancient Greek
Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic peri ...
into Latin: the ''
Categories
Category, plural categories, may refer to:
Philosophy and general uses
*Categorization, categories in cognitive science, information science and generally
*Category of being
* ''Categories'' (Aristotle)
*Category (Kant)
* Categories (Peirce)
* ...
'' and ''
On Interpretation
''De Interpretatione'' or ''On Interpretation'' ( Greek: Περὶ Ἑρμηνείας, ''Peri Hermeneias'') is the second text from Aristotle's '' Organon'' and is among the earliest surviving philosophical works in the Western tradition to dea ...
'' (''
De Interpretatione''). Victorinus had a
religious conversion
Religious conversion is the adoption of a set of beliefs identified with one particular religious denomination to the exclusion of others. Thus "religious conversion" would describe the abandoning of adherence to one denomination and affiliatin ...
, from being a
pagan
Paganism (from classical Latin ''pāgānus'' "rural", "rustic", later "civilian") is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Judaism. ...
to a
Christian
Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
, "at an advanced old age" (c. 355).
Life
Victorinus, at some unknown point, left
Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
for
Rome
, established_title = Founded
, established_date = 753 BC
, founder = King Romulus (legendary)
, image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg
, map_caption ...
(hence some modern scholars have dubbed him ''Afer''), probably for a teaching position, and had great success in his career, eventually being promoted to the lowest level of the senatorial order. That promotion probably came at the time when he received an honorific statue in the
Forum of Trajan
Trajan's Forum ( la, Forum Traiani; it, Foro di Traiano) was the last of the Imperial fora to be constructed in ancient Rome. The architect Apollodorus of Damascus oversaw its construction.
History
This forum was built on the order of the empe ...
in 354. Victorinus'
religious conversion
Religious conversion is the adoption of a set of beliefs identified with one particular religious denomination to the exclusion of others. Thus "religious conversion" would describe the abandoning of adherence to one denomination and affiliatin ...
to
Christianity
Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...
(c. 355), "at an advanced old age" according to
Jerome
Jerome (; la, Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus; grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος Σωφρόνιος Ἱερώνυμος; – 30 September 420), also known as Jerome of Stridon, was a Christian presbyter, priest, Confessor of the Faith, confessor, th ...
, made a great impression on
Augustine of Hippo
Augustine of Hippo ( , ; la, Aurelius Augustinus Hipponensis; 13 November 354 – 28 August 430), also known as Saint Augustine, was a theologian and philosopher of Berber origin and the bishop of Hippo Regius in Numidia, Roman North Af ...
, as recounted in Book 8 of the latter's ''
Confessions''. Marius Victorinus developed a theology of predestination and justification that anticipated St. Augustine, as well as themes that we find again in the anti-Pelagian treatises of the Bishop of Hippo. His conversion is historically important in foreshadowing the conversion of more and more of the traditionally
pagan
Paganism (from classical Latin ''pāgānus'' "rural", "rustic", later "civilian") is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Judaism. ...
intellectual class, from the gods who in pagan belief had made Rome great.
Jerome, who was his student of rhetoric, dedicated the following words to him:
I am not unaware that Gaius Marius Victorinus, who taught me rhetoric in Rome when I was a young man, has published commentaries on the apostle; but, versed as he was in knowledge of secular literature, he was completely ignorant of the Scriptures; and no one, no matter how eloquent, can correctly discuss something he knows nothing about.
Brought up a
Christian
Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
, Emperor Julian had converted to a philosophical and mystical form of paganism; and once in power upon the providential death of
Constantius II
Constantius II (Latin: ''Flavius Julius Constantius''; grc-gre, Κωνστάντιος; 7 August 317 – 3 November 361) was Roman emperor from 337 to 361. His reign saw constant warfare on the borders against the Sasanian Empire and Germanic ...
