Church history

The work of Eusebius of Caesarea “Ecclesiastical History” was written in 312-352, consists of 10 books and covers the period from the founding of the Church to the victory of Emperor Constantine over Licinius in 324. The treatise mainly describes the events that took place in the eastern part of the Roman Empire. This is a documented apology for Christianity. Eusebius strives to prove the apostolic succession of the primates of the main Churches of the East and West (Roman, Antioch, Alexandria and Jerusalem), consider the history of the formation of the canon of sacred books, outline the main events in the history of the Church, describe the exploits of the Christian Church and its martyrs, etc. The most important source for Eusebius is the Holy Scripture. According to the content, the essay is divided into 2 parts. Part 1 (books 1-7) contains excerpts from the works of ancient authors and describes the events of the first 3 centuries of Christianity. In the 2nd part (8-10 books) official documents (decrees and decrees of emperors) are quoted and events contemporary to the author are described. Book 1 is dedicated to Jesus Christ. Book 2 lists the sources used. The narrative begins from apostolic times and includes a description of the persecutions of Emperor Nero and the beginning of the Jewish War. Book 3 describes the martyrdom of the holy apostles Peter and Paul, tells about the personality and writings of the Apostle John the Theologian, and about the emergence of the first heresies. Book 4 talks about the apostolic succession of the main Local Churches. In the 5th book we are talking about the most significant heresies, about the founding of the Alexandrian school, about schmch. Irenaeus of Lyons and his works. Book 6 tells about the persecutions of Emperor Septimius Severus, Clement of Alexandria and Origen. The 7th book consists of excerpts or paraphrases of letters from St. Dionysius the Great, on the basis of which Eusebius describes the persecutions, mentions the Easter canon, the heresies of Sabellius, Paul of Samosata and Mani. The 8th book begins with a story about the persecutions under the emperor Diocletian and ends with the edict of the emperor Galerius on religious tolerance. The 9th book tells about the persecutions under Emperor Maximin. The 10th book ends with a story about the last persecution of Christians under Emperor Licinius and his final defeat from St. Konstantin. *The title of the work in Greek is ᾿Εκκλησιαστικὴ ἱστορία. *The title of the work in Latin is Historia ecclesiastica. Eusebius adhered to moderate Arian views and, in addition, was an Origenist. It is also necessary to take into account the fact that he was the court historiographer of Emperor Constantine and wrote as befits a court historian. So, when reading Eusebius, it is necessary to make allowances for all these characteristic features of the historian and, taking them into account, determine the degree of confidence with which his writings should be treated. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 Addition You might be interested in: