Isidore of Pelusiuji (or Pelusiofa), St., an eccle- siastical writer, was born at Alexandria about the year 370. He spent his life in the neighborhood of Pelusi- um, in a monastery of which he was abbot, and where he practised strict asceticism. He was a great admirer of St. Chrysostom, of whom, according to some, he was a pupil, and whom he defended against the attacks of the patriarchs of Alexandria, Theophilus and Cyril. In the controversy waged by Cyril against Nestorius, Isi- dorus Pehisiota favored the Cyrillian party, his comisels of moderation contrasting greatly with the passion and ambition of Cyril. He was a firm adherent to the doc- trines of the Greek Church, and vigorously opposed all heretical inroads. Of his writings, which "discuss, with learning, piety, judgment, and moderation, nearlj' all the theological and practical questions of his age," there remain to us yet a collection of his letters, forming five volumes, though they are probably not all (there are more than 2000 of them) his own. These letters treat almost all on the interjiretation of Scripture. The first three volumes were published, with a Latin translation and notes, by J. de Billy (Paris, 1585, fol.), and reprint- ed, together with the fourth volume, by Conrad Kitters- hausen (Heidelb. 1G05, fol.), and the fifth by the Jesuit Schott (Antw. 1623, 8vo). A complete, though rather fault}' edition was finally published at Paris in 1638, folio, and in IMigne's edition of the fathers, vol. Iviii (Paris, 1800). See Photius, Bibliothecn (cod. 228, 232) ; Schrockh, Christliche Kirchenf/csrh. xvii, 520, 529 ; Heu- mann, Dissertatio de Isidoro I'ehi.<i<itii < jiis'jiu' fpistolis ((iiittingcn, 1737, 4to): Fabricius. y;//)//"///. (■</ (I'ni'ca,^, 480, 494; H. A. Niemeyer, JJe Jsiil. I'd. riia. ■■^criptis et doctriiHi (Halle, 1825); Tillemont, il/ew. Ecclesiastiques, vol. XV. ; Du l*in, Nouv. Bihl. des aut. eccles. iv, 5 sq. ; Ceillier, /list, des aut. sac. xiii, 600 sq. ; Neander, Kirch- enf/esch. ii, 2, 361 sq. ; Schaft', Ch. Hist, iii, 941 ; Herzog, Reul-Kncijklop. vii, 85 ; Hoefer, Nouv. Biogr. Genh-ale, xxvi, 57.
Isidore of Seville, or Isinonus Hispaliensis, surnamed also " the younrf to distinguish him from Isi- dore of Cordova, one of the most distinguished ecclesi- astics of the 7th century, was bom at Carthagena about the year 5(50 or 570. He was a son of Severianus and Theodora, and brother of St. Leander, his predecessor in the bishopric of Seville, and of St. P'ulgentius, bishop of Carthage. He was brought up by his brother Leander, and it was therefore natural that he should have been favored in the selection of a successor for the bishopric of Seville, but it was not principally owing to his rcla- tionshi]) to Leander that he was honored with this dis- tiiigiiislicd position. His abilities fully entitled him to this distinction. When he ascended to the bishopric the Cot lis had been masters of Spain for a century and a half. The north and west of Europe were shrouded in moral darkness. Germany, occupied by a number of adverse tribes, was yet given to idolatry ; Sweden, Nor- way, Deimiark, Scotland, were almost unknown ; Eng- land and Ireland had just received the first faint glimpse of Christianity; France was torn by the dissensions of
petty monarchs, and the East itself was on the eve of the "inroads of Mohammedanism. To counteract these influences, and to build up the Christian faith among his countrymen, was his first care. To this end he es- tablished schools to properly train the young, entered into closer relations with the bishop of Pome (Gregory the Great), and made every effort to bring the doctrinal and moral system of Christianity into harmony with the habits and institutions of those various races and na- tionalities which at that time composed the Hispano- Gothic kingdom ; and so successful was he in his efforts that he is considered one of the brightest ornaments of the Church of Spain. His abilities were further recog- nised by his contemporaries in permitting him to jjre- side over the two Councils — half ecclesiastical, half civil —of Seville (619) and Toledo (Dec, 633). On both oc- casions he showed great zeal for the orthodox side, and strict opposition to all heretical manifestations; espe- cially, however, was he opposed to Arianism. So able was the conduct of Isidore at these councils that the canons of them may be said to have served as a basis even for the constitutional law of the Spanish kingdom, both in Church and State, down to the time of the great constitutional changes of the 15th centurj-. Isidore of Seville died at Seville April 4, 636, and was canonized by the Church soon after his death. We have but few particulars of his Ufe from his writings, except that in a letter, about the authenticity of which there is much doubt, he invites some bishop to join him in a synod to depose the bishop of Cordova for luxuriousness and worldliness. The great reputation which Isidore en- joyed among his colleagues may be best inferred from the fathers of the 8th Council of Toledo, who call him Doctor egregius, ecclesicB catholicce novissimum, decus, pracedentibus eetate postremus, doctrince compciraiione non infmus, atque, et quod majus est, jam sceculoriim fni- torum doctissimus, cum reverentia nominandus, Isidorus. According to the testimony of his disciple, St. Ildefonse, he was a man of wonderful eloquence. The same au- thority names him as the author of De Genere Offici- orum (generally called De Officiis ecclesiaslicis). Liber Procemiorum : — De Ortu et Obitu Pati-um (sanctorum) : — Liber Synonymoi~um (sive lamentationis) : — De Natu- ra rerum : — Liber Senteniiarum : — LAher Etymologiarum (Origines), probably the last work of Isidore. The first edition of his works, which display very extensive learning, and cover the various departments of litera- ture— theological, ascetical, liturgical, scriptural, his- torical, philosophical, and even philological — and thus amply account for the admiration of his contemporaries, was published bj' Michael Somnius (Paris, 1580, folio) ; another, ven,- complete, v.-as taken ]irincipally from the MSS. of Alvar. Gomez, and augmented bv notes bv J. B. Perez and Grial (Madrid, 1 599. 2 vols. f(il.). The edi- tion of James Dubreuil (Paris, IGOl. folio) and- that of Cologne (1667) are taken from that of Madrid. The latest, which is also considered the best, is due to Are- voli (Rome, 1797-1803, 7 vols. 4to). See St. Ildefonse, De Viris Illustribus ; Sigebert de Gembloux, De Script. Ecclesiast. (c. 55) ; Tritheim, De Scrijif. Eccles.; M'Crie, Reformation in Spain, p. 52 ; Hoefer, Kour.Biog. Gener, xxvi, 57 sq. ; Chambers, Cyclop, s. v. ; Herzog, Real-En- ci/klop. vii, 89 sq. ; Smith, Diet, of Class. Biography, ii, 627 sq. (J.H.W.)