PL 6 · cols. 75–78

N. Lenglet du Fresnoy, Lactantii vita

Editors' preface

LACTANTII VITA.

THE LIFE OF LACTANTIUS.

Lucius Caelius vel Caecilius Firmianus Lactantius, non in Italia, sed in Africa potius natus esse recte creditur. Ibi enim etiam adolescentulus praeceptore usus est Arnobio. Nec mos fuit umquam Romanorum aut Italorum Africam petere, ut eloquentiam aut scientias edocerentur; imo Afri in Italiam disciplinarum aut artium discendarum ergo immigrabant saepissime. Tunc autem Siecae rhetoricam docebat Arnobius, quem non aequavit modo, sed etiam vicit dicendi suavitate Lactantius, ita nominatus a lactea, ut aiunt, eloquentia. Circa annum 290, Nicomediam accitus est sub Diocletiano, ut litteras oratorias doceret. Testatur itaque hunc S. Hieronymus (de Scrip. eccles.) Ὁ δοιπορικὸν, id est, Itinerarium suum ex Africa Nicomediam usque hexametris versibus descripsisse. Illum ethnicis parentibus fuisse prognatum, atque eorum errores cum lacte simul hausisse colligitur ex eo, quod de se ipse dicat, Epitomes capite 48, paulo ante finem: « Nos qui sumus ex Gentibus; » et initio capitis 2 de Ira Dei: « Liberati ab errore quo implicati tenebamur, formatique

Lucius Caelius or Caecilius Firmianus Lactantius is rightly believed to have been born not in Italy but rather in Africa. For it was there too that, as a youth, he had Arnobius for his teacher. Nor was it ever the custom of Romans or Italians to make for Africa to be taught eloquence or the sciences; on the contrary, Africans very often migrated to Italy for the sake of learning the disciplines or the arts. At that time Arnobius was teaching rhetoric at Sicca, and Lactantius not only equalled him but even surpassed him in sweetness of speech, being so named, as they say, from his milky eloquence. About the year 290 he was summoned to Nicomedia under Diocletian, to teach oratorical letters. Accordingly St Jerome (de Scrip. eccles.) attests that he described in hexameter verses his Hodoeporicon, that is, his Itinerary from Africa as far as Nicomedia. That he was born of heathen parents and drank in their errors together with his milk is gathered from what he says of himself in chapter 48 of the Epitome, a little before the end: "We who are from the Gentiles"; and at the beginning of chapter 2 of De ira Dei: "Freed from the error in which we were entangled, and formed

Editors' notes and page, col. 75

Footnotes

(1) ‹anchor: Tunc autem Siecae› · call in col 75

Sicca, urbs Africae propriae; vocaturque aliquando Sicca Veneria, vel Sicca Colonia. Siccesitanus episcopus legitur apud Victorem Vitensem in historia Persecutionis Vandalicae.

Sicca, a city of Africa Proper; it is sometimes called Sicca Veneria, or Sicca Colonia. A bishop of Sicca (Siccesitanus episcopus) is read of in Victor of Vita, in his History of the Vandal Persecution.

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running head: 75 LACTANTII VITA (cut off at the image edge)
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ad veri Dei cultum, justitiam disceremus. » Sic et libro VII, capite ultimo ait: « Abjectis erroribus, quibus antea tenebamur, ad aeterna coelestis thesauri praemia dirigamur. »

to the worship of the true God, we might learn justice." So also in book VII, in the last chapter, he says: "Having cast off the errors by which we were formerly held, let us direct ourselves to the eternal rewards of the heavenly treasure."

Quo vero tempore ad christianam religionem accesserit, certo non constat; forte tamen anno 295, ut jam diximus. Nihilominus sat nobis est asserere, illum ante incoeptam sub Diocletiano, anno scilicet 303, persecutionem coeleste lumen attigisse. Id colligitur ex hoc Divinarum Institutionum loco (lib. V, cap. 4, initio.): « Cum praesente me, inquit, ac dolente, sacrilegas litteras suas explicassent, » duo philosophi acerrimi christianorum adversarii.

