Golden Epistles of the Ancient Christians

set The text completes the previous page's sentence regarding Dionysius of Alexandria's controversial phrasing. that he established a distinction of essence in the Godhead and an inequality of divine glory within it, and thus is said to have almost played into the hands of Arian doctrine Arianism: a 4th-century theological belief that Jesus Christ was a created being, subordinate to God the Father, rather than being of the same eternal substance, of which one may read in the Church History, Book III, Chapter 3, Section 2. Meanwhile, authors maintain that in his other writings he declares himself entirely orthodox; indeed, Athanasius Athanasius of Alexandria, the famous 4th-century defender of the Trinity confessed that Dionysius never sided with the Arians, as Bebelius Balthasar Bebel, a 17th-century Lutheran theologian and historian cites and approves in Ecclesiastical Antiquities original: "Antiquit. Eccl.", Century III, Article 1, page 491. Among these are included several distinct epistles, which we possess for the most part only in fragments, as they are named below. Eusebius praises them as very edifying in Book VI, Chapter 37 [of his History].

3. Regarding his good testimony, praise, and other writings, much can be found in Labbe Philippe Labbe, a 17th-century editor of the records of Church Councils in Volume I of the Councils original: "Conciliorum" in the Appendices, pages 764, 831, 849, etc.; in Dupin's Library of Ecclesiastical Authors original: "Biblioth. Script. Eccl.", page 516; in Beveridge's Collection of Canons original: "Pandect. Canon.", Volume II; in Cave, and others. It is certain that he suffered much from the pagans for the sake of Christian doctrine and its confession, and thus he was deeply earnest about the truth.

XII. through XV.

1.) After these two men named Dionysius, it may be permitted to add another of this name, who is commonly called the Areopagite Dionysius the Areopagite, an Athenian judge mentioned in the New Testament; a collection of highly influential mystical texts was later attributed to him. This is not the time to rekindle the controversy over his writings; most of it was previously presented in the Church History (Book 1, Chapter 2) and afterward in greater detail in the History of Mystical Theology, Chapter X, pages 239 to 267. Other authors, who in whole...