[...] the presented dissertation is engaging and intellectually significant. […] It will certainly meet with lively scholarly discussion. I would like to emphasise that not only the logic of the argument developed in the main course of the narrative, but also the documentation, remains at the highest level. […] The work will attract the interest of historians of antiquity, Byzantinists, theologians, patristics scholars, and classical philologists. However, the potential circle of readers should be viewed more broadly. What is at stake here is the cultivation of a humanistic interest in European culture and in our identity. Prof. Kazimierz Ilski Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznań The book is clearly addressed to an international scholarly readership and fits very well within its research niche […]. Compared with competing publications, the work offers significant added value: its breadth of context, a modern methodological apparatus, a full command of the literature in many languages, as well as its ability to combine political history, theology and narratology, make it an enduring study that will serve as a point of reference for years to come. Rev. Prof. Józef Naumowicz Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński University, Warsaw

General Introduction 13 Chapter 1: The Birth of a Late Antique Genre: Historia Ecclesiastica from Eusebius of Caesarea to Sozomen of Bethelia 33 A. The Christianisation of Ancient Historiography: Graeco-Roman Models, Biblical Traditions and Eusebius of Caesarea 34 Books I–II 56 Books III–IV 57 Book V 58 Book VI 59 Book VII 60 Books VIII–X 61 B. Rufinus of Aquileia 66 C. Philostorgius of Borissus 73 D. Socrates of Constantinople 77 E. Conclusion 85 Chapter 2: Sozomen and Contemporary History: Major Trends in Ecclesiastical Politics under the Theodosian Dynasty 89 A. Introduction 90 B. Sozomen and the Theodosian Zeitgeist: Ecclesiastical Politics between Declining Arianism and Reclaimed Nicene Orthodoxy 93 C. Sozomen between Intellectualism and Realpolitik: The First Origenist Controversy and the Downfall of John Chrysostom 114 D. Conclusion 148 Chapter 3: Sozomen and his Ecclesiastical History 155 A. Sozomen: Origins, Life and Career 156 B. The Dedicatio: An Address to Theodosius II 176 Excursus: The Origins of the Dedicatio 186 Chapter 4: Framing Power, Reaffirming Orthodoxy: Athanasius of Alexandria and the Shaping of Sozomen’s Authorial Voice 189 A. Introduction 190 B. Sozomen and Athanasius of Alexandria: Championing Orthodoxy and Garnering Authority in a Hostile Environment 195 C. Struggling with Bishops, Standing up to Emperors: Sozomen and Athanasius’ Legacy of Orthodox Heroism 208 D. Conclusion 218 Chapter 5: Beyond the Myth: Sozomen’s Conception of Constantine’s Imperial Leadership 221 A. Introduction 222 B. The ‘Mythologisation’ of Constantine 227 C. Recovering the Myth and Recovering from its Aftermath 231 D. Ambivalence and Polemics: Sozomen’s Mixed Approach 239 E. The Defence of Constantine in Sozomen’s Narrative 242 F. Sozomen and Constantine’s Orthodoxy 245 G. Sozomen and the Council of Nicaea: The Orthodox Past and the Doctrinal Uncertainties of the Future 258 H. Sozomen’s Account of Arians and Arianism 269 I. Sozomen’s Concluding Reflection on Constantine’s Life and Achievements 276 Chapter 6: The Predicament of the Nicene Faith: Sozomen and The Constantinian Dynasty 283 A. Constantius II 284 B. From Julian to Valens: Apostasy, Heterodoxy and the Survival of the Nicene Faith 306 C. Conclusion 323 Epilogue ‘… since the topic is not the works of men …’: Sozomen’s Contribution to Historia Ecclesiastica 327 Abbreviations 339 Bibliography 345 Primary Sources 345 Secondary Literature 354 Index of People and Personages 389 Index of Ethnic and Geographic Names 401

Koszyk

Between Authority and Orthodoxy