Caesarius

CONCERNING ST. CAESARIUS, QUAESTOR OF THE PROVINCE OF BITHYNIA, BROTHER OF ST. GREGORY THE THEOLOGIAN.

AROUND THE YEAR 369.

Preliminary Commentary.

Caesarius, Quaestor of the Province of Bithynia, brother of St. Gregory the Theologian (Saint).

By I. B.

Section I: The public veneration of St. Caesarius; his office in the state; the time of his death; the funeral oration; his goods defended against invaders.

[1] Blessed was the family of Gregory the Theologian, commonly called the Nazianzen, for it was enrolled in its entirety among the company of the Saints: the father, Gregory, Bishop of Nazianzus, ^a Saint; Nonna the mother, ^a Saint; all their children Saints -- Gregory, first Bishop of Sasima, then of Constantinople; Caesarius, most illustrious for his knowledge of medicine, then Quaestor of Bithynia; and finally Gorgonia, their sister. The feast days of each we shall note below. St. Caesarius is venerated on February 25. The memory of Caesarius is consecrated in the Roman Calendar on the fifth before the Kalends of March, in these words: "At Nazianzus, St. Caesarius, brother of Blessed Gregory the Theologian, whom the same Gregory testifies he saw among the hosts of the Blessed." Because these words were absent from the older copies, I suppose they were added by Cardinal Baronius.

[2] In any case, among the Greeks he has been enrolled in the catalogue of the Saints for many centuries past. For Nicephorus Xanthopulus, nearly four hundred years ago, long since enrolled among the Saints, wrote in his Ecclesiastical History, book 10, chapter 19: "All these, by the dignity of their manner of life, were deemed worthy of holiness, just as indeed were Caesarius, the brother of Gregory, and Gorgonia." Which John Langus thus translates: "All these (Basil, Gregory of Nyssa, Peter of Sebaste, Naucratius, brothers; and Macrina their sister) on account of the integrity of their life have been enrolled among the Saints; just as indeed Caesarius, the brother of Gregory, and Gorgonia his sister." In the Menaea at March 9, the following is found: "On the same day: the holy Martyr Urpasianus, and St. Tarasius, and Caesarius, brother of St. Gregory the Theologian." Inscribed in the Menaea on March 9. Maximus, Bishop of Cythera, has the same. And in both sources the form is "Caesarios," as also in Gregory himself. In Nicephorus it is "Caesareios," Caesarius or Caesareus with ^a long penultimate. A couplet is added in the Menaea, in which mention is made of the oration of St. Gregory delivered at the funeral of Caesarius.

[3] This is the tenth among the Orations of Gregory, at the beginning of which he professes that he will observe moderation in lamenting as well as in praising. praised by his brother Gregory in ^a funeral oration, "For," he says, "we shall not mourn him who has departed more than is fitting, since we are not accustomed to approve such things even in others; nor shall we in praising him exceed measure and decorum -- although ^a fitting gift, and one most appropriate above all others, for an eloquent man is an oration, and for one who uniquely loved my discourses, ^a eulogy: and not merely ^a gift, but ^a debt, the most just of all debts." (from which this Life is excerpted) Where he then proposes what he is about to say, he adds an elegant narrative of the deeds accomplished by Caesarius, which we shall transcribe, dividing it into four sections. The first will embrace his education and studies. The second, what he did afterward under the Emperor Constantius, from the year 354 -- when Baronius says that Gregory left Athens, and Caesarius Alexandria -- before the consulship of Arbetio and Lollianus. The third, what he did under Julian the Apostate, and what contests concerning the faith he underwent with him. He died in the year 369. The fourth and last, with what honors he was adorned by Valentinian and Valens, in whose sixth year he appears to have died, in the year of Christ 369, shortly after the earthquake by which the city of Nicaea was terribly shattered. The year of that earthquake Socrates, in his Ecclesiastical History, book 2, chapter 10, indicates: "In the second consulship of Valentinian and Valens, on the fifth before the Ides of October, an earthquake occurred in Bithynia and destroyed the city of Nicaea." That was the year of the common era 368. St. Caesarius appears to have died the following year, for St. Gregory narrates his death in such ^a way that he says that, having emerged unharmed from the earthquake, he was nevertheless unable to escape illness -- as though no great space of time had intervened between the two events.

[4] Caesarius was then Quaestor in Bithynia -- that is, Prefect of the Treasury -- ^a post that was held under the illustrious Comes of the Sacred Largesses, He was Prefect of the Treasury in Bithynia: as is evident from the Notitia of the Eastern Empire. For what reason would there have been for him to reside in Bithynia if he had been the Quaestor whose jurisdiction, as stated in the same Notitia, included "the dictation of laws," etc., and who was called "a man of magnificence, illustrious, most glorious"? The reason why he was in Bithynia, however, Gregory indicates in section 4, number 17: "He was living in Bithynia, administering ^a not insignificant prefecture from the Emperor, which was to collect moneys for the Emperor and to have charge of the treasuries." And why otherwise would the same writer add this? "For the Emperor intended this as ^a prelude for him to greater offices." And yet the dignity of Quaestor in the Notitia of the Empire is one of the greatest. But under the jurisdiction of the illustrious Comes of the Sacred Largesses, the first officers are the Comites of Commerce, the Prefects of the Treasuries, the Comites of Mines, etc. Moreover, as Guido Pancirolus notes, there were Prefects of the Treasuries in nearly every province.

