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Epistle of Theonas

Theonas of Alexandria

Chapter 7

About this work

Author: Theonas of Alexandria

VII.

The most responsible person, however, among you

‹ Chapter 6 Chapter 8 ›

,

and

also

the

most

careful

,

will

be

he

who

may

be

entrusted

by

the

emperor

with

the

custody

of

his

library

.

He

will

himself

select

for

this

office

a

person

of

proved

knowledge

,

a

man

grave

and

adapted

to

great

affairs

,

and

ready

to

reply

to

all

applications

for

information

,

such

a

one

as

Philadelphus

chose

for

this

charge

,

and

appointed

to

the

superintendence

of

his

most

noble

library

—

I

mean

Aristeus

,

his

confidential

chamberlain

,

whom

he

sent

also

as

his

legate

to

Eleazar

,

with

most

magnificent

gifts

,

in

recognition

of

the

translation

of

the

Sacred

Scriptures

;

and

this

person

also

wrote

the

full

history

of

the

Seventy

Interpreters

.

If

,

therefore

,

it

should

happen

that

a

believer

in

Christ

is

called

to

this

same

office

,

he

should

not

despise

that

secular

literature

and

those

Gentile

intellects

which

please

the

emperor

.

To

be

praised

are

the

poets

for

the

greatness

of

their

genius

,

the

acuteness

of

their

inventions

,

the

aptness

and

lofty

eloquence

of

their

style

.

To

be

praised

are

the

orators

;

to

be

praised

also

are

the

philosophers

in

their

own

class

.

To

be

praised

,

too

,

are

the

historians

,

who

unfold

to

us

the

order

of

exploits

,

and

the

manners

and

institutions

of

our

ancestors

,

and

show

us

the

rule

of

life

from

the

proceedings

of

the

ancients

.

On

occasion

also

he

will

endeavour

to

laud

the

divine

Scriptures

,

which

,

with

marvellous

care

and

most

liberal

expenditure

,

Ptolemy

Philadelphus

caused

to

be

translated

into

our

language

;

and

sometimes

,

too

,

the

Gospel

and

the

Apostle

will

be

lauded

for

their

divine

oracles

;

and

there

will

be

an

opportunity

for

introducing

the

mention

of

Christ

;

and

,

little

by

little

,

His

exclusive

divinity

will

be

explained

;

and

all

these

things

may

happily

come

to

pass

by

the

help

of

Christ

.

He ought, therefore, to know all the books which the emperor possesses; he should often turn them over, and arrange them neatly in their proper order by catalogue; if, however, he shall have to get new books, or old ones transcribed, he should be careful to obtain the most accurate copyists; and if that cannot be done, he should appoint learned men to the work of correction, and recompense them justly for their labours. He should also cause all manuscripts to be restored according to their need, and should embellish them, not so much with mere superstitious extravagance, as with useful adornment; and therefore he should not aim at having the whole manuscripts written on purple skins and in letters of gold, unless the emperor has specially required that. With the utmost submission, however, he should do every thing that is agreeable to Cæsar. As he is able, he should, with all modesty, suggest to the emperor that he should read, or hear read, those books which suit his rank and honour, and minister to good use rather than to mere pleasure. He should himself first be thoroughly familiar with those books, and he should often commend them in presence of the emperor, and set forth, in an appropriate fashion, the testimony and the weight of those who approve them, that he may not seem to lean to his own understanding only.

Notes

1
[A lofty spirit of liberal love for literature is here exemplified.]
2
It is from these words that the inference is drawn that this epistle was written by a Greek.