, Julian attempted to reorganize the highly decentralized pagan cults, on lines analogous to the Christian Church. The emperor, wanting to purge the schools of Christian teachers, published an edict in June 362 mandating that all state appointed professors receive approval from municipal councils (the emperor's accompanying brief indicated his express disapproval of Christians lecturing on the poems of
Homer
Homer (; grc, Ὅμηρος , ''Hómēros'') (born ) was a Greek poet who is credited as the author of the ''Iliad'' and the ''Odyssey'', two epic poems that are foundational works of ancient Greek literature. Homer is considered one of the ...
or
Virgil
Publius Vergilius Maro (; traditional dates 15 October 7021 September 19 BC), usually called Virgil or Vergil ( ) in English, was an ancient Roman poet of the Augustan period. He composed three of the most famous poems in Latin literature: t ...
with their religion being incongruous with the religion of Homer and Virgil). Victorinus resigned his position as official ''rhetor of the
city of Rome
, established_title = Founded
, established_date = 753 BC
, founder = King Romulus (legendary)
, image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg
, map_caption ...
'', professor of rhetoric, not an orator. The sprightly old professor kept writing treatises on the
Trinity
The Christian doctrine of the Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the central dogma concerning the nature of God in most Christian churches, which defines one God existing in three coequal, coeternal, consubstantial divine persons: God th ...
to defend the adequacy of the
Nicene Creed's definition of Christ the Son being "
of the same substance" (''
homoousios
Homoousion ( ; grc, ὁμοούσιον, lit=same in being, same in essence, from , , "same" and , , "being" or "essence") is a Christian theological term, most notably used in the Nicene Creed for describing Jesus ( God the Son) as "same in b ...
'' in Greek) with the Father. After finishing this series of works (begun probably in late 357), he turned his hand to writing commentaries on the
Pauline Epistles, the first in Latin. Although it seems from internal references that he wrote commentaries on Romans and the Corinthians letters as well, all that remains are works, with some lacunae, on Galatians, Ephesians, and Philippians (the comments from the first 16 verses of this latter are missing).
We are fairly well informed on his previous works, mostly texts for his teaching areas of grammar and rhetoric. His most important works from the standpoint of the history of philosophy were translations of Platonist authors (
Plotinus
Plotinus (; grc-gre, Πλωτῖνος, ''Plōtînos''; – 270 CE) was a philosopher in the Hellenistic tradition, born and raised in Roman Egypt. Plotinus is regarded by modern scholarship as the founder of Neoplatonism. His teacher wa ...
and
Porphyry at least), which are unfortunately lost. They greatly moved Augustine and set him on a road of creating a careful synthesis of Christianity and Neoplatonism that was tremendously influential. Victorinus wrote a brief treatise ''De Definitionibus'' (''On Definition'') that lists and discusses various types of definitions used by rhetoricians and philosophers; he recommends the ''substantial definitions'' preferred by the latter (prior to the late 19th century this work was ascribed to
Boethius
Anicius Manlius Severinus Boethius, commonly known as Boethius (; Latin: ''Boetius''; 480 – 524 AD), was a Roman senator, consul, ''magister officiorum'', historian, and philosopher of the Early Middle Ages. He was a central figure in the tr ...
). Victorinus' manual of
prosody, in four books, taken almost literally from the work of
Aelius Aphthonius
Aphthonius of Antioch ( el, Ἀφθόνιος Ἀντιοχεὺς ὁ Σύρος) was a Greek sophist and rhetorician who lived in the second half of the 4th century CE. Life
No information about his personal life is available except for his fri ...
, still exists. It is doubtful that he is the author of certain other treatises attributed to him on metrical and grammatical subjects. His commentary on
Cicero
Marcus Tullius Cicero ( ; ; 3 January 106 BC – 7 December 43 BC) was a Roman statesman, lawyer, scholar, philosopher, and academic skeptic, who tried to uphold optimate principles during the political crises that led to the estab ...
's ''De Inventione'' is very diffuse.