[5] He is not, therefore, as some have supposed, that Caesarius who was Comes of the Privy Purse, to whom there exists ^a rescript of Valentinian and Valens given at the very beginning of their reign, not the Comes of the Privy Purse, concerning which see Baronius at the year 364, section 8. For by what reasoning could the prefecture of the treasuries have been ^a stepping-stone for him to greater dignities in the fourth year of the said Emperors, if he had already in their first year been Comes of the Privy Purse, which was ^a far more illustrious dignity? Even less credible is what Leunclavius noted in the margin of Zosimus -- that Caesarius, the brother of Gregory of Nazianzus, was that Caesarius who was Prefect of the city of Constantinople, still less the Prefect of Constantinople, whom the same Zosimus and Ammianus in book 26 relate was cast into prison at the beginning of the reign of Valens by the usurper Procopius. The Nazianzen would not have been silent about this; he would not have said that the Emperor intended the prefecture of the treasuries to advance him gradually to greater things, if he had already before this held one of the three primary offices of the empire.

[6] Where, moreover, our Caesarius died is nowhere stated. The body was conveyed to Nazianzus, where his parents buried it and paid him the honor of funeral rites according to the Christian custom, he is buried at Nazianzus: as his brother testifies. The same Gregory, in his poem on his own life, narrates what happened after Caesarius's death:

"My brother held ^a certain public office the goods of the deceased are seized by some: (O what is your power, most wicked one!); he was acting as Quaestor, and in the midst of his office departed from life. Then ^a mighty pack of hounds rushed with rabid fury upon the dead man's money and fortune; friends tear everything apart, servants, strangers. For who does not snatch timber from the falling oak? As far as concerned my own affairs, I did not fear the burdens of such business, for I am ^a bird that easily soars aloft. But it befitted me, together with my dear father, to bear glad fortune as well as the harsh turns of circumstance, and to be ^a partner not of wealth, but of trouble."

[7] Gregory then wrote to Sophronius the Prefect ^a letter (which is number 52 among those extant), against whom Gregory implores the aid of Sophronius, Prefect of Constantinople, imploring his help against those who had cruelly fallen upon the fortune of his dead brother and were plundering it. At the beginning of the letter he philosophizes admirably, though briefly, on the fragility and inconstancy of life; then concerning the matter of Caesarius's goods he writes thus: "There was formerly, among no obscure personages, one who was yours as well -- Caesarius; nay (unless fraternal love deceives me), he was among the very illustrious, conspicuous for his learning, superior to many in the uprightness of his character, distinguished also by the abundance of his friends, as ^a friend of old, among whom you and your nobility he both himself trusted to be the first and persuaded us of the same. But these are matters of the past; and you yourself will add much more of your own, honoring him with funeral tributes, which is natural to all men -- to bestow even somewhat more upon the dead. And now (but see that you transmit this discourse with dry eyes, or at least that you weep decorously and fittingly): he lies here lifeless, destitute of friends, forsaken, pitiable, anointed with ^a little myrrh (if indeed even that much was expended) and covered with ^a few cheap garments. And it is to be greatly valued that he obtained even these by human pity. Meanwhile, adversaries, as I hear, have made an assault upon his property, and some from one side and some from another, most freely and most insolently, are partly already plundering it, and partly about to plunder it. O cruelty and inhumanity! And there is no one to prevent it; but the most humane person does only this much: he invokes and implores the protection of the laws. and his own. And, to speak briefly, we have become ^a tale -- we who were once considered fortunate. I beseech you, do not regard these things as trivial and tolerable, but grieve for our situation and at the same time be indignant, and do ^a kindness to Caesarius, who has been removed from among the living. Come, I adjure you by friendship itself! Come, by whatever you hold most dear, by the hopes conceived in your mind -- make them favorable for yourself by showing yourself faithful to ^a dead friend: so that you may bestow this also upon those who are still among the living, and bring them better hope. *Do you think we are vexed by concern for money? The disgrace would be more intolerable to us if Caesarius alone, of all mortals, should seem to have been without friends, he who believed himself to have very many. Such, then, is our entreaty, and it comes from such persons as we are -- since perhaps you also hold us in no contemptible estimation. But what assistance and by what means it should be rendered, the circumstances themselves will suggest, and your prudence will perceive."

