History of the Church by Eusebius
Review of the fourth century book
It was a tough slow read. But I’m glad I persisted, for these reasons:
— The vivid description of the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans in 70 AD. That could well be called the First Holocaust. For that, Eusebius mainly quoted from Josephus. Now I’ll have to read Josephus.
— References to “Greek shorthand.” Stenographers recorded lectures, sermons, performances. Copyists made clear copies from those notes. And other copyists made high quality copies. I had imagined such a publishing setup, based on common sense. It felt good to have those ideas confirmed.
— Martyrdom portrayed as a victory for the victim. Many instances of individuals going out of their way to be burnt to death or decapitated or be devoured by wild beasts, for the honor, the glory, the ecstasy of martyrdom. Bizarre psychology described as commonplace.
— The irony of Christian bishops with the names of Greek gods and historical figures (like Dionysus).
