Gennadius of Massilia
Encyclopedia
Gennadius of Massilia also known as Gennadius Scholasticus or Gennadius of Marseille, was a 5th century Christian
priest and historian.
His best-known work is De Viris Illustribus ("Of Famous Men"), a biography of over 90 contemporary significant Christians, which continued a work of the same name by Jerome
.
) and a contemporary of Pope Gelasius I
.
Nothing is known of his life, save what he tells us himself in the last of the biographies he wrote: "I, Gennadius, presbyter of Massilia, wrote eight books against all heresies, five books against Nestorius, ten books against Eutyches, three books against Pelagius, a treatise on the thousand years of the Apocalypse of John, this work, and a letter about my faith sent to blessed Gelasius, bishop of the city of Rome".
Gelasius reigned from 492
-496, so Gennadius must have lived at the end of the fifth century.
and contains, in some ten folio pages, short biographies of ecclesiastics between the years 392
and 495. It is a very important source and in part the only source of our acquaintance with the over ninety authors treated therein.
It is a continuation of St. Jerome's De Viris Illustribus
. In that work Jerome had for the first time drawn up a series of 135 short biographies of famous Christians, with lists of their chief writings. It was the first patrology and dictionary of Christian biography. This book of reference was so useful that it naturally became popular, and many people wrote continuations after the same method. We hear of such a continuation by one Paterius
, a disciple of Jerome, and of a Greek translation by Sophronius.
It was Gennadius's continuation that became most popular and was accepted everywhere as a second part of Jerome's work, and was always written (eventually printed) together with his. Gennadius's part contains about one hundred lives, modelled closely after those of Jerome. Various edits and reprints do not number them consistently; by Bernoulli, i to xcvii, with some marked as xciib, etc., originally cxxxvi-ccxxxii).
The series is arranged more or less in chronological order, but there are frequent exceptions.
In xc, 92, he says (in one version) that Theodore of Coelesyria (Theodulus) "died three years ago, in the reign of Zeno". From this Czapla deduces that Gennadius wrote between 491 and 494.
The present form of the text indicates a repeated revision of the entire work. Other people have modified it and added to it without noting the fact—as is usual among medieval writers. Some scholars including Richardson and Czapla consider that chapters xxx (Bishop John II of Jerusalem
), lxxxvii (Victorinus
), xciii (Caerealis of Africa), and all the end portion (xcv-ci), are not authentic. There is doubt about parts of the others.
but is now universally attributed to Gennadius. The work was long included among those of St. Augustine.
Some scholars (Caspari, Otto Bardenhewer
, Czapla) think that it is probably a fragment of Gennadius's eight books "against all heresies", apparently the last part, in which, having confuted the heretics, he builds up a positive system.
An English translation by Richardson was produced in the Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers
, 2nd ser., iii. 385-402.
The Liber de Ecclesiasticis Dogmatibus is in an Appendix of the Benedictine edition of the writings of St. Augustine.
in "De Viris Illustribus". Semipelagians are warmly praised (Fastidiosus, lvi, p. 80; Cassian, lxi, 81; Faustus of Riez
, lxxxv, 89); full Pelagians (Pelagius
himself, xlii, 77; Julian of Eclanum
, xlv, 77) are heretics; Catholics
are treated shabbily (Augustine of Hippo
, xxxviii, 75; Prosper of Aquitaine
, lxxxiv, 89); even popes are called heretics (Julius I, in i, 61).
The same tendency is confirmed by the treatise "De eccles. dogmatibus", which is full of Semipelagianism, either open or implied (original sin carefully evaded, great insistence on free will and denial of predestination, grace as an adjutorium in the mildest form, etc.).
Gennadius considers (like later writers, e.g. Thomas Aquinas
) that all men, even those alive at the Second Coming
, will have to die. But this conviction, though derived from a widespread patristic tradition, is, he admits, rejected by equally catholic and learned Fathers.
Of the theories concerning the soul of man subsequently known as the creationist and the traducianist views, he espouses the creationist. He will not allow the existence of the spirit as a third element in man besides the body and the soul, but regards it as only another name for the soul.
In De Ecclesiasticis Dogmatibus, his views include the following points.
Heretical baptism is not to be repeated, unless it has been administered by heretics who would have declined to employ the invocation of the Holy Trinity.
