''Historiae Ecclesiasticae Tripartitae Epitome'', the abridged history (in twelve books) of the early

Christian Church In ecclesiology, the Christian Church is what different Christian denominations conceive of as being the true body of Christians or the original institution established by Jesus Christ. "Christian Church" has also been used in academia as a syn ...

known as the ''Tripartite History'', was the standard manual of Church history in

Medieval Europe In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

. The work, dated to around 550 AD, consists of a compilation of church histories, parts of which were selected by

Cassiodorus Magnus Aurelius Cassiodorus Senator (c. 485 – c. 585), commonly known as Cassiodorus (), was a Christian Roman statesman, a renowned scholar and writer who served in the administration of Theodoric the Great, king of the Ostrogoths. ''Senato ...

, and translated into Latin by Epiphanius Scholasticus. It epitomized three Greek works in particular, the church histories of

Socrates Scholasticus Socrates of Constantinople ( 380 – after 439), also known as Socrates Scholasticus (), was a 5th-century Greek Christian church historian, a contemporary of Sozomen and Theodoret. He is the author of a ''Historia Ecclesiastica'' ("Church Hi ...

Sozomen Salamanes Hermias Sozomenos (; ; c. 400 – c. 450 AD), also known as Sozomen, was a Roman lawyer and historian of the Christian Church. Family and home Sozoman was born around 400 in Bethelia, a small town near Gaza, into a wealthy Christia ...

and

Theodoret Theodoret of Cyrus or Cyrrhus (; AD 393 – 458/466) was an influential theologian of the School of Antioch, biblical commentator, and Christian bishop of Cyrrhus (423–457). He played a pivotal role in several 5th-century Byzantine ...

, written in the previous century. An Italian theory posited its composition around 510 AD, arguing that the work was composed using the library Cassiodorus assembled at the Monasterium Vivariense, the monastery of

Vivarium A vivarium (; or vivariums) is an area, usually enclosed, for keeping and raising animals or plants for observation or research. Water-based vivaria may have open tops providing they are not connected to other water bodies. An animal enclosur ...

on his family estates at the foot of Mount Moscius on the shores of the Ionian Sea. It is now thought to have been composed several decades later, in Constantinople, around the time the crisis in relations between Justinian and the Western Church, around 550 AD. It describes a history of the Church from the year 324 to the year 439.CSEL vol. LXXI, 1952, s. XI. The book attained a high reputation. Only

Eusebius Eusebius of Caesarea (30 May AD 339), also known as Eusebius Pamphilius, was a historian of Christianity, exegete, and Christian polemicist from the Roman province of Syria Palaestina. In about AD 314 he became the bishop of Caesarea Maritima. ...

' ''History'', in a Latin translation by Rufinus, competed with it as the official version of church history in the West, until original sources began to be rediscovered, edited and printed by

humanist Humanism is a philosophical stance that emphasizes the individual and social potential, and agency of human beings, whom it considers the starting point for serious moral and philosophical inquiry. The meaning of the term "humanism" ha ...

scholars in the 15th century.

Notes

Citations

Sources

*
''Historia ecclesiastica tripartita: historiae ecclesiasticae ex Socrate''
CSEL vol. LXXI, Vindobonae 1952.

External links

''The History of a Historia''
Utrecht University 2010. 6th-century history books 6th-century books in Latin Books about ancient Christianity History of Christianity texts {{Christian-hist-book-stub