At what time he came over to the Christian religion is not certainly established; perhaps, however, in the year 295, as we have already said. Nevertheless it is enough for us to assert that he attained the heavenly light before the persecution begun under Diocletian, namely in the year 303. This is gathered from the following passage of the Divine Institutions (book V, chapter 4, beginning): "When, in my presence," he says, "and to my grief, they had unfolded their sacrilegious writings," [namely] two philosophers, most bitter adversaries of the Christians.

Litteris humanioribus a teneris annis probe fuit excultus Lactantius, cujus praecox ingenium testatur Symposium, quod adolescentulus scripsit in scholis Africae. Illud autem non putamus esse, quod tamen post Heumannum et Bunemannum edidimus: opus sane juvenile vel etiam puerile, in quo centum quaedam explicantur aenigmata. Forsan antequam christianae militiae nomen daret, Carmen de Phoenice vulgavit, quod, teste Heinsio aliisque viris doctis, sat est elegans, ut ascribi Lactantio possit, eique revera ascribitur quibusdam in manuscriptis.

Lactantius was well schooled in humane letters from his tender years, and his precocious talent is attested by the Symposium, which he wrote as a youth in the schools of Africa. We do not, however, think that it is the one which we have nevertheless published after Heumann and Bünemann: a work plainly juvenile or even puerile, in which a hundred riddles of a sort are explained. Perhaps before he enlisted in the Christian service he published the Poem on the Phoenix, which, on the testimony of Heinsius and other learned men, is elegant enough to be ascribed to Lactantius, and is in fact ascribed to him in certain manuscripts.

Quamvis eloquentiae daret operam, rhetoricamque

Although he gave his attention to eloquence, and rhetoric

Editors' notes and page, col. 76

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PL 6:77

doceret, forum tamen nusquam attigit, sed, ipso fatente, ad argutam malitiam juvenes erudiebat; quod et Quintilianus multo ante Lactantium fecit, sicut testantur ejus Declamationes. Ut autem tempus tereret, otiumque dulce honestaret, se propter discipulorum penuriam ad scribendum contulit, etiam suscepta religione christiana. Hinc emanarunt opera quaedam ab eo vulgata, de quibus supra diximus Praefationis nostrae p. XIV (col. hujus ed. 71). Post adeptam veritatem Nicomediae commoratus est Lactantius ad annum usque 317; ibi ergo fuit toto decennio, quo saeviit odiosa principum crudelitas. Quid hac furente fecerit, qua ratione ipse christianus in tam horrida tempestate catenas aut vincula effugerit, ignotum omnino est. Ille fortasse a principibus ac praesidibus non christianus, sed philosophus potius habebatur. Sic enim de christianis ait ipse (de Opificio Dei, c. 1, initio): « Quo philosophi nostrae sectae, quam tuemur, instructiores doctioresque in posterum fiant. » His interim elegantissimum librum scripsit de Opificio Dei, stylo tamen mere philosophico, aliosque nonnullos; atque consilium tunc iniit contra philosophos omnes disputandi, ut vanas eorum refelleret opiniones, veritatemque exponeret ac propugnaret: non autem istud eo tempore ad prosperum adduxerat exitum. Anno vero 317 desinente, in Galliam, Nicomedia relicta, accersitus est, ut Crispi, magnae spei principis, filii Constantini natu maximi, juvenilem aetatem nobilioribus artibus ac scientiis informaret. Tunc enim solum vigesimum aetatis annum attigerat Crispus, cum a patre Caesar factus est, anno 317, kalendis martiis, ut testantur Idaciani Fasti.

