Theodorus Lector
Theodorus Lector
A lector attached to the Church of St. Sophia of Constantinople in the early part of the sixth century. At the request of a friend he compiled in four books his “Historia Tripartita”, an epitome of the historians Socrates, Sozomen, and Theodoret, made up of excerpts from them. An imperfect copy of this work exists in MS. but it has never been published; Valesius used it, attaching perhaps too much importance to the readings he found in it, in his edition of the above-mentioned historians. Theodorus also composed a history in two books which carried the narrative of the “Hist. Trip.” from the death of Theodosius II up to the times of Justin I. This work is unfortunately lost, but two long series of excerpts are preserved usually bearing the title Apo phones Nikephorou Kallistou which, however, is spurious (De Boor, “Zeitschrift f. Kirchengesch.”, VI, 489; Preuschen in “Realenencyk. f. Prot. Theol.”, s. v.); quotations also are found in the writings of St. John of Damascus and the Acts of the Seventh General Council. The history owes its value to the scantiness of our information concerning the period it treats rather than its merits. It is full of marvelous stories. The only indications of the time when Theodore lived are the date at which his history ended and his speaking of the “holy memory” of Theodoret — he would hardly have done this after the “Three Chapters” controversy.
———————————–
DE BOOR, op. cit.: (Leipzig, 1907); NOLTE in Tubingen Theol. Quart. (1861), 569 sq.; SARRAZIN, De Theod. Lectore. Theophanis proecipuo fonte in Comment. philol. Jenensis, I, 163 sqq.; BARDENHEWER-SHAHAN, Patrology (St. Louis, 1908), 552. The fragments of the History were published by VALESIUS and reprinted in P.G., LXXXVI. For additional excerpts to be found in the writings of NICETAS, and CHARTOPHYLAX OF NICAEA, see DIEKAMP in Hist. Jahrb., XXIV, 553 sq.
F.J. BACCHUS Transcribed by John D. Beetham
The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume XIVCopyright © 1912 by Robert Appleton CompanyOnline Edition Copyright © 2003 by K. KnightNihil Obstat, July 1, 1912. Remy Lafort, S.T.D., CensorImprimatur. +John Cardinal Farley, Archbishop of New York
Fuente: Catholic Encyclopedia
Theodorus Lector
Theodorus (64) Lector, reader of the church of Constantinople. He composed in two books a tripartite history out of Socrates, Sozomen, and Theodoret, extant in MS. at Venice. It was copied by Leo Allatius, but not published. Valesius used his MS. in his edition of those authors. He also composed a history which extends from the last days of Theodosius the younger to the reign of the elder Justin, A.D. 518; some portions of which remain, and are in Migne’s Patr. Gk. lxxxvi. col. 157-2280. They have been collected out of Nicephorus Callistus, John of Damascus, and the fifth action of the seventh general council. His history abounds with wonderful stories in defence of orthodoxy. He tells that Timotheus, bp. of Constantinople, A.D. 571, was the first to ordain the recitation of the Nicene Creed at all celebrations of the Holy Communion. It was previously only recited once a year, at the end of Lent. Evidently the Arian party must have been still strong at Constantinople in cent. vi. A question has been raised whether our Theodore did not live in cent. viii. rather than cent. vi. Combefis in his Originum Rerumque Constant. Manip. and Baudurius in his Imper. Orient. have given some quotations from a Theodorus Lector relating to the statues with which Constantinople was adorned, one containing an incident which proves the writer to have lived in the reign of Philip, 711-713 (Combef. p. 11; Baud. p. 88); but two men of the same name may have occupied the same office. Ceill. xi. 103-105; Fab. Bibl. Graec.
[G.T.S.]