The Seven Books of History Against the Pagans

440 Pages·1981·7.21 MB·English

by  Paulus Orosius

THE FATHERS
OF THE CHURCH
A NEW TRANSLATION
VOLUME 50
THE FATHERS
OF THE CHURCH
A NEW TRANSLATION
EDITORIAL BOARD
Hermigild Dressler, O.F.M.
Quincy College
Editorial Director
Robert P. Russell, O.S.A. Thomas P. H'I.Iton
Villanova University The Catholic University of America
Robert Sider Sister M. Josephine Brennan, l.H.M.
Dickinson College Marywood College
Richard Talaska
Editorial Assistant
FORMER EDITORIAL DIRECTORS
Ludwig Schopp, Roy J. Deferrari, Bernard M. Peebles
PAULUS OROSlUS
THE SEVEN BOOKS
OF HISTORY
AGAINST THE
PAGANS
Translated by
J.
ROY DEFERRARI
The Catholic University of America
THE CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY OF AMERICA 'PRESS
Washington, D.C.
NIHIL OBSTAT:
REVEREND HARRY A. ECHLE
Censor Librorum
IMPRIMATUR:
+PATRICK A. O'BOYLE
Archbishop 01 Washington
April 29, 1964
The nihil obstat and imprimatur are official declarations that a book or
pamphlet is free of doctrinal or moral error. No implication is contained
therein that those who have granted the nihil obstat and imprimatur
agree with the contents, opinions, or statements expressed.
Library of Congress Catalog Card No.: 64-18670
Copyright © 1964 by
THE CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY OF AMERICA PRESS, INC.
All rights reseroed
Second Printing 1981
First short-run reprint 2001
ISBN 0-8132-1310-X (pbk)
To My Daughter-in-Law
MARY PATRICIA

CONTENTS
Page
INTRODUCTION xv
BOOK ONE
Prologue.......................................... 3
Chapter
1 Sin and Its Consequences ........................ 5
2 Geography ..................................... 7
3 The Fall and Man's Punishment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
4 Ninus and Semiramis. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
5 The Fate of Sodom and Gomorrah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
6 Sodom and Rome ............................... 24
7 Rhodes and Achaia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
8 Joseph in Egypt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
9 Joseph in Egypt, continued .................... " . 28
10 Migration under Moses. Plagues in Egypt. Exodus
from Egypt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
II Revolting Crimes ............................... 31
12 Revolting Crimes, continued.. . .. .. . ... .. . .. .. .. . 32
13 The Minotaur and Lapithae . ..... .... .... . ...... . 34
14 Conquests of Vesoges ..... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
15 The Amazons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
16 The Amazons, continued......................... 37
17 The Trojan War....... ......................... 37
18 General Disorders throughout Greece and Asia... ... 38
19 Death of Sardanapalus. Astyages and Cyrus. .. .. .. . . 38
20 Phalaris and Aremulus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
21 The Messenian War. War between Sparta and
Athens......................................... 41
vii
BOOK TWO
Chapter Page
I Rise and Fall of Early Empires..... ............... 44
2 Babylon and Rome . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
3 Babylon and Rome, continued . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
4 The Founding of Rome. Early Kings of Rome . . . . . . 48
5 Struggles against the Etruscans. Secession of the Plebs.
Conflict with .the Veientes ... . ....... .. ........ ... 50
6 Capture of Babylon. Conquest of Cyrus . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
7 Scythian Expedition ....... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
8 Conquest of Darius. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
9 Invasions of Greece. Battle of Thermopylae. . . . . . . . 57
10 Battle of Salamis. Flight of Xerxes ...... . . . . . . . . . . 58
11 Plataea and Mycale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
12 Plague at Rome. Cincinnatus and the Aequi ....... 61
13 Appius Claudius and Verginia ... .. ............ ... 63
14 The Misfortunes of Sicily. Athenian Disasters . . . . . . 64
15 Treason of Alcibiades ... . ..... .... ............ ... 67
16 Peloponnesian War. Fall of Athens.......... ..... 68
17 The Thirty Tyrants. End of Athenian Liberty . . . . . . 70
18 Artaxerxes and Cyrus... ...... ...... . . .... .. .. ... 73
19 Siege of Veii. Invasion of the Gauls...... ....... . . 74
BOOK THREE
Preface ........................................... 77
1 Weariness of the Greeks. War between Sparta and
Persia. Decline of the Lacedaemonians. The Theban
Supremacy. Campaign of Conon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
2 Battle of Mantinea. Death of Epaminondas . . . . . . . . 82
3 Dire Omens .................................... 84
4 Pestilence in Rome . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
5 Pestilence in Rome, continued . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
6 Gallic Invasions ........ '. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
7 Carthaginian Treaty ............................ 87
8 Roman Wars. Advent of Jesus Christ.............. 88
viii