[8] Thus far Gregory. Now Sophronius, to whom he wrote, is the same man who, at the beginning of the reign of Valens, reported to him the rebellion of Procopius, having secretly left Constantinople. Concerning him, Ammianus Marcellinus in book 26, chapter 18, writes as follows: "Some, thinking all things safer than the present situation, formerly ^a Notarius, having secretly slipped out of the city, sought the Emperor's camp by forced marches. All these were preceded by Sophronius, running with the most energetic speed -- then ^a Notarius, afterward Prefect of Constantinople -- who, encountering Valens already setting out from Caesarea of Cappadocia (as the torrid heats of Cilicia were now abating, to hasten to the seat of Antioch), having narrated the sequence of events, turned him, agitated and astonished with doubtful hope, as happens in such circumstances, toward Galatia, to take hold of the still tottering situation." He was ^a native of Caesarea of Cappadocia, natives of Caesarea, later Masters of the Offices. as epistle 332 of St. Basil indicates, of whom many other letters also survive addressed to this Sophronius, from which it is established that he was afterward Master of the Offices.

[9] Near the end of his oration, his brother indicates certain other things about Caesarius: that he was the last-born among the children of SS. Gregory and Nonna, Caesarius was laid in his parents' tomb, and that he was laid in the tomb which the parents had built for themselves. "Having performed this duty," he says, "we shall also make an end of speaking, as you also of weeping, now hastening to your tomb -- the sole and mournful gift that Caesarius has from you: prepared indeed for the parents and for old age, in due time, but bestowed upon ^a son and upon youthful age, prematurely indeed, yet not absurdly in the eyes of Him who governs our affairs. O Lord and maker of all things, and especially of this creation ... receive now Caesarius, I pray, the firstfruits of our departure. If the last-born, yet the first to depart -- the first of their children to die: we yield to Your reasons, by which all things are governed. But receive us also hereafter at the fitting time, having directed our life in the flesh for as long as shall be profitable."

[10] That he lacked ^a wife and children is shown in the same oration. "What need," he says, "to mention other things? But these things, which all judge illustrious and desirable -- lacking wife and children, will he not have ^a wife, or children? But neither will he mourn them nor be mourned by them, neither leaving others behind nor himself left behind as ^a monument of calamity. Will he not receive wealth by inheritance? But he himself will have heirs of the most convenient kind, the poor were his heirs: and such as he wished, so that he might depart hence as ^a rich man, taking all things with him."

* Greek: poieseis autous anelpidas -- read euelpidas.

Section II: The apparition of St. Caesarius; his writings.

[11] What is stated in the Roman Martyrology -- that Gregory saw his brother Caesarius among the hosts of the Blessed -- is taken from what Gregory wrote in the same oration: "I shall await the voice of the Archangel, the last trumpet, the transformation of heaven, the change of earth, the liberation of the elements, the renewal of the entire world. Then I shall see Caesarius -- no longer wandering, no longer borne by others, seen in dreams by his brother in glory, no longer mourned or pitied -- but radiant, illustrious, exalted, such as you have often appeared to me in dreams, O dearest and most loving of brothers, whether my own desire or truth itself gave shape to that vision." Although he does not entirely and explicitly affirm that it was ^a true apparition of Caesarius's soul, nevertheless St. John Chrysorrhoas of Damascus appears to have understood it so, near the end of his oration on those who have departed this life in the faith. as St. Damascenus interprets; For after citing St. Ephrem the Syrian, he adds: "And again, he who has obtained the title of Theologian says, 'Then I shall behold Caesarius, radiant, illustrious, and exulting with joy, such as you have appeared to me also in dreams, dearest of brothers.'" But in neither passage is it said that he saw his brother among the hosts of the Blessed, as the Martyrology states.

[12] There exist in volume 4 of the Bibliotheca of the Ancient Fathers, Cologne edition of 1618, from page 644 to 697, four Dialogues of Caesarius, an illustrious man, which are said to have been written by this Caesarius of Nazianzus. And this is clearly indicated in the title of the Greek-Latin edition prepared at Augsburg by Elias Ehinger, the title of which reads: "Questions proposed by Constantius, Theocharistus, Andrew, Gregory, Domnus, Isidore, Leontius, Dialogues, or Questions of Caesarius -- are they by this Caesarius? at the time when Caesarius, the brother of the Nazianzen, was ^a privy secretary and lived in Constantinople teaching for ^a full twenty years." But Caesarius does not appear to have resided in Constantinople for so many years, since, according to Baronius's reckoning, he left Alexandria in 354, spent some time in his homeland (to which he also returned during Julian's reign), then lived in Bithynia under Valens, in whose sixth year, the year of Christ 369, he died.

[13] If, moreover, he published those Dialogues or Questions, how is it that St. Jerome, an auditor of the Nazianzen, makes no mention of him in his book On Writers? But he does not appear to have treated theological subjects, Indeed, Gregory himself shows that Caesarius did not even pursue sacred studies; nay, he seems to suggest that he published nothing at all. "He will not display orations," he says, "but through orations (of others, that is) he will be an object of admiration. He will not treat the doctrines of Hippocrates and Galen and their opponents. nor to have published anything else: But neither will he be afflicted by diseases, deriving vexations from the calamities of others. He will not expound the writings of Euclid, Ptolemy, and Hero by demonstrations. But neither will he conceive grief on account of unlearned men of inflated minds. He will not vaunt himself upon the opinions of Plato and Aristotle, and Pyrrho, and ^a certain Democritus, and Heraclitus, and Anaxagoras, and Cleanthes, and Epicurus, and the Academics. But neither will he labor over how to dissolve their subtleties." These, therefore, were the arts in which Caesarius had chiefly labored, and which he could have illustrated with credit in his writings: oratory, medicine, mathematics, astronomy, philosophy. Could Gregory have either omitted or been ignorant of it, if Caesarius had written those learned Dialogues? Even if one wished to interpret the cited words of Gregory as referring not to the writing of orations and treatises, but to the fact that by delivering public orations, by medical disputations, by astronomical observations, and by philosophical subtleties he could have made ^a name for himself had ^a longer life been granted him, still even here Gregory ought to have treated of those Questions if they had been written by Caesarius.

