Theophilus of Alexandria, a bishop in the lat- ter jiart of the 4th and the beginning of the 5th century, is distinguished for his persecution of the Origenists, for his hostility to Chrysostom, and as being one of the most violent and unscrupulous even among the ecclesi- astics of the 5th century. He succeeded Timotheus as bishop of Alexandria in A.D. 385, and soon after se- cured the favor of the emperor by a characteristic ma- noeuvre. AVhen the fate of the empire was suspended on the battle which was to decide between IMaximus and Thcodosius (388), he sent his legate, Isidore, to Kome )irovid(>d with letters to both, the one or the oth- er of which he was to deliver with certain presents, ac- cording to the issue of the battle. He was also very zealous against heathenism, and in 391 obtained the emperor's consent to use severe measures against the
TIIEOPHILUS OF ANTIOCH 335
THEOPHYLACT
pagans in his district, which resulted in the most of them heing driven out of Egypt. His behavior to the different sects of Christians was marivcd bj- the same unscrupulous inconsistency. He apjicars to have pass- ed a part of his early life among the monks of Nitria, some of whom were Origenists and others Anthropo- morphites. At first he declared himself decidedly against the latter, and, in opposing them, he sided open- ly with the Origenists, drawing his arguments from the works of Origen. When, however, it became evident that the majority of the Egyptian monks were Anthro- pomorphites, Theophilus went over to them about 399, condemned the writings of Origen, commanded all his clergy to burn them, and commenced a cruel persecu- tion of all who opposed the Anthropomorphites, while he himself continued to read the works of Origen with admiration. In 401 he issued a violent letter in which he condemned the writings of Origen and threatened the latter's adherents ; in the following year he sent forth another of like character, to the unbounded de- light of Jerome. Theophilus was subsequently called to Constantinople by the empress Eudoxia, and secured the deposition and banishment of Chrysostom (q. v.) in 403. During the tumult which followed, Theophilus escaped and returned to Alexandria, where, in 404, he issued a third Paschal letter against the Origenists, and where he died in 412. The works of Theophilus men- tioned by the ancient writers are, Ylpoff(pwi'7]TiKiv Trpoc Toi'g fpovovvTag ra 'Qpiyh'ovc, quoted by Theodoret (Dial, ii, 191), and which Gennadius (33) calls "ad versus Origenem unum et grande volumen :" — Letter to Por- phyry, Bishop of Antioch, quoted in the Acta Concil. Ephes. pt. i, c. 4: — the three Paschal Letters alread}' mentioned and one more: — and some other unimportant orations, letters, and controversial works. The Paschal Letters are still extant in a translation by Jerome, and are published in the Antidot. contra Dicers. Omnium Sceculorum Hieresias (Basel, 1528 fol.); and the whole of his extant remains are contained in Galland, Biblioth. Putr. vii, G03 fol. ; Cave, Hist. Litt. s. a. 385, p. 279, 280 ; Murdock, note to Mosheim, Eccles. Hist, i, 444 (Engl, ed.). — Smith, Diet, of Greek and Latin Biog. s. v.
Theophilus of Antioch, a writer and bishop of the primitive Church, was educated a heathen, and af- terwards converted to Christianity. He was ordained bishop of Antioch, succeeding Eros, about A.D. 170, and governed the Church twelve or thirteen years, at the end of which he died. Having been converted from heathenism by the study of the Scriptures, he wrote an apology for the Christian faith, addressed in the form of a letter to his friend Autolycus. The work shows much learning and more simplicity of mind. In its general structure it resembles the works of Justin Martyr and the other early apologists; but it contains a more detailed examination of the evidence for Cliristianity, derived both from Scripture and from history. The three books of Theophilus to Autolycus were first pub- lished in the collection of the monks Antoniiis and Maximus entitled Sententiarum sice Capitum, Theologi- corum praecipue, ex Sacris et Profunis Lihris, Tomi Tres. There have been a number of editions, the most complete being that of Johann Christoph Wolf (Hamb. 1724, 8vo), and an English translation by Joseph Betty (Oxford, 1722, 8vo). Theophilus was the author of several other works which were extant in the times of Eusebius and Jerome. Among them were works against the heresies of Marcion and Hermogenes: — Commentary on the Gospels (still extant in Latin, and published in the Bibliotheca Patrum [Paris, 1575, 1598, 1609, 1654, etc.]). Jerome refers to his Commentaries on the Prov- erbs. See Smith, Diet, of Greek and Roman Biog. s. v. ; Ya.hnc.Bibl. Gr(ec.\\.i, 101-106; Mosheim, Eccles. Hist.; Herzog, Real-Encyklop. s. v.
Theophilus of C.esarea, a bishop who presided over the Council of Ciesarea in Palestine, and signed the letter of that council, which appears to have been
drawn up bv himself, on the Paschal controversv, .\.D.
198.
Theophilus of Ciltcia, so often mentioned in legend, is said to have originally been the administrator of the Adana bishopric. Out of modesty, he declined the episcopal see, and was deprived of all his honors by the new bishop. He now applied for help to a Jew- ish sorcerer, who brought him into a nightly conven- tion of devils. Here help was promised to him provided he would deny Christ and Mary and would assign his soul. He was restored to his former position ; but, re- gretting what he had done, he prayed as a penitent to Mary, and through her intercession Christ took the assignment away from the devil and placed it upon his breast while asleep in the church, tired out by prayer. He now openly confessed his sin and died three days later. The author of the legend is said to have been a Greek cleric, Eutychianus; while a Neapolitan priest, Paulus (9th centur}'), made it known in the West. In the Acta SS. for Feb. 4 we find this legend in a poetical dress, by the bishop Marbod of Rennes. See Jubinal, (Euvres de Riitebenf vol. ii; Pfeiffer, Marien- legenden (Stuttgart, 1846); Blomaert, Theophilus (Ghent, 1836); Hoffmann von Fallersleben, Theophilus (Hanov. 1853-54); Meyer, Radetcins Gedicht iiber Theophilus (Munich, 1873; edited after a Munich MS. of the 13th century). (B. P.)