He retained his
Neoplatonic
Neoplatonism is a strand of Platonic philosophy that emerged in the 3rd century AD against the background of Hellenistic philosophy and religion. The term does not encapsulate a set of ideas as much as a chain of thinkers. But there are some id ...
philosophy after becoming Christian, and in ''Liber de generatione divini Verbi'', he states that God is above being, and thus it can even be said that He is not. Victorinus noted, "Since God is the cause of being, it can be said in a certain sense, that God truly is (vere ων), but this expression merely means that being is in God as an effect is in an eminent cause, which contains it though being superior to it."
For medieval authors its works were practically unknown, although it was widely exploited by
Claudius of Turin
Claudius of Turin (or Claude) (''fl.'' 810–827)M. Gorman 1997, p. 279S. F. Wemple 1974, p. 222 was the Catholic bishop of Turin from 817 until his death. He was a courtier of Louis the Pious and was a writer during the Carolingian Renaissance ...
at the beginning of the 9th century, by
Haimo of Auxerre Haimo of Auxerre (died c. 865) was a member of the Benedictine Abbey of Saint-Germain d'Auxerre. Although he was the author of numerous Biblical commentaries and theological texts, little of his life is known today.
Haimo defended the real presence ...
around 850 and by
Atto of Vercelli Atto of Vercelli or Atto II (c. 885–961) was a Lombard who became bishop of Vercelli in 924. He served as Grand Chancellor to Hugh of Provence and Lothar II, both Kings of Italy in the 10th century. During his time as bishop, Atto was known for ...
around 920.
Works
Mary T. Clark has identified the following works of Marius Victorinus:
Theological works
Candidi Arriani ad Marium Victorinum rhetorem de generatione divina(in Latin)
* Marii Victorini rhetoris urbis Romae ad Candidum Arrianum
(in Latin)
*
ttp://ardownload.catholiclibrary.org/library/view?docId=Fathers-OR/PL.008.html;query=;subDocument=PL.008.html.xml.00000155;brand=default Adversus Arium(in Latin)
** I. Liber Primus
*** IA. pars prior
*** IB. pars posterior
** II. Liber Secundus
** III. Liber Tertius
** IV. Liber Quartus
* De homoousio recipiendo
* Hymnus Primus
* Hymnus Secundus
* Hymnus Tertius
Exegetical works
In epistolam Pauli ad Ephesios libri duo(in Latin)
(in Latin)
*
ttp://ardownload.catholiclibrary.org/library/view?docId=Fathers-OR/PL.008.html;query=;subDocument=PL.008.html.xml.00000171;brand=default In epistolam Pauli ad Philippenses liber unicus(in Latin)
Secular works
*
Ars grammatica
An ''ars grammatica'' ( en, italic=yes, art of grammar) is a generic or proper title for surveys of Latin grammar. The first ''ars grammatica'' seems to have been composed by Remmius Palaemon (first century CE), but is now lost. The most famous '' ...
*
Explanationes in Ciceronis Rhetorica
* In Ciceronis Topica commenta ''(lost)''
* De syllogismis hypotheticis ''(lost)''
See also
*
Book of the 24 Philosophers
*
Maria gens
The gens Maria was a plebeian family of Rome. Its most celebrated member was Gaius Marius, one of the greatest generals of antiquity, and seven times consul.''Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology'', vol. I, p. 949 ("Maria Gens"). ...
Notes
References
*
*
*
External links
Opera Omnia by Migne Patrologia Latina*
Corpus Grammaticorum Latinorum: complete texts and full bibliography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Marius Victorinus, Gaius
Ancient Roman rhetoricians
4th-century Romans
4th-century Christian theologians
4th-century philosophers
4th-century Latin writers
4th-century translators
Victorinus Marius Gaius
Catholic philosophers
Neoplatonists
Converts to Christianity from pagan religions
Victorinus, Gaius
Greek–Latin translators