[14] And so also judged James Billius, who wrote in his Sacred Observations, book 1, chapter 3: "Nay, it does not even seem to me probable that those Theological Questions belong to this Caesarius of Nazianzus, otherwise his brother Gregory would have mentioned it. which Pontacus says in his Chronology that he possesses. For if, beyond the knowledge of medicine which he professed at the court of the Emperor Julian, he had besides made such progress in the learning of divine letters as even to leave to posterity ^a monument of erudition in that field, surely Gregory, in the oration with which he adorns his funeral, would by no means have omitted this among the other praises which he heaps upon him." It is reported indeed that Suidas lists other works of this Caesarius; but I have been unable to find this in three editions of Suidas.

[15] Whoever, however, the author of that book may be, it pleases me to declare, from the Bibliotheca of Photius, what judgment both Photius and others of his age formed concerning the author. Thus, therefore, he writes in Section 210: "The 220 Ecclesiastical Chapters of Caesarius. In the age of Photius I have read the book of Caesarius containing 220 Ecclesiastical Chapters, in which some propositions are partly explained and partly questions are solved. (whose judgment on the work is given here) You would say that this writer is still flourishing in age and is swelling both with the produce, as it were, of Rhetoric, and with the erudition of external no less than of our own philosophy. Although, to say it in ^a word, there seem to be not ^a few things wanting to ensure that his impulses and movements be free from blemish. Yet his diction is clear (although he often deflects in ^a youthful manner toward poetic words and departs from the customary construction, not without some fault), and in the strict accuracy of doctrines he falls but little short. It was held to be by this Caesarius: Moreover, his discourse is composed through Questions and Responses, with interlocutors also introduced as characters. And indeed of Gregory, as they say, whose brother -- the title of Theologian indicates -- is the author." Thus it was translated into Latin and published by our Andrew Schott. But the final words are obscure, which in Greek read: "They say that it is of Gregory, whose surname Theologus indicates the writer to be his brother." Thus literally from the Greek; and yet not sufficiently clear. If the word "indicates" were absent, it could be rendered: "They say the writer was the brother of Gregory, who bears the surname Theologian."

[16] It is established from this at least that the commentary was already in the age of Photius (who lived in the ninth century of the Christian Era) considered the work of an ancient writer. If anyone should contend, either on the authority of Photius or on other grounds, that the work is by Caesarius, and Gregory could have had reasons not to mention it. it may be surmised that Gregory did not mention it in that oration because the author had not published it, and perhaps Gregory himself had not then read it, but received it later with the rest of Caesarius's belongings and writings. What if he saw that the work was not polished, and therefore deliberately made no mention of it? The person who afterward reviewed the work and applied the file to it may perhaps have inserted some things from St. Gregory of Nyssa and other writers -- or else someone else subsequently did so. It is clear, moreover, from Photius that the work was once larger than what now survives: for he says he read 220 chapters, while Ehinger published only 78; somewhat more perhaps are in the Bibliotheca of the Fathers, but not the 142 that are missing from Ehinger.

LIFE OF ST. CAESARIUS

from Oration X of St. Gregory the Theologian.

Caesarius, Quaestor of the Province of Bithynia, brother of St. Gregory the Theologian (Saint).

from the oration of St. Gregory of Nazianzus.

Section I: The birth of St. Caesarius, his education, his studies in letters.

[1] Caesarius -- to begin where it most befits me -- had those parents whom you all know, whose virtue, both seeing with your eyes and hearing with your ears, you extol with marvelous praises to the very heavens; and, recounting it to others to whom it may be unknown (if indeed there are any such), St. Caesarius was born of illustrious parents. each receiving one or another particular part, for it is not possible that one person should set forth everything, nor is this the work of ^a single tongue, however great anyone's labor and diligence, however supreme the effort and exertion of his mind. Though they have many and great subjects of praise (unless perhaps it seems to some that I act foolishly in proclaiming domestic glories), yet one thing above all ennobles them and renders them distinguished -- namely, piety. and pious ones; I speak of these venerable and gray-haired persons, worthy of reverence no less for their virtue than for their old age, whose bodies indeed have been broken and weakened by time, but whose souls flourish and bloom before God.

