DE DIONYSIO AREOPAGITA

as Dionysius himself says in his works to Timothy, speaking thus about the Blessed Hierotheus. Here he appends a whole and lengthy passage on the same subject in the very words of the Pseudo-Dionysius, just as they are found in the Treatise on the Divine Names inscribed to Timothy, ch. III, §. 2, Vol. I, p. 588, et seq., of the Corderian edition. From these, two things can principally be concluded to the contrary. (1) Either Nicephorus reported the very words of Juvenalis, and to them, for the sake of illustration, added a passage from Dionysius on the same matter: since it is hardly credible that Juvenalis possessed such a tenacious memory for all of Dionysius's works that, being asked about any matter unexpectedly, he could have readily produced the very words pertaining to that matter while answering. Or (2) which is the conjecture of Dallaeus, Nicephorus, in a manner customary to writers and historians in particular, merely introduced Juvenalis as speaking, and thus narrated not what he truly said, but what he could have said. This conjecture seems to be favored by the fact that Nicephorus does not express by any word whether this speech of Juvenalis to Pulcheria was ever committed to writing, or whether he kept it written in his possession. Let Arnoldus choose whichever opinion he wishes; he will not gain a whit from it. For both outcomes prove that Nicephorus himself is the author of those words which are called into support, and that he had knowledge of the writings of Dionysius, which we concede with both hands regarding Nicephorus, a writer of the 14th century.

There remains from the Fathers, upon whose authority Arnoldus relies, Andreas of Caesarea: concerning whose age, although it is not yet sufficiently settled among the learned; many, however,