he taught, he nevertheless never set foot in the forum, but, on his own admission, trained young men in clever malice; which Quintilian also did long before Lactantius, as his Declamations bear witness. But in order to pass the time and to lend honour to his pleasant leisure, he betook himself, on account of the scarcity of pupils, to writing, even after he had taken up the Christian religion. From this sprang certain works published by him, of which we spoke above, on p. XIV of our Preface (col. 71 of this edition). After attaining the truth Lactantius stayed at Nicomedia until the year 317; there, then, he was for the whole decade during which the hateful cruelty of the emperors raged. What he did while it raged, and by what means he himself, a Christian, escaped chains or bonds in so dreadful a storm, is altogether unknown. Perhaps he was regarded by the emperors and governors not as a Christian but rather as a philosopher. For thus he himself speaks of the Christians (On the Workmanship of God, ch. 1, at the beginning): "So that the philosophers of our sect, which we defend, may become better instructed and more learned in time to come." Meanwhile he wrote for these men a most elegant book, On the Workmanship of God, yet in a purely philosophical style, and some others; and he then formed the plan of disputing against all the philosophers, in order to refute their empty opinions and to set forth and defend the truth: but at that time he had not brought this to a successful issue. At the close of the year 317, however, having left Nicomedia, he was summoned to Gaul, to shape in the nobler arts and sciences the youth of Crispus, a prince of great promise, the eldest son of Constantine. For Crispus had only reached the twentieth year of his age when he was made Caesar by his father, in the year 317, on the Kalends of March, as the Idacian Fasti bear witness.

Hujus tam praeclari, nobiliorisque muneris nusquam in scriptis suis meminit Lactantius; tantae modestiae fuit vir ille eruditissimus! Crispus autem, quamvis juvenis, moderatam tamen studio litterarum navabat operam, ac eodem tempore ita in gerenda

Of this so distinguished and more noble office Lactantius makes no mention anywhere in his writings; of such modesty was that most learned man! Crispus, however, although young, nevertheless devoted moderate effort to the study of letters, and at the same time so in conducting

republica erat occupatus, ut exercitibus praeesset, consul eligeretur annis 318, 321 et 324, Francorum victor anno 320, atque Licinii anno 323, fuerit. Hinc videas illud officium Lactantii litterarium, egregium quidem, at nec servile, nec domesticum, nec tandem ita perpetuum fuisse, ut a scribendo deterreretur. Tunc ergo molitus est Divinarum Institutionum opus, quod prius non modo fuerat meditatus, sed ad quod etiam extruendum eruditas animadversiones, prout tempora dabant, privatis chartis haud dubie consignaverat.

the state that he commanded armies, was chosen consul in the years 318, 321 and 324, was victor over the Franks in the year 320 and over Licinius in the year 323. Hence you may see that that literary office of Lactantius, distinguished indeed, was nevertheless neither servile, nor domestic, nor, finally, so continuous that he was deterred from writing. Then, therefore, he undertook the work of the Divine Institutes, which he had not only previously meditated, but for the construction of which he had also, without doubt, set down learned observations in private papers, as the times allowed.

Alia etiam edidit, de quibus jam egimus in Praefatione. Verum ab eo tempore quo Crispum adiit, nil de Lactantio nec sui, nec sequentium temporum notant historici. Id solum observat Eusebius virum hunc, quem eloquentissimum, quem doctissimum appellat, adeo ab aulicis abhorruisse deliciis, vitamque tanta in egestate degisse, ut saepe etiam necessariis indigeret, quod est ejus in christiana religione inconcussae constantiae argumentum. Talis sane erat Lactantii penuria antequam Crispo Caesari foret addictus. Nec mirum igitur si tanto animo, si tanta cura laudes effundat in paupertatem evangelicam. Dubitetne quispiam, quin Caesaris praeceptor, quem tanti faciebat Constantinus Magnus, princeps beneficus ac liberalis in omnes, sanctissime vixerit, qui opes, qui dignitates, qui honores aliaque bona calcavit mortalia: qui denique Crispum discipulum sic instituit, ut hunc Eusebius Caesariensis principem optimum et Deo charum appellaverit.

He also published other works, of which we have already treated in the Preface. But from the time when he went to Crispus, the historians, neither of his own nor of the following times, record nothing about Lactantius. This alone Eusebius observes: that this man, whom he calls most eloquent, most learned, so shrank from the delights of the court, and spent his life in such poverty, that he often lacked even necessities; which is a proof of his unshaken constancy in the Christian religion. Such indeed was the poverty of Lactantius before he was attached to Crispus Caesar. No wonder, then, if with such spirit, with such care, he pours out praises upon evangelical poverty. Would anyone doubt that the tutor of the Caesar, whom Constantine the Great, a prince beneficent and liberal towards all, held in such esteem, lived most holily, he who trod underfoot riches, dignities, honours and the other mortal goods; who, finally, so instructed his pupil Crispus that Eusebius of Caesarea called him an excellent prince and dear to God?