[2] The father, indeed, fairly grafted from the wild olive into the fruitful olive tree, and made so much ^a partaker of its richness the father having been converted from errors, that he was placed in charge of the grafting of others too, and of the care of souls, presiding over this noble people on high -- ^a second Aaron or Moses -- having obtained such dignity that he draws near to God and conveys the divine voice to others standing afar off; then as Bishop. gentle, free from anger, tranquil in countenance, fervent in spirit, rich in the things seen with the eyes, richer in those that are hidden and concealed. But why do I undertake to describe one who is well known? For even if I prolonged my discourse at great length, I would still not bring my oration up to the level of his virtue, or say as much as each of you knows and demands. And it is better to leave this to your opinions and thoughts than to cut away by my speech ^a great part of the wonder. The mother, moreover, consecrated to God of old and from her very ancestors, the mother ^a Christian from her forebears, led piety, like ^a kind of necessary inheritance, not to herself alone but also to her children -- ^a truly holy lump from holy firstfruits. And she so increased and magnified it that some believe and proclaim that not even the perfection of her husband (for I shall say it, even though this speech may not lack boldness) should be attributed to any other than to her, and that he received (O marvelous thing!) greater and more perfect piety as the reward of his piety.

[3] Both were lovers of their children and of Christ at once (a thing most worthy of admiration) -- nay, lovers of Christ even more than of their children, since they gathered this one fruit from their children: to be known by Christ, both conspicuous in virtue, and to take their name from Him, and to define ^a happy progeny by virtue alone and by conjunction, as it were, and as it were by kinship with what is more excellent. Both were humane, merciful, snatching much from moths and thieves and the prince of this world, transferring themselves from ^a sojourn to an abode, and heaping up for their children the greatest inheritance -- that is, the splendor of the future life. Thus they reached ^a ripe old age, equal to each other in virtue and in years, and full of days, both those that remain and those that flow and pass away; each destined to hold the first place among mortals, except that they themselves prevented each other from the primacy. And they fulfilled all the measures of felicity, and fortunate ones: with the exception of this last trial, whether ^a testing or ^a dispensation -- that is, in my judgment, so that having sent ahead that son for whom more was to be feared on account of the slipperiness of his age, they themselves might now close their lives with ^a tranquil mind and be translated with their entire household to the realms above.

[4] I have set forth these things not to proclaim their praises, nor because I was unaware that scarcely anyone, even with an entire oration devoted to their praises, could match the dignity of the subject; but to show that Caesarius had been laid under an obligation by his parents to cultivate virtue, rightly educated by them, and that it should seem neither strange nor incredible if, having obtained such parents, he showed himself worthy of such praises -- but rather that it would be strange if, neglecting domestic and familiar examples, he had set before himself other models to contemplate. And indeed such were his beginnings, and such as befitted those of noble birth who were to live rightly and honorably. But passing over the middle portion -- that is, his beauty, his stature, and his grace in all things, and as it were the harmony in sounds (since it does not befit us to marvel at matters of this sort, even though they may seem to others to be of no small importance) -- I shall direct my discourse to what follows next, and what, even if I wished, I could not easily pass over.

[5] Having been educated and trained, then, under such moral guidance, and sufficiently exercised and cultivated in the disciplines of this place -- he goes to Alexandria for his studies: in which it cannot be expressed how far he left most others behind him by the swiftness of his intellect (O how shall I pass over the memory of these things without tears, and how shall my grief not show me, contrary to my promise, to be of too little courage!) -- when the time for traveling abroad seemed to have come, then for the first time we two were torn apart from each other: I indeed, out of love for the art of oratory, lingering in the schools of Palestine, then flourishing; he, however, setting out for Alexandria, ^a city which both then and now, both in truth and in the estimation of men, is the workshop of all learning.

[6] What shall I commemorate first, or what as the greatest of his praises? Or what shall I pass over without the most grievous loss to my discourse? Who was more faithful to his teachers? Who more pleasant to his peers? there he conducts himself admirably, Who more avoided the society and familiarity of the wicked? Who more attached himself to the friendship of the best men, both others and especially the most celebrated man from his homeland and the most noble? Knowing, that is, that it matters exceedingly for virtue or for vice with whom one associates. And therefore, who was dearer to the governors, nay, to the entire city (though otherwise, on account of its very magnitude, all were obscure and unknown), or who was more illustrious for temperance, or more distinguished for keenness of intellect? What branch of learning did he not traverse? Nay, which is there that he did not master, as though it were his only pursuit? To whom did he yield, even in the slightest approach to his level -- not only among his contemporaries, but even among those of greater age who had spent more time in literary studies? For he cultivated all disciplines as one, and each one in turn as all. and makes the greatest progress, And as he surpassed those gifted with ^a swift intellect by his industry and diligence, so he surpassed the industrious and diligent by the swiftness of his intellect -- or, to speak more correctly, he excelled the ingenious in genius, the laborious in study, and those who were strong in both by both.

