- Arius Didymus
Arius Didymus (Areius, _el. Ἄρειος), a citizen of
Alexandria , was aStoic philosopher in the time ofAugustus , who esteemed him so highly, that after the conquest of Alexandria, he declared that he spared the city chiefly for the sake of Arius. [Plutarch, "Ant." 80, "Apophth."; Dio Cassius, li. 16; Julian, "Epistles", 51; comp. Strabo, xiv.] Areius as well as his two sons, Dionysius and Nicanor, are said to have instructed Augustus inphilosophy . [Suetonius, "Augustus", 89.] He is frequently mentioned byThemistius , who says that Augustus valued him not less thanAgrippa . [Themistius, "Orat." v., viii., x., xiii] FromQuintilian [Quintilian, ii. 15. § 36, iii. 1. § 16] it appears, that Arius also taught or wrote on rhetoric. [Comp. Seneca, "consol. ad Marc." 4; Aelian, "Varia Historia", xii. 25; Suda]Arius Didymus is usually identified with the Arius whose works are quoted at length by
Stobaeus , summarising Stoic,Peripatetic andPlatonist philosophy. [Inwood, B., "The Cambridge Companion to the Stoics". Page 32. Cambridge University Press. (2003).] That his full name is "Arius Didymus" we know fromEusebius , who quotes two long passages of his concerning Stoic views onGod ; the conflagration of theUniverse ; and thesoul . [Eusebius, "Praeparatio Evangelica", xv. 15, 18, 19, 20.]Notes
Further reading
* Fortenbaugh, W. (Editor), "On Stoic and Peripatetic Ethics: The Work of Arius Didymus". Transaction Publishers. (2002). ISBN 0-7658-0972-9
External links
* Eusebius of Caesarea, [http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/fathers/eusebius_pe_15_book15.htm "Praeparatio Evangelica", Book XV] . 15, 18, 19, 20.
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