HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Saint Pamphilus ( el, Πάμφιλος; latter half of the 3rd century – February 16, 309 AD), was a
presbyter Presbyter () is an honorific title for Christian clergy. The word derives from the Greek ''presbyteros,'' which means elder or senior, although many in the Christian antiquity would understand ''presbyteros'' to refer to the bishop functioning a ...
of
Caesarea Caesarea () ( he, קֵיסָרְיָה, ), ''Keysariya'' or ''Qesarya'', often simplified to Keisarya, and Qaysaria, is an affluent town in north-central Israel, which inherits its name and much of its territory from the ancient city of Caesar ...
and chief among the biblical scholars of his generation. He was the friend and teacher of
Eusebius of Caesarea Eusebius of Caesarea (; grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος ; 260/265 – 30 May 339), also known as Eusebius Pamphilus (from the grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος τοῦ Παμφίλου), was a Greek historian of Christianity, exegete, and Chris ...
, who recorded details of his career in a three-book ''Vita'' that has been lost.


Biography

Eusebius' ''Martyrs of Palestine'' attests that Pamphilus was of a rich and honorable family of
Beirut Beirut, french: Beyrouth is the capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, which makes it the third-largest city in the Levant region. The city is situated on a peninsula at the midpoint o ...
. This work also asserts that he gave all his property to the poor and attached himself to the "perfect men".
Photius Photios I ( el, Φώτιος, ''Phōtios''; c. 810/820 – 6 February 893), also spelled PhotiusFr. Justin Taylor, essay "Canon Law in the Age of the Fathers" (published in Jordan Hite, T.O.R., & Daniel J. Ward, O.S.B., "Readings, Cases, Materia ...
quotes Pamphilus's ''Apology for Origen'' to the effect that Pamphilus went to
Alexandria Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandri ...
, where his teacher was Pierius, the head of the famous
catechetical school Catechesis (; from Greek: , "instruction by word of mouth", generally "instruction") is basic Christian religious education of children and adults, often from a catechism book. It started as education of converts to Christianity, but as the re ...
there, before settling in
Caesarea Maritima Caesarea Maritima (; Greek: ''Parálios Kaisáreia''), formerly Strato's Tower, also known as Caesarea Palestinae, was an ancient city in the Sharon plain on the coast of the Mediterranean, now in ruins and included in an Israeli national pa ...
, where he was ordained a
priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in partic ...
. In
Alexandria Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandri ...
,
Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning the North Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via a land bridg ...
, Pamphilus became devoted to the works of
Origen of Alexandria Origen of Alexandria, ''Ōrigénēs''; Origen's Greek name ''Ōrigénēs'' () probably means "child of Horus" (from , "Horus", and , "born"). ( 185 – 253), also known as Origen Adamantius, was an early Christian scholar, ascetic, and the ...
. Photius says that Pamphilus was a Phoenician born at Berytus, and a scholar of Pierius, who collected sacred literature. According to Eusebius, he suffered martyrdom in the third year of the
Diocletianic persecution The Diocletianic or Great Persecution was the last and most severe persecution of Christians in the Roman Empire. In 303, the emperors Diocletian, Maximian, Galerius, and Constantius issued a series of edicts rescinding Christians' legal rig ...
, after spending two years in prison. While he was in prison, Pamphilus and Eusebius worked together on five books in defense of Origen. The Diocletianic persecution began in earnest in the year 303. In 306 a young man named Apphianus—a disciple of Pamphilus "while no one was aware; he even concealed it from us who were even in the same house"Eusebius, ''Martyrs of Palestine''—interrupted the governor in the act of offering sacrifice, and paid for his boldness with
martyrdom A martyr (, ''mártys'', "witness", or , ''marturia'', stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an externa ...
. His brother Aedesius, also a disciple of Pamphilus, suffered martyrdom about the same time at Alexandria under similar circumstances. Saint Pamphilus's turn came in November, 307. He was brought before Urbanus, the governor of Palestine,''Lives of the Saints, for Every Day of the Year'', p. 212 and upon refusing to offer sacrifice, was cruelly tortured, and then relegated to prison. In prison he continued copying and correcting manuscripts. He also composed, in collaboration with Eusebius, also imprisoned, an ''Apology for Origen'' in five books, which Eusebius edited and to which he added a sixth book. Saint Pamphilus and other members of his household, along with Valens, deacon of the Church of Jerusalem and Paul of Jamnia, men "in the full vigour of mind and body", were without further torture sentenced to be beheaded in February, 309. While sentence was being given a youth named Porphyrius - "the slave of Pamphilus", "the beloved disciple of Pamphilus", who "had been instructed in literature and writing" – demanded the bodies of the confessors for burial. He was cruelly tortured and put to death, the news of his martyrdom being brought to Pamphilus before his own execution. Nearly at the same time another of his companions, Patriklos, suffered a martyr death in Caesarea and was later interred after the payment of a ransom to Diocletian in Cappadocia.


Veneration

St Pamphilus is regarded as a
saint In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and denomination. In Catholic, Eastern Or ...
by the
Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
and the
Eastern Orthodox Church The Eastern Orthodox Church, also called the Orthodox Church, is the second-largest Christian church, with approximately 220 million baptized members. It operates as a communion of autocephalous churches, each governed by its bishops via ...
es. His
feast day The calendar of saints is the traditional Christian method of organizing a liturgical year by associating each day with one or more saints and referring to the day as the feast day or feast of said saint. The word "feast" in this context do ...
is celebrated on 16 February (the RC Church lists an additional commemoration on June 1).


Works and influence

*Of the ''Apology for Origen'' only the first book is extant, in a Latin version made by Rufinus. It begins with describing the extravagant bitterness of the feeling against Origen. He was a man of deep humility, of great authority in the Church of his day, and honoured with the priesthood. He was above all things anxious to keep to the rule of faith that had come down from 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 ...
. The soundness of his doctrine concerning 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 ...
and the
Incarnation Incarnation literally means ''embodied in flesh'' or ''taking on flesh''. It refers to the conception and the embodiment of a deity or spirit in some earthly form or the appearance of a god as a human. If capitalized, it is the union of divinit ...
is then vindicated by copious extracts from his writings. Then nine charges against his teaching are confronted with passages from his works.
Saint Jerome Jerome (; la, Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus; grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος Σωφρόνιος Ἱερώνυμος; – 30 September 420), also known as Jerome of Stridon, was a Christian priest, confessor, theologian, and historian; he is co ...
stated in his ''De Viris illustribus'' that there were two apologies—one by Pamphilus and another by Eusebius. He discovered his mistake when Rufinus's translation appeared in the height of the controversy over Origen, and rushed to the conclusion that Eusebius was the sole author. He charged Rufinus, among other things, with palming off under the name of the martyr what was really the work of the heterodox Eusebius, and with suppressing unorthodox passages. As to the first accusation there is abundant evidence that the ''Apology'' was the joint work of Pamphilus and Eusebius. Against the second may be set the negative testimony of Photius who had read the original; "Photius, who was severe to excess towards the slightest semblance of
Arianism Arianism ( grc-x-koine, Ἀρειανισμός, ) is a Christological doctrine first attributed to Arius (), a Christian presbyter from Alexandria, Egypt. Arian theology holds that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, who was begotten by God ...
, remarked no such taint in the Apology of Origen which he had read in Greek." The canons of the alleged Council of the Apostles at Antioch were ascribed by their compiler (late fourth century) to Pamphilus. *The ascription to Pamphilus, by Gemmadius, of a treatise ''Contra mathematicos'' was a blunder due to a misunderstanding of Rufinus's preface to the "Apology". *A '' Summary of the Acts of the Apostles'' among the writings associated with
Euthalius Euthalius was a deacon of Alexandria and later Bishop of Sulca. He lived sometime between the 4th and 7th centuries and is chiefly known through his work on the New Testament in particular as the author of the "Euthalian Sections". Of Euthalius ...
bears in its inscription the name of Pamphilus. *While defending Origen from accusations that he held and taught certain
