THE 



tl.in? that related to liis own gratification, he was felf- 

 .Icnying :mJ frugal, that ho .night polTefs more ample mea.is 

 of relieving the poor and promoting works of public utility. 

 No bifhop of his time v,ms more aftive in pe-rform,ng the 

 duties that pertained to his profemo,, and ftation, or had 

 .rr^ator influence in every kind of public bufinefs, part.cu- 

 farlv of an ecclef.anical nature. He was prudent in counfel, 

 pacific in his temper, and always difpofcd to compromile 

 differences that occurred, and to rL^commend mutual forbear- 

 :mce and union among contending parties. Bat like other 

 pacificators, he could not efcape obloquy and liarlh treat- 

 ment. Between him and Cyril, however, an irreconcileable 

 antipathy fubfitled, as was gener.illy the cafe between the 

 Eaftern •nd Egyptian bidiops ; and this antipathy was mani- 

 fefted, even after Cyril's death, by his fiiccelTor Diofcorus, 

 who caufed Theodoret to be anathematized, and to be de- 

 pofed in a general fynod at Ephefus. In the reign of the 

 emperor Marcian, a general council was affembled at Chal- 

 cedoi>; and this council decreed, that Theodoret was worthy 

 to hold his fee, and he was accordingly reftored to the 

 church of Cyrus. He died, without any further moleftation, 

 in the beginning of th; reign of the emperor Leo, A.D. 

 457 or 458. 



Theodoret bears a high rank among the ancients as a 

 commentator on the fcriptures for the purity of his Attic 

 llyle, and the clearnefs and good fenfe of his explanations. 

 He wrote commentaries upon moft parts of the facred fcrip- 

 tures. His canon of the Old Teftament was very little, if 

 at all, different from that of the Jews. With regard to the 

 New Teltament, it appears that he received only four gofpels, 

 the book of Ads, which he afcribed to St. Luke, and four- 

 teen epiftles of the apoftle Paul, upon which he wrote com- 

 mentaries ; digefting them according to the order of time in 

 which th°y were written, and noticing the places from which 

 they were fent. He has feldom quoted th? Catholic epiftles, 

 though they are not wholly overlooked. He feems to have 

 received the epiftle of James, the firft of Peter, and the firft 

 of John ; but there is no certain proof that he received the 

 book of the Revelation, or the other four Catholic epiftles : 

 fo that we may conclude, that his canon of the New Tefta- 

 ment was the fame with that of the Syrian Chriftians. His 

 " Ecclefiaftical Hiftory," comprifed in five books, may be 

 coiifidered as a fupplement to thofe of Socrates and Sozo- 

 men : bejinninof where that of Enfebius ends, at the rife of 

 Arianifm in 322 or 323, and terminating in 428. Its ftyle, 

 according to Photius, is clear and fublime, but too much 

 abounding in metaphors. It is deficient in chronological 

 precifion, but contains many valuable documents, and fome 

 remarkable circumftances, which other ecclefiaftical hifto- 

 rians have omitted. His " Philotheus," or treatife on the 

 monaftic life, the genuinenefs of which fome have qiieftioned 

 without fufficient reafon, relates the aftions and extols the 

 piety of the Eaftern monks, and abounds with inftances of 

 tlje credulity and fuperftition of the times. In his work en- 

 titled " Of Heretical Fables," in five books, he diftributes 

 the different herefies into claffes, and concludes with a ftate- 

 inent of the faith of the Catholic church. " The Cure of 

 the falfe Opinions of the Heathens," in twelve diicourfes, is 

 a learned and valuable apology for Chriftianity. Lardner has 

 given copious extrafts from this performance, which merit 

 high commendation. His other works confift of letters and 

 trafts on different theological fubjefts. They are all com- 

 prifed in the beft edition of his writings, which is that of 

 Father Sirmond, in four vols. fol. Gr. and Lat. printed at 

 Paris in 1642. To thefe the Jtf.ut Garnier added a fifth in 

 1684. Beaufobre gives the following candid account of 

 Theodoret, " Theodoret is, in my opinion, one of the moft 



THE 



valuable of the Fathers. He is le.-u-ned ; he reafont well, 

 efpecially in his dialogues againft the Greek herefies of his 

 times : he is a good literal interpreter of the fcriptures. I 

 cannot but admire his prudence and moderation, when 1 

 confider that he ended his ecclefiaftical hiftory at the time 

 when the Neftorian difputes, in which he was fo deeply in- 

 terefted, begun. But, I fear, his zeal againft heretics im- 

 pofed upon him almoft as much, as his admiration of the 

 heroes of the Afcetic life, with whom he was charmed. 

