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Seneca a Christian, for he also includes Philo and Josephus in this term. Neither do Jerome's words give assurance that he had seen the supposed Correspond- ence himself ,. He was in Bethlehem at the time and may have heard of it only through reports from his friends. The testimony of Augustine is confusing. In one passage he borrows from Jerome: merito ait Seneca, gui temporibus aposto- lorum fuit, cuius etiam quaedam ad Paulum apostolum Uguntur epistolae 3.
Elsewhere he says that Seneca never mentioned the Christians: Christianas tamen, iam tune ludaeis inimicissimos, 1 Text of c. CHAPTER I in neutram partem commemorare ausus est, ne vel laudaret contra suae patriae veterem consuetudinem vel reprehenderet contra propriam forsitan voluntatem 1.
A Sixth-Century Epitome of Seneca, de Ira. CLAUDE WV. BARLOW. AMERICAN ACADEMY IN ROME. The De Ira by St. Martin of Braga is an epitome of Seneca. A 6th Century Epitome of Seneca, "De Ira." Front Cover. Claude W. Barlow · 0 Reviews. What people are saying - Write a review. We haven't found any reviews .
The two possible reasons for the silence, as here suggested by Augustine, would both presuppose some sympathy for the Christians on Seneca's part. One other Christian Latin writer of the fourth century, Sidonius Apollinaris, shows acquaintance with some of the works of Seneca and even mentions his relations with Nero, but never alludes to any possible influence upon him by St.
Faider cites 2 only one work from the following century which was concerned with Seneca. This is the poem Rescriptum Honorii scholastici contra epistolas Senecae 3. The author exalts Christianity by condemning the philosophy of Seneca in his writings to Lucilius.
As we have seen, however, this hostility was not generally expressed by Church writers. A much more important person in the history of the Western Church in the sixth century, St. Martin of Braga, made an epitome of the De Ira of Seneca for his work of the same name 4 , while his Formula Vitae Honestae 5 also is probably an epitome of some lost treatise by Seneca, perhaps the De Officiis. Since these two works were transmitted together with the more strictly theological writings of St. Martin, he un- doubtedly regarded Seneca as a suitable source for Christian ethics, just as the fourth-century fathers drew largely on Cicero 6 , In fact, the De Ira was especially dedicated to a Bishop Wittimer, who had requested it, while the Formula was addressed to no less a person than Miro, king of the Sueves.
Dei VI Riese I 2, No. Ambrose's use of Cicero's De Off.
Whatever this unusual mention of his name in actual Church records signifies, it at least demonstrates the importance of his position among the philosophers accepted in that day. The tradition of Seneca's contacts with Paul and of his conversion to Christianity does not appear in a definite form until the Pseudo-Linus, whose work should probably be dated in the seventh century 1. Here the influence of Paul upon the imperial household and even upon the Roman senate is force- fully described in a way that seems to point to a twofold origin, with one source distinct from the alleged Correspondence between Paul and Seneca.
Thenceforth, especially from the ninth century until the Renaissance, the friendship of the philosopher Seneca and the Apostle Paul was accepted as a historical fact, doubted by no one. The Italian Humanists were the first to realize that the Correspondence is false, and therefore probably the whole tradition as well.
Belief in the tradition was, however, revived a century ago. It was advocated most strongly by Pleury in his two-volume book, St. Paul et SMque Paris, Doubt and incredulity, however, have again gained the upper hand, although there are still many persons who fondly hope that it may one day be possible to prove conclusively that Paul, during his stay in Rome, came into close, though secret, contact with important members of Nero's household 2 and made among them some of the earliest converts in the Capital 3.
Ennium, qui cum patre eius in Aetolia militaverat, civitate donavit, cum triumvir coloniam deduxisset. Ennius probably spent the greater part of his days, after returning from the Aetolian war, at Rome; and during this period he was on intimate terms with the comic poet Caecilius Statius see p. He was often in indifferent circumstances, in spite of the grant of land he had received.
Ennius died of gout B. Sulpicio Gallo] praetore ludos Apollini faciente, cum Thyesten fabulam docuisset, Q. Marcio Cn. Servilio coss. Quidam ossa eius Rudiam ex Ianiculo translata affirmant. Cato Maior , Volito vivus per ora virum. According to Aelius Stilo, Ennius has depicted his own character in Ann. Degustandum ex ea, non in eam ingurgitandum censeo. Ennius also believed in the Pythagorean theory of metempsychosis, and considered that his soul had animated the body of a peacock.
The Auct. The date of the Thyestes , B. Fulvius Nobilior in B. The Saturae include a Scipio , probably a short epic. It was mostly written in trochaic septenarii. The book was probably of a lascivious nature. The Annales , an epic poem in hexameters, which dealt with the history of Rome down to the beginning of the Third Macedonian War.
It contained eighteen Books; there are about six hundred lines extant. The following is a sketch of the contents:. Book i. His versification is, of course, rough in comparison with that of later writers, the principal points being. Influence of Ennius. Servius on Verg. Servius also on Aen. A large number of imitations are quoted by Macrobius, especially in Saturn. Book vi.
Thus Ann. He was a painter as well as a poet. Pliny, N. Ennii sorore genitus hic fuit, clarioremque eam artem Romae fecit gloria scaenae. As Accius was born B. That Pacuvius was taught by his uncle Ennius is shown by Varro, Sat. He was a member of the literary circle of Laelius. Pacuvi nova fabula. Hic sunt poetae Pacuvi Marci sita ossa. Hoc volebam nescius ne esses. The Antiopa , which is the best known, was from Euripides.
The Niptra is from Sophocles. Pacuvius also wrote one praetexta, Paulus , doubtless on L.
Aemilius Paulus, the victor of Pydna. Quidam Mediolanensem ferunt. Mortuus est anno post mortem Ennii [iii. Some read iv. The date of his death will then be B. Caecilius probably came to Rome among the Insubrian prisoners of war at some time between B. The year of his birth is unknown; he is never mentioned, like other old writers, such as Plautus and Ennius, as having lived to a great age. If he died B. His name as a slave was Statius.
His patron is unknown. Elsewhere he is sometimes called merely Caecilius as Cic. Later he examined plays before they were acted, as, e. This implies that he occupied a responsible and leading position in the guild of poets. We have two hundred and ninety lines of fragments, and titles of forty-two comedies, sixteen of which correspond with those of plays by Menander. Sed enim postquam in manus Menander venit, a principio statim, di boni, quantum stupere atque frigere quantumque mutare a Menandro Caecilius visus est!
From Ter. Donatus ad loc. Terentius Afer was born in Africa, and was brought in early life to Rome, where he was a slave of P.