Eusebius of Caesarea

Life

Eusebius is believed to have been born in the late third century in the region of Palestine in the Roman Empire, though his birthplace is uncertain. He studied under the scholar Pamphilus in the coastal city of Caesarea. Pamphilus had inherited Origen's books and built them into a great library, and Eusebius was sometimes called "Eusebius Pamphili" (Eusebius of Pamphilus) in honor of his teacher. Pamphilus was martyred during the Great Persecution under Emperor Diocletian in the early fourth century. After the persecution ended, Eusebius became bishop of Caesarea around 313.

In 325 he attended the Council of Nicaea, where he submitted the confession of faith of the church of Caesarea, and he signed the creed adopted by the council. He is known, however, to have been sympathetic to Arius, who maintained that the Son is not of the same substance as the Father. After the council he sided with the opponents of Athanasius. He was close to Emperor Constantine and in 336 delivered an oration marking the thirtieth anniversary of the emperor's accession. He died around 339.

Work and Contributions

• Ecclesiastical History: In ten books, Eusebius recorded the history of the church from the apostolic age to the early fourth century. The work covers the succession of bishops, martyrdoms, disputes over heresy, and the books of Scripture. It quotes, and thereby preserves, writings now lost, such as those of Papias and Hegesippus. For example, the tradition that Clopas was the brother of Joseph of Nazareth and that his son Simeon became the second leader of the church in Jerusalem has come down to us through the Ecclesiastical History, which cites Hegesippus. Citing Origen, Eusebius also recorded the tradition that Peter was crucified upside down.
• Discussion of the canon: Eusebius divided the books of the New Testament into three categories: those widely acknowledged, those accepted by many but disputed, and those not accepted. He classified James, Jude, 2 Peter, and others as disputed, and he reserved judgment on Revelation. This record is an important source for the study of how the canon was formed.
• Other works: His other writings include the Chronicle, a compilation of chronology; the Onomasticon, a dictionary of biblical place names; and tables comparing parallel passages in the four Gospels, known as the "Eusebian Canons." He also wrote the Preparation for the Gospel and the Demonstration of the Gospel, apologetic works defending Christianity against pagan thought, as well as the Life of Constantine, a work about the emperor.

Influence on the Korean Church

The Ecclesiastical History has been translated into Korean and is read as a primary source in seminary courses on church history and the early church. Traditions about where the apostles ministered and how they were martyred are frequently cited in sermons and Bible studies, and many of these traditions have come down through his writings. It is common practice, however, to distinguish them from the biblical text, since they are later traditions rather than Scripture itself.

Assessment

Eusebius is regarded as the "Father of Church History" for preserving a large number of sources that would otherwise have been lost. Without his writings, far less would be known about the church of the second and third centuries.

He has also been criticized. The Life of Constantine has been described as closer to a panegyric that praises the emperor excessively. The nineteenth-century Swiss historian Jacob Burckhardt is known to have criticized him very harshly. Theologically, because he leaned toward Arianism, he was long regarded with suspicion by those who upheld the orthodox position of the Nicene Creed. Other scholars, by contrast, regard him not as an extreme Arian but as a moderate figure who valued the unity of the church.