heterodox In religion, heterodoxy (from Ancient Greek: , "other, another, different" + , "popular belief") means "any opinions or doctrines at variance with an official or orthodox position". Under this definition, heterodoxy is similar to unorthodoxy, w ...
doctrines, Pamphilus endorses
universal reconciliation In Christian theology, universal reconciliation (also called universal salvation, Christian universalism, or in context simply universalism) is the doctrine that all sinful and alienated human souls—because of divine love and mercy—will ul ...
as the orthodox understanding of ''
apokatastasis In theology, apocatastasis () is the restoration of creation to a condition of perfection. In Christianity, it is a form of Christian universalism that includes the ultimate salvation of everyone—including the damned in hell and the devil. The ...
''.Origen and Origenism
/ref> Late 19th-century universalist historians
Hosea Ballou II Hosea Ballou II (October 18, 1796May 27, 1861) was an American Universalist minister and the first president of Tufts University from 1853 to 1861. Ballou was named after his uncle and went by the name "Hosea Ballou 2d. " Publishers, friends, e ...
and
J. W. Hanson John Wesley Hanson D.D. (1823–1901) was an American Universalist minister and a notable Universalist historian advancing the claim that Universalism was the belief of early Christianity. He was born at Boston. He is also notable for his eyewitne ...
have cited Pamphilius, among other Fathers of the Church, as an example of early
Christian universalism Christian universalism is a school of Christian theology focused around the doctrine of universal reconciliation – the view that all human beings will ultimately be saved and restored to a right relationship with God. "Christian universalis ...
, although the exact conception of ''apokatastasis'' in patristic writings generally, and Origenian thought in particular, is disputed among historical theologians. *
David Hume David Hume (; born David Home; 7 May 1711 NS (26 April 1711 OS) – 25 August 1776) Cranston, Maurice, and Thomas Edmund Jessop. 2020 999br>David Hume" '' Encyclopædia Britannica''. Retrieved 18 May 2020. was a Scottish Enlightenment ph ...
adopted the evocative pseudonym Pamphilus for his ''
Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion ''Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion'' is a philosophy, philosophical work by the Scottish philosopher David Hume, first published in 1779. Through dialogue, three philosophers named Demea, Philo, and Cleanthes debate the nature of God's exi ...
''.


See also

*
Pamphilus the Theologian Pamphilus the Theologian ( el, Πάμφιλος ὁ Θεολόγος) was probably a late sixth century Palestinian compiler writing in the aftermath of the Council of Chalcedon and the fall-out this produced in the eastern Christian provinces. Hi ...
*
Theological Library of Caesarea Maritima The Theological Library of Caesarea Maritima, or simply the Library of Caesarea, was the library of the Christians of Caesarea Maritima in Palestine in ancient times. History Through Origen and especially the scholarly presbyter Pamphilus, an a ...
*
4th century in Lebanon This article lists historical events that occurred between 301–400 in modern-day Lebanon or regarding its people. Administration Diocletian (r. 284–305) separated the district of Batanaea and gave it to Arabia, while sometime before 328, whe ...


References


Sources

*''Lives of the Saints, For Every Day of the Year'', edited by Rev. Hugo Hoever, S.O.Cist., Ph.D., New York: Catholic Book Publishing Co., 1955, pp. 211–212.


Further reading


Pamphilus, ''Defence of Origen''
Introduction to Book 1, from Rufinus' Latin version (in English) * *


External links

* Henry Wace

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Pamphilus Of Caesarea Saints from the Holy Land Lebanese saints 3rd-century births 3rd-century Christian theologians 309 deaths People from Caesarea, Israel 4th-century Christian martyrs 3rd-century Romans 4th-century Romans Church Fathers Eusebius Christians martyred during the reign of Diocletian