[7] And from Geometry and Astronomy, and from ^a discipline dangerous to others, having gathered whatever was useful -- that is, to admire the Creator from the harmony and order of the heavenly bodies -- in geometry, astronomy, he fled from whatever was harmful and pernicious: namely, by no means referring the things that are and that happen to the motion of the stars, as those do who incite their fellow-creature against the Creator; but, as with all other things, so also attributing their motion, as is right, to divine providence. arithmetic, In numbers and calculations, however, and in that part of the distinguished art of medicine medicine, which deals with the investigation of natures and temperaments and the causes of diseases, so that by cutting the roots the branches also are lopped off together -- who was so foolish and perverse as to yield the second place to him, and not to count it well with himself if he obtained the position nearest to him and held the first rank among the second? afterward famous everywhere: Nor indeed are these merely words supported by no testimony, but both the Eastern and Western shores, and indeed all the regions which he afterward traversed, are the distinguished pillars of his learning.

Section II: St. Caesarius's return from his studies to his parents; his life at court under the Emperor Constantius.

[8] When, moreover, as ^a great cargo ship is laden with merchandise of every kind, so Caesarius, having gathered every kind of virtue and learning into his soul, About to return home, was sailing back to his homeland to impart the fair wares of his learning also to others, here too ^a certain admirable thing occurred, which (because its recollection delights me above all things, and could also bring you pleasure) it would not be out of place to set forth briefly. Our mother, with ^a certain maternal vow full of love for her children, desired this: his mother wishing that he return together with his brother, that just as she had sent both forth at the same time, so she might see both returning together. For we were, if not to others, at least certainly to our mother, when seen together, ^a kind of pair to be wished for and beheld with prayer -- though now unhappily dissolved by envy. And behold, by the impulse of God (who hears just prayers without either's knowledge, and holds in high esteem the love of parents for virtuous children), and not by any plan or agreement, he from Alexandria, I from Greece, the one by land, he arrives at Constantinople at the same time: the other by sea -- at the same time we put in at the same city. This was Byzantium, which now holds the sovereignty of all Europe; in which Caesarius in ^a short time acquired such glory that public honors, ^a noble marriage, and senatorial dignity were offered to him; and by common decree it was requested of the great Emperor through envoys that he be willing to allow the first city to be adorned and honored by this first man of learning he is solicited to remain there by great promises: (if indeed he cared for the city to be truly first and worthy of its name); and that this too be added to its other glories: to be adorned with Caesarius as both physician and citizen -- although otherwise, besides its remaining splendor, it abounds in men eminent both in philosophy and in all other branches of the arts. But enough on this matter.

[9] What then occurred, although to others it might seem to have happened by chance and at random -- as chance brings about many things in human affairs -- was yet manifestly clear to the pious, that this event was to be ascribed to none other than to parents dear to God, gathering their sons by land and sea to the fulfillment of ^a single prayer. Come, let us not pass over even this praise of Caesarius, which, though in the judgment of others it may be slight and perhaps not even worthy of mention, nevertheless seemed to me then to be the greatest, and seems so now as well (if indeed brotherly love merits praise); nor shall I ever cease to place it among the foremost, as often as ^a narrative of events is undertaken by me. Yet by the counsel of his brother he returns to his homeland. For although the city was detaining him with those honors we have mentioned, and was declaring that it would by no means grant him leave to depart, yet I, whose authority Caesarius valued above all others in all matters, striving to the contrary, achieved this result: that neither were our parents frustrated of their vow, nor our homeland of the service due to it, nor indeed was I deprived of my own desire. For he attached himself to me as ^a companion and fellow-traveler on the journey, and preferred me not only to cities and peoples, not only to honors and revenues, which in great abundance were partly already flowing to him from every side, partly were in hope and expectation, but almost even to the Emperor himself and his edicts.

[10] From this point, I, having shaken off all ambition as one shakes off ^a heavy master and ^a troublesome disease, determined to devote myself to philosophy and to transfer myself to the pursuit of the heavenly life -- or rather, the desire came first, afterward he returns to court, but the life came later. But Caesarius, having consecrated the firstfruits of his learning to his homeland and having excited an admiration worthy of his labors, was afterward led by ^a desire for glory, and -- as he would have me believe -- in order to be ^a support to the city, and betook himself to the court: not doing something altogether pleasing to us, it is true with his brother not entirely approving: (for I shall clear myself before you), since to be reckoned among the last in the sight of God is more profitable and more exalted than to hold the first place with an earthly emperor -- yet not worthy of reproach. For to devote oneself to philosophy is as great as it is most difficult; nor is it the enterprise of many, nor of any others than those whom ^a divine greatness of mind -- which is wont to extend its hand to the good will of men -- has summoned. But it is no small thing either, if one who has embraced the second way of life pursues probity and has greater regard for God and his own salvation than for earthly splendor, and bears this indeed as ^a sort of stage or mask among the many and perishable things of this world, playing the part of this world's drama, while he himself lives his life with God, together with the image which he knows he has received from Him and owes to Him.