 Monafteries have undoubtedly fent forth great men into the 

 world ; but the difciplcs of the monks contrafted in their 

 youth a fuperftitious difpofition which is fcarcely ever Ihaken 

 off; and the weak fide of this able man feems to have been 

 an exceflive credulity." Dupin. Moftieim. Lardner. 

 Beaufobre. 



THEODORIC I., king of the Vifigoths, was the fon 

 of Alaric, and in 419 fucceeded Wallia in the kingdom 

 eftabliflied in the fouthof France. After raifing the fiege 

 of Aries, he made peace with the Romans, and was fubfi- 

 dized by them in the Spanifti war ; bat being defirous of re- 

 newing his attempts in Gaul, he took an opportunity, in 

 43;, of refuir.ing his hoftilities againft them, and laid fiege 

 to Narbonnc ; but beinp- compelled to raife the fiege, lie 

 was under a neceffity of direfting his attention to the fafety 

 ofTouloufe, his own capital, which was invefted by a body 

 of Huns, under the command of count Litorius. In a very 

 fanguinary engagement with the affailaiits, he totally routed 

 them, and took Litorius prifoner ; who was firft expofed to 

 the infults of the populace at Touloufe, and then thrown 

 into a dungeon, where he died. After this event, Theodoric 

 made peace with the Romans. His rank among the fo- 

 vcreigns of that period was refpeftable ; and both his fona 

 and daughters were well educated. The latter formed 

 matrimonial conneftions with the eldeft fons of the kings of 

 the Suevi and Vandals, who reigned in Spain and in Africa. 

 But thefe conneftions proved unfortunate. The hufband of 

 the Suevian princefs was maffacred by his brother ; and the 

 Vandal princefs, being fufpefted of a defign to poifon her 

 father-in-law, Genf:>ric, was doomed to lofe her nofe and 

 ears, and in this mutilated condition was fent home to her 

 father. Theodoric eagerly fought an opportunity for re- 

 venging this cruel infult. With this view, the Vifigoths and 

 Romans formed an alliance to refift Attila tie Hun, who, 

 inftigated by Genferic, invaded Gaul in 441 ; and Theodo- 

 ric, at the head of his army, m.arched to therelief of Orleans, 

 which was befieged by the Huns. In their way the hoftile 

 armies met on the plains of Chalons, and a dreadful battle 

 enfued. Theodoric was wounded by a Goth in the fervice 

 of Attila, and being difmounted, was trampled to death 

 under the feet of his own cavalry. When his body was 

 found, his funeral rites, were performed in the face of the 

 retiring enemy. 



Theodoric, king of the Oftrogoths, furnamed the Great, 

 was a defcendant of the Gothic race of the Amali, and 

 born near Vienna, A.D. 455. At the age of eight years, 

 he was fent to Conftantinople as a hoftage for the fulfilment 

 of the fubfidiary treaty formed by the emperor Leo with 

 the Goths. Here he had an opportunity of acquiring that 

 charafler which he fuftained among the princes of that age : 

 but his means of inftruftion muft have been very limited, 

 when it is confidered that, though he excelled in all military 

 exercifcs, he was io badly taught, as not to be able to write 

 liis own name. After ten years' refidence at the court of 

 Leo, he returned to his father, Theodomir, who was then 

 the fole ruler of the Oftrogoths, in whofe fervice he diftin- 

 guilhed himfelf by his martial fpirit. Upon the death of his 

 father, in 475, the crown devolved on Theodoric. The em- 



pcrop 