He recommends weekly reception of the Eucharist by all not under the burden of mortal sin. Such as are should have recourse to public penitence.
He will not deny that private penance may suffice; but even here outward manifestation, such as change of dress, is desirable.
Daily reception of holy communion he will neither praise nor blame.
Evil was invented by Satan.
Though celibacy is rated above matrimony, to condemn marriage is Manichean.
A twice-married Christian should not be ordained.
Churches should be called after martyrs, and the relics of martyrs honoured.
None but the baptized attain eternal life; not even catechumens, unless they suffer martyrdom.
Penitence thoroughly avails to Christians even at their latest breath.
The Creator alone knows our secret thoughts. Satan can learn them only by our motions and manifestations.
Marvels might be wrought in the Lord's name even by bad men. Men can become holy without such marks.
The freedom of man's will is strongly asserted, but the commencement of all goodness is assigned to divine grace.
The language of Gennadius is here not quite Augustinian; but neither is it Pelagian.
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
priest and historian.
His best-known work is De Viris Illustribus ("Of Famous Men"), a biography of over 90 contemporary significant Christians, which continued a work of the same name by Jerome
Jerome
Saint Jerome was a Roman Christian priest, confessor, theologian and historian, and who became a Doctor of the Church. He was the son of Eusebius, of the city of Stridon, which was on the border of Dalmatia and Pannonia...
.
Life
Gennadius was a priest of Massilia (now MarseilleMarseille
Marseille , known in antiquity as Massalia , is the second largest city in France, after Paris, with a population of 852,395 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Marseille extends beyond the city limits with a population of over 1,420,000 on an area of...
) and a contemporary of Pope Gelasius I
Pope Gelasius I
Pope Saint Gelasius I was pope from 492 until his death in 496. He was the third and last bishop of Rome of African origin in the Catholic Church. Gelasius was a prolific writer whose style placed him on the cusp between Late Antiquity and the Early Middle Ages...
.
Nothing is known of his life, save what he tells us himself in the last of the biographies he wrote: "I, Gennadius, presbyter of Massilia, wrote eight books against all heresies, five books against Nestorius, ten books against Eutyches, three books against Pelagius, a treatise on the thousand years of the Apocalypse of John, this work, and a letter about my faith sent to blessed Gelasius, bishop of the city of Rome".
Gelasius reigned from 492
492
Year 492 was a leap year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Anastasius and Rufus...
-496, so Gennadius must have lived at the end of the fifth century.
Writings
Gennadius knew Greek well and was well read in Eastern and Western, orthodox and heretical Christian literature. He was a diligent compiler and a competent critic.De Viris Illustribus
De Viris Illustribus, in its most commonly accepted form was probably published c. 495495
Year 495 was a common year starting on Sunday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Viator without colleague...
and contains, in some ten folio pages, short biographies of ecclesiastics between the years 392
392
Year 392 was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Augustus and Rufinus...
and 495. It is a very important source and in part the only source of our acquaintance with the over ninety authors treated therein.
It is a continuation of St. Jerome's De Viris Illustribus
De Viris Illustribus (Jerome)
De viris illustribus is a collection of short biographies of 135 authors, written in Latin, by the 4th century Latin Church Father Jerome. He completed this work at Bethlehem in 392-3 CE. The work consists of a prologue plus 135 chapters, each consisting of a brief biography. Jerome himself is...
. In that work Jerome had for the first time drawn up a series of 135 short biographies of famous Christians, with lists of their chief writings. It was the first patrology and dictionary of Christian biography. This book of reference was so useful that it naturally became popular, and many people wrote continuations after the same method. We hear of such a continuation by one Paterius
Paterius
Saint Paterius was a bishop of Brescia. He is known as a compiler, in particular of works of Pope Gregory I, for whom he worked as a notary.His works are Liber testimoniorum veteris testamenti, and others.-References:...
, a disciple of Jerome, and of a Greek translation by Sophronius.
It was Gennadius's continuation that became most popular and was accepted everywhere as a second part of Jerome's work, and was always written (eventually printed) together with his. Gennadius's part contains about one hundred lives, modelled closely after those of Jerome. Various edits and reprints do not number them consistently; by Bernoulli, i to xcvii, with some marked as xciib, etc., originally cxxxvi-ccxxxii).
The series is arranged more or less in chronological order, but there are frequent exceptions.
