A Dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology. By various writers. Ed. by William Smith. Illustrated by numerous engravings on wood.

1172 NESTORIUS. NESTORIUS.
sequent history. The deposition of Nestorius wa's he passed from the sufferings of this world to sharper
ultimately confirmed, though he at last agreed for and more enduring woe in the world to come.
peace' sake to withdraw his objection to the word It is impossible either to deny or justify the
OeoErocos: many of the bishops of his party deserted violent treatment of Nestorius by the council of
him at once; and although John of Antioch and a Ephesus. Neither can we, without compassion,
number of the Eastern bishops held out for a time, read his touching appeal to his persecutors (apud
ultimately John and Cyril were reconciled, and Evagr. ibid.), that his past sufferings might be
both retained their sees. counted sufficient. But our compassion is mateBut the deposition of Nestorius, and the recon- rially checked by the consideration that he reaped
ciliation of John and Cyril, neither suppressed the as he had sown; and that there is little reason to
opinions of Nestorius, nor healed the dissensions think that success would have been more mildly used
which they had occasioned. Other teachers arose, by him and his partizans, had they been victorious.
who held and taught the same views, and diffused Gennadius (De Viris Illustribus, c. 53) mentions
them among the Christians of the East, within and only one work of Nestorius, which he describes as
beyond the frontier of the empire toward Persia. being " quasi de Incarnatione Domnini," and adds
The Nestorian communities, as they have con- that the Haeresiarch supported his opinion by pertinued to be called by their opponents, separated verting sixty-two places of Scripture. The work
from the communion of the orthodox church, and has perished, except that some passages, cited from
were, doubtless for political reasons, patronized by the writings of Nestorius by Cyril of Alexandria, in
some of the Persian kings [BARSUMAs]: and the his Adversus Nestorii Blasphemias Contradictionum,
Mahometall conquests in the seventh century, by Libri V. [CYRILLUS ST. of ALEXANDRIA] are
the overthrow of the orthodox supremacy, gave thought to be from it. Nestorius, however, produced
scope to the spread of the Nestorians. Under the other works beside that mentioned by Gennadius.
denomination of Chaldaean Christians, which is the Of his Homiliae, thirteen are preserved in the works
designation they gave themselves, they still exist of Marius Mercator [MERCATOR], vol. ii. in the
and are numerous in the East, having their own edition of Garnier, who has diligently collected
hierarchy of patriarchs, bishops, and inferior from the Conecilia and the works of Cyril various
clergy; and retaining their characteristic tendency fragments in Greek of the original homilies, and of
to distinguish carefully between the two natures of the other writings of Nestorius. Several of his
Christ, and their objection to the title "Mother Epistolae are preserved, some in Greek in the
of God." Cuncilia, others in a Latin version in the Concilia, or
After a vain attempt of Nestorius to gain the in the works of Mercator. His Anathematisni duosupport of Scholasticus, one of the eunuchs about decian, in reply to Cyril, are contained, in a Latin
the court, he was ordered to retire to the monas- version, in the Concilia. Alii duodecim Anathetery, apparently that of Euprepius, in the suburbs mzatisrai are extant in a Syriac version, and were'of Antioch, in which he had dwelt before his published, with a Latin version, from the Syriac,
election to the patriarchate. Here he remained in the Bibliotheca Orientalis of Assemani, vol.
four years, being treated, according to his own iii. pars ii. p. 199. Nestorius, also, wrote a hisstatement (apud Evagr. H. E. i. 7), with kindness tory of his disputes with his opponents, which he
and respect. As, however, he persisted in main- appears to have entitled " the Tragedy; " and which
taining his opinions, or as his opponents called it, is probably the work mentioned by Evagrius (I. E.
his blasphemy, he was sentenced to perpetual ban- i. 7), as addressed, in the form of a dialogue, to a
ishment in the Greater Oasis in Upper Egypt, certain Egyptian. It is mentioned by Ebedjesu
probably in A. D. 435; at the instigation of his the Syrian, in a catalogue of works ascribed to
former supporter, John of Antioch [JOANNES, Nestorius. Of the Liber Heraclidis, mentioned
No. 9], who was aggravated by' his persistence, and also by Ebedjesu, nothing seems to be known.
by that of a few of the bishops who adhered to him. A Syriac Liturgy, ascribed to Nestorius, is men[MELETITJS, No. 7.] In this remote and painful tioned by Ebedjesu, and is extant. It was pubexile, his spirit remained unbroken. He wrote a lished in the original, with several similar works
work, addressed to some Egyptian, on the subject of at Rome A. D. 1592; and is given in a Latin
his wrongs, and addressed various memorials to the version in the Lituryiae Orientales of Eusebius
governor of the Thebaid. After an interval of Renaudot, vol. ii. p. 626. 4to. Paris, 1716. A'uncertain length, he was carried off by the memorial of Nestorius, on his sufferings, is also
Blemmyes, who ravaged the Oasis with fire and cited by Evagrius (H. E. i. 7).
sword: their compassion, however, released him, The following works are conjecturally ascribed
and he returned to the Thebaid. But the vin- to him: 1. Two Homiliae De Resurrectione et
dictiveness of his enemies was not satisfied: he Ascensione C/risti, which Combifis, in his Aucwas harshly hurried from one place of confinement tariuns Novuln, had ascribed to Athanasius. 2..An
to another, and at last died miserably from the Epistle, written before the council of Chalcedon,
effects of a fall. The story of his dying from some from a Syriac version of which Assemani gives two
disease, in which his tongue was eaten by worms, extracts in his Bibliotheca Orientalis, vol. iii. pars i.
which Evagrius had read in a certain work, was p. 36, note 5. 3. A Liturgy, still in use among the
probably an invention springing from the mistaken Nestorians, and different apparently from that
notion that, in the retributive judgment of God, already mentioned. 4. A Confessionof Faith, exthe member which had sinned should bear the taunt in Greek, and of which a Latin version is given
punishment. The time of his death is not settled: by Mercator, and in the Concilia: but this conhe was living in A. D. 439, when Socrates wrote fession is more probably the work of Theodore of
his history (Socrat. H. E. vii. 34), and probably Mopsuestia. The original and the version are
died before A. D. 450. His death did not abate both given by Garnier, Mercatoris Opera, vol. ii.
the bitterness of his enemies; Evagrius records, p. 251. Various fragments of the works of Nestowith apparent satisfsaction (U. E. i. 7, atd fin.), that rius are cited in the Acla Concilii Ephesini, in the