Surviving Works, Vol. I

That Macrobius was a Christian, but that he concealed this fact so thoroughly that hardly any trace of Christian doctrine appears in his writings.

7. An opportunity for inquiring into his age is provided by Praetextatus and Symmachus, whom we mentioned earlier as speakers introduced by Macrobius, since their time is sufficiently certain Footnote 23. However, it is not established that Macrobius was their contemporary. Certainly, among the many letters Symmachus left behind, he wrote none to this man. He did, indeed, if we trust the Vienna codex—from which Joseph von Eichenfeld and Stephan Endlicher recently published certain remnants—dedicate to Symmachus a book On the differences and similarities of the Greek and Latin verb. But since there were many Symmachi in those times Footnote 24, it is not clear which one this was. Perhaps he was the son of the orator, to whose studies, while he was being initiated into Greek literature, the father reports he attached himself as an equal (Book IV, ep. 20) Footnote 25. Thus, if we look at those men, we learn only the age before which Macrobius could not have lived, not the age in which he actually existed. But I would consider him not much later in time, because, being alien to the doctrine of Christ, he was raised to a fairly high position in the state, which could hardly have happened in a later period. Nothing, therefore, prevents us from referring to this Macrobius the edict regarding the prefects of the sacred bedchamber, and from saying that what Suringar (Hist. crit. scholiast. Lat. p. I, t. 163 seq.) states regarding his age is true:

"Macrobius lived in times when the Latin language had already begun to age. The exact time cannot be defined with certainty, but it perhaps falls at the end of the 4th century, not a very extreme one. For as appears from the Theodosian Code, Book VI, title 8, Macrobius was prefect of the sacred bedchamber under Honorius and Theodosius the Younger. Theodosius did indeed reign in the East until 450, but since Macrobius is said to have performed this duty under Honorius and Theodosius, it must be understood as that time when both ruled—the latter in the East, the former in the West. The reign of Honorius ceased in 423. But even before that, i.e., under Arcadius and Honorius, Macrobius had already been Praetorian Prefect, as appears from the inscription of a certain law in the Justinian Code, Book I, title 11, which law was given at Ravenna in 399."

...no trace appears in Macrobius's writings... Yet there are those who include him in the order of Christians, among whom it suffices to name Barthius (Adversar. p. 2258). Spanheim (Dub. evang. tom. I, p. 533), on the contrary, calls him a pagan. Fabricius agrees with him (Bibl. Lat. I, p. 620; ed. Ernest. III, p. 180). Stollius also (Introd. in hist. lit. p. II, c. 3, § 8). But Grotius (Comment. in Matth. c. 2, v. 16) and Huet (Demonstr. evangel. propos. 9, c. 15, p. 789) remain uncertain. Recent scholars, as far as I know, all place him among the number of pagans. Cf. Ch. A. Heumann, Conspect. Reip. liter. c. IV, § 24; Heyne, Opuscc. Acad. vol. IV, p. 1, although Baehr (Roem. Lit.-Gesch. vol. II, p. 600), the Real-Encycl. s. v. Macrobius, and Suringar (Hist. crit. scholiastarum Lat., Lugd. Bat. 1834, p. I, p. 164) leave the matter in doubt.

Footnotes:
23) See below chapter II, III note 2.
24) Cf. Fabricius, Bibl. Gr. lib. III, c. 16, vol. III, p. 205, ed. Ernest. — Ch. A. Heumann, annotation (α) to Conspect. Reip. lit. c. IV, § 24: "There were, he says, six illustrious Symmachi in this age; since many confuse them, Sirmond distinguished each one with notes to Ennodius, lib. VII, ep. 25. Mireus described this whole passage of Sirmond and inserted it into his own annotation to Honorius, lib. III, de script. eccles. c. 22."
25) That Aurelius Memmius Symmachus, who is said in the subscription of the Commentaries, Book I—which is read in certain manuscripts—to have emended this work of Macrobius, is not to be confused with the orator, which is what L. Lersch committed in his Roemische Diorthosen (Museum d. Rhein. Westphäl. Schulmänn. Vereins vol. II, fasc. 3). Concerning this, see what we have argued below in chapter IV, I.