Quo anno, vel qua in urbe obierit Lactantius, omnino incertum est: facile tamen assentior viris doctissimis Chri⟨s⟩topho Browero et Aegidio Bucherio, qui tradunt, eum Treviris non solum extremam egi⟨s⟩se senectutem, sed et supremum diem obiisse, qua in urbe diu moratus fuit Crispus, ad quem fuerat ex Asia accitus auctor noster.

In what year, or in what city, Lactantius died is altogether uncertain: I readily agree, however, with the most learned men Christopher Brouwer and Aegidius Bucherius, who relate that he not only spent his extreme old age at Trier but also died there, the city in which Crispus stayed a long time, to whom our author had been summoned from Asia.

Editors' notes and page, col. 77

Footnotes

(Flabo) ‹anchor: accitus cum Flabo› · lemma in col 78 Flabo. Sic restitui ex mss. 1 Reg., n. 3736, annorum 900, et 1 Clarom. approbante clar. Baluzio, et e mss. PP. Capucinorum. In impressis est Flavio; in uno, Fannio.

Flabo ("with Flabus"). I have restored it so from the manuscripts: one Regius, no. 3736, nine hundred years old, and one Claromontanus, with the approval of the distinguished Baluze, and from the manuscripts of the Capuchin Fathers. In the printed editions it is Flavio; in one, Fannio.

(Scripsit Africae) ‹anchor: adolescentulus scripsit Africae› · lemma in col 78 Scripsit Africae. Ita mss. 1 Reg Tornesianus, et 1 Clarom. nec male, ut apud Ciceronem, Siciliae cum essem. In versione Graeca est ἐν τῇ Ἀφρικῇ. Supradictam locutionem latinam ignorantes editores emendare voluerunt, in pluribus editis tollendo Africae; in duobus praeponendo in scholis τῷ scripsit Africa; in duobus aliis mutando adolescentulus in adolescentibus, ita ut legatur adolescentibus scripsit Africae.

Scripsit Africae ("he wrote in Africa"). So read the manuscripts: one Regius, the Tornesianus, and one Claromontanus; and not wrongly, as in Cicero, "Siciliae cum essem" ("when I was in Sicily"). In the Greek version it is ἐν τῇ Ἀφρικῇ ("in Africa"). Editors unaware of the Latin idiom just mentioned tried to emend it: in most editions by removing Africae; in two by putting "in scholis" before the "scripsit Africa"; in two others by changing adolescentulus into adolescentibus, so that it reads "adolescentibus scripsit Africae" ("he wrote for the young men of Africa").

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running head: 77 TESTIMONIA DE LACTANTIO [cut off at the image edge]
marginal letters: A ‹doceret, forum tamen nusquam›; B ‹tianus, sed philosophus potius›; C ‹cum a patre Caesar factus est›; D ‹Eusebius Caesariensis, in Chronico›
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PL 6:78

Editors' notes and page, col. 78

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running head: DE LACTANTIO. 78 (left half of the running head cut off at the image edge)
marginal letters: A ‹republica erat occupatus›; B ‹hunc, quem eloquentissimum›; C ‹Quo anno, vel qua in urbe›; D ‹sub Diocletiano principe accitus›
old-edition numerals: (none)
other: editors' matter: the column holds the editors' life of Lactantius (prolegomena, ‹republica erat occupatus›) and the start of a collection of testimonia (‹sub Diocletiano principe›, Jerome, De viris illustribus 80, beginning mid-sentence in col. 77); full-width headings ‹…ORUM TESTIMONIA / DE / …IANO LACTANTIO.› stand between the life and the testimonium, cut off at the left edge, not set; full-width heading ‹…NOTATIONES.› and the annotations beneath it at the page foot (‹essem. In versione Graeca…›) not set, left for the apparatus pass; last word split at the column break: in- (inscribitur); ‹tanti› printed with the i looking like l, taken as damaged type; s damaged in Chri⟨s⟩topho and egi⟨s⟩se; Flabo set as printed (usually Flavo)
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other: the text of this column below the full-width band belongs to the next unit; not set here (rail-only part)