In xc, 92, he says (in one version) that Theodore of Coelesyria (Theodulus) "died three years ago, in the reign of Zeno". From this Czapla deduces that Gennadius wrote between 491 and 494.
The present form of the text indicates a repeated revision of the entire work. Other people have modified it and added to it without noting the fact—as is usual among medieval writers. Some scholars including Richardson and Czapla consider that chapters xxx (Bishop John II of Jerusalem
Bishop John II of Jerusalem
John II was bishop of Jerusalem from AD 387 to AD 417. John II succeeded to the episcopal throne of Jerusalem on the death of Saint Cyril in 386...
), lxxxvii (Victorinus
Victorinus
Marcus Piavonius Victorinus was emperor of the secessionist Gallic Empire from 269 to 271, following the brief reign of Marius. He was murdered by a jealous husband whose wife he tried to seduce.-Reign:...
), xciii (Caerealis of Africa), and all the end portion (xcv-ci), are not authentic. There is doubt about parts of the others.
Other Writings
Gennadius states that he composed a number of other works, most of which are not extant:- Adversus omnes hæreses libri viii., "Against all heresies" in 8 volumes
- Five books against NestoriusNestoriusNestorius was Archbishop of Constantinople from 10 April 428 to 22 June 431.Drawing on his studies at the School of Antioch, his teachings, which included a rejection of the long-used title of Theotokos for the Virgin Mary, brought him into conflict with other prominent churchmen of the time,...
- Ten books against EutychesEutychesEutyches was a presbyter and archimandrite at Constantinople. He first came to notice in 431 at the First Council of Ephesus, for his vehement opposition to the teachings of Nestorius; his condemnation of Nestorianism as heresy precipitated his being denounced as a heretic...
- Three books against PelagiusPelagiusPelagius was an ascetic who denied the need for divine aid in performing good works. For him, the only grace necessary was the declaration of the law; humans were not wounded by Adam's sin and were perfectly able to fulfill the law apart from any divine aid...
- Tractatus de millennio et de apocalypsi beati Johannis, "Treatise on the thousand years and on the Apocalypse of St. John"
- Epistola de fide, a "letter of faith" which he sent to Pope Gelasius.
- Works of Evagrius PonticusEvagrius PonticusEvagrius Ponticus , also called Evagrius the Solitary was a Christian monk and ascetic. One of the rising stars in the late fourth century church, he was well-known as a keen thinker, a polished speaker, and a gifted writer...
and of Timothy Ælurus, translated and restored to their authentic form. These translations are also lost.
De Ecclesiasticis Dogmatibus
There is a treatise called De Ecclesiasticis Dogmatibus ("Of Church Doctrine") which was originally attributed to Augustine of HippoAugustine of Hippo
Augustine of Hippo , also known as Augustine, St. Augustine, St. Austin, St. Augoustinos, Blessed Augustine, or St. Augustine the Blessed, was Bishop of Hippo Regius . He was a Latin-speaking philosopher and theologian who lived in the Roman Africa Province...
but is now universally attributed to Gennadius. The work was long included among those of St. Augustine.
Some scholars (Caspari, Otto Bardenhewer
Otto Bardenhewer
Bertram Otto Bardenhewer was a German Catholic patrologist. His Geschichte der altkirchlichen Literatur is a standard work, re-issued in 2008...
, Czapla) think that it is probably a fragment of Gennadius's eight books "against all heresies", apparently the last part, in which, having confuted the heretics, he builds up a positive system.
Publication
The De Viris Illustribus was edited and published by J. Andreas (Rome, 1468), by J. A. Fabricius in Bibliotheca ecclesiastica (Hamburg, 1718), and by E. C. Richardson in TU, xiv. (Leipsic, 1896). It also appears with many editions of the works of Jerome.An English translation by Richardson was produced in the Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers
Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers
A Select Library of the Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers of the Christian Church, usually known as the Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers , is a set of books containing translations of early Christian writings into English. It was published between 1886 and 1900...
, 2nd ser., iii. 385-402.
The Liber de Ecclesiasticis Dogmatibus is in an Appendix of the Benedictine edition of the writings of St. Augustine.