[11] And indeed we have ascertained that Caesarius had such ^a disposition. For although he had no need of great labor and effort, but had merely displayed his learning -- or rather, ^a brief prologue of his learning -- he becomes the first physician and ^a friend of the Emperor: he immediately obtained the first rank in dignity among the physicians and, being counted in the number of the Emperor's friends, was honored with the most ample distinctions. He offered the gratuitous kindness of his art to the nobles, he practices his art gratis for the nobles: knowing well that nothing advances ^a man to higher things more than virtue and ^a reputation gathered by honorable means. And those who were superior to him in rank, he far surpassed in glory. And since he was dear to all on account of his modesty and temperance, and for that reason undertook the care of precious things, and had no need whatsoever of the Hippocratic oath, so much so that the simplicity of Crates was nothing at all compared with his simplicity -- he was again more venerable to all than even his rank of dignity warranted.

[12] And although he was daily honored with great dignities, he was nevertheless held worthy of greater ones, already within reach of hope, he is held in the highest honor: both by the Emperors themselves and by all those who held the first rank after them. And -- what must be considered the greatest thing -- he did not allow the nobility of his soul to be corrupted by glory or by the luxuries among which he moved. Nay rather, though he had many and great resources at his disposal, he lives temperately and piously. this was yet the first thing for his dignity: that he both was and was called ^a Christian; so that all other things, compared with this one, were to him ^a kind of sport and trifles. For other things could be played by others, no differently than on ^a stage, which is most swiftly both erected and dismantled -- nay, more easily perhaps destroyed than constructed, as may be perceived from the many changes of this life and from prosperity sliding up and down -- but piety alone is ^a good that is one's very own and that remains secure. In these pursuits Caesarius was engaged, even while wearing the senatorial robe; in these thoughts he both lived and departed from life, displaying and exhibiting greater piety as to the hidden man than what was seen in public.

Section III: The favor of St. Caesarius with Julian the Apostate; his constancy in the Orthodox faith.

[13] And passing over all else -- namely, the care and protection of kinsmen who had fallen into some calamity, his contempt for pride, his evenness among friends, his authority with governors, the contests he undertook for the truth, the many and frequent conversations he had with many people, not only clever but also exceedingly pious and ardent -- while Julian the Apostate was persecuting Christians, I shall speak of one thing in place of all, than which nothing in his life is more celebrated or more widely known. The abominable Emperor was raging against us, and after first going mad against himself by the rejection of the Christian faith, he was already intolerable to others as well; not indeed professing impiety with high spirit in the manner of the other enemies of Christ, not by open force, but concealing the persecution under ^a pretense of humanity, and like that sinuous serpent who possessed his soul, craftily dragging the wretched by every kind of device into his own abyss. And lest we should obtain those honors lest they become Martyrs, that are customarily paid to Martyrs (for this excellent man begrudged these to Christians), his first stratagem was this: that those who suffered for Christ's sake should be tortured as though they were criminals and malefactors. The second was that he gave the name not of tyranny but of persuasion to this affair, so that the infamy, rather than the danger, would be greater for those who willingly betook themselves to impiety.

[14] And while he was alluring some with money, others with dignities, others with promises, others with various kinds of honors (which he bestowed not in ^a kingly but in an utterly servile manner, in the sight of all), but craftily perverting many; and all at length with verbal enchantments and his own example -- after many others he also assailed Caesarius. O the stupor and madness, if he hoped that he would also make ^a prey of Caesarius, Caesarius himself is also attacked: and my brother, and one born of such parents! But (to linger ^a little in this account and to take delight from this narrative, as those who were then present took delight from the spectacle) that brave man entered, fenced about with the sign of Christ and bearing the great Word before him in place of ^a shield, to face ^a man mighty in arms and great in the faculty of speech. Nor indeed was he struck with any fear at his sight, he deals with him fearlessly. nor did he cast away any of his magnanimity on account of his flattering words; but he was ^a ready and prepared athlete for the contest, both in word and in deed, against one who was powerful in both. And such indeed was the arena, and so great the champion of piety. And the president of the contest was, on the one side, Christ, arming His fighter through His Passion; on the other, the fearsome tyrant, now soothing the athlete with the enticements of words, now terrifying him with the weight of his power. Indeed, there was ^a theater on both sides -- that is, of those who had still remained in the piety of the faith, and of those who had been carried off by the Emperor -- watching to which side their contest would incline, and more anxious about which of the two would prevail than the combatants themselves whom they were watching.

[15] Did you not fear lest something unworthy of Caesarius's courage might happen? But be of good cheer: for the victory is with Christ, who has conquered the world. And indeed nothing would I prefer than to set forth in detail what was then said and proposed and he eludes his attempts, (for the disputation contains, in my judgment, some logical captious arguments and subtleties not unpleasant to recount), but this would be entirely untimely and foreign to the purpose of my oration. He declared that he would always be ^a Christian: But when Caesarius had thrust aside, as if they were ^a child's play, all his verbal entanglements and all his efforts, both open and concealed, and with ^a great and clear voice proclaimed that he was ^a Christian and always would be -- not even thus was he entirely cast out; for the Emperor marveled at and eagerly desired to enjoy and be adorned by Caesarius's learning. At which time also he uttered that most celebrated saying, in the hearing of all: "O happy father! O unhappy sons!" He is stung by his bitter remark, together with his brother: For he thought fit to honor us too with ^a share in the disgrace -- us whose learning and piety he had come to know at Athens. But being reserved for his return (for justice was then conveniently arming him against the Persians), he comes back to us, ^a blessed exile and an unbloody victor, and more illustrious for his disgrace than for any splendor and glory. He returns to his homeland. This victory I judge to be far loftier and more excellent than his great military hand, his exalted purple, and his diadem of immense price. In this narrative I exult more than if he had shared the whole empire with him. He yields, therefore, to evil times, and in this obeys our law, which prescribes that whenever the time presses, we should indeed face danger for the truth and not betray piety through cowardice; but that so long as it is permitted, we should not provoke dangers ourselves, either from fear for our souls or to consult the interests of those who endanger us.