Attitude and Views
There are many indications that the author was a SemipelagianPelagianism
Pelagianism is a theological theory named after Pelagius , although he denied, at least at some point in his life, many of the doctrines associated with his name. It is the belief that original sin did not taint human nature and that mortal will is still capable of choosing good or evil without...
in "De Viris Illustribus". Semipelagians are warmly praised (Fastidiosus, lvi, p. 80; Cassian, lxi, 81; Faustus of Riez
Faustus of Riez
Saint Faustus of Riez was an early Bishop of Riez in Southern Gaul , the best known and most distinguished defender of Semipelagianism.-Biography:...
, lxxxv, 89); full Pelagians (Pelagius
Pelagius
Pelagius was an ascetic who denied the need for divine aid in performing good works. For him, the only grace necessary was the declaration of the law; humans were not wounded by Adam's sin and were perfectly able to fulfill the law apart from any divine aid...
himself, xlii, 77; Julian of Eclanum
Julian of Eclanum
Julian of Eclanum was bishop of Eclanum, near today's Benevento . He was a distinguished leader of the Pelagians of 5th century.-Life:...
, xlv, 77) are heretics; Catholics
Catholicism
Catholicism is a broad term for the body of the Catholic faith, its theologies and doctrines, its liturgical, ethical, spiritual, and behavioral characteristics, as well as a religious people as a whole....
are treated shabbily (Augustine of Hippo
Augustine of Hippo
Augustine of Hippo , also known as Augustine, St. Augustine, St. Austin, St. Augoustinos, Blessed Augustine, or St. Augustine the Blessed, was Bishop of Hippo Regius . He was a Latin-speaking philosopher and theologian who lived in the Roman Africa Province...
, xxxviii, 75; Prosper of Aquitaine
Prosper of Aquitaine
Saint Prosper of Aquitaine , a Christian writer and disciple of Saint Augustine of Hippo, was the first continuator of Jerome's Universal Chronicle.- Life :...
, lxxxiv, 89); even popes are called heretics (Julius I, in i, 61).
The same tendency is confirmed by the treatise "De eccles. dogmatibus", which is full of Semipelagianism, either open or implied (original sin carefully evaded, great insistence on free will and denial of predestination, grace as an adjutorium in the mildest form, etc.).
Gennadius considers (like later writers, e.g. Thomas Aquinas
Thomas Aquinas
Thomas Aquinas, O.P. , also Thomas of Aquin or Aquino, was an Italian Dominican priest of the Catholic Church, and an immensely influential philosopher and theologian in the tradition of scholasticism, known as Doctor Angelicus, Doctor Communis, or Doctor Universalis...
) that all men, even those alive at the Second Coming
Second Coming
In Christian doctrine, the Second Coming of Christ, the Second Advent, or the Parousia, is the anticipated return of Jesus Christ from Heaven, where he sits at the Right Hand of God, to Earth. This prophecy is found in the canonical gospels and in most Christian and Islamic eschatologies...
, will have to die. But this conviction, though derived from a widespread patristic tradition, is, he admits, rejected by equally catholic and learned Fathers.
Of the theories concerning the soul of man subsequently known as the creationist and the traducianist views, he espouses the creationist. He will not allow the existence of the spirit as a third element in man besides the body and the soul, but regards it as only another name for the soul.
In De Ecclesiasticis Dogmatibus, his views include the following points.
Heretical baptism is not to be repeated, unless it has been administered by heretics who would have declined to employ the invocation of the Holy Trinity.
He recommends weekly reception of the Eucharist by all not under the burden of mortal sin. Such as are should have recourse to public penitence.
He will not deny that private penance may suffice; but even here outward manifestation, such as change of dress, is desirable.
Daily reception of holy communion he will neither praise nor blame.
Evil was invented by Satan.
Though celibacy is rated above matrimony, to condemn marriage is Manichean.
A twice-married Christian should not be ordained.
Churches should be called after martyrs, and the relics of martyrs honoured.
None but the baptized attain eternal life; not even catechumens, unless they suffer martyrdom.
Penitence thoroughly avails to Christians even at their latest breath.
The Creator alone knows our secret thoughts. Satan can learn them only by our motions and manifestations.
Marvels might be wrought in the Lord's name even by bad men. Men can become holy without such marks.
The freedom of man's will is strongly asserted, but the commencement of all goodness is assigned to divine grace.
The language of Gennadius is here not quite Augustinian; but neither is it Pelagian.