Section IV: The offices of St. Caesarius under the Emperor Valens; his death; his burial.

[16] But after this darkness was dispelled, and ^a foreign land rightly settled the matter, and the brandished sword laid low the impious one, After the death of Julian he is recalled to court, and affairs returned to the Christians, what need is there to say with how great honor and glory, or with how many and how great testimonies, and as though he were rather conferring ^a benefit than receiving one, he was received back into the court, and ^a new honor succeeded the former? For time, indeed, changed the Emperors in succession; but the glory of Caesarius most acceptable to the Emperors: and the primacy of his authority with them were by no means shaken or dissolved. Nay rather, there was ^a contest among the Emperors as to which of them would attach Caesarius more closely to himself, and whose friend and familiar he would more be called. Such was the piety of Caesarius; such were the rewards of his piety. Let the young hear, let men hear, and through the same virtue let them strive for the same splendor (for the fruit of good labors is glorious), whosoever also aspire to this and count it ^a part of their felicity.

[17] And now, what ^a marvel this also is concerning him, which furnishes the greatest proof of the piety both of his parents and of himself! He was living in Bithynia, administering ^a not insignificant prefecture from the Emperor. He becomes Quaestor of Bithynia: For he held the office of Quaestor and had charge of the treasuries. For the Emperor intended this as ^a prelude for him to greater dignities. But when the earthquake of Nicaea -- he is preserved in the ruin of Nicaea from the earthquakes, retaining ^a scar: the greatest in living memory -- had broken out and overwhelmed almost everyone, destroying them along with the beauty of the city, he alone of the illustrious men, or certainly together with very few, escaped -- and that by an incredible manner: namely, being protected by the very ruin itself, and bearing some small marks of danger, so that he might thereby conceive ^a fear that would be the teacher of greater safety, and attach himself wholly to the heavenly portion, persuaded by his brother, he resolves to leave the world: transferring his service from things subject to change and exchanging his own court. And this indeed he both had in mind and eagerly desired, as he persuaded me by letter, when I had seized this occasion to admonish him -- which I never ceased to do, grieving that the greatness of his nature was occupied with inferior things, and that so philosophical ^a soul was rolling about in public affairs, and was, as it were, covered with clouds like the sun.

[18] But although he was superior to the earthquake, he was not likewise superior to disease: for he was ^a man. He dies of an illness: And that former event was peculiar to him, while this was common with others; the former belonged to piety, the latter to nature. And consolation preceded the calamity, so that, though shaken by his death, we might glory in the marvelous manner of his preservation. And now our great Caesarius is preserved for us: ^a precious citizen, praised in death, transmitted from hymns to hymns, he is piously buried in his homeland by his family. conducted with pomp to the shrines of the Martyrs, honored by the holy hands of his parents, his mother substituting piety for mourning through the bearing of tapers, tears overcome by philosophy, grief assuaged by psalmody, and finally ^a newly created soul, which the Spirit had reformed through Baptism, receiving worthy honors.

[19] This is my funeral gift to you, Caesarius; these are the firstfruits of my discourses, His brother honors him with ^a funeral oration: which lamentation has often kept hidden, and which you were to have brought to light upon yourself. This is my adornment for you -- dearer to you, I well know, than every adornment: not silken, soft, flowing fabrics (in which, even while you were still alive, you took no delight, as many do, being adorned with virtue alone); not textures of transparent linen, not infusions of precious ointments, which even before this you sent back to the women's quarters, and whose fragrance ^a single day dissolves; what is the best manner of honoring the dead: nor indeed anything else that is small and prized among the small -- all of which this bitter stone would have enclosed together with your beautiful body on this present day. Away with the contests and fictions of the Gentiles, by which wretched youths were adorned, who offer trifling prizes for trifling contests, and with whatever things they honor the dead through libations and firstfruits and wreaths and freshly gathered flowers -- serving their ancestral custom and foolish grief rather than reason.

[20] My gift is an oration, which perhaps even future time will receive, endowed with perpetual motion; not permitting him who has departed hence to be wholly gone, but ever preserving in the ears and minds of men the one whom it has undertaken to adorn, and presenting the likeness of the beloved more expressively than in ^a painting for contemplation. Such, indeed, are the things we offer. But if they are small and inferior to your merits, and he predicts that anniversary honors will be paid to him. it is also pleasing to God when what is done is done according to one's powers. And some things we have already paid, while others we shall give, offering anniversary honors and commemorations -- those at least of us who shall survive.